Fighting to Survive (15 page)

The
zombie stepped out from behind the door and bit into Ned
’
s
shoulder before anyone could even react. Ned screamed in horror and
pain and staggered under the dead woman
’
s
grip. Jenni raised her gun immediately and shot both of them in quick
succession.

“
No,
”
Charles gasped.

“
That
was fucked up,
”
Felix said and wiped his brow.
“
Shit!
”

Jenni
was breathing hard, staring at the bodies. Lifting her walkie-talkie,
she said,
“
Make
sure to check the fucking doors. One was behind a door when we
opened it. It got Ned.
”

There
was silence, then Nerit
’
s
voice said,
“
Understood.
”

Jenni
wiped a tear away and looked at Charles and Felix.
“
Let's
go.
”

As
they walked out, she leaned down and picked up the flashlight from
Ned
’
s
slack fingers.

“
Second
floor clear,
”
came the announcement over the walkie-talkie.
“
Advance
to third floor.
”

***

Katie stood near the
stairwell. Her body was shivering. They had been in view of the other
teams on occasion throughout the inspection of the second floor, but
it had been nerve-wracking. They had found nothing in their rooms.
Just pristine rooms ready for guests. There had been one loss on the
and it had been on Jenni's team. That terrified her.

Jenni
’
s
team now drew near, with Nerit
’
s
behind them. Jenni looked very pale and she stared up the stairwell
with a dark expression on her face.

“
You
okay?
”
Katie asked.

“
No,
”
Jenni answered.
“
This
isn
’
t
fun.
”

It
seemed like a strange answer, but again Jenni tended to enjoy killing
zombies. The losses had been high today and it was taking them all
back to the insanity and fear of the first days of the zombie plague.
Katie was sure that Jenni was thinking of her lost children. She knew
she was thinking of Lydia.

Travis
stood nearby. His face had deep lines in it. Katie was sure she
looked just as stressed as everyone else.

“
Let
’
s
go,
”
Nerit said, and lead the way.

The
other teams would be going up the other stairwell on the other side
of the hotel.

Nerit
moved easily up the stairs, no signs of her age showing. Katie felt
immense affection and respect for the woman. She seemed so in control
of herself and the situation compared to the rest of them.

The
long stairwell that lead steadily upwards was sterile and painted
boring white. The banisters and steps were made of heavy wood and
vases of dead flowers adorned tiny tables on the landings. Their
footsteps echoed as they moved upwards, making them all cringe
inwardly.

“
This
is scary as shit,
”
Charles muttered. He was dragging along behind everyone else, his
bland features looking more doughy and pale now that he was scared
shitless.

Jenni
looked back at him.
“
Don
’
t
be such a wimp.
”
Her voice was annoyed and sharp.

“
Look,
we have no fucking clue what is going to happen next,
”
Charles started.

“
Bad
thing to say,
”
Roger told him quickly.
“
In
horror movies bad shit always happens after someone says something
like that.
”

“
Like
what?
”
Charles snapped back.

It
was then the zombie dropped down from above, hit the banister, and
managed to grab Charles
’
shirt. Katie had the impression it was missing most of its lower half
and the stench was awful. The zombie hit the banister sideways. His
body caught for only a moment before it fell over into the stairwell
below. Its grip on Charles shirt was firm. Charles hit the rail and
toppled over before anyone could grab him. Jenni managed to grab his
sneaker and it came off in her hand as he tumbled over without even a
gasp.

“
Fuck!
”

Katie
and Jenni were the first ones down the stairs, the rest of the groups
behind them.

As
they rounded the last landing, they came across the zombie and
Charles. The zombie had landed headfirst and its skull was split
open, spilling curdled brains. Charles lay near him, head twisted
about in an unnatural angle. Both were completely stone cold dead.

“
I
told him,
”
Roger grumbled.

“
Fucking
stupid way to go out,
”
Shane decided.

“
I
think we found one of the plumbers,
”
Travis said ,and pointed to the name of the plumbing company on the
zombie
’
s
tattered shirt.

Jenni
stood staring down at Charles' body and slowly blinked.
“
I
hate today.
”

***

They kept going.
They had to. Despite their shocking losses, they had to keep going.
Too much of an investment of time and energy and lives had been given
to taking the hotel and they were determined to finish. Perhaps now
they were more cautious, more terrified, and more determined, but
they were still in hell.

“
I
feel like I'm next,
”
Jenni muttered as she joined Curtis' group. She felt wobbly inside.
Seeing three of her teammates go down so quickly had made her feel
very vulnerable. Felix joined Katie's group and she missed his
presence.

The
process continued. Rooms were searched diligently by almost overly
cautious people, then the doors were closed and large checkmarks left
on the wood with blue chalk. Room by room was cleared. Then floor by
floor was cleared. Jenni moved with graceful ease behind Curtis and
his team, watching every shadow. They were now on the fourth floor
and there had been no sign of zombies since the one that had killed
Charles.

She
was feeling claustrophobic and hemmed in by the building and the cap
on her head was hot and heavy. With all her heart, she wanted to
abandon this endeavor. It was eating at her, making her feel weak and
helpless. Their tiny little world had felt so safe until now. The
walls around the construction site and city hall had given them a
sense of security. Their fort barely took up a one-block radius and
it was cramped, but at least livable. Maybe they needed the hotel,
but right now she hated it.

Anger
was starting to creep up within her. She had actually felt safe and
happy the last few weeks. Her relationship with Juan was still
evolving, but it was good. He was not quite the knight in shining
armor she imagined, but he was sweet and made her laugh. She wanted
to bask in it and forget the past. Forget Lloyd, forget the dead
children she had failed, forget the beatings, forget the pain...She
just wanted peace in this tiny little fortified construction site in
this tiny little town.

God,
she hated this opulent hotel and its apparent false dreams.

“
Fifth
floor clear,
”
Bill's voice said over the walkie-talkie. He was on the other side of
the hotel.

Jenni
and Curtis looked at each other, and then down the hallway with all
its blue checkmarks on the doors.

“
It
would be nice if it kept going this way,
”
Curtis said.

Jenni
smacked him.
“
Don't
say shit like that!
”

“
Jinx,
”
said Jimmy, rubbing his bald head.
“
Don
’
t
jinx us.
”

“
Shit,
sorry,
”
Curtis mumbled.

Katie,
Travis, Felix and Roger came around the corner. All four looked just
as harried as she felt.

Katie gave Jenni a
little smile and squeezed her arm affectionately and it made Jenni
smile.

It
was good to at least have friends in this world.

“
Sixth
floor may be a hotspot,
”
Bill's voice said over the static.

“
Roger
that,
”
Curtis answered as the two teams started upwards.

The
last person in Curtis group, a short skinny man named Davey, took off
his hat and ran a hand over his blond hair.
“
Anyone
else thinking this was a bad idea.
”

Jenni,
aware of the origins of the plans to take the hotel, glanced back at
Travis.
“
Nah,
we need this building. Right, Travis?
”

“
With
one hundred and twenty-five...
”
he hesitated as it dawned on him the number was now lower
“
…now
inside the site, we need room. Especially because there are people
still out there running low on supplies and needing shelter as summer
hits.
”

Katie
nodded in agreement and looked up the stairwell.
“
We're
expanding our little world.
”

Davey
frowned.
“
Well,
dammit, this new world is a pain in my ass.
”

And
with that, they started upwards.

The
clatter of their heels against the stairs made everyone wince and
they all pressed up as close to the wall as they could as they
climbed. Eyes set upwards, their lesson had been learned with
Charlies' demise.

Jenni
hesitated at a window and glanced down. She looked out over the
rooftops of the town toward the green hills soaked with the
torrential rains. It was beautiful and her breath caught. Looking
down, she could see into the construction site quite clearly. From
above it looked smaller and being able to see over the walls and
security perimeter made it seem vulnerable. There were still undead
out there. She could see them.

“
Jenni?
”

“
Coming,
Katie.
”

The
teams split up again, taking separate paths. Moving toward the first
door, Jenni felt her stomach tightening. Just four more floors and it
would be over.

“
Same
routine as before,
”
Curtis said.

Jenni
nodded and leaned over and unlocked the door.
“
Ready?
”
When the responses were positive, she flung open the door.