by Gayle Katz
“Wait a minute, a student got bitten?” asked Charlie, understanding suddenly flooded her mind.
“Yep.”
“Where did the students go?” asked Charlie.
“Um, they went on the school bus,” answered Zan. “Principal Allan and the driver arrived.”
“Oh. Well, this is bad, but I guess it could be worse,” said Owen.
“Right,” said Zan. “Wait. If they get bitten, it won’t matter. Will it?”
“What are you talking about?” said Frank. “This was a special potion from a project Doctor Arora had been working on last year. Not only does it turn dead bodies to zombies, but it also causes zombies to create more zombies.”
“What? Like real zombies?” Zan asked.
Frank nodded, pleased with the results. “It’s just sad that it was the last batch I grabbed from the donut shop before you blew it up.”
“Wait, you knew Doctor Arora?” asked Owen.
“Yes. I was working with her to create a zombie uprising, just like Slim, the owner of the donut shop. Too bad she’s gone now.”
“Oh crap,” said Owen. “You were the employee that Slim told to scram from the donut shop?”
Frank nodded. “Yep. You forgot about me. You thought I had nothing to do with it, as that’s what Slim told you. He only said that, just in case you thwarted the plan. But in the end, we have ways of carrying on.”
“But this is the end of it,” said Zan. “I mean, once we kill off the last of the zombies.”
“Nah, I can have another scientist analyze that vial,” said Frank. “They are always starving. Not much money in science today.”
Owen immediately ran forward and stomped on the glass vial. He ground it into the floor.
“Nah, that won’t do it. I can scrape that off the ground.”
Owen looked frantically around him. He spotted some shoe polish. He raced to the stand, and ripped the cap off the bottle. He ran back to the spot on the ground and poured it over the dust.
“That should do it,” said Zan.
“You asshole!” cried Frank, pushing him over. “That’s it! I’m done with you! I only need Charlie the zlayer!” He raised his gun and pointed it at Owen.
zzz
Mark, the bus driver, and the mayor were all vying for the attention of the police officers who arrived on the scene. This, unfortunately, kept them from entering the mini mall to assist the teens in their hostage situation.
The mayor was explaining to the police about how terrorists had commanded the bus and mall, killing dozens of the students, while Mark was explaining there were no terrorists and that it was a zombie attack. The bus driver was explaining how the bus accidentally caught on fire with the students inside. The police didn’t know which story to believe, but they managed to put out the fire on the bus. By now, most of the zombie evidence had been destroyed.
Mark gave up arguing. The police were paying no attention to him. He did know that Charlie, Owen, and Zan never showed up. That must mean that they were still back in the mall. He decided to head back there and see if he could find them.
zzz
Zan’s phone rang, but Frank shook his head, so she didn’t answer it. Her best guess was that Stewart had found out what had happened and was checking on them.
Frank then resumed his task and aimed his gun at Owen. Owen dropped to the ground, while the shot filled the air. Dee stood up and clutched Frank. He tried to shake her off.
“You OK?” yelled out Zan.
“I’m fine,” said Owen. “Try and get him!”
Zan looked at the dagger in her hand, and then flung it through the air.
The dagger hit its mark, right in Frank’s back. Frank screamed. In that moment, the dagger hit a nerve in his spine while Dee bit him on the shoulder. He dropped the gun.
Owen rushed to pick up the gun. He tossed it at Zan, who grabbed it from the air.
Charlie just stood there, uncertain what to do.
Frank reached around and pulled the dagger from his back. He dropped it to the ground. He pushed Dee away from him. She fell against the wall.
Owen raced around to be with Zan, grabbing Charlie’s arm. The teens were on one side of the room, with Frank and the zombie on the other side.
The zombie raised her arms, while Frank backed away from her.
Charlie was fascinated. She ventured closer, and then bent forward. She picked the dagger up from the ground. The zombie rushed at her, with Frank’s blood dripping from her mouth.
“Get away,” Frank warned, but it was too late.
Charlie rushed forward, dagger in her hand. She aimed directly for Dee’s right eye socket. Bingo! The dagger hit its mark. As the body started to drop, she expertly pulled it out of the skull.
“I’m back!” she announced.
“Hooray!” said Zan. “Oh no, where are they?” Zan looked around.
“Where is who?” asked Charlie.
“Oh my god! Frank has taken Owen! We have to go after them.”
“They didn’t go out the front,” said Charlie. “I would have seen.”
“They must have gone out the back.” The two young women raced to the back exit of the store.
zzz
Mark was back inside the mall. Things seemed fairly quiet here. He saw several dead zombies on the ground. One wasn’t quite dead yet, so he quickly killed it. The rest of the zombies were long gone, along with a few humans. He double-checked, but they were definitely dead.
He saw lights in one of the shops at the end. That was odd, as there shouldn’t be anybody left here.
He went and peered inside the store. He didn’t see anyone in there but thought he’d better check it out, just in case.
He opened the door and went inside. The first thing he saw was the dead zombie on the ground. He decided to check out the back. He rushed out the exit door to the alley. In the distance, he heard voices.
He raced ahead to meet them.
“Hey, what happened?” he called out to them.
“Mark! Good to see you,” said Charlie. “Unfortunately, one of the zombie gang members has taken Owen.”
“Oh crap,” said Mark. “Wait a minute, zombie gang?”
“Well, not the entire gang, but this guy just got bitten by a zombie!” explained Zan. “Owen is immune, but not if he’s all eaten up!”
“Yuck,” said Mark. “Which direction?”
“Well, I don’t think he’d have taken him around to the front. The police are out there,” said Charlie. “I’m guessing they went this way.” She pointed ahead to the darkest part of the alley.
“OK, let’s go,” said Zan. Just then her phone rang. “Oh good. It’s Stewart.”
“Hi, Zan. I heard about the commotion down there. Is everyone OK?”
“No,” said Zan. “They’ve taken Owen.”
“I’m coming down there immediately,” said Stewart. “It sounds like there are a variety of different stories. I don’t want you guys getting shot at by the police.”
“But we can handle it,” said Zan. “Too late. Stewart is on the way,” she told the others, putting away her phone.
“What?” said Charlie. “But he never comes.”
“I know, right? Say, do you remember now?”
“I do,” said Charlie. “It’s like the fog has been lifted from my brain!”
“Hey, cool,” said Mark. “Welcome back to being a zlayer!”
Chapter 19
________________________________________
Owen was pulled along behind Frank. So far, Frank didn’t show a lot of signs of being a zombie, beyond his skin turning a slightly gray color. He may be one of the zombies that retained some of their brainpower, rather than becoming a full-blown zombie right away. Owen still had his dagger on him, but he needed the zombie to slow down so he could whip it out and use it.
“Get in,” said the zombie, when they reached a dark-colored van.
“No,” said Owen, yanking his dagger out and plunging it i
nto the zombie’s eye socket. The zombie fell down.
“Perfect,” said a voice from the van, grabbing onto Owen and dragging him in.
“Oweeennnn!” called out a voice in the distance.
The large sliding door of the van closed before Owen had a chance to see who was calling his name. He thought it might be Zan.
zzz
“Do you see something?” Charlie called out to Zan.
“I think so!” cried Zan. “I saw Owen being pulled into a van.”
“Oh, there’s Stewart,” said Charlie, flagging his car down. The three teens hopped into his vehicle.
“Follow that van,” said Zan.
“Hey look, dead zombie,” called out Mark.
“Owen must have taken him down before they got him,” said Charlie.
“Buckle up,” commanded Stewart, as the car grew in speed to match the van ahead. They complied.
They didn’t know if the driver of the van ahead knew that they were being followed. The van kept at a steady pace. It was rush hour, so there were a few cars between them. Even if the people in the van knew they were being followed, it wouldn’t do them any good, as they wouldn’t be able to drive faster anyway.
“Hey, why are we headed to that Black Cat Donut Shop?” asked Charlie.
“You mean, what’s left of it,” said Zan.
“Hey, I knew you guys were responsible for that,” said Mark, chuckling. “Maybe you’ll tell me the story sometime.”
“Maybe,” said Charlie. “Say, I have an idea.” Charlie gave her instructions to Stewart.
zzz
They had taken Owen’s weapon away from him. “What’s the name of your gang?”
“Shut up,” they told him.
“Well, if you’re going to kill me anyway, you can tell me,” he said in protest, using his powers.
“Fine. It’s the Zeagles,” they said.
“Yep, that sounds like a gang,” said Owen. “The Eagles.”
“No, the Zeagles,” said the guy in the back with him.
Owen suppressed his chuckle.
“Shut up!” said the guy beside him.
“Why do you need me anyway?” he asked. “It sounds like you have your zombie apocalypse under control.”
“Charlie, we’re taking you to a meeting with someone,” said the driver.
“Charlie?” said Owen, confused. “I’m not Charlie. I’m Owen.”
“But Frank brought you,” said the guy in the back.
Owen laughed. “He’d do anything to make a buck, but he’s dead now.”
“Oh geez,” said the bad guy in the back. “Should I kill him now?”
zzz
There seemed to be a higher police presence on the road tonight, after all the things that had happened at the mini mall earlier. Stewart sat in his car listening to the news. Apparently, there had been a Legionnaires’ disease outbreak in the water at the new mini mall. Many people had died. Then, a school bus had been hit by a cyclone and almost all the students had died.
Stewart shook his head. How many ways could they spin a zombie outbreak in Portland?
He sat in his car and waited for the teens to finish their project.
zzz
Zan, Mark, and Charlie came out of the small mobile building, laughing. They ducked around to the back, near some bushes to hide out.
As they waited, they grew bored. It had been a long day of excitement, and now, as it turned to dusk, the day was winding down.
“If I can ask, why are you so frightened of guns?” asked Charlie.
“What? I’m afraid of guns?” asked Zan.
Mark looked at the two girls with a puzzled expression on his face.
“Yeah, you are, like more than the average person,” said Charlie.
“My mentor was killed by a gun,” admitted Zan.
“Oh, sorry,” said Mark, switching to a more comfortable position.
“Thanks,” said Zan. “It happened before I met you, Charlie.”
“So, did a zombie kill him or something?”
“My mentor was a she. And no, not a zombie,” Zan choked out.
“Oh,” said Charlie. “A gangster?”
“No,” said Zan. “It was me.”
“What?” exclaimed Charlie. “It was an accident?”
“Sort of,” said Zan. “She turned into a zombie.”
“Wait, I thought mentors were immune as long as they stayed in their own city?”
“They are, but we were in a truck that had just crossed the border into California. A zombie got her. The only good news is that the other zombies dropped, fast.”
“Wait a minute. You crossed the border, she got bitten, and still lived?” Charlie paused. “Oh.”
“Yep, she was bitten by the zleader, so she would have been a zleader too.”
“I’m so sorry,” said Charlie.
“It’s OK. I’m over it,” said Zan.
“I wonder what would have happened if you made friends with her?” asked Charlie. “Would a zleader be so dangerous then?”
“I have no idea. Do you want to conduct an experiment?”
“Not really,” said Charlie.
Beside them, Mark listened. “Wow, I wonder what the story is behind why you and your mentor were in a truck with a zleader and zombies?”
“Wouldn’t you like to know?” said Zan.
“Why, I think that’s a story for another day,” said Charlie.
The team continued watching and waiting.
zzz
Owen became antsy. Was it a full moon tonight? He peered out of the van’s small window. It seemed to be slowing down. He’d already managed to get his hands untied from behind his back. It was a little trick that Charlie had taught him. He longingly eyed his dagger, which was left at the back end of the van. As these guys had guns, there would be no time to grab it.
Finally, the van turned and stopped. Owen assumed that they had arrived for the big meeting.
Owen pretended that his arms were still tied behind his back as they made him exit the van. “Hey, is this the site of the former Black Cat Donut Shop?” he asked. It was a vacant lot that had been cleared of the burned out husk of the former donut shop. On one end sat a small trailer with a first-aid sign on it. One guy grabbed his arm and pulled him in that direction.
They walked up to the small trailer and the first guy knocked.
The door opened, letting them in. They walked into a tiny room with a table and four chairs. A large first-aid kit was installed on the wall. Owen jumped as the door slammed shut.
“Sit,” commanded a tall, thin female figure garbed totally in a black pantsuit, complete with a hooded mask, much like a HAZMAT worker would wear. You could not see her eyes or face at all.
Owen sat in the offered chair, while the other two guys sat on the opposite side. The leader stayed standing.
“Are you a zleader?” asked Owen.
“Shut up,” she answered. “So, is this Charlie?” she asked the two guys.
“Yes,” said the guys while Owen answered, “No.”
“Which is it?” she asked. “And I thought Charlie was female.”
“It doesn’t matter,” said one of the guys. He motioned to Owen. “This guy is a zlayer too.”
The woman flipped the table over. It smashed against the wall, sending pens and papers everywhere. One of the guys had set his gun on the table. He peered around but didn’t know where it had gone.
“Imbeciles!” she yelled. “This is why nothing ever gets done around here! No one seems to stay alive for more than five minutes! Where do I find intelligent members?” she cried.
Owen slowly raised his hand in the air.
She laughed.
Chapter 20
________________________________________
“It’s hard to hear what they’re saying,” said Zan, listening through her wireless earplugs. “Something about her being around stupid members.”
Mark peeked down at his pants, a bit puzzl
ed.
“Sounds like she tossed something against the wall,” whispered Zan.
“OK, right about now,” said Charlie, looking worriedly around her.
zzz
Stewart waited impatiently in his car. This was quite the theory his team had. But he had watched the two guys drag Owen out of the van, so it had been true. Their shortcut had given the team an advantage in setting up first.
zzz
“Should we shoot him?” asked one of the guys, seeing that Owen had freed himself from the ropes.
“Yes, you should. He’s useless. He’s not a real zlayer. He’s been taught to fight. That’s it,” said their leader.
One of the guys looked through his pockets, but he didn’t have a gun. This led the other guy to crawl on the ground, looking for his gun, while their leader spewed a bunch of insults at them.
“Got it!” he cried.
“OK,” she started to say, but then a loud sound penetrated the walls of the small trailer. There were moaning and groaning sounds, and thumps and bangs coming from outside.
“What the?” asked one of the guys. “You’ve been experimenting on site?”
She shook her head. “No, but it sounds like we’re surrounded by zombies.”
“You can exit via the roof,” said the other guy.
She looked up and saw the sunroof at the top of the trailer. “Good plan,” she said. “I may just kill your friend when we’re done here. Oh, you got the vial?” she asked, helping them right the table.
The two guys looked at each other. “Umm.”
“Idiots! Now I’ll have to find it myself.” She jumped onto the table, and then pulled herself onto the top of the roof.
