Z Day is Here (8 page)

During one violent yank, the truck tipped
sideways as it had a few times before. Only this time, he could not
recover. The truck began flipping sideways, like someone rolling a
brick down a hill. We must have flipped three of four times before
coming to a stop against a building.

The truck bed was ripped in half. Me, Cole,
and Tonya were in one side; Brett, Spook, Paula, and Ken were in
the other side. I lay on the wall—now the floor of the truck—where
I’d landed until I heard Paula screaming and crying. I jumped up,
blood rushing down my arm from a large cut on my shoulder. As I
looked around, I saw Cole and Tonya helping each other up. They
appeared to be okay, just a little banged up. I jumped out of the
trailer and made my way over to the other side. Paula was holding
Brett’s now-lifeless body. His neck was contorted in a very
unnatural way. Spook was behind her, trying to help Ken, who was
trapped, penned between two pieces of the trailer. His leg was
crushed, blood flowing freely from just above his knee. He was pale
and almost completely unresponsive. I ran over to Spook, trying in
vain to pull back the metal. The more we worked, the more damage we
were causing. Now, as if to mock us even more, Cole began yelling
something about zombies coming. I ran to look. He was right. A
massive group had obviously heard our wreck and was coming after
its meal. We had a decision to make. Do we leave Ken here or pull
him, no matter how much damage was done? Either way, we had to go.
Ken made the decision for us. He reached down and grabbed the gun
Spook had in his belt. He told us to go. He was dead either
way.

We left Brett's body lying next to Ken. As we
ran into the nearest building, we could hear Ken shooting multiple
times, then nothing but silence.

There we stood, all of us bloodied and banged
up. Tonya tended my wounds, and Cole sat in the corner crying for
his lost friend. Spook and Paula held each other and kept watch.
Malice was gone, nowhere to be seen. I swear to God if I ever see
that man again, I will blow his fucking head off.

How much more can we take?

The power has been going off and on all day.
I guess that is just one more problem to add to our growing number.
Tonya made some makeshift stitches for my arm. The pain was almost
unbearable. I had to bite down on a stick to keep from screaming.
Tonya has been a lifesaver to me; I want to get to know her a
little better. Everyday I like her more and more. I truly believe
she would do anything for any of us. She sat next to me and talked
most of the night. She told me so much about her past, but it just
made me want to know more. Or do I? Should I even try to get close
to anyone ever again? It seems as if every time I get close to
someone, they end up dead.

Other than Tonya talking to me, there was no
one else even saying a word. After what we have been through, there
was not much to say. We saw quite a few zombies walk (if that’s
what you call it) past the building we are in, but none of them
even glanced in our direction. That is a good thing, since I would
not be able to offer any help. Our plan is to just keep quiet and
stay put for a few days. We are all bruised pretty good and could
use the break.

Earlier today, I thought I saw a quick
glimpse of Malice (what a VERY fitting name). He was running
between a couple of buildings. He looked like a scared cat trying
to stay hidden. He needs to stay out of my way.

I have no idea where we are. I know we’re not
in the city. We are in a small town. This building we are in is a
two-story office building. It looks like the company was some kind
of ad agency. There are banners and signs everywhere. A huge sign
sitting in the corner reads, "A+ Paws and Claws, Inc." Another one
is for some place called Spooky Empire. Sitting in a printer is an
unfinished sign that reads, "Dine and Dash Auto Clea." There is
quite a bit of blood on the ground near the printer. No doubt the
worker was probably attacked as he was working. Upstairs, there are
quite a few offices and a large break room. Everything in the
fridge is rotten.

Back downstairs, Spook and Paula are huddled
in a corner. I am worried about Paula. She hasn't stopped crying
since yesterday. She has a wild look in her eyes. We need to watch
her. She may try to do something stupid. In extreme situations like
this—

Someone is coming through the back door! I
can't see if it is a zombie or a live person. Spook is on his feet,
pistol in hand, and Tonya is right by his side.

Oh my God, it's Ken.

Ken is alive.

After we walked away from the accident, he
held the gun close. He said most of the zombies tried following us,
but the few that came after him got a face full of lead. He told us
about how he knew he was done for and almost shot himself but
decided to go out fighting. He said when he got to the last bullet,
there were about five left. They were moving towards him, ready to
eat, when out of nowhere, Malice appeared behind the undead
bastards. Ken said Malice was wildly swinging a metal pipe at their
heads. Within seconds, he had them all laying in a big bloody mess
at his feet. Ken told how Malice helped free him from the wreckage
with a crowbar he found in the cab of the truck. Once he was free,
he took shelter in the wreckage until it was safe to come out. He
said that Malice felt so bad about what had happened, he could not
and would not face any of us. Malice had saved Ken from certain
death then run off into the shadows. It is hard to remain mad at
someone who would help, but at the same time, he is to blame for
the death of a fifteen-year-old boy.

Ken may be safe from the zombies, but his leg
is severely mangled. I don't think he will last much longer with
that wound. We have stopped the bleeding, but if infection sets in,
he will die within days. The most we can do it is watch it and try
to keep it clean. If he does make it, he will never walk right
again. Maybe in the days when we had hospitals, but not now, not in
this mess.

I found a map of the local area and have
decided to go looking for a hospital or that dog place A+ Paws and
Claws that I saw on the sign. Maybe they have some kind of
antibiotics. I don't see a hospital on the map, but maybe I can
find a doctor’s office. If not, then Ken, you’re getting dog
medicine.

Spook and I decided to be the ones to go
looking for medicine. We gathered what little supplies we could
find, plus the map, and headed out. Finding the hospital was easy.
In fact, we were there before dark last night. The hard part will
be getting into it without being seen. It seems the zombies flock
to hospitals, probably because that’s where the living head to when
something is wrong.

This is a small town, so the hospital isn't
very big. The whole building is no bigger than a small warehouse.
We are in a house directly across the street from the emergency
room entrance. Three ambulances are parked in front of the
building; one looks as though it rammed the back of the one in
front of it. No doubt the ambulance driver got a surprise from the
"dead" body he was transporting to the morgue.

It appears that everyone in the town rushed
to get to the hospital, because the parking lot is full. The doors
have been broken, as have most of the windows. There are a few body
parts laying around on the lawn and blood splatter on the walls. I
doubt anyone in the town made it out alive.

All day long, we have been sitting in this
house, watching and waiting for our chance to head toward the
hospital. When we go, it will have to be a very fast trip. We can't
take any chances. My arm is killing me, so I will be nearly useless
against an attack. If we shoot any guns, it will attract lots of
unwanted attention from the undead of the city. I have a paper
slicer handle I found in the marketing building; Spook has a wooden
flag pole. We both have guns with us, just in case things get
really bad.

There are pictures hung on the wall in this
house of an old man and his wife. I have been looking at all the
pictures around the house; it looks like a nice family. I think
they have either two or three kids, but I'm not sure. In some
photos, there are three kids, but in some there are only two. They
were also very clean people. There isn't a single piece of paper
laying out anywhere. It looks like everything is neatly in its
place. While going through the house, I found some really nice
clothes that look like they fit me, so I cleaned up really good and
changed clothes for the first time in quite a while. It is strange
how nice clean clothes feel on your body when you have gone this
long wearing bloody and stained clothes. It was like a shopping
spree for us. In a matter of hours, we had gone through every
square inch of the house. We took what we thought we could use.
Everything else, we left wherever it fell. We laughed, thinking
about how upset the old woman would be if she came home and found
her house in shambles. I doubt she will ever come home, though.

So we have decided to make our way to the
hospital later this evening, whether it is totally safe or not. If
we don't get back soon, Ken may not be alive.

Well, we were all set to go yesterday when
out of nowhere, three zombies attacked us! I don't know how they
got in, but Spook heard a noise in the kitchen. We grabbed our
makeshift weapons and headed that way. When we got in the kitchen,
they quickly turned to look at us. Now, I don't think they have any
brain function other than to eat, but I could almost swear we
startled them. Their dead white eyes got wider, and their heads
swung to one side, mouths open, salivating for dinner. The smell
that came from their bodies almost made me vomit. Being dead for
over a month, their bodies were also decaying more than I had seen.
These three looked like they had been dead—or undead—for quite some
time. The skin around their wounds had turned black from rot; dried
blood covered their faces. These were also starving zombies. Their
movements were quicker. It seems the hungrier they get, the faster
they become.

Before I knew it, they were upon us. Their
teeth snapping closed like a dog’s. The first one went after Spook.
His wooden flagpole came crashing down across the first one’s face.
Once he hit the ground, the second jumped towards Spook. With a
somewhat awkward grace, the pointed end of the pole impaled the
second zombie under the jaw and up into his head, killing him
instantly. Before I could say anything, the third one was after me.
I pulled my pipe back, ready for the kill, when a hand grabbed my
ankle, knocking me off my feet, my weapon sliding across the floor.
When I hit the ground, I was face to face with the first zombie. He
flung his head toward mine, desperately trying to pull my face off
with his teeth. I moved back just in time, but the third one was
swooping down onto me. Spook ran up behind the third one, grabbed
him by the head, and pulled him off me. I reached around for
something to bash the first one’s head in but found nothing. I got
my feet and ran into the living room, grabbed a very heavy glass
lamp, and made my way back into the kitchen. When I got there,
Spook had finished off the second undead bastard and was moving to
take out the first one, who was now on his feet again. Together, we
walked right up to him. The vacant look in his eyes showed no fear,
no hate, no sadness. He did not know what his fate was about to
become; he just knew the hunger. I hit him in the head with the
lamp hard enough to damn near decapitate him.

After the fight, we were too tired to attempt
a trip to the hospital. We have barricaded all the doors and
windows and will rest the remainder of the evening.

Tomorrow, barring another attack, we will
head that way.

We made it to the hospital.

Before we left, we both covered ourselves in
the blood of the dead zombies to cover our scent. When we left the
house, we slowly made our way toward the building. We kept
ourselves hidden as much as possible. Once we got inside, we
quickly made our way into medical supply room. We packed as much as
we could into a bag we had found inside the house. The trip was
going much better than either of us had thought. Not even a single
zombie glanced in our direction the entire way to the building or
once we made it inside. Things were going so good, too good. We
knew it wouldn't be long before we were noticed.

In and out in less than ten minutes. That was
our goal, and that’s what we stuck to. Right at the ten-minute
mark, we were stepping out the front doors. Five minutes after
that, we were back in the street, making our way to the house, when
the zombie blood smell wore off. Spook said he thought it was our
sweating that caused the odor to get to them. Either way, they were
on to us. We began to run. As we began running, I glanced back
behind me to see about fifty of the undead monsters coming after
us. I am not totally sure, but I would swear they were almost
trying to run after us! We easily got away, but I know they are
getting faster. This scares the hell out of me.

We are hidden in an old train station. There
doesn't seem to be anyone around, so I think we are going to try to
get some rest and make our way back to the marketing building first
thing in the morning. Tonight, we are going to sleep in shifts.
Spook said he is wired from the action, so I am taking the first
sleep. Two hours is better than nothing right!?

We got plenty of sleep last night and headed
back to the office first thing this morning. We arrived to find the
place empty! The door had been broken down, and blood covered the
floor. No one was around, not even a zombie. The only hint we got
to their whereabouts was a letter written on the wall. The note
read, “Attacked, leaving. If safe, stay there.” So this is where we
have been sitting all day. We have barricaded the door once again
and have a nice open view of the road from the second floor. Not
much has been going on today, so this is going to be a short
update.