by Jolie Du Prè
Sara gets up and walks over to me as if she’s about to kill me. “Who put you in charge? Mark is the leader here, not you.”
Mark leaves his chair and puts his arms around Sara to calm her, but she pushes him away.
“We’re not going to do it, right?” says Sara. “I mean, what are we here? We love Eli.”
I answer before Mark does. “Please be realistic. We don’t know how much time he has. If we tie him up, it’s only for our own safety.”
Sara throws her arms up in the air. “Do whatever you want. I don’t even want to be here. I just wish I wasn’t here.” She turns and runs for the van. At the same time, Gary comes out of the van. Sara bumps against him and keeps on running.
“You agree with me, right?” I say to Mark. “Tying him up is the best thing for us to do?”
“I agree with you, Jen. We’ll get the rope.”
Eli is ghost white with hollow eyes. His breathing is even more ragged than before.
“Poor Eli,” says Katie.
Gary approaches us. “What the hell’s wrong with Sara this time?”
“We’ve decided to tie Eli up, and she’s upset about that,” I say.
“Dude doesn’t look too good, does he?” says Gary.
“No, he doesn’t,” says Mark. “I’ll go get the rope from the van. We don’t have much time.”
“No, I’ll do it,” I say. “After all, it was my idea.”
* * *
Mark, Katie, Gary, and I are standing over Eli. Sara is in the van, crying. She’s refused to come out.
“We’re going to tie you up, Eli,” says Mark, raising his voice a bit. “It’s for the best.”
Eli nods his head. He can hear us, but he can barely speak. His wheezing will have transformed into growls after he turns.
We lift up Eli. The whole time, I’m scared he’ll turn as we’re doing it. We tie him to the tree. I’m glad someone thought to pack a rope.
* * *
Hours have passed. Gary, Katie, and Sara are in the van. Mark and I, surviving on adrenaline, sit in front of the fire, staring at Eli. He’s standing and tied to the tree with his head tilted and his eyes closed.
There’s a question I’ve wanted to ask Mark ever since he said he had to shoot his sister. “What happened to your family?”
Mark looks at me. “Zombies cornered us in a store. My father, my mother, and my brother were all attacked. Only my sister Lisa and I made it out of there, but she eventually got bitten.”
“I’m so sorry, Mark. My dad died from cancer years ago, but it was my mom who turned into a zombie. Do you ever feel guilty for surviving?”
“Sometimes I do feel guilty I didn’t die along with the rest of my family.”
I grab Mark’s hand, but then Eli fidgets against the tree, which makes both Mark and me jump.
“He’s fading fast,” says Mark.
“I know. God, I hate this. Where the hell did that zombie come from? It’s so peaceful out here.”
“Seems to have strayed off a farm or something.”
“It will be nice when we get to your ranch.”
Mark squeezes my hand. “It will be paradise.”
Mark leans over and kisses me on the lips. He keeps them there, and I savor his taste. Then he kisses my nose, and my body tingles.
“What’s going on between us?” I whisper.
“I think I’m falling for you.” He leans over to kiss me again.
Then, we hear a growl. Eli’s eyes are wide open as saliva shoots out of his mouth. He’s moving hard against the rope, struggling to get out.
Mark and I dart up from our chairs, and Mark grabs his gun, rushes to Eli, points, and fires. Blood shoots from Eli’s head as his body falls forward against the rope.
I didn’t know Eli for very long, but we’ve all become close. Tears fall down my face faster than I expected.
Mark puts his gun back in his holster and hugs me.
“How are we going to survive this?” I say.
Mark doesn’t answer. He just hugs me tighter.
* * *
Mark and I buried Eli. We could have waited for everyone to wake up, but we felt it best just to get it over with.
We’re back in the van. No one has said much. Gary is driving and both he and Katie are quiet up front. Sara stares at the window with a blank expression on her face.
Mark is asleep, not surprising since we’ve been up all night. I should be too. I look like shit from the lack of it.
“Are you okay?” I ask Sara.
She doesn’t answer. She just continues to gaze at the window.
We don’t want to camp outside again. It’s much safer to be in a house. However, like before, we’ll have to find one that’s suitable. Then, we’ll have to ask permission, assuming the occupants are still alive.
Are we the lucky ones? That’s a matter of opinion. We are alive, but for how long? Mark has it in his mind that his place in Texas is our final refuge. He has faith that the zombie situation will end and humans can get on with life again. When I look into his handsome face, I so want to believe him.
14.
AS I SIT IN THE VAN, I look out my window. I see a river behind the trees. The water sparkles in the sunshine, and it looks so clean and inviting. All I want to do is get out of this van and jump into it.
I look at Mark. He’s still sleeping. I look around the van. Everyone is so quiet, and we’re all so miserable and dirty. A dip in the river is what this group needs, and I don’t think zombies can swim.
“Gary?”
“What?”
“Let’s turn around. There’s a river back that way. Let’s go swimming.”
“Hey, yeah! That would be fun!” says Katie.
“You saw a river?” says Gary.
“Yes, let’s turn this van around and let’s get in the river. I want to get wet. I want to get clean.”
Then, Sara comes out of her fog and looks at me. Then she looks at Gary. “Turn this damn thing around. I want to get off.”
“Settle down. You chicks are driving me crazy,” says Gary.
“Are you going to turn it around or not?” I say.
“Yeah, yeah, I’m turning.”
After Gary has parked the van in a secure place, we grab towels and I also bring shampoo.
Out here, I see no zombies; just trees, water, and blue sky. It’s nice to think we’re safe, but as we leave the van, we all take our weapons. We never go outside without them.
We stare at the river. Sara places her gun on the ground and then she removes her black boots. After that, she removes her black pants, followed by her black shirt. She stands only in red-flowered panties and no bra.
Gary nudges Mark. “Check it out, man!” Mark looks embarrassed and doesn’t say anything.
“Sara!” says Katie. But Sara ignores her and removes her panties, throwing them to the ground. Then she runs into the water. She swims out into the river and then just treads water with her back turned to us.
“Well, I’m going in too,” I say.
“You gonna take your clothes off?” says Gary.
I roll my eyes. “No, I’m not.” I remove my shoes and socks and set them next to my machete. Then I walk into the river until the water is up to my waist. I dunk myself under and I hold my breath as the water soaks through my clothes. When I rise, I feel renewed.
As I push the water through my hair, I see that Sara is no longer treading. She’s swimming, farther and farther away.
“Sara!”
She stops swimming and turns around. “What?”
“Where are you going?”
“I just want to be by myself for a while, okay?”
“Okay, no problem.”
Sara then does something I don’t expect. She smiles at me. I smile back.
Arms circle my waist. “Got you!” says Mark. I turn around and I’m looking right into Mark’s eyes. “The water feels good,” he says. Mark looks even more handsome with wet hair.
Then
we hear Katie scream. We turn our heads, only to find Gary lifting Katie up and then tossing her into the water. No harm. She seems to like it. As I watch them play, I wish I could cement this moment.
“I want to wash my hair,” I say. “Want to wash hair with me?”
Mark grins. “I would love to wash my hair with you, Jen.”
I laugh, and Mark and I wade through the water to where our shoes and weapons are so we can retrieve the shampoo. I look over at Sara, who is still in the middle of the river, away from everyone.
“You think she’s okay?” says Mark.
“She’s fine. She smiled at me.”
“Really?”
“Yep.”
We walk back into the water. Mark pours shampoo into his hand and then he starts washing my hair with it. I don’t expect it, and I try not to beam like the Cheshire Cat. Then I do the same for him.
As we’re rinsing our hair, I see a zombie wandering on the other side of the river from where we’ve parked the van. Katie and Gary are still playing in the water and don’t see it. But Sara gives it the finger.
“Come on, Sara. Time to go,” screams Mark.
Sara swims back without protest. I’m grateful for that. She walks her naked body out of the water, wraps herself in a towel, and then grabs her boots and her gun.
“What about your clothes?” I ask.
“Leave them here,” she says, walking away. “I don’t want to see them again.”
Gary and Mark stand outside the van while we girls get dressed first.
Once on the van, we grab clean clothes and a plastic bag to throw our wet things in.
“That was fun. I can’t believe you got naked, Sara,” says Katie, throwing her wet skirt into the bag.
“I don’t give a shit who looks at me,” says Sara. The smile that she gave me at the river is gone. I’m just glad she was able to get a bit of happiness today.
15.
TO OUR RIGHT IS A MOTEL. An elderly man crouches at the side of a soda machine. He hides his head in his folded arms.
Zombies shamble toward the other side of the machine. They don’t know a human is hiding from them, but soon, they will know.
“They’re gonna get him!” Katie says.
Gary stops the van, grabs his gun, and gets out. Mark rushes out with his gun as well. I follow with my rifle.
Outside the van, I aim for a zombie. I shoot it and then I shoot two more. Meanwhile, Gary and Mark are shooting.
“Stay there, don’t move,” screams Mark to the man. The man nods his head and then buries it back into his folded arms.
Eventually, all the zombies are down. We run over to the man. He trembles as we help him up. He must be at least eighty and he’s emaciated. As I grab his arm, I can feel his bones.
“Are you all right?” I ask.
“Yes. Thank you. I thought I was a goner.”
“Are you with anyone?” Mark asks.
“No. I stay here alone. I’ve been hiding out, watching the zombies from my window. It was just one or two at first, then more and more.”
“Is there anyone else here at this motel?” I ask.
“Yes, but they don’t come out. I shouldn’t have come out. Everyone is hiding.”
“Where’s your room?” says Gary.
“Over there.”
We walk the man back to his motel room. Inside, we see the room is large, with two full-sized beds that look like they haven’t been slept in.
“I’m Bill,” says the man. “You folks staying?”
“Bill, my name is Jennifer, and this is Gary and Mark. Our friends, Sara and Katie, are still in our van. Actually, we’d love to stay overnight, if we can. Sure would help us. We’re on our way to Texas.”
“If you don’t mind, Bill,” says Mark.
Bill’s face lights up. “I don’t mind at all. I could use the company. Got any food?”
“Yeah,” says Gary. “We got lots of food.”
I smile. “Thank you. I’ll go get Katie and Sara. They must be worried sick.”
Gary and I run back to the van while Mark stays with Bill.
Back at the van, Katie is staring at us, bug-eyed. Sara is still gazing out her window, as if nothing just happened.
“We’re sleeping at this motel tonight,” says Gary. “We saved the old man, so he said we can stay in his room.”
“Really?” says Katie. “Are you sure it’s okay for us to join him?”
“Yeah, dude’s got a big ass room.” Gary points. “It’s right over there. Number five.”
“So let’s grab some food and stuff and bring them to the room,” I say. “His name is Bill, and he looks like he hasn’t eaten in weeks.”
“See, Sara,” says Katie. “Everything is going to be all right.”
I look at Sara. “You okay?”
She stares out the window and doesn’t answer.
“Sara, I said are you okay?”
Sara jerks her head and glares at me. “Yes, I’m fine. I’m fine.” She gets up and runs out the van to Bill’s motel room.
* * *
As we arrive at Bill’s room, he’s standing in the doorway. Despite everything that’s happening, he looks content.
Katie places her bag on the floor and gives Bill a hug. “Hi, I’m Katie.”
“Well, hello there!” Bill says, hugging her back.
Sara is already in the room, sitting in a chair and staring at the floor. We close the motel room door and put the supplies on the top of a dresser.
I look in the bathroom. Bill has placed a pillow and a blanket in the bathtub.
I stick my head out. “You’ve been sleeping in here, Bill?”
“Yes, I feel safer that way.”
Mark pats Bill’s back. “We’ll set up here and get you something to eat, and no more sleeping in the bathroom for you.”
“I’m just so grateful you young people came by to see me.”
Katie whispers into my ear, “We can’t leave Bill here. We’ve got to take him with us.”
“We’ll talk about it later,” I say.
Sara is rocking back and forth in her chair, staring at the floor, balling her fist on her lap.
I go over to her and kneel in front of her. “How’s it going?”
“What day is it?” she says.
“Um . . . I don’t know. I never know what day it is anymore.”
“It’s Sunday,” says Katie. “My diary says it’s Sunday.”
“When we were swimming, it reminded me of when I used to go to the beach with my brother on Sundays,” says Sara. “That used to be our way of taking a break from everything. Just hanging on the beach, you know?”
“Yeah, I know. One of these days, I’ll go to the beach again.”
Sara’s expression changes. “What makes you think you’ll ever have the life you used to have? It’s over, Jennifer, over.”
“Well, it’s over for now, but things will get better.”
Sara lets out a demonic laugh. “Don’t you get it? This is it. We’re fucked. Those things have taken over.”
“Sara, calm down,” says Mark.
“Don’t tell me to fucking calm down. I’m tired of people telling me to calm down.”
Poor Bill stares at Sara, wondering what the heck is going on.
* * *
The motel room door is double locked. The curtains are closed, blocking all view from the outside. Katie peeks out the curtains and sees two zombies down the road. We remind her that the curtains need to stay closed and to stay away from the window.
We’re preparing our food. Bill lies on the bed, watching us. It makes me happy to know we saved him from what could have been a disaster. Sara, however, hasn’t left her spot.
“I’m worried about her,” whispers Mark.
“Yeah, me too,” I say. “Andy’s death was hard for her, and losing Eli hasn’t helped.”
* * *
We’re eating our food. Every so often, I notice Bill staring at Sara with a worried look o
n his face. Gary notices it too.
“Don’t mind her,” says Gary. “She’s just crazy, is all.”
Sara gives Gary a stern look, but she doesn’t say anything.
“My wife died, and we lost our son before she died,” says Bill. “I’ve been a widow for quite some time. Then zombies drove me and Jim, my neighbor, out of our homes. Luckily for me, Jim owns this motel and put me up in this room. Used to share it with two other people, but, they left and never came back.”
“What about Jim?” says Katie. “Is Jim alive?”
Bill looks at Katie and doesn’t say anything at first, but then he speaks. “The last time I saw Jim, he was a zombie. Saw him outside my window. He grabbed someone, but I stopped looking after that.” Bill sets his empty plate down. “I was going to knock on doors and beg for food. But you see what happened. I’m all out. There’s nothing left.”
“Then it’s a good thing we came by,” I say. “Especially because the other people in this motel are just hiding from one another.”
“When we leave, you’ll come with us,” says Mark.
I look at Mark. Of course, it’s the right thing to do. I’m sure we were all thinking it, but we waited for Mark to say it.
Bill shakes his head. “No, I don’t want to be a burden.”
I stare at the veins on Bill’s hands. “We need to take you with us. You can’t stay here.”
Bill looks at me with tears in his eyes. I go over to him and give him a hug. “It will be good, Bill. You’ll see.”
* * *
After we’ve eaten our food, we clean up and relax. Sara is no longer sitting in the chair. She’s in her sleeping bag. I think about the time when the zombie almost got her. I notice blood from that zombie still stains her bag. I cross my fingers that Sara will be better in the morning.
* * *
Bill is resting on one of the beds. I’m glad we were able to feed him, and I’m sure he prefers sleeping on a bed to sleeping in a bathtub.
Gary is sleeping next to him. Katie has the other bed to herself, for now. Sara is in her sleeping bag on the floor.
It’s no surprise that I’m still awake, but so is Mark. We’re sitting at a table, our space lit with candles.
“I’m glad we convinced Bill to come with us.”
