The Dead Series (Book 2): Dead Calm

by Jon Schafer

  Heather made a snorting noise. “It figures you'd be with Ricky then. You used to be one of the back shooters.”

  Distracted by the label she used, Steve asked, “Back shooters?”

  “Every year at least three unarmed suspects were shot in the back by a Lee County Sheriff's Deputy. Somehow or another, they always convinced the Florida Department of Law Enforcement to let them investigate their own shooting. Miraculously, the officers were always cleared. They're trigger happy, and the Sherriff down there condoned it and covered it up.”

  “Imagine that,” Steve said sarcastically.

  Trying to ignore the scornful looks from the group, Seth knew the conversation needed to be refocused so he said, “But that's neither here nor there. I’m down here to offer our aid in your search for Randy. We can check the upper decks for him.”

  Steve looked thoughtful for a moment before saying, “I accept your help. We’re going to search deck five first, so give us an hour and then come back. Our people need to be in on the search of the upper decks though.”

  “Of course,” Seth said, “wouldn't have it any other way. We’ll split it up and give you your own sections.”

  “And ask Ricky if he has a spare lens for the sextant he gave us. The one we have seems to have been accidentally cracked,” Steve said.

  “I’ll pass on your request,” Seth told him. Nodding to the group in front of him, he said, “I’ll be back in an hour so we can plan the search. Ladies, gentleman, Sheila, stay safe until then.”

  After Seth was gone, Heather exchanged a knowing look with Steve and Tick-Tock. Sheila approached them and said, “Don't trust him. He's a snake, just like the rest of them. Maybe worse.”

  “I know,” Steve told her.

  Mary asked, “Then why did you agree to work with him. And why'd you ask him for the spare lens for the sextant? We’ve got one.”

  “To throw Seth off the track and make Ricky think we still need him. I want to stall them for a while,” Steve answered.

  “So we can search deck five?” Susan asked.

  “So we can make it look like were searching deck five,” Steve told her. “I’m sure they have people watching us so we have to go through the motions.”

  Confused, Mary asked, “What about Brain?”

  “Yeah,” Sheila put in. “Even though the little dweeb always wanted to talk about Star Wars, I kind of liked him.”

  “He's not on deck five,” Heather said. “Ricky's people have him.”

  “They kidnapped him?” Mary asked with horror. “How do you know?”

  Heather answered, “Seth must have been a lousy cop. He gave himself away when he called Brain by the name Randy. Only we know him by that name. He acts like he doesn't even know Brain's name and then he calls him Randy? What a dumbass. Seth blew it. “

  Steve and Tick-Tock nodded. They'd both picked up on Seth's mistake as soon as he made it.

  “What would they want a nerdy engineer for?” Mary asked.

  No one said anything except for Sheila. She suddenly sat down on the planter behind her and moaned out, “Oh God, I know why. It was there the whole time but I didn’t see it.”

  All eyes turned to her as she told them about Cozumel.

  Chapter Seventeen

  Quantico, Virginia:

  The Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff called the meeting to order. “Gentleman, since the communication satellites have come back on line, we’ve been able to establish contact with the remnants of many foreign governments around the world. Two of these are China and Russia. Both were hit hard by the HWMW Virus, much harder than the United States, but they're working to eradicate the dead and rebuild. “

  “How long will it take them?” The Navy Chief asked.

  “Decades, but that's not the point,” the Chairman answered. “The point is, that one day they will again be a threat. Right now, as far as we know, no one except the United States has any kind of nuclear capability they can call upon, but that will change. We need to make sure we stay on top.”

  “Are you suggesting a pre-emptive strike?” The Commandant of the Marine Corp asked in astonishment. “Isn’t the world screwed up enough?”

  “A pre-emptive strike, yes,” the Chairman said. “But not with nukes.”

  “But our conventional forces are tied up trying to eradicate our dead,” the Marine said.

  “And the dead might be our best weapon,” the Chairman told them. “I’m sending you a report on some research we’ve been doing in Arkansas. Take a minute to read the synopsis, I’ll wait to hear your comments.”

  Although the civilian Internet was dead, it had been originally created so the military could have a form of secure communication in the event of a nuclear war, the computers serving the armed forces were still humming.

  After the Chiefs downloaded the file and read the report, the Navy Chief spoke first, “Incredible, but will it work?”

  “They're still testing it, but so far the results are promising.” The Chairman replied.

  “Isn't Russellville where they're looking into a cure for the HWNW virus?” He asked. “I recall you saying something about that in an earlier briefing.”

  “It is, but that's not the only research they've been doing,” the Chairman answered. “After you read the entire file, you'll see that finding a cure has been a slow process. Since part of the disease mutated from the H1N1 flu, it's turned into an attempt to find a cure for that along with numerous other aspects of the disease. Additionally, the lack of subjects found who are immune to HWNW has further delayed the development of an anti-virus. “

  “0ne in five-hundred million,” the Commandant of the Marine Corps interjected. “That's how many people have a natural immunity.”

  “And of the three subjects we’ve studied who are resistant to HWNW, two died from other causes and the third is still being tested,” the Chairman informed them. “But that isn't what I’m getting at. What I want to do is authorize Doctor Lyonel Hawkins to expand the study he's been working on into controlling the dead, to give us some solid results. This has been on the back burner, so he'll need additional resources and a free hand in his experiments. From his research, we can form a weapon that will make the United State the only world power for centuries to come.”

  Silence greeted this proposal. The Chairman added, “Hawkins won't go any further in his experiments until he has the go ahead from us.”

  The Commandant said, “But some of these experiments I’m reading about here are slightly disturbing.”

  “The few sacrificed for the many,” the Chairman answered. “Now I’d like to put it to a vote. All those in favor of authorizing Doctor Hawkins to go forward with his test, say aye.”

  It was unanimous.

  Russellville, Arkansas

  Doctor Hawkins looked through the shatter proof window into the room holding the test subjects and thought; hopefully today I’ll get the go ahead for my new line of experiments and there'll be no more mucking around with these filthy creatures.

  Lined up on the far wall in the containment room were five of the living dead that were the object of his scrutiny. Although two technicians were also visible as they moved around the room, they were in no danger of being attacked as each of the dead was secured hand, foot and neck to the concrete wall by shackles on ten-inch chains. As further protection against them biting, each of the living dead wore a mask of heavy plastic that covered the bottom half of their face.

  Despite his revulsion to the dead, Doctor Hawkins was still fascinated by certain aspects of his experiments. It was this curiosity that led him to press down on the intercom button and ask one of the men in the room to unmask the dead woman on the far right.

  Carefully, the technician undid the Velcro straps and pulled the mask off with a quick jerk as he backed away. The Z lunged forward to bite but was stopped short by its neck restraint. The dead woman looked around and gnashed her teeth at the technician standing well out of striking distance.

&
nbsp; Doctor Hawkins pressed down on the intercom button again and said to the technician, “Jim, give me the statistics on that one.”

  Thumbing through a pile of charts, Jim selected one and opened it. After scanning through it, he flipped a few pages and started to read while adding his own comments from his knowledge of the specimen. “Forty two year old female. She was one of the first to be brought here to the facility and has been here the longest. Bite mark on her left bicep. This was what caused the initial transference of the virus. She hadn't turned when we received her, along with two others, from Little Rock. This was shortly before they abandoned the city. Died on October twenty-ninth at ten-forty eight AM. Came back to life on the same date at eleven-oh-one AM. Suffered convulsions before expiring. She was transferred here to containment one where she's been kept without food and water since.”

  Hawkins looked at the drawn face of the subject. While she looked like she was suffering from anorexia due to the skin stretched across the bone structure of her face, she was neither lethargic nor seemed to be suffering from a lack of energy from being deprived of food. Even as he watched, the stick figure rattled its chains in fury as it tested its bonds. Whipping its head around, the dead creature banged it against the wall behind it, leaving a smear of black puss. Seeing this reminded him of something so Hawkins asked the tech about the body fluid tests he'd ordered the day before.

  Thumbing once more through the file, Jim stopped and extracted a loose page. After reading for a few seconds, he said, “No appreciable change. The alcohol base that makes up most of their body fluids and acts as a preservative is still high. There's been very little degeneration in cellular structure, even less tissue breakdown then that of normal aging in a human subject.”

  Flipping the page, he added, “The new estimate based on longevity also came back. The lifespan of someone infected with the HWNW virus comes back at ninety-six years. That starts from the time of initial infection. That's plus or minus five years.”

  “Amazingly ironic,” Hawkins commented dryly. “The secret to long life is death.”

  “By the way, Doctor,” Jim said. “In the past month there's been no further loss of body mass. Although most of the muscle structure is gone, the subjects still function at the same physical level.”

  Hawkins considered this before asking, “What about the subjects that have been fed?”

  Picking out another chart from the pile, Jim moved over to stand in front of the dead creature chained at the far end of the line and started to read. “Twenty-two year old male-.”

  “Skip that,” Hawkins interrupted.

  Jim found what the doctor wanted. “No nutrition was absorbed into the subject even though it consumed everything it was fed. This included sheep, pig and human entrails. They only eat to eat, doctor. They get no sustenance from it.”

  Hawkins was about to comment when the PA system informing him he had a call interrupted him. Picking up a nearby phone, he listened to the message and hung up without saying a word.

  Moving back to the observation port, he pressed the button for the intercom and said, “Jim, were finished with this part of the research. Dispose of the subjects and clear this room. We'll be getting new equipment in tomorrow so I need you to start on this right away. “

  “What's going on, Doctor?” Jim asked.

  “We’re expanding research on the Malectron.” Hawkins told him. “I'll also need the other three containment rooms cleared out. so you've got your work cut out for you. See if Doctor Connors needs any of our equipment for her antivirus research before you get rid of it.”

  “She's going to want some of our floor space,” Jim warned. “She still has one test subject left in containment three. It's one of the people that are immune. “

  “She can't have any of my space,” Hawkins snapped. “She has to make do with what she has, and she'll have to find somewhere else to quarter her test subject. The Malectron takes precedence over the other research at this facility. Finding a cure for the HWNW virus has now taken a backseat to more important research.”

  “Yes, Doctor,” Jim replied.

  When Hawkins was gone, Jim picked up a hand held taser from the exam table and approached the dead creature he'd unmasked at Hawkins bidding.

  With regret, he said to her, “Sorry, Honeybun. We had a long run together but I've got my orders.”

  Placing the prongs against the skin of her side, he thumbed the trigger and said, “Lights out.”

  Chapter Eighteen

  The Dead Calm:

  Steve met with Seth on deck five. Ricky's man had brought along floor plans of the ship, much like the one Tick-Tock had pried off the wall on the day they first boarded the Dead Calm. Steve could see that the pages for decks seven and eight had been shaded with different colored pencils.

  Pointing to the cabin area colored in red on deck seven, Seth said, “That's where the stinkers are locked in so you don't have to worry about that. If he somehow made his way in there, you won't want him back. Next to that you've got service areas for the ship and then the Centrum. Most of those shops are sealed off but a few might be open. You'll have to check them as you go along.”

  “Got it,” Steve acknowledged.

  “Next you've got the Sombrero Lounge,” Seth continued. “Beyond that's the main floor of the Sounds Lounge. It's not really a lounge, it's a theater for live shows. That's also full of the dead. You can't access it, nor would you want to, but-” flipping to the layout of deck eight, he said, “You can get to the balcony through the deck above. You might want to check it out. Maybe your guy's hanging out in there. Outside the balcony area is the casino and then the Centrum again. There's not many shops and shit there. It's mostly an observation deck and a few small bars. After that there are more cabins that are sealed off. You don't want to go in there either.”

  “And your people are checking the decks above this?” Steve asked.

  “We've got people searching them now,” Seth assured him.

  Handing over the floor plans, Seth said, “You can have these. Good luck and I hope you find your guy. If we come across him and he's alive, we'll send him back to you.”

  After Brother Seth left, Steve unclipped his radio and removed the piece of clear tape holding the transmit button down. Keying it a few times to make sure it wasn't stuck, he pressed it and asked, “Heather, Tick-Tock, you there? Did you get all that?”

  “Loud and clear,” Tick-Tock replied. “I'm looking at the floor plans of the ship right now. From what I see, they're gonna try and hit us in the Sombrero Lounge on seven and the casino on deck eight. Those are the best places for an ambush.” Before Steve could answer, Tick-Tock came back on saying, “By the way, your other half just told me to tell you that when we're done talking we’re suppose to say over, over.”

  “Over, over?” Steve asked.

  “Say over,” Tick-Tock came back.

  “Over, over,” Steve said, knowing it would bug Heather to no end.

  “Say ov-,” Tick-Tock started to say, but was cut off as Heather took the radio from him. “You two need to knock that shit off. It wasn't funny the first time.”

  Steve laughed and gave a chastised, “Yes, dear, over.”

  “Tick-Tock's going to set up to cover the Sombrero and I'm going up the casino, over.” Heather told him.

  Steve was about to reply, over, over but knew it was time to get serious. Tick-Tock and Heather had climbed up the elevator shaft before Steve's meeting and waited inside by deck seven so they could have quick access to wherever Seth tried to direct the search parties.

  When Seth slipped up and Steve realized that Ricky had Brain, his first impulse was to grab the ex cop and find out where Brain was by beating the information out of him. He had barely restrained himself. He knew they needed to figure out what Ricky was up to first and if need be, he could grab the man later when they met to go over the search plan. When Sheila made the connection between why they wanted Brain and told them of Ricky wanting to ge
t to Cozumel, all the pieces of the puzzle fell into place.

  Knowing that rushing the stairs and starting a search of the upper decks would result in a gun battle with Ricky's people, he decided the best way to go about freeing Brain was to eliminate the Ushers first. Ricky wanted Brain for his knowledge and the sailboat for transportation, but the rest of them were expendable. As he considered this, it suddenly came to him what Ricky was up to. Getting the group to split up during a search would be the perfect way to take them out. This way he got Brain and eliminated the rest of them at the same time.

  Steve came up with his own plan. Ambush the ambushers. Ricky would have all his people coming after them, so they needed to turn the tables and take them out. They would try to leave one of the Head Ushers alive to find out where Brain was, but if that turned out to be impossible, they would kill them all. Without any type of effective fighting force, Ricky would have to give Brain up. Or at least they hoped so. He didn't want to get into some kind of hide and seek hostage situation on the Dead Calm. If they succeeded in taking out the Head Ushers, they would be in a much stronger position to get Brain back.

  Steve explained this to the others. They decided that, while it was risky, they didn't have any other options. They couldn't leave Brain, and without knowing where he was, they had no other choice but to go for it.

  Keying the radio, Steve said, “I'll give you fifteen minutes to set up and scope the area out. In the mean time, I'm going to get the rest of the bait, over and out.”

  Clipping the radio back on his belt, he headed to deck four. Seeing Sheila standing at the bottom of the stairs, he thought to himself that from a distance she'd pass for Heather. If any of the Ushers got a good look at her though, they'd recognize her and we might be screwed. A lot hinged on them thinking that Sheila and Mary are Heather and Tick-Tock, so we have to be convincing.

  As he approached Sheila, the first thing she did was moan, “My hair.”