Rounding the corner, he saw Jarred pulling into the driveway. Kelly had not made it home yet. Wade brought the Range Rover to a screeching halt and jumped out as Jarred looked on with eyes the size of saucers.
“Did you see any on the way home?” Wade asked.
“See what? What's wrong, Dad?"
"Very bad things. This is going to sound insane, but the country … the world … is being overrun by zombies. I guess since school is so close they aren’t in our neighborhood yet. That’s good. We still have time," Wade said.
Jarred guffawed until he looked at his dad's face. The laughter died and he got an expression like Wade had just told him Santa was real.
"Come on, Dad. Zombies?"
"I’m not kidding. Pull up CNN on your phone. That should take care of any doubt."
Jarred hit keys on his phone. It took just a moment until his face paled.
"What are we gonna do, Dad?" Jarred asked, the worry evident in his voice.
"We are going to pack up what supplies we have and head to Uncle Ben's place. His farm is much more secure, and it’s a sparsely populated area. I saw these things up close and personal on the way home. We have to get out of town before it gets too bad. I want you to box and bag all the canned food and non-perishable stuff. Grab the bottled water, Gatorade, and juices, then go pack some clothes. I am going to gather the camping gear and some other things we may need.”
"Okay, Dad."
"Jarred, as fast as possible, okay?"
"Got it," Jarred replied.
As he started towards the garage, Wade looked up and saw Kelly's SUV rounding the corner.
"Thank God," Wade said to himself.
After informing Kelly about the situation, he sent her and the kids in to gather their clothes. Wade packed the car with gear that might be useful. He grabbed his AR-15 and both the Glock 17 and Glock 41. He also loaded all the ammunition he had at the house. With both vehicles full, they were ready to roll out.
◆◆◆
Wade turned to tell Kelly to follow him when he saw their neighbor Jessica coming across the street. Jessica was not moving normally. She looked like she was just returning from a night at the bar. Her movements were jerky and discombobulated as she made her way towards Kelly.
"Jessica, are you all right?" Kelly called as she came within ten feet of the woman.
Wade recognized Jessica was now one of the infected. Luckily, he had put his shoulder holster on and the Glock was in easy reach. Yelling out to Kelly to back away, Wade drew and took aim on his former neighbor. Squeezing the trigger, Wade fired center mass. Jessica spun and fell to the pavement. Within seconds of hitting the ground, she slowly rolled over and began struggling to her feet. Wade then remembered Derek's warning. He raised the Glock again. This time the round hit Jessica between the eyes, and she fell hard. After a twitch or two, she did not move.
"What have you done, Wade?" Kelly yelled as she ran towards him.
"She was infected. We have to get out of here right now."
Gently, Wade turned Kelly to look down the street. There were dozens more people heading their direction. They all lurched in the uncoordinated way Jessica had been moving. They were making a noise that was a cross between a hiss and a growl. Wade had thought they may have some time before the undead showed up here. He was wrong.
"Kids, in the car now. Kelly, we need to go. Stay behind me and don't stop unless I do. We’re going to Ben's right now."
Kelly nodded and ran to her car. Wade jumped into the Range Rover and started the engine. He prayed they could get out of the city without running into any more of the infected. Giving one last look at the home they’d lived in for the past fifteen years, Wade hoped he and his family would be able to return here one day. He didn't hold out much hope for that at present.
With a look at Jarred, who was white as a sheet, Wade gunned the Rover. He glanced back to make sure Kelly was keeping pace. Winchester was no longer a safe place.
Kelly followed closely in her Terrain with Diana and Charlie. Wade knew the kids were likely hurling questions at Kelly. He hoped she could appease them until they could explain everything once they were safe at Ben's house. Kelly’s tires screeched when the Range Rover stopped dead in the middle of the street. Wade looked at the front of Tommy and Olivia Jackson's house. The Jacksons had been friends of the family ever since the Marshalls had moved into the neighborhood almost sixteen years ago. Wade jumped out of the vehicle and ran up to the front stoop.
Wade pounded on the front door and Tommy soon appeared.
"Tommy, have you seen what's going on?" Wade asked without preamble.
"Yeah, I just got done loading the truck. We are going to get Liv's parents and go to my folks’ house out of town."
"Okay, good. If you want to bring everyone to my Uncle Ben's, you’re all welcome. It’s the safest place I know of to ride this madness out."
"Thanks, Wade. Probably a good idea to stick together, from the looks of things. I will collect our folks and make my way to Ben's," Tommy said, giving Wade's hand a firm shake.
CHAPTER TWO
Safe House
As parents, we want our children to experience the things that brought us joy in life. We want them to learn from us, to learn the life lessons we were taught by our parents before us. Everyone wants their kids to have it better than they did as children. I have always wanted to bring my kids out to the farm more. We’ve made visits from time to time, but with sports, school activities, and work schedules, those trips have been fewer than I had originally envisioned. I had thought to teach them to hunt in the woods and fish along the bank of the Shenandoah, the way my dad had taught me. Now I am running for that sanctuary of my youth for a whole different reason. I fear it may be a long time before I will be teaching them anything for pleasure. Now the things I will be teaching will be strictly to guarantee their survival in an uncertain world.
Wade Marshall
◆◆◆
Wade jumped back into the Rover and took off again. Staying on the outskirts of town, he made his way to Route 7. They were able to get out of town without incident, and twenty-five minutes later Wade pulled onto the dirt road that led to his uncle's house. Wade did his best to dodge the washboards and holes in the rough dirt track, but he didn't slow. He had spent a lot of time on this old farm as a boy, fishing the Shenandoah River and nearby streams and ponds. Wade, along with his dad and brothers, used to spend a week here every year during hunting season; they had blinds and tree stands all over the hills around Ben's property. Wade missed those times when his dad and brothers were together. Now this old farm meant security for his family. He regretted not bringing his kids here more often to enjoy the outdoors the way he had. Of course, kids today were different. If it didn't have an LCD screen, it didn't hold much interest for them. As Wade made the last turn towards Ben's house, he saw his uncle coming out the front door.
As soon as Wade was out of the car, his Uncle Ben called out to him.
"Well, I’m fairly certain you just did a number on the front-end alignment of your car. What on earth has you driving like a bat out of hell, Wade?" Ben asked, his displeasure evident, judging the expression on his face.
"I take it you haven't seen the news this morning?"
"No, I have had a busy morning. I put up a new gate down to the pasture, and then had to feed the animals."
"Well, I think you better go have a look at the tube. It’s not good."
Once inside, they turned on Ben’s TV and sat down.
Ben sat mouth open in pure shock at what he was seeing. He had always told anyone who would listen that one day something catastrophic was going to happen.
“I always knew the world was going to spin off the rails one day. I always thought it was likely to be a nuclear attack or some kind of plague. I guess this counts as a plague. Is anything like this going on around here yet?" Ben asked Wade.
"We ran into some in our neighborhood, and we saw more on the way here. I spok
e with Derek, and he said it was total chaos in Washington. He thought they were going to have a tough time just getting out of the city," Wade said, rubbing his hands across his head.
"Well, you should take the kids up and get them settled. William's old room has two sets of bunk beds, so your boys and Jerry's boys can sleep there. You and Kelly can have my room, and Diana can take the sleeper sofa in the family room."
"We don't want to kick you out of your room, Uncle Ben," Wade protested.
"I sleep in my recliner more than the bedroom anyway," Ben said.
Wade pulled out his cell and dialed Jessie. The phone rang three times and went to voicemail.
"Damn it, Jessie. Where the hell are you?" he muttered to himself.
Wade announced he was going to ride back into town and go by Jessie's apartment. This, of course, went over like a lead balloon with Kelly. After a few minutes of pointing out all the reasons he should not leave the farm, Wade finally put his foot down.
"He is my brother, and he doesn't exactly keep up with current events. I need to make sure he is all right. I promise I will return as quickly as I can. I want you all to call everyone you can think of and get them to come here. I think we will be much better off with a large group, strength in numbers," Wade said.
"Well, looks like I better go get the shelter prepped. We’re going to need places for everyone to sleep," Ben said.
"You can get what … twenty or so down there if we had to, right?" Wade asked.
Ben smiled. "Yeah, I can probably swing that and then some. I’ve been adding on down there since you were a boy."
"Great. I’ll be back as soon as I can." Wade headed for the door.
He walked out onto the porch and saw Jerry's Escalade making the last turn towards the house. Jerry hopped out of the SUV and clapped his brother on the shoulder.
"This is bad shit, Wade," Jerry said.
"Yeah, I’m heading back to town. I haven’t been able to get through to Jessie, keep getting his voicemail."
"Same here. I tried him a few times to see if he wanted to ride up with us. That piece-of-shit van of his sits more than it's on the road. I think maybe I better ride along just in case you need back-up."
Jerry walked over and began speaking with Kim. Wade could tell by her expression she had the same misgivings as Kelly.
Finally, with a resigned look on her face, Kim nodded and turned to her boys, Michael and Mark, and put them to work unloading the car. Wade and Jerry climbed into the Range Rover and set out for Winchester.
◆◆◆
Kelly met Kim on the porch and gave her a reassuring hug.
"They will be all right. Wade promised he would make it as quick as possible," Kelly said, trying to keep a positive outlook.
"I hope they are quick, because I am scared to death. I still can't believe what I saw on the news. What could cause something like this? How is it even possible?" Kim said, tears rolling down her cheeks.
"I don't know. Hopefully there will be more information soon," Kelly said, opening the door to the house.
◆◆◆
Ben came out of the house with Jarred and Charlie in tow, waving for Michael and Mark to come along. He gave the four boys directions on where to put the items as they unloaded the vehicles. Ben loved seeing all his nephews and niece, but he wished it were under better circumstances. Once the supplies were unpacked and the gear stored in the house, Ben directed the boys to follow him. He set off towards the barn at a brisk pace with the four boys trailing.
Opening the door to the barn, Ben stepped inside and hit a light switch. The fluorescents, mounted in the ceiling, illuminated the dark barn and caused the boys to blink rapidly until their eyes adjusted. On the left side of the barn, there was a row of ten stalls. Only nine of them were occupied. Ben walked over to the empty stall, throwing open the gate and directed Mark to hand him a rake. Ben quickly swept the hay into a corner, revealing a recessed door in the floor of the stall.
"What’s that, Uncle Ben?" Charlie exclaimed.
"That, my boy, is our hidey-hole." Ben grinned. "Now, watch your step. The stairs are very steep," Ben said, disappearing into the dark hole.
Hesitantly, the boys followed their uncle and one by one were swallowed by the darkness. Ben made it to the bottom and flipped a switch and light flooded the ten-by-ten tunnel. Dust particles floated to the floor under the bright fluorescent lights. The tunnel had a fine layer of dust on the floor, except for a path down the center of the concrete floor.
"Wow, this is awesome!" Charlie said excitedly.
"Well, glad you like it. We may be spending some time down here before it’s all said and done. This place was once a nuclear silo. They decommissioned it back in the sixties and I bought the land from the government. They had originally bought it from our family, so we had the first option," Ben said, moving farther down the tunnel.
About twenty yards down the hall, it opened into a twenty-by-twenty room. On the right side, running the entire length of the room, was a counter with a computer and a large control panel in its center. Mounted on the wall above, there was an assortment of monitors. Ben walked over and flipped a switch and a small engine came to life in what looked like a closet off the left side of the room. He returned to the control panel by the computer and his hands expertly moved over one toggle after the other and the monitors popped and cracked as they came to life. He then powered up the computer and the soft hum of the CPU's cooling fan could be heard. Ben watched as curiosity got the better of Charlie. He went to the door on the left of the room and threw it open.
"What is all of this stuff, Uncle Ben?" Charlie called over his shoulder.
Ben came over and placed his hand on top of Charlie's head.
"Well, my boy, we need power to run the computers, TVs, and other electronics. I have a propane-powered generator connected directly to a 5,000-gallon tank behind the barn. It’s vented to the outside, so we don't have to breathe the fumes. There are three others there for back-up. Those shelves over there hold about fifty deep cycle batteries, which are connected to the windmill behind the barn. If something were to happen with the propane system, we could run the surveillance cameras and computer for about twelve hours, when they are all fully charged," Ben said proudly as the other boys crowded around the door. "Over there is a water pump that runs to its own well." Ben pointed out the old-style hand pump in the corner.
"Wow! Uncle Ben, this must have taken forever to build. Dad told me you had a shelter here, but I didn't picture anything like this," Michael said.
"Well, you haven't seen much of it yet. I started adding to the silo when your Aunt Gert and I got married. Once she passed, let's just say the purse strings got a lot looser and I guess I went a little crazy," Ben said. A sad smile crossed his face as he thought of his wife Gertrude, still not believing she had been gone ten years now.
Ben led the boys through the underground complex, showing them the mess hall for cooking and serving meals, and the recreation room with televisions, video games, and DVD players. He walked them through the showers and sleeping facilities. The boys were amazed as Ben went farther and farther through the shelter, revealing one room after another.
"Sheesh, Uncle Ben, how many people can you fit down here?" Jarred inquired.
"150 souls, but we could probably bump it up to 200 if we utilized the mess hall and rec room to set up cots," Ben said proudly.
Ben had the boys follow him back to the control room and pointed out a big red panic switch mounted on the wall.
"Boys, if anything ever happens and we are under attack, this switch will slide a steel plate across the door in the stall, where we came down. Nothing short of plastic explosives or dynamite will get through there and it would take plenty of both," Ben said, pointing to a metal box that had a large red button inside.
"Wait a minute, Uncle Ben, you never showed us that room," Mark said, pointing to a door just to the right of the generator room.
"Ah, well, that is the b
est room in the place. It’s the armory," he said, walking over to the door.
Ben pressed on the wall just to the right of the door to reveal a keypad that had not been recognizable before. After punching in a six-digit code, there was an audible click behind the armory door. Ben reached down and turned the knob, stepping back to allow the boys to enter the room. All four boys had eyes as big as saucers as they stared around the fifteen-by-fifteen room. Racks and shelves lined every available space, floor to ceiling. There were rows and rows of AR-15's, hunting rifles, assorted handguns, and shotguns.
"Wow, were you planning on attacking a small country sometime?" Jarred asked sarcastically.
With a sheepish expression, Ben said, "Like I said, I went a little crazy for a while after your Aunt Gert passed. I can't take my money with me, and so I figured I would be prepared if anything ever went bad. I would at least be able to protect my family."
"Yeah, and half the state from the looks of this armory," Jarred said, all the boys breaking into laughter.
CHAPTER THREE
Convoy
Military training teaches to adapt to fluid situations while maintaining the chain of command. The lessons are drilled into soldiers every day of their existence. The military want soldiers who can stay calm and cool in any situation they may encounter and effectively counter that chaos. My brother William had served for most of his adult life, until the time he was killed. He had always told me that Derek Gaines was the best soldier he knew. No matter how much training you have, regardless of how prepared for war you may be, nothing can ready you for a world where people die then come back as ravenous, cannibalistic monsters. They are single-minded in their need to feed. They don't feel pain; they disregard wounds that would have the average person incapacitated. How do you fight an army you can't hurt, that doesn't get tired or require sleep? I am worried there won't be enough of the living left to claim our world back from the dead.
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