Dead and Forsaken (12 page)

“
Noooooooo!”

She
fell down on her knees began to pray. She knew it was all over. Soon
it was hard for her to breath as the bodies piled up on top of her.
They bit her hundreds of times.

“
CRUNCH!
CRUNCH! CRUNCH!”

Once
they smelled the blood and got a taste of her flesh there was no
stopping the feeding frenzy. This caused extensive bleeding and
organ failure causing her to succumb to her injuries. Severe blood
loss from the wounds caused her to pass out. At least now she didn’t
have to watch herself be devoured. Her chest rose and fell as her
blood squirted and gushed from her body. A female sitter finished
her off by digging into her throat with her teeth slashing it open.
The forsaken ferociously attacked and mutilated her body. They
ripped out her guts and chewed them to pieces. The girl’s
blood soaked into the thick carpet ending her young life before it
really began. No one was there to listen to the girl’s final
feeble screams but it wouldn't have mattered anyway.
Tonight
neither the guilty nor innocent were safe.

******

The people the young
secretary saw didn't even make it another block themselves.

“
I' m sorry!” cried the
hurt man. “I'm slowing you guys down!”

“
It's OK man! Save your
energy!” replied his friend.

“
Just promise me you'll do me
when the time comes!” he begged in pain.

“
No!” he responded.
“Don't talk like that all of us are going to make it!”

“
Hurry up! Move it!”
yelled the woman. “We can't waste any time!”

To make things worse the forsaken
following them were gaining ground. When they tried to escape the
path to their car was blocked by a crowd of creatures gathered in
the street.

“
GRRRRR!”

They
started moving faster in the other direction after hearing gun shots
in the distance followed by an occasional scream. A filthy man in
ripped up clothing emerged from the shadows and collapsed on top of
the man carrying his friend. The attack sent him flailing backwards
with his friend pinned in between him and the monster. The wounded
man screamed as soon as a mouth full of teeth clamped down onto his
back.

“
GNAWWW!”

He
was bitten multiple times but could only clench up his muscles and
cry out in pain. Blood poured from the bite and coated his friend
face. The monster came up with blood dripping down its mouth and
chin. It snarled at the man before biting down on his friend again.
Trapped underneath he witnessed the creature tug until a hunk of
skin peeled off his neck. The helpless man on top peered into his
friend’s eyes and begged for help with his last breath.

“
Don't let them take m..”
he whispered.

More
of the forsaken appeared from the surrounding structures.

“
GROWWWL!
GROWWWL!”

Soon
a pack of stragglers boxed all of them in. Soot, dirt and dried
blood discolored their garments. The man at the bottom was quickly
overpowered. Even in his last dying moments he was more concerned
about the woman.

“
Get out of here!” he
ordered. “Go! Aaaaahhhh!”

His
ribcage was ripped open exposing his organs. They tore into his
chest cavity spilling his intestines and its contents onto the
ground disemboweling him. Fresh bile and undigested stomach fluids
mixed with his gushing blood as they fed. The sound of slurping and
crunching could now be heard. This was not how things were supposed
to end. The poor woman was so full of grief at the death of her true
love that she hesitated for a second.

“
No! No! No!” she
screamed. “We were supposed to be together.”

It
was too late to help him so the traumatized woman put him out his
misery. She shoved the pump action shotgun she carried into his
face.

“
BLAM!”

A
single shot made his skull erupt and sent a light shower of blood,
bones and brain into the air. She pulled more shells from her Dooney
and Bourke purse then took one last look to make sure the coast was
clear. While the creatures were still busy eating she continued on
all alone now. The spent cartridge spun on the ground before coming
to a stop.

All of us could still
hear the sounds of death and fighting outside the ER's locked doors.
Even with everything locked down the survivors were nervous and
scared. Soon they heard human voices echoing down the halls inside
the building. The desperate calls for help came from just beyond the
back door. The first voice came from a man who sounded like he was
in pain. Then a woman let out a louder bloodcurdling scream.

“
Get away from the door! It
is going to break!” said a nurse.

“
We can’t let them get
in here.” a doctor begged.

“
They’re breaking
through anyway!” a lab worker yelled.

“
Find something to brace it!”
cried the panicked nurse.

“
Everything is either too
light or too heavy to move!” explained the worker.

“
Help me hold them back!
Don't leave me!” the nurse begged.

“
It is too late run!”
screamed the doctor.

I
was talking to pastor Harrell when we heard the yelling too. I knew
I had to find out what was going on but I had to take care of
another issue first. When you are at war the enemy of your enemy can
become your friend. Now was not the time to debate right or wrong.
People were dying. I was going to let Sandoval out of his holding
cell and give him an offer he couldn’t refuse. It was
understandable that I was weary about him trying to get revenge for
earlier but so far he didn't seem anxious or angry.

“
Come on out of there and
turn around.” I told him.

“
It's about time you let my
ass out of here.” He shot back. “Shut up and let me get
these cuffs and leg irons off.”

“
So am I free man now
officer
?”

“
Yes but I have a favor
to ask you.”

“
Why do you need my brown
ass?”

“
You're the only one that
I can trust to take care of something if it happens.” I
stated. “What do you mean?”

“
I'm going outside and I need
someone to take care of these people while I'm gone. I saw you in
action and you did not run or hesitate when it was time fight!”
I revealed.

“
And how do you expect me to
protect them?” he asked.

I
patted him on his back and gave him the deputy’s loaded 45mm.

“
Here!” I told him.
“You are going to need this!”
He was surprised that I trusted him with a
loaded gun. I was cautious as he handled the weapon and ready to
draw my own if necessary.

“
How do you know I won't take
this gun and use it to save my own ass?” he asked. “I
know that you're smart enough to see that some crazy shit is going
on around here.”

“
True that but if I do this
then I'm out for good.” “I can live with that.” I
declared.

“
That's what up.” he
responded.

As
I turned to walk away he sucker punched me in the jaw. I pulled my
gun and pointed it at him as he did the same.

“
I guess I deserved that!”
I said.

“
You damn right!” he
responded with a smile.

“
So are we even now?” I
asked. “Because I really ain’t got time for this shit!”

“
Yeah man!” he
answered. "We’re even! As long as long as you quit acting
like cop!”

“
Look we both know that shit
happens in the heat of a fight and that stuff earlier was just
business!” I answered. “I need you to get past it so we
can get out of here alive! You feel me?”

I
lowered my gun and put it back into the holster and walked up to
him. He dropped his gun to his side but didn't put it away. We stood
there for a second mean mugging each other until we both cracked a
smile. “What the fuck we waiting for then?” he asked. We
bumped fists with each other and walked down the hall. Joe the tech
and the pastor helped us move all the debris blocking the outer
doors. Dr. Okonkwo was not excited about Sandoval being armed. He
was the same doctor that examined him when he first came in and
still saw him as a prisoner. He knew that men could have one face in
public and another in private. He had no sympathy for Carlos
situation. Many of the others felt the same way.

“
I think its worth
remembering that this guy is a fucking criminal!” said Dr.
Green.

“
I don’t like this
man having a gun!” added Dr. Okonkwo with a thick Nigerian
accent. “What if he tries something? I left my homeland to
avoid being taken advantage of by criminals.”

“
Regardless of what you think
I am not a criminal!” responded Sandoval with a serious look
on his face. “Sometimes things aren’t what you think!”

“
You cannot manipulate or
intermediate me!” said Dr. Okonkwo. “I know what type of
man you are and you will never change!”

“
I know this unusual but
trust me he is the right man for this job.” I explained. “All
of you got into healthcare to save lives not take them. Guys like
Sandoval and me are different. We are survivors! That is why he has
the gun!”
They didn't see what I saw in him but
every man needs a chance for redemption.

“
I still don’t like
it!” Dr. Okonkwo declared. “I guess I will have to trust
your judgment!”

“
That’s great! We pay
you to protect us and you give a Goddam gun to a convict! Great!
That’s just great! For your next trick why don’t you
give a bottle of barbecue or hot sauce to the dead bastards trying
to kill us!” Dr. Green said sarcastically.

He
was an OR surgeon that Dr. Black called to the ER to do a surgical
consult on a stabbing victim. He and the rest of the surgeons loved
to be in charge. They spent their time talking about themselves and
debating which one of them was more like God.

“
Sir I know that this is
unusual request.” I told him. “You can trust me to do my
job or you can shut the fuck up and get out the way!”
He got mad and walked
away. Dr. Black told me to be careful and the pastor said a prayer.
The door connected the ER and the main hospital. I pressed my ear to
the door and listened. Maria came up to me and touched my shoulder.

“
Don't go out that door!”
she begged. “We don't know what's out there.”

“
Those people are still
alive!” I told her. “They need my help.”

“
That's true but we need you
here too.” She pleaded.

“
If I don't try to save them
those people will die.” I told her.

“
If those things get you then
you will die!” stressed Maria.

We
stood there looking at each other and then I caressed her face.
There was so much I wanted to say and no time to say it. I just
looked at her and spoke from my heart.

“
I promise I'll be back.”

“
You better!” she said
punching me softly in the shoulder.

I
moved toward the door and Sandoval cracked it open. I looked back
at the crowd of faces and took a deep breath before I stepped out.
Sandoval was the last person I saw.

“
You got this right?” I
asked him.

“
No doubt homey.” he
said with a nod. “I will see you when you get back!”

I
slowly entered the hall. The only sign of life was a flipped over
wheelchair and a single IV pole. The screaming began to get louder
as I moved further away from the ER door. I moved slowly down the
hall trying not to make any noise. I turned down a corridor and
headed toward the Clinical lab. This sterile facility housed the
specimen lab, pathology lab, and blood bank. The outer door to the
lab was smashed open. I scanned around for any beasts and then went
inside. The interior was a mess. Patient charts and other medical
documents were left unattended. Vials of blood and Petri dishes of
fluids were broken and shattered on the ground. The lights flickered
off and on as I crept through the darkness and disappeared into the
back room. I could see electron microscopes and other analysis
equipment turned over on the counters. Bone marrow, tissue cultures
and urine samples were still underneath the bank of negative
pressure hoods. Multicolored vials filled with patient specimens
were everywhere. Their glass shards cracked and crunched under my
feet with every step. I heard some tapping from another room off to
the right. My heart began to beat faster as I crept around.

In the darkness I just barely made
out of the outline of something moving. I could not see what was
happening but I heard the sounds of someone slurping and chewing on
the other side of the counter. I got closer and could see someone
leaning over the body of a lab worker. I could make out the long
white lab coat they were wearing. I could not tell if it was a man
or woman because they were still wearing protective goggles and a
mask. The traumatic injury to their neck would have caused them to
loose almost a gallon of blood in a few moments. The blood had
splashed all over the computer and centrifuge on the counter in
front of them. The other figure was the new dishwasher from the
cafeteria. She moaned as she looked up slowly from her lab worker
meal.

“
GRRRRRRR!”

Blood and raw flesh stuck in her
teeth. She reached for me but I evaded her grasp. I needed to be as
quiet as possible so I put my gun away and pulled out my baton. I
swung down with all my might and landed four powerful blows. The
baton cracked the crazy bitch’s skull in and ruptured her
brain cavity. Blood spilled from the wound and covered my boots.
That’s when I heard another banging noise and muffle screams.

“
BANG!
BANG! BANG!”

The
noise was coming from across the hall. I stepped over the body of
another dead lab worker as I got closer. His clothes were torn and
some of the flesh was missing from his back. The top layer of skin
was gone. Several muscles and bones were exposed. Once I was inside
the room I saw the cafeteria cook standing with his back to me. He
was beating on the door to a storage closet.

“
BOOM!
BOOM! BOOM!”

His movements were robotic and
steady. It was easy for me to remember him. One day I went to wash
my hands before eating in the cafeteria. I walked in the bathroom
and saw the cook using hand soap to wash his underarms in the sink.
Then he dried them off with toilet paper.

He
looked at me surprised and then left without washing off his hands.
Even I found it disturbing. After seeing that I never ate any food
from there again.

“
GROOOWWWL!”

His
left arm was all chewed up and blood saturated his white uniform. He
reacted to the sound of my footsteps but I struck him on the back of
his head twice before he could turn around. The blows brought him to
his knees. Blood spewed from the wound and spattered against the
closet door.

“
Take that you funky son of a
bitch!” I told him.

I
raised the baton again and targeted his temple with three more
blows. Once he stopped moving I pulled his body away from the door
and cautiously turned the handle. I found four scared and frightened
people inside the small utility closet. One of them was the lab
manager and pathology specialist Dr. Khan. They had all panicked and
tried to hide when the monsters broke in.

“
I'm here to take you back to
the ER!” I explained.

“
I don't think I can do
that.” said a tech.

“
Yes you can.” I told
her. “You made it his far didn't you?”

“
I'm just a lab worker not a
soldier.” she cried. “They killed all those other
people!”

“
It doesn't matter what you
did before!” I explained. “Now your job is to stay
alive. I know you’re still trying to digest what's happening
but we don't have time to mourn the dead!”

“
We're all going to die
anyway!” she screamed. “Just leave me here!”

“
Save those tears for later.”
I told her. “I'm getting us out of here.”

We
walked slowly past the dead bodies in the front room and stopped at
the door with our backs up against the wall.

“
Listen up everybody!”
I explained. “I will take the lead. Make sure you stay in a
single file line. Stay close together and watch each other’s
back. If I say run you better fucking run!”

I
scanned the hall for activity and then we moved out. We all stopped
at each doorway and corner before continuing on. At the end of the
corridor we could see a gruesome scene. Five or six beasts had
surrounded a housekeeper's body. She probably tried to run but was
overpowered. They hovered over her corpse feasting. She died from a
large bite wound to the neck but was bitten on the face, chest, and
thighs too. The pack continued to tear off pieces of flesh until
their mouths were full and their faces were bloodied. Bits and
pieces of the rest of her body were everywhere. All of them were
growling while eating her organs and fatty tissue.

“
That’s a fucked up way
to end up!” a man said shaking his head.

“
You can say that again!”
said Dr. Khan in agreement. “Those creatures were just like us
once. They had families went to school and had jobs.”