Adrian looked at her as other people pushed past her into the theatre.
Dan looked up as he held onto the shotgun. He looked to see a figure stroll out from one of the walkways. “Jesus!” he said. Dan looked at the man; he had his hand on a wound. A tiny amount of blood could be seen seeping through his fingers. He started to walk towards the people.
“Sir, I need you to stay there,” Dan demanded.
“What?” a person asked. “He’s injured!”
The man kept walking forward.
“Sir! I need you stay there!” Dan yelled.
Adrian could only stand and watch. He looked at the middle-aged man.
“What?” the man asked. “But I’ve been bitten!”
Dan didn’t reply.
“God, it’s hot,” the man moaned.
“Sir, if you take one step closer, I will shoot,” Dan warned the man.
The people stopped and looked at Dan as he stood in the middle of the hallway. The man leaned against the stairwell.
One of the man’s friends walked up behind him. “Jesus, what’s wrong with people?” the friend asked. “Braiden, you ok man?”
Braiden’s eyes shot open. They were glowing yellow.
“What the!?” the friend gasped.
Braiden went for his friend. Adrian and Dan looked in horror as he was bitten into. Braiden then snarled at Adrian and Dan as they stood there, just looking at him. Braiden snarled again and now ran towards Dan and Adrian. Dan squeezed the trigger of his gun. The onlookers watched the lifeless body, but the friend soon caught their attention. They watched as he slowly sat up. His eyes were now glowing yellow. He snarled at them as they gawked at him.
“Inside. Now,” Dan ordered.
The people ran into the theatre. Adrian and Dan looked at the spiral staircase. It was dead silent until they heard a snarl. Running down the spiral steps was a line of the infected. Dan squeezed the trigger of the shotgun, and the rest of the security team opened fire.
***
Stuart walked with the lady along the corridors of the ship. as the alarm sounded
“What is going on?” she asked.
Stuart didn’t answer as he continued along the corridors, holding onto the lady’s arm, listening to the gunfire coming from below. He turned to the right and looked down the corridor to see a figure standing there.
The lady opened her eyes in complete shock. “Barry?” she said. “Is that you?”
Barry didn’t answer. He just stood there, gazing down at the floor.
“Barry…?”
Stuart looked at the lady as she charged towards her husband as she yelled out, “Barry!”
Barry spun around. Stuart stopped dead when he saw Barry’s glowing yellow eyes.
“What the hell is wrong with your eyes?” the lady asked her husband. “Call a medic!” she said in a panic.
Barry viciously bit into his wife’s neck. Blood rushed down her neck and body.
“Bar…” she panted. “Barry…”
Stuart stood in shock, staring at the lady as she was eaten in front of his very eyes. Barry suddenly looked up at Stuart. and sprinted towards him.
“Oh, fuck,” Stuart gasped. He turned around and dashed towards the exit. He ran into the stairs and slammed the door to the stairwell shut behind him. “Fuck, fuck, fuck…” he mumbled as he tried to lock the door. He felt Barry trying to break through. Panting for breath, Stuart didn’t know whether to go up or down.
***
Captain Bryson looked up at the CCTV screen on the bridge. The infected were now everywhere. He took off his hat. None of the crew could speak. Dan looked through the sight of the shotgun. The last shell blasted from the weapon, and the weapon clicked.
“Fuck it!” Dan threw the gun on the floor, swiping his handgun from its holster. He looked up at the camera on the wall. There was a phone next to him. He picked it up and hit the bridge button.
Captain Bryson looked up at the screen. He could see Dan on the phone. He picked up the phone.
“Captain!” Dan yelled. “Seal the theatre!”
Bryson looked at the screen.
“Captain,” Curt said. “Do it.”
Bryson looked up at the screen again. He walked over to the control panel, and he pushed the red button. The shutter slowly started to roll down.
“Inside!” Dan yelled to everyone. “Inside now!”
Adrian and the rest of the security staff ran into the theatre as the shutters started to seal. The shutter suddenly stopped.
“No!” Dan yelled.
Bryson noticed that the shutter had stopped halfway down.
“It’s because there are people inside,” he yelled to Curt. “Override it.”
Curt ran to the computer.
The zombies kept running towards the entrance to the theatre.
“Come on,” Curt panted as he thumped the keyboard.
Dan reloaded the last magazine into the handgun and then caught Adrian’s attention. “Hey, listen. You should go now!” he called to Adrian. “Come here!”
Adrian went over to Dan.
“Listen to me,” Dan told him. “On the stage, there is a trap door. Go through it. It leads out into the corridors below. Find some shelter and try to get off the ship. The code is 9-9-3…” Dan stopped for a second, trying to remember the fourth digit of the code. “Yes!” he yelled. “9-9-3-shit! What’s the last—”
Dan screamed as he was chomped into by an infected passenger.
Adrian ran into the hall. “Coleen!” he shouted. He couldn’t see her anywhere. “Coleen!” he screamed again.
He heard a sudden scream over the other voices. He looked in the direction of the scream and saw one of the infected trying to bite into his wife.
“Hey!” he yelled. The zombie looked at Adrian. “Not my wife, you arsehole!”
He squeezed the trigger of his shotgun, taking down the zombie in one shot. He ran over to Coleen and picked her up off the ground.
“Come on,” he ordered her. He dragged her towards the stage, making sure no one was looking. He looked around the stage.
“What are you doing?” Coleen asked.
“Trust me,” he replied. Adrian found the stage trap door. There was a digital pad built into the floor. He started typing the three-digit code, adding an extra number.
“Shit,” he yelled. He typed again, trying a different last number. “Shit,” he yelled again. Adrian looked to see one of the infected running onto the stage. He tried the code again. “Shit.” He tried 9-9-3-6 this time. The small red light turned to green. “Perfect!”
He lifted up the trap door, just as the zombies had pounced onto the stage.
“Shit!” he said. “Listen,”
An infected individual bit into his neck before he could say anything more.
He looked at Coleen. “Tell Justin… I… I…” He fell to the ground. Coleen pulled the trap door shut behind her. She fell against the wall and began to cry. She could hear the zombies and people screaming above. She looked down the lit steps. to a hallway of changing rooms that the actors used. She shook her head, knowing that she had to try and attempt to get off the ship.
“You can do this,” she said. “Come on, you can do this.”
***
Bryson, Curt, and the rest of the bridge crew looked up at the screen. The infected were piling into the theatre. Bryson looked away from the screen.
“Sir, shall we evacuate?” Curt asked.
Bryson didn’t reply. He just turned around and walked through the bridge.
“Fuck this,” another crew member said as he got up.
“Wait, where are you going?” Curt asked. “You can’t go out there”
The crew member just ignored him. He went to the door that led out of the bridge and swung it open. There, right in front of him, were the infected. The crewmember gasped. Curt heard the screams of the infected as they piled into the bridge. Captain Bryson could only stand and watch. He saw Curt get bitten into.
The last of the crew were also taken down. Bryson turned his head to the left, where one of the infected was standing. Bryson let his breath out for the last time. The zombie lunged into him and ripped the veins out of his neck. Blood gushed all over the front window of the bridge from the wound. The wiper continued moving back and forth, smudging the raindrops over the window. Bryson slowly fell to the floor, blood streaming down the front of the control panel. As his body landed on the control panel, his hand came down upon the ‘anchor up’ button. The anchor slowly started to rise. The ship slowly began to drift with the storm towards Adelaide.
Chapter Eleven
Boyd Anderson watched as Andrew Parker entered his office. He stood in the middle of the office. Some dry dust had settled onto the carpet where he is standing. “Take a seat,” Boyd asked.
Andrew advanced forward towards the desk. “Name’s Andrew,” he said. “Andrew Parker.”
“Boyd Anderson,” Boyd replied. “I’m town mayor.”
“I’m glad there are people left alive amid this crisis,” Andrew mentioned.
“I’m glad to” Anderson replied. “What brings you to Tamagoroa?”
Andrew looked at Boyd as he sat at the desk, elbows on the table, twiddling his thumbs.
“One of my scouting groups saw the explosion at the fuel depot,” he replied.
Flynn looked at Rebecca as she sat on the desk in the far corner of the room, trying to figure out Andrew Parker.
“After scouring a map of this part of the country, we came across Tamagoroa… A New Perth project, I take it?”
“Yes,” Boyd replied. “We were one of the first towns to be constructed under the project.”
“It’s a nice town,” Andrew said. “What’s the population?”
Boyd looked up at the sky as Andrew contoured to dig for information. “Currently, 300 people.”
Andrew sat forward in the chair, locking his eyes onto Boyd’s.
“What were you doing before the infection began?” Boyd asked Andrew.
Andrew took a second to think. “I own a mining and construction company,” he replied. “Hence, the helicopter arrival. Good that one can fly 550 miles.”
“Mining?” Rebecca asked.
“Yes,” Andrew confirmed. “Runs in my family, all the way down the family tree; the company belonged to my father, whose father’s father owned it, and so on.”
Boyd looked at Andrew. “A majority of my town’s people work there,” he said “and a few from the inner cities.”
“This is why I want to make you an offer for you and your people,” Andrew said.
Flynn looked at Andrew. He folded his arms standing in the corner, looking down at Andrew. Rebecca’s eyes were locked onto Andrew as well.
“Okay, what have you got to offer?” Boyd asked.
Andrew looked at Boyd. “You get a lot of your water from springs below the ground, don’t you?” Andrew asked.
“Yes. Yes, we do.”
“Using my construction company, I am willing to construct a high wire fence around your town in exchange for fresh water from your spring below.”
“Fence?” Flynn asked.
“Yes,” Andrew replied. “It will be strong enough to hold them things back if they make it into the outback—plus, the other things.”
“Yes, we encountered some” Flynn intervened.
“In exchange for fresh water every week until this is over?” Boyd asked?
“Yes,” Andrew replied. “You got my word.”
“When do you want to start?” Boyd asked.
Flynn frowned at Boyd.
“You got yourself a deal!” Andrew said, shaking hands with Boyd. “It’s been a pleasure doing business with you. I need to get back to my people.”
“Your people?” Boyd asked.
“Yes,” he replied. “The mayor of the town was in Sydney with his family when the infection hit, so the town elected me their new leader.”
Andrew got up and looked over at Rebecca, who was sitting in the corner looking over at him. “Rebecca,” He said. Andrew shook Rebecca’s hand.
“Pleasure,” she said.
Andrew turned his attention to Flynn. “Mr. MacDonnell,” he said. Andrew held his hand out. He looked Flynn in the eye. Flynn looked at Andrew, and they shook hands.
“Right,” Andrew said. “I’ll round my people up, and we can start tomorrow.”
“Have you got enough water to last until the construction work is over?” Boyd asked?
Andrew took a second to think. “Yes, we had a delivery just before the infection began. Luckily, the tanker truck broke down just as he was about to leave. We can use it to transport water to and from our location.”
Andrew then turned heading away and left the town hall. He climbed aboard his helicopter to head back out to his town. The engines powered up to full. The helicopter lifted off the road, heading down towards the southwest.
“Do you trust him?” Flynn asked Boyd.
“What choice do we have? He has got to protect the people of his town.”
“But do you trust him?”
“Like I said, what choice do we have?”
The helicopter flew into the distance. Boyd turned around looking at Flynn. “Flynn, Rebecca. Go and get some rest. You two need it. I’ve got work to do”
Chapter Twelve
Five Days Later
Tanya walked into the classroom, looking at the small group of students—a mix of young and mid-teens. The oldest of the five students was 14 years old.
“Hey, everyone,” she said with a smile. The small group remained silent. “My name’s Tanya, and I’m going to be your teacher.” The group gawked with boredom at Tanya. “Today,” we are going to learn about the history of Australia.”
One of the girls looked up with boredom.
“Hey,” Tanya said. “It’s going to be fun!”
The girl got up. She walked passed Tanya and out of the classroom.
“Same time tomorrow?” Tanya asked. But before she could finish, the door was shut with a slam.
“Okay,” Tanya said. “Where were we?”
“History of Australia,” a boy said.
“Yes, well done!” Tanya praised. Tanya stood up straight; it was a big confidence boost. They were listening to her. “Okay,” she said in a livelier voice. “Australia was found in—”
“1770,” she heard someone say.
She looked up at the student in the far corner of the room. “Very good!” she praised. “It was founded—”
Once again, before she could continue, the voice spoke. “By the English,” she then said. “I know. My dad’s English”
Tanya watched as the girl got up. “What does your dad do?” Tanya asked, trying to keep the conversation going in the room.
The girl froze as she approached Tanya, looking her in the eyes. “He’s dead,” she said. “He was on his stag party in the gold coast; he was due to get married to my mum today, who also was also on her hen party in Sydney.”
Tanya watched as the girl stormed out of the classroom. Flynn looked and saw the female student storm past. He looked back as the last of the students walked out of the classroom. Flynn watched as Tanya sat down on the table.
“Hey,” he said as she started to cry. “Hey,” Flynn said again, trying to comfort her.
“I’m sorry,” she cried.
“Hey, you’re doing your best.”
Tanya continued to sob. “I just miss my family,” she said. “I also hope the children from the school are safe as well.”
Flynn didn’t know how to respond. He realized that Toby wouldn’t be seeing many of his friends again. He looked up, seeing two teenagers who seemed to be fighting over something. Flynn ran outside. The heat gave him a shock after being in the air-conditioned school
“Hey!” he snapped. “Break it up!” Flynn pulled the two boys apart from each other.
“Give me that!” One boy yelled.
Just then, Boyd Anderson walked dow
n the steps of the town hall. He saw Flynn with the two boys.
Flynn pulled the piece of French stick out of the boy’s hand. He broke it into two. “Share,” he said. “It may save your life in this day and age.” Flynn looked at the two boys. “Now get out of here.” Flynn watched as the two boys walked in different directions.
“I think you need a new uniform,” Boyd said as he approached.
“Tell me about it,” Flynn replied.
Flynn looked over at some workmen from Andrew’s workforce. They were having their afternoon break from the scorching hot sun. Flynn watched as they got out of their car and into the small rest facility that had been set up. “How’s that project coming along?
Boyd didn’t respond. One of the workmen had caught his attention. He was about nineteen. He slowly tagged along with the rest of the workers.
“Hey,” Flynn said.
Boyd continued to stare at the workers as they entered the café. Boyd slowly turned his head and looked at Flynn “I’m sorry?”
Flynn looked at Boyd. “How is the fence going?”
There was a short pause. “Oh,” Boyd said. “Coming together nicely.”
Flynn and Boyd slowly started to walk into the town. “How’s the generator?” Flynn asked.
Boyd looked forward into the streets. “Okay,” he said. “Still working.”
“I mean fuel-wise.” Flynn tried not to snap.
Boyd stopped. “Got enough to last about two months.”
“Then what happens when that runs out?” Flynn asked.
There was a short pause for a minute. Boyd continued to stare down the street. “Then we have no power.”
Flynn froze. He felt his heart thundering in his chest. “Are there any more fuel stations?” he asked.
“Nope.”
“Then what do we do?”
Boyd stopped, looking into Flynn’s eyes. It was like he was awaiting his instructions. “We pray.”
Flynn tried not to twitch his eyes. “What was the news saying?”
“People are dying in the streets.”
“No, what I mean is… What about rescues?”
Boyd locked his eyes onto Flynn’s again. “There won’t be any rescue out here.”
“What? America, England, China—none of them are sending in rescue teams?”
Fear The Outback (Book 1): Fear The Outback Page 11
