Planet Dead (Book 1): Bloodthirsty

by Sylvester Barzey

  Catherine’s hands were composed and ready, but her heart was slamming around in her chest. Some had robes like the little girl, others had lab coats, military uniforms and normal everyday attire as if they just step in off the street. They all shared the same pulsating blood vessels and bald heads that cut in and out of the light as the screeching got louder. Their weapons came up and Catherine opened up fire, sending one lead bullet after another into the infected crowd that swarmed them.

  “What the fuck is this?” Catherine screamed out

  “There’s so many of them!” Tennessee hollered over the bullets.

  “Stop talking and keep shooting!” Robert said. “We’ll push them back and make a run for the door!” With every bullet they fired they moved closer and closer towards the exit sign. As the first wave of infected were shot down, the second wave seemed to have watched and learned. Many of them began to race towards them zigzagging back and forth through the light. Head shots became damn near impossible. So they took whatever shot they could get. Bullet after bullet was being fired. The bodies went down and then sprung back up as if nothing happened.

  “Get to the door!” Robert shouted as he moved closer to the pack of infected, “I’ll hold them back!”

  Tennessee wasted no time, she put one foot in front of the other and took off racing towards the door. With her went the light, leaving Catherine and Robert behind to face the monsters in the darkness. As her hands pushed the door open, Tennessee felt her body being ripped back from the doorway. Her hands slammed onto the doorframe and she screamed, “Get off me!”

  Catherine’s barrel turned towards the doorway and she pulled back on the trigger sending a bullet cutting through the air. Unlike the barrage of random shots her and Robert was dishing out, this one found it’s mark blasting a hole into the side of the zombie’s skull.

  Tennessee took her new found freedom and bolted through the doorway and down the steps.

  “Let’s go!” Catherine said but Robert continued firing into the pack un-phased by his wife’s request. Catherine shouted again, “Let’s go, Robert!”

  “I’ll lay down cover fire as-” His words got cut off by the sound of Catherine’s rifle firing shot after shot as she switched her M4 to three round burst. The barrel smoked as it sprayed from left to right, pushing the wave of infected back. Catherine watched as the bodies dropped to the floor only to be back on their feet within a matter of seconds.

  They were fighting a losing battling, Robert could see that now, “Fine, on three!” He said.

  “One,” Catherine said as he bullets whizzed through the hall.

  “Two,” Robert shouted over the gunfire.

  The two of them turned and bolted for the door as they both screamed out “Three!”

  Catherine’s shoulder bashed into the metal of the door sending it flying open, she kept her eyes forward. Her feet skipping one step after another. Her hands locked to the railings in hopes of keeping her body from stumbling down the staircase. Catherine’s only focus was getting away, until she heard it.

  “Fuck!” Robert’s smooth deep voice shouted out the word. His back was pressed up against the door as the infected began to pummel the metal. The leather of his boots did their best to hold their ground, but with each hit Robert felt himself sliding back.

  Catherine darted back up the steps, “Robert!”

  Robert put out his hand, “Just keep going, someone has to hold them back!” he replied.

  Catherine stood at the bottom of the staircase staring up at her husband. His arms and back were pinned against the door. His eyes were closed tightly trying to avoid her light brown gaze, one that he thought he would never see again.

  Catherine shook her head and Robert shouted, “Just go!”

  “I’m not leaving you!” Catherine said, she put her foot on the step and her fingers wrapped around the handle of her weapon.

  When Robert’s eyes opened they were staring down the barrel of Catherine’s rifle, “Killing me is worse than leaving me, Kitty Cat!” Just then another slam came into the metal door and his hold shifted.

  “Don’t call me that!” Catherine said as she took a deep breath and then blew it out of the corner of her mouth. She pressed her cheek to black metal and her eye to the scope. “Run and don’t look back,” she said.

  Robert shook his head “No! Catherine, just keep-” Robert’s words were cut off by Catherine sending a bullet into the upper part of the door, his head ducked and his eyes quickly went towards his wife “Are you crazy!” he shouted.

  Catherine bellowed back “Move!”

  Robert’s dog tags were raising and falling quickly as they rested on his chest, he held his weapon close and then let out a big sigh followed by, “You’re so fucking hard headed,” as he released the door and started running.

  Catherine opened up fire into the crowd of infected that were trying to force their way through the door. One head shot after another, Catherine had dropped three zombies before the crowd finally pushed their way through. Wide eyed and heart racing, Catherine leaped down the staircase and started running down the steps.

  Robert was turning back every few seconds to fire off shots. They came to a dark stairway, their footsteps were lost in the thundering sound of the infected chasing them through what seemed like a never ending staircase. They ran deeper into the darkness when a door flew open, shining a bright white light on them.

  “What the hell took you two so long?” Tennessee said.

  Robert and Catherine rushed through the open door. Tennessee slammed the door shut and turned the deadbolt locking it. A loud pounding could be heard from the other side of the metal, Tennessee frantically started backing up with the flashlight, “What the fuck are those things?” she ask.

  Catherine’s hands went on the top of her head as she did her best to easy the fire that took over her lungs.

  “Zombies?” Robert asked.

  Tennessee shined the light in the Robert’s face, “Bullshit, zombies ain’t that fucking fast and they don’t all sport the same hair do.” Tennessee said. She ran her fingers through her hair before point back at the door, “ Did you see any bites? Any fucking cuts on them? Because I didn’t!”

  Catherine closed her eyes and softly said, “Look for a fuse box or a generator.”

  Tennessee’s head spun towards Catherine, “No! What the fuck are they?” She demanded.

  Catherine shouting back “I don’t know! And right now I don’t fucking care!” She turned to look around the dimly lite room, “All I know is they’re waiting for us to get that lab open and that’s what we’re gonna do. That’s the mission,” Catherine said.

  Tennessee pointed the flashlight in Catherine’s face, the white light dropped and Catherine closed her eyes as orange spots slowly moved around in the darkness. She listened to Tennessee’s footsteps slowly moving away.

  “You alright?” Catherine’s eyes opened to see the red glow of the room shining down on Robert’s face. She went to slap him, but the impact was blocked by his forearm “What hell?” Robert said.

  Catherine slapped him with her free hand, “What the hell is wrong with you, Robert!” She broke loose, then she started slapping and punching wildly. The blows got weaker and softer, then she wasn’t hitting him at all. She was resting her head on his chest and crying. “What the hell is wrong with you?” She softly asked.

  Robert’s cheek settled on the top of Catherine’s soft jet black hair. His eyes closed and his lips parted, “I’m sorry,” he said.

  The two of them stood there, embraced in one another's arms, until the pounding on the door became too hard to ignore. Catherine’s head came up and she wiped away her tears before turning and saying ,“Let’s go.”

  Walking down a dark hallway, Tennessee shined her light along the walls revealing several unmarked doors, with large padlocks on them. A hand grabbed hold of Tennessee’s shoulder causing her to jump and drop the flashlight. “What the fuck!” She said.

  Catherine
leaned down picking up the light, “Sorry, what you find?” she said.

  The light came back up on the padlock and Tennessee shook her head, “I don’t like this,” she said softly.

  Robert nodded as he raised his weapon, “Neither do I,” he said.

  Catherine’s hand went out towards the lock and as her fingers got closer, the metal the door started to violently shake. The three of them watched as the lock pushed and pulled against the metal latch. Catherine took a step back, “We need to get the fuck out of here,” she said and looked over at Tennessee and Robert, “Like now!”

  They quickly continued down the hallway. “What the hell were they doing in this place” Tennessee asked Catherine.

  Rising her weapon, Catherine felt Tennessee following closely behind her, “Nothing good,” Catherine replied.

  Robert stopped cold, “Shit! You think Brooks knew about this?” he asked.

  Tennessee laughed and shook her head, “Oh no, I doubt she knew anything about the super zombies or the creepy basement.” She rolled her eyes, “I mean it’s not like she works here or anything.”

  Robert looked over at Catherine, “Who the hell is she again?” he asked.

  Catherine stopped as the flashlight shined on an open doorway. Robert and Tennessee came up beside her. The trio stared into bright beam of light that showed two concrete steps leading down into a room.

  “You think one of them got out?” Tennessee asked.

  Catherine shook her head as she handed the flashlight to Tennessee. She raised her weapon and walked through the doorway, down the steps. “Give me some light,” Catherine said.

  Tennessee pointed the light over Catherine’s shoulder to show a dusty room with pipes running along the ceiling. The light scanned the room showing four large burners and then it passed over two large grey metal panels.

  “Go back!” Catherine said. The light quickly shot back to the metal panels, “Jackpot!” Catherine said with a smile.

  “It’s about time something good happened to us,” Robert said. He cautiously walked in behind his wife, with his weapon at the ready.

  “That’s it?” Tennessee asked.

  Catherine unslung her weapon resting it on the wall as she popped open the lids to the two panels, revealing rows of black switches. Catherine nodded, “Fuck yeah it is!”

  Tennessee laughed and leaned in the doorway, “Thank God! I’m so ready to get out of this place,” she said.

  Robert walked up to the second box and put his hand on the top breaker switch, as Catherine placed her hand on the other switch. The couple looked at each other. This was what they had been waiting for, what they had been fighting for. The final moment before their nightmare came to an end. Yes, there were still many questions to answer. Still battles that needed to be fought, but what mattered was they could fight them together. Robert leaned in and kissed his wife as they both pulled their switches to off.

  The red lights went out and Tennessee dropped the flashlight to the ground. It rolled down the two steps, then spun along the cement floor. It’s light fell onto Catherine, then the boilers, then Tennessee. They both pushed the switches back into the on position causing the main lights to kick back on. Robert leaned back opening his eyes as he smiled at his wife.

  “I love you,” he said.

  “I love you more,” Catherine replied. She looked over at Tennessee with a smile. Then Catherine’s eyes got wide, her jaw started to fall open as she readied herself to scream, but her words couldn’t match the pace of that moment. Tennessee was aiming her M4 in their direction. A roaring blast echoed through the small boiler room. Catherine’s eyes were locked on Tennessee's finger pulling back on the trigger for a second time.

  Robert’s body jolted back, slamming into the fuse box. His knees buckled and his hand reached out to Catherine. Blood started cascading down his back onto the floor and not a second later his body followed. Robert’s body fell over in a heap, surrounded by a mass of blood that took over the once gray concrete floor.

  “Robert!” Catherine screamed.

  She quickly rushed to her husband’s side only to hear Tennessee shout, “No! You don’t fucking move!”

  Catherine stood still just inches away from Robert. She could see him from the corner of her eye. He wasn’t screaming, his hands had fallen from his chest and into the puddle of blood. Catherine’s eyes shot away from Tennessee down to Robert. She could see the two dark bullet holes in his body pushing out blood with every passing second. Catherine’s eyes stung from the tears and before she knew it Robert’s bloody body started to blur. She took a deep breath, then Catherine made a quick dash for her weapon.

  Another blast echoed through the boiler room, which followed by a burning pain that rushed through Catherine’s shoulder. She dropped down next to her rifle, her fingers just inches away. She pushed her hand forward brushing her fingertips along the buttstock. Then Tennessee’s heel came slamming down onto Catherine’s fingers. Catherine screamed.

  Tennessee laughed and twisted the heel of her boot, grinding Catherine’s fingers into the concrete. The skin tore away and Catherine felt the pain in her fingers battling the pain in her shoulder, both trying to take center stage in her mind.

  “Well now that we’re alone, how about we have that talk.” Tennessee softly said.

  CHAPTER 14

  T ap.

  TAP.

  TAP.

  The sound of Maxine’s nail tapping along the glass started off as a small annoyance and then quickly grew into the only thing Sue could think about, aside from wondering how Catherine was doing. Sue pulled her legs close to her, she rested her shoulder on the wall, not being able to rest her back on much of anything. She bit down on her lip as the pain started to shoot through her again.

  Sue’s eyes closed trying to hold back the tears, but they slowly started to come. The darkness pulled her back to that farmhouse, she could smell the rotten scent that seemed to soak its way into the wood of the house, she could hear him laughing, just laughing. Sue’s started breathing faster before she felt a hand touch her shoulder. She jumped and then wished she didn’t when the pain started running through her body again. Sue’s eyes opened to see Peter and Jordan standing over her.

  “You alright blondie?” Peter said and Sue nodded her head.

  “I’m fine” She slowly started to try to get to her feet, but the blood loss and the lack of food had her stumbling to the side, she almost fell over till she noticed the small arms that were holding her up. Her head turned to Jordan and she smiled, “You saved me again kiddo,” Sue said.

  “Mom said to keep you safe,” Jordan replied.

  Peter nodded leaning on the wall, “Yeah, how the hell did you two end up together anyway?” Peter’s arms folded over his chest. “Where’s Samantha and Dean?”

  Sue shook her head and looked down at the floor as she said, “They didn’t make it,” she said softly.

  Tap.

  Tap.

  Tap.

  Sue’s head leaned back as she shouted, “Do you have to fucking do that?”

  Doctor Brooks’s hand fell from the glass and she started to get to her feet as she said, “Sorry!”

  Sue rolled her eyes and stood up straight, “How the hell are we gonna get out of here? Exactly?” she asked.

  Brooks looked over at Peter and Peter looked at Sue “There’s a chopper that’s coming, for zero so Maxine can make a cure.” Peter said.

  “There is no cure. The best we can do is make a vaccine for the virus” She said softly.

  “So they’re coming for zero and four other doctors?” Sue asked.

  Doctor Brooks ran her hands over her face, “This isn’t how things were supposed to happen. I left to seek out more resources, I planned to return sooner but now...”

  Sue turned her head to the side, “But now what?” she asked.

  Brooks sighed as she said “It’s possible they might have left or-”

  “Or got eaten?” Sue asked. Sue looked ov
er at Peter “She full of it! There’s no one coming. You heard her, they're gone or their dead!”

  Peter shook his head “No, Max is gonna get us out, tell her Max,” he said.

  Doctor Brooks’s eyes went back towards the glass door and Sue rolled her eyes, “She’s playing you. There are five spots on that chopper. Zero and her make” Sue’s two fingers went up and wiggled, “In a build full of high profile doctors, what the hell made you think she could get you a seat?” Sue asked.

  Pete’s eyes went from Sue over to Doctor Brooks, “Max, tell her.” he said again. The doctor didn’t turn, she didn’t give any hint that she even acknowledged Peter’s words. “I said tell her God damn it!” he shouted.

  “You would have been safe, but I’m needed elsewhere,” the doctor’s head turned to look at the trio. All eyes were on her as she shoved her hands in her pockets. “The chopper to the compound was set for tonight. Now someone put the system into lockdown, so someone is here, which means it’s still coming. Which means we can all go just as planned.” she said softly.

  “We can all go? So you’re gonna get us out of here?” Sue asked

  “I’m not,” Doctor Brook’s replied.

  Brooks’s words filled up the red lit room, then the lights went out.

  Sue shouted, “Excuse me bitch!?”

  Peter’s hands shot through the darkness and grabbed Sue, “Be easy blondie,” Peter’s words raced through Sue’s mind and caused her to spin around on her heels. The rubber of her blood stained white shoes squeaked as her hand balled up into a fist.

  The lights shot back on and before Peter could react, Sue’s fist came crashing into his nose, “Don’t call me that!” She screamed.