Nuclear Undead: Wake the Dead

by N. J. McConnell

  “We need to talk,” Dad began as he sat there picking at a piece of grime stuck to the pants that he still had on. He stopped and looked at me with a serious expression then said, “I’m sure that you’re wondering where Mom and Ashley are right now.” I nodded yes.

  He took a deep breath and continued, “You see, your sister and a group of her friends wanted to go to Bricktown on New Year’s to watch the ball drop. Mom and I didn’t think it was a good idea for them to go there alone. You know how much trouble they can get into.” He attempted to smile at the memory of some of the situations that he had to rescue them from before, but it didn’t work. There was too much pain there.

  “Mom decided she’d better go along with them to chaperone. I tried to talk her out of it, but you know how it is when her mind is made up.”

  I nodded yes, opened my mouth to ask a question and then closed it after noticing how distraught my father looked. I could just imagine the scene unfolding. My sister would have been on her cell phone with her friends and putting on her best puppy dog look to guilt trip them into letting her go. They would’ve told her that it wasn’t a good idea, but Ashley doesn’t give up when she wants to do something. She would have worn them down until they agreed to whatever she asked. Because my sister was the baby of the family, she pretty much gets whatever she wants. When I was living at home, it used to piss me off.

  Dad stared vacantly at the wall with tears rimming his eyes. “When they left, they were so excited! Everyone was laughing and talking about how much fun they were going to have. There were some music groups playing that night and some other goings-on that they wanted to check out. They were all excited about having a night on the town - even Mom.”

  He stared off into the distance for a moment, then shook his head and continued. “I made your mother promise to call if anybody gave them a problem and her cell phone was fully charged when they left. She put that pink 9 mm I gave her on her last birthday inside her purse in case somebody stepped out of line, so I didn’t really have reason to worry. You know Mom.”

  I understood how he wouldn’t be concerned. Mom knew how to take care of herself. She had been married to a Ranger for over thirty years and had received the same training that I had, though she seemed to enjoy it more. If anyone could survive a bad situation, it was her.

  “The celebration is a public event, you know. I figured that with all the police being there keeping it safe for families with kids, a group of teenagers being escorted by your mom would be just fine.” I stayed silent while he continued, but I could feel the steady beat of my heart in my chest.

  “I wanted to go with them, but I had to work the next day so I went to bed and figured that your mom would wake me up when she got back. When she wasn’t there the next morning, the first thing I did was look around the house for her, but the car was gone and so was her purse. I tried calling her cell, but the call wouldn’t go through. Her side of the bed hadn’t even been touched. You know that’s not like her.” I nodded my head in agreement.

  He rubbed the whiskers that were beginning to cover his normally clean shaven face and with an irritated expression continued. “There was no reason for Mom to shut her phone off and like I said, it was charged up, so there’s no way that the battery was dead. When I tried Ashley’s phone, it didn’t go through either. I started thinking that something was up, so I threw on a jacket and drove downtown to meet up with them and make sure they were okay. I listened to news on the radio while I was driving there and that’s when I found out what was going on. From what the news said, all hell broke loose while I was sleeping.”

  “I circled around until I found her SUV sitting in the parking lot by the train station, but there wasn’t anyone near it. Well, no one that was breathing anyway. There were creatures in the parking lot hiding under cars and behind bushes. Mom’s purse and cell phone had fallen into the floorboard and the door was standing ajar. Her gun was on the ground next to the front tire. I picked up her things and then called out for her. I figured that they probably couldn’t hear me over all the racket coming from those things, so I walked around trying to find them, but I also kept having to fight off those crazy bastards at the same time.”

  He thought for a moment, then added, “I think that noise gets them excited or something and they start moving towards it. Anyway, I learned after wasting a lot of rounds that the only way to kill one of these bastards is to shoot them in the head. I figured that the police couldn’t arrest me for murder if I was only defending myself and nobody was alive to turn me in anyway. No one that I saw.”

  My heart plummeted in my chest with that last statement. No one was alive? What about Mom? What about Ashley and her friends? It was hard to sit here and listen patiently, but he needed to get this out. I waited and let him finish.

  “I spent the next few days searching for them. I looked everywhere that I could think of, but they just vanished. My phone was dead by this time, and I couldn’t get through to you or Ashley even before that, so I had no choice but to keep searching on foot. I stayed there surveilling the area. I finally found your mother.” He said with a cracking voice. “She was walking towards a dumpster where I put some zombie bait. At first I wasn’t positive it was even her, but when I got within a couple feet, I was certain. It was your mom.”

  Was? “Where is she?” I asked, though I already anticipated the answer.

  Dad held me close and then with a choked off sob said, “I’m sorry, Baby. Your mom didn’t make it. She had bite marks on her arms and didn’t even recognize me. I called her name and she let out that howl that they do and tried to attack me.” He looked down at the floor. “She’s gone now. We have to assume the worst about Ashley, too.”

  I didn’t ask any more questions. I know what Dad is saying and I understood it, but the pain of loss is almost unbearable. I can’t breathe; my body quaking with sobs. This can’t be happening. Not my mom and sister! Not them. I think I’d rather be dead than to face a world without my family. They aren’t perfect, but they are my flesh and blood and I love them. They can’t be gone!

  Dad is still holding me and I’m ashamed to say that I failed to realize that his loss may be greater than mine. The love of his life was attacked and if I understood the situation correctly, not only did she attack him, but he had no choice, but to end her misery himself. What a horrible choice to be forced to make! I’m so caught up in my own heartache that for a while, I was oblivious to his.

  I must have been suffering from shock because sometime later, I noticed that Dad showered and changed into the clean clothes that he keeps in the spare bedroom for when the family stays over. His hair is clean now and the stubble shaved off.. Although I noticed these things, I didn’t comment. The only thing I was able to think about right now was the awful ache in my heart and the emptiness I felt.

  Dad sat next to me, took my hands in his, then looked straight into my eyes.

  “Pumpkin, I know you’re hurting, but you’ve gotta pull it together. Okay?” I nodded in agreement, but didn’t know how to do it.

  “Listen, I met some other survivors on the way here. They’ve been waiting to come in to give us time to talk, but I need to let them in where it’s safe and we have to make some plans. We’ve got to stick together and help each other out if we’re going to survive.”

  Dad knows that even without a zombie apocalypse, visitors were welcome. We’ve always had an open house and I’ve never minded people dropping in. When I became a teenager, after we moved past the teasing I got for training with my dad, it was common to have impromptu sleepovers. If we didn’t have enough beds freed up, friends who dropped in unannounced would make pallets on the floor. Sometimes we’d use the kitchen tables and chairs to build tents by covering them with blankets and sheets, then we’d see who would go to sleep first and the loser got the whipped cream and feather treatment or woke up with a mustache drawn on with a magic marker. We had a lot of fun, but more importantly than that, there was a sense of belonging i
n our house and the security of knowing that our friends were always welcome.

  Dad left the basement to go outside and came back trailing a small group of people. They were all dirty and were toting weapons and carrying various belongings with them. The group ranged from a young college professor named Jason Morrow who even through my grief I noticed to be attractive and a couple named Pete and Virginia Albertson who were farmers. They were accompanied by a yellow mixed breed dog that Coco fell in love with immediately.

  Following up at the rear of the group was Coco’s favorite veterinarian, Nicole who apparently is friends with the Albertsons and came here with them. I felt a sense of hope in seeing her and knowing that at least one of the people I knew before the end of the world took place is still safe.

  It’s good to see women survivors. According to the HAM radio, many of them died. Women in this area haven’t been taught how to defend themselves like I was. When the zombies started attacking, they depended on men to protect them, but that didn’t work out. Yes, most women here learn how to point a gun and shoot, but when it comes to hand to hand combat, they just aren’t prepared to do what needs to be done. Many of them were killed during the first few hours of the outbreak and some were attacked while trying to shield their children from the zombies lurking outside their homes.

  For the most part, the men picked up baseball bats, golf clubs, pipe wrenches or whatever else they could find and beat the zombies back by crushing in their skulls. This is the South and many of our men have served in the military, so they are trained to fight. In fact, we have several military bases in the state and our number of veterans and active duty personnel is high. After they’re discharged or retire, some service members stay in Oklahoma to either enter into law enforcement or work as civilians at Tinker Air Force Base, one of the largest employers in the metro area.

  Chapter Eight

  Should We Stay or Should We Go

  “Radiation doesn't recognize borders. A meltdown in Japan or India, say, is a danger to the whole world. Wind circulates the radiation everywhere. Water quality is affected. We all eat the same fish. We use products from all over the world - if something is contaminated, it will cause harm.”

  Wladimir Klitschko

  After introductions were made, I showed everyone where they would be sleeping and where the bathrooms were so that they could shower and change. The sweet older woman named Virginia, who reminded me a lot of my own granny, gathered all of the dirty clothes together and after politely asking permission, began putting the laundry in the washer and dryer set. While she was busy with that, I threw together some food for everyone out of the leftover casserole and yeast rolls, then added various other things and baked an apple pie for desert. I cheated and used canned vegetables and frozen pie filling, but no one cared and I wanted to feed them as much as possible as quickly as it could get done. They looked as if they hadn’t eaten a good meal in days.

  After showers were taken and everyone was changed and seated around the living and dining area eating their dinner, we began discussing options for surviving. Nicole said, “I think that it would be best to wait it out for a while. This would be a perfect place if Sidney doesn’t have a problem with long term guests.”

  I was just about to answer yes when Dad looked over at me and shook his head. “We can stay here tonight while we plan what to do,” Dad said as he motioned around the basement, “But, we have to leave tomorrow.”

  Everyone stopped talking and turned his direction. He now had our undivided attention. The statement caught me by surprise. He just got here and he was going again? Was he planning to leave me alone? Dad must have noticed the look on my face. He quickly added, “You’re going too, Sidney.”

  I nodded and felt embarrassed at my reaction. Dad wouldn’t leave me and I was being ridiculous to think that he would. My nerves were just frazzled and I was having a difficult time in accepting all of the changes in my life in the last few days. I realize that I’m not handling this very well, but I’m doing my best.

  “Jason and I have been discussing the situation and if we stay where we are, our prospects aren’t good. Even if we’re lucky enough to outlast the zombies and they don’t realize that we’re hiding here, it’s inevitable that we’ll eventually run out of food and other supplies or eventually be forced to protect ourselves from other survivors that may not have the best intentions.” He looked around the room before going on. The farmer, Pete, was nodding his head slowly in silent agreement.

  Dad took a deep breath before explaining. “According to Dr. Morrow, there’s a much more serious threat that we have to consider and there’s not much time left to act.” We gave him our undivided attention. “Doctor, will you please fill them in on what we discussed?”

  “Yes, of course,” said the professor as he pushed his wire-framed glasses up onto the bridge of his nose where they rested precariously. He scanned the room for a moment before clearing his throat and beginning. “To put it candidly, we have under a week’s time to travel to the northwest area of the country and locate suitable accommodations. It would be in our best interest to travel far away from nuclear power stations if we are to survive the initial fallout.”

  I didn’t grasp what he was talking about, so I glanced over at the others to see if they understood. They all had the same blank expressions on their faces.

  “Oh, right. I see that I didn’t explain that very well. You need background information. You see, the United States and other countries who rely on nuclear power for their energy requirements will soon experience nuclear fallout much more destructive than Chernobyl.” He paused to let that statement take effect, which it did. “The fallout will be transported along with the airstream and anyone caught outdoors will be infected with radiation. Short of a full crew maintaining the nuclear power stations or getting them properly shut down, it is a certainty that they will ultimately overheat. The question is how long it will be until this happens. Because this situation materialized rather quickly, we must assume the worst and make preparations for our safety.”

  He pulled a crumpled United States map out of his pocket, laid it on the dining table and attempted to smooth it out before removing a pen from his pocket and drawing circles on various states. When he was finished, he looked up at us and pointed to the map. “These markings symbolize the locations of nuclear power plants located on America soil. As you may surmise from the absence of marks in some areas, there are none situated in the states of Montana, Wyoming and essentially much of the northwest region. In my estimation, it would be advisable to expedite our departure and move that direction as quickly as possible in order to secure shelter before the situation becomes hazardous.”

  He nodded to Dad who then took over. “Dr. Morrow is right. We should plan on leaving as soon as possible.” He held up his hands as people began talking over each other. “Now, whether you agree or not doesn’t change the fact that this is going to happen. None of you are being forced to come.”

  He looked around the now quiet room before continuing, ”I’ve travelled extensively throughout America and from my own experiences, I believe Wyoming will be the best choice of places to go. The population’s low and the people are well supplied with firearms, so not only will there be fewer of these creatures around to deal with than what we have here, but we shouldn’t have a problem securing weapons or ammunition if we need them.”

  He waited for that to sink in, then explained his plan. “There are several large ranches in that area that would provide everything we need to provide for our needs. I’m familiar with one ranch that would meet all our requirements. It’s owned by a man who I’ve consulted with in the past and the place should be empty. He has a home in the Hamptons in New York and only travels to Wyoming in the summer for vacation. This would be a perfect place for us to start over, but first we have to make it there. With some of the roads blocked off from accidents, it might be slow going and take us two or three days to make it. That means that we’ll need a
way to transport supplies and a safe place to sleep at night.”

  “What’s the house like, Dad?” I asked. “I mean, I know ranches are large, but is there space for everyone?”

  He smiled knowingly. “Yes, there’s more than enough room. There are about twenty bedrooms in the place, two bunkhouses with a connecting walkway and sleeping room for about twenty in each one, plus a few cabins. The main house has a movie theater, game room, bar, sauna, music room, library, indoor swimming pool and … well, you get the idea. It sits near a lake and is totally off the grid, so we’ll still have electricity and fresh water even though the power is out in most places. There’s plenty of land to farm and equipment to use to do it. There are horses, cattle and pretty much everything else you’d expect on a ranch.”

  “Who takes care of the animals if the owner doesn’t live there full time?” asked Nicole with a look of interest.

  “He has some cowboys who live out in cabins who take care of the animals and there’s a caretaker who makes sure the property is kept up.” answered Dad.

  “Won’t they have a problem with us just showing up?” Virginia inquired.

  Dad thought for a moment before giving her an answer. “The owner gave me a standing offer to bring my family there any time that the ranch is free and he made the staff aware of it. To be honest, though,” He looked at all of us. “It may not be necessary. From what I’ve heard, this infestation spread everywhere and anyone who was outside on New Year’s Eve turned. I don’t mean to upset you, but I won’t mislead you either. They probably won’t be alive.”

  We let that sink in for a moment. I felt horrible for all the folks who had died, but I was relieved that we probably wouldn’t be confronting anyone about moving into the place. Is that a survivor’s mentality or am I being selfish?