Dead 09: Spring

by T. W. Brown

  “What’s the deal?” Kevin asked once the pair had gone silent and were now staring at Kevin expectantly.

  “They say that they have seen what you are talking about,” Jane translated. “Even worse, they say that these child zombies tend to act like a hunting pack. They said it reminded them of the velociraptors from the movie—”

  “Jurassic Park!” Kevin interrupted.

  By the time they reached the farmhouse where the rest of the group was now standing out front waiting, Kevin had been told a few tales that matched his own. Jane gave him a curious look.

  “Are you saying these men are not just spinning some exaggerated tale?” she asked in a whisper that conveyed her fear.

  “I can’t really vouch for the pack hunting thing, but I know they are different, and what I saw back there looked like an ambush was in place. Somebody sprung it too soon or we might have been in big trouble.”

  The groups converged in the middle of the highway and Kevin related what he had seen before he told about the potential haul. Of course then he was forced to give his pieced together theories involving the child zombies. He was receiving a lot of skeptical looks until Jane followed with sharing all that Jose and Manuel had said about their own experiences.

  “So do we go in or just blow by this place?” Bill Sten asked after it was clear that nobody else was going to.

  “My honest opinion is that there will be other places to find supplies,” Kevin answered.

  “You can’t be so sure about that.” Rose nudged her way to the middle of the circle. “Aleah and I came up with nothing not too long ago. It was frustrating and made us do things that were more dangerous than we probably should have tried. We were getting desperate. It is easy now while we still have a couple of days’ worth of food, but if we hit a stretch of nothing…we are screwed.”

  The debate began, and Kevin sat back, listening to all sides, as the cases were being made both for and against going in after some of that food. Twice he noticed Dr. Miriam Reno staring at him with just a slight arch to her eyebrow like she expected him to just step in and make the call. The thing was, he already had his mind made up.

  “Bill, Jose, Manuel, Jane, and Jill are going to join me and Catie,” Kevin said above the debate that was starting to grow between Rose, Heather, and David as the youngest members of the group seemed to have the most to say on the subject.

  “Wait!” David spun on Kevin. “Why can’t I go?”

  “Truth?” Kevin challenged. “You are a big mouth and a know-it-all. And while I don’t begrudge a person who has some smarts, most of the crap that comes out of your mouth reminds me of the old days when people would spew crap on Facebook that they knew nothing about. Also, I am certain that this run is going to be a challenge and I don’t trust you to have my back.”

  The young man stood there with a look etched on his face like he’d just been slapped. His mouth opened and closed a few times, but Kevin had already dismissed him and moved on. His next statement was to prevent any other possible arguments in regards to his choice of companions.

  “Aleah, you need to stay back with Heather and continue to catalog everything at this farmhouse we can use. Doc, nothing personal, but you won’t ever be going on a run. I learned that lesson the hard way. As for the rest of you, it is simple…I haven’t talked to you that much and don’t really know you well enough. I believe that we are walking into a trap.”

  Another round of voices rose in opposition, but Kevin silenced them. “This is not up for debate. The only people at this point that have a say are the ones that I named to join me. Other than that, this is no longer a discussion. So…if you are with me, step forward.”

  Each person did so. Jose and Manuel gave him a grim squeeze of the shoulder after Jane had translated it all. They took a place on either side of Kevin and folded their arms across their chests like sentinels.

  “We still have plenty of daylight.” Kevin cast a glance skyward. It was barely midday by his guess. “Let’s move.”

  ***

  Kevin scaled the fence and landed in the back yard of the third house. Two more and they would be at the point where the T-intersection sat. They would be across the street from the house with the line of shrubs where the first of the child zombies had appeared. It would also put them behind the second group. Jose, Manuel and Jane were with him. Bill, Catie, and Jill would be in the middle of the street. (Fadia Street according to the one sign that sat tilted on the corner where the actual target house was located.)

  At each house, Kevin made visual contact with the other group and would wave them to advance to the next. There was not a lot of space between the houses, but at least it was not too deep into spring yet, so many of the trees and bushes were just starting to bud or bloom and did not hinder the ability to see out to the street.

  “Okay,” Kevin turned to the others, “the next house is where things will get hairy. We have to move fast and take these things out as quickly as we can. They are still zombies. And while they may be showing some rudimentary signs of planning, that does not change things.”

  Jose said something and Jane looked up at Kevin with a tight-lipped smile. “He says that they are worse…they are demons. He and Manuel are certain that it is demons from Hell trying to use the children as a way into our world.”

  “Whatever helps him do his job.”

  Kevin looked over into the next yard. It was no different than the one he was currently standing in except for the fact that this one had an above ground pool. One side had collapsed at some point, and with the cover still partially intact, it was almost like a bit of a cave. He felt the hairs on his arms and on the back of his neck stand up.

  Turning to the others, he put a finger to his lips and then pointed. He signaled to Manuel to move down to the back end of the yard and climb at that point. Jose went up closer to the house while he and Jane took the middle.

  No sooner had his feet touched ground when something moved from inside the dark recess of the four foot high pool. Memories immediately flooded his mind of that horrific sight involving the dog and the still animated head of that little girl that he, Heather, and Aleah had come across.

  A low growl issued from the darkness and Kevin raised his hands indicating that everybody freeze. Blade already in hand, Kevin took a few cautious steps towards the opening. He heard something shift and move. Cocking his arm back, Kevin was prepared to step in and strike.

  A triangular head emerged and Kevin took an involuntary step back as the brindle pit-bull curled its lip to reveal a mouthful of sharp teeth. A heartbeat later, five pups waddled out to stand under the protective shadow of their mother.

  “Easy, girl,” Kevin whispered. “We don’t want any trouble.”

  The female pit-bull lowered its head just a little, but its eyes remained fixed on the human standing before it. Kevin was not sure if he was relieved that the dog was not a zombie. A zombie dog suffered from the same lack of coordination and speed as its human counterpart. This dog looked surprisingly healthy. He wondered briefly what its diet must consist of. If it was surviving by eating zombies…then perhaps dogs had the same possibility of immunity as humans.

  Kevin took a step back and started to angle towards the house and away from the pool. The entire time, the pit-bull kept her eyes fixed on him as well as the others. Manuel had to retreat almost to the fence before the dog seemed to relax and cease her growling.

  “I miss having a dog,” Jane said wistfully as they slipped through the gate that was only barely hanging on by a single rusty hinge.

  “Yeah, well considering that one of our concerns is feeding ourselves…I don’t think pets are a viable option at the moment. Besides…” Kevin glanced over his shoulder one last time. The pit-bull and her pups were nowhere to be seen. “I think she is doing just fine on her own.”

  With that, the four crept alongside the house to the corner and peered out to the driveway. Kevin felt his mouth go dry. Beyond the hedges that ran along the
front of this particular house, he could see Catie and her group where they had come to a stop in the middle of the street. He could also see the two dozen or more child zombies on his side of the hedge. A few were just sort of milling about or shifting back and forth from foot to foot; but he could swear that a handful were making periodic checks through the hedges.

  One of them gave a soft moan. Seconds later, it was answered from across the street. It was as if that had been the cue because every single one of the child zombies shifted position and began to move for the end of the hedges. They would pour out from the driveway. What happened next removed any doubt that these child zombies were capable of some form of thought process. One of the children stopped beside the derelict vehicle still in the drive way and began to slap the hood with his palms. The sound was magnified by the silence that had preceded it.

  Within moments, adult zombies began emerging from every direction. This went beyond anything he had imagined possible. He glanced at Jane and saw her horrified stare as she witnessed the event. He was not sure which one, but either Jose or Manuel whispered the word “Diablo!”

  From their vantage point, it was clear that Catie and her group would be surrounded in mere seconds. There was no choice; this run would have to be cancelled.

  “Catie, run!” Kevin bellowed.

  He did not wait to ensure she complied, he felt he knew her well enough that she would do what he said. He shoved Jane back the way they’d come. He fell in behind her, but Jose and Manuel had other plans. The two men rushed the child zombies.

  Kevin would not risk his life. Whatever these men had in mind, they were on their own. He and Jane sprinted across the back yard. Kevin was only mildly surprised when the pit-bull did not emerge. Obviously it knew better as the first of the child zombies pushed through the gate, finally breaking it free of its last hinge.

  The zombies would not even get two steps in before he and Jane were over the fence and dashing across the next unkempt yard. As they reached the next fence, there was a sudden flurry of barks and moans. One pitiful yelp cut through the rest of the noise causing Kevin to wince inwardly.

  At last they had made it to the barricade that had sealed this place off from the rest of the world to no avail. Kevin could not help but think of the downfall of this place as they ran. Despite his claims of not caring, his mind ran through the most likely scenario. The residents of this place had come together and tried to create a safe zone. Many of them obviously had children.

  Catie and her group were already waiting for Kevin and Jane since all they’d had to do was turn around and sprint back up the road. The looks of concern were obvious when Kevin and Jane appeared with no sign of Manuel or Jose.

  “Where are the others?” Jill asked as soon as Kevin and Jane pulled up.

  “They…went…after…the…children,” Kevin panted. He waved away the follow up questions until he could catch his breath. Once he could talk and not feel like he was starving for oxygen, he explained how the two men were convinced that the child zombies were actually demons from Hell.

  “And you just let them charge in alone?” Bill asked. He took two steps past Kevin, obviously intending to go after the pair.

  “If you go in there, you go alone, and you probably don’t return,” Kevin said to the man’s back. “There are close to a thousand zombies in there. I know there are at least forty or so children.”

  “So we just leave those men to die?” Bill spun on Kevin, fists clenched.

  “Look, you haven’t been out here in all of this very much. Maybe you made a few runs when you were back at that compound, but out here…things are different. You do what you want, but I’m not going back in there.” Kevin stared the larger man down. He watched as the spirit seeped from the man’s eyes. He knew what Kevin was saying to be true.

  “Let’s get back to the others,” Catie said, stepping between the men to ensure the discussion was officially over.

  The group turned and began heading up the highway. They had gotten less than a dozen steps when a voice called from behind them.

  “Hola, amigos!”

  They all turned to see Manuel and Jose jogging their direction. By the time they closed half the distance, it was clear each was carrying something.

  The two stopped a few feet from the group and both held up a puppy in each hand with smiles beaming on their faces. Kevin scowled but remained silent. The men spoke quickly; when they finished, Jane turned and filled everybody in.

  “They say that it is now okay to return for supplies. They have sent the demons back to Hell and given the children their peace. Also…” she glanced at Kevin, “…the mother of the puppies is dead. She was torn apart protecting her pups. Jose says that he knows Mister Dreon does not approve, but he and Manuel promise that, if need be, they will share their own rations with the pups. They say that if these little ones fight anything like their mother, it will be a worthy sacrifice.”

  “Then let’s go finish what we came for,” Kevin finally agreed. “Even though these two say they got all the children, you still need to keep your eyes peeled just in case.”

  His warning was all for naught. The group spent the remainder of the day taking down every remaining zombie within the confines of the poorly constructed walls. By that evening, the rest of the group had been brought up to camp for the night.

  The conversation at dinner was upbeat and positive. Everybody was all smiles and laughter. The four puppies were a large source of happiness for everyone—even Kevin. Somewhere along the line, Rose produced four pieces of different colored yarn and tied a piece around each pup’s neck.

  “For now, we can call them Red, Purple, Green, and Black,” the girl announced.

  For the next two days, the group remained vigilant for any zombies that might have been missed, but things remained blissfully uneventful. Everybody worked in teams to round up supplies. Kevin, Bill, and Jill found bicycles and built three carts that could be pulled.

  Kevin knew it was unlikely that the bikes and carts would last long, it seemed that every time they got into a groove, something came along to derail it, but at least they could make some good time while the luxury was available.

  Four days later, they were back on the road headed west along Highway 38, which they had discovered to also be called the Lincoln Highway. They had only travelled one day when signs indicated that a larger city loomed ahead. However, it was not the city that had them concerned, it was the series of signs that had been put up.

  “Continue at your own peril,” Rose read the large black letters painted across the stripped roadside billboard. “Guess they probably aren’t friendly.”

  Kevin produced the road atlas they had picked up at a gas station and began tracing things with his finger. At last he looked up at the group. “We can go south and hook up with Interstate 88. It isn’t too far out of the way. That can take us all the way to Davenport. From there, we can follow Interstate 80 until it reaches Interstate 29. That will take us all the way to Sioux City where we swing north for the final stretch to Sioux Falls. There are a few major cities along the way, but we can probably skirt them without going too far from the beaten path.

  “I think the interstates offer us the fastest way possible. However, if we take a more direct route, we could possibly cut the time in half. The problem will be the likelihood that some of the lesser roads may have washed out.”

  The group gathered around as Kevin laid out the possibilities. When he finished, he put it to a vote. Despite the fact that it would take them out of their way a good distance, the consensus was to stick close to the interstates. Everybody felt that having the bicycles for as long as they could was a real plus. If they were lucky (which none of them believed to be the case), they could reach Sioux City in just a couple of weeks. As it was, the hope was maybe within a month.

  They were just about to resume their journey when a scream sounded from beyond some trees to the south of their location. Everybody jumped at the initial scare,
but seconds later, Bill, Barney, Jill and Catie had dropped their bicycles and took off towards the direction of the noise.

  “Everybody move into that field,” Kevin pointed to what might have once been a massive corn field, but was now a jungle of sorts. “Don’t go any further than where you can still see the road. Adam, Selma, you come with me.”

  Kevin took off on his bicycle past where the scream had come. His plan was to move in from the other side. He felt the rush of adrenaline course through him as he pumped the pedals. Once he was about a hundred yards beyond the cluster of trees where Catie and the others were just now disappearing, Kevin ditched his bicycle. His mind was warring with his decision to simply charge in to a situation blindly. He knew that never ended well. Yet, he had found a new source of invigoration since the addition of the people from the compound. For some reason he could not put a finger on, things felt different; and ever since they had re-committed to travelling to South Dakota, he just believed that they would succeed.

  Wading through the tall grass, Kevin had drawn one of the pistols. While it had been generally agreed that firearms were the weapon of last resort, he could not be sure of what he was rushing into and had no desire to perish because his best line of defense was in its holster.

  Just ahead, he heard the sounds of a scuffle. He heard a roar that sounded like Bill and something wooden being shattered. When he broke through the thickest of the trees and brush he found Bill, Catie, Barney, and Jill taking down a dozen walkers. However, that was not what drew his main focus. Up in a tree were three children between the ages of twelve and mid-teens. They were clustered together and crying. His eyes followed their gaze and he spied a fourth young girl that had been savaged.

  With a sigh he waded in to help finish off the zombies. He kept a wary eye on the dead girl, knowing that she would sit up at any moment.

  The last of the zombies was taken down and Kevin moved next to Catie, whispering for her to gain the attention of the children. Without trying to draw too much attention, Kevin slid his blade free and moved to the downed girl. Just as he reached her side, the eyes opened. He was about to strike when he saw what he was almost certain to be a furrow of the forehead as if the thing were afraid. That was all it took to make him pause long enough for the creature to let loose with a mewling baby cry.