Convergence: The Zombie War Chronicles - Vol. 2

by Damon Novak

  To my surprise, the Sea Ray was docked along the end. Everyone was out of the boat, and they were moving supplies onto the dock.

  “What the hell are they doin’?” I asked.

  “Maybe something’s wrong with the boat?” said Georgie, a question in her voice.

  Danny saw us and waved. He then pointed at a boat I couldn’t see from where we were and gave a thumbs-up.

  I drove as far out onto the dock as I could, then stopped and put the pickup in park.

  “I think we got a new ride,” I said. “I’m bettin’ it’s got more beds.”

  “I was feeling a little guilty,” said Georgie, grabbing a bag of ammo from the back of the pickup. “Especially since Danny joined us.”

  “Hold on. They have dock carts.” I walked over and upended a big, green plastic cart. The mold-covered ice chest that had been inside slid onto the dock.

  Rolling it back to the Toyota, we began filling it with ammo and the things we’d gotten from CVS.

  “This should only take a couple runs,” I said. “Let’s go see this new ride.”

  Ω

  I swear the boat was more of a ship. I whistled when I saw it floating there, the huge radar thingy on the top spinnin’, the deck so far above the dock that I couldn’t even see it.

  “Is that a fuckin’ hotel or a boat?” I asked.

  “Glad y’all made it,” said Danny. “Looks like a good haul.”

  “Got what we went for, plus a little more from the drug store,” I said. “What the hell is this beast?”

  “This, my friend,” said Danny, proudly, “is a Dreamliner 26. Four guest cabins, plus crew cabins, and a flying bridge, which I know you love.”

  Georgie and I stood starin’ up at the nautical behemoth. “How’s the fuel? Can you start it?” I quickly realized I wasn’t givin’ him time to answer anything.

  “Funny you should ask,” said Danny. “Harbormaster’s office is right over there, and they had a key for it. Turns out for the big boats they do that in case of emergency and they have to move it without the owner around.”

  “Fuel?”

  “Full,” said Danny. “Topped off and ready to roll.”

  “Ready to float!” yelled Liam. I looked up to see him standing on the bow, wavin’.

  “What’s up, kid?” I asked.

  “I’m sleeping in the crew cabin!” he said, then ran off.

  I whistled and turned back to Danny. “Crew cabin? We may not want to get off this thing. What’s the range?”

  “You’re gonna shit.”

  “Try me. But I didn’t get adult diapers from CVS, so if you’re serious.” I turned. “Did we, Georgie?”

  “Maybe in a few years,” she said. “Not now.”

  “1,400 nautical miles,” he said. “We’ve made our last stop for fuel ‘til we get to where we’re going.”

  “Good,” I said. “We won’t have to hug the coast if we don’t want to. Great job, y’all.”

  Lilly walked up. “This crap isn’t gonna load itself, so enough with the chit-chat.”

  “You warm the cockles of my heart, sis,” I said.

  “Look!” said Terry, who I hadn’t noticed. He was standin’ north of us in the center of the dock, pointin’.

  “That the goddamned horde you mentioned?” asked Danny.

  “Yes,” Georgina almost whispered. “Oh, my God. They’re walking right into the water.”

  She was right. Though they were probably about a quarter mile away, every face was pointed directly at us. Unable to look away from their food source, they stumbled over the foot-high curb and tumbled into the riprap at the base of the seawall.

  It was almost sick, watchin’ things shaped like humans walkin’ off the edge like a bunch of lemmings. One after the other they tripped and plummeted, some hittin’ their heads on the rocks and layin’ still; others managin’ to crawl back to their feet, only to get washed away by the poundin’ surf, startin’ to kick up from some distant storm we had no way of knowin’ about.

  “Shit, we need to hurry. We also got sweet Billie Jo and the ever-handsome Garland, along with their pet zombiegator Chester to worry about,” I said. “I’m sure he’s awake and pissed off by now.”

  “The gator?” asked Danny.

  I shook my head. “Garland. Had to knock him out to get our ammo and suppressors.”

  “I want details.”

  “Once we’re safe, you got it.”

  Ω

  With the wind pickin’ up, takin’ that monster off the dock was a challenge. As Danny said, it was just over 85 feet long and had just short of a 22-foot beam. It was easily 10 feet wider than any other boat I’d driven before.

  We managed to master the thrusters, and before we knew it, we were cruisin’ west, keepin’ a mile offshore.

  Just before castin’ off, and right after pickin’ our sleepin’ cabins, which were about as luxurious as any high-end hotel I’ve ever seen pictures of, we all went up to the flybridge. When I walked up there, I whistled.

  “You’re shittin’ me,” I said. “This is like drivin’ a beachfront, rooftop bar around.”

  The floor was built with teak slats, and just behind the helm, which had an enormous GPS screen, was a three-seater bar. Everything was white, which was a little prissy for me, but I still hoped we didn’t have any blood sprayin’ across the upholstery anytime soon.

  Across from the bar, with plenty of walk-around room, was a sofa that would handle ten people without crammin’ together.

  Right off that sofa was a dinin’ table that seated seven more people in chairs, with the rest sittin’ on the sofa.

  You get the drift. Seatin’ for 20 people, not includin’ the boat’s captain.

  With the weather makin’ the water rough, we’d held our speed down to 20 knots. It was just that visibility got more limited as the storm drew closer, and while I knew the draft of the boat was just over six feet, I didn’t know the waters and how fast the depth changed if you drifted outside the marked channels.

  Everyone joined us up top while Georgie and I recounted our experience in the gun store with Garland, Billie Jo, and Chester. We covered everything, from the massive horde, to the spiked harness Garland had built for the gator, how she’d threatened to shoot Georgie, have sex with me, all of it.

  When we were done, they all just shook their heads. For the moment, our goal was to leave the bad behind and move on to the unknown.

  Ω

  We’d been drivin’ two hours, and as near as I could figure, we were just off the coast of Gulf Shores, Alabama. That’s when we cut the engine, dropped anchor, and heard the sound.

  Danny ran up first.

  “CB, we got company.”

  “I heard it,” I said. “Just gettin’ these.” I held up the binoculars, then put them to my eyes to focus on the dot bouncin’ along the water. It was a boat, just visible off our port side, silhouetted on the horizon.

  “Looks like a cigarette boat,” I said. “Lilly calls ‘em dick boats. Compensation, she says, for somethin’ else that’s lackin’.”

  “Either way, it’s company, and they’ll be here soon,” said Danny. “Gimme.” He held out his hand. I handed the binoculars off.

  “Closer now. Looks like a guy and a girl. Maybe your friends from Fort Walton?”

  “Goddamn, I hope not,” I said. “No doubt they’ll be loaded for bear.”

  “I can’t take you anywhere,” said Danny.

  “You can say that again,” said Lilly, trailed by Georgina, Roxy, and Terry. They all settled into the seats except for Georgina, who had a bottle of Windex and a roll of paper towels in her hands. She immediately started wipin’ down the brass and anything not upholstered.

  “Y’all see that boat coming?” asked Lilly.

  “The jury’s still out, but we’re thinkin’ it’s my friends from the gun store.”

  “That’s not good,” said Georgie, who put down the cleanin’ supplies. “Everyone, grab a weapon. Preferably
a rifle.”

  Roxy gawked at her mother. “Mom! Are you saying we should shoot them?”

  “Not if we can help it,” she said. “But you haven’t met them.”

  “It’s really bouncin’ now,” said Danny. He lowered the glasses. “They’re hittin’ the waves like people who don’t know how to drive a boat.”

  I turned, and now I could see the boat pretty clearly.

  “The guy wearin’ overalls?” I asked. “And the girl. She wearin’ a tank top with the word BITCH on it in shiny letters?”

  “Bingo,” said Danny.

  “Georgina’s right,” I said. “Arm up, if only to drive ‘em away.”

  Georgina sighed. “They’re resourceful. You have to give them that.”

  We’d brought several long guns up to the flybridge, so everyone now had one in hand. Liam was on the television downstairs, ‘cause there was an Xbox, and he took to it like a bee to honey.

  Playin’ Xbox in a world of zombies. Nuts.

  “Hey, the girl’s standin’ up and he’s still haulin’ ass! Wait. What the fuck? She just dropped!”

  “Dropped where?” I asked. “Gimme those.”

  He gave me the binoculars. Now I could see Garland very clearly, standin’ at the helm. Danny was right; I didn’t see Billie Jo at all.

  Suddenly a huge wave formed just off their port side. “He better slow that thing down!” I said. But I could see Garland was focused on what was happenin’ behind him. He didn’t even see the swell comin’.

  “They take that wave broadside, they’re fucked!” I said. I leaned on my horn. It blared across the Gulf of Mexico, but I didn’t know how it would help. I just felt like I had to do somethin’.

  Had Garland let off the throttle, I think they would’ve made it. But if anything, it appeared he even accelerated. I turned just as the wave reached it. Just as I put the binoculars to my eyes again, the wave slammed into the Formula and it went airborne.

  As the big outboard whined at full RPM, and the cigarette boat rolled to starboard, the inside of the boat came into view; that goddamned gator was there, and a dark red color coated the inside of the deck. I just caught a glimpse of Billie Jo, slidin’ across the deck with Chester.

  That explained the blood.

  Next thing we knew, the boat was upside down.

  “Jesus!” shouted Lilly. “CB, pull anchor. We gotta help them!”

  “Help ‘em?” I shouted. “I’m pretty sure they’d have killed me and Georgina.”

  “We’re not them, and we never will be,” she said. “Pull the anchor!”

  “Goddamnit, Lilly!” I shouted, but I did what she said.

  When the anchor was seated, I let Danny motor us over to where the boat was. The storm had now darkened the skies above us, and the waves were kickin’ up beyond what I was comfortable with.

  We got to the overturned boat just as the rain began peltin’ the boat with huge drops.

  I ran out to the rear of the boat. There were some controls I wasn’t familiar with, so I looked ‘em over and started fuckin’ with ‘em.

  The first switch I found lowered a set of steps that had been straight up, like a ladder. When it seated at the bottom of its travel, it became an elevated dive platform with a little teak landin’ at the top.

  “This’ll work!” I shouted, as Lilly stood behind me.

  “I saw a boat hook back there,” she said, runnin’ off. A couple of seconds later, she was back, standin’ beside me. I looked behind me and saw Roxy, Terry, and Georgie, all with rifles in hand.

  I was glad they took me seriously, even with those two in the water. I didn’t have any doubt that if Garland had a gun in his pants when he went into the drink, that he’d pull it out and try to fire on us.

  “There’s someone!” shouted Lilly, pointin’. “It’s the guy!”

  “Something’s floating just ten yards or so behind him!” called Georgina.

  “Yell at Danny to throw it in reverse!” I called. I don’t know who relayed the message, but in thirty seconds, Danny was plowin’ backwards.

  The motor cut out just as we drew to within fifteen feet of the sinkin’ boat.

  The big Dreamline’s momentum carried us right up to Garland, who was too busy splashin’ and screamin’ to even think about a gun. “Swim toward us!” I shouted.

  As though he wasn’t even aware we were there, he looked up, then started paddlin’ frantically toward us. I extended the boat hook and caught the shoulder strap of his overalls.

  Pullin’ with all my might, I dragged him from the water to the rear step. He threw his tired arms on the deck and Lilly reached down to grab his arms as I dropped the boat hook and hurried over to help her.

  We got him out of the water, and he flopped over on his back where he sputtered out saltwater and coughed like a smoker with black lung disease.

  “Help … Billie Jo!” he managed.

  I was already searchin’ the water for her. Suddenly, somethin’ surfaced five feet from the rear deck.

  It was fuckin’ Chester. The spiked collar jutted from the water, and his goddamned toothy mouth was still wide open. The hinged, metal plate was down over his eyes, so I didn’t have a clear shot. I raised the 30.06 and fired anyway.

  The first shot rang off the steel harness, and that’s when I got worried about a ricochet. “Bring me a shotgun!” I yelled and heard feet across the deck. A few seconds later, Terry stood behind me. “Here!” he shouted.

  Now the rain was pourin’ down. “Keep a gun on him!” I yelled, because Garland was sittin’ up, and I didn’t trust him as far as I could throw his ass.

  “There!” shouted Georgina. “She’s right there!”

  I was focused on the gator. I raised the shotgun just as it managed to bump the rear of the boat with its snout. I aimed right at its nose and fired.

  Black-red juice flooded into the water as its jaws blew apart. The tail started whippin’ back and forth, so I raised the barrel and fired twice more at his legs, then two more shots at its tail, which provided all its forward momentum.

  With a hiss that cut off midstream, it sank from view.

  “Okay, where is she?” I yelled.

  “There, at 10:00!” said Georgie.

  I wasn’t sure whether she meant mine or hers, but when I looked, I saw Billie Jo’s motionless body, bobbin’ in the waves. Against my better judgement, I dropped the shotgun and dove off the step into the water.

  “CB!” came behind me, and I knew it was Lilly. Too late. I was pumpin’ my arms and swimmin’ as hard as I could toward the girl, who was face down in the water.

  I fought through the churnin’ water, the big Dreamline 26 risin’ and fallin’ like an ocean hammer behind me. I finally reached the girl, who was unconscious.

  Managin’ to get my arms around her, I rolled her over onto her back and started kickin’, pullin’ her back to the boat. I got tired faster than I expected, and the boat was driftin’ farther and farther away, the harder I swam.

  “Stay back, CB!” shouted Lilly, and at first, I didn’t know why. Next thing I heard was the motor crankin’ up, and white foam churned behind the huge yacht.

  Danny was circlin’ around. Now I knew that big screen on the helm was also a rear camera. As I treaded water, he turned the boat in a big arc, movin’ farther away from me than I was comfortable with.

  To be honest, the whole time I was out there I was thinkin’ to myself, I wonder what other animals besides gators changed. Sure hope it ain’t sharks.

  Wouldn’t that be my luck. Tryin’ to save a couple of snakes, I get eaten by a big, zombiefied bull shark.

  When he’d made his circle, clearly monitorin’ the current, he cut the motor again and the rear of the Dreamline was driftin’ toward me.

  Terry, Lilly, and Georgie were standin’ on the rear platform. Lilly had the boat hook and held it out. I managed to grab it with one hand and hang on for dear life.

  When we got close enough, I let go and threw an arm up
on the deck, grabbin’ hold of a large cleat. Terry and Georgie dragged the woman from my arm and onto the deck.

  “Oh, God!” shouted Terry, as her entire body came out of the water and rested on the deck.

  Well. Not her entire body. Her left leg was torn away, and I knew from what.

  Their buddy Chester. That’s what all the red was about on the deck of their boat. He must’ve gotten her.

  Both arms free now, I timed the rise and fall of the rear deck and managed to kick hard, pushin’ myself up far enough to drag my body aboard.

  I struggled to call out, “Keep that gun on him, Roxy!”

  “He’s not moving a muscle,” said Roxy. I opened my eyes to see her standin’ there, her eyes filled with determination, the barrel pointed squarely at Garland’s head.

  “Billie Jo’s leg’s gone!” the waterlogged man screamed. “Help her!”

  Georgina was already runnin’ toward the salon door, and I forced myself to my feet, steadyin’ myself against the portside rail. My heart was poundin’ in my chest so hard, I was sure I was seconds from a premature heart attack.

  Georgie was back in seconds, a length of rope in her hands. She quickly dropped down beside the unconscious girl and wrapped the rope around her upper thigh, cinchin’ it tight. She tied it off, and I saw the blood flow almost stop immediately.

  “I have to cauterize that wound!” she shouted. “I’m not sure how I’m going to do that.”

  Danny ran down. “Guys, it’s clear to the west. I’m firing it up and I’m gonna burn some fuel. Hang on. It’s gonna be rough.” He looked down at the woman. “She gonna make it?” he added.

  “Not if I don’t act fast!” said Georgie.

  Danny ran off, and I hurried over to where Billie Jo lay. I bent down and scooped her up. “Where, Georgie?”

  “On this cushion,” she said, pullin’ it off a lounge chair with the sound of Velcro detachin’. She lay it on the deck, just under the rear overhang and out of the poundin’ rain.

  Just as she put it down, I had the girl’s body on it. I ran over to Roxy and took the gun from her. “Help your mom,” I said, turnin’ the barrel toward Garland again. His eyes were on Billie Jo, and it occurred to me that while they weren’t good people, it didn’t mean he didn’t care about his partner in crime. Hell, maybe he even loved her.