Breathless Bodies

by Brigit Levois

  "Tony, where did-"

  "Here" He tossed the sack at me and I nearly collapsed under it. "That's a two-month supply of MRE's, first aid gear, water filters, things like that. On your way out, grab the sword that's next to the second level entryway." He walked over to a standing closet and rolled it out of the way, revealing a hatch in the floor. Tony opened it and descended to the third floor, leaving me there for a few moments. He came back up with a few guns and an ammo box so I assumed his armory was in the lowest level.

  "I can see we're in for some fun." I said this with a wry tone as he handed me a gun and box.

  "There is ammo for both this gun and your handguns. Take your kids, call Sean, go to the place marked in the Sierra mountains. There's a bunker that you can stay in for a few months. It won't be cushy, but you'll live." He stopped talking and grabbed my hand.

  "This might be the last time I see you youngin. Take care and remember everything I taught you. Don't ask questions and stay away from the military. Now go." He turned me and shoved me gently to the ladder.

  Leaving the bunker was the hardest thing I had done. Not just because of the backpack that weighed as much as me, but because I knew that I might not ever see Tony again. I hauled the sack into the bed of the truck and sped away to my mothers. I plugged my phone into the charger and tried to call Sean but he didn't answer. I called my mom next.

  "Hello?" The sound of her voice calmed me slightly, but I was still worried and anxious.

  "Mom, get you and the kids packed. We have to get to the mountains. Pack cloths and things that mean the most. I don't have time to tell you what's going on and I don't want to scare you, but things are about to change. Grab some food and warm blankets. I'll be there soon." I heard her say okay and try to talk more, but I hung up. I hope she listens I thought. I dialed my brother's number. No answer.

  "Damn it!" I pounded the steering wheel. Just before I went on an explicit rampage, my phone rang. It was Sean.

  "Hey, I've got some news for you." I told him everything I knew.

  "Well...sounds like trouble to me. Better call in some super heroes, they'll help! I mean, zombies? Come on now, if you missed me this much to make up a story then you should have just asked me to come home."

  "Look, I'm telling the truth, I promise. I'm almost to my mom's house, we're headed out to the Tehachapi's tonight. I want you to go somewhere for me, please. Just to be safe." I didn't blame him for not believing me. It was pretty far-fetched. But I had hoped he would listen to me

  "Alright, where do you want me to go?"

  "There is a bunker by Burnt Lake. I'll send you the exact directions, please go there. Trust me on this."

  "I'm sorry but this is crazy! Zombies, really? I'm going to finish this job and when I get home we'll go somewhere, just us. Sounds like you need a vacation." He chuckled to himself

  "Damn it Sean! Fine, you'll see for yourself. I'm going to send you directions to a bunker if you decide to take me seriously. Bye ass hole." I hoped he would go. I sent him the location of the safe house just as I got to my mom's. As I was walking up to the front door of my mom's house, I heard the rumble of freight planes. I looked up in time to see about a dozen planes fly overhead towards the base. My mom opened the door, she looked worried.

  "Now that you're here, would you kindly tell me what the hell is going on?"

  "Mommy!" My daughter, Kaylin, ran and jumped at me. I caught her and hugged her tight.

  "Go get your backpack honey, we have to go. Mom, I know this is going to sound unbelievable, but it's true." I laid it all out for her and she gave me the same response as Sean.

  "Zombies? Really?" Jeez, would someone be original?

  "Yes mom, I know it's crazy but look for yourself." I handed her the folder Tony gave me. As she skimmed it, I grabbed the closest bag she had packed and walked to the truck. My daughter came out with her backpack and teddy bear.

  "I'm ready mommy!" I put her in the truck and strapped her into her seat.

  "Where are we going mom? Are we going home?" I wanted to tell her yes I wanted to tell her that nothing was wrong and there wasn't about to be a zombie apocalypse. But I couldn't.

  "Were going on an adventure Lin, you're going to have to be a big girl for mommy, alright?" That was when my brother called me back. I gave him the same spiel as my mom and husband and I got the same response.

  "Look, listen to me and get ready. I'll be there in half an hour." We finished loading my mom's and kid's stuff, got Kendrick strapped into his seat, and headed out. It took some doing but I had almost convinced my mom that it wasn't a joke. We got to my brother's house just after six. Alright, I thought, we have a little bit of time. As my brother came to the fence line, I stepped out and lit a cigarette.

  "Well, what's going on this time?" He had indulged my paranoia before so I wasn't surprised he did so now.

  "Look, this is real. Give me a day and I'll show you. Grab your stuff and let's go." As he went inside and grabbed the rest of his stuff, the many dogs on and around the property started howling towards the base. I guess our flyboys hadn't neutralized the threat.

  It was at that moment that I realized how deep in trouble we really were. If Tony was right, then the entire country could be compromised in a month. How many other people knew? How many people were ready for what the movies made out to be utter destruction? How many were ready for science fiction to become reality? Only one way to find out I guess.

  Chapter 4

  It had only taken twenty minutes to show them I was telling the truth. As we drove to Tehachapi, we passed what was the base. Now it was a burning field. They then barraged me with all manner of questions; how did I know, who told me, what do I have already, and what do we need? I had my mom look through the file again.

  "Is there anything that can help us gather resources? Store lists or locations?" I didn't have time to wait for an answer. As we were turning onto the 58 West at the 14/58 split, a man staggered out onto the freeway. His chest was split open and his innards now out. His uniform was still partially intact.

  I saw this as a chance to start the score card. I aimed my truck at the puss bag and gunned it. He just kept coming at the truck, no sign of fear or thinking I might hit him. My mom inhaled sharply as we ran him over. Lin yelled and threw up her hands as if it was and amusement park ride. That's my girl, I giggled to myself. As I turn on the windshield wipers to get rid of some of the blood, my mother lost her lunch. Watching the man's appendix going back and forth across the windshield didn't help I guess. I couldn't stop myself from giggling.

  My brother looked at me for a few seconds till I finally asked him what he wanted. He held off for a moment, and then started yelling;

  "What the hell was that?! You ran that man over in cold blood! He didn't do anything!" Alright, this was not going to work. As he continued to yell. I scanned the area quickly, pulled over then turned around to glare at him.

  "Pull it together Steven. I told you what's going on, he wasn't human anymore. These people aren't even living. They have no remorse, no feeling, nothing except wanting to get their mouths on our flesh. If you want to defend them then you go right ahead but do not expect my help when they tear you, limb from limb!" I hated yelling in front of the kids, they saw it enough from their dad and I. But I had no choice, it was either yell or smack the crap out of him.

  We reached the bunker near midnight. It was in the mountain at the far back of a campsite, in the upper elevation of the Tehachapis. Looking at the map, it had a small sketch to show how to get into the bunker, a large boulder moved to reveal a door with a keypad. Tony had included phone numbers and passcodes for all of the marked locations. It was moving the boulder that would be a problem. Luckily I had convinced Sean that I needed a truck of my own - a big king cab 4x4 with push guard, flood lights, and a five-ton winch in the front. Yeah, it was bad ass.

  I angled the tr
uck to the right and pointed the headlights at the boulder, making sure I had enough room to reverse. Before getting out, I told my mom to honk if she saw anything move. With one last look around, I stepped out. Hooking the boulder to the winch of the truck went fairly quickly and I was back in the truck in no time. Throwing the truck into gear, I gave it some gas and started going in reverse. It took a little tugging but the boulder finally moved about ten feet. Pulling forward, I angled the truck to use my high beams to light the entry. Both guns loaded, knife in my boot, I zipped my jacket before reminding my mom.

  "If you see anything move, honk the horn." Looking back at Steve, I jerked a thumb at the window and hissed at him. "Please help keep a look out."

  "I got it, don't worry." My mom said. I re-read the pass code and hopped out. Before I could type in the code, the horn blew. I turned just in time to avoid having my shoulder bitten. It was thrown off balance by my ducking, giving me time to get the headlights behind me. By the time it caught its balance and started towards me, I had my gun drawn and aimed. It took one step and I planted two in the forehead, throwing it backwards in a lifeless flop. Killing one with a truck was one thing, but being up close and in my face was completely different. My stomach turned and I ran to the boulder to retch. When I finished I wiped my mouth with the back of my hand and rushed to the door, trying to open it before more of them came. We managed to get the kids and most of the supplies in before another came. I was holding a bag which I tossed to my brother. As he caught it, I pulled out my gun and aimed at the zombie. It was a woman in a jogging outfit who looked like she had been mauled by a bear. I was shaking as she came at us but my kids were in danger, so I popped her twice. My brother was shaking as badly as I was when I walked up to him.

  "What's the matter?" He looked at me like I was crazy. Trying to be strong for the both of us, I clasped his shoulder. "Hey, you saw me puke. It's not like this is exactly my favorite thing in the world either." I pulled him into the safety behind the door and closed it.

  My mother had found the light switch on the wall and turned them on when we came in. We were in a living room of sorts. A small TV and two couches, with a book shelf was in the right back corner of the room. There were a few books and lots of dust. There was a coffee table between the couches and I sat on it while I looked in Tony's folder. I was hoping there was more to this place than just tiny living quarters, but all I had was hope. I searched for the specs on this bunker.

  Area 002:

  Door access code: 0573

  Lift access code: 1573

  Entry to A deck: Turn TV volume to 15, tune to channel 2. Lower volume to 5, turn off TV. Enter access code. Door will open

  Entry to B deck: Place anchor on launch pad. Enter access code. Door will open.

  Entry to C deck: Place box of grenades at the end of shooting range. Enter access code. Door will open.

  What kind of top secret hide away was this? My daughter could have hidden it better. I wanted to keep reading but Kendrick was starting to fuss. I followed the directions and the book case moved revealing another door with a keypad. Typing in the access code, it slid back, revealing an elevator. We all got in and went to the first deck.

  A deck was about 400 square feet of gizmos and gadgets, TV screens and computer monitors. I figured it was a control room of sorts. There was a phone on the wall, along with a thin binder. In the corner there was an anchor suspended above a rug that looked like a launch pad. I walked up to it, following the cable that suspended it to a lever. Lowering the anchor to the rug, a wall panel slid back to reveal another elevator.

  The next level, B deck, was larger and filled with weapons and construction equipment. Guns, knives, bullet presses, ammo, explosives, chemicals, all sorts of things that would make for death and destruction. Sheets of steel, barbed wire, even a damn cow catcher. Along one wall was a display of various kevlar body armor pieces, alongside hunting and assault rifles. There was a 40 yard shooting range with a box at the entry way marked 'grenades'. I tried to pick it up and knew right away it was filled with rocks. Dragging it back to the end of the shooting range, I saw a level spot to place it where it sank slightly to the faint hiss of hydraulics. Walking back out to the armory, the Kevlar had moved over to cover the assault rifles, revealing another door and keypad and, pass code entered, another elevator.

  The last level was the best of all. About 1600 square feet, it was just like a house. Half of it was storage, but there were three bedrooms, one and a half bathrooms, cabinets fully stocked with non-perishable food items, a complete kitchen with a coffee pot. The living room was equipped with a TV and a few game stations. In the laundry room, there was a door that slid back to reveal a closet that held the generators. Hot damn, indoor plumbing and hot water! This wasn't so bad.

  As I finished exploring, my mom and Steve got the kids settled into their room.

  "Mom, when can we go home?" Kaylin asked in that small five-year-old voice. I wanted to tell her the truth that we might never go home. I wanted to tell her that we have to stay here for a few months, then find a new home after the danger was gone. But I couldn't stand to see fear in those huge innocent eyes.

  "Just as soon as we're with daddy." She smiled and cuddled up with her teddy bear.

  "Good, because I miss Daddy. Mom? Sing twinkle twinkle with me?"

  We sang her favorite bed-time song. I gave hugs and kisses good night to her and her brother. I turned on the nightlight and left the room. For that brief moment, it seemed that the world hadn't gone to the dogs, that we were just on vacation somewhere. I leaned my forehead on the door and enjoyed the illusion. But, as usual, my brothers timing was impeccable.

  "What the hell is going on here Alex? Please, now that were safe, tell me what's happening." he hissed at me, being careful that the children didn't overhear. Well you knew it was coming, I thought to myself. I took him and my mother into the kitchen and sat them down while I looked for some coffee to make. Upon finding it, I gave a sigh of relief and started the coffee pot.

  "Look, I know this is far-fetched but there are actual zombies out there. You saw them yourselves." Mom looked like she was going to be sick all over again while I had to stifle a giggle about the appendix and try to continue.

  "I don't know how long but it seems we'll be down here for a while. There is a chance that the Military might be able to stop it but, from our entrance and what Tony told me, I think we can safely assume not. Tony has been teaching me how to survive in this kind of situation so I have a little knowledge about what to do." My mom knew I liked to prepare for the worst.

  "Oh jeez, I knew Tony would be a bad influence on you!"

  "Mom, do you not realize that what he taught me just saved our lives? I can keep us alive until Sean gets here." Then I realized I had forgotten to call him.

  "Look, go have some coffee and we'll talk more after I get off the phone." I walked to the wall with the phone and dialed his number. Straight to voicemail. My stomach sank as all the possible scenarios went through my mind. It struck me that he might have gone to the bunker so I grabbed the file from the table and took a look. There was a list of the bunkers; next to them were phone numbers for each bunker. Found it. I dialed and listened to the ringing for a while, hoping he was there.

  "Hello?" he answered the phone.

  "Oh thank god! I tried to call your cell and it went to voicemail." I hadn't realized till then that I was crying. When did that happen?

  "Calm down, I don't get service down here. Are you guys safe now?" I told him where we were, my heartbeat slowing.

  "What made you decide to go to the bunker?" I asked.

  "Have you turned on the news yet?" I answered with no.

  "Well when I got back to my hotel, I turned on the news then tried to call you. The bombing is all over, they're blaming it on the Koreans. This is worse than just the U.S., almost every country is saying these bastards are terror
izing them. Some are even claiming that it was an experiment gone wrong by the Russians."

  "Wow... I can't believe this is actually happening."

  "Alex, I'm sorry I didn't believe you at first, but we'll get through this. Now, do you want me to try and make it there now or do you want to wait for this to all die down a bit?" I wanted to tell him to come now but we both knew that was stupid.

  "I think it would be best if we waited. Have a planned route and such. I'm going to try and get hold of my uncle to figure out where we go from here. Be safe, I'll call you tomorrow." We said our goodbyes and hung up.

  As I looked around the kitchen, I was struck with the reality of the situation. The world was now in danger of being overrun by zombies. It was the apocalyptic nightmare that Tony and I had been preparing for. We didn't expect zombies, but all enemies are the same. With nothing else to do, I poured myself a cup of coffee and talked to mom and Steve.

  Chapter 5

  We had been in the bunker for a little over a month now. It was almost March, and we were all getting cabin fever. My son had taken his first steps, and now wouldn't sit still for the life of him. Mom wanted to go into town but we didn't have a vehicle that was zombie proof. So my brother, being the MacGyver he was, designed a way to reinforce the truck with the supplies we had. The problem was going to be getting the cow catcher to the surface. Maybe the answer is in the folder, I thought to myself.

  Flipping through the file, I read through the section on our bunker. According to the papers, there was a lift that would be big enough to get the truck down here. It was to the left of the original entrance. I looked at the clock. 3:00 pm. Alright, it's still light out, we can do this. I read the sheet, when entering the access code by the door, I needed to enter the one for the lift. Well, that's easy.

  "Mom, I need you to stay down here with the kids. Please call Sean and tell him what's going on. I'm going to take Steven to B deck with me, we'll be back in about 2 hours, at most." I kissed my kids, then my brother and I headed up. As we entered B deck, I grabbed my hand guns and a few small knives.