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  MARZ II

  MARZ SERIES

  Book Two

  James Davis

  And

  James Aldridge

  Dark Days Press

  MAYFIELD, KENTUCKY

  Copyright © 2020 by James Davis and James Aldridge

  All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, distributed, or transmitted in any form or by any means, without prior written permission.

  James Davis and James Aldridge /Dark Days Press

  Mayfield, Kentucky

  Publisher’s Note: This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents are a product of the author’s imagination. Locales and public names are sometimes used for atmospheric purposes. Any resemblance to actual people, living or dead, or to businesses, companies, events, institutions, or locales is completely coincidental.

  MARZ II/MARZ Series-Book Two/ James Davis and James Aldridge. -- 1st ed.

  ASIN: B08J263T9Q

  Cover Artist: Ommy Hudan

  Editor: Sara Miller

  Marketing/Publicist: Poised Pen Productions

  Contents

  Chapter 1

  Chapter 2

  Chapter 3

  Chapter 4

  Chapter 5

  Chapter 6

  Chapter 7

  Chapter 8

  Chapter 9

  Chapter 10

  Chapter 11

  Chapter 12

  Chapter 13

  Chapter 14

  Chapter 15

  Chapter 16

  Chapter 17

  Chapter 18

  Chapter 19

  Chapter 20

  Chapter 21

  Chapter 22

  Chapter 23

  Chapter 24

  Chapter 25

  Chapter 26

  From the Authors

  Chapter One

  10:33 a.m. New Year’s Day 2049

  Athens, Georgia

  The roar of the engine echoed off the surrounding trees as Johnny raced the Dodge Charger down an old back road. The interstates were packed with stopped cars and dead bodies. Moving the obstacles turned out to be more perilous and time consuming than it was worth, so Johnny and Roosevelt kept to the back roads unless they had no other choice.

  “You paying attention to where we’re going?” Johnny asked as Roosevelt held the map out in front of him. Cell service had failed a couple of days earlier and they were reduced to navigating the old-fashioned way. Johnny had a feeling most of everything would be going back to the old-fashioned way in the days to come.

  “Yeah I got it.” Roosevelt finally said using his index finger to trace the road they were on.

  “In about two miles you’re going to make a left then follow that road for about thirty miles until you come to a three way stop. Once you get there, you’re going to make a right. I-24 won't be far from that turn. We’re going to have to chance it for a little ways today till we find another backroad going west.” Roosevelt explained. Johnny pressed down harder on the throttle sending the car speeding down the empty backroad. Tall pine trees and single-story homes blurred past as the car rocketed down the road.

  “110! 120!” Johnny yelled over the screaming Hellcat engine.

  “Johnny slow this sumbitch down!” Roosevelt shouted back as he squeezed the car's door handle and arm rest as hard as he possibly could. After about a mile and a half Johnny lifted his right foot and eased down on the brakes. The car slowed down to 80 then down to 55 and finally 20 as Johnny made the turn. He down shifted and eased back into the throttle giving Roosevelt a quick peak from the corner of his eye.

  “Don’t you fuc…” Roosevelt started but Johnny stomped down on the throttle sending Roosevelt slamming back in his seat. The tires chirped each time Johnny switched gears, the car gaining speed as it sped down the road. He held the speed steady at sixty-five miles per hour as he navigated through the shallow curves.

  “What the hell is wrong with you?” Roosevelt said after finally catching his breath. Johnny shrugged.

  “Just felt like opening her up. Plus, it helps push the thoughts of Tracy out of my head.” Johnny answered. Roosevelt nodded his head, knowing all too well the pain and heartache his friend was going through.

  “You know they would have wanted us to move on and try to be happy right?” Roosevelt asked in a gruff voice.

  “I know. I just can’t forget about my wife, who I had to shoot, in a few short days. Johnny replied in a somewhat annoyed tone. He allowed the car to slow as he gripped the wheel and steered around a wrecked car and truck. They crept by keeping an eye on the woods out of Roosevelt's window for signs of threats. Johnny turned back to face the road when a bloody, torn apart face smashed into his window. The glass shattered and the runners arm shot in grabbing a fist full of Johnny’s shirt and chest hair. He let out a loud squeal before smashing his right foot down onto the gas pedal. The car roared and sped off down the road, the undead monster still holding its death grip on Johnny.

  “Get this thing off of me!” Johnny shouted as he tried to beat the things arm away. Roosevelt glanced out of the windshield and spotted another wrecked Prius laying on its side in the road. He grabbed the steering wheel and gently eased the car to the left as Johnny continued to pry at the zombies clenched hand.

  “Hold on!” Roosevelt said, easing the car over a hair more toward the wrecked Prius. Johnny screamed as the Charger aimed directly for the side of the Prius. The two cars skipped off one another as the Charger blew past. The force of the impact ripped the zombie free from Johnny along with a large piece of his shirt and a huge patch of chest hair. Johnny let out an ear-piercing high-pitched scream as the stinging, burning sensation radiated through his chest and stomach.

  “Uhhahhhh!” Johnny screamed in his high-pitched girly voice before taking over control of the speeding car and rubbing the now bald patch on his chest.

  “You scream like a damn girl!” Roosevelt said with a chuckle.

  “Screw you!” Johnny replied, still rubbing his newly acquired bald spot as he navigated the car down the back road. He spotted a dirt turn off and aimed the car toward it. Slowing he took the corner with ease and guided the car through a line of trees. After a few seconds, the wooded area opened into a huge field of rolling hills. Johnny drove the car off the dirt path and up a hill. When they crested the hill, they spotted a massive lake at the bottom with an even bigger houseboat floating near the bank. Johnny looked over at Roosevelt.

  “You thinking what I’m thinking? Johnny asked as a smile crept onto his face.

  Roosevelt chuckled, “If you’re thinking about getting aboard that boat to relax for a while then yes I sure as hell am!” Johnny nodded and eased the car down the hill. He stopped next to the dock that led out to the boat. Before they climbed out, they sat there watching the surrounding area for any signs of threats.

  “Think anyone is on board?” Johnny asked as they both climbed out of the car. They turned to face the massive boat and then took several large steps back. Eight sprinters appeared at the edge of the boat's upper deck growling and snapping their teeth at the two men below.

  “Well, shit. I guess this place is a bust.” Roosevelt said, looking up at the growling monsters that were once peaceful people.

  “I bet they were out here having a great time until one of them turned and crashed the entire party.” Johnny speculated.

  “That's one hell of a surprise party!” Roosevelt added. Johnny glanced up at the biting bastards and then flipped them all the bird. Somehow this seemed to agitate the things even more because they all started to ram themselves into the boat’s walls. A man in a br
ightly colored Hawaiian shirt raced forward and slammed into the half wall hard causing it to flip head over heels to the water below.

  “Holy shit!” Johnny and Roosevelt said at the same time. The rest of the undead followed the first and soon the water was a course of splashes as each one of the zombies flipped over the railing. The monsters sank into the dark murky water, disappearing from sight. Everything around them was now silent as they stood there watching the water for the creatures to come crawling out.

  “What do you think? Should we check it out now? Looks like the zeds aren’t a problem anymore.” Johnny said.

  “Zeds?” Roosevelt asked, confusion covering his features.

  “Yeah. Zeds. Has a nice ring to it and it's a damn sight better than saying zombies.” Johnny said.

  “What about dead heads?” Roosevelt asked. Johnny rocked his head from side to side, his hands palm up in front of him.

  “Eh. I don’t know. Seems a bit too long for my liking but you can call them whatever you want.” Johnny answered.

  “Infected? No wait, biters!” Roosevelt offered with a shrug.

  “Those two aren’t bad. So, Zeds, Biters and Infected. I can live with that.” Johnny said, nodding his head.

  “Then let’s check this boat for infected and possibly get some damn rest.” Roosevelt said, pushing past his friend. The tall yellow grass swished on their pant legs as they made their way to the dock. A rush of water caught both of their attention as they stepped onto the dock ramp. Three of the infected busted forward out of the water making a bee line directly for them. Two more splashed up on their right making the total number of infected reaching five.

  “Three more!’ Roosevelt said as they backed up the boat ramp to board. When they started to move the group of zeds took off like a shot toward them. They both raised their pistols and started firing at the advancing group. Three shots hit their target and five more hit low, knocking them back a few steps.

  “Steady yourself!” Johnny said, tightening his own grip and pressing the gun back out. A course of shots rang out and the rotting corpses of eight zeds lay from the dock to only a few feet in front of the two men.

  “That was too damn close!” Johnny said, running a hand through his hair.

  “Yeah it was. We need to tighten up and get the headshot the first time, every time, from now on.” Roosevelt replied. Johnny nodded and turned to the entrance to the boat. He stepped down on the deck and glanced around, seeing broken bottles and overturned tables all over the upper deck. Blood was smeared all over the floor at the front of the boat and what was left of two bodies lay next to one another. Let’s go down in the cabin and see what it looks like.” Johnny said, turning away from the two dead bodies. He started forward and grabbed the door handle that led down into the lower decks of the boat.

  “Wait a minute. Listen close and see if you hear any growling in there before you open that.” Roosevelt suggested. Johnny nodded.

  “Ok. Good idea.” Johnny said before placing his ear to the door. Hearing nothing, he turned to Roosevelt and shrugged.

  “Seems quiet to me,” Johnny said.

  “Alright. Let’s check it out but be extremely careful.” Roosevelt said. Johnny slowly opened the door with his left hand, his Glock in his right and eased into the door. Roosevelt followed and together they descended the stairs to the main living quarters. Everything seemed to be intact and in its proper place as they moved through the room. They stopped at one of the bedrooms and quickly peaked inside before moving in quickly to cover the room. Finding nothing they stopped and looked around at the room.

  “Looks empty to me.” Johnny said before he turned to leave the room. Roosevelt turned to follow but stopped dead in his tracks as a female voice sounded behind them.

  “Drop your weapons now!” She said.

  Chapter Two

  1:36 p.m. New Year’s Day 2049

  Athens Georgia

  "Don't move I said!" The woman's voice commanded as both men instinctively raised both hands above their head.

  "We're human." Johnny said calmly.

  "So were my family, you see how that turned out. So were the soldiers that killed the nice family that lived next door. Human doesn't seem to mean what it meant last week." She said, her voice cracking as she spoke the last sentence.

  Johnny spun on his heels to face a middle-aged woman. She was short and thin. The twelve-gauge shotgun she was holding against her chest appeared to be as old as she was. Johnny suspected that it would hurt her as much or more as it hurt him if she actually fired it. The woman blew a short, bright red curl that had fallen out of place and rested on her forehead. The curl lifted momentarily before falling back into the exact same position.

  "Slow down, I told you not to move." She said, adjusting the thick, teal glasses resting on the bridge of her nose.

  "I'm sorry ma'am. My name is Johnny…" he started.

  "Truman!" She said, realization washing over her face. "I recognize you from the T.V. My husband would have loved to meet you," she said.

  Johnny nodded.

  "This is my friend, Roosevelt Parker. Did you say soldiers killed your neighbor?" He asked

  "They sure did!" She exclaimed, hoisting the shotgun up a little higher.

  "What kind of soldiers?" Roosevelt asked over his shoulder, his hands still raised above his head.

  "Put your hands down." Johnny scoffed, noticing his friend hadn't moved a muscle.

  "She got a gun?" Roosevelt asked.

  "Yeah, but…"

  "Nope." Roosevelt replied flatly.

  "Go ahead and put 'em down," the woman instructed.

  Roosevelt lowered his hands and slowly spun around in place to face the woman.

  "I'm Peggy." She said, still pointing the shotgun in their direction.

  "About these soldiers?" Johnny asked.

  "Oh, well let me tell you what happened." Peggy replied.

  "Want to lower that weapon first?" Roosevelt said.

  Peggy looked down at the shotgun in her hand, shook her head and pointed it toward the ground.

  "Not even sure the dang thing shoots. It was my husband's. Y’all want anything to drink?"

  Both men politely declined the offer.

  "The soldiers?" Roosevelt asked once again.

  Peggy sat down in a nearby armchair, grabbed a coffee mug and took a long sip of whatever was in it. Johnny couldn't quite tell, but judging by the face she made, he surmised that it was probably some sort of liquor.

  "Well, a couple of brown trucks drove down the street, real slow. The soldiers in the truck were shooting those things. They stopped in front of our neighbor’s house, a group of the monsters had 'em holed up in their house since yesterday. The Thompsons, a real lovely young couple, had two of the prettiest twin girls you ever seen. Anyway, these soldiers stopped and cleared the porch off real quick. The Thompsons came rushing out of the house, thought they had been saved. The soldiers though, they opened fire and shot them too. Then they just hopped in their trucks and drove away." She said, taking another long sip from her mug.

  "Jesus Christ!" Roosevelt exclaimed.

  "Yep, that’s when Joe said it was time to get lost. We loaded up with our two boys and came out here. Hadn't been here long when three of them things came outta nowhere and turned my boys into whatever they are now." She said, wiping a tear from her eye with the collar of her loose leopard print shirt.

  "And now here we are." She finished, turning the ceramic mug up and emptying it into her mouth.

  "Here we are." Johnny repeated.

  "I'm sorry to hear that ma'am" Roosevelt said, briefly lowering his head.

  The sound of engines across the lake echoed through the calm afternoon air.

  "One on the roof!" A man's voice shouted, followed by several doors opening and then closing.

  Roosevelt jumped up and crept over to a small window at the back of the boat. He parted two sections of the
blinds and peeked through.

  "Coast guard." He said, straightening up and wiping the dust from his fingertips on his shirt.

  Two shots rang out, followed by the sound of something crashing into the roof above them.

  "Got him!" The man's voice shouted.

  "Nah that was all me!" Another man's voice argued.

  "Knock it off and clear this area, shred the boat!" A woman commanded.

  Roosevelt and Johnny looked at each other wide eyed as they realized what was about to happen. Before they could react, Peggy was up and at the door. Shotgun at her hip, she burst out the door. Johnny scrambled toward the door to catch her. She rounded the corner and across the deck stopping before the rusty iron rail.

  "You sonsabitches! The Thompsons never did nothin' to nobody!" She screamed, squeezing the trigger two times, hitting nothing that Johnny could see. The soldiers looked on for a brief moment in silence, before raising their rifles. Johnny managed to grab the small woman and drag her backwards, she kicked and screamed and shouted, her words becoming mostly unintelligible at this point. The soldiers opened fire, bullet after bullet pelting the boat.

  Johnny managed to pull Peggy around the corner, just as a few bullets hit the ground where they were moments before, splintering the wooden planks on the deck.

  "Come on!" Roosevelt hissed, motioning them over with his hand. He was crouched at the shore side of the short boarding deck. Johnny dragged Peggy who hadn't stopped struggling to break free.

  "Help me with her!" Johnny shot back.

  Roosevelt sighed, and stayed low, running back up the deck. He reached out and grabbed the woman, effortlessly lifting her up and throwing her over his shoulder. He straightened up and charged back down the ramp. Peggy lost her grip and the shotgun she had been carrying fell from her hands, hit the deck, and tipped over the edge, splashing into the water before sinking from view.

  "This way!" Johnny shouted, running past Roosevelt who was slightly encumbered carrying Peggy's flailing body. Gunshots continuously echoed through the area, hitting the boat and the ground behind them every step of the way. Several yards later, the two men, and Peggy on Roosevelt's shoulder broke the tree line and disappeared into a thick forest of pine trees. Limbs and sticks whipped across their necks and faces as they sprinted through the forest. The pain came only as an afterthought while they ran.