Sirens of the Zombie Apocalypse (Book 1): Since the Sirens (22 page)

Hayes seemed hard to convince. “But don't these people seem
more like Vampires to you? The sick seem to go for a person's blood,
not their brains.”

Liam's fear of blood was strong, but the more he thought about it
the more it made some sense. Angie especially was a bloody mess, and
her apartment was a nightmare of blood. The park ranger up in the
Arch was covered in blood, as was the Arch observation deck. Unless
he consumed an entire person up there—Liam thought about the
impossibility of that—it meant whatever he attacked had bled
profusely but was still able to get away. Was blood the key?

Still, Vampires? Liam wasn't ready to believe such supernatural
nonsense.

“I think these people are dead, but some kind of infection
is keeping them from turning off and staying dead. But I haven't seen
anyone actually die and then come back to life...” He realized
how little he knew about the infected people now causing so many
problems for him.

“Last night you guys knew nothing useful about the sick
people. Do you know anything about how the infection spreads?”

“Just what I've heard secondhand. Nothing from official
channels. I've not actually seen any zombies yet so I can't confirm
anything for myself. They say the plague infects the victim and makes
them crave blood. They aren't sure why, but one consistent data point
seems to be the biting by the infected, and their desire to consume
as much blood as they can. The drained victim then gets up and looks
for more blood. Possibly to replace their own.”

“Mmmm. That doesn't really tell me anything I don't already
know. I've seen infected people attacking helpless victims since this
all began. You don't know anything useful that could help us fight
back, or stop the plague?”

Hayes gave a good laugh.

“Look at me kid. I'm just a driver. I know just about as
much as you do.” He then looked away as if frustrated with his
impotence.

Liam believed he knew more than he was letting on. He was clearly
part of an organization that would know. Why wouldn't he know
something? Every book on zombies he'd ever read would back up that
claim.

I wish you'd had the balls to save us, instead of Victoria.

He wished
he
had the balls to say
that
out loud.

2

Liam and Hayes sat in silence for several more minutes. Grandma
was nodding in the coolness of the tunnel but Liam was thinking about
waking her up to move her further south, out of the area surrounding
the Arch. With so many people fighting, it was no place for an aged
grandmother to be hanging about. It wasn't a great place for a kid
either.

He noticed a police officer was standing about 100 feet down the
tunnel, at the southern exit. The northern exit was a tiny point of
light in the opposite direction. There was no way to know who was up
there, though Liam could see lots of people in the tunnel between
himself and that pin point. The tunnel made a great shelter against
the gunfire of the larger battle. That much was certain.

He decided the first course of action was to move Grandma further
toward the southern exit, as that was the direction they wanted to
go.

It wasn't easy to push the chair on the rocks, but he got help
from Hayes and they actually made pretty good time. Grandma woke up,
but seemed to nod back off fairly quickly with the rocking action of
her ride.

When he was close to the exit, he noticed the officer had a
shotgun and a radio.

Liam parked the wheelchair about thirty feet from the exit and let
Hayes know he'd be right back. Then he approached the officer.

“Excuse me. I'm Liam. My friend and I were the lookouts who
went up into the Arch to watch for the gangs.”

“Nice to meet you. I guess we both missed the action down on
the ground.”

“What do you mean?”

“The captain put me down here to guard this tunnel exit, but
nothing has happened. I could do more good up where the action is.
What did you see from up top?”

Liam traded some basic information with the officer.

His name was Jones. He was a large black man with maybe too much
gut poking out of his belt. Still, he was quite impressive. Liam
didn't say anything to offend him, but he suspected he was put down
here because he would make such a large target. Not the best
attribute to have in a gun battle.

His radio gave him an idea.

“Can you call the captain inside the Arch?”

“Sure, but my orders are to hold here. I don't have anything
to report.”

“Actually you do. My friends and I just came from inside the
Arch museum. There is a service entrance that comes out inside this
railroad tunnel. When we left the captain, he and his cohorts were
trapped by a group of looters who took control of the north entrance.
I think we can help get them out of there.”

The officer gave him “the look.” Liam had seen it many
times over the years. It was the look an adult gave him to decide
whether a kid could know what he was talking about when it came to
something important.

“Dad, there is a car flipped over on our street.” The
look.

“Mom, your phone needs a critical software update.”
The look.

“Officer, I know how we can save your leader and all those
family members.” The look.

To his credit, officer Jones got on the radio.

“Yeah, this kid—what's your name?—this Liam kid
said the captain sent him up to the top of the Arch and now he says
he can help our guys get out of the Arch museum.”

The officer went over some details with the man on the other end.
Liam was grateful to be helping the officers in their sticky
situation, but his motives were anything but pure. He was hoping
somehow he could save Victoria. He was worried his last memory of her
would be as a bouncing light going up to the sky.

I'm not going to leave her to die.

3

Officer Jones was going back and forth with the person on the
other end for many minutes. When he was done he shared what he knew
with Liam.

“Things are pretty bad up top. There are gang members and
looters at both main entrances to the Arch underground area now, as
well as at a third entrance on the city-side. Our boys are trapped in
the museum. For your plan to work they would have to cross the
waiting area in full view of both groups of armed criminals.”

He churned on that for a few seconds before continuing.

“But that isn't even the worst part. There is a big group of
infected really chopping up the remaining citizens on the north side
of the park. Our intel says they will be at the Arch sooner rather
than later. The gang members aren't very good at killing zombies
apparently. They don't die as easily as our guys and gals in blue.”

He was visibly angry making that realization, but went on with the
facts.

“So our plan is to get any officers still available on this
side of the park, go up the tunnel you found, and attempt to rescue
the remaining officers and families inside the museum.”

“But the metal grate is now locked. How are we going to get
into the maintenance room?”

Officer Jones smiled. “Leave that to me.”

Liam wasn't content to leave anything to chance. He'd seen
everything fall apart the past couple days and trusted nothing to
work as it should. But he couldn't exactly tell the police how to do
their jobs, so all he could realistically do was tag along and hope
they got the job done. And, if he was really lucky, he would emerge
from the dark hallway just in time to save Victoria.

It took about fifteen minutes to gather four police officers,
including officer Jones. Liam was disappointed that was the best they
could do, and they seemed to sense his feeling.

“Don't worry kid, this is more than enough firepower to fend
off the garbage shooting at our boys in there. See these?” He
was holding out his weapon. “These are AR-15's. Since the rules
of war have been turned off, we are using silencers today. We should
make short work of those bastards. At least well enough to help our
friends get out of there. We also have some other toys we're bringing
to the party. It also helps that we'll have the drop on them. Thanks
to you and your secret entrance.”

One of the new guys gave him a chuck on the shoulder. He was
carrying a massive shotgun with a drum magazine of some kind. The man
handed a battering ram to his larger compatriot.

Officer Jones slung the ram over his shoulder. Apparently they
were going to use that to bash in the grate. Liam didn't doubt they
could do it, especially given the bulk of officer Jones. He might be
able to punch the thing apart.

As they were readying the plan amongst themselves Liam was
standing off to the side, not sure if he should listen in or look
busy doing something else. He decided there was one item he
definitely wanted to pass on to these guys.

“Ummm excuse me. If you happen to see my friend in there,
please help her get out. She's about my age. Wearing a black dress.
Probably running from two gangers with guns. She ran up into the Arch
to save me and the rest of our group.”

“If we see your girlfriend we'll grab her.”

He didn't correct her designation as his girlfriend, even though
it wasn't true. He liked how it sounded, but it made him even more
depressed at how things had transpired.

After a few more minutes of preparation the policemen gathered
near the small tunnel entrance and were working the radio. Presumably
coordinating with the group inside.

“Liam, do you have any weapons?”

He wasn't sure if he should tell the cops that he was packing a
gun, but decided now was not the time to be worried about getting
himself thrown in jail for concealed carry of a weapon without a
permit. He knew better than to whip out a gun, so he used his words
instead.

“I have a small pistol, yes.”

“OK, listen. Your job is to guard this exit so when we come
back out we find your friendly face, and not anyone else. Do you
understand?”

“I'd really rather go with you guys.”

Officer Jones grabbed one of the radios from one of his cohort and
tried to give it to Liam. Liam pulled the police radio he'd been
using earlier out of his backpack, showing he was already plugged
into their radio net.

Jones continued. “I understand son. But trust us. We'll get
it done. We need someone here to keep this door open or we'll be cut
down when we come out. Make sense?”

Liam couldn't argue with the logic, though his heart still
envisioned saving Victoria. That wasn't going to happen if he was
parked here at this entrance as a glorified greeter.

“Don't use your radio unless absolutely necessary. But you
can listen so you know when we're coming back.”

“Understood.”

Through it all Hayes had kept his distance from Liam and the
police. He figured the man would want to help young Liam protect this
exit, but he made no effort to move much past where they had placed
Grandma near the exit of the railroad tunnel.

He's probably thinking about making a run for it.

The air outside the train tunnel was thick with gunfire, though
the odd angles of the sound waves inside the tunnel made it hard to
know where it was all coming from.

Liam also thought he could hear an increase in gunfire coming from
the other end of the railroad tunnel. That is, from the spooky and
dark section north of where he stood.

Why did I even suggest this?

Hero stuff. Remember?

4

Jones went in first. He had to go in on his knees and elbows since
the space was too low for him to crouch and walk. He dragged the
battering ram with him. The other three men entered the same way,
though one of them was dragging a large black bag as well. Liam
imagined it was a bag of weapons.

He checked his pistol on his hip, then stood on the wall next to
the opening, holding the radio close to his ear so he could listen in
without blaring it to the whole tunnel. There were other people
about, but none were anxious to interfere with this operation.

The radio chatter began almost immediately.

“Jones here. We are through the grating and are in the
maintenance room. No sign of the enemy. Moving to hallway. Out.”

A few minutes later a much shorter transmission, in a whisper.

“Jones here. In position. Be ready in five minutes. Out.”

Liam knew the basics of the plan, but had no idea of the tactics
they would use to extricate those inside the museum. He tried to be
patient and wait the five minutes. The radio chatter had completely
stopped.

The void gave him time to think of how he could do something
stupid. He thought about going up the tunnel himself, then ascending
the stairs to try to catch up with Victoria and see if he could help.
But he knew that by now she was probably down the other leg of the
Arch if she kept running once she got to the top.
If
she got
to the top. Ugg. Why did he have to think that?

But then he thought about where she could have come down. Was
there a room on the north side of the Arch which was a maintenance
shed like the one in the south? If so, was there a grate and a tunnel
over there too? Did that duct come out on the other end of this same
railroad tunnel? He almost started running up the tunnel right then
and there. But he looked the other way toward Grandma. She was
silhouetted in the harsh light of the tunnel exit, but he could see
she had woken up and was talking to Hayes. Would it be smart to leave
her alone and try to force his way into danger?

He couldn't make up his mind.

Then the radio blurted.

“Go! Go! Go!”

There were loud noises on the net, then it went silent again.
Finally a long series of beeps and boops echoed from the device.

From inside the duct leading back to the Arch there was a lot of
gunfire, followed by a lull.