by Hunt, Jack
“Guys, they are rounding them up. That’s why they killed Specs’s family. I think his dad put up a fight. I think they all did and that’s what got them killed. They are rounding up women. I can’t leave yet.”
They stared at me as if I was insane. Truth was, I think I was beginning to lose it. It was very possible that the military could bomb this town if they saw that it was infected. But I hadn’t heard any jets flying over. And who would make that type of call? The president?
“Listen, I’ve made some stupid mistakes. I’ve put your lives in jeopardy. I wouldn’t expect you to stay. But I couldn’t live with myself if I didn’t try to help them. Now, if you want to go, go. But this is our town. We grew up here. Our families worked hard to give us something. It might not have been much, but to them it meant a lot. And as much as I’ve wanted to put this place in my rearview mirror, I’ll be damned if I’m going to let some Uncle Sam assholes come in here and piss all over the little that we have. So if you want to leave, go, but I’m going to help these women, or die trying.”
There was silence. I was sure each one of them was weighing up the cost of their own life against that of a stranger.
“Fuck! Fuck this shitty end of the world,” Jess said.
I stared at Dax. Jessica and Izzy walked back to me. He looked at them.
“Well, Bruce Lee didn’t live long. So I’m in,” Baja said, joining us.
“Do I need to even say anything?” Specs said as he walked over to us.
Dax stood by himself shaking his head. “Well, I can’t let you wimps go it alone. In the words our father, hoo-fuckin’-rah.” He smiled and came over. “You know I’m going to kick your ass after this, right?”
“You can try.” We both smiled.
* * *
We couldn’t go back into Baja’s apartment so we entered an apartment above a gift store. It was an antiques and collectibles shop run by an odd Chinese couple that looked like midgets. Hardly anyone ever went in there, mainly because they wouldn’t let you in if you had a bag, or if you wore shoes. They would literally make you take them off at the door, and you didn’t go in unless you put on a pair of their slippers. Like how weird is that?
Anyway, I was told by a friend of a friend, of another friend that there were cameras everywhere and they watched you like a hawk. Yeah, they were certain someone was going to steal from them. And if for any reason they thought you had stolen, they would hold you there until the police showed up. Now, I’d always been fascinated with that part, especially after hearing how they had held down Ronny Palmer, a kid who was built like a brick shit house. Ronny played varsity football and was known for putting a kid or two in the hospital for tackling him too hard. That even included his coach. So how in the hell did these little midgets take him down? Baja said they knew martial arts. Others said they came from a long lineage of folks who use Chinese sorcery and black magic.
Being I was the first one to break into the apartment, I was relieved to find there were no midget Z’s scrambling to bite me in the ass or zap me with some unknown magic.
Specs rooted around inside their fridge for something to eat but all he could find was some gross-looking meat that look like pink brains and sliced kidneys. Their cupboards didn’t exactly offer anything better. I found yellow tins with Chinese words on the side. When I opened one, it didn’t look like pork and beans, more like something that your grandmother might have left in her bedpan. And the smell, oh God, the stench was so bad; I thought someone had hooked me up to someone’s rear end.
“Fuck this.” Specs tossed the food from the fridge on the ground. “I’m starving.”
“Maybe there’s some left at Matt’s apartment,” Baja suggested.
“If there was, it’s probably been blown to smithereens.”
“Listen, we need to figure out how to get in. They are going to have that shelter surrounded. They aren’t going to fall for the whole bottle against the side again,” I said.
“We grab one of their men,” Dax said.
“Yeah, that sounds good. Let’s just mosey on up and knock one over the head,” Baja said.
“Worked for them, didn’t it?” Dax replied.
I stared back and shook my head. And there it was, rubbing it in.
“Guys. As far as we know right now they’re still out there looking for Johnny,” Jess said.
“I doubt it.”
“We need to draw them out. Get them all in one area. We don’t have enough ammo to enter some gunfight,” I said.
“And your idea for doing that? Cause from what I can see, these freaks aren’t going to come strolling out for a Sunday morning picnic,” Baja added.
I looked over at Jess and Izzy. Dax followed my gaze.
“Oh no.” Izzy threw up her hands.
“They haven’t seen either of you. As far as they are concerned, you aren’t with us,” I said.
“You want to send them into the lion’s den?” Dax said slowly.
“What other choice do we have? We’ll move in and take them out before they get a chance to do anything.”
“Johnny,” Baja said, shaking his head.
“Can you think of a better idea? Cause if you can, I’m all ears.”
“No, man, we can’t do that,” Specs said.
“Hello, do we have a say in the matter?” Izzy said. Her eyes darted from Jess to me.
“No, I think I know where he’s going with this,” Jess said, taking a seat on the couch and looking at me. “If they are rounding up women, then we give them what they want.”
“And what about if they attempt to rape us?” Izzy asked
“They won’t. I’ll be there too,” I said.
“What?” Dax added.
“Johnny, you don’t have to go with them, we’ll move in and take them out, hold one of them captive and turn the tables on them,” Specs said.
“You really think they are going to give a shit about one of their men?” I said.
Specs shrugged.
“No,” I said. “I’ll take them in. It’s the old Trojan horse approach. We stand a better chance of finding out where the other girls are being held, where they are storing the weapons. Then, we’ll get the girls out, and seal those fuckers in.”
“How?” Dax asked.
“Dynamite,” I replied.
“You can’t move that, Johnny. The nitroglycerin is leaking. You touch that, it’s goodbye Kansas,” Baja replied.
“Don’t you mean Castle Rock?” Specs added.
Baja rolled his eyes.
“We’re not going to move it. When I was coming through the mine they were firing off rounds and the place was shaking. That was just a gunshot going off. We ignite that dynamite and that whole network of mine tunnels is going to collapse like a house of cards.”
“And so will the whole fucking town.”
“This town has already collapsed.”
Dax shook his head.
“But when it does, so will that shelter.”
“No, Johnny, my father built that place to withstand blasts and earthquakes.”
“Sure he did, and if they are inside they might live…” I paused. “If they can get out.”
“What?”
I pulled out the map from inside my jacket and laid it out. I ran my finger across to where the shelter was located in the ground. “Your father built the shelter inside an abandoned missile silo. That silo only goes down so many feet. Why?”
I tapped my finger on the location of the connecting mine tunnels.
Specs looked down on the map. “There wouldn’t have been any more material to support it.”
“That’s right. Right now that shelter is like an elevator hanging inside an elevator shaft. Except in this case, it’s a mine shaft.”
I stood up and went into the kitchen, I returned with a tin can. I wrapped one hand around it. “Now my hand wrapped around it, is the earth.” I stretched out my other hand and placed the can upright on top, still holding the can.
&
nbsp; “Wire holds elevators from dropping. In this case, the ground around the silo and beneath it are all that’s holding that container in place. There’s enough dynamite down there to collapse it into the tunnels below. We aren’t going to force them out, we are going to bury them alive.”
The others stared at me as if I had just emerged from a mental institution.
“And what if we don’t get out in time?” Izzy said.
I raised an eyebrow.
Izzy shook her head. “This is nuts.”
“All this, Johnny, to try and save the lives of a couple girls we don’t even know?”
“Know them or not, it doesn’t matter. Look, the shit storm of the century might have occurred. But we aren’t animals. Those women deserve to live. They deserve not to be held imprisoned for sex by some psycho maniac. Doing this… is what makes us human. So what? We run now, we get to live another day. Maybe two, maybe a year. But then what? What if those women were Izzy and Jess, would you leave them behind?”
Dax rubbed a hand over his head.
“Listen, I didn’t say this was going to be easy. This isn’t just about getting them out, it’s about preventing those men from doing the same thing to others.”
“And if doesn’t work?”
I sniffed, and exhaled hard. “Then I will die doing something that mattered. Fuck! C’mon guys, we’ve lived our entire life in this town, wishing to get out. To make something of ourselves. Before this happened, the best we could have hoped to achieve was donating to a worthy cause or a stint in the army. Not to knock the army.” I shot Dax a look. “But now we’ve got the chance to do something that can really help.”
Dax let out a sigh.
“How will we know when you’re out?” he asked.
“Specs, does your old man still have that ham radio inside the RV and your house?”
“Yeah, where are you going with this?”
“Give us one hour. Once we make it to the surface I’ll communicate via the ham radio for you to blow it.”
“And if you don’t make it to the surface in an hour?” Specs said.
“Blow it.”
“Johnny?” Dax said.
“You do it. You hear me.”
With that Dax stood up and tossed the can across the room. It smashed the glass cabinet. He disappeared out of the apartment door that went down into the store. Jess gestured for me to go and speak with him.
“This is madness,” Baja said getting up. He wandered into another room, lighting a joint on his way in. Izzy leaned into Jess and began whispering. I got up and went down after Dax. When I made it downstairs he was staring at a photo on the wall of the couple who owned the place. He didn’t turn around. I looked around the store. It had been trashed. No doubt by the same men who we were about to face.
“Do you remember when dad and mom used to take us camping?”
I chuckled. “Yeah. How could I forget?”
He shook his head, placing the photo frame back on the wall.
“Your unwillingness to do anything he told you. God, it pissed him off.”
I ran my hand over a Chinese ornament of a lion.
“Yeah, I guess doing what others want has never been my thing.”
“No, Johnny. It hasn’t but I’ve always admired it.”
I let out a laugh, then frowned.
“What?” I replied.
“But one day it’s going to get you killed. I don’t want to be around when that happens.”
“Dax.”
“Listen.” He turned around and was dead serious. “You get your ass out of there. I’m not doing this alone.”
“You think I’m going to leave you behind, brother?”
“I’m just saying. If push comes to shove, get your ass out. Don’t try to be the hero.”
I smiled. “Whenever have I tried that?”
He grabbed hold of me, patted me hard on the back then walked back upstairs. That was the first time I’d ever sensed that he actually gave a shit. I think he meant it.
Truth be told, this was an insane idea. I wasn’t sure if we were going to make it out alive. Anyone else would have run for the hills. Taken the opportunity to get out while they could.
I looked around at what remained of someone’s livelihood. Shelves overturned. Ornaments broken. Glass smashed. It looked the way I felt. You see, none of us had planned for this to happen in our town. Our once quiet small community had been turned upside down, shaken and destroyed at the hands of a virus that we had no clue about. All we knew was that we had to stay alive.
But now this wasn’t just about us. There were others, if we turned a blind eye, were we any better than the men who were holding these girls? If I was going to die, I wasn’t going to do it as a coward.
LION’S DEN
The moans of the dead filled our ears as we moved out of the alleyway into the exposed stretch of street that led up to the saloon. We had been monitoring their position for the past hour. We’d seen the Colonel leave. Three of his guys remained. Now what you have to understand is none of them were dressed in fatigues, which had led us to believe that maybe the Colonel was the only one that was military. Perhaps he was telling the truth. Dax said the way the men moved, carried their guns, and kept watch over the street, it was a clear giveaway.
“They are amateurs. Probably just ordinary guys that he managed to coax to follow him.”
For him this was a good thing, it meant they didn’t have their wits about them. They would be easier to overcome. Baja had suggested removing a few layers of clothes from Izzy and Jess to make it look more convincing, to which they pounded his arm and he let out a laugh. But this was no laughing matter. The danger was very real. We were taking a risk going out there. It was very possible that the Colonel had instructed his men to shoot me on sight. I was the only one that was going to be carrying a weapon. Dax, Specs, and Baja would keep a close eye on us from the rooftops, spread out in several positions. If things got hot, they could rain down some bullets on them. The plan was to have the girls’ hands tied behind their back with zip ties, and to tie both of them together with rope. I would hold the rope behind and pull them forward, announcing that I was surrendering and bringing with me a peace offering. It was an insane move but knowing their taste for women and lack of regard for human life, I thought it would be the best way to gain trust, if I hadn’t already ruined it.
It was time. I glanced up at Dax on the roof and we exchanged a final look before I moved out. He wanted me to carry an assault rifle, but they were only going to take the weapon. There was no point giving them anything more than handgun. I took a deep breath, pulled my gun out, and tugged the girls forward. I had talked with them beforehand about what we were going to do if they took us back to the shelter. They both knew the risk, and there was a strong possibility the men would lay hands on them before they got there. But I told them I would do my best to make sure that didn’t happen.
I rolled out from behind the cover of the building with purpose, with full intent that if this went south, I would at least go down shooting. I carried my weapon by my side. I ambled past burnt-out cars that held the charred remains of locals. The two girls shuffled behind me.
There were several Z’s in the street at that time. I didn’t waste any bullets; I simply pulled my knife and stabbed them in the forehead. The walk to where the three men were keeping watch on the street was only a few blocks. As I came over the rise in the road, I knew they had spotted me. Two of them dashed out into the street with assault rifles aimed at me.
“Don’t shoot. I’m surrendering. Joining. Bringing with me a peace offering.”
They didn’t move a muscle. I saw one of them start talking into his radio. It looked like they had stolen them off the police.
“Throw the weapon over here, and get down on your knees.”
I knew the others would be watching. They would have their rifles aimed at the men’s heads. But it still didn’t make it any less uncomfortable. It was unnerving to k
now that one pull of a trigger and I could be dead. I tried to make use of the time before they had hold of us to explain.
“The Colonel said I could join. I know I ran but that was because of the Z’s. I’ve brought back some women I came across in an apartment. I’m thinking you guys could use them.”
They squinted, looking the girls up and down. One of them moved around to check out if the girls were holding any weapons behind them. He shook his head and gave the thumbs-up. As they started to approach I continued.
“Look, I’m just like you guys. I want to survive. I’m ready to do whatever the Colonel wants.”
I heard the crackle of their radios. Again, one of them spoke into his. This time I heard what he said.
“We’ve got the kid. He’s got two bitches with him. Says he wants to join. What do you want us to do?”
They were now standing over me. My head was turned, both arms stretched out on the ground. One of them patted me down, checking for weapons. He removed my knife and took the handgun.
“I think I’ll check these ones.”
I watched as a slimy fat guy with a bald head approached Izzy and Jess and began feeling them up. He ran his hands up their legs and lingered there for a moment.
“Fuck off,” Izzy said.
He let out a laugh. “Feisty. I like that. I think I’ll make you mine.”
When he shifted to Jess, I felt my skin crawl. I wanted to kill him so badly. I saw Jess’s face grimace as he manhandled her breasts and ran his hands over her buttocks.
“You’re the quiet one, eh?” He licked the side of her face. “I’ll soon make you noisy.”
She didn’t utter a word. The tallest and largest one of the bunch, a guy responding to the name of Harvey, pulled me up by the arm.
“Where’s your other pals?”
“They bolted.”
“Bullshit.”
“Do you really think I’m dumb enough to hand myself in if I thought that for even a second that you were going to kill me?”
“Don’t hold your breath. We still might.”
He eyed me with contempt. A look of skepticism danced across his face.
A gun fired, then another. For a moment I thought they had shot the girls. Twisting around I was relieved to see that the fat one had just taken out a couple of Z’s. Their twisted, mangled bodies lay on the ground with blood gushing from their mouths.
