by Nick Harland
Esme’s reply came, ‘Ok, you’re the boss, see you on the other side.’
She didn’t seem entirely convinced but I didn’t fancy unknown back roads to find a way around. We started down the hill and it helped us pick up speed. I couldn’t see Mary in the side mirrors so they were taking the staying close thing seriously. I looked at Eve whose mouth was a thin line of concentration. Taking the roundabout at speed with brakes that pulled like hell and Zed’s in the way wasn’t an easy thing to ask her to do, but she was a trooper and went for it without hesitation.
As we got close to the roundabout Zeds started to surge towards us but Eve side-swiped the Fiesta before pulling the truck to the right. The Fiesta went spinning towards the horde and rolled over as it hit the high curb around the roundabout. The rolling burning car caused mayhem; it was a masterful move. The ones that ended up in front of us in the confusion were barely more than an annoyance to the heavy truck. They hit the plate Bill had welded to the front but we didn’t lose much speed. Some went under the wheels but I was used to the whiplash inside the cab as it rolled over them, as was Mutt. I hung onto the grab handle as Mutt flattened himself onto the floor between my feet.
Eve struggled to pull the truck around the rest of the roundabout and I felt the wheels slip on the bodies beneath them. I heard Eve growl, ‘Fuck it, hang on’, as we understeered and headed straight for a stationary Mini on the side of the road. We hit the Mini hard, crushing it against a safety barrier, eventually pushing it, sort of over, sort of through, the barrier. The truck held up well but we lost a lot of speed and Eve had to grind it into first to carry on. I half expected to feel Mary shunt us from behind but Bill must have had enough space to see us go off course and to make sure he didn’t follow us.
Eve did well to carry on but having come almost to a stop I could see the horde catching up to us. Then I saw Mary speed passed us and briefly caught Esme’s concerned eyes as they flashed by. Our progress up the hill on the other side of the roundabout was painfully slow and it was clear a Beefcake and a few Sprinters would catch up with us before we gained enough speed to lose the rest of the horde. I didn’t know what they would do when they caught us, but it wouldn’t be good. The Beefcake and Sprinters disappeared from my view in the wing mirror and Eve was pushing the engine too hard to be able to hear what they were doing. All I knew was that I couldn’t see them anymore.
We managed to get up enough speed to avoid the main part of the horde catching up to us and as Eve changed into third I was sure I heard a bang come from the back. Eve’s white knuckle grip on the trucks steering wheel relaxed a bit and I said, ‘Well, it wasn’t exactly incident free but we made it, though I think we might have a few hitch hikers.’
Eve glanced over and the smile I was expecting wasn’t there, ‘Wasn’t incident free is one word for it, fucked it up completely is another. I almost wrecked us and fuck knows what damage I’ve done to the truck.’
I was going to reach over and put my hand on her thigh but I thought better of it, she wasn’t in the mood for a show of emotion. I said, ‘You just hauled ten tonnes of knackered old truck with only three brakes around a burning roundabout and through a horde of Zombies who want to eat your face. You did it because it was my dumb-ass idea to do so and you pulled it off with only one Mini incident, and despite all that you still had time to stop for hitch hikers. If you want to be angry be angry at me, not yourself; you were inspired. The way you side swiped that Fiesta was awesome.’
I’d gambled on the play on words around the Mini but it payed off. Eve broke a smile and replied, ‘I suppose it was your idea wasn’t it. I know we stopped for hitch hikers but I’ve changed my mind. Let’s drop them off at the next junction shall we. We haven’t tried the tipper out so I think it’s time.’
I radioed Esme and explained the plan. When it was her turn to reply she said, ‘Ok understood. I’ll come and help, tell Eve that was hard-core.’ Then realising Eve could hear her she said, ‘Eve, that was hard-core, no hesitation, just one hundred percent commitment to Zed killing mayhem. Even Bill was egging you on and he doesn’t think you’ve damaged anything essential, but because it’s Bill he wants a quick look when we stop.’
I looked over at Eve with a wide, ‘I told you so’, grin on my face. Although she said, ‘Smug bastard’, she couldn’t hide the smile behind the words.
We didn’t have time to reach the next junction before Esme was on the radio, ‘Heads up, time to stop.’
A moment later we heard scrabbling on the roof of the cab and Eve jammed on the brakes, yanking the wheel to keep it vaguely straight as she did so. The Zed on the roof rolled onto the bonnet then bounced onto the road and Esme was out of Mary the moment Bill could stop her. I opened the door and Mutt leapt out, probably desperate to be anywhere other than the foot-well, and I was close behind him. I heard Eve start the tipper mechanism and as I looked over my shoulder she was leaning out of the window with an M9 in her hand.
Esme ran over to the floored Sprinter and got there before I could, hitting it before it could reach its feet. There were at least another two Sprinters and one Beefcake and with their recent development they were not to be taken lightly, Esme looked at me for direction. Although we would have an advantage as they slid out of the back of the truck, if anything went wrong we wouldn’t have Eve to back us up. I said, ‘Let’s wait for them, be ready.’
We turned to see the back of the truck reach a critical angle but not before we saw Bill get out of Mary with a Henry rifle and aim it in our direction. I heard him warn, ‘We don’t have long, I can see them coming.’
I knew the horde would follow us and it made the whole situation tense to say the least. Then the hairs on my arms and neck stood up as I head the groaning of the Sprinters and the loud growl of the Beefcake coming to their feet. We wanted them on our side of the truck so I yelled, ‘Come and get us you ugly mothers, we haven’t got all day.’
The two sprinters were skidding around the corner immediately, arms circling in the air as they struggled for balance and momentum. The Beefcake was close behind them. Eve shot once and there was another shot from Bill. Staying calm when a bullet flies past you takes balls of steel and in many ways it’s worse when you know one might be coming. I barely flinched but Esme put me to shame, I didn’t see her move at all.
One of the Sprinters fell but the other one was only hit in the shoulder, slowing but not stopping it. There was another shot from Eve but the Beefcake was shielded by the Sprinter and both were almost on us. I ran forwards as the other Sprinter fell and shouted, ‘Be ready.’ Taking a Beefcake on hand to hand was a big risk but I remembered my move on the building site weeks before when I threw myself at one’s feet and tripped it up. This time all I had to do was trip it, as Esme would be there to finish it, so I threw myself on the ground at its feet, closed my eyes, and held my steel balls.
I felt the Beefcake’s leg hit me and as I didn’t get quite close enough it was like being kicked in the side, hard; I squealed. The Bastard did fall though and its yelling was short lived as Esme finished it. I painfully uncurled and grabbed Esme’s hand as she offered it to me. I pulled myself up and Esme pulled me towards her and kissed me. It was so unexpected I barely had time reciprocate before she pushed me away and said, ‘That really wasn’t necessary, Bill or Eve would have got it.’
I knew she was right, and I had acted in the heat of the moment, but I felt the need to justify myself, ‘Probably, but we saved a bullet or two and one day in the not too distant future we might be counting every single one.’
Although I smiled as I said it, it must have hit home because Esme’s face dropped and she didn’t look at me, ‘I suppose you’re right. The horde’s coming, let’s get the hell out of here.’
Eve put the tipper down and we got rolling again before the horde could threaten us. I was angry with myself for what I’d said and wanted to turn the vehicles around and squash the lot of them. Eve knew I was angry and after we’d got going she said,
‘I know you put a bit of a downer on things but you weren’t wrong and it’s important we keep focused. We all treat this like a game a lot of the time because it helps us cope, but it’s not a game and any of us could die during any encounter. My gun could have jammed and you and Esme wouldn’t have been ready for the Beefcake. Don’t be too hard on yourself. As things get harder the decisions will too but we’ll still be looking for you to make them. We’re going to need you for that.’
Changing her tone and slipping her hand onto my thigh she added, ‘She kissed you though which was good. I know she did a whole lot more last night but it could have been a one night thing. The fact she kissed you in front of everyone means she’s with us now, so why don’t you think about that instead. I’ll drive and you can think about all the things we didn’t do last night that you still want to. If you feel like it you can think out loud and maybe I’ll chip in.’
My 22 year old brain went from anger and regret, to tits and ass, in a moment. A moment later I was starting to get uncomfortable, not helped by Eve’s hand wandering to my crotch and her saying, ‘That’s more like it.’ Then she added, ‘It’s going to take a little while to get to the airport. Why don’t you shuffle up a little closer and give yourself a little freedom. I like to see you touch yourself and when I’m not having to steer this lug I’d love to lend a hand. Tell me all about our next threesome and save yourself for a straight run, I’d like to be there at the end.’
I didn’t argue. It felt a little wired touching myself in front of her, outside of a session at least, but I went with it and when Eve lent a hand it was lovely. At the end I held the steering wheel for a few seconds so she could concentrate on the job in hand and it was even more lovely.
Chapter Two - Last Flight to Anywhere, Ever…..
Thankfully, the rest of the road to the airport was relatively clear. We skirted around a village just before the airport that looked like it would be good to scavenge from. There must only have been a few hundred houses and although we didn’t pass one, I figured there must be a shop or two somewhere. There was the occasional dead body amongst the Zeds we saw out and about and they were starting to get pretty rancid.
The airport itself was tiny. I had been there once with my parents to meet some friends who flew in to see them. It didn’t look like it had changed much. From the outside it looked like a big department store but with less windows. The double glass doors were closed but all the glass was broken. There were two dead bodies and three dead Zeds just to the side of the door. It looked like the bodies had been dragged out of the way of the doors, which was a good sign of survivor activity.
We stopped right outside the entrance and I pressed the button on the radio, ‘This place is tiny and there is nowhere to sleep inside. There is no way survivors would stay here but obviously there have been some which is good.’
Eve grabbed my hand and brought the radio close to her lovely red lips. She pouted briefly when she saw me staring at her, ‘He’s right. I’ve been here a few times and it’s a bit of dump, even on a good day. I see two possibilities. They could be hold up in the hotel a quarter mile down the road or if they’re smart they will have camped out in the plane, it’s easier to defend.’
I nodded and let go of the button so the others could speak. Esme chimed in, ‘Eve’s right. We need to check out the inside and see if there is a plane with survivors inside. Any plan for how we approach the place. There’s been fighting so it might be clear, but we should know what we’re doing.’
I replied, ‘I don’t think there’s any alternative to just going in. They don’t come to noise anymore so we have to go to them. Mutt can lead the way.’
Esme didn’t reply but we saw her step out of Mary and say loudly, ‘Well what are we waiting for then?’
Bill stepped out as well, carrying a pry bar and an M9. Esme had a rifle across her back and Seven Mk2. We go out and Mutt jumped out and ran to Bill and Esme wagging his tail enthusiastically. We walked over and Andrea wound down the window and said, ‘I’ll beep if there is a problem but I’ll be fine. I don’t feel so good so I’m not going anywhere.’
The bodies at the door were in bad shape but didn’t look like they had been dead as long as some of the others we’d seen. It was always hard to see dead survivors that had made it through the initial event and these ones had obviously made it a few days at least, enough time to have hope. We all knew that any day we could all end up just another few bodies in the apocalypse, it was depressing. We walked into the main lobby and it was deserted, Mutt ran around checking the area. There was a line of check in desks and several dead Zeds but no other bodies. The luggage in the area was all open and had been riffled through; another good sign.
A wide hall at the end of the check in desks led to the passport control gate, the smallest duty free shopping area ever, and then a departure lounge. The duty free area had one shop selling a bit of everything and one coffee shop, both had been scavenged and there were more dead Zeds and a couple of dead bodies.
We walked through the departure lounge and there was one plane parked close to the building, apparently ready for passengers, but there was no ladder up to the open door. Where the ladder would have been was a pile of dead Zeds and one dead body. About fifty feet away on the closest runway was another medium sized plane which did have stairs going up to the open door and a bright yellow emergency slide thing coming out from close to the back. We could all just about make out a figure stood at the top of the stairs. Eve got the small binoculars out of her pocked and looked towards the plane. She said, ‘Well that’s definitely not a Zed. It’s a middle aged man with a some kind of weird looking weapon, not quite Seven but it looks like it would do the job. Oh yes, and he’s waving at us.’
We walked cautiously through the doors, onto the tarmac, and passed the nearby plane. As we approached the plane with the stairs we could see other figures peeping out from behind the man in the doorway. As we got closer we could see scattered bodies around the bottom of the emergency slide and spread out towards the airport, both Zed and survivor. It was by far the most dead survivor bodies we’d seen in one place and it was grim. Trying not to look at or smell the grim death at the end of the plane we stopped at the bottom of the stairs and the man stepped forwards and looked down at us. His hands shook and his knuckles were white where he was gripping his weapon, we could see at least three or four others behind him. He said, ‘Are you friendly, we don’t have much, most of us are dead or gone.’
There was a bad smell and I noticed the pile of toilet waste at the end of the slide. I was about to speak when Eve stepped forwards with her hands up. As she did I found Esme by my side seeking out my hand to hold. I glanced at her and there were a few tears running down her face. Eve said, ‘We’re friendly, we’ve come to help. We have food and water for you and transport to get you out of here. We have a really secure base with power and plenty of beds…’
Eve was about to go on when the man collapsed onto his knees, tears running down his face. He put his weapon down and said through a chocked throat, ‘Please help us, we’re in bad shape.’
We all followed Eve up the stairs and the smell from inside the plane hit us and made me wretch. Eve stopped just in front of the man who slowly came to his feet, walking his hands up his legs and swaying a little when he was upright. A younger man and an older woman emerged from the shadows and held him steady but they didn’t look in much better shape. The man stood with his head bowed in shame. He began to speak, ‘I’m sor…’
Eve interrupted, ‘There is nothing you need to say. You’ve lasted three weeks without decent weapons and you’ve all been through hell. Some of us have been through the same. There is nothing in there you need except any food and clean water. We have clothes and hot showers. How many of you are there and can you make it down the stairs?’
The woman holding the man up said, ‘There are eighteen of use left from a full flight. We ran out of food again yesterday and we’ve been drinking water f
rom a large pond across the airfield. We’ve only had a few small meals in the last week but we can still walk. A few of us might need a little help with the stairs. I’m Gill by the way and this is captain Dankert….Edward. How are you going to get us all out of here?’
Eve replied, ‘We have a tipper truck outside. It’s not going to be comfortable but we’ll do what we can. It will hold all of you and it should be relatively safe. We also have a Range Rover with one more of us who’s injured in it. If there are people in really bad shape we can fit two or three in the Range Rover and a couple in the front of the truck, and we can go in the back of the truck. Do you have any cars that work, it might be better if you do?’
Gill replied, ‘No. four of us took that last car three days ago and didn’t come back. We assume their dead like everyone else, or have run away.’
I spoke up, ‘Right, Bill and I will go get the supplies and you get as many people out of the plane as you can.’
Eve turned to me and forced a smile. She held her hand out and I squeezed it briefly before kissing her lightly on the cheek and following Bill back down the stairs. As we walked back Bill said, ‘I know they’re in bad shape but we can fix them up and eighteen is good. There’s bound to be some skills we don’t have and I think we’re going to need the numbers from now on. I hate putting them in the truck. Maybe we could get them food and water then go back down the road to the village and try and find another vehicle or two. There must be a few of them who are able to drive….and you did end up with a couple in the back when we went through the horde.’
I thought about it and there was no easy answer, ‘We could probably find another vehicle of two, and scavenge for some more food and water. By the time they’re finished with what we have there won’t be anything left. I’m worried about getting back through that enormous horde. We killed a load but when they charged us but others from closer to the stadium will have come onto the dual carriage way. There could be even more blocking the way now than there were.’