Dead and Dead Again: Kansas City Quarantine

by Dalton Wolf

  “Screw you, Boomer,” Calvin replied to the laughter of his friends. “Just don’t worry about it. We may not even get out alive, so why worry until we do? That’s all I’m saying.”

  “I’m just fucking with you, Calvin,” Boomer admitted. “You think I believe they can fix those things? They’re zombies. They’re dead.”

  “Ass,” Calvin muttered. “Turn here,” he pointed for Felicia.

  “Raytown seems pretty tame,” Tripper said.

  “Shut up, Calvin,” Athena snapped a warning, sensing a joke from her fiancé.

  “That was harsh,” Felicia said.

  “No it wasn’t. You don’t know him yet, FeFe. He was going to say something like ‘when isn’t it tame?’ or ‘you were expecting something more from a retirement community?’ or ‘said everyone who had ever visited Raytown’.”

  “I was just going to agree that it seems pretty quiet,” Calvin lied in as innocent sounding voice as he could muster.

  “You’re a damned liar, Calvin Hobbes,” she shot back angrily.

  She glared lasers at the shotgun seat in the Hedgehog and although they were in two different vehicles and it was impossible for him to see her or she him, she still tried to use her power to make him uncomfortable.

  “Are you glowering at me?” Calvin asked.

  “Yes.”

  “How could you possibly know that?” Sarah demanded.

  “My back was burning right between my shoulder blades,” Calvin replied. “Turn left up here, Felicia,” he added. “Right here,” he pointed.

  “Plus, I know my girlfriend—”

  “— Fiancé—”

  “—and if I’m making fun of her parents or her home town,” he pointed again. “Left here.” He whispered. “She tends to get pouty.”

  “Screw you, Calvin Hobbes.” Athena drew the bow of her anger and launched several more glares into the vehicle ahead, but they rebounded impotently from the reinforced windows.

  “So which one was it?” Felicia asked quietly leaning over to whisper to Calvin.

  “Which what was what?” he asked.

  “Which thing were you going to say?”

  “Oh,” he leaned even closer. “The last one,” he whispered.

  She giggled and turned the vehicle where he pointed.

  “Now turn right and go until you see the ugliest orange house you’ve ever seen,” Calvin said loud enough for Boomer to hear even without the earpiece.

  “Hey, it’s better than you damned white folks and your socially approved browns and grays. Boring and done. Wait ‘til you see the house I’m gonna build. It’s gonna be purple with orange trim.”

  “That’s disgusting,” Calvin mimicked retching. “I think I just threw up in my mouth a little.”

  “Fuck you, man!”

  “Now I’m fucking with you, Boomer,” Calvin laughed. “You can paint whatever little hovel you eventually beg, borrow, or dig out of the mud whatever color you wish, and you can live right next to me, my friend.”

  “But we’ll have to have all of the gatherings at our house,” Athena added. “No way am I going into a purple and orange house. Only bad things could happen in there…bad things.”

  “Not ugly purple. It’ll be beautiful colors. You’ll see…Assholes.”

  The others laughed just as the first dead guy bounced off the hood of the Hedgehog with a meaty thud that echoed for several protracted seconds.

  “The fuck?” Tripper cursed.

  “Sorry,” Felicia apologized quickly. “He came from nowhere, and fast.”

  “Whoa,” Tripper cried as another one leaped over the hood and smashed into a parked car alongside the curb.

  “Welcome to Zomburbia,” Calvin said quietly, humming the Twilight Zone music.

  “This is interesting,” Felicia slowed and carefully watched the yards as if looking for little kids playing with a ball that might get loose.

  “They’re much faster and slightly more erratic than the zombies from the city,” Athena agreed.

  “Slightly?” Calvin countered.

  “Shut up, Calvin.”

  “Shutting up.”

  Rounding another corner afforded a clear view of a long street lined out before them. The dead here in the inner suburbs ran from one side of the street to the other, rebounding from fences, cars and buildings in completely unfocussed chaos instead of following the path of the street like normal dead people did. The suburban dead did seem to be attracted to sounds and several of the nearest ex-neighbors now grouped-up to lope towards the incoming vehicles. But even though they charged like a pack of wild dogs, the twenty dead that moved towards them in a nearly cohesive group were easily dispatched by the turrets. The last two leaped energetically onto the hood of the Hedgehog just as Boomer and Joel sent the killing nails through eye sockets to blend their dead brains into sludge.

  “Well…that was different,” Tripper noted needlessly.

  “Everyone be a bit more careful out here,” Calvin cautioned, also needlessly. “Let’s get a bigger cushion this time before we bring out the parents. Athena, radio them and tell them not to come out until we get in there and bring them out.”

  “You’ve already told them three times,” she replied.

  “Just do it!” he snapped.

  Sarah leaned over and whispered to Athena. “They’d already texted Lola too.”

  “Oh. I already forgot.” Athena whispered sadly.

  “Sorry, Calvin. I’m calling them now.”

  “Thank you,” he said. “Sorry I snapped.”

  “I love you,” she responded.

  “Oh god!” Tripper interrupted in disgust. “Does every situation have to turn into some kind of love fest with you two?”

  “Shut up, Trip,” Calvin, Athena and Sarah said as one.

  Athena texted her parents and warned them again not to come out until someone came in to get them. She covered the speaker so Sarah couldn’t hear the conversation, but judging from how long it took her to respond again and the frequent exasperated sighs, it must have been some discussion.

  “Ok, I told them, Calvin.”

  “Thank you. Ok, here we are. This is Boomer’s parents,” Calvin pointed Felicia to a square, ‘60’s era two story bright orange house with a two car garage. The lawn was immaculately manicured. Two little white-faced lawn jockeys and half-a-dozen garden gnomes watched over the twenty zombies shuffling back and forth in the driveway around a burned-out Cadillac Escalade, the molten tires of which had been reduced to mere stains running down the driveway. At least ten toasted Infected bodies lay within the burned-out wreckage.

  “That’s my parent’s car! Get off our lawn you diseased freaks!” Boomer yelled, sending burst after burst into the zombies trespassing on his parent’s lawn.

  “Mom! Dad! Stay inside until we come get you!” He hadn’t told anyone, but he was very worried. Neither of his parents had responded to the texts. He had been hoping the car wasn’t still there. Now that he saw that it was not only there, but nothing but a smoking skeleton, a cold fist squeezed his heart like a vice.

  “You stay outside, Boomer,” Calvin ordered.

  “I know,” Boomer replied quietly.

  They all knew there was a chance they would find nothing but corpses inside the house. As soon as a large enough cushion was created, Trip, Calvin, Lucy, Brick and Athena burst forth from both vehicles, charging across the lawn and up to the front door. Calvin held out both arms, slowing the others and then paused to ring the doorbell.

  “Are you fucking kidding me?” Trip asked in astonishment.

  “Hey, it’s still their house. Mr. and Mrs. McClintock! It’s Calvin! We’re here to see if you need a lift out of town!”

  There was no answer. Calvin shrugged and with one chop separated the door from its handle and with a kick the door swung inward. He nearly retched again at the sight of the lime green walls with dark purple décor covering the living room.

  “Hello?” he called.

&n
bsp; No one answered, but they could hear shuffling sounds from the right hallway. Calvin pointed for Lucy and Athena to follow, and the other two to get on either side of him. Trip moved to the far side, Brick on his right. The shuffling cleared up as they walked down the hallway and Calvin realized it was someone sobbing and wrinkling paper. He reached the master bedroom and turned the knob. The door slid easily and he looked to either side for booby traps before swinging it the rest of the way open. Four pink walls with blue trim jabbed Calvin in the brain. A body sat on the floor, upright and moving around, shuffling things from one box to another. It seemed to be a male, and he was crying silently, shoulders shaking in uncontrolled sobs. Another step and he could see the man’s short, graying black buzz-cut and shiny ebony skin. The partially missing upper left ear positively identified the man to him. But was he dead or alive?

  “Mr. McClintock?” Calvin asked tentatively.

  The creature didn’t answer, so Calvin shuffled slowly a few steps further into the room and asked again. “Mr. McClintock? You ok?”

  “Calvin? Calvin, that you?”

  “Hello Mr. McClintock. How are you?”

  “You can call me Ed, Calvin. You know that.”

  “Thank you, sir. We need to get you out of here. Where is Mrs. McClintock?”

  But the man ignored him and fumbled around in another box.

  “I just been sittin’ here lookin’ at the photos of me and Beatrice at the family picnics. We got a separate box for all the events over the years and we just put all new photos into similar events so’s we can look back on all the events and…see how time has changed the memories…” he trailed off and dropped the pictures into the box.

  “Guess that’s all I got now. Jus’ memories.”

  “What happened, Ed?” Athena asked.

  “She just burned up. I couldn’t do nothin’. I just stood in here with them damned zombies between us and me holdin’ a damned broken shovel handle and I didn’t do a damn thing. And she screamed and screamed. Lord how she screamed…I just did nothin’.

  “Oh hell,” Tripper breathed.

  “Boomer, you’d better get in here,” Calvin called. “Athena, can you take his place on the turret?”

  “I don’t know, Calvin,” she replied doubtfully. “I should probably stay here and help Boomer.”

  “Trip, can you take over Boomer’s turret?”

  “You got it, boss.”

  “And can you stop calling me boss?” he snapped angrily.

  “Sure thing, Chief.”

  Calvin sighed. It would have pissed him off if he didn’t know Tripper had to make a joke out of something or he would probably lose it. And his friend hated crying in public more than anything. Boomer entered the room and instantly knew his mom was gone. He burst into tears and ran over to his dad and pulled him to his feet and into a great bear hug, so happy was he to see at least one of his parents still alive.

  “What happened, pop?” he demanded quietly.

  “Boomer, that you?” he asked.

  He was clearly stoned out of his mind.

  It took several minutes to get Mr. McClintock composed enough to tell them what had happened. “We was stuck in here, one, maybe two days ago now. The phones are out and so’s the ‘lectricity. Heard an explosion before it went out so someone probably blew up the relay station or somethin’.”

  “Why didn’t you call?” Boomer demanded.

  “Our phones are outside in the Caddy. I couldn’t go out there cause of my broken leg. So I told her we’d wait here ‘til one o’ you kids comes and rescues us. But she said we needed to be callin’ to get people organized and make sure you kids was ok. I tole her to wait, tole her you and Calvin and your bunch are smart kids and you’d take care of things. Tole her you’d find a way to get us out if you was still alive, but she’s got to be so damned…so god damned stubborn,” he broke down again.

  Boomer hugged him, tried to comfort him, but was having a hard time waiting to find out what had happened. Not wanting to judge, he sure did need someone to blame.

  “She…she was always so stubborn, you know that, don’t you son?” he asked.

  Boomer nodded.

  “Well, she goes out there and almost gets to the car and this pack is on her. They was movin’ so fast…so fast. But she killed the closest one with a hammer and makes it into the car, but can’t get the door shut. I go hoppin’ out the door on one leg and two o’ them fast ones jump at me. I killed one again and then broke the shovel on the other—whole thing stuck in its head as it fell away. I had nothin’ but this little six inch piece of wood and two more comin’ at me, so I stepped back and closed the glass door. It’s thick ‘nuff that they jus’ bounced off it.”

  “It’s ok, Dad,” Boomer consoled him. “We’ve been out there. We’ve seen how it can be.”

  “I don’t think she got bit,” Ed said through his tears. “But she was in the back and they was gettin’ in and she knew they was gonna get her, one was crawling over the seats an’ others was beatin’ in the windows. She grabbed this flare out the emergency kit, you see. And she waited until they was all halfway inside and she busted out the back window and started screaming to attract a few more. And when they was on her…she sprayed them with that gas can and lit that flare and Boom! You ain’t ever seen nothing that went up like that,” he laughed and cried at once. “Yeah, your mother was stubborn…and proud. You know that bitch done went out there and lit herself up like some damn hero rather than come in here and admit she was wrong? We could have jus’ waited. You know that’s right, don’t you, Boom? Crazy damn Bitch,” he laughed.

  Boomer nodded and hugged his dad once more.

  “Ain’t that some real bullshit?” Ed muttered, letting them lead him slowly in a staggering daze from the room.

  “She took ten of them things out with her, Boom-Boom,” he hugged his son again fondly and squeezed his shoulder. “She didn’t want to go out like them. You were right, Calvin, I should have bought at least one gun.”

  “I’m sorry, sir,” Calvin said sadly. “I wish we had gotten here sooner…”

  “This was that first day, son. If I’d have got her down to the parade, it’s likely we’d both be dead. Don’t you worry bout takin’ the blame for things ain’t in yo’ wheelhouse, son. You here now even though we didn’t call you, just as I said, but she don’t ever listen. Got to go her own damn way. So just you don’t let it get to you none.”

  “Clear outside?” Calvin asked.

  “Clear,” Trip replied.

  Calvin stood on one side, Boomer on the other and they half-carried the dazed man out of the house and into the back of the Wagon. Athena half led, half pushed him down onto one of the medical cots and told him to belt in. The random tinkling of the turrets could be heard the entire time.

  “Sorry Boomer,” Calvin said, patting his friend on the shoulder.

  Athena hugged him tightly when she stepped out of the back of the truck.

  “You mind if I take my place back on the turret?” Boomer asked.

  “No problem, mate,” Trip called from the Hedgehog.

  “Let’s go get your folks,” Boomer said, looking out at the streets with sad, but determined eyes. “At least we know they’re ok for now.”

  For the next ten minutes no one said a word. Calvin turned up the classic rock station slightly and started using a finger to show Felicia where to go. 1 finger pointed left meant next left, 2 fingers right meant 2nd street on the right. Only music, the continuous tinkling of Boomer’s turret and the occasional crunch of a Bouncer ricocheting off the hood spoiled the silence on the journey to Athena’s parents. Joel might as well have stayed back at the Fortress, because before he could move his turret and hit the trigger, Boomer had already filled his target with nails and moved on. If it moved and it didn’t move right, Boomer shot it. Clearly he was done worrying about how future Boomer would look at him. These things were a danger to everyone around him and he would kill every one that showed its
elf in his crosshairs. This continued for their entire trek to the other side of town.

  Meet the Rosenthals

  “Welcome home,” Sarah said to Athena as they pulled up in front of the long two-story brick house with a covered two-car garage connected to the right side and another immaculately manicured lawn.

  Athena growled, but she looked both happy and relieved to see her old home.

  “Did you—”

  “—I told them,” Athena snapped at Calvin.

  “Ok. I just don’t want another Lola incident,” he finally admitted aloud what was behind his OCD.

  “Darlings, you made it,” an extremely slender, dark featured woman in her sixties with a thick, dyed-blonde mom-cut called down to them, waving a shotgun that seemed half her size from the second story window.

  “Get back inside, Miriam!” they heard Saul yelling. “Calvin said stay inside until they come in and get us.”

  “I’m not outside.”

  “You are outside. I can see you.”

  “I’m not outside. I’m leaning out the window,” Miriam argued.

  “You’re more than halfway outside the house; that makes you outside.”

  “I’m on the second floor. I am not standing on the front porch.”

  “That is not the issue. You do not know that those things cannot jump. Mrs. Wiggenton used to run track, remember?”

  “You don’t have to remind me. I am the one who has to listen to her stories every time we get together, Saul.”

  “Not anymore, I’ll tell you that.”

  While they continued arguing, Calvin and Athena rushed out side-by-side and attacked the two zombies stomping through the side garden. Both turrets kept the streets clear behind them. Just to keep in practice, Calvin threw his first axe, splitting the skull of an old man in a bloody gray suit and sending him flying into the side of the house.

  “Very impressive, Calvin. Ooh, Lem Clautshizer,” Saul broke off his argument to comment on Calvin’s victim from inside the turreted kitchen window. “Do not worry, Calvin. He was a thief. Never returned one single thing he ever borrowed from me. And his wife there, whoo, that woman could not keep a secret to save her own life. Funny thing, she was a vegetarian.”