As The World Dies: The First Days-A Zombie Trilogy Page 4

"Yeah, I did."

  "Coffee?" Jenni motioned to the cup holder fastened to the dashboard. Two cups of steaming coffee sat there.

  "Yeah, sounds good."

  They drove on.

  2. A Taste of the Dead World

  Sometimes the world changes and you don't even notice. One day slips into the next and subtly the world around you transforms. A new building goes up. A tree is cut down. Your neighbors move out. The potholes in your street are repaired. A new elected official takes office. You gain five pounds. Your friend loses ten.

  And then there are the stark changes that upturn your world and leave you in shock, breathless, and lost.

  Like hearing your baby scream out and chewing noises.

  Or leaving your home after kissing your pretty wife and wondering if you should be wearing your new high heels today and then finding yourself fifteen minutes later running for your life in shoes that pinch your feet and almost make you stumble.

  Or how at eight-thirty this morning you didn't even know your traveling companion and now, at nearly eleven in the morning, you're both eating beef jerky and donuts with a stiff chaser of cold coffee.

  "I think if we keep to back roads, we'll be safer. We can keep avoiding the bigger towns if we keep turning off on these roads," Katie said to Jenni.

  Jenni peered down at the map she had found in the glove compartment. "Okay, I think I can figure it out." It felt good for Katie to be making choices. It felt good to have a role to play again. Mother and wife were gone, but she could be Katie's helper.

  Katie sat in the driver's seat, arm propped on the edge of the door, her head resting on her hand, driving along as the dog they had discovered in the back of a truck slept halfway on her lap. Jenni could tell that Katie was struggling not to let her emotions get the best of her. A few times Katie had touched the cell phone beside her and Jenni could see the internal struggle not to flip the phone open to look at the photo.

  Jenni sighed. She didn't even have photos. She had nothing. Nothing at all.

  Except for Katie, the dog, the truck and the winding road.

  Along the way they had seen other vehicles, driving fast down the road, usually toward the city, the panicked people inside barely glancing at them as they flashed by. In one small town they had seen no signs of life at all. At one point, a farmhouse on a hill was being boarded up in the distance by tiny moving figures as they passed.

  But yet, they felt very alone.

  "We can't drive forever. We'll have to stop eventually and get more gas. More supplies." Katie sighed. "But heading into a highly populated area will do us no favors. Back roads are the way to go."

  Jenni pursed her lips and carefully ran her finger along the lines on the map. Slowly, her eyes strayed up to the national park. She shivered slightly, her head swimming...

  How could she be such a bad mother?

  Jason, her stepson, was still up there camping out with the freshmen high school class of his private school. Far away from the city, his dead father and half-brothers...

  How could she have forgotten him?

  Tiny fingers straining under the front door rose menacingly in her mind and she felt herself shudder. Her stomach coiled and she reached out a hand to brace herself against the dashboard.

  "Hey, are you okay?" Katie's gentle hand stroked her hair. "Hey, Jenni?"

  Jenni looked up at her, shaken. "I...uh...forgot my son."

  Katie flicked her gaze toward Jenni, then back at the road. "No, hon, we couldn't bring him...he..." Her voice faltered.

  Jenni shook her head. "No, not Mikey...not him. Jason. My stepson...I forgot about him until just now...I...how could I...I'm..."

  Her zombified husband was right. She was a bad mother. Incompetent. Stupid.

  Katie continued to stroke her hair while trying to keep her eyes on the winding road. "It's okay. It's okay. This whole day is fucked up. It's confusing. It's okay."

  Jenni felt tears rolling down her cheeks. "I just...forgot him. He just came to live with us last year. But I shouldn't have forgotten him, should I?"

  Katie slowly pulled the truck over and drew Jenni tight into her arms and gave her a firm hug. "It's okay. Calm down...shhh...shhh..."

  Jenni clung to her desperately and whispered, "I try so hard."

  "It's okay. It's okay. Maybe he got out of the house," Katie said softly.

  "He wasn't in the house! He's here! Here!" Jenni drew back and grabbed up the map and pointed at the national park. "He's here! Safe. With his science class! The zombies can't be out there! He's safe and he needs me and I forgot about him!"

  "Okay, okay. Jenni, listen to me. Listen to me," Katie said firmly.

  The dog whined a little and licked Jenni's face trying to soothe her.

  Jenni tried to concentrate on Katie's face and voice. It was so hard. All she could hear was her husband's voice berating her for being such a stupid whore and a terrible mother.

  "This day and everything about it is awful. We're both in shock. We're both scared out of our minds. We're not thinking straight and that's okay. We just need to survive right now. We just need to make it through today and be safe. If we can do that, we can get our heads together and start to figure out exactly what we are going to do. But for now, we live in this moment and make our way to the next."

  Jenni sniffled and nodded. "What about Jason? I just can't leave him there."

  She just couldn't. It would be her last great failure. He was all that remained. Maybe he wasn't her son by blood, but she was obligated to take care of him and love him.

  Katie looked at the map for a long moment. "I think we can go get him. Maybe even stay there if it's clear of the infestation. Honestly, we need to stay away from any area with too many people. A lot of people will not know what is going on." Katie faltered for a moment. "Hell, I don't know what is going on."

  "Zombies," Jenni reminded her helpfully.

  Katie ran a hand over her blond hair. "Okay, zombies, but why? How? This shouldn't be possible, but I'm seeing it. And if your movies are right and the bite is how it spreads, then keeping away from major populated areas is our best bet. Less chance of infection. So going and finding your stepson and seeing what the situation is out at the park may be our best option for now."

  Jenni threw her arms around Katie and hugged her tight. "Thank you, thank you. I have to make it up to him!"

  And she did. She had to let Jason know that she loved him and that she would be a good mother to him. She would learn to do better and be better. That was all there was to it.

  Katie drew back, squeezed her hand tightly and gave her a soft smile. "We'll be okay. It will be okay. We just need to keep it together. Okay?"

  Jenni nodded, relieved. Katie was right. They had to keep it together. And survive. And go get Jason. She wrapped her arms around the dog and he nestled against her body. And they had to take care of Jack and each other.

  Satisfied that Jenni was calm now, Katie shifted gears and the white truck started down the road once more.

  "Jenni, I know you're scared. I am, too, but right now, we can't fall apart, okay? When we find a safe place, we can both mourn. Where we can both...deal." Katie looked at her and smiled softly.

  Jenni nodded firmly. "Okay, I can deal. I can be strong."

  "Good," Katie relaxed a little and returned her gaze to the road.

  Jenni shuffled the dog and the map and settled down once more. She had a job to do and she had to do it well. It was obvious to her now that Katie was sent to her. Katie was strong and she was going to get them through this. It would be okay.

  "What the hell," Katie murmured.

  The truck slowed down and Jenni looked up to see a convoy of army vehicles heading their way. The first few passed them, but then a jeep pulled off the side and they were flagged down by a solider in the passenger seat.

  Jenni felt a flutter of excitement. Maybe this is how they would find safety. The army would save them and take them to a place free of the zombies. The men loo
ked strong and capable with their large weapons and thick armor.

  A tall black man walked toward the truck and motioned both of them to get out.

  Katie didn't look very happy and turned to Jack. "Stay down, boy. Don't bark. Be calm. Lay down on the floor."

  The dog tilted his head and his gaze followed her motions to the floor of the cab. Obediently he got down.

  "If they work anything like cops, they'll shoot him if they feel threatened," Katie told Jenni.

  "They wouldn't!"

  "Just answer them truthfully and calmly. This is a different world, Jenni. We don't know how it works yet."

  Jenni felt her first pang of fear, then nodded and got out of the truck.

  Katie stood next to the truck, as relaxed as possible as the black soldier approached her. He motioned for Jenni to join Katie and they stood side by side, the former prosecutor in her suit, high heels and a hunting jacket and a housewife in flip-flops, her nightgown and bathrobe. Looking back and forth between them, his green eyes were eerily intense.

  "Are you two together?"

  Jenni nodded and Katie answered, "Yes."

  "Did you come from the city?"

  "Yes," they chorused.

  "Are either one of you bit?"

  "No, no," Katie answered.

  Jenni whispered, "No."

  Without warning, he began to run his hands gruffly over their limbs, squeezing to see if there was a response.

  Jennie started to protest, but Katie gave her a look that silenced her.

  Jenni became all too aware of the soldiers standing nearby, guns ready. They'll shoot us if we are bitten, she thought.

  She endured the rough, large hands on her body.

  "No signs of wounds!"

  Jenni knew for sure that they would have been shot if they had shown any signs of having been bitten. The soldiers visibly relaxed.

  "Head to the town of Madison. There’s a FEMA rescue center there. It'll be secure." He looked into the cab to see Jack staring at him intently. With a small smile, he reached in and patted the dog's head. "Remember Madison. Make sure you go there."

  Katie made a show of looking at his name badge, then said, "Yes, Lieutenant Reynolds."

  He nodded to them briefly and walked back to his vehicle.

  As the jeep sped past them to rejoin the convoy, Katie shook her head. "They're heading into the city," she murmured.

  "Are we going to Madison?"

  Katie shook her head. "No. I think we're better off on our own. Something about it doesn't seem right."

  Jenni nodded, her black hair whipping around her face. The wind was blowing hot and fierce.

  Katie stood with her hands on her hips and shook her head. "No, definitely not going to Madison. We're heading out to get your stepson. Then we'll see what we can figure out. I don't like the idea of us being all herded into one spot with only FEMA to protect us. We need to find more ammo and another gun."

  Jenni nodded. "I agree."

  Once back in the truck, they started down the road again. They had a plan now and Jenni was relieved. The world seemed a little more bearable now.

  A few miles down the road they saw two vehicles pulled over onto the shoulder. Bodies surrounded both of the cars. Young and old were strewn about, bullet holes torn through them. A few had obviously run for it, but hadn't made it to safety. As the white truck passed the tragic scene, Jenni recognized the girl from the convenience store still in her gas station smock. Half her head had been blown away.

  Katie didn't say a word as she turned onto an even narrower back road.

  "I guess," Jenni said after a moment, "one of them was bitten."

  Chapter 3

  1. The Truth of Things Yet to Come

  Katie was tired of the sun blazing through the windshield and the steady hum of the road. It was nearly one o'clock in the afternoon and they had been slowly winding deeper into the Texas wilds. Some of the roads were so narrow that two cars passing would have to hug the shoulder and slow down considerably. Herds of cows, peach groves, and empty fields were all they saw for miles. Occasionally there was a house in the distance, but they didn't even consider trying to pull off the road. Out in the country, people were barricading themselves in as the cities went to hell.

  "What do you think is going on?" Jenni's voice sounded raw.

  To preserve their gas the best they could, they had finally turned off the air conditioner. The wind blowing through the cab was warm, not hot, but the dust caught in their noses and throats.

  "Where?"

  "Out there? Austin, Houston, Fort Worth..." Jenni asked.

  Katie thought about the morning and all that had happened to them. "It was spreading so fast, I don't think it’s going too well. Maybe the army can get a handle on it. I don't know. I know yesterday there was that commuter plane crash in Chicago they were blaming on someone going crazy and attacking everyone and a race riot in Philadelphia. But now I have to wonder."

  "I didn't see the news. The kids were watching Disney movies when Lloyd got back. Some bum bit him on the hand when Lloyd had rolled down the window to hand him some coins." Jenni laughed. "He was such an asshole to his family, but always generous to everyone else."

  "He used to hurt you, didn't he?"

  Katie's voice was gentle, but she knew her words stung.

  "Better me than the boys," Jenni admitted.

  "I got into the habit of not listening to the news until I got to work. Lydia and I had a strict policy of making our mornings as peaceful as possible. It made the rest of the day just easier if we could relax, drink coffee, have breakfast, watch the sun come up...” Katie faltered as the tranquil memories of the morning came back to her.

  Lydia had been wearing a long, dark dress with stylish ethnic jewelry around her neck and wrists. Her short, spunky hairdo had looked rather retro and cute. They had spoken about their weekend plans and Lydia's plans for the summer garden. It had been a lovely morning. She could still remember how cool and soft Lydia's hand had been in hers when they had kissed one last time before the world had fallen into chaos.

  Jenni's hand on her wrist brought her out of her reverie and she could feel tears on her cheeks.

  "Maybe if we had paid attention to the news," Katie said with a slight sob in her voice.

  "There is a lot of bad stuff in the world. Sometimes it was just better to shut it out."

  Katie nodded briskly and tried to pull herself together. She had to concentrate on the here and now and get them to a safe place. Where that was, she wasn't sure, but they had to keep moving.

  As the truck sped around a curve in the road an old station wagon came into view. A middle-aged man, wiry and sunburned, stood next to it waving desperately. Katie automatically began to slow down and Jenni gripped her arm hard.

  "Maybe we shouldn't stop," Jenni said fearfully.

  Katie considered her words, then shook her head. "If we can save someone, we should." She slowed the truck down to a stop and listened to the hot engine tick and rumble.

  The man walked briskly over to them and gripped the edge of the window frame with trembling hands. "Good thing you gals came along. My wife isn't doing so hot. We broke down about two hours ago."

  "What's wrong with your wife?" Katie asked though she knew the answer.

  "Got some crazy shit going down on the highway. People grabbing other people out of cars and doing all sorts of just-” He shook his head. "I can't even explain it. It was just insane. Wife had her window down and some little kid bit her arm. I didn't think it was that bad, but she's not doing too good right now. I was heading back home, avoiding the highway, when we broke down. Now I think she needs a doctor."

  Katie sighed softly. The man had a very earnest face and kind eyes. His skin was weathered from the Texan sun and beads of sweet trailed down his long nose. For a moment, she just wanted to hug him and comfort him, but he wouldn't understand. He didn't understand. Not yet.

  The passenger door creaked open and Jenni slippe
d out. Jack started to follow, but she shut the door on him and he woofed at her.

  "Lady, we need your help bad," the man said, obviously unnerved by Katie's silence.

  "There isn't any help for her," Katie said finally. "Anyone bit is...doomed."

  "What the hell are you talking about?"

  "You know how people were attacking each other on the highway? It's that way in the city too. Everywhere. People get bit they get sick and attack other people." She wasn't sure how he would take to the zombie theory.

  A flutter of pink caught her eye and she looked toward where Jenni was staring into the car. Jenni took a step back and glanced back toward Katie. Sadly, she shook her head. The warm Texas wind blew hard against the truck, rocking it, and sent bits of dry grass and leaves spinning across the road.

  The man was silent for a long time. He was obviously thinking hard. "Then we gotta get her to the hospital before it’s too late."

  "She's almost gone," Jenni said as she stepped up next to the man. "She's real bad, Katie. I think maybe we should...” She motioned toward the shotgun.

  "Mister, I know you love your wife. Trust me I know how you feel, but you need to come with us and leave her. She's not going to be the woman you love in just a short while," Katie said to him. Impulsively, she laid her hand over his. "Please, come with us."

  Jack let out a sharp bark followed by a growl.

  All three of the humans turned back toward the station wagon. A woman with long blond hair was struggling out of the open passenger window. Her greenish skin and opaque eyes said it all. She was dead and hungry.

  "Shit!"

  "Honey?"

  "Get in the truck!" Katie flung her door open and Jenni crawled in over her faster than she would have thought possible.

  The man hesitated as his wife hit the road hard, landing on her face.

  "Please, get in the truck!" Katie screamed at the man.

  He looked at her in confusion, then back at his wife who was struggling to get to her feet. "Lady, you're both fucking nuts," he decided and headed toward his wife.

  Katie slammed the door shut. "Shit!"

  "Run her over," Jenni ordered. "Just flatten her ass and save him."