“She’s gone, Rob,” James yelled toward the front of the boat.
“They’re coming back!” Shirley screamed as the blood covered assailants started toward the boat again, still chewing on pieces of Hannah as they approached.
“Hold onto something and get ready!” Rob yelled, pushing forward on the throttle, causing the boat to gain speed.
“What if the river is too shallow up ahead for this speed?” Emily asked.
“We won’t be in the water that long,” Rob answered.
The wall of flame was right in front of them, but Rob wasn’t slowing down at all. He got them right up to the trench and then slammed the boat into the bank, sending the boat airborne and into the fire, everyone onboard screaming as they entered the flames.
CHAPTER THIRTY-SEVEN
Joel could see the light from the fire glowing at the other end of the second tunnel as they arrived at its entrance. He knew the dead were still behind them because he could hear them moaning. He could also hear the sound of their feet shuffling along in the water and he detected the faint smell of decay.
“They’re starting to rot,” Julie said.
“Not fast enough to do us any good,” Joel responded.
“We’re at the end of the tunnel,” Brighton said, turning to the left and heading toward the light ahead.
“We’re right behind you,” Joel said. “Is the coast clear?”
“Yes, but the entrance is blocked by branches and debris. We have to clear it out before we can get out of here.”
“There’s no time. They’re right behind us.”
“Do we have any more cans?” Julie asked.
“I have one left,” Lorraine said.
“We have to light them up,” Joel said. “Jane, grab a couple of the branches from the end of the tunnel. We will have to prod them back away from us until they burn up.”
Jane ran to the edge and grabbed the straightest branches she could find, handing one to the reverend, one to Lorraine and keeping one for herself. Julie lit the aerosol spray with the lighter while Joel swung the can toward the dead when they turned the corner. They went up in flames one at a time, moaning loudly and beating themselves against the sides of the tunnel, trying to extinguish the flames engulfing them. They tried to reach out for the survivors as they continued to burn, but they were pushed back by the branches being wielded by three of them.
“They smell even worse when they burn,” Julie said, wrinkling her nose against the stench.
The aerosol in the can ran out and Joel tossed it aside. The dead were already burning, anyway. He stepped back, allowing room for the others to keep pushing at the dead with the branches.
“When are they going to stop moving?” Jane asked as she jabbed at the one closest to her.
“Hopefully, it will be soon,” Lorraine answered.
Finally, they stopped trying to attack and fell down, one by one into smoldering heaps of blackened flesh. Their nerves had burned up and they were finally still.
Everyone stopped and listened, waiting for the sounds of more walking dead to announce their arrival. When the sound didn’t come, Joel breathed a sigh of relief.
“I think we are in the clear for the moment,” he said.
“We have no more cans, though,” Jane pointed out.
“I don’t think we’re going to be able to fight off another attack,” Julie said. “We better get this tunnel cleared out.”
“How far are we from the edge of town when we get out of this tunnel?” Joel asked.
“We’re there already,” Brighton answered. “Once we get out of here, the trench should be about twenty yards or so up there.”
“You mean we made it?” Jane said, her eyes wide.
“Not yet,” Brighton answered. “We have to get this tunnel cleared out.”
“It’s packed pretty tight from the water, though,” Joel said as he pulled on some of the debris.
Everyone started pulling out branches, old tarps that had been washed down the river and anything else that had stopped up the end. It was not an easy task and they were moving as fast as they could to get a hole large enough to pass through.
They were starting to see some progress when they heard the moaning start again. This time it sounded like there was an army of them moving down the main tunnel.
“You’ve got to be kidding me,” Lorraine said. “Can’t we get a break here?”
No sooner had she gotten the words out when they heard the sound of moaning outside the tunnel, on the other side of the debris. It sounded as though the zombies were only about ten or fifteen yards away from the exit. Even if they could get the debris cleared, they would be devoured before they could get out into the open air.
“We’re screwed this time,” Jane said, leaning against the tunnel wall, looking as though she was about to burst into tears.
“We’ll never get that exit cleared and get away from the ones outside in time,” Joel said. It was all over for them.
“Even if we do, we’re still dead,” Brighton added.
They listened to the sound of the moaning getting louder and they looked at each other, knowing that these were the last people they would ever see.
“What now?” Lorraine asked.
“It looks like we die and get burned up with the rest,” Jane answered, her tone grim.
Joel looked at Julie, now biting her lip. He looked down at the notebook, still mostly tucked in his jacket pocket. The most important thing to him was finding some way to stop the dead and reverse the effects, getting them all out alive. He’d failed at finding a way to stop it. He’d also failed at getting them all out. None of it seemed important anymore. In the instant before they would all die, he realized what was the most important thing to him now.
“I’m sorry,” he said to her.
She looked at him with confusion. “For what?”
“For not getting us out alive,” he said. “And for not seeing what’s important before this.”
“At least we get to die together,” she said, attempting a smile, Apparently understanding what he was referring to.
He hugged her tightly, waiting for the dead to arrive and kill them all. She was right, they would die together.
* * * *
The boat passed through the flames, remaining airborne until it slammed onto the pavement, shattering the shell in the front and coming to an abrupt halt.
Sargent Perkins watched in awe as the boat made its voyage out of the flames to the asphalt, unaware the survivors were this close to the safety of the camp. He looked to the spot where they had exited, making sure there were no dead trying to escape along with them. So far there were no others coming through.
He approached the wreckage slowly, fearing he might find them all dead or seriously injured. It was a big risk to send the boat airborne like that, but he was certain they hadn’t much choice.
Troopers ran to the boat to check for survivors and offer assistance if they could. Sargent Perkins arrived with them, yelling for them to get everyone out of the boat before it exploded.
Rob crawled out of the wreckage, scraped up and bleeding, but otherwise unharmed. Perkins could see the others pulling themselves out, as well. Troopers were helping them to their feet and leading them away from the boat to the safety of the first aid tents.
“Sheriff Daniels I presume,” Perkins said.
“You must Be Sargent Perkins. Please, call me Rob.”
“And you may call me Avery,” Perkins said. “Have you heard from the other survivors, yet?”
“Not yet. I just hope they make it out.”
“You want us to give them more time before we begin spraying the fuel to spread the fire and burn the town?” Perkins asked.
“Can you give them ten more minutes?” Rob asked. “After that, I think we would be taking too much of a risk. It’s going to rain in a few hours I think.”
“We’ll wait,” Perkins promised. “In the meantime, why don’t you get yourself che
cked out and try contacting them.”
“Thank you, Avery. I’ll do that.”
“We have one other survivor we picked up just a little while ago. She’s in one of the first aid tents right now, but we are going to be taking her to the hospital shortly.”
“Who is that?”
“Margie Barnes.”
“What about Lenny Hackett?”
“He wasn’t with her. I am going to question her after the EMTs are finished with her. You want to be there?”
“If you don’t mind, I have a few questions for her.”
“I’ll let you know when we can talk to her.”
“Thanks, I appreciate that.”
“I’ll have emergency crew check the others over.”
Perkins watched the fire for anyone else while Rob pulled out a phone and began dialing.
CHAPTER THIRTY-EIGHT
Joel continued to hold onto Julie as the moans got louder down the main tunnel. The dead were just outside the small branch now. They all looked at each other, ready for the end to come, when suddenly Reverend Brighton’s phone went off. They all looked at him in disbelief, not sure if they really head it.
Then it rang again.
“We have service all of the sudden?” Lorraine asked in surprise.
“It must be spotty,” Julie said. “I didn’t have signal here a little while ago.”
“It’s Rob calling,” Brighton said, opening the phone and putting it on speaker so everyone could hear. “Hello Rob, it’s good to finally hear your voice.”
“Where are you?”
“At the end of the second tunnel of the drainage system. Where are you?”
“I’m with Sargent Perkins.”
“You made it out.”
“Yes, and now we have to get you out. How far are you from the end of the tunnel?”
“We’re at the end of the tunnel, but it is plugged up with debris. The dead are coming up behind us in the tunnel and more are outside the exit here. We aren’t going to make it, Rob.”
“You’re right below us,” Rob said. “We are coming to get you all, just hold on.”
“They better hurry,” Joel said. “The dead in here are almost on top of us.”
He watched the opening of the tunnel while they waited for their rescue.
* * * *
“What’s wrong, Sheriff?” Perkins asked as Rob ran up to him, fighting to catch his breath.
Rob pointed beyond the flames. “There’s a drainage tunnel that comes out about twenty yards away, right down there. The others are in there, but they are surrounded. I need to get to them.”
“I’m going with you,” Perkins said, ordering two troopers to douse a three-foot section of the fire for them to pass through.
“We’re going to have to take out a few zombies,” Rob said. “Do you have anything burn them up quick?”
“We have some shotguns that may blow them back out of the way.”
“They’ll have to work. Can you spare some men to pull the stuff out of the end of the tunnel?”
“Sure, but what if we run a chain from the debris to that bucket loader over there and pull it out fast.”
“Perfect,” Rob said, grabbing a shotgun and heading for the opening in the wall of fire.
He ran down as close as he dared to the tunnel opening, now clogged with debris, and began firing the shotgun, driving the dead backward. He kept shooting them until they were knock off their feet, falling into the mud or water and buying time for the troopers to get the chain around the debris. Sargent Perkins and James had grabbed shotguns and joined Rob in firing at the dead. Between the three of them, they managed to keep them at bay.
Rob watched as two young troopers got the chain in place on the debris plug and signaled for the loader to swing its bucket, pulling the debris out. It came out in one big chunk and then fell apart once it was free.
He let out a long breath as the five survivors wasted no time in bolting out of the tunnel. Behind them came another mob of the dead, pouring out only a few seconds after the living.
“Everybody, get back up to the camp!” Perkins ordered. “We need to get this area sprayed down with fuel and burn these things up before they get out!”
Rob, James and Perkins continued of fire at the dead as they came out of the tunnel, knocking them down long enough for everyone to get away. Once the others were safely behind the flames, they stopped firing and bolted for the camp themselves.
“Spray it now!” Perkins ordered as they got to safety.
A fire tanker had been filled with gasoline and was now spraying the flammable liquid in a high arch over the existing flames, causing the ground around the dead to immediately ignite. They had other fire trucks nearby, ready to put out any fires that may start on the wrong side of the trench.
They watched the dead burst into flames as the gasoline hit them, as well. They stumbled around and fell to the ground, burning up until they were nothing but a smoldering carcass. Once the nerve cells had all burned away’ the dead stayed still, finally remaining truly dead.
“Am I ever glad to see you safe, Reverend,” Rob said, walking over to shake the man’s hand.
“That makes two of us, Rob,” Brighton smiled.
“Sargent Perkins, this is Reverend Brighton. And over here are Joel Spence and Julie Walsh.”
“So, you are the guy who saved the girl in the parking lot?” Perkins asked Joel.
“Yes, sir. I just got a lucky break.”
“That was a brave thing, son.”
“Thank you, Sargent.”
Suddenly they heard explosions off in the distance, coming from the center of town.
“What the hell was that?” Perkins asked.
“Oh, I forgot to tell you,” Rob said. “We started a fire of our own by accident. The fuel tank at the Brenner place blew hours ago. The fire must have reached the gas stations in town.”
“Well, I guess that makes it easier to get the affected area burned down. Sorry about your town, Sheriff.”
“So am I,” Rob said, looking in the direction of his former home.
“What will you do now?”
“It’s all politics, but hopefully we will rebuild the town.”
Rob wasn’t actually sure what he would do now. He was just glad to be alive and faced with the opportunity to do anything.
* * * *
Margie sat in the first aid tent, feeling dirty, tired and wanting to find someplace to go to sleep. They had been going over her, making sure she was not seriously injured. The emergency squad members had started an intravenous drip of isotonic saline solution into her arm, trying to rehydrate her after being without drinking water and complaining of flu symptoms.
Her head still hurt, but not as bad as it did. Her joints were still aching and felt stiff. Her skin felt like it was on fire and she knew she was running a fever. She was wondering if she had made it all the way to safety only to die of some strange disease she may have picked up from a tick or something in the woods.
“Are you feeling any better, Margie?” one of the squad members asked her.
“I feel like shit,” she answered. “Did I get the flu or something?”
“I’m not sure. You have some readings I am not familiar with. I am going to take your vitals again if you don’t mind.”
“Am I going to be taken to a hospital?”
“If we deem it necessary. I think you should go for observation, at least for tonight.”
“I think it’s a good idea, too.”
“There are some people outside who want to talk to you. Do you feel up to it?”
“Who are they?”
“A sheriff, a State Trooper and some deputies.” He answered.
“Can it wait until I feel better?” she asked, looking at the ground. “Just tell them Lenny was killed by those things in the woods.”
“I’ll tell them we are taking you to the hospital and they can talk to you when you feel better, alright?”
&nbs
p; She smiled. “Thank you.”
* * * *
Shirley walked over to Helen who was still in shock over everything that had occurred, mostly over losing her parents. She sat down next to her and put her arm around her, trying to comfort her but knowing that there would be no way to fully comfort the girl for weeks to come.
“Why don’t you let me take you to the first aid tent and then take you to my sister’s house in Kingston?” Shirley asked. “We can both rest up there and try to put our lives back together.”
“Are you sure it’s no trouble?” Helen asked.
“None at all. I would be happy to have you with us.”
“What if the sheriff needs you to help him when they get the fires out?”
“I will still be driving distance away,” Shirley assured her. “But I think I have earned a week or two of vacation.”
“I would be glad to stay with you then,” Helen said with a smile.
* * * *
Rob remained at the scene with Sargent Perkins, Doctor Blake and Reverend Brighton. The first rays of the morning sun were peering over the mountains as the men watched the fires continue to burn. It had been hours since the town had been destroyed, all the dead now remaining silent.
“I sure hope the fire departments can keep that blaze under control and put it out,” Rob said. “It’s one hell of a fire.”
“I hope so, too,” Perkins said.
It was then that the first drops fell from the sky. The slight sprinkling soon picked up to a steady rain and then became a downpour. They ran for the cover of one of the tents, watching as the storm raged on.
“It looks like someone upstairs is watching out for us,” Brighton said when they’d entered the shelter of the tent.
“We’ll take all the help we can get,” Perkins chuckled.
Rob listened to the thunder and watched the occasional flash of lightning, thankful for the rain that would help control the blaze.
CHAPTER THIRTY-NINE
Threshold Series (Book 1): Threshold Page 21
