“Jesus H. Christ! Billy, what in the world was that?” asked Jude in a low voice. “I know the guys said they saw it, but Jesus hearing it and seeing it are two different things.”
“I know, buddy,” said Billy. “Did you see how when they’re freed they go right into digging mode? This thing has to be some sort of exotic weapon that got loose. That behavior has to be part of the weapon. But what kind of person would invent something like this?”
“Hell, Billy, what kind of person invented nuclear weapons and chemical weapons. It was probably us. Some lunatic in the Pentagon was probably worried about the Chinese or whoever and let this loose accidentally. It doesn’t matter now though. We’ve seen what you came to see. My house is only about a mile from here. Let’s get going while they are busy doing their thing.”
“One last look, buddy,” said Billy.
Billy didn’t wait for a response from his friend and climbed back to the top of the roof. He saw another grave was nearly emptied and his stomach flipped as he saw a small coffin come to the surface.
“Oh no,” he said out loud.
The coffin lid was ripped away and he saw a small child with a bonnet arise. It was a girl of about ten in a blue dress. Billy watched her first awkward movements as she walked for the first time in God knew how long. Through his binoculars he saw her dead eyes and the way the flesh seemed loose and waxy on her face. With tears in his eyes he put down the binoculars and brought his rifle to his shoulder. He only has a dozen rounds left, but he didn’t care. Jude put a hand on the barrel to try and stop him.
“Buddy, don’t please. They will hear the shot and come looking.”
“They’ll never know where it came from,” said Billy. “And even if they do, we’ll be long gone by the time they get here. I’m not leaving her to that existence.”
He looked through his scope and found her head in the crosshairs. He said a quick prayer and then with the tears stinging in his eyes he pulled the trigger. The bullet blew out the back of her head and the small figure fell to the ground. It caused a small ripple of movement among the others, but they quickly went back to work.
“Now we can go,” said Billy. “That’s one soul at least that won’t eat human flesh. Those bastards won’t get her anyway.”
Chapter Nineteen
They made their way down the ladder quickly, but carefully. As always, Jude was afraid of the cliché “sprained ankle of death” that he always saw in the movies. Once on the ground, they began the last leg of the journey to Jude’s home at a careful trot. Billy’s theory was to keep moving faster than a walk, but not so fast that they would be exhausted if they found themselves in a real chase.
It seemed that every member of the dead must be busy in the various cemeteries of the city because they had still seen no creatures other than the ones they had just left. The town seemed deathly still and silent as they ran. There were still some abandoned vehicles, and especially at intersections, but if they hadn’t known better they might have thought that everyone was simply inside relaxing. Jude’s excitement grew as they neared his house and they slowed to a walk as they came onto the block.
It was hard to tell if there had been any battle. Once the dead became hungry, enough it was clear that they consumed their own. Zombie corpses always disappeared after a while. The old couple’s house in Purgatory was an example of that. And any blood would surely have washed away over the winter and spring. The only thing that really stood out was the occasional burnt out house and the cars in the street.
****************
“There it is, Jude,” said Billy, as they stood in front of the ranch style house. “Should we ring the bell or what?”
Jude shook his head and he took the lead as they walked up to the door. He put his hand on the doorknob and turned it. The door swung open and Jude walked in with Billy behind him. Billy noticed Jude wiped his feet automatically on the mat as he walked in.
The home was just as Billy remembered it and he recalled what a neat freak Jude’s mother was. What he saw now would have killed her, he thought. The once neat and tidy home was a disaster area. If the blood had washed off the streets, it had not inside. The living room showed signs of a struggle and dried blood and gore was all over the walls and carpet. As Billy took it all in he saw Jude stagger to a corner and vomit. Billy gave him his privacy and walked into the kitchen. That room also showed signs of a struggle, although not the intensity of the living room. Billy’s heart sank thinking of the long dangerous journey and all for nothing, at least for Jude. He got up and returned to the living room.
“You gonna be okay, buddy?” Billy asked.
“I’m fine,” answered Jude, but his face was pale and he was visible shaken. “You know I never allowed myself to think that they were dead. At least not until now.”
“Let’s check out the rest of the house, buddy. Maybe they left a note or something.”
Jude agreed and he and Billy walked out of the living room and began to check the bedrooms. The bedrooms seemed to be relatively undisturbed. It was as if they were waiting to be reoccupied. All the doors were open except a small bedroom at the end of the hall. Jude tried the knob and found the door was locked. Hope sprang in his heart.
“This is April’s room,” he said with excitement, as he began pounding on the door. “April, baby. It’s Jude. Are you in there?”
After a few moments of pounding and with no response he kicked the door hard with his boots. The flimsy wood frame buckled and he and Billy shoved their way into the room. There was no one there. The bedroom window was open and it was apparent that it had been for sometime, as inclement weather had soddened the carpet and the bed. Jude ran to the window as if he could catch his sister running away. He began sobbing and Billy went to his side and put an arm around his weeping friend.
“Let’s get out of here, buddy. There’s nothing to see here.”
Jude turned and began wiping his eyes. He looked older than he had just a few minutes before as his face hardened.
“Yeah, you’re right, Billy. There’s nothing to see here. Maybe we’ll have better luck at your mom’s place. Let’s get the Hell out of here. I never want to see it again.”
Billy clasped him on the shoulder and they strode into the living room. Jude had his hand on the doorknob when Billy brought him up short.
“Just a minute, man. Let’s see if the coast is clear.”
Billy drew back the drapes a bit and peered out. He immediately saw two shambling figures in the street almost directly in front of the house. He motioned Jude to join him and then they pulled back.
“We’d better wait for a while,” said Billy. “Let’s give them a chance to pass by.”
“Wait for just two of them?” asked Jude, as he grasped the ax in his belt. “We can take two easy. Let’s just blow them down and be on our way.”
“If we do that it might bring every creature in this area down on us. Let’s just wait it out for a while.”
Billy could see that Jude was getting jittery and he was trying to project a calm image to quell Jude’s rising terror.
“Billy, you just don’t understand, man. I can’t stay here. Besides, if we wait maybe more will come and we promised Harley we’d meet him at your place tonight.”
“Okay, buddy, but let’s go out the back way. We can jump a few fences and cut across a few blocks that way.”
Jude eagerly agreed and they went through the kitchen to the rear door. Billy scanned the yard and didn’t see anything. They went through the back door into the yard. The pool in the back yard was filled with brackish water and it smelled horrible. Billy wrinkled his nose in disgust. He was about to move towards the fence when Jude’s hand came down on his shoulder.
“Dude, the ladder is gone,” said Jude pointing at the huge tree in the middle of the yard.”
“What ladder? What are you talking about?”
“The tree house ladder. Don’t you remember? It’s gone.”
Suddenly, Bil
ly did remember. Jude’s father had built a tree house for Jude and his friend’s years ago. It was a sturdy structure lovingly built to last. Billy and Jude and the guys had spent many happy days and nights in the tree house. They had used a knotted rope to reach it at first, but Jude’s mother had worried that some one would fall so Jude’s dad had purchased a rope ladder with steps. The rope was nylon and the steps were molded plastic. It was designed to last forever and it could never have disintegrated since they had left last fall.
“Maybe somebody took it,” suggested Billy.
“No,” said Jude, gazing through the foliage. “It’s still attached to the tree house. I can see it. Someone has pulled it in like we used to do at night.”
Billy took a closer look and realized that Jude was right. He could see the ladder was indeed pulled into the structure. There was only one way to do that.
“Someone’s in there,” Billy muttered under his breath.
“What should we do?” asked Jude.
“I’m not sure, but we’re not leaving until we get a look inside. Maybe you can stand on my shoulders and get a grip on a branch.”
Jude frowned at that idea. The structure was pretty high up and he didn’t relish going up the hard way. He had been scared enough when he was younger using the ladder. He was about to suggest an alternative when they heard a small thin voice.
“Please, just go away and don’t hurt us.”
It was the voice of a teenage girl. She sounded scared and neither of the guys blamed her.
“We’re not going anywhere. Don’t worry we won’t hurt you. We just want to talk to you,” said Billy. “This is our hometown and we just made it back. You can trust us.”
They heard a bitter laugh come from the tree house.
“There’s no trust left in the world,” the girl said. She was still hidden from view, but she could obviously see them. “Just go away.”
“This is my house, girl, and I’ll leave when I’m ready. Do you read me?” asked Jude.
“Oh my God. Jude? Is that really you?” asked the girl.
“It’s really me. Who are you?”
In answer the rope ladder was thrown down. They didn’t trust the ladder with both of them so Jude went first. As he disappeared into the tree house, Billy followed. Once inside he immediately pulled the ladder back up. From the expression on the girl’s face he had done the right thing.
Jude was seated on the floor next to a teenage girl who looked to be about seventeen. Next to her was a smaller girl of about thirteen years, Billy judged. They were both slender and blonde. It was hard to tell in the gloom of the interior, but he thought they both had blue eyes as well.
“Billy, sit down,” said Jude. “This is Penny and this is her sister Rose. They live down the street from me.”
“Nobody lives down the street anymore, Jude,” said Penny. “I still can’t believe it’s you. I would never have recognized you with all that fur on your face.”
Jude reached up and stroked his beard. They had tried to keep clean-shaven at first, but gradually he and Billy had almost stopped shaving. Harley, of course, never shaved.
“Well anyway, it’s great to see familiar faces,” Jude said. “How are you doing, Rose?”
Rose buried her face in Penny’s shoulder and did not reply.
“Is she okay?” asked Billy.
“She just doesn’t talk much these days,” replied Penny, stroking her sister’s hair. “But she’s fine. Having her with me has been the only thing keeping me sane. Plus she can smell out an eater a mile away.”
Rose looked at her sister and gave a crooked half smile and then immediately hid her face again.
“How long have you been here, Penny? What happened to mom and dad? And what about your folks? Why are you here?”
“Oh, Jude. My folks turned and so did your folks. The whole freaking town went crazy, I think. In the beginning there were a few scattered survivors, but we haven’t seen anyone for months and we have learned the hard way that just because someone is human doesn’t mean they are an angel.”
She left that statement hanging and Jude sensed that he shouldn’t press her on the subject.
“Anyway, ever sense this happened we have been hiding and waiting for…Hell, I don’t know what we’re waiting for now. In the winter we hid in basements and garages scrounging for food. With spring coming, Rose and I both wanted to feel the wind and the sun and we remembered this tree house. It’s a perfect hiding place from the eaters. Besides that, I remembered how much your mom liked canning and we have been raiding her pantry for weeks. That stuff lasts forever if you can right and…”
Rose was tugging on Penny’s sleeve. Penny took a hurried look through a gap in the boards.
“Don’t make a sound,” she said with a whisper. “They are in the yard.”
Chapter Twenty
Billy crawled over noiselessly and confirmed what Penny had said. There were two zombies shuffling their way around the yard. Their progress was seemingly aimless. Penny motioned for him to pull away from the opening and he crawled into the corner of the room.
“There’s nothing to worry about,” she said in a whisper. They’ve been underneath us plenty of times and they never find us. I think the stench from the pool water hides our smell.”
“So you think they can trail us by scent?” asked Billy. “We’ve thought that might be true too, but we haven’t been able to test it.”
“All I know is that Rose and I have seen them put their noses in the air like a hunting dog. It’s worse at night, but you guys probably already know that. They don’t exactly sleep during the day, but they are way more active at night. At least around here anyway.”
“That’s been our experience, too,” said Jude. “But if they ever did realize you were up here you’d be treed. Have you ever thought about that?”
“Sure I have, Jude, but Rose and I are way safer here where they couldn’t just stumble on us. And besides, if we were still holed up in a basement and they found us it would be the same thing. And even if it happened, maybe they’d lose interest after a while and go away.”
Jude and Billy exchanged a knowing glance.
“I don’t think so,” Jude said, with a shake of his head. “We were trapped on an island all winter and the zombies had us surrounded. They didn’t go away, it just seemed to attract more of them.
Rose had remained on lookout and she now came over to Penny and put a hand on the older girl’s shoulder.
“Alright, baby,” cooed Penny. “Just keep watching.”
The young girl rubbed her stomach and looked at Penny with sad eyes.
“I’m hungry too, baby, but we should probably wait a bit until we are sure that they are gone,” said Penny softly. Turning to the guys she explained. “Rose says the eaters are gone.
“That’s good news, “said Billy. “And if you guys are hungry we can help there.”
Billy took off his backpack and began rooting through it. He soon pulled out several jerky treats and candy bars that they had taken from the marina.
“Here you go, honey,” said Billy, as he held out the treats to Rose. “You’ll have to take pot luck and it isn’t exactly health food, but it’s the best I can do on short notice.”
As Billy held out his hand Rose shrank away from him and buried her face into Penny’s chest. Penny had a weak smile on her face and she took the treats from Billy. She then offered Rose two of the candy bars, which the young girl took and went to the furthest corner of the room and began eating quietly. Penny seemed quite wistful as her eyes followed her sister.
“Don’t take it personally,” she said to Billy. “Rose hasn’t been herself for a long while now.”
“Shoot, it’s amazing any of us are still on two feet these days. Being on guard against the dead twenty four hours a day would make anyone a little leery of strangers,” said Jude.
“It wasn’t this thing,” said Penny with a sad sigh. “About a month after this thing got started w
e ran across three men who had survived like us. We thought maybe we were even going to be saved, but they turned out to be bad men. They had a big RV they were using and they had guns like you guys. That same night they found us they took Rose and me to the RV and then they…”
There was a heavy silence in the air and Jude thought he was going to be sick, but he fought it off and swallowed hard.
“We got away the next day,” Penny continued. “And Rose hasn’t spoken since.”
“The bastards,” swore Billy.
“My God, how did you get away from them?” asked Jude.
Penny turned towards him with a blank expression and dead eyes.
“We just got away,” she said. “Do you guys want to tell me all the things you’ve done to stay alive in this world?”
Billy and Jude said nothing and both thought of the terrible decisions that they had made in the days since this cataclysm had occurred.
“I didn’t think so,” Penny muttered. “But let’s not worry about that. Do you guys have a plan or are you just freelancing your way around the countryside?”
Jude deferred to Billy as usual and gave him the floor.
“Well, we are going to my mother’s house from here,” began Billy. “From there we are meeting up with two friends who are scouting some more ammo for us. After that, we are going to connect back up with our vehicle and try to find more survivors. We are playing it by ear a little bit, but I don’t want to leave you here. We can help protect you. You can’t stay alive in a tree house forever. I won’t force you, it’s your decision, but I would like you to come with us.”
Zombie Civilization: Exodus (Zombie Civilization Saga Book 2) Page 12
