The Red X_Complete Edition

by Robert P. Sullivan

  “Hell no! He’s just trying to get us to run out of cover.” Mark said.

  “Awe you saw through it, worth a shot though.” Davidson fired in unison with the word shot, just be more of an ass I guess.

  Mark had an idea. “Listen, we can corner him. I’ll keep him covered here, you run around and we can catch him in a cross fire!”

  “Great plan! It’s not gonna fucking happen!” Davidson yelled and jumped through the window beside his cover. We ran up to see where he was going, and he had broken through another window on the other side of the room he jumped into. We followed through the windows after him. “Perfect!” We heard him yell and he ran into an old auditorium.

  We ran up behind him but stopped at the door, and took a peek inside. All the other doors were closed, and it was very dark inside.

  “Damn! You two are smarter than I took you for. I figured you would come running in here, and I could at least shoot one of you down.” Davidson started to laugh. “Oh well, this spot is perfect for a final showdown though!”

  “Fuck! He’s got a real advantage.” Mark said under his breath. “We can’t see him inside, so if we charge he will likely kill one of us. One of us could go to get help, but that could take hours and if he makes a move by then whoever is here won’t be able to strike first.” Mark was whispering. “Do you have any ideas?”

  “Nothin’” I said back.

  A few seconds passed while we tried to think. Davidson yelled from inside. “Come on in! It’s warm, and you can’t tell because it smells like shit in here, but there’s hot fucking cocoa!... And a bullet for each of you! Oh come on!”

  Mark got a strange smile on his face. “I say we charge him.” He whispered.

  “What?’ I just couldn’t believe he said that.

  “Think about it, that is the last thing he is expecting right now. He knows we’re smart, so even though he is begging us to come in, he knows we won’t.”

  “What are you waiting for? Hurry up and come in here so you can die, so I can get out of this hell hole.”

  I shrugged in agreement with Mark, and started a finger count down. Five, I stretched my neck. Four, I scratched my head. Three, I readied my gun. Two, I took a deep breath. One, I recognized something…

  Mark went to charge in but I grabbed him and yanked him back. “What the fuck are you doing?” Mark asked.

  Davidson yelled out from the darkness. “Oh that was a close one, but you didn’t have the balls to go through with it. It’s like you don’t even want to kill me.”

  I grabbed the door and yelled out to Davidson in my best impression of his voice. “Oh, I’m not going to kill you… The zombies are.” I slammed the door shut, and we could hear the lurkers creeping inside.

  “Damn good show kid! Damn good!” Davidson fell silent for a moment before the screaming and gunshots started. It didn’t last for long though. And soon enough the disgusting sound of feeding was all that remained.”

  Chapter 33

  “How did you know the lurkers were in there?” Barry asked.

  “The smell. I told you they have a smell you just can’t forget.” Jake leaned back in his chair. “That’s what you wanted to hear right? How the leader of the red ‘X’s died?”

  Barry was shaken for a moment, then regained his composure. “Yeah…” was the only word he found.

  “Of course after that, it’s all pretty common knowledge. When the fighting stopped we had killed over half the ‘X’s and the rest ran away. In about a year the group had almost completely disbanded, with the scouting parties stopping literally over night.

  But I was never happier than when I came back to find that my wife and child were ok, even though most of the families in town had a casualty. There was a mass funeral service for the men and women that gave their lives to protect the town that day, but everything started to look bright after that. Old Harold Lamond retired after that battle. He took a bullet to the shoulder and complained about it the rest of his life, but was proud to bear the wound.

  Mark Williams as you know went on to become the chief of police. Hell, Mark even started the whole notion of accepting the ‘X’s as refugees into our society. I’m not really sure why but I guess the way he saw it was, that if we didn’t take care of them they were just going to be a thorn in our side. So, even though the debate was heated, we eventually took them in. When we went to Oak Noll there were even children that we rescued from the life of scavenging. They were in pretty bad shape but we managed to get them the help they needed.

  A few years passed and wouldn’t you know it the world started to get reconnected again. A new government was formed, and major utilities were restored. It was like a miracle when water started running through the pipes again. Although, I heard they had a hell of a time getting the power back on. They said that there was so much damage to the network, when they went to turn it on it started a whole bunch of fires. So they had to go out and make sure that every breaker was off and all the power lines were in good shape before turning the grid on one section at a time.

  Still, things aren’t as good as they once were. We still don’t have the internet back, and I have to be honest, that would be nice. I did hear that cell phones were being used in some major cities again, but I haven’t seen a working one since I left mine behind way back when this whole thing started. Oh well, I guess things could be worse.

  Out of all the inventions of mankind do you know what the one I was most grateful to have back was?”

  Barry seemed distracted, but entertained the thought. “I don’t know what?”

  “Toilet paper” Jake burst into a fit of laughter and held his sides “Phew! Alright alright… So that answered all your questions right?”

  “Um…” Barry thought for a minute. “Yes I believe it did. Oh, but I wonder if you could do me a favor?”

  “What is it?”

  “Well seeing as Mark was so instrumental in the take down of the ‘X’s I was wondering if you could maybe give him a call and see if I could get things from his perspective?” Barry was hanging on the edge of his seat for the answer to the question.

  “Well sure… hang on a moment.” Jake got up and stretched his back. “I’ve been sitting too long.” he said to himself under his breath and made his way over to the phone. After picking it up and dialing a number he waited for someone to answer.

  “Hello this is Mark.” The phone chirped through its tiny speaker.

  “Hey Mark it’s Jake. How are you?”

  “Well… I was too damn old yesterday, and when I checked today I was even older.” A bit of laughter poured through the phone.

  Jake smiled and pulled his head away from the phone. “Make sure to check again tomorrow… Anyway, I got this fella over here that was interviewing me about the red ‘X’s, and he was wondering if you wouldn’t mind letting him ask for your perspective on all the things that happened.”

  “Sure I guess, I’m not doing anything tomorrow. Give him my address and tell him to come on over. What’s his name?”

  “It’s Barry Bradford. Hang on a second.” Jake put his hand over the phone. “Hey Barry Mark says tomorrow is good for him.”

  “That’s fine, go ahead and tell him… Eleven o’clock.”

  Jake put the phone back up to his head. “Is eleven good for you?”

  “That’s fine, here let me write that down… Eleven… Barry Bradford… Alright, well is there anything else?”

  “No I think that’s it for now. You have a good day.”

  “You too Jake.” Mark hung up the phone and Jake did the same. “Ok, Mark says that’s all good.”

  “Um.” Barry stood there waiting. “The address?”

  “Oh, shit, yeah let me write that down for you.”

  Jake scribbled the address on a piece of paper, and handed it to Barry, who took the paper and placed it in his pocket. “Thanks. There is one more thing that I would like to check out though.”

  “What is it?” Jake asked.

&
nbsp; “Well the jeep you have out in your carport, that’s the same one Davidson used during the assault on Aegis right?”

  “Yeah I just kind of, took it. I had to replace the radiator after that, but I was one of the only people that had a working car for a while there.”

  “Mind if I take another look at it?”

  “Sure, why not?”

  Jake opened the door for Barry and left it open behind him. They walked over to the carport where Barry asked, “Hey can I get in it again? It’s kind of like sitting in a piece of history.”

  “Go ahead.”

  Barry sat down in the old jeep. He looked it over with no less interest than he did the first time. He rubbed his hands over the steering wheel and a look of fondness came over his face. He reached over and ran his hand over the course leather of the passenger seat, stopping when his hand ran over a gash in the leather on the top edge of the seat. He stepped out of the car and walked around toward Jake.

  “How did it get that gash in the seat?” Barry asked.

  “I don’t really know, it was there when I got it.” Jake turned his head to the side and looked closer at it.

  “I’m betting it was teeth marks.”

  “I can kind of see it, but what makes you say that?”

  Barry leaned back against the car and pulled up his bag. He started rummaging through it as he spoke. “Well, when I was a kid I was riding in the car with my Dad. I was in the backseat and one of my dad’s friends came running up to the car to deliver some bad news. You see, my mom just passed away and my dad slammed on the brakes. My face went right into the back of the seat. It left a mark just like that.”

  Jake squinted at Barry. “I’m sorry to hear that… How did she die?”

  “Oh she got shot. Yeah I loved my mom… Her name was Clara Davidson.” Barry moved only his eyes to make contact with Jake’s. Jake stepped backward in fear. Barry threw his bag on the floor revealing a taser in his hand. Jakes eyes shot wide before the hum of the electric current brought him into the darkness.

  Chapter 34

  Dustin came into his parents’ house. It was a nice home that was built in the old days. It rested near the center of Aegis, and had been his home for his entire life. “Mom!” Dustin yelled as he looked through his belongings. “Mom?”

  “What is it Dustin?” she asked back half paying attention to him, and the other half reading a book.

  “Have you seen my bow? I can’t find it anywhere.” Dustin continued the search.

  “Well where did you have it last?”

  Dustin rolled his eyes and was not impressed with his mother’s over simplification of the task of finding something that was lost. He thought that if it were that simple, then he would have found it already… only to his dismay remembering that the last time he had it was at his grandfather’s house. Dustin closed his eyes tightly and placed his index finger and thumb on them. “Stupid.” he said to himself.

  “What was that?”

  “Nothing Mom!” Dustin hadn’t intended to go to his grandfather Jake’s house today, although it was his intention to replace its string and go practice with it, or at least shoot arrows at cans with his friends, if that counted. He believed that it did, and was set on retrieving the lost item. “I’m gonna go over to grandpa’s house.”

  “I thought you said you weren’t going there today.”

  Dustin let out a sigh. “I think I left my bow over there.”

  “Ok, but don’t be gone too long, dinner will be ready at seven.” she said whilst flipping the page of her book.

  “Don’t worry Mom, I’ll be back before dark.” Dustin grabbed his coat and opened the front door. He closed it behind him much too hard, as always, even despite his mother’s dismay on the subject. He realized what he was doing only a split second too late to make a difference in the matter, and decided that it would be best to hurry to the car, to make an escape before she could come out to tell him off.

  He hopped in the car and started to drive, pretending not to notice that his mother had opened the front door with a stern look on her face. “She’ll forget before I get back.” he said to himself, while flipping on the radio. There were only three channels, two for old music, and one for new, but he liked the sound of the older music, as there were more skilled people back in the days before the outbreak. Newer music always sounded flat, simplified, and out of tune, and that was not something that most people were fond of.

  “I wonder what it was like before the zombies came?” Dustin thought to himself as he drove. He was born second generation after the outbreak, to him articles and concepts of the old world seemed almost as mystical as magic. Hearing about all the technology was a stretch for his imagination, so the only reason he believed that a man walked on the moon was because of the videos that were played in school.

  For Dustin there were two educations, the first was the school, math, literature, and science, and the second what his grandfather, work, diligence, and practice. They were each difficult in their own way, but for Dustin, unlike his grandfather, both had their place. He could see that the world needed people who could think, and work hard. So he was grateful to spend his time off learning how to get things done with his grandpa, and for the education that led to a brighter future for mankind. Although he found himself more concerned with finding a good girlfriend, more than anything else.

  He reached the edge of town, and continued down the road that led to Jake’s house. He pulled around the last bend that led up the house, and parked out front next to Barry’s car. “They’re probably in the middle of the story. I’ll just get the bow real quick and leave.” Dustin mumbled to himself as he got out of the car.

  He walked up to the front door looking for the right key on his ring, after finding it he was surprised that the door was already partially open. He knocked… “Hello? Grandpa?” The only reply was a slight howl of wind, blowing amongst the trees. “Hello?” He asked again, while stepping inside confused. He looked around the house. “Is anyone here?” There was no sign of anyone. He looked at the front door for a note saying that they had left but found nothing.

  “They’re probably just in the garage.” He walked out of the house and around the side of it where the driveway led to the carport. It was empty. A terrible feeling came over Dustin as he looked at the empty spot. “They’re gone? Wait there has to be a note. Grandpa always leaves a note!” He jogged back to the front door and looked on the ground for a piece of paper that could have blown off in the wind, but there was nothing. “Something’s wrong.”

  He frantically ran outback looking for them in the distance, before going back inside to double check to make sure no one was there. “What’s going on?” He went to the phone. “Maybe Mark will know something.” Dusting knew Mark like a second grandfather, and there were few people that he trusted as much as him. He dialed the phone number. It rang, and rang… and rang… “Oh shit.” He clicked the phone off with his finger and dialed it again. “Come on answer the phone.” Once again it just kept ringing.

  “Maybe it’s nothing…” He said to himself trying to calm down, but the feeling kept creeping back up. “Oh screw it.” He dialed 911. It rang twice before someone answered.

  “This is 911 what is your emergency?” The person on the other end of the line answered.

  “This is going to sound crazy, but I think my grandpa has been kidnapped.”

  “Are you reporting a missing person?” she asked.

  “Yes, I know it doesn’t sound like much, but when I got here the door was open, and there was no note saying where he went.”

  “Is there any evidence of a break in?”

  “No…” he said looking around. “No but I think the person that he was with took him. His name was Barry Bradford.”

  The operator sighed. “How long has it been since you last saw the missing person?”

  “I saw him yesterday, and talked to him on the phone last night.”

  “If there isn’t any more evide
nce, then I am afraid you are going to have to wait twenty four hours to report a missing person. Can I get your name?”

  Dustin was frustrated. “No you don’t understand. He always leaves a note. That is how we make sure that he isn’t in trouble!”

  “I’m sorry, but I can’t do anything without having waited for twenty four hours. Now can I get you name?”

  Dustin slammed the phone. “Fucking bullshit!” he said. He took a moment to collect his thoughts. He dialed Mark’s phone number again. “Come on, I know you can convince the police to do something…” The phone rang twice then cut out. “What the?” He hung up and tried to dial again, but the phone held fast in its silence. “What?... Fine I’ll just drive over there!”

  Dustin hopped in his car and drove as fast as he could over to Mark’s house. It was only about five minutes away, just on the edge of town. “Oh good.” he said when he saw his car in his driveway. Dustin jumped out of the car leaving the door open and ran to the front door to see it wide open. “Oh no… Is anyone here?!” he yelled at the top of his voice. The television was on, and bowl of soup steamed on the table next to Mark’s chair. “This is bad, this is real bad.” he kept saying to himself as he searched through the house for anyone.

  When he failed to find anyone he walked outside in a hurry, but stopped as he got to his car. “Where the fuck do I go?” He started to pace on the side of the road. His thoughts were swirling when he stepped in the mud. His foot sunk in, and had a suction to the ground when he tried to pull it free. He lost his balance, but quickly regained it. When he looked down, he pulled his foot out, and there in the mud he found his answer. Tire tracks that were all too familiar led off the road, and up into the forest.

  Chapter 35

  “Wakey Wakey!” Barry’s voice echoed through the trees.