Love in the Time of Zombies (16 page)

“You can’t leave. You just got here,” Michelle said, tapping her foot and giving me the ‘I’m serious’ look.

“I’ve been here for two days. I’m not leaving. I have to go back to the shopping center. I know my necklace is there somewhere,” I replied, my fingers reaching for it like the phantom pain of a missing limb. The only thing I had left of my parents and my old life that I cared about.

“Why can’t you wait for Canida to get back? He could send you with a few of his men.”

I yanked on the ‘purse’ I’d made for the tape recorder with the zombie repel sound to keep my hands free to fight. A copy of the sound was now with Jed Long. He’d managed to practice some with variations to test on the zombies nearby, few though they were. The signal was working to keep the area clear.

“At least take some RVers.”

I stared at her and tossed my crossbow to my back. “They’re a bunch of kids. The oldest is maybe twelve.”

She put her hand on my arm. “Age doesn’t matter anymore and you know it. They’ve managed to survive here for three months after all the adults died. They’ve held this place all on their own.”

I patted her hand and moved it from my arm. “Nickie and I will be fine. It’d take an hour or two to get there, barring any difficulties. No more than an hour to look around. Then I’ll head on back. I’ll be here in time for dinner.”

“I wish I could go with you,” she said, her arms hugging her body.

“Well, you can’t. You have responsibilities now, Mom.”

She smiled, her gaze traveling over the paved blacktop, spotting her new clan running, playing tag, a group of young orphans who had adopted my friend.

“Now all you need is someone to play daddy with you.”

Her smile died. “Not yet. I can’t.”

I wrapped my arms around her and hugged her tight. “Don’t wait too long or all the good ones will be taken.”

She laughed and lightened the mood. “It’s not like there is a large selection to start with.”

Grabbing her hand, I dragged her to the front of the RV storage yard. I pushed the button and the gate rattled and slid open. Someone had rigged it to only open enough for a person to walk through. I stood outside with Nickie as Michelle pushed the button and the gate rattled and slammed shut.

Electricity via solar panels, water from wells dug in the yard, and comfortable beds in the RVs stored there before the apocalypse. What was I doing going back to the Streets mall to look for a useless trinket? For something that had nothing but sentimental value in this new world. But my gut said I needed it. I needed to go back and see what was left in the daylight. I needed to go today.

A whimper caught in my throat. My gut also told me to go back and bury Seth or at least the dead zombie I thought might be Seth. If there was a chance it was him, the father of my unborn child deserved at least that much.

A hundred feet down the road I spotted some skinbags shambling aimlessly in circles. “We need to tell Jack and Jed that it seems to work to this point,” I whispered to the dog as I reached into my bag and switched on the recorder. As soon as I pushed the button, the undead ran off like children from the Bogeyman. Jed needed to tweak the sound; it wasn’t exactly the same as the one Antonio had given me.

Birdsong filled the air as the dog and I strode down the road. The other sounds were missing. All the background sound you get so used to in life was gone. No voices of children playing. No screeching of brakes or revving of motors. How quiet had this rural area been before the world died? There must have been the sound of radios and televisions, of neighbors talking while they took out the trash. The houses weren’t so far apart that you couldn’t have heard a mother calling her children to dinner.

At the intersection I pulled my crossbow off my back and fitted a bolt into the slot. The sound on the recorder would repel dead men but it did nothing for the live ones meaning to cause trouble. That’s where the crossbow came in handy.

I’d barely taken two steps when the sound of a car motor filled my ears. I moved off the street into the shadow of an overgrown tree and weed-infested yard. A white minivan zipped around the corner and stopped. Hiding was futile, I’d been seen. Moving out of the shadows slowly, I walked to the sidewalk, Nickie at my side.

The window on the minivan rolled down and Suzy Soccer Mom leaned out the window. I brought the crossbow up to face her. Her mouth dropped open, her eyes went wide, and her hands shot up into the air. Empty hands. Taking a deep breath, I stood my ground.

“Who else is in there with you?”

“My son is driving and Melanie is in the back.”

Leaving the motor running, the driver opened his door and came around the front of the vehicle. His head barely cleared the hood. His hands were up as well. The young mom got out and slid the side door open. A baby sat in a car seat in the back. Her blonde hair was dirty and tangled over her eyes.

I had a clear view and there was no one else in the vehicle. I lowered the crossbow slightly.

“What are you doing out here?”

“Can I put my hands down?”

I nodded and waited. Everyone had a story and you had to decide instantly whether it was the truth or not.

“We were living in an old house down the road. Our food was getting low three days ago so my husband went out. He didn’t come back,” she finished with a sob and a hiccup. The young boy behind her rubbed his eyes and tears ran down his face.

“Where are you headed?”

“Some men found us at the house and told us to go to the RV storage yard. He said there were people there and safety. The guy said his name was Jack.”

I lowered the crossbow to my side. “That’s Commander Canida. He’s our leader. Just continue down this road about half a mile and the yard will be on the right-hand side. Tell them Jack and Emily sent you.”

The young mom smiled and her whole face brightened. “Can we give you a ride there?”

“Thanks, but I’m headed the other way. I’ll be back tonight. Hope to see you there.”

She whispered ‘thank you’ and they hopped back into the minivan and headed down the street.

I squatted next to Nickie. “Sometimes you meet the good ones. We have to collect all of them we find.”

It felt like Seth’s head just hit the pillow and someone was shaking him to get up. Sunlight streamed through grimy windows. He sat up and wiped the sleep from his eyes. Finding his gloves, he slid them on fast, looking away as he pulled the special fitted one over his mutilated hand.

Miranda smiled at him. “You slept like a rock. Me, too. The rocking boat was like being in a hammock or a cradle. I haven’t rested like this in months.”

He smiled back. “Any breakfast? I’m starving.”

The young woman headed to the stairs, calling over shoulder, “Teddy caught some more fish this morning and found some oranges in his supplies.”

He stretched and pulled on his shoes as Miranda’s steps faded to above decks. Faint voices filtered down the stairs from the open door. Laughter had him hurrying with the shoe tying. With some practice he was almost as good as before losing his fingers.

On deck he was greeted with the delicious scent of frying fish and the deep timbre of Teddy’s laugh drowning out Miranda’s girlish giggles and Cody’s chuckles.

“You were right, Miss Miranda,” Teddy said. “The idea of oranges got his lazy butt up here in no time.”

His smile fell. “You lied? My mouth was watering just thinking about it.”

Miranda laughed and pulled her hands out from behind her back. “Yep, no oranges. We have oranges
and
apples.”

Seth eyed the orange and red fruit and smiled, almost tasting them. Strange how priorities could change with the end of the world as they knew it. He’d heard his mother’s stories of growing up as a kid on the East coast and how an orange for Christmas was a treat. Before the time of international shipping and having fruit all-year round. Because it was summer somewhere in the world and the fruit came from Peru and Australia.

He took the orange from Miranda’s hand and brought it to his nose. The pungent scent filled his nostrils and flooded his mind with good memories of summer days and easier times.

“May as well enjoy them. Probably the last we’ll see for a while.”

“Dude, you’re being a killjoy. Perfect way to bring down the mood,” Cody said, putting an arm around Miranda’s shoulders. “Still orchards. Just won’t have them year-round anymore.”

She smiled. “Don’t worry. It’s just Seth’s way.”

His eyes opened wide. Was it his way to be a downer? He hadn’t always been. He’d believed there was a future. Zombies and rampaging armies kind of took the optimism out of life. Still, he could try for Miranda and Cody. It wasn’t their fault this was the world they were stuck with now.

He glanced toward shore and turned back to Teddy. “So where do we get off this boat ride?”

The big man flipped a fish in the pan. “We eat. Not sure what we may find on the way. Then I get us to a pier on the other side of the bridge.”

“Sounds like a plan.”

A short time later, Seth finished up and patted his full stomach. “Okay, so let’s get to land and head on out before Ran stages a mutiny.”

Teddy navigated the boat and in short order the pier came into view. The undead filled the end, pushing up against each other, their moans carrying over the water.

Seth stared as they got closer and the skinbags got more animated at the sight and probably smell of fresh meat. Talking about the smell, he covered his nose as the boat pulled in closer.

Miranda and Cody came from below with backpacks, filled with Teddy’s supplies from the bulging look of them.

The boat motor stopped and Teddy patted the wheel in what looked like a good-bye. “Not sure we’ll make it back. The Emily’s been a good boat. I’ll miss her.”

Seth craned his neck and looked up at the zombie-filled pier. “Now what?”

The man pointed to the opposite side of the boat. “Over the side.  Water’s gonna be a might cold, so no yelling. We walk from here.”

Cody helped Miranda over the side. The water came up to her thighs. He could see her holding her squeals in. Cody jumped in beside her.

“Not so bad, Dude,” he called up to Seth.

He lowered himself over the side. Definitely cold, but bearable and barely knee height. He started walking to shore as he pulled the machete out of its holder. A big splash flung drops of water on him as Teddy fell in the river behind him.

Seth stumbled up the rocky shore and waited for Teddy. The zombs remained down at the end of the pier like they were too brain-dead to know how to turn around. They just kept pushing on each other. Someday the railing would give and they would tumble in like lemmings off a cliff. Teddy stumbled up beside him and shook himself like a wet dog.

“That wasn’t too bad at all,” the big man said, laughing.

“Speak for yourself, King Teddy,” Miranda said. “My toes are frozen.”

Teddy looked up at the sunny sky. “Be warm today. We’ll be dry in no time. Bet you’re sweating by the time we get to where you want to go.”

She was stomping her feet. “I sure hope so.”

“Behind you,” Seth yelled as the first undead reached them from the parking lot.  “Yep, sweating in no time,” he muttered as Cody and Miranda went back to back and Teddy did the same for him. They spread out slightly and in a short time the ground was littered with the finally dead and the way was clear for their trek.

“I spy something red and white,” Miranda said, playing the classic game with Cody. The walk gone by faster than Seth had expected. He wasn’t sure whether that was a good thing or a bad thing.

“That Coca-Cola can by the suitcase,” Cody answered.

Teddy shook his head. “Do you think this will ever end or will future generations see something like a soda can and think it is an ancient artifact?”

Seth stared down at his boots and the broken asphalt, the cracks filled with weeds and plants. His ears picked up no sounds but Miranda’s soft voice and the trudge of their boots.

“I think this is it,” he replied. “Sure, the skinbags running around now will decay and fall apart. But if even one zombie is left alive, this starts all over again. Even then, we all have the virus, so we would need a cure for that too. Things will never be the way they were.”

“That’s a pretty sad vision for the world, don’t you think?”

“How else can it be? The flu killed billions first. Doctors, scientists, planners, and visionaries had to be in that group. Then the dead rose and attacked millions more. What are the odds that the people who could fix this are still alive? What are our odds if they aren’t that a next generation will have the knowledge and ability to fix it? Hell, the next generation will just be surviving, not figuring out quantum physics, the wonders of the DNA strand, or the cure for AIDS or cancer. In two or three generations we could be back to living in caves and oohing and aahing over fire.”

“Man.” Teddy sighed. “Just kill me now.”

Seth slapped him on his giant bicep. “That my friend is the reason for my happy outlook on life.”

Teddy gave him a slap back on his arm and almost knocked him over. “Thanks for the sarcasm, but I’m going to stay optimistic. Humans have a way of bouncing back, no matter what. We gotta have hope. Or we wouldn’t keep having babies.”

“Babies.” He shuttered. He could still remember Emily’s words when they’d discovered Beth, Nick’s girlfriend, had been pregnant. She’d been so right to believe it was insanity to bring a baby into this world. Hell, it was insane for people to be in this world.

“Heads up, Dudes,” Cody called back to them. “Three up ahead.”

Fifty feet ahead stood three leather-covered bikers of the undead. The one in the middle was almost as big as Teddy. He just laughed.

“I’ve got this.”

He ran faster than his size would imply. Running smack into them, he sent them flying like bowling pins. One got up faster than the others and rushed Teddy. The big guy grabbed the zomb’s head and twisted. The crack could be heard by Seth and the kids. He dropped him like a bag of trash. Walking over, he stomped his gigantic feet on number two’s and three’s heads and they lay still.

Teddy scraped the blood and guts from his shoes on the asphalt as he walked back their way. A big grin split his face. “Wow! I missed out being the king of an empty land.”

“Seth,” Miranda called out.

His head came up and he looked her way. She pointed an arm to the east. A small pillar of smoke rose from where he remembered a Target store being. Could they be another casualty of Peters and his zombie army?

He looked at her. Miranda nodded. “Okay, we should check it out. Someone could be hurt or they might know something about Peters.”

Seth led the way off the freeway and across the field. They took the opening by the bookstore and came out in the enormous parking lot. He stopped and held up his hand. They all listened.

He heard nothing but birdsong and the wind. They continued to the blackened remains of the store. Miranda and Cody wandered about, kicking corpses and checking for live victims.

“Do you think this is the work of that Peters guy you were talking about?” Teddy asked.

Miranda came up to his side. “I don’t think so. There’s a lot more dead dead and just a few zombs. He uses the skinbags as suicide bombers. Body parts would be everywhere. Cody saw the side of the building and it looks like it blew up. Bricks and stuff hit the street and another store on that side. Maybe a furnace exploded or something.”

His head shot up at the sounds of moans coming from the sporting goods store next to Target. Several undead spilled from the storefront, tripping over busted boards. Weighing the benefits of searching for supplies and making a hasty escape, he chose escape. He waved his hands to get Cody back to his side.

“Let’s get back on the road and head to the shopping center.”

“I thought this was the shopping center,” Cody said.

“Nope, it’s down the freeway another mile or so,” Miranda answered him, grabbing his hand and pulling him along, swinging their arms as they went.

“Let’s go kick some army butt.”

Miranda said, “He isn’t in the real army. He made it up to make him feel special.”

“That is so wrong, Dudette. You got to earn that title.”

Seth smiled as Miranda wrapped the young man around her little finger. A small part of him missed her looking up to him like that, but a big part, the important part, knew this was how it was supposed to be. He could be assured that Teddy and Cody would look after her. Hell, Miranda would look after them right back.

As they approached The Streets shopping center, the west side looked great. He couldn’t tell if they had fought and won or fought and lost. They strode further along the road and the damage on the front came into view.

Many of the buildings didn’t exist anymore except as piles of rubble. The steel containers they’d used to block the streets were twisted, burned hunks of metal. They got to the overpass section of the road and hunkered down below the railings.

Seth shrugged off this backpack and dug out a pair of binoculars. Pulling them to his face, he scanned from one end of the complex to the other. It didn’t look good. The field in front was cluttered with dead. The only promising sight was the distinct lack of any life at all. If the ‘General’ had overpowered the group, he wasn’t in residence either. It looked safe enough to at least check out. Maybe they could discover what had happened from what was left.

A quaint house stood on the corner with the required white picket fence to make it someone’s dream come true. The dream was shattered by the pile of dead bodies in the front yard. The garage door stood open with burned rubber marks down the driveway.

I crept closer and saw all the skinbags were missing their heads. Commander Canida and crew had been through here, I would bet a chocolate bar on it. My stomach growled at the thought.

“Probably where the minivan came from,” I told Nickie.

His ears perked up and his fur stood on end. The dog turned and barked at something behind me. That was the only warning I got as I turned and Tommy leaped on me and knocked me on my ass. I knew it was Tommy because what was left of his tiny T-shirt said so in bright blue letters.

His growl made my skin crawl as I shoved an arm under his chin to keep his few teeth from biting me. Either his zombification took them or he was the right age to want his two front teeth plus several more for a Christmas that wouldn’t come for him.

I reached for my knife but my fingers weren’t making it. I put both hands on his chest and shoved. The undead kid went flying as I sat up. The crack of his head hitting the curb echoed in the silent air.

Standing up, I pulled my knife and walked over to the tiny corpse, but it wasn’t needed. My breath caught as I slammed the knife back into the sheath. Tears blurred my vision as I stared down at someone’s son. I said a prayer for him and hoped it was enough.

Pulling it together each time I had to kill someone was getting harder and harder in my hormone-flooding state. Between the adrenaline rush when the kid attacked me and my remorse afterward, I was a mess.

I held my breath. The zombie kid attacked me. My teeth weren’t hurting. Nickie wasn’t glued to my side. With a shaking hand, I reached into my bag and pulled out the recorder. I started breathing again. The on button was popped up. I pushed it on again. A zing went through my teeth and Nickie crouched at my feet.

“Okay, buddy. We are all good to go.”

The dog and I retraced our steps of a couple of days ago. Down Neroly Road until it met Empire and back to what was left of the Target store. The fire was down to smoldering and the gray smoke in the air was a bare wisp.

Moans and the crunch of glass alerted me to a few zombs hanging out at the sporting goods store. A click up of the volume of the recorder and they were scurrying away. Too bad we didn’t have tanks or something. We could corral them all and be done with this mess.

Once they shambled far enough away, I turned the volume down, and rubbed my jaw. The sound really did vibrate through my fillings. I headed south out of the shopping center. The plan was to take Shady Willow Lane and hit The Streets from the east side instead of the west side and the highway I’d left on.

“I think that shot I heard was Antonio taking out General Peters, but we need to be sure, don’t we, dog?”

We hiked past a giant church with a parking lot full of cars. A shiver went down my spine. My imagination could all too easily see rows and rows of the dead who hoped that religion was the answer to the zombie apocalypse. I didn’t deny them the right to believe, I just always thought God was everywhere, not just in a building you showed up in once a week to talk to him.

I rubbed my stomach in a slow circle and smiled. God was in every miracle, not in a specific location at a specific time.

Nickie and I passed a school with zombie children behind the fenced-in play yard. As we moved closer, they scattered like nerds running from the bullies. I patted the bag holding the recorder as if it were a talisman against danger. I couldn’t afford to get used to thinking the sound was total protection. I kept my head up and my senses alert.

We passed subdivisions full of eerie quiet. Most of these houses had belonged to the people who had made The Streets compound their new home. Most of them had died when it was overrun by Peters and the zombie army. We were down to twenty-five or thirty people, plus the kids who had already made the RV yard their home.

The sun came out from behind a cloud and warmed my face, and as easily as that, brightened my mood. You had to enjoy every moment. Too bad it took this to make me see that. Why didn’t I enjoy the sunshine on the bay back then? Why didn’t I walk on the wharf and listen to the sea lions and feed the gulls? Why did I think the next charity ball was more important than just enjoying life, living in the moment?

“Come on, Nickie,” I said to the dog as we reached the end of the shopping center. The containers at this end still stood in place, but the buildings on either side were nothing but piles of rubble. Moans echoed on the other side.

I bit my bottom lip.
Leave the recorder on or turn it off and clear them out?
A decision was reached in a split second. If I were going to search for my necklace, I needed the place as safe as I could make it. I didn’t need to think it was safe and have the recorder pop off again.

Reaching into the bag, I pushed the thing off. I swung the crossbow to my back and climbed the pile of stones and mortar. By the time I reached the top, the stench of undead hit me. I gagged and swung my bow back around.

Thunk.

Thunk.

Two down and one too close to get with a bolt. I swung the bow to the side and got my knife. A shove through his skull and the zomb hit the ground. Catching my breath, I held it and listened. Faint moans carried from down the mall road.

I wiped the blade on the zombie’s shirt, put it back in the sheath, and swung my bow back around, fitting it with a new bolt. Grabbing the two bolts out of the undead, I wiped them and secured them on the crossbow.

Nickie padded in front of me, his nails scratching slightly on the concrete sidewalk. I stopped at each storefront to listen and sniff.

“Most of the skinbags must have died,” I whispered to the dog. “I think the buildings fell on them.”

His ears perked up as if he understood me. I rubbed his head and we moved on. I stepped as quiet as possible, as Nick had taught me when I’d first arrived and we’d been paired up.

A knot formed in my throat seeing The Streets destroyed like this. This had been my home for six months, a safe haven, and the General and his zomb army had taken that away. I prayed that General Peters had gotten his just deserts.