DEAD Series [Books 1-12]

by Brown, TW

  “Where the heck is everybody?” Kevin whispered.

  “Locked up for the most part. Only so-called essential personnel are actually allowed out and about for the time being. You really caused a divide, Mr. Dreon.”

  “And by essential personnel…” Kevin left that open as a question.

  “From what I have seen, it consists mostly of Jordan Cranston’s goon squads that act as the compound’s security team and a few of Latricia Jones’ holier-than-thou creeps. They have been weaseling their way in to power for a while now…and this was the tipping point on the scale. First they manufactured division within our own group, then they manufactured a war between the people that they kicked out and those of us who stayed.” Miriam glanced at Kevin and shrugged. “Sorry…almost got up on my soap box and we really don’t have time for that now. We need to get out of here.”

  “Agreed, and…” Kevin’s voice trailed off as his gaze tracked skyward to the point where he had his face pressed against the glass so he could better look up.

  “What?” Miriam stepped forward.

  “Smoke.” Kevin pointed.

  “I wonder what blew up?”

  “We gotta get moving. You said that you know where Heather is, let’s get her and these people that you say are on your side and let’s get out of here.”

  The woman fumbled in her pockets and produced a set of keys. Unlocking the door, they were immediately hit by the various smells from the fire.

  “That’s not good,” Miriam said as they bounded down the stairs.

  “What?”

  “The fire is in the direction of where they are keeping your friend…that is the propane tank area.”

  Almost on cue, another explosion rocked the ground and sent a roiling mix of smoke and flame screaming up into the sky. Miriam grabbed Kevin and tried to pull him away.

  “I have to try to save Heather.” Kevin felt his lips move, he heard the words, but his feet had ceased moving in that direction. He was no idiot. He knew hopeless when he saw it.

  Shoulders slumped, he turned to follow Miriam. She was rambling on about how they had to hurry and release those she knew to be sympathetic, or at least against the way things had evolved within the compound. Kevin heard nothing except the roar of flames occasionally punctuated by another lesser explosion.

  ***

  “Don’t matter one way or another if we come all this way and leave with nothing,” Rose pointed out.

  Aleah had insisted that they return to their hideout. But before she could do anything, she watched as Rose came her way at a sprint. Getting beyond where the majority of the zombies had gathered at the base of the steep berm, the girl barely broke stride as she jumped and landed on her butt, sliding the rest of the way in a cascade of dirt and gravel.

  When she reached the bottom, the girl proved to be rather smart as she ran for a partially knocked down house across the street. She used the back end of the car that was jutting from what might have been a bedroom judging by where it had come to rest to help herself up to the roof. After a few yells and hoots to draw attention, she ran over the crest and vanished from sight.

  Aleah eventually realized that the pain in her chest was from holding her breath. She let it out in a sudden exhale of relief when Rose popped up from behind the fence of the house next door. She went to the girl and reached her just as Rose’s feet hit the ground.

  “We gotta go!” Aleah had insisted.

  Rose had waved her off. When Aleah maintained her stance on the desire to leave, saying that if Catie was still alive, she would probably be heading to the warehouse complex and might be in a hurry to vacate the area, Rose seemed not to notice or hear a word.

  Neither of them wanted to consider the possibility that Kevin and/or Heather might not be in tow. Still, Rose was adamant about grabbing supplies if there were any to be had.

  Aleah was still trying to think of another way to win this argument when the younger girl simply turned on her heel and disappeared into the house that she had been about to investigate just before that first explosion.

  Climbing through the window, Aleah found herself in a bathroom. The door was open, showing a long, dark, and thankfully empty, hallway. Rose was just vanishing around a corner as Aleah got to her feet and hurried after.

  “It ain’t much,” Rose sighed as she flipped open cabinet after cabinet to reveal a few odds and ends, “but there are a few cans of soup. One of ‘em is even tomato…that was my favorite.” A wistfulness seeped into her voice.

  Aleah hurried over and helped grab the scant items that could be used which included a few foil pouches of themed seasonings like taco flavor and Chicago chicken. If they had to boil more lawn clippings, maybe this stuff would make them somewhat palatable.

  “Just a few more houses,” Rose said.

  “Nope,” Aleah’s voice was firm, “this place was some sort of hold out for what looks like had to be a small group.” She had noticed the one bedroom with the five or six sleeping bags still unrolled on the floor—she had also noticed the two decaying bodies in one corner with their brains painting the walls in dark, moldy clumps. “I would be willing to bet that they hit everything close. We would just be wasting time.”

  Rose’s face showed that she wanted to argue. The small bag in her hand looked pathetic considering that it represented almost their entire food supply.

  They left the house in silence and started back to the warehouse complex. The mood was somber and Aleah found that she had to keep dabbing at her eyes. Hope was retreating faster than she could go to catch it. She saw the slumped shoulders and occasional wipe of the eyes from Rose as well and knew that the girl’s feeling likely matched her own.

  They were just about to cross the road and enter the catacomb of long warehouse buildings when something whistled overhead and struck the leaning stop sign they had just passed with a loud clang.

  The pair froze at first, but then the flight instinct took over as they bolted at a sprint for the nearest building. They skidded to a halt as a pair of figures dressed in full body armor and sporting rifles stepped out from the shadows.

  ***

  Catie hauled herself up and over one vehicle after another. These people had done an amazing job of making sure that the trucks, vans, busses and other automobiles that made up this metallic Jenga puzzle were of a variety of sizes. You could not simply hop from one to another.

  At last she was clear and took off through the overgrown field that was between her and the final highway that she would have to cross before reaching the warehouse complex where she had left Aleah and Rose. Every so often, the thoughts of the bad news she would be relaying tried to rear up. She suppressed it and kept her mind focused on just getting to her destination.

  A few lone zombies had spied her and were now on an intercept course that would cut her off. That was a problem she could get behind. As she neared the first of the undead, she made the conscious choice not to draw any weapon. This poor unfortunate would be the recipient of her frustration.

  She slammed into the frail looking creature with a lowered shoulder. It spun and toppled to the ground gracelessly. Before it could try to roll over, Catie came down with a booted foot in the middle of the face. The impact was more of a squish than a crack. For some reason, that made her even angrier. Again and again she stomped, until there was nothing but a pulpy mess from just above the neck.

  As more of the creatures began to emerge from whatever places they had been hiding, Catie continued her assault. Alternating between yelling taunts and absolute, grim-faced silence, she hit, kicked, and stomped. At last she spun in circles, her anger now centered on the fact that there were no more zombies to kill.

  With a sigh, she surveyed her area of destruction. Bodies lay everywhere; each showing a large spreading stain on the ground where bits of brain and skull punctuated the black, uneven halos.

  Entering the warehouse compound, she could feel the adrenaline burning away, leaving total fatigue in its place. Sh
e entered the building where Rose and Aleah should be and was not surprised to discover it empty.

  Her mind sorted out the possibilities. They could be out foraging; Catie knew they were low on supplies when she’d left them. However, the possibilities were infinite. Perhaps it was time to strike out on her own. It would save her the job of delivering the bad news about Kevin and Heather.

  Mind made up, Catie climbed up onto a shelving unit that was bolted to the wall. It was sturdy enough and had wide enough shelves that she could catch a quick nap before heading north. Her mind began to catalog all the things that she would need as she brushed away at least the worst of the dust that lined the shelf she would call her bed before climbing in and collapsing. That had to be the reason she did not hear anything until it was too late.

  “You there,” a male voice barked, “put your hands out to the sides where we can see them and climb down real slow.”

  ***

  Dr. Miriam Reno had grossly misjudged the number of people who were part of the group ready to leave. Of course some of it might have had something to do with the now raging inferno. She and Kevin were standing outside the auditorium before a crowd of several hundred.

  The coup had been very anti-climactic when it was all said and done. As it turned out, Latricia and Jordan were the main force behind the rebellion. Their only advantage had been that they had gotten to the weapons lockers and armed their side first. It was basic math as far as Kevin was concerned. Thirty people with guns against a population with none was almost an even odds fight, but arm the other side and it was a non-issue.

  “What about The Guardians?” a voice called from the throng of people gathered around.

  “They are concentrated to the south,” Adam Scott, a young man with long blond hair that reminded Kevin of something from an 80s hair band answered. “That leaves every other direction if you want to get away from them.”

  Kevin moved away from the group and could not help but stare with heartbreak at the conflagration that was the building Heather had been confined to. To think of all she had done, all she had become…and to see it all snuffed out so pointlessly. Even worse, she died alone. Kevin could think of nothing sadder, and he had certainly seen his share of sorrow in the past year or so.

  “So, you say you have a spot where you might be able to meet up with others from your group?” Miriam was standing in front of Kevin with arms crossed and a raised eyebrow that invited an answer.

  “Yeah, so that is where I am headed.” Kevin spun and started off, but a hand gripped his forearm.

  “Hold on, brother,” Adam said with a hint of amusement in his voice. “You got nothing. Not a weapon, food…heck, not even a bottle of water. You wouldn’t last the day.”

  “In case you haven’t noticed, I made it this far. I know what I need to find.” Kevin turned on the man and glared at the hand still grasping him.

  Adam released his grip and stepped back with a look that Kevin almost thought might be apologetic. “No disrespect intended, fella. I was just saying that you should probably grab some gear. We got plenty to spare. No need to start off in the hole.”

  Kevin glanced at Miriam who gave a curt nod, but it was obvious that she was lost a bit in thoughts of her own at the moment. Kevin looked around and realized that, while it looked like almost everybody was loading up an assortment of carts and wagons—including what looked like a near perfect replica of an old prairie schooner—there were a handful of individuals still gathered around that showed no inclination of going anyplace.

  “Sorry,” Kevin finally apologized with a deep sigh. He turned away from the fire and faced the man. “I just…” His voice trailed off and he realized he had no idea what to say. The events of the past several days had been too surreal to get his mind around. And now that it was being compounded with the loss of Heather, he was simply speechless.

  “A few of us would like to join up with you if you don’t mind,” Adam said after the silence had dragged on for several seconds. “Got a couple of the guys tossing some stuff in a wagon as we speak. Figure we got about another twenty minutes before the undead start converging in huge numbers…that fire will bring ‘em for sure. Plus, we got enemies in the area…they will be in soon enough to pick through our remains.”

  Just then, a young man of about sixteen sprinted up. He took a few deep gasps before he could talk. At last, through his labored panting, he managed to say, “That woman who done this went over the north wall. A few sets of eyes saw her headed toward the Dorchester industrial warehouse complex.”

  “Wait!” Kevin’s head popped up. He now had a focus for his pain. “Somebody did this on purpose?”

  “Yeah,” the young man spoke after getting a slight nod from Adam. “Rumor has it some gal come in just a couple days ago. The doc had a look at her. Guess she had a stab wound or something.”

  “That little thing did this?” Suddenly Dr. Reno was back in the conversation. “I was there when Dr. Billings stitched her up and ran the tests to see if she was immune. Turned out she was, but I have a difficult time believing that slip of a girl could be responsible for all of this.” She waved an arm in the direction of the fire which actually seemed to be burning out.

  “Then you gonna flip when you hear she is the one who supposedly took out Latricia and Jordan,” the boy said with a shake of his head, indicating that perhaps he did not believe it either.

  “Which way did she go?” Kevin stepped forward, grabbing the boy by the arm and turning him so that they were face-to-face.

  “Over the wall just on the other side of Propane Row…or what used to be Propane Row.”

  Kevin did not wait; spinning on his heel, he took off in a wide arc around the blast zone. As he passed the outer edge of the buildings affected by the blast and ensuing fire, he could not help but look that way one more time.

  “I will get whoever did this to you, Heather,” Kevin vowed.

  He was up and over the wall before he realized he had a dozen people, Dr. Miriam Reno and Adam Scott among them, in tow. Once they made eye contact, Adam quickened his pace and fell in beside Kevin.

  “You may want these,” he handed a holstered pair of Glocks to Kevin along with a small pouch that looked to contain four spare mags.

  “Why would you do this?” Kevin finally asked. “I know my reason, but what is yours?”

  “Despite the dysfunction, that was still our home,” Adam finally said with a shrug. “Of course…a bunch of us was fixing to leave, but that is beside the point.”

  They had made it through the maze of interlocked vehicles when Kevin spotted some movement ahead. A single person was in the midst of at least thirty of the undead. He was initially fascinated by the person’s fluidity as this individual took down zombie after zombie with a series of kicks, sweeps, and shoulder charges. He knew anger when he saw it, but there was something else. He needed to get closer to be sure.

  Turning to face the people who had fallen in with him for whatever reason, he spoke quickly. “We split up and come in from both sides, but nobody is to hurt this person. I want to see them for myself.”

  He noticed some looks being exchanged, but he could not be concerned with perception at the moment. Without another word, he took off at a jog in a wide arc to the right. He could hear some sort of conversation taking place as he did so. They were either deciding who was going which direction, or if they would be abandoning the crazy guy; either way suited him fine.

  Kevin reached the large expanse of giant warehouses and quickly found one with a ladder lying beside it. He chose not to question his good fortune and quickly set it against the building and climbed up. Just as he reached the roof, he spotted the lone figure making its way in between two buildings that ran parallel to each other. He stayed low and followed along until the person stopped at a door, looked around—obviously wary that somebody might be following—and then ducked inside.

  Kevin noted which door the person used and then climbed back down. Just as hi
s feet hit the ground, Adam stepped out from behind a Dumpster with four other individuals. Each was wearing what looked like prison riot gear, and each carried an automatic rifle which he was almost confident enough to assume to be M4s. There were a variety of other weapons dangling from belts and holsters, but those rifles were enough to make anybody pause.

  “Follow me,” was all Kevin said. He turned and headed for the door he had seen the person duck inside.

  Opening the door quietly, Kevin peered into the shadow shrouded open room. It was about fifty by fifty and the walls were lined with big metal shelves that had been bolted into place. His eyes immediately tracked to the figure that had climbed to the fifth shelf and was busily wiping away a cloud of dust.

  “You there,” he barked, “put your hands out to the sides where we can see them and climb down real slow.”

  “If I put my hands out to the sides…I will probably fall,” a familiar voice replied. Kevin could hear the fatigue and absolutely apathetic tone. It was so foreign coming from…

  “Catie?” Kevin stepped into the room.

  The face that turned to greet him looked awful. It was splattered with flecks of dark nastiness and streaked from the obvious tears that had come in a rush. The eyes were red and puffy around the edges and it took Kevin a moment to recall that she had been tested like he had and found to be immune.

  Good thing, he thought. That much splatter, she had to have gotten some in her eyes…maybe even her mouth. That last thought made him shudder.

  “Kevin?” Catie said with obvious disbelief. However, a second later, that emotion was replaced by another and the young woman launched herself from the shelves. She landed with catlike agility and sprung into his arms.

  “I was sure you were dead…or that I would never see you again.”