Journal of the Undead (Book 1): Littleville Uprising (38 page)

“She’s probably playing hide-and-seek, but keep your eyes open.” Doc tried to keep the concern from his voice. “While I’m scrounging up some food for Frank, have a look around, would ya?”

When Doc entered, Rose was alone in the kitchen. He took it as a grim sign considering how close it was to dinnertime. Though Rose playfully scolded Doc, reminding him they weren’t running a twenty-four-hour diner, she happily piled a plate with pot roast, mashed potatoes, and gravy. Adding a generous wedge of pecan pie, she handed over the tray. She confirmed that there was still no sign of Lucy and Kate was worried. Doc hoped Emma was having better luck as he headed back with the tray. Shouting in the common room prompted a quick detour.

“What’s going on?” Doc whispered to Jimmy and Anthony.

“They think R.J. knows something about Lucy’s whereabouts so Evan and Ray are interrogating him.”

“
Interrogating him?
” Doc shook his head in disgust. “I have a bad feeling this is going to get out of hand.”

Between Ray and Evan shouting, Kate’s sobbing, and R.J.’s whining, it was no wonder the ruckus could be heard down the hall. More than once, Matt put a restraining hand on Evan’s shoulder, but Evan was determined to reach the truth. Kate’s emotional plea finally cracked R.J.’s resolve and the story tumbled out.

“Everyone treats us like little kids and Lucy and I are sick of it,” R.J. whimpered. “We just wanted to prove we can do everything the older kids can. We were gonna sneak out and kill some zombies to prove it, but then Dad said I was off restrictions so I told her I didn’t want to go anymore.”

“So you let her go out there by herself?” Evan gasped.

Both Matt and Mike had to hold Evan back.

“I told her not to!” R.J. cried.

Kate’s face blanched. Doc rushed to her side and caught her around the waist in case she fainted. Weakly, Kate insisted she was fine and thanked Doc for his concern.

“Good. Maybe you can get Evan under control then.”

Kate’s eyes grew cold and hard. Completely out of character, she hissed that R.J. deserved ‘whatever he got and more’ as she walked away. Sighing, Doc hoped that Jimmy and Captain Giovanni would help him restore order. Just when it seemed that everyone had settled down, Doc noticed Evan, Matt, and Mike huddled in a corner. Knowing his godson, he assumed they were plotting.

“Okay, everyone under eighteen,” Doc announced. “Go to your rooms while the adults sort everything out.”

Rachael scurried from the room, trying to encourage the boys to do the same.

“No,” Evan bellowed. “He can’t send me to my room like a five-year-old. I’m going to find my sister!”

Ray rounded on his nephew and barked orders while Evan shouted back defiantly. Doc and Jimmy stepped between them and attempted to diffuse the powder keg of emotion. Mike clamped his hand over his cousin’s mouth to prevent Evan from saying anything more. Grabbing R.J. by the scruff of the neck, Ray dragged his son from the room, vowing to handle Evan next. Meanwhile, Captain Giovanni established guards at the main door with orders to prevent anyone from leaving.

“Evan, you need to calm down and think rationally,” Jimmy told his nephew. “Before you and your cohorts go tromping through the woods, half-cocked, let’s think this through.”

“We don’t have time to stand around jabbering,” Evan cried. “Lucy’s out there, alone! We need to go now!”

“We don’t know for sure that she’s still out there. If she came back in, she’ll know she’s in a world of trouble. She might be hiding,” Doc said, more hopeful than confident. “Let’s do one more thorough search. Only this time, check hiding places like closets and crawl spaces. Emma is already checking the hospital wing, so you boys check the rest. If you still don’t find her, we’ll meet in my office to plan the next step. We’ll probably need to use the emergency exit. I’m sure Ray will have the main doors guarded.”

Jimmy stared at Doc incredulously; sending a search party out in the dark was not only dangerous but extremely foolish. Evan begrudgingly agreed to Doc’s plan and the boys set off to begin their search. Doc motioned for Jimmy and Anthony to follow him.

Once safely out of earshot, Doc explained his plan, “Look, if by some miracle Lucy turns up, great; but more than likely she is still outside somewhere. Kate already has enough to worry about without Evan embarking on a suicide mission. I have no intention of those boys leaving the compound.”

Jimmy breathed a sigh of relief as Doc continued, “When the boys come to my office, I’m gonna inject them with a sedative and then restrain them. With them out of the way, we can go search for Lucy.”

The other men agreed to Doc’s plan and set off to ensure the main doors were secure. Jimmy promised to check in on his sister before returning to Doc’s office. Grabbing Frank’s tray, Doc hurried back to the hospital wing. He handed Frank his food and a few books before meeting up with Jimmy and Anthony. All three were in the pharmacy when Emma stumbled upon them.

“Emma, how much do Matt and Evan weigh?” Doc asked, expecting an immediate answer.

Emma’s eyes narrowed suspiciously. Noticing the vials and syringes on the counter, she asked why. In no mood to be questioned, Doc demanded that she just answer him immediately. Recognizing that they were getting nowhere, Jimmy pulled Emma aside to explain.

“Emma, listen …The boys think Lucy might be outside and they’re planning to go out after her. I’m sure I don’t need to tell you how dangerous that would be. Right now, they’re too emotional to see reason. We’re gonna sedate them to keep them safe. It’s important that we know their weight so we can give them the correct dosage. So, if you could help with that, I’d really appreciate it.”

Emma nodded and reluctantly gave Jimmy their weights.

“You don’t really think Lucy is out there do you?”

Jimmy frowned and Emma felt her stomach flip-flop. Even behind her mask, they could see the color draining from Emma’s face.

“Someone’s going after her, right?”

“We’re following protocol,” Captain Giovanni replied tersely; in his opinion, they’d told Emma too much. It wasn’t any of her business that he, Doc, and Jimmy were going after Lucy as soon as the boys were secured.

Emma knew “protocol” meant that no one was leaving until daylight. Doc gathered the supplies, stuffed them in his pocket, and told the men to meet him in his office.

“You have a patient to care for,” Doc reminded Emma. “
And
you’re quarantined, so stay out of sight.”

The men disappeared, leaving Emma dumbfounded. Though she didn’t want Evan and Matt wandering around in the dark, she didn’t want Lucy left out there alone. She snatched a few items from the pharmacy before creeping to the storage room. Emma unearthed two emergency packs, warm coats, and some clean clothes for Major Stone. Frank looked up from his book as Emma tossed a backpack and a pile of clothes on his bed. Before he could utter a word, Emma was disconnecting his IV.

“What’s going on?” Frank asked.

“We’re going on a rescue mission; get dressed.”

“Hmm, what happened to following protocol?” Frank replied sarcastically. “Two quarantined patients wandering around infecting people. Tsk-Tsk.”

“Fine, don’t come … but I need you to show me the emergency exit.”

“Why should I do that?”

“Because Lucy’s missing. Now, are you gonna help me or not?”

Frank sprang from the bed with a look of panic plastered on his face. Emma nodded grimly and tossed the major his clothes. While he dressed, Emma grabbed two rifles from their locker and a couple of boxes of ammunition. Motioning for the major to keep quiet, Emma unlocked the door. She handed him a loaded rifle and a backpack. Frank took the lead and they slipped down the hall.

“Dead end,” Emma moaned, disheartened.

Frank shook his head then pressed against the wall, forcing a panel to pop forward. He pulled the panel open to reveal a passageway. Just as Emma started to go through, he put his arm out to stop her.

“Wait. I shouldn’t be taking you out there. What was I thinking? You’re just a kid; you belong in here. Safe and sound.”

“First of all, I’m not ‘just a kid.’ You know as well as I do that no one should be out there alone
especially
with a wounded arm. I’ve been through and seen more in sixteen years than most people have in a lifetime, so spare me the ‘you’re just a kid’ bullshit!”

No sooner had the words escaped her lips than Emma wished they hadn’t. Major Stone took a step forward and glowered at her. With her back pressed firmly against the wall, Emma swallowed hard and chewed nervously on her lip.

“Young lady, if you ever mouth off to me like that again I will blister your backside! That is not a threat; it’s a promise. Profanity will not be tolerated. This is your one and only warning. Is that clear?”

Emma nodded sheepishly. Frank turned on his heels and marched through the passage. Halfway through the narrow hallway, he realized he was alone. With a heavy sigh, he retreated to find Emma. As much as he hated to admit it, he was going to need her help. Still backed against the wall, Emma was deep in thought, chewing her lip.

“Well, are you still coming?” Frank asked.

Startled, Emma looked up. She noticed the major was waiting patiently for her to follow.

“You made a good point. Especially with my injury, it would be a huge help if you came with me. That being said, I meant it when I told you I’d better not hear language like that from you again. Got it?”

Emma smiled weakly and breathed a sigh of relief.

“Besides, you’ll be in plenty of trouble when we get back. Doc will be furious and I don’t think there’ll be much I can say to override it,” said Frank as he ducked back through into the passageway.

Grimacing, Emma pushed the thought of what Doc would say from her mind. Getting Lucy back safely was all she cared about. Following the major’s lead, Emma cautiously stepped through the narrow hall. They paused only for a moment as Frank pulled what looked like two helmets from a storage bin and tossed one to Emma.

“Those look like the hardhats coal miners wear,” Emma said with surprise.

“That’s exactly what they are. We can’t have our hands tied up holding flashlights. These should help. We’ll turn them on once we get outside. Emma, are you sure you want to do this?”

She nodded emphatically and Frank resolved not to ask again. The night air was frigid and the only sound was a distant moan echoing through the trees. Frank switched on Emma’s light, then his own, and waited for their eyes to adjust. His plan was to follow the scouting route then sweep out further as they looped around.

“With all due respect, you’re thinking like a major and not a nine-year-old girl. Lucy wouldn’t have followed the scouting route because she would end up getting caught. My guess is she stopped at her favorite spot first to watch for deer, and then headed over to the pits.”

Emma explained the pits as trenches lined with spikes to trap the zombies. ‘Tiger traps,’ as Ray had called them, made it easy to completely destroy the zombies. After shooting them, they could set them aflame in a controlled environment. One of Ray’s favorite punishments was making rule breakers dig the ditches. Chuckling, Frank asked how many Emma had dug.

“R.J. has the most,” she insisted.

“That’s not surprising.”

Because Lucy had been begging to see the pits, Emma assumed she would go there. Frank conceded that her suggestion made sense so he let her take the lead. Emma easily found the stream where she and Lucy had watched wildlife on that first day—it felt like years, rather than months, had passed since then. There was no sign of Lucy and the dusting of snow made it hard to look for old tracks. It was a short hike to the closest pit but in the dark they had to move slower and more carefully.

“Hmm, it’s around here somewhere. Just keep your eyes open and watch your step.”

She proceeded to trip over a large branch. With a yelp, Emma toppled over and fell to the ground.

“Like I said,” she giggled, while brushing the powdery snow from her backside, “keep your eyes open and watch your step.”

Shaking his head, Frank doubled back to make sure zombies weren’t lurking in the brush while Emma pressed forward to look for the pit. She had only taken a few steps before tripping again. This time it was the straps from a backpack that had tangled around her shoe and tripped her. Emma knelt down and, clutching the bag to her chest, shouted Lucy’s name. Frank sprinted back to Emma and clapped his hand over her mouth.

“Are you crazy? You’ll have every zombie in the state shuffling this way shouting like that. That backpack could belong to anyone. For all we know, it could have been out here for months.”

“But it says Lucy in purple glitter.”

Emma held out the pack for his inspection. For the first time, Frank felt hope and began shouting Lucy’s name as a chorus of moans drew closer.

“Shh, did you hear that?” Emma asked.

She was positive she’d heard a faint whimper along with the moans. Emma edged closer to the pit and looked down. The light from her helmet illuminated the pit and the rotting corpses that were skewered in grotesque positions on the spikes below. Their ravenous moaning reverberated off the walls as they groped the air for food. Huddled against the edge, a tiny body trembled from both fear and cold.