The blonde slowly opened the door.
My heart pounded as fast as little Ben’s, and my fingers rested on the trigger of my gun.
When the door was opened, the stench of death wafted into our nostrils, and I knew that could only mean one thing. I handed the boy off to the woman closest to me.
“No, Dean!” he said, reaching for me.
“Gimme that flashlight,” I said to the brunette, my voice cracking with tension. After she handed it to me, I headed up the stairs with my gun drawn. When the beam landed on white, milky eyes. I fired. It dropped sideways as a little girl screamed, then headed up the stairs to the door labeled “Floor One.” I glanced up the stairwell, shining my light, but I didn’t see any other zombies; it was a relief to know that that one was just a straggler. I slowly opened the door to the first floor, only to find at least ten zombies stumbled around. I slammed the door shut, took a deep breath, then glanced back at the women and children who were counting on me to save them. “It’s dark. I’m gonna need a lotta light…and some backup.”
A few of the women bravely volunteered to come with me, and after a few deep breaths to ease our nerves, I led them into battle. A blonde set a flashlight into a nook in the wall that held antiques. Zombies shifted in the shadows, and one immediately lumbered over. I aimed my gun directly at the bald zombie’s head and squeezed the trigger, sending it crashing to the ground, its head hanging at an awkward angle. To the right, I emptied the rest of my clip into the second one, a zombie with shaggy black hair and deep bite marks running down its face and neck.
A loud succession of gunfire echoed all around me as the women fired into the approaching zombies. Those only armed with flashlights beamed light around, trying to help the battlers focus so we could make out our targets and shoot or bash them. The undead had set their sights on us, and they continued letting out excited moans, as if their dinner was near. Four well-placed shots to the head took down the small group coming from the left.
A hissing zombie in a black business suit fixated on me, lifting his lip to expose a row of sharp, jagged, bone-crunching teeth. I aimed carefully, then let out a shot that sent him hurtling to the floor with a hard crash, on top of some of his dead buddies. I shifted my aim and fired again. The women were shooting like champs, taking freaks down one by one. I admired their bravery, especially since most of them had never had to fight before, and I knew I never could have taken all those zombies out by myself. These chicks are kicking some serious zombie butt!
Cries and shouts of victory, mixed with the moans of the undead, echoed throughout the room. Somebody fired near my head, and while my ears rang, it didn’t slow me down. When a shot of pure adrenaline shot through me, I leapt onto a table. With perfect aim and a steady hand, I continued to fire off several rounds, showering empty shell casings down onto the table until my gun clicked empty. With snapping jaws, three zombies clumsily bumped into the table. I pulled out the empty clip and frantically slammed in a new one, then fired three shots as dead, rotting arms reached out for me. They fell, sprawled beside one another on the cold, hard ground.
A woman’s scream pierced my ears from the left, and I looked to see that a zombie had her pinned to the ground as she struggled fiercely. She was only armed with a flashlight, violently beating the zombie in the head, to no avail. As it lunged for her face, I squeezed the trigger, and the beast fell to the side, motionless.
“I see how they’re getting in!” another lady shouted from the other side of the room. “The lock’s been shot out.”
At that moment, I looked down at the dead bodies on the ground, half-eaten, and it all made sense. The gang members had shot the locks out so they could break in, and the zombies had come in behind them and made a meal out of them.
“Block it with furniture!” I yelled.
“But you said we shouldn’t trap ourselves,” the woman from earlier argued.
I rushed over and helped a few women push a heavy oak desk toward the door to act as a blockade. “We’re not trapped this time. This won’t hold long, but it’ll buy us enough time to get outta here,” I explained. I glanced out the window and huffed out air. The street was littered with zombies, so we’d have to go out the aptly named emergency exit, the back door; I hoped we’d have better luck taking the back way. I rushed over to the stairwell we’d come from and motioned the rest of the women and children to follow. “We’ll have to try the back door,” I said.
Pointing my gun, I shined the flashlight into the darkness. A crashing noise and a low hiss distracted me. A towering zombie stumbled into my path, and his gaze fell on me, but I swiftly shot it in the temple. It fell forward, and two little boys jumped back, startled.
I peeked through the back window and was glad to see that there wasn’t much activity back here.
“We can cut through the yards to Lilly’s house,” a woman said. “We’ll be safe there.”
Another woman nodded. “Right! It’s all boarded up, and people guard the place in shifts.”
“Okay,” I said. “No guns from this point on if you can help it. The gunfire will only get their attention, and we don’t need company.”
“What do we use then?” a woman said in a harsh whisper.
I walked over to a wooden chair and turned it over, then broke the legs off. “These,” I said, handing a leg to four women.
“Wooden stakes?” Ben said. “These aren’t Draculas, Dean. They’re zombies.”
I glanced down at him and smiled. “These weapons will work on all kinds of monsters, Ben. You just keep your eyes closed and go with your mom. Can you do that?”
“Sure!” he said as his mother pulled him along.
I broke up more chairs, and then handed out weapons to anyone else who wanted one. Grabbing one for myself, I gripped the wood tightly in my hands.
“Let’s hurry, before more come,” the brunette said.
The door swung open, and I rushed out. A zombie reached out for me, and I reared back and swung as hard as I could. The zombie fell with a loud thump. I reared back again and swung at the next one and the one after that.
Once the path was clear, I motioned the group to run down the alley.
The blonde led us through a few yards but suddenly stopped when we got to a silver fence. “This is it,” she said.
That was my cue to leave, so I met her gaze. “I have to go back, to find Nick and Lucas and get my sister and friends out of jail. Can you take it from here?”
“I can and I will,” she said. “Thanks for your help, Dean. We would’ve never gotten out of there without you. You’re a real hero.”
“Are you guys gonna be okay?” I asked, looking down at Ben.
“We will now. Thanks.” Gasping, she said, “The guys will be here in no time. This is our emergency spot.” She reached into her pocket and handed me a set of keys. “The gold one will open the cells. Get your sister and friends, Dean. They deserve to be free. We all do.”
“Thank you,” I said.
She smiled at me and turned to go inside.
I waved to the brave women and shot them a final smile. “Good luck…and take care,” I said. As they waved, I rushed back to the lab.
***
Cutting back through the yards, I stopped at a tall wooden fence. Just as I was about to scale it, a hand reached through a long, vertical gap. I jumped back and barely escaped the grasp of the long, dead, black fingernails that were reaching for me. It sounded as though the thin barrier contained a herd of wild animals, like a dilapidated zoo. I stepped back as more hands burst through the missing board in the fence, at least six of them, belonging to at least three zombies. My breathing quickened. I might have been able to fight off the small group, but I didn’t have the time. I needed to get to Nick and Lucas as fast as I could, so I sucked in a deep breath and turned to cut through a different yard.
I heard gunfire and shouts coming from the lab as I ran. Guttural sounds and grunts echoed in the air behind me. I spun around and saw eight
or nine zombies shuffling through the high grass, attracted to the sound of the battle and Jackie’s silent calls. I had told the women not to use guns, but I had no other option. I could never take out so many zombies with a wooden chair leg.
I took a deep breath, trying to remain calm, and focused on making clean shots to the head so I could fire as little as possible. I’d never taken on so many at once without backup. Trust what you know, I said to myself. You’re a sharpshooter, remember? I tried to imagine that I was just playing a videogame back home in my beanbag chair, but the graphics were all too real.
I shot the first one right between the eyes. Taking careful aim, I emptied clip after clip, making no misses, no mistakes. I’d been practicing my marksmanship on the island and destroyed several thousand pop cans. I was sure I’d never have to use those skills, but there I was, by myself, shooting for my life. Everything was a blur as I slammed the rest of my rounds into the undead group until every single one of them fell dead to the ground. My training had paid off, and I almost wished Nick could have seen it. Not combat-ready? Bull!
I hiked through the shrubs and weeds and peeked out. The zombies had dissipated and moved on, but the gang’s vehicles still surrounded the lab, and I knew it would only be a matter of time before they caught a scientist and forced him to rat us out. I decided it was best to use the back door so I wouldn’t be spotted. I opened the door and raced through the corridors to the jail cells. “Val! Claire!” my voice echoed.
Val gripped the bars. “Dean!”
I opened both cell doors with the key the woman had given me. “We’ve gotta go. Sam’s gang is still in the lab.”
“They…Dean, they killed Jackie,” Claire blurted out, her eyes red and puffy.
Her words cut straight to my heart. “What!? But I thought—”
“They shot her,” she sobbed.
“Who?”
“The scientists,” she answered.
I refused to believe it and ran to Jackie’s cell, but it was empty. “Are you sure?” I said. “Maybe they just took her somewhere else.”
“They tried to sedate her again,” Claire said, “but I heard her growl at them. She sounded like a grizzly bear, Dean! They screamed when she lunged, and then I heard the gunshot.”
“No!” I yelled, in complete denial. “I’m sure they just moved her. They need her for their research, and—”
“Why would they take her somewhere else?” Claire screamed in grief. “They locked her up for a reason. This was the safest place to keep her from hurting anyone.”
I turned to face Val. “Val, is it true?”
“Dean, I can’t begin to tell you how sorry I am. There was an altercation, and she attacked them. We heard everything. They responded with deadly force, and I watched them drag her out.”
“We have to find her,” Claire said sadly. “She at least deserves a proper burial.”
I punched the yellow brick wall as hard as I could. My knuckles began to bleed and ache, but I didn’t care. That pain paled in comparison to the grief that immediately began eating me up inside, like a cancer. Jackie was dead. The scientists had tried to sedate her, and things had gone horribly wrong. I knew what Claire and Val were telling me was true, and I couldn’t bear to let it go unpunished. “What did the men look like, the ones who did this to her?” I asked.
“Revenge won’t bring her back,” Claire retorted, “and it might get you killed. Jackie wouldn’t want that, Dean. She…she wanted to save the world, not cause more bloodshed.”
Val gently touched my shoulder. “We’ll talk about this later, Dean. Right now, we’ve gotta go. You know if those men catch us, they’ll kills us for switching the bags.”
I couldn’t breathe or think or speak as it all sank in.
“Let’s go,” she said. “We’ll make them pay later, but if we stay here, we’re dead.”
“Back door,” I barely managed to get out as grief overwhelmed me.
“Where’s Nick?” Claire asked.
“Inside, with Lucas. I’ll go,” I stammered. When footsteps echoed in the corridor, I held my gun steady, ready to blow away any scientist I saw.
“Don’t shoot!” Nick said. “It’s only me.”
“Nick!” Claire yelled, jumping into his arms and burying her head in his chest.
He wrapped his arms around her and kissed her head.
“What happened?” I asked.
“We got away. Lucas is waiting for us two blocks away, with one of the men from the lab. Engine’s running in the U-Haul. The guy says he’s gonna take us to a safe compound outside the city. Nobody will know we’re there.”
“I’ve got the vials,” Val said. “Let’s go!”
“Jackie’s dead,” I said.
“I know. I’m so sorry, Dean.”
Everything seemed like a bad dream as Nick led us out the back door. I ached as we left the building, knowing we were leaving Jackie behind. I robotically followed them to the next block, and we piled into the truck that was still loaded with all the weapons Nick had found. It was smart to park the U-Haul so far away, because it had been kept well out of sight and made the perfect getaway vehicle.
We took the back roads out of the city. When we arrived at the next safe zone, armed guards opened steel gates into a luxury community with fancy homes. Nick, Val, and Lucas talked to the people there, explaining everything to them.
In one of the mansions where they agreed to put us up for the night, Claire sobbed, and I held her in my arms for hours. When the room started to spin, I had to go outside for fresh air. I stood on the deck of the house overlooking the lake. For an hour, I stared at those gentle, glistening ripples that rolled across the serene water. The place was quiet and peaceful, with only singing birds and no gunfire or fighting or zombie hisses and moans. It was something like an animal sanctuary, an undisturbed, natural habitat for humans to run free—until we reached the edge of the cage. Not only had the virus taken loved ones from me, but it had also robbed us of our real freedom, something too many humans had taken for granted for so long. I hoped we could one day walk down the street without fear of zombies preying on us, but that hope was becoming dimmer by the day.
I felt so numb, so lost, so helpless. I didn’t know if I could go on without Jackie. I knew I’d never get over her and that I’d have to live with that horrific, tragic loss every day for the rest of my life. All I really wanted was to hold Jackie in my arms again. I just wanted my life back, the one I wanted to share with her.
The door creaked open, and Nick and Val came out.
“We thought you could use some company,” Val said. She rubbed my back, then finally broke the pained silence. “I’m here for you.”
“I appreciate that, but only Claire can really understand,” I said. “Only she loved Jackie as much as I did.”
“Don’t say that,” Val scolded. “If anyone understands what you’re going through, it’s me. I’ve lost so many people I loved. When Travis, my fiancé, was killed at the clinic, I thought my life was over.”
The pain in her voice was evident, and I embraced her and hugged her tightly. “How do you get over something like this?” I whispered. “How does one stay sane in a world this crazy?”
“We don’t. We just have to keep fighting,” Nick said.
I shot him a hard look. “Even when we lose everything that’s precious to us?”
“When I lost Darla, I thought my heart had been torn out, but I know she would have wanted me to go on and live the life I’m destined to live.”
“Our soulmates have been violently ripped from us,” Val said. “My heart still bleeds for him, and I’m often consumed by pain and emptiness.” Her voice wavered. “I’m so lost and lonely, Dean, but we have to be strong and stick together.”
“What could I have done any differently?” I asked. “I tried so hard to save her. We all did.”
“Nothing,” Nick said. “This isn’t our fault, so don’t blame yourself. Just take one breath at a time.�
��
“What are we gonna do now?”
“For starters, we’ll spend the night here and leave in the morning,” Nick said.
“Right. We can’t wait around here for Sam and Larry to come find us,” Val said. “I’ll find us a car, some gas, food, weapons, and supplies, and we’ll—”
“We’ll what? Run? To where?” I was tired of running.
“Anywhere.”
“I’m tired of running.”
“Me too,” Val said, “but it’s how we stay alive. Like Nick said, we’ve gotta take one breath at a time.”
“I’m slowly dying. I can’t begin to tell you the pain I’m feeling.” I tried to keep my voice from trembling, but the emotion poured through. “I feel like I’ve been hit by a freight train.”
They both tried to comfort and console me and give me brotherly and sisterly advice, but it did little good. My heart was dead, and nothing they could ever say would take away the hurt, grief, and loss that overwhelmed me. I began to think we shouldn’t have gone to the lab, but I didn’t think we had any other choice. It was some consolation to know that Val and Claire probably wouldn’t turn into hybrids, thanks to their blood type, but my heart still ached for Jackie.
The sky was the most beautiful blue ever, and my gaze shot back to the sun glimmering on the lake as a breeze swept past me. The scene before me was beautiful and serene, and if I didn’t know any better, I would have thought it was perfect. The thing was, I did know better.
My heart bled for Jackie, and the pain was far too real. That calm lake, shining sun, and those singing birds were just a farce, Mother Nature’s cover-up to hide the fact that our world was crumbling beneath us. We were stuck in an undead nightmare, and I wondered if we’d ever get out with our lives…
To Be Continued…
(See book 6 cover below)
The Zombie Chronicles - Book 5 - Undead Nightmare (Apocalypse Infection Unleashed Series) Page 24