Plague of the Living Dead (The Z-Day Trilogy Book 3)

by Mark Cusco Ailes

  Captain Spanner made his way over to the escalator and looked up. Several zombies were getting on it and making their way down toward them. He could lose the first floor if the zombies found their way down the escalator. He turned and motioned toward a couple of men to join him.

  “Make sure none of the zombies make it down the escalator. I’m heading up to the second level.” He got on it and made his way upward, staying close to the side farthest from the zombies trying to reach over to grab him. He watched as one of them leaned over too far and rolled down the rails toward the soldiers who were waiting for the kill. He shook his head. He was thankful zombies didn’t have reasoning skills. He reached the second level and was immediately confronted by two female zombies dressed in expensive dresses. Both of them had expensive necklaces around their necks. He figured they must have been close friends. He fired two shots sending them both down the escalator. He watched as they knocked down several more zombies on their way down to the first level. He couldn’t help but laugh. The scene reminded him of one of the classic comedies he grew up watching as a kid. As he continued to watch, he was forcibly grabbed around his throat, causing him to fall forward to his knees. He heard a ferocious growl. He was being brought further to the ground by the weight of the zombie pushing down on him. He felt its saliva trickling down the back of his neck. He fought hard against its weight, but the more he moved, the harder the force from it became. He tried to raise his sidearm but his arm was immobilized. It was no use. No matter what he tried, the zombie continued to push down on him. He felt its hot breath on the back of his neck and its teeth beginning to sink into his flesh. A shot rang out and he felt the zombie slide off of his back. He turned his head to see what happened and saw a hand reaching out to him.

  “Did he bite you, Captain Spanner?” The soldier helped him to his feet.

  “No. You came to the rescue just in time.” He looked at the zombie that almost ended his career. “I learned a valuable lesson today. You can’t let your guard down around these things.”

  “Sir, something is attracting the zombies by the gun store. They’re all slowly making their way toward it.”

  Captain Spanner looked in the direction he was pointing. He saw the gate was pulled down, but the zombies were trying to gain entrance. “There must be survivors inside there. Let’s get rid of the zombies for them. But be careful, the survivors are heavily armed. We don’t know if they’ll consider us a threat or not. Not everybody likes the military.”

  “I realize that, sir. It’s the one thing that’s always bothered me. Why do people hate the people who help keep America free?”

  “People are strange. They want us to keep America safe, but when we do, they’re upset over how we do it. It’s a no win situation. No matter what we do, we’re going to be considered the bad guys.”

  “It’s not right. I put my life on the line for those idiots. They don’t deserve to be protected.”

  “Watch it, soldier,” said Captain Spanner. “We signed up for the military. It’s our duty to protect them no matter how they feel about us. Come on; let’s get this done before they have a chance to break through the gate.”

  They made quick work of the zombies and watched as they toppled over on top of each other as several more soldiers appeared on the other side, well out of range of friendly fire. Captain Spanner acknowledged them.

  “Continue your sweep through the mall. Make sure all the entrance doors are secured. After we accomplish that, we need to clean the mall. If we don’t, it’s going to get ripe in here.” He turned to Private Lake. “Let’s try to make contact with whoever is inside the gun shop. First, we need to clear some of the bodies out of the way.”

  Terrance watched as the two soldiers who were busy moving the zombie’s bodies away from the front of the store. He stood with his loaded high powered rifle pointed at them. “Stop right there! If you think you’re getting inside here, you better think again! I have a high powered rifle and I’m a good shot.”

  Captain Spanner froze in place and looked through the gate at Terrance. He could see his hands were steady alerting him the man was experienced with weapons. “You can lower your weapon. We don’t mean you any harm. We’re just here to clear the mall and set up a command base. I don’t care that you are raiding the gun shop.”

  “We need weapons,” said Terrance. “It’s the only way we can protect ourselves from zombies and people like you.”

  Captain Spanner smiled. “We’re not the enemy. You can take whatever weapons you want. We’ll even let you leave the mall if you want. But, I wouldn’t advise it. The whole area is infested with the walking dead. You will have a better chance of survival if you stay inside the mall.”

  Terrance looked at him suspiciously. “How do I know I can trust you?”

  Captain Spanner was losing patience with him. He had more important things to accomplish than trying to convince a civilian he didn’t need to hide from the military. He turned to walk away and then stopped. “Listen, you do what you want. Just try and stay out of my way. I have a job to do, and I don’t need you interfering. Do we have an understanding?”

  “The weapons are ours.”

  “Of course they are. I have my own weapons.” He walked away from the store, heading toward the sound of gunfire echoing from the other side of the mall. He knew he would encounter the man again. He only hoped it would be on friendly terms. He didn’t want to have to use precious resources on somebody he was paid to protect.

  Terrance stood next to Brinke and the others holding his weapon in his hand. He knew they had heard the conversation with Captain Spanner.

  “Why did you send him away?” asked Brinke. “He sounded as though he wanted to help us.”

  Terrance stared at her as though she didn’t fully understand the situation they were in. “He didn’t want to help us. He wanted all the weapons we have. He knows since we have the weapons, we have the power.”

  “What power?” asked Patricia. “We’re locked inside here, and they are out there! I’d rather be out there with them. We would be safer with them.”

  “Boy are you naïve,” said Terrance. “Do you actually think they care about you? They only care about themselves. Do I have to remind you you’re not a soldier? Unless you recently have joined the military, you’re not one of them. No, you’re safer with me inside here. At least here we can defend ourselves.”

  “You’re talking like a crazy lunatic,” said Daniel. “Those men are paid to protect us. They’re not going to kill us if that’s what you’re worried about. Besides, they sound like they are clearing the mall of the zombies. I want to be on their side.”

  “Of course they’re clearing the mall. They want to take the mall for themselves. Why else would they be clearing it?” asked Terrance. “That’s why we can’t let them have this shop. If we didn’t have these weapons, who knows what they would try do to us.” He looked at Emily and Patricia. “I already have a good idea what they would do to the both of you.”

  Brinke was growing impatient with him. She didn’t want to be locked in the shop with him any longer. She knew she would have a better chance of survival with the soldiers. She turned to head for the back door to the shop. Terrance took a step toward her, but was confronted by Daniel.

  “If she wants to leave, let her leave. We’re not your hostages. Stay here with your precious guns. All I want to do is leave and find a way out of the mall.”

  Brinke opened the back door and was met by a couple of soldiers who pointed their weapons at her. She glared at them. “I’m not your enemy! The real enemy is lingering in the store! Now if you don’t mind, I would like to talk to your leader.”

  Chapter Ten

  Mr. Billings was frustrated nobody was answering at the police station. Brian was sitting next to him in the truck watching the door leading into the building. His hands were shaking. He had never come across a situation like this the whole time he had been an exterminator. He looked at his boss.

 
“What are we going to do now?”

  Mr. Billings started the truck. “I’m not sure. Nobody is answering the phone at the police station. I don’t know who else we can report this to. We have to notify somebody.” His cell phone rang.

  Jennifer, his wife, was shouting frantically on the other end. “Jennifer, you have to calm down. I can’t understand a word you’re saying. What? Who is eating the neighbor’s dog? What’s all over the news?” He reached over and turned on the radio.

  “I repeat. The dead are coming back to life and feasting on the living. Don’t trust anybody. Not even if it’s your wife, husband, daughter, mother, pastor, or even the family pet. Somehow people are being infected by a deadly strain of flu, succumbing to it and then rising from the dead. Details are sketchy at best, and no one seems to understand what is happening. People are being urged to stay indoors. Lock your doors, board up your windows, do whatever it takes to keep the walking dead from entering your residence. A question has been raised about how one can protect themselves from these savage creatures. All we know as of right now is you can kill, yes I said kill the creatures by damaging their brains. Yes, shoot the creatures in the head and it seems to send them back to the depth of hell. Once again, the dead are coming back to life to feast on the flesh of the living.”

  Mr. Billings turned off the radio and realized his cell phone connection with his wife had been severed. He looked at Brian frightfully and then tried to call her back. The line was dead. “Do you have any service on your phone?”

  Brian shook his head. He didn’t have any service either. He looked back toward the building. “I would say we were listening to a horror program on the radio had I not seen the zombies in person.”

  “This can’t be happening,” said Mr. Billings. “There has to be some reasonable explanation for what’s going on. There is no such thing as zombies.”

  “They created several of them for the zombie park in Indiana. Do you think some of them got loose and found their way into Illinois?”

  “I don’t know. It sounds like a feasible explanation. It doesn’t matter right now. I have to find my wife. She said someone was eating the neighbor’s dog. We need to get to her.”

  The road leading back to his neighborhood was congested. The traffic was at a standstill and people were laying on their horns as if it would make the traffic move any faster. A helicopter flew by overhead and disappeared out of sight. Mr. Billings knew it was a military helicopter most likely out scouting the situation in the city. Brian was trying his cell once again. He was worried about his parents. They lived in Joliet, and he wasn’t sure if their area was under attack.

  “Were you able to reach them?” asked Mr. Billings.

  “There still isn’t any service for some reason. Why would the cell towers be down?”

  “I don’t know. I don’t know how the whole phone thing works in the first place.” He sighed. “Apparently nothing else is working around here, either.” He heard the sound of a firetruck up ahead. “Whatever is happening up there has got to be bad. At this rate, I’m never going to get home.”

  Brian stuck his head outside the window trying to get a view of what was happening in front of them. He saw several people running between the cars heading toward them. He stuck his head inside and stared at Mr. Billings.

  “What’s going on, Brian?”

  “I don’t know. There is a stampede of people running toward us.”

  Soon they were surrounded by frightened people running past their truck screaming. Mr. Billings didn’t like the look of things. Something was causing the stampede of panicking people. It didn’t take them long to learn what was causing it. Right behind the stampede were dozens of blood thirsty zombies slowly making their way through the cars. Mr. Billings made sure the doors were locked and told Brian to duck down out of sight. They could hear the growling of the zombies as they bounced off the truck in pursuit of the stampede. It seemed like hours before the last of them slowly made their way past and farther down the road. They waited for several minutes before speaking.

  “Do you think they’re gone?” asked Brian.

  “I hope so. Well, we know one thing for sure. We can’t get to my house in the truck. We’re going to have to try to get in front of this and find a car we can use to get out of here.”

  “What happens if we come across any of the creatures? We don’t have any weapons to defend ourselves.”

  “I have a crowbar and an ax in the back of the truck. They will have to do. Come on before I have a change of heart.”

  They exited the truck, secured the crowbar and ax, and then stopped to look around. The last thing they wanted was for a zombie to overtake them by surprise. The area looked clear of the creatures.

  “Come on,” said Mr. Billings. “We need to move before one of those things discovers us.”

  “Too late,” said Brian, standing frozen in place. “Just don’t make any sudden movement.”

  Mr. Billings looked past Brian in shock. There was a young female zombie standing in front of him wearing a bloodied white nightgown. She shambled toward Brian with blood drooling from her lips. A low, frustrated moan came from her. Brian knew one wrong move could cost him his life. He wanted to turn tail and run, but was frozen with fear.

  “Brian, use the crowbar. Crush her skull with it.”

  Brian held his breath and raised the crowbar. The young zombie kept her eyes transfixed on it, as if she knew what he was planning on doing. She opened her mouth and growled, causing him to lower the crowbar in fear.

  “I can’t do it,” he said. “I can’t kill her.”

  “Brian, she’s not human. If you don’t do it, she’s going to kill you.”

  She took another threatening step toward him, growling once more. He raised the crowbar once more and closed his eyes. He swung it toward her head and felt himself fall over to his side. He had missed. She stared at him menacingly and lunged toward him, biting into the back of his head. She tore away a large chunk of brain matter and chewed loudly. Blood shot from his wound like a geyser. Mr. Billings watched as she tore another chunk of brain from his skull. It was more than he could endure. All he could think about was getting back to his wife and making sure she was safe from harm.

  He left Brian behind and ran between the cars until he reached the front of the line. He was fortunate. Two cars were idling in the front of the line with no occupants inside. He jumped into the driver’s seat of the Ford and slammed the door shut. He slammed it into drive and punched it, leaving the gruesome scene behind him.

  Jennifer Billings was hiding in the closet inside her bedroom after making sure all the doors to the house were secured. She was confident her husband was on his way home to help her. She didn’t know how far away from home he was before she had lost the signal with him. She needed him to come home now and deal with the zombie feasting on the neighbor’s dog in the front yard. She heard commotion coming from outside the bedroom window. She closed the door to the closet and tried not to think about what she had witnessed. She looked at her cell phone. Service had been interrupted. She tossed it aside. She closed her eyes and remembered something important. Emily wasn’t home yet. She knew she would be with Patricia. She looked at her cell phone once more, but there was still no service. She wondered what could have happened to cause an interruption in cell service. Her thoughts were interrupted by the sound of something pounding on her bedroom window. She didn’t know what to do. She felt impaled by fear, unable to move. Once again the sound of pounding erupted. She slowly opened the closet door barely enough so she could see the window. She didn’t know what was on the other side of it, but she had a suspicion it was the thing eating the dog in her front yard, trying to find which room she was hiding in. She held her breath and slowly rose to her feet and stopped to listen. The pounding had stopped. She was relieved. Whatever had been pounding on the window obviously had given up and left. She turned to go back inside the closet as the silence was broken by more pounding. She hurr
iedly turned back around, wide-eyed. Her heart was beating out of her chest. She had been wrong. Whatever was outside her window was still there, daring her to show her face. She crept slowly across the brown plush carpeting, dragging her feet in fear. She felt the fear coursing through her whole body as sweat began forming across her brow. Whatever was on the other side of the window was drawing her toward it. She stopped and listened once more, just to make sure it wasn’t her mind playing cruel jokes on her. She held her breath in anticipation.

  The silence was broken by the pounding, and this time it was much more forceful. Whatever was on the other side of the window knew she was inside the bedroom. Now it was playing a mental game with her. She couldn’t understand why, but it wanted her to finish the journey across the bedroom. She continued slowly across, forcing her feet to keep pace with her desire to solve the mystery of the pounding. She was now only a few feet away.

  Her heart threatened to leap from her chest, leaving her alone to solve the mystery. She paused to catch her breath before continuing once again. She reached the window and caressed the chocolate colored curtains in her hand, trying to decide if she wanted to really know what was on the other side. It was a decision she didn’t want to take lightly. One decision could ease her curiosity, and the other could haunt her for the rest of her life. She wasn’t sure she was ready to play the game of chance. She relinquished her fingers from the curtain and stood there staring at the window. It wasn’t too late to change her mind. She could turn back around and find refuge back inside the closet. She looked at the closet. It looked so safe and serene. Her thoughts were interrupted by a different sound. It sounded as if something had crashed into it. She heard the forceful cracking of the glass and someone shouting obscenities on the other side. She flung the curtains opened to reveal a blood-cracked window with her husband retrieving a hammer from the skull of a zombie. He tossed it aside and stared at her as it fell from her view.