In the Lone and Level Sands

by David Lovato

“I’m going to be one of those… Those fucking things. Jesse can’t see me like that.” Phil’s eyes watered.

  Francine bashed another zombie that had come her way. “Alan, we need to get the hell out of here!”

  “Yeah, I know!”

  “Tell Jesse I love him,” Phil said. “Tell him his father loves him very much.”

  “Phil—”

  “Shoot me! Before I turn! I don’t want to turn! I don’t want to turn!”

  Phil’s shouting was attracting more zombies from other areas of the store.

  “Come on!” Francine said. “Don’t let him suffer any more!”

  Alan nodded and held up his gun.

  “Will you tell him? Will you do that for me?”

  “Of course,” Alan said. “Goodbye, Phil.”

  The shot rang loudly in Alan’s ears, and Phil was dead. More zombies were moving in.

  “Let’s go!” Francine said.

  Alan rose to his feet. He shot a couple zombies heading into the aisle. He and Francine went to the back of the store and grabbed their cart, picking off a few more zombies on the way. Alan handed the gun to Francine, steadied the boards in the cart, then pushed it toward the front. Francine covered him as they left the store.

  Alan and Francine headed to the car and put the wood in the back seat. As they left the parking lot, Alan looked at Francine.

  “After I drop you off, I’m going to come back and get Phil’s body. I think there’s enough wood here for two caskets.”

  Francine nodded. “Will you let Jesse go if he wants?”

  “I won’t make him stay. If he wants, yes, he can go.” Alan sighed. “It’s been a long day, already.”

  ****

  Jesse didn’t take news of his father’s death well, but Alan told him he was going to go back and get Phil’s body.

  “We’ve got to go back now, if we’re going to go,” Alan said, “or there won’t… be anything left to bring back.” Jesse nodded, tears running down his cheeks.

  Alan and Jesse brought a blanket to wrap Phil’s body in, then got into Alan’s car.

  “I’m sorry about your parents, Jesse,” Alan said. Jesse didn’t look away from the window.

  When they arrived, Alan grabbed a cart similar to the one they used for the wood, and led Jesse through the store. There were a handful of zombies around the area where Phil had fallen.

  “You fuckers,” Jesse said. He raised his shovel and advanced on the zombies. “Get away from him!”

  “Jesse,” Alan said, “be careful!”

  Alan shot two zombies. Jesse hit a third over the head. It went down and stopped moving. Alan shot at another zombie, killing it with the last of his ammo.

  Jesse moved toward Phil’s body, but the zombie he had knocked down grabbed his ankle. He yelled in surprise. Alan grabbed a sledgehammer from a rack and smashed the zombie’s head. He looked at Jesse, who was shaking.

  “I said be careful.”

  “I thought it was dead.”

  “You have to make sure.”

  “Okay.” Jesse knelt by Phil’s body. He put a hand on his dad’s shoulder. “Dad…”

  Alan gave him a few minutes, then the two of them wrapped the body and set it on the cart. When they got to the car, they put Phil’s body in the back.

  When they returned, Billy and Alan worked on the caskets for Martha and Phil. Jesse wept quietly as he took some of the extra wood and made three crosses. He found a black Sharpie, and on one cross he wrote:

  Phil Emerson 1962-2013 A great father, husband, and person.

  On the second, he wrote:

  Angela Emerson 1970-2013 The best mother I could ever ask for.

  And on the third:

  Martha James, my loving grandmother.

  Emily was alone in Martha’s room. She sat in a rocking chair by the bed, all tensed up, angry. She had held it in long enough.

  “How could you do this to the family, Mom? How could you? Times are hard enough! I need you! Your family needs you! Why did you think you could check out, unnoticed?” Emily heard footsteps coming down the hall and tried to calm herself. Alan and Billy carried a finished casket into the room.

  “Who are you talking to?” Billy asked.

  “No one,” Emily said. She looked at the casket and smiled slightly.

  “How does it look?” Alan said.

  “It looks great. Alan?”

  “Yes?”

  “…I hope you can forgive my actions this morning.”

  “I don’t blame you for them.”

  “Well, I do. I was way out of line.”

  “Will it make you feel better if I just agree with you?” Alan asked with a smile.

  “Yes, because I was wrong.”

  “Okay, then you were out of line. But I forgive you.”

  “Thank you.” Emily sighed and hugged Alan.

  “Hey, Alan,” Billy said. “Let’s get Martha settled.” Alan nodded, and the two men gently lifted Martha’s body from the bed and placed it in the casket.

  ****

  Alan and Billy dug the holes. They weren’t perfect rectangles, but they would suffice.

  Everyone gathered outside, except for Alan and Billy. They went into Martha’s room to get her. After they brought Martha’s casket out and set it by her grave, they did the same with Phil’s.

  It was windy, but there were few clouds in the sky. It was a beautiful day. Emily, Francine, and Jesse sat in a row of chairs brought from the dining room.

  Alan was the first to speak. He held Martha’s photo in his hand as he stood in front of her casket, collecting his thoughts.

  “Even though the circumstances of our meeting were unfortunate, I don’t regret meeting Martha. I feel blessed to have known her.” Alan cleared his throat. He knew he might begin crying at any moment, but he tried his best not to. “I know I’ve only known her for a matter of days, but I feel like I’ve known her for much longer. She made me feel like family, she helped me learn to move on with my life after my own mother’s death. It’s still not easy, and Martha’s death has made it that much harder, but I have hopes. I have hopes that things will get easier soon.” Alan bowed his head for a moment. No one said a word. Alan turned toward the casket. “I think Martha would want to have this.” He placed the photo on her chest, by her hands, which rested folded together. “May you rest in peace, Martha.” With that, Alan sat down in his chair. Others said a few words after him, and some words for Phil as well.

  Too soon, it was time to lower the caskets into the ground. Billy had found ropes in the garage, and Alan had put slits in the sides of the caskets to feed it through. Emily, Francine, and Jesse helped Alan and Billy lower Martha into the earth.

  “Ashes to ashes, dust to dust,” Alan whispered. He cried when the next words came to his mind, but he uttered them anyway. “I love you, Mother.” He watched as Jesse and Billy piled dirt onto Martha’s casket with soft thuds, and all else was silent but the wind blowing through everyone’s hair that afternoon.

  70

  In Los Angeles

  The rain was still coming down, and Layne and the others were lost in Los Angeles. The group hurried for the nearest building, but found a lobby full of zombies when they opened the door. They headed a few buildings down and found an empty post office.

  They sat together on the cold floor and watched the rain streak the windows. Layne stared at a large map of the city that was on the far wall. It was difficult to see because there was no power. Lightning struck, and Layne used the brief second of illumination to study the map. He wanted to know where they were.

  “Our flashlights sure would come in handy,” Warren said. “But they were in the car when it… You know.”

  Katie was leaning against Keely, who suddenly sat up. “Something wrong?” Katie asked.

  “My sketchbook!” Keely said. “It was in my bag, in the car!”

  “What was in it?”

  Even in the dim light, Keely looked like she might cry. Then she turne
d to the window. “Never mind. It doesn’t matter.”

  Layne felt worse with every word. The only thing stronger than the pain in his heart was the feeling that he was close, that he had something that had to be done, and soon.

  “I’m sorry, Keely,” Ralph said. “For what I said to you, when we first met.”

  “Don’t worry about it. It’s ancient history.”

  Lightning struck, and again Layne used the brief moment to check the map. Finally finding this search useless, he returned to the group and sat down.

  “So when do we head for the prison, O fearless leader?” Keely said, trying to smile.

  “We don’t,” Layne replied.

  “What are you talking about?” Garrett said.

  “I’m not going to do this to you anymore. I’m not risking your lives again.”

  “Kyle was right,” Ralph said. He sounded somber, out of energy. “It isn’t your fault.”

  “Yeah, man,” Garrett said. “You can’t have known what was going to happen. And anyway, you’re the only reason any of us got out of there.”

  “I’m also the reason some of us didn’t.”

  “We’re going to finish this,” Katie said. “It’s not like we have any better alternatives.”

  “Let’s discuss it in the morning,” Layne said. He was intent on convincing them not to follow, but it would have to wait. “It’s been a long day.”

  “You think this place will last the night?” Dex asked. “Those windows are glass, and this is a big city.”

  “Draw the shades. And we’ll keep a watch, as always.”

  Layne lay on the ground, a half-filled mail bag as his pillow, and fell asleep. Nobody blamed him.

  “Well, who wants to keep first watch?” Katie asked.

  “I will,” Ralph said. “I won’t sleep anyway.”

  One by one, they fell asleep. Ralph was left alone. He closed the blinds and listened to the sound of rain hitting the glass and thunder cracking the sky.

  ****

  When Katie woke up, it was still dark. Everyone was asleep except for Ralph, who was sitting away from the others. She could hear a shredding sound. Katie got up quietly and walked over to him. He was tearing apart a pocket Bible. She sighed and sat down next to him.

  “You don’t have to take over,” Ralph said. “I can stay awake.”

  “I think you should get some sleep.”

  “I couldn’t if I tried.”

  “You’d be surprised.”

  Katie took the remainder of the book from him. He reached for it, but then decided he didn’t care that much, and returned his hands to his lap. Katie opened the tattered book and read the first thing she saw.

  “At that time, the disciples came to Jesus, saying, ‘Who is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven?’ And calling to him a child, he put him in the midst of them, and said, ‘Truly, I say to you, unless you turn and become like children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven. Whoever humbles himself like this child, is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven.” Ralph looked at her. “What do you think?”

  “I don’t think anything,” Ralph said.

  “I think we all have a lot to gain.”

  “What could I possibly have to gain?”

  “Friends,” Katie said. “Family.” She hugged him.

  “I’m glad you found what you were looking for, but… I don’t mean to be offensive, but I haven’t gained anything. I just keep losing.”

  “You haven’t lost us.”

  “Not yet.”

  “If we had met any other day, in another world, you would’ve hated me, Ralph.” Ralph didn’t look up. “I might’ve hated you, too. But look at us now. Tell me you haven’t gained anything.”

  Ralph sighed and listened to the storm for a while, then said, “Will you take over the watch?”

  “Of course. Go get some rest.”

  Ralph went to lie down. He was asleep soon after. Katie listened to the storm, and for a moment, she grieved for those they had lost. Then she turned her attention to the future, and wondered about the things they might gain.

  ****

  Despite all of the times Layne had felt like he could sleep for days, he didn’t think it would actually happen, so when he woke up and two days had passed, he felt very disoriented.

  They were still in the post office. Layne was cramped from the hard floor, and felt like he had hardly rested at all.

  The others were quiet, for the most part. The post office had only one entrance, and if the zombies found out they were inside, there would be no way out. The shades were drawn, and little light got into the building.

  Layne was halfway through a granola bar he had pulled from a green duffel bag when he realized he had no idea where it had come from.

  “Who went out while I was asleep?” he asked. The others all stopped what they were doing.

  “A few of us,” Garrett said. “A few times.”

  “We’ll leave the city today. We’ll find some cars, and I’ll get you guys out of here.”

  The others exchanged glances. “We already found cars,” Katie said.

  “And supplies,” Dex added. “Which wasn’t easy. The stores around here have all been emptied. We had to check bodies.”

  “Thanks,” Layne said. “But you didn’t have to do that.”

  “It’s fine,” Katie replied.

  “So,” Garrett said, “when do we head out?”

  “We can leave soon,” Layne said. “We can use the city map to find a route out of here.”

  “We’ve copied our own map. Heads straight for the prison.”

  Layne looked at him. The others all looked back. “I told you—”

  “And we told you,” Katie said, “we’re coming with you.”

  “We started this together, and we got this far together,” Warren said. “Now we’ll finish it together.”

  “I can’t do it,” Layne said. “I can’t risk your lives.”

  “We’re risking our own lives,” Dex replied. “This isn’t about you, and it’s not up to you. So sit down, shut the fuck up, and drive us to the prison!”

  Layne laughed, and it surprised him. The others joined in. In higher spirits, they packed their things, got into their new vehicles, and headed for the prison.

  ****

  The words “Glendale Maximum Security Prison” were cast in iron above the main gate, which was locked. Layne drove directly through it and another gate behind it.

  A path led up to the main entrance of the prison. They parked on it, gathered their guns and supplies, and headed for the double doors. Layne noticed water was trickling out from under them. More came rushing out when he opened the doors.

  There was a lobby obviously not designed for looks. Everything was cold and drab. What stood out was that there was water everywhere. The sprinkler system had been engaged, and was still going. The water went halfway up Layne’s shins.

  “How long do you think this has been going on?” Katie said.

  “Days,” Layne replied.

  There was a desk at the back wall, and to either side was a barred gate. Beyond that, the zombies roamed free. The ones that weren’t dressed in orange jumpsuits were dressed in guard uniforms. They wandered slowly, weakly.

  “They probably haven’t eaten in a long time,” Ralph said.

  “Hopefully it’ll work to our advantage,” Layne said.

  “What if this Norman Peters guy starved to death?” Dex asked. Layne didn’t want to think they had come this far just to find a bony body lying in a cell. He said nothing.

  The drenched map on the wall told them that the warden’s office was in a separate building, behind the prison. Layne decided that was a likely place to find a manifest. He took a set of keys from the desk and opened the gate to the right.

  They didn’t wait for the zombies to notice them. The survivors opened fire, and the sound of pouring water drowned out the sound of their arrival. Most of the zombies fell into the reddening water without
noticing them, and the ones that did notice hardly had time to move.

  The survivors made their way down a long hallway filled with offices. The water made movement difficult, and they stayed on their guard. They couldn’t hear any better than the zombies could.

  They rounded a corner and down another hallway that would’ve led in a large rectangle back to the lobby, if not for the other hallway halfway down, which led out back.

  The yard was also full of zombies, these ones not impeded by water. Layne went outside first, firing at the oncoming zombies, holding the door for his friends. Garrett moved out, followed by Katie. They stayed back against the wall and fired. Zombies fell, bursts of blood and chunks of them flying off. They were swifter and smarter, but the guns the survivors had found proved useful. The zombies were all dead by the time the rest of the group made it outside.

  Layne saw the warden’s office and headed for it. There was another gate separating it from the rest of the yard, and Layne tried the keys from the desk. None worked. “Well, what do we do now?”

  “Wait, you didn’t try this key,” Garrett said. He took a grenade he had collected back in the makeshift city, pulled the pin, and placed the grenade between two bars, right above the lock. Everyone backed up as far as they could.

  The gate blew off of its hinges, and much of the surrounding fence was also torn away, leaving ample room for the survivors to get through. Some of the razor ribbon from the top dangled, and Layne warned the others to stay away from it.

  They reached the warden’s office and tried the door. It was locked. Layne broke the window on the door with his gun, then reached in and unlocked it.

  “Do you think the warden is still alive in here?” Ralph said.

  “I’m not sure, but let’s be careful,” Layne replied. They entered the small building. It had a few rooms in it, all had closed doors.