Dead Strain

by Giesler, W. A.

  The three men watched as she glided over to the windows and door, pulling down the shades that they all had missed, shutting out the view from outside the store. Turning back to the men, "Now you can push it into place," she told them with a smug smile on her face, stepping out of the way.

  "Oh, she is really getting on my nerves," Hobart announced with a laugh.

  Once the shelf was in place, they all put the cans back in place adding the extra weight that might be the difference between the dead getting inside or not. Stepping back, they all admired their work, happy with what they had done, knowing it definitely would slow down the dead if they were to try to get inside.

  Gathering themselves, the group headed to a back room, which only had the one entrance to it to relax. Sara had grabbed some food from the store and brought it in back with them, placing it in a pile in front of the men. "You guys can have some of this stuff, or if you want, there is frozen food out there and I think a microwave if you want to fix something hot," as she grabbed a package of chips from the pile.

  Reaching down, Hobart snatch up a package of cupcakes, quickly ripping into it. He looked up and noticed the others staring at him as he gulped down the sweet treat. "Sorry, haven't eaten since last night, besides I love these things," he told them as he went back to his snack.

  "Well, I am heading out there. I need something hot for dinner," Jameson announced. "Sara… care to join me?" reaching his hand out to her.

  "Sure, I could use something hot, also," grabbing onto his hand and climbing to her feet.

  "Here, take a flashlight with you, but try and keep it low. I don't want to alert anyone or thing outside," Hobart said handing him the light.

  Jameson took the flashlight, turning it on, "Anyone else want anything?" The two men shook their heads, so he turned and led the way, and he and Sara moved back out into the store. Looking back, "Hey, where are the frozen foods?"

  "Over there," she replied, pointing at a case near the front of the store.

  Walking slowly through the now dark store, they approached the front and the frozen food case. Jameson looked over the selection, taking note that there was not much but quickly decided on some pizza. He reached in, grabbing out the box, "Anything for you?"

  "Sure, I will take one of those," Sara replied.

  Taking out a second box he closed the door. Unfortunately for him, the door slipped from his hand and slammed shut with a loud thud. The pair stood perfectly silent, listening carefully for any sounds from outside as they both hoped that they had not caught the attention of anything. Just as they began to relax thinking that all was clear, they heard a sound from the front door. Jameson quickly turned off the flashlight and turned toward the door trying to see through the blind for the source of the sound.

  The moonlight helped to cast a shadow on the blinds, revealing one person standing outside the door. Sara gasped aloud when she saw the outline of the person and could easily tell from the slow movements that it was indeed one of the infected. She moved close to Jameson, "We need to move away so it doesn't see us," she quietly whispered to him.

  Nodding his head in agreement, he slowly moved back down the aisle, away from the front entrance. The pair made it most of the way back when the front window shattered, causing Sara to let out a shriek, which no doubt alerted whatever was outside to their presence.

  Connor and Hobart jumped to their feet when they heard the window break, moving quickly out of the back room, bumping into the others just outside the door. "What the hell happened?" Hobart asked.

  "We have company out front," Jameson told him, "and from what I can tell, it is only one, but I cannot be completely sure."

  "Alright, we need to get prepared to run if need be." Looking around, Hobart grabbed one of the axes and moved to the front of the store. He could now hear the moans coming from the person out front, sending a chill down his spine, knowing the dead were here.

  Connor grabbed another axe, but before heading up front, he looked at the other two, "Gather up as much food as you can carry; we may have to make a break for it." He did not wait for an acknowledgement from either of them, turning quickly to join Hobart at the front of the store.

  Peering slowly around the giant shelving unit, Hobart tried to see outside, wanting to see what they were facing. For the moment, he could only see the one moving slowly back and forth on the front porch of the store, which provided some relief that they were not up against a horde of them.

  Connor moved up next to the sheriff. "How's it look out there?" he whispered.

  Hobart held up one finger letting him know silently how many were out front. Continuing to look out the front door, suddenly the creature turned and looked directly at him while he peered around the shelf. "Oh shit! It spotted me," he said aloud as the creature started for the door.

  The dead man let out a loud cry, overjoyed to see a source of living flesh before it as it started for the door. Once again, it slammed into the door sending more glass flying as it tried desperately to squeeze between the door jam and the shelves. Blood dripped from its mouth as it continued to let out the blood curdling screams and press its way inside.

  Hobart stepped back, watching the creature as it tried to get in. He could not believe what he was seeing as a shard of glass still attached to the door frame tore into the side of the creatures head ripping open a massive gash, but to his horror, it did not slow down the creature one bit. Raising the axe, he waited for the thing to get further inside providing him better access for dealing the deathblow its head.

  "Are you planning on killing it?" Connor asked.

  "Just waiting for it to give me full access to its head," he replied as he raised the axe over his head and swinging it down, burying it in the back of the man's head. He watched as it twitched a few times before falling motionless, and then he pulled the axe out. Turning to Connor, he had to ask, "That thing? I thought you still considered them people."

  "I'm beginning to change on that point," he told him, staring down at the man. "When that thing started screaming, wanting nothing more than to take a bite out of us is when things changed for me. People don't do that, but those things sure do."

  "That is some smart thinking kid. Looking at it that way may help you live longer," patting him on the shoulder. "Let's push this thing outside and try to secure the door again."

  After the body was back outside, the two men pushed the shelves closer to the door, restricting as much access as they could before heading back to the others. Walking into the back room, they spotted Sara and Jameson standing at the back of the room with two backpacks stuffed with supplies as they waited for the order to move out.

  Connor smiled at the pair, "You two can relax. We took care of our friend out front."

  Hobart nodded, "Sure did," he said as he raised the bloody axe. "Alright, let's get some rest; we need to get an early start in the morning. Three of us will sleep, leaving one on watch. I will take the first shift," he told them.

  Jameson and Sara both let out a sigh of relief as they dropped the backpacks. The exhausted pair grabbed some blankets off the storeroom shelf and made up some makeshift beds before settling in for the night. Connor watched the pair, amused at how quickly they bedded down before following suit and finding a comfortable spot on the floor.

  "Connor, I will wake you in two hours for the next shift," Hobart told him. He watched the three for a few seconds before moving out into the store, wanting to check the entrances while the others slept.

  "Alright, Sheriff," he replied, watching the man walk out of the back room before looking over at Jameson, "You are after me, then Sara."

  They both nodded and then settled in, quickly falling to sleep.

  CHAPTER 6 – MORNING

  Jameson knelt down next to his brother. Placing a hand on his shoulder, he gave him a gentle shake. "Connor, get up; it's morning, and I think someone is outside." Standing up his brother groggily rolled over opening his eyes and staring up at him.

  "Wh
at's the problem?" Connor asked stretching his arms above his head.

  "I heard some noise from out front, but I didn't want to look out until someone else was awake."

  This information quickly woke him up as he popped up to his feet ignoring the ache in his back from sleeping on the hard floor. Reaching down he snatched up his axe, "Alright, let's go see who is out there." Following his brother, the pair quietly moved from the back room up to the front of the store.

  "Listen," Jameson said angling his ear toward the front door.

  It did not take long for Connor to hear what he was talking about when they both heard the shuffling of feet from the other side of the door. He started inching closer to the shelf that was blocking the entrance wanting to peek outside when a hand landed on his shoulder sending fear racing through him as he instantly thought the worst. Spinning around and raising his axe in the process, "What the…," coming face to face with Sheriff Hobart. "You scared the hell out of me," he angrily whispered as he tried to regain his composure.

  Trying to suppress his laughter, Hobart forced out an apology for scaring him but was unable to keep from smiling, which from what he could see, irritated his young friend. "Look, kid, I really didn't mean to frighten you, but you damn well know we should all be awake before tangling with those things."

  Connor just nodded at him, still irked that he had snuck up on him. "I know… I just wanted to see what was out there before waking everyone up." He knew Hobart was right in what he had said but figured why waken everyone up if the sound was from an animal and not the dead. Looking over Hobart's shoulder, he saw that Sara was also awake and was having a rather animated conversation with his brother. "Alright, we are all here; let's take a look and see what is out there," he said slowly moving his head around the shelf.

  The outside came into view with everything clearly visible in the bright morning sun. Inching further around the shelf trying to get a visual on what was making the noise, he came face to face with a hideous, blood-covered zombie staring right back at him.

  Hobart watched as Connor looked outside and quickly jumped into action when he heard the ear-shattering scream from the other side of the shelf. Reaching down, he grabbed the legs of Connor and pulled with all he had.

  Connor tried to back away as he stared into the lifeless white eyes of the creature that was mere inches from his. He could smell the stomach-turning odor of dead and decaying flesh, not only from the body of the creature but coming from its mouth and the pieces of shredded human flesh still caught in its blood stained teeth. He felt hands grab onto his legs, so he braced himself for the inevitable pull, bringing him back inside and away from the trouble in front of him. He could see the hand of the creature trying to reach inside and grab him, but to his relief, it became caught on the door jamb as a shard of glass tore into the grey, lifeless skin of the arm. He was amazed at how the creature did not even flinch at the wound it had just sustained, but instead, it kept its eyes glued on him, trying desperately to get at him.

  Even with the creatures face so close, he was able to see others out front, and all that were now heading toward the door as the screams of the zombie alerted them to the meal inside. "Pull; we have a lot of company out here!" he yelled.

  Hobart gave the legs one good pull thankfully bringing Connor back inside the store and away from the creatures out front. "You alright, kid?"

  "Yeah, but we have a bunch of them out front, and they sure as hell know we are in here."

  Hobart looked at the barricade for a moment and then back to the others. "Grab the backpacks of food and anything else you can that we may need, and get ready to run." The shelf began to sway as the dead outside began their assault on the entrance, so he threw himself against the shelf. He could feel the dead begin pushing at the shelf as they tried to get past the barricade. He did his best to hold them back while he waited for the others to gather supplies and get ready to move out.

  Sara sprung to her feet when she had heard the telltale scream of the zombie. Fear raced through her as she stepped back away from the front entrance, completely forgetting the irritation she had felt with Jameson for not waking her for her turn on watch. She knew he had done it so she could get some rest, but she wanted to do her part and pull her shift while Jameson and the others got their sleep.

  Jameson jumped to his feet and started for the back room stopping briefly to snap Sara from her trance and get her moving. The pair moved quickly to the back, grabbing their backpacks and pulling other supplies from the shelves before heading back out.

  Connor looked up at Hobart, "Thanks, Sheriff, you saved my ass there, but now what do we do? We can't go out the front, and we have no idea what is out back."

  He knew this kid was right; they were stuck and with only two options for getting out. "I'm not sure. We are kind of limited on our options, unless you have something to add."

  "I do, Sheriff," Sara said as she walked back up front.

  "I'm all ears. What do you have in mind?"

  "We make as much noise as we can up here hoping that all those things mass out front. Once they are up here, we can make a break for it out the back."

  Hobart liked the plan, and it truly had a good chance at succeeding, but his only concern was the truck. "Sounds good, but what about the truck? How are we going to get back to it if all those things are up here?"

  A smile grew on her face. She had anticipated his question and already had an answer for it. "I'm glad you asked," she said with a chuckle. "We don't go out the back until they are inside then we go around the building to the truck." She could see the confusion on his face, so she continued, "Those things are slow moving, so if we wait until they are inside, we let them see us out back, and they should come after us, which hopefully will give us plenty of time to circle the building and get to the truck."

  Connor looked up at her. "Who are you, and where did you come up with that?" he asked, laughing as he stood up.

  "Listen, you have something better?" she asked, not even trying to hide her irritation.

  "Relax, Sara, I'm just kidding. It is a brilliant plan that has a real good chance of succeeding," he told her.

  The smile on her face grew once again, "Thanks, Connor. Nobody ever has taken me seriously before, must be the cheerleader thing."

  "Well, if we get out of this alive, you don't have to worry about that any longer, at least not with us."

  "Alright, you three make some noise," Hobart told them as he continued to brace the shelf against the front door. "They seem hungry with how hard they are banging on this thing," he said trying to lighten the mood in the room. All four broke out into laughter and then started to make as much noise as they could as they attempted to draw all the dead to the front of the building.

  The screams from the other side of the door increased in intensity as more and more of the dead gathered hoping to get at the living flesh waiting for them just inside the doorway. Hobart was starting to have trouble holding back the throng of dead, which were now pushing hard at the barrier keeping them outside.

  Nodding toward the three kids, "Head to the back, and be ready to run. I can't hold this much longer."

  "Come on," Jameson said to Sara, grabbing her hand and starting toward the back. Turning back, they could see Connor slowly heading their way as he kept watch on the Hobart. "Alright, Sheriff, we are all back here and ready when you are," Jameson called out. Reaching out, he unlatched the door and released the lock on the rear door preparing to make a run for it out the back.

  Connor stopped a few feet from them continuing to watch the front of the store. "Come on, Sheriff, let's go!"

  Hobart nodded toward them and prepared himself for the sprint to the back door. "Alright, here we go," he called out as he released his pressure on the shelf and ran to the back, joining the others. They all watched as the dead quickly pushed the barricade out of the way and began flowing inside. "Let them see you, and as soon as they start for us, we go. Got it?" he asked.

  Ja
meson, Sara and Connor all prepared by raising their axes, wanting to be ready for what may be behind the door as the dead in front of them began moving in their direction. Grabbing the door handle, Jameson prepared to open it while praying that there were no more of these things waiting for them on the other side.

  "Go!" Hobart yelled as the first of the dead pushed its way past the blockade and was now only a few feet away from him. Swinging his axe he buried the blade deep into the top of the zombie's skull, sending blood spattering in every direction. As the creature slumped to the ground, he slammed his foot into the dead man's face, yanking the steel end of the axe free before following the others.

  Ripping open the door, they all ran outside axes at the ready, prepared to fight their way through however many were waiting for them. Bursting out into the bright sunlight, they were all pleased to see none of the creatures, but they knew it would not last as the dead inside were rapidly approaching the rear exit of the store. Turning away from the doorway the foursome sprinted around the building desperately trying to get to the safety of the truck. Turning the final corner back out front of the store, they ran into several dead still milling about.

  Hobart and Connor went to work taking care of the first few, which were standing nearby and completely unaware of their arrival. "Get the truck started," Hobart yelled as he swung the axe neatly removing the head of the nearest zombie, taking it off cleanly from ear to ear.

  Jameson nodded to him and ran for the truck stopping only to bury the pointed end of his axe into the skull of a creature blocking his way. Looking over his shoulder, he saw Sara following closely as they made their way to the truck. Arriving at the driver side door he pulled it open and hopped inside only to realize he did not have the keys.

  "Come on, start it," Sara yelled, swinging her axe, ending the existence of another of the dead.

  "I don't have the keys!"