Love in the Time of Zombies (5 page)

Tears blurred my vision. “A baby is the last thing I have to worry about, Seth. I’m infertile. That’s why my husband died with a hooker. Constantly needing to prove there wasn’t a problem on his side of the equation.”

He took my hands and kissed the tears running down my face. I smiled at him. “So, no more stressing, okay? Don’t ruin the first sex I’ve had in five years.”

His stunned look was enough to set me off for round two. Part amazement and part thrill raced across his face, as I tackled him and straddled his hips.

Somewhere in the Delta, East Bay Area, California

“General Peters. We’re ready for the next test.”

Martin smirked. He’d never been the general of anything, let alone been in a service that had generals. Unless he counted being a supervisor at an auto repair shop, with ex-cons and illegals to order around, and that didn’t count for shit.

But, let the world go to hell in a handbasket and the man holding the basket could take any title he wanted. Let the guy have a safe haven in the Delta and the firepower to hold it and men were willing to follow you and call you any damn thing you demanded. Have the balls to hold it all together and the best food, drink, weapons, and women were yours for the taking.

He pushed away from his desk in the safe room in his bunker. Walking past rows of shelves with canned goods and bottled water, he glanced at the food and smiled as he noted the stock had been rotated on schedule. To fuck up that simple task got you bumped to latrine digging duty—permanently.

He clapped his second-in-command on the shoulder. “Captain Gomez, I hope this test runs better than the last?” His not subtle hint hung in the air between them.

Antonio swallowed audibly and his Adam’s apple bobbed up and down in his skinny throat. The man’s thin frame shook from head to toe. Martin wouldn’t be surprised to hear Gomez’s knees knock together.

“You’re sure everything is ready?” He squeezed the man’s shoulder, feeling the bones grind beneath his fingers. The power play sent an orgasmic thrill through his body. The apocalypse should have happened years ago.

The captain winced, but held firm. “Of course, General.”

Peters stepped back, crossing his arms across his chest. “I believe you were sure last time—” His voice boomed across the enclosed space. “And now I’ve lost four good men and have four extra undead fuckers to deal with, don’t I?”

Martin stalked up to the man until they were nose-to-nose, but Antonio held his ground, his shaking subsiding.

“This time I’ve tried something different. The creatures will be staked on a leash. We can watch their movements with no one in danger.”

“Very good, Captain.” He patted the man on the cheek harder than necessary. “Perhaps you should have thought of that last time.”

“Sir, I told you—um, I let you know there was a chance of failure until we get the right frequency.”

“Yes you did, Antonio. But you’d better find it soon. Because I’m running out of patience—and men.”

Tanya Gomez placed a hand to her brow, to shield the sun’s glare from her eyes. She spotted the general and that sniveling, idiotic Antonio coming out of the bunker.

She sighed. So many zombie widows, as they were called, and she was still stuck with a stupid husband. Her glance slid to Martin Peters. There was a man! He saw what he wanted and he seized it. Just like he’d seen her in town long before the zombies came, and seized her.

Her breath caught and she squeezed her thighs together. What a lover.
Muy caliente
. Rough and strong, just like she wanted it, needed it. He was her best so far. She’d had many since her first at fourteen, but none like Martin. His tastes were even more perverted than her own.

Antonio ran up to her, wrapping his arms around her, suffocating her. He swooped in for a kiss. She turned her head at the last second and his perpetually wet lips slid along her cheek. She shuddered as he whispered in her ear.

“
Mi espousa
. My wife. I love you.”

She pushed her husband away. “Go do your job. Don’t keep the general waiting. You know how angry he gets.”

He kissed her quickly before she could stop him. As he ran to catch up with Peters, she wiped her hand across her mouth and dried it on her jeans. Her time was coming. Soon, she’d get rid of the boy and have a man.

Tanya strolled over to the arena with the rest of the people standing nearby. She noted the crowd was smaller than for the last test. She smiled.
Some people were such wimps. A little bloodshed and they couldn’t handle it. So what if a few soldiers were killed?

The ripping.

The tearing.

The moans of the undead as they fed.

She shuddered and squeezed her thighs together
.

That night Martin had been a beast as well.

The bloodshed had been more than just a little when the four men were mauled by the zombies. Several men had jumped up with guns ready to fire, but the general had ordered them to stop. The infected were forced into the cages with the rest of the zombs.

That stupid Antonio thought he had a way to control the creatures. She prayed he failed again. Maybe the general would finally end his loser life.

She found a seat near the top of the wooden grandstands. A new fence enclosed the arena after the last debacle. The fresh-sawed wood smell almost covered the stench of the undead. Their moans filled the air. The beasts were leashed to tall stakes in a semicircle around the far edge of the dirt arena.

General Peters strode to the near end, his hand wrapped around a young girl’s arm. Tanya squinted. Miranda Stevens. She sat up straighter, a smile on her lips. Miranda was the latest young thing in Martin’s bed. He stood tall, his gaze directly to her, and an evil grin on his face. Yes! The stupid girl meant nothing to him. He was hers.

A man yelled from the edge of the arena. “Stop. You can’t do this. She’s my baby.”

General Peters nodded and a man stepped up to the distraught father and a shot rang out across the field. Blood blossomed on his white shirt. The man fell to the ground. A silent moment passed, the crowd leaning forward. He twitched, rolled over, and got to his knees. Falling a few times, the now-undead man stood and lurched toward the general and the young girl.

“Tie him with the others.”

Her breath caught and her heartbeat raced. He would take her rough tonight. Do all the things she liked but didn’t know how to ask for. The welts and bruises would let everyone know who she belonged to, even Antonio. Especially Antonio.

The girl screamed as she tried to pull away from Peters. “You promised. I did everything you asked. You promised.”

He pushed her to the ground. “I make no promises, little girl.” A young man came forward and tied her hands behind her back. She started to run. Peters grabbed her by her long hair and his fist connected to her temple. The girl crumpled to the ground.

“Let’s get started,” he yelled to Antonio.

She laughed as her husband glanced at the young woman on the ground and rushed to the platform with the stereo equipment. Her fingers dug into her thighs. Maybe he would fuck up again and she could finally be through with him after Martin killed him for her.

Her nipples pebbled under her shirt at the thought of being with the general out in the open for all to see. She’d be the first lady of their enclave. Hell, she could aim for Queen of California.

A hum came from the speakers, and then turned into silence except for the barking of every dog on the compound. The creatures in the arena turned in circles, tangling themselves with the ropes around the poles. Black liquid oozed down their arms and legs as they strained against the ropes.

Antonio’s fingers flew across the synthesizer. There appeared to be no change in the silence, except for the hum on the edge of her hearing. Enough to make her believe she could almost capture the sound. The zombies pulled on their leashes, fighting to attack each other. Martin walked up to Antonio and shoved him to his knees, pulling his gun out of the holster.

Her husband put his hands up. She just caught his words. “... just some adjustments.”

Martin put the gun away. “Better get it right. My patience is wearing thin.”

Antonio jumped up and his fingers trembled on the controls. Her teeth ached as he made another adjustment. The zombies stopped moving. They stood and swayed in place, looking at the sky.

Antonio pointed to the girl. Martin spat orders and several men gathered the girl and put her within reach of the monsters, then ran away. The crowd swayed forward in their seats as the sound continued and the undead ignored the fresh meat in their midst.

“Okay, this is what I wanted to show you.” Antonio spoke to the general as he spun a dial on the control board.

Her mouth fell open as the creatures all stretched their tethers as far as they could reach—away from the girl. They ignored her completely. All were attracted to the speakers in the trees, like dogs with a treed raccoon. Some fool thought Antonio had made them harmless. The man touched one and lost his hand in the process, blood squirting across the man’s face and the dirt of the arena.

Martin pulled his gun and shot the man dead on the spot. A head shot.

He smiled as he put the gun away. Clapping Antonio on the back, Martin grinned. “Amazing. We need to pick a target for practice.”

Antonio spun the dial to make the zombies again look to the sky and ignore all the rest. Martin snapped his fingers and directed the men to get the girl out of the center. They snatched her up and looked to him.

“Take her to the guards. It’s been a while since they’ve had some fun.”

Tanya rushed to her husband’s side. For the crowd’s benefit, she gave him a big kiss. “Antonio, you are so brilliant.”

Martin moved to the other side. “So, Antonio, my friend, what do you need for a practice run at a real target?”

Seth managed to keep Emily in the Streets of Brentwood compound the first day, but by the second day after Nick’s death, he could see she was going stir crazy. She’d helped her friend, Michelle with laundry detail until there wasn’t a pair of dirty underwear left in the compound. He’d suggested she help her friend, Bobbie Roberts organize a group of teenagers who’d wanted some space of their own. With some shuffling around, the teen group soon settled on a rooftop away from the grown-ups, with empty rooftop space on either side. A pirate flag soon hung down from the store façade and cheering wafted across the open mall as the fabric of the skull and crossbones cracked in the wind.

She was now talking to Bobbie and the hard glances she shot his way warned him he wasn’t going to like whatever plan she’d hatched to get out of the enclosed space of the shopping mall.

“Bobbie and I think the camp needs more tents.” Emily stood in front of him, hands on hips as if waiting for his argument. At that moment, he’d gotten a clearer picture of her married past. If she were spoiling for a fight, he wasn’t going to give it to her. He’d seen her in action. The woman could take care of herself and cover his back too.

“I know there are several sporting goods places in town and nearby, but I’m sure they’ve been picked clean.”

The older woman nodded. “Emily and I were thinking it’s time to start clearing some houses and getting some supplies. Lots of families in this community must have camped. We could find camping stoves, lanterns, maybe even those little pop-up tent things.”

“From what Nick told me...” Emily’s jaw clenched with a teeth-grinding sound as she paused at the kid’s name. “A lot of people owned guns in this town. We might as well collect what we can.”

Bobbie spoke up again. “The patrols are already out and about, but I know Joe and Bob waited around to see if you wanted them to go with you. Josh and Suz volunteered too. The Logans said they would be ready when you are.”

“We should help them,” he said.

“I’ll go get my stuff,” Emily said, giving him a quick hug.

He watched her long strides carry her to the breakaway stairs.

“That woman needs space. She might have married money, but she didn’t come from it, if you know what I mean.”

Seth gave the older woman his attention at her unexpected words. “I thought it was one of those ‘combining dynasties’ things.”

She laughed, throwing her head back. “Oh no, Emily was doing secretary work at her dad’s law office. Carl spotted her, decided it was time to make the next generation of Grays, and married her.”

“So he fell in love, just like that? Not that I can’t see the attraction, because I certainly can.”

Bobbie snorted. “No love match there. Oh, maybe she felt something for him at first. Taken in with the things money can buy. But Carl was only concerned in how Emily looked and dressed and acted. He needed the right someone to play the part of Carl’s wife. Unfortunately, she found out the only person Carl loved was Carl.”

“How did you get to know Emily?”

“I lived near the Grays. I met Emily at a party and I could see right away that she needed a friend, someone who wasn’t after her connections. I watched as Emily started to die inside when Carl started stepping out. I haven’t seen her as happy as she’s been killing skinbags. She finally found something she can do, all on her own. So don’t take that away from her. She’s no ‘princess in a tower’. Go out there, watch her back, but don’t let her know you are watching her back.”

“I will,” Seth replied softly as Emily ran up to them.

She slid to a stop with her backpack strapped on, crossbow in hand. Giving him a grin and a quick kiss, her smile grew when he pulled her in close. “Suz and Josh are ready at the exit. They found a big truck for us to go out in.”

Emily gave Bobbie a hug and they strode over to the exit at the cargo containers. Josh sat at the wheel of a super-sized black truck, with his sister, Suz in the passenger seat. Joe and Bob were already in the bed of the truck, so Emily and Seth hopped up on the tailgate and joined them. Bob slapped the roof and the truck headed out.

“Are we going to the apartments?” Emily asked the guys.

Joe shook his head. “Josh doesn’t think we’ll find a lot of camping stuff there and the parking lots are too tight. No room to maneuver. We could get trapped there.”

Emily nodded. “Makes sense. So where?”

“We’re heading over past the church. Nice neighborhood there. I’ve seen a bunch of motor homes and trailers in the area.”

Seth glanced around as they passed the church. A giant X in red marred the pristine whiteness of the doors, which were covered with crossed plywood to stop any zombies from using the church as a nest.

He saw Emily’s shoulders tense as they passed a small school and playground. He could sympathize; he hated when they found children undead. It was all kinds of wrong to have to put down little ones.

The play yard looked deserted except for a few mounds of decaying flesh held together by shreds of clothing. He looked away, swinging the rifle Joe had handed him in a semicircle to survey the neighborhood for threats.

“Stop,” Emily cried, hopping out of the truck bed before the vehicle came to a complete stop.

Seth jumped down to cover her. “What?”

She jerked her head toward the Confederate flag hanging from a porch flag holder. “A candy bar and a pack of gum say we find a weapon cache there.”

He smiled at the mention of the only currency that now mattered and counted for anything, the things now in short supply. “I’ll take that bet. I say they bugged out when the shit hit the fan and took the guns with them.”

Emily grinned. “I accept. Just know that I love Hershey’s.”

She reached out and knocked on the door, followed with her ear against the wood. Another knock and she grabbed the doorknob. Turning it, the door swung open. She pushed her crossbow over her shoulder and pulled a gun from her holster. Standing still, she sniffed deeply. Holding up her fingers in the okay sign, they all filed into the house, Joe left standing on the porch when they went inside.

He and Emily moved through the living room to the kitchen. He heard the Logans as they proceeded down the hall to the bedrooms. Like the police in the past, doors opened, followed by the “clear” call echoing in the empty house. A lost reminder of a lost world.

The kitchen reeked of spoiled food smell. The kind that made you catch your breath and wish you hadn’t. They’d learned early on to leave refrigerators closed. Scratching sounds in the cabinets broadcasted there wouldn’t be any pantry findings in this kitchen. The small animals were taking back their fields and meadows that had been covered by suburbia.

Seth heard closets opening and closing down the hall. He and Emily moved to the door in the kitchen leading to the garage. He spotted a vintage Corvette and an enormous gun safe.

Emily squealed like a girl in a jewelry store. Something must have spooked the tenants, because the safe stood open, guns and ammo spilling out like pirate loot.

“Yes.” She hopped up and down. “I knew it. You owe me candy,” she sang out.

Seth moved over to the garage door and pushed it up. Light spilled into the open space, highlighting the cherry-red car, the safe, and tools scattered across a work bench designed for more than a basic do-it-yourselfer.

Looking up, he spotted belongings in the rafters. Wincing, he jumped onto the hood of the ‘vette with a metallic ping and denting of the hood, apologized in his head, and pulled down tents, cots, a cook stove, and crates.

He jumped to the floor and found a pry bar on the bench. A few tugs and the boxes opened, light falling over mounds of brass casings. Turning, he spotted equipment to make bullets sitting on the workbench.

“Emily, I’m going to get Bob and the others. We need to get this stuff back to the base. We’ll be able to make our own bullets.”

“Fine, I’ll clean out this safe. There’re enough weapons here for a gun shop.”

Half of my body was in the safe when something bumped my foot. “Just a minute, I think this is a box of grenades. I’d like to not blow myself up.”

A moan filled my ears and every hair on my body stood up. My bladder wanted to let go and my stomach turned. A hand grabbed me by the ankle and dragged me out of the safe. The stench had bile rising up my throat as the creature held onto my foot, trying to pull it into its mouth.

The reeking skinbag stood up and pulled me with it. The pressure built as the thing gnawed on my boot. Hell no, I wasn’t going to go hanging upside down and done in by a bite to my toes.

I brought my other foot around behind the thing’s knees, swept it forward, and took that zombie down. Unfortunately, I went down too. Good thing I could jump up faster than a zombie did when you knocked it down.

I jumped up.

Then I jumped down.

Right on his head. With a crunch, my boot pulverized its head and brains. And I kept on jumping. I was not going to die like Nick. Like Josie. Like Peter. Like Benny. Like the young girl my first week at the camp. Like all the faces and names I could remember since this started. My neighbors in the city. The police officer helping us into the evacuation bus.

“Hell, no,” I screamed until I was hoarse. I stopped and looked up. Seth stood in the doorway, with Josh and Suz behind him. They all stood there with their mouths open and guns raised.

“What? Haven’t you seen anyone kill a zombie before?” I joked, then my throat seized up and the tears flowed. I turned away, but the tears wouldn’t stop. Arms surrounded me and held on tight.

“Are you okay? Are you bit?”

I shook my head, my voice gone. “No. No bites,” I whispered.

“It’s okay. We all get to freak out a little from time to time. Just makes us human. Today was your turn.”

The laughter trickled out between the tears. I stood straighter and pulled away a little. “I’m fine now.”

I stared at my gore-covered boot. “Shit, I liked this pair. It took me weeks to break them in.”

Seth hugged me with one arm and kissed my cheek. “I’m sorry I left you alone out here. The area looked clear.”

I hugged him back. “It’s okay. I think I took care of the problem.”

“Yes, you did,” Suz voiced from the doorway. “I saw tons of shoes, boots, and clothes in the bedrooms. The family must have been packing to bug out.”

Grabbing my knife out of my pocket, I sliced the laces off and toed off my boots. Skirting the mess by the safe, I walked into the house. I turned at the last second. “Before
it
showed up, I found a box of grenades in the safe.”

Suz grabbed my hand and pulled me down the hallway. Suz Logan is strong. She looks like a beauty queen with her sun-bleached blonde hair and bright blue eyes, but I’ve seen her take down five zombies on her own, with a stick and a knife. She and her brother came to Brentwood early in the Z virus infestation. They’d lived in Concord, but it was gone now. The only people left were pockets of survivors too stubborn to leave, surrounded by the undead. The only major thing left there was a hospital. A few doctors and nurses refused to leave their unmovable patients and offered help to the survivors left behind.

Suz and her brother Josh were inseparable. They never went on a mission without the other. She’d told me even before the zombies, they’d been alone, the last members of their family. Most had died of the flu epidemic. She and her brother had been sick too. They’d woken up and everyone else was dead.

We went into a bedroom and I was hit by flying boots. Suz just laid into me.

“That was stupid. You know that, right? While you were stomping the hell out of ghoulie number one, did you even stop to think about numbers two through one hundred that might have been out there? I’ve already mourned Nick this week; I’m not adding you to the list.”

My mouth fell open.
Damn, I’m so stupid. I wasn’t thinking.

“Suz, I’m so sorry. I’m usually better than that.”

“Damn straight, you are.” She punched my arm. “And don’t you forget it. I taught you everything you know.”

I winced. “Yes, ma’am.”

Pulling the boots on, I glanced around the room and at the stuff on the bed. Wow! Camouflage pants and jackets, Kevlar vests, arm guards, shin guards, and even protective vests made for a woman filled the bed to overflowing. I grabbed one and held it up.

“This is so going to be mine.”

Looking around at all this preparedness, I couldn’t help wondering what had happened to the occupants. There wasn’t any damage, so they hadn’t been attacked in the house. But they hadn’t left and taken all their stuff either. Had they been ready to go and ran out to help a neighbor? Had they needed some last-minute item and just never made it back? I hated all the not-knowing in this new world. Lives just stopped, like a broken clock, and there was no one left to restart the world.