by Zuko, Joseph
“Don’t shoot, it will only draw more of them!” Troy picked up the second shovel from the ground and handed it to Karen. She knew he was right, but damn, it was so much easier to put a round between their eyes. Karen holstered her gun and took the shovel just as the two monsters jumped over the dead Salesman’s body.
The two challengers had entered the arena. Troy charged at the first one and nailed it with a perfect swing. The bottom of the shovel’s blade CHONGED when it collided with its face. Karen swung her weapon and it only caught the edge of the infected’s skull, but it was enough to get it to change course and it ran headlong into the side of the house.
Troy swung again and this time he pinned its head up against the wall of the garage. A two-foot geyser of black blood erupted between the shovel and the wall. It spattered the siding with gore. Troy had performed an excellent finishing move. Karen’s infected stumbled against the wall and tripped on a coiled up garden hose on the ground. The creep crashed to its face and Karen launched her shovel at the base of its spine. She hammered down onto the shoulder of the shovel with her foot. The spine cracked and the infected stopped flailing on the ground.
“You all right?” Troy was already moving the body towards the front yard.
“Yeah.” She muscled the tool out from its spine and went to help Troy get all of the dead bodies out of the backyard. They quickly pulled the corpses into the front yard and stacked them up.
“We’ll need to burn these tomorrow,” Troy said as he closed the gate behind them.
“Don’t you mean today?” Karen jested about the late hour.
“Shit, you’re right.” Troy rubbed at his eye lids. Karen picked up the sheet she had dropped when she came to Troy’s rescue and handed him an edge. They unfolded the fabric and pulled it tight as they laid it on the ground next to Penny’s body. Rigor mortis had set in and they had to roll Penny’s stiff cadaver onto the sheet. Touching a dead body was repulsive. Touching their Mama’s dead body was agony.
They slowly and carefully rolled Penny’s body into the sheet. Then they hoisted her up and carried her over to the grave. They laid her down next to the opening in the earth and Troy jumped in. Karen joined him in the dirt hole and they gently laid Penny’s wrapped body onto the cold soft dirt. They dragged their tired bodies out of the grave and stood at the foot of her burial plot. The siblings looked down at the stained white sheet. Some of the coagulated black blood had bled through the cotton fibers.
This was not how Karen ever imagined her Mama’s funeral. She had actually never really thought about her mother passing away. That dark day seemed like it should have been decades away, but here it was. There they stood, exhausted, filthy and emotionally drained in front of their Mama’s final resting place.
“Remember when she took us to see Tool live?” Troy bent down to pick up his shovel.
That day had slipped Karen’s mind until Troy mentioned it. It was the fall of 1996 and they were on tour for their new album, Aenima. Karen and Troy were obsessed with the band, but they were under eighteen and couldn’t go without a legal guardian present. Penny saw just how badly they wanted to go see the silly rock show, so she volunteered to take them. All of Penny’s friends thought she was nuts for taking her seventeen and fifteen year old kids to see a band like Tool, but she did it. That was the kind of woman Penny was. She sat through two hours of ear shattering racket just to see her two children smile. Penny’s ears rang for a full week, but she was a hero to her children and that made the pain worth it.
“She was so miserable. Napkins jammed into her ears and people trying to mosh with her.” Karen’s somber voice rose for a moment as she recalled that night.
“That guy offered the three of us weed and she said, ‘Thank you sir, but we don’t need any marijuana.’ The look on that guy’s face.” Troy leaned on the shovel’s handle.
“And afterwards she took us to get pancakes and waffles at IHOP at one in the morning. She yelled her order to the waitress, because her ears were ringing so badly.” Karen picked up her shovel.
Troy bowed his head, “She was an amazing Mama and all she ever wanted was for us to be happy. No matter what it took she always did her best to show us how much she loved us.”
Karen reached out and took Troy’s hand. She squeezed it and said, “She was a better Mother than we deserved and she always said we deserved the best. We should get back inside soon.” Karen gave her brother’s hand one last tight squeeze and then she forced her shovel into the soft mound of dirt that sat next to the grave. They both swelled with tears as they slowly dropped shovels full of dirt down onto their Mama’s corpse.
Amber sunlight began trickling over the fence as they placed the last scoops of earth onto the newly filled plot. As they finished, the sun began to peep over the horizon, just like Karen thought it would. They had not spoken a word to each other as they worked. They staggered back into the garage, placed the shovels and lantern back on the wall and headed inside.
Karen needed a shower and a strong cup of coffee. She was covered in dirt and sweat. She felt grimy everywhere. She drifted like a dust cloud into the kitchen and headed straight for the coffee maker. She moved like she was on autopilot. She wasn’t thinking, just moving. Coffee grounds into the paper filter, she added a little extra just to be on the safe side. This wasn’t the same kind of espresso machine she was used to at home. She poured in the water and made sure it was a cup or two light on water. She wanted that coffee to be strong. She hit the delay start button on the machine. She set it to start brewing in about three hours. Karen needed to get cleaned up first but she absolutely needed more sleep.
Before parting to hit separate showers Troy gave his sister a hug. They were too tired for anymore tears, but she knew it was his way of saying thank you for the help.
Karen headed for the master bathroom and Troy crept towards the guest bathroom. Penny’s water heater was a little undersized and now it was a race to see who would get the hot shower first.
As Karen passed the spare bedroom. Leon was in there snoring like a yeti.
Lucky bastard! He slept through all that bullshit! Karen wasn’t mad. She was jealous. Jealous of anyone that got a good night of sleep. She felt the same way when she entered the bedroom and saw her two babies sleeping. She fumed with jealous rage, but she reeked and was filthy. She didn’t want to climb into bed that way. She kept moving and headed for the next best thing. A hot, long, steamy shower.
Chapter 18
It had been two hours since they had hit the garage and their projects were taking shape. Rich was a fantastic mechanic and worked wonders as he fabricated a protective shield for the PT Cruiser and Cliff’s van out of scraps of metal. Jim learned more about welding and turning a wrench in those two hours than he had his whole life.
Rich’s first order of business after he switched out the tire for a fresh one was to build a cow catcher for both rides. They needed two large chunks of metal to attach to the front of both cars. So they improvised and took the heavy metal doors from the two public bathrooms stalls. Rich wanted to give the cow catchers an angle so that the infected bodies would slide off and out of the way. They propped up the bathroom doors against Rich’s work bench and Cliff swung a sledgehammer into the center of them. It took three dozen swings of the hammer to get the doors to bend slightly in the middle. When Cliff was finished, he laid them on their side horizontally. The two solid hunks of metal had about a twenty-degree bend down the middle that fit perfectly up against the front of the two cars.
Tina had bandaged the wound of Devon’s leg and had gotten the bleeding to stop. Devon rested on the couch in the waiting room of the office. Rich had an old fashioned popcorn machine in the corner for his customers to eat as they waited and he had fired it up to get the kids some food. Nickelodeon was still running its normal programs, so Morgan, Devon and the three girls sat and watched SpongeBob SquarePants as the others worked on the cars.
Rich had Sara and Tina working to cover the si
de and back windows of Jim’s car. Rich told them to take apart a rack that held air and oil filters. Then they used the metal shelves to cover up the rear windows on the PT Cruiser. An air compressor chugged away in the corner of the shop as the two ladies drilled out holes in the shelves with a set of air powered impact drills and bolted them to the Cruiser.
Rich used angle iron to attach support anchors to the frame and bumper. Cliff and Jim held up the makeshift cow catcher as Rich bolted the stall door to the support anchors.
“There we go, baby! It’s solid as a fucking rock and will still let the air flow into the engine compartment to keep it cooled.” Rich pulled at the van’s new cow catcher and it didn’t move. They continued to fortify it with more bolts and welding on lengths of steel. Since they had worked out the system, they attached the other cow catcher to the PT Cruiser much faster.
The ladies finished covering the windows to the four doors with metal slats they were cutting off of a rack that held spark plugs. Tina would measure out the length they needed and Sara blowtorched off a section. Tina ran the impact drill as Sara helped hold it in place.
Inside the shop Rich had collected old gas station signs, traffic signs and other automotive industry signs that hung on every wall in the shop. In order to block up the rear windows of the van, but still allow the doors to slide they had to use the thin aluminum signs. It looked like Rich was going to breakdown and shed tears when the ladies bolted on a very old Pennzoil sign that must have cost a lot or was difficult to find. He did not say anything, but the look on his face spoke volumes. The sign was the perfect fit for the window so he got back to work and let them destroy his precious memorabilia. It worked perfectly. The window was fully blocked, no infected could get through it and the door still slid open. The ladies were very proud of themselves once they completed covering all the windows.
Cliff and Jim helped Rich lay the last strip of metal support for the PT Cruiser’s cow catcher, but they still needed something to cover the windshields.
“What about a cyclone fence?” Sara suggested.
“You could see through it to drive but the infected assholes couldn’t get in. I like it. Good thinking Red,” Rich said as he rubbed his hands clean with a rag. “Next door are two gates that would fit perfectly. You guys keep those fucking things off my back and I can cut the gates down with the blowtorch. We’ll be back in five minutes.”
“Sounds solid, but have you looked outside?” Frank said as he handed a fully loaded assault rifle over to Jim. They had not looked out a window since they entered the garage and had spent hours making a ton of racket.
Jim stepped out of the garage and into the waiting room.
“Of course,” Jim said under his breath. The parking lot was full of biters.
“We’ve been through this before,” Sara said as she snatched up her shotgun and cocked it.
“And now we’re better armed,” Frank said as he handed a shotgun to Cliff.
“It feels like a waste of our very limited ammo.” Jim stepped closer to the barred up front door so he could get a better look and a quick headcount.
“Any shots fired to bring down one of those infected people, is not a waste of ammo.” Sara stood shoulder to shoulder with Jim.
“We’ll clear the lot.” Frank nodded at Rich. “Then you can come out and we can make a run for the gates,” Frank released the bolt on his SKS.
Rich nodded back. He did a quick test with the blowtorch he was carrying to double check that it was functioning correctly and full of gas. It worked like a charm.
“Stay with the girls, okay?” Cliff grabbed his wife and planted a kiss on her lips before she could answer.
Rich unlocked the front door and Jim led the charge. The four of them came out guns blazing. A tidal wave of lead came crashing down into the zombies. Brains and blood flooded out of their infected skulls as the crew pumped round after round into their chewed up bodies.
The cool early morning air felt good on Jim’s sweaty face. He had worked up quite a lather putting the rides together and the fresh air was nice. The smell of gun powder filled Jim’s nose as the shots pounded his ear drums. He tried to keep calm and follow Frank’s example. Aim and fire and not just spray shots in all directions. With the four of them cycling through rounds they cleared the lot in no time. When the last body dropped, Rich opened the front door and joined the crew outside.
“Alright, let’s get this done. Any of you assholes let me get bit and I’ll kill you. Except you, Red. I’m too sweet on you,” Rich joked as he raced in the direction of the gates and his four security guards fanned out around him. Sara shook her head and rolled her eyes.
Tina closed and locked the door behind him. She watched as they sprinted across the street. It was a towing company that had the gates they were after. Matching tow trucks lined the back lot behind the company’s main building.
Rich got to the gate first and he fired up the blowtorch. He worked top to bottom attacking the hinges quickly. The blue flame cut through the metal fence like butter. The crew formed a semicircle around him as he worked. A few monsters popped out from around the corners of the surrounding buildings. Frank cut them down with a few pulls of his trigger.
The first gate fell free and Rich pulled it down to the sidewalk. A couple more cuts and they would be ready to move. The street they were standing on was normally a busy intersection. Jim was surprised that even at this early hour there were not more travelers out. He thought that as soon as the sun was up, all the still living humans in the area would be out trying to make a daring escape. But the streets were empty. It was a stark contrast compared to the way it was yesterday. Jim guessed that it meant either people were digging in like ticks or that most people in this area did not make it through the night.
“How much longer?” Sara asked.
“Almost got it, Red.” Rich stood up from a squat position and kicked at the last hinge. The metal snapped on impact and the gate fell. Rich pulled it down and laid it on the other fallen gate on the sidewalk.
“Let’s go,” Rich turned off and then tossed his blowtorch down onto the gate to free up his hands. Jim slung his assault rifle back onto his shoulder and helped Rich lift the two gates.
A large horde of zombies emerged from an alley next to Rich’s shop. At the direction and speed the infected were moving, they were going to block the crew’s route back to the garage.
Sara fired two shots and her gun was empty, “I’m out!”
Cliff let off three and then he was tapped out, “Me too!
Frank thinned the herd with his SKS and then it clicked empty. Mid stride he flipped the magazines around and reloaded his rifle.
“Take over!” Jim called to the two with empty shotguns. Cliff tossed his gun onto the gate and took Jim’s position. Jim passed his end of the gate over to Cliff and pulled the rifle off his back.
The zombies were quite the athletes and moved on the humans with incredible speed. Jim and Frank took out the lead racers, but it was going to be close.
Sara tossed her shotgun next to Cliff’s and pulled out her Glock. Jim’s rifle clicked empty and still the pack of monsters closed in. They were thirty feet from the garage. Frank’s normally steady hands were shaking and his aim was off. From a lack of sleep and all of the running, he was missing half of his shots.
Fifty infected monsters stood between them and the garage. The crew was running low on ammo. Another group of zombies had overheard the action and were now chasing down the crew from behind.
Frank’s SKS was tapped out and Sara had hammered through all seventeen of her shots, but thirty infected were closing in fast.
Jim wished he had stuck with his spear. Frank switched to his two Berettas, but even if he was perfect and nailed all of them with headshots it would barely be enough. Sara switched out her magazine. She was still new to handguns and running at the same time made it even more of a challenge. Jim pulled his sidearm and the three of them let loose with their shells.
/> One of the garage doors began to rise and Tina was there at the open bay. She had a spare pistol from one of the duffle bags in one hand and the .38 special in the other. She surprise attacked the infected stragglers and took down ten herself.
When the four of them clicked empty there were only three remaining zombies. Jim held his rifle like a club and kicked his legs into high gear. He raced out in front of his group.
“Jim!!” Sara called for him to stop.
He nailed the first one in the jaw with the butt of the gun and the infected slammed hard to the ground like a wrestler getting clothes lined. Jim took two more steps and swung the gun back in the other direction. It connected and the butt of the gun crushed in its skull. The final zombie that stood between them and the garage was so close that Jim didn’t have time to recoil his attack. The only thing Jim had time to do was use the barrel of the gun like a spear and stab at it in the face. The metal tip of the rifle scraped its way up the zombie’s cheek and tore a jagged ravine. The barrel slid up its face and landed in its eye socket.
Jim yelled out a guttural war cry as the assault rifle crunched its way deep into the infected monster’s brain. Its light switch was flipped off and the creep fell to its knees.
Jim did not slow down. He stomped his boot onto its torso and leaped over its dead body. He ripped the rifle out of its destroyed socket and kept moving. The path was clear and the team headed for the open bay. The metal garage door shuttered and dropped when the crew passed through its opening. It shut just in time to keep the second hoard out. The zombies chasing them down from behind crashed into the side of the building. The metal doors bowed, but they held up under the pressure.
Cliff and Rich dropped the gates to the concrete floor. Cliff reached out and hugged his wife, “Thank god you opened that bay door! We wouldn’t have made it otherwise!” He kissed at her neck and cheek.
