Four hours later, the sun was just cresting the horizon. The sounds of Charity getting out of the shower roused him from his sleep.
“How did you sleep?” she asked as she was drying her hair.
“With my eyes closed.”
“Ha. Ha. Smart-ass. Glad to see you’re getting back to your old self so soon.”
“I never was one to dwell on the past too much. You can’t change it. You can only make today better than yesterday. I slept good…” He looked at his watch. “For the four hours I got of it.”
“Good. Yesterday Q got the route to his folks all figured out, and I’m pretty sure he’s going to want to take lead today.”
“Perfect, because I just need to mindlessly follow today. My brain needs a break from, well, everything.”
“Awesome, we can just chill today as a tagalong.”
“Hopefully. I have an idea though.”
“Of course, you do. You’re the idea man.”
“HAHAHAH! Yes. Yes, I am.”
“So, what your latest great idea?”
“You’re going to drive the 4Runner, and Q and I will be in the lead with the armored truck.”
“Oh, you’re going to have to convince D to drive their truck. And she doesn’t really like to do that.”
“Yea, good point. But I would hate to waste that resource. It saved us last night on the way here. Some random-ass dudes took some pop shots at us from some buildings off the side of the road, and the armor worked like a champ.”
“I’m sure it did, but what about the rest of us?”
“I hadn’t really though that far ahead yet. I need coffee bad.”
“Ok, idea man. Get you some coffee and wash that stanky ass of yours. I’ll be outside helping everyone get ready to go.”
Bill put on some coffee and hopped into the shower. As he washed, he tried to think back. So much had happened in such a short time. They’d emptied the waste tanks two days ago, or was it three? Once he was dried off and dressed, he checked the level on the tanks. Potable was still seventy-five percent, and the black and gray tanks were appropriately full. He grabbed his coffee, threw on his favorite hat, grabbed a cereal bar, and stepped out for the day.
“So, what do you think?” Bill asked Q after he’d shared his idea about the armored truck.
“I think it’s great, but it’s going to mean more gas, which means longer gas stops. With the power grid starting to fail, that means way longer, because we have to hand pump everything.”
“Good point. I agree, then: we leave it here. I just thought it would be a great battering ram if we come across another blockade, like back in Alabama.”
“You’re right, but we just don’t have the manpower to pull it off yet.”
“I know you’re right, man. After yesterday, I just want to protect everyone.”
“I get it, man, I do. But right now, I need Wild Bill back. The guy who charged headlong into all of this with no fear, trying to save the world.”
“I will. I just need some time. Maybe I just need to get laid. It has been over two weeks, you know,” Bill said in a joking manner.
“Yea, right, with Charity living with you? I don’t mean to be too personal, but she’s a little cutie, and I’ve seen the way she looks at you.”
“Dude, we haven’t played hide the salami yet. Last night was the first time she kissed me. And it wasn’t even anything. It was a quick peck, and then she rolled over to sleep.”
“You’re fucking kidding me, right? You seriously expect me to believe you have been sleeping in the same bed with her all this time and you haven’t hit that? You’ve been really sleeping, like, with your eyes closed and unconscious?”
“Yes, that’s exactly what I’m telling you. My wife died at the beginning of all this, and we’ve been so busy that… I don’t know, man. I’ve never been real good with the ladies. And what do you mean the way she looks at me?”
“Bro, you fucking blind-ass idiot. All I’m hearing is excuses. That girl has it bad for you. You make a pass at her, and she will be all over you like stink on shit. Stop being a pussy and go for it. Tonight. Seriously, life was too short before, and now every day is precious. Carpe diem, seize the day, and all that shit. You’re the one puffing your chest out and telling everyone to live each day like it’s your last. Now heed your own damn advice. Nobody here is going to judge you. Least of all me.”
“Whatever, man.”
“Don’t whatever me. You’re supposed to be the badass here.”
“Smart, yes. A good shot? Fuck yea. A ladies man? I don’t think I’ll ever master that one.”
“Well, don’t. Just get all up in that shit. Trust me, dude. From day one, D and I saw it. Like, we thought maybe there was something before ZomPoc, but we figured it out quickly that there wasn’t.”
“You really thought I cheated on my wife? Nice, dude. You’re supposed to be my bestie here.”
“HAHAHAHA! No, not like that, but maybe you just knew each other or something. But it became apparently obvious that you didn’t. Look, man, if I thought you were anything but a standup guy and doing what was best for everyone, do you think we would have stuck with you this long? Or at all? Bill, man, I know yesterday was rough on you. I pray to God I don’t have to go through that. I know you’ll never be the same, but don’t let it ruin who you are. We got a good thing started here, and the ball is rolling. Let’s fucking steamroll right over this whole goddamned apocalypse and make shit better. Make it like we talked about all those late nights by the fire drinking beer and smoking cigars.”
“Thanks, man, I needed that. Like I said, I just need a little time to get my head straight, and then we good.” Bill grabbed Q, and they did the manly hug thing with three pats on the back.
It was 7:30 in the morning of ZP9 when they finally left Fort Wayne for the last time. Kathrin didn’t want to be in an RV alone. Shane and Anne offered to let her bunk with them. Phillip, Tanya, and Doris were going to take over the now-empty RV.
The convoy headed due west on state Highway 14. Bill felt glad to be behind the wheel of the 4Runner again—like it was a comfortable pair of shoes that are well broken in. He followed behind Q for the first time since they’d left Texas. He was a little concerned about how Q’s truck would hold up against thrillers, but he was in no mood to argue about little things today. He wanted to enjoy the open countryside, feel the wind in what was left of his hair, and be free. The first hour or so went by easily, and as the day warmed up, he rolled up the windows and turned the AC back on.
“Sure is beautiful day out. I’m glad the sun finally came back out after being overcast and gloomy for the last two days.”
“Yea, that sun feels nice on my face,” Charity agreed.
In the town of Rochester, from the road they were on, everyone could see that the middle school, high school, and the community college had been burned to the ground.
“What the hell?” asked Bill. “It’s like every town I go to the schools are already burnt down or on fire.”
“I think it’s you,” said Charity.
“HAHAHA! How the hell is that even possible?”
“I don’t know. I’m just picking on you.”
Bill heard the sound of a small single-engine plane overhead. He looked around as best as he could without crashing. He couldn’t believe it; it was the second time in three days he’d seen a plane. It looked like the one from Campbellsville too: long and sleek, a commercial commuter that could hold about ten people, he figured. That was too much of a coincidence.
“Mike, you got a copy?”
“Yea, what’s up?”
“How bad did you piss off that Grand Master fella?”
“As near as I can tell, we killed a few of his minions. I’m sure that didn’t make him happy, Why?”
“Did you see the plane that passed us off to the north just now?”
“You’re kidding, right? There’s no fucking way they followed us this far. We’re three states away. No,
I didn’t see it from where I am.”
“I have no idea, man. I’m just saying it looked like the same one that landed as we were leaving Campbellsville.”
Charles took off from Fort Wayne International Airport at eight o’clock in the morning, with Vinny sitting in the copilot seat of the Pilatus PC-12. Yesterday they’d spent twelve hours in flight trying to track down the line of campers he was pretty sure had helped Mike and Shannon. The carnage of bodies from town to town had led them here. They thought they had lost the trail near the end of the day and would have to head back to give the Grand Master the bad news. Then something had caught their eye on the outskirts of Fort Wayne, Indiana. They had put down at the international airport and spent the night at the Fort Wayne Aero Center. Then they’d headed east and circled along the city’s edge, looking for anything that would clue them in to where the convoy might have gone. As they flew over a golf course on the western side of town, Vinny spotted something very out of place.
“Hey, Charles, is that an armored truck sitting in the driveway of that neighborhood?”
“Let me circle around again. Tell the guys in the back what you saw and if they can confirm the visual.”
“Got it.”
Charles got as low as he dared, and everyone in the back confirmed it was indeed an armored truck with the front covered in dried blood. There was also an RV sitting in another driveway, with bloody streaks down both sides. Several bodies were scattered around both vehicles, and a few were neatly laid side by side in the fairway behind one house.
“Do you think that’s them?” Vinny asked.
“I’m not leaving any stone unturned. I’m going to widen our circle and see if we find any signs.”
A mile and a half to the west of town were parallel lines of bodies squirming around with no legs from the knees down.
“That’s definitely them. Let’s follow this road for a while and see if we can find them.”
“Good, the guys in the back are itching to get this over with and get back,” Vinny said exasperatedly. Charles knew that Vinny wanted to get back more anyone. He had rather enjoyed his new position of power, and Charles knew Vinny didn’t want the GM to appoint anyone else in his absence.
“So, what’s the plan if we catch them? Are we taking everyone? Or just the ones that escaped two days ago?” Charles asked.
“Well, I figure we capture as many as we can alive, Mike and Shannon will fly back with us. We’ll keep Jeff and Robert to guard them. You tell the rest of the guys to drive back with the rest of our spoils of war. You and I will report in to GM, let him know what we found, and present him with our gift. Hopefully, that keeps us in his good graces.”
“Awesome. I like the sound of that.”
“I bet you do.”
A short while later, they were flying over Rochester, and he spotted what they were looking for. Charles hadn’t gotten a good look at the convoy before, as he’d been landing in Campbellsville, but to him, their little group seemed to have grown since then. That meant more people and a bigger fight. He adjusted the altimeter settings based on the barometric pressure and prepared for landing.
“All right, everyone, buckle up. We are about to land. We need to get some transportation and catch up to them quickly. If we do this fast enough, we can get back to Campbellsville tonight. Once we are on the ground, Charles is going take back off and keep an eye on them. They are currently heading west on Highway 14, and it looks like the main road out of town. Jeff, make sure you grab the handheld HF radio so we can keep in contact with the plane.”
Charles circled back around and made his landing on Runway 29. He taxied to the small service area and unloaded all of the men. When he taxied back down to the far end of the runway for takeoff, he had to go down the runway and turn around at the end, because another plane had crashed on the parallel taxiway. He really enjoyed flying during the zombie apocalypse: FAA regulations had gone out the window. Yesterday there had been no holding pattern for larger planes at Fort Wayne International, just land and take off as he pleased. This was the freedom he’d wanted when he’d gotten into flying twenty years ago.
Vinny led the other seven men up to the FBO to find a couple of vehicles. As they approached the building, he didn’t see any movement around the outside. The door was unlocked, and when he opened it, the smell assaulted his sinus cavities. They’d been to a few places collecting people and supplies in the past week, but nothing had smelled this bad. He turned on his heel, coughed, and dry heaved next to the building. He was glad he hadn’t eaten much breakfast. He stood up straight, looked at his men, and directed a couple of them to go in and clear the building. As soon as they stepped foot inside, they repeated the actions of Vinny.
“Oh God, it’s horrible! What did they keep in there before everything went to shit?” Jeff asked.
“I don’t know, man, but it smells worse than rotted meat. It’s like dog vomit on the carpet after it ate shit combined with a dead hooker’s yeast infection,” Kyle said.
“Fuck this, man. We have to get in there and find some keys,” Vinny pressed.
He pulled out a handkerchief and a bottle of water and soaked it down. Then he wrapped it around his face, hoping it would filter out some of the smell. It worked enough to get him in the door and halfway across the building. That was where he ran into the first deadhead: a female wearing the top of a stewardess outfit with nothing on her bottom half. He couldn’t help but look down, and the maggots falling out of her crotch as she shambled towards him were too much. He backpedaled as fast as he could while he vomited into his handkerchief. Jeff was hot on his heels, but Vinny was blocking the view, so Jeff didn’t understand why he was getting sick. Jeff quickly shot her in what had once been a very pretty face. The gun blast attracted the other five from various offices because these guys had not thought to suppress their weapons and the sound of gunfire was loud in the enclosed space. Jeff continued to dispatch deadheads as they appeared. When Vinny regained his senses, he avoided looking at the stewardess at all cost. His eyes did land on a guy wearing a pilot’s outfit, also naked below the waist.
“Boss, what happ—“Jeff figured it out just before he added his recycled breakfast to what Vinny had managed to get on the floor.
“Holy shit, that is the most disgusting thing I have ever seen. I may never look at a woman the same way again,” Vinny said.
“Good thing you didn’t really like them to begin with, then, huh?” Jeff replied.
“You guys search the bodies for car keys. I’m going to look around for a clean shirt,” Vinny ordered as he pulled off his clothing from the waist up, all of which was covered in vomit. He found a suitcase in the pilot’s office with clothes that were a size to large, but he didn’t care. On the floor, next to a desk, was a used condom that looked like it had fallen off the pilot’s penis after it had gone flaccid postmortem. He dry heaved again, having nothing left in his stomach to produce.
Rejoining his team, he was pleased that they’d found four sets of keys. They headed out to the parking lot to find what they had acquired: two compact cars, a truck, and a minivan.
“All right, we split up, two to a vehicle, and take them all. That way, we will have better coverage when we catch up to them. I call dibs on the truck,” Vinny instructed.
“You would,” Wayne said with a sneer.
“Listen here, fucker. GM and I go way back, to elementary school. If you have a problem with him putting me in charge of this little excursion, take it up with him when we get back. Capiche? And know that your insolence has been noted. I will not tolerate any more shit from you. Got it? Now, get in the damned minivan and drive that shit like you stole it.”
“Yes, sir.”
Vinny and Dwaine got in the truck, and on Vinny’s command, Trevor and Jack took lead in one of the compact cars. There was no way Vinny was getting shot by some asshole in the back of an RV. The people they were after seemed to be resourceful, so he wasn’t taking any chances on dying. Jeff
rode with Wayne; that left Kyle and Robert to take the other small car.
The plane flying around had attracted the attention of hundreds of thrillers from the hospital across the street. The small recon team drove in the grass and on the shoulder to avoid as many as they could. They turned right, onto the highway, but quickly realized they had to take an alternate route thought town. The bodies left behind by the RV gang were too much for the small car in the lead to drive over. Once they got to the other side of town, they got back on Highway 14 and were soon doing ninety mph in an effort to catch up.
Ten miles up the road, Vinny finally remembered to turn on the radio.
“PC12, this is boss man. You got your ears on?”
“Yes, they’re attached to my head. You know this isn’t a CB radio, right? And you’re not a trucker. What the hell took so long? I’ve been watching you roar down the road like a bat out of hell.”
“We ran into a little trouble at the FBO. So, what’s the status on Mike’s new gang?”
“You’re about to approach a little town up ahead called Winamac. You’re going to turn right, up old Highway 14, make your way across town, and get back on the main road on the other side.”
“It would be faster if we went through town.”
“Listen, you, there is a hospital on the edge of town. Your vehicles will never make it through the carnage left behind by that goddamned ‘deadhead killer’ trailer they have.”
“Fine, you can see better than we can.”
“You’re fucking right about that.”
Vinny followed Charles’s directions, and when they got on the main highway, they sped up again.
“All right, about thirty miles up, they stopped for gas at the Interstate 65 interchange. At the rate of speed you Evel Knievel’s are doing, you should be there in about twenty minutes.”
“Is there any way you can stop them? Hold them there?”
“Did you eat a bowl of stupid for breakfast? I am one guy in an airplane. What the fuck am I supposed to do?”
Beginning of the New Beginning, Vol. 2 Page 7
