Jeff cursed to himself in his head. “Smart idea Senator. Let’s move.”
Down the stairwell they went. The rest of the survivors inside the school building watched with worried expressions as the soldiers marched in procession down the halls and towards the foyer to exit into the parking lot. Jeff watched one of the Labrador retrievers they’d rescued wag his tail manically as all the excitement passed by. Mike gave the dog a pat on the head as they left the school and headed out into the cold February air.
The humvees were already running for them. Private Russell drove the humvee that had the Lieutenant, Private LaFrenz, Chad, and the Senator in it. Once everyone was locked into the heavy vehicle, Lieutenant Daniels thumbed his helmet microphone, and issued the command to roll. He didn’t have many batteries left for his comms gear either. Pretty soon he’d be back to yelling out his commands the old fashioned way.
The two military trucks roared to life and plowed through the opening in the automobile wall when the van blocking the gap was backed out of the way by another one of the National Guardsman. Exiting was frequently more dangerous than entering. The undead were harder to distract away from the gate from the inside.
Sean always got nervous on exits. He always felt like the cookie jar lid was off when the van was moved out of the way. He just had the feeling that one day they’d try and leave, and a horde of the dead would push their way in. As the convoy burst out of the barrier surrounding the school Sean looked out the thick bulletproof glass of the humvee. Directly to his left, standing at the wall of cars was the zombie that had stared up at him through the classroom window the other day.
It stood impassively once again, watching the humvee with Sean drive away, leaving him behind. As they pulled away out of the corner of his eye Sean could swear the zombie was waving goodbye to him.
Had to be an optical illusion he thought.
It had to be.
*****
Jeff stepped out of the humvee and scanned the farm’s surroundings. He’d noticed on the way over they’d seen more undead than was normal, and it put him ill at ease. He and this group of soldiers had spent months killing undead, and to have so many come out of the woodwork like this on a day like today was not cool. He didn’t see any near the farm, and the undead would be hard pressed to get over the cattle fence and through all the snow to be a danger to his men and their mission.
He scanned the tree line as well as the chicken building and barn. Nothing stood out to him as being threatening, and he motioned for Stockwell and his flunky Chad to get out of the vehicle. The plan was simple. Lenny and Ollie would greet them at the door, and they’d tell him what was going to happen before he got inside.
If something happened, everyone wanted it to be done outdoors. Gunfights and struggles in a house were definitely less than ideal in Jeff’s mind. He looked over to the farmhouse door and saw it open. Lenny and Ollie came out and down the steps. The elder McDowell immediately fired up his pipe and took a few tokes as Sean and Chad made their slow way over to him. The two men had their heads on swivels looking for danger. They hadn’t been out in the open since the attack on the gas station a few weeks ago.
“Mister McDowell, so nice to see you again! How are things here on the farm?” Sean put on his best face and strode towards the old farmer, extending his hand so Lenny could take it and shake it. Lenny did no such thing. He stood and looked at Sean impassively and puffed once more on his pipe. Sean’s extended hand awkwardly got pulled back, and Sean looked at Chad incredulously.
“Senator you can put your hand away. I have no interest in shaking it.” Lenny’s tone was flat and frightening. Jeff found himself just shy of amazed that the usually congenial and friendly old man had turned so sour, so suddenly. Jeff began to realize the pain of Lenny’s wife’s death may have done some damage they weren’t aware of.
“Something wrong Mister McDowell? Normally you’re a much more receptive fellow.” Sean’s smile did an abrupt change to one of confusion. He wasn’t quite ready for that greeting. Jeff’s men fanned out and formed a perimeter. Two went to the end of the driveway near the gate, and one went to the back of the farmhouse near the barn. Mike stood at the passenger side door of the humvee furthest down the driveway, and Jeff himself stood next to the confused Sean and Chad. Ollie was behind his father.
“Mr. Stockwell, there has been some talk lately that you have been a piss poor leader of men here in this town.” Lenny’s voice was emotionless. He was sharing information, not making an insult.
“I uh… Lieutenant? What’s this all about?” Sean looked around at Jeff and Mike, trying to make heads or tails of the situation.
Jeff nodded in agreement with Lenny’s assessment of the situation. “Lenny ‘s right Sean. We made a huge mistake electing you as leader. We thought maybe because you had experience in politics you’d be good for us, but all you’ve done the past three months is fuck everything up and get a whole mess of us killed. I won’t even go into what you’re doing to a few of the women at the school. We all know you’re up to no good.” Jeff hefted the weight of the M4 rifle hanging across his chest. It was a thinly veiled threat.
Sean shook his head defiantly. “You guys can’t just do this, there is a system for this kind of thing, there’s a process of appeals, and…”
Lenny interrupted him, “You familiar with back woods justice Senator? Lemme tell you how this works now. There ain’t no courts, there ain’t no police, there ain’t no more system for this kinda thing, and the only justice and law is that of God, and men of character. You sir, are neither. We were approached a few days ago by your friend Adrian, and he asked us for help in getting to you…”
Sean backpedaled in fear at the mention of his nemesis. He looked around like a rabbit fleeing from the shadow of a hawk soaring above. He looked trapped. “Is he here? What the hell? That guy will kill me, he hates me!”
With no emotion Lenny puffed once on his pipe as Chad grabbed Sean to steady him, “He is here, and he is watching what happens right now, and what you decide right now determines what he does.”
Sean’s eyes slowly widened in horror as he realized more than an election or a debate was at stake. His life was suddenly on the line. He jerked his head left and right, looking for the man he assumed would be pointing a gun at him.
“Don’t bother looking son. He isn’t where you can see him. But I assure you, he can see you just fine. So here are your two choices; one, you about face, walk down that driveway, and disappear. You walk until you find a place you’re welcome. I assure you it ain’t anywhere in this town. Or two, you say no to that option, and we call Adrian, and he swings by, and we give you to him.”
Sean looked like he’d been violated. “You can’t do that! He’ll kill me, or worse!”
“Yes son, I would say that he will kill you, or do worse. Makes the first option awfully enticing, doesn’t it?” Lenny puffed again and cracked a smile out of the corner of his lip.
Sean was silent as all eyes fell on him. He looked small, and scared. The men gathered gave him a full minute to choose his fate. He kept licking his lips, looking back and forth between all those gathered to pass judgment on him. Finally Jeff broke the silence, “Shit or get off the pot Stockwell. It’s cold out here.”
Sean licked his chapped lips and swallowed nervously. Finally he gave his answer in a meek voice, “I uh. I’ll leave. I can keep my gun, and the vest right? I don’t have any food. Or water.”
“Eat snow asshole. Bounce.” Mike said from behind him. Patience was now gone.
Chad let go of his golf buddy and Sean took a few steps back. Ollie stood behind his father and grinned happily. He was elated that they were finally about to be rid of the man he and his father hated so much.
Sean caught a glimpse of Ollie smiling so happily, and venom spat suddenly from his lips, “Quit smiling you ginger faggot. Have fun trying to fuck that fat bitch Melissa. I know I’ve been enjoying fucking her.”
Ollie’s face tur
ned the color of his hair, and he lowered his head and charged the Senator. Everything happened in an instant. The Lieutenant took a fast step forward, and threw a shoulder into Ollie, sending him sprawling on his face to the side. Ollie was a big strong man, and his bull charge was powerful. Sean’s eyes flared up in horror as the redheaded missile came at him, and he drew the small pistol he carried.
The fallen senator pointed the weapon at the space Ollie’s lowered head had just been in, screamed loudly, and snapped off a few quick shots. Ollie had gone into the ground already, and the shots hit the Lieutenant just below his body armor, right on the belt. Jeff doubled over and fell backwards, clutching the gunshot wounds to his gut. He let out a low moan as the roaring burn of pain set in.
Mike lifted his rifle and brought the butt of it down on the back of Sean’s skull, sending him face down in the driveway. Chad let out a squeak and stumbled backwards until he lost his balance and planted himself in a snow bank next to the house. The other soldiers came running to lend assistance, and thirty feet away with a creak, the barn door opened. Adrian walked out, worry and anger on his face.
Mike stood in the driveway with absolute rage on his face, holding Chad at gunpoint. Ollie had lost his breath when he smashed into the ground and he gasped, sucking air into his empty lungs. He looked at the Lieutenant rolling on the ground next to him, eyes staring off into oblivion.
Adrian took off at a run and slid on the ground on his knees next to the wounded officer. Adrian sat his own weapon down on the ground and started to rip off the body armor and uniform of the fallen Lieutenant. Everything was slick with warm red blood. The white snow below had started to pool a thick sheen of it and the scent of copper was strong in the air. Daniels gritted his teeth against the pain and looked up at the large stranger ripping his clothes off. He didn’t have the strength to resist.
“Lieutenant, I’m Adrian. It’s nice to meet you.” The large man undid the front of Jeff’s BDU pants and exposed the four angry red holes leaking blood above his pubic hair. Adrian ripped the white sheet off his jacket and tore it in half. He folded the white cloth and pressed down firmly on the four wounds, applying pressure to try and stop the bleeding.
“Hey, fancy meeting you… like this. You don’t act… a lot like an… an enemy.” It was only through determination and willpower Daniels got any of the words out. Daniel’s hand clutched at Adrian’s wrist, holding on for dear life.
Adrian forced out a tight smile. “You and I have never been each other’s enemy sir.” Adrian pressed down hard as the white sheet turned a deep crimson between his fingers, absorbing far too much of Jeff’s blood. Jeff lifted his head enough to see how bad the bleeding was, and let out a meager laugh. His head dropped to the driveway, sending his helmet skidding away.
The soldiers stood around flatfooted, watching their leader bleed out. Private Gavin Russell, the Lieutenant’s young driver just minutes ago, flicked the safety on his M4 off, and took purposeful steps around his leader to shoot Sean.
“No. Not like that.” Jeff gathered more inner strength. Adrian looked down at him puzzled. “Lenny, do you have rope?”
The old man holstered his revolver, and turned towards the barn. He looked over his shoulder and saw Adrian’s pretty young blonde friend poking her head out of the chicken coop. She looked on intently, and unless Lenny was an idiot, he thought she was eying that Private Russell.
*****
Sean awoke when the blinding pain in his knee hit him. He let loose a primal scream and reached down to clutch at the pain. His hands didn’t move. He realized he was on the ground still, and that there was something binding his hands.
In the fading sunlight he realized that his hands were tied together at the wrist. Baling twine was tough stuff, and when wet, turned abrasive. In the few seconds Sean tried to twist his hands free he’d managed to cut his wrists to ribbons , and rivulets of bright red blood ran down his forearm. It was only then that he realized he was freezing.
He was on the ground in a parking lot that had just been cleaned of snow. It had been done haphazardly, and he recognized the place almost immediately. It was the parking lot of Sunshine Meadow, his golf course.
His knee had been busted with something. Just moving it sent stars across his eyes, and he had to let out a whimper. He’d been left for dead at his golf course.
“Heyyyyyy… fucker,” a voice called out softly from above.
Sean forced himself to roll over, and he saw the Lieutenant propped up against the wheel of a car a few feet away. Drawing a line through the snow from Sean’s foot to the blood soaked Lieutenant was a length of rope. They were tied together, and Sean’s knee was broken.
“I just thought it would be nice if we spent some quality time together. You know, before I died. I thought it might be nice if you got to see what happened first hand to people that died because of you.” The slowly dying officer coughed wetly, and clutched his destroyed stomach. “I’d say we have maybe five minutes of quality time. Then I think…. I think I’ll probably eat you alive.”
Sean screamed for the whole five minutes.
Then a little more after that.
February 22nd
Mr. Journal, I have relief today. On so many fronts. I haven’t felt this positive about anything in a long time. Refreshing, this positivity thing. I’m pretty much of the opinion that while things didn’t go perfect in Westfield, they went pretty damn well.
I’ll recant that for you. After grabbing all the supplies we thought we might need we made the trip to Westfield the morning of the 20th just like we planned. For some reason I brought the laptop too. I still don’t know why I did, but I just wanted it with me. Mr. Journal goes to Westfield. Where’s next?
I wrote my drunken entry after everyone started to fall asleep that night in Lenny’s place. We sandwiched all four of us into the front of the plow truck, and while crowded, we had a good groove on. Everyone was pretty happy about what we hoped would happen. The trip was good, and we didn’t encounter trouble worth noting.
We parked at a house as close to the farm as we could get. Patty remained behind with the truck in the event we needed either defense on the car, or if she needed to zing in and rescue us. Abby Gilbert and I made our way to the farm at about 2pm. We met up with old man Lenny and his son Ollie, and they shook our hands pretty excitedly. He felt that this was a long time coming. I detected a pretty powerful sense of vindication off them too, which told me a lot.
Once we’d gone over the entire plan for the confrontation with Sean, I got the ok to set up in the barn, and Abby went to the chicken coop. She was not pleased to have drawn the building filled with chicken poop. I told her she was more than welcome to switch to the barn where the cow poop was, and she quickly changed her tune. Chicken poo suddenly became fashionable. Gilbert drifted back into the trees and set himself up a reasonably comfortable position where he could cover us with his trusty AK. I had a good view through a space in the frame of the barn door.
And then the waiting started. I think it was about 3:30 when they arrived. Two humvees loaded up with people. A quick head count showed me Sgt. Mike, and officer (turned out to be Lt. Daniels), plus three National Guardsman. Also with them was Sean, and another asshole that looked like he’d previously been a big fan of Polo shirts and golf. As soon as they got out of the humvees, Ollie and Lenny came outside to meet them, and it started.
I couldn’t hear everything. From what I could see, Lenny and the Lieutenant laid it all out for him, and he took it poorly. At one point he looked like he’d shat himself, and started looking all over the place, I think he was looking for me. I laughed. Weasely round eyeglasses wearing cocksucker.
Finally he went quiet when his asshole friend Chad held onto him to steady him. After a bit, it looked like we’d get out of it clean, but something happened. Sean said something to Ollie, and Ollie lost his shit. I saw Ollie charge forward, and the officer got in the way. I couldn’t quite see, but there were four rapid gunshots
, and the officer went down.
I moved. I saw Mike cold cock Sean on the back of the head, and Sean went facedown. His friend (who I later found out was Chad) backed up and fell into a snow bank. The guardsman came rushing, and I went straight to the Lieutenant. I ripped his clothes off to get at his wounds, and wound up tearing the sheet straight off my back to form a compress.
I said hi to him, and he managed a hi to me. He was dying. One of the young privates went straight over the Sean and was about to kill his ass when the Lieutenant managed to stop him. He asked Lenny for rope.
Lenny got some baling twine from the barn, and they hogtied Sean. His buddy Chad watched in just total horror as they did it. It was literally like watching a hog being prepared for slaughter. Everyone stood around watching Lenny do it. I mean you could SEE Lenny enjoyed doing it, which told me even more about how he felt. The Ollie guy was all out of sorts, and sort of wandered around. He knelt next to Daniels as I held the compress on, and Daniels kept telling him to, “Forget what Sean said,” and, “Do what your heart tells you.”
I don’t know what Sean said to him, but it clearly broke Ollie’s heart. I didn’t ask.
Once Sean was tied up Daniels said to bring the two of them to the local golf course. I radioed for Patty to make her way to us, and she was there within ten minutes. Patty knew the way, and after I hopped in the truck, I plowed us a clear path the few miles out to the golf course. I cleared out the parking lot, and the soldiers got Lenny and the still knocked out Sean out of the humvees.
Daniels told them to tie him to a parked car in the lot. They looped more twine around him and tied him so he could walk, but only about ten feet. They then tied Sean to Daniels, and Daniels seemed really pleased. I can recall the look on Abby and Patty’s face when they figured out what Daniels had planned. Morbid stuff.
Midnight (Adrian's Undead Diary) Page 39
