The morning activity sparked Lucy’s curiosity, so she switched on the radio in Abraham’s Cadillac. As soon as she did, she was greeted immediately by the Emergency Alert System sound. After the familiar but unsettling sound finished, instructions were given for everyone to remain in their homes. If they felt as if they needed to seek medical attention, they were told to go to a local facility. Due to the close proximity of Atlanta, doctors from the CDC would be in Chattanooga and Knoxville within the hour. There were no other indications of anything amiss, just a feeling that Abraham had that something wasn’t right.
Power was out all through town as Lucy crossed the railroad tracks and made a right hand turn towards the church. There were several people at the station fighting over what little gasoline that was left. The tanker truck was due to deliver that morning, but after the rush to grab what was left, it didn’t take long for the tanks to run dry. Lucy watched as one of the clerks came outside and placed a hand drawn sign on the door.
NO GAS - NO WATER - DON’T ASK
Lucy shook her head. It was going to be a long day at the church if the gas station was already running out of water and gasoline. The church had a stash of both in case of emergency, but she had a feeling that it wouldn’t last long enough to make a dent in the demand.
Lucy’s cellphone buzzed as she passed the gas station. She fumbled in her pocket and procured the device. There was a single message from her brother, Bobby. The message did not look good.
I’M AT DAD’S. WHERE THE FUCK ARE THEY?
Lucy swallowed hard. She’d never had the best relationship with her brother. On more than one occasion as teenagers, Bobby had touched her inappropriately. The touching went on for several years before finally leading up to sexual assault and rape. Lucy had not dared say anything to her father; it was Bobby’s word against hers. Although her mother loved her, she could never bring herself to say anything to her either. The shame of being the victim of incest was more than she could bring herself to bear. She buried the feelings down as far as she could and tried to imagine that it had happened to someone else, like a horror story told through someone else’s eyes.
Lucy knew that the repercussions of not telling Bobby would far outweigh the shitstorm that she would have to endure if he was with them instead. She tapped away a message on her phone. Her father would not be happy, but it was much easier to deal with him than Bobby.
HEADING TO THE CHURCH. MOM IS SICK AND POWER IS OUT.
A few moments later another message beeped in.
NO SHIT, LUCY. BE THERE IN FIFTEEN MINUTES.
Lucy choked back emotion. It was hard enough to deal with the situation without Bobby’s bullshit. She tossed the phone into the passenger’s seat. She gripped the wheel and looked back into the back seat. Abraham was still bear-hugging her mother and she was still trying her damndest to take a bite out of her husband.
Lucy frowned. “Daddy, what is wrong with her?”
Abraham shuffled to see her daughter in the rearview mirror. “I don’t know, Lucy. I could have sworn that she stopped breathing this morning when I called you. I don’t know if this gas has anything to do with it or not, but she needs help.”
The car’s radio repeated the Emergency Alert System noise, followed by an alarming revelation. It had been nearly ninety minutes since the alert system had started going off, the message essentially the same. This was the first indication that anyone knew what was going on.
And it was horrifying.
Lucy could not believe her ears. All at once, she realized what had happened to her mother. She listened for a moment, taking in all the information. She turned up the radio to make sure that her father heard it as well.
“The gas released by numerous earthquakes and other seismic events this morning is having an untoward effect on deceased bodies. There is no indication that this is an act of terrorism, however, the bodies are returning to life and attacking the living. There is no rational explanation for this, nor any discernable cause. Citizens are advised to stay in their homes and do not attempt to confront any of the recently revived bodies. If you are bitten, seek medical attention immediately, as this has been the primary mode of spreading whatever is causing the dead to rise. The President will speak to the nation within the hour on the plan of action for these creatures.”
The message went on to repeat itself on a loop. Lucy looked back to her mother. It was painfully obvious what had happened to her. She was now one of the undead.
She was a zombie.
“Daddy, I think that…”
Abraham interrupted her curtly. “There’s the church. Pull up out front and tell someone to help me with your mother.”
“Daddy, I think that mom is a…”
“Don’t argue with me, Lucy! Get me some help for your mother!” Abraham yelled. The drastic change in his voice startled Lucy. She knew that he had to have heard the announcement on the radio, though he seemed not to care.
Lucy pulled the car up to the front of the church. A dozen or more cars were parked haphazardly in the parking lot. Word had gotten out about the seriousness of the current situation, and people were flocking to anywhere they could get help. Several families were walking briskly into the front of the church, with many more behind them.
Lucy parked the Cadillac as close to the entrance as she could and got out. Abraham was wrestling with his zombified wife as she opened the driver’s side rear door. Abraham kept the bear hug on his wife as he exited the car, roughly pulling her out as he did. Several people who were going into the church shot disapproving glances at him as he did. Once they got closer, the looks transformed into ones of fear and apprehension.
Abraham half-dragged his wife into the front of the church. More disapproving looks at first, then alarm.
Pastor Sage was speaking to some of the deacons about how best to divvy up the supplies in the church and get bedding for everyone when he spotted Abraham and Muriel. He quickly strode over to where Abraham was coming through the door. Abraham hadn’t noticed, but the people who were inside the church had distanced themselves from him, parting the way like Moses and the Red Sea.
Pastor Sage held his hands up in a cautious manner. “Abraham! You must take her from the church! The dead have begun to rise, and I’m afraid that Muriel looks to be one of them! Has she been bitten?”
Abraham frowned angrily. “No, she has not been bitten! She is sick, that’s all!”
Pastor Sage eased forward. The few people that were within arm’s reach of Abraham had now retreated to the sides of the church, watching the scene play out in front of them.
“She is not sick, Abraham. She is one of the risen dead. I don’t know if there is anything that can be done for her or not yet, but she must not infect the rest of the congregation. We need to put her somewhere that she cannot harm us. You must understand, I have a duty to protect the congregation.”
Lucy placed a reassuring hand on Abraham’s shoulder. “Daddy, I think that it’s best if we…”
Abraham lashed out, violently elbowing his daughter away from him. “Your mother is sick, Lucy! If she is one of the risen dead, then it is because God chose her to come back! This is no plague or terrorist act, it is the will of the Lord! The rest of the dead did not come to life until the thousand years were ended. This is the first resurrection. Revelation 20:5, Pastor Sage! You should know that this is a sign from God!”
Pastor Sage arched his eyebrows. “I don’t think this is what the Lord had in mind when he promised a resurrection of the dead, Abraham.”
Something broke inside Abraham Stone. The fact that Pastor Sage could not plainly see what was going on was utterly appalling to him. It was as plain as the nose on his face what was happening. The Lord was calling Abraham to serve. What he hadn’t said to Pastor Sage was the next verse in Revelation. Blessed and holy is he that hath part in the first resurrection: on such the second death hath no power, but they shall be priests of God and of Christ, and shall reign with him a thousan
d years. This was clearly the first resurrection, and God has chosen Abraham, much like he had chosen to test the Biblical Abraham by telling him to sacrifice his son, Isaac. God had taken Muriel from him, but with a purpose.
Abraham grinned devilishly.
And then he loosed his grip on Muriel.
“The Lord has brought us the first resurrection! We must gather those who will rise from the first death, for the second death hath no power over them! My wife will live again, Reverend!”
Muriel stumbled forth and grabbed Pastor Sage before he could react. Within another second, both were on the ground and Muriel was taking a bite out of Pastor Sage’s neck. Bright red blood spurted from the wound in a magnificent arc, landing on the pew beside them. Muriel tore into his neck even further, crunching bone and sinew.
The crowd that had gathered around the walls of the church made a hasty, terrified dash for the door. They did not make it far, however. On the steps leading out of the church stood Bobby, a shotgun in his hands. He had been witness to the entire conversation between Pastor Sage and his father. He was not pleased with the way it had been handled.
“Get your fuckin’ asses back in that church! None of you assholes lifted a finger to help my father or my mother! Now you’re gonna pay for it!”
Bobby fired a single shot into the air.
“Get back inside!” he screamed.
Lucy had absently taken a seat at the rear of the church, watching as the woman that had been her mother devoured Pastor Sage in the floor in front of her. She didn’t know how to react. The sight of her mother eating another man alive should have bothered her. The sinister face that her father wore should have bothered her. The fact that her incestuous brother was herding people back into the church to have them turned into one of the undead should have bothered her.
None of it did.
All she wanted was her family, especially her mother and father. She had them. The reports from the radio had made it seem that the world was coming to an end. It sure as hell seemed like it to Lucy Stone. She stood and walked over to her father, who was still motionless in the middle of the aisle, staring at Pastor Sage as the reverend began to stir and arise as one of the undead. The huddled masses on either side of the church screamed in terror as Muriel and Pastor Sage began to search out their next target. Try as they might, no one could escape from the coming Armageddon that would befall them.
Abraham turned and led both of his children out of the church. As they reached the steps, shots rang out in the distance, prompting them to look up. A fire burned across the small town, likely not to be put out anytime soon.
Abraham turned to his children, the intimidating face that his children had never seen before was still there, still commanding a look of menace. He pointed to the rest of the town, the screams and pounding on the door behind him still carrying on.
“Go and find more for the congregation.”
Six Feet From Hell: The Lost Chronicles (Book 1) Page 6
