Suspending Reality (16 page)

I came from behind and held her arms. I couldn’t help noticing her perfume, which smelled so good. “Stand facing the target with your feet shoulder-width apart.”

She glanced at me.

I smiled. “Now bend your knees slightly.” I inched closer and said in her ear, “Extend the handgun toward the target, keeping your arms straight and locked. Got it?”

“Yeah.”

I shot her a grin and continued with the lesson. “Okay. Now, with your shoulders squared, your arms form the perfect position for shooting.”

“I can do this,” she said with confidence.

“Hold the gun on target,” I said in her ear. “If it’s a zombie, aim for the brain and shoot. It’s the only way to kill it. If that’s not comfortable for you, I can teach you another way to hold the gun.”

“Show me.”

I nodded. “Okay. Stand like you’re ready to hit someone.”

“Like a boxer?”

“Exactly. Now, angle your support arm shoulder toward your target.” My hands moved across her body to help guide her.

“Okay.” Her contours smoothed under my touch as she followed my instructions.

“Bend your knees while keeping your body weight slightly forward. Grasp the gun using opposite pressure with both hands. Keep both elbows bent, with your support elbow pointing downward.”

She spun around. “I think I can do this.”

My eyes drifted down to her flat, toned stomach. I could have sworn she caught me looking at her belly ring, but I tried to change the subject quickly. “Look, I’ve given you some really good pointers, but I’m afraid it’s still not enough to survive out here. Why don’t you come with us?”

She set her bottle down. “Why?”

“Because it’s dangerous. You know you can’t stay here.”

She let out a long breath. “Claire’s right. Getting together with another group won’t guarantee our safety. You could stay here with us.”

“There’s safety in numbers, and staying here is crazy,” I said.

“You don’t think we can make it on our own?” she asked.

“Not without concrete walls and an army.”

“Do you think we could just stay for the night? I know Claire will see things differently in the morning, and so will I. We’re just so tired after everything we’ve been through.”

Nick peeked his head in. “Absolutely not! This place isn’t safe. We need to get some supplies and load them and our butts in those Jeeps.” He grabbed my shoulder. “Get moving now!”

Chapter 7

Val, Nick, and I quickly loaded up the two Jeeps with bottled water, a case of Pepsi, and canned food we found in the pantry. I also packed the black bag holding the precious vials. I started up both Jeeps; they ran great. Val found a few red plastic gas cans in the garage next to the lawnmower, which was great; we didn’t want to stop anywhere if we didn’t have to. It would be wise to get a head start, with nothing to slow us down.

We were all set to go, but my heart sank. I couldn’t imagine leaving Claire and Jackie to their fates. I just hoped I could convince them to change their minds—especially Jackie, who I was really taking a liking to. Nick gave me ten more minutes to try and convince her to go with us. I found her in the humongous master bedroom on the bottom floor. What made the room really neat was that it extended from the house with three glass walls and a glass roof. “Hey,” I said, noticing she had cleaned up and changed into new clothes. They were a size too big, but they were much more practical than what she’d been wearing earlier. I was sure Val would be impressed with her blue jeans, white t-shirt, and black tennis shoes. She’d also put her hair up in a long ponytail. “We’re getting ready to leave, but I wanted to talk to you first.”

“Don’t worry. I’ve got the gun you gave me.” Jackie glanced out through the spacious glass wall, watching as the setting sun flooded the sky with brilliant colors. She placed her hand on the clear glass. “It’s so beautiful, isn’t it?”

“Yep. Something like that could even fool you into thinking the world hasn’t gone to hell in a hand basket.”

She frowned and sat down on the bed. “I was trying to block all that out, if only for a minute.”

I sat next to her. “This is a cool bedroom. It’s kind of like a glass cube.”

She glanced up. “Yeah. I bet it’s neat to see the stars shining at night.”

I stared at her black hair with blonde streaks. It was striking, original, and beyond cute. I loved her bold look. “So, what’s your story?” I asked.

“My story?”

“Yup. Everyone’s got one, right?”

“Right, but I guess right now I’m only concerned about the ending.” She sighed. “I just want to live another day. Tell me, Dean, is it really possible to survive in such a hostile, undead world?”

“Yes, and that said, I have to make one last-ditch effort to try and convince you to change your mind and come with us. We’re leaving in a few minutes.”

She continued to stare off into the sunset. “Give it your best shot.”

“Jackie, there are plenty of cities out there that are still safe, like the island in Ohio where Nick and I live. I’ve been there since the outbreak, with no problems. The zombies aren’t immortal beings. They can’t bust through brick walls or get through our military. We have machineguns, bombs, and all kinds of ways to stay safe. Supplies are flown in every day to help people survive the battle.”

She met my gaze. “If it was so great, so safe, then why’d you leave?”

“I didn’t—not on purpose anyway. Our helicopter crashed on a trip for make-believe supplies.”

She cocked a curious brow.

I continued, “I know it sounds weird, but it’s a long story. I can tell you all about it on our road trip.” I was pretty cocky and certain she’d change her mind and come with us. By the twinkle in her eye, I could tell she liked me, at least a little. 

“I’m sorry you crashed.”

“It was what it was,” I said. “I can’t cry about it now. I need to stay focused and keep moving.”

“Can we ever defeat these things? I mean, do you think our lives will ever be normal again?”

I reached for her hand. “Yes, I believe we will prevail. Zombies will die off, and eventually their bodies will rot away. All we have to do is outlive the infected. Yes, there are overwhelming odds stacked against us, but we can do this. I believe with all my heart that humanity can overcome anything, as long as we don’t lose hope.”

“So you’re heading to a safe haven, one of the walled cities?”

“Yes. We can hold out in the fortresses created around the United States. Zombies will run out of food and die, and we’ll get our world back. We just need a little time.”

She nodded. “You make a good point.”

“Then come with us. I’m sure Claire will cave once she sees you’re serious about leaving.”

A
thump
on the window drew my attention.

Jackie jumped. “What was that?”

I turned and couldn’t believe my eyes. A zombie with rotting flesh and oozing eyeballs was hitting his head against the glass. He shot me a stone-cold, glazed-over look that said in not so many words,
“I want your brains…now!”
The stupid thing seemed stumped as to why he couldn’t pass through the transparent glass wall.

Speechless, Jackie pointed to the other glass walls.

I gasped. Crap. Another one stared me straight in the eyes. This one looked like a raccoon, with blackened skin around her eyes; she definitely had that I-just-got-out-of-the-grave look about her. The dead seemed to be coming out of the woodwork like cockroaches, multiplying before our very eyes. Our beautiful view of the sunset had turned into a grotesque nightmare.

I stood, but my sudden movement made them moan and groan even louder. Decaying human hands pounded on the glass walls from all three sides of the bedroom, and my heart raced. Brain-hungry walking corpses staggered around with white, sunken eyes and green, mottled skin. It was downright disturbing. I sucked in a deep gulp of air.

The glass shook, and I wondered if it would shatter. I gasped as bloody handprints streaked across the glass. Windows are notoriously easy to break, but I wondered how well a glass wall would hold up. I sure didn’t want to find out.

I backed up slowly, focusing on the zombie who was making the most fuss. Even though he had decayed hands with exposed tendons, he still kept pounding. I cringed at his blue-green veins and the open flesh wounds on his forehead, cheeks, and neck. Through a tear in his shirt, I noticed an exposed ribcage with decaying flesh hanging off of it in grotesque shreds. The right pant leg was also torn to reveal a long white femur. Even a famous horror writer couldn’t have invented anything as horrible as the very real monster I was staring at.

“Let’s go!” Jackie said, grabbing my shoulder.

“Nick!” I yelled. “We’ve got to go…NOW!”

Chapter 8

With the orange light of the setting sun as a backdrop, the zombie looked like a creature out of a horror movie. His decaying palms pressed against the smooth surface of the glass wall, and his open mouth dripped with spit and blood as his dead gaze focused on me, making me flinch. For a whole second, I could barely breathe, let alone form a coherent thought in my head, and then it dawned on me that we had to get the heck away from there.

I grabbed Jackie’s hand and headed down the hallway, calling as loudly as my lungs would allow, “Nick! Val! There’s a pack of zombies out there. We need to get going now!”

Our feet pounded the hardwood floor as we passed the hall and rounded the corner into the living room. The door stood ajar, as though no one had bothered to close it behind them. I yanked it open and stopped in my tracks when I took in the two towering guys resembling wild mountain men with their unkempt appearance, greasy hair, and long, thick beards.

“Going somewhere?” one asked.

“What the heck?” I took a step back, unsure whether they were friends or foe. They didn’t look like zombies, but for all I knew, they could’ve been bitten and might turn on us any minute. Even if they weren’t part of the undead army yet, they could have still wanted our food and weapons. “Who are you? How did you get in here?” My grip tightened around Jackie’s hand as I pushed my body forward to form a shield between her and the wildlings. If they wanted her, they’d have to force their way past me first—not that I could have been much of a safeguard against a pair like that, but I hoped I could at least buy her a few seconds to get away.

The one in the red checkered shirt raised his hand and waved his rifle at Jackie and me. “You two with them?” He pointed behind him, toward my brother and Val, who were lying on the ground, their mouths pressed in a grim line that didn’t leave me much hope. With Nick holding the back of his head and Val’s bloody lip, I knew they’d been attacked and put up a good fight. The wildlings were clearly after our food and weapons. Whether they’d leave us alive or not wouldn’t make much difference with the zombies out there, ready to burst in any minute.

I took a deep breath, and then a step forward while pushing Jackie behind me. “Look, mister, there’re zombies out back! We’ve got to get outta here now!”

The other wildman regarded me for a second, probably considering my words and trying to read my expression, to see if I was telling the truth. He patted Jackie and me down and took our guns.

“You don’t trust me?” I spat through gritted teeth. “I wouldn’t either in your situation, but if I am telling the truth—which I am—we’re all dead. Go and see for yourself.”

The red checkered shirt guy motioned the other forward and then aimed his gun a bit higher, right at my face. I didn’t even flinch as I watched his companion walk past. The mountain man then forced me and Jackie to stand next to the others. A few seconds ticked by before his friend returned, his face a pale mask of horror. I saw his faint nod, and then the red checkered guy lowered his weapon. “We’re gonna have to work together if we wanna make it out alive.”

I nodded and heaved a big breath. “Give us back our weapons,” I said, pointing at my brother and the girls. “We won’t be of much help if we can’t shoot.”

The red checkered guy nodded and held out his hand. “I’m Earl, and that’s my friend Tahoe, like the lake.”

I ignored him as I walked past. We had to work together to get out of this mess, but I had no doubt the hillbilly twins would happily shoot our heads off and take all our food and supplies once the zombies were properly dispatched.

“I’m Nick,” my brother said. “That’s Dean, Val, Jackie, and Claire. Give us back our weapons…
now
!”

Tuning them out, I headed for the side door, pulling Jackie with me. I wanted to see if the zombies were starting to come around to the front of the house. Unfortunately, we didn’t get far before a flat, metallic
click
warned me of danger. I turned on my heel slowly, my gaze focusing on Earl’s rifle, which was now pointed at me again.

“Stop, or I’ll shoot you both dead in your tracks.”

My automatic response was to touch my holster, but then I remembered that Tahoe had disarmed me, so I remained frozen to the spot. “I figured that much,” I said dryly. “But I thought you said we need to work together.”