Ridgetown: A Zombie Apocalypse Novel

by Philip Radford

  "Oh no, no, no. I don't mean like that! Sorry, I should have picked my words more carefully. I mean he's...... Using the facilities."

  Mark looked round at the others and smiled, shaking his head as he sat back down.

  Dennis continued, "I'll get him now, hold on."

  A minute passed before another transmission came through. This time it was Ishaq, using the radio confidently and as a result, his voice booming through the speaker that was currently turned up full.

  "Bravo one receiving. Everything is fine here, how's the barracks?"

  Helen whispered to Liz, "Why's he calling this place a barracks?"

  "If anyone's listening in, it makes us sound us less appealing to attack. Also makes it unclear where we are, people might think we're in an actual barracks."

  "Bravo one, we were worried for a moment. Heard you were incapacitated."

  "That's affirmative Alpha one, I was having a poop."

  Luke laughed out loud but instantly felt embarrassed because no one else was laughing.

  "Bravo one, we've got our friendly here, wants to talk to your friendly. Switch to frequency two, over."

  "That's received."

  Mark turned one of the dials on the front of the radio, it beeped each time as the signal changed. He stood up and addressed Helen, giving her the transmitter.

  "I've changed to another channel that we don't use very often so talk however you want. Just try not to give too much information about how big or where we are."

  She nodded and took the handset from him.

  "Dennis, Scott, are you there?"

  "Helen, it's Scott. Are you alright?"

  Helen wasn't surprised that Scott had taken over the technology duties.

  "Yes, I'm fine. I've not had chance to look at the network yet, there was an attack last night."

  Scott sounded concerned. "Are you injured? Was it humans or zombies?"

  "Zombies. There was a screaming noise that could have been a new special one, some of the guys saw a Leaper earlier on today as well."

  "Did you tell them we've seen them hunting together? I was telling Ishaq about the ones we've seen."

  "Yeah, I told them. How are you guys getting on?"

  "He's cool. All yesterday he kept calling himself our hostage even though I kept telling him he wasn't. Every time I left the room, I came back in and he was sat on a chair with his hands behind his back and a paper bag on his head. I don't even know where he got the bag from."

  The whole group laughed, Scott sounded genuinely perplexed.

  "Can I speak to Dennis? I just want to let him know everything is okay."

  There were a few short transmissions of gibberish followed by a short one in which Scott's faint voice could be heard explaining he just needed to press the button and talk. Finally, Dennis spoke.

  "Helen, have you forgiven me for volunteering your help yet?"

  "Yes, you're forgiven. They're all friendly enough, we might be able to set up some form of a relationship with them, help each other out."

  "Wow! Coming from you, that means a lot!"

  Helen felt her face flush, she hoped that no one noticed.

  "I heard you tell Scott there was some kind of incident last night, is everyone okay?"

  "Everyone's fine, it was quite a large horde but these guys know how to handle themselves."

  "More than at Osiris?"

  "I don't think there'll ever be more than there were at Osiris." Helen's somber tone only made the others more curious. "Anyway, just make sure you guys keep an eye out for any larger groups than normal."

  "Will do. Is Mark there?"

  Mark leant over Helen, she passed him the transmitter.

  "I'm here Dennis."

  "She's not kicked the crap out of anyone, has she?" There was humor in his voice but it still sounded like a genuine question.

  Helen gripped Mark's hand, squeezing it in order to press the transmitter, "I'm still here Dennis..."

  "Oh, hi Helen! Ha ha, just joking." There was a definite nervousness to his laughter.

  Helen rolled her eyes and leaned back in the chair. As she released Mark's hand she suddenly became aware of what she had done and her face burned again.

  "Everything's fine Dennis, really. Are you sure you guys don't want to come here? Check the place out? Ishaq would be able to direct you."

  "We're fine for now thank you. We'll come to pick Helen up when she's finished and have a look around then if that's okay? I don't think Ishaq's quite ready to come back at the moment anyway."

  "Not back on the toilet is he?"

  "Ha ha, no. Scott dug out an old games console and the two of them have gotten pretty competitive over it. "

  "Fair enough. We're gonna have a look at the connection this afternoon, so we'll check in again tomorrow. Might be finished by then as long as we don't run into any hiccups?"

  The final sentence sounded more like a question and Helen was conscious that it was aimed at her. She was caught off guard by the thought of going back tomorrow and surprised at how she felt at the thought of leaving so soon. She acknowledged Mark was still waiting for a response so quickly nodded.

  "Sounds good over hear. We'll wait to hear from you tomorrow then."

  "Tell Ishaq to change back to the first channel for tomorrow."

  "Will do. Stay safe over there!"

  "You too."

  Mark flicked a switch on the front of the radio and it went quiet. Luke started unplugging and disconnecting it soon after, Allister picking up the main unit.

  "Helen, are you okay to come to the church with me and Allister? We can finally show you our setup over there and you can make a judgment about how long it will actually take."

  Helen suddenly felt driven to help and enthusiastic to make a difference.

  "Definitely, are we going now?"

  "Can I come?"

  Luke's voice sounded like a child asking his parents if he could join them on a trip to the cinema. He looked slightly embarrassed for asking but clearly wanted to go. Helen wasn't oblivious to the fact that Luke enjoyed being around her, she genuinely liked him, but she hoped she wasn't giving him the impression that she liked him more than she did. It was slightly awkward for her but he was definitely the friendliest out of all of them and she didn't feel uncomfortable around him, quite the opposite.

  "Might be a good idea, Luke's probably the best person to show everything to. He understands everything IT, that's why we asked him to check out the transmitter in the first place." Mark spoke as if he was asking for Helen's permission to bring him along.

  "Whatever you guys think, you're in charge." Helen appreciated being asked her opinion, beginning to feel like a part of the group again.

  Mark fell back into leader mode. Helen thought that the role suited him and he did it well. He had been abrasive earlier but it didn't seem out of character. From what Helen had seen, Mark could take control of any situation and charge forward, unwavering in the belief that what he was doing or saying was the right thing. It gave him an air of authority that came with confidence. Whilst he was being apologetic, he had come across as slightly more timid but now the confidence had returned.

  "Right, that's sorted. Myself, Helen, Allister and Luke will head over to the church. The packs will still be at the pub so we won't have to take anything with us, just a melee weapon. Liz, can you get an update from a few of the others and let them know what we're up to? I want everyone to stay in the loop with each other. Ryan, are you okay looking over my truck while we're gone?"

  Liz and Ryan nodded in affirmation.

  "Do you guys have melees with you?"

  "Do you mean a hand held weapon?" Helen wanted to clarify.

  "Yes."

  Helen picked up her axe that was still resting on the couch from being left there earlier. Allister went to the garage and came back with a hammer and a screwdriver, holding them in front of Luke so he could choose between them. Luke took the screwdriver off him.

  Mark
picked his pickaxes that rested on the table and motioned for them to exit through the upstairs.

  "Let's go."

  Helen was getting used to all the climbing. It quickly became a normal thing to do, probably because it made so much sense. Such a simple bit of coordination that made it so much harder for zombies to reach them. The only issue was that her muscles were starting to complain about all the exertion. A lot of the aches came from fighting for her life yesterday, but part of it was down to not being used to all the climbing.

  As they exited the building, the estate looked just as busy as it had looked the day before. It made Helen wonder just how close to the edge the community was living. How much food did they have in terms of supplies? They seemed to have stockpiles of different materials, but how much of it was actually useful? Did they have to go scavenging everyday? What would happen if they didn't? They were all questions Helen wanted to ask but, for now, she just wanted to concentrate on the task at hand. It had seemed simple enough the previous day but things hadn't gone as smoothly as she had hoped, so today she was determined to keep her head in the game.

  They walked through the gardens and everyone they passed acknowledged them, saying hello or smiling. It was a friendly atmosphere and it felt pleasant. However, as they approached the wall, Helen began to get a feeling of dread in her stomach. There were noticeably less people towards the edges and it was markedly quieter, Helen assumed to lower the chances of attracting the attention of a roaming horde. Just like yesterday, she was determined not to show her apprehension to the others so kept her face looking stern.

  She noticed how Luke was fidgeting with his screwdriver, clearly feeling as uncomfortable as she was but not being able to hide it as well. They were walking alongside each other, a few steps behind Mark and Allister.

  "You okay?" She whispered to him.

  "Yeah." His voice broke as he whispered back, giving his answer a slight squeak. He quietly coughed and answered again, sounding less scared this time. "Yeah, no probs. You?"

  "A bit nervous to be honest."

  "Yeah, I was lying. I'm crapping my pants if I'm being truthful."

  Helen let out a cackle, louder than she had intended. Mark turned around and gave her an irritated look that hinted he wasn't going to say anything but didn't want her to do it again. She liked Luke's honesty and wondered whether he was being so honest to make her laugh, reassure her or just because he knew he was rubbish at lying. She would have felt fine with any.

  They reached the ladders that lead to the top of the wall and, as last time, Mark went first to check the status of the road.

  "It's clear."

  He hoisted himself over the wall and dropped down. Allister followed next. Luke offered Helen the chance to go next, even trying to insist that she did in a gentlemanly way. Helen eventually asked him to go first, requesting to go last. Luke seemed upset that his gesture was unaccepted but climbed the ladder before her.

  Helen needed a moment to herself before she climbed, she felt like she needed to prepare herself. She wasn't expecting anything like the evening before, however, she hadn't been expecting an evening like that at all. Now more than ever, she needed to be ready for anything, especially with a Leaper being spotted in the area.

  Her place in her group of three for the past few months had become so rooted within her that it almost felt normal. Being with different people made her aware just how cut off from the rest of humanity they had been. None of them would have described themselves as particularly talkative or outgoing but, compared to this group, they were practically hermits. It was very surreal compared to what she had grown accustomed to but she was beginning to like it.

  Working on the car with Ryan and Liz was as close to normality as she had felt in nearly a year. It felt good to laugh and talk about anything apart from what needed to be done that day in order to survive. Talking to Liz had also been the first proper female conversation she's had in months. Not that they had talked about anything particularly gender specific, simply being able to talk about things with a person who had a common perspective was something Helen hadn't even realised she had missed.

  She climbed the ladder and surveyed the surrounding area. Like yesterday, it seemed calm and she knew that it would be, simply by the others deciding it was safe enough to drop down. Helen looked round because she wanted to see for herself that it was safe and to show the others that she wasn't just relying on them to make sure she was going to be okay.

  Allister and Mark were watching the streets but Luke was looking up at Helen. She thought about his gesture of letting her go first up the ladder and showed she appreciated it by asking for his help to get down. She thought the kind of drop she had done yesterday would be a bit dramatic so she gently lowered herself. Luke immediately rushed over to help her and she held his outstretched hand and kept the other on the wall, sliding herself down with her foot.

  She smiled at Luke as a thank you and immediately noticed Mark and Allister grinning like idiots. Helen and Luke both looked embarrassed as it dawned on them that they were both still holding hands. They quickly let go, Luke looking sheepish whilst Helen gave them both a stern look.

  Mark looked at Allister and gave him a hugely over exaggerated smile, tilting his head to one side and held his hand out towards him. Allister responded with an equally over the top smile, tilted his head to the other side and took hold of Mark's outstretched hand. The two of them turned their backs on Luke and Helen and started to skip down the road together towards the church, swinging their interlocked hands as they did. Helen let out a loud sigh.

  "How long are they going to play on that for?"

  Luke found it hard to look Helen in the eyes, still clearly feeling self-conscious.

  "I don't know. If we're lucky..." He set off walking in their direction mid sentence, Helen began to follow, "...Maybe they'll have stopped by next month."

  Chapter Seven

  When they had reached the wall, Helen had felt apprehensive. As they approached the pub she had felt sick, reminded of how close she had come to not surviving the onslaught. Now, in the daylight and without a zombie in sight, it seemed like a totally different place.

  Compared to the pub, which looked quite uninviting with its boarded up windows and doors, the church had huge stained glass windows that lit up, reflecting the sunlight. She had barely noticed them in the dying light the previous day but now they shone like a beacon, something that she found confusing.

  "Shouldn't the windows on the church be boarded up as well?"

  Mercifully, Mark and Allister had stopped holding hands and had given up trying to embarrass Luke and Helen.

  "We've not really seen a need, to be honest. When you get up to the church, you'll see that the windows only start at head height. They let a lot of light inside and they look nice. The area looks depressing enough as it is, if we can add a bit of colour then we will do."

  "When we get back, I'll introduce you to Cass, she's keen on making Ridgetown as aesthetically pleasing as possible. She's like a breath of fresh air sometimes. She likes to grow plants and flowers and stuff as well as fruit and vegetables. She makes figures out of scrap and carves sculptures out of wood. Some of them are pretty crap, but that's not the point. She does little things like that to remind us of who we are. We're not just faceless survivors, we're people. It's not enough just to exist, we need to live as well."

  Mark's little speech caught Helen unprepared. She hadn't expected such deep philosophy from asking about boarding up some windows. It surprised her that he thought so deeply about their situation. She supposed she had fallen into that trap herself. Days of surviving had blended into weeks, into months, routine taking over. Not stopping to smell the roses once in a while.

  They entered the play area and climbed the wall, negotiating the walkway onto the roof of the pub and into the room on the top floor Helen had sent the distress call from. She hadn't really paid any attention to the room last time she was in it but it was nothing
spectacular. At the back of the room were the two backpacks of supplies that she and Mark and had brought yesterday, expecting to resupply the safe house with them. Allister picked up hers and they went back onto the walkway, this time crossing the gap across the road to the roof of the church. Helen definitely wasn't a fan of that.

  The walkway across the road was made up from the same erratic collection of materials as the rest of the walkway and relied heavily on the overhanging trees for support. Rather than make a solid structure that could be brittle, Mark and the others had designed the bridge as more of a floating platform. The trees that surrounded the street had clearly been there for longer than most of the buildings, thick branches protruded from sturdy trunks that had grown over thirty feet in height.

  Metal wires had been fastened around the thickest branches and stretched out like webs coming from the trees, supporting the walkway from above as securely as possible. There was a small gap at the beginning and end of the walkway where it was connected to each building with ropes and cables pulled tight to keep it anchored. The gaps offered slight movement so that a strong wind or movement from the trees wouldn't pull it loose. They had trialed a single rigid platform but any kind of twisting compromised its stability,

  As soon as Helen stepped on the walkway, she felt it move. Although it was simply adjusting to her weight, she was convinced it was going to break leaving her to fall the twenty something feet to the concrete below. She grabbed the railing that had been fashioned out of scaffolding and felt relief at the solidity of it. It had been fastened all the way across and felt sturdy, although she wasn't sure how confident she would have been to put all her weight on it.

  Mark's insistence that they cross the bridge one at a time had not helped Helen's struggling confidence. She wasn't normally afraid of heights but the sheer basicness of the bridge made her question its safety. It seemed to have been thought out pretty well but doubted anyone from the group had had much bridge building experience before.

  She crossed slowly and cautiously but thankfully without comment from Mark or Allister. Mark reassured her that everyone is a bit apprehensive when they first cross it but faith in its build quality comes with crossing it a few times. He did however again suggest that she not put too much weight on it, instantly backpedaling as he thought she might have taken it as an unintended slight on her weight.