by Lee, Damien
“Are we not doing that by letting you stay here?”
“No, this house belongs to Amy’s family. We’re letting you stay here.”
Frank eye’s flitted to her before drifting back to Ben. “The rules have changed pal. It’s survival of the fittest now. We hold all the weapons, which makes it our house. So don’t try anything funny.”
“Don’t worry, I won’t,” Ben said. “But weapons or not, if you go into that bedroom at any point, I’ll kill you.”
“Why the fuck would I wanna go in there? I admit it’s been a while since I’ve seen a threesome, but two fellas popping a lass does nothing for me.”
Amy saw Ben’s back tense. He squeezed his hand into a fist as he leaned forward.
“It’s not like that,” he said. “But since we’re helping you tomorrow, I want you to help us.”
“What do you want?”
“One of those guns and some ammo.”
“There’ll be a gun shop in town, Rambo. You can take whatever you want.”
“I meant before we go.”
She saw Frank’s eyes narrow. “Why?” he asked.
“Because if we get attacked, I want more than a few gardening tools to fight them off.”
Frank looked up at Lisa, who leaned against the armchair. “I’ll think about it,” he said after a moment of deliberation. “We’ll discuss it before we leave.”
Ben nodded as he rose to his feet.
“Give her one from me.” Frank winked.
She watched Ben inhale slowly, his fists clenched. He ignored the remark as he walked towards her. Amy led the way up the stairs.
“What?” She heard Frank exclaim. “Someone ought to be having sex tonight.”
24
Frank lurched awake as a shriek filled the farmhouse. He grabbed the shotgun by his side and leapt from the armchair. The room was lighter, with the sun’s glow starting to creep through the boarded windows. He scanned the area, noticing that Lisa was no longer sleeping on the couch. He made for the doorway, tripping over a shadowy bulk on the floor.
“Wassup?” Simon grumbled from his makeshift bed.
“What the fuck are you doing there, shithead?” Frank spat as he stumbled towards the stairs.
A dull thud shook the ceiling as another high-pitched wail sounded, this time from a man. Frank bounded up the stairs and rounded the corner of the landing. As he turned, one of the doors opened. Tina emerged, rubbing her eyes.
“What’s going on?” She yawned.
The answer came as Lisa and Glen came crashing out of the bathroom. Frank looked on as Lisa pinned the whimpering man to the ground. She held his arm tight behind his back, pushing his face into the floor.
“What happened?”
“This little perv was spying on me!” Lisa snapped, kneeing Glen in the lower back.
“I wasn’t, I swear.”
“What happened?” Frank repeated.
“I had to pee. So I went into the bathroom, sat down, and who did I see? Old peeping Tom here ogling me from the bath.”
“It was the only place left to sleep. Ben and Amy wouldn’t let me sleep in there.”
“I wonder why.” Frank snorted. He stepped over Lisa and her captive before rapping on the bedroom door. “C’mon lovers, rise and shine!”
He stepped back as the door swung wide. Ben entered the hallway, closely followed by Amy.
“What’s going on?”
“Lisa found this guy in the bathroom because you two wanted to be alone.”
“Yeah, because we don’t know him. I didn’t want to spend the night watching the door as well as him.”
“Sure,” Frank said.
Lisa dragged Glen to his feet. “Look at me again and I’m taking your balls.”
With that, she shoved the man back into the bathroom.
“C’mon,” Frank ordered. “I want you all down here now. We need to make a plan.” Not waiting for a response, he returned to the living room.
“Nice of you to join us.” He eyed Simon and Elaine as he strode into the living room.
“What happened?”
“Nothing, just sit down and shut up.”
He sat in the single chair, with Lisa perched on the arm, waiting for the rest of the congregation to join them. Once everyone had assembled in the room, Frank relayed his strategy.
“Okay, I’ve been thinking about this all night long, so if anyone disagrees, I’ll shoot you in the face. Understand?”
Some of the group nodded, others stared at him with expressionless masks.
“We’re going to split into three groups.”
“Why three?” Ben asked.
“Did you not hear me say I’d kill you?”
“Yeah, if we disagree, I’m merely asking why.”
Frank eyed him briefly. “Because there are three different things we need: Food, equipment, and weapons.”
“What do you mean by equipment?” Amy asked.
“Things like wood, torches, batteries, nails. Anything that can help secure this place and help us survive.”
“Okay, well how about me and Ben get the weapons, half of you guys get the food, and the other half get the equipment?”
They watched Frank shake his head, scoffing at the prospect. “You’d love that, wouldn’t you? No, I’ve already decided who’s going where. You and G.I. Joe aren’t together. Call it an insurance policy.”
“So where are we going?” Simon asked.
“Don’t get comfortable, Tubs. You and Mrs. Tubs aren’t sticking together either.”
“I’m not leaving my wife!”
“You will, or we’ll take you out there and leave you.”
“So what are the teams?” Tina asked before Simon could protest any further.
“You, Lisa, and Fatty can get equipment.”
“Which one?” Tina asked, eyeing the obese couple with distaste.
“The one who’s supposed to be a man.”
Simon snarled at Frank as he looked around the rest of the room.
“In charge of food will be Amy, Mrs. Tubs, and what’s his face.” He pointed towards Glen, who sat sheepishly in the corner.
“Which leaves me and you?” Ben asked.
“Precisely, Rambo. And if there aren’t any more questions, let’s get moving.”
He made to rise but stopped when Amy spoke.
“But how are we all going to get there?”
“We’re going in the van.”
“The prison van?”
“Yeah.”
“Can we all fit in?”
“There are two seats up front, and five cells in the back. One of you will have to stand.” He looked around at the anxious faces as he got to his feet. “Shall we?”
He passed the rifle to Lisa before loading cartridges into the shotgun.
“I thought we could have a gun?” Ben objected.
“We? There’s no we anymore. I’ve told you the groups.”
“Okay, but we’ll be getting guns at the shop. The others won’t have anything to protect themselves.”
Frank sighed. “Fine. The other group can have this gun when we get there. Now let’s go before I change my mind.”
He made his way over to the door, closely followed by the rest of the group. Lisa remained behind, approaching the gap in the window once everyone had left.
“How we looking, Lise?” Frank yelled from the door.
“Looks clear to me.”
“Okay, let’s go.”
He removed the bolts and chains and swung the door wide. The sudden burst of sunlight caused him to recoil as he rushed outside. Blinded and disorientated, he listened for any untoward sound. Moments passed, with his eyes quickly adjusting to the natural light. He looked around once the sun no longer burned his retinas, noting a trio of zombies near the barn, but no more in sight.
“Let’s go.”
He led the group over to the prison van, watching the three zombies nearby. They appeared not to notice the processio
n as they rushed to the vehicle. Their quiet footsteps and bated breath aided their silent escape.
“Oh, fuck me!” Simon gasped.
Frank whirled around. Simon stood beside his wrecked Land Rover, with a hand to his mouth.
“Look at the state of this!” he continued.
“You idiot,” Lisa snapped as the trio of zombies let out a yearning screech.
Frank levelled his shotgun, waiting for them to come into range. “In the van, now!”
The rest of the group made for the vehicle as Lisa stood by his side, aiming the rifle at their targets.
“You any good with that thing?” he asked.
A thunderous clap reduced one of the attacker’s heads to fragments. “Yeah.”
Lisa aimed the weapon again, dropping another zombie in seconds. The final creature was within a few meters of the pair when Frank obliterated his head with the shotgun.
“Two out of three ain’t bad,” he sang as they walked towards the prison van. He pried open the driver’s door and jumped in. The air was warm, with a faint smell of death, no doubt emanating from the fragments of cow stuck in the grill. He looked to the seat beside him, staring at his passenger in wonderment.
“What the hell are you doing?” He asked Glen, who sat rigid in the front seat.
“What?”
“That seat’s reserved, get in the back.”
Lisa opened the door wide. Not waiting for Glen to respond, she grabbed his shirt and dragged him outside.
“Thanks, Perv,” she said, climbing into the passenger seat.
Frank started the van as Glen jumped in the back. After performing a quick U-turn, they were racing down the narrow country lane.
“Which town are you planning on ransacking?” Lisa asked.
Frank shrugged his shoulders, concentrating on the road ahead.
“You do have some idea though, right?”
“Every town nearby will have what we need; a hunting shop, a hardware store, and some kind of grocery store. We’ll visit the closest one and hope for the best.”
“Yeah, but a hunting shop might not be good enough. I mean, they might only have pellet guns and air rifles.”
“If that’s the case, then we can modify them. It’s easily done.”
“Oh yeah, I forgot I’m sat next to a prisoner.”
“Former prisoner.”
“Yeah, whatever.”
“Don’t worry. Deer hunts are a big thing around here. Most gun shops should stock more than pellet guns.”
“I hope you’re right.”
They both glanced at a sign showing the distance to the nearest town.
“Newchurch or Bealsdon?” Frank wondered aloud.
“Both are six miles away, just go left or right.”
“Fair enough.”
They drove on until the junction loomed ahead. Debating the two routes in his mind, Frank decided on the right turn.
“Bealsdon it is.”
After only five minutes, they were at the edge of the ruined town. Fires raged, alarms blared, and the dead wandered the streets aimlessly.
“Excellent choice,” Lisa said as she thumbed cartridges into the rifle.
“There’s a Transit van over there,” Frank replied, pointing outside. “Shall we let the first group out here?”
“That’ll be me I’m guessing?”
“Only if there are keys in there. If not, we’ll keep looking.”
“Keys?” She scoffed. “Who needs keys?”
Frank watched her disappear outside. He listened as she walked up to the side of the van.
“Okay, we’re here,” she told the group. “Tina and Simon; you’re up.”
She stepped into view, followed by the rest of her team. Frank looked on as she walked around the front of the van up to his window.
“All set?” he asked.
“Yup.”
“You sure you can start that thing?”
“Please. I’ve been wiring cars for years. You’re not the only hardened criminal around here.”
“The murderer and the thief.” He grinned. “Sounds good, huh?”
“Shakespearean, my dear.”
Standing on her tiptoes, she leaned in through the window and kissed Frank lightly on the lips.
“Make sure you come back in one piece,” she said.
“You too. Meet you back here in an hour?”
“Any longer and I’ll come looking for you.”
“You care that much?”
“Hell yeah. Those guns will come in handy. I’m not leaving them just because you’re dead.”
She cast Frank a mischievous grin before turning towards the Transit van.
“Looks like you’re the one who’s throwing it about.”
“Jesus!” Frank exclaimed. He whirled around to see Ben in the passenger seat. “What the hell are you doing?”
“I came to find out where the hell we are.”
“Bealsdon.”
“Huh. That’s where Glen’s from.”
“Great, get him up here and he can tell us where the nearest supermarket is.”
He waited for Ben to leave before looking back at Lisa. The van door stood ajar, with her legs visible over the passenger’s seat. He watched as she worked the cover beneath the ignition whilst Tina and Simon served as look-outs. A few seconds passed before the white van rumbled to life.
“What are we doing here?”
“For fuck’s sake!” Frank gasped. He spun around to see Glen sat beside him. “What are you people? Ninjas?”
“Why are we here?”
“Because it was the closest place. Now, where’s the nearest shop?”
He watched as Glen looked away, trying to find the best answer. “The nearest DIY shop is a few minutes from here.”
“Which way?” a voice asked.
Frank flinched. He spun around, looking at Lisa who had approached his window once more.
“Could everyone stop sneaking about!”
“Kinda hard when there are zombies everywhere.”
“You go straight ahead,” Glen told her. “Take a right and follow the road to the end. The shop is on the corner”
“A corner shop?” Frank asked. “How is that going to help us?”
“No, it’s a depot. It’s pretty big.”
“Sounds good to me,” Lisa said.
Frank turned back to face her. “Remember, pick up anything we can use. But if it’s too crowded, don’t hang around. You don’t have many bullets left.”
“I know. See ya soon.”
Frank watched as she jogged back to the Transit van. Tina and Simon were already inside waiting for her. She climbed behind the wheel. With a parting glance, she raced ahead. Frank stared as she cut down some milling zombies before bearing right. Once the vehicle was out of sight, he turned back to Glen.
“Right, now somewhere for food?”
“A bit more complicated, we’re going to have to go quite far into town.”
Frank sighed.
“But it’s a supermarket. It’ll have everything we need,” Glen continued.
“Okay. What about a gun shop?”
“There’s one a few minutes from the supermarket. It’s a good one as well, but you might have trouble getting in.”
“Why?”
“It’s only open during hunting season. Other than that, it’s normally locked tight.”
“Let me worry about that. You tell me where to go.”
He put the van in gear and drove onward. The remaining zombies had chased Lisa, leaving the rest of the road empty. He took the left turn as instructed and increased his speed down a similarly deserted road.
“So what are we gonna do about cars?” Glen asked.
“We’ll get to the supermarket first. After that, we’ll worry about the cars.” He looked over at Glen. His face was creased with worry. “Don’t worry; we won’t leave until you’ve got a way back.”
The concern disappeared from his face, but Frank could te
ll he still had his doubts.
Their journey to the supermarket was relatively uneventful. Apart from two instances when they had to drive past a gathering of the undead, the roads were deserted. Frank pulled up alongside the store and turned to Glen.
“You’re in luck,” he nodded towards the destroyed shop front. “Looks like somebody’s already broken in, saves you the trouble.”
He watched Glen jump out, joining the others who had already convened in the car park.
“What if it’s those freaks that broke in?” Glen asked.
“Then you’ll have this to protect you,” Ben replied. He leaned into the van and reached for the shotgun. Begrudgingly, Frank handed the weapon and the remaining shells over.
“Fine. But you better hope those things aren’t in the gun shop.”
He watched the security guard pass the shotgun to Glen before approaching Amy.
“Be careful in there. I don’t want anything to happen to you.”
“I’ll be fine,” Amy replied, placing a comforting hand on his shoulder.
“C’mon, Rambo!” Frank yelled from the van. “Let’s get this over with.”
“They don’t have a car yet.”
“We do,” Glen said.
He stood next to a parked sports car. He lifted the key triumphantly as he joined his team.
“There, you see?” Frank yelled. “Now get in.”
With a parting look at Amy, Ben turned and jumped into the prison van.
“Right then, where’s this gun shop?” Frank called from his open window to Glen.
“Straight down there, take a left and it’s halfway down the street. It’s called Llewellyn and Bough. You can’t miss it.”
“Noted. Anything else we need to know?”
“No, but I don’t suppose you’ve got a light?” Glen motioned to the rolled cigarette behind his ear.
“Lay off, Cheech.” Frank glared at the man. “Keep your head in the game or you won’t be coming back.” He looked at the other two. “The same applies to you lot; if there’re too many zombies in there, grab what you can and get out. You don’t have many bullets either.”
He made to drive off but stopped as another thought entered his mind.
“Oh, and make sure you get sensible things. Tinned food, bottled water, jars. Basically, anything that doesn’t expire soon.”
