DEAD RAIN: A Tale of the Zombie Apocalypse (13 page)

34

“Speak up,” the Sheriff snarled. “I can barely understand your goddamned blabbering.”

Deputy Hayes winced and pressed the bandage up under his chin. Every syllable he spoke brought a stab of pain and the fresh taste of blood into his mouth. “I sai… I foun… the… cahr… but the g… gihrl… wathn’t… theah.”

“What the hell, if the car was there she had to be close by. Did you search the entire property?”

Hayes nodded. There was nothing to be gained by being honest. The Sheriff had a disobliging temperament under the best of circumstances. Hayes knew he was capable of anything if provoked.

The Sheriff scowled and his neck flushed red. “We need to find that girl before those nosy state troopers do.”

“May…be… she’th… aw… ready dead.”

“Yeah, and maybe she’s not. We can’t risk that possibility. If she escaped from that cemetery she has to have something on the ball. I zapped her with a hundred thousand volts of electricity and
she still managed to get away.”

“What… if she… aw… ready… talked…?”

“If she talked to those troopers… then we really have our work cut out for us.”

“You… can’t… mean…”

“You listen to me, Hayes. Nobody who knows about the cemetery or our involvement in this mess can get back to file a report, do you understand? Right now all hell is breaking loose, but you have to trust that the good Lord will redeem us. A month from now when this nightmare is just a memory, things will return to normal and no one will be the wiser. ‘til then you need to keep your head screwed on straight and do exactly what I say.”

Which is what got us into this mess in the first place,
Hayes thought.

Leeds read the glimmer of doubt on his deputy’s face. “This is just more collateral damage, son. And it’s nothing compared to the action I saw in Nam. I went on a dozen search and destroy missions before I was old enough to drink. It’s them or you, you just do what has to be done. So cinch up your balls, cock your weapon, and do your God-given duty. Do you read me, Deputy Hayes?”

“Yes… sir,” Hayes slurred. At this point he was more afraid of Sheriff Leeds than he was of the resurrected.
Tell him what he wants to hear. Then get on the road and get the hell out of here. If you get help soon enough, maybe this thing will end… and maybe God will forgive you for ever being a part of it.

“Alright then,” Leeds said. “Grab a rifle. And if you’re in any doubt about whether that girl talked to those troopers or what she might have told them, just assume she did. A stitch in time will save both our asses. Or should I say a snitch in time?”

Hayes dawdled as he unlocked the gun safe to get his assault rifle.
This is crazy. He can’t really want me to kill those troopers. An innocent girl is bad enough… but cops?

“Hurry up in there,” the Sheriff commanded, his blood pressure rising with each passing second.

“Sorry…” said Hayes, trying to buy another minute, hoping the Sheriff would head out first so he could make his escape in the other direction. “I need… to fix… my… bandage.”

“Let me see that,” the Sheriff pulled him closer and inspected the bloody mess beneath his chin. “It’s not that bad, stop being a baby. The bleeding’s already stopped.” He j
erked his head toward the door.

Hayes reluctantly obeyed, heading out to his cruiser. He started his engine and let it warm up, watching through his rain-drenched window as the Sheriff got into his SUV and its headlights flared on.

“Come on, get out of here,” Hayes muttered under his breath, planning to head north just as soon as the Sheriff went south. But the Sheriff was too wily for him. Instead of leaving, he flashed his brights and waved the deputy out.

Hayes pulled out of the driveway and turned south, with Leeds right on his tail.

Damn it,
Hayes thought. Having passed the troopers’ SUV just minutes before, he knew they were headed for a showdown.
Headed for a showdown in zombietown.

35

Emma
stayed close behind Kerri as they hurried through the woods. They’d finally calmed the girl down and convinced her she’d be safe, assuring her that they had enough ammo in their guns to protect her during the trek to her house. Ryan brought up the rear, Colt revolver in one hand and the policeman’s Glock in the other. They were soaked to the bone with punishingly cold rain, but were too emotionally numb to feel it.

Following a deer trail they emerged fifty feet from
Emma’s front yard.

“This way,”
Emma pointed.

Kerri led the way but paused almost immediately, taken aback by the strange eel-like thing on the road,
wriggling out from under a plastic cocoon like some giant slow-moving larva, lit by a handful of sizzling red flares. It was several feet past Emma’s property, obscured by the pouring rain and the deep puddle it was lying in, but instinctively she knew just what it was.

Taking
Emma’s hand she pulled her forward, deliberately keeping her aligned so her own body blocked the girl’s view of the squirming atrocity.

As they drew closer she tried to avoid looking at the wormy abomination with a human head,
but like someone driving past an accident, she couldn’t resist a peek. She wondered who might have set up the ring of flares around him and then left him there to suffer. If it was a he. With its crushed body and mutilated face it was impossible to tell.

Were they scared off by more of those things? Or did they leave it here for a purpose? Is it some kind of warning? This night just gets weirder and weirder.

She was relieved when Emma tugged on her sleeve, pulling her towards her house. “We’re here,” Emma whispered meekly. “That’s my house.”

Kerri looked past her to Ryan, who w
as staring at the writhing monstrosity, and motioned to him with a sweep of her arm. They turned and proceeded cautiously toward the house, keeping Emma protectively between them. She was still in a fragile state and they knew they needed to keep her feeling secure—as secure as anyone could feel under such nightmarish circumstances.

Ryan was pleasantly surprised when
he saw the vintage Ford. Under different circumstances he could have spent hours admiring such a beautiful restoration. He paused for a moment to check out the interior with his flashlight, making sure there were no nasty surprises lurking inside.

Kerri was the first to see the gun-blasted bodies lying in the rain near the house. Noting that one appeared to be a middle-aged woman, she immediately surmised it was
Emma’s mother and stopped her from getting any closer, physically halting her and turning her away from the gory scene. “Hold it. Wait here ‘til I check things out.”

Ryan hurried to join them, concerned about the sudden holdup.

Kerri shot him a telling look. “Keep an eye on her.”

Ryan nodded. Wrapping an arm around
Emma’s shoulder he stood guard, scanning the rainy darkness around them.

Kerri hurried to investigate the bullet-riddled bodies. If she hadn’t s
een worse in her years as a paramedic, the gruesome sight might have paralyzed her. Without wasting time she slipped on a pair of rubber gloves from her bag and dragged the woman’s body around to the side of the house and dumped it close to the wall. Then she returned and did the same with Russell, which wasn’t nearly as easy. When the task was completed she stood for a long moment, catching her breath, letting the rain wash their blood off her gloves.

Returning to the front of the house she peered through the open door, checking for any unpleasant surprises that might be waiting inside. It seemed quiet, probably vacant. Drumming up her courage she poked her head through the doorway and switched on her flashlight. Nothing moved in response to the beam as it swept past open doorways and probed dark corners. Finally satisfied that no one was inside, she motioned to Ryan to follow.

He sighed wearily as he led Emma into the house, relieved to be out of the rain. They found Kerri at the kitchen sink, scrubbing her hands with dish soap. “What were you doing back there?” he blurted. “I thought I was going to drown in that freakin’ rain.”

Kerri shot him a silencing look. It told him all he needed to know. He quickly clammed up, embarrassed, and relieved that
Emma was too zoned out to be paying close attention.

“We can’t stay here,”
Emma stammered, nervously scanning the darkness around them. “It’s not safe.”

“Relax,” Kerri said firmly. “We’re safe here
for the moment. They’re gone.”

“How do you know they’re gone?”
Emma countered.

Kerri shot her a frustrated look that said
do you really want me to answer that?

“Hey, it’s okay,” said Ryan, changing the subject. “I don’t want to stay here any longer than we have to.
Let’s just grab the car keys and we’ll be on our way.”

Emma
snatched her mother’s keys from a hook near the door and handed them to Kerri. “The Ford’s are in my bedroom,” she said meekly. “On my night stand. First door on the right.” She nodded in the general direction. It was clear she was too scared to fetch them.

“I’ll go,” said Ryan. Cocking the hammer of the Colt he walked slowly to the bedroom door. He checked inside before he entered and quickly returned with the keys in hand. “Score.”

Kerri smiled reassuringly. “Okay then, we’re good to go.”

“You guys might as well grab some dry clothes while we’re here,” suggested Ryan.

“We don’t have time,” snapped Kerri, eager to be on the road.

“I’m not saying change here,” he replied. “Just fill a plastic bag. You can change when we get to safety. It would be silly to survive the zombie apocalypse only to die of pneumonia.”

Kerri looked at Emma, who nodded.

Ryan went to guard the front door while the women hurried to the bedroom to fetch the fresh clothes. Gazing out through the pouring rain he could tell that the road flares were dying as their reddish glow flickered ou
t, dimming one flare at a time.

A chill ran up his spine as a shadowy figure staggered into view on the road, its rain-soaked form edged with glittering red light from the flares. Even at the distance he could see the distinctive s
huffling of its cold dead legs.

Lightning flashed, exposing Ryan in the doorway. He ducked inside and pee
ked carefully through a window.

The zombie stood staring at the house.

Ryan’s heart thumped in his chest. Somehow despite all he’d witnessed that night, all his close calls and personal losses, his fear had grown exponentially worse now that escape seemed imminent.

Finally the wandering corpse turned away and continued its aimless journey dow
n the road.

“Come on,” Ryan whispered anxiously to himself, regretting his suggestion as he glanced at the doorway to
Emma’s bedroom.
Christ, what the hell are they doing in there?
He pictured them trying on outfits. Putting on a mini fashion show.

Just as he was about to go fetch them, they ret
urned carrying a vinyl gym bag.

“I got you some of my dad’s old things,”
Emma said to Ryan. She handed him a sweater and an old-fashioned hooded yellow raincoat. “I hope they fit.”

“Thanks,” he replied, touched by the gesture. In a flicker of lightning he caught a glimpse of her doe-like eyes and her baby-doll lips. For the first time it registered that there was a normal teenage girl with a very pretty face hidden behind her mask of grief, and for one micro-second he was transported from their hellish situation.

Quickly he peeled off his wet shirt and tossed it aside. Kerri and Emma both stole a glance at his rippling torso as he pulled the dry cotton sweater on, then donned the yellow raincoat.

“Let’s get out of here,” said Kerri, eager to leave the nightmare behind. But as she s
tepped to the doorway she froze. Drawing in a sharp breath she quickly ducked behind the wall. “We have company,” she said quietly.

Ryan stole a peek
outside as he slipped his handguns into the raincoat’s spacious pockets. Two zombies were lingering on the road, just fifty feet away, and before he could react a third one stepped into view.

“We can’t go out there,” said
Emma, her fear bubbling with a vengeance. “Close the door.”

“What door? That’s half a door. It won’t keep them out for a minute,” said Kerri. “We have to get out of here now. Before it’s too late.”

“Kerri’s right,” said Ryan. “If we’re seeing three of those things now it means a dozen more are right around the corner. They must have been drawn to the flares. We need to get in those cars and get out of here now.” He pulled up the vulcanized hood of the rubber coat. “Emma said the Ford’s low on gas. I’ll move it out of the driveway. You two get in the other car and follow me out to the street. As soon as we’re at a safe distance I’ll dump the Ford and join you.”

“Sounds like a plan,” said Kerri, trying to sound blasé for
Emma’s sake. “But don’t drive off until you’re sure we can start the other car. I’ll turn the headlights on once the engine’s started, okay?”

Ryan nodded. “Let’s do it.”

But Emma was white as a sheet. She gazed past them, unable to take her eyes off the cadavers loitering on the road.

Kerri saw what was happening and stepped in front of her to break the evil spell. “Listen to me, hon’. We’re going to
be okay. But we have to go now—right now.”

Ryan looked at
Emma and saw the vacillation in her eyes. “It’s now or never,” he said tersely. And with that he ran outside. Giving her no choice but to follow the plan or be left behind.

Kerri pulled up
Emma’s hoodie and brushed her hair out of her eyes. “Relax, hon’. We’ll be fine. The worst is over. We’re going someplace safe.”

***

Ryan darted through the rain to the driver’s side of the Ford. The rubberized raincoat was a rushing waterfall by the time he reached the driver’s door, and as he fumbled the key into the lock the key ring slipped from his fingers, landing with a jingle at his feet.

He froze and looked down the driveway. A zombie turned to look in his direction, responding to the sound of the falling keys.

Shit.
Ryan cursed his luck, not believing that the faint smidgen of noise had carried over the loud patter of the rain. He stood still as a statue, head bowed, hidden by the bulky hood of his coat, hoping that the reanimated corpse would be fooled by his lack of movement and lose interest.

The zombie stepped toward him. And its sudden change of direction drew the
others around it like a magnet.

Ryan glanced sideways and saw them heading his way. “Hurry up!” he shouted to Kerri, who was lingering in the doorway with a petrified
Emma. “They’re coming!”

“Come on!” Kerri grabbed
Emma’s hand and pulled her out into the rain. But Emma froze on the doorstep as she saw the gang of corpses shuffling down the driveway, as more appeared on the road behind them.

“Move!” Kerri jerked
Emma roughly. The teenager rallied for a moment. But as they turned the corner to get to her mother’s Camry, she stopped in her tracks once again. Kerri turned to see her staring down in horror, fixated on her mother’s ravaged body lying next to Russell’s by the side of the house.

“Jesus Christ, don’t look!” Kerri tried to pull her away from the gruesome sight, cursing herself for not dragging the bodies farther.

Emma resisted, standing like a pillar of salt. The sight of her mother’s body was too much to absorb.

Kerri slapped her. “Wake up, girl! Do you want to die here?”

Emma started crying, but the shock of seeing her mother’s corpse was broken. She let Kerri lead her away, stumbling in a cloudy daze to the passenger side of the car.

Back at the Ford, Ryan scooped up the car keys and unlocked the driver’s door—just as the nearest zombie reached the back bumper. He pulled the revolver and took aim, then decided to save the bullet and jumped into the car instead. He slammed the door hard on the cadaver’s grasping arm, then shoved it out and locked the door.

With trembling fingers he twisted the ignition key. A wave of relief washed over him as the powerful engine revved. He switched on the headlights and the windshield wipers—and his eyes went wide in alarm.

The headlights revealed Kerri hurrying around the Camry towards the driver’s side—as a ghoul lurched toward her, just a few yards away. He pounded the center of the steering wheel without effect—then noticed the chrome half-ring surrounding it and slammed his palm down ha
rd. The car horn blared rudely.

Kerri looked up and saw the zombie just in time. She fired three quick shots before hitting it in the head. As it sank to the ground she jumped into the Camry and started the engine. The motor coughed a fe
w times then sputtered to life.