Zombie Theorem (Book 2): The Siege, page 5
I cleared the room and made my way to the hallway. Kuppers looked me up and down and nodded at me. We then moved to the next room, which Brian cleared quickly. Kuppers opened the next door, revealing an empty bathroom. The last door stood at the end of the hallway, taunting us with its mysteries. I walked over and put my ear on the door, listening for any movement. I knocked quietly and waited. I heard a clawing sound on the other side of the door. Brian came up and kicked the door hard, blowing it inward. The zombie on the other side was thrown backwards onto a bed. I darted in quickly swinging my baton downward cracking its head in, killing it for a second time. I looked down at it and realized it must be the daughter of the woman I killed in the other room. She was small, a preteen dressed in pink silk pajama pants and a white t-shirt with the front stained red from blood. A bloody bandage was wrapped around its upper bicep. I figured the little girl was bitten, came home to be bandaged up by her mom, then must’ve died and bit her. The mom must’ve run to her room and died.
We ransacked the house, finding nothing but a couple of cans of food, which I packed away in Brian’s pack. The house had no guns or anything we needed or wanted. We walked out the front door and found Bravo waiting for us in the middle of the street. We shared our story and found they had encountered no zombies, only a Cadillac car in the garage. We moved onto the next house and made our way through, quickly finding again some cans of food. No one was home, and the garage was empty. We moved out to the street and waited for Bravo.
I looked up and saw Apache and Senshi looking down the street from their roof top positions. Angel waved down at me, and I waved back. Bravo came out of their house and met up with us. Their house had a six-person family inside. They took care of them but found no weapons, canned food, or a 4x4. This went on for the next twenty houses. We found canned food and some bottled water, a couple of minivans, two Lexus SUVs, and a bunch of BMW and Mercedes cars. Apache, Angel, and Senshi had moved down the block and up onto roofs across from each other.
Bravo and Alpha again met up in the middle of the street. “Something is making me feel like we are never gonna find what we are looking for in these houses,” Vic explained.
I nodded at him and sat on the ground to think. An idea came to me. “This is a golf course, and most golf courses have a club house, right? I think we should go there and see if we find something there we can use.”
Kuppers stood there in thought for a while. He removed a map from his pocket and studied it carefully. “I agree. According to the map, the club house is north of here and just off the beach, so we have a fast way there.” He called Senshi, Apache, and Angel down to our position and explained the new plan. No one had an issue with the plan, so we loaded our gear and headed down to the beach.
Angel stayed to the left of Brian, shielded from the golf course. Kuppers and I took lead, or point as he explained it to me, and the rest of the team spread out behind us. We took it at a normal walking pace, not wanting to call attention to ourselves. I could see the roof of the clubhouse coming up and pointed it out to Kuppers. He nodded affirmative and slowed down further. The rest of the team came up to us and took a knee. “We can see the club just ahead. Dan, Brian, and I will go recon the grounds. Stay here. I’ll radio when clear.”
Brian handed over Angel to Senshi and came up to my side. “You have a round chambered, right?”
I pulled back the charging handle and confirmed that yes indeed I did. Kuppers pointed up toward the beach and signaled he would take the lead. I followed him as Brian took up the rear. We found a trail and followed it up to the basketball court next to the clubhouse. We could hear the moaning and the sound of many hands pounding against walls. Kuppers looked back at us and motioned for us to stay close but quiet. I hunched over and copied Kuppers’ steps. We came up on the corner of the clubhouse and looked around. My heart sunk with what we saw.
A herd of at least one hundred zombies were gathered around the front walls, entrance, and windows. Kuppers pointed down the rear of the clubhouse, and we followed him down toward the back entrance. “If the zombies are riled up that means someone must be in there. Let’s make contact.”
We came up to one of the rear windows, and Brian knocked the first part of a shave and a haircut. While waiting for an answer, Kuppers and I watched the area around us making sure no zombies had found us yet. Brian sucked in a breath when a face appeared in the window. It was a young woman. Her face was pale, gaunt, but alive. She pointed down the other side of the building and then disappeared. We took off in that direction and came upon a set of French doors. It unlocked and opened slightly. Brian pushed his way in with his rifle at his shoulder, sweeping in all directions. Kuppers pushed me in and then followed. He secured the door and drew the curtain over the window. The room was dim, but enough light came in from the skylights above. The young woman was sitting on a chair in the middle of a destroyed room that looked like it had once been used for banquets. The tables had been upended and placed against the windows. Most of the chairs were missing, but the ones that were there were disassembled and lying in piles.
The building stunk of unwashed bodies and moldy food. I stepped over and squatted down to my knees in front of her. She was quiet, and her eyes kept looking roving over the room. I moved around until our eyes met each other, and she locked onto me after a couple of moments. She was younger than I thought at first. Probably a young teenager of thirteen. I took my canteen from my belt and handed it to her. She took it from me tentatively and took a small sip. “Hi, my name is Dan. What’s your name?”
She looked at the other two with me and then darted her eyes back to stare into mine. “My name is Theresa, but friends and family call me Tessy,” she whispered.
I smiled at her and offered my hand. She took it and shook it once with a surprisingly strong grip. “Hi, Tessy, my name is Dan. The Sasquatch looking guy over there is Brian, and the mean looking one is Kuppers. We are police officers trying to help who we can. Are you the only one in here?”
“Um, no. When the others came and took the adults, my mom told me to hide and watch over the three others. Come with me. I’ll show you where they are.” She stood and started walking away. I stood and motioned the others to follow. We left the banquet room, walked down the hallway to a stairway, and made our way up to the top floor.
At the top, we came to a door and made entrance into a large office. Inside we found three preteens sitting on blankets and pillows huddled together. I walked into the middle of the room and again squatted down to their level. I looked them over. They looked a little tired, but healthy and not starving. Brian threw me his canteen, and I handed it over. The kids took turns drinking, but made sure to leave some for Brian. The girl of the group stood up and tried to give the canteen back to Brian. “That thing is still half full, kid. Why don’t you three do me a favor and drain it? That’s just less weight I have to carry then.” He smiled and tried to look non-threatening, but when you are a small Sasquatch dressed in battle fatigues and carrying a large gun it’s a hard look to pull off.
The little girl held her hand out. “My name is Kala. Thank you.” Brian engulfed her small hand and shook it lightly.
“You’re welcome, little lady. My name is Brian. These are my friends Dan and Kuppers,” he introduced.
Kala pointed out her friends and in a quiet but high-pitched voice said, “These are my friends Gavin and Jason. I think you already met Tessy. Can I ask a question?”
Kuppers walked forward and looked down at her. “Yes, ma’am. Ask as many questions as you want. But when you’re done, we have a couple to ask ourselves.”
She looked down at the floor, as if thinking about her questions carefully. “Are you here to save us?”
Kuppers took a second to formulate his answer, his eyes watered a little, and he went down to a knee. “We did not know you were here, sweetie, but we are police officers. So we do not leave people behind who need our help.”
Kala surprised Kuppers when she ran forward and hugged him tight. Kala silently sobbed in his arms as the two boys got up and wrapped their arms around her and Kuppers. I stood there thinking about what these poor kids must’ve gone through watching their parents get taken away and to be imprisoned in this building with dwindling supplies. I looked over and saw Tessy standing by herself against the wall, watching the affectionate display. I grabbed her arm and pulled her in for a hug. She stiffened at first but let her guard down and let her emotions finally pour out. I had been watching her out of the corner of my eye. I could see the wall she put up, so she could be their rock and their leader. “You did a great job taking care of them, hun. We are here now, though, and will do our best to help.” She started shaking and sobbing, letting all the tension finally release. Brian came over then and rubbed her back.
Kuppers released the kids, stood, and clicked on his radio. “Bravo, Alpha, come in. Over.”
Apache’s voice came through our earpieces. “Roger, Alpha. Bravo, go ahead. Over.”
Kuppers explained our situation, “We made entrance to the club house, and found four young teenagers alone. We are going to secure their supplies and bring them out soon. Recon parking lot and secure rear door. We still need some vehicles to move out with, over.”
Doc’s voice cut over the radio then. “Cupcake and I are already in the parking lot. Found a large 4x4 truck with a shell over the bed. Cupcake has already checked and said he can hotwire it, but it is going to make a lot of sound. Parking lot is empty, building front entrance has count of close to a hundred, over.”
Kuppers thought for a moment. “Roger all, Doc, wait one. Bravo, is our rear egress free?”
Apache came over the radio breathlessly, “Alpha, Bravo, roger it is for now. What do you want us to do? Advise. We have Angel with us, over”
I cut in over the radio at that point, “Bravo, Dan, I’ll meet you at the back door, and you can release her to me.” I let go of Tessy and made my way out of the room and into the stairway.
I heard Kuppers relaying orders over the radio. “Bravo, once you’ve released Angel to Dan, I want you two to draw those damn zombies out toward the housing complex. Doc and Cupcake, when you see that has succeeded, start the truck and come up to the front doors, and we will load up and go collect Bravo. Over.”
A chorus of rogers came over the radio. I didn’t know the clubhouse well, except for my time following Tessy. So I went slow, checking each corner, room, and doorway before entering. I had pulled my steel baton at some point without realizing it and had it open and ready. I made my way back to the banquet room with no issues. I peeked around the curtain covering the back French doors we had entered through earlier. Angel waved at me, as Senshi and Apache stood protective over her. I unlocked the door, cracked it open, and Angel came through and hugged me tight. “Hey, sweetie, missed you,” I said hugging her back.
Apache threw a smile at me and then left with Senshi to do their jobs. I locked the door and turned around. I was immediately attacked by a male zombie and pushed to the ground. I used one arm to quickly push Angel out of the way. “Get away! Hide!” I yelled at her. She seemed to want to help but thought better and ran from the room. I had one arm pressed under the zombie’s throat trying to push it up and keep its teeth from biting my nose off. I used my free hand to try and find my baton, which I had somehow dropped when Angel hugged me.
I felt something with my fingertips and tried desperately to pull it into my hand, but it kept slipping and rolling further away. I was starting to lose my battle with the zombie as it pressed down harder, causing my hand to slide through the skin on its throat. I could smell the rot and purification on its breath, its cracked and broken teeth just an inch from my nose. My strength was starting to ooze away. I stopped trying to grab the baton and instead latched that hand onto the creature’s forehead, pushing back with all the strength I had left.
I gained another inch of safety. I bunched my shoulders and lifted my hips, twisting to the side. I was able to shift enough of my weight to finally roll over on top of the zombie. I changed tactics and pushed down on the spine that my hand had now grabbed onto since it had sunk through the skin there. With the other hand, I reached back for Doc’s Kabar and was able to pull it from its sheath. My left arm was starting to cramp, and my stitches were pulling hard from holding back the zombie. I knew I had one chance. I pulled my upper body up until I was kneeling on the zombie’s chest. I raised the Kabar and plunged it into the zombie’s eye. I twisted and pushed until I finally felt that popping sensation, and then the blade slid further in. The zombie stopped moving finally, and not a second too soon. My arms felt like Jell-O.
I sat there on the zombie’s chest for a second, trying to pull in as much air as my lungs could handle, when I heard a scream like none other I have heard. I pulled my gun from its leg holster and jumped up off of the zombie and ran. I came to the stairs to find Brian holding Angel in his massive left arm, a female zombie’s neck clasped in his right hand. I pulled my last baton and shoved it into the zombie’s mouth and motioned for Brian to let go. He did so, and I slammed the zombie onto the ground, using the baton in its mouth as leverage.
I put my foot on its chest and held it down, using my baton like a golf club, and swung into its head, cracking and destroying the brain. I looked around for more danger and found none, so I turned my attention on Brian and Angel.
Brian was looking over every inch of Angel. His face wore a mask of fear and concern. Finally, he shook his head and made eye contact with me. He blew out a breath and smiled at me. “What in the blue fuck happened?” he roared at me.
I shrugged as I took a hankie from my pocket and cleaned the baton of the creature’s blood, bone pieces, and black shit. “I don’t know. I opened the door, she came in and hugged me, and something grabbed me and attacked. I yelled at her to run and fought the thing trying to turn my nose into a hamburger from McDonalds. I was able to kill it when I heard a scream and came running.”
Brian nodded his understanding and put Angel on the stairs. “Go upstairs, sweetie. Kuppers is waiting for you with some older children. Tell him we are going to look around. Ok?”
Her face beamed with the news of other kids and turned around. She stopped part way up and turned her head. “Thank you, Brian and Dan. I am sorry for what happened.” She looked sad for a second.
I made a face at her and, she laughed. “You did nothing wrong, sweetie. Now go upstairs while Brian and I go check for more of these stinky heads.” She nodded ok and went up the stairs.
I looked to Brian. “I am worried about that kid. She is too young to be seeing this shit and dealing with almost getting killed on a daily basis. We need to figure something out to shield her.”
“Boss, in this new world, there is no way to shield her. As long as Ridder and the Culling Initiative are out there, then this is the new normal all around the world.” He dropped his shoulders, sighed, and gave me a quick hug. “Let’s do everything we can to keep giving her one more day of life and joy when we can.”
With that, he pulled his M4 to his shoulder and motioned to me to do the same with the MP5. I slipped off the safety, brought it to my shoulder, and followed Brian. We made our way back to the rear door and then cleared each room. When we entered the banquet room, I saw the zombie that had attacked me on the floor. I then remembered the Kabar and walked over to the corpse. I gripped the hilt and pulled, but it was stuck. I put my knee on the corpse’s chest and pulled with both hands. It was stuck, and I was getting pissed. How was I going to tell Doc I left his dad’s Kabar in a corpse’s head? Brian watched me and laughed every time I failed. Finally, he had enough and pushed me out of the way. With just his left hand he reached down, gripped the hilt, and pulled. The head came off the floor with the knife as he pulled. He shook his head, put his foot on the jaw, and pulled again. The knife came free with a crack and audible pop. Brian looked over the tip and shook his head in amazement. “The tip was embedded in the back of the skulll. Good quality these Kabars are.” He cleaned the knife on the left over, tattered remains of clothes on the corpse.
I took the knife and slid it back into its sheath. “I need to find some alcohol or something to clean that thing, along with my batons. Speaking of,” I reached down and retrieved the one I had dropped earlier.
Brian and I moved into the next room, which was the kitchen. Except for the rotten food scraps and putrid smell, the room was empty. We moved through the employee’s break room, bathrooms, coat room, and golf store. Everything was clear. Until we reached the lobby. The front door was cracked open slightly, allowing smaller, thinner zombies to slide through. Currently, two were wedged in tight. I took out my baton and finished them off quickly and silently. Brian looked out the windows and saw that we were zombie free now, thanks presumably to Senshi and Apache.
“Boss, I’ll stay here and secure the door while you help Kuppers with the kids and their stuff.” We fist bumped, and I jogged off to the stairway. Once there, I took some extra time moving the zombie away from the stairs so the kids didn’t have to see it.
