“My mom’s been dead for thirty years but you can spank me later if it’ll make you feel better. Probably make me feel better.”
Ms. Cromeenes rolled her eyes so hard Freddie thought he heard them.
The gunshots got louder as the soldiers fell back.
“Hot damn. Got the right key.” Fast Freddie said and popped the lock.
The first soldier arrived and he was covered in blood. The next one, the female, looked shell shocked. She hit the wall and then slid to the ground. Her arm held her assault rifle close but it was like she was clutching a lifeless doll. Her fingers flexed and uncurled and then stopped moving. Freddie was shocked when he realized that what he thought was a shadow, was actually a massive bloodstain that covered her neck and combat gear.
“Ah fuck a duck! I think they got mah boy back there.” He triggered the mic next to his mouth. “Armstrong, Tommy Armstrong, man. You down?”
“Keep it quiet, son. We got a place to hide.”
“Don’t let him in, he shot O’Dell, and Mrs. Bradshaw.”
“Accident. I didn’t know they were alive.” The kid protested.
The three residents glared at him.
As far as Jerry was concerned, Mr. O’Dell had been a grumpy old fart with an acid tongue but he didn’t deserve to be sent out of God’s Waiting Room before his time.
“See it was all cool. We had that shit. Had it in the damn bag. Then they swarmed us. Never seen so many. Like it was Christmas and we were the damn present giving mafuckahs. They took out O’Dell then they went after Sissy, there.”
“Sissy, are you okay?” Ms. Cromeenes asked.
“That ain’t her name. Just a nickname. Her first name is Cecilia so we call her Sissy.”
Sissy didn’t care what her name was now. She snarled as her eyes turned white.
“In, you jack asses.” Fast Freddie said gesturing toward the doorway.
But it was too late. The horde had arrived.
The kid lifted his gun and fired. He held his finger down and panic sprayed the zombies. Fast Freddy slapped his hands to his ears but his hearing aids picked up and amplified every shot like a hammer.
Ms. Cromeenes was already inside.
“Walkers!” She yelled.
Fast Freddie and Ms. Cromeenes grabbed a pair of aluminum walkers and prepared to push the hoard back. The kid dropped a magazine to the floor and slammed another one home.
The mass of zombies were more than the kid could handle. The first brushed past him and came at the residents. Ms. Cromeenes pushed the guy back. He fell into the horde taking a couple down in the process. Fast Freddie was just about out of anything resembling energy. He tried to follow Ms. Cromeenes lead but a zombie pulled the walker out of his arm.
The kid fell back, bumping into Fast Freddie as he tried to flee into the room. Jerry wasn’t having none of that because he grabbed the kid by the collar and pushed him back into the horde.
He went down screaming for help.
Fast Freddie managed to hobble back into the room. Ms. Cromeenes was right next to him and together they reached for Jerry.
Jerry’s hand was on his chest. He had a stricken look on his face like he was shot. He gasped for breath and tried to take a step backward. Fast Freddie knew that look all to well. Spend a few years in Shady Vale and you got used to heart attacks.
“I. Can’t.” Jerry said.
“We aren’t leaving you behind.” Fast Freddie said.
“Damn right you aren’t.”
Sissy had other plans. She grabbed Jerry’s ankle and pulled.
Fast Freddie McCalister wasn’t fast enough. He got his hand on Jerry’s arm but his friend was already gone.
Ms. Cromeenes gabbed Freddie’s arm and yanked him into the room then slammed the door shut in a zombie’s snarling face. Behind the door Jerry screamed for help.
They lowered themselves to the floor, back on the door, as she reached up and locked it. Made of heavy wood the entrance would be safe for now.
They panted next to each other for a few minutes while the screams died down. Fast Freddie didn’t say a word, he just stared into space.
Morning arrived, bringing soft golden rays though the white velour vertical blinds. The rains from the day before were gone and in its place was something like hope, or so Fast Freddie McAlister reckoned. Considering they’d survived the night, managed to find shelter, and had stayed out of harm’s way. There were worse ways he could have found himself instead of next to a soft warm body cuddled right up to his. The last time he’s spooned with a woman had been at least a decade or two ago but the mechanic’s of the act had not changed as far as he could tell.
The room hadn’t had much in the way of supplies but they’d found a few blankets and managed to push a couch next to the door to block it. Then they’d slept curled up next to each other for most of the night before daylight peeked in. At one point they’d awaken to fast and steady gunfire but after his heartbeat had slowed he’d drifted back to sleep.
Fast Freddie thought about getting up and closing the blinds but he was too exhausted to move.
“It’s quiet out there.” Fast Freddie said.
“Yeah. Been quiet for a few hours, I think we’re safe for now.”
“Good. I need water and something in my gut.”
“I’ve needed to use the facilities for a few hours. If I hold it much longer I’m peeing in a corner.”
“Use that one over there.” Fast Freddie pointed. “I had to visit it in the middle of the night. You snore like a train going uphill.”
“Freddie McCalister, I haven’t snored a day in my life. I’m a lady.”
“Sure. A lady. Would my lady like to see if we’re safe?”
The two rose and rubbed aching muscles and joints.
Fast Freddie’s body felt like he’d been tossed inside of a clothes dryer filled with combat boots. His back screamed when he got up and his titanium hip felt like it’d frozen up. Freddie’s head hurt but he wasn’t sure if it was a headache or the tension in the back of his neck.
They pushed the couch out of the way and spent a few minutes listening at the door. Ms. Cromeenes reached for the handle.
“I’m glad we made it, doll.” Fast Freddie said.
“Me too, you old fart but don’t you get fresh. I have a feeling we’re not out of the woods yet. For all we know there’s a horde right outside the door and we may be stuck here for a few days.”
“Ah, jeez, Ms. Cromeenes, give a guy hope by sleeping with him and then toss him on him out? That how you operate?”
“You don’t have the right equipment for me. Now let’s see how bad the damage is and see if we can get out of this nightmare. I need coffee, breakfast, and some prune juice.”
Fast Freddie nodded as they pushed the couch out of the way. The pair pressed their ear’s to the wood and listened for several minutes but it was quiet.
Fast Freddie took a deep breath and turned the nob.
The door swung open to reveal his pal Jerry Winfield who was a mass of bloody wounds. His cheeks had been chewed away and his lips looked something out o a nightmare.
Fast Freddie wasn’t up to his namesake. He tried to get his hand up but Jerry was already on him. Teeth flashed and blood poured as Freddie let out a horrendous scream of horror. Ms. Cromeens kicked Freddie into the arms of Jerry Winfield and then slammed the door shut as a fresh horde of ancient zombies came at her.
“Well I’ll be dipped.” She said and prepared to wait out the day.
Read the Permuted Press novel that inspired the Z-Risen series.
Beyond the Barriers is a military style zombie book set in the same world as Z-Risen.
When the dead rise, Ex-Special Forces soldier Erik Tragger flees to the mountains to wait out the end of the world. Cut off from civilization for months, he returns to find cities ruined and ruled by the walking dead.
Tragger reluctantly joins a group of survivors with a plan: flee to Portland where humanity is carving o
ut a stronghold. But along the way they face opposition at every turn—the dead, rogue military forces, looters... and a new enemy more dangerous than any they have yet encountered.
Among the stumbling, mindless zombies walk the ghouls. The ghouls are living dead creatures that not only strategize and plan, but also possess the ability to guide their shambling brothers.
With weapons and supplies dwindling, Erik and his companions will faceoff against millions of the dead who have but one goal: complete eradication of the last of the living.
Check out BEYOND THE BARRIERS on Amazon
About the Author
Timothy W. Long has been writing tales and stories since he could hold a crayon and has read enough books to choke a landfill. Tim has a fascination with all things zombie, a predilection for weird literature, and a deep-seated need to jot words on paper and thrust them at people. Tim spent time in the US Navy, worked for a major game corporation, an aeronautics company, and he has been in the IT field for the last 15 years as an engineer before becoming a full time author. He is an active member of Horror Writers Association, SFWA, and International Thriller Writers.
Tim is the the author of 11 novels including the bestselling, AMONG THE LIVING, and the sequel AMONG THE DEAD. His other works include the zombie book BEYOND THE BARRIERS and the deserted island 'zombedy' THE ZOMBIE WILSON DIARIES, and his latest, the enormously successful Z-RISEN series of military styled zombie books.
Tim resides outside of Seattle where he spends time with his partner in crime, Amanda, as well as 2 children, 2 dogs of various sizes and dispositions, and a near constant supply of overpriced and overcooked coffee beans.
Reavers (Z-Risen Series Book 4) Page 21
