by Kody Boye
“What happened that first day, Dakota? You know…when they came to your town.”
“The woman who ran the foster home had taken everyone else to the park. I said I didn’t want to go because I was still upset about being told that I would have to leave by the end of the week. I knew something was wrong, because I’d seen the reports of the rioting on the news, but she told me it was nonsense and to turn it off. It wasn’t long after she left with the rest of the kids that Steve came pounding on the door, screaming that the ‘zombies from New York’ were coming.”
“They weren’t even being called zombies at that time.”
“What were they being called before?”
“Infected,” Jamie said. Dakota shivered. Jamie squeezed his hand. “I wish I could be as strong as he is. I’m feeling pretty worthless right now.”
“Hey,” Dakota said, stepping away from the bed. He tilted Jamie’s head up so they could look each other straight in the eyes, unnerved at the feeling of the man’s beard under his fingers. “I’m gonna help you get through this. You don’t have anything to worry about.”
“You’ll help me?” Jamie asked.
“Of course I will. You can count on it.”
“There’s a meeting at dinner tonight. I’m not sure how it’ll go.”
“I’ll be there for you.”
Jamie smiled.
The sight nearly broke Dakota’s heart.
Jamie rose from his place at the head of the table. “Listen up, everyone! I’ve got something to talk about.”
Chatter around the table stopped instantly.
Please let this be ok, Dakota thought, scooting his chair closer to Steve as he waited for Jamie to speak.
“I know we’ve all had a bad day,” Jamie continued. “It’s tough, losing someone that we admire and respect, and it’s especially hard to lose a man like Sergeant Armstrong. I’m sure you all know what’s coming. We need a leader, someone who can keep peace and order as we try to rebuild ourselves and the world we now live in. By chain of military command, and by orders from the sergeant himself, I will now assume command of the Saint David’s Ward Mental Institution Base.”
“Bullshit!” Kirn cried, slamming his hand on the table. “Fucking bullshit.”
“Is there a problem, Deputy Kirn?”
“The sergeant would never let a pussy like you take over the base.”
“It’s in the note,” Private Roberts said, raising his voice above its usual low pitch.
“He was out of his mind when he was writing it, you fucking piece of shit!”
“He’s been out of his mind since the day this started, Deputy. In case you happen to have forgotten, Derek, Sergeant Armstrong had stage three testicular cancer. The chemo was the only thing keeping him alive. No chemo, no prevention; no prevention, nothing to keep the cancer from spreading.”
“It was probably in his brain by the time he died,” Jamie concluded, setting both hands on the table. “For your information, Deputy Kirn, Private Roberts was studying with the army to be a nurse before we were called back to service. And if you give either of us any shit, I’ll have you removed from the base.”
“So this is how it is?” Wills spoke up, his big mouth once again notorious for coming in two steps too late. “The sergeant dies and we get reduced to chicken shit?”
“The sergeant’s gone. I’m in charge now. Besides,” Jamie added, “neither of you were above either of us to begin with. You were cops before this. We’re soldiers.”
Wills said nothing. Kirn’s mouth curled to one side in a snarl, but he somehow managed to contain himself, despite the crimson spreading across his face like blood on a tile floor.
In the lapse of silence that followed, Desmond stepped forward with the food and began to arrange it on the table.
“Thank you, Desmond,” Jamie said, clapping the young man’s shoulder. He did not seat himself. Instead, he remained standing, looking upon the eight men before him. He cleared his throat to return everyone’s attention to him. “I’m instating a few other rules and precautions while we’re at it.”
“Here we go,” Kirn groaned.
“To start,” Jamie said, “we need more than just four men guarding the front gates. Our shifts are too long and it isn’t fair when any of us have to sit out in the cold and rain for twelve hours straight. I am appointing Michael, Dustin, Steve, Ian and Dakota as tower guards until further assistance is provided to us.”
“CIVILIAN AUTHORITY?” Kirn roared.
Jamie slammed his fist on the table. “Listen here you motherfucker. I don’t want any more lip from you. If you have a problem with something, please, feel free to speak up, but don’t scream.”
“This is ridiculous,” Wills said. “They’re civilians!”
“Unless you would rather continue your twelve-hour shifts, I’d suggest you keep your mouth shut.”
Dakota grimaced. The hot throb in his chest intensified. Someone’s going to pull a gun if this keeps up.
“Here’s the thing,” Jamie continued, taking a breath before he continued. “Everyone I just assigned to guard duty knows how to shoot a gun. Right, guys?” Every appointed guard nodded. “Erik previously addressed his concerns to the sergeant about one of us getting sick from exposure to the elements. With nine guards in place, we can alternate eight a day, two-and-a-half hours at a time, with a spare taking the place of another to give them the day off. I’m doing this to give us a break, and I’m doing this because I know it’s hard as hell sitting out there all day watching the world crumble all around us.”
No one spoke. Such a harsh statement was likely to create the effect, a ripple of emotion across a room of nine men. Even Desmond, usually reserved to such political notions, frowned, despite the fact that he was in no way involved in the guard duty.
“The other civilians will keep their chores,” Jamie continued, “and their weapons will be returned to them to better protect themselves. Military and law personnel will assist them with the maintenance of the building. Saint David’s will no longer close its doors to those who may need help. We will continue making supply runs on a weekly basis. This is only the beginning. We’re in this for the long haul, guys. We don’t want to start ripping each other apart.”
Steve placed his hands together and clapped. Most everyone else followed suit.
In the back of his head, Dakota couldn’t help but feel nervous about their new situation.
“I don’t like sleeping behind an unlocked door,” Jamie said.
“Who would?” Erik asked, bracing himself as they settled the mattress over the bare bedspring in the sergeant’s old room. “Especially not after what happened tonight.”
“Wait a second,” Dakota said, drawing both men’s eyes toward him. “The doors aren’t locked?”
“They were still renovating this place. I don’t think they ever got around to putting lock-locks on the doors.”
“There’s chains,” Jamie said.
“But they won’t do shit if someone wants to break into your room,” Erik said, gesturing Jamie to lift his side of the mattress.
Dakota turned to look out the windows, then allowed his eyes to travel across the room, toward where an old oak desk and a push-button phone sat in the corner of the room. “What did this used to be?”
“I’m guessing a warden’s office,” Jamie said.
“You know where I am if you need to find me,” Erik said, clapping Jamie’s shoulder. “It’ll be ok, J. You can do this.”
“I know. Thanks, Erik.”
The two exchanged nods before Erik left the room. Sighing, Jamie stooped to gather a tangle of sheets and blankets off the floor, then sorted them over the footrest. Dakota stepped forward and took the opposite end of a sheet when Jamie lifted it from the row. “Sleep with me tonight?” he asked.
Dakota paused in place.
“Not like that,” Jamie continued, pursing his lips when Dakota leaned forward to stretch a sheet corner into place. “I would ne
ver ask something like that. I just don’t want to be alone.”
“It’s ok. I’ll sleep in here with you tonight. It’s no big deal.”
“Thank you, Dakota.”
“Don’t thank me.”
Night offered no solace for the restless. Shrouded by clouds and hidden by rain, no moon would shine tonight.
Dakota lay in bed, shivering in the dark. Eyes trained on the window in the hopes that even a sliver of light would pierce through the clouds and offer some form of comfort, he listened to the sound of Jamie’s breathing, surprised that no touch had come any time throughout the night.
I would never ask something like that, Jamie had said.
“He’d never ask,” Dakota muttered.
Especially not on a night like this.
Not once had Jamie moved since they’d lain down over an hour ago. Their backs opposite, their hearts nearly in the same place, Dakota longed to roll over, to press himself against Jamie’s back and wrap his arms around his chest—something, anything to comfort him, but neither his heart nor his mind would allow him to do such a thing, for it was the beast of envy that was said to rest at night, in two lovers’ bed, in one place where, despite everything, all things were supposed to be well, and it would prey on them as though it had all the time in the world, silently waiting but ready to strike.
The bed shifted.
Dakota breathed.
An arm snaked over his back and a hand reached for his fingers. “Are you awake?” Jamie whispered.
“I’m awake,” Dakota said, joining their fingers together.
Neither of them spoke for several long moments. Dakota sighed as Jamie pressed half his chest against his back and moved his head to join him on the second pillow. “Is this all right?”
“Yes.”
“Does this make you uncomfortable?”
“No.”
It makes me feel better.
He didn’t speak his thought. Instead, he allowed his body to loosen under the taller man’s weight and resigned himself to his emotions. Already he felt warmer, though whether or not it was actual physical warmth he couldn’t be sure.
“Jamie?”
“Yeah?”
“Thank you.”
Jamie squeezed his hand.
A scream tore through the silence of the morning.
“What the fuck was that?” Jamie asked. They both sat up abruptly. Someone pounded on the door. “Get in the closet.”
“What?”
“I said get in the closet.”
“There’s a girl out here!” Steve called, pounding on the door. “Jamie! Jamie! There’s a girl!”
Jamie threw the door opened. Steve stumbled forward, jaw dropping when he took notice of Dakota still sitting upright in the bed. “What the—?”
“Not now,” Dakota said, scrambling out of the bed.
He pulled his shirt over his head and ran out the door.
“HELP!” the girl screamed.
She appeared to have fallen from the barbed wire fence. Palms shredded and face scrunched in anguish, she wrapped her fingers through the chain-link and looked on in horror as Steve, Jamie and Dakota ran to join Erik at the gate. Nearby, Kirn and Wills stood with their guns trained on the infected, fingers drumming against the curve of their triggers.
“Are you bit?” Jamie asked.
“No!” she cried.
“Don’t scream,” Dakota said. “What’s your name?”
“Alexis.”
“Alexis. My name’s Dakota.”
“I didn’t know anyone was here,” she said, sobbing, tears coursing down her face. “I tried to climb the fence and I…I thought I could get over the barbed wire, but then I fell and my baby…”
She sobbed. Dakota instinctively sought out the obvious swell in her stomach and felt a pang of guilt roll through his gut as he found it. “How did you fall?” he asked.
“On my back,” she said. “Thank God.”
“Are you hurt?”
“It’s just my hands,” the girl said. “I caught myself on the way down. I fell on my butt.”
“Goddammit,” Erik breathed, jamming a key into the padlock around the pull and push mechanism.
“What’s taking so long?” Jamie asked.
“I can’t get the fucking key to work!”
“They’re closing in,” Kirn warned.
“Don’t fire unless it’s absolutely necessary,” Jamie said.
A small group of about twenty infected shambled forward, their movements restricted both by the immense amount of decay plaguing some of their bodies and the vehicles situated against one side of the road. Alexis, still crying, looked over her shoulder, but quickly turned her head when she saw the corpses.
“It’s going to be ok,” Dakota said, wanting to reach forward, but not willing to get blood on his hands. “You’re safe now.”
“I can’t believe he left me,” the girl whispered.
“Who?”
“My boyfriend.”
A roar went up in the crowd.
Kirn fired a shot. “Runner,” he said.
“Were you with other people?” Jamie asked, pushing Erik aside to try and maneuver the key out of the padlock. “Was there anyone else with you?”
“N-no,” Alexis said. “There wasn’t.”
“How did you get here?”
“I jumped out my window and into our swimming pool. I’m not bit, I swear.”
“Just give us a sec, we’re gonna get you in here.”
“Hurry up with that gate!” Wills called.
“We’re working on it!” Erik cried.
Jamie twisted the key as hard as he could and the lock popped open.
“Shit,” Steve breathed.
Three infected came running out of the alley.
Alexis screamed.
Jamie and Erik ripped their fingers through the gate and began to pull it open as fast as they could. Above, Kirn and Wills opened fire upon the infected. The first went down as its kneecaps were blown out. The second and third managed to dodge the bullets or avoid fatal shots by taking blows in the chest and shoulders. One ran forward, tripped over the curb, then lashed out at the ground as it propelled itself toward Alexis.
Steve tore his gun out of its holster and fired.
Blood and brain matter exploded onto the third infected, stunning it just long enough to allow Kirn and Wills to deal the fatal, killing shots.
The gate rolled open.
Alexis ran in.
A choir of death began to sound in the streets as the zombies shambled out of the shadows.
“Someone has to check you,” Dakota said, leveling his eyes on the girl as they stepped into the locker room.
“I have to…strip naked?” she asked.
“It’s just a precaution. We want to check you for bites.”
“I didn’t get bit,” Alexis said. “I already told you.”
“I know.” Dakota sighed. He slid his fingers into his pockets and watched a few tears run down the girl’s face. “I’ll do it.”
“What?”
“I’ll do it. I don’t want anyone else to.”
“What do you mean?”
“I’m gay,” Dakota said. “I don’t know if it’s any help for you to know that.”
“You’re not saying that just to get me to undress, are you?”
“No. I’m not. They’re waiting just outside the door if you’re not sure.”
A sob escaped the girl’s chest. Pulling her shirt over her head, she tossed it into the corner and slid her pants down her legs, shivering as she stood before Dakota in only her underwear. He checked everywhere from her head to her toes, then sighed, gesturing for her to remove the rest. When she did, she stood there with her hands beneath her breasts, trembling in her nudity.
Dakota concluded his exam. “You’re ok.”
Alexis reached for a dry towel that sat on a nearby bench.
“Why don’t you go ahead and take a shower,” Dakota said. �
�The skinny guy with brown hair and glasses will take care of your hands after you get out.”
“She’s safe,” Dakota said.
A collective sigh of relief went up among the group.
“Good,” Jamie said, running a hand through his hair. “Now all we have to worry about is the infected.”
“We’ll get rid of them,” Erik said, adjusting his rifle across his back. “All we have to do is use the sound displacement technique.”
“That’s a load of horseshit,” Kirn said.
“Then you’ve got the job,” Jamie said, clapping Kirn on the shoulder. “You and Wills get to the roof and start working on it.”
“You asshole.”
“I may be an asshole, but I’m the asshole in charge.”
Kirn and Wills left, the former muttering something under his breath as they did.
“Everything else ok?” Erik asked, turning to look at Dakota.
“Her hands are messed up, but other than that, she seems ok. You might want to look at her back though. She said she fell while she was trying to climb the fence.”
“She’s also pregnant,” Erik said, reaching up to push his glasses up the bridge of his nose. “That puts us in a predicament.”
“We don’t even know how far along she is,” Jamie said.
“Are you kidding?” Erik laughed. “She’s at least five, if not six months in. We’ve got a real problem here, Jamie. We really do.
“I know.”
“We don’t have the medical equipment here to deliver a baby.”
“We’ll worry about that later.” Jamie shook his head. “For now, let’s just welcome the tenth member of our group.”
Alexis stood in the second floor lobby. Head craned forward, eyes reveling in the sight of the delicate strands of life beneath the plastic domes of the terrariums, she looked to be a child in awe of the world, innocent beyond her sixteen years and the baby growing inside her. Her lips parted into a smile and her hands started shaking, as though excited at the prospect of something great and wonderful. So captivated was she in her own little world that she barely heard Dakota approach.