by S A Ison
“You got any relatives that live out of town?” he asked and looked at Avery.
“I got a cousin down near Helicon. Why?” Avery asked.
“I was thinkin’ we’d maybe get what we could and head down there. You think your cousin would have a problem with us?”
There was a high-pitched shriek that reached the men, it was faint but came from inside the store.
“That sounds like some kid,” Avery said, shifting.
“So? What’s that got to do with your cousin?”
“Shouldn’t we help the kid?” Avery asked, looking from Bobby to the store.
“Why in the hell would we do that?” Bobby asked and then laughed and shook his head. This kid really was stupid. No sense of self preservation. Out of the corner of his eye Bobby caught movement of something moving fast. His mouth fell open when he saw a large dog. No, not a dog.
“Holy fuckin’ shit,” Bobby said softly as he watched the creature attack the zombies at the entrance of the store. He brought the binoculars up and peered through the lenses and then shook his head. He was seeing things.
“That’s a fuckin’ werewolf for shit’s sake,” he said and looked at Avery, who was now curled up with his knees to his chest.
“Zombies and werewolves?” Avery croaked.
“What kind of virus did them chinks let loose?” Bobby said in awe. He watched as the werewolf made short work of the zombies and shattered the entrance of the store and disappeared within. He nearly swallowed his chew and choked. He spat out the window and just shook his head.
Ž
Xander pushed through the hospital doors. He and Ethan had watched as Zahara disappeared behind cars and buildings. They’d looked back up to the second floor to see the people inside stunned with horror filled faces. Ethan had barked with dark humor and Xander figured the agent was getting used to his new reality. He was smacked with the stench of putrefaction when they entered into the hospital lobby. There were clouds of flies that covered bodies that littered the once sterile floors of the hospital. Maggots covered the bodies in moving masses as they multiplied and cascaded onto the polished floor.
There were more black body bags lined up against the walls and on gurneys, most of the bags moved with their restless contents within. Both men moved down the corridor, looking into each room. A nurse came staggering out, her neck ripped open. Xander lifted his weapon and shot her. They could hear the moans and cries of zombies and moved cautiously. Both men jumped when there was a loud crash and Xander looked into the window and saw a room full of zombies bouncing off the walls. They left the door secured and continued on. Making their way to the emergency room, Xander peered through the narrow windows of the double doors. They were confronted with an area fill with nearly three dozen zombies.
“Is it worth going in there?” Ethan whispered softly.
“Let’s get to the second floor, where those people were. I’m sure they know where meds and supplies are.” Xander turned and they backtracked to the elevator. Ethan was about to push the button when Xander stayed his hand.
“What happens if there are a bunch of those things trapped in there?”
“Shit, you’re right. Stairs I guess,” Ethan said and they followed the signs. Looking in through the door’s glass window to the stairwell, he saw three zombies. He nudged Ethan and Ethan brought his Walther PPQ up, ready to shoot. Xander opened the door and Ethan led the way, dropping the zombies. Xander leaned against the rail and looked down and saw at least ten more zombies below. He nodded his head to proceed up the stairs. As quietly as they could, they moved, the stairs were covered with dried blood and the flies buzzed around them. On the landing on the second floor were three zombies and Xander shot each one in the head. He was thankful for the suppressor, it made killing safer. He wasn’t sure if the zombies below could climb, but the noise of a shot would echo in the stairwell and perhaps draw more zombies to their location.
Ethan looked through the glass pane and eased the door open. He looked up and down the hall and nodded at the double doors fifteen feet away. There was a baker’s dozen that were trying to get through the double doors.
“Quick as we can, I’ll take the ones on the right, you the left,” Xander whispered. Both men raised their weapons and began to fire and drop the zombies. Several of the creatures realized there was something going on behind and turned. They started screeching and moved toward them. Xander systematically shot each one and they turned when more zombies came around the corner behind them. Now it was getting a little sketchy and he ejected his mag and slid in a fresh one. Ethan did the same and they began to fire and drop the newcomers. Sweat broke out on his forehead and for a minute, Xander thought he might have to turn into the wolf.
He didn’t mind turning into his altered self, but it was painful as hell and he wasn’t sure he might not kill Ethan in the slaughter. He didn’t think he would kill the man, but sometimes the animal inside him had other plans. He caught movement and saw that it was the woman he’d seen from outside the hospital. He saw two other faces behind her, fear and hope mingled in their expressions. When Ethan shot the last creature, he nodded and the woman opened the door.
“Thank you, my Lord God, thank you! You’ve saved us. We’re nearly out of food and I thought we were going to die here,” she said, her voice breaking and tears streamed down her face.
“We’re here to pick up medical supplies, can you help us with that?” Xander said, getting to the point. He didn’t know how long the ambulance up the street would keep the zombie away. The woman jerked slightly at the abrupt request.
“Oh, well. Yes. How is it out there? All we can see are those zombie creatures around the hospital. Aren’t the military or police doing anything about them?” she asked. The other two women nodded, looking at Xander and then Ethan.
“How long have you been hole up here?” Ethan asked.
“Nearly a week, things started getting crazy and when we tried to leave, we kept running into those things. Patients, doctors, nurses and staff were attacked. We managed to block many of the doors,” the woman said, pointing behind her. Xander and Ethan walked down the hallway and looked into several rooms. They could see zombies trapped in the rooms and he shook his head.
“I hope you have some place to go, away from the city, the whole downtown is full of zombies. Once we get what we need, we can escort you to the lobby.” Xander looked expectantly. The woman realized they were waiting for supplies and blushed.
“Oh, I’m sorry. Yes, but there are several of those things in the supply room,” she said, looking nervous.
“We’ll take care of them,” Ethan said softly. Xander noticed that Ethan was eyeing the woman with keen interest. She was pretty, about mid-thirties, dark hair and light gray eyes. Her eyes looked tired but clear. The other two women, one looked to be a patient perhaps and the other a nurse, held onto each other, silent tears streaming down their faces.
“I’m Alexander and this is Ethan,” he said. She smiled, her mouth trembling. Xander knew she was trying to hold it together. Being trapped and not knowing if you’d be rescued had to take its toll. He wondered again about Jess and his family and why the man had waited so long? He could understand here, the corridors and rooms were filled. But he was sure at some point, Jess could have taken his family and left Huntsville.
“I’m Rose. This is Julia and Mrs. Gilbert. Can I ask a question?” Rose asked, now seeming very nervous. At Xander’s nod she continued.
“Um. Did that woman that was with you, well…did she really turn into a werewolf? Honestly, I wasn’t sure if I were experiencing a psychotic break or a group dilution,” she said and the other women nodded in unison.
“Simple answer is yes. She’s our friend and she won’t hurt you,” Xander said softly. Rose relaxed though her face was still clouded with uncertainty.
“It’s a long story,” Ethan added and they turned when there was a loud bang from one of the rooms. The two women who were clutching each othe
r squeaked.
“Let’s get the supplies and get out of here. Do you ladies have a way to get home? Do any of you have a weapon?” Xander asked. They looked at each other with varying degrees of indecision.
“I came with my husband, he was waiting in the car,” Mrs. Gilbert said and her lips began to shake and her eyes filled with tears. That wasn’t good.
“I’ve got my car, I can take you home,” Julia offered and Mrs. Gilbert nodded.
“I caught the bus in. I don’t suppose the buses are running,” Rose said, a weak smile quivering on her lips.
“That would be a no. Maybe we can commandeer an ambulance from the ambulance bay?” Ethan suggested.
“I don’t drive, or at least I’ve not driven in years,” Rose said apologetically. When both men stared at her, she blushed.
“I have a mild form of narcolepsy. I can’t drive nor can I perform surgery,” she said and shrugged.
“What do you think, Xander? Do you want to trade up from your truck to an ambulance? A little more room and we can carry more gear and supplies?” Ethan asked.
“How about you drive the ambulance, we take my truck and get Rose to where she wants to go and then figure it out from there?” Xander suggested.
“Sounds like a plan,” Ethan said and smiled. A dark blond eyebrow went up as Xander looked from Ethan to Rose. She blushed prettily and when he eyed Ethan, the man was blushing as well. He sighed and looked around.
“Let’s get those supplies and get out of here,” Xander said.
Ž
Reggie’s throat was frozen, a scream of terror locked deep inside as he watched the massive creature make its way toward them. The zombies were bad enough but this thing in front of him was something made from nightmares. Its jagged teeth were dripping with saliva and blood. His body let go his bladder and his heart was nearly beating its way out of his chest. There was no way he could save Shay from this thing. His eyes looked up as it towered over him and he waited for it to bite his head off like it had done to those zombies.
The wet nose snuffled and sniffed around his head and neck and then did the same to Shay. If he’d had an extra bullet, he’d have shot the child to spare her from being ripped apart. His head and ears were still ringing from the gunfire and Shay’s steam whistle shrieks. He could barely breathe as the animal sniffed at the little girl and when he heard Shay giggle, his eyes widened even more. Shay wasn’t afraid? How was that possible? He was about to vomit and she was giggling. He saw her thin arm reach up and she was petting the damned thing. Shay was petting a werewolf. He was stunned.
“You look like my mommy,” Shay said softly and Reggie’s heart did a triple bump in his chest. Shay’s mother was a werewolf? There were really werewolves? Not just make believe, but real werewolves in this world? He understood the zombies, they were made by the mysterious virus, but werewolves? He watched as the werewolf’s mouth stretched back, displaying serrated molars. Was the damned thing smiling? Then the animal stepped back and before his eyes, it began to shrink and the sound of popping tendons and bones echoed around him, like someone was popping and cracking their knuckles. The thing shrank and the muzzle began to sink back into what appeared to be a human head.
Zahara stretched her neck back and forth and smiled up at the little girl.
“I’m Zahara, who are you?”
“I’m Shay Belvier, I’m seven.”
Zahara looked at the redheaded man who smelled of piss. A tapered eyebrow went up in question and the man swallowed hard, his eyes nearly bulging out of his head.
“I’m Reg, Reggie. I…I can’t believe it. Werewolf? Thank you for saving us.”
“I need to rinse off and find some clothing. Where’s the water aisle?” she asked, looking up at Reggie. He jutted his chin off toward a display that had cases of bottled water. She turned and felt the heat of his gaze over her back and rump. Her mouth twitched in humor. She looked down when Shay ran up to her and grabbed her hand. She looked down into the honey gold eyes of the child.
“You’re a werepup, aren’t you?” Zahara asked gently. The little girl smiled softly and nodded; her face was sweet.
“Momma said I was,” Shay said softly.
“Where’s your momma?”
“She turned into one of them zombie things. She and daddy tried to eat me,” she said and her mouth began to wobble and her eyes filled with tears. Zahara stopped and squatted down. The little girl walked into her embrace and Zahara felt her heart break. She’d never liked children, never understood them, but she understood this child. She was only a couple years older than her when she’d lost her own mother and father to violence.
“It’s okay Shay, you’ll be okay,” Zahara said, her voice catching in her throat.
“Reggie is helping me,” Shay said. Zahara looked over at Reggie, who hadn’t moved a muscle. He nodded hesitantly.
“Your momma told you to keep this a secret? Good,” Zahara said when Shay nodded. She looked up at Reggie.
“When she hits puberty, she’ll start her change. Let me get cleaned up and get some clothes on and we’ll get out of here before more of those zombies head our way. My weapons are over at the hospital.”
She walked over to the display and picked up a pack of water and headed to the women’s department. She’d need something for her feet as well. She could hear Reggie following.
“You might want to pick up another set of clothing, I think you ruined those,” she said, a smile in her voice.
Ž
Rose Duncan watched as Julia and Mrs. Gilbert drove away, weaving around the bodies. Ethan had gone to the ambulance bay to find an ambulance. The blond man, Alexander, stood looking around.
“Are you looking for your friend? The lady who’s a werewolf?” Rose asked.
“Yeah, hopefully she’ll be here shortly,” he said as he folded what was left of a shirt and shorts. He placed two guns and a samurai sword on the seat of the truck. She shifted back and forth and looked up into the sky. It was getting to be late afternoon.
“My apartment is in the downtown area. I don’t think I want to go there, since like here, it is more than likely full of zombies. My uncle has a farm about two hours away from here, to the west. Do you think we could go there?”
“I think we can do that. Maybe my friends and I could stay the night, if you don’t mind?” Xander said.
“Oh, my, yes. Of course. Goodness, you’re so kind to give me a ride, bless your heart. My uncle also has several guns, so I think I should be fine. Is this all over the whole country? The news is looping and most of the channels have gone dark. I tried calling some of my friends, but no one is answering. My uncle said he’d not seen much activity.”
“I don’t know. I drove from North Carolina and saw evidence all along the way. Ethan said he was coming from the west, Las Vegas and then from the north and there was also evidence of zombies, but that was a few days ago.”
Both turned when a Jeep Gladiator came weaving through the parking lot, the truck bounced over bodies and rocked. Rose saw the woman that she’d seen earlier sitting in the front passenger seat. Alexander stepped forward and went to open the door to the Jeep. She could see that he cared about the woman.
Xander was relieved to see Zahara, though he knew full well that she could take care of herself. It was still an odd and very new feeling within him. The week he’d spent with Zahara at the cabin had been eye-opening. He’d never expected her to have such a sweetness about her, she’d always been so prickly before. She had a wall she kept between her and the world and he’d been gifted with a glimpse of the real woman at the cabin. Then, when she’d turned, he’d seen her animal. He’d been surprised that her animal had submitted to his animal’s dominance. He’d never in a million years think of Zahara as anything but a dominant alpha. In the werewolf kingdom, female werewolves were rarely alphas. He’d known Zahara was an alpha, one reason she was good at her job as an assassin.
Zahara hopped out of the Jeep and grinned up at
him and he looked behind her and saw a little girl in the back seat. The man who’d been driving got out, looking around nervously.
“I see you picked up a couple of friends,” Xander said, nodding his head to the duo.
“I did, she’s a werepup,” Zahara whispered and Xander leaned and looked harder.
“Is that her father?”
“No, Shay said her parents were turned into zombies. That’s Reggie, he found her.”
Xander nodded and looked down at the Invisible Empire bumper sticker and then his eyes went to the man. The man backed up a step and held his hands up defensively.
“That’s not me anymore. Everything I was is dead now. I can’t think like that anymore. I mean it,” Reggie said, fear lacing his voice. Xander’s eyes slid over to Shay as Zahara was helping the girl out of the Jeep.
“What about her?” Xander said in a low deadly voice.
“I’ve protected her with my life. She reminds me of my littlest, my boy, Jeb,” Reggie said, his voice breaking and he swallowed hard. Xander stared hard into the man’s eyes, tried to see the truth of his words. Satisfied, he nodded.
The group turned when an ambulance came from around the back of the building. Ethan pulled the vehicle up next to Xander’s truck and jumped out.
“There’s about half a tank. I think maybe we should hit the gas station and fill up the vehicles and maybe get a few cans of fuel to take with us,” Ethan said.
“Sounds like a good idea. Rose says that her uncle lives about two hours west of here. She’s going to let us spend the night and we can make our plans,” Xander said and he saw Zahara looking at Shay. He wanted to groan, was he ready to take on the responsibility of a child? How could he turn his back on a werepup? His own ascendance into the werewolf had been rough and his own father had been no help. He turned to Rose and she turned, looking up expectantly.
