Dark Days (Book 1): Contagion

by Dyer, Marcy G.

  Her mother slipped her arm around Adriana. "She's hurting right now and doesn't mean the things she says."

  "Yes. I do."

  "Hurting doesn't give her the right to blame Randi. If it weren't for her, we would still be at home trying to survive." Randi's father glared at Adriana. "No. Without your sister, we would all be dead. Or worse."

  "Now you're buying into the drama queen's theatrics." Adriana stared daggers at Randi. "If it's that dangerous outside the gates, why didn't you stay here?"

  "And let your children go without vegetables?" Randi stepped up to her sister. "Leon and I went out to get food. If you haven't noticed, we can shoot deer for meat, but how are we supposed to get veggies? Fruit? Do you want your children to get malnourished? What else were we supposed to do?"

  "Once again you are displaying the drama queen mentality. My children don't need you." She jabbed her finger into Randi's chest. "You stay away from them. Don't talk to them. In fact, don't even look at them. They hate you as much as I do."

  Randi raised an eyebrow. "So, they'll graze on the dead grass in the yard?"

  "Enough." Her father held his hands out in a stopping motion. "It doesn't matter what anyone thinks. Life outside of this compound doesn't resemble anything we've ever seen before. It's only going to get worse, so everyone will rotate taking watch."

  "Not me." Once again, Adriana jabbed her finger into Randi's chest several times. "Let Randi take mine. I have children to tend to."

  He sucked in breath. "You will take watch, or you'll find somewhere else to live."

  "Xever." Randi's mother furrowed her brows into a deep frown.

  "Don't, Faustina." He held up his hand to his wife and shook his head. "We're at the point we must all work together or none of us will survive."

  Randi's mom stuck her chin out. "Don't talk to me like that. We need to pray for those people out there. Not fear them."

  "No, we need to fear them, Mom." Randi rolled her shoulders and glared at Adriana. "No one's in the guard tower right now, so I'm taking first watch. When you figure out the schedule, let me know."

  She limped to the nearest tower and walked up the stairs. No way would she sit and listen to her sister's hateful accusations any longer. It's not like Randi could erase the vision of Leon's body bleeding out in that parking lot. Besides, if she stuck around any longer, she'd take Adriana down and hurt her in spite of the woman's grief. How could she ever make her sister understand? Would Adriana ever forgive her? And how could she ever forgive herself for Leon's death?

  *****

  Josh and Mark spent thirty minutes convincing Jill to join them. Once she agreed to go, she gathered up the medications she felt they might need, and Josh and Mark loaded them into the trunk and the backseat. Jill squeezed into the crowded space. She laughed. "Good thing I'm skinny. Otherwise, I'd never fit."

  "Unless something unforeseen happens, we should get there soon." Josh couldn't stop the smile that spread across his face. "I can't wait to have a place to stay that's safe from these zombies."

  "Why do you call them zombies?" Jill asked.

  "Not sure. They eat other people? For lack of a better term?" He raised an eyebrow. "Or maybe I've watched too many zombie shows over the years."

  Jill nodded. "Zombies, undead, infected, monsters, any of those terms work for me."

  Mark and Jill talked nonstop giving Josh freedom to allow his thoughts to wander. How many of his SEAL buddies were still alive? Big Dawg Dawson, Raider Renfro, Ace Ashford. They'd grown close over the years, but lost touch when Josh didn't reup. He focused on the road and the deer grazing off to the side while praying for his fellow service men. He'd often prayed for them over the years, but not since the infection.

  Josh pulled up to the outer gate. "We're here." He keyed in the code and the door slid open. He drove through, stopped and waited for the gate to shut, then continued to the moat. "Now comes the fun part. Since I don't have Uncle Reg's remote, I have to get across this ravine and lower the bridge."

  "I'll do it." Mark reached for the door handle. "I was a swimmer in college."

  "You're also injured and on drugs. Bro, you can't even raise your arm over your head. How do you plan to swim?" Josh opened his door. "Jill, climb in the driver's seat. Once I lower the bridge, pull across."

  Before Mark moved to allow her out of the back, a voice yelled, "Stop where you are. If you take another step, I'll shoot."

  Josh raised his quivering hands in the air. "This is my uncle's land. He invited us."

  "You'll have to prove you're not infected."

  "How do we do that?"

  "I'll drop the bridge. Drive across and park, then get out and strip. When I see you don’t have any bites, I'll open the inner gate."

  "Fine." He slid back into the Porsche. "Someone's there. They want us to strip and prove we aren't infected."

  "I'm not taking my clothes off." Mark shook his head. "No way."

  "We'll worry about that once we're across."

  A couple of minutes after they parked, a tall, thin, but muscular woman with short spikey black hair and tattoos showed up.

  She glared at him. "I said to strip."

  "You can't expect us to strip down to nothing out here with no privacy." Josh took a deep breath to keep from losing his cool. "Look lady, I'm not taking my clothes for you. We don't even know each other. Get over yourself."

  Mark crossed his arms over his chest. "You don't have that right. Besides, this isn't your land. By all rights, we could make you leave since this is my Uncle Reginald's land. Who are you, anyway?"

  "Randi Martinez. I built the compound."

  An older man with gray hair and a slight paunch walked up and touched the girl's shoulder. "What's going on?"

  "These people say they're related to Barker."

  "Then let them in."

  "Not until they disrobe and prove they don't have any bites."

  "Randi, that's asking too much." The man smiled. "I'm Xever and this is my daughter, Randi."

  "Thank you, sir. Are you letting us in or not?"

  "Randi, take the young lady and check for signs of infection, and I'll check the men." He slid the gate open and stepped out. "Come on."

  The woman followed him. She walked up to Jill and led her to the other side of the gates, but still in the dead space.

  "Have you boys encountered many of the infected?"

  Josh nodded. "Way too many. We're not stripping."

  "Do you have bites or scratches?"

  "No."

  "I'll take your word for it." Xever smiled. "Randi's been out there. A lot. She's scared of bringing the infection into the compound."

  "I understand. You can't be too careful." Josh shuddered. "We encountered far too many zombies."

  They followed Xever inside the gated complex, and he took Josh to the side. "We have a schedule set up so someone is on guard twenty-four hours a day. I'll expect y'all to join in. That is if y'all plan to let us stay."

  "Of course." Josh glanced around the bustling community. "Besides it would be lonely with just the three of us, and we'd be more vulnerable. Put all three of us on the schedule for whatever duties need to be done. KP, laundry, guard duty, anything you need."

  "Good."

  Xever led them to a fire pit in the middle of a circle of tents. He introduced them to his wife, son, and other daughter. The black-haired woman had disappeared once they were in the bunker.

  "Come. Eat." Faustina reminded him of the lady who ran his favorite Mexican bakery in Austin. She took Josh by the hand and led him to a fire pit. "We have venison stew."

  "Thank you." Josh didn't realize how hungry he was until the scent of the bubbling soup reached him. His stomach growled and the first bite of the stew took him back to the days of hunting with his dad. They would wake before sunup and reach the blind as the first hint of the sun shot bolts of red and orange through the sky and return home as the sun kissed the horizon. Tired and dirty, they would open the door to the sce
nt of his mother's delicacies. She always fixed soup of some type on their hunting days. He shook his head to clear his thoughts. "We have a few things in the car we need to bring in afterward."

  They sat in lawn chairs near the fire while they ate. "Thanks to our little Randi we have cornbread. She found cornmeal and the hens have laid eggs, so we're good."

  "Thank you, Faustina." Jill smiled. "This is the best meal I've had in years."

  Josh took another bite of the hearty soup. Nothing had ever tasted better. The venison didn't have a gamey taste and the savory broth made him want to shovel it in like a man who hadn't eaten anything in months. Would they think him gluttonous if he asked for a second bowl? "Jill's right. This is wonderful, ma'am."

  "Adriana made it." Faustina rubbed her chubby daughter's arm. "She's a wonderful cook."

  They scraped the bottom of their bowls, and washed them in the dishpan set up a few feet away. Adriana took the dishes to stow them.

  Josh, Jill, and Miguel, a slim young man with light gray eyes, unloaded the car. Miguel and Jill sorted through the medications they'd brought. "These are great. I've set up a storage location for meds in one of the towers."

  "We couldn't get everything in the store, so I picked out the most common ones," Jill said.

  They followed Miguel into the tower, a large square structure with stairs winding toward the top. Miguel opened a cabinet behind the stairs and pointed out the medications already stored there. He and Jill sorted through the ones they'd brought and stowed them in some type of order. Two large rolling bins filled with weapons sat next to the cabinet.

  Josh inspected the doors. They looked like fire doors and could be locked out. "This is a nice design."

  "Yeah, my sister built it."

  "I'm impressed."

  "Come on." Miguel started up the stairs. "I'll relieve her so she can show y'all the property before it gets dark."

  The stairs ended at another fire door that opened to a large room with a built-in cabinet spanning width of the area. A couple of desk chairs occupied the floor space.

  Josh, Mark, and Jill followed Miguel across to another identical tower. The black-haired girl sat in chair staring out over the land. She looked up when they walked in.

  "Randi, will you give them the tour?" Miguel took a seat in the chair next to her. "I'll take watch while you show them around."

  She slid a jacket on covering the tattoos on her arms. "Okay. There are eight towers connected together with bridges so when you're on duty, you can traverse the compound without climbing down."

  She pointed to a charger and goggles on the counter. "Each station has rechargeable night vision goggles. Solar panels, generators, and wind turbines supply power to the compound." She motioned to the trio. "Come on, we'll walk around then go downstairs, and I'll show you the vehicles we use for perimeter checks."

  Josh watched as she walked off. The woman was easy on the eyes even if she had an abrasive attitude. She had a tan, thin, but ripped body with intriguing tattoos and short, black hair that was longer and choppy in the front. Her eyes had the color of dark Kahlua flecked with gold. Living in this compound might prove interesting to say the least.

  Chapter Seventeen

  Randi led the newcomers to the storage building and ventured a glance at the older of the men. He was a little taller than her dad, so over six foot, had short blond hair, and eyes the color of steel blue gunmetal. Maybe a politician? No, a cop? Some uptight governmental type? Handsome for sure, but a straight-arrow guy like him would run from an intense, messed up woman like her. Just as well.

  The woman was tall and thin, with long blond locks pulled into a ponytail and the other man, Mark, was a little shorter, younger. He had eyes the color of the Texas midday sky and light brown hair.

  They piled on a four seater, and she started off. "We're doing perimeter checks morning and night, but it's not enough." She glanced at Josh. "Y'all know how it is."

  "Yeah. Not what I expected." He looked around the vast area they called the perimeter. "Your brother said you built this?"

  "Barker had great plans. I took those and developed it into this."

  She drove the fence line. Several infecteds pressed against the fence at the western section. "This is turning into a daily issue." She took her AR and put down the five leaning against it.

  Josh checked the fence. "It still looks sturdy."

  "Should be." She pointed to the posts. "They're set ten inches apart and buried two feet down with a foot of concrete. Your uncle had very specific instructions."

  "It doesn't matter how solid the fence is, if enough gather in one area, they'll take it down." Mark jiggled the fence. "Then it's only a matter of time until the inner fences follow," Mark said.

  "Yep, and I've had a hard time convincing the others of that. They seem to think since it looks like a fortress, it must be one."

  Jill's eyes went wide. "Are they crazy? Don't they have a clue how bad things are?"

  "Not all of them, or they refuse to admit it even to themselves. Dad's beginning to understand, but I had to take him out and prove it to him. Miguel understands, but the others think we're safe." They continued the perimeter check and when they got back, she headed toward the gate. "I'm going to take the bodies out and burn them. Y'all should rest."

  Josh followed her. "I'll help you."

  She frowned and shrugged. "Okay. If you aren't too exhausted."

  Mark shook his head. "Josh may run on adrenaline, but I'm heading to bed. See ya later."

  "I'm with Mark." Jill stretched. "Thanks for not shooting us, Randi." She disappeared with a little wave.

  "I won't sleep much even if I bed down now." Josh rubbed his hands together and blew on them. His breath came out in little white puffs. "I'm not used to getting much rest. Maybe after we've been here a few days, I'll feel more comfortable."

  "Whatever makes you happy."

  The body burning routine ate at her. The odor of burnt, rotting bodies wafted over her. She grabbed two pairs of gloves and pitched one to Josh. They pulled the bodies into a pile and poured gas over them. She dropped a match and moved away from the macabre scene. Her thigh ached, and she kept moving to give it some relief. "Where did you say you came from?"

  "Austin. Then Houston."

  What did she say to the man now? She had to keep talking to distract her mind from the odor. A flashback in front of this newcomer could prove disastrous. "Miguel and I've been talking about building some sort of a crematorium that way we don't have to babysit while it burns."

  "How do things work around here?"

  Randi raised an eyebrow. "Not sure what you mean."

  "Is your dad in charge?"

  "I guess you could say that. It's been close to a couple of hours, so we can dig the grave. By the time we finish, we should be okay." They dug the large grave, extinguished the fire, and tugged the bodies into it. Randi avoided looking at the charred bodies.

  They climbed in the truck. She drove back into the compound, parked, and headed to the tower with Josh on her heels.

  The hard, packed earth jolted her injured leg as they traversed the compound. She grimaced as she tugged open the door to the tower. They climbed the stairs and walked to the middle tower. Miguel stood as she came in. "Everything okay?"

  "Lots of infecteds at the fence, so we had to burn them. Sorry it took so long. Go eat before you take over."

  "You look dead on your feet. Why don't you bring me something then go to bed?"

  "No. Go rest a while then take over when you feel like it."

  Miguel walked out shaking his head and muttering something about stubborn women.

  "I see what you mean about needing to build a crematorium of sorts." Josh took a seat in one of the chairs. "Any ideas how?"

  "The building supply stores might still have bricks, but I don't know if those will stand the heat of a continued fire for days on end. If we can't get the temperature hot enough, we'll need to let the bodies burn for an extended perio
d."

  "I'll ask Jill and Mark if they know how. Mark tends to know a lot of unnecessary facts." Josh shrugged. "At least unnecessary before now."

  Randi stretched and stifled a yawn. "Keeping watch and making rounds for hours on end is wearing us down."

  "It should help once your dad adds the three of us to the rotation."

  "I hope so." Randi stretched again and sat in the other chair. "So is Jill your girlfriend? Wife?"

  "Neither. We stopped at a pharmacy to get pain pills for Mark. He dislocated a shoulder when I had to avoid zombies in the road." Josh watched out the window for a few seconds. "She checked out his arm and thinks he tore his rotator cuff."

  "Maybe Miguel can help. He's a resident—was a resident in orthopedics."

  "I'll ask him to take a look."

  She stared out at the road leading to the compound. "I usually spend most of my time here, but I do make a circuit around the complex at least once an hour." She looked at Josh. "I worry more about the non-infected than I do the infected."

  "I hear ya." He leaned back in his chair. "I'm a homicide detective in Austin. Rather, I was. I saw more than my share of evil, and with the world collapsing, it'll only grow stronger."

  She took a swig on a bottle of water. "Need a drink?" She pointed to a shelf. "There's water in every tower."

  He grabbed a bottle and took a sip. "Looks like the place is well-stocked."

  "Your uncle had me take care of it. Of course most of the supplies are in his house." She chuckled. "I've made several runs to stock the camp."

  "Why haven't you moved inside?"

  "We've taken over Dr. Barker's land." Randi raised an eyebrow. "Don't you think breaking into his house and moving this herd inside would step over the line?"

  "We don't even know if they'll make it here. They started from Silver Penny, Colorado." Josh studied his fingernails. "I went from Austin, to Houston, then here, and it took me forever. At times, I'm still surprised we made it." He grew quiet for several seconds. "We almost didn't. There was another young woman, Sierra, traveling with us. When we stopped to get gas, one of the zombies got her."