“ A chain gun and a machine gun,” Shane explained. “The 242 has a dual feed that the gunner can switch between armor-piercing or high-explosive rounds. The 240 machine gun fires 7.622 mm rounds.” Noticing Nikki still looked confused, he added, “I had been planning on joining the army at one time.”
“Well, we should be well protected. Are you coming, Rebecca?” Nikki asked.
“With both of you going”—Rebecca ignored the grunt of protest from her husband—“I don’t need to.”
“Rebecca, you know the systems already. I would rather you go,” Alistair began.
“Yes, but I also know the defenses of the compound better,” she stated simply.
“Wait a minute,” Shane exclaimed while slowly letting his fork down to the plate. “Nikki and I have explored this whole compound. Where are you hiding this beast?”
Nikki looked up at Alistair. What Shane had said was true. The house was huge, almost like a hotel. It had ten bedrooms, each with its own bathroom. The basement was a labyrinth of storerooms and equipment. There were water purifiers; geothermal heating, solar, and wind transformers; and all kinds of things that neither Nikki nor Shane understood. They had found the huge generator room and even the garbage room, but they had never found a garage.
Alistair smiled and took a bite of his dinner. Looking thoughtfully between them, he took a sip of wine and then wiped his mouth. “You have only been in about half of the compound.” He smiled again. “There is a door in the back of storeroom three that leads to a tunnel. If the compound were ever breached, we could live in the underground bunker for several years without problems.” He enjoyed the effect this had on them. “The garage is off one of the tunnels.” He took a slice of bread and began to mop up some of the sauce from his plate.
Nikki looked over at Shane, who wore the same stunned expression.
Getting Ready to Go
Krissy held her brother ’s hand as their parents explained the situation. Their uncle would be coming tomorrow to get them. They had to pack up their belongings and be ready to go by noon the next day.
Kyle smiled down at Krissy. “Hey, don’t worry,” he whispered. “Mom and Dad will make sure we are safe, and Uncle Al had this place.” He gestured around. “It kept us really protected. So you know the place we are going has got to be even better.” She nodded; he could tell she wasn’t quite convinced. She just looked up at her brother and tried to believe that everything was going to be OK. Inside she was terrified to go back past the gates. She had been playing on the wall, throwing snowballs at the zombies, when she saw a boy among them. This boy had been one of her friends. They had played together at school. She hadn’t left the house since seeing him.
Krissy returned to her room and stared at her few possessions. She had some clothes and a few toys. There was a spoon man Kyle had made her because, as he put it, her doll needed a friend. She picked up the spoon man and began to halfheartedly play with it and her doll.
“Once we get to your uncle’s, we will not have to leave again.” Ray spoke from her doorway. She only nodded but did not answer.
Kyle walked up behind his father. “She is really scared to go back out there,” he whispered. “I guess seeing someone you knew…”
Ray turned to his son. “Promise me you’ll take care of her. Don’t let anything happen to her, and promise me you’ll be careful,” he said, pulling Kyle into a hug.
Kyle stood rigid and stunned for a second before returning the hug. “Get it together, Dad. We’re gonna be fine. You take care of Mom, and I’ll take care of Kris.” He held his father at arm’s length. “Deal?”
“Deal.” Ray nodded.
Prep Time
Nikki and Shane followed Alistair through the door in the back of the storeroom. He flipped a switch, and the fluorescent lights flickered to life. They were standing in a long, white tunnel. As they proceeded, Shane noticed they were walking down a slope. Every so often Alistair would open a heavy metal door segmenting the tunnel.
“Just in case,” Alistair said as Shane gave him a questioning look about the doors.
“Seriously paranoid,” Nikki whispered. Shane laughed while Alistair ignored her.
They came to another door; this one had a keypad by it. Alistair punched in a code and pushed the door open. Cool, damp air rushed into the tunnel. Alistair stepped forward into the dark room and disappeared for a moment. Lights hummed and bathed the room in light.
Shane stepped through the door and gave a low whistle. A cavernous garage containing several vehicles met his gaze. There was a huge tour bus–type RV, several very expensive sports cars, a Bentley, and…
“That is a tank!” Nikki gasped. “A freaking tank.” She was pointing.
“ No, it is an armored personnel carrier.” Shane grabbed her arm, pulling her along behind him. “See here.” He pointed to the rear of the vehicle. “The back opens to allow troops to exit quickly while the guns provide fire support,” he stated.
“It’s got…tank wheels,” she stuttered. “I mean tracks.”
“Tread,” Shane corrected.
Alistair stepped up to the back of the vehicle. “OK, let’s go over this again.” Nikki and Shane listened carefully. “We back up to the gate; Shane, you will man the guns blowing away any of the ghouls who come too close.” Shane saluted. “Nikki, you’ll cover the family from the back.” She gave a thumbs-up. “In and out in five minutes. The whole trip shouldn’t take more than two hours,” he concluded.
They spent the next couple of hours going over the weapons system, how to drive the vehicle, operating the rear gate, and loading and checking their personal weapons. Nikki was somewhat intimidated by the efficiency of Alistair and Shane at the loading and cleaning of the weapons.
After what felt like hours of going over and over what they were going to do and how all the systems worked, Alistair finally let them go. The plan was for them to leave at first light the next morning, so everyone retired early. Nikki stared into the void of blackness of her room. The silence pressed on her ears. Sleep finally overtook her, but rest was not to be found. She was back in the restaurant. Tim was eating a little girl while a waitress, covered in blood and missing a hand, was asking for her drink order. Nikki turned at a tap on her shoulder to find a zombie Shane trying to bite into her arm. The scene dissolved into a cross between the thrift shop and the convenience store. Zombies were eating her friends while trying on sunglasses. Something pulled at her arm. It was a dead Shane, his teeth poised to sink into her arm. Before she could pull it away, they were back in the cabin. The undead Shane advanced on her. She held up her arm in defense, his teeth ripping into the soft flesh. Nikki woke up, rolling off her arms. They stung of pins and needles while her hair stuck to her face on the soaking pillow. She could still see his twisted face burned into her eyelids. Nikki did not return to sleep. The knock at the door calling her to get ready was a welcome one.
Time to Go…Again
Ray, Jen, Kyle, and Krissy spent the morning collecting their possessions. A light snow had begun to fall. Ray checked his watch. They would be leaving by 11:00 a.m., and Ray knew his family was anxious. The group of zombies outside the wall seemed to sense the family’s activity. When Ray and Kyle had surveyed the surroundings, it seemed as if their number had doubled overnight. Jen and Ray were busy moving the few items to the gate while Kyle kept Krissy distracted. Every time he left her on her own, she would start to get upset to the point of hysterics. Kyle had taken it upon himself to take care of his sister, seeing how anxious his parents were becoming. Jen had taken over while Ray pulled Kyle aside.
“I know you are going to keep her safe,” Ray whispered. “If this goes wrong, if Jen and I don’t…”
“Dad, we are all going to be fine. Uncle Al is coming to get us,” Kyle interrupted, not wishing to even think about what Ray was saying.
“I know, I know, but if…we get separated,” Ray inhaled, “you and your sister are to get out of town. Head west. There will
be fewer people out that way. Promise me you will keep her safe.”
“ Dad, I already promised that.” Kyle placed a hand on his father’s shoulder. “We are all getting out of this…together.” He held Ray’s gaze for a moment. Looking over the older man’s shoulder, Kyle called. “Kris, Dad was just saying we need to find something to carry Dude in.”
The next few minutes were spent trying to locate and then capture an increasingly annoyed Dude. It appeared he still remembered Krissy’s bow and wasn’t too keen on another fashion accessory. The makeshift cat carrier did nothing to calm his mood.
On the Road
The lack of sleep vanished the moment Nikki stepped into the armored steel machine. She sat in the front next to Alistair. Shane was already up in the turret. Alistair reached up and clicked the small black button attached to the sun visor. Not sure what she had expected, Nikki found that the sound of the heavy door rolling back surprised her. Her hand flew to cover her eyes. She was blinded momentarily as the sunlight blazed through the front windows. Snow left fat, wet flakes on the glass as the armored car pulled forward.
This was the first time in two months Nikki had left the safety of the compound. It was freeing and terrifying at once. The feel of heavy steel calmed her nerves slightly. Making her way to the back, she looked out through the tiny portal to watch the door shut. It was camouflaged to match the hillside. Even through her anxiety at leaving and the excitement of the task ahead, she had to shake her head at Alistair’s efforts. “Seriously paranoid.” She laughed to herself. “Thank God.”
Shane appeared at her side. He laughed at her reaction. “Yep, just like the Batcave.” Alistair nodded at Shane’s call.
“Yeah, batshit crazy, man,” Nikki teased, earning her a swat from Shane.
They wound their way down what might have been a dirt road when it wasn ’t snow-covered. “I wish it was snowing harder. I don’t like leaving tracks,” Alistair grumbled. Meeting up with a snowcovered, paved road, Alistair urged more speed out of the vehicle. With the increased speed came the increased butterflies, making Nikki wish she had only had the coffee for breakfast.
A few miles from the compound, they met their first zombies. Three of them wandered around on the road a short distance from the wreck of a car.
“ Looks like they might have been a family…once,” Shane noted, pulling back the action on the main fifty-caliber gun, readying to fire as they passed the ghouls. Alistair didn’t even flinch when they ran over what had once been a young boy. The other two lumbered after the Bradley for a little while, not even noticing that one of their numbers was no longer moving.
The closer they got to town, the more wrecked cars and undead they encountered. Alistair slowed the Bradley as they entered the outskirts of town. They passed empty houses. Everything was covered in pristine, untouched snow. Nikki thought it would be very pretty if it weren’t so eerie. Normally there would be the buzz of snow throwers mixed with the scrape of snow shovels. The white blanket hid the scarred lawns torn by speeding tires and bloodstained pavement, and signs of violence disappeared under the smooth cover. The fact that nothing was disturbed bothered Nikki. Since they had entered the suburbs, they had not seen one single zombie. On top of that, there didn’t seem to be any evidence of them. Not a single track in the snow. Alistair drove slowly, stopping on occasion, hoping to coax out any survivors. Faces never appeared in the windows, and no doors opened. There was simply no one around. After Shane let the fifty bark off several rounds with still no sign of life (or death), they continued on. Finally Alistair stopped at a bridge spanning the frozen river that led into the heart of the city.
“ The house is on the other side of town,” he said, glancing at his watch. “We should be right on time, barring any detours.” Putting the vehicle in low gear, he proceeded to drive up and over the pile of cars blocking the bridge.
Nikki bounced around the back as they crested the smashed vehicles. “Warn me next time!” she shouted, rubbing her butt that she had just been knocked on.
Shane looked back and shouted over the engine, “Buckle up for safety.” She gave him the finger in return. He laughed, but she could see the tension in his smile.
Unexpected Detour
“ Shit! We’re not getting through that!” Shane exclaimed as Alistair stopped the Bradley. Nikki was at Alistair’s shoulder, looking out in front of the vehicle. The way was blocked. The building on the left had apparently caught fire and collapsed onto the road, taking part of the building across the street with it.
“Looks like we’re going to have to go around.” Alistair began to shift the mighty vehicle in reverse. “Oh, hello!” he exclaimed as several zombies stumbled out of a building next to the Bradley.
Nikki returned to the back and looked out the small port. “We have more friends behind us,” she stated while sitting quickly and buckling her seat belt. She had a feeling things were about to get bumpy. Nikki’s head swung side to side as dull thumps began to sound through the armor as the undead tried to get at the living.
Alistair slammed the vehicle in reverse. Watching the display, he backed the vehicle over several of the zombies. Nikki cringed as she heard them hit the door next to her and get crunched under the tread. Reaching the cross street, Alistair put the Bradley back into gear. Returning his gaze to the front, he swore. The street was full of shambling horror. Shane moved to return to the turret but was stopped by his uncle.
The pounding intensified as the Bradley just sat there. More and more zombies crowded around the armored car. Shane looked over at his uncle, who still had a hand on Shane’s arm, keeping him in his seat.
Nikki covered her ears as the drumming on the side got louder and louder. “Why aren’t we moving?” she cried, unable to keep the panic out of her voice.
“What’s up, Uncle?” Shane whispered. He was starting to get concerned. Alistair pointed up the street. Hanging out a window was a person frantically waving a flag.
“I don’t think zombies are that patriotic,” Alistair stated.
“What is going on?” Nikki screamed. Clawed hands left black streaks on the portal. The Bradley was starting to shake.
“There is someone up ahead, alive. We are drawing the zombies to us; then we’ll leave them here and get the survivor!” Shane shouted back.
Alistair poked Shane and then pointed his thumb up to the turret. Shane nodded and opened the hatch. The cold flooded down over Nikki, bringing with it the stench of the dead. She covered her ears as the main gun opened up on the road in front of the Bradley. The clang of spent brass shells banged off the roof of the vehicle.
Alistair waited until an area of about a hundred feet in front of the survivor ’s building was clear before proceeding forward. Shane spun the gun to cover the rear of the Bradley. The survivor ducked into the building as the vehicle trundled closer, finally coming to a halt in front of the sanctuary as a rope ladder fell from a second-floor window and four heavily bundled people began their descent.
“ Around the back!” Shane shouted to the group. Yelling into the compartment of the Bradley, he added, “Nikki, open the gate!” She punched the seat-belt release and sprang to her feet, hitting the button to lower the rear gate. The cold slapped her in the face as snow swirled into the warm interior. The rear gate was three quarters down when Shane opened fire again. Nikki could see the horde they had just left starting to advance toward them.
The last of the four was on the ladder. “Come on!” the one in the front turned and shouted and then screamed as the straggler fell from the ladder with a thump into the snow. Staggering to her feet, she ran to catch up. The one in the front was pulling a smaller one by the hand.
Nikki held onto a handle just inside the gate and reached out to help them aboard. The gate was almost down when the small form was thrust at Nikki. With her free hand, Nikki pulled what she could only assume was a child on board. The leader then clambered in and turned to encourage the last two on. The one who fell from the ladder
stumbled and fell again. Nikki could see the eyes of the person who was almost at the safety of the fighting vehicle. She could see the terror and the conflict. The person stopped, spun around, and ran back. Sliding in the snow, she grabbed the fallen person. Picking him up out of the snow, she placed him hard on his feet. The fallen boy nodded and allowed himself to be pulled to the Bradley.
Shane opened up with the machine gun again. Nikki could hear the moans of the dead and smell the stench over the blowing snow and the cordite from the firing gun. “Is this it? Is this everyone?” Nikki yelled at the bundled newcomers. The first one who had made it inside stared around at the others.
“Yes, four of us” came the muffled reply.
“ All in, Alistair!” Nikki cried, hitting the button to close the gate. The vehicle lurched forward. Nikki watched the dead hurry after them until the gate clanged shut. Nikki swung into her seat and was pressed into the side as Alistair took a corner. Shane stumbled down the ladder and slammed the hatch. Snow drifted to the floor and melted; the sound of labored breathing filled the space. Slowly the air began to warm with the heater going and the portals all closed.
“What do we got?” Alistair questioned from the driver’s seat.
“We got four newbies, Unc,” Shane shouted, steadying himself as Alistair took another corner.
Nikki ’s hand was inside her jacket, fingering the handle of her gun. She watched the four newcomers. They were looking around the interior with frightened interest. They huddled close together. All Nikki could see of them were their eyes under the heavy winter clothes.
Finally one of them reached up and began to pull off some of the scarves and hats that covered her head. Shane stepped forward and sat next to Nikki as the woman got up off the floor and sat in the seat across from them. Taking their cue, the others moved to the seats next to the woman and pulled off their own hats and scarves. Seated across from Nikki and Shane sat a woman with short, spiky, reddish-brown hair. Nikki judged her to be around Shane’s age. Judging by the way Shane reacted, so did he. Nikki frowned.
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