by David Rogers
Austin said it was thousands of rounds, which was a lot of zombie killing if push came to shove. Their scrounging since Knoxville had not produced a lot of ammunition, not even in the backwoods sticks of middle Georgia. Why, how; didn’t matter. Maybe the occupants of the houses she’d searched had taken their weapons and bullets with them when they left. Maybe they’d not kept very much around. Maybe she’d just been unlucky and had managed to search the few dozen houses in Georgia that were owned by non-gun nuts.
What mattered was the scavenging had turned up food far more often than bullets. So what was in the SUV’s wreck in Ocala was a cache she really wanted to get back. She had no illusions of her ability to go toe-to-toe with anyone in a fight; zombie or otherwise. Austin might manage that sort of thing okay, but she wasn’t him. She needed the pistols to be able to protect Candice and herself, and guns needed bullets.
It was just that simple.
The rest of the things in the SUV had varying levels of value. Certainly the containers of fuel and water were very useful. Cans for both had not exactly been easy to come by, especially for gas. The water was mostly a mix-and-matched collection of soda bottles that had been rinsed and pressed back into service, but along with the water stick’s repurposed milk jugs, represented days of safe water storage.
Gallons of bleach and other cleaning supplies. A collection of useful pots and utensils that had been assembled. Medical resources from bandages to pre-packaged first aid kits to unused prescription and over-the-counter drugs taken from the houses she’d searched. The clothing she’d collected and altered to fit her, and especially Candice. If she lost the clothes, it would be the third time since the apocalypse started she and her daughter would be down to just the clothes on their backs.
She was tired of it. What was in the SUV represented a lot of work to have assembled. She wanted it back. They needed it back. If they got it, they could head south and move right into a safe spot whenever they found one. If they had to scavenge and scrounge, it would make settling down a lot harder and less secure. It would even cut down their options; forcing them to make certain they only made use of places with plenty of convenient scavenging close at hand.
That struck her as dangerous. As the Sandy Summit group had already discovered, as she had seen for herself back in Knoxville with its proximity to Macon, a city of any size served as both a source of zombie problems and to attract survivors who came looking for things they needed. Not all those still breathing were friendly. Some of them were willing to take without asking, without caring.
No more. She was determined.
She was tired of running. She wanted to settle the three of them somewhere reasonably safe. Somewhere they could turn into an approximation of a home, something that offered even a little bit of stability. Candice could use a more set routine, and Austin could use the chance to finish healing properly.
Somewhere that maybe, just maybe, they could ride out this nightmare in peace.
Jessica wasn’t prepared to allow herself to dream, to hope, to pray, for the end of the zombies. But it seemed possible. It would be a monumental task, something that would take a concerted effort by an army; but she didn’t necessarily think it would be an impossibility. If the right people, willing and motivated, with weapons and support, were organized and directed in a methodical plan, she could see how it might be done.
But, as guilty as she might feel about it, she wasn’t going to go looking to sign up. Maybe if something at that level or organization started setting up nearby she’d consider what she could do. But she couldn’t countenance placing herself in a situation that risked leaving Candice to fend for herself. For better or worse, that meant she wasn’t going to be involved in fixing the zombie problem. Even though Jessica wanted the problem to be fixed.
But until it was, she was going to find the best bit of security for her daughter she could and do whatever it took to ride things out. That wasn’t so much to ask, was it?
The zombie population picked back up as they drove into Ocala’s outskirts. She started curving back and forth some to avoid them as they stood on, and staggered about, the roads. Then she had to begin serious weaving to pick a path through. By the time they got back to the general area of where she remembered the SUV being, she was down to nearly constant detouring.
It was no longer just handfuls and clumps of zombies; it was crowds. On some streets, the crowds pushed horde status. Ocala was a typical Florida town; pretty uncramped and laid out in a spreading, rather than rising, pattern; but even so there was only so much room for walking corpses to fit into. Several hundred packed a road from side to side, spilling up against fences and houses, filling in across ditches and yards.
Jessica patiently tracked back and forth for the better part of an hour. She was unwilling to drive into the midst of so many, so she kept circling and probing through the streets; always looking for a way through. She circled the neighborhood she wanted to get into, zigzagging around its periphery twice as she tried to find a way through.
But there were just too many zombies. They seemed to be everywhere. Whatever had happened in Ocala, it appeared only the dead walked its streets now. And she was starting to think, with cold chills and more than a few shudders, that the on-foot escape she’d led earlier had been nothing short of a miracle.
Just as she was starting to lose her battle with frustration, she heard the Toyota’s horn honking at her from behind. Refocusing her gaze on the rear view mirror, and making it obvious so Austin knew he had her attention, she saw him gesturing for her to follow. Out of ideas, she turned the pickup around and trailed the beat up little car as Austin guided it well clear of the zombie populated areas.
He found an reasonably empty parking lot several miles from the target neighborhood and parked. At his indications, Jessica swung around and pulled the truck up next to the Toyota; putting both vehicles’ drivers’ sides facing one another.
“Candice, keep an eye out for anything getting close, okay?”
“Got it.” the girl said, her head turned to watch out her window.
Jessica rolled hers down and leaned out a little after she put the truck’s transmission in park. “They’re everywhere.”
“Yeah.” he answered. “But I was wondering if it was my turn to come up with a plan?”
“Go for it.” Jessica said encouragingly.
“You two wait here.”
“What, here?” she asked, glancing around. The parking lot belonged to a strip mall, and the stores had suffered what looked like a fair amount of damage and looting. Zombies were present, at least ten that she could see at a casual survey. Six had already noticed the two vehicles and were stumbling around to start toward them.
“Not here.” he said with a slight smile. “But, you know, around this general area.”
“What are you going to do.”
“I’m going to go see about distracting the zombies and carving you a path through to the SUV.”
“What?” Jessica said in alarm. “No.”
“Jessica—”
“Not an option Austin.”
“Jessica—”
“We should stick together.”
“My plan doesn’t work unless we split up.”
“The SUV isn’t this important.”
“It’s important enough.”
“Not for you to d—” she started, then cut herself off quickly. Very carefully, she didn’t glance at Candice. The girl had to be listening – both adults were speaking loudly to be heard over the noise of two engines – but she gave no sign of it. Candice had lost so much already. Both her siblings. Her grandparents. Her father two years prior. Her home, her school.
Her innocence.
“It’s not worth it.” Jessica told Austin.
“Yes it is.”
“No!”
“I’m not sacrificing myself.”
“But . . . how are you going to distract hundreds of zombies?”
“I think it’s real
ly thousands.”
“Austin!”
He grinned at her, though the humor was faint and fleeting on his face. “Jessica, this is how things get done sometimes. Risks are part of the deal.”
“Not this one. We can find other supplies, from other places.”
“We’ve found some. This is doable.”
“If I’m in charge, then I say we’re not doing this.” she said as firmly as she could manage, trying to keep any of the pleading and fear twisting through her out of her voice.
“You’ve been telling me for months that we’re in this together.”
“We are! That’s why I’m putting my foot down.”
“Not this time.” he shook his head at her.
“Austin!”
“Jessica, this is the best way.”
“No.” she said, shaking her head back at him. “You don’t have to do this.”
“Give me fifteen minutes.”
“You can’t kill every zombie in Ocala by yourself Austin!”
“I’m not going to. I only have to draw them away.”
“This is not necessary.” Jessica said as clearly as she could.
“No, but it’s the best way.”
Jessica felt helpless. There was no give, no meeting her halfway, in his voice or on his face. He was calm, decided, and resolute. She realized she was squeezing her right hand on the steering wheel hard enough to hurt, and tried to relax.
“Austin.” she tried again. “We’ve still got something like a third of the state between here and where I want to go. That’s plenty of stores and houses and God knows what else where we can find food and water and ammo and everything else we need to keep going. Don’t do this.”
“I’ll be fine.” he said. “I’m a professional.”
“Goddamnit!” Jessica swore, unable to help the oath or the tears that she felt welling up in the corner of her eyes. She didn’t want to be alone. She didn’t want Candice to be alone. “We need you.”
“I’ll be fine.” he repeated. “Now, give me fifteen minutes then head as straight for the SUV as you can. When you get to it, just throw everything in the truck and haul ass back this way before you look for a route to start heading back south.”
“Austin, please.”
“Get to 75 as soon as it’s safe. Wait for me anywhere along the southbound lanes that’s clear. I’ll find you. But if I don’t get there by sundown tomorrow, just head south and I’ll catch up.”
Jessica stared at him. “How in the hell are you going to find us?”
“Bet you anything I do.”
“I’ve got a better idea. Get in the truck and we’ll go south together.”
“I-75.” he repeated, ignoring her continuing attempt to get him to change his mind. “If you move on, leave a sign on the road. Maybe on the mile markers or something. A big one. I’ll be checking as I go, so that’ll let me figure out what you’re up to. Sundown tomorrow, then move on and get past the Tampa-Orlando line and find yourself a good place next to one of the lakes.”
“Just come with us.”
“Fifteen minutes. Sundown tomorrow.” he repeated. The Toyota began moving before she could say anything further. Turning her head, she saw him accelerating sharply out of the parking lot and heading east. Back into the thick of the Ocala infestation.
“Goddamnit.” Jessica whispered. She knew better than to drive right after him; that wouldn’t change his mind. He’d figure out a way to delay her so he could go ahead and play the hero. “Damnit, damnit, damnit!”
“Mom, Austin’s going to be okay isn’t he?”
Jessica closed her eyes and forced herself to take a slow, deep breath. When her eyes closed, it caused two of the as-yet unshed tears to roll down her cheeks. “I hope so.” she said, brushing at her face. She would not cry. She would not cry again. Not in front of Candice. Not over this.
No matter how much she wanted to.
“He’s really good at being tough.”
Jessica couldn’t help herself; she burst out laughing. Even through the impulse toward sorrow she was battling against, she found herself smiling. “Yes, he’s very tough.”
“We should move the truck. Some zombies are starting to get close.”
Opening her eyes, Jessica glanced around, then put the transmission in gear. “Okay.” she said, stepping on the gas. There was a clock built into the radio’s display, and she took note of the time. It was completely wrong – having stopped when the truck’s battery had gone flat – but that was okay. She didn’t need to know the time; she just needed to mark it.
“Candice, I’m going to need you to help me when I get to the SUV, okay?”
“Okay.”
“Now listen closely.” Jessica said as she pulled out of the parking lot and drove idly down the road, sticking to the middle of the lanes and taking it slow. Austin still needed fourteen minutes.
“When I get to the SUV, we’re going to want to be done and leaving again as soon as possible.”
“Right.”
“Now, there might still be zombies around.”
“Austin’s going to take care of them.”
Jessica kept her voice level, carefully making sure she didn’t let her anxiety and concern over Austin’s ‘plan’ color it further. She’d already overreacted enough in front of Candice about this. “He might not be able to get rid of them all. I’ll shoot any that need to be handled, but when there’s time, I’ll be busy transferring all our things into this truck.” She patted the dashboard.
“And then we’ll leave and go wait for Austin.”
“Yes, but while I’m loading everything, I’ll probably be too busy to keep a good watch for zombies. That’s what I need you to help me with.”
“I can do that.” Candice said solemnly.
“You’ll need to watch very carefully.” Jessica said, still working to keep her voice level. “In all directions. If you miss one, and let it get in close, that’ll be very bad. You understand?”
“Mom, I’ll watch really carefully.” Candice said. “I’ll stand on top of the truck and watch real good.”
Jessica blinked at the utter assurance in her daughter’s voice, then smiled. Yesterday, without any sign of a plan, Candice had lost it. Today, with a clear goal and way to achieve it, the ten-year-old continued to find ways to surprise Jessica. “Okay. So that’s the deal. You’ll watch for zombies, I’ll shoot anything that needs shooting, and load the supplies. Then we’ll drive off together and find a place to wait for Austin to get done being a hero.”
“We’ll be okay.” Candice declared. “It’s a good plan.”
Jessica bit her lip, but she nodded back with what she hoped was nothing but reassurance. Keeping an eye on the dashboard clock, Jessica circled around the area – dodging zombies and weaving past abandoned or wrecked cars – until it was time. Then she swung back on course and headed east for the neighborhood that had caused them so much trouble.
This time, she noted immediately the roads were clear. Well, not clear, but effectively so. Only a handful of zombies were still wandering around as she neared the wrecked SUV; the vehicle sitting forlornly in the middle of the intersection where it’d been left. There was a fairly large scattering of dead – really dead, now – zombies in the area that showed signs of having recently been shot. And more that looked like they’d been run over or dealt other massive trauma that left them unable to move.
“You crazy stubborn bastard.” Jessica muttered. It could only have been Austin. She saw at least a couple of magazines worth of shell casings on the pavement, showing that he’d done some shooting. What else he’d done to wreak so much havoc by himself, in such a limited amount of time, she could only guess at; but whatever it was, it’d worked. There was an excellent window to get at the SUV’s supplies now.
“Okay, I’m going to shoot. Get up on the roof and be careful.” Jessica told Candice.
“You too.”
“Both of us are going to be careful.” Jessica
said as she neared the SUV. She pulled the truck right past the black SUV, running over several zombie bodies, then backed up and put the rear of the truck right next to the rear of the SUV. She stepped on the parking brake and double checked that she had the transmission in park, then opened her door and stepped out. The purpose and need to not waste time was helping her override her tension and nervousness.
The Taurus seemed to fill her hand almost without her having to reach for it. There were five upright zombies within thirty feet of where she stood. She brought the heavy stainless steel pistol up in both hands and watched the sight dots slide into view as she looked at the first corpse.
It was a woman, and an old one by the look of what was left of the face and body beneath all the dirt and decay and damage. Long hair that was matted and tangled, though almost half of it on the left side had been pulled free somehow; only stubble and stray strands remained on that side of the zombie’s head. It wore the tattered remains of a polyester pants suit and blouse, though the blouse had been ripped enough to effectively be useless as covering. The flesh beneath the top’s remains was dried and wrinkled, gaping in several places from splits and tears that showed dried blood.
Steeling herself, Jessica looked past all of that as she lined the Taurus up on the zombie’s face. The jaw was making chewing motions, and the deep set eyes were locked on hers as she looked through the pistol’s sights. Jessica exhaled like she’d been taught – by Austin – and squeezed the trigger back.
The heavy forty-five caliber round went right where she wanted it to; through the zombie’s silent expression and out the back of its head. In between it shattered the creature’s skull and took whatever was left of the brains and dried blood inside with it as it exited. Jessica saw the zombie crumpling to the ground, a lumpy ruin where its head had been a moment before, and swiveled slightly to face the next.
The second zombie was younger and had suffered a lot more damage than the first, but seemed no less dangerous for it. Massive head trauma was the only thing that stopped a zombie for good; but equally massive trauma to the rest of it could disable it. The creature might not be truly dead afterwards, and it might not care; but a limb that didn’t work anymore, or that was missing entirely, couldn’t be used.
