The Undead Day Nineteen

by Haywood, RR

  They file into the rooms, edging deeper to make room until the blast damaged door is closed.

  ‘Everyone is in here,’ Paula says quietly, ‘want me to tell them to go?’

  ‘No no,’ Lilly draws a deep steadying breath, ‘honestly, I am sorry. I just…’ She flounders with a mistaken instinct that crying now makes her look immature and young.

  ‘Oh god,’ Paula says, pulling her back in, ‘I’ve seen every one of this lot cry like babies.’

  ‘Fact’ Cookey says gently, ‘hey, Lilly.’

  ‘Hi Cookey.’

  ‘Lilly.’

  ‘Blowers.’

  ‘Who hurt your face?’ Blinky asks without preamble but with a look of absolute certainty that whoever did it will get the shit kicked out of them. She doesn’t know Lilly but she can see the way everyone is reacting to her and she saw Nick kissing her. She’s heard about Lilly so that means she’s the missus of one of the team and that counts. So fuck ‘em. They’ll get the shit beaten out of them for that.

  ‘Crews?’ Howie asks. His tone so soft yet so commanding that she pulls gently from Paula to look into the dark brooding eyes that will inflict harm on whoever has hurt one of his. She senses the ripple going round the room. The way Blowers lifts his chin. Mo cocking his head over as his eyes narrow. Clarence’s nostrils flaring and lower down a deep growl rolls round the room as Meredith picks up on the sudden change of mood. Nick pulses with rage. His fists clenching at his sides. The girl with the cut face even has that look and Lilly takes it in with the sudden knowledge that she did the right thing. It’s what any of these would have done but worse, they wouldn’t have stopped at nineteen. They would have finished all thirty and then slept soundly after.

  ‘They’re dead,’ Lilly says, finding voice to speak of the thing that has not been discussed since that night.

  ‘They wanna be dead,’ Blowers mutters.

  ‘All of them?’ Nick asks, his rage held ready.

  ‘Most,’ Lilly says, ‘I killed nineteen. There were thirty remaining when you left the fort.’

  ‘Fuck,’ Cookey whispers, ‘good skills, Lilly.’

  ‘You got nineteen?’ Blinky asks, clearly taken aback that someone who speaks like Charlie but isn’t a hockey player can do something like that, ‘that’s fucking awesome.’

  ‘They weren’t infected,’ Lilly says, not knowing if the strange girl who keeps blinking knows who the crews are.

  ‘So,’ Blinky shrugs, ‘fuck ‘em.’

  ‘Maddox?’ Howie asks.

  ‘He’s sick. He passed out just after you left and was in a coma…that’s er, well, that is when it went all went rather wrong.’

  Blinky blinks and looks at Charlie, ‘she related to you, Charlie?’

  ‘No, Blinky she just speaks properly.’

  ‘Tell you what,’ Paula says, exerting total and complete control with those few words, ‘we’ll make some drinks and if you want, and only if you want, you can tell us what happened.’

  ‘Coffee,’ Howie blurts.

  ‘Oh I have something,’ Lilly says quickly, ‘er, would you excuse me for a moment? Nick, I may I need your help if I may?’

  ‘You sure you ain’t sisters?’ Blinky asks with a suspicious glance at Charlie.

  ‘Could be,’ Cookey says, ‘Dave’s mum was on the beach.’

  ‘She was not my mother.’

  ‘I thought you were an orphan,’ Howie says.

  ‘I was.’

  ‘She might be then. Never know.’

  ‘He was joking, Dave,’ Marcy says hitting Howie on the shoulder, ‘she isn’t your mother, Dave.’

  ‘I think Reggie fancied her,’ Cookey says.

  ‘I beg your pardon! I did not such thing. I...well, I never…’

  ‘He’s joking too, Reggie,’ Marcy groans adding a hit to Cookey’s shoulder into her list of shoulders to be hit.

  ‘Anyway,’ Cookey announces with a grin, ‘you’re all being very rude. Lilly, this is Blinky. Blinky, this is Lilly.’

  ‘I know,’ Blinky says.

  ‘Nice to meet you, Blinky,’ Lilly says politely.

  ‘I blink a lot,’ Blinky says still staring suspiciously between Lilly and Charlie.

  ‘Okay,’ Lilly says.

  ‘And this beautiful woman is Charlie,’ Cookey says, ‘I saw her bum this morning and it’s got a tattoo of…ow!’

  ‘Don’t keep telling everyone,’ Charlie says, ‘hello, Lilly, I’m, Charlie.’

  ‘Hello, Charlie. It’s nice to meet you.’

  ‘And you.’

  ‘They could be sisters,’ Blowers remarks.

  ‘Just because two people speak in a manner that is right and correct it does not mean you have to assume they are related,’ Reginald says.

  ‘Reggie must be their uncle,’ Blowers says.

  ‘Uncle Reg!’

  ‘Do not call me Reg,’ Reginald glares at Cookey and the world settles back as Lilly remembers them exactly as they are. Unfussed, unfazed and still pissing about.

  ‘Right well, yes I have something. Nick, if I may borrow you please,’ Lilly says heading down into the corridor that leads to the back rooms. Nick follows behind her with his wry smile wondering what it is she wants to show him.

  She turns the corner and stops. He turns the corner and stops. She smiles. He smiles.

  ‘You coming back?’ Cookey shouts after a few minutes of patient silence.

  ‘Yep,’ Nick breaks from the embrace, his lips leaving Lilly’s who smiles wide and happy and sighs deeply.

  ‘I have something,’ Lilly says softly, taking him by the hand to lead him into a back room where she stops. He stops. She smiles. He smiles.

  ‘Well?’ Cookey shouts after another couple of minutes of patient silence.

  ‘Coming,’ Lilly calls out.

  ‘What is it?’ Nick asks, his head swimming from being lost at sea in Lilly’s eyes and lips and hands and arms.

  ‘Just here,’ Lilly says, stepping away to reveal a table behind her.

  ‘Oh wow,’ Nick laughs, ‘The Boss will fucking…shit sorry, I mean, he’ll love you…’

  ‘I missed your swearing.’

  ‘Yeah?’

  ‘Yes.’

  ‘Fuck me, we’ll send a search party down in a minute.’

  ‘I have a small generator up there but the connections are all different so I wasn’t sure how to get the power supply…’

  ‘Easy,’ Nick says, lifting the object up.

  ‘And finally,’ Cookey laughs as Lilly comes back in looking a little sheepish with Nick behind her grinning from ear to ear.

  ‘Oh fuck,’ Howie says getting quickly up from his chair, ‘is that a coffee machine?’

  ‘It is,’ Nick says.

  ‘Power?’ Howie asks, hardly daring to believe it.

  ‘I have a small generator here,’ Lilly says, pointing towards the door and the small fuel run machine on the floor, ‘I remembered how much you all like coffee.’

  ‘What is it?’ Howie asks rushing to Nick, ‘Tassimo! Fuck me, it’s a Tassimo…an actual fucking Tassimo…have you got the pod things? Lilly, I don’t know what to say…’

  ‘Jesus,’ Marcy says rolling her eyes, ‘you’ve just made a friend for life there, Lilly.’

  ‘Pea found it in one of the houses,’ Lilly explains.

  ‘I love Pea,’ Howie says.

  ‘Better not,’ Marcy says.

  ‘Right,’ Howie says firmly, ‘Roy and Nick will splice shit to get power running. Everyone else find cups and sugar…’

  ‘No,’ Paula calls out as everyone starts moving, ‘sit down, you’ll bloody break everything. Nick and Roy will get the machine working. Cookey, you’re still on brew duty so get the cups ready.’

  Boxes of coffee pods are opened and cups made ready as Nick and Roy cut wires to splice shit and get the power from the generator into the coffee machine that comes to life with a glowing light. Coffee is made. Proper coffee that fills the room with scent. Cappuccinos,
Lattes and Americanos poured hot and fresh into mugs that get loaded with sugar as the room fills with conversation and the clanking of weapons being rested on tables with chairs scraping back.

  Then it’s done and they sit with the first cups of coffee of the day and drink the first sips in a silence ordered by a finger held up by Howie. Marcy tuts again. Paula rolls her eyes, Charlie grins at Lilly who smiles back.

  ‘Ah,’ Howie says contentedly, ‘righto, so what happened then?’

  Now it’s not so hard to talk about. The power of it has gone. They killed over ten thousand yesterday and another two hundred today and they show the marks of those fights clear on their bodies. She killed nineteen but the reason was the same. The purpose was the same. To do the right thing for the right reasons and she held the line.

  ‘Maddox passed out from being tasered…’ Lilly begins and it flows out. A story told that is listened to intently. Chairs are pushed back so feet can rest on the table corners. Others lean forward to rest elbows and drink coffee. Meredith noses the door open and goes outside to find Milly and Billy and the room fills with the sound of hammering and sawing and voices calling out. With Paula at her side tutting and shaking her head at the right times, and leaning to rub her arm or hand as she tells of how she fought back. She doesn’t leave anything out either but the whole of it in every seedy sordid detail.

  Howie watches Mo for reaction. Mo grew up with the people Lilly killed but Mo just shows disgust and looks down with eyes seething in fury at what they did. His head shaking at Sierra, Skyla, Zayden and the others.

  She trails off feeling a strange calm settling inside. Clarence exhales noisily and nods, ‘did the right thing,’ he says deeply, ‘without doubt, Lilly. Well done.’

  ‘Definitely,’ Blowers says, sensing the need to give affirmation for her actions, ‘any one of us would have done the same…’

  ‘We wouldn’t,’ Mo says, bringing every pair of eyes to him, ‘we would have done all of ‘em and not stopped at nineteen.’

  ‘Probably,’ Blowers says.

  ‘Listen yeah,’ Mo says, ‘if you’s see any of them come near me you stop ‘em or…’

  ‘Done,’ Cookey says, nodding at him.

  ‘Same with Mads,’ Mo says, his intent obvious, ‘best be keeping him away from me.’

  ‘Speaking of which,’ Howie says, ‘he’s in the hospital?’

  ‘He is,’ Lilly replies, ‘Lenski has been with him the whole time.’

  ‘I see,’ Howie says, his face remaining passive as he exchanges a glance with Clarence, ‘but he knows right?’

  ‘He knows,’ Lilly says, ‘the doctors brought him round long enough for me to tell him but unfortunately he reacted to the medications and slipped back into the coma. They said they cannot risk bringing him out it again due to the medications they used the first time…’

  ‘Dont was it?’ Roy asked.

  ‘I believe so, yes,’ Lilly replies.

  ‘Dont?’ Paula asks.

  ‘Coma cocktail,’ Roy says, ‘very controversial.’

  ‘Doc,’ Howie coughs into his hand.

  ‘Not a doctor,’ Roy says stiffly.

  ‘May I ask how it was for you?’ Lilly asks, not knowing if the protocols allow for her to reciprocate the request for information.

  A brief silence of introspection that stretches in the room until Cookey clears his throat and leans back with his hands behind his head, ‘I shall give you the er…oh fuck, what’s the word for a shorter description of…’

  ‘Abridged,’ Charlie, Reginald and Lilly say together.

  ‘Fuck me they are related,’ Howie says with a laugh.

  ‘Abridged,’ Cookey says, ‘I’ll give the abridged version…’

  ‘This’ll be brilliant,’ Blowers mutters.

  ‘Can I shoot myself?’ Blinky asks.

  ‘Right well, where do we begin…so,’ Cookey says looking over the table at Lilly smiling then down to see his audience are all primed and expectant, ‘we left the fort and slept in a house on the shore. Then we got up and drove about looking for food. We got to a village, everyone split up and we got attacked while Paula and Roy were having sex and Mr Howie and Marcy were probably trying to have sex and the rest of us were stuffing ourselves stupid. We all ran about for a bit. I puked, Blowers puked…I think Nick puked then we found a mansion house with the women’s England hockey team in it and met Charlie and Blinky. It rained. Charlie looked fit in the rain and I think she fell in love with me at that point,’ he pauses at the snort of laughter from Charlie. ‘Meanwhile, Paula and Roy were still having sex and Jimmy Carr was taking a shit on Mr Howie’s chin. Then we got all got back together and Mr Howie did his weird thing that scared all the zombies. We had a big scrap. Went shopping and taught Mo how to shave and found a hotel and went to bed. The next day we got up. Reginald turned into a cross between that ginger bloke from Mission Impossible and Morpheus from the Matrix and played a game of draughts or Snakes and Ladders with the infection. During that time, Nick got bit and we all cried when we figured he was immune then Charlie and Reggie made us all feel stupid by pointing out we haven’t been wearing face masks and have probably been drinking zombie blood everyday so therefore we are all probably immune which cheered us up quite a bit. Er…then we had some more scraps. Clarence turned into a helicopter with some chains…Marcy and Mr Howie were flirting like so badly all day and she said don’t die today Mr Howie so of course we all took the piss. Then we got into a town and found ten thousand of the fuckers waiting for us. We had another scrap and er…’ the humour leaves his eyes sudden and marked as Lilly detects something shared that still holds pain, ‘something happened that wasn’t cool, not cool at all…’

  ‘No,’ Blowers says darkly.

  ‘Not cool,’ Marcy whispers.

  ‘But,’ Cookey says, pulling his smile back on, ‘Meredith got in our heads and gave us all a kick up the arse and we kicked the shit out of them. Charlie stole a horse from a scientist who was actually there when the infection thing was invented…Nick and Mo blew up another petrol station and we nicked an old bus and went back to our hotel to have a jolly good sleep while Mr Howie and Marcy did the funky chicken in the back of the Saxon…’

  ‘How the fuck...’ Howie says.

  ‘Walls have ears, Mr Howie,’ Cookey grins, ‘then we got up, Mo got Dave trained. The infection got in the water and ate our scientist and me and Charlie had a naked wrestle while she was trying to pull my towel off and I was like no no Charlie I am not having sex with you right now but I did see the tattoo on her arse. Er then we ran about for a bit more so Blowers could play with some bitten of willies that he found and we did that until Charlie picked a fight with two hundred of them on her own and got bit and found out she was immune and we all cheered again and…and I think that’s about it.’

  ‘Outstanding,’ Clarence booms as the rest of us cheer and clap while Cookey grins round then stands up and bows.

  ‘I thank you,’ he says, ‘most of that was true,’ he adds to Lilly laughing hard at his perfect delivery. He shields his hand and mock whispers, ‘the bit about Blowers playing with willies was true and I did see Charlie’s bum.’

  ‘Mate,’ Blowers says, bent double on the seat, ‘that was brilliant.’

  ‘Such a twat,’ Nick says between laughs.

  ‘He missed a bit though,’ Marcy says, wiping her own eyes and looking at Lilly, ‘when Charlie picked the fight with two hundred? Should have seen Cookey in the Saxon…’

  ‘Oh no, no no,’ Cookey says quickly.

  ‘He was going nuts’ Blowers says with malicious delight, ‘what did you say, Cookey?’

  ‘Nothing,’ Cookey shouts, ‘Charlie I didn’t do anything they say I did…’

  ‘What?’ Charlie asks still laughing while wincing at the dull pain in the cut on her face from laughing so much.

  ‘I will come to you…’ Marcy says with mock passion, ‘Hold on Charlie…I will come to you…’

  ‘Oh fuck off
,’ Cookey says, grinning despite the blush in his cheeks.

  ‘That was you?’ Charlie asks, remembering the moment the hive mind descended as she gave ground into the doorway.

  ‘No!’ Cookey exclaims.

  ‘So was,’ Mo laughs, ‘you was going nuts, bruv.’

  ‘Bruv innit,’ Cookey quips.

  ‘You get me yeah?’ Mo quips back taking the piss out of his own accent.

  ‘He was out…’ Blowers stops to laugh at seeing Cookey in a rare state of discomfort, ‘he was out the Saxon before it even stopped…Mr Howie had to run after him yelling at him to stop…’

  ‘Not true,’ Cookey says.

  ‘Bloody was,’ Howie laughs, ‘I was shouting stop you bloody idiot…’

  ‘Roy and Dave both had to cover him,’ Nick adds, laughing hard at the memory, ‘I’ve never seen Roy move so bloody fast.’

  ‘I had arrows going this close to my head,’ Howie says holding his thumb and finger a few millimetres apart, ‘and I swear Dave shot one between my legs.’

  Charlie laughs hard, her eyes misting as she leans over the table to grab Cookey’s hand, ‘thank you…’

  ‘I will come to you Charlie…’ Marcy calls out passionately.

  ‘Ah bollocks,’ Cookey says waving his hand, ‘I’d do the same for anyone.’

  ‘I will come to you Blowers…’ Marcy calls out which just sets them off again.

  Lilly laughs hard. She can’t help it. The visual imagery of Cookey running with Howie chasing after him is too much. All of it and the abstract notion of Jimmy Carr having a poo on Mr Howie is too much. She drops her head to wipe her eyes and feels the days of tension drop instantly away.

  ‘And just for the record,’ Charlie says, pausing to get her voice back under control despite the hawing braying laugh, ‘I most certainly did not pick a fight with two hundred…’

  ‘You bloody did!’ Howie bursts out laughing that sets everyone off again, ‘Paula had already called you back.’

  ‘I will come to you Charlie my love…’ Marcy calls out again, clasping her hands to her chest.

  ‘Don’t die today Charlie…’ Blowers calls out.

  ‘Oh get bent,’ Cookey gives up and sits back laughing at the comments and pulling a face to Lilly over the table. ‘So yeah, quiet couple of days really,’ he adds and looks round, ‘then we get back and find you’ve done all this…fucking legend or what?’