Zombpocalypse (Book 1): Contingency

by Mariah Lynde

  Frowning a little, I placed the last butterfly stitch in place before lifting my gaze to meet his own. Of everything we’d discussed in the last twenty-four hours, it boggled me that he was more upset about my character assessment of him then about what we could be facing.

  “All that I said, and that’s what you took away from our conversations?” Smirking a little in amusement, I leaned back and grabbed a 4x4 of gauze, laying it out across his arm before I continued, “The fact that you went down to the IT floor yesterday to try and apologize means you are a decent human being. I wasn’t intending to imply otherwise.”

  “Well, that is something I suppose.” He gave a soft laugh and then turned his head to peer at me. “So why dress me down? I mean, after all this what use is pointing out the flaws in someone’s character?”

  Admittedly it was a good question. I couldn’t fault him for it. The things I had said to him could be considered vicious.

  “You’re right.” I broke off a piece of medical tape to secure the gauze in place. “What I said was personal in nature, but the truth is I thought it necessary. If I’m correct about what we witnessed last night, from here on out the laws of survival have changed.”

  Not looking at him, I broke off another piece of tape. Fitting it over another edge of the gauze and sighing a little as I debated how to explain it to him.

  “How do you figure the rules have changed?” His voice wavered a little, that unsure note of trepidation making itself known. Instead of locking on to that I chose to pretend I hadn’t heard it as I answered.

  “Survival is a human imperative. If this thing gets out of hand, then eventually we’ll be depending on each other to survive. How far do you think people who ignore others and are abrasive will really get?” Stopping to peer up at him, I gave a small smile. “I’m many things, I have flaws, but when someone tells me to go away or give them space, I do. I don’t force my company onto them or ignore what they say.”

  “I just wanted…”

  “I know what you wanted.” Answering him softly, I put the last piece of tape in place as I continued, “Don’t get me wrong. I’m not saying that is a bad thing. When something is too much, we need other people to help us see clearly. The execution can sometimes leave something to be desired. If this is the end of the world, what do you think would have happened if you were with a group of people and treated them that way? I mean, think about it…”

  Pausing for a moment, I leaned back. Tugging a little at the edge of my makeshift bandaging to be sure things were secure. Pleased that it appeared to be intact and serviceable, I motioned that he could have his arm back.

  “In a few months, if things are shot to hell and you depend on others in your group to survive, how long would people tolerate you treating them with dismissal? In the wake of an apocalypse, or disaster…when the law of nature has become survival of the fittest, history has proven that mankind starts to thin out its herd. Those that are a detriment or hindrance are left by the wayside. Considering the way society has progressed, some sense of that will remain. Men like you, who are used to having your way or ignoring others in favor of their own goals will not be tolerated. You can’t run over people roughshod, because in the end they will cut you loose to die on your own or take care of the problem by their own hand. That much…the movies have right.”

  Stepping back, I started throwing the trash in the bag I had set aside on the table. Giving him a few moments to reflect on what I had just said and gaining myself some much needed personal space. Only when I had completed my task of clearing off the tabletop, did he finally answer. Again I found myself a little taken aback by his reply. It was yet another thing that telegraphed to me that Cal Mitty continued to be a man full of surprises.

  “That’s a pretty bleak way to look at things. Sad part is, you’re right.” His agreement with my assessment caught me off guard. Enough so that I jerked my head up to look at him, only to find him staring blankly at the pile of supplies strung haphazardly through my kitchen. Before I had a chance to think of some sly, backhanded remark, he continued, “History has time and again proven that when society is thrown back to a new starting point, those that rattle the cages and disturb the water are given a swift, if not violent end. Whether by their own hands or that of others makes no difference, the fact remains that those people do not survive. Which begs the question, as blunt as you are, how do you expect to survive?”

  A small snorted laugh escaped my lips and I shook my head. While his capitulation to my previous statement had been a surprise, him turning my words on their head to go on the attack once more, outlined just why I thought Cal Mitty dying would have been a waste. The man was quick, both mentally and physically when it was called for. While there happened to be some things about his personal character that I did not care for, he could prove to be a huge asset when someone was trying to survive in less than favorable circumstances.

  Which brought me back to his question: should I bother answering?

  That particular option held its own form of appeal, but so did shrugging him off with not even a whisper of what had already been set into motion. Still, considering I’d just dressed him down so fully, it only seemed fair.

  “You’re right, in most situations I wouldn’t stand a chance. This time however, I have options and for me that is an imperative. The group I plan on being around know me for who I am already and have accepted that.” Shrugging a little, I moved into the kitchen to drop the makeshift garbage bag in my hand into the trash can. Pulling off the nitrile gloves just after I had done so, I moved to wash my hands in the sink before turning towards him. “Crude as you may think I am, there are some people who like my personality. True, I can be more than abrasive at times, but more often than not, I can keep my mouth shut when it’s needed.”

  “So that’s it. You think you’ll just make it to your friends and all will be alright? Who’s to say that any of them, let alone you yourself will survive long enough to make it to some kind of rally point?” This time when he spoke, he did so as he moved to stand. Needless to say, his height was somewhat overbearing in my small and now cramped apartment. Careful to keep as much distance as I could between us, I shuffled back through my kitchen towards the refrigerator before I answered.

  “Again, a good point that would normally make me stop and think. Sadly, you’ll be disappointed to learn we kind of prepared for this. When you showed up today, you kinda caught me in the middle of part of my prep work for this whole fiasco. A majority of my friends are doing the same in their respective areas. So if this does end up being what we think it is, we have a plan.” Shrugging again, I turned my back to him and moved to open the freezer, grabbing a bag of frozen peas.

  “How can anyone prepare for something like this?” Gray eyes watched me in shocked consternation even as his body loped forward. For a brief second, I felt like one of those gazelles on the National Geographic channel, being steadily stalked by some lion that would soon pounce on me with a vicious attack.

  My pulse rocketed skyward and I stepped back without realizing it, slamming into the fridge behind me with enough force it made a soft ‘thud’ sound. That particular action had Cal looking at me in complete confusion while I wondered just what the hell was wrong with me. I didn’t even like this guy but my body had at some point decided to lock into attraction mode. While normally I would have praised the powers that be to experience something like this, in the middle of a half-blown crisis with impending doom, not so much. Fate and her timing could truly be a bitch.

  Steadying myself, I held up that bag of frozen peas like it was some kind of ultimate protection spell a hobbit would want while marching through Mordor.

  Before you ask, yes I’m aware of just how nerdy that sounds but frankly I don’t care. If you were to have given me a choice I would have taken a mindless horde of brain eating zombies beating down my door rather than having to deal with Cal Mitty coming towards me with that fixated look.

  “Well, I’m
always paranoid.” I began, the word flowing past my lips before I could stop them. “Being as most of my friends are the same way and have little social interaction with the world at large, we all kind of had a plan for when things went to shit anyway. It’s not exactly like we’ve been winning any economic awards here in the States. So, we always assumed there would be something. This is not the first time we’ve kind of gone off the deep end in preparation for some world changing event. What makes this different is that it’s more than just me that has witnessed it.”

  “What? Wait, you’re saying this is happening elsewhere and these friends of yours have seen it too?” He edged closer and I tossed the bag of peas at his chest. Shifting to the side, I took a deep breath, watching as his hand fumbled to catch the slick bag of rapidly defrosting vegetables.

  “For your arm…” I pointed to his now covered bicep that I knew to be brandishing a pretty impressive form of improvised bandaging. While it wouldn’t be winning any awards for prettiest dressing, it would get the job done. Peering up at him, I nodded once and sighed, knowing full well he deserved to know the truth. Once Cal Mitty headed out the door, I’d likely not see him again, so giving him fair warning was the least I could do. Not to mention that I could consider it my good deed of the day,

  “Yes, at least three others have witnessed something similar to what we did last night. One of which was my own father, and the others are spread out in various locations but all of them hold one commonality. Some are passing it off as a form of cannibalism, but the couple of accounts I have heard are a lot like what we saw in the lobby – no matter what people did to wound or maim the person, they just kept coming. Until there was a head shot or something else to take the person down.”

  “Well now I know why you believe that this situation is so dire.” For a moment, his words wavered again. I could hear the desperation in his voice, that tone which said he would prefer to find something, anything, to cling to. That particular struggle happened to be one I constantly had to wrestle with and I honestly wished that I could offer him what it was he needed.

  Sadly, I couldn’t. Hell, I had enough on my plate and found myself barely able to function from the sheer amount of weight that had settled on my shoulders in the last day and a half. If there had been an option on knowing what seemed to be coming, then I may very well have chosen to be oblivious. Honestly, I likely would have chosen anything else to save me from these feelings of stupidity and paranoia that had been plaguing me since last night.

  There were no illusions or belief that I appeared as anything more than a paranoia ridden mess. Hell, I admitted to it. My nerves were shot enough that with a man I barely knew in my domicile, I happened to be acting like a blushing teenager instead of readying myself for what I feared lay before me.

  For the last sixteen hours I’d been in panic mode, grabbing any and everything that seemed to serve a purpose in survival. In my conversation with this man, I had been given several outs but that niggling feeling in the back of my mind refused to let go.

  No, this was no mere accident or coincidence. It couldn’t be. There were also the accounts that had come from the others. Whether by hearsay or their own personal experience, while the incidents themselves seemed inconsequential, there were too many to dismiss this out of hand.

  A part of me clung to the hope that this whole mess could be contained. Much as I wished for that to be true the feral part of my nature which screamed its demands to facilitate survival refused to give in.

  Looking over at Cal, I saw him struggling with what I’d let slip. Exhaling a little, I moved to walk past him and towards the living room where the bags and boxes piled in the middle of the floor beckoned. While I very much doubted that it would settle his nerves to watch me begin separating and logging the items there, I needed something to distract me.

  “Yes.” I finally answered. Moving to pull the first box down off the pile and drop it to the floor with a solid thump before moving to push it towards the couch. “I’m no statistician, but I am intelligent enough to not believe it is all mere coincidence. There are too many attacks around the same time in too many different places to pinpoint a central event. Whatever this is, it will get worse before it gets better. I would prefer to be on the side of the living at the end of it all.”

  “There’s no guarantee that it will get that bad. Why dwell on the worst case…”

  “Because the minute you dismiss the severity of a thing is the minute it kills you.” I snapped back, looking over at him. Gray eyes locked onto my own and I found myself forcing my gaze away to focus on my hands peeling open the cardboard box in front of me.

  “You are driving yourself crazy. Miss Warren, I admit you have some valid points but you can’t just assume…”

  “Listen, if I wanted someone to save me from my insanity, I’d say so. Quite frankly, even if I did want that, it wouldn’t be you that would do it. So…why don’t you take my peas, slap them on your arm and get the hell out of here. I have things to do.” Unable to take his questioning on top of my own second guessing, I’d finally reached the end of my rope.

  “Is that really what you want?” His voice, that rich baritone of sound, echoed off the walls around me. Did I want him to go?

  Yes.

  Something about him set me on edge and made me more than a little uncomfortable. That wasn’t to say there weren’t other feelings and inclinations running through my mind and heart, but I couldn’t afford any more distractions than I already had.

  “Yes, that’s what I want.” I said softly, looking at the contents of the box before me without really seeing them. Still, it was better than looking at him.

  “Fine. I hope you’re wrong, Miss Warren. It would give me no greater pleasure than to show you the world is not completely made of darkness.” I didn’t look up as he moved toward the kitchen door to make his way back out. Anything I might have said as a parting shot never made it past my lips as the door opened with a soft squeak and then swung closed.

  The sound of the latch on the door clicking shut as he left sounded like some kind of ominous death knell. Why that was…I couldn’t tell you. Sadly, it would be sooner rather than later when we’d learn just how right I’d been and with that a deep seated regret in knowing I hadn’t been wrong.

  Chapter Seventeen – It begins…

  For several minutes after Cal walked out the door, I sat on the couch oblivious to the world around me. The scenes of the last several hours beginning with the lobby of the McGinley Building and ending with the exit of my unexpected houseguest began to play out in rapid flashes through my brain. Maybe I had been wrong?

  Could I be overreacting to something that happened to be nothing more than a coincidence? Maybe the supposed lockdown that Isaac had been talking about would prove to be a precautionary measure for an outbreak and nothing more than that. That single, brilliant ray of hope quickly dimmed as I began to take note of the world around me.

  The silence of the room was shattered by the intrusive wail of sirens from nearby. Just as my thoughts came back into focus, I realized that said sirens were actually just outside my front door. Well, maybe not right outside, but close enough that their sounds were echoing off the walls of the buildings within the complex and causing an ear piercing pain that made my temples throb in protest.

  Under any other circumstance, there would have been a joke about hearing the call of my people. Today, that was not the case as my already strained nerves couldn’t take much more. I was already jumping up off the couch and flying towards the front door to get up to speed on what was happening outside. There is no way to describe the feeling of dread that swamped me at the scene that presented itself. Cop cars lined the street leading up to the complex. Every single one of them was rolling in a slow processional while their horns blared and speakers squawked with the keying in of buttons.

  Considering it was dusk, there happened to be more people in the complex now. Some of them were running to the front gate in a p
anic. Others contented themselves with looking out of their windows as if avoiding some kind of mad man on the loose while they waited to hear whatever it was that the people in emergency services had to say. I already knew what they would hear. With the lack of fire engines and ambulances, this could only be a curfew run. A caravan of local law enforcement sent out to tell the populace at large that they needed to remain indoors for a set amount of time.

  There were a few nights a year where such a display was common, Halloween among them. However, at this time of year, this kind of action would only result in one of two things; absolute panic that caused people to overload the emergency system or a complete breakdown of civil obedience based on the panic this little warning caused. The last would normally result in a riot or some other large group display of disapproval from the populace. Personally, I wanted none of it.

  It did, however, do me some good to see that other people in my little complex had made it home safely. Where earlier I had been paranoid because of the lack of movement from others, right now the knowledge that they were seemingly here and unscathed meant things had not progressed to a point of madness. Sadly, it could only be a matter of time before everything took a turn for the worse.

  Ever since Cal’s visit earlier I’d been questioning the different decisions I had made. While my little nerd cave seemed decent enough to weather a storm, I couldn’t decide if it was a good idea to even consider weathering out the first part of this particular storm here. Yes, I lived in a gated community, but what happened if someone inside the walls turned? Did I really think that I could withstand that many undead to survive long enough that I could make my way back to my hometown?