Welcome To Hell.A.

by Stephens, L.

  Ava put her hands over her ears.

  “Ear muffs,” Ava said, trying to be cute.

  “Yeah, ear muffs, baby,” Sarah said, grabbing her by the arm and getting her to her feet. “You’re going to need a lot of them in a minute. Jill, get over here!”

  Zombie Ryan had sat up but wasn’t facing them. His head was scanning the roof, trying to work out where the voices and sounds were coming from. Jill turned to see what they were talking about and almost instantly took a position behind Sarah and Ava, bringing the handbag with her.

  Zombie Ryan slowly got to his feet. He stood between them and the door, not that fleeing to the door would do them any good. Sarah cursed Jill for distracting her when she was about to finish Ryan once and for all, but she knew the blame fell at her own feet. She was in charge. She had to take care of this. She looked to the rickety fire escape as a potential place for them to hide, but then the best contraception device ever to be invented made her presence known and even that shitty idea turned to dust.

  “Go away!” Ava screamed from behind Sarah.

  Zombie Ryan’s head swiveled at the sound of her tiny voice. Like a hound dog who had caught a scent on the breeze, he became incensed and began moving towards them. Sarah, Ava and Jill were cornered, nowhere to go but over the edge.

  “Oh shit,” Sarah whispered. “This is it.”

  Sarah could feel Jill moving behind her as they backed away in unison. The assault rifle was out of reach, not that she thought she could wield it with any sort of value. All the ideas she was coming up with were all coming back to her as very bad ones.

  “You got any ideas?” Sarah asked over her shoulder to Jill.

  Sarah was hoping Jill was finally going to come to the party with a plan or something that might actually provide her worthless life with some meaning, but there was no response. Zombie Ryan was ten feet away when Sarah felt the first bump in her back, pushing her towards him. It wasn’t anything that crazy. Sarah guessed they were running out of room on the roof and that Jill was stopping them from going over the edge. The next thing she knew, she was on the floor. Her legs had inexplicably given out, and she had taken Ava down with her.

  CHAPTER 129: MEAN GIRL

  There are times in your everyday action movie when the protagonist has a couple options: do the good thing and sacrifice yourself, or do the bad and selfish thing and live a long and healthy life. Jill by no means was a protagonist. She was just a bit player, but she was having one of those action movie moments, and for her it came down to interpretation. Jill decided that if she did the bad and selfish thing, she would be the one who had to interpret what went down, and the more she thought about it, the less it seemed bad at all. She didn’t consider the pros of doing the good deed long. It wasn’t much of a pro in her opinion. At best it was an express ticket through the pearly gates or a handshake from Saint Peter himself, but there was also the underlying question, would one instance of heroism really make up for a lifetime of lying, cheating and selfishness? Jill wasn’t in the mood to find out. Assholes live forever.

  There was still room before they reached the edge, but Jill didn’t want to find herself trapped, especially after she did what she had in mind. She started taking smaller steps and put out her hands to push back on the Uber driver, giving her the impression that they were running out of rooftop. The plan seemed to work as the Uber driver started taking smaller steps backwards too, and this helped immensely with the second part of her plan, as it allowed her to have her hands comfortably on the Uber driver’s back without raising suspicion. With the zombie creep still far enough away that Jill would have room to move, she lurched forward and pushed the Uber driver in the lower back, and with the Uber driver’s hand tightly gripped on the little monster’s, it worked two-fold. Both of them spilled onto the ground in front of the Zombie Creep before they even knew what hit them. Jill watched, astutely waiting. She didn’t want to set off running and attract the Zombie Creep’s attention. That would have been a large failure on her part. She wanted him to assess his obvious meal option and give it his full attention before she made her move. The Zombie Creep hesitated at first, and it seemed for the briefest second that the Uber driver and the little monster rushing at him had scared him, but Jill’s fears were allayed when he started staggering towards them again. Jill saw her moment and slowly walked sideways a few yards, then found her path straight down the sideline.

  As Jill slowly passed the staggering Zombie Creep she gave a slight look over her shoulder. He was drawing nearer to their sad little huddle, and it was a touching scene for her. She wasn’t completely made of stone, not anymore, but it was still around the ninety five percent range. She figured the orgasm she had last night, which the asshole had given her, had irreparably changed her. For the first time in her life she was feeling pangs of guilt. She had become human. This didn’t mean she was about do an about-face and save them. Quite the opposite. She was just going to save all that guilt and emotion for a future breakdown, possibly on a reality show with Dr. Drew, Phil or Oz, or whoever could give her the most attention and money. Jill moved the paint cans and bent down to get the final pieces of the barricade out of the way so she could open the door. She didn’t want to leave the rooftop, but with the Zombie Creep loose and another couple zombies about to be made she figured she had no choice. This was primetime Jill, not thinking about the future or the past, just what she could get away with in the moment.

  CHAPTER 130: THESE HOES AIN’T LOYAL

  To conquer oneself is a greater victory than to conquer thousands in a battle.

  ― Dalai Lama XIV

  Sarah didn’t have time to register that betrayal might come from behind. All she could do now was turn her back on Zombie Ryan and bundle up Ava in a ball and try to cover her with her body.

  “Hold on, baby,” Sarah whispered to Ava. “Everything is going to be okay.”

  Sarah had wanted Jill to come to the party with an idea, something to get them out of this horrid situation. Jill had come to the party all right. She had come, drank all the booze, then left with all the food, leaving Sarah to clean up and deal with all the uninvited guests. She could hear his feet on the roof getting closer, and she knew she was done—they were done. Once again, she cowered with a helpless soul waiting for their demise. She gripped Ava as tightly as she could. She just needed to let Ava know she was there and that she wasn’t alone. Sarah’s breathing was rapid. She was about to hyperventilate again, but this time she didn’t care.

  All the sounds that had been so vibrant in her ears were now muffled as Zombie Ryan dropped on top of her and Ava. There were loud sounds but they seemed distant, other worldly, and she didn’t want to return to that world anyway. At that moment all she wanted was to pass out and wake up dead. It wasn’t ideal of course, but, given the circumstances, it would do. She could feel and smell the sickening juices that had been secreting out of his body for the past few hours, and she was close to dry heaving. He was like a drunk virgin trying to have sex in a car on prom night. He was slow in his movements. He didn’t bite or thrash, his weight just pressed down on her.

  The urge to give up disappeared as a renewed vigor to survive washed over her. There was no way, dead or alive, that this creep was going to be the end of her. Even though it seemed futile, she started fighting back. She grabbed his arms and created a tiny bit of space between herself and Zombie Ryan’s face.

  “Get off me you creep!” Sarah yelled as she struggled to keep him at bay.

  She knew it wouldn’t do any good in the long term, but she was desperate. She could feel Ava underneath her, with the weight of two people on top, and she hated herself for not taking the brunt of his attack and letting Ava run away. That idea had been at the forefront of her mind, but she knew the only future for the little girl stuck on the rooftop by herself with a zombie was to become his next victim, or for Jill to take her under her wing and throw her to the wolves the next chance she got. Sarah had made the decision to let he
r die with her so at least she wouldn’t be alone at the end and neither would she.

  “I’m sorry, Ava. I’m so sorry,” Sarah sobbed as she tried to get Zombie Ryan off her.

  “Mommy!” Ava screamed and clawed at Sarah. “Mommy!”

  The sound of Ava’s muffled voice was more crushing than Zombie Ryan on top of her, and Sarah had had enough of this zombie rape or whatever the fuck it was and stood up with sharp energy, pushing Zombie Ryan to the side and scrambling her and Ava away from him.

  CHAPTER 131: ROMANCE NOVELS

  Jill marveled at her final fuck-you to all the jealous bitches and assholes that had brought her to the rooftop. The zombie creep was staggering towards them, and it looked like he had shat himself at some point. His crappy Target-bought suit pants were stained with brown and red. Speaking of Target, to Jill it looked like the Uber driver had given up and was not even going to put up a fight. The little monster and her were going to be eaten, and Jill was okay with it. After all it was their fault. They should have been nicer to the only person on the rooftop who actually meant a damn, the only person who had tried to save them, but instead they looked down their grubby little noses at her. It was just typical jealous bitch syndrome. They couldn’t be me or aspire to be me, so they had to try to bring me down, Jill thought. Jill was having none of that negativity, so she put them all behind her and went back to removing the last of the barricade. It was time she left the rooftop and all the losers that were still there.

  There was a deep boom and something hit Jill on the shoulder and pushed her backwards. She skidded on her ass with her hands outstretched behind her to stop her going fully ass over tit and hitting her head.

  “What the fuck!?” Jill spat.

  She was in no mood to have to deal with any more drama, especially as she was in a lot of pain already. Her palms throbbed and her ass hurt. She wasn’t exactly sure what had happened but she was furious. The catalogue of injures was becoming more and more, and she knew there would be faint scars and possible limps. She started thinking about how she might actually have to find some loser who made less than a million a year and that she might have to give her ass up once a month to some dude who could only fly her first class commercial and not private.

  Thankfully, a loud pop brought her out of that train of thought and she looked up. There was a man standing in the doorway above her, the smoking gun in his outstretched hand obscuring his face. She nodded her head. She kind of needed a hero right now, and at first glance he seemed to fit the bill. Even though he had brought her a little injury, she was fine to suck it up for the time being. She knew with a slightly blemished nose, she really wasn’t the pristine work of art she was usually. Her eyes followed the gun as he dropped it down to his waist. He seductively lifted his shirt and placed the gun in his waistband, and Jill had vivid flashbacks of reading her mom’s Mills and Boon novels. He was like the shrouded gunfighter who only knew how to do two things: save damsels in distress and fuck. His tight lower torso stirred something in Jill. She liked it a lot, and any feeling of animosity towards him was fading fast. There was something familiar about it, something sexy, and she tried to put a lid on the feeling. She was going to have to get the better of this guy, not fall into his trap. The lines of the muscles in his torso invited her to continue looking up his body to his face. She just hoped it was decent. Well, decent enough that if she did have to fuck him it wouldn’t be a chore. There was suddenly an off-putting feeling filling her stomach. It was like she had just checked out some guy at the gym, and, when he had turned around, it had been her brother.

  CHAPTER 132: LESS THAN HERO

  Jake tucked the gun back into the waistband of his jeans and tried to hide his wince as the hot smoking barrel touched his skin.

  † You fucking knew it was Jake, I know, but it was better this way. †

  He leaned against the doorframe and produced his best come-hither stare, but Sarah wouldn’t look up. She was crouched with her arms around the little girl while the completely dead body of Zombie Ryan leaned over them. He wanted to go over there and push Zombie Ryan clear so he could help her to her feet, but this was primetime hero stance shit and he wasn’t about to miss the opportunity. Jake was feeling proud, and in that moment why wouldn’t he? He had taken down the bad guy. Well truth be told, from behind, Jake hadn’t even known the guy was a zombie but it looked like a safe bet.

  “Hey,” Jill said quietly as she lay sprawled out on the ground before him.

  Jake looked down at her. Even though her face was swollen and had smears of blood on it, he was pretty sure it was the girl from last night, the girl he had blown a load in and then kicked to the curb. He wasn’t sure what she was waiting for. She just looked at him as she bit her lip, kind of seductively.

  “Hi,” Jake said with a rugged smile.

  She looked at him, still chewing away at her lip and swaying her immaculate legs in his direction, but Jake still didn’t take the hint.

  “Asshole!” Jill hissed. “You’re not going to help me up?”

  It’s definitely the girl from last night, Jake thought.

  “We got to stop meeting like this,” Jake said with a smile as he offered her a hand.

  What an ugly bit of happenstance, he thought as he pulled her to her feet. In all his years of cavorting and carousing he of course had had his fair share of run-ins with two girls he was romantically involved with, but this situation took the cake. It was awkward and potentially messy, but one equation came to mind: the girl I smashed last night, plus my ex-girlfriend, plus me, equals: three way?

  Jake smiled as he watched Sarah push Zombie Ryan off and scoot away from him with the little girl in tow. It was quite comical, knowing that she wasn’t in any danger anymore, like a Chaplin or Keaton film, every move over the top and exaggerated. His smile grew broader as he watched Sarah piece it all together and follow the bullet’s trajectory back to him, he had almost forgotten to get back into his hero pose, so he quickly leaned back on the doorframe and waited for the applause. Their eyes met for the first time since he had led the zombies away from her and the occupants of the SUV. He could see the tears welling in her eyes, and everything was crystal clear. He loved her. There was never ever any doubt. Well, after he fucked her again there might be some doubt, but after that, he’ll know for sure. For the time being he was here, her hero. Well, he was the guy that caused all her problems but also the guy who had solved them.

  He watched as she talked to the little girl and they hugged. If there wasn’t a city on fire and a zombie apocalypse behind them it would have made a great Hallmark card.

  “That will get me some likes,” Jake said as he took a quick picture of Sarah and Ava hugging with the apocalyptic backdrop.

  “Don’t you know?” Jill said petulantly. “Instagram is down. It’s been down for hours!”

  “You sure get around, don’t you?” Jake said with a smirk. “What was your name again?”

  She said something in reply, but Jake didn’t listen. Her name was on the chain around her neck, and he was too busy looking at the love of his life take the little girl by the hand and lead her towards him.

  Jake dipped both his thumbs in his waistband and arched his back even more against the doorframe, and before he knew it, the gun that sat in his waistband slipped out of its perch. His reaction was awkward, and he put out his foot to try and break its fall but instead it hit his shin, skidding ten yards towards Sarah. He looked up and Sarah was looking at him with her beautiful smile across her beautiful face. With deep embarrassment, Jake scrambled over to the gun and picked it up, and he was rewarded with Sarah’s warm smile.

  “Hi there,” Jake said, leaning around to look at the little girl who was cowering behind Sarah.

  The little girl swapped to the other side of Sarah and out of Jake’s view, so he decided not to press the point or think about what had happened to her mother. He instead got into Sarah’s face and just stared at her. They were inches apart and nothing was s
topping him from hugging her, but he didn’t want to ruin the moment by being his usual overbearing and inappropriate self.

  “You took your time,” Sarah teased. “I was about to come looking for you.”

  “I got to keep you guessing, Sarah,” Jake said with a chuckle. “That’s the only thing I got.”

  Saying her name to her in person made him feel good. It made everything that had happened in the last twenty hours or so feel like a mountain that he had climbed just so he could enjoy the view.

  @KillingJake the love of your life only comes around once. Make sure you’re there for the second time. #HeroShit

  CHAPTER 133: ASSHOLES LIVE FOREVER

  Jill couldn’t believe her luck. Of all the places this asshole could come back into her life, it had to be this rooftop, especially while her face was absolutely destroyed. She knew he would still fuck her, and that all men would fuck if the pussy was served up on a platter, didn’t matter what the state the pussy was in. He seemed to know the Uber driver, and that wasn’t a big deal to Jill. No one was going to choose a Toyota Corolla over a Bentley Phantom. He had left her standing there like an idiot when he went over to greet the Uber driver and the little monster, but Jill assumed he was just being polite. She strode over to them in her best Milan catwalk strut.

  “You’ve got some fucking nerve!” the Uber driver said to Jill. “Trying to kill me is one thing, but trying to kill a child, that’s some fucked-up shit!”

  The little monster grabbed her ears for some reason, and Jill had to think fast. She couldn’t just blow off this lower life form in front the asshole, especially if they were friends. She had to keep it civil.

  “What did you want me to do?” Jill said sincerely. “I was scared, I panicked. I’m so sorry, I am. It will haunt me forever.”