Scratch marks.
He had come out of the shower in a daze to find a message on his bedside phone. It was from Jenkins. He said to meet him down in the bar. Ron was in no hurry to get down stairs. If Jenkins knew that he was infected he would most assuredly shoot him right between the eyes. Jenkins might be his partner but he was also a cold, calculating son of a bitch who wouldn’t think twice about shooting his partner to stop the spread of the plague. So would anyone who valued life over the walking dead. Ron knew he was going to die, but he wasn’t ready to go just yet.
Ron lay back on the soft bed. The softest bed he had ever laid on. Within seconds he was asleep… But he snapped wide-awake several minutes later, his stomach grumbling with hunger. The rash was itching like hell, and his whole chest felt hot and sticky. He raced to the bathroom and looked in the mirror; the rash had now spread under both arms to the elbow and all the way around his chest to his back. Several more of the boils had burst as well, leaking their fetid liquid. He used half a roll of toilet paper to clean the pus from his chest before he painfully pulled on a t-shirt. The rash burned like severe sunburn and itched like a fresh mosquito bites. He finished dressing with fresh clothes taken from his suitcase and went down stairs. Better they all hear it from his mouth.
It took most of his concentration to keep from scratching his chest and arms but as soon as he entered the bar he realized something was going on. Everybody had left their seats and was huddled around the door and large pane windows to see what was going on outside. Ron made his way through the crowd, cringing in pain as someone bumped into him causing the rash to flare with hot pain. But he found a spot by the window and peered out. Several soldiers were in the process of arresting some people. Ron peered closer…Two soldiers, a dark haired man and a blond haired woman. It took him several more seconds for his mind to register that he recognized the people being arrested. The two soldiers were Jenkins and Mac. The man was Matt and the woman was Susan. Ron moved away from the window and made his way outside just as the truck drove away.
Ron’s head spun as he tried to figure out what the hell was going on.
His first thought was that the Park City Militia was double crossing them. They knew the size of the load they had brought in and they weren’t satisfied with 50%. They wanted the whole thing. A wave of paranoia washed through him but it quickly faded as reason set in. If Park City made a habit of robbing every big score that rolled in they would be cutting their own throats. They depended on independent operators going down into Salt Lake and bringing back the big score. While they had been at the tariff station one of the workers had told him about several rival raider gangs that competed with each other for the biggest score’s. Sometimes their competition got deadly.
But if they weren’t here to steal their load then what other reason was there to arrest them? The discomfort of the rash suddenly made him think they were after him. But that too couldn’t be possible. No one else knew he had developed the rash. Ron turned to a sour faced, spike and leather clad biker walking back into the bar.
“What happened?”
“They were infected.”
His words hit Ron like a brick wall. Infected? When did that happen? None of them had said anything about being touched by a superzombie. Was one of them bit out on the raid? Was Mac bit while helping rescue Zack from the base hospital?
“How do you know?” Ron asked.
“I heard the doctor and one of the soldiers talking. He said one of them was infected.”
“Did he say which one?” They had been looking for him. Maybe one of the soldier’s at the tariff station had spotted the rash and reported it? Maybe they had seen other cases of it and recognized it for what it was?
“I didn’t hear the whole conversation. Just that one of them was infected so they all had to be checked.”
“How did they make it into the city?” asked a heavily made up young prostitute standing nearby.
“How the fuck would I know?” the biker said gruffly and walked away. Ron and the prostitute looked at each other and she smiled provocatively.
“You need a date?” she asked.
“No thanks.” Ron said, turning back into the bar. What the fuck was he going to do? Did he dare contact the military to find out what was happening? They would undoubtedly uncover his secret. It was all he could to now to walk around with his shirt chaffing the rash until he wanted to scream and scratch and scratch until he bled. Dazed and confused, Ron made his way back upstairs, went to his brother’s door and knocked.
“Rick! Open up! We got an emergency on our hands!” The door opened seconds later and Rick and stepped out into the hallway. He was fully clothed but his hair was still wet from the shower.
“Keep it down. The girls are finally asleep. If I wake them up Jen will kill me.” His mood was cheery and jovial.
“Rick we have a serious situation on our hands.” Ron could barely contain his anxiety.
“What the hell are you talking about?” Rick had just begun to feel safe and relaxed. Ron’s mod disturbed him.
“I went down stairs to meet Jenkins but he was being arrested by the military.”
“Arrested?” Rick nearly screamed himself.
“Not just him; Matt and Susan and Mac as well. All four of them were handcuffed and put into a jeep.”
“What for?”
“One man told me they were infected.”
“But when?” Rick asked. “How?” Rick was as taken aback as he had been.
“I don’t know? Maybe while we were out on the raid?”
“Nobody got bit out on the raid.” Rick said. “Nobody… They checked us when we first made it back to the base. Nobody was bit.”
“You don’t have to be bit.” Ron said absently.
“What?” Rick was confused by his brother’s strange behavior.
“They’ll come and arrest us next.”
“Let them take us. I’m clean. So are you. We all are.” Rick looked into Ron’s eyes as he said this, and something there chilled him. “We are all clean, aren’t we bro?”
“I got scratched on the throat by that superzombie. Scratched! Can you fucking believe that?”
“Ron, what the hell are you talking about?” There was growing fear in Rick’s voice.
“I’ve been infected little brother.” Ron pulled down the front of his shirt to showed Rick the festering rash. Rick winced as the stench hit his nostrils. “That fucking deadfuck scratched me on the throat and now I’m going to turn into a fucking zombie.” Ron’s spoke with little emotion.
“You’ve been infected?” David’s voice startled them both. He had come up behind Ron silent as a cat. “How did you get infected?” David asked, taking a step back from Ron. Ron looked around the hallway of the hotel but it was empty. Ron quickly told David about the four being arrested as well as the development of his rash.
“Maybe the soldiers were talking about Zack.” David said. Ron and Rick looked at him oddly. “He’s up at the hospital now. Maybe they said he was infected and they wanted to check his friends too.”
“The slime at the motel!” Ron blurted, slapping himself in the forehead as the light bulb went on inside.
“What are you talking about?” Rick asked.
“It makes perfect sense. Back at Summittown a superzombie went into Zack’s room. We know because we found slime trails
“That’s right.” Rick said. “The same kind of slime we found near those brain sucked corpses out on the raid.”
“Do you think Zack was infected by a superzombie? Just like me.” Ron asked.
“Do you think you’ll turn into a normal zombie? Or a superzombie?” David asked.
“What the hell kind of a question is that?” Rick snapped angrily.
“It’s the right question.” Ron said blankly. “What kind of zombie will I become? A fast, thinking, mean ass son of a bitch or a staggering deadfuck? For all your sake I hope it’s a staggering deadfuck so you can deal with me easily. The
same goes for Zack. Hopefully those bastards at the hospital will put him out of his misery before he turns.”
David felt his emotions stretch thin as he thought about Ron’s last statement. He was still in shock over his Fathers death, yet to come to terms with the traumatic events just a few days ago. David couldn’t even remember for sure how many days ago it happened. Now Ron was infected with the zombie plague and Zack probably was too. And maybe even his sister and Matt? David felt like screaming at the top of his lungs! Cursing God and the Devil and everything in between for destroying his life! Destroying the world’s life. He wanted to scream and scream until he was raw in the throat and could scream no more. But instead he laughed…
Chapter 27
Sunday, June 24, 2001
Park City, UT
1:50 PM
They arrived at the Park City hospital and the jeep lead them around the back of the building. As it came to a halt near one of the ambulance entrances Matt realized just how scared he was.
“This is so fucked.” He grumbled.
“Relax.” Jenkins said. Matt was amazed at how calm Jenkins remained. Susan looked as afraid as he was and a nervous sweat had broken out on Mac’s brow but Jenkins still had that cocky smile of his, as if to say he didn’t have a care in the world. “None of us are infected. It will only take a few minutes to confirm then they will let us go.”
“How can you be sure of that?” Susan quipped. She didn’t like Jenkins and it showed.
“Nothings for sure girly.” He smirked at her as if she were a child.
“Fuck you asshole!” Susan snapped at him. Jenkins just chuckled back at her.
Two soldiers came around the back of the truck, M-16’s in hand. They ordered them out of the truck, which was somewhat awkward with handcuffs on but they all managed nonetheless. The Captain and the twitchy doctor walked over to them from the jeep.
“Now you understand why I can’t un-cuff you right now?” He looked at each of them in turn before looking at Jenkins. “If any of you are infected keeping you cuffed will just make disposal quicker and easier for everyone.”
“Nice to know you’re thinking about us.”
“Take ‘em inside.” The Captain ordered the two soldiers. As they went inside Matt heard the twitchy doctor and the Captain begin to argue with each other.
Inside there were half a dozen nurses waiting for them. They were taken into a small room to one side and sat down in chairs. While the two soldiers stood watch over the nurses quickly drew blood from each of them. Once finished the nurses and the soldiers exited the room and the door was closed and locked.
“Are you nervous yet?” Matt asked Jenkins.
“Not at all.” Jenkins leaned his head back and pursed his lips under his salt and pepper mustache. Matt didn’t like Jenkins arrogance either. Sometimes Matt just wanted to punch him in the mouth.
A foreboding silence fell across the four of them and in the tiny room time soon lost meaning. Matt didn’t know whether it had been five minutes or an hour since the nurses had left but the door was eventually unlocked and opened. Standing there was the Captain who had arrested them and the twitchy doctor.
“You are all clean.” He said as if he wished otherwise. They all breathed a heavy sigh of relief. Even Jenkins.
“So we’re free to go?” Mac asked, standing up. “Remove my cuffs.”
“Not just yet.” The Captain said.
“What the hell are you talking about?” Jenkins barked.
“We want to ask you a few questions.”
“There’s no need to keep us cuffed.” Matt said.
“Maybe, maybe not? I just don’t know that yet.”
“This is bullshit Captain. We passed the test. You told us yourself that we’re clean.”
“You’d be wise to keep your mouth shut.” The Captain looked at Matt with eyes as cold as steel.
“Ask your god damned questions then.” Jenkins snapped.
“Where did Zack Thomas first get injured?”
“He was shot a few days ago by soldiers down in Salt lake City.” Matt said.
“Why did they shoot him?”
“We were trying to get some gas for our vehicle. The soldiers came up in a jeep.”
“So you just started shooting at them?”
“They were trying to rape me!” Susan jumped in. “They killed my father! Zack was just trying to defend us.”
“All I care about is when your friend became infected. Luckily he didn’t infect any of you. But he may have infected others. When was his last contact with a zombie?”
“Last night. In Summittown.” Matt said.
“We don’t know what the hell that was.” Mac said. “I’m the only one who saw it, and I’m not sure what I saw.” Mac closed his eyes and retold the story, trying to pull the details from his memory.
“Are you sure it was a zombie and not some kind of animal?” The twitchy doctor finally spoke.
“What did it look like?” The Captain asked.
“It wasn’t one of those superzombies. I fought one of those back at the base. They were big ugly bastards wearing body armor and packing serious heat. The creature I saw was short, but it moved quickly. I only got a couple of shots off before it was gone.”
“I think Mac saw our brainsucker.” Jenkins said.
“Brainsucker? What brainsucker?” The twitchy doctor moved very close to Jenkins, leaning down until his be-speckled face was only a few inches away. Jenkins fought the urge to kick him on the balls. “Tell me more.”
“We were out on a raid yesterday when we found some bodies tied up in a back room. Holes had been punched into their skulls and their brains had been sucked out leaving an empty shell. The bodies and the surrounding area were also covered with a sour smelling slime. The same kind of slime that was found in Zack’s room after Mac chased the creature away.”
“A new creature all together…” The doctor said with amazement.
“Now you are telling me there may be another kind of zombie we don’t know about?” The Captain asked.
“This is as new to me as it is to you Captain.” The doctor said curtly. He looked at the four prisoners. “We don’t get many zombies up here. We had our fair share with the initial outbreak but they were dealt with quickly. Not many salvagers are willing to bring back zombies, even for scientific study. What specimens we do have we kept from the outbreak and those are all Beta Stage zombies.”
“What’s that?” Matt asked.
The doctor looked over at the Captain and waited for his nod of approval before continuing.
“Beta Stage is the classification we give the multitudes of zombies walking around right now. Until recently we believed that there was only one stage of zombification. The stumbling reanimated corpses. But a specimen was found while on a raid that changed that. It was merely a hand. A severed hand composed of leathery flesh and congealed, black blood… And it was still alive. With a Beta Stage Zombie once a limb was severed it was dead. No sign of animation. But this one was different. It would clench and open and when placed palm down it would scuttle around like a spider.
“That sounds like a superzombie.” Jenkins said. “Rotted, leathery flesh, almost impossible to kill.”
“We’ve been told that bullets are ineffective against them?” the doctor sounded as if he couldn’t believe it.
“You got that right.” Jenkins said. “We had to use grenades on the ones we faced and even those weren’t enough to kill them. They were just too mangled to attack anymore.”
The doctor and the Captain gave each other an odd look before the doctor continued.
“After careful examination the specimen proved to be a completely new strain of the plague. The flesh and blood is literally the virus. Organized as a mobile, autonomous creature. We called it the Alpha Strain.”
“So it is a disease?” Susan asked.
“Most certainly… It was first diagnosed as a virus shortly after the initial African outbreak ten month
s ago. It was easy to detect once they knew what they were looking for…” He paused, staring out into space for several long seconds. “When they knew what they were looking for…” He repeated it with a bitter laugh. “If they had just released the information to civilian doctors this madness may have been avoided. Steps could have been taken to keep it from all falling apart…but it was all kept top secret. It wasn’t released to stateside civilian doctors until after the west coast was overrun. But admitting it was a virus was only the half of it. They didn’t say anything about the Alpha strain. No mention of your superzombies.
Further research proved that we all carry the virus.” Everyone gave the doctor a frightened look. “It’s true. Every human being on earth carries the virus in a dormant stage. Only after death does the virus become active and causes reanimation as a Beta Stage Zombie, and then only if the corpse has an intact brain.”
“Where did this virus come from?” Mac asked.
“Nobody knows.” The doctor said. “One day the dead just started walking.”
“This virus had to originate someplace.” Matt said.
“Yes but where? Was it hatched in a secret government laboratory? A new bio-weapon gone awry? Or maybe massive deforestation of the African jungles unleashed some new plague that had been cooking in the jungle for centuries? Perhaps it is a natural mutation of the human DNA caused by radiation leaking in through a thinning atmosphere? Or maybe Mother Nature got tired of us fucking with her environment so badly and decided to fuck with us back? Maybe it’s aliens from another world? Who knows? Trying to solve that mystery is like trying to figure out who built the pyramids. It just IS. We can’t worry about how; we’ve got to worry about NOW.” The twitchy doctor looked even crazier as he finished speaking, his eyes bulging behind his glasses.
“Is there any way to keep the virus from becoming active?” Susan asked.
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