Controlling the Dead

by Annie Walls

  I don’t know what to say. I know how she feels.

  “Anyways, I neva got to thank Mac for that. He shot him up with some drugs, and he went to sleep forever. No more pain.”

  Sam and Ty walk by the truck and when they see me at Glinda’s mercy, they burst into laughter, unknowing of our conversation. I shoot them the bird. Glinda snatches my hand back. This brings another round of laughter. “Ha ha!” I mock.

  *

  We leave sometime deep into the night. I ride in a car with a few members of the team. Sam. Thomas. Even though he can be a major prick, he will watch my back. Last, but not least, Sander. He insisted, I think just to watch me doing my thing. Everyone else takes one vehicle each, leaving behind Rudy’s truck for Leila, who has stayed with Ariella.

  Rudy is with Julie, Maddie, and Bunyan. They are getting out survivors and searching for Jonathan. Mya told us she doesn’t know him, but if he is there, then he’ll be in the singles dorm. Doesn’t matter he’s already married, but I hope he hasn’t already impregnated someone else.

  Mago and Mya won’t be going in, but they’ll be close. Reece, Glinda, and Ty are working in the girls dorm. Felix, Nastas, Nita, Gwen, and Kale are going to the independent housing. Nita is more concerned with children than anything else. I told them about the couple I had tied up, but more than likely they are already loose and the whole compound knows we are coming. I hope Bryce and Ashley listened and believed me. I honestly don’t know if I would in their situation.

  The plan is everyone else is going in first. Diversion. Mya tells me exactly where to go. I try not to worry about anyone because Mac was very thorough in teaching them hand-to-hand combat. If all else fails, they have guns. A tear escapes and I wipe it away.

  Sander glances at me through the darkness. “Everything will work out, chingona. You’ll see, we’ll be in Arizona in no time.”

  “I’ve never been to Arizona. It’s probably hot and dry.”

  He laughs. “It is, it varies. The temperatures seem hotter because it’s dry.”

  I grin. “Good thing I like it hot. I hate the cold.” Looking out the window now, I squeeze my jacket tighter. “What about you Sam? Willing to relocate, even though Guido didn’t say he’d kill you?”

  He shrugs. “Doesn’t matter to me. Ty will go, if anything to get Felicia.” Felicia is Ty’s girlfriend. “I think they’ll leave.”

  Sander’s brow scrunches in confusion. “You’re basing your answer on whether your amigo goes or not?”

  “No, I’ve been talking to him about it. He doesn’t know if Felicia would want to. She has family at the community,” he explains.

  “I’m going to get those people out, Samaru, right after I put a bullet in Guido’s skull.” I say with absolute determination. Stuffing down the anger, I’ll have plenty of time to think about it, but right now, I need to focus on this mission. Through the darkness, his septum ring flashes in the lights from the dashboard. My words hang in the air, in our silence, for the rest of the drive.

  CHAPTER TWENTY-EIGHT

  We wait an hour at the car before we set on the quickest path to our destination on foot. Going through the throng of zombies unnerves us all, but I have to hand it to the guys—they don’t flinch or say anything. It’s not so bad now I’m not alone in it. We have another hour before Mya lets the zombies loose. When we get close, my stomach sinks at the nonstop gunfire. The compound knows we’re here. We easily scale a fence near the building. No one is around, but the smell of gunpowder is strong. We covertly make our way around to the back door Mya instructed us to go to. It’s locked with a keypad for a code.

  “Mya didn’t say anything about a keypad. I don’t have any tools,” I whisper, studying the solid door, with a vertical panel of glass.

  Sander steps up. “’Scuse me while I make this door mamehuevos.” Sam gives me a confused glance and mouths balls? I shrug and shoot Sander a dirty look.

  “Are you being lewd?” I hate not knowing what he’s saying.

  His mouth drops open, pretending to be offended. “Me? I’d never be vulgar in front of a lady. But since there’s not one around, yes, I was.” He gently hits the butt of his gun to the keypad box, pulling it out, wires and all. After counting the wires, he jerks two of them out.

  My jaw drops. “I really don’t think I have anything to teach you.”

  His teeth flash through the darkness. “I didn’t unlock it, just disarmed the connected alarm, so I can do this—” His gun goes through the glass panel. We all freeze momentarily, listening for sounds of approach. He picks glass out and sticks his arm in to open the door from the inside. “Like a glove.”

  Sam grunts an approval. I grin and want to ask how he knew which wires to pull. I manage to hold my tongue and glide into the building. It’s dark, and since it’s nearing dawn, people haven’t shown up for work yet. Mya informed us that no one sleeps in here, but guards are in and out all the time. Hopefully, they are somewhere else.

  A flashlight flashes as Thomas clicks one on. I give a thumbs up and breathe through my mouth. The harsh sting of antiseptic is strong, stronger than a hospital. We move down the hall, looking in open doors and checking closed ones. A loud bang jars our attention at the opposite end of the building.

  Sander waves us all into the nearest room and Thomas cuts the light. My ears ring through the silence, and my heartbeat booms through my ears. Sander kneels at the door. His ear stuck up as he listens for any sounds. He throws his hand up in a classic “don’t move” gesture.

  We freeze. I don’t dare breathe, and the only sound is the erratic beating of my heart. Sander moves so fast I don’t see him until he has someone by the throat. I can’t see the person, but a double glare tells me they wear glasses.

  The person makes a gagging sound and holds up their hands. “Ru—Ru.” Whoever it is, is male. His form is a non-threatening stance.

  “Te quieres, guerro? What you want? Spit it out.”

  I go over and slap Sander’s arm. “For fuck’s sake. He can’t speak.” Sander lets go, and the guy gasps while rubbing his neck. Thomas flashes the light in his face. He automatically flinches from the bright light.

  “Well?” I prompt the classic comic book, nerdy guy. The kind of guy that would dress up like Spock at a Star Trek convention.

  He clears his throat. “Rudy told me to tell you, Kan, that he sent me.”

  This throws me for a loop. “What? What the hell for?” I ask, clearly confused. He takes off his backpack. A gun cocks as he unzips it. He peeks over his glasses and rolls his eyes at the guys.

  He watches me as he pulls a laptop from the backpack. My laptop that the base confiscated. “I know everything there is to know about their systems. I believe this is yours?” He hands it to me.

  This is too much of a coincidence. “What’s your name?”

  “Kyle,” he turns. “Follow me.” He slings the bag over one shoulder.

  Sander holds up his gun. “How can we trust you?”

  I trust Rudy, but I’m interested in the answer myself. I raise my brows at him. Kyle only scoffs, “You’re serious? You know how many people want to help you, Kan? You and Rudy have a whole goddamned fan club here. We’ve been waiting on you, and we’re prepared to get out quickly and safely. I’d rather not waste time telling you about it when you’ll see soon enough. Do you want the locations to the other compounds or not?”

  “How did you get this?” I wag the laptop.

  He flashes a crooked smile. “I work doing odd jobs for IT. They had me search through it. Pretty impressive.”

  “It was my dad’s.”

  Another grin. “I know.”

  His statement gives me the willies, but he has to be telling the truth. Not everyone can be stupid enough as to believe everything they hear. Especially, when the questions they want answers to aren’t getting answered. Then, up pops our photos in the leaflet claiming we are rebels against the cause, leaving behind destruction and dead guards. I can see how we’d gain a few foll
owers. Damn.

  “I know all about you, Kan.” He points to the laptop. “I have some information from their systems. What you need is not on the laptop, we need to get it.”

  I glance at Sander, Thomas, and Sam. They know we are only here to grab as much equipment as we can to find out more on the virus and whatever else we can get. Kyle doesn’t seem to have a clue, so we keep our mouths shut. “Actually. We were going to take as much equipment as we can carry.” I whack him on the back, walking by him. “Then blow this building to the sky.”

  Turning to wait on Kyle, he is stunned, but he moves ahead of us. We go into another room when a mass explosion shakes the building. I look to them. I must appear worried, because Sander says, “Must be a diversion. They are getting out. We need to hurry.” More gunshots sound from outside.

  “Sam, get those.” I point to some electronic notebooks on a large charging station. “You know passwords?” I ask Kyle.

  “Some, but I can get the rest.” He pats his bag, “Got my own. They use a satellite, if you can believe it. They have contacts all over the world. We’ll be able to reach their system from where ever we are.”

  This is very lucky news. Except for the “all over the world” part, but I’ll cross that bridge when I get to it. “Good. I’ll be right back.”

  “Shit!” Sander exclaims, but in a hushed tone and shakes his head in disagreement. “No, not alone.”

  I suddenly know why he insisted on coming with me. Rudy. I give Sander a look that says exactly what I think about that. He backs off. I rush down the hall. When I get to a lobby of sorts, I can see out the front windows. Civilians run following black-canvas men into a shelter. The building is a colossal dining hall with a blowout basement. Ash rains down like snow, or maybe it is snow mixed with ash. A huge fire lights up the grounds.

  I hurry to the computer lab. “How much time?”

  Sander glances at his watch and I see it light up green. “Twenty-six minutes to show down.”

  “Gonna be enough?” I ask them. They are all busy stuffing computer equipment in packs.

  “Yep. Plenty. You set up the rest. Then give me your empty bag.”

  “All right guys, let’s show them how we do it.” I jog to the lobby, and begin placing the bombs. I’ll set the timers right before we leave. I was only able to carry three, and Sander has another one.

  “Psst!” Sander warns, coming up behind me to see where I’ve placed one. He nods and goes down the hall and into a room. I do the same so we have a bomb in almost every corner of the building. I stop at a steel door, knowing what’s probably behind it. Everyone agreed to leave the actual, tangible virus alone for now, hoping to get some information from the computers. The best we can do is to destroy it. When I make it down the hallway, I meet Sander in the middle. He hums AC/DC’s “TNT.” I snort out a laugh.

  His teeth flash. “This is going to be spectacular, chingona.”

  I return his grin, but it falters. Screams erupt outside, blending in with moans and gunshots. Sander and I exchange glances. The famished have arrived and famished they are. I hope everyone got out, and I hope with no casualties.

  *

  We watch out the front window. The refugees will die, or so it seems at first glance. Famished gather around the dining hall in a frenzy. A man is crawling and wailing a blood curdling shrill as a handful of famished eat on his body. One of them pulls his insides out. Looking closer, the man has on black-canvas. I avert my eyes. My plan is working. Soon these zombies won’t be here.

  “It’s time to go. Everyone ready?” I ask. The guys appear fine with the exception of Kyle. He’s pale and sweat drips from his hairline. His eyes are wide, focused on the scene outside. It’s apparent he wasn’t planning on this part. He’s used to the zombies being subdued. I take him by his soft shoulders. Damn. His glasses perch at the end of his nose. “I’ll cover you. Don’t worry. Just stay in front of me.” I wave my hand toward the back. “Move out, it’s fireworks time.”

  When they get to the back door, I run around and set timers. My footsteps echo through the rooms. When I get to the group, I pick up my own pack and make sure I have all my weapons at the ready. I nod and Sam kicks the door open and immediately starts shooting famished. Kyle stops. I push him forward. “I can’t hold your fucking hand and shoot!” That gets him moving. We make it to the fence, but it lies flat on the grass. A few famished grapple to untangle themselves from the thick barbed wire. I don’t think, just run and shoot. Slipping my machete out with my left hand, I whack any famished that comes close, spraying fluid across me. My shoulders ache from the weight of my pack. Sam and Sander make up our front line, keeping the majority of zombies at bay by shooting them down.

  Minutes tick by and we are in the woods when the explosion hits. The force vibrates the ground and I stumble forward. Three more explosions follow it. Someone grabs me to help me steady myself. Thomas. Panic threatens to seize me, but I stuff it down. Debris and ash shower down on us. Chunks of stuff crack through the tree branches and we have to dodge them. Our harsh breathing cuts through the air. The famished keep going in the direction of the compound and are thinning out. Putrids mill about making their way toward us, reaching out with bloated hands. I slice limbs and necks, trying to breath through my mouth as my feet pound into the ground. The smell is rancid, like infection, and I taste it in the back of my throat. Kyle gags and has to stop to throw up his dinner.

  Poor Kyle. He isn’t used to dealing with zombies face to face. I guess knowing about them is one thing. Having to deal with them? Totally different story. “Cover us,” I tell the guys and rub Kyle’s back. It makes him gag even more. “I know you probably don’t want to hear this, but you’ll get used to it.” He looks at me without his glasses. I don’t think he can get any paler, and he has chunks on his chin. His eyes widen in realization as he wipes his arm across his face. “Hint: breath through your mouth.”

  He nods, replacing his glasses and we run. We make it to the car, breathing heavy. I open the trunk to switch bags. “Did anyone get bit?” Sander says, holding up his gun.

  I roll my eyes. “Not on my watch.” Shutting the trunk, I say, “You guys go on ahead of me. I need to do something.”

  Sander hesitates before saying, “No, mamacita. Get in the car.”

  I cock my Bersa and point it at him. “Fuck you. You get in the car and drive away. I’ll only be a few hours behind you.”

  “Puta madre! Rudy is not going to like this.”

  “That’s what you get for promising you’d look after me.”

  “Yeah, Kan. This isn’t good. I’ll go with you,” Sam tries to reason with me through the rolled down window. I shake my head.

  Sander glares at me for a long moment before he swears in Spanish, getting in the car. I wait until the car pulls off before heading to my destination.

  *

  Mya is waiting on me when I get to our meeting spot about an hour later. She sits in a rundown car. “It’s the only one I could find with the keys in it.”

  “No problem. As long it can make the four hour drive.” Before hopping in next to her, I carefully place my huge duffle—that could carry a body—in the backseat while we wait.

  “This is crazy,” she says.

  “No, it isn’t. I don’t want any more innocent people to die. Now that we have a fan club, the revolutionists won’t have any mercy on anyone. I think the first part of the plan worked. I saw a guard being ripped to shreds.” We watch zombies walk through a large fenced-in farm. When the zombies start to thin as they come in from the compound, I get out.

  “You need help?” she asks, fidgeting a little.

  “Nah, your parents are already going to be on edge when they notice you aren’t there.”

  “No, they won’t, I told my dad, Kan. I didn’t want them to worry.”

  “What?”

  She laughs and then mocks him, “Nothing Miss Moore resolves to do astonishes me.” Her tone of voice is so uncannily similar to Mago’s
that I laugh as I get my bag out of the back.

  I hand her my gun. “Just watch out for rogues.” Her mouth drops open as she handles the gun as if she has no clue how to use it. I smile and give her a rundown. “Just, you know… try not to shoot me and you’ll be fine.”

  Taking off around the fence, I wire the tubes together without timers. I fuse them all together a bundle at a time, going down the middle of the field. I bump into zombies, but I ignore it the best I can and focus on my task. One misstep and it won’t have the domino effect I want it to. It takes longer than I anticipated, and by the time I’m done, the sun shines brightly in the sky.

  I slide in the car as if I didn’t just wire up a whole farm to blow to smithereens. I smile, knowing Reece is going to be pissed.

  “Ready?” I ask with a grin.

  She shakes her head at me. “You’re way too excited about this.”

  “Well, this is one step to getting our world back. One zombie at a time.” I pause, realizing how that came out. “I’m aware of how impossible that sounds.”

  She smiles at me. “Nothing is impossible, Kansas.”

  Taking the lighter from my pocket, I light the end of the fuse and drop it on the dirt road. “You can drive off now.”

  Her eyes widen as she takes off. I wait a few as the car bumps up and down on the road. A few minutes in, I turn in my seat and worry after another few minutes pass, until the first one goes off. The car shakes as a big cloud of dirt shows up over the trees. They go off every few seconds or so. The closer the explosives are together the faster they go off. Eventually, the whole sky is one big dust cloud, but the farther away we get the less the car shakes.

  Turning around in my seat, I take out a towel and dump water on it to clean my skin of gore from earlier in the morning. “I bet it’s a huge fucking mess back there.”