Val: Prequel to The Zombie Chronicles

by Peebles, Chrissy

  Once I reached the snow plow, I jumped in the cab and shut the door behind me, quickly locking it. I reached in my vest pocket and pulled out a screwdriver. I’d packed it for just such occasions as this one. It was also great backup if I lost my weapon and had to pierce a zombie’s brain. I didn’t have any trouble hotwiring the truck, but the stubborn engine wouldn’t turn over.

  Before long, one of the guys came over and tried, but he wasn’t any more successful than I was. “We’re gonna have to find another way,” he said.

  I saw other snow plows in the far corner, but there was no way any one of us could make it over there. To make matters worse, the zombies below pounded the boxes, making it clear that staying there was a death sentence.

  A guy pointed a gun at Sammy.

  “Hey, I helped to save your butt!” she said.

  “Whoa,” I said. “I thought we were a team.”

  He put his gun down. “For now. I’m Ralph. This is Tony, Louis, Steven, Timmy, Jose, Rita, Justin, Bruce, and Tammy.” We all nodded at each other as the introductions were made.

  “I’m Val, and this is my friend Sammy.”

  “Truce?” Ralph said.

  I shook his hand. “Truce.”

  “Okay then.”

  “What are we gonna do?” Sammy asked. “How are we supposed to get past these maggot-filled pus-sacks?”

  “We’ve gotta get to the roof,” Tammy, the brunette, suggested. “Then we can climb down the fire escape.”

  “Good idea,” Sammy said, “but how do we get through all those zombies?”

  Tammy pointed to a door not too far away. “I worked here a couple years ago, and I know that door leads to another section of the warehouse.”

  “But we have no idea what’s in there,” a man said.

  My stomach clenched. “We’ve got no choice but to find out, because we have absolutely no chance here.”

  The flashlight beam wavered as she led us to the door through the large room, twisting around boxes and crates as we climbed. The zombies followed below, hopefully awaiting manna from above. Unfortunately, the labyrinth of boxes didn’t take us directly to the door, and we would have to sprint a little way to get there.

  “We’re gonna have to make a stand!” one of the men said, then began firing like crazy in every direction.

  Determined to get out of there alive, I shot anything in front of me as we bolted to the door. When a zombie’s hand reached through the boxes, I fired straight into its head.

  Another freak, riddled with bullet wounds, leapt for me, but I pulled the trigger and knocked it right out of the air. At the exact same time, another one went for my back. Sammy shot it, and I gave her a nod of appreciation. The next corpse that staggered toward me looked as if its face had been gnawed off by an army of rabies-infected rats. I pulled the trigger to destroy it, then quickly reloaded my gun. The stench of gunsmoke and death lingered all around us, and it was a struggle not to gag from the overwhelming, noxious aroma. Black goo and blood sprayed everywhere when Sammy shot another zombie, leaving a gaping hole in its chest.

  “Headshot,” I coached, knowing that a well-placed shot could mean the difference between life and death.

  “Gee, I’m sorry. In case you haven’t noticed, it’s a little dark and hard to see in here!” she snapped, then took aim and fired again.

  This time, her shot ripped half the zombie’s face off, and black goo gushed out of the wound. To finish the job, I shot it directly between the eyes, knocking it backward.

  The man leading the way pushed on the door, and we were all relieved to discover that it wasn’t locked. After everyone filed through, we tried to shove the door shut behind us while the zombies tried to force their way in.

  “This sucks!” Sammy yelled, shooting them one by one.

  “You’re tellin’ me! I can’t get the door shut,” Louis said with a huff.

  Chapter 5

  I grabbed a thin zombie who was blocking the entrance. Sammy had already shot it, so I figured it was safe to drag it out of the way, even if that meant bringing it inside with us. Once it was moved, I heaved a sigh and pushed on the door with all my strength. It was simply not an option to invite the zombies inside, so I grunted and pushed even harder. The guy next to me pressed hard against the door, too, his strong muscles bulging beneath his t-shirt.

  Finally, we managed to shut the door and lock it. We were in a storage room, and it wasn’t inhabited by too many zombies. Still, I didn’t see any windows or doors that led to the outside, and I was worried that we were just making things worse for ourselves by crawling deeper and deeper into the infested building.

  “Go to the next room,” Rita directed.

  With my gun drawn, I slowly pushed the next door open, but as soon as I did, dozens of zombified trespassers tried to storm the room.

  “What the…!?” one of the men yelled and frantically slammed the door shut.

  “We can’t go in there,” Rita said.

  Tammy grabbed her arm. “But that’s the only other way.”

  I glanced at all of them. “It’s doable.”

  “You’re crazy!” Bruce said. “We need to come up with a Plan B.”

  “From what I saw, the room isn’t that big, nothing like where we came from. There are only a few dozen of them in there, not hundreds. We can easily clear the room. Anybody who has more than one handgun should fire with both hands. We can stand with our backs together and carefully rotate through the room, shooting like crazy. That way, no one will be ambushed from behind.”

  “Yeah, unless one of us goes down and breaks the circle.”

  “Just stay alert and focused,” I said. “This can be done. I’ve done it many times, with a good team.”

  “Let’s do it,” Sammy said.

  Everyone glanced around and finally agreed. It had to be done, and there was no other way. We got into position and opened the door. I blasted the few zombies standing in our immediate path. As we made our way in, I made every shot count, firing in two directions to double our chances of survival. Light shone from the hardhat on my head, so I was able to take out my marks quickly and efficiently.

  Everything happened in slow motion as we kept our circle. A dead-eyed creature with matted hair approached, jerking as it walked. I aimed and squeezed the trigger. As soon as it fell, another took its place. Again, I aimed for the headshot. When the next rotter appeared, I repeated the process all over again, like I was on Level 4 in some live-action, first-person shooter videogame. After a few minutes, the moans suddenly ceased, and my shoulders shrugged in relief. I broke the circle and glanced around. Dozens of flesh-eating monsters were piled on the ground, and the acrid smell of gunsmoke assaulted my nostrils once again. I hunted for the door and rushed over to it when I spotted it.

  “This is it,” Tammy said.

  Gripping my weapon, I took a deep breath. I turned the door handle slowly, and the hinges groaned as the door swung open. I stepped cautiously inside, hissing and moaning echoing all around me. My hands were sweaty as I gripped my gun. When dead fingers suddenly clawed at my boots and pants, I shone the light below and gasped. There, on the floor, as far as my eye could see, were several zombies, flailing and crying out with hunger. As clutching fingers reached for me, I jumped back.

  “Go back!” Rita shouted.

  “No! Climb up on the shelves,” Sammy said, “or get to those boxes over there!”

  I hastily stepped on one of the rickety bottom shelves and pulled myself up to the next horizontal surface. I carefully placed my foot on a hard place and held on to the metal rod. I moved up to the next level cautiously, using the shelf as a ladder to help me reach the top. Once I was all the way up, I glanced down and was horrified at the sight below us. Hundreds of legless zombies slithered along the floor, like some kind of demonic snakes. When they spotted us, they pulled themselves over with their arms and hands.

  “What happened to those things?” Sammy said. “They’re all…amputees!”
/>   “Oh my gosh! It’s real!” Rita screamed.

  “Yeah, it exists,” Jose said.

  I had no idea what they were talking about, and I didn’t care. I just wanted to get out of there.

  Sammy, on the other hand, was intrigued and engaged them. “What exists?” she asked.

  “This is where our rival gang takes people,” he answered. “We’ve heard of it, but we thought it was just made up, to scare people. They cut the zombies’ legs off to…well, to sacrifice people to them, I guess. I wonder how they get anybody in here without getting killed themselves.”

  “I’m sure they have their ways,” Sammy said.

  “So this hellhole is manmade?” I asked in disbelief.

  “Yep, a certified zombie-snake pit.”

  “Can humans be more idiotic?” I muttered.

  “Tell me about it,” Sammy chimed in.

  Ralph, the dark-haired guy and their supposed leader, looked at me.

  “So…who are you? What’s your story?” he asked.

  “I’m Val, and this is Sammy. We’re part of an elite skull-splitting wrecking crew.”

  He cocked a brow.

  I continued, “Basically, we smash skulls and pump lead into zombies’ brains, and if you mess with me, I’ll do the same to you. That’s my story. Got it?”

  “Loud and clear.”

  “Good! I’m glad we’re on the same page.”

  He smiled. “Yes, we are. And I gotta tell ya, tough chicks are a real turn-on for me and—”

  I clicked my tongue and aimed the gun at his head, quickly silencing him before he said something we’d both regret. “Ralphie, Ralphie, please don’t go there.”

  “Easy,” he said. “I was just tryin’ to, uh…lighten up the situation.”

  “Where’s the stairwell?” I asked, lowering my gun. “I’m ready to opt out of The Amazing Race, Zombie Edition.”

  “Yeah, I know. I hate obstacle courses and scavenger hunts myself,” he said. “Where’s the exit anyway?”

  Tammy pointed to the other side of the room.

  Shivers ran down my spine, and we all looked at one another helplessly. There was nowhere to go. No matter which way we chose, we would have to fight through an army of ravenous zombies—hundreds of them. For all intents and purposes, we were trapped, and my heart felt as if it was about to burst out of my chest. The distorted echoes ringing around the room only made me shudder worse.

  “If we’re fast, we won’t get bitten,” Jose said. “We can smash ‘em with those shovels by the door.”

  “All it takes is one bite, one scratch,” I said, my hands sweating profusely. “It’s too risky.”

  “Well, we can’t just camp out on these shelves for days,” Rita said.

  Raspy groans and garbled, low moans came from everywhere, as if the zombies were agitated by our presence in their disgusting den. Looking down at them, I was reminded of just how grim and dire our situation was. There was no way we could get through so many of them without getting bitten, and it wasn’t worth the risk.

  “We’re dead!” Rita screamed, with horror all over her face. “Doomed!”

  She was clearly overcome with terror and panic, but I hated that she was willing to give up on her life so easily. I refused to give up on mine so easily. It didn’t look good, but we had to consider every possibility for survival. “We’re not dead yet,” I retorted, “not by a long shot. As long as we’re breathing, we’ve gotta fight. We’re survivors, so try and act like one.”

  “I’m outta here!” Rita said.

  “What are you talking about? You can’t take all those things on by yourself,” I said, looking around. “Hey, look!” I said, pointing at the ceiling. “We can climb across those beams up there.”

  “Do you think they’ll hold us?”

  “What choice do we have?” Sammy said.

  “Let me test it,” I said. I then started climbing up the large boxes wrapped in plastic. The heavy-duty shelving seemed to hold my weight, so I motioned for Sammy to follow me. When I made it to the top, I gazed out across the tangle of pipes and bars and beams that lined the high ceiling. It reminded me of a jungle gym at the playground. All we had to do was climb across them without falling. “We can do this,” I said, glancing over my shoulder. “Just take your time…and don’t slip.”

  “Got it,” Sammy said, letting out a trembling breath.

  A choir of guttural moans echoed below us, and fear flooded through me as I watched hundreds of slithering zombies just waiting for us to plummet into their gnashing mouths. The gurgling wails and vile gibberish of the infected made the hair on my neck stand on end. The mangled undead wanted us to slip, and if we did, we would be quickly ripped apart by those decaying hands, jagged fingernails, and broken teeth. My gut twisted at the thought as I climbed the makeshift monkey bars, thankful that it was sturdy enough to hold our weight.

  “How you doing?” I asked over my shoulder.

  “Good,” Sammy whispered, clambering from beam to beam.

  “Just concentrate on the beams and not the moans below, okay?”

  “I’m trying.”

  “You’re doing great.”

  “It’s so slippery,” Rita complained, “and my hands are all sweaty.”

  “Just be careful,” I added, moving inch by inch.

  Suddenly, Sammy screamed. When I turned to look at her, she was clinging to the edge of a beam, with her body dangling precariously above the hungry horde. “Val!” she cried.

  “Sammy, don’t let go. I’m coming. Hang on!”

  I grabbed the beam and reached out my hand. I peered over the edge, my heart threatening to explode out of my chest. The zombies reached up with their decomposing hands, and their jaws began to snap like hungry piranhas. Tony suddenly offered to help, I was iffy, because I didn’t trust him. He leaned over and grabbed Sammy’s arm. We both pulled, inch by inch, until Sammy was able to grab the beam and heave herself back up, gasping for breath.

  I shot the guy a thankful look. “Thank you,” I said.

  By that time, some of the gang had passed us up and were in the middle of the room, but everyone froze when a crack split the air.

  “It’s breaking!” one of the girls screamed.

  “Get back!” Sammy said.

  One of the guys turned and looked at us with a solemn, worried expression on his face. “Looks like there was a leak in the roof. It’s all rotted out.”

  “We gotta go back,” I said.

  “Great,” the guy next to me complained. “Then how are we gonna get out of here?”

  Sammy pointed to a forklift in the corner. “How about that?”

  “That ain’t gonna work, baby girl,” Tony said. “There’s not enough clearance. The tires will start spinning the second they hit all that blood and all those slimy bodies. I know, ‘cause I’ve worked in a factory for years. We’ll get stuck before we even make it halfway.”

  “Besides, I bet the battery’s dead,” Timmy said, “and I don’t know ‘bout you guys, but I sure as heck don’t got no jumper cables in my pockets.”

  I glanced around and studied the factory for a moment before I thought of the perfect Plan B. We couldn’t see it from down on the floor, but with the bird’s-eye view, looking down at a plow covered by a tarp in the corner, it became quite clear. “I got an idea, but I don’t know if it’ll work.”

  “What?”

  “We try the snowplow idea again,” I said.

  “Snowplow?” Louis asked. “Where?”

  “Over there, to the left, under that tarp.”

  “That’s a great idea!” Rita said. “It won’t be that hard to get to.”

  “Think it’ll run?” Sammy asked.

  “Yeah, ‘cause the last one was a waste of time,” Ralph said.

  “There’s only one way to find out,” I said. “We don’t even need much gas—just enough to get ‘er to the other side of the room.”

  “I say we do it,” Tammy said. “Ya never know. This
one might work.”

  “Don’t hold your breath,” Louis said.

  We climbed back downward, and I managed to reach a shovel leaning up against the wall. I jumped down and bravely began clearing a path to the plow, smashing every biting jaw I saw along the way. Bruce found a shovel, too, and began bashing zombies left and right. The others rushed past us and quickly broke the window of the truck, something they clearly had plenty of practice in doing. They quickly hotwired the plow, and it sprang to life. The cheered and gave each other high-fives, justifiably pleased with themselves.

  Then, I overheard two of them talking in faint voices.

  “I say it’s justice served if we leave those two broads behind,” Bruce said. “They got our friends killed, man.”

  “I dunno about that,” Jose. “They’ve also been bustin’ their pretty little butts to get us outta here.”

  Chapter 6

  I knew the two men were talking about Sammy and me, and I realized I needed to commandeer that plow in a hurry, before they left us behind for zombie fodder. I went into full action, grabbing the skinny driver and jerking him out. When I held my gun to his temple, he looked at me in horror.

  “Don’t shoot!” Timmy said.

  “Please don’t kill him!” Rita yelled.

  Tony, who’d helped me pull Sammy up, looked at me. “I got your back, sweetheart. I ain’t gonna let anybody hurt you or desert you. Just let my cousin go. I’ll drive.”

  “Your cousin just plotted to kill Sammy and I,” I said.

  I threw his pathetic cousin to the ground and resisted the urge to kick him hard in the gut or give him the beating he deserved. When he shot me a glare, I just rolled my eyes.

  “These girls are under my protection!” Ralph announced loudly.

  Sammy and I jumped in the passenger side, and I glanced over at Tony, my only possible friend. “Are you ready to plow through some zombies?”

  He smiled. “Yep!”

  “Let’s do it!” Sammy said.

  Tony threw the truck in gear, and we took off with a jerk. I tried to ignore the loud thuds and crunches under the wheels. I felt no pity as we ran over the small mob of gnashing teeth. The vehicle roared forward, plowing right through the zombies. When we got to the other side, we jumped off and headed for the corridor. As we opened the door, zombies lurched at us, obviously drawn to the noise of the engine.