“You know; this ensemble is growing on me. You all covered in blood and guts. It’s sexy in a... Texas Chainsaw Massacre kind of way,” he joked with that brilliant smile, trying to lighten the mood. I shot him a dirty look and wanted to reply with a snarky comment but I couldn’t contemplate a damn thing to say, so I busted out laughing. That made his grin widen and he kissed my, now clean, forehead.
“You sure you’re okay, love?”
“I’ll live, just sick of every time we come out to gather supplies, it’s a fight for survival. Living my life like this is wearing on me,” I complained. “I traded in wearing scrubs and trying to survive the day without getting puked on for jeans and combat boots trying to survive the zombie apocalypse. I must admit though; I’d rather be getting puked on.”
“Yeah but you would be all covered in puke without me to help you clean up. If this plague didn’t take effect, we would have never met. I realize that sounds dreadful, and is not a romantic story to tell our kids and grandkids someday, but I thank my lucky stars you wandered into my life when you did. Whether it be from a good situation or a frightening one, I’m still grateful. We’ve got to continue fighting so one day we can break through the end of the terror to discover something wonderful waiting for us. Plus, you are pretty efficient at kicking zombie ass.”
“Not entirely, I almost became zombie sushi a few minutes ago. I can’t believe I was so stupid getting that close to her. One tiny mistake is all it takes nowadays to get you killed, and I know better,” I admitted. “By the way, did you say “our kids and grandkids”?”
“Yep. Who says when this war is over we can’t have children? We will need to restore humanity.”
“Um… I guess I never stopped to consider it with everything always going on.”
“Well, it’s something we should think about, but only when the time is right. Which is not right now… obviously?”
“Yeah, no shit.”
“For now, let’s get a move on and scrounge up what we can. We will be running around after dark trying to get our fuel, and that makes me nervous.”
“You and me both. We should get the hell out of here and bust ass to hurry back home. But I want to resume our little “kids” conversation, as soon as we have the opportunity.”
“First things first, survive those stinkin’ monsters surrounding us,” he imitated Benji’s small squeaky voice. “Then we can talk about putting a bun in the oven,” he finished nonchalantly. He kissed my nose and strolled down the aisle ahead of me, cramming food in his duffel bag. I placed a hand on my belly and tried to imagine a tiny life inside. It was a scary but exciting concept. Hopefully, I would find out one day what it feels like to bring a miracle into this crazy world.
Chapter 5
After rummaging through the anterior of the store, Leland and I chose to finish where he left off and swept the back area from top to bottom. We were hopeful the previous foragers missed some valuable supplies. I followed him through the double swinging doors into utter darkness. Only our flashlight beams illuminated the broad hallway before us. I noticed an office to my left with papers scattered all over the floor and desk chair overturned. On the right sat the break room and restrooms. I swooped my light through the break room in search of anything beneficial. The snack machine had the glass broken out and all the contents missing. On the floor in front of the machine, something shiny reflected off the flashlight beam and caught my sights. I strolled over to examine what it could be. A smile stretched across my face as I reached for the object and realized it was a bag of Cheetos. Vicki would be thrilled. Before I could enjoy my treasured find too much, Leland opened the refrigerator door and released a foul stench that made us both gag.
“Ugh! Oh my God, Leland. Why would you open that?” I shrieked at him, covering my nose while I shoved the bag of Cheetos into my backpack.
“Sorry. I don’t know what I was thinking,” he replied, coughing against the offensive odor of rotten food. He slammed the door shut and exited the room. I stayed right on his heels.
The storage warehouse opened to high ceilings with twenty-foot shelving units. Most of the racks sat vacant, with merely a few remnants of cardboard boxes and plastic wrap. But in the rear, beside the loading docks, a few shelves contained some neatly stacked cases of canned goods that stood intact. Only one dilemma, they were on the second shelf from the top.
Leland disappeared around the corner to hunt for a ladder while I looked for anything else useful to our trip. I listened as he shifted things around, grunting with his efforts. My flashlight skimmed the dust-covered metal racks. A rat squeaked, causing me to startle, then scurried away when the light reached him. I let out a shaky laugh and carried on. The following object I stumbled upon, a package of baby diapers, produced another smile from me. Images of Leland and I having a little one played through my wandering mind. A raven-haired beauty with my emerald eyes, or a red-haired angel with his turquoise eyes…
The idea thrilled and frightened me at the same time. If it ever occurred, what would it be like for us to care for a child in this disease ridden planet? Just a stroll outdoors proved life threatening anymore. Maybe bringing a baby into this dangerous world would prove us reckless and naïve. But like Leland said, we would need to restore humanity after all the infected died off.
The magnitude of people the virus infected was mind-boggling. It spread so fast, we didn’t stand a chance on containing it. The last we heard, before the broadcasts stopped, the CDC had failed to discover an antidote or vaccine after various efforts. This virus seemed like nothing anyone has encountered before. America is now dead. Our highways are littered with the remains of “We The People”. Officials never showed up to check for survivors. We stand all alone out here. Nothing else mattered now besides surviving another day.
Sometimes I wished I could wake up from this nightmare I see every day. Return to my former life where things were simple and routine. Go to work at the hospital. Come home and walk the dog. Fix dinner and talk to Luke about my day. Drink a glass of wine and curl up on the sofa. Life was so easy then. Other times, I’m oddly grateful that this world went to shit. The particular reason being, I would have never met Leland.
That piece of me, hidden down deep, didn’t realize I would be capable of developing into the strong person I am today. My limitations were poked and prodded, but I came back fighting. The woman I'm destined to be was brought to light. If the outbreak never came about, I would meander through life a hollow shell. My full potential would remain dormant and I would never know my true calling existed. So I believe, no matter how complicated life is, everything you go through has a purpose.
I snapped out of my reverie when a thundering clatter erupted from the area Leland was exploring. The sound of metal crashing, and a muffled cry, got my heart pumping and my feet moving. I weaved back through the shelving units and turned the corner to find Leland buried under a dead body in a janitor uniform. The broom closet door swung on the hinges beside of him. A mop and bucket, brooms, bottles of cleaner, jugs of bleach and other indiscernible items were strewn here and there. I made my way over and tugged at the man’s legs to give Leland some oxygen. He wiggled beneath, trying to slide out from under the deceased man. A groan filled the air. At first I assumed the noise arose from Leland as he fought to pull free. But the dead body appeared to stir and changed from a motionless dead corpse, to a growling ravenous zombie. He latched onto Leland with a vengeance. Leland shouted and began fighting the undead man. He struck the biter in the face numerous times before I could shout, “Duck!”
He finally comprehended that I was struggling to take a clear shot and dipped his head down. I leveled my pistol and flashlight, then squeezed the trigger. The blast echoed off the warehouse walls, making my ears ring. The biter’s skull exploded on contact. Blood rained on Leland and the floors. He wiped at his face with a washcloth found in the broom closet rubble, then looked up at me.
“Nice shot, Annie Oakley,” he joked.
“Well, that you did, love. Thanks for saving my ass,” he added, still cleaning the blood from his face and neck.
"I happen to like your ass the way it is, so I'm always willing to save it. Plus, I'm returning the favor. You've saved mine too many times to count. What the hell were you doing in the broom closet?"
“Looking for a ladder, of course. I wanted to be thorough in my search and hadn’t come across one anywhere else. So I thought perhaps there would be one in the closet. My mistake. The janitor must've holed up in there when the market got ransacked. But clearly he was bitten. I cracked the door, and he collapsed on top of me. Supplies joined the party.”
“Well, shit. I’m glad I was back here with you. Otherwise we wouldn’t hear you struggling from the front of the store.”
“Yeah. I’m keeping you close by from now on,” he said with a smile.
“Agreed. Now let’s find that ladder and get our food. I’d hate for you to go through all of this for nothing.”
“Me too.”
We scooted around the debris and dead carcass to continue our quest for the notorious ladder. Jess and Alastor came charging into the warehouse after hearing the gunshot. We explained what took place and told them we needed a ladder to reach the canned food. With four of us searching in all directions, it wasn’t long before Jess finally found it stuffed in a dark corner. We sat it up and Leland climbed to retrieve the canned bounty twenty-feet up. We ended up with a case of every vegetable imaginable, six family-sized cans of baked beans, two cases of peaches and a case of tuna. Our little group hit the jackpot. We all hooted in excitement and cracked jokes about who had dibs on what. Never in my lifetime have I become worked up over a can of food. This is what the world has come to?
Alastor soon seemed like part of the family. Jess was crushing on him hard and I didn’t want to stand in the way of that. Leland gave him the keys to the car and asked him to drive around back so we could pack the canned goods into the trunk. Alastor disappeared into the front and we moved the food to the cargo dock. Leland pulled the chain to raise the gate. Darkness had fallen outside. The frigid breeze struck us like a sheet of ice and we all shuddered. Jess grinned at me. Her eyes ablaze with mischief.
“What is that look for?” I chuckled at her.
“What look? I don’t have a look,” she responded, feigning innocence.
“Yes, you do. What is up with you two?” I asked, wiggling my eyebrows at her.
She burst out with laughter and shook her head, “There is nothing 'up' with us. Why do you assume there is?”
“Because you’re grinning from ear to ear, and you giggle like a schoolgirl when he mentions the slightest thing. It’s not like you to act so girlish around guys. I’m a bit shocked,” I admitted.
“You are crazy, Autumn. I don’t giggle like a schoolgirl,” she frowned at me.
“In fact, she’s right, Jess. You do,” Leland chimed in.
“Whatever. You guys don’t know what you’re talking about. Just because I’m being cordial with the new guy doesn’t mean I’m flirting. I’m trying to make him feel welcome,” she tried convincing us.
“If you say so. And I never claimed you were flirting, you said that,” I told her with a sly smile.
“Well, it’s what you meant to say,” she retorted.
“Actually, yes. I do believe you’re flirting your little ass off. But if that’s what you choose to do, I won’t stand in your way. You deserve to have a companion, Jess. We didn’t mean to pick on you about it,” I said. She beamed as I patted her back to prove I was sincere in what I said.
Headlights flashed in the parking lot as Alastor pulled in behind the dock. He left the car running and hopped out to help load the food into the trunk. We passed him and Leland a case at a time until they were all gone. Afterward, they reached up to lift us off the platform and sat us on our feet in the snow. We jumped in the car and Leland left the supermarket in our rearview mirror.
Our next stop… the gas station.
Chapter 6
The last glimpse of the sun vanished behind the mountains as darkness embraced Cottage Grove. A chill creeped into my veins and I shivered against it. The car’s heater labored to battle the cold, hardly blowing lukewarm. Teeth chattered throughout the vehicle, reminding me of wind-up teeth I played with as a child. The gas station emerged in the distance as we snaked our path through the battered streets of my town. I muttered a brief prayer that fuel remained in the underground tanks. Leland turned into the littered station’s lot and parked beside a manhole in the pavement. He climbed out and called to Alastor for help. They retrieved 4 large gas jugs from the trunk and a manual pump to extract the fuel out of the reservoir underneath us. Jess and I decided to investigate the store for anything useful since the guys would be pumping for a while. I braced myself for the frigid air to hit me and opened my door to step out. No amount of preparation could make you ready for the sting of a wintry breeze as it laps at your tender flesh. We stood our ground against the elements and sprinted toward the building.
Jess and I pushed our way through the glass doors into the shadows of the small shop. I clicked on my flashlight and set to sweeping the aisles as she checked the front counter. We loaded our backpacks at the supermarket, so now we required something else to carry items in. I skimmed the area for anything that would do the job and came across a stack of empty boxes sitting beside the beer cooler. I snatched one off the top and checked the aisles again. It was surprising when I realized this store wasn't ravaged like the grocery store. A remarkable amount of food waited on the shelves for someone to come along and devour it. The coolers had a fair supply of drinks available as well. They were still chilly from the glacial air seeping into the building. I cracked open a bottle of Coke and sighed with pure contentment as the sweet bubbly liquid flowed into my parched mouth.
“What are you making weird noises about over there?” Jess called out.
“The sodas are still cold and it’s absolutely incredible. I haven’t had a Coke in three months. I forgot how delicious they were,” I replied, smacking my lips after chugging half the bottle.
Jess chuckled and said, “They have any Dr. Pepper left? I love me some Dr. Pepper.”
I searched the coolers and discovered three bottles of Dr. Pepper. “Yep, you’re in luck, my friend. There’s three left.”
“Thank you, sweet baby Jesus,” I heard her say as I packed the bottles into my box along with seven Cokes, five Mountain Dews, eight Sprites and eleven waters.
The snacks were still plentiful, so I took two of each item. My box was filling up fast. I worked my way to the front to sit it down and grab another. Jess was behind the counter filling plastic bags with batteries, lighters, pocket knives, and whatever else that struck her fancy. A table of spoiled fruit sat at the edge of the front shelves extending along the counter. Luckily, it didn’t smell too bad since it was freezing cold inside the building. I examined the racks behind me and obtained an absurd amount of candy left behind. The kids would be in heaven when we returned with all of this sugary goodness.
As I filled my second box with more junk food than one person should consume in their lifetime, I noticed a dog barking outside the store. Peeking through the tall windows surrounding the shop, I found an anxious Daisy yapping and prancing around in the snow. I instantly realized something was wrong. As I threw open the door, she rushed to me whining and jumped up to place her paws on my chest. A crazed look haunted her golden eyes as she continued to bark. She paced between me and the sidewalk, facing back towards the hardware store. I knew she wanted to tell me something, but I can’t speak dog so it took a second to comprehend. I peered down the street and could see the edge of the parking lot that connected to our shop. Pale gray smoke curled up into the air against the blackness of the sky. My heart fluttered as a thousand scenarios raced through my mind. Pan
ic ensued as I fled from the gas station, zipping past Leland and Alastor pumping fuel into the cans.
“Leland, something’s wrong! We need to go, now!” I shouted while bolting for the hardware store. I didn’t have the patience to wait for everyone to pile into Leland’s car and drive back. Daisy stayed quick on my heels as I sprinted up the middle of the street, my breath gushing in and out of my lungs. My heart pumped faster than ever before. It’s incredible how your body will react to fear, especially when your family are the ones at risk. Shocked at how fast my feet were moving, I glanced back to see Daisy easily maintaining the pace with me. Leland yelled in my direction before his car engine roared to life and tires squealed in his effort to catch up with me. I made it to the mouth of the parking lot when he slid in beside me causing snow and ice to fly through the air. They all jumped out of the vehicle before it reached a full stop. We bolted for the entrance to our temporary home. Broken glass doors were crowded with raging zombies forcing their way through. The source of smoke revealed a tremendous fire blazing inside. Angry flames danced high in the rear of the building as smoke clouds poured through the shattered doorway. Without pausing to analyze the situation, simply reacting, I swiveled my rifle around to the front of my body and squeezed the trigger.
The others trailed after me with their own firearms. Gunshots filled the night air and echoed off the neighboring hillsides and structures. With my mind locked into killing zone, I proceeded onward through the perishing crowd of biters. My skin throbbed with tension. My ears roared as the guns cracked open and showered bullets all around us. Sight of my surroundings narrowed down to tunnel vision with blurry edges. I remained fixated on the walking corpses in my vicinity. When my rifle ran out of ammo, I drew my reloaded pistol out and continued moving without a hiccup. I had to get to my family, nothing would stop me. Not even the hundred or so zombies that invaded our temporary residence. Bodies crumbled to the floor one after another, and with no remorse I stepped over them to move to the next. My only determination was to rescue Mom, Andrew and the kids. Even if I had to wade through blood, guts, or even fire… I would save them.
Autumn's Calling (Book 2): The Battle Page 5