The Hunt Chronicles (Book 2): Revelation (3 page)

I rose to my feet, finally in the safety of the building.  Well, not entirely safe.  While Boomer hadn’t found any of the dead inside, the hundreds coming toward the gas station were starting to build up.  The three of us followed the canine to the back as the zombies pressed up against the small wall.  I could already see a couple mounting the windowsill over near the newspaper stand.  It wouldn’t be long until every busted out window was full of zombies climbing their way in.

The store was in disarray.  Shelves had been knocked over and debris was everywhere. 

I moved up and took the lead with Boomer and saw where the entrance to the walk-in cooler was.  Instantly, I knew it was a bad idea.  Though the glass doors that gave access to all the drinks and frozen goods seemed intact, they still led back into the walk-in.  It wouldn’t take zombies long to bash their way through the glass and knock down the shelves. 

The door to the cooler was right next to the back door.  For a brief moment, I considered barging through the back door and continue running until we could find something better.  But with my adrenaline kicking in, my mind was already set on making it into the cooler.  Not that charging out back would have made us any safer.  It was night and every zombie in the city was out for the hunt.

At the time, I thought it was hopeless anyway.  It didn’t matter where we went.  The dead were going to find us and my immunity wouldn’t keep my heart beating after they ripped me to shreds.  But even though I thought we were already dead, it doesn’t stop the human instinct of survival.

Boomer ran straight for the back as I stopped and opened the cooler door.  Karina ran in as Boomer swung around and took up station right next to me, his tail wagging intensely.

Chuck soon followed while I covered them.  None of the undead had made it within sight yet and I thought we may have made it home free.  I grabbed Boomer by the collar and pushed him through the door.

I glanced one more time behind us.  The zombies were coming into the building, but were still not visible.  I jumped through the cooler door and quietly shut it behind us.

Chapter 2

Santa Claus

April 22
nd
  Midnight

Without much thought, I switched off my flashlights and ducked down by the door.  It was pitch black, and I couldn’t see where Chuck or Karina had gone.  I heard the old man breathing heavy, but didn’t hear anything from Karina.  Boomer was right by my side though, silent, as if he knew making any noise would put us in danger.

There was a saving grace.  I could hear the zombies in the store, but they appeared to be more anxious than aggressively trying to break their way into the walk-in cooler.  Their moans were loud, even through the heavy, insulated metal door.  By some insane luck, I was sure all of the glass doors that lined the front side of the cooler were all shut and intact. 

I was positive that with all of the commotion in the store, I could whisper and not be heard by the dead.  It was risky, but I could hear things falling and being knocked around, not to mention their own croaks and moans.  Whatever allowed these things to hear should still be hampered by the laws of physics.

“Karina, Chuck,” I whispered as quietly as possible.

“Here,” Chuck replied, just as low.  Karina didn’t reply, but I heard her sniffle.

“I don’t think they know we’re in here,” I said, moving towards the sound of Karina’s sobs.  I could sense Boomer was at my side the whole way, but his panting was drowned out by the moans of the dead.

“Yeah,” the old cop agreed.  His voice seemed strained, almost like he was gasping for breath.

“We might be able to wait it out all night,” I said confidently.  “If we have free skies tomorrow, punching our way out of here and into the open sun might not be that hard.”

“We might not have all night, Christian,” Chuck said solemnly.

I found Karina and felt her jerk to the side.

“It’s me,” I assured her, and then responded to Chuck.  “I think we can.”

“You don’t get it, boy,” he said a little too loud, “they got me.”

It took me a moment to register what Chuck said.  Karina, however, understood right away and clutched my arm.

“You got bit?” the teenager asked, her voice shaking.

“Afraid so,” he strained.  I could hear him moving around, like he was scooting across the floor.

“Where?” I asked, barely squeezing the word out.  I was having trouble coming to terms with it.  We were not in the best place to be locked in an enclosed environment with someone who was going to change into a scab at any moment.

“My hand,” he said.

“Are you… are you sure you’re infected?”  Karina asked.

“Everyone gets infected,” he returned almost angrily. 

“That’s not true,” I blurted out.

“It is, Christian,” he sighed.  “I’m already dead.  We just need to figure out how we’re going to save you two.”

“I’m not—,” I started to say and then stopped.  I was going to say I wasn’t going to shoot him.  That I wasn’t a killer, but that wasn’t true.  A flash of Judy’s face broke through the darkness of the walk-in cooler.  I pulled the trigger on her and if I had to, I knew I would on him, too.  But I still thought there was a chance he wasn’t infected.

I left Karina’s side and moved towards Chuck.  I felt her grasp out toward me, but I quickly pulled away.

“Chuck,” I whispered, hoping it was low enough that Karina couldn’t make out what I was saying, “there is still a chance you’re not infected.”  I was pretty sure Boomer stayed next to her.

“It doesn’t work that way,” he argued as I got closer to the sound of his voice.

“It does,” I urged.  “Not everyone gets infected.  I know this for a fact!” I emphasized.

“What do you mean?” he asked suspiciously.  I could tell he didn’t believe me.

I reached down and felt his arm.

“I got bit,” I said as quietly as possible.  He started to jerk away.  “No wait!  I got bit in the beginning, when everything went to hell.  The first day, you know?  I never changed.”

I didn’t tell him that I got bit back at the Ace Hardware.  I had a feeling that if I did, he might just kill me right there.

“That’s not possible,” he dismissed.  “Everyone I’ve seen get bit, turns.”

“I should be a scab right now or at least a zombie,” I continued.  “But I’m not.  I’m still me.  It’s been a month.”

“You have to be mistaken, Christian,” he continued to argue.  “I know—”

I interrupted him and grabbed his hand.

“Feel this,” I said as I shoved his hand through the top opening of my vest and shirt.  “Do you feel it?  That’s the scar.  I almost lost half my shoulder.”

He tried to pull away at first, but I held fast.  After a moment, I could feel his fingers tracing around the wound Dave gave me the first day of The Awakening.

“I don’t know, Christian,” he said stubbornly.

“I am immune,” I whispered confidently, “and there is a chance you are, too.  I haven’t told anyone because… well, because I wasn’t sure how they would react.”

“Maybe you are,” he grumbled, “and maybe you’re not.  But I am.  I can feel it.  It’s like sand in my veins.”

“But Chuck…” I started to say, but stopped when he grabbed my arm.

“Listen,” he said between sharp breaths, “you get that girl out of here.  You save her life.”

“We can’t get out of here,” I argued.  “We won’t make it ten feet.”

“You will if I can… can get their attention,” he grunted as he started to get up.  “I’ll go to the other end of the cooler.” He coughed, a little too loud.  “I’ll push open one of the glass doors and make a ruckus.  It should give you enough time to run out and then go through the back door.”

“Look man,” I pleaded, “just wait it out.  Maybe—”

“Stop arguing with me,” he said as he shoved the MP5 into my chest, and then leaned in close to my ear.  “Listen to me,” he said in a whisper, “I don’t know if that story you just said is real or not.  But if it is, you get Karina to safety, find the others or someone else, then you leave her be.  Go off and avoid everyone if you can.”

“But I told you,” I hissed equally as low, “I’m immune!”

“Immune or a carrier?” he retorted.

“But...” I trailed off.  I hadn’t considered that.

“It could be in your blood, Christian.  You could be putting everyone at risk.  Maybe if there was still a government they could do something with you, but there isn’t.”  He stopped for a second and I could hear him reloading his hand gun.  “You’re a danger, kid.  You were right to keep it to yourself.”

I didn’t know what to say.  I started to think he was right.  It was something I hadn’t considered before.  Thinking I’m immune is one thing, but what would people do if they thought I was carrying the infection?  Maybe fate had saved my life back at the Ace Hardware compound when the scabs showed up, preventing me from revealing the secret to Lieutenant Campbell.

“Get the girl, Christian,” he said sternly.

Reluctantly, I agreed and slowly felt my way back.

I bumped into her, not realizing she had already gotten to her feet.

“You okay?” I asked, more annoyed than apologetic.  Boomer brushed the side of my leg letting me know he was still there as well.

“Yes,” she said, fear still in her voice.  But there was something else, I just couldn’t put my finger on what it was.

I heard Chuck rummaging through whatever clutter was on the ground as he made his way over to the far wall.

“Christian,” he said loudly, not caring anymore about being heard, “you remember what I told you.”

I didn’t say anything back.  I didn’t know what to say.

Karina, Boomer and I moved to the door, waiting for whatever Chuck had planned.  This might make me sound horrible, but there was a part of me that hoped he put a bullet in his head before they got to him or before he turned into a scab.

“Do you still have my pack?” I asked her hurriedly.

“Uh-huh,” she answered.

“Give it to me,” I told her.  She blindly handed it to me and I quickly detached my AR and strapped it to the top of the pack.

I put the backpack on and reloaded the MP5.  A quick feel on my ammo vest told me I had only one more magazine left for it.  There was more ammo in my pack, but I neither had the light nor the time to riffle through it.

“Get ready, kids!” Chuck said with an air of peacefulness that bewildered me.  How could he be so calm knowing he was about to die?

I heard a creak and the moans of the dead that were muffled now filled the walk-in cooler.

“Hey, fuckers!” he yelled out.  “Come and get me!”

The dead-heads instantly went into a frenzy, pushing towards the open glass door.  I could hear the shelves that stood between Chuck and the dead rattle and shake as they clawed their way towards him.  Glass started to shatter all along the wall as they pressed up against each other in hopes of feasting on the old cop as he continued to call out to them.

I didn’t waste any more time.  Chuck would soon be dead and we would too if we didn’t get moving right away.

I quietly opened the freezer door and felt Boomer rush out.  I couldn’t see anything.  If moonlight was making it into the building, the hoard of zombies pushing through the front blocked it all out.

Luckily, the back door wasn’t barred or locked.  I pushed on it and it easily opened, shedding moonlight into the gas station.  Behind me, the moans grew to epic proportions as I heard Chuck’s gun go off.

The clear night sky above revealed an open yard in the back, partway fenced.  To the left was a road heading east to west and nothing but scrub brush and palmetto bushes in front of us.  I could see surprisingly well.  The change from complete darkness made it seem brighter out than it actually was.

I looked over toward the road and saw numerous figures moving in the direction of the building.  We couldn’t go that way.  I saw no other choice but to head into the brush where I hadn’t seen any zombies. 

More gunshots rang out from inside the store as we ran into the field.  A shriek of pain screeched out over the sound of the frenzied dead.  One more shot sounded from the gas station, and the agonizing cry was cut off.

We kept moving with Boomer in the lead.  Karina was actually faster than I was.  Adrenaline couldn’t change the fact that I was carrying an extra hundred pounds.  Besides the thirty pound pack now strapped to my back and the fifteen pound AR-15, I had my weapon, other gear and twenty-five pounds of ammo strapped to my chest.  I was falling behind and was starting to lose sight of them.

We ran for only a few minutes before I called out for them to stop. 

“Hold on,” I wheezed.  “Just… hold on a sec.”

Boomer slowed and stopped, but Karina kept running.

“Wait!” I called out in a partial yell, but she disappeared around a large palmetto bush.  Sucking in a breath, I continued.  Boomer, after seeing me start up the pace again, continued after her.

I rounded a few more bushes and came across a small reservoir.  Karina was running along the edge and then continued west through the brush.  Boomer stopped and turned toward me. 

“Go!” I yelled at him and he turned back around and sprinted after her. 

I didn’t want Karina to be alone.  If she ran into a group of zombies, she would not be able to defend herself.  With Boomer there, she would have a chance.

I jogged as fast as my body would let me.  Blood was pumping into my ears and I felt like I was going to pass out.  Warm liquid was streaming down my forearm and onto my hand.  The bite I received inside the Ace Hardware was still bleeding.

The sound of Boomer panting and whining brought me to him.  He was pacing back and forth in front of a fence.  Behind it was a building and I could see piles of junk scattered around a large open area behind the structure.

“She… climb… the fence, buddy?” I said between breaths.  Boomer just whined anxiously.

The fence was six feet tall.  Getting Boomer over it would have been impossible.

I took off my pack and tossed it over into the lot.  Praying that it was strong enough, I pulled out my multi-tool and searched for one of the thick wires that connected the fence to the poles.

I ended up having to cut three before I could fit Boomer and myself under it.  It only took a minute, even in the dark, but it seemed like forever. 

As soon as Boomer made it under, he broke off to the back of the lot.  I soon followed, grabbing my pack and slinging it over one shoulder.

“Karina!” I said in a loud whisper as I navigated through the large back lot full of junk.  It had to be as big as a football field.  I could never have found her without Boomer.  Tracking the canine around a few piles of metal scrap, I came to a dead end.

In the corner, I could barely make out Karina huddled in the shadows.

“Karina,” I whispered, “What are you doing?”