Zombified (Book 2): Shady Oaks (21 page)

“
What would that be?”

“
I want to be there when he wakes up.”

Jake gave Charlie a quick glance and he shrugged with a slight shake of his head.

“
That's a decision that has to be discussed with the others first,” Charlie said to Jake, pointedly ignoring Malcolm.

“
Once he's given the vaccine, it will be awhile before we even attempt to wake him and then it will be a very slow process,” Jake added as he glanced back at Malcolm. “He's been down for a long time and we have to be very careful.”

Malcolm glared at the young doctor. “If anything happens to my son...”

Jake stood up, frowning. “Your threats mean nothing to me. Not everyone is a heartless bastard like you.” As Jake turned on his heel and strode out, Charlie walked closer to Malcolm.

“
You're the worst kind of stupid, aren't you?” he spat out in disgust. “Jake will take care of Connor like he was his own son and he will even ask that you be present when he wakes up, which is way more than you deserve.”

He turned without waiting for a reply and after returning the rifle to Jose, hurried to catch up with Jake, who was still silently fuming. Charlie placed a hand on his shoulder as they walked. “Don't let him get to you, try to stay focused on what you're doing, which is saving a lot of lives.”

Jake glanced at him before nodding. “I can't help wondering how men like that are able to not only survive, but thrive without someone taking them out. Malcolm seems to have the ability to take normally decent, good people and turn them into versions of himself.”

“
Makes me wonder what kind of person Connor is,” Charlie commented.

Jake slowed his pace. “Well, the truth is, we may never find that out. Malcolm knows as well as I do that there's a good chance Connor may never wake up.”

“
If he doesn't wake up, we'd better make sure we keep Malcolm under a tight reign, no telling what he'd do,” Charlie muttered. He didn't like the idea of a raging Malcolm getting loose to exact his type of sadistic and brutal revenge.

As they neared the entrance to the tent, Jake stopped. “I'm going to go administer the vaccine to Connor. I'll keep you posted on his condition.”

Charlie nodded and as he followed Jake inside, he prayed that all would go well. His thoughts drifted to Mick and the others, and he said another prayer for them, too. They could use all the help they could get.

****

He stood on a ridge that overlooked what could be called a small village. Haverton was fortunate, they acted quickly and were able to keep the infection at bay. The perimeter was heavily patrolled and all entry points protected by at least two guards.

None of this mattered to him or his horde. He was only waiting for his stragglers and for the sun to set behind the mountain, then they would proceed down the ridge and take what they wanted.

Several towns and small farms lined the base of Fletcher Mountain, they would prove fairly easy to invade and overcome.

Each conquest would make them stronger and at the same time provide more followers. They were already a formidable army of the undead and they were about to get even stronger. He gave the mental signal to move forward and as one, they silently took their first step off the ridge.

Chapter 27

“
So what are we supposed to do?” Mick asked as he trudged along at Dexter's side.

“
Since we don't have the same level of training as the others, we lag back and catch any strays that get by.”

Dexter's group was waiting quietly and as they approached, Dexter began shouting orders again. He pointed across the street at the apartment building where most of the zombies were currently swarming.

Mick could see several dark figures of men on the roof. They were running back and forth, yelling and whooping to keep the zombies' attention on them so the men on the ground could sneak up from behind.

They were picking the zombies off with carefully placed shots, but stopped with all the men below them. The possibility of accidentally shooting one of their own was too great a chance to take.

In the waning fog, Mick made out the line of uniformed men slowly moving forward. He squinted, hoping to see Sean or Scott, but it was too dark. He didn't know where Nelson and his men were, but he assumed they were probably coming in from either side. He knew the idea was to box the zombies in, pushing them toward the apartment building where there would be no escape.

“
We stay twenty paces back,” Dexter told the men and women standing before him. “If any of those things get by the men in front of us, it's our job to take them out. Don't shoot unless you have a clear target, we don't need any deadly mistakes. Most of you have other weapons like axes or machetes; try to use them if you can.”

For emphasis, Dexter pulled out a large knife and flashed it above his head. “I used this bad boy on a zombie and took him right out.”

Mick shuddered, he though he heard Dexter proudly tell the story many times. “If you can, take the head clean off, at the very least try to stick 'em in the eye to get at the brain.”

A loud whistle got their attention. “All right ladies and gents, that's our signal to look sharp. Here we go.”

Mick glanced down at the knife holstered on his hip as he swung the rifle he was handed earlier off his shoulder. He wasn't certain he could drive a blade into a person's eye, even if they were technically dead.

As the line of soldiers began to advance with Dexter's group following, the zombies soon came into view, and the ensuing barrage of gunfire was frightening as well as deafening.

Breaking into a cold sweat, he tightened his hold on the rifle as he raised it into position and moved slowly forward.

The idea was to literally mow down the zombies with massive firepower. That plan almost immediately went out the window. The whole mass turned as one and surged forward when the soldiers opened fire. As zombies fell, the ones behind them continued on and within moments everyone was in slow retreat, but still shooting steadily.

Mick felt the beginnings of panic start to overtake him and to his relief; he spotted first Scott and then Sean coming his way at a quick jog. Within seconds, they flanked him.

“
Come with us!” Scott yelled in his ear. Mick nodded and they began to move back toward the street at a faster pace. He noticed that both of them now had M9 bayonets, or multipurpose knives, attached to their M-16s in case of close quarter fighting. He carried the same knife because of Sean's insistence that it was not just a weapon but an invaluable tool.

Both his sons raised their weapons and began firing as they continued to carefully move backward. From his peripheral vision he could see men scurrying back and forth as they fired on the swarm before them.

As he raised his own rifle, a strange sound came from behind the apartment building and for a brief moment, everyone paused. He squeezed his eyes shut when a beam of light temporary blinded him. He felt a strong wind wash over them and he looked up and pointed.

“
It's Harry and Mark!” He shouted excitedly. As a zombie lurched toward him, Sean stabbed it in the head and drove it to the ground where he put a bullet right between the eyes for good measure. He looked up.

“
Great timing,” he said with a wink at Mick.

The Huey came down even lower, and the zombies flocked toward it with arms upraised. They were fascinated with the noise and light, forgetting everything else around them.

Another light emanated from the chopper, illuminating the ground directly below. When they swung around, Mick was able to make out a figure, which he assumed was Mark, sitting on the floorboard. As zombies continued to flock toward the hovering Huey, Mark began to mow down zombies with the mounted .50 caliber machine gun.

On the ground, Captain Sears and Nelson's men quickly fell in together and began to inch forward in a line, slowly heading toward the zombies under the chopper. Mick was glad that Sean and Scott decided to stay by his side, with all the chaos and commotion he wasn't sure what to do.

Corporal Riley ran up to Sean, shouting something into his ear as he thrust a plastic bag into his hands. He spun around and jogged the other way, Mick watched him stop in front of Dexter and hand him another bag. Mick peered over Sean's shoulder as he opened the bag. Sean pulled out a handful of blue latex gloves and quickly handed a pair to Mick.

“
The captain wants us to make sure any zombie down on the ground is dead and if not, we're to dispatch them. Then we need to drag them over and roll them into the ditch for the time being.”

Mick nodded and as he fumbled with the gloves, watched the carnage occurring before him. Looking down, he shook his head as he finished getting on the gloves. He wondered if there would ever come a time when life would get back to some semblance of normalcy for any of them. There were times when it seemed as though they were getting a handle on their situation, then something like Malcolm's men or this massive zombie horde comes in and disrupts everything.

Scott nudged him in the ribs, for which Mick was grateful because he hated when he thoughts turned morose. His son handed him a large hook and Mick groaned inwardly.

Their group began to slowly move forward again. Whenever Mick came upon a zombie, he carefully checked for head wounds. If there were none, he quickly ran the blade of his knife through an eye or ear before hooking the corpse near the collar bone and dragging it quickly to the ditch where he jerked the hook free before rolling the body down to join the others.

No one talked, everyone focused on the grisly task before them. Beside, who could talk with all the shooting, moaning, and shouting going on at the same time. Not to mention the noise and wind from the chopper.

Despite it all, Mick managed to concentrate on the task before him. The dew-covered grass was slick and got worse as zombie blood, gore, and no telling what else covered the ground. Everyone was slipping and trying to walk carefully, which was difficult when dragging bodies across the yard.

He lost track of time and glanced up in surprise when Sean put a hand on his shoulder. He looked around, hook still in hand. Only a few zombies remained on the ground. The Huey slowly lifted off and headed in the direction of the soccer field. The sudden silence felt strange, for several seconds no one moved, they just stared quietly at one another.

Without a word people began to slowly move off, most heading back toward the school. Scott joined them and Mick found himself once again between his sons as they followed the main group back.

At that moment, all Mick wanted was to have his family back together, a hot shower, and his bed...in that order. He knew that all of those things were possible, but more than likely still several hours away from obtaining, so he squared his shoulders. As he passed the huge mound of reeking bodies now overflowing from the ditch, he yanked off his gloves and almost angrily threw them on top.

The first person he saw as they neared the school was Cindy. The fog was gone and illuminated by the
moonlight; she was standing on her tiptoes obviously watching for them. They locked eyes and she waved furiously. She gave Judith a nudge and nodded in their direction. Judith turned to look and she smiled. Cindy grabbed her by the arm and together they jogged over.

She wrapped her arms around Mick's neck and hugged him hard. Reaching out with one hand, then the other, she grabbed each twin and pulled them into a family hug. The four of them stood together silently, before someone clearing their throat interrupted the moment. Mick looked over Cindy's head to see Dexter standing next to Judith.

“
Sorry to break up your little family reunion, but we still have some business to attend to,” Dexter said grimly.

“
We're going to touch base with Sarah and Denise, then see if there's anything we can help with,” Sean said with a wave of his hand. Mick watched them walk off then turned to Dexter.

In characteristic Dexter style, he puffed out his chest before speaking again. “I need you and Cindy to go with Judith and start getting the injured people together. The captain wants anyone bitten or scratched moved up to the camp. He said if you can help with that, he'll see to it that you and Cindy go with the first group so you can be with Brooke as soon as possible.”

Mick glanced at Cindy and Judith; they both gave him a nod. He looked at Dexter. “Absolutely, just point us in the right direction and we'll get right on that.”

Dexter pointed toward the other end of the parking lot. “Go all the way down,
there are people down there already setting up some kind of triage. I'm heading down to get everyone out of the shelter, when they're all moved I'll come help.”

He turned to go, then paused and turned back. “Speaking of Brooke, I'm sorry about what happened and I'm keeping my fingers crossed for her.”

Before Mick could reply, Dexter turned on his heel and hurried off.

“
Well, that was nice,” Cindy said, clearly surprised.

“
Sure was,” Mick agreed. “Sometimes Dexter can be full of surprises.”

Cindy had one arm linked through Mick's and she linked the other through Judith's. “Shall we get going?”

As they walked, she glanced up at Mick. “Sounded like things got kind of bad over there, I'm so glad Harry and Mark made it, we could hear the chopper over here.”

Mick paused. “Yeah, it was bad and they pretty much saved the day.”

Judith grinned. “Cindy had the foresight to call them up on the walkie. They wanted to drive back earlier, but she asked them to wait just in case. Sure enough, the fog lifted and they were able to come in and help.”

As they approached, a figure stood and waved. “Who is that?” Mick asked, squinting.

“
Not sure - oh, it's Megan!” Judith said excitedly.

Megan trotted over to them and after giving Judith and Cindy a hug, she stepped back to look at them. “Darrell's been scratched,” she said solemnly as she gestured toward a group of people huddled together. “We're waiting with the other wounded.”

Mick winced. “We're here to help, and will be taking everyone up to the camp for treatment soon.”

“
That's what we heard,” Megan replied as she turned to head back.

As they followed Megan, Cindy asked, “We lost track of Casey, is he here?”

Megan froze in mid-step for a moment before moving forward again with a shake of her head. “He didn't make it,” she whispered loud enough for them to hear. She didn't turn to look at them. “I really don't want to talk about that right now, it was awful.”

Cindy hurried over to put an arm around her friend. Judith bowed her head and gave Megan a pat on the back. Mick followed behind as the three friends murmured to each other, heads together as they walked. He was sick of people dying and hoped it was finally over.

He stopped when he heard the sound of a large vehicle approaching. As the military truck pulled up, he saw Sean in the driver's seat. The back gate swung down and Scott jumped from the back and approached them.

He was relieved to see
them; he wanted to get Cindy up to Brooke as soon as possible. As another truck pulled up beside the first, Sean whistled to get everyone's attention.

“
Let's get a move on, I want anyone who is badly injured or was scratched or bitten to have first priority, the next truck will take everyone with minor injuries.”

After a quick hello and many reassurances to a nervous Darrell, Mick and the others helped get both trucks loaded.

“
Let's go,” Scott said as he offered a hand to help Judith get into the back of the truck. Once she was safely inside he turned to his parents. “Sean's already in back, you're with me,” he said curtly as he slammed the gate shut.

Within moments they were on their way up the rutted and bumpy dirt road. Cindy sat between them and feeling her gaze on him, Mick turned and gave her what he hoped was a confident smile as he put an arm around her and gave her a gentle squeeze. Finally they were on their way, and he knew they were all thinking of was getting to Brooke as soon as possible. He closed his eyes and forced himself to relax, if he didn't he was afraid he'd start blubbering like a baby.

****

Brooke slowly opened her eyes and yawned. Someone was holding her hand, but she couldn't see who it was. Everything was
blurry; she rubbed her eyes and yawned again loudly.