Zombiekill by Russ Watts Page A

anymore. They had tried it Jeremy’s way, and it wasn’t working anymore. Magda had lost even more weight and was becoming lethargic with every passing day. They had all lost weight, and if he didn’t do something about it today, then tomorrow might not come. Schafer knew his headache was a result of becoming dehydrated, and it was another reason why he had to leave the house. He had tried talking to Jeremy about it, but he was continually shut down. Over the last week they had argued more and more, until it just wasn’t worth the effort anymore. If Jeremy wanted to stay and starve to death, then Schafer knew he couldn’t convince him otherwise. That didn’t mean he had to let his family suffer too.
    “I’ll be okay, Rilla.”
    Schafer had found one of Victoria’s empty backpacks and pulled the straps around his shoulder to make sure it was secure. He was going to use it to hopefully bring back some food. Schafer patted his pocket, checking the kitchen knife was safely stowed away, and gripped the old baseball bat in his hands. Rilla had found it in the back of the garage collecting dust, probably one of Jeremy’s old toys from his own boyhood, and she had stolen it away for her father, insisting that he take it.
    “Just keep quiet, don’t draw attention to yourself, and get back here if you run into any trouble. Don’t take any chances, okay?”
    “Promise.” Schafer winked. “Now go. Just make sure you’re here when I get back.”
    From the confines of the laundry room they ceased their whispering, and Rilla stepped out to head for the kitchen. She had to cause a distraction to make sure that Jeremy and Lyn were looking at her and not at her father who was about to sneak out the back. Jeremy would never allow Schafer to go out, so they had planned how to do it carefully. Rilla would make a lot of noise in the kitchen from where the back yard was hidden from view. Schafer meanwhile would run out back and use the garbage bins to scale the retaining wall into the neighbor’s property. If Jeremy or Lyn asked where Schafer was during the day, then Rilla would simply say he wasn’t feeling well and was still in bed.
    Schafer waited patiently in the laundry room, for Rilla to start shouting and drawing everyone to the kitchen. He looked around the room as he waited, marveling at how white and clean everything was. With everything that had happened, it was surprising how Jeremy and Lyn liked to keep up appearances. Lyn regularly swept and cleaned the house, even dusting the TV when it hadn’t worked for months and wasn’t likely to ever again.
    A short scream sounded from within the house, and Schafer knew that was his cue. It was Rilla screaming, and he could already hear the others running to the kitchen. He crept silently out of the room, down the corridor to the back door, and outside where the sun was waiting for him. He heard Rilla scream again and shout something about rats, and then he was gone, running over the brown garden and the dead vegetable patch to the wall. It looked higher than he remembered, but he couldn’t afford to back out now. He dragged two of the garbage bins over and pushed them right up against the wall. Clambering on top of them, he put his arms on top of the wall and began to pull himself up. When he reached the summit, he looked back briefly, noticing the crowded zombies around the front of the house. When they did go, they would all have to go over the wall too.
    Before he jumped down, Schafer scanned the neighbor’s yard, ensuring it was clear. The drop, about ten feet, wasn’t as high on this side as the land rose up, and he knew he could safely let himself down without breaking anything. The whole area had been concreted over and seemingly used to store old car parts. Bits of engine lay all over the place, and dead leaves had collected in the corners of the yard. The small house beyond looked deserted. Two small windows upstairs were open, and the dark rooms within appeared