Infamy: A Zombie Novel (12 page)

My feet begin to trip up and my shoulder slams into the stairwell door swinging it wide open. The rail
crunches my back when I hit against it. I don’t let it slow me. Surprisingly, there’s no pain in my entire body. Adrenalin? Infection? I don’t care.

I leap three steps at a time to
the roof. For once in this entire fiasco I feel like something is going right. Nothing is in my way. Just me and the baby now, plunging through darkness. She laughs. I laugh. Fuck it. This is togetherness.

The
roof door opens with ease to smoke and sunlight. I can hardly see shit but can hear a helicopter closing in. Hope that fucker isn’t about to drop a load of bombs on our ass.

Within moments the
chopper takes position at the edge of the roof. This better be the Major and his buddies. Shit. Another snag. The chopper is blocked from fully landing because of a huge antenna. No worries. This pilot is an expert. He aligns the chopper just inches from the side of the roof.

A large side
door slides open and a man jumps out, runs toward us. He has short grey hair, fatigues and a pair of aviators like he just stepped from
Zombapocalypse
. EdgeCrusher would be proud of this moment if he hadn’t been obliterated by zombies or the Rapture. Fucking America. Maybe it took both to take him down.

“You must be Seth,
” the Major says.

“
See any other guy around here with a baby strapped on?”

He smiles.
“Let’s get the fuck out of here.”

“I can’t.”

The Major looks puzzled.

I l
ift my arm to show him the bloodstained wrap.

“
Shit, son. Wish there was more time for you.” He straps Ella to his chest.

“
The journal is in the front pocket of the carrier. Make sure she’s safe,” I say. “She’s the cure.”

“
This kid will be a national treasure,” he says, turning to the helicopter.

“Major
. . .”

“Yes
?”

“Tell
her my name is Seth Walsh. And that saving her life is the greatest thing I ever did with mine.”

The Major gives me a salute
and steps up onto the chopper with Ella. Before he can take a seat they’re off. I glimpse Ella smiling and laughing at me as the helicopter rises above the Rapture, above the fire and gloom.

The
door behind me swings open. Infected come staggering out. Moans and cries fill my ears over the screaming of jets and helicopters.

I’m done being a ZID. Time for me to check out. Only one of my guns has
any shots left. I take a look at my clip. Three bullets.

I fire a couple of rounds in
to the undead for the hell of it before placing the barrel to my temple.

M
etal burns against my skin. My eyes shut and Ella’s face is the only thing I see.

So this is it.
“Goodbye, Ella. I hope you know I love you.”

Boom!

A loud explosion smashes the side of the building causing me to rip the gun away from my head. Everything is rocking back and forth as I look around and watch as a jet flies off into the sky. Zombies are being thrown to the ground or off the side of the roof. The large antenna sways and snaps sending its top half falling. The debris catches the tail of the helicopter causing it to spin out of control. I stand and watch as everything slows around me. From the metal cyclone the Major losses grasp of Ella and she begins to fall.

“NO!” I shout as my feet begin to move in to a
run towards the edge.

I leap.

Behind me the building begins to crumble and fall. Below me is the city set ablaze and in front is my only salvation.

Ella.

Grasping at the baby holder I manage to grab a strap with one arm and with the other I reach out in to the nothing. Hoping, praying that my hand is caught by an Angel. This only to save Ella. Please don’t let her die.

Then
an embrace takes hold of my forearm. The Major grips me tight as I return the same forearm lock.

“I
need to set her down!” the pilot shouts over the wind and winding motor. The Major continues to hang to the newly form human chain of Ella and I and as we begin to go down. The Major begins to pull us in as the chopper makes a rapid decent. Loud beeping and the force of the spin causes me to grip Ella even more as my eyes shut.

The ground gives a
hello in a greeting a lot faster then I like to give back. But we are in one piece or so I realize once I hear laughter coming from Ella and I open my eyes to see her in my arms.

I smile looking at her.
The Major pats me on the back as the pilot unbuckles to come check on us.

Then
my smile quickly leaves when I look at my arm next to Ella’s head and notice I no longer have a bite… Wait I don’t even have a scratch on me. What the Fuck just happen?

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