“Outside,” yelled Jacqueline. “Go be children outside!” She laughed at their goofy smiles as they ran swiftly to the backdoor, racing to see who could get out first. "Just be careful!" she yelled.
“Good lord, what have I done,” she said, watching them with a grin. She felt a tug on her shirt and looked down to see Maya quietly staring up at her. Jacqueline watched her fidget nervously before she finally said in a voice filled with uncertainty, “I think I need a mommy.” Jacqueline felt her eyes instantly grow wet as she bent down, picking her up. Cuddling her in her arms, their eyes met for a brief moment before Maya rested her head against her shoulder. Jacqueline was overcome with emotion and began weeping as she held her.
She had done it, or more accurately, a Disney cartoon had helped facilitate it. Whatever the means, she had finally broken through and reached them. It was hopefully the beginning of a new chapter in their lives.
CHAPTER FIVE
"We're doubling patrols for the next few weeks and remaining on high alert." Bo was addressing the compound at a hastily called town meeting. Mace stood up, raising his hand. They were discussing the continued safety of the compound after the latest attack. The hall was filled with people.
Bo nodded towards him from the front of the room. “Mace, I’d love to hear your thoughts on this,” he said loudly. “I know you’ve seen a lot yourself.”
Mace looked around at the faces that quietly observed him before returning his focus on Bo. “I’ve thought a lot about the attack the other night. You seem to have a wide range of weapons at your disposal, but there are few things that we discovered that have saved our lives on more than one occasion.”
The room remained silent as everyone waited for him to continue. “One of the best weapons we’ve come across is a flash grenade,” he said. “It may sound crazy, but it is highly effective at disrupting an attack, and it kills any infected in a close enough proximity. It also completely freaks out the rest.”
“We have some,” Bo stated, rather surprised at the news. “We hadn’t thought of using them. We were more concerned with high impact weapons.”
“Trust me, they work,” reiterated Mace. “They’ll actually blow the eyeballs right out of their skulls.” A distasteful look fell upon a few faces at the description, while Yvette and Jim both smiled at the rear of the hall. They both recalled the effectiveness of the flash grenades and knew they wouldn’t still be alive without them. They were part of Mace’s group that had traveled to Overland Park from San Francisco months earlier. They were also teenagers in love. Their courtship had taken place during the zombie apocalypse. They often joked about the twisted stories they would someday tell their children.
Mace continued without noticing any of the reactions. “The other perfect weapon for chasing down infected or for a night hunt is an ambulance. The revolving lights put them in something close to a trance. They are a hell of a lot less dangerous that way, and it works much better than a spotlight alone. A police car would work well, too.”
Bo raised his eyebrows as he considered Mace’s input. “We’ve got two ambulances parked behind the medical center. They are both operational.”
Angela stood up immediately from two seats away, twisting around to address everyone. “Let’s get out there, then, and soon. The best defense is a good offense. A nighttime offensive would be the best way to flush them out, and if we can fight those bastards while they’re in a coma, it’s all the better.”
Mace appreciated her enthusiasm but wasn’t finished. “There is more, though. The bigger threat will be the gangs or militia that will want what we’ve got. If it hadn’t been for the infected, who knows how far that assault could have gone.” He thought back to Father McCann’s words on the deeds of men under such circumstances and repeated them almost verbatim. “This catastrophe will bring some to levels of greatness but bring others to the depths of depravity. We need to be prepared.”
Bo was watching him carefully. “What do you suggest?”
“The chain link fence is good, but there are way too many buildings or obstacles outside it where we could be watched or an assault launched.” He knew his opinion on this might not go over so well. “I think we need to level everything within at least 500 feet of the fence.”
A murmur rose throughout the crowd. “You want to do what?” said a man close to him, clearly perturbed.
“Level it. Burn it. Whatever we have to do that will give us complete vision in all directions,” answered Mace, turning to face him. “We need to have as much control as possible, which includes what goes on outside the fence line.”
A voice rose from the back. “I suppose you’ll want to dig a moat as well.”
A few people in the crowd laughed.
“If I thought it would make us safer, I would. It’s only obvious to anyone on the outside looking in that we’ve got something going here. If somebody wants it, and if there are enough of them, this place could be overrun rather easily. The large cache of weapons will only hold out so long.”
Bo spoke up loudly to get everyone’s attention. “He’s right,” he said. “We’ve allowed ourselves to get complacent. The weapons won’t last forever. I like the idea of creating some space between us and whatever is out there.”
The murmuring quieted down for the moment.
“I’m not trying to create problems,” Mace stated. “But if we don’t look forward now, we are going to pay for it later. The weapons we are relying on will not last forever. I think we need to start searching for or making crossbows or other armory that won’t need bullets. The bullets will eventually run out. We should also try to acquire some horses, if there are still any around. Gas will eventually run out as well.” He could sense the tension in the room building again. He was an outsider, he knew, but all their lives were at stake. “I just want to create a safe enough place for our children to live in. We don’t know what the future holds, and the better prepared we are, the better chance they’ll have.”
~~~
Inside Sarah’s house, a few women had gathered for their own discussion. While the rest of the compound was focused on camp safety and strategy, the women were organizing a school program to educate the compound children.
“I think it would be a mistake to stick with the old books and tools. We need to focus on survivor techniques and combat training,” said Jade, who gently rocked Jason in a rocking bassinet. They were gathered in the living room, and Jade had helped Sarah drag the bassinet in from her empty baby’s room. “With limited resources and time, everyday needs should be the bulk of what they learn.”
Chelsea, sitting on the other side of the bassinet, stared lovingly at the sleeping child, occasionally squeezing his little hands or feet. She had become his big sister at the request of Jade and had taken the role very seriously.
Lisa, who sat next to Jade, thought of something and spoke up. “We also need to train the children for medical emergencies. They should all know CPR and first aid techniques.”
“Good idea.” Sarah was jotting everything down in a notebook. “They should all be able to distribute the antidote as well.” Three months earlier, Jade and her group had arrived with a partial antidote for the infection. They still needed to figure out how to fix its complications. The antidote stopped the infection from spreading, which was key to their survival, but it came at a price.
Rachel, the compound nurse, nodded in agreement. “I would love to start a training program similar to what I’ve been using with Melissa.” Melissa was a young teenager who had arrived with Jade and the others and had shown great interest in nursing.
“You’re a great teacher,” Melissa said appreciatively, hanging on her every word. Rachel had become like a second mother to her. Both her parents had died shortly before their arrival at the camp, and Rachel had helped her cope with the loss. They shared a brief smile.
“What about vocational classes?” added Jade. “Allowing kids to choose what they want to learn?”
“I
want to be a mommy,” said Chelsea to herself, still focused on Jason, who rubbed his nose with the back of his hand in his sleep. Lisa looked down at her daughter and smiled. Chelsea had adapted to camp life better than she could have hoped.
“Agreed,” said Sarah, lifting her head from the notebook and putting the pencil on the table, “although I think some cross-training would be highly beneficial. We need people who are competent at a variety of positions.”
“Can’t argue with you there,” said Jade. “We need people who are good at raising and carrying for livestock and know how to work in a garden. We need to be completely self-sufficient.”
~~~
The last mutant infected had traveled over forty miles by the time it encountered any living victims. Hiding in one of the rooms of an abandoned house to avoid the light, it came out of its putrid fog as a group of survivors entered the front door in search of supplies.
Hearing the clatter within the house, it was initially overcome with fear, visibly trembling as the noises drew closer. It hunched down to try to make itself less visible. As soon as the door started to push inward, though, its internal chemistry changed. It charged at the door, shrieking and furious as the door fully opened, and the teenage boy who came through with his gun drawn screamed as the mutant crashed into him.
The gun discharged into the infected’s chest, but it didn’t phase it as it threw the boy against the hallway wall and sank its teeth into his neck. It ripped out flesh and tossed the teenager down the hallway, the boy’s eyes wide and desperate as blood spurted from the wound. Flopping around in torment, nausea sent a torrent of vomit gushing from his throat, and he clutched the rug beneath him as the infection took root. His eyes filled with terror as blood poured into them. Shaking violently, his three traveling companions yelled out as they rushed to the scene from different areas of the house.
The boy’s girlfriend arrived first, and the creature roared as she raised her pistol and fired, the bullet just missing its head and putting a hole in the wall inches to the left. The mutant was instantly upon her.
The boy who had been attacked grew still as death overcame him. As his two friends rushed past him to try to save his girlfriend, his eyes snapped back open, blood-red and filled with rage, and he shrieked as the madness surged through his entire being. He jumped to his feet in an acrobatic leap and immediately took off after them. The creature had already torn the girlfriend’s face wide open and was pounding into it repeatedly with its fists as her friends fired their weapons repeatedly into its back. The newly infected teenager came upon them from the rear, jumping on the closest one and biting into the back of his neck. The second one turned and raised his gun, pleading for him to stop as he backed up. "Jordy, wait! Jordy!"
The mutant infected was suddenly behind him. Towering over him, it clutched the boy’s head in its hands and squeezed, lifting him off his feet. The boy squealed in pain, kicking his legs and dropping the gun. The girl now rose to her feet, her face a horrid mess of torn flesh and blood. As the mutant crushed the boy’s face inward, she rushed towards the boy, digging her teeth into his tricep and tearing out a huge chunk of muscle. His body started convulsing as his other friend joined the slaughter, ripping open his stomach with both hands as it shrieked at him, inches away from his face. The boy screamed in agony as his head caved in, eyeballs popping from their sockets as the creature’s arms shook with rage and crushed him with all its strength.
The mutant lifted him as high as it could before slamming his body down on the ground. They all jumped upon him, tearing into him until there was nothing left but a bloody pulp.
CHAPTER SIX
Jacqueline heard a loud commotion in the backyard and went tearing out the door by the kitchen. It had been three days since they’d all watched Peter Pan. The children had loosened up considerably, yet as she approached a number of them outside, the barn became eerily quiet.
“What’s going on?” she asked, slowing down and stopping just before the barn entrance, staring at the children who a moment before had been cheering.
The kids all remained silent. Breathing heavily from the exertion, she looked at the open doors. “Is something going on in there I should know about?”
Turning away, a few of the kids just murmured under their breath as they quickly walked away. It was obvious that something wasn’t right.
She scanned the area, watching their reactions before entering through the barn doors. What she saw inside made her gasp. “Oh dear Jesus, you boys get away from that, now!”
Woody and three other boys shot her a surprised look before scrambling out of the way. They had been holding down a tall male infected, and as they let it go, it slowly rose, hissing at them in defiance. Standing at a distance, Woody stood in his cowboy outfit, pleading at Jacqueline with his eyes not to ruin their fun.
She stared slack-jawed from him to the infected. It wasn’t the hideous condition that shocked her the most. It wasn’t the fact that it was on their property that disturbed her. It was the large alarm clock that was securely tied around its neck.
“What were you trying to do?” she asked in shock. She looked directly at Woody, who began to turn away. “No no, you don’t get to play that anymore. We are a family now. I’m not going to punish you, I just want to understand. What did you think you could accomplish?”
The creature plodded towards her slowly, its mouth gaped open and drooling.
“It was supposed to be our crocodile,” spoke Woody defiantly. “We were just trying to have an adventure.”
Jacqueline knew she shouldn’t be shocked, but this was way beyond anything she expected. She pulled her 9mm from the shoulder holster and pointed it at the creature. “You can never play with them,” she said emphatically as she watched it approach. “I don’t care how skilled you think you are; one bite, one scratch, and the infection could spread to all of us in a matter of minutes.”
The rest of the children had now gathered around, watching the spectacle, remaining quiet. “You do know what happens when you’re bitten, right?” Jacqueline asked as the creature moaned, drawing closer.
She shot a quick glance at Woody, who just shrugged his shoulders. “You do know, right?” she asked again, louder. The creature took another step closer and she locked her gun on its head, pulling the trigger. The loud bang inside the barn caused the kids to flinch as the creature whipped back, the bullet smashing through its skull.
“You die and you become one of them!” she said loudly in distress. “This part is not some damn fantasy. Whenever you see one, you kill it, you hear me? You don’t take any chances.” She stared at Woody and then at the rest of the kids and could see the uncertainty returning to their mannerisms. She couldn’t lose them again. “Every one of them is a pirate, okay, and we kill pirates around here. We don’t ever allow pirates into Neverland.”
She could still see the defiance in Woody’s eyes. At only eight, he was the undisputed leader of the children. She couldn’t let them slip back into their old patterns. “You are the greatest pirate fighter I have ever seen, Woody, but let us never play with pirates again. When we see them we show them what we’re made of, okay? We show them why they should always fear us. Understand?”
He just stood still, watching her, unsure of what to do. She took several steps towards the fallen infected and raised her pistol at it again. Looking at Woody, she fired two more shots into its torso. “We never let the pirates live,” she said softly. “We never compromise Neverland. Never. We never give them a chance to win.”
Woody nodded this time as he stared at her, his eyes turning cold with understanding, and he moved his gaze from her to the dead pirate. “Pirates never live,” he said quietly.
“Right,” she said in agreement. “Never.”
CHAPTER SEVEN
Chelsea ran by Bill as he was checking on one of the five cows they had acquired for the compound. He jumped as she squirted by, followed closely by Buster who suddenly barked at being left behind.
Bill was in the pasture at the rear of the compound, and as the camp vet, it was his job to ensure that the cows remained healthy. “Dang girl, don’t do that,” he said as she squealed, running past. He jumped again as her friend Jody darted by, yelling, “Slow down, Chelsea!” as she went.
He was confused by their mad dash until he spotted a kite in the air that was plunging towards the ground ahead of the girls. It lifted back up a second later and then sailed high, fluttering in mid-air before diving again. He followed the string across the field to see his son, Mike, at the far end, maneuvering the strings to control the kite.
Bill felt a cold sweat come over him, and his heart thumped in his chest. “You’re dead,” he proclaimed with a stunned whisper. His mouth opened wide as he stared.
He took a step towards Mike, and Mike disappeared. He blinked his eyes a few times, trying to determine if he’d just lost his mind or had indeed just seen his dead son. After a few minutes, Chelsea and Jody came running back in his direction, with Buster leaping all around. “Chelsea,” he yelled out as she drew close, “Were you chasing that kite?”
Chelsea stopped abruptly and looked at him funny. “What kite?”
“You didn’t see a kite?” His breath instantly caught in his throat.
“Nuh-uh. We were chasing butterflies.”
“Never mind,” he said, turning around to hide the tears that began welling in his eyes.
Mike had been killed two days before they had arrived in Overland Park. Attacked by an infected, Mace had been forced to shoot him. They were a just a few days away from receiving the antidote. He was the last casualty before they arrived at the compound.
Bill stared at a fluff of clouds in the sky. He wiped a tear away with his finger. “My boy, I don’t know if that was you or not,” he said, “but I miss you.”
“He misses you, too,” said Sarah, startling him as she walked up from behind. “I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to scare you.”
Children of the Apocalypse (Mace of the Apocalypse #3) Page 4
