Zombie Crusade II: David's Journey Page 14

  Christy slammed on the breaks and spun around to stare at her husband as soon as the Rover slid to a stop. With frustration and anger rising in her voice, she practically shouted. “As I asked a few minutes ago, what in the hell are you talking about?”

  David held up his hand in a calming gesture and explained, “Look, I’m pretty sure that the organisms they were ceased to be at some point before they morphed into what they are now, but I agree with Luke. These creatures are biologically alive in some way. They are evolving.”

  Christy’s eyes grew wide and she covered her mouth with her hand as she cried out, “We’ve been killing them! Not that I don’t think we should be killing them, but killing something that’s already dead isn’t really like killing at all.”

  Luke tried to ease Christy’s growing discomfort, “They aren’t human any longer; they are certainly monsters, and our mortal enemies. We haven’t been killing people; I promise you that.”

  She almost whispered, “What have we been killing?”

  David took over the discussion once again. “Obviously, the person they were is dead in almost every way. This virus, or whatever it is, well, Jack was pretty sure that it was the result of an Army medical experiment gone wrong. But what if it didn’t go wrong?”

  Jim sounded skeptical, “You think they were trying to genetically modify human beings for their own purposes? Even if that’s true, I can’t see these things as the result they were looking for. They still seem like zombies to me.”

  Luke shrugged, “You can call them whatever you want. Who knows what the military was trying to accomplish? I mean, maybe they were hoping to drive terrorists insane or something, so they wouldn’t fight us. Whatever USAMRIID was trying to do, the result is the worst pandemic in history that turns people into monsters that hunt and eat humans.”

  David added, “A new species, in a way. I’m no biologist, but what if some USAMRIID crackpot scientist was trying to alter humans to make them stronger or harder to kill—like some sort of super soldier? If certain bodily functions could be slowed down, like the heart rate, what would happen? If the brain stem and instincts are all that drive their behavior, could a craving for protein cause this zombie-like hunger for flesh? I know it sounds farfetched, but what aspect of a zombie apocalypse isn’t?”

  Christy looked horrified once again. “David, are you trying to tell us that they still think?”

  Luke jumped in again, “No, I don’t believe think is the right word. They can communicate, but bugs can communicate and I don’t think anybody would argue that bugs can think. These creatures don’t show any signs of self-awareness; they’re operating on pure instinct. They probably have some limited ability to learn from experience—but just because they can be conditioned doesn’t mean they can think.”

  Nobody spoke for a moment as they considered the ramifications of Luke’s theory, so he finally continued, “The worst thing is that we have no idea how far they will evolve. I hope that we just saw the pinnacle of their development, but there’s no way to be sure. I’m fairly certain that whatever these things are, or will become, USAMRIID didn’t think these creatures would be the result of their experiment.”

  “No,” David agreed, “these monsters aren’t helping anyone but themselves, and I doubt that anyone at USAMRIID is even still alive.”

  Jerry interrupted, “All right, so maybe they’re still biological organisms and not the reanimated dead from the zombie movies. We still apparently can only stop them by destroying the brain, and they will relentlessly hunt humans until they are stopped by us. So why does it matter what they are?”

  Jim stuttered, “Oh crap! Oh my God! I see where you are going with this—we need to make our move now!”

  David and Luke both nodded as the older man continued, “These creatures are developing into better hunters every day, and they are learning to work together and follow the lead of the best among them. They certainly aren’t going to get any worse than what we’ve faced so far, and that was terrifying as it was. Now, we don’t know how much more lethal they’ll eventually become, and we can’t afford to wait until they’ve reached their full potential.”

  There was a long moment of silence before Christy restarted the Rover and declared, “We need to go home and get moving!”

  Everyone in Jim and Trudy’s living room was trying to talk all at once. David had explained the theory he and Luke were still in the process of developing, and everyone else who had been in the vehicle with them on the trip to Menards agreed with the new analysis of the situation. Finally, the room grew quiet as David held up a hand for silence before continuing. “The only thing that’s changed is our timetable. We’re not going to wait out the summer here in Westlake. Tonight we are going to brainstorm a list of preparations we absolutely must have in place before we can leave, and then we are going to prioritize the list and make assignments. Everyone will have numerous jobs to do, and they need to be completed ASAP! I’m talking a matter of days, not weeks. As far as I’m concerned, every day that we stay here our chances of making it to Jack drop a bit.

  “Another thing, anyone who wants to opt out of this trip and stay here will have plenty of supplies and a safe house to live in, but if you are going to Indiana, we are gonna follow a chain of command from now until we get to The Castle. We have ourselves a triumvirate in command here: Jerry, Christy, and me, but If you have a problem with any orders, talk to me about it, and don’t complain until we get where we’re going. I’m not on some sort of power trip here; this is basically a military-type mission we’re on, and there’s a good reason why the military has a chain of command and follows orders. We’ll have to exercise discipline and order out there, or we’ll die at the hands of these monsters.

  “Does anybody have a problem with this arrangement?”

  He waited a few moments for anyone to speak up, but all David saw around the circle of faces were nods of agreement so he continued with his instructions. “What this means is that when we’re in a tight spot of any type, everyone needs to follow orders without question. Anytime we’re in a reasonably safe place, or otherwise have the time for a discussion, feel free to question anything and everything. All of you have experiences and knowledge that I don’t possess, and that makes us stronger if we can communicate effectively.

  “Many of you here have fought at my side against some very difficult odds, and we’re still here today, so I know you can fight and think. We’ll need both of those skills in abundance if we’re gonna to make it to Indiana. One last point, everyone who’s seen Luke in action knows that he is absolutely deadly against these creatures, and if you’ve spent time with him out there you know that he seems to have a sixth sense about this new world we’re living in.”

  David turned to Luke, who was staring at him with an intensely serious expression. “Son, any time, any place, while we’re out there on this journey, I demand that you speak up loud and clear if you get one of your hunches about something.”

  Luke nodded grimly, “I will, David.”

  The older man offered a brief smile and then returned his attention to the group. “Okay, if there are no questions, let’s get to work!”

  The next few days saw a frenzy of activity in which every member of the group worked sixteen-hour days making preparations for the trip, everything being supervised and recorded by Christy with her ever-present notebook. David, Jerry, and Luke, made several forays into neighboring homes looking for helmets and weapons, running into a few starving zombies locked up in some of the homes since the beginning of the outbreak, but avoiding contact with any of the advanced specimens they’d been seeing lately. The other members of the group were busy packing food, medical supplies, and camping gear they would be taking along, while also finding time to complete the work on leather-armor suits for everyone. By the end of the fourth day after their experience at the Menards store, David decided that they were ready to go.

  He had talked it over with Jerry and Christy, and they’d decide
d that the group would make their move to the Cleveland Yacht Club marina two hours before dawn the following morning. Their reasoning was that they had night vision and were still uncertain if the zombies, a term many in the group still used to describe the monsters in spite of what they suspected about their biology, could see at night any better than a normal human could. David expected the most confusing time to be when they reached the marina and began making the transition from the vehicles to the boats. With the children, and a number of adults who weren’t exactly fighters, he wanted everyone to be able to see in case they were attacked or somehow became separated from one another. David also fully expected the marina to be a disaster area, and he wanted as much daylight as possible to find boats, fuel, and batteries, and safely load all their gear and people into the craft.

  Everyone worked to load the Rover, Father O’Brien’s Explorer, and Jim’s old Jeep for the trip. Once the packing was complete David advised everyone to shower and put on clean clothes, because there was no way to know when they would have the opportunity to enjoy hot water again. Everyone ate as much food from Jim’s supply of canned goods that wouldn’t be making the trip as they possibly could, and set aside leftovers for a farewell breakfast the next morning. Finally, everyone bedded down in one house and tried to get some sleep before their departure hour.

  Christy was now considered the master route finder and driver through Westlake and the surrounding areas, so she drove the Rover while Blake, a lifelong resident of the suburb, worked the GPS and served as navigator for the trip. Vickie, Father O’Brien, and Gracie were assigned to the Rover as well. David followed in the Explorer with Lori riding shotgun. The Explorer had seven seat belts, so all the children, Sal, and the dog rode in the middle vehicle. Jim brought up the rear with Jerry, Luke, and Trudy packed into the Jeep. Most of the supplies were stored on top of the vehicles, and everyone was fully armored if somewhat crowded on the inside. They didn’t have that far to travel, and David was taking no chances with safety as they headed into the unknown.

  The sun was peeking over the horizon as they pulled into the packed parking lot of the Yacht Club, the four-mile trip taking the allotted two hours but accomplished with a minimum of noise. They had seen several dozen zombies as they drove, but every one of them was alone and in poor shape. The creatures tried to follow the tiny convoy, but David wasn’t worried about them as he kept his eyes open for the packs that had haunted him since the expedition to Menards. They didn’t see any of the hunters, which was what Luke was now calling the advanced creatures, but he knew that didn’t mean they weren’t out there, tracking them by sound or other senses that might be evolving as they continued to develop with the intake of protein.

  The Yacht Club itself was really an older main office building with a newer addition that served as the clubhouse. A series of long piers lined the rather narrow channel that led to the open water of Lake Erie. The convoy approached the entrance slowly; the gate had been ripped from its hinges and tossed ten feet to the side. The parking lot of the Yacht Club was almost as messy as that of St. Bernadette’s, but there was a wide sidewalk paralleling a high, chain-link fence topped with barbed-wire for about one hundred yards that was free of obstruction. Christy led the vehicles through the obstacle course of cars and onto the walkway that led past the office to the docks. As soon as they reached the sidewalk, David called Christy on the radio and asked her to stop for a moment. As the group idled in place, he got out of the Explorer and waved for Jerry and Luke to join him.

  “Luke, grab your bow and move over to the gate we just drove through and keep watch for a minute.”

  As the teen moved to follow the order, David asked Jerry, “Know how to hotwire a car?”

  Jerry cocked his head to one side and smirked, “I’m a cop!”

  David smiled and nodded as he explained, “All right, let’s take a few minutes to see if we can’t block this opening with one of those big SUVs in the lot. Think the batteries will still work after sitting this long?”

  “Well, it’s summer and they’ve only been here about four weeks; we shouldn’t have any trouble with that.”

  “Good,” David remarked, “I’ve got your back.”

  They quickly moved to a Hummer in the first row and found the doors locked. Instead of trying to break through the glass they simply moved down three spots to a Lincoln Navigator that had a window a quarter of the way open. That door was unlocked, and Jerry immediately discovered a set of keys wedged above the driver’s side visor.

  “Still want me to hot-wire this thing?”

  David sighed, “Just see if the damn thing will start!’

  Jerry chuckled quietly and hopped into the driver’s seat, turning the ignition and finding that the vehicle started up without any problems at all. He drove it over to the gate, parked it right up against the wire on both sides, and quickly climbed out the driver’s side to join Luke and David waiting for him.

  “Nice work, Dad.” Luke whispered.

  “Wish I had a dime for every time I’ve heard that in my life.”

  David muttered, “I’d be shocked if you had more than a dollar. Now let’s go.”

  As they got back in their vehicles behind Christy they heard her call over the radio, “There’s zombies in there.” She was parked less than thirty feet from the main office and had a clear view of the left side of the building.

  Sure enough, three or four emaciated creatures could be seen clawing at the windows, and David told Blake and Lori to keep the flesh-eaters’ attention while he led Jerry and Luke around to the back door. They entered to find a slow-moving zombie heading their way. He’d been trying to scratch through a door leading to the front of the office, and David simply grabbed the monster with one arm and slammed the blade of a six-inch folding knife he’d been carrying lately through the top of the monster’s head. Luke and Jerry had already moved around him, hoping to get into the next room before the zombies at the windows came to investigate the noise.

  They needn’t have worried since Blake and Lori still had the starving creatures’ full attention as the father-son team rapidly crossed the room and dispatched the zombies with mace and axe. They cleared the rest of the building in less than sixty seconds, finding no other flesh-eaters while discovering a little room that had a wall covered with keys hanging from hooks. David radioed the all clear to Christy and told her where they were and what they had found.

  In less than a minute, Father O’Brien darted in and grabbed a log book on the desk in the key room. He quickly scanned the final two pages before announcing, “One of those poor creatures apparently kept really good records for as long as possible. The keys are arranged by docks, with the biggest yachts being as close to the harbor entrance as possible. Those keys should be along the bottom two rows.”

  Christy looked over the keys and remarked, “Thank God for small blessings! Every set of keys here is marked with a dock number and ship name.”

  O’Brien smiled, “Well, young lady, I suggest that you grab them all and let’s drive our vehicles toward those end docks.”

  As soon as they were outside Father O’Brien saw Blake and Lori looking out toward the channel that led from the docks to the lake, and he squinted against the sunlight to see what they were so interested in. With a shock he saw that the docks and access channel to the lake were in the same condition as the roads around Cleveland: gridlocked.

  Christy moved up beside him and muttered, “Now what are we going to do?”

  Father O’Brien spoke quietly but reassuringly to them all. “Let’s get ourselves as close to the yachts we want as possible, and we’ll find a way to get past this mess.”

  “How are we going to do that, Father?” David asked in an irritated tone.

  The old priest smiled. “We’re going to burn our way out.”

  CHAPTER 12

  The narrow road that led along the outer docks was blocked by numerous vehicles that had been left by survivors who’d attempted to escape the an
archy accompanying the first days of the outbreak, and every time Christy found her progress blocked by one of the abandoned autos the guys got out and pushed it out of the way. Progress was slow but steady, and the group made it to the docks holding the bigger vessels in about an hour. They had encountered over a dozen zombies during that time, but again, none were the fast-moving hunters they were on the lookout for. Christy and David accompanied Father O’Brien onto the docks to look for yachts that were in good condition and large enough to hold the group, while Jerry and Luke organized a perimeter around the vehicles to keep watch.

  Only minutes after they had taken their positions Lori called out in a tense voice, “We’ve got company!”

  She was posted at the rear of the Jeep, watching the route they had just taken to the far-docks. Jerry looked over at Luke and jerked his head in Lori’s direction, “Go see what she’s got; I’ll stay over here.”

  Luke trotted over to Lori’s position with bow in hand, finding the former soldier pointing down the path at a group of about eight fast-movers two hundred yards away who immediately broke out into a run when they saw the teen come into view.

  Lori muttered, “I hadn’t moved a muscle, but they started staring this way when I called out to you.”

  “Dad,” Luke called out, “leave Blake and Sal on that side and get over here now!”

  Jerry came running up to Lori and Luke as the hunters closed within fifty yards, still running full speed toward the waiting humans. A few seconds later an arrow smacked right between the eyes of the leading flesh eater, and then Luke pulled his axe as his dad and Lori opened fire with the .22s that David had insisted they keep while he and Christy searched the yachts. Three more of the monsters were down before the remainder of the pack hit the three warriors with a crash. Luke had taken one step forward at the last second and bent over to catch the first hunter with his shoulder, flipping the beast high into the air before it dropped head first to the pavement. Even before the creature hit the ground Luke had spun around and sliced through the skull of a flesh-eater that had tackled Lori and was preoccupied with trying to gnaw through her helmet. The teen then turned to see his dad grappling with a strong female, as a male lay twitching on the ground beside them with Jerry’s short sword sticking out of one of its eye sockets.