In Hiding: A Survivors Journal of the Great Outbreak

by Michael Elliott

  As the military raced to get people out by bus, boat or any other means possible the massive crowd of Zeds that must have been thousands deep, pushed their way through the blockades and the barriers and the army was desperately trying to hold them back. It was incredible how many of them there were out there. One massive horde of disease and death driving forward and it looked like there was no stopping them.

  Watching what was happening there was a real wake up call for all of us. Reports were that most military units were heading west to regroup as they evacuated cities along the way. We knew what that meant for us. We knew then that it could be a really long time before rescue would come and that was if it came at all.

  So with the realization that the store was going to be our home for much longer then we originally anticipated, we knew we needed to do a few things just in case the unimaginable found its way here. We knew if one of those giant hordes of Zeds ever made its way to our front door that there was no way the doors could withstand something like that. That many of them all pushing at once, never stopping, never giving up until they were through. We needed to prepare just in case something like that ever happened.

  That was the main reason we came up with the Last Resort Plan. None of the others actually called it that. It was just the name that I gave it. The plan itself was pretty basic but we all agreed that it might be our only option if something like that were to happen. We spent most of the night hammering out the details and nobody seemed to mind because as tired as we were I don’t think anyone was going to be able to sleep anyway.

  The plan was to find a place that we could easily defend and stock it with plenty of supplies so that if something did go wrong we would all have a place that we could fall back too. After much discussion we decided that the roof was our best option. So over the next couple of days we would stock pile bottled water, canned goods, camping gear and everything else we thought we might need to survive in case of an emergency. We would bring up blankets and pillows, cooking gear and hunting rifles. We would turn the roof of the building into a small tent city where we could survive for an extended period of time if the lower level ever became overrun.

  There were two main reasons we chose the roof as our fall back position. First, it was the only place in the store that gave us a view of our immediate surroundings. If rescue did come the roof was the only place that would give us a chance to see it coming. Secondly, it was easily defendable. There was only one-way to get up there and that was the ladder. We didn’t even know if Zeds could climb ladders, but even if they could, only one of them could get to the hatch at the top at a time. Something heavy placed on top of that hatch would be enough to keep them from pushing through. It was as good as place as any to make our last stand. I just hoped it would never come to that.

  We starting making a list of everything we would need to move up there, batteries, flashlights, radios and perhaps the best idea of all, a barbeque. Cody knew of a smaller charcoal model that he could take a part and move it up there piece by piece. It not only meant that we would be eating better. It also allowed us to save most of the canned food for when we would need it most. We would be able to use the frozen meat still inside the storage freezers before we lost power. Believe me throwing all of that rotting meat out into the parking lot was not pleasant when it came to it.

  Not only had we put the finishing details on our plan that night. We also laid out a plan for what we would do if we lost power in the building. It wasn’t like the utility companies were out there looking after it anymore. We had to assume the worst and that was that we would eventually loose power at some point. So we decided that we would move camping lanterns into key positions that we could turn on once the store went dark. Not to mention we decided that we needed to gather all the flashlights and batteries that we could find.

  After everything that had happened earlier that day I was happy to see us all pulling together. Everyone was contributing and we listened to everyone’s ideas. We even all came to an agreement on keeping the guns safely in one place. We picked a central location in the back room and decided to keep all but a few hunting rifles back there with most of the ammo. That way if something did happen, everyone knew where to go and find the guns.

  Those plans gave us a real purpose and a reason to get up the next morning. All of our thoughts about our families and the world around us were put on hold. For that brief period of time we were able to forget about what we had done and the things that we had seen. We had something else to focus on. We did it because it was what we had to do.

  DAY FOUR

  I had never really been a sound sleeper before all of this began. Truth is I usually struggled to sleep most nights anyway. Problem was that I was getting less and less sleep as the days went on. I was physically drained. I needed much more rest then I had been getting, but my mind just wouldn’t shut off. The more desperate I was to fall asleep, the less sleep it seemed I was able to get. The morning of that fourth day was hard and I wasn’t looking forward to the work that I knew needed to get done.

  All the excitement of the previous night was long gone and the realization of the strenuous work required had set in. We spent most of that day trying to move supplies to the roof and believe me it wasn’t the best day to be as tired as I was because the work was physically demanding and we were at it for hours. The cases of bottled water and the canned goods continued felt heavier and heavier as the day went on. We had to move everything up the stairs and then up the ladder. It was pain-staking work and to be honest I don’t really think that any of us had the energy required for the job.

  We worked in teams for the most part and I had plenty of interesting conversations with a few of the others. It was pretty much all we could do to help pass the time and make the work seem less repetitive. The conversations I had with Ray were always the most fascinating. Ray was a really smart man. He was well educated and we both shared similar interests in history and politics. It also helped matters that he had been watching the news religiously and could tell me just about everything that was happening around the world. Ray was almost obsessed with watching the news and I was never sure if it was just something that he had always done or if it was brought on by the incredible events that we were living through. Maybe Ray felt that if he understood everything just a little bit more he could better prepare for anything the outbreak might throw at us. Then again, maybe he was just hoping to see his wife in the background of some news report.

  The two of us spent a lot of time talking that morning. We worked side-by-side moving various supplies across the second floor hallway to Cody and Trevor who then brought it up the ladder. We talked mostly about the things that he had seen that morning before I had even dragged myself downstairs. He had been watching reports from various refugee camps and shelters. The conditions were as best as they could be I guess. Huge areas with rows and rows of tents set up. Ray told me that they actually appeared to look somewhat safe. Reporters were interviewing refugees about their stories of survival and what they saw as they made the dangerous journey to the camps.

  There were groups of people who left early in the outbreak and made it out before things became too bad. Other groups of people had to fight their way through dozens of Zeds along the roads just to make it. There were some people who had been with larger groups that had been held up in apartments, hotels, schools and a variety of different places. There were some who had simply been out on their own until they found a military convoy or another group passing bye. Ray told me about the great stories of humanity and people helping others as they made their way across the country.

  He also told me stories that showed how dark times brought out the worst in some people. Some had to fight off people trying to steal their car or their supplies. Even worse were the several cases of assault, rape, theft and murder that were being told. I guess I couldn’t say that I was surprised when he told me stories like that. But I had never really had that much faith in people to begin with.

/>   However Ray had told me about a few other reports that morning that had me feeling a little more optimistic about the human race. A reporter had met up with this group in western Ohio. A huge collection of people from various backgrounds both men and woman who were traveling around armed to the teeth. They were moving from small town to small town trying to help anyone they could. They would go door to door searching for survivors and even tried to help those who were surrounded by Zeds if they were able too.

  They helped everyone they could along the way and were willing to take anyone in. They never asked for anything in return, they just did what needed to be done. After hearing that I actually starting to hope that a group like that might eventually find us and help us escape from the Zeds that surrounded our new home.

  There was always plenty to talk about with Ray and it really beat working with some of the others. Adam barely said anything and Trevor had become really quiet since the whole Bruce incident. But truth is that everyone worked and they worked hard. Paul had acted as our foreman and nobody else really objected. I guess that was probably because it really hadn’t been that important to any of us and it really seemed like Paul embraced the leadership role.

  In the middle of the afternoon we decided that we had moved enough to the roof for the day. We agreed that we would spend the rest of that afternoon organizing the supplies we already had up there and start setting up some of the tents. We stacked everything into piles and set up tarps to cover what needed to be protected from weather. It was while we were up there working that afternoon when things took an incredible turn that I don’t think anyone of us could have seen coming.

  I remember exactly where I was and what I was doing when I first heard it. I was helping Paul set up one of the tents when all of a sudden I heard Tanya begin to shout. It wasn’t a scream and it wasn’t out of fear. She was shouting out and waving her arms like she was trying to get someone’s attention out in the parking the lot.

  As I ran over to where she was standing I remember hoping to see an Army convoy pushing its way down the street on its way to rescue us. But we weren’t that lucky. Actually at first I didn’t see much of anything except for a parking lot filled with zombies and a handful of abandoned cars. As the others arrived and started asking questions, Tanya pointed out at a parked car at the far end of the lot. It took me a few seconds to see it, but that was when I realized it wasn’t the car she was pointing at, it was what was behind it.

  At first I thought my eyes were playing tricks on me but there was a woman behind that car and from what I could see she didn’t look to be infected. Even more surprising was that there appeared to be someone hiding behind that car with her. None of us could see who was with her, not from where we were standing, but it was obvious by the way she kept looking over and reaching out that someone was there. So Tanya kept shouting until the woman waived in acknowledgment that she had heard her.

  I don’t think we knew what to do. After not seeing anyone for days we were starting to think that we were the only ones left in the city. Well the only people who weren’t infected that were left in the city. We had heard the occasional gunshot in the distance but that had pretty much been it for signs of life. Seeing that woman gave us all hope that we weren’t alone.

  It wasn’t until she stood up from behind the car and started running across the parking lot that we finally saw who was with her. It was a young boy who looked liked he couldn’t be much older then eight. She held one hand over his mouth and had her other arm around his shoulder as she pulled him along side of her. Together they made it to a blue van and they quickly ducked down behind it.

  We wanted to help them, we really did, but not one of us could think of a plan. We didn’t know how to help or what to do. I could still see the two of them hiding behind that van but I could also see that there was a small group of Zeds heading right for them. It didn’t look like they could see them coming and that was when Anne decided to take action.

  She ran across the roof to where the hunting rifles were stored. She picked one up and grabbed a box of ammo and then ran back to the front ledge of the roof and got down on one knee. While she was loading the weapon she shouted for one of us to find a way to get the two of them inside. She sounded like a drill instructor yelling out orders and we all jumped into action. Problem was that we still weren’t sure what we were going to do so most of us simply did nothing but watch.

  While I was standing there rattling my brain trying to think of a way to get them inside the store I looked over at Cody and could tell that he had come up with something. He ran across the roof to the back end of the store overlooking the receiving doors. He took one quick look and came sprinting back to where we were. He told us how there were fewer Zeds at the back doors and that if we could somehow tell that woman and child to get there we could let them in. Now that we had an idea of where to get them in, the question became how to get them in. That was when Anne came up with a plan. She would provide covering fire for the two of them as they made there way across a parking lot that was littered with zombies. Tanya and Sandy started shouting out instructions to the woman until she waived to let us know that she understood.

  Paul grabbed the other hunting rifle and he and Shannon ran over to the ledge of the roof that overlooked the receiving doors. Shannon would act as a spotter while Paul tried to thin out those that had gathered around the back doors. Ray and I stayed with Anne and acted as spotters for her. Our job was to keep an eye on what was happening on her peripherals while she focused on lining up her shots. Cody, Trevor and Adam went downstairs to open the doors for the woman and child once they arrived.

  Many of the Zeds in the parking lot seemed to have heard all the commotion we were making on that roof. That turned out to be a good thing because as most of them began to focus on us, it meant that their attention wasn’t on that woman and child. But there was still plenty of danger out there and the two of them were going to have to make their way through it too get all the way to the back doors. Not to mention that small group of Zeds that was still closing in on them. Maybe the little boy had made a noise or maybe it was something else but they knew exactly where they were.

  Anne fired a shot without any word from Ray or myself. The first round went straight through the shoulder of the Zed closest to the van. The impact propelled him forward and he slammed into the side of the van but he was soon moving again and getting closer. Just as he started to make his way around the front bumper of the van, Anne fired another shot that blew a hole right in the side of his head. The Zed dropped to the ground and one of the others in the group tripped over the body and fell down as well.

  Anne had led the protest against killing Zeds in those first days of the outbreak. But at that moment I think they had changed in her eyes. Maybe it was the mother in her but Anne never hesitated to put a bullet in anyone of those things that got close enough to threaten that woman and child. I heard another shot. That one had come from Paul. I looked back to see him standing at the far end of the roof and pointing his rifle down over the ledge towards the pavement below. As I was watching him, Anne fired another shot. I turned around just in time to watch a Zed drop to the ground beside the van. I could still see it twitching on the ground as brownish colored blood oozed from it’s neck. That was when the woman and child started to run again.

  Anne fired again. A Zed wearing nurse attire dropped to the ground as the bullet entered the back of her head. The woman and child ran right past the body as it fell to the ground.

  I remembering hearing more gunshots then I could see Anne taking. Paul must have been firing plenty of rounds into the crowd below, but I couldn’t take my eyes of the two people running across the parking lot as they ducked and dodged their way around Zed after Zed.

  Finally they made it to another car and they stopped just on the far side of it to take a break. The whole scene was unbelievable. A group of about four Zeds started right for the car. I could tell Anne was starting to rush her shots as th
e first two in the group started to close in. Anne’s next shot missed entirely and actually hit the hood of the car. That was when I saw the little boy take off running and the woman was forced to get up and give chase.

  She pushed one of the Zeds right out of the way and knocked it to the ground. Anne fired another shot and one of the nearby Zeds dropped to the ground as the bullet hit in the mid-section.

  The woman caught up to the boy after only a few steps. She picked him up and ran to take shelter behind a black pick up truck. I felt so helpless just standing there watching. I couldn’t shoot worth a damn or run out there and save them so I just stood there and watched. I could still hear Paul shooting on the other side of the roof which had me questioning just how many Zeds were actually down there and if those doors were really the best way to get them inside.

  That was when the woman ran out from behind the truck and she started for the corner of the building. She was following Sandy and Tanya’s directions as they pointed frantically which way they needed to run. She kept running pulling the boy along as they turned the corner and started down the side headed for the area behind the building. Anne got up and changed her position to give her a better angle and Ray and I followed.