And then it hit him. “Holy roller. Jesus, this lady is a freak.”
He watched the three of them drive down the path leading away from the parking lot. At the base of the winding driveway, they stopped abruptly. He didn’t much like watching the good doctor disappear into the woods, but he had to admit that having some distance between Maggie, Malachi and himself made him much more comfortable. He’d seen and heard Malachi’s disconnect and agreed with Neil that Maggie was hiding something. She’d avoided directly answering any questions and seemed to only be telling partial stories that served her own ends. What she had said, though, was enough for him to be wary of her both coming and going.
Chapter 14
Dr. Caldwell had always thought of the woods as a quiet place. On that afternoon, it was as silent and as peaceful as a crypt. The forest was made up of narrow, white barked birch trees with equally thin limbs and branches still holding tight fisted to the small leaves starting to show all of their colorful autumn personality. Mixed in amongst these trees were their taller, fuller cousins, wearing thick conical coats of fragrant green needles. A few birds here and there chortled lightly, but there were no songs; only avian warnings shared well above the two men’s heads. The quiet was at once menacing and comforting.
The two men walked side-by-side, their feet crunching an uncomfortably loud marching tune in the drying foliage. They had no tools to cut anything down, so they were relying on whatever scraps the forest floor had to offer. They walked solidly for several minutes before Dr. Caldwell finally said, “Okay, that’s far enough. Let’s find us some wood and get the hell outta here. Maggie’s likely to get spooked and leave us in a lurch out here if we’re not careful.”
“She wouldn’t leave us,” Malachi said defensively. “Maggie’s no coward.”
“And she’s no fool either. If she gets to thinkin’ that we ran into trouble, she could just think it wiser to go back to the chalet or just hightail it outta here altogether. It’s really got nothing to do with being brave or cowardly. It’s a survival response. The whole fight or flight mentality kicking in, and sometimes we can’t control it.”
Malachi didn’t know if he agreed with the doctor, but he appreciated that the man was speaking to him like he was an equal. It was the first show of respect he’d seen from anyone in a long time. It felt nice and made him feel like he was important.
He watched the doctor gather handfuls of sticks into his arms clumsily until, trying to pick up the last small branch he could reach, the doctor dropped most of what he was carrying. Malachi smiled for a moment and felt really good.
He went over to the doctor and motioned for him to stop. Malachi sifted through the collections of branches and dried twigs until he found a long, thin, and still partially green branch that was slightly longer than all the rest and set it aside. He then piled most of what the doctor had collected atop the lone twig but turned them so as to be perpendicular to it, forming a close approximation of a plus sign. “Now watch,” he said. He found both ends of the twig under the rest and pulled these ends together until he could fashion them into a knot. He was left with a good-looking bundle of wood that made it easier to carry larger amounts of fuel for the fire.
They worked out a system in which the doctor gathered the wood while Malachi bundled it. They only spent a few minutes, but they were able to gather four very large armfuls of wood. With the wood bundles clutched under each of their arms, the two men ran out of the woods toward Maggie’s car.
At first Maggie was worried. They looked like they were running so fast. Was something following them? She started the car with a single thought suddenly coming to her. Is this the moment?
Then she realized that there wasn’t anything on their trail and that they were just excited about their haul of wood. She unlocked the door as they approached and they tossed in the wood, turned and ran back toward the woods.
They quickly got back into the routine. Dr. Caldwell tried to find better-sized pieces of wood this time, but even the most mature trees were still only a scant few inches in diameter. The pickings were slim, literally. He was walking over with one of several armloads of wood when Malachi suddenly shot up and stood stock-still. Dr. Caldwell followed the other man’s lead and froze in mid-stride, his eyes widening when he realized why Malachi had stopped. He had heard something. Maybe he was seeing something too.
Dr. Caldwell was finding it difficult to control his breathing, especially when he heard a not too distant crunch. He hadn’t moved and he was pretty certain that Malachi hadn’t either. There was something else out here with them. His mouth was suddenly a desert experiencing a drought. He couldn’t swallow, which made his breathing even more desperate and loud.
Malachi reached to his holster and drew his pistol. The doctor was still too stunned to move. He prayed to himself, please let Malachi shoot straight.
There was another crunch, this one even closer, then there were several more. Dr. Caldwell felt nauseous, a horrible burning rising in the back of his throat.
When Malachi lowered his weapon into a firing stance, Dr. Caldwell was ready to break into a sprint if only he could remove the concrete blocks that seemed to be affixed to both of his feet. He wanted to move, but he just couldn’t. He couldn’t even drop the sticks that were lying across both of his outstretched arms.
When the moose appeared from behind one of the robust fir trees and sauntered past them, both men were silent at first. It was Dr. Caldwell who laughed first but Malachi was quick to follow. Dr. Caldwell dropped his load of wood. “I think this is about enough, don’t you? If it doesn’t last through the night, well so be it. I’ve had about enough of the woods for one afternoon. How about you?”
Malachi, putting his pistol back in its holster, nodded and, still laughing, said, “I just about peed my pants. Damned moose probably knew what he was up to. Just messing with us. But yeah, let me get these ready to move and we can get outta here.”
Back up at the chalet just a few minutes later, Malachi’s description of the doctor’s face and his own intense fear of the moose solicited roaring laughter. The mood for the rest of the afternoon was light and pleasant. Everyone’s bellies were full and the sun was warm. Without the terror that still lurked in the city waiting to pounce, it would have been a very nice day for all of them; a teasing reminder of how things had been…before. It was a relief for all of them to momentarily forget the sorrow and the loss that had gripped all of their lives so tightly these past few weeks.
As night descended and the temperature dropped with the setting of the sun, the bundles of wood that Malachi and Dr. Caldwell had collected were combined with pieces of wooden furniture found throughout the chalet to make a pair of warm fires around which they all gathered. To most of them, it wasn’t much different than camping. They talked about mundane memories and even shared jokes with one another, trying to keep the laughter flowing whenever possible.
Chapter 15
It was very late—or very early, depending upon one’s perspective—when Jerry woke Neil. Jerry had agreed to work the latest watch shift and Claire had elected to keep him company. They were standing next to the lone metal trashcan that still had a fire burning in it when Claire looked at Jerry and asked, “Can you hear that?”
Jerry suddenly realized that he could, but it was that same sound that he felt as much in his chest as he did in his ears. They weren’t alone. He squinted and struggled to pierce the night, but the darkness was impenetrable.
Jerry whispered, “They’re out there but I can’t see a thing.”
“Do you really think it’s them?” Claire asked.
“Yeah, it’s them. Either they’re not that close yet or there’re only a handful out there.”
“You some kind of a pro or something? You’ve lived through an apocalypse before have you?”
“No. But I’d guess you to be about what...nineteen?”
“Exactly nineteen. Is it that obvious? And what the hell does that have to do with a
nything?”
“We’ve got a working theory that their moans, when heard in small numbers, vibrate at a frequency that affects ears in different ways depending upon the age of the listener. You’ve got young ears so you can hear it. Me too, but I bet most of the others can’t. Not yet anyway.”
She looked at him quizzically, doubtfully. She was set to ask him about his theory when Danny appeared and asked, “They’re here aren’t they?” He was massaging his chest and making a face like he was suffering a very bad case of heartburn.
Jerry said, “Good timing, kid.”
“What?”
“Never mind. Yeah, I think you’re right. I was trying to figure out how many and how far off they were. Can you go get Neil?”
Neil was outside in an instant, still wiping sleep from his eyes. Meghan, of course, was fast on his heels. “What’s up? Kid says we might have some zekes out there.”
“Yeah, they’re out there.”
“How many do you think?”
Danny answered this time, “There’s just a couple out there and I think they’re still out on the road but they’re getting closer.”
Jerry added, “If we wait too long, like, let’s say, until dawn, they’re going to draw more of them to us.”
Meghan, just catching up to the conversation, asked, “What are we talking about here?”
Neil said, “Jerry’s right. We gotta deal with them now. No fucking around and nothing fancy. They’re not clever. They’ll just come right at us if we bait them a little.”
Danny suggested, “We could use the car headlights. It might even blind them a bit. Slow ‘em down maybe.”
Jerry and Neil nodded, congratulating Danny on a good idea. It was definitely time to get everyone up and moving, just in case. This was going to take everyone’s help.
A moment or two later, the entire group was awake and gathering themselves. To Claire, Art, and Maggie, it appeared as if this was a well-rehearsed activity. Of course the truth was far from it. If nervous tension and fear could be tapped as energy sources, there was enough in the room to light up most of Anchorage. They were well armed but they were all amateurs in these matters. Dr. Caldwell and Malachi were the only ones in the group who had actually received weapons training, so all the guns in the world didn’t give any of them any special edge when it came to using them. Neil grabbed his shotgun and put on the dark blue jacket with the deep pockets filled with shells. He was also carrying a forty-five caliber semi-automatic pistol. Dr. Caldwell was similarly armed, as was Malachi. Jerry toted his hunting rifle and a smaller caliber revolver that he tucked into his belt.
It was decided that Meghan would drive the minivan and Maggie would drive her own car. Meghan was carrying her own sidearm while Maggie declined to carry any firearms herself. The two vehicles were parked on the opposite side of the chalet, away from the approaching undead. They didn’t think there were any of the things on that side of the building, but they all emerged from the back door at the ready. The two vehicles were started and moved slowly around to the front of the chalet with the shooters, Malachi, Dr. Caldwell, Jerry and Neil walking slowly between them.
The children were escorted onto the balcony and told to sit on the folding chairs set next to the burn barrel. Once out there, Danny said to his chaperone, Kim, “They’re getting closer.”
“Jesus kid, that’s creepy. But I think you’re right. I can hear them now too.”
Emma, Claire, and Art, also armed with pistols, were inside the chalet, but downstairs by the front door. When they had first arrived earlier the previous afternoon, they all decided to bar the all glass front doors with a rolling rack of folding chairs and tables. It was heavy, and when locked into place, very difficult to move. They hoped that if the things were to find them and make it up to the chalet, that the heavy rack would help to secure the front doors long enough to allow them to escape.
Art said to the two women, “Maybe we should just make a run for it. What happens if there are too many of them out there? Who the hell put Neil in charge anyway? What makes this guy qualified to lead us?”
Emma, not looking away from the unfolding drama in the parking lot, said, “It’s dark and dangerous outside. If there are only a handful of them, it probably just makes sense to deal with them so that we can move out of here when it’s light enough to see. If there are too many of them out there, Neil will get us outta here. He’s good. He’s kept us all alive this long. Just be patient.”
As she finished her sentence, the first gunshot cracked the quiet with its report.
Out between the two vehicles, Jerry operated the bolt-action slide on the rifle at his shoulder and said, “I got one. Pretty sure I got him through the head. He went down and isn’t getting back up.”
Meghan had the passenger side window down. Neil leaned in. “I think that’s far enough. Now roll up this window and let’s wait for them.”
Meghan, whose hands were quivering, nodded and swallowed hard. She fumbled with the window control a few seconds before figuring out how to raise it. She started to look to her left now to make sure that none of the things were trying to swing up and around them. It was dark, but she was able to see a little further with the help of the van’s high beams, despite being pointed in a different direction. The bright setting of the headlights cast enough of a cone of light so as to illuminate the space to either side of them.
Maggie’s driver side window was already up. She saw Meghan come to a stop and followed her lead.
Neil asked Jerry, “Can you tell how many are out there yet?”
Looking through the scope, Jerry said, “I can see at least five and maybe more, but I think that’s about it. I think we’re lucking out right now. We can take these few.”
Dr. Caldwell asked, “And then what? We know that these gunshots are going to attract attention from more of them. How much time will we have until more of those things show up?”
Jerry fired his rifle again. “Damn! Only got him in the chest.”
Dr. Caldwell said, as if to reassure the other man, “Under different circumstances, that would be a good shot. Don’t be so hard on yourself.”
Jerry’s rifled kicked again. “That got ‘im. What were you saying Doc?”
“Never mind.”
Jerry said, “They’re moving much slower now. They seem more like Romero’s zombies. Sorry, zekes. Still trying to get used to the new name. Maybe the decomposition theory was right. As they get further into decay, they’ll become less and less mobile. This group is getting closer though. Get ready. I can still see five, so maybe we’ve got close to ten of them out there after all.”
Neil started to chew on his lower lip. He could feel his heart rate begin to climb and his breathing begin to quicken. Dr. Caldwell could sense Neil’s anxiety and said, “Let’s all relax a bit. Keep a sharp eye out and we’ll be okay. We can’t let them get around behind us. If we start getting overwhelmed or hemmed in, we haul ass outta here.”
They could all hear a faint, deep moan, as it became a kind of hungry growl. There was also a dragging shuffle, probably feet coming from out of the darkness. And then the ghouls were upon them. The zekes were just out of reach and fully in view within the glare from the headlights. Meghan screamed involuntarily and hid her face. Neil, distracted, peeked into the van to make sure she was alright. He didn’t see the female fiend emerge from the light.
Dr. Caldwell did, though. He pulled the trigger on his shotgun and half of the woman’s head disappeared. The beast spun around violently and collapsed in front of the van, just out of reach of Neil. The doctor pumped another twelve-gauge shell into the firearm’s chamber and prepared to fire again.
This time Malachi was the shooter. His semi-automatic shotgun didn’t require any action on his part to reload between shots. He fired once, hitting one of the things in the chest, which set it back slightly. He then fired again and removed the beast’s scalp. He pivoted slightly and brought down another with a single shot.
; Now brandishing a sidearm, Jerry fired the revolver three times, apparently hitting nothing. He backed away a few paces and stopped. He had never been so afraid in all his life. He couldn’t concentrate and, therefore, couldn’t aim at this close distance. It was different to be shooting at these things through his scope and with enough distance between him and them that he was largely out of harm’s way. Fighting them up close like this was an entirely different experience. He could see them more clearly, even in the dark. He could smell their rank odor and hear their horrible guttural sounds.
Neil fired his shotgun and another one fell, closer still. Jerry said, “I think there’s still one more out there.”
They all paused and held their breaths trying to hear anything at all. Jerry said as he raised the rifle, “Yeah, here he comes.”
And out of the darkness came another one. It was wearing a police officer’s uniform. The ghoul’s left hand was gone at the wrist and his left ear was just barely still attached, having been all but chewed from his head. Malachi backed away and lowered his weapon. He was shaking his head and mumbling unintelligibly to himself.
Dr. Caldwell stepped forward and pumped a lethal round into the beast’s head, bringing it down in an instant. He looked over at Malachi and asked him, “Did you know him?”
Malachi didn’t answer at first. He just stared at the fallen officer. Without looking back at the doctor, Malachi said, “I didn’t know him well, but I...I knew his face more than anything.”
“I’m sorry, Malachi. I don’t think there were any options though. He—”
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