What Came After

by Nord, K. C.

  Norah frowned, "we can't leave that many zombies on the loose."

  "I don't know," he said doubtfully. "There's at least fifty or sixty of them running around."

  "We might need help," Norah speculated.

  "What about luring them into a large building like a barn or a school and then burning the place down?" I suggested remembering my mom's story when she and my dad burned down a shopping mall full of zombies.

  "One big zombie BBQ," Ethan said with a grin. "I like it! Speaking of which, are you two hungry? If so, I could fire up the grill."

  "That's disgusting!" Norah snapped and abruptly walked outside onto the balcony.

  Ethan blinked, "Is she always like that?"

  "No, I've never seen her like this before. Usually, she's very easy-going."

  He shrugged, "Do you want to go talk to her, or should I?"

  I shook my head, "I should probably do it."

  CHAPTER NINETEEN

  When I walked out onto the deck with two cups of hot chocolate, Norah was standing by the railing with her back to me, and from her posture, I could tell that she didn't want to talk. But since I've never been the type of person who leaves well enough alone, I barged right in.

  "Do you want to talk about it?" I asked quietly.

  Norah sighed quietly," Not really, but I know that you're never going to let this rest."

  I smiled at her, "you know me pretty well by now. But, seriously, Norah, whatever it is, I'm sure that between the two of us, we can figure it out."

  "That's just it, Kaley. I don't think that we can."

  I handed her a cup of hot chocolate, "Grandma always said that a cup of hot chocolate could fix anything."

  "If it was only that easy," Norah said and took a sip before setting her cup down on the deck railing.

  "Life rarely is easy, but chocolate always helps," I replied.

  "I've already told you that a zombie bit me and that Celeste gave me the cure. But, as you probably already figured out, I also left out a few details."

  I nodded, "yeah, that was pretty obvious."

  "What I didn't tell you was that I was already dead or at least at the moment of death when she gave me the cure."

  "What! Are you sure?" I gasped.

  "From what I was told, She gave me the cure and then did CPR to get my heart started. Except for cases like your brother or Stephanie, This should never be done; the cure is only to be given to the newly infected. And it shouldn't have worked, but somehow it did, and I came back to life."

  "Wow, that is amazing!" I exclaimed.

  Norah looked at me with a troubled expression, " I'm not sure that it is. Because I'm not the same person that I was before, I can put on a good act most of the time, but things are not the same."

  "What do you mean?"

  " It's hard to describe, but sometimes I see things and know things that I shouldn't."

  "Like the time that you told Grandma that my mom needed her."

  Norah shook her head, yes.

  "That doesn't seem not so bad," I said.

  "But, that's not all of it," Norah continued. " Celeste should never have brought me back; she went against all of the laws of nature to do so. And sometimes, I think that death wants me back. Almost every night, my dreams are filled with terrible nightmares that haunt me when I'm awake, and other times I find myself almost consumed with anger. Celeste says that it will get better with time, but she doesn't know."

  "Don't ever think that," I said firmly. "You came back because it wasn't your time."

  "I hope that you're right."

  "I'm sure of it. But, I was wondering about something; do you remember anything that happened after you died?" I asked curiously.

  "Not really; I have a vague memory of talking to my mom. Other than that, everything is in bits and pieces. I was out of my head for several days after Celeste revived me, and most of that time is a blur."

  "Grandma always told me that everything happens for a reason," I said quietly. " She said that we don't always know the reason, and it may not make sense at the time, but someday it will."

  Norah looked at me doubtfully, " Maybe that's just bitterness talking, but I've always had a problem with that phrase. Too many innocents have suffered so terribly for things that weren't their fault."

  "I know," I said with a sigh. "I have a hard time with that one as well. It's probably just something that people say to make themselves feel better. But I do want you to know that you don't have to go through this alone, and I'll always be here if you need someone to talk to no matter what time of day or night."

  "Thanks," Norah replied. "I appreciate it, but I came out here to help you, not the other way around."

  "Well, maybe we can help each other."

  Just then, Ethan popped his head out the door, "is it ok if I come out here now? Because the grill is out here, and I need to get these quail started if we want dinner tonight."

  "Come on out," Norah said with a rueful smile. "I'm sorry for the way that I behaved earlier."

  "Hey, no problem," Ethan said and grinned back at her. "We've all been there at one time or another."

  "I guess we have," She replied and helped Ethan carry out the rest of his cooking supplies.

  "So Ethan, if you don't mind my asking: where are you originally from?" I asked as we sat outside on the deck, enjoying the late afternoon sunshine and watching him grill the onions, potatoes, and quail.

  He paused for a moment, almost as if to steel himself before answering, "Up until a year ago, I lived just outside of Barrenwood, New Mexico. I left town after my wife and family were killed in an outbreak, and up until I found this place last month, I've just been living on the road."

  "I am so sorry for your loss," I said, wishing that I'd never opened my big mouth in the first place.

  "That's ok," Ethan replied. "Probably every one of us here has a story."

  "That's for sure," Norah said.

  "What made you decide to stay here of all places?" I asked.

  "Well, first off, I liked the name of the town, Nowhere Texas. And when I found this place, I knew that it was made for me," he replied with a laugh.

  "It's nice here," Norah said. "Very quiet and peaceful."

  "Maybe not quite as peaceful as it used to be," I said and pointed at the ground below where two zombies milled around looking for prey.

  "Dammit," Ethan swore. "We're going to have to do something about that.

  "We will," Norah replied quietly.

  We stayed up late into the night, planning everything out with as much detail as possible. There was a large horse barn on the outskirts of town, and the plan was for us to lure the zombies into the barn. Once they were inside, we planned to set fire to the barn and burn the zombies with the barn. Or, as Ethan said, "one big zombie BBQ."It all sounded so nice and easy, but then again, you know what they say about the best-laid plans.

  THE NEXT DAY WE DROVE slowly through town with Norah and me in the back of Ethan's pickup. Ethan had come up with the idea for us to bang trash can lids together to make as much noise as possible, and it was working, but a little slower than I wanted. Right now, we had about ten zombies shuffling along behind us, but I knew that there was a lot more than that lurking around the town.

  "At this rate, we're going to driving around town all day, and that's not even mentioning the fact that we look completely stupid," Norah commented disgustedly.

  I dropped my trash can lids and leaned into the cab of the truck; this isn't working all that well. Why don't you lay on the horn for a bit? While we try something else."

  Ethan nodded and started honking the horn while Norah and I started picking off one by one the zombies following behind us.

  "Look, it's starting to work," she commented as more and more z's started pouring out into the street.

  I nodded my head and almost jumped out of my skin when a crazed zombie from out of nowhere crashed into the passenger side of the truck. Leaning forward, I took him out with one wel
l-placed shot between the eyes.

  "I don't know about you," I shouted to Norah. " But I'm starting to feel a little too exposed back here."

  "No, kidding!" She shouted back.

  I was starting to feel a little alarmed as even more zombies spilled out into the street behind us. They were pouring out behind parked cars and businesses like a never-ending wave.

  "Step on it!" I screamed and pounded on the cab of the truck as yet another zombie crashed into the side of the pickup. This one almost got over the side of the truck bed before Norah shot him in the head.

  "Sit down, back there!" Ethan yelled and hit the gas, moving right at a small group of zombies that were in the road in front of us. Norah and I managed to sit down just in time to avoid getting thrown out of the pickup bed when he plowed through them. And I winced at the sound of their bodies hitting the underneath of the truck.

  "We did it!" Ethan whooped before looking back at us. " Is everyone alright back there?"

  "Now you ask," Norah grumbled. "I should have been the one driving; you almost killed us back there."

  "Oh, don't be such an old lady," Ethan laughed. "It's all good. We wanted to get their attention, and we did."

  "Now, all that we have to do is to get them to follow us inside and get the doors closed in time to trap them inside," I said as we approached the horse barn.

  "It's just a matter of timing," Ethan remarked confidently.

  When we reached the barn, Norah jumped out and hid behind some shrubbery. As soon as the last zombie ran into the barn, she would slam the doors shut. And then we would drive out the other side before I jumped out to close the doors behind us. At least that was the way that we had planned it.

  And at first, everything seemed to be working as planned. Ethan pulled inside the barn, and we sat there with the engine running as the first of the zombies started piling inside.

  I felt the first inkling of unease when I saw just how many there were. The barn was large, but still, it looked like it might have a hard time containing them all. Luckily, they did just fit, and when Norah shut the doors behind the last one, I gave Ethan the call. As he pulled out the door, I turned to scan the barn interior one last time when I saw something move in one corner of the barn. I squinted, trying to make out what it was in the darkened interior, and my heart almost stopped. Crouched down behind some hay bales was a small child, a little girl who couldn't have been more than three or four years old.

  "Stop, there's a kid in there," I screamed to Ethan as I leapt out of the back of the truck. "Close the doors, and we'll come out through the loft.

  Even as the words left my lips, I was already halfway across the barn. I jumped across the hay bales and snatched up the little girl, and sprinted for the ladder to the loft. In my experience, zombies can't climb ladders. Usually, all that they will do when they encounter one is to continuously bump into it as they lack the mental capacity to figure out how to climb anything. So once we reached the ladder, we should be safe.

  I dodged to the left and ducked behind a massive pallet of farm supplies, barely avoiding a snarling zombie that mindlessly charged at me. By now, the rest of the zombies were aware of my presence in the barn, and they were on the hunt. One last surge of adrenalin allowed me to push past my previous limitations; with a burst of speed, I reached the ladder, taking the steps two at a time, managing to get out of their reach just in time.

  When I reached the loft, I handed the girl to Norah, who had climbed up the ladder on the outside of the barn. And I followed them down the stairs right before Ethan tossed a Molotov cocktail in through the loft, igniting the gasoline-soaked hay bales and hopefully taking out all of the zombies in the process. But we planned on sticking around until the end just in case any stragglers did manage to make it out.

  CHAPTER TWENTY

  I yawned and leaned back in my chair under the old tree. Stretching out my legs while I watched Ethan and Norah argue over the best way to wash the zombie guts off her jeep. Even though it was a nice mild day, I was happy here in my spot under the tree as the harsh Texas sun would wreak havoc with my pale complexion.

  A few feet away, Ava (the little girl from the barn) was playing fetch with Moose, who was delighted with the attention. I smiled when he tirelessly brought back yet another stick to Ava, who laughed and clapped with delight.

  The sound of a truck driving up Ethan's long drive reached my ears, and I sat up in my chair with one hand on my shotgun that laid across my lap, only relaxing when a rusty old pickup driven by an older man pulled into the driveway.

  Recognizing the sound of the truck, Ava looked up and shrieked with joy. "Grandpa," before she took off running down the driveway.

  The pickup door swung open, and an older man wearing dusty jeans and a cowboy hat emerged. "Ava, baby." He swung her up in the air as she laughed and shrieked.

  Moose's protective instincts clicked in, and I reached out and grabbed his leash as he moved to protect Ava, "down boy." I ordered, and he obediently sat at my feet.

  "That's a nice-looking dog you have there!" The older man stated.

  "Thank you," I replied. " I take it that you're Ava's grandfather?"

  "Yes, ma'am, I am," he said with a friendly grin. "The name's Hank Adler, and I'd like to thank y'all for taking care of her for me."

  "That's no problem at all," I replied, charmed by his folksy manner. "But if you don't mind my asking, how did you find us in the first place?"

  "Some of the townsfolk back in Nowhere reported seeing her with you."

  "Oh good, there are some people left," Norah said.

  "Oh yeah, there are at least a couple dozen left in town. They said that y'all cleaned out all of the zombies in town. It sounds like the three of you are going to be legends in these parts."

  "Well, that's not good!" Ethan said with a grimace. "The only legends that I know of are all dead."

  "Not true," Norah said and rolled her eyes at him.

  "How did Ava end up in that barn all by herself?" I asked, ignoring their squabbling.

  Hank patted Ava on the head, "Some strangers stopped by my place the other day. I have a general store in Fillmore; it's about 35 miles back. Anyway, from what some of the other kids told me, Ava here decided to climb in one of their trucks and hitch a ride. She's always been my most adventurous grandchild; anyway, her grandma and I didn't hear anything about it until later that evening, and they were long gone by then."

  "What can you tell me about the strangers?" I asked.

  "Well," Hank said and pushed back his cowboy hat. "They were driving three big black trucks, and the ones that I spoke to were nice and polite, but they pretty much kept to themselves. A couple of them came in for some food and a few supplies, but the rest stayed out with the trucks."

  "Did you see a teenage boy or girl with them?" I asked.

  " I did see a girl with them, she was walking around outside, but I didn't notice a boy."

  Stunned, Norah and I looked at each other; as coincidences go, this one was huge. And I wanted nothing more than to get back on the road as soon as possible. But the way things were, we would have to wait for the morning as it was too late in the afternoon for us to leave today.

  We visited with Hank and Ava for a bit longer, but he didn't have any more information about the strangers. And after turning down Ethan's offer of a room for the night, they left just in time to get home before dark.

  IN EXCHANGE FOR US saving his life yesterday, Ethan offered to go with us to Barrenwood. I have to admit that having another driver as well as another gun in case of trouble was an attractive offer, which is why we took him up on it. But, it did make me wonder why he would want to revisit Barrenwood after losing his whole family there.

  Early the next morning, the four of us were back on the road. I was lounging in the back seat with Moose, who was happily chewing on a stick. While Ethan drove and Norah, who wasn't a morning person, sat grumpily beside him, drinking her morning coffee, which would hopefully improve he
r mood before long.

  Things were quiet for a while, with everyone lost in their thoughts when Ethan spoke up, "Kaley, what do you think that those guys would want with your brother?"

  "I have no idea; maybe they are trying to help him?"

  "I've heard a lot of weird stories about the ERI, but I've never heard of them helping anyone," Ethan said doubtfully.

  "The ERI?" I asked.

  "Elysium Research Institute, they are some type of a medical research facility. I think that they worked with the military back before the first outbreak."

  "And they are still around?" Norah asked, jumping into the conversation.

  "Oh yeah, they try and keep to themselves and don't have much to do with the locals. But word has a way of getting around, especially since some of the employees don't always follow the rules about not fraternizing with the townspeople."

  "What exactly have you heard about them?" I asked in concern.

  "I don't know if it's true or not, but someone said that they are experimenting on people to try and find a cure."

  "Well, that would be a good thing, wouldn't it?" Norah asked.

  "Maybe, but as I said, they are very secretive, so they're not all that trusted by the locals," Ethan replied.

  "I have to say, that phrase experimenting on people kinda bothers me," I remarked.

  Norah frowned, "it does seem a little weird that they are still a thing after all these years."

  "Do you know who owns the place or is in charge of everything?" I asked.

  "The only thing that I know is that some Dr. by the name of St. James runs the place," Ethan replied.

  AFTER A WHILE, I GREW tired of looking at the unchanging landscape. After all, you could only look at so many rocks and cacti before becoming bored. So I decided to use the extra time to catch up on a bit of reading, but I couldn't seem to get into it as my thoughts kept straying to other things like my brother and even my parents. This was the longest that I'd ever been away from them. Sometimes, I wondered if things would ever get back to normal again. Or if I even wanted it to go back to the way it was before. My life has changed so much in the last year. Some things like Lucas getting bit by the zombie was terrible, and I would do anything to change that if I could. But getting Moose and meeting Norah and Celeste and Nick and so many others were good. Yes, life could be hard at times, but there were still so many things that made it worthwhile despite the hard times.