by Tim Moon
The truck started up with a strong, reassuring growl. Ben nearly flipped on the headlights out of habit but stopped himself. His mom and Anuhea followed him down the block.
It was quiet in the truck by himself. The radio had nothing but static, so Ben began to hum songs to himself just to pass the time. Since Ben didn’t remember arriving at the house it took a few minutes to get his bearings. Once he realized where they were, he looked in the direction of his mom’s house. Dark smoke still drifted into the sky from what was probably the smoldering remains of his childhood home. Seeing it made his grip tighten on the steering wheel.
Ben slowed down and took the next left turn towards the house. It was a deviation from the plan, but he had to see it. They might be able to salvage stuff from the basement. Or… something. Ben had to see the house again. The urge was powerful, undeniable.
Aware that infected might still be lingering in the area, Ben drove to the side street they had used for escape, the one with the opening in the vehicle barrier. Since it wasn’t directly connected to Mill Plain like the other side, it should be less crowded. Since the infected had likely tried to follow them the other night, there shouldn’t be any lingering in the area.
The truck jerked to a stop before reaching the vehicle barrier. Oddly enough, the neighborhood was empty from what he could see. Just a few bodies lying here and there. Ben climbed out, carefully lifting his rifle and sword out so they didn’t bump anything. He watched and listened for any sign of infected. The air reeked of burnt wood and plastics. The SUVs idled quietly and Anuhea rolled down her window, a dark scowl on her face.
“What the hell are you doing?” she asked. “We’re supposed to go to the store and leave.”
“I just want to check it out really quickly,” he said, glancing back at his mom who had also rolled down her window.
She eyed him carefully but rather than argue, Nancy said, “Be careful.”
Ben knew his mom would say that. With a nod, he turned away. Avoiding Anuhea’s glare, Ben rushed to the corner of the nearest house. He peered around the edge, found the area clear and then ducked behind the first car that formed the wall, moving further down the line, so he could see down the block.
Once he had a clear view all the way down the block, Ben halted. Peering over the trunk of a car, he immediately noticed several infected stumbling around. What shocked him even more was seeing the charred husks of burnt homes. The fire had spread and burned down at least six houses. Anger simmered in his chest at what Nick’s group had done.
Satisfied that he wouldn’t be overwhelmed, Ben rushed through the s-curve, and ran across front yards. He stayed close to the houses, doing his best to avoid attracting the infected. He lowered his rifle and drew his knife. Stealth was one of the keys to survival. The dead were few and spread out enough that he would not in much danger.
Charred wood infused the air as he approached the home where he had spent so much of his life. The skeletal remains of a few walls remained standing. Wisps of smoke rose from piles of ash and coals. It was far worse than he could have imagined.
Ben had only seen brief clips of burning houses on the news and they were usually put out by the fire department. His mom’s house had no such aid and the results were astonishing. For a mere physical possession, it startled him that seeing it destroyed affected him so deeply.
Any hopes Ben had of recovering supplies were dashed. Few items stored in the basement could have survived. Even if they did, he doubted the floor would support his weight. The thought of falling through or being trapped in the basement if it collapsed on top of him was too disturbing to risk. He backed away from the house, staring at the blackened wood and exposed foundation.
Ben heard a scraping sound coming from the street behind him. An infected man had spotted him. It growled when he turned. Gritting his teeth, Ben decided to let off a little steam.
Striding towards the decaying infected man, Ben raised the blade and prepared to strike. One of its feet was missing, and the jagged bone protruding from his pant leg is what made the scraping sound he heard. The undead stepped onto the sidewalk and then started across the lawn towards him. Ben took out his knife and prepared to end it.
When the guy was in range, he swung the knife and hit nothing but air. The zombie tilted perilously with a loud snap. Ben blinked in surprise. When he saw that the infected guy had stepped into one of the holes they dug and snapped its one good leg, Ben couldn’t help but laugh.
The laugh ended when the man began to crawl forward, totally oblivious to the gut-churning angle of his leg. Ben side-stepped and put a foot in the middle of the guy’s back. His knife drove into the back of the man’s head and the body stopped moving.
His brief encounter, and the loud snap of bone, had drawn the attention of the other infected. Ben counted four in the open. More began to emerge from between houses and behind bushes. The count quickly rose to nine infected. They were spread out though.
Moving carefully past the holes dug into the lawn, Ben stood on the sidewalk in front of his mom’s house and let the dead approach. The woman on his left caught his knife blade with her face. The man coming at him straight on tripped on the curb and fell at Ben’s feet. He stepped on the guy’s back and thrust the blade into his skull. Another infected closed in, as Ben yanked the blade out of the skull and swung it up in time to nearly hack off an arm, before pivoting and taking his head off.
Dark zombie blood covered Ben’s hands and jacket. The smell nearly made him lose his breakfast, but he had grown accustomed to the smell and was able to swallow the bile down. The thrill of battle coursed through Ben. He didn’t want to continue fighting at such close range though, so he drew his sword.
It may have just been a replica of a TV show weapon, but when the teen girl lunged at him, Ben cleaved her head in two. Her body fell with the blade lodged firmly in her body, jerking him forward. Annoyed that he’d gotten stuck again, Ben rocked the blade back and forth to free it.
The next two approached at the same time. Ben dashed past them, into the street and took the head off another zombie. It landed with a dull splat on the asphalt. Spinning back the other way, he gutted the two walking together. It didn’t stop them, but one stumbled in the tangle of organs which slowed it down. Ben used the opening to strike the first one down. Its head rolled across the street as he stabbed the slow one in the face. His aim was on point, catching the zombie in its opened mouth as it growled at him. For a second, he felt like the T-1000 in Terminator 2. All the infected needed was a carton of milk. Ben smirked and then kicked it in the chest to free the blade.
The largest infected trailed behind, a hulking man with a beer gut flopped over his pants. His shirt had been torn off and Ben could see bite marks and missing flesh as the sun continued to brighten the sky. The groan that emanated from his wobbling jowls was low and angry. Blood stained fingers reached out for Ben.
With a quick slice, several fingers popped off as Ben batted away the hands. He backed away and circled to his right, holding the sword up like a baseball bat. He slashed at the man’s leg, hoping to drop him to his knees. Instead, the blade sunk in and stuck. How did people fight with swords when the kept getting stuck? Ben growled in frustration.
His hand slipped from the hilt as the man lunged at him and he barely dodged the fat hands and finger stumps reaching out for him. Regret erupted in his mind. Why didn’t he just escape without fighting?
Now the hulking man trudged forward with a sword lodged in its leg and ink colored blood dripping from its hand. Ben could shoot him, but he still wanted to end it quietly. He took a steadying breath and drew his knife. The man was slow, which he had counted on. Circling around the brute, Ben came into striking distance and planted the blade into the back of the dead man’s skull. The big man collapsed in the street. Ben reached down to remove his knife and then the sword before any more infected stumbled into the fray.
Ben wiped the blades clean on the dead man’s pants, put the knif
e away and looked around. A thought came to mind and he ran inside the neighbor’s house. It took a few minutes to find what he needed.
Ben scribbled a quick note and was about to leave when he had another idea. Rummaging through the drawers in the kitchen, he found a loose sandwich baggy. He tucked the note inside the re-sealable bag and tucked it into his pocket. Outside, he was startled to see Anuhea creeping up.
“What are you doing?” he asked.
“Wondering where the hell you are,” Anuhea snapped.
“I’m right here.”
She snorted in derision. “Are you done fooling around yet?”
“Just a second. I wanted to leave a note for Keanu and Kaholo, just in case they do come looking for us.”
Surprise registered on Anuhea’s face and her posture relaxed.
“Okay, good idea,” she said after a moment.
Ben looked around for something. His eyes were drawn by a blue shirt and bright red hat. He grabbed a garden gnome from the neighbor’s garden and ran over to the remains of his mom’s house.
“You killed all these?” Anuhea asked.
“Yeah,” Ben said, absently.
He set the note underneath the gnome on what used to be the front steps of his house. He used his foot to scrape up a pile of ash and bits of wood and metal to keep the gnome from tipping over. Ben doubted the last few attackers would return, so he wasn’t too worried about them reading the note. If their friends ever showed up he didn’t want them to think they had died in the fire.
“I’m all done,” Ben said. He glanced around at the bodies of the infected he’d killed. A chill ran down his spine, making his shoulders quake.
“Finally,” Anuhea said.
“Let’s get to SportsMart,” Ben said, as they started to jog back to the vehicles. “And then get the hell out of town.”
34
The SportsMart parking lot teemed with infected. Sitting across from the store, at the intersection with Mill Plain, Ben feared they might be out of luck. The bone chilling groan of the horde was audible above the rumble of the truck engine.
Good thing I was paying attention, Ben thought.
The infected had yet to spot them. He cocked an eyebrow as an idea struck him. One they had used before in a similar situation.
Ben climbed out of the truck, leaving it running and slowly walked back to the SUVs.
Anuhea’s face was a storm. “What is it now?”
From the back of their mini-convoy, it was clear she couldn’t see the problem. Yet as soon as she said it, she heard the moaning of the dead. Realization dawned in her eyes and her expression relaxed. His mom had also rolled down her window. Oliver stared at Ben through the window with big eyes.
Ben held a finger to his lips.
“As you can hear, there’s a massive herd of infected in parking lot,” Ben said as soft as he could and still be heard. He looked to Anuhea. “I want you two to stay here while I lure them away, like what we did at the hospital.”
Nancy’s eyes narrowed. “Can’t we just go somewhere else?”
“This is the best place. The closest place and we don’t know if it’ll be easier somewhere else. BigMart on 192nd is probably just a screwed as the one by I-205. There’s so much great gear inside. No one else has the same selection of things we need,” Ben said in a low, insistent voice. “It’s worth the risk. Just stay here, okay? I’ll lead them off and then circle back around.”
His mom was reluctant but finally said, “Okay.”
“Turn off the engines to save gas but stay alert in case you need to move. Don’t let infected or others sneak up on you.” Ben thought for a moment. “It’ll take me a while because there are so many infected.”
“How long?” Anuhea asked. Chadwick listened quietly from the back seat with a rifle across his lap.
“What time does the clock in your car say?”
“It’s a little past seven.”
“That’s too damned early to be up,” Ben said with a shake of his head. “Just to be safe, give me an hour. If I’m not back by then, go to our meeting spot at the Amboy Corner Market. You can’t miss it.”
“You better make it back. Don’t leave me here with your grieving mother.” Anuhea gave him a sharp look.
His mom scowled but didn’t seem to have a better idea. “Be safe and hurry back.”
“Deal,” Ben said. “I love you, Mom.”
“I love you too, Son.”
Ben waved at Oliver and went back to the truck. Right away, he began to plan the route in his head. The SUV engines went silent as they prepared to wait for him. Ben glanced back and gave Anuhea a quick nod as he climbed into the truck. Taking a deep breath, he buckled in and surveyed the scene again.
The horde was centered at the far end of the shopping center in front of SportsMart with a long tail of infected stretching out across the intersection in front of him. The few infected in the intersection would be easy enough to get past. Making sure they all followed was the real trick. Ben had to make sure none peeled off and went towards his family.
The zombies in the road swayed back and forth like pendulums, milling about aimlessly. Their movement patterns were spasmodic yet somehow mesmerizing. Ben could already smell their filth coming through the truck’s heater.
His intended route took shape in his mind. East on Mill Plain to Olympia Drive. Turn south on Olympia Drive, leading the horde onto one of the back roads, and then he’d speed away and circle back around to SportsMart.
The first hurdle was the group of infected in the intersection ahead of him. Ben decided to stay in the nearest lane, driving on the wrong side of the road to avoid most of them. It should also give him room to maneuver in case any infected had spilled out from the main crowd in the parking lot onto Mill Plain. He dreaded the possibility of having to plow through a crowd. Even though they were undead, it was a risky maneuver they had already experienced in Hawaii, and not one Ben wanted to repeat.
Taking a deep breath, Ben wiped his clammy palms on his pants before taking a firm grip on the wheel. He let off the brake and eased forward towards the intersection. He started off slowly to avoid being seen until he was out in the street. No sense drawing attention towards the SUVs.
Once Ben turned onto Mill Plain, several of the infected noticed him and gave chase. That’s when he sped up. The tires squealed, and the back-end fish tailed a little as he flew around the corner. His foot mashed the gas pedal and the engine growled in response. The horde responded to the noise and movement. Ben grinned as they began to follow.
Glancing to his right, Ben saw heads turn in his direction like a wave as a football game. Infected standing in the road ambled his way but he blew right past them. He swerved in time to avoid smashing two bodies with the front end, and instead caught them with the back corner of the bed. The chorus of the dead grew as the bulk of infected noticed him.
The herd was slow to get moving, so, Ben honked the horn. Two loud blasts – just enough to alert the dead. If most of the dead followed him, their plan would work.
Ben grew nervous though. With so many infected, some of them had to be runners. He drew his pistol from its holster and drove with one hand on the wheel. Holding the cold steel weapon reassured him.
Slowing down, he switched lanes as he drove past the main body of the infected and honked again. The road ahead was clear. Behind him, he watched hundreds of infected shuffling towards him. Even though he was safe, his nerves were taut as a bowstring. His head swiveled left to right, as his football coach taught him in high school. There was no way, he’d let himself be surprised by a stray group or runner coming up on him.
After a minute of coasting down the street unopposed, Ben finally rolled to a stop. The infected moved like a damned glacier. Given their pace, he hoped the timeline he’d confirmed with Anuhea would be long enough. The clock in the truck already said it was a quarter past seven and many of the dead still hadn’t made it out of the parking lot.
All Ben co
uld do was wait.
He watched in his mirror as the infected stumbled and lurched towards him. Each one was eager to feast on him. Dark eyes starred at him with dull expressions, devoid of humanity. When they had closed to within fifty feet of the truck he rolled forward and gave his horn a quick tap.
A roar erupted nearby. Ben looked to his right and saw a hulking creature, not quite man, but not quite infected either. It had a loping gait, like a cow with a lame back leg, and it was racing towards the mass of infected.
Ben nearly drove into the low concrete median as he gaped at the beast. The creature charged the undead with another growl. He skidded to a halt and watched the tall, broad, monster with its misshapen head and blistered skin. One arm was about three sizes too big and dragged on the ground, contributing to its odd gait. Ben thought it looked like a cross between a deformed rancor and the troll in Lord of the Rings.
The oddest thing, Ben realized, was that despite roaring like an enraged grizzly bear, the infected basically ignored it. If anything, they seemed to shy away from the beast. There were a hundred feet between the leading edge of the zombie horde and another forty feet or so to the creature.
Watching the beast caused a kink to form in his neck. Ben drove up to the next intersection and turned the truck sideways, so he could watch. Screaming howls rose over the din of the horde.
Runners, Ben thought.
Sure enough, four runners could be seen forcing their way through the bulk of the infected herd. Ben’s pulse shot into overdrive. It looked like they were coming for him. Before he could slam his foot down on the accelerator though, the monster roared again. Ben’s eyes flicked over to the creature and he watched in awe as it lifted a zombie in its one oversized hand, ripped its head off, and poured the inky blood into its mouth. It squeezed the fluid out like a juice box, a good portion splashing on the grayed skin of its chest.