White Ash on Bone: A Zombie Novel (3 page)

Each step sent a jolt of pain through her legs and feet as they approached Jack’s car.  Under normal conditions, Donna's injuries would have slowed her down, but fear and adrenaline drove her on. 

As they reached the car, the bartender came around the corner.  The side of his entire face was chewed off as well as a large section of his right arm.  Bone showed through in many places, and a low moan emanated from him as he lurched forward toward his prey. 

Jack kicked the bartender square in the chest and sent him sprawling backwards. 

Donna managed to open the door just in time for Jack to shove her unceremoniously inside.  Not wasting time to go for the other side, Jack jumped in behind her and climbed over to the driver seat.

His key stabbed at the ignition a couple of times before plunging into the hole. Jack fired the ignition.  Donna saw the bartender get up as Jack dropped the vehicle into drive. 

The bartender managed to get his face right next to Donna's window before Jack pealed tire and launched the vehicle away from the creature.

After six blocks and a few turns, they arrived at Jack’s house.  He owned a three story brick home on a corner lot; it had a fenced-in back yard along a side alley. 

Faced with the turmoil of events, the area was quiet and free of activity.  Jack led her inside and locked the door behind them.  "Here’s the plan,” he said.  “Those things might try and smash through a window.  My house has a few weak spots on the ground floor, but I don’t think they have the coordination to climb up to the second story. I have some wood in the basement, and we can utilize some closet doors from upstairs to cover the windows."

Jack reached into a kitchen cabinet and produced a pistol, "Just in case we have guests." 

After he loaded the weapon and secured it to his hip, he redirected his attention to Donna.  "Listen, I need you to try the phones, TV, anything; but don’t make too much noise, or open the blinds."  He raced down the steps to the basement leaving Donna alone.

She tried the phone first.  The line was dead.  The TV was working, and there was news on a Pittsburgh station; but it only said that some kind of incident was going on in Butler, and news crews were en route.

Jack emerged from the basement carrying boards, "Did you find out anything?"

"No," she said, "just that they have news choppers on the way."

"Check the internet," he said. "I have a computer up on the third floor."

It took less than twenty minutes for Jack to produce five doors from closets and bedrooms on the upper floors.  He quietly placed each in position near a window or door.  It took another half hour for him to bolt the doors over the three windows from the inside and reinforce the doors.

By that time, the television was broadcasting images from a news chopper over Butler.  It showed pictures of complete carnage in the streets.  Mostly the footage showed groups of people surrounding cars or trucks stuck in gridlock. People were slowly pounding their way into the vehicles.  They watched people being pulled out of cars or trucks and torn to pieces.

“This is news chopper 10 reporting over the City of Butler, North of Pittsburgh.  Earlier, there were reports of some type of civil unrest in the downtown area of Butler.  From what we can see, there appears to be some kind of rioting taking place in the streets.  It looks as if traffic has come to a standstill in many areas.  In fact, there appears to be multiple car wrecks throughout the city.  For those of you watching this footage, I have no explanation for what might be causing such turmoil in the- my god did you see that?  They tore his arm off!”

Chapter Two

John Marks sat stunned as he watched the scenes play out on the television.  It was the first hard information he had on what was going on.  It was also the only communication he had from downtown Butler.  As the Emergency Management Coordinator for Butler County, John was supposed to coordinate the emergency services of the County. 

Butler was fortunate to have one of the best Emergency Operations Centers (EOC) in the State. So good in fact, during 9/11, Butler County helped coordinated emergency services for responding to the crashed plane in Shanksville, Pennsylvania.

The EOC was situated on top of a hill about three miles southeast of downtown Butler.  Today, it was a blessing and a curse. It was a blessing for the fact that the EOC was not in the riot and a curse that there was no line of sight to observe what was going on.  With no further communication coming from the scene, there was little to go on. 

John had sent a couple of police officers down the hill to try and establish communication, but the streets were jammed with vehicles.  They last reported that people coming out of downtown were hysterical, claiming people were being eaten.

That was the last he had heard from them.  In fact, nothing was coming out of the County Seat of Butler.  No communication from the County Commissioners’ office, or the City Mayor’s office; it was as if there was no one left.  The phones were pretty much jammed, but Internet and radio were still operational.  John could hear small arms fire sounding from all over Butler valley whenever he stuck his head out the door of the building.

John composed an e-mail to the Pennsylvania Department of Homeland Security and the Governor’s office.

Be advised, Butler City is declaring an emergency and requesting State support ASAP.  Rioting in downtown Butler has overrun County and City government centers.

We cannot currently account for over 200 Police and 60 other emergency responders who were dispatched on scene.  Radio communication is operational but with no response.  A TV helicopter on scene is showing abandoned first responder equipment, rioting, and possible cannibalism.  

John thought a moment and deleted the cannibalism part.

We are currently setting up the Clear Water Mall, Butler County Airport, Butler Hospital, and this EOC as evac stations and assembly points.”

###

Kimberly liked to help people, so it did not surprise her family when she volunteered at the hospital.  With her blond hair, blue eyes, and red uniform, it took no time at all for the 23 year old to become quite a favorite with the guys at the hospital.

Ordinarily, she would be helping distribute meals this time of day. Today was anything but ordinary.  Dozens of people were arriving at the hospital wounded and bloody.  It quickly overwhelmed the ER.

"Kimberly, honey, we need you to assist Rebecca down at the ER registration desk.  You’re going to be her gopher," the floor nurse said. 

"What’s a gopher?" Kimberly asked.

"You know, go for this go for that,” the nurse said.  You’d better get down there."

Butler Hospital had undergone many renovations and building projects in its history. These projects left it a virtual maze of corridors, stairwells, and elevators.  Kimberly made her way through a twist of hallways to the ER.  On the way, she noticed through a window that Life-Flight was taking off.  The helicopter was taking a patient to Pittsburgh for better care. 

I wonder if I’ll see Mike down in the ER, Kimberly thought to herself. 

Dr. Mike Carson was a resident physician at Butler Hospital.  He had taken an interest in Kimberly early on.  In his early thirties, most women considered Dr. Carson good looking.  He was a tall with a strong build.  Kimberly liked the smell of his spiced body wash.

Kimberly found herself completely taken with him, and she loved his attention.  She no longer cared that Dr. Carson was married.  She had met the attractive Mrs. Alison Carson on a number of occasions, and felt the woman's icy stare.  Despite the stare, Mrs. Carson treated Kimberly with a measure of politeness.  Kimberly felt guilty about it, but it didn’t stop her from sessions in the utility closet with Dr. Carson.   

In a few weeks, Kim and Dr. Carson would be traveling together to the Dominican Republic.  He told his wife he would be traveling to a medical conference in San Antonio, Texas.

When Kimberly reported to the main desk of the ER, the room was in chaos.  Countless open wounds had canvassed the ER in a dark red macabre.  Curtains, windows, floors, and ER workers were spattered and sometimes splashed in an unhealthy dose of blood. 

Kimberly was instructed to help with patient histories for the countless walking wounded who were turning up in increasing waves.  The hospital's ER could only handle so much traffic before the halls of the hospital were added to the triage system.  As the halls filled, Kimberly was instructed to help expand emergency capacity to the front parking lot of the hospital.

Many of the patients arrived on foot and were frantic. Their story was universal; they claimed they were attacked by crazy people downtown.  The patients insisted that these lunatics attempted to bite and tear at them, but they had managed to get away.

In the parking lot, a woman approached Kim, carrying what must have been her little girl. "You have to help my baby,” the woman shouted. “They hurt her real bad."  

The mother’s clothing was marred with the blood of the girl.  It was obvious that the child had lost a dangerous amount.  The flesh that was not covered in blood appeared devoid of color.  The child hung like a rag doll in the mother's arms.  It looked devoid of life.

Dr. Carson suddenly appeared from behind Kim and grabbed the child from the mother.  "My god," Carson said. 

He placed the child on a gurney and bent over to check for vitals while applying pressure to the wound.  The child began to emit a slow groan from her frail form.  The child's eyes opened and fixed on Carson.  "It's going to be ok sweetheart," he said. 

"Shh, baby, mommy is here," the mother said through a face-full of tears. “Mommy won't leave you.”

The three of them were crouched over the child. Carson began to become puzzled that he couldn't find a pulse.  The child reached out for Carson's hand, and he realized three of the girl's fingers had been torn off.  A fourth finger hung by a small piece of skin.

Kimberly felt bile begin to rise up from her stomach, and she fled to find the nearest restroom.

Carson grabbed for the girl's wrist, and he applied pressure behind the wound.  The child’s face lunged at Carson's arm.  It sunk teeth deep into his flesh.  The mother desperately grabbed for her injured child, and Carson screamed out in pain. 

"I need help,” shouted Carson, “someone hold her please."

"What are you doing?” the mother gasped.  “You’re hurting her."  The mother tried to intervene and separate her daughter from Carson, but the child turned on her.  The child's teeth found the softness of her mother's neck.  Blood sprayed from the internal pressure of the mother's heart.

Carson's eyes darted desperately around the parking lot.  He sought some source from which to call for help, but his eyes only took in a scene of utter anarchy.  A melee of several fights had started. People were thrashing and tearing at each other.  Some people attempted to stop the fights.  Others ran from the violence. Shouting and screams filled the air.

Kimberly didn’t make it inside the hospital before she bent over to vomit.  It weakened her knees, and she felt dizzy on her feet.  She collapsed and just managed to sit upright on the sidewalk curb. 

Glass shattered behind her, and she turned to see three women push a man through the window to the ground.  They fell on him with violence.  The man was individually stronger than any of the women, but they outnumbered him and were relentless as they tore at his body.  He punched and kicked at them, but they ignored his blows.  She saw the man’s intestines appear in one of the women’s hands.  The man screamed as the woman pulled foot after foot of intestines from his abdomen.  Kimberly picked herself up off the ground and ran into the building to find help.

Inside the hospital, lifesaving efforts had turned into desperate bids for survival by the staff.  Kimberly was forced into a stairwell after being chased by one of the undead.  In the stairwell, she found that two of the undead were a floor below her.  They scurried up the steps to get at her.

“Please don’t hurt me,” Kimberly pleaded as she ran up the steps.  They came on anyway.  She screamed for help, but her breath became heavy from the effort to climb flight after flight.  She could hear their footsteps pounding up behind her. 

Kimberly gained some distance on her pursuers and threw open the door to the next level she came across.  In the hallway of the floor, people thrashed and kicked at one another.  A hand reached out from the other side of the door and brushed against her sleeve barely missing.  Kimberly pulled the door closed as fast as she could.  She could hear someone scratching on the door while footsteps closed in behind her.  She continued up the steps pausing at each level only to find the same struggle playing out on each floor. 

Kimberly’s energy depleted with every step.  In a desperate bid, she ran out of the stairwell into the 10
^th
floor main hallway.  The undead were there and were summoned to the sound of the door closing behind her. 

She threw herself into a nearby utility closet and locked it behind her.  It was dark in the closet; the only illumination was coming in from the the hallway outside.  Shadows danced in the light underneath the door as forms closed in.  She fumbled along the walls looking for a light switch.  On the door to the closet, the undead beat away.

###

Donna sat on a couch in Jack’s house.  The two of them had taken refuge on the third floor.  What had once been an attic, had been fully finished and converted into an office with a living room.