.
After a while, we turned in. I shut the curtains, killing the moonlight and darkening the room. One small candle burned as a light source and we took extra care to make sure it didn’t give us away to the zombies. Before leaving the window, I looked out at the burning city and the roaming zombies with dread. Death could sneak up on us and snuff us out at any moment.
Charley was first on guard duty. He put his rifle over his shoulder and marched like a toy soldier. I could hear giggles from Brittany and Jones beneath the covers. I watched the shadows produced by the candles and lost myself in thoughts of home and family.
During the night, as I watched Charley, his left hand shook. He was standing against a wall with his gun over his right shoulder. I watched and it shook again. Warning bells went off in my head and I knew what was wrong. All night my body had been telling me not to relax and have fun because something was wrong, danger was near me. This was what I was being warned about.
My rifle was next to me. I eased my hand to it and unlatched the safety. Only my head showed above the covers so I was safe, Charley couldn’t see what I was doing. With care, I eased the gun up to my head and aimed at him. He was turning into a zombie and I was going to take him out. Always trust your instincts; they will never let you down.
Brittany must have seen me, she screamed my name. Before Charley could react, I was on him. I raced to him with my gun up in his face. Likewise, he aimed at me with perfect timing. We were having a Mexican standoff.
“Zee!” Brittany got to her feet and ran next to me. “What the hell are you doing?”
“He’s a zombie, Britt. I saw him turning.”
“Zee, put the gun down. He is not a zombie, it is only Charley. You were dreaming.”
Her calmness wasn’t working on me. “I saw it, he is a zombie and I am going to blow his fucking head off!”
Charley was not afraid, I saw no fear in his eyes and that angered me more. “You better back off or you will be the one with a hole in your head.”
“You try it, just try it.”
“Baker!” Jones shouted. He was late to the party, but I could use his support.
“He is a zombie, Jones. I saw him shaking like Thompson did right before he turned. That son of a bitch has been bitten and didn’t tell any of us.” I held my gun higher.
“Baker, you back off, soldier. You read me?”
“He’s a zombie, Jones. Do you hear me? He’s a zombie!”
“Maybe you’re the zombie,” Charley said as politely as he could. He was trying to infuriate me and he was damn close. “You’re the one who has been off in her own little world tonight. If anybody is changing it’s you. How about it, Jones? Hasn’t she been the weird one tonight?”
Jones looked at me and wavered, I saw it in his eyes. “I trust Baker with my life. She is part of my team until the day she dies.”
“Thanks, Jones. Britt?”
“Nobody is getting shot tonight. Do you both understand me? Nobody is getting shot tonight. Now put the guns down and talk like reasonable people.”
Neither Charley nor I eased our positions, it was a stalemate. I was right and would not let another zombie get past me.
Brittany went to Charley and got him to lower his weapon—I trained mine between his beady little eyes. I longed for them to turn red so I could blast him. She turned to me and tried to ease mine down. I resisted and stepped back.
“Take your clothes off.”
“What?”
“You heard me, prove you are not a zombie.” I said to the wide-eyed, potential zombie.
“No,” said Charley.
“I’m not going through this again. People lie all the time. You are not getting me killed. Prove you have not been bitten or scratched.” The words did come from me, as alien as they were. I was asking a fully grown man to strip at gunpoint. Would the others ever do something so crazy?
“Do it!” Jones barked. “Let’s end this now.” He jerked the curtains open and let the moonlight filter into the room and shine its light of purity on all inside.
“Fine!”
Charley handed his gun to Brittany. He looked at me with hatred, I didn’t care, I had the truth on my side and was about to prove it. He took off his shirt, kicked off his cowboy boots, removed his socks, and then his pants. He stood before me in his underwear, white boxers. He held up his hands to allow us to examine him. Jones, Brittany, and I scanned every inch of his flesh for traces of scratches and bites.
Brittany, in an effort to appease me, briefly left and came back with the cloth she used to wipe down our kitchen table. She whispered an apology to Charley and wiped areas of his body covered in dried zombie blood. I kept my gun on him and watched with anticipation. She cleaned a few areas and when no traces were found, he turned around to show his back.
Again, Brittany saw two places that needed wiping and performed her service. No marks of any kind shone on the man. She looked at me. “He’s clean, Zee.”
Charley turned around, gloating. It sent me into a frenzy. I boiled with rage.
“Drop the underwear.”
Charley’s face contorted, but only for a second. He smirked and dropped them. He then turned around and back, before pulling them up. “Satisfied?” he started putting his clothes back on.
I wasn’t satisfied, not in the least, but he was clean. Something told me not to let it go.
“I saw your hand shaking.”
“It’s from hitting the gun cabinet at the police station. It tingles every once in a while. You could have asked.”
I lowered my gun.
“Oh, it’s just me that’s in question?” his arrogance annoyed me. We looked at one another. Then, all eyes turned to me, confusion on every face.
“All right,” said Jones. “From now on, safety is number one. We drop trou after every hand-to-hand fight. Dushell, you’re next.”
“What?” said a shocked Brittany.
“You heard me,” said Jones, looking sorrowful. “Strip.”
Brittany cast a look at me that would have burned me alive, if possible. “No problem.” She said it more to me than to the others. Her teeth were together, face red with anger. With that, she handed her towel to Charley and glaring at me and me alone, she reached down and unlaced her boots. She kicked them off and took off her socks. Glaring again at me, she took off her pants and threw them on the floor. She then pulled her shirt over her head and threw it in my face.
I should have known—she wore no bra. She raised her hands above her head and shot me the dirtiest look she could muster. Charley got his reward for my mistake. As Brittany held her pose, he and Jones, he in particular, took great pleasure examining every inch of her beautiful skin. She turned around and they began again. She then turned back and fixed her gaze on me. “Do you want my panties, too?”
“No.”
“Whatever.”
I hope I hadn’t lost her as a friend, this was not what I intended. To ease my guilt, I did the unexpected, “I’m next.” I gave Jones my rifle and while Brittany gathered her tossed items and dressed, I took center stage. Like Brittany, I thought it best to start at my feet and work my way up, thinking it would be less of a peep show that way. I bent over and unlaced and pulled off my boots and socks. My feet hadn’t been free of boots in so long, it felt good. I quickly undid and removed my pants and then my shirt. Unlike my friend, I had made use of our haul from the store and now stood before them in a blue, matching bra and panties set. I held up my hands and after confirmation, turned to show my back.
Jones told me to turn again and then I dressed. He was the last to be examined and I was happy, none of us were bitten or scratched. Brittany glared. Jones looked solemn. And Charley smirked like the asshole he was. One day I’m going to kill him.
Chapter 18
Sleep was impossible after that. Charley and Jones went to check our perimeter, truth be told, they wanted to get away from me. I was left with my friend and my stomach churned. Brittany and I sat with our backs against a wall with our knees to our chests. I needed to apologize to my friend. I searched my heart for words, they never came.
“Zee?”
“I’m so sorry.”
“You’re my friend and I love you, but you are a head case.”
“I know. I’m sorry.”
“God, Zee. How could you do that?”
“I thought he was a zombie.”
“Yeah, right.”
“I did, Britt!”
“Maybe you should examine your hatred. You know, find out what is at the bottom of it.”
I stayed silent, arguing would do no good.
“Are you going to say anything?”
“What can I say?”
“Zee. Why did you do it?”
“I don’t know.”
“Why did you freak out when Thompson died?”
“I don’t know.”
“Did you sleep with Thompson?”
“God, no!”
“It’s about feelings, Zee. You have feelings that you hide and when you do, they still come out, it just happens in a crazy kind of way that hurts everyone. Get a grip, Zee, lighten up. I mean . . . what was up with you? We were laughing and blowing off steam and you were just . . . I don’t know, Zee. It’s not normal.”
“The world is ending and you think I’m not normal because I have priorities and don’t want to waste my time playing charades? I’m the weird one, when you were playing with food, chasing it around the table instead of eating it?”
“Zee! Stop it! Stop trying to turn things around. What you did was crazy. If I hadn’t stopped you, you would have shot and killed an innocent man. We’re a team, all of us. Yes, we are surrounded by danger and can die any minute, but that is no excuse to not live. That is no excuse to not be happy and laugh. No excuse to isolate yourself and pretend we have no priorities or feelings or common sense. You have to do something to stay sane, we are doing that. Why can’t you?”
“I’m trying,” I uttered.
“Try harder.”
Brittany was not letting me get away with anything, she shouldn’t. I almost killed an innocent human being, one of the few left in the world. I had no defense and every argument I wanted to use was flat and weak.
The boys came back, their laughter filtered through the door. I would apologize as soon as he came in and do my best to act normal. They rumbled the cans as they crossed them and laughed to themselves. The door opened and they were all smiles.
Immediately, I got to my feet. “I’m sorry, guys. I’m especially sorry to you, Charley. I hope one day you can forgive me.”
I waited. The silence was killing me.
Brittany took my hand. “Hey, guys. I want you both to meet my friend, Zora. If you become her friend, like me, you can call her Zee.”
My face reddened. I lowered my head to hide my face, I wanted to die. Brittany enjoyed her torture. The look on her face said she wouldn’t stop.
“Zee is from a large family, her mother pushed out a dozen puppies. I want you both to look at these hips and believe me when I say it—she is a chip off the old block. You can’t go wrong with this one.”
If I could have hung my head lower, I would have. She reamed me out good. I had it coming and kept telling myself not to freak out and act crazy. I could do this, I could be fun. The two people I trusted most had told me to relax and live for the day. To enjoy life before it ended. I needed to enjoy life.
“Now, we don’t want this young, buxom filly going to the glue factory all depressed and a sourpuss. No! If we die tomorrow, this stallion is going to ride tonight. Can I get an Amen?”
“Amen,” said Jones.
“Amen to the fillies,” roared Charley.
“We’re all young,” shouted Brittany. “We’re all single! The world is burning! And we’re all going to hell! Whoo!”
“Whoo!” echoed the boys. I stood laughing, red faced.
Brittany continued, “If we were near a club, I’d be rocking tonight. Anybody got any music?”
“No,” said Jones. “I got a substitute.”
Jones gave his famous grin and went for his pack. We set the table up and patiently waited with our cups for him to pour us a drink.
“To the brave men and women of the 59
After a while, we turned in. I shut the curtains, killing the moonlight and darkening the room. One small candle burned as a light source and we took extra care to make sure it didn’t give us away to the zombies. Before leaving the window, I looked out at the burning city and the roaming zombies with dread. Death could sneak up on us and snuff us out at any moment.
Charley was first on guard duty. He put his rifle over his shoulder and marched like a toy soldier. I could hear giggles from Brittany and Jones beneath the covers. I watched the shadows produced by the candles and lost myself in thoughts of home and family.
During the night, as I watched Charley, his left hand shook. He was standing against a wall with his gun over his right shoulder. I watched and it shook again. Warning bells went off in my head and I knew what was wrong. All night my body had been telling me not to relax and have fun because something was wrong, danger was near me. This was what I was being warned about.
My rifle was next to me. I eased my hand to it and unlatched the safety. Only my head showed above the covers so I was safe, Charley couldn’t see what I was doing. With care, I eased the gun up to my head and aimed at him. He was turning into a zombie and I was going to take him out. Always trust your instincts; they will never let you down.
Brittany must have seen me, she screamed my name. Before Charley could react, I was on him. I raced to him with my gun up in his face. Likewise, he aimed at me with perfect timing. We were having a Mexican standoff.
“Zee!” Brittany got to her feet and ran next to me. “What the hell are you doing?”
“He’s a zombie, Britt. I saw him turning.”
“Zee, put the gun down. He is not a zombie, it is only Charley. You were dreaming.”
Her calmness wasn’t working on me. “I saw it, he is a zombie and I am going to blow his fucking head off!”
Charley was not afraid, I saw no fear in his eyes and that angered me more. “You better back off or you will be the one with a hole in your head.”
“You try it, just try it.”
“Baker!” Jones shouted. He was late to the party, but I could use his support.
“He is a zombie, Jones. I saw him shaking like Thompson did right before he turned. That son of a bitch has been bitten and didn’t tell any of us.” I held my gun higher.
“Baker, you back off, soldier. You read me?”
“He’s a zombie, Jones. Do you hear me? He’s a zombie!”
“Maybe you’re the zombie,” Charley said as politely as he could. He was trying to infuriate me and he was damn close. “You’re the one who has been off in her own little world tonight. If anybody is changing it’s you. How about it, Jones? Hasn’t she been the weird one tonight?”
Jones looked at me and wavered, I saw it in his eyes. “I trust Baker with my life. She is part of my team until the day she dies.”
“Thanks, Jones. Britt?”
“Nobody is getting shot tonight. Do you both understand me? Nobody is getting shot tonight. Now put the guns down and talk like reasonable people.”
Neither Charley nor I eased our positions, it was a stalemate. I was right and would not let another zombie get past me.
Brittany went to Charley and got him to lower his weapon—I trained mine between his beady little eyes. I longed for them to turn red so I could blast him. She turned to me and tried to ease mine down. I resisted and stepped back.
“Take your clothes off.”
“What?”
“You heard me, prove you are not a zombie.” I said to the wide-eyed, potential zombie.
“No,” said Charley.
“I’m not going through this again. People lie all the time. You are not getting me killed. Prove you have not been bitten or scratched.” The words did come from me, as alien as they were. I was asking a fully grown man to strip at gunpoint. Would the others ever do something so crazy?
“Do it!” Jones barked. “Let’s end this now.” He jerked the curtains open and let the moonlight filter into the room and shine its light of purity on all inside.
“Fine!”
Charley handed his gun to Brittany. He looked at me with hatred, I didn’t care, I had the truth on my side and was about to prove it. He took off his shirt, kicked off his cowboy boots, removed his socks, and then his pants. He stood before me in his underwear, white boxers. He held up his hands to allow us to examine him. Jones, Brittany, and I scanned every inch of his flesh for traces of scratches and bites.
Brittany, in an effort to appease me, briefly left and came back with the cloth she used to wipe down our kitchen table. She whispered an apology to Charley and wiped areas of his body covered in dried zombie blood. I kept my gun on him and watched with anticipation. She cleaned a few areas and when no traces were found, he turned around to show his back.
Again, Brittany saw two places that needed wiping and performed her service. No marks of any kind shone on the man. She looked at me. “He’s clean, Zee.”
Charley turned around, gloating. It sent me into a frenzy. I boiled with rage.
“Drop the underwear.”
Charley’s face contorted, but only for a second. He smirked and dropped them. He then turned around and back, before pulling them up. “Satisfied?” he started putting his clothes back on.
I wasn’t satisfied, not in the least, but he was clean. Something told me not to let it go.
“I saw your hand shaking.”
“It’s from hitting the gun cabinet at the police station. It tingles every once in a while. You could have asked.”
I lowered my gun.
“Oh, it’s just me that’s in question?” his arrogance annoyed me. We looked at one another. Then, all eyes turned to me, confusion on every face.
“All right,” said Jones. “From now on, safety is number one. We drop trou after every hand-to-hand fight. Dushell, you’re next.”
“What?” said a shocked Brittany.
“You heard me,” said Jones, looking sorrowful. “Strip.”
Brittany cast a look at me that would have burned me alive, if possible. “No problem.” She said it more to me than to the others. Her teeth were together, face red with anger. With that, she handed her towel to Charley and glaring at me and me alone, she reached down and unlaced her boots. She kicked them off and took off her socks. Glaring again at me, she took off her pants and threw them on the floor. She then pulled her shirt over her head and threw it in my face.
I should have known—she wore no bra. She raised her hands above her head and shot me the dirtiest look she could muster. Charley got his reward for my mistake. As Brittany held her pose, he and Jones, he in particular, took great pleasure examining every inch of her beautiful skin. She turned around and they began again. She then turned back and fixed her gaze on me. “Do you want my panties, too?”
“No.”
“Whatever.”
I hope I hadn’t lost her as a friend, this was not what I intended. To ease my guilt, I did the unexpected, “I’m next.” I gave Jones my rifle and while Brittany gathered her tossed items and dressed, I took center stage. Like Brittany, I thought it best to start at my feet and work my way up, thinking it would be less of a peep show that way. I bent over and unlaced and pulled off my boots and socks. My feet hadn’t been free of boots in so long, it felt good. I quickly undid and removed my pants and then my shirt. Unlike my friend, I had made use of our haul from the store and now stood before them in a blue, matching bra and panties set. I held up my hands and after confirmation, turned to show my back.
Jones told me to turn again and then I dressed. He was the last to be examined and I was happy, none of us were bitten or scratched. Brittany glared. Jones looked solemn. And Charley smirked like the asshole he was. One day I’m going to kill him.
Chapter 18
Sleep was impossible after that. Charley and Jones went to check our perimeter, truth be told, they wanted to get away from me. I was left with my friend and my stomach churned. Brittany and I sat with our backs against a wall with our knees to our chests. I needed to apologize to my friend. I searched my heart for words, they never came.
“Zee?”
“I’m so sorry.”
“You’re my friend and I love you, but you are a head case.”
“I know. I’m sorry.”
“God, Zee. How could you do that?”
“I thought he was a zombie.”
“Yeah, right.”
“I did, Britt!”
“Maybe you should examine your hatred. You know, find out what is at the bottom of it.”
I stayed silent, arguing would do no good.
“Are you going to say anything?”
“What can I say?”
“Zee. Why did you do it?”
“I don’t know.”
“Why did you freak out when Thompson died?”
“I don’t know.”
“Did you sleep with Thompson?”
“God, no!”
“It’s about feelings, Zee. You have feelings that you hide and when you do, they still come out, it just happens in a crazy kind of way that hurts everyone. Get a grip, Zee, lighten up. I mean . . . what was up with you? We were laughing and blowing off steam and you were just . . . I don’t know, Zee. It’s not normal.”
“The world is ending and you think I’m not normal because I have priorities and don’t want to waste my time playing charades? I’m the weird one, when you were playing with food, chasing it around the table instead of eating it?”
“Zee! Stop it! Stop trying to turn things around. What you did was crazy. If I hadn’t stopped you, you would have shot and killed an innocent man. We’re a team, all of us. Yes, we are surrounded by danger and can die any minute, but that is no excuse to not live. That is no excuse to not be happy and laugh. No excuse to isolate yourself and pretend we have no priorities or feelings or common sense. You have to do something to stay sane, we are doing that. Why can’t you?”
“I’m trying,” I uttered.
“Try harder.”
Brittany was not letting me get away with anything, she shouldn’t. I almost killed an innocent human being, one of the few left in the world. I had no defense and every argument I wanted to use was flat and weak.
The boys came back, their laughter filtered through the door. I would apologize as soon as he came in and do my best to act normal. They rumbled the cans as they crossed them and laughed to themselves. The door opened and they were all smiles.
Immediately, I got to my feet. “I’m sorry, guys. I’m especially sorry to you, Charley. I hope one day you can forgive me.”
I waited. The silence was killing me.
Brittany took my hand. “Hey, guys. I want you both to meet my friend, Zora. If you become her friend, like me, you can call her Zee.”
My face reddened. I lowered my head to hide my face, I wanted to die. Brittany enjoyed her torture. The look on her face said she wouldn’t stop.
“Zee is from a large family, her mother pushed out a dozen puppies. I want you both to look at these hips and believe me when I say it—she is a chip off the old block. You can’t go wrong with this one.”
If I could have hung my head lower, I would have. She reamed me out good. I had it coming and kept telling myself not to freak out and act crazy. I could do this, I could be fun. The two people I trusted most had told me to relax and live for the day. To enjoy life before it ended. I needed to enjoy life.
“Now, we don’t want this young, buxom filly going to the glue factory all depressed and a sourpuss. No! If we die tomorrow, this stallion is going to ride tonight. Can I get an Amen?”
“Amen,” said Jones.
“Amen to the fillies,” roared Charley.
“We’re all young,” shouted Brittany. “We’re all single! The world is burning! And we’re all going to hell! Whoo!”
“Whoo!” echoed the boys. I stood laughing, red faced.
Brittany continued, “If we were near a club, I’d be rocking tonight. Anybody got any music?”
“No,” said Jones. “I got a substitute.”
Jones gave his famous grin and went for his pack. We set the table up and patiently waited with our cups for him to pour us a drink.
“To the brave men and women of the 59
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