“I’m not leaving Zack,” she said. “I’ll be fine. Thank you anyway.” The nurse left without another word.
“She was lying you know?” Zack said.
“What do you mean?”
“What she said. She was lying.” his face held a lopsided grin, his eyes shining bright.
“When?” Susan didn’t know what he was talking about.
“That part about you looking as bad as me. She was lying. You don’t look bad at all.” Susan felt her cheeks grow hot and she smiled.
“You’re high.” she said, patting his face.
“Yes I am.” Zack laughed. “But she wasn’t lying about me being tired.” She lay down on the cot beside him, on his uninjured side, trying to give him as much room as possible.
“I’m not hurting you am I?” she asked.
“No.” he said.
“Good. Now shut your mouth and get some sleep.” she said. She let out a large yawn, closed her eyes, and was asleep in under a minute…
Chapter 10
Friday June 22, 2001
University Of Utah Hospital
Salt Lake City, UT
11:03 AM
Once the Humvee returned to base the soldiers departed for the debriefing area. Ron and Jenkins finished talking amongst themselves before Jenkins followed them. Ron walked over to where Matt stood waiting.
“You head on back to the bus, bring everybody up to date.” he said to Matt.
“What about you?” Matt asked.
“I’m going to go over to the Comstation and make a call to Ft. Douglas. Let them know we’re coming. Then I’m right behind you. We’ll go up to the hospital and get your friends and then go to the base.”
“Are you sure the is going to be no problem with this?”
“I told you I would take care of it didn’t I?” Ron spread his arms to accentuate his question. Matt nodded his head. Ron reached into his jacket pocket and pulled out a small cigarette tin. He popped it open and pulled out long, fat joint, easily the size of a cigarette. “Here’s a little something to help you relax.” he held it out to Matt who took it with a smile across his face. “Ok then, get going. I’m ten minutes behind you.” Ron patted him on the shoulder then turned and headed towards the Comstation.
Matt headed out of the motor pool, towards the refugee camp where the bus was parked. The battle was still spinning through his head, making it unable to concentrate on much of anything else.
Superzombies!
As if things weren’t already bad enough. Not only did you have to worry about zombies eating you, now they could shoot and throw grenades. But how had they equipped themselves? They were deadfucks! Rotting bags of shit. Walking piles of pus. They didn’t think, they reacted. So his mind spun in circles until he found himself entering the bus. Sharon and David were asleep. He would let them sleep. It had been a rough night for them.
He settled back in the driver’s seat, a heavy weariness seeping into his bones. He hadn’t slept since they fled the school, over twenty-four hours ago. Matt reached into his pocket and pulled out a lighter, sparking the joint Ron had given him, puffing until it lit then took a long, slow pull and leaned back once again. The effect was almost instantly. The tired ache washed away, replaced by the cool numbness of the marijuana.
After seeing those superzombies he was really beginning to have second thoughts about the trip down into the city tomorrow. What if they ran across some of them while they were out? There had been the whole perimeter defense squad to deal with them. Tomorrow there would be maybe a half dozen of them on the bus. No, he didn’t want to go out tomorrow. He wanted only to gather Zack and get the hell out of there and up to Kelly’s cabin on the lake. But they would need supplies from the city if they were to survive for an extended period there. Matt felt trapped between what he wanted to do and what he had to do. He took a final puff from the joint and pinched it out, tucking the second half away for later. Ron came around the front of the bus as Matt was putting it away.
“Feeling better?” Ron was smiling.
“Thanks.” Matt said. He twisted the wires under the dash and the engine sprang to life. “Does the hospital know we’re coming?”
“They do. Jenkins is going to meet us at the entrance.” Ron sounded as if he had anticipated Matt’s questions. Matt eased the bus back into the main road, the sea of humanity parting around it. “So how did you come upon this bus?” Ron asked. He was sitting in the stairwell.
“We were holed up in a school. We knew it was safer to stick together than in separate vehicles. Thank god there was a bus there. I’m surprised that you and Jenkins haven’t grabbed one while you were out looting.”
“There has to be some kind of law and order for it to be called looting.” Ron sounded a bit pissed. “Besides, we’ve usually gone out with military salvage teams. They have the cargo space in their trucks. Like I said it wasn’t until recently that the Army started providing an incentive for privateers to salvage. Even then, most people don’t venture to far down into the city. Hell, the only part of the college that is safe is the hospital. The rest is swarming with deadfucks.”
“Well I’m not looking to make a career out of this. One raid down into the city and that’s it. Zack should be able to travel in a couple of days then we’re out of here. Maybe you should get you a bus while we’re out. Save us both a lot of hassle.”
“Me and Jenkins discussed that a bit before you signed on.” Ron’s mood suddenly went serious. “But after that last patrol…those superzombies… I got to thinking about the situation here, and how maybe it wouldn’t be such a bad idea to get moving to somewhere else. Somewhere safe. Maybe somewhere up in the mountains?” He looked Matt straight in the eye. He was asking to come along.
“I thought you had a good thing going here?”
“I do. But like I said these superzombies make it a whole new ballgame.”
“Just you?” Matt asked.
“I want to bring my Brother Rick and his family. Thank god they escaped the city. They’re all I have left.”
“It’s a big bus.” Matt said. “There’s plenty of room.”
“What about your friends up at the lake? You don’t think they would mind?”
“It’s a big lake. There’s more than one cabin up there. They can’t all be occupied.”
They drove the rest of the way in silence, each stewing with their own thoughts. When they reached the hospital Ron stuck his head out the door and spoke to the guard a moment before passing. Matt was impressed. Despite all of Ron and Jenkins reassurances he had still been skeptical. But so far everything was going smoothly.
When they stopped in front of the hospitals main entrance, he was surprised once again to see Susan standing beside a portable stretcher, which bore Zack, carried by two soldiers.
“How is he?” Matt asked Susan as they boarded
.“He’s better now,” she said. “But I didn’t think he was going to survive the surgery. You wouldn’t believe the conditions here.”
The soldiers secured Zack to the front bench then exited the bus. Matt looked down on his friend. His face was flushed with fever, but that was better than the deathly pale he had been first thing this morning. His eyes were closed, and his breathing came easily.
“He sure looks a hell of a lot better.” Matt said.
“What’s going on?” Susan asked, peering out the window across the parking lot. “They wouldn’t tell me anything, only that we were being moved to the base.” Matt quickly filled her in on what was happening. As he had guessed, she was less than thrilled about him returning back to the city.
“I can’t believe you’re actually going back down there!” she looked at him as if he were the biggest fool she had ever laid eyes on.
“Susan I am not going to argue about this right now. It was a long night and not a real good morning. I’m tired.” She was about to protest, but there was something in his eyes, some…emptiness that stilled her tongue. It had been a long night.
“I’m sorry.” she softened.
Matt got the bus rolling. They went down the hill towards the western perimeter road. As they passed the western garrison, two Apache gunships were lifting off, heading North x Northeast. Going out to search for large gatherings of zombies most likely.
Looking in the rearview mirror, he could see that Susan had went back to speak with her mom and brother, who were now just awakening. At the western road he turned south. Just ahead he could see a military transport truck parked at the shoulder of the road. Three soldiers stood about, holding their rifles not quite drawn, and not really relaxed either. Just beyond it was an M1A1 Abrams tank, also pulled to the shoulder of the road, turret-pointing west, where the ground sloped down into more suburbs. Between the road and the ‘burb’s was a perimeter defense line of trenches, sandbagged heavy weapons emplacements, and several Humvees and regular army jeeps and dozens of armed soldiers spread in a line for hundreds of feet in either direction. Last night they had been unable to see this defensive line in the dark.
As they continued down the road, Matt could see a transport truck parked every few hundred yards. On two different occasions Humvees passed them going the opposite direction, back towards the base. On the left shoulder of the road abandon cars had been pushed to the side. Ahead, about another half mile there was a four-way intersection. The roads leading south and west were barricaded with a pair M1A1 Abrams tanks apiece as well as several dozen soldiers. The road to the east was the main entrance to Fort Douglas. It was blocked by the double arms of a raising steel gate attached to either side of a solid steel guardhouse set into the middle of the road. Matt pulled the bus to the left side so the main doors opened to the guardhouse. The soldier who had spoken earlier moved to the open doors. He conversed briefly with the man in the guardhouse, relaying the password and his orders. Of course the gatehouse had been expecting them, but security was very strict. The double arms swung up, and they were in the Base. The main road wound up the hill, much like the hospital, only this hill was occupied with rows of long, two story, yellow barracks instead of a sea of humanity. Not to say the base was unoccupied. Far from it. People were everywhere, most all of them soldiers; some were in full battle dress, most were merely in fatigues. All were armed, even if only with a sidearm. Following the soldiers instructions Matt went beyond the barracks to the administrative center of the Base where he spotted the command center, hospital, PX as well as the bases R & R facilities. He pulled around to the emergency ambulance entrance. As soon as he came to a stop and opened the door two orderlies entered the bus, unstrapped Zack from the seat, lifted his stretcher and carried him off.
Jenkins stepped up onto the bus. “He’s in good hands. Let’s get you people to some quarters.”
Jenkins’s guided him further east, where even more barracks awaited. They stopped at the corner building of the first row.
“You’ve been assigned bunks in this barrack.” Jenkins said.
“I live in this barrack.” Ron said.
“You do?” David asked.
“Me, my brother and his family.”
They exited the bus and entered the barrack, where a single uniformed guard sat behind a metal desk. He snapped to attention at the sight of Jenkins.
“At ease.” Jenkins grumbled. They passed the desk down one of the hallways through a set of double doors into a room full of cots stacked bunk bed style. Several of the cots had a bedroll and pillow resting at one end, more than enough for all of them. “Here you go.” Jenkins said. “Make yourselves at home. I’ve got to get back to the hospital.” He looked from Ron to Matt. “I’ll see you in the morning.” With out another word he was gone. Matt moved to the nearest cot, laying back.
“You get some rest partner.” Ron said, again clapping him on the shoulder. “I’ll see you later.” he nodded to the rest of them before leaving.
“I sure hope Zack is ok.” Susan said.
“Don’t worry.” Matt said. Now I’m sounding like Ron. “These guys are on the up and up. Zack is in far better hands that he was at U.”
“I’m hungry.” David said.
“Yea, me too.” Matt said. They set about making up their beds. As they worked in walked an army nurse carrying a medicine bag.
“Good afternoon.” she said. “I’m here to give you all a quick physical. Lets start with you.” she sat her bag beside David. The nurse checked his blood pressure, pulse and temperature, as she did with all of them. “Everybody seems fine. Just some exhaustion.” She gave them all a Valium and told them to get some sleep. They would be awakened at dinnertime. They were too weary to argue…
Matt awoke to the sound of several people talking. For a moment he panicked, a wave of paranoid fear washing through him like some kind of drug. He sat up quick as lightning, eyes wide. Sharon and David were sitting on her cot talking quietly. Susan stood near the door speaking with Ron.
“Mornin’!” Ron called full of good humor. Matt’s brain was foggy. His eyes sticky with sleep.
“What time is it?” he asked, stretching.
“It’s tomorrow morning.” Ron said.
“What?” Tomorrow morning?
“You slept all day and night. It’s 9:00 O’clock Saturday morning.” He had slept about seventeen straight hours.
“I don’t think I’ve ever slept so well in my life.” Matt said, stretching again with a loud groan. “Is there a toilet in this place?” he asked. His bladder felt as if it were going to burst.
“Just out the door and across the hall. There’s a shower as well. I even brought you some towels.” Matt gave him an odd look that got Ron laughing again.
“I want to see Zack.” Matt said as he left the room.
“I already checked on him this morning.” Ron called after him. “He’s sedated so he can sleep.”
“How long until he’ll be back on his feet?” Susan asked.
“At least a couple more days. He was shot with an M-16. It did a lot of damage. Plus that parking lot surgery didn’t do him any good either. Yeah, it’s going to be at least another couple days, and even then he won’t be but fifty percent. He needs rest, and a lot of it.”
Susan turned away from Ron, looking at her family. David looked much better than he had yesterday, and he was putting up a brave front. A good nights sleep and a hot shower had done him wonders. But Susan could see the cracks in his armor. The dullness in his once sparkling blue eyes was unmistakable. Her mother still slumped with depression, her eyes red and swollen with fresh tears. Susan could hear her telling David stories about their father as they were growing up. She spoke as if Frank were still alive and would come into the room any moment. Susan felt the emotion swelling in her once again.
No more tears!
The time for tears was yesterday. Now there was time only for the safety and survival of her family, which now included Matt and Zack. Once they were safely out of the city secured at the cabin on Rainbow Lake then there would be time to grieve properly, but not before.
Father I swear to you your death shall not have been in vain. We will survive!
Chapter 11
Saturday June 23, 2001
Fort Douglas
Salt Lake City, UT
9:37 AM
As soon as Matt had showered and dressed Ron was ready to move out. Matt was not looking foreword to it, but it was necessary.
“You’re really going to do it?” Susan asked.
“I explained all of this yesterday.” Matt said. “Please don’t argue about it.”
“I’m going with you.” she said. Her words caught him off guard. He blinked several times.
“Like hell you are.” he said.
“It’s my decision. Not yours. And I’m going with you.” She had made up her mind last night while lying in bed. If she was going to see her family to safety, she wasn’t going to do it sitting on her ass waiting for someone else to do it.
“You need to take care of your family.” Matt said.
&nb
sp; “David can do it just fine.” her tone was hard. She was not going to budge.
“I promised your father that I would take care of you!” Matt was almost pleading now, sensing he had lost the battle.
“I don’t need you to take care of me!” She was angry now. Take care of her! As if she were some baby who needed a nursemaid. She had taken care of herself while growing up in Bennies street gang. “I need you to help me protect my family and get them out of the city!”
Matt was stunned into silence by her outburst. He wanted to protest. Her father, with his dying breath, had made Matt swear to protect them and see them to safety. And he would do that. But Susan was also right. She was a grown woman able to make her own choices. How could he expect her to sit by and do nothing to help protect her family? Had he been in her position he would have done the same thing.
“This ain’t no field trip girlie.” Ron said.
“No shit.” her words were iron. She wasn’t about to let him bully her with his macho man attitude. Their eyes locked for several long seconds. Susan’s glare daring him to argue further. By the look on Ron’s face Matt was unsure whether he wanted to slap Susan in the mouth or throw her down and fuck her brains out; Probably a little of both.
“She’s a big girl,” he said with a smile, looking her up and down. “She wants in, let her in.”
“Are you sure you can handle it?” Matt asked her.
“No.” she said, a weak smile playing across her face. He smiled back, patting her on the cheek.
“Jenkins and my brother are waiting downstairs. Lets get this show on the road.” Ron exited.
“Davey?” Susan called to her little brother. David came over, his expression showing he already knew what was happening.
“You take care of mom.”
“Please don’t go!” Sharon pleaded, gripping Susan’s arm tightly.
“Mom you’re hurting me!” Susan yanked her arm away.
“You know I have to go. Just like Davey went with them at the school. If we are going to survive we have to make it happen! I know that. You know that. And Dad knew that!” this last bit came out especially viscous and she immediately regretted. Her Mother was not coping well with her husband’s death. She constantly talked about him as if she expected him any minute. The mere mention of his name was enough to send her into tears. That last bit had been no exception. Susan’s guilt became an aching lump in her chest. She reached out to embrace her mother.
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