Zombie Rehab

by Craig Halloran

  Henry thought he knew what the man was doing, but he didn’t think the others would respond. They all gathered in.

  “Everyone hold hands and bow your heads.”

  Henry grabbed Weege on his left and Tori on his right. The small circle was complete. He glanced up at the old metal cross that was illuminated in the pale moonlight.

  Rod said, “God … please help us get the hell out of here alive. Amen.”

  A few others mumbled the final word as well.

  “Henry. Henry,” Weege was squeezing his hand.

  “Yeah.”

  The little man’s eyes were feverish with excitement.

  “I have an idea.”

  “I’m all ears.”

  So was everyone else.

  “We need blood. Lots of blood.”

  “What for? We—”

  “Ssssh!” Tori said. “Do you hear that?”

  The sound was very distinct.

  “Numma-numma. Numma-numma ..”.

  And getting louder.

  “Get back in the Gators!”

  “Henry, listen to me! Let’s head for the gym! I have an idea. We have to get blood!”

  Not a second after they started moving, the zombies erupted from the fog like rabid dogs.

  “GO!”

  The zombies were blocking their path.

  CHAPTER 26

  Washington, D.C.

  Now, Don was the one laughing. His nephew Jack was cursing at his custom laptop.

  “Impossible!”

  Don swore that if that big man in the zombie suit survived, he would put him directly on his payroll and hope the man never learned he had been an associate in his attempted death. At this point, Don was titillated. The massive man slung the zombies around like rag dolls. The WHS team that worked the cameras must have been having a fit. His screen went black on several occasions, only to emerge again with another pummeling scene. He swore he felt his jaws rattle a couple of times.

  “Don’t get cocky, Uncle. See, the man’s out of energy, and the zombies have just begun.”

  It was a hard thing, watching the valiant man begin to die. The swarm covered the fighter. The screen didn’t pick up much of the picture, but it was pretty clear this battle was over. Don’s heart was heavy for a moment, and then something amazing happened. His view of the screen changed, and suddenly he was sailing through the air and crashing on top of a gravel roof. After the camera switched, the big man was on the lower roof and hustling over the side. Henry Bawkula was there, too.

  “Yes!”

  Jack sneered.

  “That was just luck. Those people don’t have anywhere to run. No escape, and they are running out of ammo.”

  “True, but it’s still getting closer to the dawn. Let me ask you something, Jack. Have you ever taken a moment to ever consider what it might be like if you were in there?”

  “No. The only thing that matters is that I’m not in there.”

  “Suppose that was you. Do you think you could survive? After all, you’re smarter than the zombies. What would you do?”

  Don waited for the reply, but the only response was the man’s fingers moving feverishly over his keyboard.

  “Well … I guess I’ll assume you would give up and die, then.”

  “I’d think of something.”

  “Ah … so, don’t you think they’ll think of something, as well?”

  Jack threw his arms out in front of himself and said, “I don’t care what they think. It won’t matter. They won’t survive. No one has, so far.”

  Wow! Don couldn’t help but worry about his status with the WHS. His nephew, someone that he had brought up within that organization, was now privy to information that he was not. His stomach soured as he ran his hand over his face. He became very cold.

  Jack continued his gloating.

  “How much do you really know about the zombies anyway, Don?”

  It was an insult. He knew as much about zombies as anybody. What he knew about the functions of the XT Serum was another matter. Still, the question pissed him off.

  “Here’s what I know. They are a virus. Man made. An abomination. Something that happens, I believe, when man is saturated by evil. Mindless and hungry with an appetite that cannot be satisfied. And like any other virus, they attack. Infect. Cells and flesh. In this more extreme case, the zombies are hunting blood. They want to infect it. Everyone thinks they are flesh eaters—like cannibals—but if that were the case we wouldn’t have any zombies. They would all consume themselves.

  “Although I’ve always enjoyed the headlines … ZOMBIE EATS MAN’S BRAIN, all of that is bunk. Do you know how much pressure it would take to crack a human skull? How can a man bite into another man’s head? Our teeth aren’t designed to be can openers. If a zombie ever ate a brain, it was only because it had already been spilled. Besides, what’s the best way to kill a zombie? Pierce the brain. Why would a virus kill itself? No brains, no zombies.”

  Jack was nodding.

  “True. But you’ve got to love all of those old movies. I bet your generation never saw that becoming real.”

  “We didn’t expect to land on the moon, either. Or have a bomb that could destroy an entire country.”

  “Well, it looks like every generation has its achievements, some good and some bad. Real bad. Still, Uncle, I don’t think you are telling me everything you know about the zombies. The 101 segment doesn’t help. Can’t you at least tell me where they came from? Who created the virus? About the first outbreak?”

  Don didn’t like the intensity in Jack’s voice. For a moment, his nephew looked like a man obsessed with something dark. He looked Jack in the eyes and said, “You seem to already know enough, Jack. You know things that I don’t even know. You’re doing things that I wouldn’t even consider. And now, you want me to share with you everything that I know?” He cleared his throat. “I do what I do because I have to. That doesn’t mean that I enjoy it. Look at you. People are dying, and you like it. Don’t you?”

  Jack tore his eyes away saying, “No.”

  “It sure seems like it.”

  “Can’t you just tell me who you think is behind the outbreak?”

  “No.”

  “Do you even know?”

  Don paused before he shook his head saying, “No.”

  Jack hissed through his teeth and returned his interest back to his screen. Don checked his. Only the view of the fog remained. He was relieved.

  Good

  “Looks like they lost them, and the time’s still ticking away.”

  “They’ll sniff them out soon enough.”

  Don hoped not.

  “See look! They’re already on the trail.”

  Don looked down at his screen just in time to see his zombie view getting run over by a Gator full of a bunch of shooting people. As exciting as that was, a troubling feeling remained. He was beginning to get a sinking feeling that he wasn’t holding the purse strings anymore. He looked over his shoulder. Oliver was still standing outside the car and smoking. Am I still in charge here? Maybe his nephew was … and he might be in trouble.

  CHAPTER 27

  Institute, WV

  They lived. Gators, bullets, zombie suits, and gas propelled the small band of survivors through the latest zombie onslaught. Two zombies were smashed into the payment like roadkill while another got lanced with an 8-foot strip of rebar. No one looked back as they fled through the undead blockade and headed down the road. Now they were stuck, and time was running out. The zombies would be there soon.

  Rod and the rest of the security team were slamming the butts of their guns into the gymnasium’s door. The magnetic locks weren’t giving in.

  “Henry, we gotta go! This ain’t gonna work,” Rod said.

  Henry swore he could hear the zombie moans coming.

  From behind the wheel of the Gator, Doug shouted, “Get the hell out of the way. I’m making a hole!”

  Henry and Tori jumped out of the ATV as the machin
e barreled toward the heavy metal doors. The sound of bending steel meeting all-wheel drive mayhem crashed into their ears. The Gator plunged inside the darkness.

  “Damn. He did it!”

  The Gator was still running as they all rushed inside to give thanks to the man. Doug sat unmoving in his seat. A large piece of metal had cut into his head. Henry pulled Tori close as she sobbed.

  “Ah man,” Rod exclaimed. “I guess it’s better dying like this than the other way.”

  In the distance the moaning became louder.

  Weege was yelling, “Come on! Come on! We need the blood. The storage is this way!”

  “What the hell is he talking about, Henry?” Tori said. “And I can’t see a damn thing!”

  A small flashlight beam was glaring in their eyes. It was one of the security team guys. Henry didn’t know him.

  “Follow you, or follow him?”

  “Ow!” Weege screamed from somewhere in the dark.

  “Find him,” Henry said, “and we’ll follow. I think I might know what he’s thinking.”

  “Wherever we’re going, let’s get there! Those zombies will be here any second,” Rod said.

  Henry was pulling Tori through the darkness as small beacons of light led the way. Weege was on the gymnasium floor holding his ankle. Rudy stumbled over to the little man and helped him up from the floor.

  “What are you doing, you little idiot? What do we want blood for?”

  A bright light flashed inside Henry’s head. He knew what Weege wanted to do. The zombies wanted blood. The blood bank would give them that.

  “Come on, this way everybody,” he said, leading the way to a lab room in the back.

  Henry knew that the zombie contagion spread through the blood. Testing revealed that living flesh fired the hunting instincts of the zombies, letting them track people for miles. But there was more to it than just the living bodies. There had to be blood inside them as well. Despite what many people figured, brains weren’t the object of their ravenous hunger. It was the drive to infect and spread, and only the blood stream could carry that. Still, would stored blood satisfy the zombies’ appetites?

  Rudy pulled open the door of a walk-in refrigerator and Henry stepped inside. Bags of blood were lit up by the small flashlights.

  “What in the world?” Rod gasped. “What’s all of this blood for?”

  “Transfusions. They try different types to give the zombies new blood. Flush out the corrupted stuff,” Weege said.

  “Does it work?” Rod asked.

  “Er … testing is inconclusive. Now shut up and grab some bags,” Weege ordered.

  Rudy began passing them down the line, everyone filling their hands.

  “This won’t work, you moron. We need to hide,” Rudy commented.

  “Shut up, you drunkard,” Weege fired back. “You hopeless sack of camel dung!”

  One of the fire team members spoke up and asked, “What are we supposed to do with it?”

  “They’ll follow a blood trail,” Henry said. “Someone look for a something to carry this stuff in.

  “Ssshh!” said a security guard that was watching the door. “I think I hear something.”

  As everyone shuffled out of the room, all eyes followed the light illuminating the hall. The emergency lights added an additional bit of dim lighting. There was a lot of heavy breathing in the silence and the rattling of weapons being fingered. Henry tried to settle himself down. How many more zombies were out there? How many could they fight off? A dozen bags of blood would only slow them down. They needed a place to hide. But where? Think Henry! Think.

  “Where to, Henry?” Rod asked.

  “Dude, I found some garbage bags,” Rudy said. “I’ve got about ten more pints in here.”

  “Ssshh!” Tori said.

  A distant sound was echoing down the corridor.”Numma-numma. numma-numma … “

  Henry set a pint down on the floor and pulled out the Swiss Army knife that his step-father Stanley had given him for his birthday. He cut the bag open and slung it down the hallway.

  “What are you doing, Henry? You’ll lead them right to us!”

  He could feel their confusion. Every stare was of desperation in the dimness.

  He was confident when he spoke.

  “No, I’m leading them to the pool.”

  “The pool?” someone said.

  Weege said in an excited voice, “That’s right, zombies can’t swim!”

  They left a trail of blood as they dashed through the hallways and burst into the aquatic center. The smell of chlorine was heavy in the gloom. They sliced open a few more bags, set them near the edge of the pool, and waited.

  “I’m burning up.”

  “Let’s find a way out of here.”

  “We’re all going to die,” Rudy said.

  “Shut up!” They all replied.

  Henry scanned the room. There were four exits, and the zombies could burst inside from any one of them. They had come through the door on the east wing, and a there was an opposite one from the west. The north side had two more doors that led back outside, but they were probably locked.

  “How are we going to get them in the pool, Henry?” Tori said.

  “I guess we’re going to have to push them in.”

  “I’m not doing that!” Weege said.

  “Me either!” Rudy agreed.

  “We’re going to have to make a stand. This is our only chance, unless someone has a better idea?”

  Everyone was looking at one another, sweaty and miserable. The heat was unbearable inside the suits and the sweltering building. Henry figured everyone would just as soon die as suffer inside their zombie suits any longer. He was exhausted, too. He checked his weapon. One full clip left. He switched it with the other. Everyone else followed suit except for Weege and Rudy, who were whispering back and forth to each other.

  “Rudy, do you care to fill us in?” Henry said.

  “Ah … well, Weege and I have decided that we would rather take our own chances. If you guys want to stay and die by the poolside, that’s fine, but we think we can do better on our own.”

  “Our best chance is to stick together.”

  “Let them go, Henry,” Rod said. “I’m staying.”

  “There’s nowhere to go, unless you know something that you aren’t telling us?”

  “Good luck, Henry,” Weege said as the two men scurried away through the other set of doors.

  Henry started to go after him, but Tori held him back. She said, “Those two won’t make it very far.”

  “That’s what I’m afraid of.”

  It was down to him, Tori, Rod, and two security men that he didn’t know. Half a dozen zombies would be there any second. Henry knew that they would only get one shot at this, so he had to be sure it worked. They would probably only get one chance. It was time to make a sacrifice.

  “Rod, double check those doors over there.”

  He started to remove his zombie suit.

  “What are you doing?” Tori said.

  “I’m getting in the water.”

  “Why?”

  “I’m going to draw them in after me, while you guys hide.”

  Rod yelled over, “These doors won’t budge, Henry!”

  “You aren’t the best swimmer, Henry. Let those guys go.”

  “No! It’s too dangerous. I’ll be fine.”

  Tori stripped down. Henry heard someone gulp in the dark air. She was the perfect figure of sweat and lingerie. Henry grasped after her has she dove into the deep end.

  “Ah … it feels so good in here. Sorry, Henry, but I had to get out of that—”

  “We’ve got company, coming fast!” the guard said, backing away and lowering his barrel.

  Henry stripped off his suit and dove in alongside Tori. He said, “We’ll suffer the madness together.”

  The moans of the zombies became a roar.

  Over half a dozen figures burst inside the aquatic center, smeared with blood. Henry
started shouting.

  “In here, zombies!”

  Tori was whistling and splashing.

  The zombies groaned as they piled into one another, fighting over the pints of blood. Two collided at the pool’s edge and fell in with a splash. Rod unloaded his shotgun into another, knocking it into the pool.

  Henry felt his heart freeze as more zombies spilled through the door.

  “This isn’t good. Tori, we’ve got to get out of here.”

  The blast of weapons rang out like cannons inside the metal dome. A human voice was screaming out in pain. The zombies became a writhing mass of undead flesh as they found the blood and then rushed after the humans in the pool. The pool lights underneath still glowed, and Henry could see the creatures sinking fast under the weight of their metal helmets. He wondered if zombies could drown. Judging by the looks of things, they didn’t. They just kept trying to climb up the sides of the pool, so far, in vain.

  He and Tori swam towards the shallow end of the pool and hunkered down.

  “We’ve got to make a dash for that door.”

  Ahead, Rod was backing towards that very door.

  “Come on, you two!”

  Henry and Tori scrambled out of the pool and dashed for the doors.

  BLAM! BLAM! BLAM! click

  Henry shoved down the lever of the metal fire doors and surged down the hallway, pulling Tori behind him. Rod was on their heels, and a pack of zombies was on his.

  His lungs were bursting inside his chest as he turned down one corridor and into another. He had to make it back outside. Get the Gator and go. He glanced back over his shoulder. Rod was running with a limp, and the zombies were only another twenty feet behind, jaws opened impossibly wide and snapping shut.

  “Henry,” Tori moaned, “I can’t keep up.”

  “We’re almost there. Hang on.”

  She slipped on a dark streak of something and fell. He pulled her up and hoisted her over his shoulder. Rod was pulling him along now. The zombies had gotten closer. The gymnasium was just ahead, but he knew they wouldn’t have enough time to cross it, start the Gator, and run. The zombies would swarm them before they even sat down.