by SJ Morris
“Hmm, curious, very curious.”He mumbled to himself as I reached up to pull myself into the windowsill.
Kamil came to the rest of the way and started screaming madly. I looked to Sampson and he shook his head no, tugging the rope tight to the window.
“Get in here, now. I’ll take care of your friend,”said Sampson.
I climbed the rest of the way in the window and yelled out to Kamil.
“Be quiet, Kamil. Everything will be okay!”
“Shut up, you. Everything willbe okay? Why would you lie to your friend like that? He’s not going to like what I do to him at all.”Sampson replied with a disgusting laugh.
Sampson grabbed me around the shoulders and kissed my face.
“I’m never going to let you go. You’re my golden goose and you are going to make sure these walkers never get to me.”
Scotty started to stir at my feet. I guess he was starting to wake up from the nice concussion Sampson gave him. Sampson bent down to talk to his so-called friend.
“If you ever disobey me like that again., I am going to feed you to the walkers, got it?
“Yeah boss, sorry,”Scotty mumbled rubbing his head slowly.
“Now, get up, you’re going outside with me to help me get that black guy off the tree and back in here. It’s too dangerous outside, too many walkers. I thought they were all moved out, but I guess not. I don’t want him going to waste as walker food.”
Sampson was still crouched down talking to Scotty. I looked over and saw Dustin looking out a window behind where Dana was tied to a chair, with his gun propped up on the wall. It wasn’t within a quick arm's reach, so I motioned to Dana and she shook her head yes, that she understood I was about to do something to get us out of this mess.
I was standing next to where Scotty was still laying on the floor, talking to Sampson, so I took the opportunity to back kick him in the face, bouncing his head off of the metal shelf he was leaning on.
Instantly, he was knocked out cold again.
Sampson jumped up to grab me, so I rushed him with my shoulder to force him against the wall and brought my knee up into his junk.
He doubled over in pain and I took the opening to knee him in the jaw.
Sampson was now out cold, too.
Dustin heard the commotion a second too late, because Dana stood up with the chair still tied to her, and rushed him, pushing him halfway out the window.
The window shattered when he hit it and the glass impaled him. He laid there, bleeding out slowly, trying to pull himself off the window and grab his gun. Dana kicked it out of his reach.
I ran over quickly to grab the knife from his back pocket and finished the job without hesitation. I tossed him the rest of the way out the window and moved a shelf quickly in front of it. This way, the infected could have him, but still couldn’t get inside at us.
I cut Dana free and we ran over to the closet door, where we freed Chuck, who was gagged and bound inside.
I gave Dana the rifle and told her to stand guard over the unconscious Scotty and Sampson. Ignoring the throbbing pain in my head and ribs, I grabbed some blankets from the office and ran outside to find Kamil.
“Kamil! Are you okay? It’s safe now. We’ve got the other guys taken care of.”I said as I ran over to him still lying face down in the wet dirt.
I covered his body with the blanket and cut his hands free. He pulled his arms in close to his chest, rubbing the blood back into them. He had a very large gash on his forehead where I assumed he was smashed with the butt of a rifle.
“Hey look, we have matching boo-boos,”I said smiling.
Kamil looked up at me and just shook his head.
“Is Dana all right?”
“Yeah, she’s good. She’s inside, watching over the two assholes that are left. They’re both unconscious. I’ve got a pretty hard kick.”
“Good, let’s get inside and I would love to get some clothes on,”Kamil said as he reached for me and I helped him up, slowly.
“Thanks, Abby. I don’t think we would have survived another day if we hadn’t met you. You’ve saved us more than a few times, now.”
“No thanks needed. Just doing the right thing for good people. Now, let’s see if we can find your clothes.”
“Yeah, they cut them off, so I’m going to need new ones. I don’t think it’s going to be easy to find clothes that fit, but anything is better than a blanket.”
“Hmm, the guys inside aren’t really your size and I don’t think you’re going to want to wear their stuff anyway. I think I saw some coveralls on the shelves inside and I’m sure Chuck has a shirt that would fit you.”
There was infected just breaking the tree-line, heading for us, as we made it to the door. They were fairly deteriorated, so they were slower, which was good, but their arrival made me think of a fitting way to get rid of our two unconscious ex-captors.
I didn’t know if my other friends were going to go for it, but I was going to do it with or without them.
I’d had enough of the dregs of humankind making this world an even more disgusting place.
I got Kamil inside and got him some clothes.
All Chuck had that fit the big guy was overalls and a t-shirt, so he looked hysterical, but I wouldn’t dare laugh at him, after everything he’d just been through.
I might have giggled a little bit, but Kamil looked at me, knowing it was just about the Farmer Joe outfit he was stuffed into.
“We need to get rid of these two,”I said pointing to Sampson and Scotty.
“We most certainly do.”Said Kamil with so much hate, I could feel it emanating from him.
“I have an idea, but I don’t know if everyone’s going to go for it.”
“There’s nothing disgusting and cruel enough for these two. Do whatever you want, Abby, just as long as they suffer.”Dana said, surprising me.
I thought she was going to be the last person on board for cruel and unusual punishment, but it goes to show you how little I knew of my companions.
“Well, there were a few infected coming to the front door just as we were coming in. I was thinking we get to the roof and lead them to the side of the building with noise. Then we dump these two over and give the infected a decent lunch. While they’re busy chowing down, I can go around front and take them out, but only after they’re pretty much done with these two.”
“Sounds good to me. Two birds, one stone right?”Said Kamil.
“I’m in.”Said Dana.
Chuck just kind of looked at us oddly.
“That’s kinda cruel, don’t ya think?”
“You were beatup a little and shoved in a closet, Chuck. No disrespect, but I was stripped naked, beaten, and tied to a tree for God knows what reason. I don’t think it’s even enough,”Kamil retorted, with a glare.
Chuck had no response but didn’t look convinced, so I chimed in.
“We know we can’t let these two go. What they did to us, they would just do to someone else. Hey, who knows how many people they already victimized since this started? This way, we don’t have to do it ourselves but the deed is done.”
Chuck looked at me, to Kamil, and then to Dana. Dana nodded her head slowly in agreement and that was all Chuck needed to get on board.
Ah, the power of a young pretty face.
“I guess it’s for the best that they go. I wouldn’t want them hurting anyone else. It does seem like the best way. I’m good.”
“Well then, let’s get on it before they wake up.”
Kamil and I grabbed Sampson to carry him up the stairs, while Chuck and Dana grabbed Scotty.
We labored, but we managed to get them both up the stairs to the roof without incident…
Well, maybe I dropped Sampson on his head once, or twice, but they were accidents; he was heavy.
Dana and Chuck needed some additional help, but eventually, we all made it up to the roof.
I had secured Sampson and Scotty’s hands and feet with baling wire before we hea
ded up the stairs, just in case they decided to wake up and become a problem.
We checked Scotty for anything useful in his pockets and he only had a box of cigarettes and a lighter he had taken from Chuck.
Chuck was very happy to have them back.
Since that was all we needed from him, Kamil and I tossed him over the edge. He landed on the ground with a loud thump and blood started pouring from his head so I presumed he was dead from the impact.
Pity.
The sound and the smell of fresh blood was enough for the infected that were in the front of the building, because without us making any additional noise, they came running like we had rung the dinner bell.
I searched Sampson’s pockets, just as he started coming around.
He had the map I took from Liam, but other than that, he had nothing of use; only a few business cards for a Nissan dealership mechanic shop.
They were stamped Sampson Harper, Manager.
I guessed that was his most prized possession; a business card to show people he somehow made it to a managerial spot in some shitty garage, how pathetic.
Sampson started moving around and I took this opportunity to lean him over the side of the building, while Kamil put his entire body intohis back, so he couldn’t go anywhere.
He woke up and started thrashing.
“What the hell are you doing? Where the fuck am I?”He yelled.
The infected below that couldn’t force their way into the group feeding on Scotty looked up immediately with their milky white eyes and started clawing at the wall towards us. Sampson finally realized where he was and started screaming for help. I ripped a piece of his tattered shirt off and shoved it in his mouth.
“You like to beat and torture people? This is what you get for it, you piece of shit. You see those infected down there? They’re having a fantastic lunch and it consists of your friend Scotty. Guess what, buddy, you’re next.”
He started crying and tried talking through the cloth so I removed it.
“No! You can’t do this! I know things, you can’t kill me!”
“What kind of things could you know that we would care about?”
“There’s a secret military compound about an hour walk from here. I saw it with my own eyes!”He said quickly.
“If it’s supposed to be a secret, how do you expect me to believe you know about it, you toothless piece of hillbilly crap?”
“When we were scavenging for food and places to stay yesterday afternoon, we saw an entire group of military guys, heavily armed, going through a church. They came out with a guy in a black hood like they were kidnapping him. They got him down on the ground and stuck him with a needle. He stopped fighting and they got him on a gurney and took him away. They were on foot and I wanted to know what was going on, so we followed them.”
“You want me to believe that in the middle of a zombie apocalypse the military is kidnapping people and somehow you and your ragtag group of shit-stains somehow managed to follow them without being captured or killed yourselves?”
“It’s the truth! Well…We didn’t do that great of a job following them. They ran into a group of walkers and started shooting, so we hid and when we came back up they were gone. It was by chance we kept walking in the same direction as them. We walked up to the edge of some kind of farm and saw them again. We just broke the tree line by the farm and there was an electric fence, so we stopped. Then, we saw the men again. They walked up to the barn and disappeared inside, kidnapped guy, and all. We hung out for a while and more men in full military get-ups came and went from the barn to the farmhouse. Some of them looked like they were doctors. They were wearing those, long white coats.”
“You have got to be kidding me. Can you show me where this is on a map?”
“Are you kidding me, Abby? This asshole tried to rape and murder us and you’re listening to his garbage?”Yelled Kamil.
I pulled out my map and showed Kamil.
“Look, there’s a location circled in red right here and I think it’s pretty close to the location jackass here is talking about. If this is why Liam had these places circled, it may lead me to the group of scientists that know more about this virus. I need to know what the hell happened. These men might be able to tell me. I used to work for the CDC and hopefully whatever information I may be able to get will help me and the other scientist at the cabin fix this mess! I have to try, Kamil.”I said with tears in my eyes.
“Okay, fine…But let’s be careful with this one.”
“Oh thank you, thank you, so very much! I can be of use, I promise and I won’t try anything funny. I swear it! Pull me up and I’ll show you whatever you want!”Exclaimed Sampson.
“Not just yet. Is this the area you went to with the military personnel?”I asked him pointing to the red circle with a question mark on the map I took from Liam.
“Yes, I’m pretty sure that’s it. It was off of Olsen Lane because I remember seeing the sign for the farm in the distance and it was called Olsen Farm and Feed.”
“How many soldiers did you see? Give me an estimate.”
“There were about thirty coming and going, I think. There were only six in the group we found that kidnapped the guy.”
“What type of weapons did they have and what type of security did you see?”
“Um, they had huge rifles with silencers on them, but I’ve never seen the kind they were using. I didn’t see anything other than the electric fence. Oh, and it looked like they were using a card key system to get into the barn and the farmhouse. Other than that, I have no idea. We hung out for a while but walkers showed up, so we had to move.”
“Are you sure that’s all you remember?”
“Yeah. We left the farm house quick and found a water tower to hang out on overnight and that’s when the huge herd of walkers passed under us. We decided to follow where they were going figuring we could scavenge from any groups of survivors the herdcleared out.”
“You are despicable; you know that right?”
“Hey, I can’t help it if the walkers destroy and I take what’s left to survive. It’s what you’re doing too, but you won’t cop to it.”
“Don’t compare me to you, you sick piece of garbage. You take and take. You don’t stop to help anyone but yourself and you see this human catastrophe as a way to do whatever the fuck you want. Instead of trying to help, you’re making more of a mess. You disgust me.”I spit in his face and tossed him over the edge.
I didn’t hear him hit the ground like Scotty. There were too many hands already waiting for him. I heard his screams as he was devoured and ripped to bite-sized pieces.
I know he deserved it, but still, what had I become?
He may have been a waste of life, but had the last few months, or the last few days, more specifically, really changed me that much? I guess so because that was the only feeling of remorse I had. It lasted all of five seconds before I shook it off and turned to the rest of my group, to figure out what was next.
Just as planned, I went outside after a few minutes and finished off the infected that were dining on dear old Scotty and Sampson, may they burn in hell.
Afterward, I walked around the back of the building to be sure we weren’t going to be surprised by another large amount of infected.
All we needed was to get our gear and get ready to go and not to be able to go anywhere because we were trapped by monsters again.
I found a few pretty badly decomposed infected eating what was left of Carl and Jessup. I stood and watched them for a while and they seemed to be slowing as they ate more, like they were getting full.
However, the one that was at the stomach area of one of the boys was still trying to shove bits of flesh in its mouth, while it was already full. It looked like this one was at max capacity and he couldn’t eat another bite, even though he continued to try.
There was a total of three chewing on the boys. I took out the newest two and left the overstuffed, oldest third.
Maybe th
at is how he lasted the longest. He was the most deteriorated of the three, but he also just kept trying to shove more in his mouth. Maybe fresh meat helped keep the virus alive in the tissues of the deceased host.
I stuck my knife in the top of its head and it thumped over sideways, with flesh falling out of its mouth.
It was a pretty gruesome scene and boy did it smell.
Yet, I’d been around this black infected blood so often, that I didn’t really smell it anymore.
So, I decided to take this time to try and learn a little more about these undead abominations.
I took my knife and cut away what was left of the shirt of the infected.
I then took a deep breath of cleaner air and said a quick prayer, even though I haven’t believed in God in a long time.
I dug my knife into its chest and started the‘Y’incision for my outdoor autopsy.
What I found astounded me.
I broke away the ribs, which were like dry turkey bones. I exposed the heart and lungs and they looked extremely healthy, except for the darker than normal coloring and solid black veins, running through the organs themselves.
I surmised that the virus only maintains the internal organs, vital for keeping the infected walking around, able to locate and find more hosts to infect.
Again, this was acting more like a parasite than a virus or an extremely dangerous combination of the two.
The heart pumped infected blood to all of the vital organs and once the infected was too decomposed to go on, my guess was that the virus would continue to live in the infected body long enough for the body to swell, and eventually pop, where the infected blood would have the best chance to infect someone else.
I would have to capture one of the infected and watch it until it decomposed as much as it was going to in order to prove my theory, though.
Thoughts for another day; Right now, I had to get my new friends safely to the cabin and hopefully, get some more people to come with me to check out this Olsen Farm and Feed.
There might be some answers there, but with the military presence I couldn’t just walk up and be like;‘Hey guys! I used to work with the CDC and I’ve seen this virus before, so I know a little about what’s going on. Who wants to fill me in?’