The Dead and The Living (Book1): The Dead and The Living

by Wimer, Kevin

  Tex opened his door and got out. He gently shut the driver’s side door and met Chris on the other side of the truck. The two men looked at each other—both bathed in a green and grey hue. Chris thought Tex looked a bit eerie in this lighting. He had seen a side to Tex that gave him great pause. It was a side that Chris hoped to never be on the wrong end of. Tex looked at Chris and motioned for the man to follow him as he turned and stepped into the thick brush that awaited him. Chris followed Tex into the brush and to where the others were waiting. He looked at each of them. The men and woman of the group had spread out in a defensive position and were now awaiting orders. Tex looked around and made sure everyone was there and then he gave the hand signal to stand up and move out. It was like watching a well-oiled machine as everyone stood and took their positions. Tex turned form the group and swiftly began moving through the brush as he took point. It was where Tex wanted to be. Out in front.

  The group moved to the edge of the brush. It had taken them nearly the full twenty minutes to get into position. Tex looked at his watch and then at the others in the group. He took a deep breath to try and bring his heart rate down. His heart was ticking faster than a swiss watch. He made a mental note to get back into a workout routine and to make those of the Scavenger groups workout as well. Tex took a few more steps and then took a knee while holding up a fist—stopping the group behind him. He looked down the line as each of the men and woman took a knee and began scanning their line of fire. He looked at Chris and motioned him forward. Chris quickly rushed to Tex.

  “We have three minutes until Cubbie and his group cut the power,” looking at his watch and then back up at Chris, “I want you to take out that man right there,” pointing at a man who was standing atop of the shipping container, “I’ll take out the other one.”

  Chris nodded.

  “Once those two men drop, we need to cut the locks to the gate and get moving,” Tex said as he turned and pointed to one of the men behind him and motioned him forward, “Hector, I need you and Shane to cut that lock. Chris and I will provide cover. Pass the word to the others to be ready to move as soon as the lights go out and the lock is cut.”

  Hector looked at the two men and nodded his head.

  “Roger that, Tex.”

  Hector ran back to the group and began passing the word. He grabbed Shane and told him to move up to where Tex and Chris were. The man nodded his head and quickly made his way over to the two men. Shane took a breath and let it out. It had been one hell of a trip up the hill and now things were about to get a bit lively. He wasn’t ready for it. He wondered who would be. Shane looked at Tex and had the answer to that question. Tex was ready. He was more than ready. It seemed that their new friend was too. Shane had little time to think as Hector took his place next to him. The two men looked on and waited for the signal to go. The men atop of the shipping containers walked back and forth—stopping only to say a few words to each other. One of the men lit a cigarette and took a long drag of it before beginning his routine of walking across the top of the container.

  Tex narrowed his eyes as he looked on. He noticed something. The two men roughly reached the furthest point of the shipping containers about the same time. It was a perfect place to hit them and let them fall to the ground. The two men would hit the ground without making much of a sound. He knew the sound their bodies would make if they hit the metal of the shipping containers. It would echo through the silence and alert all those behind the gate. Tex looked at his watch. It was now less than a minute until Cubbie and his group would have the power cut. He tapped Chris on the shoulder and then tapped his watch. Chris nodded his head. Tex began counting the time down and when the time came the lights to the compound were still on. His body had started to go into motion. His heart quickly sank to the pit of his stomach when the lights didn’t go out. Chris started to say something when the world in front of him went dark and was quickly bathed in a green and grey hue. He caught Tex out of the corner of his eye raising his rifle. Chris did the same. The two men pulled the triggers of their rifles at roughly the same time. The bodies of the two men fell to the ground.

  Hector and Shane quickly moved forward as Tex and Chris lead the way. The others within the group had taken their positions behind them—waiting for the gate to be open so that they too could join in the fight.

  CHAPTER 21

  Chris’s heart raced as he ran alongside Tex and across open ground. His mind thought nothing of pulling the trigger and killing the guard atop of the shipping container. He had shut down the part of himself that gave a damn about human life. The men and woman behind these gated walls were sadistic killers that needed to be killed. They were subhuman to him. He had felt something within himself change at the pull of a trigger—something he knew he would never get back and somehow, he was okay with that. He would do whatever it took to get Brandy. He would do whatever it took to keep the group that he was now with safe. The people of Graceland were good people and deserved nothing less. Chris reached the front gate at the same time Tex and the other two men had. He held his rifle into his shoulder and the barrel pointed forward while scanning the area in front of him. He could hear Hector and Shane working to cut the lock on the gate. It wasn’t that loud of a noise the two were making but it sure as hell sounded like it. Chris could feel the hair on the back of his neck standing on end—his spine tingled with chills as an electric charged of adrenaline surged through his body. The lock fell to the ground as the two men forced both sides of the gate open.

  Tex stepped through the gate and then turned to look at the group behind him. He motioned for them to get their asses in gear and into the fight. The group behind him quickly got to their feet and ran the short distance to the gates entrance. Tex turned his attention to the world in front of him as he moved deeper into the compound—looking for someone to kill. He turned his head and could see that Chris was a few feet to his right, scanning his area of fire as he moved. Tex had been expecting more men to be behind the walls of the front gate. The courtyard of the warehouse complex was bare—not a living soul in sight. He stopped and turned towards Chris who motioned for the group to follow him. The group quickly fanned out as Chris lead the way to the backside of the warehouse and to where Ron and his raiders would be. The group was in mid stride when three men stepped out from one of the buildings. Tex had little time to think. He pulled the trigger of his rifle—killing the first of the three men. Chris did the same as he killed the second man in line and then fired wildly at the third who quickly fired off a handful of shots at the approaching group. Tex wanted to curse aloud. The group was less than halfway to their rally point when these three assholes had shown up. The sound of the man firing his rifle at them had alerted Deacon and his group that they had visitors.

  Tex barely flinched as the bullets passed the side of his head. He flipped the selector switch of his rifle from semi auto to burst and squeezed the trigger. It was all just muscle memory as he filled the man full of holes—his body danced like a puppet on a string. Tex had little time to think about what had just happened. It was as if everything was moving in slow motion. He watched as the man stumbled backwards and then slumped to the ground and onto his knees before falling flat on his face dead. It wasn’t but a minute or two later that the compound came alive. It was those few minutes that had given Tex and his group of raiders just enough time to not only keep the element of surprise but the upper hand on those that were trying to figure out what in the hell was going on. Tex quickly looked around at the group. He then looked at Chris who motioned for them to follow. Tex gave the orders and everyone quickly fell into place and followed. Chris was in a flat out run as he ran around the building and to the backside where Ron and his group were waiting.

  Chris found Ron and his group with their rifles up and pointed at them. He started to yell for them not to fire but it was far too late. Ron and his raiders unleashed a hailstorm of bullets. Chris hit the dirt as he heard men behind him screaming in pain. Ron and
his raiders had fired into a group of Deacon’s men that had come to investigate what was going on. Chris lifted his head in time to see the men falling to the ground. Those men were quickly replaced by more men. Men that were prepared for a fight. The men quickly rushed through the doors and fanned out and began firing at them. Chris was on his hands and knees as he began crawling to a place that would offer him some cover. He was less than a few feet away when he was finally able to get to his feet and run. He dived behind an old truck and took a breath and let it out as he started to get back into the fight. It was then that he noticed what kind of truck he had taken cover behind. It was an old fuel truck that was being used to fuel the generators. Chris’s heart fluttered as his eyes went wide with fear—flinching as a hailstorm of bullets began hitting the metal body of the truck and the gas tank on the rear of the truck’s frame. He knew that any second now the truck would erupt in a giant fireball that would tear him to bits and pieces. His heart was pounding as he leaped from cover and began firing into the men that had been firing at him.

  “We need to move!” Chris shouted.

  Tex looked over at Chris and it was then that he noticed the fuel truck. His heart flipped and sputtered before diving to the pit of his stomach. He turned and looked at the men and woman that had now joined in the fight to kill them. It was more than Tex had anticipated. The roof of the buildings that surrounded them had just as many if not more firing down at them. He knew Deacon had a few hundred men, but he had been betting on the fact that most of them wouldn’t be willing to fight. He had been betting on the fact that most would run off and hide until it was all over. He had been wrong. Dead wrong. Deacon had put together a small army that was willing to fight and die for him.

  “Chris on me!” Tex shouted, “Ron keep these bastards busy while we go and get Brandy,” he yelled while running across the compound and to where Chris thought Brandy was being held.

  Chris fired off a few quick bursts and then started to run. He was in mid stride when he caught someone out of the corner of his eyes. It was Deacon. Deacon and a handful of men were running out of one of the main buildings and towards an area that would allow them to escape. Chris brought his rifle up and into his shoulder and held his breath as he began to squeeze the trigger. It was then that Cubbie and his group made their presence known. Cubbie and his group of raiders began shooting at Deacon and his fleeing men. Chris wanted to be the one to put a bullet in Deacon. He watched for a tick of a second as Cubbie and his group battled it out. He knew the group would slaughter Deacon and his men. He knew that he needed to help Tex and not wait around. Tex didn’t know the compound like Chris. The world around him was a buzz. It sounded like World War Three. Chris turned and ran to where Tex had taken a knee and was firing at a group of men and woman above him. He could hear the buzzing sound of bullets zipping past him. The ground around him was being chewed to pieces by the hot molten lead that was being slung at him. He wondered when one of those misses would be a hit.

  Chris slid to his knees and fired up at the men and woman above him. Tex was in the middle of a magazine change when Chris made his way to him. His rifle had jammed. He was trying to clear the malfunction while Chris kept the bastards above them busy. Chris moved the barrel of his rifle from side to side—firing as he did so. He had little time to aim so he just squeezed the trigger and prayed that he was on target. Tex quickly got the malfunction cleared and was back in the fight. The two men fired until their magazine’s ran dry. It was time to go. Chris leaped to his feet and yelled for Tex to follow. The two men changed their magazines while on the move. Chris came to the door that would lead them inside and to where he hoped Brandy would be. The door was being held open by the body of man lying face down in the threshold of it. Chris stepped over the man’s body and into the foyer area of the building. He took his foot and turned the man over to see who it was as Tex entered. He wasn’t sure who it was. The man’s face had a gaping hole in it from where a bullet had entered and exited out the back.

  “Where to?” Tex asked.

  Chris motioned to head down the hallway.

  “At the end of the hallway there is a door. It leads to the basement,” breathing heavily as he spoke, “Its where the Butcher keeps—”

  Chris didn’t get to finish. The hallway filled with bullets raining down onto them from above. Tex stepped from the entranceway and into the middle of the foyer with the barrel of his rifle pointed up. He held the trigger of his rifle down until it ran dry. Chris quickly followed suit and did the same. The two men were now out of ammo and were moving onto their secondary weapons. The hailstorm of gunfire from above them had stopped. Chris wondered if they had killed them or if the bastards were just lying in wait. The two men had no time to find out. They needed to get Brandy and get the hell out of here. Chris tapped Tex on the shoulder and told him to follow. The two men ran down the darkened hallway that was bathed in the green and grey hue of their night vision. Chris’s heart was pounding like a drum when he found the door that lead into a stairwell. The staircase went both up and down. The lower half of the building belonged to the man they called the Butcher. Chris placed his hand on the knob of the door and was just about to open it when Tex stopped him.

  “Cover my back,” he said, “I have more experience at clearing a building than you do.”

  Chris stepped out of the way as Tex turned the knob of the door and flung it open and stepped into the stairwell. He stepped in with the barrel of his handgun pointed forward and then up and into the upper part of the staircase. He had been met with no resistance. Tex motioned for Chris to follow as the two men began making their way down the staircase and to the basement. The sounds of gunfire outside echoed through the building. Chris could hear men yelling and screaming. Some of those men were giving orders while others were dying. Tex was the first to make it to the bottom of the staircase. Chris stepped off the bottom step and onto the landing as he turned to face the set of stairs that they had just come down.

  “Where do I go once, I go through this door?” Tex asked.

  Chris looked over his shoulder.

  “It’s another hallway,” breathing heavy as he spoke, “At the end of the hall there is a door leading into a room. Its where Brandy will be.”

  Chris had no way of knowing if Brandy would be there or not. He was just hoping. Deacon could have given the orders to put her in a different room and in a different building. He could have given the orders to kill her and dump her body along the road for the walkers to feast on. The group of raiders had no idea if Brandy was here or not or if she was still alive. Chris turned back around and looked at the stairs and then up into the stairwell. He could hear movement above them. The two men needed to act quickly, or they would be trapped.

  “On me,” Tex said as he placed a hand on the knob of the door.

  Tex took a breath and held it as he turned the knob of the door and flung it open. He started to take a step in but stopped dead in his tracks. He came face to face with the barre of rifle pointed at his head. He started to pull the trigger of on his gun but quickly noticed that it was Brandy who held him at gunpoint. He yelled don’t shoot but heard the click of the rifle before he was able to get the sentence out. Tex was expecting a bright flash of light followed by pain. He was also expecting to feel nothing at all but the welcoming darkness of death. He knew that a bullet at this close of a range would have torn through his skull and killed him instantly. His knees felt weak as he stood there in the threshold looking down the barrel of the rifle at the young woman they had come to rescue. The gun hadn’t gone off. He wasn’t sure if it was from a faulty primer or if the gun was unloaded. It didn’t matter. He was still alive and the look on Brandy’s face was that of shock. She squeezed the trigger again before giving up. It was then she noticed who stood in front of her. She dropped the rifle to the ground and began sobbing as she fell into Tex arms.

  “I got you Brandy,” Tex said, “You are going to be okay.”

  The sound of mo
vement above them began to grow. Chris looked over his shoulder at Brandy. He could see the state that she was in. Her shirt was ripped to shreds and her breast were exposed. He could see in the green and grey hue that her face was battered and bruised. He could also tell that she was covered in blood. Chris started to say something when the sound of footsteps behind him alerted him that someone was there. He turned and without giving them a chance to say anything he fired. The bullet struck the first of three men in the chest. Tex pushed Brandy back through the door and into the hallway that she had been standing in as Chris began unloading his weapon into the group of men who were also returning fire. Chris had little time to aim. He pointed and squeezed the trigger. The slide of his handgun locked open. It took Chris’s brain a second to register that he had run out of ammo. Chris dropped the magazine free and started to reach for a new one when he was struck in the chest. The bullets that hit him in the chest drove him backwards and through the open doorway.

  Tex saw Chris stumbling back and into the hallway. He watched as the man did a dance and then fell onto his back. He wasn’t sure if Chris was still alive or if the bullet proof plates of his vest had stopped the rounds from penetrating. Tex pushed Brandy to the side as he started to move towards the doorway. He did as he had been trained to do as he began edging his way from cover. He had a split second to react when a target presented itself. Tex squeezed the trigger and killed the first man. He quickly rushed through the door and into the foyer area of the stairwell. He fired until all the targets were down. Tex had taken out the remaining men that had just shot Chris. He ran up the steps to make sure that all the men were dead. He kicked their bodies and if they still had life in them, he fired one round to the head—effectively ending them.