She squeezed him tight. “Better now, sweetie, but we’ve got other problems. Is everyone still keeping calm up there?” She pointed to the steps to the bunker.
“Yes,” said Isis. “And so far, we’ve had no encounters down here at all. I believe this tunnel system will eventually take us out of Kingman and entirely away from this horde.”
Max moved over to his dad and embraced him, too. “Glad you’re okay, pop.”
“You’d be hard pressed to be happier than I am to see you,” said Hemp, smiling. He kissed Max on the cheek, and Flex saw the young man blush. Had Flex not been deep in worry mode, he would’ve razzed him about it.
“Mom!” came a voice. Gem smiled automatically, which made Flex smile. He watched as Colton emerged from the corridor and ran to them, throwing his arms around his wife’s waist as though they had not just seen one another upstairs.
“Hey, baby,” said Gem, wincing. “I’m so glad you’re safe. Go a bit easier on the hug though. Remember mommy has a broken rib.”
There it was again. Mommy. Flex knew Gem loved to be called that. Flex Jr. had grown up and begun to call her mom, so being a mommy again made her feel needed in a different way. Colton was providing therapy for her that even he didn’t understand.
If Flex were to be honest, he enjoyed hearing Colton call him dad. He wasn’t even sure the boy had ever known his real father.
Gem stood facing Colton, her hands clasped together behind his neck. “How’d you do up there with that big crowd?” she asked. Flex recognized that she was doing her best to put her worry for Beauty and the others out of her mind for the moment.
“It’s cold down here,” he said. “Up there it was hot and crowded,” said Colton. “Kev said it was body heat. I’m glad to be out of there. What is this place?”
Flex knelt down. “It’s an old underground tunnel system built by these secret society guys. Pretty cool, huh?”
Colton looked around in wonder. “Yeah,” he said. “I wonder if there’s treasure down here.”
“For now, the tunnel system is the treasure,” said Flex. “A way to move around the town without being on the street where the stinkers are.”
Colton nodded and said nothing. Flex rubbed his back.
“Colton, would you go check upstairs and see if they have any granola bars up there?” asked Gem. She turned to wink at Flex.
“Okay!” Colton said, excited about his mission. “You want one, dad?”
“Heck yeah,” said Flex, smiling.
The moment he rounded the corner, Isis said, “Those at the clinic aren’t the only ones in danger. There’s a bad situation developing in that bunker up there, and it appears to be growing worse.”
“What?” asked Charlie, as Hemp appeared behind her.
“Night is falling, and there are not near enough supplies to accommodate the people up there, even through tomorrow,” said Isis. “They could come down here to replenish water, but as for food, they’re already running low. We do not yet know what lies ahead in this system, so I’m not comfortable bringing them all with us.”
“I’ll be right back,” said Nelson. He slipped past Max and ran back up the steps to the bunker.
Rachel glanced at the spot he had been standing and shook her head with a shrug. “He gets ideas … all of a sudden.”
The group discussed options for a few minutes and it wasn’t long before Flex realized they didn’t have many at their disposal.
“So everyone up there needs to get somewhere else, right?” asked Charlie, pointing up toward the bunker. “What’s the situation outside City Hall now?”
“I’d hate to guess, Charlie. The walkers seemed to spread out when the people who weren’t in the bunker ran out, but that’s been a while now,” said Flex.
“How well armed are they up there?” asked Hemp. “I know many of the fighters spread throughout the city, so we’ve got our weakest, least trained citizens in this bunker.”
“Good point,” said Gem. “Unless at least half of them have weapons, there’s no way they can make a break above ground. Too many roving zombies for that.”
“I think they’re fairly secure up there,” said Isis. “I was primarily concerned with the food and water stocks. Of course the latter was solved by the Artesian wells. In any case, the best they can do at this juncture is to either stay put and be a little hungry, or have someone lead them back toward the museum and just fight their way through any Hungerers and Mothers they encounter. I think the first option is the best one.”
“If we’re workin’ our way through this tunnel system anyway, why can’t they just follow behind?” asked Flex.
Isis shook her head. “As I said before, I don’t know what we’ll run into further on, and I’m afraid it will be far too chaotic to explore this tunnel system with so many people.”
“Where do we go when we get them out through the museum?” asked Rachel.
Nelson bounded back down the steps, breathing hard. “I heard you and that’s not gonna work, either.”
“Why not?” asked Gem.
“Because you remember that wall of zombies we got through at the museum?”
It seemed like a rhetorical question, but Nelson also appeared to be awaiting an answer. Everybody nodded.
“It’s twenty times the size now, dudes. And the horde outside City hall broke down the door. It’s packed in there, and they’re jammed up against the bunker entrance.”
“How the hell do you know that?” asked Flex.
“Because I got on Kev’s radio and just started asking if anyone was in trouble,” said Nelson. “Punch answered. He must’ve showed up at City Hall right after you guys got the front cleared out, because he used his key to get back inside. Right after they got through the doors and found the bunker closed up, he said a huge group of rotters started crashing the front of the building again.”
“Shit, are they alright?” asked Gem.
“Yeah, but he said it was close. The glass doors finally caved in and came down and the fuckin’ zombies were pouring through. He and Lola ran and hid in that coat closet by the bathrooms.”
“Are they still there?” asked Hemp. “My God. There’s no way we can get to them.”
“Dude, they’re not there anymore,” said Nelson. “They figured out their WAT-5 had worn off, so they each munched their last ones, one at a time. When they opened the door, they were spotted by two Mothers, and Punch blew their heads off with that Saiga shotgun of his. Then they tore through the smashed glass front and got across the street to the old bank building. Fought their way up there.”
“Are they still there?” asked Hemp.
“Yeah,” said Nelson. “They’re on the roof, which is how they saw the entrance to the museum was packed up with rotters again.”
“I knew he’d get there eventually,” said Rachel, taking Nelson’s hand and squeezing it. He leaned over and planted a kiss on her cheek, looking proud of himself.
“Shit,” said Flex. “So Kev’s people gotta come this way. With us. No sense in them staying up there with no food.”
“Does Kevin think the door to the bunker will hold?” asked Hemp. “I imagine the Mothers left up there are taxing it to its limits.”
“It isn’t designed to do anything other than seal off the bunker,” said Isis. “They will eventually break it down, even in their weakened states. Their numbers will make up for any lack of strength.”
“Punch said that CJ DeAndrea, Giles Batchelor and Jim Cole are at the old armory on South Main with about forty other people,” said Nelson. “He talked to them on the radio.”
“Then they’re in good shape,” said Charlie.
“Hell yes, they are,” said Gem. “They won’t starve, plus that’s pretty much on the southern outskirts of town. They’re probably south of most of these bastards.”
Flex knew why. The armory was a very large building where they stocked all the town’s excess food and water. Canning food and preserves had become common, and
there was an enormous amount of sustenance in that single location.
To their disappointment, there had been no cache of weapons or ammo stored there when they got into Kingman; in fact, the main building had been turned into a basketball court at some point. Regardless, while the building didn’t have the best defenses in town, there was enough food there to keep people for months if they could keep the hordes from getting inside.
Isis’ eyes suddenly grew intense. She pointed at the flowing water. “That stone channel routes the fresh water generally due south,” said Isis. “Which is definitely the direction we need to move to escape the town.”
“So … it has to come out somewhere, right? Water keeps flowing,” said Trina.
“That’s absolutely correct,” said Isis. “In order not to be discovered, it must flow directly into the Ninnescah River. If it does go that far, the tunnel system does, too, otherwise it would be pointless to have built it.”
“We’d have noticed water running into the river,” said Taylor. “Right? I mean, we swim down there all the time.”
Hemp seemed to catch Isis’ excitement. “I’ve no doubt that the water enters the river below the water level,” he said. “And to accommodate seasonal water level variations, it would have to be at least four or five feet below the surface.”
“This is a shitload of cool information,” said Flex, “but how does it solve the problem of our citizens being trapped in buildings all over the city by hordes of rotters?”
Hemp stepped into the stairwell corridor and turned to face everyone. “Everyone. We need to slow down for a few moments and make a good plan. One that saves as many lives as possible and gets us to safety. Now, if we can take this tunnel system down as far as the South Fork Ninnescah River, I believe we’ll survive. With the gas diminishing, the abnormals may not detect our absence, and they won’t know to follow, particularly if we’re underground. Isis, Max. You did say the Mothers are weakened, correct?”
“I know we are,” said Max. “No doubt they’re experiencing the same thing.”
“Then we go back upstairs and get on every channel on several radios until everyone has answered that has the ability to do so. We tell them to fight their way to the oldest buildings in Kingman. Isis, do you believe this system reaches all of them?”
“I know all of the buildings listed in the town’s historical registry,” said Isis. “They are the most likely access points. The water runs south, but there must be several wells feeding it from farther north,” she said. “If you noticed as you followed Max’s bread crumbs, multiple water channels feed this one from multiple points in town,” she said, again pointing at the flowing, underground stream. “They angle in from different directions. I believe each of those channels runs beneath the oldest structures within the city.”
“So, the answer’s yes,” said Flex.
“Correct,” said Isis.
“Let’s go, then dudes,” said Nelson. “We’ve dicked around quite enough.” Nelson stood aside and let Rachel lead the way again. He turned, smiled and followed.
Flex wasn’t certain, but he thought he heard Nelson talking about his wife’s ass as she ascended the stairs ahead of him.
The dude was like a happy pill when he needed it most. Suddenly, Flex felt like they would survive the day.
All of them.
“Get a move on, Cowboy,” said Gem. “You daydreaming?”
Flex turned and saw Gem’s brown eyes staring up at him from the step below. “I love you, Gemina Cardoza Sheridan. I think we’re gonna make it.”
“We always do, Flexy. Most of us, anyway.”
Flex nodded and made his way up. Gem gave his ass a quick pinch before he stepped into the bunker and among the crowd of survivors.
*****
CHAPTER SEVEN
“If any of you would like a break from this congestion, you may go down those steps and splash your faces with the water,” said Hemp. “It’s pure. Feel free to drink, too. Sit, relax, but do not go anywhere. The tunnel system is extensive and you could easily get lost or hit a dead end. We’re up here to develop a plan.”
The murmured responses came, and Flex counted at least three-dozen people take the scientist up on his offer.
Vikki and Victoria were among them, both of them patting Hemp on the shoulder as they passed, giving him and Gem weak smiles. Vikki had been right earlier when she said she was tired.
She looked exhausted.
*****
Whenever they reached another group on the radios, the people monitoring them called Max or Isis over. Based on the location of the survivors, they directed them where to go. Isis had said there was a slight chance that some of the newer buildings also had access into their basements, because of natural disasters such as tornadoes that may have destroyed the original buildings, requiring them to be rebuilt later.
The basements would likely have remained relatively untouched. Flex hoped the Freemasons had been involved in any new construction done.
All at once the arched door leading into the bunker began to spit dust from the hinged side. Reeves ran up to it and put his hands against the rough wood. “Feels like they’re right outside.”
“They’re not in here, though,” said Trina. “Kev, don’t worry.”
Isis bristled and turned toward Max. “I sense Mothers. More than ever before. How can there be so many?”
She looked worried. That worried Flex.
“As instinctive as they are,” said Hemp, “the Mothers must realize something is affecting them. As their only function is feeding, their simple minds would logically conclude that a lack of sustenance is what is weakening all of them.”
“You think they called all the Hungerers here, then?” asked Gem. “Isis, would they do that?”
“This is the largest single food source in the city,” said Isis. “Yes, they would do that. They have done that.”
Another shudder. More dust. Five times as much as the last push.
“There’s not much time,” said Isis.
“I feel it too,” said Max. “They’re getting in my head again. I can practically feel their shrieks. It’s almost like it’s coming from me.” He put his hands to his head as though attempting to squeeze away the intruding noise.
The clawing on the outside of the door grew constant, and another powerful impact pushed the door in more.
“Try to close your mind,” Isis said. “They are growing desperate.”
Just seconds after the previous impact, a huge shudder came from the door and the top hinge pushed inward three quarters of an inch.
“Guys, do we need to run?” asked Reeves.
The noise from the crowd behind them increased; the children among them began to cry, feeling the panic of the adults caring for them.
A man that Flex didn’t know turned and pushed into a woman, knocking her out of the way as another crash hit the bunker door. He disappeared down the stairwell leading into the tunnels below.
His actions set off a stampede of sorts, but the shifting crowd had little success fighting one other to reach the narrow passageway.
Gem was being jostled from all sides and Flex saw her wincing as she struggled to hold onto her Uzi and protect her injured side.
Suddenly Dave Gammon was beside Flex. “Flex, if we don’t calm these people down, they’re going to hurt themselves, never mind bout what’s outside that door!”
Serena and Ben stood behind him, their eyes on the bunker door.
“Everybody calm the hell down and stop pushing!” shouted Flex. “Now! Back up and let these people get through!”
With a crash, the door tore from its hinges and fell inward, the weight of the dozens of stampeding abnormals adding to its own solid mass. Kevin was unable to back up in time, and crumpled beneath it. His cry was cut off as bloody, aspirated air was forced from his lungs.
“No!” shouted Flex, but there was nothing that could be done. The horde that pushed into the room clawed and growled as they se
t upon the scrambling survivors, hands clawing, teeth clamping down on the living flesh nearest them.
Flex curled his arm around Gem and pulled his Glock, firing blindly into the doorway and into the main City Hall building. He saw Max and Isis, their eyes blazing red, staring toward the invading rotters as they pushed their ways along the wall of the room toward the opening.
Several had now entered the corridor and descended with speed, allowing more of them to get inside. Flex saw Charlie trying to mount a bolt into her crossbow, but the crowd jostled her continuously.
“Charlie, fuck that!” shouted Flex, his arm around Gem as he moved her and Colton through the crowd toward the entrance. Charlie pushed ahead and got in front of Gem, clearing a path. Flex turned back after seeing both of them safely reach the passage.
“Hemp, go, go!” he screamed.
Dozens of rotters had intermixed with the crowd, but once inside, it was as though the Mothers could no longer manipulate each one. They were weak; Flex could see it, and some of the citizens of Kingman were able to push them away and escape.
Flex kicked at crawling rotters, stomping their fragile heads into exploding, bloody water balloons as he moved his Daewoo around and raised the gun as high as he could while still keeping his finger on the trigger.
Angling the barrel down, he emptied his magazine, the expended shells peppering the heads of the people scrambling to get behind him. The recoil of the gun without body support behind it threatened to knock it from his hands.
“Flex!” came a voice, and he turned to his right to see Jill Richman trying to get to her feet, the body of a dead rotter lying over her legs. He leaned down and gave her a hand. She took it and he pulled her up.
Her eyes were frantic. “Flex, where’s Lily?” she cried.
Amidst the horrific attack, Jill’s words reminded Flex that her daughter was still at the clinic with Beauty and the other young Hybrids.
Guilt swept over him again. “Jill, I’ve got … people going to get her now,” he lied. It wasn’t like him, but he had to do what he could to minimize her fear.
Dead Hunger_The Cleansing Page 14
