Zombie Theorem (Book 2): The Siege, page 11
We took turns shaking his hand and moved around the house and higher up the hill. I looked back as the man and his family started loading their truck, preparing to leave. Flittering across my mind was the thought ‘I hope they make it.’ Then I shut it down and concentrated on our task in hand. We walked to a high point and could see down to the Humvees. Everything seemed normal, so we continued our walk north. We came to a point about two miles further where we could see down onto the bridge that was the entrance to Mendocino. No cars were moving that we could see. Parts of the town were on fire. We climbed down the hill and crossed Highway 1, making our way down to the cliffs overlooking the ocean all the way back to the parked Humvees. After seeing Mike and his family, we had not seen another soul. However, plenty of trash and broken down cars were in abundance.
As we came closer to the Humvees, Apache popped her head up. At recognizing us, she lowered her rifle and waved us in. We trotted in and relayed our findings to Kuppers and Vic. Brian and Senshi had not radioed in yet, so we sat and ate an MRE and dozed in the shade. Apache sat on one of the Humvees providing watch. Little Angel came out and sat in Doc’s lap and ate his cookies for him.
I took out my notepad and started looking over the notes I made from the reports, trying to get a better picture of the big puzzle. I kept flipping back and forth over the data, then closed my eyes and tilted my head back allowing my consciousness to work on the data. Trying to beat it up and mold it into something I could understand better.
A thought came out of the farthest recess of my mind. I grab onto it and tried to make sense of it, but I needed to talk it out to someone. I got to my feet and started looking around for Vic. I found him sitting in the .50 Cal cupola. I climbed on top of the Humvee and sat next to him. “I need to bounce a theory off of you. Something that just screamed into my brain and won’t leave me alone.”
He looked over at me and then signaled to Kuppers to take over on the .50 Cal. I climbed down, and we met by the hood of the lead Humvee. I pulled my notebook out, and Vic did the same.
“Ok, so something has been bugging me about the reports I went through earlier. I couldn’t see the whole picture until I let my subconscious mull over the data for the thirtieth time. Here is what I think. I want you to tell me if I am totally off-base or what. The way I see it, I think that the Initiative’s main goal is to cull back the world’s population. The question I had to ask myself is why would they want to do this. My main theory is that they want a reduced population that they can take control of easier, fine and dandy as it goes. That part makes a disturbing kind of sense. So then I asked myself, how could they control the size of the population, unless they have a way to destroy the zombies?” I looked over at Vic to make sure he was following my line of thinking. He was concentrating on my words and writing down my points. “That would make them look like saviors to the people. Now if that is the case, how many people, or what percentage, have to die in order for them to release their cure? Do they have hidden caches of food and medical needs? How about ways to recover the power and communications? Now this is the main thing bugging me. How do they intend to govern such a wide-open, empty country? The answer struck me hard: regional leaders. Break the countries up into manageable chunks and put a central leader in charge who reports back to whoever is at the top.”
I finished speaking and looked over at Vic. He kept me waiting while he poured over the data and questions I presented to him. I turned my face to the setting sun and absorbed as much warmth from it that I could in order to chase away the cold fear that gripped me.
Vic nodded his head a couple of times and then did his trademark removal of his glasses, rubbing the bridge of his nose. “Shit. Dan, I think you could be right. So do you think Leslie, the captured Congress Woman from Nevada, was a regional leader?”
“No, something makes me think she was just a tool of the regional leader for that area.”
“I see your point. You think with the complete unknown that is the northwest is because it has already been cleared and is being run by a regional leader?”
“I don’t think it has been cleared, but I think there is a regional leader residing in the north. It would be perfect. Smaller population, access to fisheries, farm fields, natural resources, and a shipping port,” I laid out my thoughts.
“You’re right, and here we are marching into the teeth of the demon.” Vic dropped his head in frustration. “Then there is my wife sitting in the middle of it all in Portland, and your dad on his farm in Spokane.”
“So the question is, do we allow our friends to be led into all this danger just for us?” I asked.
A commanding voice broke into our conversation, “You are not leading us into danger, boys. We chose to brave the darkness and help you guys.” Kuppers had been listening in on our little conversation. Apache and Doc both appeared from behind us and threw in their two cents.
“This was already decided, boys. A vote was called, and we all answered.”
Doc stared at me, chewing on his ever-present glob of gum. “Like she said. Listen, if there is some high mucky-muck of this damn Initiative, then I want a chance at his or her ass. We have support from General Richards, so this might end up being a good thing. That and I am running out of gum to chew, so I guess ‘till you find me more I need to let out my frustrations on some asshole who really deserves it.”
Apache smirked, and then punched Doc in the shoulder. “Are you just one big walking 80s action star with all those one liners? I thought you were a cowboy.”
“I can be both and, ow, that hurt.” Apache rolled her eyes and punched him again.
Vic met my eyes, and we sighed and turned to Kuppers. “So, what do you think of the theory?”
Kuppers put his hands on his waist and struck his tough guy pose. I really don’t think he means to do this, but it makes me giggle inside every single time. “I think you guys made a couple of leaps in logic, but the sad thing is I have made those same leaps. I am a little worried about what we are going to face further north. I think the direction we have been going is the best for us. We will hug the coast and stay away from larger towns and try to gain information to send south to the General.”
A voice came from behind us, causing Vic and I to spin and pull our sidearm. I sighted on a hulking gray shape leaning against a tree. “Now that sounds like a good plan, Kuppers. Except that we are coming with you guys.” Hase came out of the shadows dressed in dark combat fatigues, a giant pack on his back, blacked out face and hands, and a large battle rifle I had never seen before.
“When did you guys get here?” Kuppers inquired.
Hase whistled, and the night came alive as the rest of the Delta team materialized from the shadows. “About the time Vic and Dan started their little conversation.”
“Where is your vehicle?” I asked.
“Didn’t bring it. We flew in on the Blackhawk, saw your Humvees parked below so fast roped out to the hills about five miles from here and hiked over,” Heaven answered.
“Brian and Senshi are scoping out Mendocino and plotting to see if we are safe to travel through,” Vic filled them in.
Hunter whistled and shook his head, “Dude, that place ain’t bad. We made a quick fly over from the ocean, and the hordes aren’t too big. We should be able to push through them. We then continued up the coast and checked on Fort Bragg. That place looks bad. Lots of fires and a pretty good size horde. At least bigger than what we have ammo for.”
My legs quivered at the news, and I almost fell to the ground when Vic reached out and settled me. All I could hear was a loud roaring sound, my vision blurred, and I felt like the ground was tilting on me. Oh, I guess the aliens are here to take me away again. Damn! I heard Angel in the background crying. Wait, she has been a trooper. I’ve never heard her cry, and that was it. I went inside my head. I was done. There is no way Julie could survive those hordes. This has been a fool’s errand the entire way. Men have died because of my actions and decisions. I spun in a slow circle and tried to make out any detail of where I was. Nothing, the dark was so black and oppressive. It felt half alive, like it was pulling the very essence of who I was out of me. I laid down on the cold ground and pulled my legs up toward my chest. Depression and loss laid heavily on me. I didn’t think I could get up now, even if I wanted to. I had felt stronger since leaving that God awful, soul-sucking, terror of tower. I thought I could handle what had to be done. I had grown into something else. Maybe I’m not making sense here.
I don’t know how long I lay there, but a sliver of warmth finally shone down on me. I opened my eyes and rolled over slowly. A voice broke the silence. It was angelic, melodious, and filled with love. “Dan, she is not gone yet. You need to wake up and go to her while you still can.” The warmth I felt started to freeze over again and my head felt heavy. I just wanted to give up and release it all. The voice shattered the blackness and flooded me with white light. “GET UP NOW!”
My eyes popped open, and I stood up like a jack-in-the box released from that moment of cold hell. I was so fast that it surprised the team sitting around me. They had shrunk back from my sudden revival. I looked around and saw that Brian and Doc had returned. A warm, small hand wormed my clenched fist open and held it tightly. I looked down and found little Angel smiling up at me.
“I told them you would come back.”
I picked her up off the ground and hugged her tight. “How did you reach me?”
She leaned back, took my face between her two hands, and smiled. “It’s a secret that I am not allowed to talk about,” she said cryptically but only loud enough for my own ears to pick up. I shook my head not understanding, then kissed her forehead.
I turned to the team, using the dim light of a small camping lantern on the ground to make out each one. “Sorry about that, guys. I have no idea how to explain what happened.”
Brian stood next and took Angel from my arms, handing her to Apache. He then wrapped me in his Sasquatch arms, lifted me off the ground, and gave me a hug so tight I thought he would break my back and force my lungs up and out of my chest. I started to see black spots when he finally relented and put me down. “Happy you’re back, boss.”
I patted his left bicep and thanked him. I felt good, full of hope, but also a feeling of need, to move, to hurry, to rush. I regarded my team, as well as the new Delta guys. If these men couldn’t get me through hell, no one could. “What are we waiting for? Let’s mount up and get going.”
“The sun will be up soon. What’s the rush?” Hunter asked.
“It’s a feeling I have. Something is telling me we need to move now if we are going to make it.” I reached down, collected my gear, and stalked toward my Humvee. I felt a presence behind me and turned. My team, as one, stood, grabbed their gear, and mounted up. No questions asked, no comments made or gripes given.
“You guys coming?” I asked the Delta team.
They looked at one another, shrugged, grabbed their gear, and started loading into the rear of the Humvees and in two cases on top. We were squashed in tight like anchovies in a tin can, but we were ready to go. I switched on my radio, which was dead. “Vic, my radio is dead.” Brian came out of his cupola, pulled my radio from my vest, and swapped out with new batteries, then switched it back on. “Thanks, buddy.” He threw a wink in my direction. I opened up on our channel, “Kuppers, no headlights. Night vision only.”
I felt in control of myself, but guided by something else. Like a hand on my shoulder and a whispering in my ears. With Kuppers’ Humvee in the lead, we pulled out on Highway 1 and accelerated north. We were crawling at a speed of twenty miles per hour when the voice whispered one word clearly, “Faster.”
The voice did not surprise me or scare me. The opposite really; it felt positive and helpful. I clicked on the radio, “Cupcake, Apache, faster. Trust me and open them up all the way.” Apache looked back at me, studied my face, then turned and pushed the pedal to the floor. Cupcake got the message and also accelerated.
The Humvee, I would learn, is a heavy vehicle that is made to get you where you need to go safely and with all your gear. If you wanted speed, you might as well get a Camry. Forty-five was our top speed, but the voice didn’t say anything else, so I figured that was fast enough.
We approached the bridge and were over quickly and with no zombies or vehicles blocking our way. The highway remained clear of obstacles, and we shot through Mendocino without hassle. As we approached Fort Bragg thirty-five short minutes after leaving our camp, cars started choking the road. Cupcake and Apache deftly swerved around them. Cupcake radioed, “Dan, I am going to need directions once we hit the city. Over.” I rattled off her address over the radio but let him know we were going to push through the city without stopping. I ordered him to keep the pedal down and not to stop. Julie lived on the other side of town on a little piece of land. I was glad now that I had Kuppers let me look over the maps every chance I got. I felt assured I would have no problem finding her.
We pulled into Fort Bragg proper, and everything changed from what we had experienced earlier in Mendocino. The road was lined with zombies; most stood there staring in the direction of the ocean. As we passed, they turned their heads toward us and moaned. My bowels shook at how five thousand zombies moaning at once sounded like the end of the world. That voice came back. “Do not shoot, keep going, hurry.”
My hand moved on its own and clicked open the radio, and I repeated the message. I looked out the window and watched as we swerved around broken and abandoned vehicles, burned out hulks that used to be businesses and homes, and, of course, the multitude of dead that stepped into the street and turned to follow us.
I looked over at Angel, and she turned to meet my gaze. She smiled, and her eyes sparkled. She seemed to be excited and anticipating something. She swung her feet back and forth and started fixing her hair, running her hands through it, smoothing it down. It was weird to watch.
The voice shouted in my head, loud as ever, “TURN HERE NOW! SHE NEEDS HELP!” I yelled the directions over the radio. I looked down and removed my magazine from the MP5. Finding it full, I loaded it back in and removed the safety. Then I pulled back on the charging handle, making sure a round was chambered and ready. I repeated with my handgun and checked my vest pockets, making sure I had plenty of additional loaded magazines.
I saw a street coming up and knew it was the right one, “Left on this street now.” Both Humvees swung to the left, and we were confronted with a house at the end of the cul-de-sac overrun with zombies. Before we could come to a complete stop, I opened the door and bailed out rolling onto my shoulder. Almost immediately, I was on my feet running. The MP5’s sights came up, my vision cleared and, like I was a robot, I started aiming and taking shots without thinking. Somehow, as if guided by a greater hand, each shot took a zombie down. As I got closer, I dropped my MP5 onto its sling and removed my 1911 from its leg holster. My fingers again going on automatic, the safety came off. I raised the barrel and started firing. A voice that I found was mine screamed Julie’s name into the house.
I emptied the magazine, dropped it to the ground, pulled another from my vest, slapped it home, and pulled back on the slide. All of this without thinking; again, I felt that guiding hand taking over my actions. When that magazine emptied, I slid it back into its holster, removed my batons, flicked them out to their full length, and started swinging them in a way I had never practiced or even known how to use. Zombies fell after every swing. I cut a swath through them and came to a door at the end of the hall that the zombies had almost knocked down.
“Julie, I’m here! come out!” I called out. The door slowly opened and, for a minute, I thought the person who emerged was a zombie. She was dirty, clothes torn, and she seemed dazed. I searched her face, watching as a smile spread wide and she jumped into my arms. Her body shook with each heart-wrenching sob. I dropped my batons and wrapped my arms around her, and we slid to the ground onto our knees. I could hear the firing of guns going on around us, but I didn’t care. I had found her. I had the one chance I had begged God for. I found Julie alive. I was able to hold her in my arms. My life could end, and I would be happy, content even, in fulfilling my mission.
I don’t know how long we kneeled in that hallway, holding each other tight and crying. I heard a little voice, “Dan?” I thought it was the voice in my head guiding me again. I pulled away from Julie and turned my head until I saw Angel. She stood there swinging on her heels, hands clasped in front of her.
I stood then and helped Julie to her feet. We walked hand in hand to Angel. I looked down at her, “Angel, this is Julie. Julie, this is Angel.”
Julie whipped her head to me, her eyes threatened more tears. “You have a child? Why didn’t you tell me? She’s beautiful.”
“I am not her father. I rescued her in San Francisco, and she has been saving me every day since. The entire team has adopted her.” I looked up and saw the team, including Delta, watching our little scene unfold.
Julie bent over at the waist and looked into Angel’s eyes. “Thank you, little lady, for bringing him back to me safe.”
“You’re welcome, pretty lady, but I had help.” She pointed back at the team and then wrapped her arms around Julie and hugged her tight. Julie hugged her back and then released her.
“Sorry my house is such a mess guys, but these things wouldn’t take no for an answer,” she directed to the team.
Brian broke from the team and walked slowly to us. Julie almost stepped back from his advancement. He stopped a couple of feet from her and extended his giant paw, “It would be a pleasure to shake the hand of the woman who is willing to put up with his crap.” He pointed at me with his other hand. “Because I’ve been doing it for the last couple of weeks, and I don’t know how much more I can take.” A giant grin crept onto his face.
