Evacuation (13 page)

“Wipe that stupid smile off your face, McKinney. We’re not safe yet.” Spade spat a wad of shit out of his mouth, wiped his sleeve across his face and took off running along the side of the fence.

Just like that, my little victory was shat on.

The zombies had all made it to the gate. How fucking good for them. They stuck fingers through the links, and noses and tongues.

“Let’s go,” Palmeri said.

I pulled my knife from the sheath.

“Chase,” Dave said.

I jabbed the blade into an eye socket. Black goo oozed. Once I removed the knife, the thing fell to the ground. The others stepped on it. Two creatures looked up, as if they realized they’d just gotten a little closer to the top of the fence.

I killed another by stabbing a blade into its mouth, through the roof, and punching it up to the brain. Then, I used two hands to pull my knife free. This one dropped on top of the other zombie I’d just killed.

The zombies that had looked up before stepped onto this corpse as well.
And again, looked up.

“Holy shit,” I said.

“Chase, we’ve got to go. I can’t even see Spade anymore.”

“Did you see that?” I said.

Palmeri had my arm. “Yeah. You’re a real fucking bad ass.”

She pulled me along, as we jogged to catch up with Spade.

I think my mouth hung open the whole time with my eyes wide.

There was something else about them, something I couldn’t quite remember. Something I should remember. Right now, I was just too mystified by what I’d seen. All I could think, all that just kept running through my mind was,
What the fuck just happened?

Chapter Twenty-One

0628 hours

The sun wouldn’t be up for at least another hour.
Maybe a little less. It was November, after all. The fire burned, but we were farther from it than before. As we ran along the side of fence perimeter, I saw flames. They didn’t rage and fight away the darkness anymore. In fact, they seemed to make everything around it that much blacker. It was as if the fire sucked out the light and left the area in shadows.

We came to the part of the fence where we needed to turn toward the river to go back to the boat. Part of me did not expect to make it back here and that had been a terrible realization I’d faced, buried and attempted to ignore the whole time we’d been at the compound. Felt as if I should drop to my knees and kiss the ground, thankful to be alive, safe and back.

Spade held a finger up to his lips, as if we didn’t know by now to keep quiet. He might be an excellent shot, something of a leader, but right now, I was really hating his guts. I did my best not to return an eye roll. I kept my rifle in both hands, my knife back in its home. Staying bent forward, we crossed open area; the worst sound was that of shoes pulling free of the thick mud as we slogged our way through.

Spade stopped and stood up straight, with his arms at his side.

My stomach dropped and the muscles tightened. Something was wrong. He wouldn’t be stopped like that. He just wouldn’t.

“Boat’s fucking gone.” He shook his head, raised his arms, and then punched them back down to his sides. “The boat is fucking gone. And so is Spencer.
Where the fuck is Spencer.”

Spencer had one job, which was to shoot the Captain if he tried to leave with the boat.

I was already doubled over. Vomiting made sense. I held it down, spitting out a mouthful of bile. “Dave?”

Dave was standing by Spade now, looking back at me. “Yeah, it’s gone. Mess of bodies on the ground I think.
Too dark. I can’t tell for sure.”

Bodies?

Palmeri and I made it to them and the four of us stood there. We could hear the river, catching glimpses of the current when moonlight hit it right. Dave was correct; the grass around the empty slip was littered with something. Only thing that made sense was bodies.

I started running, but Spade grabbed my arm.

I shrugged it off. “What do you think you’re doing?”

“We don’t know what’s over there,” he said. “Look, I know you’re upset. This is bad. Okay, bad. But we can’t stop being smart because of our emotions. We need to--”

Fuck him. I ran toward the slip.

First lump I encountered was a zombie, as well as the second. I looked back. Palmeri and Dave scoped out the area as well, kicking over dead things for better views.

The corpses stunk. Sifting through a garbage dump in mid-July might have smelled better. Each new one I came across, I stopped before looking at faces, because I didn’t want to find…

“Dad?
Dad!”

It wasn’t a yell, but more of a loud whisper. It came from my left. “Charlene?”

Something ran at me from the darkness.

I knew it was my daughter. I knew it, but I still stood, rifle in hand, ready to swing.

“Daddy!” Charlene said, dropped to her knees.

I let go of the rifle and fell in front of her. She wrapped her arms around me, burying her face into my chest. “Honey, what is it? What’s wrong?”

“Cash,” she said. “Cash, Daddy.”

“Char, tell me what’s going on? What happened?” I pulled her head away from me. Dim moonlight allowed me enough glow to see her eyes that were red and puffy. She’d been crying since long before now.

“He’s been shot. He got shot. It’s my fault.”

Her fault?

“Where is he?” I said. “Where’s your brother?”

She pointed back the way she’d come. “Over there. Allison has him. She’s with him.”

It’s my fault, ran through my head. I wanted answers. There were too many questions. No time to ask anything. Charlene and I were up, and running. I heard the others behind us, our feet pounding cold, muddy earth.

“Over here,” Allison said.

We’d entered a small forest. Charlene led us through pines and leafless maples. To the west, a purple and orange hue spread like a wavy line on the river, across the horizon. Morning was upon us. A new day, and off to a bad fucking start.

I stopped short. Cash lay on the ground with his shirt torn open. Allison sat by his head. Erway kneeled beside him. She used a cloth to apply pressure to the wound. A bullet wound.

It’s my fault, Charlene had said. If she shot her brother, it wasn’t her fault. It was mine. I let her have a gun. Fourteen and I armed my baby with a gun.

“It’s okay.” Dave rested a hand on my back. “Don’t hold it back, man. Don’t hold it in.”

I didn’t realize I was crying. My knees gave out, but Dave caught me and lowered me to the ground. Cash looked more than vulnerable. He looked peaceful. His skin was wet with sweat, pale, and blue from the cold. “Allison,” I said.

“We need to get the bullet out. There’s not enough light to do it here,” Erway said. “I don’t have what we need. A more sterile place would be better.”

I didn’t even bother looking around. We were in the woods, at the foot of the mountains, surrounded by the river and a camp filled with walking dead zombies. Where the fuck were we going to go that was more sterile. “You can’t do it here?” I said.

“I can. Just wouldn’t be the best place. As it is, there’s going to be a good chance he’ll get an infection without antibiotics,” she said. I hated her matter-of-fact tone, but was just was telling it like it was and not holding back. I respected it, but just hated her tone.

“Daddy,” Charlene said. “We have to save him. It’s all my fault! Mine!”

“It’s not her fault,” Allison said.

“Where the fuck’s our boat?” Spade said.

“Not now,” Palmeri said.

“What do you mean, not now? We could help the kid on the boat,” he said. “Where’s our boat?”

“They’re gone.
Most of them dead. They were going to leave without all of you,” Erway said. She looked at me. “Your daughter tried to stop them.”

It’s why she thought it was her fault. I could see it in Erway’s eyes.

“The crewmen managed to get the boat out of the slip, ans headed further up the St. Lawrence,” Sues said.

“Okay, okay,” I said. I had nothing else.
Nothing.

“He been bitten, or is that a gunshot?”

We spun around. Spade was fast, Palmeri, too. They had guns aimed at two strangers, who in turn had rifles aimed at us.

The men wore long beards and flannel under
Carhartt
camouflage coats with matching pants. They were dressed for the elements as well as for hunting. I’d put money on it that these were locals.

“Shot,” I said. “He’s been shot. Not bitten.”

They eyed us for a long moment. “Lower your weapons.”

“You first,” Spade said.

The men didn’t move. “We don’t have to. We know your guns are all empty. All of you used every bit of ammo fighting them zombies inside the fenced area back there. Ain’t got a single bullet left between the lot of ya.”

Seemed no point to arguing.
They’d been somewhere safe watching us. Had seen us up against the enemy. Why they hadn’t helped…would I have helped? I’d like to think I would have. Good chance I wouldn’t have, though. Damned good chance.

“Put them down, guys,” I said.

“Not until they do,” Spade said.

I hated to do it, take sides. “Guy’s right. We don’t have ammunition. You’re in a standoff with an empty weapon. How do you plan to win that? Put the guns down.”

Palmeri did as I asked, first, but Spade held out a few seconds longer. “Spade,” I said. I wanted him to understand that I wasn’t fucking around. My son was bleeding out over here.

Spade finally lowered his rifle.

As one, the two men lowered theirs. “We’ve got a camp. Not exactly close, but it’s better than trying to dig out a bullet here. Let’s get him transported,” the one guy said.

“We don’t know who either of you are,” Spade said.

“That’s enough,” I said. I wasn’t going to yell. Last thing we needed was to get all loud and rowdy, and end up attracting more zombies. We’d be fucked if that happened. 

“Not going to be easy to move him,” Erway said. “Bullet’s in his side. If there isn’t internal bleeding, moving him could cause it.”
“And doing surgery out here won’t make him any better. You’re his father, so it’s your kid. Your call,” the man said.

I looked at Erway. “He has a point.”

I nodded. “I’ll carry him.”

No one argued. I walked on my knees closer to my son. I scooped him up the way I had a million times when he was an infant. Dave helped me up onto my feet. “I’ve got it now, thanks.”

“My brother will lead. You guys follow him. I’ll take the rear,” the man said. “We’ve got to move fast. There are herds scattered all around. Lot of them fast-running kinds, too. You know the ones I mean?”

We all did. “Lead the way,” I said.

Cash’s head, arms and legs dangled limp; dead weight in my arms. I’d spent the better part of yesterday with him on my back, arms around my neck. At nine, he wasn’t that light but light enough, I guess, and I was thankful. Carrying him this way, though, tugged at my emotions. I bit my lip hard to keep it all in check. I needed strength and the only way I’d get it was by not paying attention to what I was actually doing.

“He
breathing?” Allison said.

“I don’t know,” I said, running faster.

“I don’t think he’s breathing,” she said.

“Erway,” I said. I stopped, set him down and put my ear to his lips. “I can’t tell. I don’t know.”

Erway dropped down beside me and pushed me out of the way. She lowered her head to his face. She seemed to watch for his chest to rise and fall while listening for breathing. “He’s breathing. Shallow breaths, but breathing.”

The man from the rear came up on us. “Why’d we stop?”

“How far is this camp?” Erway said. “Because I’m not sure we can wait.”

“Right up that hill,” the man said. He handed his rifle over to me, squatted down and lifted my son into his arms. “We’ll get him there. Come on!”

We all followed. I was now the one with the gun with ammo. I was last. Ahead of me was Charlene and Allison, they stayed right by the man with my son. Erway was behind them. Dave, Sues and Crystal were ahead of everyone, must have been right behind the other guy on point.

Didn’t want to jinx anything, but we’d not seen a zombie in a while. That was another thing that I suddenly found myself feeling thankful about.

Chapter Twenty-Two

0718 hours

The log cabin sat on top of the hill we’d just climbed. The horizontally laid logs interlocked at the corners, while the logs making up the purlin roof were notched into the gable-wall logs. Tall pines and a variety of trees were set back, but surrounded the patch of property.

“Get him inside,” the one brother said to the man carrying my son.

Everyone shuffled in.

“Pull the blanket off my bed, Jeremy. And someone, shut and lock that door,” the man said. He followed his brother to a room. Jeremy stripped the bedding as the other man laid my son down onto the mattress.

Erway set her bag down beside the bed. “Do you have a bowl I can use to sterilize my equipment? A jug of water and some clean towels, or sheets.”

“I’ll grab it, Jason. You stay here,” Jeremy said. “You stay.”

Jason gave me a pat on the back as he squeezed by me and out of the room. Allison, Charlene and I moved closer to the bed.

“I don’t need all three of you in here,” Erway said. “Chase, you stay. I am going to need your help.”

“I’m not going anywhere,” Charlene said. She had her arms around Allison’s waist. They both actually held each other.

“Take her out of here, Alley,” I said.

“I’m staying, Dad! I’m not—”

“Get her out of here!”

Allison didn’t have to try too hard to remove my daughter from the room. Charlene was spent, emotionally, and physically.

Jeremy returned with a couple of porcelain bowls. “I brought rubbing alcohol, too.”

Jason took the supplies. “What should I do?”

Erway used scissors to cut away Cash’s clothing. “Pour the alcohol into the bowls. Set them on the nightstand by me. Chase, get on the other side of the bed. I’m going to need you to hold his arm and legs down. He’s passed out right now, but without any anesthetics, if he wakes up, any movement is going to be dangerous. We understand each other?”

I nodded. She took one of the towels and pressed it over the small hole in my son’s stomach, and mopped up far too much blood.

“You two, I’m going to need you to hold down his arm and leg on this side, without getting in my way. You, take the arm. And you, you have his leg,” she said.

Like me, they nodded.

“You’ve done this before,” I said. “Removed a bullet?”

She smiled. “I’m a paramedic.”

That was hardly an answer. Maybe I didn’t want an answer as bad as I thought I needed one.

Erway placed silver tools into the bowls of alcohol. “I need to wash my hands,” she said.

“That way, right around the corner,” Jason said.

“You hold this cloth tight on the wound,” Erway said, placing my hand onto the towel. “Don’t lift it to look at it. Got it? Hold it. Firmly.”

“Seems like the doc has it together,” Jason said. “That’s a good thing.”

Small talk wasn’t going to cut it. My mind ached. I looked over my son’ body. The towel seemed to do little more than keep blood from staining Jason’s bed.

Erway returned, removed plastic gloves from her bag and snapped them on over her hands. “I could use more light.”

It was the first time I noticed wood shutters on the inside of the cabin locked in place over the two windows in the room. “Can we open one of them?” Jeremy said. “Sun’s up. Be the best light.”

Jason nodded. They each went to a window. “My brother built this place so sunlight would hit the cabin whenever there was sunlight to be had.”

I ignored him, as we all did. “Now what?” I said.

“Get ready to hold him. Chase, remove the towel,” she said, so I did.

She poured some water from the jug over the wound. The hole didn’t look so bad with all the blood gone. I almost smiled.

From the bowl of alcohol, she removed what looked like scissors. “What’s that?” Jason said.

“Hemostat,” she said. “Now shh!”

Outside the room, I heard Allison and Charlene sobbing.

“Good chance he’s going to stir, wake up,” she said.

“It’s going to hurt?” I said.

“Immensely.” She chose  something that was long and slender. It looked like a pick a dentist used to scrape at plaque build-up, but was thicker all around. She stuck it into the gaping hole.

Cash didn’t just stir. He woke the fuck up. His eyes went wide, darting left and right and then stopped on me. His mouth was in a giant “O.” He looked like he wanted to scream, but the sound was trapped inside his lungs.

“I’m searching for the bullet. I’m flicking the probe,” she said. “I’ll hear a click when I’ve found it.”

Cash found his voice. He screamed. His body shook.

I held his arm down with both hands, but just barely. Jason had both of his legs and he was practically laying out over them, his chest weighing them down. Jeremy had the other arm, and sat with his back to the bed, holding on as best he could.

“Hang in there, buddy. We’re almost done,” I said. “You’re doing great.
Great. She’s almost done.”

“Think I found it,” Erway said.

Blood spilled from the round hole. I didn’t want to think about the possibility of internal injuries from the bullet.

Erway moved the probe around, as if she was trying to hook the bullet and hoist it out. When she stopped, she used the other hand with the hemostat, and opened the tongs slightly. She dipped them into the wound with the probe and Cash thrashed.

“You have to hold him still,” she said.

“We’re trying,” Jason said.

“Try harder,” she said.

“Cash?
Cash, buddy, we’re almost done. It’s almost over,” I said. There was little more I could say. He wasn’t talking or responding. He was just screaming.

Then he stopped screaming. His body stopped writhing. “Erway,” I said.

“He passed out.”

“He what?”
I said.

“The pain.
He passed out,” she said. That tone again. “I want to get the bullet now, while he’s out. Should be a little easier.”

Easier.
I almost laughed.

Then she flicked a little more with the probe, as if guiding the bullet up toward the tongs of the hemostat. She clipped and cursed, then clipped again. “Shit,” she said. “Jeremy, pour some more water over the entry point, there.”

Jeremy looked reluctant to let go of Cash’s arm. He tentatively let go with one hand and stared for a moment – like he was afraid that my son’s arm would snap out and latch onto his throat.

“Jeremy, water!”

He picked up the jug and poured out water. “That enough?”

“More,” she said.

The blood thinned when mixed with water and rolled off his skin. “Okay, that’s good.”

I didn’t think I’d be able to watch anymore. With Cash out of it, it was a little easier.

Erway’s mouth opened. She looked at me. “Got it.”

With a steady hand, she slowly withdrew the hemostat, which had a flattened slug in its grip. “That all of it?” I said.

“Not sure yet.” She dropped it into a glass on the nightstand. “Looks like a .22. I was able to pull it straight out. That’s good.”

The bedroom door opened and Dave popped his head in. “Chase, we got zombies in the yard.
A lot of zombies.”