Zombified (Book 2): Shady Oaks (20 page)

“
That's what everyone is hoping for. Jake wanted me to tell you that the next time you talk to Mick or anyone in town, be sure to tell them if someone is scratched or bitten to isolate and secure them until we can get them up here to see if they can be treated.”

“
Good idea, we can probably save a lot of people,” Charlie replied. “One other thing, remind me tomorrow morning to have a few men sweep this field to make sure we didn't miss any creepy crawlies.”

“
Got it,” Jenny said. She turned and gestured toward the tent. “I'm going back, are you coming?”

“
I'll be there in a few, think I'll see if I can get Mick on the walkie and see what they've decided. That way I can come in and let everyone know what's going on.”

To his surprise, Sean was the one who responded, telling Charlie that Mick gave him his walkie before going off with Cindy to explain what happened to Brooke.

“
I see,” he replied. He was glad he wasn't in Mick's shoes at the moment. “We've been busy up here getting things ready in case everyone heads this way, do you know if anything's been decided yet?”

“
As a matter of fact, now I'm hearing we are staying put for now. There's a plan in the works, but haven't heard what it is yet.”

“
All right, let your dad know we talked, okay? Oh, and one other thing, pass the word along if anyone is scratched or bitten they need to be isolated then brought up here so they can be tested to see if the vaccine will work for them. We don't need anyone dying needlessly because they think there's nothing that can be done.”

“
Good thinking, will pass it on. Talk to you soon.”

“
Copy that,” Charlie responded. He looked toward the tents as he clipped the walkie back into place. Now that they had the situation fairly well under control he felt the urge to head down to Shady Oaks. He hated the idea that his friends were in danger and he couldn't do anything to help them other than offer a little advice.

He saw a figure emerge, switch on a flashlight, and head his way. Jake gave him a grin as he lowered his light and came to stand beside him. “Jenny told me you were still out
here; I'd like to ask you something.”

“
Ask away,” he responded amicably. The more he was around Jake; the more he liked the young doctor.

“
I've been talking to the doctors and scientists who've been working for Malcolm. I don't agree with what Malcolm had them do, but what you and I would consider the really bad ones, they were weeded out awhile ago. These men that are left are dedicated to finding a vaccine that everyone can benefit from. I'd like to keep working up here if possible and I need their help.”

Charlie stood for a moment looking up at the sky, where a few tentative stars seemed to be dodging in and out of the clearing fog. He glanced at Jake.

“
I can't promise you anything, Jake. Whether directly responsible or not, a lot of people were hurt or lost their lives. When the time comes we'll have to decide what to do with them on an individual basis, but I would say that their dedication puts them in a somewhat favorable light.”

At Jake's crestfallen look, he said, “I'll pass on what you've said to the captain and the others, I'm sure they will be interested in what you have to say.”

“
Guess that's about the best I can ask for right now,” Jake said reluctantly. “Please emphasize though that I need these men and their research.”

“
I understand how important they are and will pass that along.”

“
So, have you heard from Mick yet?”

“
As a matter of fact, I just finished talking to Sean. Let's head back inside and I'll pass on what he told me.”

He noticed headlights coming up the dirt road, bouncing up and down and skimming the tree line. Hunter was back sooner than expected and met them at the entrance to the tent.

“
We found a good spot and it's going to take a good while for all those bodies to burn,” he said as he nodded toward the southeast. Charlie followed his gaze and made out a faint red glow through the trees. “A couple guys stayed behind to watch the fire. We're planning to go back sometime tomorrow to bury the remains.”

“
You mean sometime today, it's past midnight,” Charlie said. “Let me know when. I'm thinking it would be nice if I can manage to get the captain to let one of his chaplains come up here to go with you to say a few words.”

Hunter nodded. “Good idea, maybe we could even have a little service of some kind.”

Charlie nodded and gestured with his flashlight toward the tent. “After you.”

A sudden wave of fatigue washed over him. Coffee was definitely needed before he did anything else. He followed the others inside and made a beeline straight for the kitchenette, which was directly on the other side of the plastic divider. He sighed with happiness when he saw a full pot in the coffeemaker.

Jenny was standing nearby talking to Beth and she glanced at him and smiled. He smiled back and pointed.

“
Coffee. Need some. Now please.”

The two women chuckled as they watched him scurry over and grab a paper cup, quickly filling it with steaming coffee. He began to blow then sip the hot liquid, grimacing as it burned his tongue, but it had the desired effect. He could feel the heat course through him and it helped chase away the fatigue.

“
I guess Jake talked to you?” Jenny asked. She gave him a questioning look.

He nodded and took another sip. Ah, heaven in a cup he thought. He looked at his daughter. “We talked and I told him I would pass on his request, but I'm in no position to make any decision, especially right now.”

“
Understood,” Jenny remarked.

“
By the way, I heard from Sean and I need to get everyone together, let them know what's going on in Shady Oaks. Why don't we head back to the main room.”

As he turned to go, he heard his walkie crackle to life and after a moment, Mick's voice came through. As he pulled it free, he held up a hand. “Would you mind going on and getting everyone together while I take this?”

“
Sure thing,” Jenny said. She stopped and gave him a quick kiss on the cheek before stepping through the plastic.

He hadn't expected to hear from Mick so soon and frowned. Sometimes no news was good news and with Mick calling him back so soon, it made him nervous.

He took a deep breath and pushed the button. “Charlie here.”

****

He still sat with his back against the cold and damp stone wall of the basement. He thought there was more than enough room for them, but he was wrong. So many came, and many more were on their way. By daylight the building would be unable to hold any more, which meant they would be milling around outside where they could easily be seen.

Instinctively, he knew they had to move, if they were discovered now they would surely be destroyed. He really wanted to stay put, he was satiated from feeding and his distended stomach made it difficult to move. With a groan, he placed a mottled and gore-covered hand against the wall and slowly pulled himself up.

Those around him began to stir as he filled their empty minds with an imagine of them moving as a group down the smaller dirt side road that led off into the thick stand of trees that lined the base of the mountain. As they stood, he turned and made his way slowly up the stairs.

Those waiting on the first floor made way for him and fell into line behind him as he passed by. He wasn't sure where to go, he only knew they needed to go the opposite direction from where they recently fed. He stepped outside and slowly shambled toward the dirt road.

Chapter 26

Cindy wiped her eyes again and sniffed. Mick watched her with concern. She was taking what he told her better than expected. She hadn't even said anything about him leaving Brooke at the camp.

She looked at him with red-rimmed eyes. “I knew eventually something would happen to one of us, the odds weren't in our favor to stay fairly unscathed by all this.”

He rubbed her back silently as she continued. “I knew I should have made her stay here, I was uneasy about her going, we didn't even know what it was like up there. I feel like this is all my fault.”

Mick tilted his head to look at her, surprised. “If anyone has anything to feel guilty about, it's me. I was supposed to watch out for her. Not only did she get hurt, but then I left her up there.”

Cindy shook her head. “I guess we are both going to feel guilty no matter what, but the hard truth is we can't protect them from everything. Besides, she's in the best hands possible right now and she'd only be in more danger down here.”

“
True. Hadn't thought about it that way,” Mick admitted. He heard voices coming from down the hall and looked up. “Sounds like something's going on, let's go check it out.”

Cindy gave him a faint smile. “All right, just promise me that as soon as this is over we'll head up to be with Brooke.”

“
Promise,” he said solemnly before heading for the door. He almost ran into Scott at the threshold.

“
C'mon you two, Nelson made it here with his men and he's got Dexter with him!”

Mick raised an eyebrow and taking Cindy's hand, followed his son down the hall. As they approached the thick glass doors that led outside, he saw a large group of people standing around.

As they exited the building and went down the short flight of steps, Cindy pointed and leaned toward him. “There's Dexter,” she said loudly in his ear so she could be heard, it seemed to Mick that everyone was trying to talk at once.

Mick squinted, then nodded. A slight but steady breeze was blowing away what was left of the fog, and the nearly full moon was high in the sky, illuminating everything in a pale, cold light.

Scott stopped abruptly and Mick saw Captain Sears approaching, with Nelson and Dexter on his heels. They bounded up the steps and turning, the captain held up a hand.

“
Can I get everyone's attention, please?” Instant silence greeted him and he smiled. “Thank you. After much discussion, I wanted to explain what's going on. Nelson here tells me he believes we can defeat these things and that there's no reason to put it off. Mr. Reed,” he said with a gesture toward Dexter, “Informs me that his men up on the apartment roof were beginning to make a rather large dent in the numbers as they picked them off one by one.”

He looked around at the men and women standing before him. “We need to decide if we want to stay and fight, or should we head back up to the camp where we can regroup and do some planning.”

“
If we let those things run around willy nilly while we're lounging around at this camp, they're going to do even more damage. We've worked too hard to get this town up and running again to just hand it over,” a dark-haired woman Mick knew only as Milly said. “And what about the people in the shelter? They would be stuck in there until we returned.”

There were several murmurs of agreement, and Mick knew right then what the final decision would be. In the end, it was unanimous that they would stay and fight. After another hurried discussion, Nelson gathered up his men and disappeared into the night.

To Mick's dismay, Dexter was put in charge of all civilians and he immediately began to bellow orders in true Dexter style. The last thing Mick wanted to do was fight his way through zombies again. Fortunately, Cindy, Judith, and a few others were to stay at the school and keep a watch on the roof and take out any stray zombies who headed their way.

Mick wasn't the least bit surprised that Sean and Scott were going with Sears and after a few quick hugs and reassurances, they hurried off.

He turned to Cindy and wrapped his arms around her. He rested his chin on the top of her head and held her tight. He was afraid to leave her alone, although he knew that other than the shelter, she would be safe up on the school roof away from the reach of any zombie. He held her until he felt a large and heavy hand fall on his shoulder.

“
Time to go,” Dexter growled.

Cindy looked up as Mick released her. “Have you heard from Darrel, Megan, Casey, or Rose?”

“
Haven't heard from anyone other than Rose, I talked to her when I was stuck on the roof. I was able to reach her on the walkie when I saw some of the people from the shelter come up when the church bells rang. Told her to get them back inside. I saw her come up and talk to a few of them before Nelson's men showed up. She ran back in when they started rounding people up.”

“
Oh, I'm glad she didn't get caught,” Cindy remarked.

“
She was back inside the shelter with Kevin when the zombies made their way down there,” Dexter said. He grunted as he shifted his backpack from one shoulder to another. “She said they had to fight them off to get the door closed and some people didn't make it.”

Cindy gasped and Mick put an arm around her shoulders. “What! How in the world did zombies end up down there?” he asked in dismay.

Dexter shrugged. “No idea, maybe they were attracted to the commotion Nelson's men were making when they were taking themselves some prisoners and found an open door. By the way, what's up with all these naked and bald zombies – and some have what looks like medical scrubs or paper gowns on?”

Mick shook his head. “We have Malcolm, the leader of the Connor Group to thank for that, but I'll explain more later when we have more time.”

Dexter looked at his watch. “Speaking of time, we really gotta go. Are you ready?”

Mick sighed. “Ready as I'll ever be, I suppose.”

He turned to Cindy as Judith walked up and linked an arm through her's. “Take care of her for me,” he said to Judith and gave her a small smile.

She smiled back. “Don't worry, she can take care of herself, but I'll be there if she does need me.”

Cindy blew him a kiss as Judith began to drag her away by the arm. “See you soon!”

“
I'll call you on the walkie when it's all clear,” Mick said with a small wave.

Dexter grunted again and gave Mick a nudge. “C'mon man, we don't have all
day; everyone else is in place and ready to move.”

Mick hesitated. “Go on
ahead; I'll be there in a few.”

Dexter gave him a quizzical look, but for once didn't push the issue and ambled off.

He wanted to let Charlie know what was going on so they could start preparing. With what they were up against, Mick was certain they were going to have several more injured on their hands. He quickly keyed the mike.

****

“
Charlie here, what's up Mick?”

“
Sean filled me in on what you two discussed,” came the reply. “He passed the info on and I wanted to let you know we're about to go finish this, one way or the other.”

Charlie frowned. “Wish I could be there.”

He heard Mick give a wry chuckle. “No you don't. Trust me. I wanted to give you a heads up so you have time to get ready for the injured we'll be bringing up.”

“
From what I've seen, I think we have everything we need.”

“
Sounds good, but if you haven't already, you might want to set up a quarantine area. We know there will be some who won't be able to tolerate the vaccine and we'll need a place to put them.”

Charlie gave himself a mental slap upside the head. “Good idea, I knew there was something we were forgetting!”

“
I'm hoping we get lucky, but we both know not everyone will make it,” said Mick with such sadness in his voice that it carried over the walkie.

“
Well, let's stay optimistic then,” Charlie said with forced reassurance.

“
How is Brooke, is she still sleeping?”

“
Like a baby,” Charlie said as he glanced toward the tent.

“
Any news from Jake yet?”

“
Not yet, but could be anytime now.”

“
All right, guess I should get going. No matter what though, the minute you know anything give me a shout, okay?”

“
You got it. How is Judith?”

“
She's with Cindy and they are safe and sound up on the high school roof.”

“
That's a relief,” Charlie responded.

“
Dexter's glaring at me and heading this way so guess I'd better go,” Mick said with a sigh.

“
All right, take care of yourself,” Charlie said as sudden tears stung his eyes. He felt a deep and surprising fear. He tried to swallow, gulping past the large lump in his throat.

He heard a chuckle. “I'm always careful,” Mick replied.

“
You'd better be,” Charlie said. “If you haven't heard from me by the time you're finished down there, give me a call.”

“
Will do, signing off for now.”

Charlie stared at the walkie in his hand for what seemed like minutes. At that moment, he didn't know what to say, do, or think. His friends and the place he'd come to know as home was in mortal danger and all he could do was stand there. He looked up into the now clear sky. The moon shone brightly, illuminating everything around him, for which he was thankful.

From the corner of his eye, he saw someone emerge from the tent and as they approached he was surprised to see it was Jake. He was waving what looked like a large folder.

He skid to a stop in front of Charlie and waved the folder under his nose. “I didn't realize this, but before they had to leave Connor's blood was already being tested and we just got the results.”

Charlie raised an eyebrow. “Really? So what does it tell us?”

“
Well, it tells us we need to talk to Malcolm,” Jake replied.

“
So I'm guessing the vaccine will work for Connor,” Charlie said with a growing excitement. If it worked for Connor, he couldn't help but hope it would work for Brooke and the others.

Jake smacked him on the arm with the folder. “You got it! Now we need to talk to Malcolm. We know what he will say, but he's still Connor's father and I guess it's kind of ingrained in me that we should get his permission to go ahead with treatment.”

Charlie nodded. “Lead the way.”

As they approached, a man sitting by the front door stood up. Charlie recognized him as Hunter's father. He was holding a shotgun in both hands and silently eyed them up and down.

Jake nodded toward the door. “We need to talk to Malcolm.”

Without a word, he turned the knob and opened the door for them. Once inside, Jake turned to Charlie and grinned.

“
Guess he's a man of few words.”

“
I'll say,” Charlie said as he grinned back. He looked over Jake's shoulder where he could see into the next room. Another man, one he didn't recognize, sat in a chair watching their two prisoners. His hands rested on a rifle lying across his lap.

As they entered the room, the man gave them a nod, stood up, and offered a hand to first Jake and then Charlie.

“
I'm Jose Gonzales and I'd like to thank you for saving my wife and me,” he said with a wide smile as he vigorously shook their hands.

“
Glad we could help,” Jake said quickly. He glanced at the men in the cell. “We'd like a few minutes with Malcolm, please. Would you like to take a break while we're here?”

“
Sure thing, thank you,” Jose replied. He turned, then hesitated. “Here,” he said as he handed Charlie the rifle. “You might want to keep this, just in case.”

As the man hurried out, Charlie leaned against the wall as Jake grabbed the chair and pulled it closer to the cell where Malcolm and Samuel sat staring at them.

“
Well, what did we do to deserve the pleasure of your company?” Malcolm asked with a sneer.

“
We're not here to play games with you,” Jake said, ignoring the taunt. “I've got some news about Connor.”

Immediately, Malcolm stood up and strode over to the cell door, grabbing a bar in each hand. Charlie tightened his grip on the rifle.

Jake held up a hand. “Calm down, Malcolm. We got the results back and the news is good. Connor should tolerate the vaccine with no problem.”

Malcolm visibly relaxed and let out a big breath, then his eyes narrowed. “Should? You haven't given him the vaccine yet? What are you waiting for?”

“
Why, your permission of course,” Jake said casually. “Even though you're a cold-blooded murderer, you're still his father and I felt we still needed your go-ahead to treat him.”

Malcolm shook his head. “Of course you have my permission, but I do have one request.”