"It just seems weird that you're talking to me all of a sudden. We've barely exchanged hellos before." Russ sipped his coffee and then took a swig of water. "What caused you to jump from that car and run over to me?"
"I can't explain it. I just got this overwhelming feeling of fear that something was about to go wrong. Then I saw you, and I guess..." She trailed off, shaking her head. "I guess some things have been weird lately."
Russ thought about his dream.
Russ had told her about what his day so far, but not the dream. He promised himself never to tell anyone about that dream. If he did she would probably just stare at him and smile, trying to make him feel like he was normal. Dreams were like that though. They brought out the underside of one’s imagination. He had told her about his car, and that was about it.
It still didn’t make any sense to him why she stopped by.
Lisa had told him about her mother, and about how she had tried to get her freak on with Justin Maddox, who was the biggest douche bag in the town (they both agreed to this). They got a good laugh out of the story. Of course, she didn’t say anything about the throwing up or the fact that she was bulimic. Most people would probably not understand and grimace at her. She also tried to stay away from the feelings she had for him after being with him for such a short time. It didn’t make any sense to her at all, but she felt something. Being with him made her safe.
The server brought out the sandwiches and they were both silent for several minutes. Lisa had a piece of food in her mouth and took a moment to chew and swallow. “I don’t know.” She slurped her drink. “I looked at the big douche bag sitting next to me and saw you. I guess I just wanted to get out.” Quickly trying to change the subject, she noticed a small black mark on his skin peeking out from under Russ’s left sleeve. It looked like a small point. “What’s that?”
“What?”
She pointed to his arm.
“Oh.” He smiled and lifted up his sleeve all the way to his shoulder. It revealed a green apple with THE BEATLES in the center of it. “That’s my tattoo.”
“Wow!” Lisa’s eyes brightened. “No shit?" She glanced at the tattoo, amazed. “I have one myself. My mom doesn’t know about it though.”
“What is it?”
“I’ll show you when the time is right.” A grin spread over her face.
Russ tried to keep a straight face to show her that he wasn’t fazed. In his desperation in high school he had checked out books about dating from the library. The idea he learned was to keep an empty conscience when dealing with women and pretend like you just don’t care. He gave her a brief nod.
“You wanna go to a drive-in tonight?” she asked.
Russ felt his heart pump warm blood through his body, and he turned to mush. He wasn’t going to show it though. Maybe when she wasn’t around he’d dance around in circles, but not now. He’d go though. He’d definitely go.
“I’m down,” he said. “What time?”
“They always have a triple feature at seven.”
Russ nodded. Both of their plates were empty and it seemed like a good time to end the mini-date.
“My dad had an appointment in Wichita this morning and he wanted me to change the oil in his car real quick,” he said. The latter part of that was a lie, but he wanted to get out of there for a bit to conquer his anxiety. “Can I call you?”
“Yeah!” She wrote her number down on a napkin for him.
“Ready?” Russ asked.
“Just a sec, I need to use the bathroom.”
She got up from the table and walked to the ladies room, calmly. Once inside, she went into the stall, knelt over the toilet, but stopped.
Not this time, she thought. I look just fine, damnit.
Lisa washed her hands and left the bathroom, proud of herself.
* * * * *
Lisa had never felt so strongly for anyone in her life –not even her own mother. It wasn’t completely infatuation, though. She felt a level of attraction to him, that was for sure, but there was something else, luring her to him like a magnet pulling a piece of iron. There was some strange feeling of safety that seemed to accompany her when she was with him. What had caused this feeling, she still had no idea.
Either way she liked him, and if she went through with this guy he would be the first real boyfriend in her life. She had avoided a lot of people just so she could keep to herself. People scared her. It seemed that every time someone invited her out to a party she would end up in the corner by herself, trying to look natural. But she never was natural with people.
She leaned back in the seat and tried to relax. The wind was blowing steadily in her face, but she didn’t mind. There wasn’t a window to roll up anyway even if she did.
They were both silent, but that was fine with her –as long as she could be near him, she would be safe. From what, she didn’t know or care, because it wasn’t going to affect her.
The sound of a helicopter up in the distance had been growing louder during the drive. They could now see it up the road, flying low, right above the housing development. He was only about a hop away from Lisa’s home, but he brought the car to a stop. It wasn’t everyday you saw a helicopter flying this low. Aircraft came in through Brownsville all the time, but not like this. It had to be around sixty feet above the ground. Leaves, grass, and other debris flew around in the wind. The helicopter slowed and appeared to almost stop in the air.
“What the fuck?” Russ muttered.
Lisa laughed.
“ATTENTION ALL BROWNSVILLE CITIZENS: WE NEED EVERONE TO REMAIN INDOORS. THIS AREA IS UNDER TEMPORARY QUARANTINE. THE SITUATION WILL BE RESOLVED IN FORTY EIGHT HOURS.”
The helicopter ascended up into the air and flew right over them. The wind had made Lisa’s eyes water.
“Maybe our little date is cancelled,” Russ said.
“I guess so.”
He drove the car down to her house and dropped her off before returning home.
* * * * *
After rolling a quick joint, Justin Maddox backed into the driveway and sat smoking as he watched the sun go down. It sat on the horizon, suffocating as the darkness drew around it. To him, nothing had been so beautiful, except for Mrs. Kelly’s ass. He smiled and drew in a deep breath.
The only thing ruining the moment was the noise of the helicopter somewhere in the distance. He didn’t think much of it. The area was used to aircraft flying over the town. They weren’t too far from Wichita, the beloved Air Capital of the World. He inhaled again.
Holy shit I’m gone, he cracked up. The helicopter drew closer, and it hung just over the horizon. It was about the size of a quarter in the sky. The sound was getting louder, and it was irritating.
“Stupid bitches. Go away.” He laughed again. This time he bent over and clutched his stomach.
But they weren’t going away, they were coming closer, and it seemed as if they were flying lower, as if they were about to land. He cackled again at the thought, and then took another deep puff. His eyes were now as red as cherries.
I’m going to tap Mrs. Kelly one of these days, he thought. I’m going to tap her good. Maybe her daughter too. A three-some would be pretty cool.
The helicopter drew closer, and he could feel a cold wind whip through the air. It was now about the size of a dollar bill, and it hovered just over the neighborhood.
“Whoa!” he laughed. “This is pretty cool.”
A voice, it sounded automated, but it wasn’t, spoke, “ATTENTION ALL BROWNSVILLE CITIZENS: WE NEED EVERONE TO REMAIN INDOORS. THIS AREA IS UNDER TEMPORARY QUARANTINE. THE SITUATION WILL BE RESOLVED IN FORTY EIGHT HOURS. THANK YOU.”
Justin cracked up, “Holy shit!”
8
A desert of dirt surrounded Mr. Van Lou. Most of the trees were dead, some of them with twigs still reaching up to the sky, looking like bony little hands. Mosquitoes fed from every part of his body not covered by clothing –even parts of his face. Sweat slipped down from his brow into hi
s eyes. He closed them, hoping that his vision would clear. Then his glasses steamed over. He took them off and used his Kansas City Chiefs T-shirt to wipe it clean, but the instant he put them back on his face they fogged up again.
A gentle breeze found its way through the night, but the unbearable heat prevailed. He wasn’t going to leave without Libby, though. After losing all four of his kids, she was the only thing he had left.
“Honey? You there?”
The only answer he got was from the chirping crickets. He had been wondering around the woods for at least a couple of hours and he hadn’t found a damn thing. The search party had gone back, but he wasn’t going to leave her. She was out there, alive, and he knew it. Even if he wanted to leave, he couldn’t. He had no idea where he was and had lost all concept of direction.
“Libby, where are you?” he shouted. He could hear the faint sound of a helicopter somewhere in the distance.
“Hi Daddy!” A child’s voice answered him. It was Jason, the oldest of the four children. The boy walked calmly toward him, taking a step over a gray tree stump sticking out of the dirt like a dead body trying to come back to life. Andy could see from the dying day light that Jason’s head was twisted backwards and blood was oozing from his eyeless sockets like thick honey. Jason’s back was to him, but his face was not.
“Jesus Christ,” Andy whispered.
“Why did you let the bad man get me Daddy?” He took a few more steps foreword by walking backwards.
“You’re dead,” Andy whimpered and fell to his knees. “You’re dead son.”
“No, Daddy.”
He heard someone breathing behind him. Andy turned and found his wife standing in front of him, bleeding from a pus filled gash on her arm. Her skin was entirely gray, with the exception of a few black spots on her cheeks.
“Libby?” his voice quivered.
She took a slow step forward. Andy glanced over his shoulder to look for his son, but he was gone.
“Libby? Oh God! What happened to you?”
“I think you should find out, honey,” she said smiling. Her teeth were black, and her voice sounded familiar but distorted, like a guitar that was out of tune.
“Tell me what’s wrong?”
She took another step. Andy tried to stand up but she placed a hand on his shoulder and pushed him back down.
“You’re going with me,” she said.
* * * * *
Donahue sat in the quietness of his car. The sun was still above the horizon, but it looked like it was beginning to submit to the darkness. Normally Donahue slept during the night and he had four officers take the graveyard shift. That obviously wasn’t going to happen. There was too much going on, and the other officers would probably decide to obey the helicopters and stay in their homes.
He found himself thinking of his wife, Jenny. They had been married for just four years and were not going to be able to have a baby anytime soon. Donahue’s last visit to the doctor about two weeks before confirmed his worst fear –he had erectile dysfunction. They both knew what it was before hand, but that didn’t stop him from feeling a horrid rash of embarrassment when it became official. He had been afraid to go and talk to his doctor about it. For a whole year he held out, and then he finally went. The doctor had talked about various drugs for it and had even written him a prescription. Unfortunately that nut of a pharmacist in town was crazy religious and refused to carry that drug, or any sexual enhancer. The closest place he could go was Wichita, an hour’s drive. He didn’t have much time during the week to go. He had promised his wife that he would go pick it up that very week, but now that wasn’t going to happen. He was trapped in the town by a fence.
Donahue pulled out of Van Lou’s driveway. There was a line of four Humvees to the south of him. Soldiers wearing green cammo hopped out and were standing in line, listening to instructions from Agent Hawking. Johnson was standing just a few feet to Hawking's left and was shouting at Alan as he drove out. Donahue pulled to a stop and rolled down his window.
“Woah, Sheriff! Glad I caught you.”
“Need something else, Agent Johnson?”
Johnson wiped sweat off his brow with a sleeve. He was panting vigorously. “The phone lines have been cut off.” He paused to gasp for air. “This is, after all, a top-secret project.”
“How is my town supposed to –”
“It doesn’t matter, Mr. Donahue.” His voice became deeper, as if he had just caught his breath. “We can’t let the word of this incident be spread to other cities, if you catch my drift.”
Donahue figured the man’s eyes were probably looking at the ground as he spoke, but he couldn’t tell because of the sunglasses.
“Makes sense,” Donahue said. He had a bad feeling about the FBI now. It felt like they were taking control of the entire town. In a way they already had. No one was allowed in or out, and no one was allowed to go outside their homes.
“Thanks, Sheriff.” Agent Johnson walked away from the car and ran a hand through his sweaty hair. Donahue rolled up his window and headed home to his wife.
The town around him seemed dead. The cars that would be out heading to the Saturday night keggers were all parked, and if they weren’t they would be soon. The sun was almost down, and the only thing left of the daytime was a streak of orange across the horizon. When he arrived at his home, that streak was gone.
Jenny was happy to see him and was worried sick as he expected. They sat together in the love seat in front of the television, which was giving off nothing but static. He told her everything about the day, and it scared the living hell out of her. Four dead kids with their heads turned backwards, a missing woman, and now her husband was missing too. There was also the spaceship, which was a concept both of them found difficult to believe. But it was there, and Donahue had seen it.
“The television is out too, huh?” Donahue said.
“Yeah, and the radio.” She smiled at him. He was slowly running his hand through her hair.
“The radio?”
“Yeah, I can’t pick up anything on it.”
His mind immediately went to the CB’s in the cars. If those didn’t work there was no way they could do their jobs. All of them would be isolated from each other if they needed help. God knew what was going to be out there if the little green man decided to mosey on into town.
“Let me put some coffee on for you,” Jenny got up from the loveseat and began to walk toward the kitchen.
“No, I’m going back out.”
“What?”
“I’m going back out. I have to. Anderson and Lopez are out there and if something happens…” Donahue’s voice trailed off. He was too upset to argue. The images of those children popped into his mind. He could see the whole room. The blood on the floor, the broken window, the four kids. He could even taste his vomit again.
“What would happen?” Jenny asked.
“I’m not going to let any more children die tonight.” His eyes watered as he walked out the door.
9
“You might want to close the garage door, honey.” Jessica paced behind Rick, who was bending over with his head in the trunk of his ’96 Mustang. She placed her hands on the back of his neck and began to massage.
“Get out of here!” He jerked away from her. “I’m working on something!”
“What if someone sees you putting those in?”
“Then they know I have new subs. How are they going to know where I got them?”
There was a short silence.
“Exactly,” he said. “We got any smokes?”
“Just a sec.”
Jessica hurried into the house to get them as Rick went back to work on the speakers. He had been dating with her for a year and a half and now they were living together. Both had jobs; he had dropped out of school and was working full-time at Joe’s auto, an auto shop on the north side of town. Jessica had been going to school at some crappy community college in Wichita for a while, but she quit because they could
n’t afford it. Now she was a waitress at Roy’s Diner.
She reappeared a few minutes later with a pack of Camels. Rick grabbed them from her hand and took one in his mouth.
“Got a light?”
Jessica took a step back and a million thoughts rushed through her head. Is this what I left school for? Rick had some type of control over her, and she knew this. He had made the decision for her to quit college. He had made the decision to cut away from their parents. What will my life be like ten years from now?
“Hello? Got a light?”
She reached in her purse and pulled out a Bic. Rick took it and lit up.
“Listen honey,” he said. “No one’s ever going to find out I took Russ’s speakers.”
She nodded, staring at the ground. A gentle breeze blew in from the outside and pushed some of her hair into her eyes.
“Are we still going to be doing this ten years from now?” she blurted out.
“Doing what?”
“Stealing people’s things because we can’t afford our own and living in a shitty little cottage like this.” They had bought the house because it was cheap, and there was always something wrong with it. The front door was about to fall off its hinges (Rick had made excuse after excuse not to fix it), the toilet never seemed to flush right (nine out of ten times it would overflow onto the floor. They had been using a bowl and dumping it in the trash after they used it), and there were several cracks in the ceiling that leaked whenever it rained. She didn’t want to live there anymore.
“Soon as I get that promotion at work, honey. Joe is about to fire our manager. He’s been doing a lousy ass job, and as soon as he gives me his spot–”
“You’ve been talking about that for months, Rick.”
He sighed and flicked the cigarette butt onto the ground. “I’ll get it, just hang in there.”
Super Zombies from Outer-Space Page 4
