The Zombie Letters (28 page)

              “You don’t ask
me
shit, man,” the gunman said. “Brothers said we gotta wait. Wait my ass . . . I’m takin’ your guns, your plane . . . and your girl.” He shoved the barrel further into the back of the doctor’s head and shouted in a deep, rumbling voice that was a bit slurred. Typically with darker black men, they tend to have redder eyes. This man in particular was very dark-skinned, but his eyes were downright bloodshot. Alvin could tell the guy had been drinking.

              “Wait a sec!” Darin shouted. “I think we can reach an agreement!”

              “Shut up, Miles!” Alvin screamed back, “Don’t say shit! Leave Archie outta this!”

              “What?!” the crazed man said, letting loose a stream of spit into Darin’s hair. “Who the fuck is Archie?”

              “Goddamnit, Darin!” Alvin snarled as he shouted. “He don’t need to know about that!”
              “Shut up . . . or I kill the whore instead.” He pointed the rifle at Victoria. With hands still in the air, she shrank back against Alvin and pressed her back against him.

              Darin shot a harsh look at Frenchie. “You wanna die, Alvin? Be my guest.” The gun was pointed back at him. “Listen . . . whoever you are. My name is Doctor Darin Miles. I’m a scientist with Locke Research Labs based in Washington DC. Pentagon, understand? This outbreak started when one of my team’s projects went haywire. Long story short, we found an ancient plant outside of Mount Fuji in Japan that helped us build the fucking shit that started this. It was all an accident. The extract from this plant acts as a  . . . repellent.”

              The assassin shoved the barrel into the back of Darin’s head violently, making his head swim. “Buddy, you better start making sense real quick.”

              “Are you listening, numb-nuts? He’s telling you that the oil extracted from this plant keeps those things from attacking. It was used as a base for the drug that started this and for some reason, they pay no attention to anyone that has it on their skin,” Alvin said. He moved his hand to the butt of the gun at Vic’s back pocket. The man with the rifle didn’t see the small gesture, so Alvin put his other arm in the air.

              “Bullshit . . .” he sneered though his surly words. A small, sickly belch escaped his mouth.

              “Nope,” Alvin said, slowly lowering his hand and reaching for the plane’s keys. “Here.” Alvin tossed the keys at the drunken man. For a moment, Alvin thought that he was too inebriated to notice, but when the keys hit his chest, he fumbled to catch them. He lowered the rifle enough for Darin to quickly turn around and grab the barrel. Darin took the barrel into both hands and shoved it up, connecting it to the man’s nose. It instantly gushed blood, but to his amazement, he didn’t even flinch. They struggled for the gun, but the assassin quickly overpowered Doctor Miles. He snatched the rifle away, spilling Darin to the floor. Before he could raise the boom-stick to the good doctor’s head again, Alvin drew the small pistol and sent a bullet into the man’s eye. He remained on his feet for a moment and fell face-first onto the floor . . . nearly on top of Darin. “I want to assume that the others he referred to also heard that shot,” Alvin said, walking up to the heap on the floor and getting his weapon back. It was foolish assuming the drunk asshole didn’t check the gun beforehand. It
was
loaded. Live ammo. He indeed had the right gun. “We’d better get the hell out of here.”

              “You’re a hell of a shot with that thing,” Victoria said, extending a hand to lift Darin up. He stood up and held onto her hand . . . just a moment longer than he had to.

              “I’m just a collector. That guy was huge. Kinda hard to miss him. Eyes were so goddamn red, they looked like bulls-eyes.”

              They all ran to the plane and French leapt inside, turning on the engine quicker than the others could even open the doors. The plane whirled to life. When a bright light shot on in the control tower, the three of them were already heading up the runway. Alvin told himself he could have been pissed off that they had the rest of his guns, but at least
he
had the Godfather and one of his assault rifles. There were three of them now. Two guns were not going to cut it. They needed more.

              “We’re going to Kentucky,” Alvin shouted over the sound of the plane.

              “Might I ask
why
?” Victoria shouted back.

“There’s a National Guard base right outside of Mayfield. It’s one of the largest armory stockpiles in the country,” Darin said.

“Well done, Doctor Miles!” Alvin’s voice could barely be heard over the sound of the plane, but Darin could make it out well enough. When they shut the doors, the Cessna was as quiet as a car.

Victoria could see why Frenchie liked flying so much. Up in the clouds, one could pretend that everything wasn’t quite as bad as it really was. The only thing around them was sky. The clouds looked like she could open a window and walk on them. She’d never seen anything like it before. The sky was enveloping; surrounding them all in a world of blue. It looked as if someone had wrapped a large box around the world and carpeted it in thick clouds. The ground didn’t matter. It seemed to matter to Doctor Miles at that moment. He sat beside her in the back seat with his gaze locked somewhere below the plane. Through the thick haze of clouds around the Cessna, the ground was still somewhat visible. Even from up here, Victoria Rains looked down and could make out the devastation their world had suffered. Buildings burned and the wrecked remains of civilization blew in the wind like tumbleweeds.  Cars were lying in ditches, on their sides and driven halfway through homes. Darin’s face was pressed to the window, but she could see his reflection in it. It was all coming loose. The floodgates had opened. It was heart wrenching for her to see men cry. Victoria supposed she got it from her grandfather. He was such a strong and collected man . . . very tough. The only time she ever saw him cry was when her grandmother had been diagnosed with breast cancer. Here and there, she had seen men weep since then. It was rare, but she did. It takes something truly different to make a real man break down. She couldn’t even handle men crying in the movies. It all came back to seeing the hardest male she had ever known, down on his knees in the garage where he thought no one was looking . . . pleading with a god he’d never believed in before that day.

Vicki Rains wanted to say something to Darin. To comfort him somehow. Given his hand in the events that re-shaped everything, how
could
she comfort someone like that? There was absolutely nothing she could say to someone with the weight of countless deaths on his shoulders. Never before had she felt more powerless. Victoria had become the same woman she was almost a year ago . . . on her ass in the street as the horde of the dead came after her. Darin Miles had saved her, though. Despite his awkwardness and silence on the matters of the heart, she knew he loved her. So, Victoria kept as silent as the destroyed Earth under their feet.

With his face still in the window, Darin Miles reached to his side and took her hand.

CHAPTER 12

I

             
G
one.

              Everybody was gone.

              When the sun rose, the base could be seen more clearly. The night before, they had just popped in and out. It was too dark to see anything in there, so they decided to wait until morning. Now, there were what looked like enough bullet holes in the walls of the armory to suggest that a small war was fought inside. From out of the little bullet-proof windows of the APV they had found, it was obvious that the place was of the many last-stands fought by a group of people. There was evidence of death all over the grounds. No bodies were anywhere, aside from those who were already dead. A massive burned pile of them sat next to the edge of the street as if someone somewhere would come by and cart off the garbage. Whoever had fought here placed all the living dead in a large pile and set fire to them. They were obviously survivors that did it. Only human beings could dispose of their fellow man . . . infected or not . . . so callously. There weren’t any of the infected there at all. No wanderers. Thank Christ the armory was in the middle of nowhere. Dennis figured why they’d all left. Those
things
probably don’t like their meat cooked.

              The travelers of the now destroyed Kentucky sat in the silent APV for nearly an hour, just observing the base around them and waiting for something to happen.

              Nothing.

              The personnel vehicle they found didn’t run anymore. It appeared that someone had used a torch to cut open a flap near the engine compartment. Wires were cut and it appeared as though something had been removed from it. Someone from the base must have been scrounging for parts. It was parked so close to the base that they decided to take a look inside while Christian kept watch outside. Nothing in there but discarded random shit they had no use for. Whoever was there before they arrived probably used it as a dumpster. There were also surveillance cameras everywhere. A couple of them still seemed to be working. Someone had to have been there recently.

They entered and searched every room. Ana Garner could see the look in Dennis’ eyes when they got to the last rooms in the base. They’d split up individually to scope the place and saw no one else living . . . or dead. “They’re gone.
THEY’RE GONE!
” Dennis screamed to the ransacked facility. He ran to a corner office door that was open. It was more than likely the base commander’s or officer’s area. Ana stood back and watched Dennis tear the office apart. Nothing survived his surprisingly pure rage. Not the door. Not the windows. Not even the solid maple desk. Her heart broke watching a man in such extreme desperation. He told them the story on the short bike ride over. That must have been so awful to see the look in your loved one’s eyes like Amanda looked at Dennis. Amanda Jackson didn’t see her husband. She saw a monster. She is somewhere now, mourning his death. The people that took them away were doing what they believed was at face-value. They saved a family from one of the living dead. What they didn’t know was that they were shooting at a man who’d nearly bled to death . . . but was still alive. He wasn’t one of those monstrous creatures, though it had to have been convincing at not only that distance, but with so little time to react. Dennis couldn’t react. Hell, he could barely remember it. All he could remember was her face.

              God, that look on her face.

              “The fuck you doin’?” Christian whispered behind Ana. He had to whisper. Another man was in ear-shot. Christian was the only king of the universe when the little wife was the only one in the room.

              “I just walked by and . . .”

              “Can you
imagine
what that guy’s going through? He’s lost it and your stupid ass is standing here staring at him like he’s some kinda goddamn zoo exhibit. Do you have any decency at all?” he balled up his fist at his side, taking a chunk of his pant leg into his leftie . . . the one with the nastiest hook.

              “Don’t talk to her like that,” Dennis’ voice calmly echoed from the room.

              “Hey, she was the one . . .” Christian said wide-eyed. He mouthed silently to her.
I’m gonna get you for that.

             
“I don’t care if she was taking a piss on your head. I’m not a moron and that scar under her eye wasn’t a dog bite or a cat scratch, either. Neither are the cigarette burns on her back.”

              Christian’s gaze grew cold. He was a fairly short, skinny guy . . . but he was a scrappy one. Wimp to the fellow men or not, he would still fare well in a fight. “You saw her . . .”

              “I
saw
her get in the back of the APV with me. I saw one when she moved to sit down. Her shirt got caught on a loose bolt.”

              “So you were lookin’?” Christian said. He was red-faced. Furious, but his voice was shaky and embarrassed.

              Dennis emerged from the room with a fire axe in his hands. Christian Garner’s eyes met it and his face instantly turned white. “I only
see
things that don’t belong.”

              “I told you, Dennis. This is preposterous,” Ana said with a false laugh. “I have . . .”

              “Those are cigarette burns. I see how you look at her when she makes the slightest step towards you. I can see it on her, too. She didn’t have to tell or
show
me shit. Personally, I don’t give a damn what you two do. Lady, if you allow this treatment, you are as much to blame as him, but as long as you are with me . . .” Dennis walked towards Christian with the axe and held the blade inches from his face. Christian visibly shrank back. His hands had let loose of his pant legs. Dennis’ eyes were terrifying. He was such a nice man, but both Ana and her husband saw that his personality could switch on a dime whenever it involved two things Ana had noticed about him. His family . . . and mutual respect for others. He had a genuine kindness in his heart, but a hidden sort of rage that rivaled her husband’s. Only the rage Dennis Jackson felt was just. It wasn’t uncontrolled, un-aimed and wild. Dennis’ rage was righteous. “As long as you are with me . . .” he repeated in a cold whisper. His puffy eyes were still leaking his family’s tears. “You leave her alone. You do so much as lay a finger on her and I’ll cut out your tongue and nail it to your forehead.”