The Rabid

by Ami Urban

  ***

  I'd forgotten how good Fun Dips were. Especially the cherry ones. I was really enjoying my packet while Lisa searched a back office and we stood watch. Lucky clawed at my leg. He wanted some too.

  "Do you mind?" Scott glanced at me from his side of the door.

  "Nah. Want?" I held out my backpack.

  "No." Scott shoved it away. "I mean do you mind finishing that thing up. You're really annoying me."

  "You kidding? These things are rare today. And these are the ones that change color, see?" I showed him the blue stick.

  "Do you ever get tired of being fucking weird?"

  "You know..." I tilted the packet back until most of the sour powder fell into my mouth. "The statistical probability of you surviving this mission is slim to none. Given how you were just introduced."

  "What the fuck are you talking about? Slim to none isn't even a probability measure."

  "I tossed the candy stick into my mouth. "You just upgraded to 'divided by zero'."

  Our other companion snickered.

  "See, Chuckles over there thinks I'm funny. What's your name anyway?"

  He flashed an unhealthily toothy grin. "Everybody just calls me by my last name. It's Tango."

  I felt my brows shoot up. "Well, hell. Now I can't give you a nickname."

  Tango laughed again. "If you really want to be different, you could use my first name. Tinder."

  I dropped the spent packet to my feet and kicked it away. Lucky ran after it, sticking his nose inside. "Like...building a fire Tinder or finding romance the not-so-old-fashioned way Tinder?"

  "My parents were survivalists, so the first." His tone suggested mild smugness at his own short comings.

  "Well, Tinder Tango, it's nice to meet you. You want a Fun Dip?"

  Lisa stepped out of the office, holding a bottle of some liquid. "Well, I found insulin. It may come in handy, but it's not what Gregg needs. We need to keep looking." She tossed a glance at all of us. "What's going on?"

  "What do you mean?" I played ignorant.

  "I mean Scott looks like he's ready to commit a felony." She pointed to him while looking at me.

  "I don't like his mouth, Lisa. He's gonna get us in trouble."

  Lisa put her arms out before the kid could take a shot at me. "Jack has saved my life many times, Scott. He's very handy with his weapon."

  "Shh... Not in front of the children, honey." I winked at Scott, but he rolled his eyes.

  "So what do we do now?" Tinder Tango looked at each one of us. "Upstairs?"

  "Yeah...about that." I put a hand on my trusty shotgun. "I saw someone or something up there while we were outside. Tinder Tango, you and me should head upstairs to check it out. Sierra, you stay here."

  "Now, hold on a second! I'm just as capable as you are!" Scott was whining. Whining made me want to vomit up all my Fun Dip.

  "Well, there can't be that many. I mean, the door was closed and there's none of them down here. Maybe Scotty and Lisa should just come with us." Tinder Tango had a point. There weren't any Biters on the first floor. And I'd only seen one shadow. If there were living junkies up in the place, they probably would have ambushes us when the Scott kid started whining.

  Lisa pushed past us and started up the stairs. I bounded over to her, grabbing her upper arm in a gentle hold. "Whoa, there, Foxtrot."

  For some reason, saying her nickname to her made my heart do a somersault. She looked into my eyes as if the feeling was mutual.

  "We need the medicine, Jack."

  I stared at her a moment longer, trying to search for an answer to all our problems in her face. When I couldn't find it, I looked back to Scott and Tinder Tango who were whispering together.

  "Let's do this, kids."

  They stopped whispering long enough for Scott to toss me a grin. "Anything you say, Juliet."

  I allowed my mouth to fall open comically accompanied by an exaggerated gasp. "Oh my shit! You're learning, Sierra!"

  As everyone began ascending the staircase, I stopped the little shit in his tracks and lowered my voice enough so the others couldn't hear.

  "Listen to me, Scott. This isn't some fucking Yoga class you can just squirrel your way through. We're talking about face-biting monsters. They don't care who you are, what your fucking name is or how old you are. They will kill you without so much as an angry grunt."

  Scott looked me up and down with a sneer, then backed an inch away. "Whatever, man. You act like I'm doing this for you. I'm doing this for Lisa."

  "Yeah? Aren't we all?"

  "Difference between me and you is that I'm still fucking her."

  It took me a moment to understand just what he'd said to me. How could that have been right? Wouldn't Lisa have told me? This kid? Really?! He was such a punk.

  "I'm gonna shoot you in the ass."

  "That's cute." Scott turned and started up the stairs after the other two.

  "God, I wish you wore a red shirt today."

  "Whatever."

  With each step, the air became hotter and more putrid. The smell of rotting paper and mildew was enough to choke a small child. That was morbid.

  About halfway up, I heard the distinct shuffle of booted feet. I stopped everyone and got in front, pushing my back against the wall. It seemed as if the world was holding its breath.

  The sound came again. It sounded metallic — like someone hitting a tuning fork against a railing. Then the howl met us. It was pitiful, just like every other time I'd heard it.

  "I got a plan." Tinder Tango moved past Lisa and Scott to me. "Scotty and I can go this way and you and Lisa go that way." He jerked his thumb toward the sound of the Biter first, then pointed down the safe-looking part of the hallway.

  "Are you serious? Have you ever shot a gun, Tinder Tango?"

  "Tango's got a good idea. let's just do it." Scott was beginning to get on my last nerves.

  "Listen, guys, I realize I'm not Chuck Norris here, but..."

  I was cut off by another loud howl of the Biter. And in the midst of that ear-piercing music, Scott and Tinder Tango got it into their heads that it was the perfect time to defect. Scott yelled, "Go!" and the two of them rushed past Lisa and me toward the sound.

  "Jesus Balls. Come on, Lisa."

  "Right behind you."

  With shotgun in hand, I began down the hallway toward where Scott and Tinder Tango had run. Babysitting made my head ache, but they were the only volunteers willing to go. But what good were volunteers when they didn't even listen?

  "Hey, Lisa, I know there's been a lot of tension between us." We were finally alone, so I took that as an opportunity to ask her about what the kid had said. I peered into an empty room, then moved on.

  "What happened to you and me sucks ass, I'll say that, but it wasn't just my decision." I passed another empty room. The Biter was now quiet. "But that kid said something to me that I don't like." I was almost to the end of the hallway. "If I ask you a question will you be one-hundred percent honest with me?" Another empty room on my left. And silence behind me.

  "Lisa?" I turned to find empty space where she should have been on my heels. "Mother fu—"

  "Help!"

  The cry came from my right. I spun back around and ran toward the end of the hallway, Lucky on my heels. At the very back was a circular room full of cages. Some of them were empty, but others had Biters locked up in them. Scott and Tinder Tango were in the middle of it all. An enormous Biter with pounds upon pounds of flab was standing over Scott, ready for a meal. Tinder Tango was backed against and open cage, white as a sheet.

  "Hey, Bitch Tits!" I cocked my shotgun as the heavy Biter turned toward me. "Come get some."

  The thing roared something fierce and began lumbering toward me. The footsteps boomed on the concrete floor, almost shaking the entire hospital building. And I took my time. I savored the moment when the big nasty thing would hit the ground dead because of my awesomeness. So I waited until he was about two feet away before I pulled the trigge
r. Buckshot sprayed in an arch, hitting him in the chest.

  "He stumbled backward for a moment, but then regained his composure and started for me again. Before I could aim, Lucky leapt on the Biter, sinking his little teeth into the thing's neck.

  But he was so small. All the Biter had to do was shrug him off. With a whip of a hand the size of a baseball mitt, he flung my companion across the room where he hit the wall with a thud, then slid to the floor.

  "Lucky!" I turned back toward the overly stuffed rabid man and aimed again. I fired, splitting open his fat head and lodging metal pellets in his jaw. Indeed it was pretty satisfying when he hit the floor.

  I ran over to Lucky, but it was too late. The little guy was breathing his last breaths in my arms. He looked up at me with a sadness that struck me right in the heart.

  "It's okay, buddy." I stroked the fur on his face. "It's ok."

  With one last longing look, my pet raccoon died. I sighed, wanting to cry, but not in front of two stupid kids. I gently placed Lucky's body in my backpack and stood to face them.

  "Okay, what the actual fuck, you guys?!" I dropped my gun to my side and approached Scott to help him up. He seemed weak. I looked him over, but couldn't see any blood or bite marks. Something didn't seem right, though. I ignored it for a moment to grab Tinder Tango.

  "Come on, guys."

  The two of them were still white. Tinder Tango was shaking so bad the cage he was against rattled. I took another look around the room. The Biters were gnashing their teeth. One of them banged on his door, startling the poor kids.

  "There are people here," I hand't even realized I'd spoken.

  "What do you mean?" Tinder Tango breathed a sigh of half-relief.

  "These things didn't put themselves in cages. There are people here. And they have Lisa. Let's go."

  From the Desk of Dr. Lisa James

  December 20

  I'd realized not following Jack was probably a bad idea, but I figured they could handle those diseased things on their own. In addition, I'd seen a nurse's station on the opposite side of the hallway. There'd most likely be a map of the hospital there.

  So, I told Jack I'd be behind him and went the other way. There were papers scattered all over the nurse's desk. Charts were left open on the counter. Many of them stated the patients all caught the virus. The victims we'd heard were probably all that was left.

  Another howl emanated down the hallway. It startled me into faster action. I rounded the station to see a directory taped to the desk. Looking it over carefully, I found the Chief of Medicine's office was down and to the right. The medical supplies would be around there, so I abandoned the station.

  Suddenly, it felt like an earthquake rattled the building. A roar followed by shuddering walls made my footsteps quicken. I could see the office. I was inches away when I felt strong arms wrap around my waist and pull me into an empty room.

  The door slammed shut as I tried to kick my way out of the stranger's grasp. But he held tight. He was very strong.

  "Been waitin' for ya." A gravelly voice whispered in my ear. Chills shot down my spine.

  "Let me go." The firmness of my voice surprised me.

  "If you insist."

  I heard what sounded like a zipper, then a click, then the man stepped away from me. He was indeed very large with a scruffy thick beard and a very dirty bandana wrapped around his head.

  "You're cuter than I thought." He smiled as if showing off how many teeth he was missing.

  "I'm not the only one here." I remained standing with two feet planted. I gentle tug of my arm made me realized I was handcuffed to a bed. The man appeared to live in the hospital. There were food wrappers and broken beer bottles everywhere.

  "Oh, I know that, sweet pea." The words stung. My father used to call me that. "But my pets will keep your friends busy for quite some time."

  "Pets?" I tried to stall him.

  "Shush, now, sweet pea. Papa's gotta present for ya." The man closed in on me. My mind raced with a thousand thoughts. All of them culminated in a fight or flight response, but I was cuffed to the bed. I backed away as far as I could, but I could smell his putrid body odor from feet ahead of me.

  Twisting my body slightly, I felt around with my free hand for something to attack him with. My palm closed around the sharp edge of a broken bottle. Pain stung up into my arm, but I managed not to wince. I didn't want to tip him off.

  He was closer. About six inches away. His smell clouded my brain. I heard shouting. The man hesitated, but didn't stop coming for me. His fingertips grazed my cheek just as Jack, Scott and Tango busted into the room.

  The man spun around to face them. That's when I jumped onto his back and jammed the bottle shard straight into his eye. Blood began to gush from the wound, spraying partially onto the warped ceiling tiles. He screamed, clawing at the glass sticking out of his head. My three companions stood in the doorway dumbstruck as the large biker doubled over. The blood began to blind him. He stood and aimed for the open door, but instead rammed into the wall with all his weight. When he fell over, I could see the glass shard had embedded itself deep into his gray matter. He was dead.

  "Will someone please search him for a handcuff key?"

  Scott got to work before the words had even left my mouth completely. Jack stepped around the big man and approached me, his eyes sparkling with what looked like surprise.

  "You go girl."

  "He threatened my life. It was survival instincts."

  Jack put both hands up as Scott came toward me with the key. "Hey, I'm impressed, not judgmental."

  "Thank you." I used the sentence to appreciate them both at once while I unlocked the handcuffs. I explained to them where the medicinal supplies were kept and they followed me to the closet while regaling me with what they'd done while we'd been separated.

  The man had apparently been keeping diseased victims hostage and making them attack anyone who entered the hospital. It also seemed as though he'd been waiting for a woman stubborn enough to enter by herself.

  The medical cabinet's lock had been broken — no doubt by the biker man. I expected the worst when I opened it, but was pleasantly surprised to find a few drams of morphine inside. Enough to put Gregg to sleep.

  "Lisa." Tango startled me. He was close. "We have a problem. Jack's trying to kill Scotty."

  I couldn't believe my ears. I rushed out to the lobby of the second floor to see Scott sitting against the reception desk with Jack's gun pointed straight at his head.

  "what's going on?" I gave the drams to Tango. He put them in his pack.

  "Scott, tell her what's going on." Jack never looked at me.

  "I swear I have no idea what he's talking about! he's crazy, Lisa! Help me!" The boy's eyes pleaded with me.

  "He got bit." Jack finally tossed me a glance.

  "Is that true?" I studied Scott's face.

  "No! I swear! Help!"

  Jack sighed, dropped his gun to the floor and knelt next to the boy. Then, he pulled out a pocket knife, clicked it open, and went for Scott.

  "Jack!"

  The knife cut through the soft fabric of Scott's shirt, sawing a large chunk out of the sleeve. Jack pulled down, revealing a fresh bite mark in Scott's bicep.

  "Jesus Christ..." Tango whispered the words behind me.

  Tears coursed down Scott's cheeks. "I don't wanna die, Lisa. Help me."

  "I'm sorry." There was nothing more I could say. He cried harder.

  "You have a choice." Jack stood, picking up his shot gun. "You can either stay here and turn or I can end it for you right now."

  Scott sniffled, wiping dirt and tears from his face. "I...I don't want to die."

  Jack looked to me for guidance.

  "Stay here, Scott." With one last glance at the floor, I started toward the stairs. Tango followed. I could hear Jack giving Scott a bit of a pep talk.

  "You did good, Scott. Your parents would have been really proud. You can pray or cry or sit here and jack it, but y
ou probably don't have a lot of time left to..."

  His voice trailed away as Tango and I exited the building.

  ***

  We pulled up outside Huntington House with only hours of daylight left to spare. Many of the diseased had wandered off of the property, making it easier to get in. Tango immediately jumped out and ran to the front, eager to give the morphine to Ms. Huntington.

  I started to exit the vehicle, but Jack said my name to keep me back. I owed him quite a bit of my time, so I obliged.

  "If I ask you something, will you give me a one-hundred percent honest answer?" he asked.

  "Of course."

  He took a deep breath. "Look, I know things have been tough. There was no easy way to... Well, I guess I'm just trying to say I understand if you moved on."

  "That's not a question."

  He seemed surprised when he looked at me. "Oh, shit, you're right."

  "So what was the question?"

  He screwed up his face for a moment, then looked back at the house. "Scott told me something at the hospital."

  "Go on."

  "He said you two slept together."

  Had I heard correctly? "I'm sorry?"

  Jack took his hands off the wheel and turned to face me again. "He said you two slept together. You had sex. You did the deed. You vulcanized the whoopee stick in the ham wallet. You retrofitted the pudding hatch with the boink swatter. You cannonballed the fiddle cove with the pork steeple. Foxtrot Uniform Charlie Kilo. Aren't you going to stop me?"

  "I raised an eyebrow. "I didn't want to interrupt. Continue."

  He opened his mouth, but nothing came out for a few seconds. "People usually stop me way before that. So, I guess I'm done."

  "Well, the answer is no."

  "Oh."

  We were silent for a few moments.

  "Why do you think he told me that?"

  I shrugged one shoulder. "Perhaps to make you jealous. He saw me as a mother figure and he was probably just being a territorial nineteen-year-old."

  Jack made a face. "Kid had a real Oedipus complex."

  I commended his usage of literary history. "Indeed."

  ***

  "My hands were shaking as I pulled a syringe full of the anesthetic. I'd tried to make enough in relation to Gregg's weight, but I wasn't even positive of that.