Chapter 13

Tom wasn’t sure exactly what medicine that Mike needed. He cursed himself for not paying more attention is his science classes in school as he grabbed a plastic shopping bag and began tossing in everything that had “biotic” at the end. The store had been trashed. Aisles were completely overturned; large blood splotches lined the walls and stained the carpeted floor. The front window of the place had been shattered, and a single corpse impaled in the window from the remaining glass in the frame along with multiple firearm shell casings that littered the store had been the only evidence that a struggle had occurred. Not a single stiff wandered around, and the soldier had been thankful for that.

Strangely though, none of the medicine in the back pharmacy had been touched. There either wasn’t enough time before the shamblers arrived or people just forgot the back pharmacy even existed. As he tossed in a few more bottles of antibiotics, automatic gunfire erupted outside.

“Nick-” His Taurus handgun was already in his hands; the platinum barrel glinting in the dim light. He hoped that out of the bag of meds he snatched, one of them would help Mike. Tom hopped over the counter of the pharmacy and weaved in and out of the downed aisled, making his way towards the front of the store as another burst of gunfire came from outside. He heard the faint noise of a helicopter as he saw Nick fall to his knees and pound his hand on the ground, dropping his machinegun beside him.

“What the hell happened?” Tom asked as he jogged up next to him, watching the helicopter fade away in the distance.

“Son of a bitch saw me but kept going.” Nick growled as he stood up, retrieving his weapon before he did. Tom watched as the helicopter disappeared into the night, the clouds swallowing up the bird.

“You know, we should listen in on the radio… see who these guys are.” Tom said as Nick started walking back towards the truck. Nick shrugged as he got in shotgun. Tom tossed the bag of antibiotics in the back as he climbed in the cab.

“That helicopter looked civilian now that I think about it.” Nick said as Tom pulled out of the parking lot, noticing a few shamblers stumbling towards the vehicle as it sped by, probably attracted by the gunfire. Damn it, Nick shouldn’t have open fired. He hoped that they wouldn’t be followed back to the house.

“So?” Tom said as he drove through a red light, traffic laws didn’t really apply in this new world. Even before the outbreak, Tom never really followed them; he paid countless tickets as a result.

“Well, who knows who these people are… maybe it’s best that they didn’t stop for us.” Nick thought as Tom took a turn. He did have a point, but it was probably in their best interests to meet up with other survivors. From the events of the night so far, Tom wouldn’t mind the security of more people.

“You worry too much.” Tom dismissed the thought; Nick didn’t drop it.

“Like that kid said, people are starting to react more aggressively towards each other in order to survive. What if these people are like that? Do we really want to risk it? I say we just shoot straight over to Tunica and try our luck there. Like that trucker said, it’s safe there.” Nick tried bargaining as they pulled into the neighborhood.

“Alright look, let’s just listen in on the radio for the next day and see what they’re up to. If they sound shady, then we’ll get the hell out of here. If not, it won’t hurt to head on over and see what they have to offer.” Nick just shook his head as they pulled up to the house. Tom slightly took his foot off the pedal as he maneuvered the Titan around the numerous corpses surrounding the driveway.

“Hope you’re right.” Tom killed the engine and grabbed the bag of medicine before slamming his door shut and walking briskly towards the front door. Before he even reached it, Jake had opened the door, a revolver in hand.

“Did you get the stuff?” The kid asked as Tom brushed by him.

“Yeah, I think so. Where is?” Tom saw he wasn’t where he left him. Either was Katharina.

“We moved him upstairs to a bed. He’s awake now and doing better, but without the proper treatment he could go into shock.” Tom’s eyebrows raised.

“How do you that?” He asked as he walked up the stairs. The kid shrugged.

“Parents worked in the ER. Was always typical dinner conversation when they were home.” Tom turned back around and made his way towards the guest room; the door lay half open and light spilled out of the opening. He lightly opened the door, the plastic bag ruffling in his hands. Katharina sat by Mike, her long hair covering the side of her face. Mike lied in the bed, his forehead covered in a thin blanket of sweat.

“Special delivery.” Tom startled them as her entered, grinning as he held up the bag of meds.




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Hours later, Nick sat alone on the back deck smoking a cigarette, his M1 Garand at his side. Everybody else was fast asleep, and he wished he could be doing the same. Yet, after the horrors he’d witnessed earlier with those things being able to actually run, he wasn’t quite sure if he wanted to be asleep if some of them decided to come back. About an hour ago, he’d rigged up a sort of contraption outside. His father had been an electrician, and he’d always participated in the whole “take your kid to work day,” mainly to just get out of class though. Now he was glad he did.

The stereo outside was now connected to a long orange extension cord that he’d found in the garage. The cord had been taped down in several places outside, just in case one of the stiffs stumbled over it. The cord came all the way back into the house, where he’d cut open the cord so various wires had been sticking out. Another extension cable had been plugged in alongside it, which he completely slashed open with his knife. All he had to do was connect the cut open cord with the slashed one connected to the boom box, and the stereo would turn on, volume cranked to the maxed and Thunderstruck would blast throughout the neighborhood. This way, if any more of the stiffs or the… running ones came back to the house, it would at least give them all enough to escape. Nick was actually quite proud of his creation.

The former swat sniper took a long drag off his cigarette as he toyed with the CB radio that he’d taken out of the truck, going through the multiple channels trying to find the mysterious owners of the chopper. Hell, maybe they weren’t even from around, and just passing through. He didn’t really like Tom’s plan of just “popping over to say hi.” The kid had a good heart, but he could be really naïve at times. Not everybody would take them in with open arms.

“…opy that.” Nick’s hand froze as the words spilled out of the speaker. He waited, turning the volume up. Nick waited a full three minutes before a male’s garbled voice was heard, static interfering.

“…eck….possible survivors…Private…recon…over.” He cursed as he moved the CB radio, trying to get a signal. Possible survivors? Private? Maybe they WERE military, or national guard. He listened closely as the next transmission came through.

“Worry about…tomorrow, return….airport. Any…obtained?”

“Airport eh?” Nick rubbed his face, he was going on a week without shaving. His wife Carrie never let him go more then a day without shaving… yet he didn’t want to shave. Last time he saw Carrie alive, she’d give him a kiss on his cheek. Nick smiled as he rubbed the spot where she’d kissed him. He didn’t really want to shave it away.

“Copy that…two…ver.” Nick switched the radio off and took a final drag on the cigarette before putting it out on the forehead of a stiff he’d been sitting next to. The skin bubbled and popped as he stood up, grabbing his M1 and CB.

“Fucker.” He kicked the corpse and went back inside, deciding maybe he should catch a few hours of sleep.




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Tom yawned as sunlight across his face woke him up. He blinked away watery eyes for a few seconds before turning over in bed, looking for the warmth of Katharina. She was gone. Tom sat up and scratched his hair, yawning again and looking at his digital watch; it was just past nine. Tom smelled something, and it smelled good. He climbed out of bed and grabbed his pair of camo pants and slid them on. He looked around for his shirt, but couldn’t find it. Shrugging, he went into the closet and grabbed a plain white T before heading down the stairs.

Bacon and eggs sizzled on a large iron skillet, Katharina was behind the stove wearing his shirt.

“Hey.” She smiled as she put a few pieces of cooked bacon on a plate. He walked up behind her and hugged her, giving her a peck on the cheek.

“Smells good.” He said, the aroma of the bacon was starting to make his mouth water. He saw there was already a plate filled with buttered toast and a jar of jam next to it on the table.

“There probably won’t be too many more breakfasts like this for a while…” Katharina said as she cracked one of the last eggs over the skillet. Tom frowned, she was right. Hopefully the world would eventually return to normal, one of the things that he’d grown accustomed to were huge breakfasts.

“Where is everyone else?” Tom asked as he pulled away from her and yawned.

“Mike’s outside by the pool, he’s been up since I have. The meds really took effect, he’s doing a lot better. Jake is down in the basement, not really sure what he’s doing. Nick is still sleeping, how about you go wake him?”

“Alright then.” He gave her a light pat on the behind and headed for the stairs..




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Carrie laughed as she took another swig of beer. The bar was booming with life, people laughed and danced as music flowed smoothly out of the vintage jukebox. Nick had never been more nervous in his life. He fiddled with the ring in his pocket yet again as Carrie lowered her bottle to the table and smiled at him.

“What’s wrong with you tonight Nick?” His heart pounded wildly in his chest as he took his hand out of his pocket and took a sip of beer.

“Nothing, Carrie. Nothing at all.” He smiled as she took his hands and squeezed them. Her long hair flowed in front of her eyes, with the flick of her head she removed it. Nick smiled back. This was going to be a night he would always remember. He really didn’t know why he was nervous, he was almost positive that she would accept his proposal. But still… he was scared shitless. The next song on the jukebox came on, it was a love song. Some people on the dance floor trudged back to their seats as other couples replaced them. The soothing music seemed to quiet everything in the bar, voices subsided as Nick shifted all of his concentration onto his girlfriend Carrie.

“Let’s dance.” He said, standing up and taking her by the hand.

“Since when did you dance?” She asked with a smile as he led her to the dance floor.

“I don’t.” He laughed, putting a hand on her lower back and pulling her close to him. She smiled as she hugged him tightly, burying her head into his chest.

“I love you Nick.” His heart skipped a beat, now was the perfect time.

“I love you too, Carrie…” The continued to dance, his head screaming at him to just pop the question already. “Honey, I need to ask you something.” She pulled away from him, her gleaming eyes seemed to sparkle as she looked into his own.

“What is Nick?” He broke into a feverish sweat as he pulled the ring out of his jeans and got down on one knee. “Carrie Marie Cole, I love you. I want to spend the rest of my life with you and I want you to be the mother of my children. I want to grow old with you. Will you marry me?” He smiled up at her.

Carrie looked at him with a blank stare. The music subsided, everybody in the bar stopped.

“I’m dead, Nick.” Nick chuckled nervously.

“Don’t be silly. What do you say?” Carrie’s eyes rolled to the back of her head. Her skin paled as veins began pulsating out. Carrie let out an animalistic growl as her chest cavity popped open. Her entrails and viscera spilled out and blood sprayed his face as she grabbed him and sank her teeth into his neck.

Nick screamed as his eyes shot open. He grabbed the .44 on the bed next to him and jammed the gun into Tom’s face.

“Christ, calm down!” Tom screamed as he slapped the large revolver away. Nick was drenched in sweat, as were the sheets. He was breathing heavily, large beads of perspiration dripped down his chest as he tried catching his breath.

“You ok?” Tom asked with concern. Nick sighed.

“Just a dream.”




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After breakfast, as Jake and the girl cleaned up, Mike, Nick, and Tom sat out on the deck with the radio.

“I caught a few transmissions last night,” Nick explained. “I think they’re military. They mentioned something about survivors, so I don’t think they’re bad news.” He stressed the word ‘think.’ “They also mentioned an airport, which I think is where they’re set up. I don’t really know this area, Tom, you know any airports near here?” Tom nodded.

“Yeah, there’s a small one about ten miles from here. Mostly civilian recreation aircraft, Cessna’s and such. It’s surrounded by a large gate and concrete walls, there’s a good chance that’s where they are.” The soldier explained.

“And even they ain’t, there will probably be some aircraft left behind. Why drive to Tunica when we can fly there?” Mike mentioned.

“Actually, that’s a great idea.” Nick said. It would save them probably a few days time.

“We would need two pilots, though.” Tom said. “A Cessna is a relatively small aircraft. It’s only made for a few people at once, and that’s exactly what the airport carries, Cessna’s. With all of us and our equipment, there’s no way we could fit it all in one plane.” Damn, Nick hadn’t thought of that.

“Well, we’ll figure that out when the time comes. I think we should pay our friends a little visit today…”