Maybe something bit him … maybe he got into a fight with a big dog.
If that’s the case, what’s happening to the guy could be rabies or something similarly aggressive. Finn puts his palm on the Arab’s forehead, feeling to his surprise how cold the skin is.
Huh! The fever must have broken.
Normally, Finn would take that as a good sign; however, in this case, he’s pretty sure it’s quite the opposite. The Arab’s body seems to be giving up the fight against whatever is attacking it. His breathing has turned short and shallow.
If they’re not here within minutes, he’ll go into cardiac arrest.
Finn closes his eyes and breathes heavily for a moment. What a day this has turned out to be. Not half an hour ago he was out in the garden trimming hedges, his only worry was the ache in his back. Now he’s sitting with a dying man.
Lone calls from the kitchen: “They’re here! Finn, they’re here!”
Finn notices the sirens. He gets to his feet and goes to the kitchen. He sees the ambulance come to a halt and two paramedics jump out.
“Go and see to him,” he says, starting for the entrance hall. He opens the front door just as the paramedics come running. “It’s in here! Hurry up, he’s not doing very well. In the living room!”
The two men squeeze past him without any questions and head for the living room.
“Finn!” Lone calls from the living room, her voice shrill. “Finn, come look at this!”
Finn strides back into the room, almost bumping into the paramedics, who have stopped dead in the doorway. When he sees what they’re seeing, he too stops abruptly.
Lone is standing next to the couch. The Arab is sitting bolt upright, his mouth slowly opens and closes, a stream of drool running from his lower lip. But Finn only sees the man’s eyes. They’re wide open, staring at nothing, and both pupil and iris are completely gone. Looking at the guy, Finn is reminded of those fish that live deep down near the bottom of the ocean, their eyes blind from living in eternal darkness.
Lone is the first one to speak. “I … I think he …”
She’s interrupted as the Arab suddenly moves with striking speed. He twists to the side, reaches out his arms, grabs Lone’s blouse, pulls her down, opens his mouth and bites down hard on the side of her neck.
Lone screams shrilly, more surprise than pain, and the paramedics jump back to life.
Finn, however, finds himself utterly unable to move. It’s like someone pulled the plug on his old body, and he can only stand there and watch everything that happens in front of him through a veil of shock.
The living room turns into a tangle of flailing arms and snapping teeth. The paramedics manage in a joined effort to wrench the Arab free of Lone, but he comes away with a massive chunk from her neck, and the blood immediately starts gushing. A second later the Arab has instead clamped down on one of the paramedics’ shoulder, causing him to yell out and stumble over his own feet, reaching out and grabbing hold of the other paramedic in an effort not to fall down, but only managing to pull his colleague down with him.
The noises only come through to Finn in a muffled drone. The shouts of the paramedics, Lone’s screaming, the animal-like growl of the Arab, the crash of the coffee table being flipped on its side as the paramedics scramble frantically to hold down the Arab while simultaneously not being bitten—which proves impossible, as both of them quickly suffer bloody wounds as the Arab’s teeth tear through their uniforms.
Lone is the last person standing, but only for a few seconds, as she tries in vain to stop the blood from pouring out of her neck, her tiny, shaking hands getting soiled in no time. Her eyes sweep the room, distant and dreamy, and for a moment they connect with Finn’s. Later, he will swear that he saw her smile; that his beloved wife of almost fifty years summoned her last effort of will to send him one last smile. Then, she collapses and disappears from view behind the couch.
Finn blinks hazily and turns his gaze back to the Arab, who’s now on top of one of the paramedics, the poor guy screaming and fighting to get him off, while the other paramedic is rolling around the floor, clutching his jaw, which is missing most of the skin. The Arab is the only one who hasn’t slowed down; he’s still biting at everything within reach, desperate like a predator who has gone hungry for weeks.
So, this is how it ends, Finn thinks very soberly. Part of his brain is trying to convince him it’s all just a bad dream, but the more rational part knows better. It knows Lone is dead and he himself will be joining her on the way to heaven in only a few moments, as soon as the Arab loses interest in the already dead-or-very-close-to-it paramedics and turns to see Finn just standing there. He ought to run, of course, but his body is still completely unresponsive, and besides—what would be the point? Lone is gone, so he might as well go too. He only hopes it’ll be over quick and not—
“Finn!”
Someone shouts his name very close by. Finn turns his head to see a boy he knows. It’s Dan, the boy from across the street. Dan stares at him with eyes large and scared—but also, surprisingly, somehow determined.
“Come … with … me,” Dan says, the words finding their way to Finn’s ears as distant echoes. “We … gotta … get … out … of here …”
Dan pulls him by the arm, hard, and Finn is surprised to find himself moving along. His eyes are reluctant to obey, though, and his neck turns to get one last glimpse of Lone.
Just as Dan drags him out of the living room, Finn actually sees part of his wife: her hand is sticking out from behind the couch. The skin is greenish. The fingers twitch a few times. Lone is waking up again.
SIXTEEN
Dan hauls Finn out the front door and only lets go of him once he’s sure the old guy will stay on his feet and not collapse.
“Finn?” he says, attempting to catch the swimmy, grey eyes. “Where’s the key?”
Finn blinks dazedly. “The key …?”
“Yeah, the key to the house. Do you have it? Where is it?”
The words don’t really seem to resonate, and Dan is about to abandon his effort, when Finn suddenly goes to the pockets of his shorts. “I don’t … have it on me,” he murmurs. “It’s probably hanging on the nail.”
“What nail?” Dan demands. “Where’s the nail, Finn?”
“In the front hall.”
“Right. Stay here for a moment, okay?”
Dan steps back into the house and looks around. From the living room the screams and bangs have died out—instead he hears the unmistakable sound of someone chewing noisily and wetly on something. Dan doesn’t have to look in order to guess who won the fight. In a matter of minutes, there’ll be three new zombies in the house. That’s why he needs to lock the front door …
His eyes catch the nail in the wall next to the coat stand, and he grabs the key, slips out into the baking sunshine once more, slams the door and locks it.
“Right,” he says to Finn, who’s still standing there, an expression of not-quite-sure-what’s-happening on his face. “They can’t get out.”
“Get out?” Finn repeats in a murmur. “But Lone … Lone is in there …”
The emotion flickering across Finn’s face as he turns to look at the house sends a jolt of empathy through Dan’s heart. The experience of losing a loved one is still all too familiar to Dan, and he sees Jennie’s face before him. He forcefully pushes the image aside—and is surprised to find he can actually do it. “Come with me, Finn,” he says gently. “There’s nothing more you can do for her.”
“But … but I …”
Dan takes hold of his arm and leads him down the garden path. Finn struggles weakly for a moment, then follows along. They cross the street and are met in the driveway by Dan’s grandma, her eyes wide. “Where did you go, Dan? Why would you run out the door like that?”
“Help me out here,” Dan says, avoiding the questions. “He’s unharmed, but I think he’s in shock.”
Grandma takes Finn’s other arm, her eyes ping-ponging betwe
en Finn, Dan and the house across the street. “What happened over there, Dan? Where are the paramedics?”
“They … they are still in the house,” Dan mutters, helping Finn inside.
“But why aren’t they helping Finn? And who was that screaming just a minute ago? We heard it all the way over here. I was afraid you—”
Dan suddenly stops listening. Something has struck him with the force of a brick to the back of the head.
The garden door!
“I need to fix something, Grandma,” he says, letting go of Finn and stepping back outside. “I’ll be back in a second!”
“No, Dan! You stay here!”
Dan runs out the driveway. He doesn’t pause to check for any traffic and is almost hit by a station wagon. It honks its horn at him. The window rolls down, and his dad sticks out his head. “What the hell are you doing, Dan? Why are you running around out here?”
“Dad! … I … it’s …” Dan has no idea how to explain the situation in a short amount of time. He looks to Finn and Lone’s house, and at that moment, he sees Lone, as she comes staggering around the corner of the house. Her head is bobbing around on her shoulders, due to the fact that the tendons in her neck have been severed, and still-shiny blood has drenched her flowery summer shirt.
Too late … she already found the way out …
“Come on, let’s get inside,” his dad says. He hasn’t seen Lone yet, and he rolls the car into the driveway before Dan can say any more. Dan follows the car, not taking his eyes off Lone, who is headed this way.
The car’s engine shuts off, and Dad gets out. He sees Lone. “Oh, hi, Lone! We’re not really—” He interrupts himself as he gets a closer look at the neighbor. “What the hell …?”
Dan finally gets his tongue working. “Watch out, Dad! She’s turned into a zombie!”
Dad looks briefly at Dan, then back at Lone, looking as though he’s not really sure what to believe. Some sort of instinct seems to be telling him Lone is dangerous, while another, rational part of his brain can see she’s obviously hurt and wants to help her.
Dan has told the police about the zombies, has explained it all to the shrink and to his parents, has been going over the events of the past couple of days what seems like a thousand times—yet none of them believed him, and Dan couldn’t very well blame them. His dad, though, was the only one who actually seemed to consider the legitimacy of what Dan was saying—although he didn’t say it outright. But right now, his dad seems to reconsider if maybe the horrible creatures Dan has described might have been real—and that one of them might be headed for them right now.
Dan doesn’t wait for his dad to decide, but runs over and grabs his wrist. “Come on, Dad! We need to get inside! She’s dangerous! She wants to eat us!”
“Eat us?” his dad repeats. “Honestly, Dan …”
But he never finishes the sentence, because now Lone has crossed the street and is coming up the driveway, and she’s close enough for Dad to see that something is completely off—her always warm and friendly old-lady eyes are now empty, white balls rolling around blindly in their sockets, yet somehow still seeing.
Dad shoves Dan towards the door. “Hurry up, get inside.”
Dan runs to the door, just as Finn pops back outside. Dan’s grandma is trying to pull him back, but Finn has already seen his dead wife, and his expression turns blank as he mutters: “Lone?”
Dan pushes him back as he tries to go to her.
“No, get inside! Grandma, help me get him back inside!”
His grandma is already tugging at Finn, but he’s surprisingly strong for an old guy, and for a second all three of them are caught in a deadly stalemate right on the doorstep, Finn repeating his wife’s name. “Lone … Lone, I’m right here … I’m right here, Lone … I’ll help you …”
Dan is gripped by panic. “Get in, get in!” He shoves Finn in the chest hard enough to cause him to stumble backwards and would have fallen on his ass, if Dan’s grandma hadn’t been there to catch him.
“Dan, she’s coming!” his dad calls from behind him.
Dan turns to see Lone lunge at his dad.
“Dad, no!”
His dad catches Lone’s wrists a split-second before her long nails can scratch his face. He forces her arms back, but Lone in response flings her head forward, snapping wildly at his face and throat, her tiny teeth clapping just inches away from Dad’s skin. Surprisingly, his dad doesn’t seem to panic, but holds on to Lone firmly, keeping her at a safe distance. Dan just stares at his dad for a second, amazed and impressed.
“Get inside, now, damnit!” Dad roars over his shoulder. “And get that door closed!”
Grandma is still struggling to hold back Finn. Dan hesitates a moment longer, staring indecisively back and forth. He can’t just leave his dad out here, but he can’t really do anything to help him either.
Then he sees the paramedics—it’s a wonder he hasn’t seen them before now, really, since one of them is already halfway up the driveway. Dad is still wrestling with Lone, still shouting for them to get in and close the door, and he hasn’t noticed the newcomers.
“Watch out, Dad! Behind you!”
Just as Dan shouts, his dad shoves Lone away hard. She tumbles over and slams her head into the pavement with a sickening thud. She blinks, groans and flails her arms, trying to get back up, but seemingly unable to, as her brain just took a hit hard enough to knock a living person unconscious.
The quickest of the paramedics steps forward and plants his teeth right in Dad’s shoulder. He roars out in pain. The sound is mixed with Dan’s anguished scream. Then Dan’s body takes over. He jumps right into the action, grabs hold of the paramedic’s blood-stained shirt and yanks him backwards just as he’s about to bite down on Dad’s shoulder a second time. The zombie has caught hold of Dad’s shirt in return and holds on tightly, not intending on being dragged away from its first meal. But the short break gives Dad a second to react, and he doesn’t waste time; he turns halfway around, almost tearing his shirt, and starts bashing the zombie with both hands. A clenched fist right between its eyes causes it to let go and stagger backwards—but the other paramedic has now joined the fun and goes directly for Dan’s dad, who pulls back, clutching his shoulder, a look of terror on his face.
Everything slows down for a heartbeat, and Dan sees everything like from very far away. He sees paramedic number two lunge at Dad, who no longer has the strength to fight back. He sees the zombie sink its teeth in his neck, the blood spurting out, Dad screaming in pain.
And things might have played out just like that—had it not been for Lone, who at that exact moment, in an effort to get back up, rolls clumsily to the side. The paramedic doesn’t see her, trips over her legs and falls down face-first. Dan hears a couple of sharp snaps, and when the zombie a moment later cranes its neck back to look up at them, most of its teeth rattle out onto the pavement.
Paramedic number two is a bit more capable, as it manages to step past Lone, who’s still struggling to get up, and now the paramedic is blocking Dan and his dad from the doorway.
Dad sneers, holding a hand to his shoulder. His shirt has been torn, but Dan can’t see any blood—at least not yet. Maybe, just maybe, his dad was lucky enough that the zombie’s teeth didn’t break the skin. But with the amount of luck Dan has had lately, he doesn’t get his hopes up. And bleeding or not, his dad is obviously in pain.
“You stay back!” he shouts, kicking out at the paramedic. The zombie doesn’t seem to heed the warning; in fact, it sees the kicking leg more as an invitation and grabs at it eagerly, missing it by inches.
Dan and his dad back up farther, coming closer together. Soon they’ll be caught in the carport with nowhere to go. Then it happens again: Dan reacts before he knows it. He pulls sideways, away from his dad, and runs in an arc past the paramedic, headed for the street. The zombie turns and follows him.
“Dan! What are you doing?”
“I’ll lure them away from the house
! Get inside!”
“You’re coming with us!”
“I’ll draw them down the street, then I’ll come back!” Dad is about to say something else, but Dan cuts him off: “It’s okay, Dad, I can outrun them! Just please go inside the house!”
Dan doesn’t wait for an answer. He runs out the driveway, passing the toothless paramedic and Lone, who both have gotten back up. As he reaches the street, Dan looks back up to see his dad run inside the house, shoving Finn back and out of sight, and Dan feels a jolt of relief.
The paramedic without teeth and Lone come staggering at Dan, but the other one is headed for the front door. Dad sticks out his head and darts one last look in Dan’s direction, their eyes catching each other, but there’s no time to say anything, and his dad slams the door right in the face of the zombie, who immediately starts clawing at the woodwork.
Dan turns and jogs down the sidewalk. His plan is to draw the zombies down the street, just far enough for him to run back. As he looks over his shoulder to make sure the zombies are following him, his foot catches a crack in the pavement and he tumbles over, just managing to break his fall in the last second, resulting in a bad bruise on his palm.
A loud scream from down the street makes him forget the pain immediately. He looks up and sees the Arab from Finn and Lone’s house attacking a woman on a bicycle. He turns his head and looks back. The paramedic is still in pursuit, but Lone has lost interest and is instead headed across the street where one of the neighbors—John, a big fat man wearing no shirt—has popped out to see what the noise is about.
Dan wants to yell out to warn him, but his voice doesn’t seem to work, and besides, he’s got his own problems. The paramedic is just a few yards away now, eagerly picking up speed and reaching out to grab Dan. Dan scrambles to get to his feet, when suddenly he hears the angry roar of an engine. The car swerves right in front of Dan, crashing into the paramedic with a loud bang, sending the body flying through a hedge. The car comes to a halt halfway up the sidewalk. The front door is pushed open, and a young guy with tattoos all the way up his arm stares out at him. “You been bit?”
Dead Meat (Book 3): Dead Meat [Day 3] Page 6
