“You must be Zora.”
I turned in time to greet the approaching hand of a small woman. She wore a blue pantsuit with black flats. Grey hair fell around her shoulders, framing an oval face. I shook her soft hand. “Yes, I’m Zora Baker from Camp Vix.”
“It is so nice to meet you. May I call you, Zora?”
“Fine.”
“Good. I’m Sandra Glessman. Call me Sandy.”
“All right.”
“You can go now, Jolly,” by her tone, she liked him as much as I did. We could be friends. “Come, Zora, let me show you my world.”
Sandy led me around and gave names for everything she pointed to. It all sounded technical so I assume she was a botanist. The garden resembled a football field in size. Most of it tilled into neat rows, though I saw no tiller. She explained how they grew hardy vegetables and told me which grew best and why, I paid no attention. It was good enough being there. I didn’t need to learn how it all worked. Simon was my focus, being with him and keeping him safe.
We went to a new section holding herbs and others for medical purposes. I would be working in the other section, but if I proved myself, this is the advancement that awaited me. Thrilling.
“Excuse me, Sandy,” I interrupted her spiel. “Do you know my brother Simon, Simon Baker?”
“I don’t believe so.”
“I need to find him. He mentioned something about studies or a class he had to attend. Do you know anything about that?”
She crinkled her small face in deep thought. “He might be in a safety class. They teach the older children how to fight and when they’re old enough, they join the army.”
That didn’t set well with me. I was all in favor of him learning how to protect himself, but not forced to join the military.
“What’s wrong, dear? Everyone has a part to play. Survival comes at a price and those that don’t contribute are a drain on us all.”
Sandy must have been reading my mind. It was eerie. “I plan to teach him how to defend himself. Forcing him into service isn’t right.”
Her look of shock told me that neither she nor their system had ever been questioned before. Her mouth hung open and her eyes were saucers. She blinked and they went back to normal. Then she smiled and I had seen enough of those smiles to be on guard. Now, I will watch what I say and keep a lookout for anything suspicious. Her look told me something was wrong. I would get to the bottom of it.
“I’ll walk you to lunch. Perhaps your brother will be there and you can confirm he hasn’t been drafted into slavery.”
Sandy was good. It takes someone of her maturity to throw poisoned darts while facing you with a happy smile. Sandy led the way and I followed. My mother was quite the expert, like a Stepford wife with a blowgun. I knew to be wary of her and it transferred to this fiftyish small woman with gray hair.
This time, I looked around to gauge my surroundings. The fort was impressive. Camp Brandt had a high wall surrounding it with guards who walked its top, armed with M16's. A central tower, three stories high, was the main attraction. Surrounding it were campers, tents, makeshift houses, and others. The greenhouse garden was against one of the far walls and at the base of the other, an outdoor garden.
We went into a large tent that once inside, transformed into a long cafeteria style room of brick and wood. At least a hundred people were present, talking over one another. The odd thing: over half of them were people of color. And for the first time in ages, I saw human children. They were playing, running around their table instead of eating. Several adults were shouting and demanding they sit, but the children laughed and ran. What a great sight. This was home. I can be a farmer by day and a guard by night, I can do it, I know I can.
“Zee!”
I whirled around and saw him and like before, my heart raced. Simon was waving at me. He shouted my name several times. I left Sandy and went to him. We hugged in front of his table and then he introduced me to his friends. Simon sat at a table of early teens, those aged ten to fourteen. I shook hands with six girls and two boys. I was so happy to see them that I couldn’t remember any of their names.
Simon was about to explain something when Sandy came behind me and tapped me. “We only have a few minutes for lunch, let the children eat. I have more to explain to you.”
“I’ll see you tonight,” said Simon. “We stay on the east side, in the central tower, Miss Sandy will show you.”
“All right, you be good.”
I don’t know why I said it, it felt right to me.
“I will.” Simon looked bashful. I might have gone too far with the parental thing. The girls had grins plastered across their faces.
I left with Miss Sandy. I thought she told me she didn’t know my brother, liar. We are no longer friends.
She led me to a table and she talked the whole time, explaining rules and regulations and the proper way to do things. I tuned it out as best I could. My goal was to get through the day and see Simon tonight.
Lunch blows when the food is crap. My metal tray contained mashed potatoes or its equivalent, a mystery meat that smelled vaguely like chicken, and a piece of cornbread. I should say that the bread was the most appetizing and the smallest item on the tray. I ate part of the meal and returned with her to the garden.
She gave me a break later in the day. She told me to take five—her mistake. In the real world that can mean anything. I took it to mean I had all day. I dropped the hoe and high tailed it out of the garden. I was going to see Simon. My soul purpose in coming to this place was to get him and they think that a short visit would do the trick? No way in hell. I sprinted from the gardens toward the center building.
I stopped when I saw children going into a side door toward the back of the facility. With guards out in front, it was better to go to the rear. I ran after the children. I made it to the side door, it wouldn’t open. I shook the stubborn doorknob with both hands and shook as hard as I could, nothing. I looked for a new way inside; I wasn’t going to be denied access. I found a window at ground level. It was small but if I squeezed hard, I could fit through. I laid flat on the ground and slid toward the window.
Three quick breaths and I exhaled and shoved myself through. I rolled on top of a crate and landed on the floor with a thud. I got up and went to the door. I didn’t feel good, there was a twitching on my right side, no time to worry about it now. I moved forward. I peeked through the door and saw the children. Simon was with them.
I opened the door more and it creaked loudly so I stopped. I would view them from here. I had a feeling something sinister was going on and I was going to get to the bottom of it. I was lied to and that didn’t set well with me. I watched as a row of children, boys and girls, stood in a line. To their right was a table with instruments on it. I studied the faces of the children to figure out what was happening. They looked relatively happy and contented, some of them were a bit antsy like they were waiting for Christmas presents and couldn’t stand still.
At the top of the room were two soldiers and then I saw him, Doctor Blake. Something within me burned, he was evil incarnate. It had nothing to do with him being black. I knew evil when I saw it. He called the first child forward, a boy. Simon was behind him and stepped in front of him. He yelled he was first. The younger boy gave him his position. Doctor Blake smiled. The old man was like a proud parent and I again questioned his relationship with my brother. Why on earth would my brother want to make this man proud of him?
One of the guards opened the door between him and his comrade by pushing a button. The door opened and a zombie came out of it. My heart dropped. Zombies, here in the complex? Zombies in the heart of the securest building here. My knuckles turned white, gripping the door. Normally, I would run into the room and save my brother, I didn’t, I needed to know what was going on. My breathing picked up and I kept watching. Unless Simon was in immediate danger, I would stand down.
Railings were on either side of the door. The zombie couldn’t get to the m
achine gun-toting guards. They didn’t even look worried, if anything, they looked disgusted. Maybe they knew that person previously. The zombie howled and moved forward. It ran toward Simon with its arms outstretched, drool running down its chin. Before I could move, Simon did. My brother grabbed a machete off the table and with a deadly howl of his own, charged the running zombie. Simon leaped in the air and with one whack, the zombies head rolled across the floor.
Simon stood proud as he faced Blake. He held up his weapon and Blake nodded. At the same time, the children screamed and jumped for joy. Simon went over and picked up the head and threw it in a metal bin and stepped to the side. I looked at his face. I couldn’t move. I couldn’t go to him and hug him and tell him it would be all right. I stood glued to the door watching while my mind raced.
A growl brought me out of it. Another zombie came through the door. The boy who gave Simon his turn was running low at the zombie. He wasn’t as tall as Simon and chose a tactic of taking out the enemy’s height. His machete sliced the zombie’s leg and it fell forward, groaning. The boy came back around and stood over the zombie and with another whack, he beheaded his enemy. More roars went up from the crowd.
The doctor calmed them down and then my hand moved. The door creaked and they heard it. I ran for the exit. As I reached the exit I heard gunfire behind me. I leaped on the crate and pushed myself through and took off running. More gunfire sounded behind me, but I was long gone.
I didn’t stop running until I made it back to the garden’s door. At the door, I came to a screeching halt and lightly turned the doorknob. Sandy stood glaring at me.
“I had to use the bathroom.”
I had no idea how long I had been gone and used the best excuse I could think of. My chest heaved and sweat ran down the side of my face. Sandy looked at me, not buying one word of what I was selling. “Next time, go to the back of the garden, the bathrooms there work nicely.”
“I will. Thank you.”
She scoffed and walked off. I went back to where I had been working and picked up my hoe. I spotted blood on my hand and wiped it off. I assume it came from the window. I worked hard while thinking of the children. Once in a while, Sandy would come by and disappear again. She would not find me missing again. I greeted her with a warm smile on each occasion.
The day went faster than I thought it would and then Sandy led me to my living quarters. Sandy opened the door to a camper and motioned for me to enter. Inside, I found a couch and table, nothing more.
“Does it meet with your approval?” Sandy’s condescending tone was to remind me of my earlier transgression.
“Where will Simon sleep?”
“The Children’s Center. It’s on the bottom floor of the castle. Oh, that’s what we call the central tower. The children live there. You can see him from now until when you go on guard duty tonight.”
“I want him here with me.” I squared my shoulders and looked as menacing as I could.
Sandy grinned and then chuckled. “I’m scared. The children stay there.” I looked harsher at her. “Even if you cut my throat, he stays where he is. You are only a sister. There are mothers and fathers who have no choice but to accept the arrangement. The children are our future and must be protected. If we fall, they have a chance to survive. Don’t you want to give your brother those extra minutes of precious life? Or would you rather he be exposed in here?” Sandy was on a roll and she knew it. She stepped closer to me, to twist the knife. “Do you really love him, enough to let him live, if you should die?”
She had me. “Of course, I do.” She won and her grin reflected the victory. Round one to Miss Sandy. “May I see him, now?”
“Yes. On the south wall is a giant clock, you have two hours until guard duty. Spend it well.”
“I will.”
Sandy turned and left. I walked through my little home to look it over and then I was out the door. This is a big place and I was anxious, so I broke into a light sprint to get there faster. I didn’t need help finding the castle, it stood in front of me, a beacon for humanity’s safety. I stopped when I came near people, didn’t want them to think an insane person ran amok within their walls or something worse. While walking, I happened to look at the high wall and saw the clock Sandy referred to. According to the clock, the time was 4:30. I have two hours for my visit. That would make my guard duty start around six or seven tonight. I could live with that.
Chapter 22
I stopped in front of the tower, two guards stood at the entry double doors. Calling it a castle was no joke, it was. True, I had never been inside an actual castle, but the feel of it seemed right. The building was solid brick on the outside with huge double entry doors made of steel, standing ten feet tall. The outside guards wore exquisite uniforms with bright colors and fancy hats, an honored position.
I glanced at the side before advancing to the main doors. Two soldiers stood guard by the window I had used. They don’t know it was me, if they did, I would be arrested by now. My mind flashed to Simon and then to the stupid thing I had done. They can throw me out.
There was no time to linger on it. I had to get to Simon. I moved forward to go inside and the first guard blocked my path, stepping in front of me. His height and weight dwarfed mine, so fighting my way through would not work. Charm might. “Hello, I’m Zora Baker. I’m here to visit my brother, Simon Baker.” I smiled my best seductive smile.
He looked me up and down carefully. If I could read his mind, I might cringe, but I began the game so it wasn’t his fault. “Are you armed?”
“No,” a bigger smile this time.
“The children are our future and must be protected. Submit to a search and you may pass.”
I didn’t like the sound of that, if it got me to Simon, I would submit. “Okay.” I held my arms out to my sides and looked him squarely in the eyes. If my look said anything, it said, no funny business, mister.
The second guard came behind me and carefully searched while the other held eye contact with me. I stared into hazel eyes and remained as rigid as possible. This is nothing, I’ve been through worse. When satisfied, the first guard stepped aside and I entered the building.
Inside, light filtered in through small high windows. I stood in a wide hallway with three doors twenty feet in front of me.
It was quiet and I felt as if I were in a library as I slowly walked forward to the tall doors ahead of me. I stopped and read the writing. The center door’s sign warned of no entry by unauthorized persons, I assumed that meant me. To my left, the girls’ dormitory and to my right, the boys’, I excitedly turned the boys’ doorknob, doing my best to stop the shaking in my hand. A jumble of emotions soared through me.
I entered into another hallway and all joy squelched from inside me. In the center of the hallway hung a body, a zombie corpse strung up from the ceiling rafters. Someone had placed a pan below it to catch its drippings. I instinctively put my hand to my nose to keep away the smell. How could this be?
The door at the end of the room opened and sound filtered to me, happy sounds of children laughing, screaming, and playing. I looked to the door with my hand over my nose and saw a young girl waving at me. “Hey.”
I walked around the zombie and went to her. “Hey.”
“Remember me, Hannah Mutton?”
How could she stand there like that? All smiles without her hand over her nose. Her bewildered look gave way to ridicule as she glanced behind me at the hanging zombie. She shook her head and opened the door wider, motioning me forward. I went through the door.
I stopped her. “Hannah?” I can’t say I smelled the corpse; I didn’t want to give myself that thrill. Now with the door shut, I breathed in the surrounding air with exuberance. “Isn’t this the boys’ dormitory?”
“Yes,” said Hannah, giving me a strange look.
“Shouldn’t you be next door?”
“Yes, but we can come over during the day. Dorm curfew isn’t for another hour. Do you remember me?”
“You sat with Simon during lunch.”
“Yes.”
I searched my mind, wondering if she had been one of the children in the room with the zombies. I believe she was, but I couldn’t question her about it or I would give myself away. They might be looking for me.
“Hannah? Why is there a zombie hanging in the hallway?”
“That’s Peter Kelly.”
“You know it, I mean him?”
Hannah’s expression altered to wide-eyed amazement. “He was bad. They warned him not to be out after curfew and he left.”
“He left?”
“Yes! He sneaked out to meet with his fiancee Rhonda Hillson. They were lovers.”
Her cavalier attitude took me by surprise. I appraised her and believed her to be roughly twelve years old. What did she know about lovers? Maybe they were stealing kisses.
Hannah continued with both dread and excitement etched into her face. “It happened last week. They didn’t like it here and Rhonda’s mom was leaving and taking her away. Peter sneaked out to go with them. They were hiding in this old house surrounded by zombies. When the guards found them a day later, Silvia, that’s Rhonda’s mother, she had bitten this huge chunk out of Peter and was eating Rhonda’s leg. Poor thing, they had to shoot her in the head.”
“Oh my god!”
“It’s all true. They killed four zombies in the basement of the house. Peter turned the next day and they killed him.”
“Wh-wh-why would they hang him in the hall like that?”
Hannah’s shocked face was for me, not Peter. “You can’t leave here, zombies will get you. This is our home now, not out there with zombies.”
Zombie Zora Page 19