To his right, Jesse was taking down a heavyset man who must have topped the scales at three fifty. The man’s arms were covered with bites and his entire left hand was missing. Dried blood ringed around his mouth and covered his chin. Jesse gave the man a shove then thrust a screwdriver through his eye. Milky liquid flowed from his burst eyeball as Jesse shoved the screwdriver deeper into the man’s brain. The man dropped instantly. His weight caused an achingly loud echo throughout the garage.
They both moved quickly to their next targets. Max brought his claw hammer down on the skull of a slight woman and bits of brain and blood oozed from the hole. He moved on to the next, a rather muscular man missing his nose, lips and a good portion of his cheek. His teeth were broken and bloody. His muscular arms flexed as he reached for Max’s arm and caught it in a tight grip. As the dead guy tried to lean forward to bite his arm, Max grabbed the man by his hair and stabbed him through the ear with a screwdriver.
A few feet away Jesse stomped on the head of a crawler who’d appeared from nowhere. It was little more than a head, shoulders, arms and half of an upper torso. He crushed the skull of a teenaged boy with his hammer as Max swiped his at a frail elderly woman. They both looked around and saw no more zombies in the immediate vicinity. They were concerned though about the way sounds echoed in the parking garage and hoped they didn’t just invite more of the dead to join them.
They slowly approached the turn to the lower half of the first level. Max nearly ran into one of the dead who had been standing against the cement pillar around the corner. It was a brunette woman who must have been around thirty. She had a full face of make-up that seemed unmarred by anything other than her vacant eyes. She was wearing a tight black dress and one strappy black high heel. Her other foot was bloodied with skin sloughing off from shuffling around the floor of the parking garage. Her fingernails were broken, and her hands bloodied. She had two large bite wounds on her lower arm where the flesh had been ripped cleanly away down to the glistening stark white bone underneath. Wearing only one heel left her off-balance which led to her advantage as she turned toward Max. Her full body weight fell forward onto him, her hands reaching for his face and becoming entangled in his beard. Her teeth snapped at the air just inches from his face as she tightened her grip in his beard and tried to pull his face toward her. He had to use both arms to hold her back and keep his balance. He tried to lift his arm to swing his hammer, but he was using all of his strength to push her back far enough that her teeth couldn’t connect with his face. The clicking sound her teeth made as she snapped her jaw at him made his blood run cold. Then Jesse was there, plunging a screwdriver through her ear. She fell to the ground taking a small chunk of his beard with her.
“Jesus Fucking Christ,” Max breathed as he rubbed his chin. For a few seconds there, he had thought he was a goner. Thank fucking Christ for Jesse. He nodded at Jesse and Jesse nodded back. The expression on Jesse’s face betrayed his emotion as well. They stood there for a moment. Max wanted nothing more than to sit and have a cigarette to calm his nerves, but they had to push on.
Chapter 11
Day 2
Michelle woke early as the sun rose. The barn was rather well lit with the sun coming through the elevated window. She, Joey and Lucia had taken turns keeping watch throughout the night while the others rested in turn. It was time for her to take over for Joey before they figured out what to do next. She grabbed some food and water from the trunk of the SUV and made her way up the ladder.
“What’s it looking like out there?” She asked him quietly while handing him a bottle of water and some pop tarts. She opened her own bottle and took a long drink.
“It’s slow, Mom,” Joey answered. “Just a few stragglers here and there. I haven’t seen any in the last hour or so.” He yawned and rubbed his hands over his eyes.
“Eat that, and then try to get a little more sleep. We may be getting out of here soon.”
Joey nodded then sleepily made his way down the ladder and over to the SUV. It was much more comfortable to sleep in the car than it was anywhere else in the barn. He paused by the flat tire on the front passenger side then he knelt down to examine it. Through it all, somehow the rim was undamaged. That observation perked him up and all thoughts of sleep quickly left him. He decided to try to change the tire. It wouldn’t make much noise and the dead weren’t around anyway.
Lucia awoke to the sounds of Joey moving things around in the trunk. He had removed the case of water and pushed the duffel bag to the side. He lifted the bottom covering to expose the spare tire and the jack.
“Ugh! What are you doing? I was sleeping,” Lucia complained.
“Do you want to walk out of here or do you want to drive?” Joey snapped back. “I’m going to change the damn tire.”
Lucia stared at him for a moment biting back her retort. Normally she would have started an argument, but she thought better of it. Instead, she reached over the center console to the gun bag on the passenger side floor. She pulled out her cell phone to see if she had a signal. At the very least, she could go online to check on her friends’ social media and maybe see if there were any new news reports. As an afterthought, she grabbed Joey’s and her mom’s phones too.
“Hey douchebag, here’s your phone,” She teased as she thrust his phone at him. He quickly checked it for a signal. Static. He put it in his pocket. He’d go online later to see if there was any news.
Lucia was busy checking her own phone and didn’t give her mom’s a second glance. There weren’t any new posts from any of her friends, but at least the internet was working. She climbed up the ladder toward her mom.
“What’s Joey doing?” Michelle asked. She couldn’t see him at the rear of the SUV with the trunk door raised.
“He thinks he can change the tire. He’s getting the spare and the jack out of the back,” Lucia replied. “Oh, here’s your phone. It’s probably still static, but the internet is working.” She handed the phone to her mom, her eyes still glued to her own.
Their escape from their home yesterday had been exhausting. By the time they had gotten settled in the barn, Michelle had forgotten about their cell phones. She didn’t expect to have a signal but powered her phone on anyway. She watched the apple light up on the screen then entered her passcode. She gasped when she saw that she had four text messages.
The first one was from Jesse. He’d sent it yesterday afternoon. He told her he was okay, and he was with Max, and that Michelle needed to get herself and the kids to Max and Anna’s house.
The second one was sent around 9:00 last night. It was from Jessie too. Michelle nearly collapsed with relief as she read the message. Jessie and Max were still together, alive and safe on top of the parking garage. Downtown was gone and the city was on fire. They were going to make their way to Max and Anna’s house, but it was going to take a while. He told her that hammers and screwdrivers were effective against the dead and they should try to move quietly.
A third message popped up from around 9:30 last night, this one from Anna. She let Michelle know that their husbands were safe and making their way home. Their house was secure and fortified. The dead didn’t know that the house existed, so they had to find a way to get in without alerting any of the dead. Anna said to do whatever they needed to do but suggested that they approach from the next street over and cut through the large property of the neighbor who’s land abutted Anna and Max’s at the rear.
The fourth message had come through at dawn. It was Jessie. They were leaving the safety of the parking garage roof before the fires reached it. They planned on getting a vehicle from the valet and would go from there. He ended the message telling her how much he loved her and the kids.
Michelle let silent tears slide down her face for a moment, and then pulled herself together to send a message to Jesse.
‘Babe, we’re safe. We spent the night in that big red barn around the curve from the mansion. Joey is changing a flat on the SUV then we’re going to make our
way to Anna’s. I love you so much Jess. Be safe and get here.’ Michelle pressed the send button. Then she sent a message to Anna letting them know where they were and that they were getting ready to head their way.
She looked out the window of the loft and saw nothing but lush green lawns and small parcels of farmland. The houses within view appeared normal. No zombies were in sight.
Lucia was glued to the screen of her phone, no doubt checking her social media accounts.
“Lucia,” Michelle started. Lucia looked up to her mom. “Dad’s safe. He’s with Max. He’s trying to get out of downtown,” Michelle finished. Lucia’s eyes teared up then she nodded. Michelle pulled her into a big hug.
“I’m going down to let your brother know. If he can get that tire changed, we’ll drive to Max and Anna’s.”
Michelle climbed down the ladder over to where Joey was working with the jack. She was proud of him. He had shown great maturity and leadership over the last eighteen hours, much more so than she would have expected from him at his age. It was as if he’d taken on the role of protector and man of the house in the absence of his father.
“Joey, Dad’s okay,” She said. He beamed up at her with relief showing on all of his features. “He’s with Max. They’re trying to get away from downtown. It’s going to take them a minute,” she finished.
“I knew he’d be okay Mom,” Joey grinned. “I should be done with this tire in maybe fifteen minutes.” Michelle nodded in acknowledgment.
She climbed the ladder up to the window at the rear of the barn. They had kept constant watch on the front while checking the rear occasionally. The rear opened up to a small field before meeting a wooded area that connected to the woods that sat between them and the fancy house. She didn’t see any zombies. That didn’t mean they weren’t there in the trees, but she was grateful that it looked clear. Leaving the barn was going to be much easier than arriving had been.
Michelle climbed back down, mentally mapping the route they would take once the SUV was ready to go. She was taking back roads, mostly little side streets that sat off the secondary roads. She hoped to find the way relatively clear but knew that there could be hundreds of zombies around any given corner. It would be much easier to maneuver the winding little streets with plenty of turnoffs to other little streets than it would be to take secondary roads or especially main roads.
She went over to the wall at the back corner of the barn that was full of tools. She was faced with familiar tools that Jesse used around their house and yard and tools that she had never seen before. She grabbed three hammers, a hatchet and half a dozen screwdrivers.
“Tire’s good to go, Mom,” Joey said with pride in his voice. He had just saved them from the prospect of walking and trying the dodge the dead while on foot.
“You did good, kiddo,” Michelle responded. She checked the gear in the front seat while Joey put the jack and the case of water back in the rear. She motioned for Lucia to come down from the window at the front of the barn.
“Any dead out there?” She asked Lucia.
“I saw two, but they’re across the street and they’re nowhere near each other. We should be good to go, Mom,” Lucia answered.
“All right, everybody check your gear,” Michelle quietly instructed as she opened the driver’s side door.
She showed her kids the assortment of tools that their dad had recommended using. They each grabbed a hammer and a screwdriver. Joey took the hatchet as well. He put the remaining screwdrivers in a pocket on his backpack.
Joey walked to the rear of the barn and removed the lift bar from the double doors. He moved one door a couple of inches to make sure the opening was still clear. Seeing none of the dead there, he opened the door ninety degrees, which was slightly wider than they needed to pull out. As he opened the door, Michelle settled into the driver’s seat while Lucia put her seatbelt on in the back.
Joey hurried back and settled in on the passenger side, again shifting himself around so he sat partially on the seat while his legs rested on top of the gun and ammo bags stacked on the floor there.
Michelle started the car, slowly pulled out and turned to go around the barn back toward the road. The blind curve to her right just past the tree line made her slightly nervous, but there had been very few zombies around over the last few hours. She turned left, away from the curve, seeing no dead in her rearview and let out the breath she didn’t realize she had been holding.
Chapter 12
Day 2
Max and Jesse proceeded forward while hugging the inner wall of the garage. The valet key box sat caddy corner to where they had paused. They could hear the sounds of the dead outside. Raspy moans coming from their mouths were overshadowed by the monotonous shuffling of thousands of feet on the nearby streets and parking lots. The noise from outside was making it harder for them to hear any zombies that might be inside the garage. They heard a string of gunshots somewhere in the distance and hoped the noise would draw some of the zombies away.
There were two uniformed valet workers stumbling around in the corner by the key box. They didn’t see any other dead between them and the box, but at the opposite corner just inside the entrance of the garage there were a few dozen shuffling aimlessly. Way too many for them to try to take out, especially given the size of the crowd wandering the street just outside. They were going to have to make it to the key box unseen and quietly take out the two dead valet guys. Then they would have to search through the keys quickly.
They had just passed a luxury, oversized SUV about a half dozen spaces back. A brief whispered conversation and they were agreed that it was their best option. Jesse noted that it was parked in space number twenty-seven, so they’d know where to look for the keys.
“You ready?” Max whispered. Jesse nodded back.
They moved slowly ducking from behind one car to the next all the way to the corner. With all of the noise outside, the two dead valet guys never noticed Max and Jesse until hammers were crushing their skulls. They dropped both bodies quietly. Max checked the box for number twenty-seven, relief washing over him as he saw the key hanging exactly where it was supposed to be. He quickly grabbed the key then they made their way back toward the SUV quietly slipping from behind one car to the next until they reached it.
“Damn it, the key fob,” Max whispered, “The alarm is going to chirp.”
“No choice bro,” Jesse responded, standing ready at the passenger side door. Max clicked the button and winced at the two short bursts of noise the alarm made. He hoped it wasn’t enough to gather any more of the dead at the exit, but he couldn’t see the exit from there and couldn’t do anything about it anyway.
They both climbed in quickly shoving their backpacks just behind their seats, but still wearing their safety harnesses and tool belts with their hammers and screwdrivers within close reach. The car started up as soon as Max turned the key, and he was surprised at how quietly it ran. Then he figured that was to be expected with an SUV that cost over a hundred grand.
“Slow and quiet until you get to the exit, then gun it,” Jesse said. They were going to have to plow through a couple dozen zombies to leave the parking complex. Max let the car creep along at five miles an hour until he made the left toward the exit. Then he pressed his foot down hard on the gas, hoping to plow through the small crowd without getting stuck. The power of the SUV surprised him. Bodies fell left and right as he drove down the slightly sloping road. A few slid under the car and a couple flew right over it, but he was able to drive right through them.
He made a hard left onto the six lane street. There were zombies everywhere. They were in the buildings, on the sidewalks, in the street and in wrecked cars scattered about. But, turning left away from the square he could escape the thousands upon thousands of dead that would certainly have overtaken them if they’d tried to go in that direction.
“Jesus Christ,” Jesse yelled as two zombies landed on the hood. A teenaged girl missing most of her lower jaw and her ri
ght ear with rings of bite marks all down her right arm landed on the hood with her face pressed against the windshield. What remained of her jaw moved in a snapping motion leaving smears of black blood on the glass. Landing on top of her was an old man who looked to have been at least seventy. He gripped the top of the hood near the windshield wipers trying to push himself through the glass. Max swerved, braked slightly then swerved again, successfully knocking them off before accelerating again.
The road was six lanes across with scattered parked and wrecked cars as well as a few ambulances and buses. Downtown had fallen so quickly that not many people had gotten a chance to try to leave in their vehicles, and the vast majority of people who worked downtown commuted via the rapid transit rather than driving. The road was a barely passable obstacle course of vehicles, but Max had a little bit of room to maneuver as long as the SUV continued to plow through the dead. Right now he had no choice but to push the SUV to its limits. If they were forced to slow down or stop the dead would overwhelm them within seconds.
“Sharp left at the light,” Jesse hollered at Max. The simple shuffling of thousands of pairs of feet made a lot of noise. It was hard to hear each other over the commotion without yelling. The light sat at a huge five way intersection. Three of the roads were at least six lanes across, with the other two being much smaller. Jesse directed him to a six lane road that would bring them nearer to the interstate. Max made the turn and saw that zombies were there wandering in every direction. They weren’t packed together like the zombies over on the square, but there were hundreds upon hundreds of them shuffling around the street ahead of him. Some were standing still but most were stumbling about aimlessly winding their way through and around the maze of stopped and wrecked vehicles. Those nearest to them immediately focused their attention on the SUV and reached for it as they passed by them.
Chronicles of the Undead | Book 1 | Urban Gridlock Page 9