Containment_A Zombie Novel

by B. A. Hippsley

  Luke stopped and steadied himself using a tree, sliding slowly to the ground. He could go no further. Zach looked at the improvised t-shirt bandage on Luke’s leg. The bright yellow garment was now dark red, soaked with his brother’s blood. He needed to re-dress the wound and bent down to unwind the cloth. Luke winced in pain and raised his hand to his eyes.

  “Luke I’m real sorry about all this, the crash, your leg... I should’ve taken you to town yesterday.”

  Luke jabbed his finger at his brother.

  “Ain’t your fault about them crazy army guys, I mean who’d have reckoned they’d done that? That was extreme, man.”

  “All the same, I should’ve gone to fetch help and...”

  “No way you was gonna leave me on my own and no way I was gonna let you walk away with all them ‘whatevers’ about the place. Where’d you reckon them ugly crap heads come from?”

  Zach unwound the bandage and grimaced as blood ran freely down the leg, pooling on the hard floor.

  “They gotta be some kinda of military experiment or something. Those guys made roadblocks to stop them things getting out, maybe us too.”

  “So that means...” Luke stopped mid sentence pointing to a thick clump of greenery a few feet behind Zach, “I reckon I heard something over there.”

  Zach turned his head and followed the direction of his brother’s finger. The bush exploded in a frenzy of motion as two of the creatures burst out and advanced towards the stunned Claytons.

  Zach found himself transfixed by the thing in front of him as it snarled and drooled. Before he knew what was going on, a sharpened stick erupted from the putrid face and the creature toppled forward onto the rocky ground. Jimmy Red Cloud pierced the second ghoul’s temple, instantly destroying the brain. Zach looked at Red Cloud in bewilderment. “Hell, JRC! You just scared the crap outa me!”

  Jimmy sent a disapproving stare back at Zach and pointed his makeshift spear at his brother.

  “Now I told you before – Jimmy, Jimmy Red Cloud or Red Cloud. JRC makes me sound like a damn cleaning product.” He gestured towards Luke. “What you doing up here?”

  “We had us a problem with some Army guys,” said Zach, looking down at Luke. “We didn’t do so well.”

  “You and me both.” Red Cloud walked over to join the two brothers.

  “Jimmy you gonna help us get to town, dude?”

  Red Cloud looked at him and then at Zach. “You never gonna make it with his leg. Where’s your wheels man?”

  Zach continued to dress Luke’s leg. “The Army trashed one set and the Beast is on the other side of town. Say Jimmy how come you’re up here?”

  “I was on my way to see Bill Merka when some of them things jumped me. I was lucky to get away. Tried to get back home but the Army shut the whole place down.”

  “Yeah, we’ve been dodging them boys and those drones.” Zach stood up and looked at Red Cloud. “What about Merka. He have any idea what’s up?”

  Red Cloud shook his head sadly. “I figured I’d go ask just that. But someone’s blown his head all over the wall. I thought the cops would get it wrong and blame me, so I hid out by the tower.”

  Zach smiled and helped Luke to his feet. “That be about right for that bunch. Jimmy, me and the boy here, we ain’t much on tracking and I gotta get him to town. We could use your help here.”

  Red Cloud took a long look at the desperate pair in front of him. “Okay, but we keep to the woods and stay off the roads until we hit town. We ought to be there in a few hours, but that’s gonna depend on his leg.”

  “That ain’t no problem, you guys gonna have to keep up with me.”

  To reinforce his point, Luke walked painfully forward. “If we follow on from here, we gonna come across the foundations for the old Air Force huts. Then it’s a straight run to Armstrong, okay guys?”

  Red Cloud took the lead, the other two following behind. They’d only gone a few hundred yards when Red Cloud called a halt. He gestured to an open space set in between them and the next section of woodland. They could make out the crumbling foundations of the old wooden huts, barely visible under the encroaching plant life. Red Cloud’s eyes darted about the surrounding area.

  “We need to cross that ground fast. We don’t want to get caught out in the open.”

  “Ain’t there another way Jimmy?”

  Red Cloud nodded his head at Zach. “Yeah, but we’d have to back track on ourselves and find the road so...”

  The ground beneath their feet began to tremble violently and then a section of land exploded upwards, sending clumps of debris high up into the sky.

  “Freaking butt-wipes done shooting at us again!” Luke shouted out furiously.

  “Hold on, that came from below ground.”

  They stared at the smouldering hole a few yards in front of them and then the smell hit them; the stink of rotting meat.

  “What the hell is that smell?”

  First one creature climbed out from the bowels of the ground, followed by another and still another, as the ground continued to spew its rotting harvest into the light. Now with more creatures than they could count, it was time to leave. As the three men sped away from the gruesome gathering, Zach stopped to look back.

  “Where the hell did they all come from Jimmy?”

  “The old men talk about the time the dead will battle the living for the earth. I think hell’s about right.”

  ****

  The station house was crammed full of people – Eastman’s rag-tag army of volunteers. Hardly America’s finest, though it did him good to see so many people answering the call. He’d gone over the plan outlined by Taylor, and even placed people into groups. That should have been enough but looking at some of the confused expressions around the room, perhaps it was worth going over the plan one more time. He held his hands above his head then brought them together, like a gunshot.

  “Just so long as we all got this, I’m gonna run this by you one more time.”

  As Eastman started to explain, he looked up at the man who was walking towards him. It took him several moments to recognise the clean shaven man was in fact Taylor. It seemed he’d taken Eastman’s advice and cleaned his act up after all. Taylor made his way through the horde and sat next to Eastman and Benteen. Eastman eyed him up and down.

  “You spend all my money Taylor?”

  “Sure. I do want to look my best.”

  Eastman nodded and walked over to the flipchart by Clara’s desk, turning the pages back. He sure as hell was not prepared to wade through another half hour’s worth of this. This was going to be the abridged version.

  “Group one with Gerard and Taylor, you locate and grab that weapon...”

  “Suppose it isn’t there. Suppose they got this thing someplace else, what then?”

  Taylor looked over at Danny Hardman – “Mr..?”

  “Hardman. Danny Hardman.”

  “Mr Hardman, that base or rather beneath that base is the most effective position they can use that warhead, it’ll be there.”

  Eastman nodded his appreciation, and then Oscar Majors called across the room, “If those Army boys haven’t already got through that wall you mentioned, how we gonna get in?”

  “Oscar, it’s amazing what a little Nitro can do in the right hands – as long as we in the Sheriff department don’t bust him.”

  Benteen smirked at Boulle, who sat expressionless at the rear of the room.

  “I’m sure we all fully appreciate your kind donation Mr Boulle. Group two, now that’s me and Sarge. We’re gonna hit those jammers.”

  He gestured at Vince Langley and Pat O’Brien – “You guys be ready to go as soon as we take them out.”

  “We’re gonna pump out as many emails and such as we can. Now as well as that, everybody got to ring as many people as they can.”

  Lenny Kovak had been strangely quiet throughout the proceedings but he called over to O’Brien, “You said a while ago that transmitter you got will reach New York. What if
it doesn’t work or gets destroyed?”

  “Then Lenny, everybody’s gonna have one hell of a long distance bill. As soon as the air waves are clear, we got to use every God damn electronic communication we got.”

  Eastman gave O’Brien the thumbs up sign and then invited Sarge to comment.

  “Sarge you want to add anything here?”

  Sarge stared at Eastman for a moment. “No, I’ve already said what I wanted.”

  Eastman was surprised at Sarge’s distinct lack of enthusiasm. Here he was with a mission and yet... something was wrong. He needed to know what, but now was not the time.

  George Lee looked at Taylor and raised his hand.

  “I got me a question Mr Taylor. Them electronic gizmos. Where we got to hit, to make ‘em go bang?”

  “Well you may get them to go fizz, but there’s nothing in them other than a pile of electric circuits. You just need to hit them as many times as you can.”

  “He’s right,” said O’Brien, pointing to the chart with the map of the camp and jammers, “The only time we gonna know for sure those God damn things are cooked, is when we get the waves back.”

  “Brad, that’s all just fine and dandy. My worry is that you and Sarge don’t have enough firepower for this. You’re gonna need to take those army guys and the stereo box things out and...”

  Sarge’s voice rang out across the crowed room – “So we need more fire power to kill Americans, that what you saying, Colt?”

  “Them boys only gonna get themselves killed if they try to kill us, that’s all I’m saying.”

  Eastman looked over at Sarge and the military group sitting with him. Some were reservists, others home on leave, but all had awkward looks on their faces. Ed Callan was deep in conversation with Sarge. He was a major player on the military team. Eastman had known the boy all his life; Armstrong had always been too small to hold him. It had been no great surprise when Callan left to join the Marines. After the war, some said he’d developed a taste for it. Eastman was glad to have a Recon Marine on his team.

  “Sarge you and the guys okay with this?”

  Sarge dipped his head forward low and looked left to right before fixing his eyes directly on Eastman.

  “Sheriff, we got guys from the army, marines, air force and the navy here. Now each one of us was born and bred in Armstrong.” He paused and looked about the room before he went on, “When you asked for help every last one of them stepped up.”

  Eastman nodded towards the small uniformed group.

  “And we appreciate all you’ve done.”

  Sarge pointed in the direction of the mountain. “Those boys up there, they took the same oath and salute the same flag as we do.”

  The volume of chattering dropped to zero as Sarge got to his feet.

  “I’ve got more years of service than you can shake a stick at. But I’ve never shot at another American, let alone another serving soldier.”

  A nervous murmur went across the room as Eastman’s little army started to voice its concerns. Eastman had to do something; if Taylor lost confidence in them, he’d walk.

  “I’m against drawing on our own too, but it isn’t like that. These boys mean us harm, and we’re gonna get killed for something that’s not our doing. We never asked to be involved in all this. No one asked them here and no one wants them.”

  Sarge met Eastman’s eyes and addressed him like a defence lawyer in a courtroom battle.

  “Brad, like most other folks in this room, you have never been in real combat.” He looked around at the others in the room, “And I’m not saying that’s a bad thing. But war is not all about the generals, or the flag or even your country. It’s about the Joes around you, kinda like a brotherhood. You fight for the man next to you.”

  Without the military the others wouldn’t stand a chance. Eastman summoned all his conviction and tried one last time.

  “You’re right; most of us can’t even begin to think what combat’s like. But we’re all in this together and this is life or death.” Eastman pointed to the military section. “Looking about this room, you guys owe your family and friends as much loyalty. It’s come down to them or us. This is our town and our people. I'll break every rule in the damn book to keep us all safe.”

  Sarge gestured towards Taylor. “And what about this guy? Why’s he so important?”

  “Listen, I’d like to tear this guy apart.” All eyes turned to Benteen as he raised his voice. “But he knows how to do this and we’d all best listen to him and do something while we still can.”

  Sarge gave Taylor a long hard stare. “Is he right, can you sort this out?”

  “Yeah, but we can’t do this on our own.” Taylor swept his arms around in an arc at the people gathered about him. “We need you and your guys. It’s time to pick sides.”

  The crowded room fell silent, each person awaiting the verdict, every eye fixed on the group of camouflaged figures. The whole mission was now looking ever more like a suicide run. Then, after what seemed like forever, Sarge broke the silence.

  “We’ve come to a decision,” – he paused momentarily – “Brad, we’re with you.”

  Ethan Mason called out over the buzz of noise and addressed Taylor, “Now I get why we can’t leave the town in large numbers, Brad’s made that real clear. What I don’t understand is what’s the difference in that and us attacking these people? We still gonna leave the town.”

  “Yeah, Ethan has a point there. That’s gonna make them madder than hell,” Ray Johnson called over to Taylor. “This whole operation’s been about them containing this threat. They’ve cut you off from the outside world. The only reason you’ve stayed safe for this duration, is because you posed no direct threat to them. That’s all changed now and judging by what this guy,” – he pointed at George Lee – “has told us, the military have pulled out. The only reason they’d do that is to fire off those missiles.”

  “So what is the damn point?” Tom Price threw his hands up in utter frustration. “If they’re gonna use them, why not make a run for it?”

  “Our one and only chance, is to move fast and shut down one of those weapons and free the airwaves. You start an evacuation and they’re most likely to call an air strike down and still fire the damn missiles.”

  Eastman called order and waited until everyone had stopped talking.

  “Okay now we all know what we gotta do, let’s go take our town back.”

  ****

  Austen Colt headed towards the group of men with a grin on his face.

  “Well no need for any Nitro, Boulle. Someone’s had a damn good go at that door.”

  Benteen moved forward to greet Colt. “What you find?”

  “The door’s been blown off; there are a few of those things – dead – and a Jeep. There’s a bunch of tracks leading down a tunnel.”

  “So that’s gotta be the base then?” Hardman ventured, looking at the others.

  “Okay let’s move out. Austen you go left and Boulle, you keep right.”

  Benteen turned to the others, “The rest, you’re with me.”

  “What about me?”

  “Taylor, I want you where I can see you. You pull any stunts with us and I’ll nail your butt to the nearest tree.”

  “Thanks for the vote of trust.”

  “I’d trust you more if I knew why you were so hell-bent on going into that hole.”

  Without a backwards glance, Benteen led his group out of the trees and set off for the base, a few hundred yards away. He had a mixed bag with him: Ethan Mason, Ray Johnson, James Burke, Tom Price, Roody Goldsmith, and Danny Hardman. Hardly heavy duty, any of them, but they were eager to help.

  After a short trek the group arrived at the base. Benteen and his group used the greenery for cover as Boulle and Colt worked around the dilapidated structure. The Army Jeep lay abandoned with a number of dead ghouls strewn on the ground nearby. Both Boulle and Colt disappeared into the building and then reappeared moments later. Benteen held his hand high
in the air and the whole band moved silently forward.

  “Keep your eyes open and your wits about you. This could get heavy.”

  Benteen gestured at Taylor to move forward, “You’d best go first.”

  “Just you hillbillies make sure you don’t shoot me in the ass.”

  Taylor switched on his flashlight and surveyed the opening. The wall section had been blown out, leaving a door-sized opening to gain access. The ad hoc doorway led onto a long dark corridor, with more dead creatures on the floor. Taylor turned as he heard the sound of rubble crunching underfoot. Benteen stood alongside him.

  “I kinda guess they come this way then? What’s your plan?”

  “We’re not gonna get much done standing about here. Your bunch ready?”

  Even though he couldn’t tell in the gloom, he could imagine what their faces looked like.

  “Roody, Danny you stay up here. I don’t want anybody getting around back of us. We may have to get out in a hurry. The rest, follow Taylor.”

  Benteen gave him a wily look before they began the journey into darkness. The flashlights flitted about the dank, cavernous tunnel as the party carried on. The bulkhead lamps dotted around the walls hung lifeless in the pitch black. They’d only travelled a few feet when suddenly Taylor hissed at the others to switch their lights off. Bobbing towards them were four high power flashlights.

  “We got company! It’s the military watch...” Taylor’s sentence was cut short by the harsh tones of Corporal Wyllie booming though the cavern.

  “Advance and be recognised!”

  Taylor nudged Benteen’s arm and whispered to him, “Let me do the talking.”

  “Advance and be recognised!” The repeated command echoed once more.

  “Captain Brent Taylor, US Army Rangers. Where’s your CO, soldier?”

  The beams of light got ever closer until they stopped directly in front of Taylor.

  “I’m in charge here Sir. Corporal Wyllie, third squad.”

  Wyllie was flanked by Harper, Dodge, Smithy and Ford, all aiming their rifles waist high at the other group. Wyllie continued, “This is a restricted area, mind telling me what you’re doing with these civilians Sir?”