“This is our last hope,” Aaron says. “I think we’re all willing to risk it.”
Roberts looks at each individual member of our group, perhaps looking for any weaknesses that will get us killed. Apparently we pass his inspection, because he nods. “I understand. I can get you there, but once you’re off the ground, it’s all you.” He looks at Allen and Chad. “I can help you get back to your bus, and I think I’ll take you up on your offer, if it’s still good.”
“It is,” Allen says. “I’ll never turn away another survivor. We need to stick together if we’re to survive.”
“So how far away is this helicopter?” I ask.
“We go out the way we came in, and then its a hundred yard dash to a separate fenced in area behind this building, where we kept all of vehicles and helicopters.”
“A hundred yards is pretty far when there’s a horde of zombies between us and our destination.”
“We’ll be fine, Maddy,” Todd says. “Don’t worry about something until you know for certain we actually have something to worry about. The way might be clear. We could get through without any problems, especially now that we have all the ammunition we could want. We can do this. Just keep a positive attitude for now.”
Roberts nods. “He’s right. After all that shooting earlier, they could all be cleared out of there and looking around the base for whatever made all that noise. If we hurry, we might be able to sneak in and out without them seeing us.”
“Well what are we waiting for?” Chad asks. “Let’s get this over with. We still have people waiting for us.”
We gather our backpacks full of supplies, and we follow Roberts over to the door. He peeks outside to make sure the area is still zombie-free. Once he’s sure the coast is clear, we creep out, making sure to make as little noise as possible. We can’t afford to attract any attention at this point. We’re so close to our goals I can almost taste it, and if we were to do something stupid and fail at this point…
We walk around the side of the supply building without a sound. Roberts is in the lead, followed closely by Aaron. Allen, Chad and I take up the rear. Miraculously, the hundred yard dash to the fenced in area is a piece of cake, with no zombies to bother us along the way. However, the second we see the helicopter, my heart nearly stops.
The fenced in field houses eight helicopters of various sizes and shapes, along with two tanks and a handful of armored military jeeps. The area is about the size of a football field, and it is crawling with zombies. There must be at least fifty of them, and there’s no possible way we’ll be able to get to our helicopter without being spotted. There are nine of us now, and we all have a weapon to shoot with, but we’re still impossibly outmatched.
“Well, we’re screwed,” Todd says.
Roberts shakes his head. “No, we’re not. Your helicopter is the one nearest to us. It’s right there. It’ll take a few minutes for your pilot to get it started and off the ground. We’ll hold them off while he does that. Then, you guys are out of here, and we can take one of those armored jeeps back to the bus. This’ll work, we’ll just have to be careful and watch out for each other.”
“Alright, let’s do this,” Aaron says, checking his weapon. “Is everyone ready?”
I look around, noting the look of terror on Daisy’s face. I scoot close to her. “Stay close to me,” I say quietly. “I’ll watch out for you. Okay?” She nods her head, but she’s too scared to speak, and I don’t blame her. I’d be scared if I were her, too. “Let’s get this over with, Aaron.”
Roberts slides back the gate, and we all wince when it screeches. We don’t have time to worry about it though. We run for the helicopter, shooting as we go. Michael is the first to reach the helicopter and he jumps in and begins to fiddle with the controls. I don’t know what he’s doing, but it works, and the thing roars to life. Aaron loads Daisy onto the helicopter where she’ll be out of harm’s way.
A zombie comes up behind him, and without thinking, I raise my arm and squeeze the trigger. The zombie drops to the ground, and Aaron looks at me startled. “Thank me later,” I say, turning away from him to take aim at another zombie as it approaches. The shot goes wide, missing completely, and it descends on me. I take a quick step back and swing my arm. The grip of my gun slams into the zombie’s skull and it drops to its knees. I strike it two more times, and it crumples to the ground with a crushed skull.
Heart racing, I turn and look for my next target. A zombie has Janelle pinned to the ground, and I run over to her side. She’s managing to keep it at arm’s length, and I grab a fistful of its shirt, hauling it even farther away from her face. I place my gun to its temple and pull the trigger, showering both Janelle and myself with congealed blood and brain matter. I toss the zombie to the ground and help her to her feet. I shove her toward the helicopter. “Keep Daisy safe and make sure Michael isn’t disturbed.”
She runs off, and I run over to help Allen. He, Chad, and Roberts are battling a small group of zombies near one of the armored jeeps. Allen struggles with a zombie while another sneaks up behind him. I raise my weapon and fire a shot at the zombie about to take a bite out of the back of Allen’s neck, and it drops to the ground behind him. Roberts takes a knife from his belt and plunges it into the zombie’s head, causing it to go still and limp in his hands. He shoves the zombie’s corpse away with a look of disgust, and he wipes his bloody hands on his pants.
Night is coming fast, and it’s getting harder and harder to see the zombies by the minute. Daisy screams, and in the dark it’s almost impossible to see her, but eventually I make out her form. A zombie has a hold of her arm and is trying to yank her out of the helicopter, but she’s gripping onto a seat and is refusing to go easily. As I run to her, she kicks the zombie in the face, breaking her nose. She lets go of Daisy and stumbles back. I trip the zombie and once its on the ground, I level my gun at its face and pull the trigger. Her body jerks, and then goes still.
“We’re ready to go!” Michael shouts. It’s hard to hear him over the sound of the rotors atop the helicopter, but he gets the point across.
We throw our bags in and climb aboard while Allen, Chad, and Roberts hold off the rest of the zombies. Aaron is the last one on, and once we’re all situated, Allen turns towards us and takes my hand, squeezing it gently. “God bless you, Madison. Take care of yourself.”
“Thank you, Allen. For everything. Be careful.”
My stomach drops to my feet as the helicopter lurches off the ground. Allen, Chad, and Roberts run for the nearest armored jeep, and they shut themselves safely inside. The jeep starts right up and they drive through the open gate, mowing down zombies in their path as our helicopter rises higher and higher. Soon, we’re so high that the only part of the jeep I can make out is the headlights, and as we fly away from the base, I watch it for as long as I can. I hope that Allen and his group make it to Chicago safely.
I lean back in my seat, trying to calm my racing heart. I’ve never flown before, and this experience is making me feel sick to my stomach. Todd grabs my hand, trying to offer me some small bit of comfort, and I smile gratefully at him. I look around at all of the people around me, and I feel hopeful that we’re actually going to be okay in the end. We’re all crowded into the back of a helicopter with no idea if we’ll even make it to Colorado, but we have more hope than we’ve had in awhile, and I just hope that it lasts.
I lean my head on Todd’s shoulder and close my eyes, hoping to get some rest before we make it to our destination. Todd wraps his arm around my shoulder and pulls me closer, and I feel myself begin to slowly drift off.
It’s nearly light out when alarms begin blaring, startling me awake from my sleep. The helicopter rocks to the side, knocking me against Todd’s shoulder. Michael is looking worriedly at the control panel in front of him, and I can tell from the look on his face that this is not a good thing. The alarms are unceasing in their urgency, and I put my hands over my ears to try and drown out the blaring sounds.
&nbs
p; “What’s going on?” Aaron shouts, trying to be heard over the sound of the wind and rotors. “Michael!”
Michael doesn’t get a chance to answer. The helicopter jerks to the side and begins spinning slowly in a wide circle as we begin to descend. We’re not too high over the tree tops, but we’re approaching the ground far too fast for Michael to attempt a landing. He grabs the controls, trying desperately to steady the helicopter, but one final jerk to the side and Michael flies out of the seat, hitting the wall. We fall out of the sky, hitting the ground, and everything goes dark.
Chapter Nineteen
Something heavy is crushing my chest, pinning me to the ground, and I can barely breathe. Every part of me aches, but I take that as a good sign, as it means I’m still alive. At least for the moment. I force myself to open my eyes, and I see a large piece of dark metal lying across my chest and legs. I try to wiggle free, but it’s no use. The metal is too heavy, and I can’t get my arms under it to free myself.
Looking around, I see wreckage everywhere. There are pieces of metal lying scattered throughout the clearing, and a few patches of grass have caught fire. Smoke rises from the body of the helicopter, which is still partially intact. From my place under the metal, I can just barely make out Michael. My heart twists painfully at the sight of his unmoving body. It’s laying half out of the helicopter’s broken windshield, and I can see shards of broken glass speared through his torso. He probably didn’t survive the crash, and I take only a small measure of comfort in knowing that he most likely didn’t suffer.
I can’t see anyone else, and I start to panic. What if I’m the only survivor? I could be trapped under here until I die of dehydration! I force myself to take a deep breath before I can get hysterical, and I try to think rationally. We weren’t that high up. Somebody else had to survive the crash. I just have to find them…
“Hello?” I call out into the early morning. “Is anyone else there?”
For a minute, nothing happens, and I’m afraid that I really am the only one still alive. Then, I hear rustling off to my side. “Madison? Where are you?”
Todd…
“Over here,” I say. “I’m trapped under a huge piece of metal. It’s got me pinned. I can’t get free.”
I hear footsteps as Todd runs to my side, and he grips a piece of the metal and lifts. He groans with the effort, but the metal slowly begins to inch off of me, freeing my arms just enough so that I can get them under the metal and help free myself. I push while Todd pulls, and slowly but surely the metal gives, allowing me to slide out from under it. Once I’m clear, Todd drops it with a loud thud, and he crouches down beside me, checking me for injury.
“I’m fine,” I say, trying to stand.
“Stop,” he commands. “You could have a concussion or internal bleeding. Just let me look you over real fast.”
I sit still while he does the best he can to evaluate me. “Michael is dead,” I say softly. “Have you seen anyone else yet? We’re not the only ones, are we?”
“I don’t know,” he says quietly. “I woke up in a patch of tall grass about a stone’s throw from here. I guess I got thrown from the helicopter when it landed. You didn’t go nearly as far, which is unfortunate, because it left you vulnerable to falling bits of metal.” He presses a hand to my side, and I double over, gasping in pain. “Shit, I think you’ve got a broken rib, maybe two. I can’t tell.”
“Well there’s nothing we can do about it, so help me up.”
He sighs. “Alright, but take it easy. Don’t make your injuries any worse.”
“What about you? Are you alright?”
“I’ve got a nasty cut on my forehead, and I think my ankle is sprained, but other than that, I’m fine.”
He grabs my hand and helps me to my feet, steadying me when I sway just a bit. “We have to find the others.” Now that I’m on my feet and I can look around, I wish I couldn’t. The helicopter is totally destroyed, and it looks like a small bomb went off in this clearing. I hope there aren’t any body parts mixed in with the metal wreckage.
Todd yanks me behind him as the sound of footsteps reaches our ears, and my hand goes for my gun, only to find that it’s not tucked into my waistband anymore. I look around for it frantically, hating the thought of being weaponless if we have to fight our way out of here.
“Hello?” a rough voice calls out. A man steps out of the trees, holding a rifle of some kind in his hands. His eyes go straight to me and Todd, and then slowly to the wreckage around us. When he deems us not a threat, he slowly lowers his weapon and looks over his shoulder. “It’s alright, Sam. You can come over, but be careful.”
“Who are you?” Todd asks, leaning on me for support. His face is pale beneath the smearing of blood from the nasty cut on his forehead, and he’s starting to tremble a little.
“My name is Reese,” he says, taking a few steps toward us. “And it looks like you need help. Is there anything I can do for you?”
“We’re looking for our friends,” I say. “Our pilot is dead, but there should be three others. Two women and a man. Can you help us find them?”
A young woman steps out of the trees behind Reese, and my heart stops at the sight of her. For a minute, the two of us stand there, staring at each other in complete shock. She’s the first to recover, and she pushes past Reese and runs for me with tears in her eyes. She throws her arms around me, holding me upright. We’re too overcome with emotion to even speak, and we just stand there and hold each other while Todd and Reese look on with shock and confusion.
Sam recovers first. “Madison, what are you doing here?”
I pull away and take a deep breath, trying to calm myself. “We were on our way to Colorado. We figured with the low population and rocky terrain, we’d be able to make a safe, semi-stable life for ourselves. But our helicopter crashed. What are you doing here?”
“We had a similar idea. We wanted someplace isolated, but we chose Kansas instead.”
“Is that where we are?”
She shakes her head. “You guys crashed just over the Missouri border. Reese and I were out looking for more supplies when we saw the smoke rising up over the trees. I told him we had to check it out, and I’m glad we did.” She looks me up and down. “You’re okay?”
“Yes, but my friends might not be. We have to find them.”
Sam turns and looks at her companion. “Go with him and look through the trees for any other survivors. Madison and I will search through the rest of the wreckage. Stay together and keep on the lookout. The crash is bound to draw somebody’s attention, dead or alive.”
Sam puts her arm around my waist, helping me walk as we look through the wreckage around us. We turn over every scrap of metal during our search. We find our backpacks of food and ammunition scattered around the body of the helicopter, and we set them off to one side. As Sam straightens the bags, I look around at the trees around us, and I notice a flash of bright blue fabric.
I run for the trees, ignoring Sam’s call. I drop to my knees, helping Daisy to sit up. She has a large bruise along her jaw, and her entire body is shaking. Her eyes have a wide and glassy look to them, and I hope she’s just in shock and not suffering from a concussion. I grab her and turn her to face me. “Daisy, are you alright?”
“W-what h-h-happened?” she manages to stutter.
“The helicopter crashed, Daisy. Are you okay?”
She doesn’t answer. She just stares down at herself as if she expects to see herself coated in blood. Luckily, she doesn’t appear to be hurt severely. I get to my feet, and Sam and I both help her stand. She sways and leans against me for support, and Sam and I help her back to the site of the crash, where Todd and Reese are waiting for us. With them is Aaron, but the sight of him doesn’t calm me in the slightest.
My eyes go straight to the jagged piece of metal imbedded in his left thigh, and I can feel my stomach start to roll. His pant leg is soaked in blood, and his face has a pale, waxy look to it. His breathing looks stead
y though, and I suppose that’s a good sign. Sam takes Daisy from me, and I drop down beside Aaron and softly call his name. His eyes don’t even open, and I bite my lip to keep from crying at the sight of him.
“I think he’ll be alright,” Reese says, surprising me. “It speared the muscle, but I think it missed anything vital. If it had nicked something, he’d probably be dead already. I used my belt to create a tourniquet above the bleeding, but we’ll have to take care of it eventually.”
I look at Todd. “Did you find Janelle?”
He nods. “She must have flown out of the chopper as we crashed, and I think she hit a tree. She’s not responding, and I can see a dark bruise on her lower abdomen that I think is internal bleeding. We have to get her and Aaron somewhere safe, or they won’t stand a chance.”
Sam looks over at Reese. “We’ll have to take them back with us. I don’t know how we’ll all fit, but we’ll have to make it work. We can’t leave them here.”
“Oh, Ryder is going to love this,” Reese mutters, earning a glare from Sam.
“He’ll be fine with it. Now let’s go!”
“Alright. Let’s get them out of here.”
I grab Janelle’s feet while Sam struggles with her shoulders. Daisy trails along behind us, staring at nothing in particular and not even watching where she’s walking. She almost hits a tree at one point, but she doesn’t seem to notice. She just stares at the ground like some kind of zombie. Todd and Reese struggle to maneuver Aaron through the trees without jostling the jagged piece of metal, and I can hear Aaron groaning quietly behind me. I hope he doesn’t wake up before we get wherever we’re going, because if he struggles, we’ll never get that metal out of his leg without tearing something.
Thankfully their vehicle is parked nearby, and they load Aaron into the backseat, stretching him out across the leather seats. Sam and I get Janelle into the back cargo area, and Daisy climbs in with her. As we close the hatch, I notice Daisy take Janelle’s hand in hers. “What about our supplies?” I ask.
Zombie Country (Zombie Apocalypse #2) Page 25