The Zombie Proof Fence

by Tony Thomas

  ‘Sure, mate,’ said the deep voice. ‘I don’t think he’s going to wake up for a while.’

  Laughs echoed down the cabin. After a few moments the intercom again sounded:

  ‘Attention all passengers. As a result of an altercation in the economy cabin, this aircraft has been placed into a special wait condition. As we have previously indicated, one of the symptoms of the infection is unexplained violent behaviour. The airport authorities have indicated that we must wait a further thirty minutes before debarking. If no further incidents occur, we will be allowed to exit the plane and enter a quarantine area.’

  The plane erupted into howls of protest. Through the noise, Jeff picked up a random scattering of ‘Bullshit’ and ‘Can’t do this’ mixed with a fair blend of ‘Dickhead’ and ‘Prick’. Jeff decided he wouldn’t like to be the troublemaker at the back of the plane.

  ‘Folks—no one is more annoyed about this than me—I’ve been driving this bus for the last fourteen hours after all! Please stay calm. If anyone near you is looking like they are stressed or having trouble coping, please call a flight attendant.

  ‘I have authorised a drink service to tide us over. If we can’t get out, we might as well have a beer. The sun is over the yard-arm back in the States! I have also ordered the entertainment system turned back on. We are connected to ground-based power so we have air-conditioning etcetera. Please sit back, relax, and wait it out.’

  ‘Interesting,’ Pete said.

  ‘How do you mean?’ asked Jeff, pulling out his phone and preparing to restart his text conversation with his son, Jim.

  ‘I mean, any other time they would have busted a gut to get everyone off the plane. If there’s another blue do we wait another half an hour? Do they lock us in for good? With four hundred odd people on board, there’s bound to be another nut job that wigs out and causes a scuffle. I think we’re going to be trapped here for quite a while yet.’

  ‘You really think so?’ Jeff said. ‘Surely everyone will do whatever they can to get off. I know that I will.’

  ‘We’ll see,’ Pete said. ‘I reckon we’re in for a long wait.’ Pete switched on his entertainment system and pointedly went to the movie section before settling down.

  Jeff thumbed:

  Jim we are stuck at gate. Will be on plane for another half hour

  It didn’t take long to get the reply.

  Bummer. Nothing changed here. Mom not back yet

  I don’t think she will come back. Something bad has happened. We are in quarantine

  What do you mean?

  There is a virus making people go crazy. They are holding us in case it is on the plane. What does news say there?

  I stopped watching news

  Turn on CNN and let me know what it says

  OK. Give me five.

  ‘Kids!’ thought Jeff. He could not imagine turning off the news in a situation like this. No doubt his son had been either watching a movie or playing a video game. Jeff couldn’t imagine that in the same circumstances, he would have turned off the news, but then he wasn’t sixteen anymore and hadn’t been for a long time.

  After only a minute or two he received a message

  CNN has a map. There are outbreaks everywhere. News sez I should go to a rescu centre near the school

  I think u should wait until tomorrow. U r pretty safe now. No-one knows u r there. Stay quiet and u should be ok

  But what if I cant get to a centre tomorrow?

  Jim trust me. Going out on the streets when things are crazy is a bad idea

  OK. Ill wait. Don and Roy are coming here to wait with me

  That sounds good. Be careful when you let them in. Make sure they arnt sick first.

  Alright dad. Please keep in touch.

  Jeff sat back.

  ‘How are things at home?’ Pete asked.

  ‘I’m not sure. Jim mentioned rescue stations but I told him to stay home.’

  ‘How come? Wouldn’t it be safer to let him get rescued?’

  ‘I don’t know. I think there’s some value in laying low for a while, every movie I ever saw the rescue stations get overrun by something nasty.’

  ‘C’mon, mate, movies aren’t reality. If we have a disaster here it’s always better to go to the rescue point than stay at home. If a bushfire comes through and no one knows you’re there, you end up getting fried.’

  ‘I hear what you’re saying. But this isn’t a fire. There are crazy people on the street attacking each other. He has two friends coming over. If they get there safely I’ll talk to him about going to the rescue station then.’

  ‘Fair enough,’ Pete said. ‘You know your boy, just remember it’s better to go to a rescue point while it’s still there than after it disappears.’

  ‘Point taken,’ Jeff said, he leaned back and tried to blank out everything while he waited to hear back from Jim.

  06:15 AEST: Sydney

  Joanne almost sprinted home. The news had made her nervous and the panic in Dan’s eyes had added to her rising fear. She had left her front door unlocked earlier, this time she locked the security grille. As she swung the front door closed, she thought she heard a yell or scream coming from up the street. Still a little freaked out by the TV news and the stories Dan and Gen had told her, she decided it was someone else’s problem, closed her door, and locked it. She went to the kitchen and tried to call in to the airline. Miracle of miracles this time she got through. One of the shift supervisors answered.

  ‘Hi Murray, it’s Joanne Spencer here.’

  ‘Hello Joanne, it’s good to hear from you. Are you okay?’

  ‘Yes, but my taxi didn’t show up and. . .’

  ‘Joanne, all flights are cancelled. Haven’t you heard? There’s a curfew and you have to stay at home.’

  ‘Actually I just heard that—but I still can’t believe it.’

  ‘Believe it Joanne. The AFP have shut the airport down. No one is going in or out except in buses. The police aren’t letting anyone stop—they just make them do the loop and go back where they came from. It’s pretty crazy down here.’

  ‘Why are you there anyway? I thought you were on the afternoon shift?’

  ‘Yeah, I am. I’ve been here since five o’clock yesterday afternoon. I was supposed to finish at three this morning, but they deemed me an “essential”, so I have to stay here. I’m not even sure if they’re going to drive me home later or if I’m here for the duration. I’ve just had a quick snooze on the couch in the office.’

  ‘Why would they drive you home?’

  ‘Because of the curfew, no one is allowed to drive. I wouldn’t want to anyway—these riots are pretty scary.’

  ‘Riots? The news said there were two “incidents”.’

  ‘Two “incidents”. That’s almost funny. When dozens of people are fighting and trying to kill each other I think you can call it a riot. I’m not sure how they can say it was only two either. There were scuffles all over the airport. It was only after the riot squad got here that they were able to settle things down. Those boys don’t muck around. They carted off about thirty people who seemed to have gone nuts, they must have this disease whatever it is.’

  At that moment, Joanne heard three cracking noises in the background.

  ‘Shit!’ Murray said.

  ‘What’s happened? What was that noise?’ Joanne gushed.

  ‘I don’t know. Look, I’ll give you a call back. I want to lock the office up and ring security. Take care Joanne—keep listening to the news.’

  Joanne stared at the phone as it went dead. As she placed it in its cradle, she heard a moaning coming from the bedroom.

  ‘Oh geez, Mark!’ she said, and rushed down the hall. As she opened the door, it briefly crossed her mind that moaning wasn’t a good sign. To her relief, Mark was asleep, although he seemed to be sweating profusely and tossing and turning. She quickly walked over to him and put her hand on his head and cheek. He was definitely running a fever. She bent and kissed his cheek to wak
e him. As his eyes blearily opened, she asked, ‘Are you okay, sweetheart?’

  Mark struggled to keep his eyes open. ‘I think I’m coming down with the flu. Can you get me a glass of water?’

  Joanne’s relief at Mark talking rationally was palpable. ‘Sure, hon, do you want a Panadol as well?’

  Mark made a noncommittal grunt and dozed back to sleep. Joanne assumed it to be a ‘yes’. She quickly ducked out to the kitchen, poured a glass of water, and found two painkillers. Travel flu was something they were both familiar with, sleep and a few painkillers seemed the best way to deal with it.

  As she started down the hall with the water and pills, the home phone rang. Startled, she dropped the water, ‘Oh rats,’ she muttered. She closed the bedroom door and rushed back into the kitchen, quickly grabbed the handset, and said, ‘Hello?’

  ‘This is Martin Davis of the Australian Quarantine and Inspection Service, could I speak to Joanne Spencer please?’

  ‘Yes, this is Joanne Spencer.’

  ‘Hello Mrs Spencer. We are doing a follow up call on Mark Spencer, he had you listed as his emergency contact on his arrivals card. We tried to call his mobile number earlier but there was no answer.’

  ‘Oh, Mark is my husband. He’s asleep at the moment. He mustn’t have heard his phone.’ Joanne thought she heard a relieved sigh from the AQIS agent.

  ‘Mrs Spencer, are you aware of the current quarantine and “state of emergency”?’

  ‘Yes, I’ve just heard, does this have something to do with Mark?’ Joanne was starting to get worried about this call and where it was going.

  ‘Your husband was working on a flight which has been determined to have carried some infected people to Australia. We are checking with the families of all passengers and crew to ensure that none of these people are showing symptoms of infection. Have you spoken to your husband since he landed?’

  Joanne was starting to freak out, ‘Not really, when he got in last night I was already asleep. I had an early flight this morning. He just woke up a few moments ago. He asked me for a glass of water. I think he’s fallen back to sleep now unless the phone woke him.’

  ‘He asked for a glass of water?’

  ‘Yes, he looks like he has the flu or something, he asked me for a glass of water before he dozed off just now.’

  The AQIS agent’s voice became suddenly more serious, ‘Mrs Spencer, can you lock the door to the room your husband is in from the outside?’

  ‘No—why would I do that? Can anyone do that?’

  ‘Mrs Spencer, your husband’s symptoms may or may not be related to the sickness, but you must take no chances. Can you lock him in that room?’

  ‘No, there is no way—you mean he could have this disease or whatever it is?’

  ‘Mrs Spencer, there is a real risk. We will dispatch an army unit to your home. They will be there in fifteen minutes. Can you find a place in your home in which you can make yourself secure? A room you can lock from the inside but that cannot be unlocked from the outside?’

  ‘Oh my lord, uh—yes, I can lock the office—sorry—it’s the second bedroom. He’s just sleeping, are you sure there’s a risk?’

  ‘Mrs Spencer, you must not take a chance. Please hang up and lock yourself in the office. The army unit will be there within fifteen minutes. They will announce their presence. If you unlock your front door now they will not need to force entry. No matter what—do not leave your office, or unlock the door, until you hear them knock and tell you it is clear to leave the room.’

  ‘Uh, Okay.’

  ‘Mrs Spencer, I cannot stress how serious this is, if your husband is infected he will become extremely violent. The only way to keep yourself safe is to lock yourself where he cannot find you until the army medical unit come to protect you and to treat him.’

  Joanne was starting to become flustered on top of her burgeoning panic. ‘Alright, I’ll do what you want, but please come quickly,’ she blurted and then hung up the phone.

  This made no sense, she couldn’t believe that Mark was infected. He looked just like he had the flu. She decided to check on him one last time before going into the office. As she walked down the hall to the master bedroom she had her first misgiving. If she were in a horror movie, this is exactly what she would do—open the door and get herself killed. Joanne paused, debating with herself. ‘This is ridiculous. It’s just the flu.’

  As she put her hand on the doorknob she paused again. The AQIS agent had been really over the top. Could she lock the room from the outside? Who could do that? It was a home not a prison. She knew people at AQIS. They always overstated the risk. How many times had she seen them kick up a fuss over a little dirt on a walking shoe? Surely this was just the same.

  As she twisted the knob she had one final flicker of concern—the news had been really scary. All the events had happened at the airport and Mark had been on one of the last flights in. ‘No,’ she told herself. ‘It’s just flu—he asked me for a glass of water for goodness sake!’ Joanne realised she had forgotten the glass of water. As she released the knob it made a small ‘click’.

  An animalistic roar surged from the bedroom. Joanne jumped back across the hall in fright. She heard fast moving feet, followed by a thump into the wall and another roaring scream. Joanne turned and ran for the back door. She heard wood splintering as she ducked through her kitchen. There was another roar as she swung open the back door and lunged through it, slamming it closed behind her. She almost fell down the back stairs in her rush to get away.

  She heard a thump against the back door as she looked around in a panic—unsure of whether she should try to hide or get out to the street. Then she remembered the scream she had heard just before coming inside—that ruled the street out.

  There were more thumps coming from the back door, Joanne was thankful it was solid timber, not hollow like the bedroom door. The screaming and roaring stopped but the thumping continued, she could see the door vibrate. Joanne knew she couldn’t stay where she was. She looked at the high brick fence between her yard and her neighbours, there was a 1-metre retaining wall and then a 2-metre fence on top of it. Dan and Gen had been okay when she saw them, she didn’t know where else to go. Joanne grabbed the table from the garden setting and dragged it across to the retaining wall. She put one of the chairs on top of the table with its back to the fence.

  Joanne clambered up onto the top of the table. It wobbled a little as she stepped up onto the chair. She could just manage to get a grip on the capping on the top of the fence. By stepping on the back of the chair, she managed to get her arms over the top of the fence. As she hooked her right leg onto the capping, she kicked the chair off the table. It was a push but she managed to drag herself onto the top of the fence.

  As Joanne straddled the fence, she contemplated jumping into Dan and Gen’s yard, the 2-metre drop-down onto the path looked daunting. She looked back at her home—she could see into the kitchen window from where she sat. The thumping had stopped. Mark was walking around the kitchen in what looked to be a daze. As she watched him he turned and saw her. Instantly he roared again and rushed towards the window. The kitchen bench blocked him from running right through the wall and he doubled over as he hit it, his head swinging down right next to the window.

  One look into his eyes was all Joanne needed. Mark was not Mark anymore. She lifted her leg over the fence into a sitting position. Joanne could hear Mark screaming and trying to get through the kitchen window. Without looking back she jumped from the fence into her neighbour’s yard.

  06:20 AEST: Sydney

  Gen tried to get Dan to calm down as he frantically went from room to room, checking blinds were drawn and windows locked. He hadn’t said a word since running back inside. She took that as a really bad sign, he normally vented pretty much all the time. His focus on securing the house was so total she knew something really bad had happened. The fact he wasn’t talking about it meant he didn’t really know what to do. He was looking pale and fra
ntic and the lack of sleep wasn’t helping.

  Gen finally couldn’t stand it any longer. She grabbed him as he rushed back to the lounge room to check the windows were locked and forced him into a chair. ‘Tell me what happened,’ she said.

  As Dan told her what he had seen he slowly unwound. He was still pale, but the edge of panic was falling away. By the time he had finished, he was almost calm—but Gen was now feeling more scared than she would have thought possible. She asked, ‘And the woman who was attacked, she went crazy as well?’

  ‘Yes,’ Dan said. ‘The guy was trying to help her and she just leapt at him and started trying to kill him.’

  ‘I know it sounds stupid, but they weren’t trying to eat him or anything?’

  ‘I don’t think so, it was like they were completely feral. They didn’t seem to have anything in mind but hurting him.’

  ‘I think you should report it to the police, right away.’

  ‘Yeah, okay,’ Dan said. He pulled out his mobile phone. His first thought was that he should call 000, this was an emergency after all, but then decided to call the local police station. He had put the number in his phone before his fortieth birthday party and had never removed it, even when he changed phones.

  The phone answered on the second ring. ‘Miranda Police. We are experiencing a high volume of calls. Your call has been placed into a queue, we will respond as soon as possible. If this is an emergency please dial 000.’

  He looked at Gen and said, ‘I’m in a call queue at Miranda Police, do you think I should try 000?’

  Gen, shook her head, ‘Just give it a second.’ She took a breath before adding, ‘I think I might check the monitor—I want to make sure they didn’t follow you.’

  ‘Oh crap, I didn’t think of that, good idea.’ They both walked to the monitor beside the front door.

  ‘I can’t see anyone on the monitor,’ Dan said. ‘I might just go look out the front window, just in case.’

  ‘I’ll go, you keep trying to call,’ Gen said. ‘They might not have even seen you, let alone chased you.’