Dead America The Third Week Box Set, Vol. 1 [Books 1-6 ]

by Slaton, Derek

  Cheryl nodded. “Sure thing, hang on a second.” She handed the receiver to Zion, and he took a seat on a nearby stool at the table.

  “Hi Tori,” he said slowly. “What… um, what seems to be the problem down there?”

  “Well, the nickel version is that my friends and I are being harassed by some real assholes across the river,” the young woman explained. “It used to be just exchanging insults, but in the last few days it’s gotten… more intense.”

  Zion frowned. “How much more intense?”

  “Four dead with multiple injuries,” came the reply.

  He took a deep breath, rubbing his forehead again. “Yeah, I’d say that qualifies as more intense,” he agreed. “So what do you envision me doing, exactly?”

  “Well… Cheryl said you were building up the city and connecting the survivor groups,” Tori explained. “I was kind of hoping you could come mediate?”

  He barked a humorless laugh. “Sounds like I’m a victim of my own success.”

  “So you’re going to come help us?” Hope exploded in the girl’s excited voice.

  He nodded. “Yeah, we’ll come on down and have a chat with your neighbors to the south,” he said. “Gonna take us a little while to get there though, since it looks like you’re twenty miles on the far side of the middle of nowhere.”

  “No worries whatsoever,” Tori gushed. “We’re hunkered down in the hardware store. It’s about three blocks up from the bridge. Just cut through the woods and we’ll be up on the right.”

  Zion glanced at Cheryl to make sure that she was writing all of it down, which of course, she was. “Do you have a short range radio handy?” he asked.

  “Sure do,” Tori replied.

  He nodded. “We’ll be on channel twenty-two. We’ll let you know when we’re nearby.”

  “Thank you again, so much, both of you,” she gushed. “You travel safe.”

  “Sit tight and we’ll see you soon,” Zion assured her, and then tossed the receiver on the table as the line went dead. “Looks like we got a road trip.”

  Calvin raised a hand. “Can we at least get the breakfast to go?”

  “They already got a couple of plates set aside for you, packed up and ready to go,” Cheryl replied.

  His eyes lit up like a kid at Christmas.

  “It’s almost like you knew we were going to take this job,” Zion said, giving her a playful side-eye.

  She smirked. “Almost like I knew what would happen if you didn’t.”

  “While we’re gone, maybe you can get some of the better trainees to go out with the zombie corralling group,” he suggested.

  She nodded. “Already got them penciled in for when they get back from the cleanup duty to be called in.”

  He held up his hands, palms out, as he got to his feet. “What would I do without you?”

  “Pray that you never have to find out,” Cheryl replied, and then shooed them towards the door. “Now you boys get going. I got more work to get done.”

  The duo exited, and shut the door quietly behind them, the sound of shuffling papers clear as day.

  “Never a dull moment, is it?” Calvin asked brightly as they headed down the hallway.

  Zion laughed and shook his head. “No sir, it is not.”

  CHAPTER FOUR

  Zion sat in the passenger seat of a newer model truck, with Calvin behind the wheel. In a previous life, this truck had been the country boy’s baby. Even in the apocalypse, he refused to let anyone drive it, even Zion.

  The interstate was a little cluttered, with the occasional crash and overturned vehicle on the road. Construction in the east-bound lane had it down to just one outside of town, which had been quickly stopped by a wreck on Day Zero, forcing would-be escapees to flee south towards California.

  “Man, it is so nice to get out of town and let my girl stretch her legs,” Calvin said with a grin.

  Zion stuck his arm out of his open window, letting it dance in the wind as they cruised at a good clip down the road. “Just don’t stretch them too much,” he warned. “If we get into a wreck, I don’t think triple-A is gonna come rescue us.”

  Calvin grimaced and dropped the speed down to about thirty-five from fifty, nodding to concede the valid point. “Man,” he finally said, “can I ask you a question?”

  “Sure thing,” Zion replied, leaning his head back against the headrest. “What’s on your mind?”

  His friend took a deep breath. “Back in your… you know…” He struggled to find the words, wanting to say gang days, but at a glance from Zion knew that was a poor choice. “Uh… youth. Did you ever get into a situation where you were just… terrified?”

  “Nice save,” his passenger commended.

  Calvin smiled sheepishly. “Thanks.”

  “To answer your question though,” Zion continued, “of course, I’ve been scared before.”

  The driver shook his head. “No, not just scared,” he said. “I mean, terrified to the point where you didn’t know if you were going to make it home that night.”

  Zion shrugged, thought for a moment, and then said, “Nah, never been terrified like that.”

  “Come on, really?” Calvin asked, eyebrows hitting his hairline. “You’ve never been in a situation where you thought, this is the end?”

  His passenger nodded, holding up a hand. “Don’t get my wrong, I’ve been in situations where it could have been the end of it all,” he admitted. “I just never got terrified over it.”

  “Well do tell, brother Zion, share your secret with the congregation!” Calvin exclaimed, raising a fist. “Lord knows I could use some of that confidence.”

  Zion pulled his arm in from the window and rested it on his leg. “I just live in the mindset of when I go on dangerous jobs that I’m not coming back.”

  Calvin opened his mouth, and then closed it again, shocked. When he finally spoke, his voice was hoarse. “That’s… not very comforting. Especially since we’re currently in a dangerous job.”

  “It’s really the only way to stay calm in tight situations,” Zion explained. “If your mind is distracted by thinking about your girl waiting on you in a comfy bed with a cold beer and a Costco-sized pallet of condoms, then your enemy already has an advantage over you. When I go into a situation not expecting to survive it, it’s a whole lot easier to focus on the moment.”

  Calvin shook his head, letting out a deep breath between his teeth. “Man, that is some next-level head game shit right there.”

  “I’m telling you brother, it works,” Zion insisted. “I got into this one situation just before I walked away from it all. Some wannabe gangster thought he was just gonna waltz right into our turf and set up shop. Well, the people I worked for didn’t take too kindly to that, so they sent me over with a not-so-welcome basket.”

  Calvin put up a hand. “Wait, wait, wait,” he said. “What is in a not-so-welcome basket?”

  “Oh, you know, the standard,” his friend replied casually. “Some fruit, nuts, and assorted cans of whoop-ass.”

  The driver chuckled. “Guess that’s not a big holiday seller,” he quipped, and then cocked his head. “Although I could see it in some families.”

  “No kidding,” Zion agreed.

  Calvin glanced at him. “So, what happened?”

  “It was in this shitty little garage in a neighborhood you would have lasted about six seconds in before getting robbed,” his friend explained, eyes near glazing over with the memory. “I go in through the side door with two of my boys for backup. It’s just him and one other dude, sitting on the couch playing video games. I knew something was up when he didn’t shit himself as soon as I walked in.

  “So I go into my talk, which had proved very effective in the past, but this brotha didn’t even look away from the screen. After a few moments, I trail off, which is when he pauses the game and gets up. He gets nose to nose with me—or nose to chest since he was about five foot four—acting all smug. I let him ramble on for a few seconds bef
ore reaching up and grabbing him around the neck. Before I could snap it, I had two guns to the back of my head.”

  “Oh, shit!” Calvin exclaimed, smacking the steering wheel in his shock. “The boys you brought with you?”

  Zion nodded. “Yep,” he said. “Turns out they were his cousins, and he had recruited them to come work for him instead.”

  “So how did you get out of it?” Calvin prompted.

  His friend smiled. “By being calm.”

  “Calm? Calm!” Calvin cried. “What did you do? Talk your way out of it?”

  Zion laughed. “Aw, hell no,” he replied, slapping his thigh. “I beat everyone in that room to within an inch of their life with a tire iron. Took a couple of rounds while doing so, but remained nice and calm as I gave each of them permanent injuries to remember me by.”

  “That’s insane, man,” the driver gushed, shaking his head in bewilderment. “I’m guessing that wannabe gangster got the message?”

  Zion shrugged. “Never saw him or those other boys again,” he confirmed. “Don’t know what happened to them. All I remember is passing out once I got back to the club house. Woke up a couple days later all patched up. My boss came in, said ‘good job,’ left a stack of hundreds on the table and walked back out.”

  “I’m guessing your boss was the type of man you didn’t question?” Calvin wrinkled his nose.

  Zion shook his head, sticking his arm back out the window and drumming on the outside of the door. “Not unless you wanted your family and friends to wonder what happened to you.”

  “Man…” Calvin trailed off in awe. “That’s a hell of a story, bro. I don’t have anything that can rival that. Closest I got is when my buddy and I got into a feud with a family of badgers and-”

  All of a sudden, the driver’s side window shattered.

  The jolt caused Calvin to swerve to the left, grinding it up against the metal median barrier of the highway. “What the fuck?!” he cried.

  Zion scanned the hills to the right, noting several glints of scopes reflecting in the sun. “We got company,” he said firmly. “Step on it!”

  Calvin hit the gas, still swerving a little as bullets peppered the truck. “They’re hurtin’ my baby!” he screeched.

  His passenger stared out, surveying the landscape, and then saw a metallic object fly through the air up ahead, smoke rising up behind it. “Pipe bomb!” he yelled. “Hard left!”

  Calvin jerked the wheel, the truck just barely passing the bomb as it went off. The back windshield exploded, the bed denting from behind. More shots ricocheted off of the vehicle and he steered towards an embankment that went to the westbound lane towards the river.

  “Hang on, this is gonna suck!” he yelled.

  Zion grabbed the handle above his head, holding on tight as the truck jumped the road shoulder and bounced down the embankment. When they hit pavement again, Calvin tried to hit the brakes, but they were moving too fast. The truck skidded across the westbound lane and continued down the next embankment towards the river.

  “I can’t stop!” Calvin cried.

  They braced for impact as the truck splashed into the water, about eight feet away from the bank. The water wasn’t too deep, only coming up to the top of the front bumper. Bullets rained down on them, hitting the car and the water, splashing everywhere.

  “Get to the front!” Zion barked, and they shoved their doors open. He moved quickly, getting around the front bumper for cover.

  Calvin leaned into the backseat to grab his sniper rifle and joined his friend, narrowly missing a bullet that pinged off of the side of the door as he slipped by.

  “Holy hell man, you good?” Zion huffed as his friend joined him.

  Calvin nodded. “Just trying to stay calm,” he said.

  “That’s my boy,” Zion clapped him on the shoulder.

  His friend took a deep, ragged breath. “So now what?” he asked.

  Zion looked around, seeing no cover towards land, but then behind him there was a tiny strip about fifty yards away on the water. There were a few canoes peeking through the trees.

  “We’re going for a swim,” he said, jerking his thumb over his shoulder.

  Calvin glanced behind them and groaned. “As much as I’d love to make these fuckers pay for baby here, it’s gonna have to wait, huh?”

  They dove into the water, submerging completely to help protect from the bullets still flying their way. Shots smacked into the water the whole way over, barely missing them even with their cover.

  As they got to the dingy old dock, Zion pulled himself up first and then helped his friend up. As soon as Calvin hit the wood, he took a knee and turned back towards the truck, looking through his scope.

  “You get the boat, I’ll cover us,” he said, watching a few guys with rifles skidding down the embankment.

  Zion nodded and immediately got to work untying a canoe and securing the paddles.

  Calvin took careful aim, squeezing the trigger and punching a giant hole in one man’s chest. His buddies panicked, diving behind the waterlogged truck for cover. He continued to aim downrange, just waiting for someone to pop their heads up so he could blow it up like a piñata.

  “Come on, we’re out!” Zion said, hopping into the boat.

  Calvin backed up and jumped in, reaching for a paddle.

  “No, you keep covering us,” his friend said, shaking his head. “I’ll get us across the water.”

  The sniper nodded and narrowed his eyes, falling into sentry mode. He scanned the shoreline, keeping his senses alert as Zion moved them towards the other bank.

  Calm, man. Calm.

  CHAPTER FIVE

  Zion rowed the boat up to the bank on the Washington side of the river, and they quickly jumped out into the grass. Calvin helped him pull the boat behind some bushes, jumping down into the brush as they heard engines in the distance.

  “Those motherfuckers are gonna pay for hurtin’ my baby,” Calvin growled.

  Zion nodded. “Damn right they are.”

  The sniper checked his ammo, pulling out the magazine from the gun before getting frustrated and slamming it back into the rifle.

  “How many shots you got?” Zion asked.

  Calvin grunted. “Seven,” he replied. “The rest of the ammo is still in the truck.”

  “Same here with everything I brought,” his friend said. “Looks like we’re going to have to go old school brute force on this one.”

  The sniper nodded. “As long as I get to kneecap the bastards that did this.”

  “You don’t wanna kill them?” Zion asked, surprised.

  “Fuck no,” Calvin spat. “They deserve to limp the rest of their days as they know why they’re limping.”

  Zion cracked a smile, impressed by his partner’s newfound rage. “That’s my boy.”

  The engines grew louder, and they stayed low in the bushes. They looked towards the bridge over the river, and saw half a dozen vehicles rumbling across.

  “Looks like they’re sending a welcome party,” Calvin muttered.

  Zion smacked his shoulder. “Come on,” he urged. “Let’s get to the hardware store.”

  They pushed their way through the thick brush. As they moved through the woods, a clearing came up ahead, leading to the edge of town.

  Zion stopped suddenly, putting his hand on his partner’s chest to get him to stop. He held a finger to his lips, and they both listened to the sound of shuffling feet just up ahead. He motioned for Calvin to stay put, and then silently crept forward. After several steps a rail-thin female zombie stumbled out from around a tree.

  It growled and reached out through holes in its tattered hoodie, and staggered towards him.

  Zion cracked a smile, and then lunged forward, shoving the frail creature to the ground. As it landed hard on its back, he grabbed its feet and swung hard, sending the zombie into a thick trunk nearby, crushing its head.

  He turned back to Calvin, who gave him an enthusiastic thumbs-up. They took pace tog
ether again, and got to the edge of the clearing, taking a knee to survey the area. There was a row of houses leading to the street, and they could see straight up a few blocks into the main area of town.

  Engines continued to rumble in the distance.

  “All right, here’s what we’re doin,” Zion said quietly. “Get across that back yard, use the house for cover to check for cars, then we haul ass straight up towards the hardware store.”

  Calvin took a deep breath. “Hopefully it’s on this side street.”

  “If not, hang a right,” Zion replied.

  His partner cocked his head. “Why to the right?”

  “Dunno,” Zion admitted with a shrug. “Gut instinct?”

  Calvin sighed. “Shit man, good enough for me.”

  “Come on, let’s move,” Zion said, and they took off like a shot from the trees.

  They sprinted across the yard, taking up position next to the house.

  Zion poked his head out to look down the street, seeing no cars but a handful of zombies farther down. “We’re good,” he said.

  He darted out with his partner hot on his heels, and they moved with a quick pace, the target two blocks away. When they got to the intersection, they checked both directions, just as an SUV turned towards them three blocks down.

  “Shit, they spotted us!” Calvin cried, as the vehicle gunned it in their direction. He fumbled with his gun as the engine screamed towards them, but Zion grabbed his shirt.

  “Fuck it, just run!” he cried, and they took off.

  Calvin threw his gun over his shoulder as they sprinted, making it halfway up the block as the SUV skidded around the corner towards them. He peeked over his shoulder and saw a figure leaning out of the passenger window, lighting a fire under his ass.

  They hit the next intersection, and hung a right around the corner.

  “This has gotta be it,” Zion huffed at the sight of a few dozen bodies laying in the middle of the road.

  They pushed on, and tore towards the hardware store. The SUV skidded around the corner and fired a few shots from a handgun, narrowly missing them as they ran.

  “GET DOWN!” a female screamed as they neared the store, and the duo dove to the ground as a loud thonk sounded. A four foot long wooden stake flew over their heads and punched through the windshield of the oncoming vehicle, and it skidded to a stop and began to back up quickly, the gunman ducking back inside.