BESIEGED (HUNGRY Series Book 2)

by Lawrence Herbert Tide

  Mechanically, he glanced to his right and saw Red standing on guard, holding the blade up with both hands, ready to slice.

  This realization was similar to that of an electric shock for Harry.

  He suddenly lifted the flamethrower to see one of the zombies, its mouth open, about to draw its rotten teeth into his abs. He knocked with the weapon's handle on the creature's head which emitted a loud noise of broken bones.

  It fell on its knees before him. The top of its skull was open, and purulent brain began to flow through the cracked opening, but the thing was still moving…

  And he saw with horror that the creature, its head at the level of his lower abdomen, open its jaw even wider, preparing to bite his manhood...

  He thrust the big gun of the flamethrower into the gaping jaw, making its teeth implode inside its throat when the metallic barrel struck.

  The zombie uttered a muffled roar and Harry shouted, "Like it or lump it!", and he pressed the trigger.

  A flood of flames invaded the gaping mouth as the roar of the zombie fell silent, replaced by the blast of the flamethrower. The yellowish light of the flames became apparent through the empty orbits, while the whole face of the thing seemed to light up. Continuing to squeeze the trigger as the gun continued to sound a deafening roar, Harry saw that the throat, then the belly of the creature, visible through an old open rotten shirt, had begun to glow.

  "Watch out," Red yelled, leaping from his side to face the other zombie, and with a swift movement of the crystal blade, making it fall apart.

  "What?" he asked, and lowering his eyes, he was surprised to see that the creature on its knees before him had begun to shine.

  He stopped pressing the trigger and then silence reigned.

  But the zombie continued to shine, an inner fire continuing to devour it as the cannon still filled its mouth. Its incandescent cheeks began to swell and its belly inflated like a balloon. Harry muttered "What the fuck is..."

  The explosion of the undead interrupted him and he received projections of the thing on his face and was blinded by them.

  Silence returned.

  But his ears still buzzed after the sound of the explosion.

  Disgusted, stinking rotten and roasted flesh, he released the flamethrower and wiped his eyes.

  The heavy weapon fell in the mud at his feet with a big splash, and he continued to wipe his eyes nervously.

  And finally, reassured, he regained his sight. His vision was disturbed by his dirty lashes, still covered with remains of burnt flesh. He wiped them again and looked down.

  He saw that only a few burnt pieces of the creature were left at his feet, on which he had dropped the flamethrower. He felt purulent fragments on his neck and his face, and his clothes were completely stained.

  He lifted his head and saw Red, who, standing near the remains of the other zombie, had also been showered.

  She spat out brownish saliva that flowed down her chin and, showing, like him, a disgusted pout, she said, "That's why I said 'Watch out'."

  Harry looked at her for a few seconds, amazed, becoming immobile, and seeming thoughtful.

  And suddenly, opening wide eyes full of terror; he tried to remove from his face and clothes as many zombie pieces and dead, dark blood as he could, grinning more than ever in revulsion.

  "Don't stress," Red said as he approached. "When they explode like that, because of the methane accumulated in their tissues, they can no longer contaminate anyone. I heard Doctor Mengele say that, once, in an educational video I watched at school."

  The good giant continued to look at her, bewildered, and she continued, "And believe me, since I've already gone through this, I know he's right!"

  Harry breathed a deep sigh of relief, closing his eyes as he lowered his head.

  Still trembling, Adams had heard grunts and yells and had seen, horrified, the creatures looking in his direction through the gaping opening of the truck. Their empty, but obviously not blind, orbits had seen him, and the creatures had opened gaping mouths.

  The old Administrator had sought refuge under his desk, shivering in the darkness he found there, while he heard their grunts grow louder and louder.

  The grunts and roars had redoubled, and he had heard a great noise.

  Then nothing...

  In the small rectangular space formed by the underside of his desk and closed by his chair, he felt safe. Vaguely, misleadingly safe and he was very aware of it...

  Coiled in a fetal position, he heard trailing steps approaching, and putrid odors assailed his nostrils at once.

  It was with horror that he realized that the chair was pulled out, exposing him to the light coming from outside.

  Then he felt a hand pulling him from under the desk by the scruff of the neck of his beautiful white jacket. He resisted, extending his arms inside the rectangular dwelling which had served him as a shelter, but this resistance was futile. He knew he could not resist the strength of their numbers.

  A last pull brought him out of his shelter like an oyster out of its shell and he found himself standing, dazzled by the light.

  Then his feet left the floor...

  Distraught, he jiggled his legs, while his vision became clearer, and found himself face to face with the impressive visage of Harry Jackson.

  The latter looked at him with a mocking smile, while he continued to hold him in the air by his collar. Astonished, the old Administrator saw that what remained of his office was cluttered with undead, cut into pieces or crushed against the metal walls of the remains of the vehicle. And standing by the black colossus, he recognized Red, who also looked at him with a smile, looking sly.

  The old Administrator tried with his fat and short fingers to make the hand of the colossus that held him loosen, but it was in vain. He had a strange impression and, still hanging, raised his head and looked at the black man's hand.

  He was surprised to see that it was covered with burnt and purulent flesh. Looking closer at the big black and the little redhead, he noticed that they were covered with the same awful smelling substance. He opened his mouth and, swallowing hard, repressed with difficulty his desire to vomit, before finally speaking.

  "Ah... Hello... I... I can explain all to you..." muttered Joshua Adams. This didn't make the man and the girl react, save for the fact that he saw them exchange a wink.

  It was then that a deafening, wild clamor sounded around them, putting all three of them on edge. Adams first of all, who, still held above the ground, felt completely helpless.

  When Adams was brought out with Harry and Red, from what had been his office, they faced an even more deafening clamor...

  Looking towards where the clamor came from, they found themselves face-to-thing with a hideous swarm of undead. These were excited, dragging their feet in numbers towards them, their sheer numbers filling the three humans with fear.

  Harry, who was watching the old administrator out of the corner of his eye so that he did not escape, closed his enormous fists, ready to fight.

  Red held her improvised sword more firmly.

  It meant an increased suffering, when the rough edges of the "handle" of the crystal blade sank even deeper into the gaping wounds of her palms.

  She retained her pain, remembering what Hiroto had told her: pain is a signal going to the brain, like all the other signals coming from the body's senses. And Adams trembled, knowing he was incapable of doing anything to defend himself, accustomed as he was to administrative management... and twisted political coups.

  It was an avalanche of zombies which were dragging toward them, numerous like ants.

  Adams dropped face down to the ground, putting his hands on his head, while the black giant and the redhead warrior were preparing to strike the first creatures which would approach.

  Red then remembered, and accepted inwardly, what Hiroto had taught her.

  Accepting the possibility of an imminent end, in order to not to be paralyzed by the fear of death, and thus be effective at
the highest level. To become a war-fighting machine completely engrossed in its task, and thus be able to die with dignity...

  ***

  Return

  Their reflex reaction was in fact to settle down when their sight was obscured by the decomposing living dead coming upon them...

  ... and passed them without attacking them!

  Red and Harry were amazed to see the creatures literally run around them and bypass them, without ever trying to attack them.

  Turning around, they saw that the undead were rushing towards the back of the truck, where many of their fellows were already clinging to the bars of the cages where the chickens were. The frightened cackles of the worried poultry were scarcely heard, because of the animal clamor of the excited zombies.

  Adams raised his head and stood up, disgusted to see the front of his beautiful white suit now just as stained as its back, but especially, he was surprised to be alive. He watched with fascination the creatures gathering in numbers against the cages, occupying, near them, the area at the foot of the ladder.

  There was an outcry and the three human beings froze with terror.

  They caught a glimpse of the man who had been knocked down at the foot of the ladder. He had woken up with the back of his head soaked in a pool of his own blood, following his fall from the ladder... and when he saw the mass of creatures coming to him, he thought that he was in the middle of a real nightmare... and realized that he wasn't dreaming!

  He screamed again as the undead plunged their bony decaying fingers into his chest and pulled out his viscera and still beating heart. Others had plunged their yellow teeth into his limbs and neck.

  His cries ceased as they submerged him, and beside him Vlad was also shouting, being bitten by a bunch of greedy mouths. Blood flowing abundantly from the back of his wounded scalp, he tried to get up, but the creatures not concerned by the poultry were weighing on him.

  That's when the hit man, knowledgeable in martial arts, finally rolled while uttering a cry of rage, which was scarcely audible among the roars. Carried away by his roll, several undead were overthrown, and Vlad leapt to his feet. Just as the mass of creatures was about to fall again on him, he jumped up and reached the ladder, climbing it with great ease. His defense and reflexes had been remarkable, and Red, as a connoisseur, could only admire, despite her reservations about the loathed man. He reached the roof of the truck and stood above the fray. Zombies began to try, laboriously, to climb the ladder after him, but the henchman, efficiently, picked them off with a kick to the head, each time they came up, and they fell heavily on their fellows below.

  A roar of engines was heard, and the two previous bikers arrived, rolling at full speed towards the truck. The one behind had dropped the dead chicken carcass and, hanging on the handlebar, hoped not to be caught by the emaciated hands of the creatures surrounding them.

  "Mr. Adams?" the man sitting behind the other called, as they looked with astonishment at the two separated halves of the truck, seeking their Big Boss.

  For them the sky fell and the motorcycle was overturned, making them fall on the ground.

  A sky that had the form of Vlad, who had jumped from the roof of the truck on them. After falling on them, the henchman had thrown himself forward and made a roll, which had projected him several meters away from them.

  The two bikers got up, the motorcycle still roaring, but they did not do it fast enough. Dozens of hands fell upon them as they began to scream and struggle. Flapping all over the place, unable to escape, they were horrified. They groaned, but the sound stopped quickly as the creatures plunged their bony hands into their chests and began to extract their throbbing hearts and lungs.

  Vlad, benefitting from the diversion that he had created, jumped on the bike after having raised it from the ground, as the group of zombies was busy while munching. The man having put the motorcycle on its wheels, he prepared to throttle the gas.

  Suddenly a zombie, spitting bright red blood, clung with a bleached bony hand on his shoulder.

  Vlad accelerated and began to roll away from the bloody mess, dragging the creature behind him. He rolled over to a tree and brushed it on purpose. The zombie hit the trunk noisily with its face and slipped down in front of it, while the henchman fled further into the woods. He still had the forearm and the hand of the thing clinging to his shoulder, when the spectators saw him disappear within the dense vegetation. The engine noise of the motorcycle faded very quickly and, a few seconds later, it couldn't be heard anymore. Red's group was horrified while seeing the horrible fate he had left to his comrades to. Harry was especially disgusted, as his face showed.

  "A real bastard! Let's go, I think he won't worry us anymore," he said to Red, who answered, “Yes, and the zombies too, while they have a clear preference for chickens and... those human beings… but it will not last, better to leave!"

  "Do you think that their attraction for chickens explains why they didn't attack us?" the girl asked, obviously puzzled.

  "Do you see any other explanation? Perhaps we were only luckier than those two poor slobs?" Harry couldn't see what she was trying to express.

  "I'm sure the pieces of undead that cover us - and which you smeared the back of Adams' suit here with - made them think we're like them. They rely more on odors than on anything else, apparently. "

  "Maybe, after all, it was worth messing your pretty costume, huh, Mr. Adams?"

  Harry heard no reply.

  Turning his head, he noticed that Adams was no longer near them. He had disappeared while they were watching Vlad flee.

  Joshua Adams had just hidden behind a bush, a few yards away, and was discreetly trying to secretly escape. He walked slowly, fearing to crack a twig under his pretty, still partially white moccasins.

  "Where are you going?" Harry's tenor voice startled the fat man, who remained immobile like a statue…

  Then began to run, burdened by his excess weight.

  Many seconds passed by when, gasping and beginning to falter, he felt Harry's iron hand on his collar, which stopped him. Turning around the old man saw, many meters behind the black colossus, who was not in the least breathless, Red, who was running towards them.

  "You're going to have some explanations to give to the Community, I believe, Mr. Adams," said the big black with a firm tone of voice.

  "Please listen to me, you've mistaken me as being guilty of something," the Administrator responded, in a honeyed voice while smiling. He stopped for a few seconds, seemingly weighing the odds in his torturous mind, before adding, "We can come to an arrangement."

  "An arrangement?" asked the girl, stopping in front of him, and he went on, "Yes..." with almost paternal candor. "Warriors like you are needed, I can make sure the media make you heroes of the Community, with all the material benefits associated with... "

  "We don’t want your favoritism, keep your pork-barreling propositions for yourself… We want you to pay for your crimes!" roared the good giant, while lifting the little man by his collar, so that the old man's chubby face arrived at the level of his own.

  "My... my crimes?" the politician whimpered. "But let's see..."

  "We go back to the Community, and you come with us, that's all," said the giant black man, making it clear that the dialogue was over about the subject.

  Adams then lost his smile, his face becoming purple with rage, and shouted, "My men hidden in the woods will prevent you from approaching them! They've been ordered to shoot anyone approaching the Community without my consent!"

  Harry looked furious and roared, "You bastard..."

  Adams disappeared from their sight, having been torn from his hands.

  Harry was dumbfounded when he realized that he was staring at the old man's empty jacket, that he was still holding by its collar. Then Red and he saw the little old man, who was sitting on the motorcycle behind Vlad. He had literally snatched the Administrator while passing by.

  They zigzagged between the undead coming out of the woods to get
to the truck.

  "No, I don't want this, he's not going to flee so easily!" Red shouted, the very white skin of her face reddening with anger.

  "Oh, no," replied her big black friend.

  He then literally disappeared in turn beside her, raising a great cloud of dust, which surrounded the young redhead completely.

  Coughing and rubbing her eyes as she stepped out of the small cloud of dust, she looked at Harry with amazement, as he was running at a crazy pace, dozens of meters away, having already almost caught up with the bike. But Adams, looking behind while half turning around, had seen him.

  "Vlad, we're going to be overtaken!" cried the latter, looking behind with stress visible on his plummy face.

  The henchman immediately released one of the motorcycle's handlebars and, turning half around, he pointed a revolver at the giant coming on them and fired.

  Harry crashed.

  He fell and collapsed on the ground, lifting a great cloud of dust as he continued to be carried away by his impetus.

  The motorcycle and its two passengers disappeared behind a tree and then from Red's view, as she ran as fast as she could toward the prone big black, and shouted, "Harry!"

  He was lying on his stomach, face down on the ground and didn't move anymore.

  The girl arrived near him and, crouching down, she tried, pushing on one of his shoulders, to make him roll over. She managed to make him lift a little on one side, but, way too heavy for her, he remained in the dust, and the redhead quickly stopped pushing. His head fell back in the dust.

  She then remained immobile at his side, thinking quickly, as seconds passed by. She then remembered what she had learnt in martial arts, and especially how to manipulate the human body. She moved to be on the other side of the colossus. Then, squatting, and passing both of her legs over Harry, she grabbed the arm on the other side of his massive back. Then, maintaining it firmly with her hands, she let herself briskly sit down on the ground, beside him. Helped by her own weight, she finally succeeded in turning Johnny's father over.