by Dan McMartin
~~~
Sitting at a crossroads, Pete and Anna looked over their map. It wasn’t detailed, just a California highway map. “I don’t want to go through Sacramento. It might be quicker but...,” Pete said, leaving his concerns unsaid. Anna didn’t need to hear them to understand.
“Too many risks. If Sacramento is anything like Oroville or Yuba City, we can’t risk it,” Anna agreed. Those towns weren’t nearly as large as Sacramento but they were still bad. Bodies everywhere, zombies wandering about, sometimes in groups dozens strong. The towns weren’t so big that Pete wasn’t able to get out but it was touch and go at times.
“I think we can take some of these smaller roads, come at the Bay Area through Vallejo. After that, it’s all urban but there’s not much we can do about that. If the Golden Gate Bridge was serviceable, I’d enter the city that way but apparently it’s not,” Pete explained.
“Yeah, the back roads weren’t bad. It will take longer but safer is better. I bet we can find a cabin to spend the night in up here,” Anna said pointing at the area south of Clear Lake.
“Yeah, I think we can make that by tonight,” Pete said and leaned over to kiss Anna. She folded up the map, a big smile on her face. Hope had returned and the events of that morning were mostly forgotten, faded into the muddled memories of all the horrors they had seen. There would be more, Pete was sure of it, but he had to believe that things would get better. He had to stay strong for Anna but more importantly, for his own sanity.
Chapter 10
“I can’t believe you didn’t check the gas gauge,” Anders exclaimed. “Stupid jarhead,” he added.
“You insisted on driving. You said I might have a mild concussion. Why didn’t you look, squid?” Gunny shot back.
“Well, you found it. You should have looked,” Anders argued.
“Just get your backpack and let’s find another car,” Gunny said. Both men climbed out of the Honda Civic and grabbed their packs out of the back seat. They shouldered the heavy packs and started walking. Each had secured a shotgun and a handgun at the farmhouse, Anders’ a .357 magnum revolver and Gunny carried a 1911 semi auto. The old man’s pickup gave up the ghost the day before. It never ran well and finally died, leaving the men stranded. A short walk led Gunny and Anders to another farmhouse, this one empty, where they found the Honda. But it was getting late by then so they spent the night after locking themselves in.
Every small town they passed had its share of what the pair had come to call freaks. They shambled about along the highway as it passed through town but disappeared for the most part in the long stretches of empty road in between. They didn’t see another living person. There were no cars on the roads and no people about. It was as if they were the last two men on earth.
It was eerie but they dealt with their fear, frustration and anger with humor and some less than gentle but friendly ribbing. They had spent one more night at the farmhouse they found that first day and set out in the old man’s pickup the following morning. They spent another night in the house where they found their current ride. Now they were walking once again, looking for their third vehicle in as many days.
“I can’t believe we didn’t look at the gas gauge,” Anders said after a while.
“It’s your fault, like everything,” Gunny told him, shoving his friend playfully.
“Yeah, yeah,” Anders replied. They walked for at least a mile. Off in the distance, they could see buildings through the trees but they didn’t want to leave the highway. They could clearly see their surroundings on the road and identify areas of danger. Out in the fields and forests, there were too many ambush points.
They would find another car sooner rather than later. Hopefully, this one would have enough gas to get them to San Francisco. If they had to, they could stop in one of the towns, fill up fast and get out before they were spotted by the freaks. But it was risky. Gunny knew better than to go looking for trouble.
Sure enough, up ahead they spotted another wide spot in the road, a small town if you could call it that. Probably a general store, a gas station, maybe a post office. Nothing much and probably not even on most maps. But where there was a small town, there were houses. Where there were houses, there were cars. There were probably zombies too.
But before the pair had walked another hundred feet, they heard something they hadn’t heard or seen all day. A car and it was coming up from behind. Gunny considered hiding but there was no time. A white Jeep emerged from behind the trees that lined a curve in the road and flew by. Gunny looked at Anders who was staring right back at him. Then the Jeep’s brake lights lit up and it turned around to come back.
~~~
Pete pulled his grandfather’s 1911 out of its holster as they approached the two backpackers. Anna pulled her revolver too. He eased the Jeep within a few yards of the pair and stopped, rolling down his window. The two men both wore their hair short and Pete couldn’t help but think they might be military.
“Is that your car back there?” Pete asked, cautiously leaning out of the window, his finger tracing the curve of his pistol’s trigger nervously.
“Yeah. We ran out of gas,” the slimmer man with the blonde hair replied.
“Where are you from?” Pete asked.
“Redding. We were on our way to Sacramento with a van of recruits when one of them...turned,” the bigger man with the dark hair explained.
“Recruits? You’re military?” Pete asked them.
“Chief Petty Officer Jim Anders and I’m Gunnery Sergeant Chris Rodriguez. We’re recruiters...or we were,” the bigger man said. “He goes by Anders. You can call me Gunny,” he added. Pete glanced at Anna.
“Should we?” he asked.
“Give them a ride? We’ll have to rearrange a lot of stuff but why not? They seem legit,” Anna told him. Pete nodded. He wanted to trust the two as well. Pete shut the Jeep down and climbed out, letting the men see his pistol as he carried it pointed at the ground by his side. The bigger man, Gunny, said something to his friend. The slimmer man, Anders, nodded.
“Let me grab my ID,” Gunny said holding his hands up so Pete could see them. The man called Anders did the same. Pete appreciated the gesture but decided he didn’t want to be like that. He didn’t want to be suspicious of everyone all the time. People were still just people, good and bad. These men didn’t seem bad and they looked like military, as they claimed.
“Don’t worry about it,” Pete said as he put his pistol away and offered his hand. “I’m Pete and this is Anna,” he greeted the two men. They all shook hands and greeted each other.
“Where are you two heading?” Anders asked.
“San Francisco,” Pete said and noticed the way Gunny looked at Anders. “You too?” he asked them after seeing their reaction.
“Yeah. We got word that there’s a carrier group on the way. We’re on our way to help out,” Gunny said.
“We heard a message on shortwave radio. It urged all military to report. It said they’ve got a safe zone there,” Anna explained.
“My commander spoke with a buddy in the CIA back east. That’s how we heard. They’re doing the same thing in Norfolk, Virginia,” Anders added.
“Maybe we can get our lives back,” Anna added.
“That’s the plan, ma’am,” Gunny replied. Pete noticed Anna’s smile at being referred to as ma’am.
“You two want a ride? It’s a tight fit with all our gear but we can make it work,” Pete offered. Anders and Gunny looked at one another.
“I’m up for a ride. You?” Anders said to Gunny.
“Safety in numbers,” Gunny replied and then turned to Pete and Anna. “We appreciate the offer. We’ll ride with you,” he said.
“We’re glad to have a military escort. We’ll have to rearrange our gear. Is that all you two have?” Pete asked, referring to the backpacks the two military men carried. He trusted the two men. They looked and sounded the part. They could have been lying but Pete didn’t think so. He wasn’t ready t
o start distrusting everyone he met. The zombies were the enemy despite the actions of the meth head and his buddies back at the cabin.
“This is it,” Anders replied. It struck Pete how normal this seemed. They were on the run, heading for some supposed safe zone. Many people were dead and more had been turned into what could best be described as monsters. Yet, they talked as if this was all normal, like it was just another regular day. Maybe it was just how people adapted in order to survive.
For the next half hour, the three men unloaded and reloaded Pete’s Jeep. They culled some of the gear, piling up the stuff they didn’t need on the side of the road. Sometimes one pair or the other had a better piece of gear or they had too much of something. Either way, they left it there thinking someone in need might find it.
Anna kept watch, circling the Jeep with Pete’s favored shotgun. Nothing appeared as the men worked. It was difficult to get all the gear in the Jeep and some of the gear ended up tied to the roof, but they managed to get all the essentials loaded. Each kept a gun handy as they climbed into the Jeep, Pete and Anna in front. The two military men insisted she sit up there.
“Nice ride,” Gunny observed.
“Thanks. She’s my baby. My ex-wife wouldn’t let me buy one so as soon as she divorced me, I bought it,” Pete replied.
“So, you two aren’t married?” Anders asked.
“Nope,” Anna said as she held up her left hand and wiggled her bare fingers. “I worked at a bagel shop. Pete used to stop in every morning. I flirted shamelessly with him but he was a bit...shy,” Anna joked.
“So how did you two hook up?” Gunny asked.
“I thought about her as I was leaving Reno so I went to go find her,” Pete explained.
“Romantic,” Anders replied.
“Apocalyptic love,” Anna joked. The men chuckled.
“You guys know that the power is still on, right? You could have filled up,” Pete observed.
“Well...um...,” Gunny began to stammer.
“He didn’t check the gas gauge,” Anders jumped in.
“Minor oversight,” Gunny said sheepishly.
“On both our parts. I guess we had other things on our minds,” Anders added. Pete unconsciously checked his fuel gauge. He had three-quarters of a tank left after a quick fill-up earlier.
“Honestly, we were trying to avoid cities and towns. Too many threats,” Gunny added.
“We feel you,” Anna replied. Pete navigated the Jeep along the two-lane highway with heavy forest hugging the road as it wound through the landscape. The patchy sunlight made seeing the road difficult in spots so Pete didn’t see the two wrecked cars until it was almost too late.
“Fuck!” Pete exclaimed as he slammed on the brakes. His heavy front bumper tapped the rear fender of one of the cars but he managed to stop the Jeep. “Everyone okay?” he asked. Everyone assured Pete that they were fine. It was a panic stop and nothing more.
They all climbed out of the Jeep to survey the crash that blocked the road. “After miles of open road and no traffic, I wasn’t expecting this. Guess I’ll have to be more careful,” Pete said by way of apology.
“I guess the tow trucks aren’t running today,” Anders joked. The foursome split into pairs, Pete and Gunny taking one side of the head on collision, Anna and Anders the other. They cautiously inspected the wreck and Anna shrieked at what she thought was a dead woman that opened its cloudy eyes and growled at her. The zombie was pinned behind the steering wheel of the far car but she was very much alive...or whatever.
“I got it,” Anders said and lifted his shotgun.
“No!” Anna told him. Anders looked at her, confused. “The noise attracts them and ammo is precious,” she said and pulled her knife. She approached the zombie cautiously and then sank the knife into its head as the creature craned its neck and gnashed its teeth. The blade did its work and the once human creature went limp.
“I would never have thought of that,” Anders admitted. He seemed as numb to the act of dispatching the zombie as Anna. Pete supposed they had seen their share of horror too.
“That’s why you’re a sailor,” Gunny said and smiled over the roof of the car at his friend.
“Ha ha...fucking jarhead,” Anders replied lightheartedly. Anna glanced at Pete and he shrugged back at her.
“You guys are good friends, huh?” Pete asked.
“Don’t let the banter fool you. I love this guy like a brother....despite the fact he’s a squid,” Gunny explained.
“A squid?” Anna asked.
“That’s what the jarheads in the Marines call us,” Anders told her.
“I see,” was all Anna said.
“So, how do we get around these?” Anders asked of no one in particular.
“I’m not sure. I’d go off road but there are a lot of trees, not to mention the steep embankments. Not sure I could find a path. Maybe we could winch them out of the way. This car looks like it might roll if we get them apart,” Pete suggested.
“Let’s do it,” Gunny said. The big Marine was a take charge kind of guy but he wasn’t overbearing. He deferred to Pete. It was his Jeep, after all. But once the decision was made, Gunny made it happen. He directed the others as they unspooled the winch and looked for a good spot to hook up the cable. Anders took watch this time as Gunny and Anna hooked up the winch cable and Pete attached the remote controller to the winch.
Gunny seemed to know what he was doing and soon the winch cable was looped around the rear axle of the nearest car. He even had Anna retrieve a blanket to throw over the winch cable in case it snapped. It would keep the cable from whipping about and possibly hurting someone. Then he put the car in neutral. “We’re ready,” he called to Pete after he had directed Anna to move off to a safe distance.
Pete nudged the winch to take up the slack and then it began to pull. The car resisted at first and Pete thought it might be too much. A moment later, however, metal groaned and squealed as the car gave way. The metal on metal grating echoed through the dense woods but there was no helping it. Once the car had been moved a dozen feet or so, Gunny put up his fist and Pete halted the winch and reversed it to give Gunny some slack.
“That’ll do. We can push it off the road, I think,” the Marine said.
“Well, you’d better hurry,” Anders called out. The other three turned to look and saw what Anders did. Zombies shambled out of the trees fifty yards behind the Jeep, just a few at first but at least twenty more appeared as they watched.
“Fuck!” Gunny exclaimed. The car they had moved had no driver. They had likely escaped serious injury and left the scene. Whether they survived long was another question. Gunny pulled the door open and turned the wheel as he began to push. Anna joined him while Pete spooled the cable onto the winch. Anders joined in pushing the car, as well. The banked curve worked against them and it was slow going.
Pete didn’t worry about the cable or how well it was spooled. He just reversed the winch and got it on the drum as fast as he could. When he was done, he faced the small hoard of the undead, shambling his way. Gunny, Anders and Anna had made some progress but their groaning and grunting due to the effort caught the attention of some of the zombies.
One broke from the pack and ran faster, then a second and third. Pete pulled his shotgun out of the Jeep and leveled it. He waited, however. He knew the shot would cause the whole horde to react and rush him. “Hurry up!” Pete called out as he looked back to check on the progress. “Just a few more feet and I can squeeze the Jeep by,” he advised.
“Just keep those things off of us,” Gunny shouted back. Pete turned back and now he had at least half a dozen of the gray creatures with the cloudy eyes bearing down. He aimed at the closest and fired. It went down in a heap, its head blown wide open. He did the same to the next closest and then the zombie behind that one but there was too many and even more had joined the rush. Pete was about to be overrun when Anders joined him.
Two shotguns opened up on the rush and more than
ten of the undead went down. But there were more behind them and the noise spurred them forward. Pete was out of ammo but Anders continued to pick off zombies as Pete reloaded. But Pete never fired another shot.
“Get in” Gunny ordered as he and Anna joined them. Anders used his last round to take down one particularly aggressive zombie that was flat out running at them. It went down as he ducked around the Jeep and climbed inside. A moment later, the horde reached the Jeep. It rocked forward as their mass slammed into the rear of the vehicle. Pete put the Jeep in gear as he slammed his door shut. He checked to make sure everyone was inside and drove as fast as he dared through the narrow opening between the roadside embankment and the wrecked car.
Pete heard metal on metal as he slipped past the car but he didn’t care. It was a small price to pay for survival. Once he was free, he gunned the Jeep and outran the zombies that followed. “Let’s not do that again,” he said.