This Dying World (Book 2): Abandon All Hope

by James D. Dean

  “Short wave radio,” Murphy replied. “I had a lot of spare time over the last couple weeks. There are still some people out there relaying information.”

  “Why were we out of the loop on all this?” Jeffries asked.

  “It wasn’t known until a day or two after the whole world took a major dump,” Murphy replied. “It took even longer to decide if it was all bullshit. By that time, we were hunkered down and hiding.”

  “Where did the black-eyed ones come from?” Dunford piped in.

  “Now that is a damn good question! I only started to see them walking around a couple nights ago. They kinda moved around like the rest of ‘em at first. But then I noticed that they could see better than the others after dark. Or at least they didn’t bump into each other as much. I saw their eyes though, that was confirmation enough for me that the game had changed. But that’s all I got. You know about as much about them as I do now.”

  “Not entirely,” Jason said. “You said earlier, they chose an alpha. What did you mean by that?”

  “I really hope I am dead wrong about that,” Murphy shook his head. He gave Titan another scratch on his head. “Like I said, I’ve been training dogs a while. Dogs are like wolves, you know, pack mentality. But in every pack, they have a leader. That’s the alpha.”

  “Why do you think that’s what we saw?” Jeffries asked.

  “Every pack animal has their way of picking a leader, most methods involve fighting. A lot of them end in death. That black-eye one killed its only real rival. Then the rest of the normal ones killed the loser that didn’t back down. It eliminated any potential threat.”

  “Why not kill the other black-eyes then?” Dunford asked.

  “No need,” Murphy answered. “They backed down. They took their place. With a lot of pack animals, there are several males in the pack. But there’s only one alpha.”

  “Jesus,” Jason sighed. “That means–”

  “That means,” Murphy interrupted. “They have a leadership structure. The alpha, and the other black-eyes that will follow its lead. Gender may not even play a part in this with those damned things. I’ve seen just as many black-eyed females as males. It might have to do with their brain power.”

  “How so?” Jason asked.

  “Well, we know they’re smarter than those white-eyed ones. One led a herd right to the house you were in. Another figured out how to open my door. I’d bet dollars to donuts that the black-eyes were responsible for that ambush. The alpha candidates may be chosen based on how smart they are. Then they fight for dominance.”

  “I didn’t see any of those things have black eyes though,” Jeffries said.

  “You won’t in the daytime. I think the eyes are something they adapted for night hunting. But I’d be willing to bet those shouters were black-eyes.”

  “What happens if two packs of meat sacks come together, and each has their own alpha?” Jason asked.

  “I don’t know,” Murphy replied. “I’m making a lot of guesses now as it is. I mean they ain’t dogs. I’m just calling it as I see it. The two alphas could fight for dominance over the whole herd, or they could ally with each other and work together. To be honest, I really have no idea.”

  “I gotta say Murph,” Jason started. “You’re not filling me with a lot of happy thoughts right now.”

  “You?!” Murphy laughed. “Buddy, when I get out of this tin can, you’re going to see a shit stain from my belt down to my socks! This scares the hell outta me!”

  Jason dropped his head, mulling over the details as a hairline trace of cold fear crept up his spine. A world of eating machines with the combined intelligence of a turnip was a horrific thought all by itself. Throwing in a leadership structure, and Murphy was right. This new revelation was a game changer.

  For some reason, as he mulled over the most recent trump card the dead had tossed down on the world, his mind turned to his family. He thought about Dan and Chris, praying his brothers and their families had managed to stay alive throughout the ever changing nightmare. He pictured his mother and father, his stepdad and his grandmother. He wondered about the rest of the family living in the mountains of Kentucky, and whether he would ever lay eyes on any of them again.

  His mind wandered to his youngest brother, Ryan. Ryan had disappeared after a fight with Chris years ago, choosing to cut ties with his entire family and set off to wander the country alone. He doubted he would ever see Ryan again. The end of the world had come and gone, leaving nothing but devastation and death in its wake. He wished he had done more to find his baby brother before the world died.

  He glanced over to check on Titan, instead finding Murphy staring back at him. Titan shifted his weight, laying his head on Jason’s lap. Jason stroked his golden fur, and was rewarded with a warm wet tongue coating his hand with sticky dog drool.

  “Family or friends?” Murphy questioned.

  “Huh?”

  “That’s what you were thinking about,” Murphy clarified. “I’ve seen that look staring back at me in the mirror a lot since…that day.”

  “Family.” Jason turned back to his window, still absentmindedly stroking Titan. “I have three brothers. I have a lead on two of them, but the third…I don’t know.”

  “He out of town when this hit?” Murphy pulled a plastic package of beef jerky from his hip pocket. He ripped into the plastic with his teeth, taking a bite from the dried meat before breaking a piece off for Titan. Titan’s head shot up from Jason’s lap, devouring the jerky in a single bite.

  “You can say that,” Jason continued. “There was some stupid family fight a few years back. He took off before anyone could mend fences. I wish I knew what happened to him. If he went down—”

  “I get it, brother,” Murphy said between bites. “Not knowing, that’s a monster bitch to live with. I take it we’re on our way to find the rest of your clan?”

  “That’s my plan,” Jason said. “Anyone who wants to come is welcome.”

  “I’ll tag along,” Murphy said, swallowing his last piece of meat. “Nothing holding me here, nowhere else to go.”

  “You know my plan, Gunny,” Dunford spoke up. “I’m going to keep looking. I think Jeffries is still with me too.” Jeffries nodded in agreement.

  “Looking for what?” Murphy asked.

  “The young Corporals here still have hope that some of us are out there still fighting the good fight. They want to regroup with whoever’s left,” Jason answered before either of the young men could speak.

  “Sons,” Murphy sighed. “Didn’t you hear what I said? There’s no cavalry riding in to save our asses. If there is anyone else out there, either it’s covert or they just don’t want to be found. Other than that, humanity’s been shit canned. You go lookin’ for holdouts, you’re going to be sorely disappointed.”

  The two men in front looked at each other, but didn’t say a word. They deflated back into their seats as silence crept through the vehicle once more.

  Chapter 10

  Joe slammed on the brakes, the bus lurching as everyone held on to what they could grab until the bus rocked back and steadied itself.

  Heads whipped around, their panic stricken faces staring at me with questioning eyes. Rosa leapt from her seat, rushing through the aisle toward the plywood wall that separated us from the back of the bus. She scanned behind the paneling and called out for Katie. Looking back at me, she shook her head with tears streaming down her cheeks.

  I launched forward to the exit. Had Joe not opened the door when he did, I would have plowed through it. My rifle was empty, and reloading it would have taken too much precious time that Katie did not have. My little girl needed me, and that meant my hammer and my Glock would have to do.

  “Dan, wait!” Joe shouted. I ignored him.

  “Katie!” I screamed. “Katie! Where are you!”

  I was suddenly thrust into reliving the worst day of my life. My daughter was out there somewhere, and the largest herd of undead I had ever seen was closin
g fast on the farmhouse. The only saving grace we had was the fact that Chris’ ability to blow things up had scattered their front lines, giving me a slight window to maneuver through the otherwise densely packed creatures.

  “Kaaaatieeee!” I screamed until my throat felt dry. I couldn’t see her. There were too many places for her to hide. I flew into a full blown panic, crying and screaming for her while trying to decide which way to run.

  Gunfire poured from the bus, punching holes into the bodies of the undead and sending fountains of dull red spray into the air. Mark floored the truck toward me, plowing into the walking remains of a petite woman. Its exceedingly long blonde hair whipped around as it somersaulted backward until it slammed down onto the hard packed gravel. Its midsection destroyed, the creature pulled itself along the ground toward me. Chris stepped out of the truck and put a hole into its head before it could go any further.

  “What’s wrong?!” he shouted.

  “Katie…missing. Can’t…won’t leave.” I could hardly breathe. My heart raced, vision blurring with uncontrolled terror.

  Chris poked his head into the truck, snatching up his rifle while rapidly explaining the situation to Mark. Mark snapped his widened eyes to me, mouth agape. He popped back up, bringing his rifle to bear and snapped off three well placed shots into the nearest rotters.

  “Daddy!” Katie’s screams echoed from within the house. I whipped around to see her tiny face poking through the plastic covered window on the second floor. She screamed for me again, her voice catching as she sobbed.

  The monsters heard her cries, their growls culminating into an intense frenzy. Their attention locked to the farmhouse and the promise of food within. Filth covered fingernails raked at the air as their emaciated arms stretched toward her innocent face two stories up. A multitude of teeth clacked together, biting the air in anticipation of a meal that was sitting well within their grasp.

  My breath caught, body frozen in horrific terror. I looked over at Chris, who had taken a knee and sighted down his rifle.

  “Daaaadddy!”

  “Go!” Chris screamed before unleashing a wall of 5.56mm death into the growing horde. A deep thundering report came from within the bus as Lexi’s Hawkeye sent a .308 round slamming into the side of an old man’s head, shearing off chunks from its skull as pieces of already dissolving brain shot out from its head in a putrid spray.

  I didn’t think. I had no rescue plans. I moved on nothing but the paternal instinct to protect my little girl. My feet were moving before I had any idea what I was doing or how I would do it. In a fear induced rage, my hammer tasted undead blood with unbridled fury. My body rattled as the hammer struck dead center into the bridge of a creature’s nose. Its face folded inward, feet leaving the ground as the force of my first attack sent the thing flying backward.

  Chris shouted over the ever increasing din of gunfire, trying to draw their attention away. Bodies fell around me as heads collapsed, their brains no more than bubbling sludge before they crumpled to the ground.

  The bus suddenly erupted with a blast from the air horns that Joe had salvaged from the ambulance and installed on the rolling fortress. The intense sound overwhelmed the multitudes of ravenous zombies, and nearly deafened me in the process. The horde split as the draw of living noise drew several of the dead away.

  Taking advantage of the thinned herd, I sped towards the house while doling out second death to the stream of walking corpses. My hammer streaked through the air, pulverizing the skulls of the things that had strayed into my killing circle. Brains dissolved in the brutally cold air, assaulting my senses with the stinging stench of rotting meat and ammonia.

  With every strike, I saw Abby’s tortured face as undead teeth tore into her flesh. My mind played back the images of Dale and Adam, men who came into my life with nothing but malevolent intent.

  My wrath took a turn that even I never expected as my ire focused on Rosa. A trusted friend who, when I needed her the most had been so careless with Katie’s well being.

  She’d left my daughter behind.

  I ripped my Glock from its holster, bringing it up under the chin of a creature that looked like it might have actually eaten itself to death. The thing was at least 400 pounds, waddling more than shambling as it advanced. It was male, I think. It wore nothing but underwear that looked two sizes too small on its bloated body. The creature’s head exploded as I squeezed the trigger.

  I fired my weapon at any head near enough to me that there would be no way I could possibly miss…until I did. I hit the slide release the second the slide locked back, then forced my weapon back into the holster. I didn’t have time to switch magazines, but I did still have my hammer. I didn’t have to aim with a hammer, I only had to swing it.

  I hit the porch at a dead run, bounding up the stairs two at a time. When I turned to look behind me, my gut sank to my feet. There were too many and they were too close. I wouldn’t have the time to get her and get back out before they were inside. I prayed that someone was working on a plan to get us both out before we were completely overrun.

  I stuffed my hammer into my belt loop and shot into the house, my momentum almost carrying me beyond the stairs. I grabbed the railing, snapping myself around and running up the stairs. I expected to see Katie at the window waiting for me with outstretched arms for me to whisk her away to safety.

  She wasn’t there.

  My already frayed sanity started to crack. I tore through the second floor, kicking open the hollow core doors with enough force to split the wood in half. I blasted through each room like a hurricane, flipping beds and tearing through each closet while screaming her name.

  I was coming up short.

  I spun on my heels when the sudden groan of the stairs grabbed my attention. A badly decomposed body slid its shredded feet across the floor as it reached the top of the steps. Splintered bone jutting out from its horribly disfigured feet dragged against the hard wood, snapping off in small chips as it caught small imperfections in the grain. Its head turned toward me, white eyes filling with a predatory stare. Decayed lips curled back in a wet hiss, exposing stained and mangled teeth. Delicate traces of red intermingled with the thick froth oozing from its mouth in long sticky strands.

  “Fuck you!” I screamed wildly as I barreled at the thing with my shoulder down, hitting the dead monster square in its midsection. It crumbled backward, crashing through what was left of the window behind it. I had to grab the window frame to keep myself from tumbling out, the sharp remnants of broken glass still clinging to the frame slicing into my palms. Searing pain shot across my hands as blood instantly pooled around the lacerations.

  I pushed back the pain as I caught sight of another monster ascending the steps. It leaned against the wall for support, its torn body leaving streaks of blackened gore along the bright paint. Sharp, intense pain shot up my arm as I pulled the hammer from my belt. Blood coated the handle the second I tried to grasp it, making my grip on the tool tenuous at best. My fingers felt weak, the rough plastic burning as it rubbed against newly exposed nerves.

  I knew immediately that trying to use my hammer would be pointless. Instead, I drew my leg up and planted a swift kick to the thing’s chest, sending it tumbling down the hardwood steps. Two more undead appeared at the bottom of the stairwell in time to get knocked down by my undead bowling ball. The three went down in a heap of rotting bodies and flailing limbs.

  My left hand had already started to swell, blood dripping on the floor in a steady stream. My right hand was not as badly injured, but as I stuffed my hammer back into my belt the skin tore. I bit down hard against the searing pain as every nerve in my palm burned like they had been touched with a hot poker.

  Clenching my teeth and pushing the pain to the back of my mind, I bolted to the last couple rooms at the end of the hall, shouldering my way through the door into what had served as my bedroom. The door flew open as soon as I made contact, sending me stumbling and almost earning me a face plant onto t
he floor.

  Katie stood in the middle of the room, hands clasped behind her back. Despite my less than graceful entrance, she did not move an inch. Her eyes brimmed with tears, lips quivering as she stared at me with a mix of guilt and fear.

  In a near panic I slammed the door shut, pressing the lock button on the doorknob. I did the best I could to shove the bed over to block the door, knowing that the cheap hollow core door would not last long. Shoving down the sharp throb in my hands, I grabbed the last clean shirt left in the dresser and wrapped my hands as best as I could before turning to Katie.

  “What are you doing in here?!” I shouted as I tied my makeshift bandage tight. “Are you trying to get yourself killed?!”

  She recoiled, her entire body shaking as she retreated away from me. I took a step toward her, and Katie took another step back, snapping her eyes shut and shaking her head.

  I was boiling. I wanted to grab her and shake the answer out of her. As I took another step toward her, I caught my own reflection in the bedroom window, and I froze.

  Wild eyes stared back at me through the thick coating of blood caked to my face. Dark red and greenish sludge streaked down my cheeks and coated my clothes. My bleeding fists were balled, gritted teeth bared in a snarl. I looked like a madman.

  She was terrified of me.

  The sudden realization of what I was doing hit me when I looked into her innocent eyes. I was there to save her, to keep my little girl safe. Instead, I was terrifying her more than the entire horde of zombies descending on the farm.

  I turned away from her, taking a few calming breaths. I unzipped my coat to wipe the sweat and gore from my face with my flannel shirt. When I felt like I was a bit more in control, I knelt in front of her and put a gentle hand on her shoulder.

  “Katie,” I said softly. “It’s okay. Daddy’s here. Why did you come back in this house when you knew we were leaving? You know how dangerous it is.”

  “I forgot something,” she answered, her voice low and skittish.

  “There’s nothing you forgot that is more important than your safety,” I scolded. “What did you need so badly?”