by Josh Vasquez
“I was afraid you were gonna say that.”
They pushed the cart to the edge of the stairs and stopped.
“I’ll go backwards,” Josh offered.
“Not gonna fight you on that one.”
They lifted the cart off the ground by the handles and began making their way downstairs.
***
“Where do you think they keep the Viagra?”
Tori just silently shook her head as she scanned the pharmacy for the painkillers.
Demerol… Demerol… Where the hell is the Demerol? She thought, as her fingers scanned through the rows and rows of medicine.
“Got it!” Lexx said.
“You found the Demerol?!” Tori said, turning to look at him.
“Nope. Found the Viagra. Sorry, still looking for the… what did you call it?”
“Demerol! I could kick you Lexx!”
She turned back to the shelves in front of her. So much medicine. Her eyes started running up and down the rows again. Not like it was a big deal for them to get it or not. Laura could just have a “natural” birth.
Tori shuddered at the idea.
She liked the idea of having kids one day, but when it came to the actual mechanics of how those children came out, well, she was a big pussy when it came to that. She’d admit it. Plus, she kinda liked the way her “situation” was set-up the way it was. Normal. She had heard horror stories about what happened down there. Made this whole zombie-apocalypse seem like a breeze.
She looked over at Lexx. He was bent over, his ass-crack showing out of the “borrowed” scrubs, looking at some of the lower shelves of prescription drugs. She caught herself smiling.
He’d be a good father.
Maybe not husband material, but she could see him being a decent man to raise children with. Especially in this world. She knew without a shadow of a doubt that he would do anything to protect her and their would-be children.
Would-be children? What the hell am I thinking about?
She shook the thought from her head and went back to her search.
Although, they had been screwing like bunnies and it’s not like they’d been using any protection. The last day she took the pill was the day she met Lexx.
What would happen if she did get pregnant? She’d be in the same boat Laura was now. And maybe by then, they would at least know what they were doing. Plus, if Josh and Laura’s baby could come into the world with no problems, then why not one of her own? If the group could deliver a healthy, happy baby in this world, what could they not do?
“What was that stuff called again?” Lexx asked behind her.
She let out an exasperated breath.
“Demerol, Lexx,” she said.
“Thought so. Found it.”
She spun around to see him holding up a small box and smiling.
“YES! I COULD KISS YOU, YOU BIG GOOF!”
“Kiss me? Just a second ago you wanted to kick me…” He said.
“My emotions towards you have changed!”
He rubbed the back of his neck with his right hand.
“Emotions, huh? You sure you’re not the one that’s pregnant?” He said, with a light chuckle afterwards.
“Would you have a problem if I was?”
He grin faded and his face went pale-white.
“Oh my god, Lexx. Don’t look so sick!” she said.
Maybe the joke was too much for him. She knew guys could be squirrelly about these kind of things.
“It’s not that. It’s just…” He started.
“It’s just what?”
“I don’t know. What if you were? Y’know?”
She smiled at him gently. He wasn’t scared for his own sake. He was scared for theirs.
“Well, then we better help get this baby out okay so we know what’s up,” she said, as she pushed herself into his chest.
He wrapped his arms around her, resting his chin on the top of her head. She breathed in deep, taking in the scent of his skin. The scrubs they wore were soft. She felt safe.
KA-BOOOM!
There was an explosion downstairs, shaking the whole building.
They shared a quick look of worry and began running for the stairs.
***
“What the hell was that?!” Jeremy yelled after the explosion rumbled throughout the hospital.
“I don’t know, but we better go find Lexx and Tori!” Josh shouted back.
“You don’t think it was them, do you?”
“Lexx didn’t have any explosives did he?”
They summoned what strength they had left and began to carry the machine faster down the stairs. Their arms grew heavy, their muscles aching for relief.
Almost there, almost there, Jeremy thought to himself. One more floor…
“You guys up there?!” Lexx yelled from below.
Jeremy breathed a sigh of relief. They were alive.
“Yeah! Almost there!’ Jeremy yelled back.
They met on the platform of the second floor. Lexx looked at the heart rate monitor suspiciously.
“We gotta take that thing?” he asked.
“Yeah, did you get the medicine?” Josh asked, ignoring Lexx’s looks.
“Yes, it’s in the bag. What was that noise? Was that y’all?” Tori said.
“No, we thought it was you guys,” Jeremy said.
Tori shook her head.
“It sounded and felt like it came from the first floor. It shook the whole damn building,” she said.
“Well, we have to go down there anyway, so we might as well get a move on,” Lexx added.
Lexx grabbed one of the sides of the cart and the three of them began to carry the cart down the stairs. Tori pulled the rifle from around her shoulder and flipped open the guards on the scope. No night vision for the stairs, but once they reached the main hallway, she would not need it anyway.
When they reached the bottom, Josh stopped them and went up to the door. He felt it with the back of his hand.
“It’s not hot, so we should be safe,” he whispered.
He pushed the door open and light rushed into the stairwell. Their eyes adjusted and Tori stepped out into the hall first. With the rifle raised, she scanned back and forth. Using her two fingers, she motioned for them to follow.
“I always wanted to do that,” she whispered.
Gunshots burst from the main foyer.
They all looked at each other with confused looks before running towards the sounds of gunfire.
When they reached the front lobby, they all stopped.
Crashed into the front of the building was a police cruiser and two police officers were fighting off the dead attracted to the noise.
Chapter Nineteen
CJ sat on top of the house and watched the driveway for any sign of his uncle. He knew the trip might take the whole day or maybe more, but he wanted to know exactly when they got back. He wanted to see them pull back in. He wanted them all here, in one place.
The day at the cabin had passed by slowly with no excitement whatsoever. His grandparents and aunt were taking naps, and his parents had gone off for a walk in the woods. Judging by his Dad’s giddiness, CJ assumed that they were going to do more than “walk.”
He couldn’t help but smile.
His mother had come a long way since they first arrived here at the cabin. She no longer sulked around and kept to herself, but helped out with chores around the house. She began smiling again. The day before, she pulled CJ aside and apologized for “not being a good mom lately.” He gave her a big hug and she cried for a little bit.
Earlier, she had come into the living room and suggested to CJ’s dad that the two of them should go for a walk. At first, he resisted, but when his father realized she didn’t really want to “walk,” he quickly changed his mind.
Things feel normal again, He thought.
He was starting to think that they never would, but over the past few days, things began to look brighter. With his cousin on the w
ay, everyone on a whole seemed to be working on making that happen. With this last trip, the family should be ready for a baby.
A baby, he thought. How crazy…
Two figures appeared on the edge of the driveway near the woods.
Where’s the truck? Oh no…
He quickly raised the scope on his rifle.
It wasn’t them.
It was a man and a woman CJ had never seen before. They were dressed in ratty-looking clothes and walked with an uneven stride, but CJ could tell, even from a distance, that the couple was not dead. The man was dressed in a long, dark coat and jeans worn around the knees. The woman wore a dress and an oversized dress coat hung against her tiny frame. In the man’s hand was a white piece of cloth, or t-shirt, and as they walked closer to the house, he began to wave it in the air.
CJ kept the rifle trained on the man.
“Heyyy there, little feller,” the man said. “We don’t mean no harm! See?”
The man waved the white fabric in the air vigorously and smiled.
CJ left the rifle pointed at the man, but lifted his eye from behind the scope.
“You both are trespassing on our property. I suggest you leave,” CJ said, his voice stern.
The man’s grin wavered for a split second, but the smirk just as quickly returned.
“Now look at this, Virginia. Little man here is protectin’ the homestead.”
CJ did not appreciate the tone in the man’s voice.
“Look boy,” the man said. “We’re just lookin’ for a lil’ food. That’s all. We’re about a day’s journey from where we’re headed and well, we need a lil’ sumthin-sumthin for the road.”
The man paused.
“Now do the Christian thing and see if you can spare some grub.”
CJ eyed the man suspiciously. Something didn’t seem right here. The man continued to beam, but his eyes gave off a different message. They had flared with a silent fury when CJ told them to leave. He had to go get someone, but he didn’t want to leave the two unattended.
“Seriously son, you can drop the gun. We ain’t here to hurt ya,” the man said.
CJ did not move.
“I’ll see if we can spare some food, and then you two are gone,” he said.
“Alright! Thataboy! I knew this kid was okay, Virginia!”
The woman mumbled something out of CJ’s hearing range. He lowered the gun.
“Don’t move. You move; you leave without food.”
The man stood up as straight as his crooked back would allow him and held up two fingers.
“Scout’s honor, kid.”
CJ nodded and slung the rifle over his shoulder.
I’ll just give them some food and they’ll leave, he thought as he climbed back inside the house.
He made his way downstairs quietly. He’ll just deal with this and it will be done. His uncle had left him in charge; he could handle it. He went into the kitchen and began to gather up some food, most perishables close to their due dates. The last of the food brought with them. They had been acquiring more from some of the trips to local towns. Between that and the garden outside, they had plenty. But CJ had no intent of giving these people too much. They would just have to be fine with near-stale Pop-Tarts and small bags of chips.
“Hungry, Bubba?”
CJ spun around to see his Aunt Laura standing behind him. She leaned against one of the dining table chairs with one hand; the other was on her belly. Her smile was warm and happy. She noticed the concern on her nephew’s face.
“What’s wrong, Bubba?” She asked, her smile disappearing.
He fell into a stuttering rant about what was happening outside. She always had a way of making him spill. He explained about the man and woman, about how they wanted food and nothing else, he explained about his Uncle Josh leaving him in “charge,” and lastly how he was going to just deal with it without bothering anyone.
“CJ…” Was all she said at first.
His eyes flicked towards the front windows.
“Well, let’s take them the food and then they’ll leave,” she said, her smile returning, but not in full effect.
He nodded and grabbed the food from the kitchen counter.
They both walked back outside to the front porch. The two strangers exchanged glances when they saw his aunt. The woman could not take her eyes off his aunt’s stomach.
“Why hello, Miss,” the man said. “Name’s Dennis and this here is Virginia. I’m sure the boy told you we were just passing through and needed some food for the journey?”
“Yes,” Laura said. “He mentioned you needed food.”
She nodded to CJ and he took the food down the stairs. He handed it to the man, who took it and looked at it with contempt.
“Erm… I believe the boy misunderstood me. I said, we had a day’s journey. Could you maybe spare a little more? Just to see us through?”
“I think it’s enough,” CJ said.
“Excuse me, I was talking to your…” Dennis interrupted.
“Aunt,” Laura said. “I’m sorry, Dennis. That’s all we can spare.”
He eyed her with the same angry eyes he had before. His smile was that of a used-car salesman, his eyes that of a man filled with hate. He stretched his neck, left to right, the joints cracking.
“I don’t want to do this, Dennis,” Virginia mumbled.
“Shut up, Virginia,” he hissed under his breath.
CJ walked back up the steps and stood next to his aunt. He hand rested on the butt of the rifle still slung over his shoulder.
“Well, would it be too much to ask for some drink then? I’d hate to inconvenience you folks anymore,” he said.
“There’s a water pump over there,” Laura said, pointing towards the shed.
Dennis looked over at the shed and then back at Laura. He patted himself down and held his hands up.
“Looks like I don’t seem to have anything on me to put it in…”
The four of them stared each other down. Dennis finally broke and chuckled.
“Y’all folks sure can be difficult. Can we have something to put the water in? Please?”
Laura turned to CJ.
“Go get them a plastic jug, CJ.”
He nodded and went to walk inside.
“CJ…”
He turned to look at his Aunt.
Get G-Dad, she mouthed.
He nodded again and went in to get his grandparents.
***
“This is a nice place you got here, Miss.”
Laura looked at Dennis with thinly veiled disgust. His smile was sickening.
“Thank you. Where is it, that you two are headed?” She asked.
Dennis’s eyes lit up.
“Ah, we are headed to Beulah Land!”
“Beulah Land?” Laura questioned.
“Yes! Have you heard of it? It is a place of rest and refuge not too far from here! By the end of the day, me and Virginia here will be restin’ in good ole’ Beulah Land!”
Laura nodded.
“You don’t believe me?” he asked, his eyes looking hurt.
“I’m sorry. I just haven’t heard of it,” she said.
“Oh, well, y’all are good Christian folk, I’m sure y’all will fit in well there. Now, how many of you are there?”
She didn’t answer. This bothered Dennis.
“Now ma’am, here I am, trying to be a good Christian man and tell you about Beulah Land, and you don’t want to tell me the truth about how many souls you got here?” He said, his southern accent heavier in this part of speech.
“I’m sorry, Dennis, but I believe it’s time for you to leave now,” she said.
His eyes flashed red again. His smile widening.
“Dennis, I don’t want to do this,” Virginia said again.
“Virginia…”
“She has a baby,” Virginia whined.
“But Virginia, we’re so close to Beulah Land, I can taste it.”
He placed his hand
inside his jacket and felt the cold metal grip of his pistol.
Chapter Twenty
Jeremy could not believe his eyes. Two living, breathing officers of the law. Since the day he left his house, he had yet to see one police officer or any other type of authority figure. And now, here were two right in front of him, fighting off waves of the undead.
They were backed up against the car, one popping off rounds with his pistol, while the other sprayed bullets from a military-style submachine gun. A third man, not dressed in a blue uniform like the others, stood on the roof of the car, swinging a sharpened shovel at the zombies behind them. The previously blocked front entrance was now somewhat open, the cruiser having burst through the blockade of wreckage.
Jeremy was not alone in his confusion. He looked to the others and they all had the same looks on their faces.
The police officer with the submachine gun stopped firing and looked at the four of them.
“You dickheads just gonna stand there, or you gonna help us?”
He was right. Zombies were collecting both behind the cops and now coming from the halls of the hospital as well. The noise from the wreck was drawing in undead from all over. Jeremy decided his questions would have to wait.
“Tori! Watch our backs and us three will help clear the way!” He yelled, pulling the hunting rifle from his back.
Her response was turning on her heels and dropping to one knee. She leveled the AR-15, and began taking down the zombies behind them.
Thata girl, he thought.
He turned his attention back in front of him. The rifle was heavy in his hands, but he had grown accustomed to it after practicing back near the cabin. Josh was very adamant about everyone participating in target practice. And by everyone, he meant everyone. Jeremy had to admit it was pretty funny to see an eight months pregnant woman fire a revolver. Laura wasn’t a bad shot either.
Jeremy put the closest z’s head in between the iron sights. His rifle did not have a scope, but he liked it that way. He always had a hard time adjusting looking back and forth down the scope. It was just easier with the built-in sights.
The first head shattered like a melon at a David Gallagher show.
It was answered by the boom of Lexx’s shotgun. Jeremy saw a zombie’s chest explode in a shower of red out of the corner of his eye. The body flew backwards several feet and hit the ground with a thunk. Jeremy planted a bullet between its eyes for the final blow.