by Wood, J N
Fucking hell. What if I have a panic attack down there? There will be nowhere to escape to.
Martin produced a radio from his hip and brought it up to his mouth. ‘Martin to base,’ he said.
Shannon stepped down and laid next to her husband on the wooden trolley. ‘Wish us luck,’ she said. ‘See you on the other side.’
‘Good luck,’ Jack said.
‘Yeah,’ I almost squealed. ‘Good fucking luck.’
Martin’s radio crackled into life. ‘Go ahead Martin.’
‘Two coming through,’ Martin replied. ‘Ten more to follow.’
‘Okay. Thanks Martin,’ the voice over the radio said.
‘Don’t worry Chris,’ Shannon said. ‘You’ll be fine.’
Michael pulled on the rope, rolling them into the tunnel and out of sight.
‘Fuck’s sake,’ I whispered.
Their feet disappearing into the darkness sent a shiver of fear through me. I hadn’t realised the night in the hole under the sofa would have had such an effect on me.
I heard Jack speaking. ‘Have you had many British people come through here?’
I turned to see him facing Elliot and Martin.
‘Erm…yeah, we’ve had people of all nationalities,’ Elliot replied.
‘I’m looking for my wife,’ Jack said, suddenly sounding anxious, his eyes darting between Elliot and Martin. ‘She’s called Beth Tillman, white, about five foot seven, blue eyes, light brown hair down to about here.’ He placed his hand just below his chin.
Elliot raised his hands. ‘Whoa there fella. For a start, me and Martin don’t do every shift out here, and also, do you know how many people have entered the camp in the last two weeks?’
‘Well…no,’ Jack answered.
Elliot hesitated. ‘Well, neither do I, but it’s a lot. I met a fella the other day and his number was thirty seven thousand and something.’
‘Fuck,’ Jack whispered.
‘Once you get through to the other side, there are lists and lists of everyone that has come in,’ Elliot said, obviously trying to placate Jack. ‘If you ask the sheriff once you’re over there, he might be able to help you.’
Jack turned to look at me. ‘I can’t stay here and wait,’ he said. ‘Do you mind if I go next?’
Bollocks. I’m not ready for this.
‘I stay with Chris to end,’ Gee offered.
Fucking hell. Gee might get stuck down there. I’d be well and truly fucked then.
‘Thanks Gee,’ I said. ‘Probably best I get it over and done with. Face my fears and all that shit. That’s as long as nobody else minds?’ I directed this final bit to the group.
A few waves of hands meant we were going next.
Bollocks.
Thirty minutes later and I was lying on the trolley in the hole, my baseball bat and Jack’s axe separating us. Bringing the empty trolley back had taken less than ten minutes. I’d been expecting, and hoping, for a bit more time.
Out of the corner of my eye I saw Jack turn his head to face me.
‘Do you want to pull or shall I?’ he asked.
‘Erm…you, if you want.’
‘Okay. See you all soon,’ Jack said, as he pulled on the rope. The wheels squeaked as the trolley started to roll, and our heads entered the tunnel.
‘It will be okay Chris,’ Gee called out.
‘Yep, cheers,’ I just about managed to say.
It only took a few seconds until we were far enough away from the candle light in the container to make it pitch black. I’d been worried about being in a small space again. I hadn’t taken into consideration the lack of light.
‘I hadn’t thought about it being this dark,’ I said.
‘What were you expecting? For the whole tunnel to be lit up?’
‘Nope, just hadn’t thought about it. Talk to me about something though please. Otherwise the smell of shit is gonna get a lot stronger.’
‘I really don’t think that is possible,’ Jack said.
Fuck’s sake. We’re going really fucking slowly.
‘Actually Jacqueline, on second thoughts, I’ll pull the rope if you want?’
‘I’m doing it now. I’m just getting into a rhythm.’
‘A really fucking slow rhythm,’ I muttered.
‘Fuck off. I’ll get quicker. We’ve only just set off.’
‘I honestly don’t mind doing it,’ I offered.
‘I’m doing the fucking rope pulling!’ he shouted, his voice echoing back to us.
‘Okay, okay. You can fucking do it.’
At least that argument had momentarily taken my mind off feeling like the tunnel was closing in around us. I didn’t dare move my hands in case they would touch the ceiling. If the space was indeed that small, my head would probably explode. My thoughts were getting too loud again, making it impossible to think of anything rational. I could almost feel my nose scraping against the roof.
Calm down Chris.
I tried to take in slow, deep breaths.
I wanted to talk but I couldn’t swallow all of a sudden. With a very painful gulp, I managed to get down whatever was making me mute. ‘I’m starting to freak out Jack. Talk to me.’
‘Really?’
‘Yes. Talk about something, anything.’
‘Erm…I don’t know. What about Steve dying like that? That was very dramatic wasn’t it?’
I couldn’t stop myself from laughing. ‘Yeah, I suppose you could say that.’
‘Do you think he thought he was going to make it?’ Jack asked. ‘Or did he know he was sacrificing himself for Max.’
‘Jesus. Dunno. No, I don’t think he thought he was gonna survive that. He wasn’t the brightest spark but he must have known.’
‘Well, either way, that was the bravest thing I’ve ever seen,’ Jack said.
‘Yep, I honestly can’t believe he did that. It was fucking mental. Horrible and mental.’
‘What else could we have done though?’ Jack asked. ‘It was only a matter of time before the zombies got to him, or he fell off the bus.’
‘Yeah I know. Not sure what I would have done if I was in his place. What actually happened after he left the bus? He got off before me.’
‘Don’t know,’ Jack said. ‘I think he had Max the whole time, so I don’t know if the kid ran off or something.’
‘How are your arms?’ I asked. ‘Do you want me to take over yet?’
‘They’re fine, and no I don’t. You don’t think Steve thought he would survive all the bites because we told him about Shannon surviving her bite?’ Jack asked.
‘Nah, he didn’t do it because of what we told him. He must have known he’d be eaten alive.’
Fucking hell. That was a horrible to say about somebody I kind of knew.
A shiver ran down my spine. I wasn’t sure if it was because of the cold down here, or from talking about Steve’s death. Probably a bit of both. My heart was still working overtime, but at least my head was starting to clear slightly.
‘In the last couple of weeks, Pete and Theo have lost their mother, father and brother,’ I said. ‘Not good is it?’
‘Slight understatement, but yes, not good at all.’
‘All in very horrific circumstances as well.’
‘Did their mother die from the virus?’ Jack asked.
‘Nope, eaten by zombies.’
‘They did well to all survive the initial outbreak,’ Jack said. ‘I’m still amazed we did.’
‘I think we survived it because we were on holiday, so we weren’t interacting with lots of other people. If you’d have been at home you would probably have died.’
Fuck. It had already left my mouth by the time I knew what I was saying. Fuck, fuck, fuck. Chris, you absolute twat.
A few moments of silence passed. All I could hear was the sound of Jack’s hands moving up and down the rope.
‘Sorry mate. I didn’t realise what I was saying. I meant if you’d have been at work, with lots of other people. I�
�m sure she’ll be fine.’
Jack took in a deep breath and slowly released it. ‘Don’t worry about it. Beth doesn’t really work does she? And she doesn’t have many friends over here. She made it to Sarah and Roy’s, and they left Mountain View to get up here, so those three definitely didn’t catch the initial virus. She’s going to be in this camp, and after a quick look through the list to confirm, I can go and find her.’
‘Yep, she will be.’
I really fucking hope she is.
‘When did Gilberto die?’ Jack asked. ‘It feels like it was a week ago.’
Sleeping during the day and being awake all night was messing with my internal clock, and Jack’s by the sound of it.
‘I think it was today?’ I replied. ‘No, it was yesterday.’
After a few moments of silence, I asked, ‘Am I becoming a bit blasé about people dying, because it’s happening all over the place? Or am I just a horrible twat?’
‘Do you seriously want me to answer?’
‘Okay, maybe you weren’t the best person to ask that.’
The sound of hands pulling on rope continued to faintly echo in the darkness.
‘Hopefully we’re in shock,’ Jack eventually said. ‘Otherwise we are just horrible twats.’
‘Ali and her family are gonna be devastated,’ I said. ‘How do you get over seeing a family member die like that?’
‘They have to carry on. What else can they do?’
‘We’ve only just met these people,’ I said. ‘I’m sure we’d be more upset if they were our friends or family.’
‘Or if your girlfriend died. You know? Ali.’
‘Yeah well done, I get it. Don’t start that shit again. You’d be upset if your new parents died.’
‘Michael and Shannon? I think they’re younger than me.’
‘Fuck off.’
‘Yeah, I think they’re both the same age as each other, thirty one, maybe thirty two.’
‘Fucking hell,’ I said. ‘I better not be the oldest one in the group. Gee must be older than me?’
‘He’s only twenty nine.’
I snapped around my head to look in his direction. In the darkness, I could only see a slightly darker shape next to me. ‘No he fucking isn’t.’
He laughed. ‘Nah, I don’t know really. He must be in his forties. Even if you are the oldest, I wouldn’t worry, nobody will expect you to take charge.’
‘Take charge,’ I scoffed. ‘What is this? The army? I’m more than happy for Shannon to take the lead. It’s not that anyway. Just don’t want to be the oldest, makes me feel old.’
The darkness was impenetrable. I honestly thought my eyes would have grown accustomed, but I might as well have had my eyes closed.
‘Jack?’
‘Yes Chris.’
‘If Beth isn’t in this camp, it doesn’t mean she isn’t already in Canada, or in another camp. There must be other camps.’
‘They’d have headed for here. The most direct route to Canada would take them through here.’
‘Yeah I know, but look at the Rodriguez’s. Their path was blocked loads of times.’
‘We came the same way as Beth. She would have followed the same route we’ve just travelled from Mountain View.’
‘Over a week ago though, things might have changed in that time. Anyway, it doesn’t matter. I’m just telling you not to give up if she’s not in this camp.’
‘Yes I know,’ Jack said.
It turned out we’d been going faster than I’d thought. When we reached the end, Michael leaned in to take my hand, saying, ‘That was quick, think you may have beaten Elliot and Martin’s time.’
‘Don’t care,’ I spluttered. ‘Just get me away from this tunnel.’
Michael pulled me out. I threw my baseball bat to the ground and jogged around them in circles. The cold air on my skin, and in my mouth was the best sensation I’d ever felt.
‘Base to Martin. Ready to go back,’ a voice from behind me said.
I stopped jogging around and stood still. With my eyes closed I lifted my face up to the sky and took in a deep breath. That was when I realised I could still hear the fireworks going off, just two miles away.
I slowly released the breath. ‘Oh my fucking god. That was horrible.’
‘It wasn’t too bad,’ Shannon said.
‘Nope, fucking horrible,’ I replied.
‘Are you the sheriff?’ Jack was asking.
‘Yes I am. Sheriff McCallany,’ the voice that had crackled out of Martin’s radio said.
Jack was standing at a chain link fence topped with barbed wire. Softly glowing light bulbs, I guessed solar powered, hung from the top of the fence. On the other side, standing a few feet away was a man who looked a lot like a sheriff. He had the gold badge to go with his uniform of varying shades of brown. Tired looking would be the best words to describe him. His eyes looked like they were trying to bury themselves into his stubble covered face.
I was disappointed he wasn’t wearing a cowboy hat.
‘Is there any chance I could have a look at the list of everyone that’s entered the camp?’ Jack asked.
The sheriff let out a short bark of a laugh. ‘When you get out of quarantine.’
‘Can I please look at it now?’ Jack pleaded.
‘The list has over forty thousand names in it. You don’t have time to look through it now.’
‘Okay,’ Jack said. ‘But I’m looking for my wife. She’s British, she’s–.’
‘Let me stop you there,’ the sheriff interrupted. ‘In twenty four hours you can sit in my office over here.’ He pointed to another shipping container behind him. ‘Then you can look through the list. I’m more than happy to let you look through it.’
Jack’s whole body slumped, making him look almost a foot smaller.
‘At six o’clock tomorrow morning I’ll let you out of the school.’ Sheriff McCallany pointed over to the building to our left. ‘You don’t have to wait for the rest of your group to arrive, just make your way over there. You’ll have beds and a bit of food. Don’t worry, this is just a precaution. Better to be safe than sorry. I’m sure you understand.’
It was only then, as I looked over to the school, that I got a good look at my surroundings. Behind the fence and the sheriff, was a football pitch, which probably belonged to the school. Bigger and brighter lights illuminated the far side of the pitch. They looked like small floodlights, all shining in our direction. We were on one of six tennis courts, all surrounded by a high chain link fence. A corridor of fencing led from the tennis courts to the school.
I remembered Elliot saying there were two fences on this side of Blaine. ‘Hey Sheriff,’ I said. ‘Where are we in relation to all the zombies that have been distracted by the fireworks?’
‘We are currently between the inner and outer fences. The outer fence is about seven hundred and fifty feet that way.’ He pointed behind me. ‘We’re kind of in the middle.’
‘So we’ve got to spend the twenty four hours in no man’s land?’ I asked, not trying to hide my disbelief.
‘Don’t worry. The outer fence got fixed up this evening, and the school buildings are secure. You’ll be safe. And what we call no man’s land is actually between the border wall and our north fence.’
I looked around at the row of trees, the running track behind me, and the shitload of other dark shapes surrounding us. ‘This isn’t a big open space that can easily be cleared. It’s a big open space with lots of places that zombies can hide.’
‘Son,’ the sheriff said. ‘Zombies don’t hide, but even if they did, these are the rules. If you don’t do the quarantine, you can’t come in.’
I raised my hands in surrender. ‘Okay, fair enough. Just pointing out that I don’t feel safe in your designated quarantine building.’
‘Okay, thank you for your observations. Now, like I’ve already said to your two friends here,’ he said, gesturing to Michael and Shannon. ‘I’ll try and answer any questions y
ou have tomorrow. Right now I’m going to go and sit in my office, and watch out for the rest of your group from there. Just head for that door over there.’ He pointed to a blue door in one of the school buildings, before turning and starting to walk away. ‘There are beds and a little bit of food waiting for you.’
DAY SEVENTEEN
Chapter 8: One Step At A Time
Someone was making shushing noises, and then Sandra was telling someone to be quiet in case they woke everyone up.
Thanks Sandra. You woke me up.
On entering the school in the early hours of this morning, we’d found what looked like a former classroom. Two rows of bunkbeds now ran down two of the walls, opposite each other. In the middle of the room were four long tables, and more than enough chairs for us all. I’d counted fifty bunks. One hundred people sharing this space would have been a nightmare. Six portable toilets, much like the ones I’d used at festivals, sat outside in a row.
After the sheriff had retired to his office, we’d tried waiting for everyone else to arrive, but we were too tired. We knew that Ali, Sandra and Gee would take care of everyone, so we shuffled ourselves off to bed.
‘Morning Chris,’ Shannon said brightly. ‘We have coffee, milk and bread.’
‘The luxury,’ I mumbled. ‘Is it still morning?’
‘Only just,’ Shannon replied, glancing down at her watch.
Sleeping on a mattress had actually felt quite luxurious. Up until I was very rudely awoken by Sandra, I’d had a great sleep.
Still fully dressed, I got out of bed. I’d been too tired to do anything other than collapse onto a bottom bunk. I stumbled over to where Shannon, Michael and Gee sat around one of the tables.
Shannon stood up and stepped towards me. She leaned in so she was just a couple of inches from my face. The peak of her cap was almost touching my nose.
I was suddenly very aware that my breath would probably stink. ‘Morning Shannon. What ya doing?’
‘The band aids have fallen off your face,’ she said. ‘Just looking at my handiwork.’
‘How does it look? Do I still look like I was splattered with someone’s insides?’
She briefly screwed up her face, before reverting back to normal. ‘No, it looks good. I’m very impressed with myself.’
