by Steve Wands
Barbara didn't know what it was about her father that was so calming to her and she was in no mood to question it. She took a breath and found her resolve. Her father was right, they planned for this, they prepared for it, and now it was happening. She had things to do and now was the time to do them.
"I'll go tell mom and Jeff," she said.
He smiled at her. "Good girl, kiddo."
Once his daughter left the room and headed downstairs, Walter turned his again worried gaze to the dead things wandering around outside. Never planned for this many, he thought as he studied them. They're slow, he noticed, slow and unbalanced, but damn... there's so many.
"Dad." Jeff came running into the room. "What's going on?"
"Have a look-see," Walter said as he moved back from the window.
Jeff leaned over to look. "Shit," he said, "this is so crazy. It's one thing to see them on TV, but in real life...it makes you weak in the knees."
"Yeah, yeah it does. But we can't think about them. We got to think about ourselves."
Laura peeked in the room as Maria ushered the kids to their room.
"We have to keep our wits," Walter said. "We have to think ahead of them. We can't react, we have to act. Now, look at them. They're slow, and right now they're spread out. But if they get clumped together, slow or not we wouldn't stand a chance."
"Right, and if they all start pulling at the boards we'd be in for some trouble," Jeff said.
"It's early," Barbara noted. "That gives us plenty of daylight to be able to keep an eye on these things."
"And that's exactly what I want to do. I want to watch them, study them. I want to know everything about our enemy before we have to go toe to toe with them."
"Shouldn't we go for help?" Laura asked.
"No, Davis has been on top of things," Walter replied. "He either already has his hands full, or he's dead."
"Dead?" Laura asked, sounding shocked.
"Davis is the kind of guy that goes down with his ship. If these things are this close to us he already knows about them. If we go out looking for him we'd only be risking our lives even more. We're safe here for now, so that's exactly where we'll be staying."
No one argued, and no one wanted to go outside anytime soon.
***
Clem paced around the station. He'd gotten a solid couple hours of sleep, but his back ached, his neck was sore and his knees clicked with every step. He hated himself for getting so damned old and useless, but there wasn't anything he could do about it. He tried to walk the clicks out but they remained despite his efforts.
His stomach grumbled and he knew he could at least fix that. He walked around and eventually came across some packaged goods that would do the trick. He secretly hoped for a Pop-Tart but didn't mind settling for the ass end of a sleeve of saltines.
He paced around some more, making his way to the windows at the front of the station. The street outside was deserted except for a few vehicles. No one was lingering around outside. A quiet morning, he thought, never thinking that would seem strange. But here it was and it just wasn't sitting right with him. Only a few hours ago it was as busy as a bus terminal in the city. Now, it wouldn't surprise him if tumbleweeds rolled by.
Danni was sleeping soundly, and after checking on her Clem hoped he wouldn't make enough noise to wake her. Let the poor thing sleep, he thought. She needs it.
***
Jon-Jon drove back toward the VFW hall, avoiding several near accidents with the vehicles that were leaving the place.
"Maybe we shouldn't go back," Dawn said.
"If everyone's leaving we can just turn around again," he replied. "But if someone needs us then we're here."
"Okay. I was just sayin'."
"I know."
The van pulled up the hillside and sure enough the dead were still coming down. For all the fighting the living had done you would never notice. Most of the vehicles had pulled out and left. Jon-Jon could see the police cruiser had smashed into Eddie's car and neither would be able to drive out. He saw the vehicles were covered in blood and hoped to God that Eddie and his family were all right. He noticed the dozens of bodies strewn about and was relieved to see that none of them were fresh enough to be anyone he'd been surviving with--at least that's what he hoped.
"Over there!" Dawn pointed from the back.
"Oh, shit!" Jon-Jon said. "They're still going at it! Fuckers are crazy," he continued.
"Too crazy. Get them in here," she yelled.
Jon-Jon drove up fast, nearly startling the group that remained; Eddie, Joseph, Janice, Frankie, Scott, Judy, Chuck, and Chung-Hee. Before the van came to a stop Dawn opened the side door. "Get in," she yelled.
Chuck smiled. "Don't mind if I do," he said and wasted no time jumping in.
"It's now or never," Eddie said, rushing his mother inside.
Joseph called out to him. "Frankie, come on."
"We'll follow you," Judy said, leaving the group to run to her car, with Scott in tow.
"You got enough room or should I go with them?" Chung-Hee asked.
"Just get the fuck in," Jon-Jon said, eager to pull away from the approaching horde.
He did, and before they could close the door Jon-Jon spun around and sped away. Scott and Judy were already ahead of them.
CHAPTER 27: Decisions
Dane was hurriedly packing his suitcase. He put two pairs of jeans in, a few shirts, socks and underwear. He grabbed a few photographs and an old watch that belonged to his grandfather. He looked around the room, his eyes locked onto the walkie-talkie, which had been silent for far too long, and he felt the pangs of guilt bite down hard.
Susan came back into the room with their toothbrushes and a bag full of toiletries. She threw them on the bed and then headed right for her closet. Dane snapped shut his suitcase satisfied with his selections.
"Okay, that's done," he said. "Now I'm going to go put whatever food and water I can into the truck.
"All right, go ahead. I'm almost done in here."
***
Davis ran out of ammunition and also ran out of rage. He jogged away from the oncoming hoarde and headed back to his truck, grabbing the ham radio.
"Where the fuck is everyone? Officer down! I repeat Officer down! The situation is out of control I need immediate back-up!"
The radio remained silent. He tried again to no avail and began to slam his fist on the steering wheel. He turned the ignition and sped away as fast as he could.
***
"Can't you get that thing to work, man?" Keith asked.
"I'm trying, but I can't do much without any tools," Topher replied.
"Fuck. I can't believe this is happening. It's like they all planned this. You know? Why are they in such a huge group?"
"I don't know, it doesn't make sense. They don't communicate with us, so could they communicate with each other? Is that possible?"
"Who knows? I just hope we can get to Bruce in time," Keith said, driving as fast as he could.
They zigzagged through the countless staggering dead that had come to town. They were everywhere. Some of the townspeople were outside fighting them with whatever they had. One man was fighting them off with a shovel, another with a garden rake. Others simply took to their cars and fled.
Where are they going? Keith wondered. The dead are everywhere.
"I think I was better off at the power station," Topher said, fumbling at his beard.
Keith tried to think of something reassuring to say to him, that he'd made the right decision. But he wasn't sure if even he did agreed with the decision.
Two more minutes. Two more minutes and they'd be at the VFW hall. He just hoped that Davis could last that long.
***
Clem and Danni stared out the windows as the bloodied man approached the station. His hand clutched his throat which was bleeding terribly. His steps were tired and feet heavy, almost dragging on the pavement. In his right hand he held his service weapon at his side.
&n
bsp; "Should we lock the door?" Clem asked.
"I think he's a cop," Danni replied. "I remember seeing him at the station the yesterday. He's awful messed up, though...might not be safe. But what choice do we have?" Danni replied.
"I don't know. I don't know anything anymore. I guess if he turns we can handle him, especially if its just him. I don't see any body else coming."
"Guess you're right. If he turns, at least we can get his gun out of the deal," she said. She felt heartless even as the words left her mouth.
"Good thinking."
Clem went out the door, slowly approaching the man. "You need some help?"
The man nodded.
"Can you talk?" Clem asked.
"Yeah," the man said.
"What's you're name?"
"Jones," he replied.
"What happened, Jones?"
"Those things got me. They're everywhere."
"Shit. Let's get you inside."
Jones nodded, still clutching his bleeding wound.
Clem walked him inside as Danni held the door open. They sat Jones down. Danni rushed to get some wet paper towels while Clem looked for something to act as a bandage. Jones got up and walked over to the ham radio. It was turned off. He flipped it back on and grabbed the handset.
"The roadblocks are compromised...zombies everywhere..." he managed.
"Jones? Is that you? This is Davis...where the hell are you?"
"Yeah, it's Jones. I'm at the station...don't come here...fading fast, man...those things'll be here too, soon enough."
"God damn it! Sal's gone. You're hurt, I haven't heard from anyone else...was anyone with you?"
"Yea...all dead...haven't seen Dane, or Keith, though."
Danni came back with a bunch of wet paper towels and began to clean up his wounds. She touched him gently, but he winced regardless. Clem came back with a gauze pad and some duct tape.
"Best I could find," Clem said.
"Good enough," Jones replied. He didn't care one way or the other: he knew his time was short.
"Jones...how many deaders do you think you came across?" Davis asked.
"Over a hundred easy."
Driving as fast as he could, Davis kicked himself. Damn, we really are being overrun, he thought to himself. He was heading to the station, despite his inclination and warning from Jones.
***
"We're all packed up, let's get the hell out of here," Dane said.
Susan nodded as she grabbed the last bag of belongings and pulling Cher on her leash. She barked excitedly, thinking they were going out for a walk. She took one last look around. Her heart hurt at the thought of never setting foot into her home again, but she knew it would hurt more if she stayed.
She'd gotten this far in life by trusting her feelings, and though many might say it wasn't far at all, she couldn't be happier with how her life had turned out. Sure, there were things in her life she could have done without, the dead coming back for one, but she was healthy and loved and that was all she needed.
She looked to Dane and their eyes met and spoke what their mouths couldn't. She nodded, and left the room, looking back quickly once more.
Upon getting to the car Susan noticed the dead in the distance. Cher barked wildly, puffing up her chest as if to intimidate the dead. They were shambling about, some were moving closer to them while others were moving toward the other end of the street. Could they see her? she wondered, shivered at the thought. She tossed her bag in and followed right behind it. Dane closed the door and drove off.
"They're all over town, now. What do you think is happening, Dane?"
"I think we're leaving and it doesn't fucking matter, okay?"
"You don't have to be like that," she said as she stared out the window.
"No, I don't, you're right, but... I just feel like we're damned if we go and we're damned if we stay. We might not be any better off if we leave."
"I know, but trust me, it'll be worse if we stay. You know how you're knee hurts when its about to rain?"
"Yeah..."
"Well, it's kinda like that, but picture the dead as rain."
"Yeah, but my knee feels fine."
"I'm not talking about your knee--I'm talking about me!"
"Do you ever make sense?" Dane smiled.
"Shut up--Oh, God, Dane look out!"
A little dead boy shuffled into the street. His shoe was on crooked, just barely on at all, and his shirt was covered in filth. Flies swirled around him with no fear of being swatted away. Dane almost ran him over, and he wouldn't have minded. But Susan's reaction caused him to slam on the brakes.
She wasn't as used to seeing the dead up close. She had stayed inside most of the time since it all began. They were still new to her and she stared at the boy with wet eyes, a quivering lip, and a newly found pity for the dead.
The dead boy staggered closer, reaching his hands toward the window. His stubby ripped finger tips streaked the glass as Susan stared into the boy's eyes. They were void of emotion, but the dark bags under them spoke of a bitter sadness. Dane reached for her hand as the wheels of the car began to roll again. Cher growled at the little boy, ready to pounce through the window if she had to.
***
"Where the fuck did everyone else go?" Eddie asked.
"Wish I knew, man," Jon-Jon replied. "People just left...and to tell you the truth we did too."
"Well, at least you came back for us," Joseph said, grateful that they had come back.
"So, what, everyone just scattered? They just took off just like that?" Eddie said, growing angry and hurt.
"Like I said...wish I knew," Jon-Jon said, keeping his eyes on the few vehicles they were following.
"Hey, uh...kid. Sorry, I forgot your name..." Joseph started.
"Yu-Yussef," the boy said, but could barely be heard.
"Right, Yussef, did you see what happened to Alexis?"
Yussef shook his head, keeping his eyes to the ground. Dawn looked apologetically at Joseph, knowing he cared for her and not knowing what to say to him. She wanted to tell him that she was okay, and that they all meet up again soon, but she couldn't do that. She knew that there was a very good possibility she was dead. She finally managed to say, "I didn't see her, Joe. It was so crazy, everyone was running around like lunatics...getting into whatever car they could and taking off."
He nodded. Joseph couldn't see Alexis just taking off, though. Especially leaving behind one of the kids. She could have been extremely flustered and not have counted them, assuming they had all followed her and maybe even now she was looking for the lost little boy. He doubted it, but wondered nonetheless where and how she was.
He wouldn't admit openly but he could feel her absence in his gut. He'd grown to like her a lot over the past few days, which was unusual for Joseph. He was a young guy who never cared much for the attachment of a girlfriend, but in a world overrun by the dead he was beginning to see the upside to having one, and he really wanted one. But as luck would have it she was nowhere to be found. The grief he felt for his father and siblings had to be playing a role in his emotional attachment as well.
***
Alexis sat in the backseat of an SUV. She didn't really know the folks she was driving with well, but remembered their names. Abdul-Ba'ith was driving the vehicle. Next to him in the passenger seat was the constantly hysterical chubby woman who Alexis thought was named Carrie, but couldn't recall. She was getting on everyones nerves and only adding to the children's growing anxiety.
Alexis sat in the back with most of the children she had taken care of in Gerty's absence, and now missed her even more. She thought that if Gerty was still around she wouldn't have lost one of the kids in all the commotion. She hated herself for leaving but couldn't risk the lives of the rest of them for the sake of one. She could've stayed and left the kids alone with the folks from the gas station, but she didn't know them well enough and after being in the truck with them for the last few minutes she knew Carrie would be usel
ess and Abdul would have his hands full. He was quiet, and seemed put together. But could she trust this man who looked like a terrorist to take these kids to safety? She couldn't make that decision. She had to have faith that someone else from her group would have taken Yussef to safety. She had to. She had to have hope and faith, otherwise she didn't see the point in trying to survive.
She held Leela in her lap with her arm around Chris, patting his head as they cried gently. Nick and Stacey cried as well, but their eyes were glued to the rear window.
"Where are we going?" Alexis asked.
"I don't know," Abdul-Ba'ith replied, looking at her in the rearview mirror. "I'm just following the cars ahead."
"I'm not sure any of them no where to go. We all just took off right? Did you hear anybody say anything?" She asked.
"No. No one said anything, they just took off, I just figure they didn't want to tell me," Abdul-Ba'ith replied.
"Oh," she said, unsure of what to say next. "There's no one behind us and I don't see any of those things around," she said. "Maybe we should pull over and wait to see if anyone else has come this way?"
"Sure, that sounds good," he replied.
"What? No!" Carrie screamed. "Let's follow the others, lets stick with them!"
"Please relax," Abdul-Ba'ith said, "they're just driving blind: they have no plan."
"That doesn't mean we should stop on the side of the road and lose the only other people we know," she cried.
"We don't know any of those people," he said, pulling over to the side of the road.