Dead Island Ravenous

by Allen Gamboa

  CHAPTER 34: KATE

  When Kate Denning came too, she found herself laying on her back in the middle seat of a full-sized SUV. The firefighter was covered in a cheap wool blanket, she recognized it as one of the blankets they’d kept in the back of their rescue rig. Kate’s whole body ached as she lifted up the blanket and saw she was still dressed. Her damaged work shirt had been replaced with a long sleeve Nomex camouflaged one. Confused, Kate slowly and painfully raised up on her elbows. She knew she was in the middle row of seats in a SUV and that someone had cleaned her up and clothed her. That didn’t make any sense. Carefully and trying not to be noticed, she peered over the vehicle's front seats. Outside she could see two black men clad in military uniforms. One had an assault rifle at the ready and seemed to be keeping watch, the other had his rifle slung across his chest and was siphoning gasoline from out of another car. Even though these men appeared to be soldiers she had run into a few shady military elements since the undead outbreak. Kate could see there was a rescue bag from her truck and a handful of water bottles in the front seat. She also saw a handgun lying between the seats. The firefighter quickly scooped the pistol up just as the passenger’s door was pulled open.

  “Next time Jeff, you’re getting the gas.” Washington wiped his mouth as Jefferson opened the driver's side door. “I hate that taste.”

  “That gas probably cleaned out any nasty diseases you have. Probably killed all that shit you've contracted over the years.” Jefferson said as he slid into the driver’s seat. “I did you a favor.”

  “Sure.” Washington set the small gas can down at his feet. He glanced over his seat to see the barrel of his Beretta pointed straight at him. “Uh…Jeff..”

  “Hurry up and get in.”

  “Jeff…” Washington motioned with his eyes at the middle seat. Jefferson slowly turned to see the dark-haired woman pointing the pistol at them.

  “Whoa…” Jefferson raised his hands. “Lady, you might want to take it easy with that.”

  “Who the hell are you guys?” Denning said as she alternated pointing the gun at both men. “Where the hell am I?”

  “Easy there Ma'am.” Washington nervously swallowed as he continued to stare at the barrel of the Beretta.

  “Again,” She shoved the pistol closer to them. “Who are you?”

  “I’m Corporal Jefferson and this is Specialist Washington.” The Marine said calmly.

  “Rowmeho Washington.” The Army Specialist added.

  “Look, Kate, we are here to help you.”

  “How do you know my name?” The firefighter asked now more confused than ever.

  “We found your ID in your pants pocket. Look, we are just here to help. Washington and I came upon you being attacked and we rescued you.” Jefferson tried to put her at ease. “Listen, I used to be a volunteer fireman before I joined up. My partner and I are just here to help. That’s all.” Jefferson glanced over at Washington, who eagerly nodded in response. “We chased the crowd off and were able to salvage a medic bag out of the wreckage. Like I said, I was a fireman before a Marine so I have some medical training. I cleaned you up and gave you my shirt. You have some minor abrasions and bruises but you’ll be fine.” Kate noticed that Jefferson was wearing a brown t-shirt under his body armor. She then glanced down at her work pants. “It’s okay, they were still on when we got to you.”

  “The others?” The firefighter asked as she cautiously lowered the handgun.

  “Sorry.” Jefferson said slowly shaking his head. “We were lucky to get to you. Now we need to get a move on because this area is full of deaders and bad guys. You can keep that weapon, just please don’t point it at us again.”

  Kate just nodded as she slowly laid the sidearm in her lap.

  “We good here?” Jefferson asked the distraught firefighter.

  “Yes.”

  “Great.” Jefferson said climbing inside. “We’re headed for any military base or safe zone we can find. Sound good to you?”

  “Sure.” She nodded. “What are you guys doing out here?”

  “Our air base was overrun.” Washington said leaning back over the seat. “Question is why are you still out here?”

  “That is a good question Wash…?”

  “Washington. You can call me Rowmeho.” He smiled.

  “Washington, anyway, my firehouse was out in this area. After the initial outbreak and the safe zones were just being established, a lot of people were still stuck out here with no medical care.” Kate glanced out the window. “People still were pregnant, diabetes, infections. You name it. Ten of us decided to stay in the area and help those that couldn’t get to a safe zone. We had half a National Guard unit and several local police officers for protection.”

  “What happened?” Jefferson asked as he drove the big GMC.

  “At first it was a real mess. No one really knew what the hell was going on. We took big losses.” Kate said quietly. “Then we figured out how to operate in this…environment and things got better. The soldiers and police kept the thieves and dead away while we administered aid to those that needed it. Once in a while we’d get a resupply but that was iffy. The Guard unit were able to get a steady supply of food and meds but then they got called away to some other thing and we were left alone. The Major offered to escort us to a safe zone but our fire captain thought we were pretty safe.” She wiped a tear from her eye.

  “He was wrong. Two days later we were set upon by an angry, hungry crowd. The very people we were there to help. They killed the remaining police officers and Fire Captain Arellano. The three of us that were left, grabbed the rescue truck and tried to escape. That’s when…” Her voice trailed off as she started to quietly sob. The emotional weight of the assault was almost too much for her. Friends and coworkers had been savagely attacked and killed right in front of her. Hell, she’d been brutalized by the very men whose family she helped save.

  “I am sorry Kate.” Jefferson looked over at Washington and shook his head. The Marine could see the overwhelming sadness in the woman’s eyes. “You need to trust us. We’re the good guys. We need to work together to make it out of here. Wash and I have enough fire power in this rig to hold off most bad things. You’re in good hands.”

  “Look Kate.” Washington leaned over and patted her softly on the shoulder. It was a gentle and out of character act for the six-foot soldier. “We’ll get you to a safe zone, I promise.”

  “Sorry.” Kate wiped the tears from her cheeks.

  “No apologies needed. You went through some bad shit back there. We find a safe zone everything will be okay. Look in the compartment behind you. Jeff grabbed that off of one of them dirt bags back there.”

  Kate turned and looked down in the rear compartment of the SUV. The sight of the big Halligan brought her back to tears. “Thank you! That was Captain Arellano’s…”

  Suddenly there was a loud roar from above the SUV. Jefferson stomped hard on the brake causing the GMC to slide to a halt on the overpass they’d just entered. A small private jet, in obvious distress, just barely cleared the roof of the SUV as it struggled to stay aloft. The plane flew a little farther before it crashed into the highway below.

  CHAPTER 35: FISTED

  Nitrex Plant

  “He’s dead.” Doc said as he knelt down next to the body of a Nitrex employee. The man lay sprawled out next to the open door of one of the Nitrex company’s work trucks. The medic could see the man had been shot several times in the chest. “Somebody shot him up pretty good.” Doc told Hale as he stood up and unslung his rifle. “Hell, he doesn’t look like your average pharmaceutical employee. He’s got a tac vest and a ripped lanyard around his neck. Must’ve been one of their security guys.”

  “Well, shit. Poor bastard. How much tastier is this crap sandwich going to get?” The sergeant glanced down at the body. “Can you tell how long he’s been dead?”

  “Looks like rigor just started in so maybe an hour, hour and a half.” Doc shrugged.

  �
�Shit.” Hale turned back to face the physical structure of the plant. A large chain link fence ran the perimeter. Two warehouses lined the large, main building. The sergeant turned back to face his team. Cross, Vannelli and Duley were squatting down near the company vehicles, watching out for any bad guys or deaders. “Uribe is just gonna love this.”

  “Sarge, that don’t mean dick. Lieutenant Uribe probably loves to be fisted.” The medic joined the others keeping watch. “Fuck him. Shit happens.” The medic noticed the sergeant was just staring at him. “Sorry, I need a smoke.”

  “Bad day to quit Doc.”

  “Well, no shit Sarge.”

  Hale ignored the bitchy medic, he tapped on his headset. Uribe and the others were stacked up by the damaged open gates of the plant. The sergeant knew the officer would blame him solely for the failure of this mission. Using Uribe’s radio call sign, he spoke into his headset mic. “Alpha one, Alpha two.”

  “Go ahead Alpha two.”

  “Entrance is clear. We have at least a dozen meat sacks and four plant security.”

  “Deaders?”

  “Yes, and multiple GSW’s.” Hale said scanning the outer area of the plant. It looked like a small war had taken place.

  “Alright, we safe to come down?’

  “Yes,” Hale blew out a breath. “You are safe to come down.”

  “Okay, we’re coming down. Don’t shoot us. Alpha one out.”

  “Don't shoot us?” Annoyed, Hale clicked off his mic and moved over to where Doc and Cross knelt behind the front end of one of the plants trucks. The sergeant squatted down next to them and waved Duley and Vannelli over. Both soldiers hurried to where the three huddled and took a knee besides them.

  “Alpha one is coming in. As soon as they get here we’ll go inside. Now, that the LT is all safe.”

  “As long as the boss man is safe?” Cross chuckled. “Damn Sarge, I don't even think that guy is safe getting out of bed in the morning.”

  “You think we have some bad guys hold up in there?” Vannelli asked.

  “Maybe. I don’t see any big rigs so they probably grabbed the medical supplies and ran.”

  “Seems like a lot of work for some aspirin and penicillin.” Doc rested the barrel of his M4 on a tattooed forearm. “Got to be more than that for this kind of operation.”

  “Norco, Vicodin, that shit is worth a fortune.” Hale noticed Uribe’s team double time it toward their position. The sergeant leaned out and waved them over so in their haste to grab some cover behind the trucks, they wouldn't rush past Hale's position

  “Sergeant.” Uribe said almost out of breath as he knelt down next to the big soldier.

  “LT, glad to see you could make it.” Hale turned towards the plant’s front doors. “I’ll take my team inside. When it’s clear I’ll call you in.”

  “No,” Uribe shook his head. “I'll have my team go first. We go in and there’s a problem you guys can come to the rescue.”

  “Lieutenant.”

  “No, I’ll lead. We’ve already lost valuable time with you in charge. I'll take my team in and you can wait for the all clear.” Uribe glanced down at his watch then back at Hale. “This fuck up could cost us all our bonuses and extra rations. I’m not ready for that.”

  “Listen LT, maybe we should look for another way in? You don't know what's on the other side of those doors. Could be a trap.”

  “We could always blow a hole in one of these walls and go in that way.” Cross said running a gloved hand across the cinder block outer wall. “Do it Marine style. Oh, wait, we don’t have any explosives.”

  “Right?” Doc nodded.

  “No, I’m in charge and it’s about time you all knew it!” Uribe unslung his M4 and clumsily pulled back the charging handle. “Banjo, Finn, you take the point. Speedy and I will follow. We’ll call you when we need you Sergeant. Let’s go!”

  “Roger that.” Banjo said as he tapped Finn on the shoulder and both men quickly moved off towards the doors followed by the Lieutenant and Speedy.

  “Sarge?” Cross gave Hale a ‘do something’ look. Hale just shook his head no .

  “Just be ready.” Hale told the others.

  “Told you he loved to be fisted.” Doc smirked as he checked his rifle. “Probably all the way to the elbow.”

  “When you’re right Doc, you are right.” Hale nodded in agreement. “Everyone standby. This will probably be real quick.”

  “Heard that before.” Cross grinned.

  CHAPTER 36: PLAY THAT FUNKY MUSIC

  Nitrex Plant Interior

  Banjo pulled the heavy door open with his left hand while he kept his rifle in combat position with his right. Finn did the same as he jerked open the other door. The smell of death and gunfire filled the air. Both men stepped into the dimly lit entranceway, carefully scanning the areas to the left and to the right, with the lights mounted under their rifles. Over two dozen bodies lay crumpled on the floor about a three hundred feet in. Uribe and Speedy followed the others inside, rifles at the ready.

  “Clear on the left!” Banjo said into his headset.

  “Clear right!” Finn shouted.

  “Check those bodies.” Uribe ordered as he found himself yelling the command into his headset mic. The officer realized he was breathing fast and heavy as he slowly followed the others inside. He noticed he was trembling a little as he moved down the corridor, stepping over corpses, his body seemed to be on autopilot. Willing himself to follow behind Banjo and Finn, Uribe tried hard to control his shaking.

  “These guys are dead Lieutenant.” Banjo said as he checked the bodies.

  “Alright.” Uribe swallowed and motioned for the three to remove their headsets, which they did. “Now you know what we’re all here for, right?” The others nodded.

  “What about the rest of the team?“Banjo asked.

  “You want that cush condo in a safe zone?” Uribe fixed the former Border agent with a hard stare.

  “Yes.”

  “Then we do what we gotta do. Right? Now, move it!”

  “Where do you think the stash is located?” Finn asked.

  “It’s supposed to be in with the rest of the supplies. It’ll be marked as antibiotics.” He glanced back over at Banjo. “Go!” The tall contractor nodded as he got to his feet and started forward.

  “Hold.” Banjo said with a quiet urgency as he stepped over a body. The contractor had stopped near what appeared to be two offices with their doors wide open. The red glow of the manufacturing plant's emergency lights cast foreboding shadows from inside the open doorways. “We have a couple of open doors ahead.”

  “Well,” Uribe licked his chapped lips. The cloying smell of death and the almost humid heat of the plants interior was starting to make him nauseous. “Check it out.”

  “Roger that.” Banjo glanced over at Finn, who was standing on the other side of the hallway from him. Finn ran a gloved hand through his sweaty mop of blonde hair and nodded. Banjo returned his partners nod as both men simultaneously entered the dimly lit rooms. Suddenly from somewhere deep inside the plant, music blared loudly throughout the facilities PA system. The already spooked Uribe jumped a little at the sudden outburst. As the music continued to echo throughout the sprawling building, the easily rattled officer again jumped as Speedy moved up next to him and put a reassuring hand on his shoulder.

  “It's alright LT.” The younger man whispered.

  “No it's not!” Uribe shouted over the music. “Get back into position soldier!” Uribe growled at Speedy, embarrassed the man had seen him spooked and pissed that Speedy had needed to prod him into moving. His history of inaction and hubris had led to the officer's removal from the military.

  “Roger that Lieutenant.” Speedy replied curtly as he stepped back into position across the hallway from the officer. The contractor was starting to wonder if all this was worth the pay off. Speedy was worried he'd made a bad decision throwing in with the Lieutenant. Uribe was fastly becoming annoyed with how long it was
taking Banjo to clear the office. Before he could send Speedy forward to see what the issue was, the sound of automatic rifle fire and a horrible, blood freezing scream came from inside the room.

  CHAPTER 37: BARRY MANILOW

  “What the hell is that?” Vannelli asked at the loud thumping sound that came from inside the building. Hale’s team stood stacked up on both sides of the double doors. Cross leaned forward and placed her ear against the cool steel. Sound reverberated against the inside of the doors. “Play that funky music white boy.” She glanced over at Vannelli and frowned.

  “What?”

  “It’s a song. Wild Cherry?” Cross adjusted her rifle.

  “Come on Vannelli, your momma probably got pregnant to it.”

  “No, she said it was a song by Gino Vannelli, some Canadian singer from the 70’s. Hence the name.”

  “Damn.” Duley shook his head. “I thought all those old white folks screwed to Barry Manilow.”

  “I prefer Motley Crue.” Cross said deadpan. Hale shook his head and held up a hand for them to be quiet.

  “Ebola Kool-Aid or Three Finger Prom Date, now that’s the shit.” Doc added.

  “Cut it!” Hale said to the team. “Alpha one.” The sergeant spoke into his headset, concern deep in his voice. Now they knew for sure someone else was still inside. “Alpha one.” No answer. Hale figured loud as the music was the Lieutenant probably couldn't hear him.

  “Alright,” The sergeant told the others. “we’re going in!” Before they could get the doors open, the distant, unmistakable sound of automatic rifle fire came from inside.

  CHAPTER 38: IF A CHERRY BERRY SHITS IN THE WOODS…

  The Teams Yukon

  Cherry Berry sat in the front seat of the Yukon idly drumming his fingers on the steering wheel. The young contractor every so often nervously glanced around making sure he was alone. Berry didn't want another Deader sneaking up on him again. After the attack by the dead furry, Berry had firmly resolved himself to resigning from the company and finding himself a nice, safe job in one of the protected zones. This wasn't for him.