Losers vs. Zombies, page 16
“So a month or two until you come back.” Sara said doubtfully. “I guess we could try. If we still don’t trust him, will you stay when you get back?”
“Yes.” Riley answered.
“If he can’t do what you did, will you come back on the road with us Brad?” Pete asked.
“Yes.” I promised.
It was an uneasy truce.
The cookout was a lackluster affair. The food was the best my people had eaten since the apocalypse began. They were just too worried to enjoy it.
No one fought. No one had any fun either.
The next morning, I followed the group to the trucks when they were preparing to leave.
“Three cities and then if we need you, you will come back.” Laura said. She was more or less thinking aloud trying to convince herself everything would be alright.
“Yes.” I hoped it wouldn’t be necessary.
“Is he expecting to order us around like we are his slaves?” Laura asked.
“Riley is a very nice person. If he wants you to do something he will ask. I am asking all of you to give him the chance to prove himself.”
“We will. We don’t like this, Brad. I guess you know that by now. We will give him a chance though.” Pete said.
Laura and Angie hugged my neck and walked away with tears in their eyes. I shook hands with Bob, Harold, and Pete. Riley walked up carrying his bags.
“Are we ready to go?” Riley asked. He sounded a little nervous.
“It looks like it.” I said and held my hand out to him. He shook it warmly. I smiled and said, “You take care of my people and I will take care of yours.”
“You got it.” Riley smiled back.
“I don’t know what all the fuss is about. We just trading one dumbass for another. Get over it.” Amy said. She walked away and got into a truck.
I looked at Riley.
“If she doesn’t come back I will understand. I will try not to grieve too much.” I said.
Riley was still laughing when the trucks pulled away.
Chapter 23
“Did Riley tell you about replacing the generators at the holes with trucks?” I asked Sara.
“No. Was he supposed to?” Sara said.
“He told me the problems you had with the generators not being as reliable. A semi can idle for a week and supply more than enough power for what we need.” I told her.
We were at her house. The trucks had left earlier and I wanted to have a look around at their perimeter holes. Sara had already made the arrangements.
“If you think that will work.” She said with a questioning look.
“Do you have any former truck drivers? I can instruct someone but it would be better if you already have someone with experience.”
“I thought you said you were a writer.”
“I drove a truck before then. I had an accident and hurt my back. That is how I ended up being a writer.”
“Oh. Makes sense. I will look at our list. We made a list of the occupations of the people here. We needed to know what we could do and what we needed to learn.” She said.
“We did the same. We instructed each city to make that same list.”
Sara went and looked. I asked Miranda for my water and pills. It was early for a second dose but she didn’t argue. I had just handed the bottle back to her when Sara returned. She had the list in her hands.
“Let’s see.” She said as she scanned the paper. “We have two drivers. Come outside with me. I will get someone to go find them.”
The drivers were sent for and would be waiting at Sara’s when I returned. Four locals pulled up in two trucks. I was loaded into the lead truck along with Miranda. We headed out for the perimeter. My driver introduced himself as Jason. He was in his mid-twenties.
“How often do you have stray zombies finding their way into town?” I asked.
“Not too often. As long as the music keeps playing, they head for the holes. Riley had us keep the holes close enough together that you can’t go between them without hearing the music from at least one of them.” Jason explained.
“Good idea.” I said as we rode up to the first hole. “Drive slowly by and let me take a look at the set up.”
“Yes sir.”
Damn it. More sirs.
“Call me Brad. I don’t need the sir part. I already feel old enough.” I said with a smile. He smiled back and nodded.
The holes were much like I expected. It occurred to me again how eerily similar Riley and I thought. It was a little creepy.
“There should really be a fence line between each hole in case the music ever stops playing. It would help keep everyone safer.”
“We thought about it. Riley said we needed it but we were worried that a large group of zombies would knock it down and we would be facing a bunch of them at the same time.” Jason said.
“Not if you put the fence in at a slant. Make it go from a point with the ends leading into the holes themselves. Like an upside down V. That way, the zombies would just follow the fence line straight into the holes. Come to think of it, you would barely even need the music anymore.” I realized.
Jason stopped the truck and looked at me sharply.
“Damn.” He shook his head and resumed driving.
We saw a zombie crossing the area ahead. Jason gunned the engine and ran it over. We went and inspected the nearest holes and found the generators were out of gas. We refilled them with gas he carried on the truck. We headed back to Sara’s after that.
“Your truck drivers are here.” Sara informed me when I walked in.
“Sara, we might have gotten the better of this trade.” Jason said. He was all smiles.
“What do you mean?” Sara asked sharply.
“Brad here, just solved the generator problem permanently. You remember the fence idea?” He asked.
“Yes we discussed it and saw it wouldn’t work.” She answered.
“Not if you build it like an upside down V with the ends slanting into the holes. Even if the music stopped, the zombies would just follow the fence straight into the holes. It took him less than five seconds to figure that out!”
Sara looked at me. I couldn’t read her face to see what she was thinking. I was then introduced to the two truck drivers, Paul and Teddy. They looked like many of the grizzled old drivers I used to see daily.
“We need a truck parked between every other set of holes. Like this, hole then truck then hole, then hole then truck then hole. Try to park them in the middle so we can run the stereos from two holes with one truck. We are going to let the trucks run the stereos instead of using the generators. You guys know they can idle for a week without any maintenance. It will make things easier.” I told them. “We will need to find some converters to go with each truck so we can plug the stereos in.”
“There’s a truck stop down the road. We can take care of that. We will fill the tanks and get them running. When do you want them out at the holes?” Teddy asked.
“As soon as you can get them there I guess. It will help make everyone safer.” I explained. They nodded and left. Yep, they were drivers alright. Quick and to the point with no real frills needed. “Jason, will you guys need me for this? Paul and Teddy can handle the trucks and converters.”
“Nope, we should be able to handle that. Sara, we got anyone good at putting up fences?” Jason asked.
“What kind of fence are we talking about? What kind of materials will we need?” Sara seemed to ask the right questions.
“Chain link with a tarp so the zombies can’t see through the fence. That is the quickest. You’ll want the fence to be at least six feet tall so they won’t be able to get over it. The fence companies usually have them premade.” I told them.
“Who would be good at that kind of thing though?” Sara asked.
“Harold used to handle our fence work. He worked in a hardware store before the zombies. Someone like that or most any kind of construction worker should be able to handle it.” I replied.
“I’ll go ask Tommy.” Jason said as he walked out the door. I noticed Miranda watching him. I smiled.
“Who’s Tommy?” I asked.
“He was a foreman on a labor crew at the mill. If he can’t do this then he will know who can.” Sara said.
“Wow, so many more names to learn. That’s hard for me.” Miranda commented.
“It won’t take long to remember the ones we’ll be talking to the most. Jason seems to be their Pete. I’m guessing this Tommy will be our new Bob and Harold. Although he won’t have to do the set ups like our guys were doing.”
Miranda and I stayed at Sara’s place for a few hours getting the idea of the town’s daily routines. We also found out who to see about getting more pain pills. I needed a huge supply of them.
“I might be able to like it here. It’s quiet and peaceful. It will be better than Cleveland anyway.” Miranda commented as we headed back to the house we were assigned.
“If you didn’t like Cleveland, why did you live there?”
“I was born there. After college I got talked into staying by some friends. R.N.’s were in high demand so getting a job was easy. Now I guess it’s good that I stayed. I might not have survived otherwise.”
“That’s true.” I said.
We spent the rest of the day getting the house the way we wanted. A generator was brought in so we could recharge my wheelchair as needed. The problem with that was the noise. I needed to use it at night when I slept but the noise from the generator kept me awake. I debated just trying to use a regular wheelchair.
Chapter 24
It was around six weeks when Riley returned with my people. No matter the trade and new surroundings, those would always be my people. They were greeted as heroes and were treated much better on arrival than they were when they left.
“Any problems?” I asked as Riley and Pete got out of their truck.
“Nope, he did really well. Slightly different from you but he was effective.” Pete told me as he shook my hand.
“Good. I’m glad to hear. Of course, I seem to remember someone telling you guys he would do fine.” I smiled.
“It’s like I said, we just traded one dumbass for another. What’s the difference?” Amy said as she walked by.
“Good to see you again. Was there any problems here?” Riley asked.
“Nope. All is good. How did you like doing the different traps?”
“It was fun after I got over being nervous about it.” Riley answered. Bob and Harold walked up as Riley said that.
“He was a little hesitant at first but he will do. I never thought to see someone else be as creative as you.” Bob said as he shook my hand.
“I still haven’t figured out if there’s something wrong with Riley and me for thinking the way we do or if there is something wrong with everyone else because y’all don’t.”
“I think it’s a little of both.” Harold said. I looked behind him and saw Laura and Angie running up to see me.
“He did pretty good but we still missed you.” Angie said as she hugged my neck.
“I missed you guys too.” I told them while I was hugging Laura.
“He didn’t give you any problems did he?” Laura asked Miranda.
“Only the usual ones. I’ve learned how to handle him.” Miranda said smiling.
“There he is! Damn, now I have to get used to how big you are all over again.” Jason said as he shook Riley’s hand.
“How you been?” Riley asked him.
“Fantastic.” Jason said with a sidelong glance at Miranda.
They had been seeing more and more of each other. I was so happy for them both. Jason was a good kid and would treat Miranda the way she deserved. Riley noticed Jason’s glance and gave me an almost imperceptible look to ask if he had just seen what he thought he saw. I gave a very slight nod with a smile. Riley smiled in return.
Everyone was happy at this cookout. The food was great and there wasn’t any tension to take away from enjoying it. I couldn’t eat much anymore but I still liked good food. After we ate, Riley and I went to talk privately.
“Tell me about Jason and Miranda. I always liked Jason. From what I’ve seen of Miranda they are perfect for each other.” Riley said once we were out of earshot of our friends.
“They hit it off pretty quickly. I was around Jason a good bit at first getting to know the place and making the changes. He and Miranda got to know each other because of it.” I told him as we neared a bench. He sat before asking.
“Wait, what changes?”
“At the holes. We replaced the generators with trucks and put up fences.”
“But the zombies will build up and the fence won’t be able to hold.” He said worriedly.
“I told them to put the fences in at a slant. Like this.” I made a teepee, steeple type shape with my hands to illustrate. “The ends slant away from the point and will force the zombies into the holes.”
“Well, damn. Do we even need the music anymore?”
“Yes. It isn’t as important but we still want the zombies moving into the holes instead of just standing around. The music still draws them in.” I told him.
“I thought about that stupid fence for days but didn’t think of that. Oh well.” Riley smiled so I knew he wasn’t too disappointed. “The main thing is that it is in place now. That means more protection for everyone.”
“Any interesting traps?” I asked.
“We ran into a humongous herd of zombies just before we got into St. Louis. They were covering the road and heading toward us. We turned and went back to an overpass. There was a tanker truck full of fuel close by. We got it cranked and drove it into the mass of zombies using a rock on the accelerator and ropes to tie off the steering wheel. We made it where the tank would leave a trail of gas from where we were. Once the truck got to where we needed it, I lit the trail of gas and blew it up. The blast was enormous.”
“Whoa! I hate I missed that one!” I said.
We traded stories for a while. I think Riley and I got along so well because we knew the stress the other one felt. When you lead men in a dangerous situation like zombie killing, you can’t help but be worried all the time. The fact of how similar we were in thought patterns just made it easier for us to get along.
They stayed for two days and hit the road. They took I-80 west, heading for Omaha. They would be gone for much longer this time. They were heading out as far as Salt Lake City before they turned north and made a big loop back on I-94 east. They would come down from Minneapolis on I-35 south.
Des Moines was peaceful. My feet never got any better but I came to love the life there. Now that they trusted me, the people were as friendly as you could find.
A year went by like this. Riley leading the cross country cleansing while I watched over the home front. Everyone was happy until the food began to run out. I organized a food search party to make a run to some of the surrounding cities.
Most of these smaller cities still had their food left. Zombies had taken over. Once the number of survivors was down far enough, it just became a matter of time before the rest died. I was reminded of those first days when I knew I needed to find more people. That had made all the difference for me.
We were in one of these little blips on the map when we hit the mother lode. The local warehouse was full from floor to ceiling almost. I had them get me out of the truck so I could go in and see it. We only took a regular wheelchair on the road since it was a great deal easier that way.
“We will have enough for a year just from this warehouse alone!” Jason said. Miranda gave him a kiss as we reached where he was standing.
“Sara’s going to love this!” I said happily.
Teddy backed the trailer up to the loading dock and the men began to load the truck. We brought a tractor-trailer so we wouldn’t be heading back and forth to Des Moines quite as often. Situations like this one didn’t happen every day. We were glad we had the fifty-three feet of storage space.
Once the truck was loaded we headed out to leave. I had already reached our pickup since I like rolling down the ramps at high speed. I turned back to see Jason and Miranda walking arm and arm. Miranda had just started showing. They were married after four months and were now expecting.
I couldn’t help but smile as I watched them. I sometimes wished I could have found someone but I knew it was a little late for me now. I was too cripple and the pain wasn’t getting any easier to handle.
“Lookout!” I rolled my wheelchair forward as fast as I could. Three zombies had come around the corner of a building and were right on top of them in no time. Jason fought one off but was not going to be able to keep the other two away. Jason’s efforts had given Miranda a chance to run at least.
I crashed into one of the zombies and knocked him to the ground. Unfortunately I went with him. I was turning frantically trying to get to where I could defend myself when I felt the zombie’s teeth sink into my arm.
Chapter 25
Miranda’s tears streamed unchecked down her face. She had been crying since I got bit. I sat in my wheelchair stunned. I kept thinking back to my last conversation with Steve. I still missed him. Now it was my turn.
It was hard for anyone to speak. No one knew what to say.
“Well, I had an interesting run at least.” I said to break the silence.
I didn’t get any takers.
It was getting close to that time.
Jason was fighting his tears with all he had. I knew he wanted to be strong in his support. I really hoped he and Miranda could always be happy together.
I was starting to get scared when a thought occurred to cheer me up. I smiled when I realized I wouldn’t have to put up with Amy’s smartass anymore. That’s one good thing.
I missed my group of losers. Two waitresses, a substitute teacher, a customer service rep, two hardware store guys, a fast food manager, three teenagers, a florist, and a writer. I didn’t forget Amy, I just didn’t miss her.
My mind was getting a little cloudy now.
