Life Among The Dead (Book 3): A Bittersweet Victory

by Cotton, Daniel

  Near the top of the on-ramp, another wave of the new breed wails. This horde is even larger than the first and coming over the fallen overpass. The manic zombies are like a swarm of locusts looking for food, and their noses are filled with the smell of blood spilled in the area. The sight of the truck cresting the ramp gives them a target to chase.

  “It couldn’t be easy, now could it?” Dan says. He turns south, keeping the setting sun to their right as the world dims around them. The truck gathers speed, leaving the dead behind as fireflies slowly begin to flash in the twilight.

  Between the speed he attains and the fireflies, Dan is optimistic about getting home before too long. The world grows dark around them on the last leg of the journey. A sign indicates that Story Book Land is just a few miles away, and he can almost make out the system of ramps and overpasses in the gloom

  “We’re almost--” A loud pop stops his words as they lose one of the back tires. He slaps his palms against the wheel. History should have taught him by now that something else would go wrong. “Murphy’s fucking law!”

  The truck drags along the asphalt, losing speed and control, as well as any headway they had on the zombies. The pickup fishtails as he pushes it onward.

  In Dan’s rearview, the new breed enters the horizon. This is gonna be close, he thinks. The ravenous pack is gaining on them, zeroed in on their taillights and the shower of sparks that fly in their wake. But the lights of the magical kingdom loom ahead, though he fears it may just be a tease.

  Before entering the lot to the park, they’ll have to negotiate serpentine turns and speed bumps meant to reduce accidents and improve traffic flow. An awful truth pops into Dan’s head as he considers this: It’ll be faster if we run.

  Carla remains silent until Dan tells her they’ll have to walk the final stretch since the dead can cut down the embankments they would have to loop around. They’d lose their lead with every use of the brakes. She sighs. “What’s the point?”

  “Suit yourself.” He stops abruptly and exits.

  “Hey!” she screams, joining him “You’re supposed to encourage me!”

  “I got your ass moving, didn’t I?”

  ###

  Within the impenetrable fortress once proclaimed a place where smiles were born, no one is happy. The residents of Rubicon haven’t budged from the entrance since arriving, and an audience of Story Book Land civilians gathers as well. The park’s military personnel stand between the factions. Their attempts to disperse the clusters have failed, as has their attempt to disarm all of the newcomers.

  Lady Luck refuses to surrender her Gunship, claiming it to be her father’s, along with many of the .50 caliber machine guns onboard. “Smart man, my daddy. Always knew something bad was going to happen to the world.”

  She remains behind the wheel, smoking countless cigarettes with soldiers from both sides of the coin, friendly as can be. She waits for Abby to give the word. They had communicated without speaking. A mere meeting of their eyes was all it took to tell her, be ready.

  Abby sits vigilantly on top of the high castle wall, hopeful that he’ll see the Williamson man bringing in the two who had traveled to Rubicon to ask them to come here.

  Floodlights slice through the darkness, pinpointing figures entering the parking lot.

  “We have movement,” a spotter calls down to the major. “Two on foot, with…” A writhing mob stalks the living, and there’s too many to estimate how many are inbound. “…a lot of zombies following.”

  Through his field glasses, Abby spots the survivors. It’s the woman that had travelled with them. The one he had to leave behind. The guy with her is smaller than Oz, and he knows it must be Dan Williamson. The man with the cure in his blood. He respects him, though he hasn’t met him yet.

  “We have to open the gate!” he yells.

  The major stops his men from following the order. “We can’t risk it, son,” he says, after looking for himself. Legions of the new breed head their way, and not even the cure is worth letting them that close to an open door. “Clear this crowd, now!”

  Lines of armed soldiers begin to push back the crowds.

  Vida is shoved roughly into a man she recognizes. She hasn’t seen him since Gabe’s place and notes his smell is much improved, however a little fishy. “Gar!” She hugs the heroic stoner.

  “I know you.” He squints at her. “Vida, right? How’s my M.J.?”

  “Tall and leafy,” she assures, and then whispers, “I need you to help me with something. Can you distract the guards at the gate so I can open it?”

  “A rebellion? You know this is the second time today I’ve been asked to--”

  “It’s gotta be now!”

  They slip away from the intensifying clash. Some folks refuse to move away until all hope is lost.

  Gar tells a story to the soldiers at the gate about some woman he met after leaving Gabe’s and before coming to Story Book Land. He lights one of his famous joints and offers the two soldiers manning the admissions booth a toke. The young men are reluctant since the major is so close. They peer around like meerkats to make sure the coast is clear before ducking down for a quick drag.

  Vida enters the booth in a flash. Her gaze dances over the panels and screens until she finds the button to open the gate. She knows the second everyone sees the steel shutter rise, all hell will break loose.

  “Get that gate closed!” the major commands his men as the barrier lifts.

  Vida is painfully seized by one of the guards while his partner keeps a steady bead on Gar with his assault rifle. She counters the hold, only to catch the man’s elbow with her face. The gate comes down again, sealing the security breach.

  But one man won’t stand for it--not the closing of the gate or the poor treatment of the girl. Now with his arm in a sling, after having bullet fragments dug out of his shoulder without the use of anesthesia, Brock kicks off his floppy shoes and walks toward the booth where Vida fights to get free. Shoving past the soldier who has Vida pinned against the control panel, he hits the button to raise the gate once more. He’s unarmed, but willing to break one of the vows he made when he graduated from the New York University of Klowning. He’s going to use his clown persona for intimidation.

  The soldier releases Vida to confront him. He’s speechless when he sets eyes on the mirthless clown in his runny makeup. Brock does all the talking, “If you ever touch her again, or close that gate, I swear by all you hold holy, and on the grave of Bozo the Great, I will eat your fucking soul!”

  “A’right Rubies!” When he sees the gate is up, Abby orders his people into action. “5,6,7,8!”

  The Gunship starts to roll with Rubicon and actual soldiers on board. More Rubies jump on as Lady Luck crawls through the gate, just slow enough for Abby to hop down from the stone ledge.

  He lands and slaps his palm on the floor to let her know it’s time to rock. “’Kay, Double L, I want a port--”

  “A port broadside,” she says. “I know, baby. It ain’t my first trip to the fair.”

  Abby has to hold onto the rail as the Gunship accelerates with a lurch. All onboard have seconds to get their bearings and get behind a machine gun. Even the Story Book Land soldiers take a stance behind the weapons, for they have no choice. As quick as possible, the two factions work together to move guns from the right side of the double decker to the left for optimal carnage.

  Back at the park, the gate is left open. Civilians now bar soldiers from getting near the booth. They won’t let the barrier close until the bus returns with their friends. Vida grabs the two soldiers that had come to Rubicon with Oz and Carla and takes them to the collection of weapons brought in from the encampment. She opens an army green crate labeled M20 in black letters.

  “Tell me you can use these things.”

  They just nod at her and the rocket launchers.

  “When the bus is clear, we’re gonna light up Broadway, ‘kay?” she says.

  Others follow suit, joining Vida an
d the pair in grabbing a bazooka and heading out into the night. They take positions on either side of the door. Once the bus is out of their line of fire, they are to strike the horde and dash back in.

  Relief rose in Dan and Carla but was doused when the gates partially open then close. That hope is renewed when the gate stays open this time, inspiring them to push themselves.

  Now a vehicle curves around the lot on an indirect course towards them. Lights radiate from around the bus like a UFO as it blares a rebellious rock anthem the winded duo can’t name.

  “Light ’em up!” Abby tells his gunners as the bus slides to a halt between the survivors and the enemy. Nearly a dozen machine guns roar at a rate of over 500 rounds per minute to hold back the throng of dead so the living can dive in. Before Dan and Carla even land on the rubberized floor of the bus, it starts to head back.

  “Give me some action in the back section!” Abby tells the gunners to slide their hardware along the rail to the rear to thin the horde. Aiming hasn’t been an issue. They just point in the vicinity of the closest ghouls and tear them apart.

  Streams of fire and smoke whizz past the windows on this return trip. Dan looks behind them as rockets explode amidst the mass of bodies. It isn’t enough to take all of them out, but it’s enough to make him smile.

  The gates are lowered. Differences are set aside. The crowds that stood at odds are happy to see the return of the two. Many don’t cheer when they notice one is missing from the roster. Dan and Carla make their way through the sea of faces.

  While Dan receives smiles and condolences, Heather waits. Dan hugs his wife when she greets him.

  Carla allows herself to break down. She’s survived, and now she can officially cry for Oz. She’s comforted by her friends.

  After a spell, Dan is compelled to leave the ladies to search out a far less pleasant face. He spots her along the far edge of the gathering. She wears what may be a smile as he limps towards her. “All right, out with it, Mrs. McCleary. Why?”

  “Mister Williamson.” She stiffens, and the distant relation to a smile vanishes. “From the first time I met that uncle of yours… I wanted him. He, of course, did not reciprocate. His tastes leaned to the younger ladies. The cheaper, more tawdry selection there was to offer. So I went on to meet my husband, and he was adequate. But, I never stopped pining for Bruce Williamson. Welcome home.”

  Dan utters a thank you instead of what pops into his head, That is so gross.

  The civilians begin to disperse, leaving behind Ruby soldiers in camouflage and homemade armor. One of the Rubicon men issues orders from the roof of the double decker, and Dan wants to meet the people responsible for his rescue.

  Fueled by the recent events, Abby takes Brass’s words to heart. These are our people, our food, our guns, and our vehicles, he thinks as he orchestrates the assimilation. “Let’s get the reload stations set up in our new armory. I want archers and snipers on the wall. Refuel and reload the vehicles, and don’t forget to collect the brass.”

  The major watches the command the man has over his people, and he doesn’t miss the fact that his own men fall into line as well. These Ruby people aren’t the overzealous thugs he had thought they were, but a strategic band of rebels. He’d be foolish to stand in their way. From this moment, he decides to let the Rubies join his soldiers, work with one another and become a stronger force against the dead. Such a collaboration can only strengthen them and work to their advantage. They will be heading out in force in the coming months, taking back the Florida peninsula. A line will be drawn in the sand as they push northward to reclaim their country, town by town, state by state. With the tactics shown today, reclamation of everything from the Charles River to the eastern shore can be theirs. Perhaps complete manifest destiny isn’t out of the question.

  A spotter on the wall reports that the irradiated dead have stopped and are just looking at the place. The old variety of zombie would be beating against the steel and stone trying to get in. However, the new breed understands that there is no hope of attaining food since the gate has closed and they have no way of breaching it. Before the order to begin culling them can be issued from either Abby or the major, the dead run off. Just a few at first, and then the rest of the massive herd follows suit.

  “It looks like the start of a marathon,” Abby says.

  He doesn’t know what to make of it. Maybe they are looking for another route in, but that doesn’t exist. Perhaps they really have given up on entering the magical kingdom and leave to pursue food elsewhere.

  “Tomorrow, in the light of day, I want to go out there and clear those bodies. They’re just going to rot in the sun and stink up our home,” Abby tells his people.

  “If I may interject,” Dan says, “the local wildlife has proven to be quite an ally to us. The gators will come and eat the dead. Probably even thin the ones still moving.”

  Abby nods, liking the fact his people won’t need to risk their lives so soon. “Just let Mother Nature take care of it.”

  “For reasons I won’t go into, that phrases pisses me off to no end,” Dan says. “But, yeah, that’s the general idea. Thanks for the ride out there.”

  “It’s what we do. Thanks for going out. It was crazy to do it alone.”

  “That’s kinda what I do.” Dan shrugs as he heads away to join his wife and Carla. He wants to get his former sheriff home so he and Heather can help her through her loss, and help her raise her family.

  Life goes on within the park. The living are left to contemplate their survival, their life among the dead. It’s at a time like this that they dwell on the fact they still draw breath when so many less fortunate have been reduced to mere memories. Such memories are held sacred and revered. People fight to continue, if only out of respect for their lost loved ones, to keep the memories alive. Remembering all the fallen ones had taught them helps them soldier on. They know that they must greet each new day as a fresh challenge, and celebrate every sunset as a bittersweet victory.

  In Loving Memory

  Bill Thompson

  Becka Connelly

  Hector Alvarez

  Sergeants Ezekiel Lynton and Rashida Steele

  Nancy and Wallace Williamson

  Bruce Williamson

  Oswald “Oz” Johnson

  And so, so many more.

  To the Reader

  Thank you once again for coming back. We’ve been through so much. And there may be another installment to the New Castle saga. Life Among the Dead 4: The End will bring the series to completion.

  Don’t forget to leave reviews wherever you can (be nice!) and contact me on Twitter, Facebook, or through my site: http://danielcotton.weebly.com/

  Wanna have your own fun with Magic Mud? Add one part water (colored to your liking) to two parts powdered cornstarch. Mix and enjoy!

  Thanks again!

  -Daniel Cotton

  About the Author

  Daniel Cotton is a New Hampshire native currently residing in Iowa with his lovely wife and two sons. He derives inspiration from his own life and over-active imagination, tapping into pains from his past as well as the current joys in his life, blending them into tales that are both dark and touching. Daniel delves into his own life experiences; his factory jobs, his time working on a psychiatric ward, his time as a Naval Hospital Corpsman, all of the places he has lived and people he’s known to make the worlds he creates seem more real. When you read one of his works, you are actually reading a piece of him.