by Garth Ono
Seeing the other zombies intently watching the struggle, Kate rushed forward, leapt over the dog pile atop Haley, and kicked Simon in the face. Once, twice, but had to abort the third when zombies charged her. Juking left, she went right. Another zombie coming in behind the others smashed into her, slamming her up against the shed. The whole structure rattled.
Kate head-butted him away, and then attacked Simon again. He was on all fours, phone in hand and trying to dial someone. So Kate stomped on that phone, shattering it and some of his fingers.
"Ha! Bet that hurt," she snarled, and kicked him in the face again.
Suddenly, zombies were all over all four of them. For the next few minutes it was elbows and assholes, as Victoria was wont to say. Kate head-butted, kneed, and kicked until she was borne to the ground and held.
"Throw them in the fucking shed!" Simon screamed, bent over his mangled hand. "Just you wait, Kate! I will have my revenge."
She tried to respond with all due snark, but Kate was lifted off the ground by four zombies, and thrown headfirst through the shed's open door. She bounced off the back wall, and lay sprawled on the hard dirt floor. Her head spun, and then Shea landed on top of her. And then the door slammed closed, plunging her into darkness.
Chapter 16
Alex scowled at the sight of Tennyson through the trees. It was twilight, so the lights were starting to coming on. The weather cleared up earlier, so it was a clear sky above with stars starting to appear.
Yet, conditions were not perfect. One of his minions was about to foul up all his plans again.
"Where is Simon, Mercy?" he asked the pretty blonde minion.
Alex spent the day in the Gilbert place. With the women's wardrobe available, he indulged his inner stylist and dressed them up. All three women were dressed in black, purples, blues, and lots of lace. Black fishnets sheathed their legs, and sky high stilettos adorned their pretty little feet. They were dressed and made up as close to Goth girls as he could make them. Mongrel, killjoy that he insisted on being, complained their outfits weren't practical.
The ex-biker and head hunter had no imagination. Not a romantic bone in his overgrown body.
"I'm sure he's on the way, master," Mercy said. As pretty as she was dressed, the minion was still ready to fight. She carried a shotgun that belonged to her late father. "I'm sure it's something simple, like his phone's battery died."
Alex carried a pistol. Mongrel called it a Smith and something millimeter. It was heavy. It had bullets. It would kill people. That's all Alex needed to know.
Still, Alex almost called off the attack since Simon failed to call and confirm the four slayers were captured or dead. Only Nicole's call stating the zombie hunters were nowhere to be seen, and the sheriff and deputies weren't acting as if anything was amiss, convinced him to go ahead with the attack.
He would deal with Simon later. If the minion was still alive.
There were only thirty-five zombie minions available for the attack. He regretted giving Simon twenty. As it stood, Mongrel was leading fifteen zombies, along with Felicity. Alex had twenty zombies, Mercy, and Prudence. Mayor Gilbert was in her office to help divert resources and people away from their attack.
He chose his objective with care. They couldn't take the town by force. They would need a lot more zombies and minions for that. The plan was to take out everyone who might put up a fight. First on the list was law enforcement.
"You better pray that your husband at least distracts the zombie slayers until we've taken out Sheriff Coleman and his deputies, Mercy," Alex said, giving her a withering look. "Or I'll take it out of your pretty little ass, too."
"Don't worry, master, I have faith in him," she said softly. The pretty blonde still looked worried. "Prudence is in position. Shall we start?"
Nicole's youngest was leading five zombies toward downtown. They could provide a distraction if things got serious. Prudence carried a baseball bat. She was supposedly a star softball player back in high school, so presumable good with a bat. She'd even armed her zombies with bats and steel pipes. Alex wasn't convinced zombies could fight like that. He suspected they'd drop their weapons as soon as they spotted a victim.
If they didn't that could be a game changer.
Mercy was texting her sister with instructions, while the drac was texting with Mongrel to coordinate everything. Alex and Mongrel's forces were going to take their target from opposite directions.
Lights started coming on in and around Frasier Mansion. He smiled. The owners were home. That would make it all so much easier.
Alex wanted to take the Frasier Mansion. It was a magnificent 1880 Victorian, with a turret, multiple deep porches, and sumptuously tended grounds. The mansion overlooked downtown from atop a low rise. The Frasier place was the finest in town, and Alex's dream home. It was the perfect place for the Master of the City to dwell.
And it was the perfect place to set a trap.
"Tell Pru to standby," he said. Alex texted Mongrel, and then pushed the phone into his pocket. Mercy watched him expectantly. "We're going in."
The vampire moved out of the trees and jogged toward the Victorian. His force was going in the front door. Mongrel would move up behind the old mansion to ensure no one escaped and to support his attack. This time there would be no mistakes, no failure to achieve their goal. Alex was leading the attack personally.
Cars were moving slowly through town. He could hear a clanking of metal on metal off in the middle distance. A few dogs were barking. He was amazed how his senses sharpened when he went into attack mode. The drac never felt that alive back when he was still alive.
I am a naturally born vampire, he thought. This is what I was born to be.
The Frasier Mansion's grounds were not fenced. Why should it be? Their wealth and influence protected them. Their arrogance would be the death of the Frasier Family.
Mongrel moved his zombies into position behind the mansion and gave a wave. Alex sent Mercy around to the other side with five undead minions to ensure no one escaped through a side door or window. And then he boldly walked up the steps and onto the front porch.
The porch proved deeper and darker than he anticipated. It was perfect for a sun-hating vampire. His days would be so much easier to bear there. The old abandoned sawmill was barely adequate. Mayor Gilbert's home had way too many large windows.
The front door was wide, double-doors of solid oak. He waved his zombies to hiding positions to either side, and then he quietly tested the knob. It was locked. Not a problem. Alex knocked.
"Coming," a muffled male voice called inside. "Who is it?"
"Mayor Gilbert's assistant," he called. "I have a message for you from Her Honor."
There was some grumbling behind the door, but it started clacking as the man unlocked it. An elderly man opened the door and looked Alex up and down with no little disdain.
The old man was tall and rail thin, but had a proud bearing. He wore a gray Polo shirt and khaki pants. A gold Rolex glittered on his wrist.
"You're Mayor Gilbert's assistant?" Arthur Frasier said. "What is Nicole thinking? Oh well, what is so important to interrupt us so late in the day?"
"So sorry, sir. I misspoke. I'm not Mayor Gilbert's assistant," Alex said. He peeled back his lips to expose fangs. "I'm her master!"
The old man squeaked and stumbled backwards. Alex strode inside like the conquering king that he envisioned himself. His undead minions rushed in to either side of him, charging through the house looking for any others. Even as he seized the old man, the drac heard an elderly woman cry out in alarm.
"What do you want?" Old Man Frasier asked.
"Everything," he said, and sank his fangs into his victim's throat.
Alex sucked his fill of hot, delicious blood. Not so much to kill the old guy, but enough to sate his appetite. Then he ordered him to kneel as his wife was dragged in kicking and screaming. He looked her over with the same disdain her husband had regarded him.
"She is
old and frail," the vampire said. "Useless. Take her into the back yard and kill her."
He didn't want blood all over his new home.
Another zombie stumbled in the front door. His first thought was she had to be one of Mercy's group. But the undead minion walked straight up to him and thrust out a hand. A note was grasped tightly in her hand. Alex had to pry it away.
"Ah, it's from my missing minion," he said. "This better be good, Simon."
A smile spread across the drac's face as he read the message. Simon had captured all four slayers alive, but his phone was destroyed in the fight. He was waiting on Alex's orders on what to do next. He ended with a request that a vehicle be sent out to pick them up.
"Everything is coming together perfectly," Alex asked. He regarded the kneeling millionaire for a long moment. "Your name is Arthur, right?"
"Yes."
Mongrel came stomping through the house, followed by his zombies and Felicity. A moment later Mercy entered the front door, closing and locking it after her zombies were inside. Alex looked back and forth between them, feeling really good about their prospects. Now on to the next phase.
"Arthur, call the sheriff. Ask him to come over as soon as possible to discuss something," Alex said. "Say nothing that might alarm him. We want his guard down when he joins us."
Chapter 17
Kate froze, holding her breath, and listened. There was a lot of movement outside the old shed. All four women stared at the closed door with huge eyes. It was dark inside the shed, but the early morning light leaked in around the door and through a million pin holes. At least it wasn't the pitch black of the previous night.
Five times over night Simon could be heard ranting about something, and then rotters would come inside and beat them. Kate couldn't discern the reason, other than he was frustrated over something and took it out on them.
She could relax once the rustling eased and Simon wasn't ranting. The young woman immediately found her rusty nail again and went to work. Kate spent most of the night rubbing the ropes binding her wrists against bare wood to no avail. She spotted the nail sticking out of the wood, low to the floor, after sunrise.
Haley, Shea, and Victoria were all frantically trying to rub through their bindings, too.
"Anyone?" Haley asked.
Everyone shook their head except Kate. "Almost."
Haley and her friends turned surprised eyes on her. Kate gave a half-smile, and continued more frantically. When Simon was heard shouting in the distance, their eyes turned to the door and Kate's heart began racing. Was another beating coming? Or did word finally come to take their captives to the vampire?
A few minutes more, and the rope finally parted and unraveled from around her raw wrists. She paused for a few seconds to rub her wrists and tingling hands, and revel in the ability to reach forward.
"God dammit, you can bask in your glory later," Victoria whispered. "Hurry up and untie us."
Kate went to work on the rope around her legs, just above the knee. Simon hadn't put as much attention into securing their legs, but she still had trouble unraveling the knot. It was pulled that tight.
"If I had a knife or nail," Kate muttered. "I could get this loose."
"Yeah, well, if you had a knife you could just cut it," Shea said. "Hurry, they're starting to get all riled up again."
Kate could hear it, too. It sounded like the zombies were stomping all around. They got that way whenever Simon began ranting. She wondered if there was some mental connection with the minion. Maybe the vamp could provide a mental bridge or something. Something to research online later. If she survived.
"Shhh," Haley said when the door rattled.
Kate sat back, hands behind her back. She prayed it was just a rotter checking to ensure they were still there and secure. They did it randomly all night. Instead the door opened to reveal Simon grinning in at them.
"Good morning, ladies," he said as he stepped inside. At a signal from him, zombies entered and began cutting their legs free. "Thanks to Kate, who stomped on and smashed my phone, I had to send a zombie runner to find my master and inform him of your capture." He wagged his brows. "My messenger just returned. Alex, soon to be your master, has ordered you brought to him. Your life as you know it is about to end."
Zombies seized Kate's arms and lifted her up. She caught Haley's eyes. Her sister gave the briefest nod. And then Kate unleashed hell.
"Hai!" she cried, kicking straight up into Simon's jaw.
The minion cried out as he stumbled out of the shed. Kate forgot him. The zombies were the more immediate threat. She drove a foot into the knee of the zombie holding her right arm. The knee snapped apart, rather loudly, and he fell away. She extended her first two fingers, and gouged out the other zombie's eyes. His grip loosened, allowing her to jerk free. As soon as both arms were free, she seized the jaw and back of the blinded zombie's head, and snapped his neck.
He dropped like a rock.
Victoria, then Haley and Shea, began kicking and screaming threats at the zombies. It was pure chaos for a long moment. Kate plowed into the few remaining rotters. Spotting a dropped knife, she snatched it up. She hamstrung one zombie's arm, another's knee, and managed to kick the last one out the door. Then she rushed over and cut her sister and friends free.
"Out!" Kate shouted, and raced out of the shed.
Simon was waiting, and pounded a right cross to the side of her head. Kate grunted and fell to her right. Victoria exploded out of the shed to plow into Simon before he could finish her off, allowing Kate to scramble away. For a long moment she was dazed, desperate to reclaim her wits. Zombies were running all around. She lashed out left and right with fists, elbows, and feet.
"Where are the weapons?" Shea cried.
Kate didn't recall any of the zombies bringing them up. Simon didn't seem interested in them either. As far as Kate knew, everything was still with their vehicles.
"Run for the bikes!" Shea cried.
Simon froze, eyes huge. Kate hesitated, knowing it was about to become a race. He took off running a second before her and vanished in the thick press of the pines around them. Haley and Shea were already heading that way, but Victoria was backed up against the shed. So she veered to the right and plowed into the zombies surrounding the redhead.
"Thanks for the save, babe," Victoria called. She snatched up a three-foot branch and used it as a cudgel, smashing rotters left and right. "I haven't had this much fun since Z-Day back in Fort Worth."
"Follow me," Kate said, kicking a female rotter in the head, and then head-butting another. "Simon is trying for our weapons."
"I'm going to ring his scrawny neck."
They plowed through the ten foot pines. It seemed to take forever to pass through them, and made her feel trapped and enclosed. It was a relief to finally burst out of them into the more open forest.
Kate spotted Shea tackling Simon from behind just as he reached the dirt road. They rolled across the ground a second, with her ending up on top. A zombie slammed into her and knocked her off of the minion. Simon scrambled to his feet, took the time to stomp on her upturned face, before turning back toward the vehicles at the roadblock. Shea went limp as two zombies seized her.
"I don't think so, you bug ugly rotters," Kate growled as she leapt upon one of them. She snapped his neck, before Victoria pounding a roundhouse into the head of the other. Shea scrambled to her feet. "Run!"
When Shea faltered, Victoria was there to help her keep moving. Kate looked around. Most of the zombies were behind them, but heading in the same direction.
"I have to go help Haley," she said, and left them behind.
Haley and Simon were already in the saddle between the hills. She heard them shouting threats at each other, but they were beyond her line of sight around the bend.
"Hurry!" Victoria cried behind her.
Kate ran down the middle of that old logging road as fast as she could. Exhaustion was starting to set in. Then gunfire erupted up ahead.
"Dammit."
She pushed herself even harder. The felled tree came into view, and then movement on the hill above. Haley was on one knee behind a tree and shooting up the hill. She heard return gunfire from above her sister.
Kate vaulted over the tree and rushed up to the back of her truck. She buckled her holster on first, letting it ride low on her hips. Then she pulled the kukri machete out of its sheath, before putting a bandolier of shotgun shells over her shoulder and picking up Lupara.
"Time to go to work, my little friend," she muttered as she broke the double-barrel open and loaded two shells. She looked up the road. Victoria and Shea were just reaching the log, with a horde of zombies fast on their heels. "Haley, we'll be up to help in a sec!"
Moving up to the log, she took aim and waited for the two head hunters to vault over the log. And then she shot the first two zombies in the face.
"Eat lead!"
The zombies slowed down. Only undead minions were smart enough to do that. Still, they were dumb as dirt. They did nothing to protect themselves or survive. Kate continued to shoot zombies, keeping them at bay. But they were still forcing their way closer and closer.
"Yee-hai!" Victoria cried as she dove over the log, hit the ground and rolled to her feet. "All rotters must die!"
She slashed left and right, taking off arms and legs, and an occasional head. A second later Shea joined her. Kate vaulted over the log, and waded into the zombies with her machete. The undead swirled around them, lashing out insanely in all directions. They hit each other as often as not.
Victoria led them in a V-formation right through the middle of the horde, Shea to her left and Kate to the right. The slayers quickly found their rhythm, and heads began to roll. They kicked, elbowed, and punched as much as they slashed, hacked, and chopped.
In no time flat Kate was splattered head to toe with blood and gore. Part of her admired the way her comrades moved and fought. So graceful and so deadly.
