Dead Hunger | Book 10 | The Remnants

by Shelman, Eric A.

  They were no Einsteins, either. They had receptors on the remnants of their brains – like tiny catcher’s mitts hanging from the ends of the nerves – and they were not nearly as efficient receivers as the now dead receptors that once sent the messages to the control center from all parts of the body.

  If they got too far away, the Hungerers would simply wander away if not stimulated by sound or the nearly numb receptors on their epidermises.

  We will bring them in to surround the town, said Lilith to all others. On our order, they will come in and overwhelm them – then we shall feed.

  It would be another place gone, this place they called Lula. It would be gutted, many of the partially-consumed joining their ranks. Any pregnant women would be cherished, as they would become Lilith.

  While Lilith did not think in mathematical numbers except in the abstract, she had some idea of how many mothers would be there. She heard from each and every one, as they all did.

  She was to meet again with the Hybrid named Isis and the weaker one named Max. Lilith had never before encountered a male like him. He was similar to Isis, but not as strong, and his mind was not as easy to read.

  But the young one; Travis. He intrigued her. She felt that if she were to consume him, she would take on some of his abilities, and while she was not sure what they were, she knew they were.

  It would be tomorrow. The Mothers would be here by then – likely earlier. She would return to the home with the garage tonight to tell them. She would send the word out to Isis.

  Lilith envisioned the carnage they would wreak.

  So did they all.

  *****

  “Flex,” said Gem. “I don’t feel good about not telling Max and Isis. They’re mature enough to take the precautions they need. We also need to figure out how to distract them while everybody skedaddles.”

  “Skedaddles?”

  “Yeah. Flies the coop.”

  “Are you from the show Green Acres?”

  “I wouldn’t rather stay in New York,” said Gem. “I also have no allergies to hay.”

  “Two good reasons I’ve kept you all these years.”

  Gem looked down at her breasts, then back to Flex. “I know the two reasons you kept me.”

  “Maybe at first,” he laughed. “But that revelation means there are at least four reasons.”

  “Enough bullshit. You can show me the other two later on. Radio them to come here. We’ll have to tell Hemp and Charlie or they’ll dissect us or something.”

  “That’s what we’re tryin’ to avoid with the damned zombies,” said Flex. “You sure?”

  “I am.”

  Flex got on the radio. “Max, Isis, Flex. Max, Isis, Flex.”

  As they always did, their ears were on. “Hey, Uncle Flex,” said Max. “My dad there?”

  “Nope, he’s heading to the fortified area with your mom.”

  “Why?”

  “Just checking things out, making sure nobody missed anything.”

  “Missed anything?”

  “We need to talk.”

  “That’s why you want us? Can we talk later? We’re doing –”

  “Now,” said Flex.

  Gem pursed her lips and pumped her fist, mouthing the word, “hard ass!”

  Max and Isis pulled up in the golf cart Punch and Jim had left in earlier. They parked right outside the porch and walked inside.

  Gem and Flex met them at the door and Flex pointed at the bench swing. “I wanna smoke. Let’s sit out here.”

  “You’re still smoking those rancid Marlboros from over twenty years ago?” asked Isis.

  “They stay surprisingly fresh in that cellophane,” said Flex. “Though I do go for the lights. They don’t make my lungs bleed as much.”

  “Disgusting,” said Max. “So why are we here?”

  “We’ve got a plan. It’s a good one, we think, but we need you to dial it in.”

  “I’m glad you called us,” said Isis. “I heard from Lilith today.”

  Max turned toward her. “What?”

  She gave him a meek look. “Sorry, sweetie. I just kind of absorbed the message and knew it. I actually forgot to share it with you.”

  Max looked a little hurt, but said, “What did she say?”

  Everyone leaned in. Isis said, “Day after tomorrow. Obviously, we have to meet at night. They’ve agreed to meet in the fortified area, but they don’t understand why all the buses are there. They know what Nel did to the Mothers and Hungerers in the buses, though. I told them he got scared, and he didn’t know we were working things out.”

  “You had that entire conversation?” asked Max, incredulous.

  “It literally took about thirty seconds,” said Isis. “I was in the porta-potty in the fortified area when she made contact. They believe there will be around a hundred and twenty Mothers.”

  Because water was a precious commodity, they used the porta-potties almost exclusively for the bathrooms. The water did not have to be potable, and they had lots of suitable chemicals to handle the waste.

  Max shook his head. “A hundred and twenty? I don’t like the sound of that.”

  “We’ve got a plan,” said Gem. “It’s a betrayal, but we don’t think anything else makes sense. We can’t coexist with these fuckers, no matter what liberals think.”

  “I read about them,” said Isis. “From the old Democrat party. They said they were all about the people, particularly minorities, but they were only about the power.”

  “That went for all of them, sadly,” said Flex. “Still, it was better to be an elephant than a jackass. At least they got things done. Anyway, they’re all gone now.”

  “So, how’s this going to work?”

  Flex and Gem went through the entire plan, but there was a glaring gap between getting them there and defeating them. Max pointed it out.

  “You promised to feed them, and I don’t think venison is going to cut it. They’ll expect people meat.”

  “And we will offer them what they want,” said Gem.

  “How?” asked Isis. “It’s not like you to give up anyone. Good or bad.”

  “You’re right there,” said Gem, nodding. “They shan’t be consuming our angels or our demons. We won’t sacrifice anyone to their kind. So, we need an escape route for our entrees.”

  “How many people are we talking?” asked Max.

  “If four or five of them can share each person, we’ll need at least twenty-four people.”

  “Good luck getting that many people to volunteer for that duty,” said Max.

  “That’s why you’re here. We didn’t tell your mom and dad we were going to let you in on this. They’re paranoid because of the whole telepathy thing. Mostly your dad. So, we need you to help figure out an escape route for our offerings.”

  “That part of town is compacted gravel,” said Isis. “Can we trench?”

  “Big or small, your pick,” said Gem. “Yes, we can trench.”

  “Okay. I have an idea. And it’s brilliant if I do say so myself.” Isis smiled.

  A second later, Max said, “That is a great idea!”

  Flex looked at Gem, and Gem looked at him, then at the two young adults. “Stop telepathing around and fucking tell us!”

  They told.

  They liked.

  They called Hemp and Charlie.

  *****

  The next morning, they located one of the propane-powered backhoes and began the process of trenching around a hundred yards from the center of the gathering spot to just outside the contained area. They had to move one bus in order to do it right, so it didn’t look too obvious.

  The entire downtown area of Lula had been paved for several years, but the backroads and industrial areas were cheaper to maintain as compacted earth and gravel. The city was a far cry from its booming days back in the late 1800s and early 1900s, so anything to keep costs under control, the pre-apocalypse city managers had accepted.

  Luckily, when they set up the fortified zon
e, they had chosen the gravel area. This would make the trenching easier to do, then conceal afterward.

  “Wonder how good their eyes are,” said Flex. They were all sitting inside the long-defunct Assembly of Praise church on the corner of Charlotte and Carter Streets, braving the hard, wooden pews.

  “You mean you’re wondering if they’ll detect the tunnel cover,” said Hemp.

  “Hell yeah,” said Flex. “They get wind of what’s comin’, we could be fucked nine ways from Sunday.”

  “Why is it nine ways from Sunday?” asked Nelson. “Why not six ways from Tuesday, or fifteen ways from Wednesday? And why from any day?”

  Everybody turned to stare at Nelson. “What, bro?” he asked, shrugging. “Legit questions, I’d say. I must not have ever looked that up, or I’d remember.”

  “Perhaps, but not applicable to this conversation,” said Hemp. “But it means examining something from every angle. For the cover, we will need to utilize ¾” plywood at least, and only make the tunnel half as wide as the sheet, so we may utilize a narrower cut to cover it.”

  “Less echo, less flex, everything,” said Punch. “As for being obvious, Flex, we put a nice layer of the same dirt on top, the Mothers shouldn’t even realize they’re walking over a hollowed-out area.

  Eileen Plover was there. She said, “I can work a circular saw or table saw if the wood’s not cut yet. I really want to help.”

  “They’re working on that right now, but thank you, Eileen,” said Hemp. “Punch, you said you worked with munitions in the service. I’d think you’d be good to get that magnesium ribbon adequately lit. We can’t afford any errors in that department.”

  “Where’s Wendy, Punch?” asked Charlie. “She’s outgoing as fuck. Maybe take her and try to round up some volunteers for the sacrifice.”

  “Pseudo-sacrifice,” said Nelson. Then he leaned forward. “You’re not really gonna kill them, are you?”

  Rachel squeezed Nelson’s hand. Lita was lying in the pew right behind them, fast asleep on a thick blanket. She had slept through many a gunfight and everything else.

  “Nel, I thought you understood,” said Scofield. “That’s what the trench is for. It’s an escape tunnel. Once the shit hits the fan.”

  “Ah, we hadn’t gotten there yet, and I hadn’t allowed my brain to venture that far ahead. Got it. All clear now, bros.”

  “Wendy’s helping with the deer fence,” said Flex. “Gem and I saw her on the way here. Up bright and early.”

  “She was sweating like a Chinese factory worker,” said Gem. “Only in a sexy way.”

  Hemp laughed and shook his head. “I’m amazed we make any progress at all with you and Nelson here, Gem,” he said. He was smiling, of course, but that didn’t stop Gem from feigning injured feelings. “Our task is to make you think, Professor Prickface,” said Gem.

  “Yeah, Professor Prickface,” said Charlie.

  Hemp looked at her. “What did I do to you?”

  “My BFF was having fun with you and you dissed her. Do that again and you will meet the pointy end of my crossbow bolts.”

  “To answer your original question – but I’m so far from it I’m not even sure what it is – yeah, I’ll go connect with Wendy and we’ll head out to knock on doors. I know where to start. We’ll need the more fit members of the community. We don’t need anyone collapsing down inside there. Eileen, want to come along and help?”

  “Yes. I really want to help in any way I can.”

  “True, because the thermite, when it becomes molten, will burn right through that wood,” said Hemp. “Without a doubt. It will become a veritable infernal tomb. No survivors.”

  “We’ll be sure and leave that part out when we go knocking,” said Punch, standing. “We need to get on that. I’ll get her now and we’ll head out.”

  Everyone bade the pair goodbye, and they left the building.

  “Okay. Priorities are deer fence, trenching, covering the tunnel, and building the main stage. I’d prefer it be elevated to provide you some cover when you duck off the rear.”

  Flex stood, followed by Gem, Charlie, Nelson, and Rachel.

  Everyone disbursed to get the last-minute preparations completed. The party was scheduled and coming fast.

  *****

  CHAPTER FORTY-ONE

  Punch decided along the way that he needed to check on something else and had sent Eileen along without him to track down Wendy and recruit the volunteers. Eileen found Wendy sitting at a picnic table drenched in sweat. Her hands had tiny cuts all over them, and she was tending to each with a bottle of rubbing alcohol.

  “Get messed up doing the fence?” asked Eileen. Carly was at the end of her leash, staring at the other people off in the distance, still working on the fence.

  Wendy looked up. “Yeah. Hey, I’m Wendy.”

  “Eileen,” she said, sitting beside her. “Want to take a break? I’ve got an easier job for you.”

  “They’re almost done anyway,” said Wendy. “The kids can dust the dirt over it, cover it up. What’s up?”

  “Door knocking,” said Eileen, brushing her long, dark hair away from her face. “Get volunteers for the sacrifice.”

  “Huh?”

  Eileen explained to her what was going on. She emphasized it wasn’t really a human sacrifice to the zombie Mothers. “It’s bullshit, but that’s part of it. We have to make sure everyone doing this seems adequately freaked out, so we’ll need some good actors.”

  “Why?” asked Wendy. “If we’re all working as a team.”

  “Ah, the old Together Everyone Achieves More crap?”

  Wendy shrugged. “I don’t know. I thought this was that kind of place. Everyone’s real tight.”

  “They are, but the … Hybrids, I think they’re called. The ones that are human, but they were affected by the Mothers’ vapor in the womb? They’re either a special benefit or a special risk.”

  “Just how do they know the difference?”

  “Time, mainly. Being around them. Travis – that’s Beauty’s kid. He’s a 2nd generation Hybrid. Isis, Beauty, Max, they’re all first generation.”

  Eileen took a moment to explain what the others had explained to her. She told her how Travis was too young to really trust, and Beauty might have some connection with her son that could allow unconscious thought transfer.

  “Hard to get used to the supernatural shit,” said Wendy. “I get it, but it sucks we have to lie at all.”

  “Yep,” said Eileen. “I’m glad about what they’re doing, though. At first I thought they were really making a deal. I shoulda known better. This is a badass bunch of folks.”

  “My kinda badasses. So, where we starting?”

  Eileen stood. “I have the map of occupied houses. Let’s start at the northwest corner and work our way east, then south. When we get enough, we’ll stop.”

  “What’s the magic number?”

  “They said 24.”

  “That’s a pretty tall order. Is there an escape plan?”

  “Yes, and we’ll need to share it with people to convince them to do it.”

  “Fuck, I wouldn’t do it. I’d rather hit the road and take my chances by myself than do that.”

  “People here trust Flex, Gem and the others. A lot. Hemp’s invented a lot of stuff along the way. Those wafers that make regular zombies not see you? The urushiol? All Hemp.”

  Wendy reached down and held up a squirt gun. “What the hell you think I have in here?”

  “Cool. Let’s go. Hope you don’t need it.”

  *****

  After only two-and-a-half hours, Wendy and Eileen had all the volunteers they needed, plus another five on reserve. They also came across something interesting that Wendy felt might be worth presenting to Flex, Gem, and the others.

  *****

  “So, are we going to present our plan for the future?” asked Gem.

  “What plan?” asked Flex.

  “Just … something, in case we need more time. Something
to stall with?”

  “I’m not sure what you mean,” said Flex.

  “Yeah, what are you talking about, chick?”

  Gem kissed Carly, then put the dog down. When Eileen and Wendy came over after securing all the volunteers for the sacrifice, Gem asked if she would leave Carly with her for a while.

  Carly ran to Flex, who scooped her up and nuzzled her face with his nose. “Good girl,” he cooed.

  “So we’re bringing these bitches right into the heart of our fortified zone, making me wonder why the hell we bothered doing all the work bringing the buses in.”

  “I thought of that,” said Hemp. “It will be part of our story. And to some degree, it’s true. We will tell them we brought the buses over in order to build a barricade. Something to keep them out if they attacked. Then we’ll tell them we had the change of heart after meeting and speaking with Lilith.”

  “So we’re the gullible humans with dumbass brains incapable of telepathy, and ….”

  “Exactly,” interrupted Hemp. “We’re believers in their minds. Trusting. And who knows, perhaps they are sincere? Even if they are, we simply cannot take the chance. Not after all we’ve been through.”

  Gem said, “Do you trust them at all Hemp?”

  “With their new nocturnal state, I just don’t know. It makes them more vulnerable, to be sure.” His face twisted in a way that Charlie knew meant he had an idea.

  “What is it, H-man?” asked Charlie.

  Hemp laughed and shook his head. “You know me too well. I was just wondering if they have any sense of time.”

  “Why?” asked Gem.

  “Because, if we can meet with them just a couple of hours before sunrise, we could possibly have another contingency plan.”

  “Not bad,” said Flex. “Punch said the same thing. Trap ‘em with the deer fence if everything goes to shit with the thermite. Let ‘em burn up naturally.”

  “I am not certain whether they can still leap as they could in the old days,” said Hemp. “Obviously we haven’t asked for a demonstration of their abilities.”