by Weeks, TJ
“But even though they were fans, they were strangers.” He added.
“Yes, strangers that paid my bills and believed in me when my own family didn’t. None of my family has ever even read one of my books. In a way, those strangers know me better than my own parents.” I explained further.
Walking on a few blocks, the streets were still eerily empty from rotters and I was half expecting a gigantic attack of them around any corner. The people that lived in this huge city had to be somewhere, they have had to go somewhere and I was sure that they just did not leave the city because they had turned.
We entered a few more of the small stores that lined the streets and collected some odds and ends that we thought could help with things like building or planting or even fixing things around home.
OUT OF REACH
I PUT the truck in reverse and pulled out. I could see a worried look on Kris’ face and to be honest, I was a little worried too. I wasn’t a stranger to the law or their cells. Not sure if they would see this as self-defense or plain out murder, but I knew it would depend on how Tina told the story. Plus with me running off on an adventure with Gizmo and fleeing the crime scene, didn’t look good.
I turned on the radio to hear nothing but static. I started flipping through the channels, but all of them were just static. I hit the power button. “What the fuck is going on?”
Ring-ring-ring-ring! My phone sounded.
“Hello?” I answered.
“TJ, Tina can’t reach the police.” Kris stated on the other end.
“So…Keep trying.” I suggested.
“You don’t understand, it says we’ve reached a number that has been changed or disconnected.” She clarified.
“Okay babe, we’ll just stop by the station on the way back.” I stated the solution.
“Okay…I love you.” She responded.
“I love you too, I’ll see you in a bit.” I clarified before hanging up.
We barely made it to the main highway when we started seeing cars crashed all down the ditch. Some were on fire, some had their doors open with people attacking the drivers and some were outside of their cars and running. About the time I caught focus on the road again there was a little girl in a white dress right in front of me. I slammed on the breaks, but it was too late. The truck came to a halt and the little girls shoe fell from the sky and landed on the windshield then rolled onto the hood. Gizmo and I looked at each other with our eyes wide open.
I was about to open the truck door when some son of a bitch belly flopped against my door, his half chewed off cheek pressed firmly against my driver’s side window. He started raking his hands down my window leaving blood trails, as he slid down the window, his jaw opened and closed and opened and closed. I could see the few muscles he had left controlling his jaw before one snapped and made a ping on the window and he dropped to the ground.
WHILE WE’RE AWAY
“GUYS, STAY here in the courtyard until we get back, unless you are going into the cafeteria. Understood?” Tina told the children.
The four nodded and went back to what they were doing.
Tina and Kris walked toward the front gate to see if Martin needed a break. They rounded the tree line that lined the rocky path that had been made by the ins and outs of the few vehicles that they had accumulated or brought with them. The huge gate came into view and Martin sat on a stool looking out into the road watching for anything coming or going. Every once in a while a rotter would appear and Martin would unlock the chain link gate and take it out with the machete that he kept nearby. There was a small shack that he had built over time to keep him warm or in the shade or dry, depending on the weather. The fence on each side of the chain link double gates was a solid silver metal wall, so far it had kept out any rotters that had hit up against it and seemed that it would hold up nicely to other issues that may arise. The group had talked about building a brick wall around the inside of the metal fence, but had not gotten around to it yet with half the group gone.
“Hey Martin, scaring people today?” Kris asked.
“Not yet, but the day is still young. What are you girls doing out and about?” He asked.
“Figured we would make some rounds, we are feeling kind of useless and need something to do. Need a break?” Tina asked.
“I would love one. There seems to be some movement down the road, I don’t think it is alive, so keep an eye out.” He warned. “But, it has been fairly quiet. I think I’ll go eat something normal besides these sucky energy bar things.” He stated.
Tina and Kris grabbed the machete and the gun that leaned against the shack and began marching back and forth in front of the gate like soldiers. They laughed as they passed each other. Tina dropped the oversized knife to her side and squinted down the asphalt outside the gate.
“Just One?” She said.
Kris backed up her soldier step with her gun and placed it on her shoulder to take a look through the scope.
“Yeah, just one.” She mumbled as she scanned the sides of the road with the gun.
“That is weird.” Tina half questioned.
“It is a little weird, but Martin has stated before that there were times where just one would show up and he would take care of it so it didn’t draw anymore in.” Kris said dropping the gun to her side. “But, the whole damn thing is weird. I mean look at everything we have dealt with from that poor dog, to your in laws. You never know, maybe he is just a stray that got lost. Either way, we need to keep an eye on it.” Kris instructed.
Tina pulled the stool right up to the gate and sat down with machete still in hand and placed her fingers around the chain link and her face up against the fence.
“So you may want to back up just a hair. Just sayin’.” Kris laughed as she placed the gun inside the shack.
“I mean is it going to charge at me?” Tina questioned.
“I guess not, you go ahead and sit right there, I am going to stand back just a bit and I’ll watch it from back here. Kris crossed her arms and stood a bit behind Tina watching it sway from side to side as it walked down the road. The sun was starting to get hot and reflect against the asphalt and down over the whole area making it a bit hard to see the rotten thing. Its pace was off balance and slow, but it was definitely headed their way.
“Be ready with your handy dandy machete right there.” Kris demanded.
“I got this shit!” Tina assured jumping off of her stool holding the machete into the air.
Kris laughed at her acting so tough. Kris acted like she was undoing the locked chain that held the gate secure.
“What the fuck are you doing? Fuck you!” Tina half shouted.
Kris laughed, “I have to do something to keep the humor.”
“You’re too fucking funny!” She sarcastically replied.
Tina decided to back the stool up and stood next to Kris as they watched it stumble a bit and fall to its knees and make its way back up to stand. Both of them moved back against the metal part of the fence so that they could not be seen and peeked around every so often watching it wander closer and closer.
“It’s holding something!” Tina stated pulling her head back out of sight.
Kris peered around the wall and into the street. “It’s a woman and it is holding something. That is strange, I have never seen one holding anything.”
Kris and Tina stepped into sight of the thought to be rotter walking towards them as it fell to the ground again and crawled a bit of the way and caught its feet again.
“I don’t think that is dead.” Tina stated.
Kris grabbed the gun and placed it up on her shoulder. She peered through the scope and dropped it from her eye and put it back up again.
“Undo the fucking chain!” Kris demanded.
Tina stood at attention not moving a muscle as she watched it coming closer.
“Tina, undo the god damn chain. It is alive. It’s Shianne!” Kris exclaimed.
Tina began unraveling the chain from around the gate and dropped it t
o the ground. Kris walked out with the gun still up on her shoulder, turning circles to ensure that nothing was around her. She kept the gun up to ensure that she was right about it being Shianne and that she was still alive and not a rotter.
“Mom!” Shianne cried as she fell again.
Tina stayed at the fence and held the gate closed behind Kris watching her walk down the road with the gun aimed.
“Shianne, talk to me!” Kris hollered to her eldest daughter that had been in Colorado.
“Mom it’s me!” She hollered back.
Kris dropped the gun and ran to her, throwing the gun behind her as the strap choked her a bit. She held her arm and hurried her back to towards Tina. Kris saw Martin walk behind Tina.
“What the fuck are y’all doing? Put that chain back on and lock this shit up.” He began rounding the chain around the poles.
Tina pointed towards Kris and pulled the chain back from the gate again.
“It is her other daughter!” Tina whispered.
“What the hell!” Martin whispered back sliding out of the gates entryway.
Martin ran to both Kris and grabbed the other arm of Shianne helping carry her back to the unsecured fence. As they entered the gate, Shianne fell to the ground and Martin began wrapping the chain around the two poles to hold it closed.
“If fucking TJ knew that I just let your ass go out there, he would have my fucking head. What the fuck were you thinking?” Martin expressed his fear.
Kris and Tina tended to Shianne as they gave her small drinks from a bottle of water that laid in the shack. Martin had just gotten the lock on the chain to secure it and BANG!
Kris and Tina jumped and Shianne scooted backwards on her ass across the path to the other side of the shack.
“They heard you yelling as I did.” Martin looked at Kris.
Kris approached the chain link and looked down the wall to see three of them making their way down the wall banging with their hands. BANG! BANG! BANG!
“Get back Kris!” Martin told her.
“It’s my fault, I will help, I’ve been out there, I know how it is.” Kris stated.
The rotters made their way to the gate and stood eye to eye with Kris and Martin. Martin took the machete that Tina had dropped and glided it slowly through one of the holes and into the skull of the first one that made his way into sight. The second stumbled over the one that had dropped to the ground. Kris reached for the knife that TJ had left her that she kept in a holster in her boot.
“Take that second one out, I got this one coming up.” Kris told him.
Martin stepped back and let the next one try to make his way back to his feet. The rotter grabbed the chain that locked them in and began to rattle it as he tried to stand and fell again. He pulled on the chain again and stood to be about three inches taller than Kris. She stuck her small hand through the fence to direct the knife into the bottom of his chin. The dead grabbed her and held her wrist tight. Kris tried to push her hand upward and free from his grasp and stab the knife into his chin. But the grasp would not loosen. She stuck her other hand through and stepped up on the fence and grabbed the knife. She stabbed it through his temple and he fell still holding onto her hand. Her face implanted into the fence as Martin slice the arm of the bone faced man and Kris dropped to the ground. The dismembered arm sliced through the gate with severed nerves and tendons till attached to it. Blood spattered through and hit Martin in the face as he quietly slid his knife through the others empty eye socket of the third one, the skin peeled off of the arm that still held onto her and fell into Kris’s lap as she and the arm hit the ground hard. Martin ran to her and pulled on the now bony arm that held onto Kris and had to pry the fingers away from Kris.
“Your husband is going to kill me!” Martin stated throwing the arm far over the fence.
“I’m fine.” Kris stated.
She rose and dusted herself off and made her way to her daughter.
“What the hell are you doing Shianne?” Kris asked her child.
“I knew that dad would not let y’all die, I knew that I just had to make it to wherever you all were. I went to the house and everyone was gone. I saw the smoke and knew that this is where he would have taken everyone. I came this way and ran into a herd of these things and outran them. I ran out of gas a few days ago and had only brought a few bottles of water. I have been out since yesterday. But, I knew Dad would have done something smart like this.
“I could not get a hold of you! I tried and the phones were out once we figured out what was actually going on. I can’t believe you got here.” Kris said hugging her daughter.
“Tasha came with me. She didn’t make it.” Shianne admitted. “I can’t believe I let my best friend get eaten by these assholes.” Shianne cried.
“Honey, it is all we could do to keep each other safe, we lost a lot of people as well. Gizmo’s parents are gone, Josh is gone. All we could do was save ourselves and the few others.” Kris tried to comfort.
“Where is dad?” Shianne requested.
“He is out on a mission getting supplies, they should be back soon.” Tina stated.
“Who is they and why are y’all here and not with them?” Shianne wondered.
“They took a few of the other guys with them, and it was Steven, Gizmo, your dad and Justin.” Kris told her. “They left us here to take care of the kids since we left them here on the other missions with the others that are here.” Tina told her.
“Other kids? Who?” She jolted up.
“Sidnie, Daltin, Cloie and Hudson are all safe. Are you hungry?” Kris asked.
“I want to see my brother and sister, and yes I am starving. I ate an old gross banana yesterday that was stuffed in my bag.” Shianne made it to her feet.
Martin watched as the three made their way slowly around the small bend in the road back towards the cafeteria. Kris turned her head back to Martin before he was out of sight and smiled to thank him for helping save her daughter. Shianne limped down the road as she raised her head and saw the kids sitting in the grass. Sidnie cocked her head around the shade tree that her and Cloie sat under and stood to see who was walking with her mom.
“Shianne?” She questioned.
“Kind of.” Shianne laughed.
Sidnie and Daltin ran to their sister and practically tackled her to the ground until she started wincing from the pain. She tried to wrap a hand around them both, but had to hold on to something to stand.
“What is wrong?” Daltin asked.
“I am pretty sure that I have some issues from walking for so long and maybe may have sprained an ankle, but I’m fine.” She told them both.
Tina and Kris helped her through the doors to the cafeteria and to the nearest table.
“Milissa, can I get whatever you have to eat and anything to drink?” Kris hollered to the back.
Milissa looked around the corner from the kitchen and saw the dirt frail woman and ran out with an already made sandwich and chips and a glass of tea to the table without question.
“Milissa, this is my oldest daughter Shianne. She was in Colorado at the time it all started and drove to here and made it a lot of the way until she ran out of gas and she walked the rest of the way.” Kris explained to Milissa, as well as Chelley and Bobbi that were looking on.
“Oh my God! Let me get you something more." Milissa ran off without another word.
Chelley brought back a warm wet rag and Bobbi took the ponytail holder off of her wrist and handed to Shianne to get her blonde curly hair out of her face with. Shianne nodded with a thanks and pulled her hair back and began to wipe her face.
“Thanks.” Kris stated to the girls.
Shianne bit off a piece of the sandwich while she wiped herself off then took a swig of tea. Milissa hurried back with a plate full of leftovers from lunch of tater tot casserole and some rolls with butter and two bottles of water.
Tina and Kris sat down with a sigh of relief and took one of the bottles of water each and drank some.
Milissa patted Kris on the back. Milissa knew what it was like to wonder if your child was alive or not. She had two adult children that lived in another state away from her and she could not get a hold of them before the group had located her and took her with them back to their location.
Once Shianne was done eating, Tina and Kris led Shianne to the field house to shower and clean up while they sent the other kids to go get her some clean clothes.
“How did y’all get here?” She asked from the shower.
“We had to leave the house, we were all at Tina’s and things went fucking nuts.” Kris told her over the dripping of the shower hitting the tiled floor and into the drain.
“The plant and school seemed like the perfect place and bunkers were I guess in the process of being set up when it all started, but we didn’t find too many people here, so we don’t know if the dead got the ones that were setting up or what. But we stabilized any places that appeared weak and took over running the plant and set up camp here. It was the perfect spot. We started going out with the guys on missions to get supplies and bring back. This last one, we picked up a couple of military guys and that gave them the manpower to go without us, so we could take care of the kids. So here we are.” Tina explained.
“So where does everyone sleep?” She asked as she got dressed.
“The classrooms in the schools are perfect. We all have our own place and most of us have fridges, and the cafeteria runs pretty much all night between Milissa, Bobbi, and Chelley. Lisa runs the plant so things don’t just shut down and we have nothing. We have Martin who guards the front a majority of the time, and crews that run a bunch of the other stuff like the crops and walk fence lines. TJ pretty much got everyone set up.” Kris told her. “Once you get rested, I am sure we can find something for you to help with until the guys make it back.”
Shianne nodded and looked as though she may fall out from exhaustion at any time.
THE VICIOUS CYCLE
“DRIVE!” GIZMO demanded.
