“Hal?”
“Daisy,” he replied.
“What are you doing in the dark? Turn the flashlight on,” she said as her feet padded carefully into the room. She stepped on his boots and kicked them and her own shoes off and into the wall behind the door with a thud.
“My coveralls were wet so I took them off,” he explained. She laughed.
“I don’t care about that. Turn the light back on and check out what I found.” He reluctantly clicked the flashlight back on, hiding himself inside the closet. He illuminated the blonde woman and her bounty, a mostly full bottle of tequila and two glasses. He laughed.
“Where’d you find that?”
“Bella has been scavenging food from the neighbor’s houses during the day when that siren has been keeping the dead away. Lots of food, but they didn’t touch the booze,” she smiled. “Want to do a shot?”
“Yeah, just a sec.” He rummaged for a bit and found a drawer with men’s clothes. He pushed aside some socks and underwear and pulled out a big pair of pyjama pants. He pulled the drawstring tight and tied it before exiting the little room. Daisy was sitting on the far side of the bed.
She turned her head and looked over her shoulder at Kahn as he walked to join her. She smiled and handed him one of the square-sided tumblers with a splash of light-amber liquid inside. He smelled it as he sat and groaned with pleasure. They clinked the two glasses together and the liquid disappeared. They both coughed and fought the burn of the alcohol in their throats before they laughed at each other nervously.
“Another?” she asked and he nodded, holding his empty glass up for another round. The second one went down easier for both of them. Kahn felt a pleasant warming sensation in his chest.
“It’s been awhile since I’ve had anything to drink,” he said.
“Me too,” she replied. “I’m glad it’s with you.” There was an awkward pause as Kahn realized his and Daisy’s hips were touching. Blood rushed to his cheeks and they flushed as he tried shifting. The soft bed made his movements sink the weight of their bodies closer together. Kahn stopped moving and his arm rested against Daisy’s trousers. She wrapped her arm around his and leaned against his shoulder. Kahn’s stomach was turning flips and he realized how much he cared for this woman. He loved her. That’s why he had avoided becoming this close to her before, trying to stay in an emotional limbo at LOSTOP. Leaving the safety of the outpost had been necessary and highly risky for both of them. He allowed himself to sink into the moment with Daisy, and all the past disappeared. He leaned over and kissed her.
When it was over he looked into her eyes and saw they glistened with tears. A pang of worry hit him until he realized she was smiling and the tears were not sad. Thunder shook the rectangular window and they both looked at the continuous driving rain. White noise from the storm filled the room for a few minutes before she turned back and kissed him again. This time, she held his face with her free hand and pressed her lips against his passionately. They separated, and she placed her head back on his shoulder.
“Thank you for taking care of those kids,” he murmured, unsure where the sentiment came from. “It was nice to see people treating strangers nicely for a change.”
“What was your son’s name?” she asked. Kahn tensed, but then forced himself to relax and trust his friend.
“Daniel,” he said quietly. “He was almost two years old when he--”
“I’m sorry this happened to you,” she interrupted. “I wish your wife and son were still alive. I wish the Neighbors hadn’t done that to you. But you realize that Bella and Jack had nothing to do with that. The man who did this to you is their grandfather, and you have to separate those two things until these children are safe.”
“I do realize that,” Kahn said, surprised that he actually did feel that way. His desire to kill Llewelyn had waned based on the circumstances. Seeing Jack holding so desperately onto Daisy had reminded him of the importance of family. He found himself immediately caring for the children, not driven by guilt or the possibility of ransom, but by love. “It’s more important for the kids to be safe, and for us to get Mel back, than it is for me to get revenge.”
“Thank you, Halwende.”
“You can call me Hal, or Kahn,” he reached for the tequila and poured them each another shot. “You never told me your name was Margaret either.” They both laughed and downed the drink, kissing each other as the spirit burned their lips.
As the thunder continued and the storm outside raged, the two climbed under the blankets of the large bed. They talked and laughed and kissed and became lovers in the shadow of the downpour.
Not far from where they slept, the solar panels powering the air quality alarm shook and were blown away by the excessive gale. Water flooded into the underground mine, displacing rotten air and destroying living corpses against the limestone. Lightning flashed as the old trailers and earth-moving equipment drifted on saturated clay. Nothing was spared as wires for lighting and speakers were torn apart and scaffolding collapsed under the force of the squall.
The looping, months-long journey the dead had been traveling to get close to the distant sound was over. The hungry creatures were free to wander once again.
Chapter 27
- Little Bites
Little Bites
An invisible dawn broke and the household slept as the storm continued unabated. Time had, so far, done nothing to diminish the rain and thunder pouring on the house on Stone Wedge. Slowly, the members of the group began to wake and move about the residence, small for twelve people. At some point in the night Jack, as he usually did, climbed into bed with Bella. When the kids woke, they found a meal waiting for the first time since their mother turned into one of the hungry dead creatures that stalked the neighborhood.
Ice and Kimble had slept on the floor in the corner of the living room, near each other like one was protecting the other. Jesse, Deb, and Lars slept on the two couches in the living room and the Wiggs brothers slept together on a small bed in the spare bedroom. Captain Louis slept alone on an uncomfortable recliner and woke first, scavenging a meal for himself in the process. It was he who the children found when they snuck out of their bedroom to the dark kitchen.
Kahn and Daisy slept deeply together in the master bedroom. The sound of laughter drifted into the room and Kahn awoke first, frightened at first being in a strange place before remembering the mission and his bedmate from the night before.
Carefully, he turned over and the empty bottle of tequila clunked to the carpeted floor. Daisy stirred and turned the opposite direction so Kahn quickly swung his legs out of bed and got dressed in his dirty, mostly dry coveralls. He quietly left the room and followed the noise of conversation to the front of the house. Amazingly, Kahn found a waiting feast of canned fruit, nuts, oatmeal, beans, tinned meat, and cereal with canned milk. His jaw dropped.
“Holy shit Captain, you made breakfast?” Kahn paused in shock at the array of food. Then the wonderful smell of cooking pork hit his nose so he grabbed a slice of the tinned meat and scarfed it. Bella and Jack were sitting together at the table in the adjacent room, each with a half-empty plate of breakfast and a smile on their face.
“Yes, Mr. Gar- I mean Mr. Kahn. I am quite a good cook and Bella here has spent a lot of time gathering edibles from houses in the neighborhood. She’s done quite an amazing job keeping her and her brother alive. Color me impressed,” Kahn chuckled at the supply officer’s statement. In the six months Kahn worked for him the captain never said he was impressed with anyone. This ten-year-old was more impressive than a military base full of professional soldiers.
“Great job, sir. Great job, Bella,” Kahn grabbed one of the plates stacked on the counter and began to load it with food. The thought crossed his mind that he should wake Daisy up just as she appeared in the doorway to the kitchen. She was toweling her wet hair and wearing a loose-fitting sundress with bare feet.
“Morning, y’all,” she smiled. “Breakfast looks goo
d, where is everyone?”
“Jesse and Deb are in the garage. There was a grill with a mostly full propane tank the kids weren’t using so we fired it up. The storm is still pretty bad but Jesse sent Lars and the other two out to search for a vehicle anyway. He doesn’t want to be stuck here for too long and Lars says he could probably get a battery to start with a generator and some fuel. I’m not sure so I was just watching the kids.”
“Where’s Kimble?” Kahn looked around and didn’t see the husky NCO anywhere. “Or Ice. Those two have been attached at the hip since the storm hit. What’s with that?” Daisy and Louis shrugged before joining the children at the table. They ate their food almost like a normal family, with the crash of thunder and dark skies as a backdrop to their newfound cheer.
After eating, Kahn and Daisy walked out to the garage and found Deb and Jesse watching the heavy downpour through the open garage. Jesse turned and greeted the two newcomers.
“Morning. Sleep well?” he said.
“Uh, yes,” Kahn replied, blushing a bit at the implication. He and Daisy hadn’t thought about anything but each other in the night and obviously the others heard enough to guess what happened.
Deb glared at the two with crossed arms before snapping her body around toward the rainfall. “Lars and the Wiggins brothers are out in this looking for a way to get us out of here,” she said with her back turned. “So it was nice of you both to join us.”
“What’s your problem, Deb?” Daisy snapped.
“Nothing, just, hope you enjoyed your shower and your breakfast while our friends are out in this-- this-- hurricane.”
“Ladies, quit it. We needed a good night’s sleep and a good meal,” Jesse interjected. “As soon as they find a suitable way to get out of here, we’ll pack up the food and leave.” Deb pursed her lips and continued to stare into the storm.
After a few moments of awkward silence, broken only by booming thunder, Jesse pointed out that he had hot coffee. He found a container of instant grounds and used the propane on the grill to heat a saucepan full of water and make the caffeinated treat for the crew. They even found some creamer and sugar in the pantry, so Daisy and Kahn both indulged in a cup. They chatted about the storm and the work Lars indicated it would take to get a 6-month idle car running again, hearing occasional bursts of conversation from inside the house. The sky even began to lighten slightly, though the rain continued still.
Thirty minutes passed, and the group of four spotted three people down the street. It was impossible to tell if they were Lars and the two Wiggins brothers because of the poor visibility, so Jesse and Deb both hurriedly pointed their carbines. A few tense moments later they realized that it was indeed the mechanic and the brothers.
Deb grabbed a couple towels that looked to have been set aside for their return and handed them to the soaking wet crewmates as they entered the shelter of the garage. Wiggs toweled off his brother’s hair as the latter complained about being cold. Lars rubbed his face and hair before tossing the towel over the small tool bench and turning with a smile on his face.
“Hold on, let’s grab the captain and the others.” Jesse held out his hands, anticipating the good news Lars would want to share with the rest. He yelled into the house that Private Lars was back and to come join them for his news. After a moment, Captain Louis came outside with Bella and Jack in tow. Ice followed shortly after and closed the door behind her.
“Okay Lars, tell us what you found,” Louis said anxiously.
“So, there is good news. We found a couple vehicles nearby,” he paused as a murmur of relief came from the other members of the group. “We went a few blocks to the west and started looking into the closed garage doors. We found one with two new-looking SUVs so we broke into the house and checked them out.”
“I broke the glass!” Ricky interrupted. His brother smiled and shushed him into silence.
“Yeah, Ricky threw a rock into the window and we even found the keys for both and they both seem to have gas. So that’s the good part. The bad part is that the batteries are dead.”
“So we jump them, right?” Louis said.
“Yes, we could do that, but we don’t have a running vehicle. We left them back at the base of the onramp. We could go find a newer battery somewhere but I don’t know if we have the time. The dead will find us eventually,” Deb clarified.
“Correct. So our best bet to get these two SUVs running is to find a stick shift somewhere to the south. The neighborhood goes uphill that direction so it should be easier to pop the clutch and get the car here,” Lars paused as Kahn and Jesse nodded at the plan.
“That sounds like it’ll work. Who’s popped a clutch before?” Jesse watched as Deb and Ice raised their hands. “Okay. With me and Lars that makes four groups that can go search for cars. Deb with Daisy, Kahn with Ice, Lars with Ricky and Wiggs with me. Louis, you can stay and watch the kids. That work for everyone?”
“That’s fine with me but you forgot someone,” Captain Louis replied. “Where is Sergeant Kimble?”
“Right, so Kimble can come with me and the Wiggins can stay together,” Jesse said. “Where is he? Who saw him last?” Ice stepped forward and with a heavy sigh began to speak.
“I’m afraid Kimble won’t be able to help us find a ride,” she said. Kahn’s stomach turned a flip as he realized he hadn’t seen his partner since the day prior.
Since we got to the house last night. After we were attacked in the storm…
“Where is he?” Kahn croaked, stepping forward and gripping Ice’s arms. The rest of the group froze in shock at what Ice had just inferred.
“I’m sorry, he’s in the dining room. There was nothing I could do. He told me not to say anything last night--”
Kahn didn’t let her finish. He darted in the door to the kitchen and maneuvered around the corner into the shadowy dining room. He stopped and listened in the entry. The room was barely bathed in gray light from outside and Kahn had to wait to hear the labored breath of his friend coming from the darkest corner of the house. He approached carefully with light steps on the carpet. Kimble coughed once and pulled in another sickly breath. He had been covered by a blanket and had his bulky frame propped up on the pillows from the couch.
“Kimble?” Kahn whispered. It took a moment and another intake of air for a response to form.
“Hey, Hal.” The voice was weak. Kahn got on his knees and moved to Kimble’s side. As his eyes adjusted he was able to see the cloth wrapped around his friend’s forearm and the dark stain spreading on the light-colored bandage. “I’m sorry, man, I didn’t even know it happened last night. That big bitch took a bite out of my arm. I was so pumped with adrenaline that by the time I realized, Charice was the only one around to take care of me. I feel so tired, man.”
“Don’t talk, just relax. We’re going to get you out of here. Lars found some vehicles.” Kimble chuckled before his laugh turned into a coughing fit. Kahn patted his shoulder until the spasms stopped.
“No. I can’t go with you. You have to get these kids somewhere safe and you have to find Jesse’s wife.” Kimble’s body sagged as the effort of speaking overcame his strength. He turned his head and took several labored breaths against the wall.
“Kimble, you saved me. You pulled me out of the fire and almost died getting me away from the Neighbors. Twice. I’m not just going to let you die here. You have to get up and get out.” Kimble shook his head with great effort. He stared at Kahn with black eyes, pupils dilated. Kahn thought his friend’s skin was beginning to turn a pallid shade of gray. A wave of guilt brought hot tears to Kahn’s eyes. I should have been faster. I should have taken the shot. I should have talked to my friend more...
“Don’t,” Kimble choked the words out, “let. Me die here. Charice. Charice will take me. She already said she’ll try and get me--try and get me home. I want to die in my own home, Hal. You have to let me go.”
“Kahn?” Kimble groaned as the new voice cut into the conversation. Kahn turne
d toward the source with glassy eyes. It was Jesse, standing respectfully in the opening to the dining room. “Everyone went to find a car that we can use to jump start Lars’ find. I’m going, too. Ice told us what happened and that she’s going to take him. She’ll find us later at our place, we’re going there after we get the cars running. Just, stay here with your friend. We’ll be back.”
Kahn nodded silently in reply. Jesse pursed his lips and reached around to the back of his jeans. He pulled a heavy object out in a smooth motion.
“I’m leaving this for you, just in case,” Jesse set the black pistol on the dining room table with a loud thunk. “Just in case.”
Chapter 28
- Split
Split
Hal Kahn sat at the dining room table listening to his friend’s fitful sleep. Kimble was in the shadow of the corner of the room. His chest moved slightly back and forth as he took each involuntary breath. Kahn tried to focus elsewhere with little success. He couldn’t help listening for the breathing to end, and his friend to rise as one of the undead creatures that filled the city.
Captain Louis turned out to be quite the caretaker. He cleaned up after Jack and Bella finished their meal, the largest and most complete one they’d had in months, and escorted the happy kids back to their shared room at the back of the house. The supply captain paused briefly at the dining room entry to catch Kahn’s eye. He nodded once in acknowledgement, paused to look at the shadowy bulk asleep on the floor, and escaped down the hall. Kahn heard their muffled voices behind the closed door with occasional bursts of giddy laughter.
I should have been a better friend.
He saved my life, in the fire. He saved my life at the Walmart. He saved my life before all that, telling me to protect my family.
He did more to save them than me.
I should have been a better friend.
A volcano of guilt bubbled up Kahn’s chest and escaped with a choked sob. He thought about his own survival. He thought about his wife, Aisha, and his young son. Daniel, who would never grow up.
Nation Undead (Book 2): Collusion Page 19