by Kuhn, Steve
The flip side of the coin is that if she doesn’t lose enough of it, she will get taken advantage of… or far worse. That scares the shit out of me. Mom always told me that kids don’t come with a manual. Wouldn’t matter if they did anyway. With my luck, I’d get the manual and it would be in German, Spanish, and Japanese… The English section would be missing, and I’d be screwed anyway.
Entry 93
This morning’s air is thick with the smell of decay.
I woke up with Kylee in the sleeper of D-Prime, which sits behind a curtain that separates it from the actual driver’s portion of the cab. I didn’t sleep well at all, despite being exhausted, because the sleeper is a cramped space for two people and Kylee’s hair kept getting in my mouth. Normally, I wouldn’t complain, but we haven’t showered properly for nearly two weeks. It’s actually kind of interesting how the smell of body odor, while at one time was completely offensive, sort of fades into the background nowadays. No, it was more of an issue that her hair was greasy, stringy, and smelled like soil.
That wasn’t the smell that hit me in the face as the morning sun crept into the sleeper under the curtain. It wasn’t us. It was the dead.
Figuring it was just the wind carrying it our way, I stretched as I stood and slid out from the curtain into D-Prime’s cockpit, no differently than any other morning when it’s my turn to sleep in the cab. The others were no doubt sleeping much more comfortably in the relative darkness of the trailer. I’m sure I yawned and scratched at myself unceremoniously, as is customary in the early morning, but I don’t really have an actual memory of it. What I do remember, however, was rubbing my eyes and squinting as they adjusted to the bright light of the sunshine.
I fell backwards through the curtain at the sight of it, once more landing on Kylee with a thud, and then clapping my hand over her mouth before she could let out a startled sound as she snapped awake. I held her body down firmly and raised a finger to my lips to let her know that now was not the time to make a sound. She nodded her understanding, and I let her go, pointing to the windshield that was now clearly visible given that I had torn the curtain down on my way through it.
We both peeked out and just watched, jaws agape, as hundreds upon hundreds of the dead herded by us, slowly and methodically. We were right in the middle of the largest herd I’d seen up until today. It was probably even over a thousand of them. They moved like a plague of locusts, devouring any life in their path and leaving behind trampled earth and rotting remains.
You could see it as they drug themselves by us, bumping into the truck as they went. Many held human remains in their hands, chewing as they moved, while others carried pieces of animal carcasses, both domestic and otherwise. I’m pretty sure one of them was holding the rear half of a housecat, the whitish-pink entrails hanging from it and dragging along the pavement of the road.
They came from all walks of life (interesting phrase, right?).
But they really did. There was no real ’pattern’ to them or anything. There were some in hospital gowns, others in street clothes. Some wore their bathrobes or were naked altogether. Hell, I even saw one that was clearly male wearing women’s clothing and shuffling in broken high heels.
I whispered, “What if the others wake up? They can’t see anything outside. If they start making noise, we’re going to die here.”
Even if Fart let them know that we had company, no one could imagine the shit we were in. I made a mental note of sorting out some way to communicate with those inside the trailer if we made it out of this alive as she whispered back, “Probably.”
It was pretty much the dumbest thing she could say, and it offered absolutely nothing by way of a solution, but at least she said something.
She looked at me, clearly disappointed, but shook it off and pointed to her right, whispering harshly, “Look. There.”
I followed her pointing with my eyes and spotted the marines scattered throughout that area of the herd. They were chewed up badly, many missing entire limbs, and beginning to show the effects of exposure. I let the word ‘Kilo’ slip from my lips.
Kylee nodded and mused, “I wonder if they’re following the herd or if they’re still chasing after their brothers just like we are.”
I didn’t have an answer. I could give a shit less what they were ‘doing’ as long as they were doing it without pieces of me between their teeth, but then shit got weird.
Kylee’s breathing got a little bit heavier, and she started fidgeting. Like, her hands would ball in a fist and then relax and the ball up again.
We watched the bernies. They were so slow when they weren’t all riled up. Minutes passed but it felt like hours, and I continued to glance at Kylee. Her intensity was increasing, and her eyes were squinting, maybe even with tears… but it was rage, not sadness.
She whispered to no one in particular, “They took my baby.”
I whispered back at her in a consoling tone, “I know. I’m sorry that happened to you.”
But she just shook her head and repeated, “They. Took. My. Baby.”
By now, she was starting to make me nervous—Well, more nervous. She was starting to look a little psycho—not her usual, in control psycho either. This was different. She turned and looked me directly in the eyes. Even her dead eye stared into my own, glassy and nearly scarred shut. “I’m going to kill them—all of them.”
Under normal circumstances, I would’ve taken a page from Cutty’s book and told her somethin’ like, “Bitch, stop playin’.” I would’ve teased her for even suggesting something so stupid. I mean, that’s the type of shit she would smack me across the back of the head for.
But this was a totally different thing. It was in the body language. She had the look of someone who already made a decision and wasn’t willing to discuss it further—like that precise moment when an argument becomes a fistfight… or like when you realize you’re going to poop and no one is gonna be able to stop it from happening. Shit just got real.
I took one more glance outside at the herd and whispered harshly at her, “No! What about the others?”
She was already tucking pistols in her waist and readying one of our rifles when she replied, “You stay here. They’ll be safe in the back. If today is my day to die, so be it. But I’m killing as many as I can on the way out.”
She racked the charging handle on the rifle, and it click-clacked loudly. She stood there looking at me with her hand on her hip as if she would walk right through me to get out. And I know she would have.
Flinching slightly at the noise, I shot a look over my shoulder and noticed that nearly the entire herd had stopped in its tracks when she racked that rifle. Like a crowd-wave at a stadium event, the dead began to stop and stand still in an undulating ripple from D-Prime and extending outward. Staring almost attentively, as if listening for the source of the noise, they played off of one another in a nearly hive-mind state and sniffed the air. Some moved only their heads to pick up the surrounding sounds in an effort to weed out the possible warm flesh in the vicinity.
I did the only thing that popped in my head at that moment. I swung with everything I had and caught her right on the button.
Yes. I hit a woman. I knocked Kylee right the fuck out, on the spot. I grabbed her as she lost her footing and laid her back down on the cushion of the sleeper.
Now, here I sit… waiting for the herd to pass—worrying… worrying about the others waking up while the dead are still passing and worrying more about what Kylee is gonna do to me when she comes to.
Either way, my afternoon just got shittier than my morning if you can believe it.
Entry 94
The herd took nearly two hours to move far enough away for me to jump out and inform the others of what we saw. I got the feeling they thought I was exaggerating, because they all just sort of shook it off and readied themselves for the rest of the day’s traveling.
It was JC who finally pulled me aside and asked, “How bad was it, really?”
&n
bsp; I just told him that we were lucky.
Seeing me speechless seemed to have more effect than an actual description, so he let it pass. He changed the subject, asking, “What’s her problem?” and gesturing to Kylee.
She was glaring at me. If looks could kill, I would have died, turned, and died again.
I pulled him away from the crowd a bit and told him about how she lost her composure. I told him the whole story.
He sucked his teeth thoughtfully for a minute and then, with a smart-ass grin, he slapped me on the shoulder. “You got a mean left hook. I know that from experience, ya fucker… and I let that shit slide between you and me because I know you been through some fucked-up shit. Hell, I dare say I respect you for it.”
I nodded my thanks to him for saying that.
Finishing the thought, he told me, “Kylee, on the other hand, is gonna fuck you up for that.”
He walked away, chuckling to himself, and my stomach felt sick at the prospect of getting in the jeep with her.
I couldn’t stall any longer. Kylee was leaning against the jeep, brooding as I approached slowly. It felt like the old days when you had a fight scheduled for after school and you weren’t sure if you could win it or not.
She stood up as I got close, but said nothing.
As I stammered to start my apology and an explanation, she snapped, “Shut up.”
I was like, “But, but, but—”
She repeated, “Just shut up.”
I shrugged and stared at the ground, preparing myself to get both physically and verbally blasted, but she softened a bit, saying, “I know. And thank you.”
A cautious relief washed over me as I looked up from the ground.
She went on to say, “I’m sorry, too. I lost my head for a second. I don’t even know what I thought I was gonna do. We didn’t even have enough ammo for half of them. I know.”
She hugged me.
As she let go and stepped back, I told her I didn’t know what else to do at the time.
I glanced over my shoulder and, catching JC’s attention, made a face like, ‘All right, that worked out perfectly.’
He returned the look with a silent nod of impressed approval.
I turned back to Kylee, and she slowly toyed with my shirt, glancing up at me demurely.
I was thinking, Holy Shit! This is happening. She’s totally going to kiss me right now.
As she smiled a sexy smile and leaned in slightly, I was ready, man. Go time! I closed my eyes and leaned in, too.
Crack!
Kylee kneed me so hard in the fucking nut sack that I dropped to both knees like a rag doll with tears in my eyes and a searing pain in my abdomen. Gasping for breath, I reached out a hand to surrender as the other clutched my balls.
She looked down at me, grinning, and said, “That makes us about even…” Then, she spun on her heels to get in the jeep.
I drug myself up using the jeep for support and made my way to the passenger seat, cradling my aching coin purse with JC’s laughter echoing from behind me.
“Way to go, Romeo!” he taunted as Cutty fired up D-Prime.
There was a town on the map about four miles ahead, and it was shopping day.
I hate shopping day.
Entry 95
Spearville, Kansas: City of Windmills. Population 813.
Not anymore.
Population zero.
‘AREA EVACUATED! United States Marine Corps headed southwest on 54!’
Kylee spat on the sign. “The fucking paint is still tacky.”
Cutty shook his head and told her, “Dis shit gettin’ old, man. We always right behind dey asses.”
Dana made her way to us with Lilly, who rubbed her eyes and asked, “Where’s all the people? I don’t even see any monsters.”
Murphy nodded at the others as he approached with Rebecca and Kylee. He tossed a hunk of stale bread to Lilly. She didn’t catch it, and the moment it hit the ground, Fart snapped it up and swallowed it down. Greedy-ass dog didn’t even chew it. Murphy passed Lilly another piece without tossing it this time and told her, “We need to teach her some manners, huh, kiddo?”
Lilly smiled and told Murphy, “Oh it’s all right, Murph. She’s hungry just like the rest of us.”
Dana smiled at Lilly and corrected her gently, saying, “‘Mr. Murphy,’ Lilly, not ‘Murph,’ okay?”
Lilly twisted her lips curiously and told Dana, “Well, JC calls him ‘Murph’ and so does Dext. Why can’t I call him that, too?”
Dana explained, “Because Dext and JC are adults—”
Kylee interjected sarcastically without taking her eye off the sign, giving a snarky, “Debatable!”
Dana hid her smile from Lilly in an effort to maintain the authoritative tone and finished the thought, saying, “You’re still a kid, and kids have to use ‘Mister’ or ‘Miss’ when speaking to adults.”
Lilly rolled her eyes and exclaimed, “Oh, son of a dammit!”
We all sort of chuckled at the complete lack of context with which Lilly’s first attempt at cursing came about, but we tried to hold it together for Dana’s sake as she snapped, “Lillith Harley Aricott! You watch your mouth, young lady! You do not speak like that, do you hear me?”
Lilly frowned and turned beet red, telling Dana, “Yes.” Her little bottom lip poked out and quivered as she tried to hold back her tears.
Dana kept on Lilly, demanding, “Where did you hear that?”
Lilly pointed at the culprit and said, “JC… I mean, Mr. JC.”
Dana rolled her eyes and threw her hands up, saying, “Oh! I should’ve known.”
JC swung his bear over his shoulder and smirked as he told Dana, “In fairness to my own grammar and artistic use of the English language, she most certainly did not hear that from me. What I said was, ‘Goddammit, son of a bitch.’ She just needs a little practice—that’s all.”
Dana scowled at him miserably.
JC winked at Lilly and ruffled her hair before telling everyone, “C’mon, maybe there’s somethin’ left in this little, shit-hole town.”
There wasn’t. It was desolate, and it was clear that Kilo left a care package much like they did back at the Haven, but it had been picked through worse than the corpses had been consumed by the vultures.
We moved in succession, building by building, house by house, but there was just nothing. Kilo was thorough; that’s for damn sure.
We came across one geek who was lurking in a little alley off the side of the main road between the market and the courthouse. It was fully engorged on who knows what… or who. It was so gross. It’s like they never know when to stop feeding. We’ve seen them before with big, fat bellies, all distended and somewhat pregnant looking, but this was the first time I had ever seen one that actually popped. It was topless from some time long ago, likely when she was attacked and bitten, and by now her skin was blue and grey. Black veins underneath her thinning skin patterned a roadmap all over her body.
I gagged at the sight of it. As everyone moved into the alley, covering both sides as we approached, the biter became attentive to our presence and moved to stand up. As it leaned forward, all the guts and black-red organs spilled onto the ground along with countless pounds of undigested flesh from inside its stomach.
Fart dashed past all of us and leapt into the air, catching the geek by the throat and landing hard. They both tumbled over, but Fart landed on top and shook angrily, growling and huffing heavily as the dumbshit hissed and snapped. Fart had it pinned to the ground and was actually standing inside of its gut cavity.
Lilly clapped and cheered. “Good girl, Fart!” she exclaimed almost merrily.
Rebecca stepped up and put her foot next to the dog’s mouth, taking over the pinning situation as Murphy called Fart back to his side. Lilly petted the dog and nearly had her face licked but Murphy, thinking quickly, put his bow between them and corrected both Lilly and the dog with, “No! Not until we can clean her up. A simple pet will have to do. Lord only
knows how nasty her mouth is right now.”
Lilly frowned, but quickly lost interest. She just sorta shoved her way past me and JC towards Rebecca and the geek before Dana and Kylee both moved to slow her progress, Dana saying, “That’s close enough, Lilly.”
Lilly told them, “I wanna do it!”
Kylee asked her, “Do what?”
“I wanna kill the monster. Can I do it this time, pleeeeeeease, please, please, please?” Lilly begged.
There was an awkward silence as we all looked blankly at one another before Dana told her, “Absolutely not.”
Lilly stomped her foot angrily as Rebecca coolly squeezed her trigger. The snarling ceased immediately, and we went about our business.
It was only about a minute later that we heard the second shot. It came from the same direction Kilo said they were headed.
JC perked up and fired one more shot of his own into the air.
And there was another from the same direction. We were communicating!
We’ve been traveling in the direction of those shots for about a half hour now, and we’re getting close. The reply shots are louder every time we stop and test them.
I wonder if that herd is listening, too, though. Whatever we’re doing, we need to do it quickly.
Hopefully it’s Kilo.
Oh, man! That would be so awesome!
Entry 96
So, the first thing the stranger said to us is, “Everyone out! Show me your hands so I don’t have to shoot anybody today.”
JC hopped down from the trailer, leaving the girls behind him. He racked his shit, took aim right at the dude’s face, and smugly told the guy, “Tell ya what, cupcake… How about you lower your rifle before we find out who’s got the itchier trigger finger?”
Two more men emerged from the camper behind this newest stranger. One was dual wielding two fairly sizable handguns, and the other had a rifle not unlike Junior’s old piece. They lined up on either side of the first guy and held their ground against JC.