Dead Life (Book 4) (2 page)

              “Lily, can you hear me,” I tried getting her attention but couldn't get her to wake up.

              “She's out Captain.”

              “Sarge is that you.” I recognized the Sergeants voice but wasn't able to see him.“Was that the Doctor that got us?”

              “I guess you could say it was the Doctor. He's infected.”

              “Did anyone get bitten? Are you okay?”

              “I don't think he bit anybody. I can't really go check on Lily. He's got me chained up same as her. I'm about five feet in front of you at the foot of the gurney you're strapped to.”

              “I got a look at somebody before I passed out. Was that him that hit Lily?”

              “Probably, I think we're alone down here.  I'm pretty sure it was him. I just woke up too.”

              “How's that possible? I saw him hit Lily over the head but he's a zombie. Why didn't he just kill us?”

              “Because I ran out of test subjects Captain Downs. I'm sorry sir, I have you at a disadvantage. My name is Dr. Jeffery Parks and this is my lab.”

              He was standing directly over me and I couldn't believe what I was seeing. His eyes were glazed over. Not as severely as the other zombies I'd seen but they weren't all that clear either. He was pale, his eyes were sunken back into his head, and there was blood all over him.

              “You don't look so hot doc. Let me up from here and I'll see if there's something I can do for you to make you feel better.”

              “I think not Captain. I'll tell you what though. If you survive the serum I'm going to inject you with I'll let all of you walk out of here.”

              “So tell me Doc how did it happen,” I needed to stall this guy while I figured a way out of here. “You know for a zombie you're doing pretty good.”

              “Well thank you. That's very kind of you to say.”

              “Not really. Most of you guys are in pretty bad shape. Did you come up with a new virus?”

              “No I got careless. One of my test subjects bit me,” Parks said, grimacing. “Everything changed when that happened.”

              “Is that when you stopped working on a cure?”

              “There is no cure. I was never working on a cure and there won't be a vaccine either. This virus is unstoppable,” he said and half growled-laughed. “You know I just might eat you instead of turning you.”

              I was screwed. There was no play in any of the restraints holding me down. The only thing I could move was my eyes and that wasn't going to do me a bit of good. In a few minutes I was either going to be a zombie or a zombie's meal. Neither appealed to me. I knew when he finished with me he would start on Lily and John.

              “How is it that you aren't like the rest of your kind?”

              “That really doesn't concern you. You won't be afforded the same benefits I had. After I inject you with the virus you'll turn into a blithering idiot just like the rest of them. I even think I'll let you have the girl. I'll take the Sergeant. We'll eat together if I can hold out that long. It's amazing how much you can eat once you turn. I've eaten three people since the change. The trick is to eat fast and of course try to keep your meal alive as long as possible. Once they die the flavor drops off drastically. Have to eat fast. Oh yes eat fast, have to eat fast.”

              “You okay Doc, not sounding too good there? I think you're losing it.”

              “I think you may be right. I have to remember to keep breathing. Can't have my brain die now can I? Once you're dead all your involuntary muscle actions and contractions quit. You have any idea how hard it is to make your heart beat? After Dr. Hall restarted my heart it was all I could do to keep it beating. It took all my concentration at first. After a few hours I figured it out though. Now it's only a minor distraction.”

              “Come on you have to tell me. How did you do it? Don't avoid the question again just tell me.”

              “I guess it won't hurt to tell you. It's not like you're going anywhere. Dr. Hall was an amazing surgeon. After I was infected he performed surgery on me. We have a heart lung machine on sight. He did a heart bypass on me and kept me oxygena

ted throughout the change. The whole thing was actually fairly simple. The hardest part was getting the heart restarted. The damage the virus does to the body is catastrophic. Dr. Hall was a genius. He saw the damage being done to my heart and lungs by the virus so he hooked me up to a dialysis machine and did his best to keep the damage to a minimum.”

              “Are you telling me the reason you can still think and talk is because you haven't really died?” I  knew he wasn't alive. He looked like every other zombie I'd seen so far, dead. I just needed to keep him talking, try to buy some time, and figure out a way out of this. If I couldn't the three of us were as good as dead.

              “Unfortunately Captain I'm just about as dead as they get. The heart lung bypass kept my brain oxygenated while the virus took over my body. I can still function on a near normal level but the reality is, I'm a zombie; a very hungry zombie. One that wants to eat. Sergeant, you hear that? I'm hungry and I think I'm going to need to eat you.”

              “Why don't you hold off on that doc? General Simmons has another chopper on it's way here. This one has twenty or thirty soldiers on it,” Sergeant Adams lied. “He wants you brought in. We're just a scouting mission. These other boys are going to come in fast and hard. Tell you what I'll help you get out of here. We've got a chopper up top and it's all yours. All I ask is that you let me live.”

              “Goddammit Sergeant, I wish I could get my hands on you,” I said, thinking that it was best to play along. “Don't listen to him Doctor. He's just trying to save his own ass. There's nobody else coming. Besides I'm the only one that can fly that bird out of here.”

              The zombie stood silently looking between Sergeant Adams and myself with a blank expression on his face. Other than his head moving back and forth the damn thing was frozen. Almost reminded me of the bobble head dolls my dad used to get at the ballpark. Then it was if a switch was thrown and Dr. Parks was back with us.

              “I'll tell you what Sergeant I'll let you live. If your friends show up they can unchain you from that wall. If not, well I guess you'll starve down here. Captain you and your little girlfriend are coming with me.”

              He took a key from his pocket and went to where Lily hung from the wall. He started to remove the shackles then stopped and looked at me.

              “I'm going to carry her out of here. If you try anything I'll bite her. I know your little mind is racing right now, trying to come up with a way out of this. But make no mistake, one wrong move and the first thing I'll do is bite her. You may actually over power me and make good on your escape. But she'll be dead. Or I guess I should say undead. It's up to you. I recommend you behave.”

              Dr. Parks removed the shackles and as Lily slid to the ground he grabbed her by the hair to stop her descent. When he pulled her hair I saw Lily flinch from the pain. She was awake.

Chapter 2

              We sat in our vehicles surveying the situation before us. I finally got out of the Hummer and walked over to the U-Haul. I needed to have a talk with Al. Maybe he would have an idea as to how we were going to get to Gina's dad through all those zombies. I couldn't come up with a thing. It probably didn't help that I couldn't hear myself think. The sound of their moaning was louder than I could bear; not to mention the smell. We were at least a mile away from the motel but the smell from their rotting flesh was fairly intense even at this distance. You could just imagine how bad it must have been down closer to the motel. Whoever was in there had to be near dead just from the smell alone and there definitely was somebody in the motel. If there wasn't, the zombies wouldn't be trying so hard to get in. Sound might draw the undead to a location but from what I've observed first hand it takes more than sound alone to keep them interested for long.

              I looked up at Al. He was looking out over the sea of zombies and talking to Cindy. His window was rolled up; most likely trying to keep all the noise and the god awful smell out. I banged on the door to get his attention. He glanced down at me and turned back to Cindy and continued his conversation with her ignoring me. I stood there for a few seconds. He just kept talking to Cindy so I banged on the door again. Al looked down at me again pinched his nose and shook his head. The son of a bitch wouldn't open up. I grabbed the handle of the door and he reached over and hit the lock before I could get the door open. Now I was mad. Al has a fucked up sense of humor at best and right now I was in no mood for his shit. Two can play at this game I thought. Pulling my pistol from it's holster, I checked to make sure the safety was on, tapped it on Al's window, and pointed the gun at him. When he looked over this time I could see I had his attention. The window came down about a fourth of the way.

              “What?” he shouted trying to be heard over the moaning zombies.

              “Any ideas?” I yelled back.

              “Yeah, let's think of somewhere else to go.”

              Gina was listening from the Hummer. “You've still got your gun out. Shoot him for me,” she shouted.

              “You know I can't do that babe.” The look on her face told me she believed otherwise.

              Rick joined me beside the truck. “God damn they stink. It was never this bad before.   What's the plan?” he asked.

              “I'm hoping Steve's going to shoot Al. That should get their attention. Then we just circle around the other way, drive up, get my dad, and leave. Simple.”

              “That just might work. The problem I see is you probably won't get the attention of all of them. They're too loud. Most you'll draw off is the few hundred or so that are closest to us. The rest will just stay right where they are moaning and groaning. Oh yeah, I forgot to add, stinking like shit,” Al was smiling big time when he said this. Nothing made him happier than the constant bickering he did with Gina.

              “Why don't we set that tanker truck on fire? When it blows up that should make enough noise to get their attention,” Rick was looking off to the east and down the highway when he said this.

              The motel was about a quarter mile from the highway and from our vantage point we could see a few miles in each direction down Highway 70. An Exxon tanker truck sat abandoned about a mile east of the motel and if it had any gas in it at all it would make one hell of an explosion. That would definitely get their attention.

              “That's a hell of an idea Rick,” Al was excited at the prospect of blowing something up. “You know it might be a good idea to blow up some cars on the west end of the highway too. Get their attention going both ways. Split the herd.”

              “Dibs on blowing up the tanker,” Cindy yelled loud enough to be heard over the zombies.

              “It was my idea,” Rick protested.

              “That's right honey. It's not fair trying to steal Rick's thunder like that.”

              “Then I get to blow up the cars,” I heard her say to Al.

              Al looked down at me. I could see from the expression on his face he needed some help. The tanker could be taken out with a few well placed shots and could be done from a safe distance. Blowing up a bunch of cars down on the highway was another story. Someone would have to go down there and either use gasoline, grenades, or a combination of both to get the job done. Al didn't want Cindy out in the open that long and neither did I. There was no way I'd want Gina down there alone. We would definitely have to come up with a better plan. Splitting up our group was dangerous but in this situation unavoidable. 

              “Let's get off this hill. I can't take this smell much longer. How about we go back the way we came. I'd like to find some breathable air and talk this over.”

              “I'm all for that buddy. If we sit here much longer one of those bastards is going to spot us. Then we'll have a shit load of them up here,” Al said. “We passed a park a few blocks back. We can figure this all out there.”

              Rick and I went back to the Hummer. Gina was in the driver's seat and looked none too happy about the delay in getting down to her dad's motel. We were so close to finally getting this leg of our journey over with. I could understand her frustration. I just hoped I could keep her from doing something that would get her killed.

              “You all can go blow up as much shit as you want to. I'm going down there. My dad is alive and  trapped in that motel. I'm going to get him out of there,” she said as she turned the Hummer around. “I'll give you five minutes to come up with a plan. Then I'm driving down there. You can stay here and wait if you want. I'll drive right through all those fuckers.”

              “Settle down baby. Rick came up with a good idea. We just need to fine tune it a little. We all want the same thing here and getting yourself killed isn't going to get your dad out of there.”

              She pulled up over the curb and drove through the parks playground nearly clipping a swing set in the process. She brought the Hummer to a stop out in the middle of an open field, turned the engine off, and got out. I looked back at Rick and shrugged my shoulders. When Gina got like this look out.

              “Looks like you had better come up with something fast.”

              “She's just worried about her dad, Rick. She'll be fine.”

              “I'm not worried about her. It's the rest of us I'm worried about. She scares me sometimes.”

              When Rick said that I burst out laughing. We both did. We got out of the Hummer and walked around to where Gina stood waiting. If looks could kill we'd both be dead.

              “I'm glad you boys are having a good time.”

              “Come on honey ease it back a little. You've got poor Rick all scared.”

              That was all it took. We both started laughing again. Cindy pulled up in the truck and her and Al got out and walked over to where we were standing. Al had a big smile across his face. That was all it took to push Gina over the edge. She started crying and walked away.

              “Did I miss something?” Al asked. “What's so funny?”

              “Rick's scared,” I said as I hurried after Gina.

              “Steve, let me talk to her,” Cindy called after me. I looked back over my shoulder and she was running to catch up with me.

              We went over to where Gina was standing and Cindy went up to her and hugged her. I stood back and let them talk. The two of them had become good friends in the past few days and if anybody could calm Gina down it was Cindy. This was one I needed to stay out of. I missed the first part of their conversation but what I did hear was none too good for us guys. There was a lot of talk about what “assholes the three of us were especially Al and I. Rick was a good sort but lately had turned into one of the boys and was becoming just as bad as those other two.” I'd heard enough and went back over to talk to the other assholes about how we were going to solve our current problem.

              “All we need to do is blow that tanker,” Rick was saying to Al. “That should draw most of them away from the motel. Then we just go in and clean up what's left.”

              “When did you become an expert?” Al was baiting Rick and enjoying every minute of it. “We need two diversions on opposite ends of the highway. Did you even look down there? There's over five thousand zombies surrounding that motel.”

              “Al's right Rick. Maybe blowing up that fuel truck will make enough noise to get them all out of there. But if it doesn't we're screwed. Two focal points, some will go east, some will go west. The ones that stick around we kill.”

              “If we go down to the motel and start shooting a bunch of high powered rifles isn't that just going to draw them right back in?” Rick was pushing hard. He really wanted to be the one that blew up the tanker truck and was trying his best to work things out so that he was the one that pulled the trigger when it was time to create a diversion.

              “This is how I see it,” Al started out. “No matter what we're not leaving either of the girls on their own out here. Rick you can blow up your precious tanker. Cindy and I will go down on the highway and rig four or five of those cars to blow. Steve you and Gina wait for us to get back to you. Just be ready to head down there and get her dad out of there if something goes wrong.”

              “You really think it's a good idea for the two of us to go down there by ourselves?”

              “Let me finish,” Al gave me a shitty look when he said this. Then he looked to make sure the girls weren't anywhere near. “I don't want Gina or Cindy going any where near that motel.”

              “How the hell you think you're going to keep Gina away from there? She's ready to charge down there right now. Once we clear some of those zombies out there will be no stopping her.”

              “You two will wait at the top of the street where we were for the three of us to get back. After the shit hits the fan it should take a while for the bulk of those bastards to make their way out of there. Hopefully long enough for the three of us to make it back to you. Then we all go down together. We'll find a good place for the girls and Rick to set up some cover fire for us. Then the two of us go in and get her dad and his girlfriend out of there.”

              “How come I always get left behind with the girls?” Rick wasn't happy with Al's plan.

              “Because I trust you to make sure they don't get eaten by any fucking zombies. Are you okay with that?”

              “Take it easy Al. I was just asking that's all.”

              The truth was Rick hadn't done any close quarters fighting with the zombies yet. Eventually we'd have to find out how he handled himself in close. Now wasn't the time.

              “Just try not to shoot me or Steve accidentally. Think you can do that?”

              “I might shoot you on purpose Al. Never on accident.”

              “Good to know,” Al said. “We'll need to find a vehicle for Rick to use.”

              “Why don't you take the Hummer and try one of those side streets. I'll wait here with the girls. If something happens and we need to leave the park we'll meet you back at the top of the street.”

              I gave Al my keys to the Hummer and he left with Rick. The girls came running back over wanting to know what was going on. Al being the master of communication that he was drove off without saying anything to Cindy. Needless to say she was pissed.

              “Where the hell are they going?” Cindy yelled.

              “They're going to find something for Rick to drive down to the highway. I've got bad news for you Cindy.”

              “Oh yeah. What's that?”

              “Al thinks it would be best to have Rick take out the tanker truck. You and Al are going to set some of the cars at the other end of the highway on fire,” I said.

              “What are we going to do while they're doing all that?” Gina asked.

              “I was hoping we could fool around in the back of the truck.” All this got me was a dirty look. “Or we could wait for them to get back then go down to get your dad and Chong out of there.”

              “That seems kind of stupid just sitting and waiting. There has to be something we could do.”

              “If something goes wrong, or right, I don't know either way, we may have to try and get your dad out of that motel before they can get back to us.”

              “I guess that makes sense.”

              Cindy tapped me on the shoulder and directed my attention to the edge of the small group of trees behind Gina and me. Seven zombies had noticed the three of us and were making their way over. We each had our assault rifles with us but being as things had been relatively quiet since we left the compound on the other side of Boonville earlier I thought it best we try to draw as little attention to ourselves as possible. I drew my sword and headed over to meet them. Gina and Cindy drew the swords they had picked at Les' farm and joined me.

              “Can I take the lead on this one?” Cindy had spent some time with Gina and Al practicing her swordsmanship and was anxious to show us what she had learned.