The Outbreak Series (Book 2): Purgatory

by Thomas Baker

  "Gus, Linda, you two might do good to hit the garage before I depart for the church, in case there’s any problems."

  "Where you charging off to there Sheriff? I thought you told JT this church business was his problem?"

  "Damn JT is what the problem is. Now I'm sitting here feeling all guilty. When I thought I was protecting my people I was damning them. Also I can’t ignore what my gut is telling me any longer about your friend. JT would shoot the whole place up in a rage if it meant getting Hannah back and making Albright pay for what he has done to Tyrone.

  “Are you going to help JT, the church people or yourself then?”

  “A mix of them all I reckon.” Randall shook his head. "My talks with JT. I don't know if they did a damn bit of good. So yeah, I'm going out. You two stay here, protect each other."

  "Now Sheriff, I know I'm just a wounded old man but those are like my kids out there. I can hold my own and I won't get in anyone's way. I can't sit around here with a thumb up my ass while JT is out there trying to get us all out of here."

  "Gus! You're in no shape to be going on a rescue mission!" Linda placed her hand on Gus's back as she spoke.

  "Linda, honey, you're a true sweetheart but this isn't up for debate. I’m going. I owe it to JT and I damn sure owe it to Tyrone. What happened to him I still can’t…"

  "Look, I promised I would look after you and I keep my promises. I have an old Sheriff's cruiser stashed close by. I'm going to go fetch it. I want you two armed and waiting for me in the driveway in seven minutes or I will assume you're not coming." Sheriff Randall didn't even give them a chance to reply as he turned and headed out the door.

  "Seven minutes, you reckon he is that good or just one oddball guesstimator?" Gus shot Linda a signature Gus smirk.

  "You're one stubborn old mule Gus!" Linda scowled as she pushed past Gus and made her way out into the garage.

  "Well Crusty Dusty, where the hell are ya when we need ya?" Gus kind of chuckled to himself as he made his way into the garage as well. Gus had already been through to much loss. He didn’t want to lose anyone else.

  Gus walked into the garage to find Linda locking shells into a rifle and putting more into a bag slung over her shoulder.

  "Well look at you Annie Oakley. You a shooter?" Gus snickered.

  "I've had some self protection classes. I’ve been to the gun range, it’s taught me enough. Who would have thought I would need them for something like this? I heal people, I don't kill them. Don't expect me to do much except in self defense. You want the other rifle?"

  "No, no, ole Gussy Poo here has his eyes on a different prize."

  Gus made his way past Linda towards an open gun cabinet where two Smith and Wesson .44 Specials hung in a Wild West style gun belt. He couldn't resist his own smile as he strapped it around his waist.

  "Typical man, you ready to head out there Doc Holliday?" Linda mocked.

  "Yes ma'am, except for the time being you better just call me Huckleberry Hound."

  Linda rolled her eyes. "Well let's head out Huckleberry, our seven minutes is about up."

  JT had sat his lantern on the floor and threw his full weight into the locked door, sure this was the one that led down into the tunnels. He wished he had Tyrone, Gus, or hell even Dusty right now to help keep an eye on the church. He didn't know if the zombies were. What if they go veering off in another direction? Or what if by his stupid luck the zombies were all taken care of by the time he got there? He would end up with an alert and pissed off church population to fight through.

  He ran at the door again, got a groan and a little crack but still it stood. He was revving up for another run when a sound made him spin. A figure stepped out of the shadows into the lantern's light.

  "Linda, what are you doing here? Something happen to Gus?"

  "He was born a stubborn jackass, that's what happened to him." Linda was breathless. JT looked at her, panic tried to rise inside him. He stamped it down. He needed to focus on his mission. Gus was a big boy.

  "We came down to the church with Randall. We were staking out the place. Gus saw Hannah through a window with Albright and took off. I came here, followed the noise you were making. We have to hurry. I don’t want to lose him."

  "Damn it Gus!" JT kicked the door, hard enough to send his knee into a throbbing spasm. The frame cracked in places, but when he pushed it still didn't open.

  "Here, let me help," Linda said. She pulled the door open.

  "Thanks," JT grumbled, massaging his knee and feeling like an idiot.

  Linda shrugged. "You know, the forest for the trees and all that. Let's go. I hope Gus hasn't done anything to stupid like going inside alone, but in all likelihood he has. You men." Linda let out an exaggerated sigh and went through the door. JT scooped up his lantern and followed. At the bottom of the stairs, darkness stretched out before them.

  It smelled of musty disuse and dirty neglect. The brick walls, the low ceiling, the unsettling silence. It gave JT pictures of creepy tombs from dozens of horror movies he had watched.

  The floors were uneven and rugged. It reminded JT of a drunken dare he accepted with his buddies back in the day. Stupid teenagers, going into an open sewage drain tunnel under this supposedly haunted bridge. They had all screamed when the dinky flashlight they had brought crapped out. They crazy scramble out in the dark then laughed there ass off calling each other scared pussies.

  As they walked he was surprised at how many intersections there were in the tunnels and wondered where they all lead to. He wouldn't be surprised if some of them were trapped. It's what he would do.

  JT found himself feeling like he was in an Indiana Jones movie as he came upon an interchange where an open area branched off in three separate directions. "Well Indy, what's it going to be? Slightly right, slightly left or charge straight on ahead?" He walked back and forth in front of all three entrances a couple times before deciding to follow the tunnel to the right from which he felt a slightly cool breeze coming out of.

  Well Reverend, you want to talk to God? Let me send you to meet him, I've got nothing better to do.

  JT felt like he was back in college waiting with his teammates to run out of the tunnel before a game. His intensity grew with every step. He flashed back to coaching peewee league football...

  Pads, helmets, pop 'em, drop 'em, leave it all on the field.

  They came to another branch where the tunnel went straight, or right. JT was pretty sure his mental compass was telling him to keep on straight. He told Linda as much. JT took a step forward. A voice cried out, making him about jump out of his skin and shit himself at the same time.

  "Hello, who is there?" came a woman’s voice.

  Two indistinct shapes ran out of the right tunnel, nearly crashing into them.

  "Linda, thank God," Mary Lou said, the sound of her surprise turned to relief. “We were told you had been killed. It's a miracle you’re here. You came back at the worse time though. You need to get out..."

  Mary Lou stopped. Behind her was a man JT assumed was her husband. They both looked at JT and back to Linda. He could see horror rising on their faces.

  "What's going on Linda? Are... are you his prisoner?" Mary Lou asked.

  The man's face turned from horror to anger. He raised his hands and made fists, as if to attack.

  JT took action while he still could. He slipped past Linda, grabbed one of Mary Lou's arms and twisted it around her back, spinning her. With his other hand he wrapped it around and covered her mouth.

  "Don't scream, don't struggle, and you won't get hurt," JT whispered in her ear. He could feel her hot, frantic breath in his hand.

  JT spoke louder, so the man would hear too. "In fact, if you both calmly go down the tunnel behind me and quietly run away, it would be the best thing for all of us. Nod yes if you will do it. Otherwise I have no qualms about hurting you."

  JT slightly twisted her arm for affect. Mary Lou whimpered. JT felt a uneasy twinge in his stomach for a moment. Damn the
se people and damn Albright for making me do this. This isn't me. JT eased up on Mary Lou a little bit.

  "Please Mary Lou, do as he says," Linda pleaded. “He’s not here to hurt any of you. Albright. He’s not what you think.”

  Mary Lou nodded yes. Her husband snarled but shook his head yes as well.

  "You first buddy, down the tunnel, to the edge of the light."

  JT waited until the man complied before letting go and pushing her away.

  "Go," JT said, as menacing as he could.

  Mary Lou skidded into her husband, who stumbled back into the darkness. A few seconds later, echoing screams of pain erupted out of the black tunnel.

  "Hell," JT said, holding his lantern higher and taking a step.

  Mary Lou scrambled behind him. JT barely noticed. He was focused on the zombie chowing down on the man. Behind the one having a late night snack, the tunnel was filled with more.

  "Shit, it seems not all of them went outside. Run!"

  Linda and Mary Lou turned. JT brought up the rear. No runners. No runners. If there was a runner, they were dead. Wall and a open space, wall and a open space flashed on either side as they ran.

  Another junction and there was a blur. Something slammed into Mary Lou. The momentum carried her into the right tunnel, out of sight. Screams of death came out of the darkness. Linda paused, gun out, looking like she wanted to rush off to help.

  The fuck. Where did that come from? Has it been down here the whole time? Now was not the time to wonder. The sounds of shuffling feet filled up the world behind them.

  "I'm sorry Linda, but go. You know we can’t help.” With a pained look, Linda turned and ran beside him.

  Sheriff Randall made short work of the trip to the church, not using any of the main roads and skirting around the church through some wooded area and ending at a spot maybe a half mile away. Randall informed Linda and Gus this was a place the local Boy Scouts used to hike up to and rest for lunch. You could tell because of the carefully placed logs in a circle.

  Gus and Linda watched as Randall took out what they assumed were night vision goggles. The Sheriff methodically scanned the area of the church.

  "How's it looking down there Sheriff?" Gus quietly inquired.

  "Few church folks, I don't see any sign of Albright, JT or this Hannah you've all told me so..." Randall trailed off.

  "Sheriff? What is it? You act like you've seen a ghost."

  Gus and Linda waited in silence for a moment before Randall spoke again.

  "No ghosts Gus, just ghouls, more than JT estimated I reckon. They're headed dead on for the church."

  "How many are you estimating?" Gus wasn’t sure he wanted the answer.

  Randall looked through his goggles again. "Twenty eight."

  Gus laughed at his thought of them taking on all those zombies and the church people.

  "There's Charlie and three others, all armed, headed into the church. You two stay put in the cruiser."

  JT realized the tunnel he had chosen was narrowing and he had to duck his head down in places to keep moving. JT was worried he may have taken a dead end path. After a couple hundred more steps he noticed the breeze was getting stronger.

  "Well this is leading us somewhere at least," JT said, relived.

  He decided it was a good time to prepare himself for whatever might be coming soon. JT knelt down, against the protest of his aching knees, and checked his inventory. Making sure the safety on the gun he picked up was off and everything was at the ready.

  In the weak light of the lantern, stairs rose up ahead. JT took them two at a time, ignoring his knee pain. There was a door at the top. JT tried it and it opened. It looked like he was in some type of medical triage area. As JT slowly came out he glanced around the room noting all the crosses, stacks of Bibles and then he saw it. Written on a whiteboard was Gus's name along with various times.

  "It's my clinic. The door was right here the whole time, under my nose."

  JT froze at the sound of footsteps and voices above him. It sounded like more than one too. He heard a door creak and the voices got louder. JT waved to Linda and they took cover behind a stack of boxes. It sounded as if the voices were arguing. The voices sounded farther away again. He heard the door slam shut and footsteps overhead.

  "I sure hope Gus is okay," Linda whispered to JT. "You shouldn't have to wait much longer for your diversion. The zombies were almost at the church when I left to find you."

  JT couldn’t help but grin at the good news. Alright you long tongued liar, time to pay for your sins.

  "I thought I asked you to stay in the car," Randall growled low, as he knelt beside one of the logs in the circle.

  "Guess you'll have to keep us safe by your side," Gus sternly replied.

  Randall sighed and went back to looking through his goggles.

  "I got zombies at my three o clock." Randall relayed.

  Gus stood up behind Randall, holding his arm in the air making a pretend clock and looking in what he thought was the right direction. Randall handed the binoculars to Gus. Gus saw them rambling up the road towards the church. There didn't seem to be any sign at the church they knew danger was coming. I guess that business with Charlie and his gang was something unrelated. A bright light temporarily blinded him. He pulled the goggles away with a jerk.

  "Sheriff, what the hell?" Gus's temper broke.

  Blinking he could make out Randall standing, pointing an oversized gun up into the air. A pop and an explosion of color broke the night right about the hanging tree in front of the church.

  "You're leading them right to battle like an expert cattle herder!" Gus exclaimed. "Next time you should warn a man first. Think it's about time to move in?"

  Neither Randall nor Linda said anything at first. Linda darted her eyes back and forth between the two men until Randall spoke up.

  "Ok Gus, you win. We move in, but we have to go in on foot. You two stay behind me and follow my lead or I stay here. If I'm doing this, I am controlling the situation."

  Gus couldn't help but think of Dusty as Randall gave out commands.

  "Yes sir Sheriff, by all means lead on." Gus left all wit out of his reply this time.

  Sheriff Randall led them down the hill and across the two lane road. Randall moved in silent strides and stuck to the tree line as much as possible. They rounded straight across the road from the front of the church, reaching it without incident. The massive tree, standing like a sentinel at the church's entrance, creaked and groaned in the steady breeze of the night. Gus shivered and not from the chill. They had a good view through the front windows into the church. Light was blazing inside. They must have lit a thousand candles in there to be so bright. They know something is up?

  Gus saw Hannah and Albright walking briskly past one of the windows. He about did a double take. Who would have thunk it? Gus remembered from Randall's map the direction they seemed to be going towards was towards the Reverend's office and living quarters.

  "That's my Hannah and she looks upset. Cover me Sheriff I'm moving in!"

  Gus was out of the bushes and making his way towards the church before Randall or Linda could even protest or try and stop him.

  "Gus, you damn old fool. You better careful! Randall go in after him!" Linda steamed through clinched teeth. “I’ll let JT know his friend Gus is just about as bad as he is about running off.”

  Randall looked mightily pissed but he said nothing. He crossed the road and went in behind Gus. Linda took off around the side of the church, seeing the zombies amble there way closer.

  Hannah could barely hold it together as she ran into Reverend Albright's office. He was quick to follow her, trying to console her the entire way through the church. She had been in her room, she guessed passed out from the shock of what happened to Tyrone. She didn’t want to think about her part in all if it. She hadn’t cried or raged. She had been numb, like she had been dipped in a frozen pond. She heard pounding on the door. She rose to open it and that’s when A
lbright told her to come with him. That’s when she lost it. That’s when it felt real to her.

  Once in his office, Albright managed to escort her into a bedroom that was attached to it. He ushered her over to sit on the edge of the bed as he slid in beside her and put his arm around her firmly.

  She was still in disbelief Tyrone would turn on her, on Gus, on anyone. She kept jumping back and forth in her mind on whether or not pushing Tyrone into the pit of the undead was the right thing to do.

  "You know you did what was necessary Hannah my dear, don't you? That man you sent into Purgatory, he was a sinner.” Albright said in a soothing voice. He went out of the room for a moment and came back with a glass of wine. He pressed it into Hannah's hands and guided it up to her mouth. She took three swallows and he continued on. "Tyrone would've harmed you. This new world, it changes people. For some it brings out the worst. Tyrone killed Linda, the woman who nursed your dear friend Gus back to health. He convinced her to run away with him, from the flock, only to murder her. It could've been you. We don't know if he has done the same thing to Gus. JT, he was an accomplice in all of this. I know it’s difficult for you to hear, but the truth must be set free."

  He held Hannah's face in one hand as he wiped her tears with the other. She responded by pressing her forehead against his chin. Albright ran his hand through her hair brushing it from her face. As he did Hannah looked up and grabbed his hand. His touch reminded her so much of JT's when he would comfort her or give her a kiss goodnight. Her thoughts became muddled, her mind fuzzy. It was getting hard to think straight. She took another big drink and without pause, downed the rest.

  "JT and Tyrone..." Hannah couldn't even finish her words as she looked away from the Reverend's face and towards their intertwined hands.