I Dream of Zombies (13 page)

“But they will change. I’ve heard it takes twenty-four hours from when you are bitten.”

“I know this... we were told,” Simon admitted. “But I’ve never seen it. That was the first one I’ve seen.”

“You’re kidding me?”

The soldier shook his head.

Tommy raised his eyebrows and waved Marla to approach the front of the coach. “What do we do about them?” he asked her quietly.

“You need to get them off,” she replied, “for all our sakes. It isn’t safe.”

“I can’t allow it,”
Simon insisted.

“Neither can I,” said a man, rising behind them. “I heard what you just said. Hey, everyone, he wants to tell that woman and her child there to get off the coach because they have a fever.”

The woman glanced at him sideways, but she was unable to raise her head. She slunk down.

“You should be ashamed of yourself!” shouted a
female voice.

“I’m trying to save your lives,” Tommy responded.

“Who nominated you to do that?” asked another man.

“In fact who are you?”
demanded someone else. “How do we know
you
haven’t got the virus, acting like a madman?”

“Because he hasn’t been bitten!” said Marla. “Don’t you people know anything? You have to be bitten. And that woman has a bandage on her arm. I can’t see the child properly, but she’s in the same state. Look!” she challenged.

One elderly lady stood and moved to see the people that the loud girl was talking about. She drew in her breath. “She’s right,” she said, but her voice was too weak to carry far.

“I feel sick,”
muttered the old man with the paper bag, leaning over the back of his chair. “Does that mean you’re chucking me off too? We’re all in this together, like we were in the Blitz.”

“But if any of us are sick we are taking the virus elsewhere,” said Marla. “Do you want to risk that?”

“Dumping them in the road is just killing them. They’ll have no chance,” argued someone.

“They have no chance now. Can’t you see?” asked Tommy, fast losing his patience.

Ellen stood up. “Perhaps we should vote,” she stated rationally.

Everyone turned around to stare at the pretty, slightly built blonde girl who had not spoken so far.

“That sounds like a great idea,” said a young man who was seated two rows in front on the opposite side.

Ellen blushed slightly. “Thanks.”

“Alright,” said Eric. “Voting seems the fairest means.”

Tommy glanced a
t Marla, but she tapped his arm and whispered, “We’re getting nowhere. They won’t listen.”

He nodded.
There was a quick show of hands: the majority were in favour of keeping the mother and her child on board.

“Right, well it’s on your heads then,” mumbled Tommy, visibly annoyed.

“Tommy,” soothed Marla. “Okay, everyone, I suggest we take the mother and child to the back of the coach. Everyone else should move as far to the front as possible and we’ll need to keep watch on them. If they change...”

“We know what we will have to do,” finished the soldier. “I’ll take the first guard duty,” he offered, pushing out his chest in false bravado and tapping his gun.

“But you need to direct me,” said Eric.

“Oh yes,”
Simon replied, his eyes dropping to the floor.

“I’ll guard them,”
stated Marla.

After some minutes, everyone had repositioned themselves on the
coach. The sick woman and her child were relocated to the backseat by the window, and Marla sat with a diagonal view of them. Everyone else had shifted forwards. It did not make much difference as the coach had been full anyway, but the additional free row seemed to make everyone feel better. Tommy sat down opposite Marla. “Can I take first kip?” he asked.

She nodded. “Be my guest.”

He smiled and lowered himself in his seat.

Ellen, who had moved to a window seat next to an older lady, was glancing back at her sister when the young guy who had spoken to her earlier caught her eye. Sitting across the aisle from her, h
e leaned forward slightly in order to speak across the man beside him. “Hi, what’s your name?” he asked.

She smiled.
“Ellen.”

“Why don’t we
change seats?” suggested the man, looking slightly irritated, and he stood in the aisle so they could do just that.

“Thanks. My name is Devan. It’s n
ice to meet you, Ellen.”

“You, too,”
she replied with a faint smile. “Are you travelling on your own?”

He nodded. “I got separated from my family. I’ve no idea where they are.”

“I’m sorry,” she answered, “but maybe they’ve been evacuated elsewhere. When we get to where we’re going, you’ll probably be able to find out where they are.”

“I hope so,” said Devan. “What about you?”

“Me? I’m with my sister and her friend, over there,” she answered, nodding towards Marla and Tommy.

“Ah, the two superheroes.
..”

“Well, I wouldn’t go that far, but, yeah, they kind of make me feel safer.”

The woman sitting next to Ellen nudged her. “Why don’t I swap with the young man? Then you can talk properly.”

“Thanks,
” said Ellen, standing up. Everyone changed seats, and she slid back in by the window and glanced out. The coach she had seen earlier was travelling along behind them. The scenery had changed to fields and trees, farmland and countryside. Quiet and still. “I like it here,” she remarked. “I can imagine the craziness isn’t happening. It’s so peaceful.”

Devan nodded. “I know what
you mean. I love the country.”

She
glanced at him curiously and then decided to lighten the mood. “So do I. There’s something restful about trees. I imagine all the creatures living in them. Maybe I’m a bit of a hippie.”

“Well, su
rely that’s a good thing?” he replied with a shy smile.

Tommy stirred
in his sleep. Something was nudging him and he woke up to see Marla’s face. “Hey,” she whispered, “my turn to sleep.”

He groaned and dragged himself up to sit straight. Feeling the edge of his jaw, he opened and closed his mouth slowly. “Think I slept with my head up the window.”

“Sure did,” she replied with a smile. “If the wind changes, you’ll stay that way. Come on and jump out so I can get some shut eye.”

“Any change in the woman and her kid?”

“None, but Ellen’s getting on really well with this young guy on the coach.”

“Really?” he asked, raising his eyebrows and trying to see.

“Don’t look! He’s sitting next to her now. Nice,” she added, grinning. “But I’m getting some zees now, so I’ll chat to you when I wake up.”

Tommy nodded and settled himself down to watch the two with a fever. They were slumped against one another. The woman’s long, dark hair fe
ll across her face and over her daughter’s head, and the little girl had her arm slung around her mother. Both were breathing heavily. Tommy rested Marla’s gun on his lap and glanced down the coach. Various people were sleeping while others chatted quietly. Ahead the motorway yawned as far as the eye could see and darkness was coming. He was not looking forward to that, but at least they were out of the city now. Things would not be so bad in the country.

He imagined walking in the fields with his dog barking beside him, the sun blazing on his face and the branches bowing above his head. Bluebells created a c
arpet, eeling its way across the green landscape, inviting him to step upon it. A woman walked out from between the trees, lithe and beautiful, her red lips curved into a smile, the white skin of her bosom emerging from the low cut of her dress. She leant forward and stroked his cheek with one finger, slowly, up and down, while she moved against him for a kiss. As the pressure of her fingers increased, the motion woke him and he opened his eyes with a start. The image in front of him did not gel with the face in his dream. This one was haggard, the eyes bloodshot, the skin a pale grey. She opened her mouth and bile dribbled down her chin as the dark chasm yawned open for him.

Tommy grabbed the gun from his lap with his right hand and shoved the woman backwards with his left. Standing, he aimed at her head as she
squirmed against the seat. “She’s changed!” he yelled out. Behind him the other passengers rose and the coach swerved slightly as Eric glanced around in terror. The soldier urged him to pull over.

Woken by the commotion, Marla
got up when she realised what was happening. Turning towards Ellen, she mouthed the word ‘gun’. Her sister bent down to rummage in the bottom of her rucksack before moving towards her, holding it out. Marla grabbed the Glock and shifted behind Tommy. “Shoot her,” she directed.

Sitting beside the woman
the little girl was shaking, her limbs flying all over the place as she lay on the back seat. Tommy thought she was having a fit for a second and then reality sank in. Her mother lunged for him and he pushed her back down. The woman shook her head violently and groaned, and then a wail filled the air. The other passengers peered over Tommy’s shoulders with a mixture of curiosity and horror, including Ellen.

“Can’t you just
put her off the coach?” asked one man.

“How?” yelled Tommy. “
I wanted to do that earlier when she was calm. You can see how dangerous she is, and she’s only just changed. She hasn’t got all her reactions yet by the look of it.” He shoved her down again. “I have to shoot her.”

“You can’t shoot a woman!”

“She isn’t a woman anymore – look!” Tommy moved aside briefly to show the passengers. The sight they beheld made most of them slide down in their chairs in fright. He raised his gun and shot her once in the forehead. The body sank. “What about the girl?” he asked. “She hasn’t changed yet.”

“Take her off the bus,” Simon suggested
.

“She’ll bite someone,”
yelled Marla. “Are you out of your mind?”

“But she’s a child.”

“Not anymore,” Tommy responded.

“Then we can tie her up and just leave her somewhere,” someone suggested.

Tommy raised his eyebrows. “Why? She’s dead. Can’t you people see what’s going on here? She’ll bite you and you’ll be one of them too. She’s no longer who she was. Look at her face. She’s having a fit because she’s changing. If you check her pulse, I bet she doesn’t have one.”

A man stepped forward. “I’ll check it,” he offered, “and if
I can’t feel anything you can do what you want.”

There was a general murmur of agreement. Tommy relented. “
Fine, but I’m standing right by you. In fact, I’m going to hold her. He shoved Marla’s gun into his pocket and bent over the girl. Taking her arms and gripping them tightly as she kicked her legs and swung her head, he dragged her along the backseat. “Do it now,” he said. “Her wrist... check it!”

The man nodded and placed his trembling fingers
on her skin. “She feels cold, like ice,” he exclaimed in surprise. “Her skin is clammy. I can’t feel a pulse. Let me check again.” After a minute he shook his head and removed his fingers. “There’s nothing,” he admitted, turning to look at the other people. “There’s no sign of life. It’s like she’s really dead.”

There was a murmur of fear and disbelief. Tommy shook his head. Surely they knew? Then he realised that they still
could not believe it. Whatever they were seeing right now wasn’t really connecting with their view of reality. This was something else and most of them could not take it in.

“Do what you have to do,” Marla
told him.

Tommy picked the girl
up by the arms and swung her in front of him so that her eyes were looking forward. The people on the coach retreated in disgust, shifting as far back in their seats as humanly possible, while those by the windows had no room to move, penned in as they were. He walked down the aisle carefully and nodded to Eric, who opened the front doors so that he could step off. In the darkness, Tommy walked in front of the vehicle and on to the grassy slope. The lights inside the coach revealed the way down was steep. He glanced at the trees to his right, but he did not feel safe going into them, even here where the virus had not spread. Taking care where he placed his feet, he trod down the slope a short way, holding the child at arm’s length, until he was sure no one could see him. Then he let her go.

The little girl
dropped to the ground and landed on her two feet. Listlessly, she peered up at him, her blonde hair hanging lank down either side of her sunken face. Tommy was struck by the horror of her eyes. There was nothing in them, except what he imagined to be hunger and pure hatred. The kid raised her tiny hands, shaping the fingers into claws, and she emitted a high-pitched whine as she walked towards him.

Tommy backed
up the slope and removed Marla’s gun from his pocket. He could not do it. She was so small, so young. The wailing hung in the air between them, cloaking the space in a rancid smile. Her mouth cracked open, waiting for him. Diving into the darkness of her eyes he shot her once through the forehead. She fell, lifeless. For a moment Tommy could not move. She could only have been seven years old, not much younger than his son. What was happening to the world that such a thing could happen to a child? He glanced up at the dark sky above him and cursed it. There were things a person should never have to do. There were things a kid should never have to see.

Scuffing
one of his boots on the grass, Tommy turned back up the slope. Something across the way made him pause. Smoky shapes littered the darkness, walking from right to left, coming from the direction in which the coach was heading. He squinted, but there was insufficient light to see much. Striding up to the coach, he checked for vehicles both ways.
Where was the coach that was behind them? Had it overtaken?
Seeing nothing, he walked out into the middle of the motorway, aware that everyone seated on that side would be wondering what on earth he was doing.

Sure enough, there
were shadows moving.
People.
He could see them; maybe five or six, seven even. He eventually counted eight. Walking closer, he could tell they were mainly male plus one female and a child. They stopped and looked his way. Then they began to approach. He waved, but they did not reciprocate. Instead they lurched from side to side, swinging their arms oddly to compensate for their lack of balance.
Shit. Not here. How could they be here?

Folding his hands on top of
his head, Tommy let out a deep breath and turned around. The sound of a horn rocked his eardrums and he stopped dead, covering his eyes as a dazzling light blinded him for a second. A gust of air nearly blew him off his feet as the coach trundled past, still blaring its horn. Behind him jagged howls pierced the air and he ran. Across the motorway he sprinted, not pausing. Thundering up the steps of the coach, he yelled at Eric to close the door, which he did.

“Freaks!”
said Tommy, gasping for air. “I counted eight. I didn’t think the virus had spread this far.”

“That’s what we were tol
d,” Simon replied. “Only London, they said.”

“
They can’t have known,” said Eric. “Damn idiot government. Now what?”

“Are you okay?” asked Marla, wandering down the aisle. “You nearly got hit...”

“Yeah,” said Tommy, feeling so relieved that he might laugh. He brushed his hair out of his face and handed her gun back to her. “I guess we keep driving to this army base that we’ve been told to reach. It’s night time, so we’re going to see more of these things. We should move.”

“What about the
woman’s body?” Simon asked.

“Drag it
over here and we’ll just chuck it off right where we are, before those freaks reach us.”

Two male passengers got up and ran to the back of the bus, followed by Tommy and the soldier. Together, they carried
the body to the front. When Eric opened the doors, they heaved her into the road. The doors closed and the coach continued on its way.

“Look!” said Marla, pointing out the window.

Tommy glanced out to see the freaks feasting on the woman in the road. “Bon appetit,” he muttered.

“Sick,” Marla exclaimed.

“That’s how I feel,” he replied. “I just shot a kid.”

Marla sat down. “
I’m sorry. But she wasn’t alive. The other guy found no pulse. She wasn’t human and she would have killed someone.”

“I know that – in theory – but the reality was
different. I almost couldn’t, and her eyes... Jesus, you should have seen her expression. Hungry, that’s the word. How can this be happening to kids?” he asked, wiping a hand across his forehead. “I hope I never have to do that again.”

“Everyone is at risk,” said Marla. “The virus isn’t selective. Everyone...”

“...is damned,” finished Tommy, staring into her eyes.

***

“Almost there,” Simon announced
, “glancing at the map. We leave the motorway second left.”

Eric
nodded.

At the back of the bus,
Marla stared out the window into the dark. “We’ll be safe now.”

“I hope there’s someone there who can give us some answers,” said Tommy. “I haven’t heard any radio an
nouncements this whole journey, except the same old ones about evacuations and London being sealed off.”

“I guess that’s
the main focus at the moment. I’m sure they’re working on finding an antidote or something.”

“Since when were you a fan of the government
, Marla? You were the one talking about conspiracies...”

“Yeah, I know,” she replied. “
I’m trying to be hopeful. But what could it be? Only thing could be some war weapon, like Agent Orange, but right now I just wanna be somewhere safe, away from those things – more for my sister… Get me?”

With a shrug, Tommy
glanced behind him at the bloodstained back seat and a girl’s tiny shoe: a constant reminder.

“What the hell?” exclaimed Eric
as he slammed his foot on the brake. Lighting up the darkness was a column of orange. Wisps of colour floated in the night sky.

“Fire,” the soldier
stated. Half of the passengers stood up at his words. Ellen turned to look across the back of her seat at her sister, her eyes wide with fear. Tommy and Marla ran down the aisle to stand behind five other men and a woman. Gradually, everyone huddled behind the driver. Ahead of them, buildings were on fire and something exploded, like fireworks lighting up the scene. Several helicopters buzzed in the sky like flies.

“That’s the army base – our destination,” Simon
informed everyone, although most of them had guessed that already.

“What about the coach that overtook us?” Marla asked.

There was silence. One by one everyone returned to their seats and just sat there quietly.

“What do we do?” asked Eric
. “Do you want me to turn around? We’re going to need petrol soon too.”