by Sue Edge
Mike answered slowly, darting the ambulance around a pileup. This far down the street, there were no obvious signs of zombies but the frantic behaviour of the people on the street suggested otherwise. “I think we should split up.”
He hastened on before anyone could protest. “We’ve only got a small window of opportunity before this plague infects the whole town. It makes sense to split into two or three groups, collect our families and meet back at a designated location as quickly as possible.”
“My sister’s home.” I instantly replied. “It’s a raised home in a rural part of Crystal Cascades. If we had to, it would be relatively easy to defend it.”
Mike nodded and there were murmurs of agreement from the others, even Roy.
” We could cover a lot more ground if we split up, I guess.” Ken added his support. ” I live out in Edmonton.”
“I live in Earlville.” Mike said. “We can ride together.”
“What about you, Roy?” I asked, a little surprised at his reticence.
He snorted, cheeks reddening. “I left Melbourne two years ago to get away from my ex-wife. There’s no one here for me to worry about.”
I nodded, feeling a pang of empathy for him, and turned to Jessie. “What about you, Jessie? Where will we find your parents?”
She shook her head violently, her eyes darkening with distress, and sank back against her seat. I met Emma’s eyes and saw my sudden realisation reflected in them. Jessie’s parents must have been at the hospital this morning. I prayed that Jessie had not witnessed her parents’ fate but I suspected that it was a forlorn wish.
We quickly agreed that Mike and Ken would head off together while Emma and I would check on her parents and brother, seeing her place was on the way to my sister’s.
“Roy? Who do you want to go with?” I asked. His eyes darted between me and Mike. It may have been unfair of me but I suspected that he was calculating just who was less likely to run into zombies. A not unreasonable reaction, I guess.
“You girls will have your hands full with the kids.” He responded gruffly. “I’d better go with you.”
****
As we left the chaos of the city centre behind, I breathed a sigh of relief. Discussion turned to finding a car for Mike and Ken. As there was a rental car yard only a few blocks away, we headed over there. Pulling into the car yard, everything was quiet and business as usual. Such normalcy struck me as completely bizarre, and I had to suppress the urge to giggle. I didn’t need the others to think I was hysterical.
“Um, guys?” Ken said quietly. “I think there’s something we’ve overlooked.”
“What’s that?”
“Have you had a look at your clothes lately?”
I glanced down at my top. “Oh.”
Mike glanced over at me and then down at his clothes. “Ah. Right.”
Our clothes were splattered with blood and other things that I preferred not to identify. Walking into an office looking like this was probably not conducive to a quick getaway.
“We passed a tourist shop down the block.” Michele offered. “They’re bound to have tshirts there, at least.”
“Good idea, hon. Are you okay to do it? You’re the only one of us who won’t stand out a mile.” The spots on her dark clothes weren’t obviously blood, at least.
She grinned cheekily. ” And I’m also the only one with money, aren’t I?”
“Well, we did leave work in kind of hurry, missy.”
Ten minutes later, Michele was back with several large tshirts loudly proclaiming the charms of Australia. As we dragged them over our bloodstained clothes, Michele pulled out a wad of money. “I thought you might need this, too. For the car and stuff.”
Mike smiled appreciatively at us as he stuffed the money into his pocket. “Resourceful and smart. She’s obviously a chip off the old block.”
I grinned. “Yeap, she’s just like her mum, alright.” Michele sent me a horrified look of denial.
Mike stepped out and did a quick check of the vehicles in the yard before settling on an old combi van.
“Shouldn’t we warn them?” Emma asked worriedly as the rest of us stood around the ambulance, keeping a wary eye out for any sign of trouble. “These people are completely clueless!”
“Yes, but not until we get our car.” Ken stated firmly. We watched silently as Mike filled in the paperwork quickly and walked out with keys to the combi van ten minutes later. The young man with him was professional and courteous - and completely unaware.
Emma looked at me, and at my nod, hurried over to him. I hoped she would get through to him but I had the depressing feeling that it was a story that had to be lived through in order to be believed.
Ken and Mike shifted awkwardly from foot to foot; none of us wanting to be the one to say goodbye. We had been through so much as a group. It went against every grain in my body to let anything divide us now. However, I held my tongue and gripped Mike’s and then Ken’s hands. “You take care now. Don’t take any stupid risks. I am going to kick your butt if you get yourself killed!”
“Once we’ve checked on Ken’s parents and my Phoebe, we’ll head for your sister’s place. Hopefully, it will only be a couple of hours.” Mike reaffirmed with a reassuring smile. I felt a sudden hollowness in the pit of my stomach as he turned away. I had come to depend on him to watch my back, I realised.
“Hey Mike.” I called out suddenly. As he turned and held my eyes, I shrugged awkwardly. “Just stay safe, okay?”
He nodded, his eyes warm. “You, too, Lori.”
Emma returned and shrugged hopelessly at our unspoken question. “I’m sure he thinks I’m mad.” She turned to Ken and her eyes brimmed with tears as she hugged him fiercely. I didn’t hear her whispered words but he closed his eyes as he held her close for a long minute. Clearing his throat, Ken stepped back. “See you guys later.”
With that, the men climbed into the old van and drove out of the car park. I watched them leave with a heavy heart. Would I ever see them again?
4
“Can we go now, mum?” Michele asked uneasily beside me. She still seemed subdued but the colour had come back to her face at least. I nodded hesitantly. The sooner we left, the better. But I couldn’t leave just yet, not while there was a little time to spare. I had to at least try to warn the people here.
Squeezing Michele’s arm, I smiled reassuringly. “Go ahead, honey. I will be along in two minutes.” With that, I set off at a trot for the office. Stepping into the air-conditioned room, I saw a pleasant looking receptionist with a short blonde bob, and two men talking behind her desk. One was the young man Emma had tried to talk to, and the other was an older, pot bellied man with full, white hair.
“I need to speak to the manager.”
“I’m the manager.” The older man stepped forward, a hint of a smirk on his face. “How can I help you?”
Keeping my voice level, I looked him in the eye. Somehow, I had to convince him that I was serious. “Yes. I am a nurse and I have just come from the hospital. I’m here to warn you and your staff that you need to leave. Right now.”
“Ahh. You’re with the, ah, interesting lady Brad was just talking to, aren’t you?”
“I am.” I tried not to show how much his condescension irritated me. “We work in the ER at the Cairns Base Hospital. There was an outbreak of some kind of plague this morning. It is infectious and appears to cause extremely violent behaviour in affected people.”
Young Brad grinned. “Yeah, that’s what the other lady said, too, except she said it was making people come back as zombies, or something!” He laughed, looking at the others for backup.
Gritting my teeth in frustration, fighting the urge to look at my watch as precious time slipped away, I looked at the boy coolly. “You’ll have to excuse my friend. She has been through a lot of trauma today.”
I turned back to the manager. “The virus is spreading rapidly through the city area. We just passed a large number of infected people
heading this way. If you are caught by them, you could be killed or infected.”
The manager looked very dubious. “I haven’t heard anything about this on the radio.”
It was time to go. The sense that at any moment now, the zombies could appear and block any escape, plagued me like an unbearable itch. “The authorities may not be aware of the danger yet, or they may be too busy dealing with the crisis. I promise you that this is no joke. You have maybe five minutes, ten at the most, to get out of here. ” The blond receptionist’s eyes widened in alarm as I continued urgently. “Please understand - if an infected person attacks you, they will try to kill you. You won’t be able to reason with them or placate them…”
I moved towards the door. I had already spent way too much time here. “Leave now, find your family and, if you can, get the hell out of town for a while.”
The receptionist moved to get up but the manager pushed her down into her seat.
“No one goes anywhere until I contact the authorities and confirm the situation.” He glared at me and then around at his staff, before heading into his office.
The girl’s worried eyes followed me as I opened the door. “By the time he contacts someone who knows anything, it will be too late for you.”
I gestured through the shop window at the two smoke plumes which were clearly visible. “You can see for yourself that something is going on in town.”
Brad looked uncertain but the young woman nodded decisively and reached for her handbag. As I turned around, I bumped into Emma.
“Time to go, Lori.”
Her face was pale again. I realised why as I registered the sounds of traffic chaos. Tires squealed, horns blared and sirens screamed as the madness neared us. It was definitely time to go.
Roy was sitting behind the wheel as we jumped into the car. He looked at me challengingly, as if expecting an argument from me but I just buckled in and told him to drive. A quick look behind me reassured me that Michele and Jessie were okay. I fished out the mobile phone and rang Kaye’s number. My anxiety started to increase with each ring.
“Hello, Kaye speaking.”
“Kaye!” I released a breath I didn’t even know I was holding.
“Hello Lori!” I heard the surprise in her voice. I rarely rang her during work so she immediately knew something was up.
“Where are the kids?”
“Playing in the gutter out front. You know how they love getting wet and dirty.” Didn’t I ever. I closed my eyes in relief.
“Kaye, I need you to do something for me. Go bring all the kids inside, lock the doors and windows, close the curtains and stay quiet. Can you do that?”
“Of course.” She replied briskly. That’s the wonderful thing about 40 years of sisterhood - I didn’t need to waste time convincing her of my trustworthiness or sincerity. “Can you tell me what’s going on?”
“Not right now, Kaye but I will when I get there.”
“All right.” She paused. “Whatever’s going on - stay safe, okay?”
“You too, Kaye.” I whispered. “Give my babies a kiss for me.” She promised to do so, and I reluctantly hung up.
I looked out the window for a moment, gathering my focus as Emma took the phone and rang her house. It rang out unanswered. She bit her lip but smiled tremulously. “They’re probably not even there. Mum loves to go to Rusty’s Markets on Fridays…”
She stopped suddenly as the realisation of what that might mean for her family struck home.
Roy glanced over. “Uh, isn’t that only a block away from Central Shoppingtown?”
“We don’t know anything yet, Emma.” I interjected firmly, glaring at Roy over her shoulders. “They might just be working in the garden.”
Her face flooded with relief at the thought and she smiled tentatively.
****
Emma’s street looked untouched by the dramas in town. As we pulled up beside her parents’ home, we looked carefully for any sign of trouble but there was nothing that hinted of danger. The woman next door was unloading groceries from her car while a couple of doors down, an elderly man walked his little dog.
The neighbour looked askance at our ambulance as we jumped out. “Emma? Is something wrong with your mum or dad?”
“Oh no,” Emma assured her. “Just, ah, hitching a lift with a colleague.”
She met my eye and shrugged infinitesimally as if to say ‘it was the best I could come up with’.
The neighbour nodded agreeably and started carrying her bags into the house.
“Oh, Mrs. Moore, have you seen my mum or dad today?”
“Well, I saw your Dad this morning when he was collecting the mail. He made one of his jokes about how he wouldn’t have anything to read if it wasn’t for all the junk mail he receives.”
I grinned. That sounded like Emma’s Dad.
“And I think your mum went out somewhere. I saw the car leave a few hours ago.”
I saw the tension in Emma’s shoulders on hearing that, so I reached over and squeezed her arm reassuringly. Stepping back, I looked at Roy as he watched us from the driver’s seat. “Keep a sharp eye out, Roy. Don’t let anything sneak up on you and the kids.”
He nodded abruptly. “Trust me - ain’t no one sneaking up on me!”
The door was unlocked. Exchanging a tense look, we stepped into the house. The utter and complete silence that met us filled me with foreboding. I could tell Emma felt the wrongness of the home, too, as her breath quickened. Carefully, we peered around the wall into the living room but it was empty. I jerked my head towards the kitchen and silently we moved down the hall.
The small, normally cosy, kitchen stood empty and chilly. I touched the kettle. Cold. My tension immediately ratcheted up several knots. Emma’s parents drank tea like it was water, yet this kettle hadn’t been used in hours.
Don’t be ridiculous, I scolded myself, you’re letting Emma’s anxiety affect you. Her parents may be visiting friends for the afternoon or something. I didn’t succeed in convincing myself one little bit.
As I passed the sink, I saw the steel parang sitting in its block. Emma and I had bought one each four years ago on a trip to Malaysia. The heavy hatchet favoured by the infamous headhunters of Borneo worked a treat cutting through boney pieces of meat, like chicken. Quietly, I slipped it out and grasped it firmly. It might come in use later, I assured myself, but I was careful to keep it behind my back and out of sight of Emma.
We headed for the bedrooms, placing our feet carefully on the hallway’s wooden floorboards. My heart started pounding like a drum as we neared the master bedroom. Please, please let there be no one there, I prayed fervently. Emma’s hands were shaking as she slowly pushed open the door.
The room appeared empty, but before I could breathe a sigh of relief, I heard a familiar sound that sent a knife through my gut. It was the sound my old dog used to make as he gnawed on a bone.
5
I pushed past a suddenly frozen Emma and moved silently around the large four-poster bed. Stepping past the bed, I saw the back of a woman kneeling before another body on the floor. The body’s top half was blocked by the woman but I had no doubt who lay there.
“Mum?” Emma choked, moving up beside me. The kneeling figure slowly turned. Emma’s mother looked indifferently at us as blood trickled down her chin. Something was clenched in her bloody hand but I avoided looking too closely at it. One look at Emma’s father’s ashen face made it clear that he was close to death as his eyes fluttered continuously in blood loss shock. “Daddy?”
As Emma reached for her father, I flung out an arm to block her.
“Emma, you need to leave.” I pleaded, my heart going out to her. “I’ll …deal with this.” I didn’t want to deal with this.
Emma wrenched her eyes away from the ghastly scene. “What are you going to do?” She whispered, eyes glazed with shock.
Looking at the kneeling woman as she placed something red and raw in her mouth, I swallowed an urge to retch. “Yo
ur mother is already gone, Emma, but if we hurry, maybe we can save your father. But I need you to go and let me handle this.”
Emma bit her lip and nodded slowly. Taking a step back, she took one last look at her mother kneeling in a pool of her father’s blood, her face an agony of love and despair. “I love you, mummy. I love you, daddy.” Turning, she stumbled out of the room.
Emma’s mum watched me as I approached her carefully. Although there was no sign of intelligent thought or fear in her eyes, she followed my movements closely. For some reason she reminded me of a cornered dog. I shifted the parang back to gain some momentum. “I’m sorry, Mrs. Jones.”
As I swung the parang down, the creature that had once been Emma’s mum launched herself forward, knocking me right off my feet. The machete flew out of my hand. Stupefied, I looked up to see the zombie lowering its mouth to take a bite out of me.
“No!” Panicked, I pressed my hands against her chest and, with desperate strength, pushed her up and off me. She gnashed her teeth and flung her head from side to side, trying to reach me. Gone was the endearingly plump and kind face I’d seen smiling at me for years. Now she stared at me through dispassionate eyes even as she tried to savage my body with her bloodstained teeth.
My arms already shaking from the strain of holding her body away from me, I pulled my right leg up and positioned my foot at her hip. With an almighty heave, I shoved the zombie to the side. It rolled away, giving me time to scramble up, grasp the nearby parang and swing around again to face her.
The zombie hurled itself at me again. I met her with all the ferocity I could muster, burying the parang deep in her neck, feeling it sever bone and sinew with the same ease it cut through chicken carcasses. To my horror, she continued to move forward until she stood face to face with me. I stopped breathing as the diminutive Mrs. Jones gazed coldly into my eyes, so close our noses could have touched. Tremors ran continuously through my body as I stood frozen in my tracks.