by Steve Wands
Sal pulled up to the station, parked, and opened the back door for his two passengers. They got out with much effort and followed him inside.
Sal led them through the desolate station to the large meeting room where the map and the tacks remained from the last time he was in there. He offered them coffee or water, and they accepted gratefully. They sat in the room staring at the map, curious as to what all the colored pushpins represented.
Once Sal returned with their drinks and an added bonus of some stale cookies he informed them of what the different colored pins stood for. Sal asked them if they could add any to the map, but they declined.
"You'd be out of pins," Clem said, munching on a crunchy cookie.
"Well, if you want to add a few, by all means, go ahead," Sal suggested, waving his hand across the map.
Clem and Danni nodded, too busy stuffing their faces to respond with words.
"You two just sit tight for a bit till the Sheriff shows up. He wants to talk to you two, should be here in a few. If you want more to drink or eat, the pantry is right around that bend." He pointed and said, "first door on the left---help yourself."
"I think we might," Danni said. "Thank you."
Sal smiled, and left the room. Clem stared at the map and decided to add a few more tacks. Once he was done, he pictured connecting the dots with an imaginary red line. The line made a crooked trail to New Haven.
Danni pinched her nose softly. It was tender to the touch and swollen, as were parts of her face. Her front teeth were somewhat numb feeling, but felt firmly in place---she was thankful for that much.
She got up and began to wander around, hoping to find the ladies room. She found the pantry, grabbed another cookie, and continued to wander. She eventually found the ladies room, and looked at herself in the mirror. She remembered the last time she found herself in a new place looking into a mirror and trying to figure out who was looking back at her.
This time she had no clue. She couldn't recognize the woman looking back at all. She was hardened, with tight lips and sunken eyes, dirty skin, oily hair, thick eyebrows and not a trace of make-up. The end of the world didn't do her looks any justice. She looked like a scrawny Sigourney Weaver from the Aliens movies but without the strong will, and the nerves of steel. She looked as dead as the things she ran from, and she was just as hungry.
She cleaned herself off in the sink as best she could. And when she returned her eyes to the mirror her appearance wasn't much better. She flipped herself the bird and left the room.
Left alone, Clem had fallen asleep in his chair. His head hung back and to the right, and any second he would start to snore. Danni didn't wake him. She just sat next to him and crossed her arms over her chest, put her head down and quickly joined him. In the span of a few minutes they were both snoring. They managed about twenty minutes of sleep before Sheriff Davis came in and dropped his notepad on the table, and pulled up a chair.
"Morning," Davis said sarcastically.
Danni lifted her head up and with squinty eyes replied, "its morning already?"
"Might as well be," Davis said.
Danni nudged Clem, who still hadn't woken up, on the arm. He'd never been a deep sleeper, but lately he'd been able to sleep through just about anything.
"Whuh---Oh! Hey," Clem said groggily, wiping drool from the corner of his mouth.
"Now that you're both up, I'm just going to cut to the chase. If you're staying in town, I need to know your names and what you can do. If you can't do anything then you can leave. Every one who stays in New Haven does something for New Haven."
"I can respect that," Clem said. "But I'm not sure what use I can be. I've had every shit job under the sun, but I ain't getting any younger." He looked genuinely saddened by his own words. "Name's Clem."
Danni rubbed his arm gently as he spoke, staring at Davis. She felt like she was being judged. "I'm Danielle---everyone calls me Danni, though. There's not much I can do. I was going to school---didn't really know what I wanted to do, and now it doesn't matter."
"So I should put you down for nothing?" Davis asked.
"I'll try to do whatever it is you want from me," she replied, hoping any request would be within reason, and hoping the world wasn't as dark as the back of her mind.
"Can you dig ditches and learn how to shoot?"
"Sounds easy enough," Danni replied.
"Good, you'll start tomorrow."
"Okay."
"Clem... I take it with all your shit jobs over the years you've learned how to be handy?"
"I'd say so. I'm no MacGuyver, but I get by all right," he managed.
"Good, same deal---you'll start tomorrow. Both of you rest up today. Eat, drink, and clean yourselves up. I'll see if I can get you both some clothes and a decent dinner. Till then have at whatever's lying around. There're holding cells in the back, feel free to get some sleep in one of them till we can find you both something a bit more permanent," he said as he stood up to leave.
"Thanks, uh...," Clem muttered.
"Bruce---Bruce Davis," he said, and then walked out.
"Thanks Bruce," Clem said, still with a sad look etched into his face.
***
Davis brought clothes and dinner for his latest guests. They were grateful, and showed him as much by attacking the foil-wrapped plates with a ferocious hunger usually only seen by the dead things stalking the earth. Davis wanted to laugh, but choked it back and replaced it with something closer to sorrow.
Davis apologized for taking so long, but with all the running around he was doing he couldn't be bothered by thinking of dinner, and certainly not anyone else's. They figured he forgot but were happy to see him show up with two plates full of food even if it was hours past any respectable dinnertime and cold.
His face wore the beatings of the day and he didn't try to hide it. He fell asleep in the chair, and Clem and Danni didn't notice till they had licked their plates clean and sucked the remains from their fingertips. They let him catch a nap while they took a closer look at the clothes. Danni left to put hers on, and after a second thought, Clem did the same. He'd hate for the sheriff to wake up and catch an eyeful of Clem's old ball bag.
CHAPTER 25: Dead reckoning
New Haven.
The next day.
Dane had a few hours before he was due to report to Davis. He and Susan remained comfortably entwined on the bed and in between the sheets. Cher, the little cute and cuddly mutt that she was, sat at the foot of the bed as usual. She watched them with fond disinterest.
Dane rubbed Susan's lower back and kissed her shoulder. She moaned with that sleepy soft voice she so often woke up with. She rubbed his hand, eager to relive last night's brief but still-damn-good escapade, and Dane took it as invitation to something more. He leaned in closer to her, leaving a trail of soft kisses from her shoulder to her neck. She giggled once he got to her earlobe: she always did, and Dane loved it. His free arm reached up her side, slithering ever closer to her breast as his mouth found his way to hers, and just before he could start to work her nipple she turned her head.
"Ugh, morning breath," she groaned.
"Real nice," Dane replied.
"If you want any more of this," she spun around, "you're going to brush your teeth and get into the shower, before I change my mind."
Usually Dane would argue, or put up a fight, or just throw her down till she herself wanted it bad enough to put up with the bad breath or the stench of a long day. But these days were different.
He hopped out of bed with a bounce in his body that could only be brought on the by the promise of sex. He tossed his shirt off and to the floor as he headed to the bathroom. He grabbed his toothbrush and went to work.
"You could use some brushing to bee-yotch," he said as he brushed his teeth.
She joined him, and like a dog he began to hump her leg. She put up with it, allowing him to grow hard, as a dribble of foamy toothpaste fell from his mouth. A spit and a rinse later they were both in th
e shower feeling each other up. Dane rubbed his hard prick against her leg as he worked her clit with his other hand. She held his hand firmly as his fingers probed deep inside her and each time he was about to pull out she'd force his fingers back inside. He stopped rubbing his member against her leg and grabbed her breast. He grabbed it hard and pinched the nipple so it stood at full attention. Susan spun around and grabbed his prick, soaping it up and working his balls as he kissed her neck and sucked on her nipples.
They worked each other hard till they were both about ready to burst. Then Susan spun around again, giving Dane her back. Being careful not to slip, Dane eased his member into Susan. She took all of him, moaning and sliding back, sticking her ass up. Dane pushed back, gripping the slope of her hips. They both moaned and grunted, giving and taking. Susan kept pushing back harder, her pussy started to throb. She gripped her breasts tight, kissing her nipples as Dane slid in and out. Susan let out an orgasmic scream, unable to hold out any longer Dane followed behind. They both bucked and trembled as they came together, every movement a tremor.
They came down from their sexual high together, kissing softly under the quickly cooling water as Dane's cum trickled down her leg, spiraling down the drain.
***
Eddie scribbled his thoughts into his spiral bound notebook of a journal. He tried to write in it as often as possible, but the last few days had been so hectic he hadn't even given it a thought. Today was the first day in a long time he could remember where he awoke calmly, and had some time to think instead of just react. He thought about all he'd seen over the last few days and wrote it down, hoping in some way that it would make more sense on paper than it did in his head---it didn't of course, but he hoped it might.
Janice pretended to sleep. She had slept some during the night, not much, but some. She peeked through her nearly closed eyelids watching over her two boys---Eddie, as he wrote, and Joseph as he snored. Joseph could sleep through anything, she thought, just like his father. Her eyes started to tear with the thought of him and she squeezed them shut tight.
***
Scott and Judy walked around the grounds of the VFW hall trying to recapture a bit of their former routine. They were walkers, walked in the morning, after lunch, and in the evening. Anytime they could set their feet to pavement and make them move they did. This morning was no exception. The sky was a mix of magenta and morning blue with swirls of torn-cotton-like clouds being pulled parallel to the horizon. The breeze was cool, if only a bit putrid, and gently pushed the blades of grass as it swept through the landscape.
They didn't talk much, but walked hand in hand. There wasn't much to say, and the quiet was a welcome change of pace compared to the last few weeks, and the last few days in particular. Scott looked around, taking in the parts of the world that were still full of life: the trees, the sky, the leaves that were beginning to change. The birds were still beautiful and didn't seem to mind humankind facing their darkest days. They chirped as if spreading the news---'Did you hear? Man's time is at an end.' Scott grew angry at the thought. Fucking birds, what did they know? Scott thought about how easy life could've been if he'd had wings: he could've just flown away when life got hard.
Judy stopped walking and gripped Scott's hand tightly.
"Shit," she said, "look, up by those trees!"
Scott looked toward the tree line, just up the hill. "Is that the only one?"
"Can't tell." Judy scoured the tree line for more of the deaders.
"It looks like its just standing there," Scott commented. Then he noticed that it was moving, just very slowly.
"Let's go tell the others," Judy said.
"Fuck that! Let's go blow its brains out." He walked forward, pulling Judy.
"Come on. I think you're starting to like this shit," Judy said.
"Like it? Really? Judy, that's bullshit. I just don't think we need to tell everyone that there's one dead guy up the hill when we can take care of it ourselves. How many of these things have we killed on our own?"
"A lot, but still---it doesn't mean you have to like it."
"I don't like it, now stop saying that. It makes me feel like a creep or something."
"You are a creep," she smiled.
"Ha ha, very funny."
As they walked closer to the dead thing, it noticed them and stumbled away from the tree line. It nearly fell as it shambled down the side of the hill, stepping out from behind the long shadows of the trees.
"Damn! I can smell him from here," Judy complained, waiving her hand in front of her face.
"Yep, we got a ripe one." He pulled a handgun from his waistline.
Scott took a firing stance. He had enough time to aim his shot properly as the deader stumbled closer. He fired, and the dead thing fell. Scott walked closer to it, the gun in front.
"Scott! Get back here!" Judy screamed.
Scott spun around to look at her as she stood with one hand over her mouth and the other pointing at the tree line. Scott followed her finger up the hill, and staggered backward as hundreds of deader things shambled out from the shadows of the woods.
"Holy fuck," he said, and ran toward Judy.
They both ran screaming down the hill and back toward the VFW hall. The dead things followed in their slow meandering way.
The deader Scott shot stumbled to its feet, unimpressed by the man's aim, and rejoined the horde of dead that staggered down the hill. Many of them were naked and burned---all were grotesque. The morning sun lit the hillside beautifully. It would've been picturesque if not for the dead things shambling through the tall, lime-green grass, some dragging intestines gone black and leathery. On top of the hill, from out of the shadows of the trees staggered many more. In only a few short moments the hill was covered with the living dead.
The doors of the VFW hall burst open as Scott shouldered through them with Judy right behind him.
"We've got to get out of here and get the Sheriff!" Scott yelled.
"What's going on?" Dawn asked, half asleep and stumbling to her feet.
"No time---everyone out! Deaders everywhere," Scott hollered.
"Hundreds of them, coming from the woods," Judy panted.
"Fuck! Fuck! Fuck!" Joseph grumbled as he too shook off sleep, along with everyone else.
Eddie and his mother looked at each other. Eddie wrapped his arm around her shoulder and made for the door, escorting her out. Joseph followed behind, grabbing whatever stuff they had lying about. Frankie ran for the door, shotgun in hand as Scott and Judy held the doors open, continuing to yell.
By the time Frankie made it outside, the dead things were halfway toward the hall. Frankie didn't have time to think, only to act. He ran toward the shambling dead, standing between them and the row of vehicles.
Eddie rushed his mother into their car, started it and moved forward. He popped the trunk, and he and Joseph grabbed what guns they could and ran to Frankie's side. They began to take shots at the creatures, but only when they could make them count. Their hands were shaky, but after firing a few rounds their nerves solidified and their aim improved.
***
Sal was riding around town, slowly driving through his old route when he heard what sounded like gunshots. It had to be gunshots he thought, what else could it be? He pressed down a little harder on the gas and poked his head out the window more, as if it would help him hear things better. He heard the noise again, and again. He was indeed hearing gunshots. He drove toward the direction of the noise, and had a good hunch about where they were coming from anyway.
As he approached the VFW hall, he could see the dead things coming from the woods and down the hill. They were everywhere. The morning sun highlighted their ghastly wounds, illuminating the gore in a golden glow.
"Calling all units, calling all units---requesting immediate assistance at the Hillside VFW. Bring anything and anyone...the shit has hit the fan," Sal squawked over the ham radio.
He drove his cruiser right up the lawn. Remembering Dane's unsusp
ecting bravado from a few days ago, Sal revved his cruiser up and plowed right through a good dozen or so of the deaders. Casting even more of them to the ground. Two of them clung to the underside of the crusier, their limbs growing mangled under the steel chassis of the vehicle. He put the cruiser in reverse and spun his way through a few more. He heard the punishing sounds of flesh denting his cruiser and knew the cruiser wouldn't be able to continue running the dead things down. If he didn't break an axle, the suspension would surely go, and if not that, then something else would find a way of breaking.
"Hell yeah!" Joseph shook his fist in excitement.
Frankie hollered at the storm of oncoming dead as he fired and pumped and repeated. He stood his line in the field and knew the others at his side would do the same. They knew their positions in the ragtag chain of command: some ran to the vehicles in preparation to hightail it, others saw to the children, some gathered the goods and weapons, while others saw to the bloody details of dispatching man's ever present shadow of death.
They wouldn't be able to fight them off much longer, however. Their sheer numbers were more than anything they had ever seen--far more than they had come across on the road, and certainly more than at the school. They were more than an army--they were a sea, and eventually even the best of swimmers will die in the ocean if stuck there long enough.
With Janice somewhat-safely in her car, Eddie ran to his brother's side with his weapon drawn. Eddie took a breath, picked a target, and fired. The anxiety left his body and coursed through the barrel of his gun as a bullet. He hit his mark, it was far from a perfect shot, but it was good enough. The dead things head slumped back, and the rest of its body collapsed, tripping up a couple of the creatures behind it.
