The news channel had long since stopped reporting the news and were on a repeated message of what to do if your loved one was sick.
Number One: Isolate them from the rest of your family.
Number Two: Do not approach them if they appear to have died. They are simply looking for a way to spread the sickness.
Number Three: If you are bitten or scratched by someone who is sick, proceed to isolate yourself so you don’t hurt those around you.
What the message wasn't telling everyone was that the dead were rising, and the only way to stop that from happening was to bash their heads in.
I took the now empty backpack and stuffed another empty bag inside it so that I would have enough room to carry back everything I found. Taking the reports as more than a warning, I left the library, clutching the bat with both hands as I cautiously walked across campus toward the cafeteria.
The changes that had occurred over the last week were astonishing. No planes flew overhead, and the sound of cars and traffic were absent. It gave me the feeling that I was alone in the world, which at this point, might actually be true.
My keys opened the back door to the cafeteria, and I so very thankful there was a skylight, which allowed me to see if there were any walking corpses inside.
I honestly didn't expect to find anyone living or dead around since the school had been closed, and I had seen no signs of life over the past two weeks.
The kitchen was spotless, and the welcome sounds of the refrigerators humming made me feel less alone. Since I was in a place with a gas stove, I decided to go ahead and make a hot meal from all the leftovers that were going bad in the refrigerators.
A sniff test confirmed that the milk was no longer good, but the eggs appeared to be okay. I walked over to the walk-in freezer to open the door, when it dawned on me that I didn't want to take a chance on getting locked in. So I pulled the empty trash can behind me and pushed it between the door and the wall, watching to make sure it would stay open. I would have no chance to cook dinner, so I went ahead and grabbed several extra pieces of bacon that could easily be used on a sandwich later that evening.
At the moment, all of the utilities, such as gas, electric, and water, still seemed to be working, but the University had gone to great lengths several years ago to become more energy-efficient by installing solar panels on all their buildings and dorms. If the solar panels continued to do their job, then the school's water treatment station would continue to run indefinitely, but I had no idea if or when the gas would be disconnected.
The University sounded like an amazing place to take shelter in, and I couldn't understand why there weren’t more people trying to live here.
“Duh.” I jokingly hit myself on the head. “Most people have family, or somewhere they can go when the shit hits the fan.”
I wasn't going to dismiss the preparation and thought someone had put into making this a safe place. I was here, and I was going to take advantage of it.
My eggs and bacon didn't take long to cook, and I made sure to clean up after myself just in case there was someone else on campus. There was no point in leaving a trail for someone to follow.
While the kitchen had lots of prep food items, there weren't that many small or individual sized cans. In fact, the fruits and vegetables that had been put in the refrigerator would go bad soon, and there was no way to take them back to my hiding place. I would just have to take a chance on coming to the kitchen every day for food. I did empty the cereal containers into several large plastic baggies, though, and placed them into my backpack.
Grabbing up all the nasty and expired food, I threw it into one of the large rolling trash cans. I could have carried it out to the dumpster, but I wanted to have both hands free in case I met up with another walking corpse.
With a last glance around the room, I pushed the trash can toward the back exit door. The keys were attached to the loop on my belt and my backpack was on. I kept my bat on top of the closed trash lid. Pushing a little on the door, it flew open with a loud bang as the trash can rolled out in front of me.
No one seemed to have heard the noise, so I pushed the trash can over to the dumpster, looking around to make sure nothing was going to sneak up on me. I lifted the trash bag out and swung it into the open slot on the side of the dumpster.
Not wanting to go back around to the side door, I wheeled the trash can to the exit door and turned it upside down so that it wouldn't roll away. Torn between wanting to get some more supplies and heading back to the safety of my room, I decided to go to the local convenience store. I didn't think it was open, but desperate times called for desperate measures, and if I had to help myself to what was on their shelves, then so be it.
The convenience store was located on the other side of campus from the cafeteria, so I followed the path, expecting to see someone somewhere, but there were no people. Being in the sunlight was a welcome change from the week inside, and I was determined to live in the moment.
The convenience store appeared empty as I approached it, but that didn't mean there wasn't someone lurking inside. The glass had been broken on the front door and left unlocked. The inside had certainly been ransacked, but most of the staples had been left on the shelves. I hated to steal from the store, yet anyone else could just walk in and take it. I filled both bags with as many items as I could carry and not fall over due to the weight from the cans. I’d been in there a while, and I still didn't see another human as I exited.
A growling sound from the back of the building alerted me to the fact that one of those things was following me. I ran across the street and over to the big oak tree on campus. I pulled off both of my packs, and clutching my bat, I walked back across the street toward the rear of the convenience store. I couldn’t let someone suffer when I could put them out of their misery.
I didn't have to go all the way to the back because three walking corpses were moving toward me as quickly as their torn-up bodies could manage.
Psyching myself up with a deep breath, I ran forward, bat swinging, until there were blood and brains flying everywhere and all three bodies were lying motionless in a pile at my feet.
Shocked at myself, and the fact there were dead bodies in front of me, the urge to vomit was my first reaction. But I was able to control myself and held my nose so that I didn't have to smell the decaying flesh.
A noise from across the street brought me back to the reason I was out there in the first place, to restock my supplies and make it back to my space in one piece.
When nothing moved to attack me, I realized that it was the wind picking up an empty can, and that was the rattle I’d heard. Still not wanting to take any chances, I gripped the bat and took off running toward the tree where I'd left my food. I hid behind the tree, peering around it to make sure nothing else was following me before I put the heavy backpacks back on. Nothing else seemed to be moving so I loaded up, but decided I wouldn't go directly back to my hiding place in case someone was following me that was alive.
As I headed back a different way, I tried to figure out which building would be the easiest to access while staying out of sight. The science building had too many windows, as did the English building, but the computer building had many extra rooms to hide in. I opened the door and turned the corner, making sure that I was out of sight if anyone looked down the hallway, when I realized that my bat was dripping blood and leaving a trail leading right to me.
The boy’s bathroom and water fountain were directly in front of me, but I didn't want to use the water fountain in case I needed clean water later on.
“I guess there's an upside to school being closed. I won't have to worry about anyone finding a girl in the boy’s bathroom.” I giggled to myself at the thought of my weird situation.
I held the bat under the faucet in the sink until the water ran clean. My bat, on the other hand, still had a slight pink tinge to it that I feared would never come out.
Unsure of how long I should wait, I decided an
hour would be a good, just to be safe. I found a room with cushioned seats to wait out my time, but they were so soft. With all of the exercise I’d done had me falling asleep instantly.
Jolting awake, I had no clue where I was. The sun had been hidden on campus by the other buildings, but it was a noise on the outside that drew my attention. Evidently, I had taken refuge in an upstairs classroom that had cushy seating, unlike the lower classrooms that only had desks. I cautiously approached the window and stood to the side, hoping that no one would notice me.
Strolling across the lawn were a couple waving flashlights and tripping over spots in the sidewalk. It was something that might have happened on the normal Friday or Saturday night, but these two were making enough noise to wake the entire city and alert anyone to their presence.
They appeared to be heading toward the boy’s dorm on this side of campus, but I needed to be sure of where they were staying, and in their present state, they were unlikely to notice me.
I scurried to put on my backpacks and grab the newly cleaned bat. When I walked out the door, I found the hallways were much darker than I had expected. It had gone from dusk to completely dark in just a few minutes, and now I was feeling my way down the hall to the stairwell. I really hated dark corners on stairways, but it appeared I was going to have to get used to it for the foreseeable future.
Out of breath from hurrying, and the extra weight of the backpacks I was carrying, I had to stop and rest before I ventured outside. If this illness continued, then I would have to start a workout plan to stay in shape because only the strong would survive.
Regaining my breath, I quietly pushed the exit door open and snuck through it, quietly latching it behind me. I had been certain I would lose the couple, but I needn't have feared because they were still making enough noise that I could stay in the shadows and they would never see me.
After a slow walk with the weight of my backpacks getting heavier, they finally stopped at a side door that had been propped open and disappeared inside.
Staying behind the trees, I walked around the front to see if I could figure out what floor they were staying on, but no light ever came on. Hoping that meant they were on the back side, I went ahead and walked around, trying to stay in the shadowed areas. I had never noticed how well-lit our campus was until I was the one trying to sneak around it. Sure enough, on the back side third floor, a small light could be seen, but they certainly weren't using the overhead lights to find their way around. It must have been a small lamp placed on the floor.
Now that I knew where they were located, I could go in and try to find them. I went back to the side door that had been propped open, but they had closed it shut after them. Holding the keys up, I tried to figure out which one was the master key, but it still took several attempts since the door was in the shadows to get it open.
The backpacks had been weighing me down, so I walked straight ahead into the lounge area and placed them between one of the pillars and couches in the welcome area. Still holding onto my bat, I walked over to the stairwell, trying to be quiet as I crept up to the third floor.
Thankfully, each stairwell door leading to the next floor didn't have locks on them, so I was able to open it and follow the sounds of drunken voices to the second hallway.
“Jeff, I'm too tired to do anything tonight,” a young woman giggled. “You’ve worn me out. I'm not used to this kind of constant activity.”
“Awe, babe. You know you can't resist me,” Jeff whined drunkenly.
“Even if I did want to do something, you’re, uh, friend doesn't seem up to it,” the girl slurred back.
“Nah, your right. Let's go ahead and get some sleep.”
The couple had left the door open and the light blinked out as they mumbled a few last words to each other. I waited in the hallway a few more minutes to see if there were any other people in the building with Jeff and his girlfriend.
The stairwell door normally would echo loudly, but as I was trying to stay unnoticed, I held onto the door so that it closed without making a sound.
I had no idea how long this couple had been staying in the building, but they seemed comfortable with the layout. I was going to take a bet that Jeff was a student and they were staying in his room. I planned to return back to my own hidden base in the archives, then get into the girl’s dorm across the way before the two had a chance to wake up.
My backpacks were just where I'd left them. I started putting them on when something grabbed my attention. The papers on the welcome counter had fluttered to the floor at the same time the drink machine kicked on.
“The air from the drink machine disturbed the papers, blowing them off the desk,” I whispered to myself.
If small, normal things were taking me by surprise, then I needed to be more aware of my surroundings.
My walk across campus to the library was quiet and uneventful. Instead of using the stairs, I pushed the button to use the elevator since the bags with food were getting heavier by the minute. The up arrow came on and the ding of the elevator echoed loudly in the empty building, making me regret my decision to use it instead of the stairs. I pushed the button to the top floor and lowered the backpacks as the elevator doors closed.
“This was a really stupid idea,” I commented out loud to myself. “What if the elevator breaks down? Who’s going to rescue me, especially since no one knows where I am?”
Since this illness had taken over the world, I hadn't really contemplated what that meant in terms of the things we all took for granted. I was used to roughing it more than most college students, but that didn't mean the use of technology and gadgets wasn't ingrained. I was going to have to overthink all my actions in the future to make sure I didn't leave myself in a vulnerable position.
The sun was already up the next morning by the time I was ready to check out the drunken couple from the night before.
Armed with only an empty backpack, a bat, and my magical keys, I made my way over to the girl’s dorm. I was about to go inside when I heard Jeff and his girlfriend, who were walking toward the cafeteria as if it were a regular day. Neither one checked their surroundings to see if one of the walking corpses was near them. I stayed out of sight and watched as they walked up and opened the front door.
I felt like such an idiot. Why hadn’t I tried to open the front door? Since they seemed to be oblivious, I ran as quickly as I could to the side of the building and waited until they were no longer visible through the front doors. I opened the door, sliding inside while looking for some place where I could take cover and see what they were up to. The worker’s door to the kitchen was open, and it sounded like they were throwing things around in the kitchen.
Unable to contain myself, I put the bat on my shoulder and walked confidently through the door.
“What in the world are you doing to cause all that racket?” I’d hoped that I was catching them off guard, but realized that could be a bad thing if they had a gun.
“We were just looking for some food. We got back to campus yesterday, and since there was no one around to stop us, we figured we’d help ourselves,” Jeff explained defensively.
“Hey, Jeff, she's just one of the kitchen staff. She doesn't have any authority to kick us out. I'm hungry. Can you make us some food?” Swishing her long blonde hair over her shoulder, she slid her arm possessively around Jeff.
“I had no plans to kick you out,” I reassured. “I was just happy that there were other people out there who are still alive. Here, I know where things are. Let me get something started for breakfast.” I put the bat down and held out my hand. “I'm River, by the way.”
“Oh, well, I'm Abby, and this is Jeff.” The blonde proclaimed, hopping up onto the counter to take a seat. “We were up at my friend Mica’s house. Well, her lake house. They were running low on liquor so they decided to come back to town and get some more. Once we made it into town, however, most of the streets were blocked off. And when we got to the liquor store, these things came out
of nowhere and killed Mica and Seth. We got back to campus yesterday and found some extra food in the RA's area. Thankfully, we had already loaded the car with liquor before our friends were attacked.”
I couldn't believe what I was hearing. Their two friends had gotten mauled by the walking corpses, and yet neither of them seemed too worried or sad about their lot. They were more concerned with the fact that they had enough alcohol to stay drunk for a month.
“So what's your story?” Abby asked while watching me collect the ingredients for breakfast.
I had already decided that I would share as little information as possible with these two. Not only did I not trust them, but I was pretty sure they would have no problem throwing me to the corpses if it would benefit them or keep them alive.
“Well, I used to stay in the homeless community before it was attacked, and now I’m just finding any place that seems safe to sleep or eat in.”
“Maybe you can show us all the good places to look for food and how to survive out there. Jeff and I don't even have a weapon to use against those things.” Abby motioned to the bat I had casually placed on the counter.
“Um, I’m not real sure about finding a weapon, but I'm sure we can figure something out. The fact that you guys found a way into the dorm makes it the perfect place to stay safe while you're asleep at night.”
“Sweet!” Jeff suddenly interjected.
He seemed almost hung over as he glanced around the room, not really making eye contact.
The food was ready, so I turned off the gas and pulled out a couple of trays, dividing everything out between the three of us. I turned on the sink and filled it halfway with dish detergent so we could easily wash our dishes before we left the building
With no thank you or acknowledgment that I had cooked the food, they both dug in quickly, acting as if I was simply doing my job. These two were going to be difficult to work with on a long-term basis.
Against Zombies Box Set, Vol. 1 | Books 1-4 Page 30