Outbreak (Book 2): The Mutation (26 page)

The vase, which concealed the hallway that led to the kitchen, toppled over and shattered.

The zombies ran straight for them.

3

Abandoned Gas Station

Spicewood, Texas

Cheryl and Walt slowly made their way through the dense, dark woods. They were exhausted, but the fear of not knowing what was in the woods kept them sharp.

Walt knew the woods and landmarks around the Will to Heal property well enough, but in the middle of the night, everything looked the same.

Walt and Cheryl didn’t have flashlights, and even if they did, it wasn’t like they could have used them anyway.

That’d be like shining a spotlight on a bucket of Kentucky Fried Chicken in front of a bunch of hungry road crew workers,
Walt had said.

Walt used the fading lights of a water tower in the distance as his guide. He knew the gas station was in that direction. He was also surprised that the water tower lights still lit up.

From the Will to Heal Center, the old gas station was only about ten miles away, but in a pitch-black woods filled with zombies, they knew they’d have to take it slow.

“How much longer do you think we have?
”
Cheryl asked.

“It should only be about another two to three miles,
”
Walt whispered. “Let’s rest for a second.”

They both sat down on the damp ground. Walt leaned against a massive cypress tree while Cheryl rested against a large boulder.

“You think the others made it?
”
Cheryl asked.

“I don’t know,
”
Walt said stoically. “They have Darren with them, so I think they’ll be all right.”

“These last twenty-four hours have been insane,
”
Cheryl said. “We went from a location with an endless supply of fresh water and plenty of food to being out in the middle of the woods in the dark trying to get to an abandoned gas station.”

“That’s it!
”
Walt almost yelled.

“What the hell are you talking about?
”
asked Cheryl.

“Fresh water,
”
answered Walt. “The one thing we need is a fresh supply of water, and we can find that at Schoepke Springs.”

“I’ve heard of that place,
”
Cheryl said as she perked up. “It’s a swimming hole and camping grounds, right?”

“Yes,
”
answered Walt as he kept his voice low, “and the swimming hole is supplied from a natural spring.”

“Who knows,
”
added Cheryl, “maybe we’ll find some other survivors there.”

Walt and Cheryl smiled at each other.

Walt always thought there was something between the two of them, but could never explore it. He was, after all, the director of the rehab center she was a patient in. His priority was always getting people who wanted to get clean and sober, clean and sober.

“Thanks for staying with me back there in the basement, Cheryl,
”
Walt said. “I couldn’t have done it without you.”

“Oh please,
”
whispered Cheryl as she smiled. “You’re a tough old man.”

“Who you calling ‘old,
’
girl?
”
said Walt as he threw a small stone at Cheryl.

Cheryl’s smile faded from her face as she looked at the ground.

“Do you think we’re gonna make it, Walt?
”
Cheryl asked.

“To the gas station? Absolutely,
”
Walt answered.

“No, Walt,
”
Cheryl said as her tone got serious. “Do you think we’re gonna make in general?”

“I can’t honestly answer that, Cheryl,
”
Walt said. He saw the look on Cheryl’s face in the moonlight. “Look,
”
said Walt. “All we can do is the same thing we do in recovery: take it day by day. We need to think about the future, but we need to plan for the ‘right now.
’
Besides, I think the plan to head over to Schoepke Springs is a good one. There’s a ton of land over there and it’s all fenced in. All we need to do in close the front gates, then clear the property of any zombies, and make sure the fence is strong.”

Cheryl’s eyes brightened the more Walt talked about the Springs.

“Who knows,
”
Walt said. “In six months we might be living in the safest compound in the world.”

“I like your optimism,
”
Cheryl said as she smiled
.
“We better get going.
”
Cheryl said as she nodded to the moon. “The sun will be up soon, and I don’t want to get caught in the sunlight in zombie-infested woods.”

“You and me both,
”
Walt agreed.

Walt stood and reached down to help Cheryl up.

“It should only be a few more miles that way,
”
Walt said as he pointed over his shoulder.

Off in the distance, Walt and Cheryl heard what sounded like people as they trampled through the woods.

Walt put his finger up to his mouth and they stood in silence as their bodies were close together.

They heard the creatures fade in the distance and decided it was safe to start moving.

Walt saw the lights of the water tower and started to head in that direction.

Truth be told, Walt would’ve been happier standing in silence with his body against Cheryl’s.

4

Lago Vista Golf Club

Lago Vista, Texas

Wilder, Butsko, Melvin, and Jones looked from around their barriers to the front door. The pounding had gotten louder and more aggressive, but then a few moments ago the noise completely stopped.

“That can’t be good, can it?
”
Melvin asked Jones.

“I’m not sure what the hell’s going on,
”
Jones answered, “but no, that can’t be good.”

Jones stood and looked over to where Butsko and Wilder were. He caught Wilder’s eyes and shrugged, but Wilder was just as clueless as the others.

Wilder took his first two fingers, pointed at his eyes, and then at the door.

“Well, what did Wilder have to say?
”
asked Melvin.

“He signaled for us to keep a tight watch on the door,
”
Jones said as he crouched back down behind the barricade.

Just as Wilder was about to ask Butsko what he thought they should do, a new, louder banging almost knocked the door off its hinges.

“What the fuck was that?
”
Wilder yelled.

“It sounds like something metallic is being used,
”
Butsko said.

Wilder checked his weapon one last time and braced himself for the worst.

“Get ready you two!
”
shouted Butsko as he stood and yelled across the room to Melvin and Jones. “They’re coming in!”

Before Butsko could duck, the door exploded inward as splinters and pieces of the door rained on them.

Butsko saw two groups of zombies run into the foyer, but before Butsko knew what was happening, one of the groups turned to Butsko and Wilder’s direction and the other group turned toward Melvin and Jones.

The zombies heaved something at each target as they ran towards the humans.

Butsko saw what the zombies threw—the half-eaten body of Trunst. The lifeless corpse slammed into the barricade and made Butsko and Wilder crouch even lower.

Butsko knew this was exactly the reaction those bastards wanted, and immediately stood and started spraying the group of zombies with his carbine as they charged.

Wilder saw Butsko open fire and did the same thing. The infected were too close and moving too fast to line up head shots, but Wilder went for the next best thing—the center of mass. He shot the infected in the chests and the kneecaps. He knew it wouldn’t kill them, but without knees, they couldn’t run. It was simple human physiology.

Across the room, Jones and Melvin experienced the same thing.

“What the fuck did they just throw at us?
”
yelled Melvin.

“Trunst,
”
was all Jones said in reply.

Jones also stood and sprayed the group of zombies with bullets. He caught a glimpse of Wilder’s version of a double tap. Instead of a chest and head shot, Wilder was doing a chest and knee shot.

Zombies fell on both sides of the room as the soldiers and Melvin gunned them down. More of the infected flooded through the front door and got closer to where the humans had barricaded themselves.

All four of them were now standing as they shot down the zombies. Wilder and Butsko worked together to mow down the zombies as they attacked them. Jones, though, was having to be more selective with his shots. Melvin may not have had the combat discipline of a trained soldier, but he was proving himself to be a crack shot.

The zombies stopped pouring into the foyer. Wilder estimated that there were about twelve of the bastards left inside, and they all looked pissed off and hungry.

“I’m getting low on ammo!
”
Melvin yelled to Jones over the noise.

“Keep shooting, Melvin!
”
Jones shouted. “Keep firing until your last bullet, and then we’ll take the rest down by hand.”

Jones ejected a cartridge from his carbine, and the nearest zombie took advantage of him being temporarily unarmed.

An infected woman jumped over the bodies of two other zombies and tackled Jones to the ground. Jones managed to hit the creature in the side of the head with the butt of his rifle.

When the rotted thing hit the ground, Jones slammed the heel of his boot into its face. He felt the creature’s facial bones crack. When he took out his sidearm and leveled the pistol, Jones noticed blood trickling down his arm from under his sleeve.

Jones quickly shot the thing in the face twice and holstered his gun. Time seemed to stop for him as he pushed up his sleeve and saw a broken fingernail lodged in his arm.

“That bitch!
”
Jones screamed. “She scratched me!”

Melvin couldn’t hear what Jones was saying over the roar of his weapon.

“What?
”
Melvin asked. “Are you okay?”

As his last word left his mouth, Melvin saw Jones staring at his own arm.

Melvin saw the fingernail and the blood.

“Jones,
”
Melvin started to say, but Jones held up his hand.

“You don’t need to say anything,
”
Jones said. Jones made a fist, then let go of his weapon and dropped to his knees as he lost control of his muscles.

Melvin kept shooting as the zombies charged him and watched as his friend succumbed to the infection.

“Shoot me!
”
Jones yelled to Melvin. “Shoot me in the head before the infection takes me!”

Melvin looked at Jones.

Jones looked at Melvin and pleaded with his eyes.

Melvin took out his pistol and shot Jones through the eyes. The back of Jones
’
head exploded, and Melvin saw shards of skull and Jones
’
brain on the zombie that stood behind him.

Melvin turned with tears in his eyes and shot the three zombies that were closest to him. The zombies flew back from the impact. Melvin watched them land, but saw the four zombies he and Jones had previously shot as they started to stand back up.

Melvin glanced over at the body of his friend and decided he’d had enough.

Melvin shot two more zombies, then turned and ran from the carnage. He ran to the far end of the massive foyer and shot the window out with his sidearm. Without stopping, Melvin jumped through the windowpane.

Butsko and Wilder saw what happened, but neither man said anything.

They’d watched as Jones realized he was infected.

They’d watched as Jones begged Melvin to kill him.

They’d watched one friend kill another.

Wilder hoped Melvin would make it, though he was doubtful. He knew Melvin was low on ammo and his hand-to-hand combat skills weren’t good.

“I’m out!
”
barked Butsko as he holstered his pistol.

“Me too,
”
Wilder said as he fixed his bayonet to the M4.

Butsko and Wilder jumped into the fray and fought the infected face to face.

*****