Dead Life (Book 2) Read online

  Chapter 1

  I started back to the front of the store. Since Gina's purse was here, she had to be here somewhere. She wasn't in the back with the security guards and Mary so I hoped she had found a hiding place. The sweetest sound came over the intercom.

  “Steve, be careful. The security guard has gone crazy.”

  I got to the front of the store and got back on the intercom.

  “Not anymore, he's not. Where are you?”

  “I'm in the conference room. I locked myself in.”

  “Stay there. I'm on my way.”

  I felt pretty stupid. I should have checked there before I went in back. The conference room was where the managers' offices were and it was in the front of the store by the pharmacy. I got to the door and used my keys to open it. There was Gina. She dropped the folding chair that she was holding and threw herself into my arms. We just stood there holding each other. She was crying. It was quite the reunion. We pulled away from each other and I looked her over.

  “We need to get out of here.” Gina sobbed.

  “It's okay. We're safe now. You didn't get hurt, did you?”

  “No, I was in the bakery and I heard Mary screaming at the guards. When I came out to see what was going on, they were wrestling around on the ground. The little greasy one had the big one down and was trying to bite him. Mary was hitting both of them with a broom and screaming that she was going to call the police. That's when the little one got off the big one and stated chasing Mary. She headed for the back. Then the big one jumped up and went after both of them. His face was bleeding and he looked pretty mad. Then he pulled his gun out, looked at me, and yelled for me to call the police.”

  “Did you call the cops?”

  “No, I tried but the phones weren't working. Let me finish. That's when I heard gunshots. It sounded like there were at least nine.”

  “Who was shooting?”

  “I don't know. They were back there and I was in here by then.”

  “So what did you do?”

  “I locked the door, grabbed that chair, and stood here waiting for him to come and get me. I was trapped in here. The store's locked and I wasn't about to go out there. I just hoped he wouldn't find me.”

  That's when she noticed the gun I had strapped to my hip.

  “Is that the security guard's gun?”

  “No, it's mine.”

  “Where's mine? I want one too.”

  “I didn't bring one for you. I'm sorry, I didn't know if you were here or not. Can you even shoot a gun?”

  “Of course I can shoot a gun. My dad taught me how when I was just a kid.”

  “We'll see about getting you one. I guess you can have the security guard's gun.”

  “Did the big one kill the little one?”

  “That's not exactly what happened. They're actually both dead and so is Mary. I had to shoot all three of them.”

  “They were zombies, weren't they?”

  “You believe me now?”

  “When I saw those two fighting on the floor, you were the first thing I thought about. That with everything I saw on the news before I came to work made me realize you were right. I'm sorry I didn't believe you.”

  “That's okay. I understand. This is some crazy shit. Come on, let's get out of here.”

  We went to the doors and were just about to head out when Gina noticed the six people milling around the Hummer.

  “Steve, what's going on out there?”

  “I guess they like my ride.”

  “You really think zombies are that interested in what you drive?”

  On closer examination, I realized she was right. Things were getting bad faster than I expected. Maybe it was time for me to get some glasses. It was too late for that.

  “I'm going to have to go get one of of those security guard's guns. It looks like we might need a little more fire power. Wait here and I'll be right back.”

  “No way! We're staying together.”

  “Okay, let's go. Just don't get too close to them. It's pretty awful. Mary's all chewed to shit.”

  We went to the hallway in back. At least the lights were off this time. When we got back there, the damn lights came back on. The first thing Gina saw was the little girl. She started screaming.

  “Gina, stop screaming. Look at me. Don't think of her as a little girl. Think of her as a zombie.” I took her by the shoulders and forced her to look me straight in the eyes.

  Gina's breathing calmed down. She took another look at the girl and saw the blood around her mouth and the heart lying next to her hand. She nodded her head slowly and turned away. I got the little guard's gun form his holster. It was a nine millimeter. His gun belt was covered in blood and gore so Gina didn't want it. He did have two extra clips of ammunition so I took those too. The big guard had two clips for his gun so I got those.

  “We'll pick up the big guy's gun on the way back. He dropped it at the other end of the hall by receiving.”

  “You were right. That was horrible. Did you have to shoot Mary? She was pretty ate up. Wasn't she already dead?”

  “Yeah, she was dead. That didn't stop her from trying to eat me.”

  “Oh my God. This is insane.”

  “Honey, are you going to be alright? You look kind of pale.”

  “I don't know. It's like a nightmare. I just want to wake up.”

  “I know how you feel. But I can guarantee this is no dream. If it was, you'd be naked and I'd be all up on that.”

  “Whatever...tell you what. If we get out of here alive, we'll see what happens.”

  “You got a deal.”

  We each took a nine millimeter. They carried more rounds and didn't kick as much as the forty-five. I'd have to rethink my choice of weapons. Shooting the forty-five caliber was like shooting a miniature cannon. If I had to do that for a long period of time, my arms would fall off. They were already sore as hell and the night was still young. When we got up front again, I saw that we were going to have a problem getting out of the store. There were at least twenty zombies out on the parking lot. Standing at the doors, waiting to come in, were five more.

  “Is that Bill and Linda out there?” Gina asked.

  Bill and Linda were regular overnight customers. They were nice but sort of pains-in-the-ass. They liked to stand around and talk to you for hours at a time like you had nothing else to do.

  “Yeah, that's them. At least they're still together. We're not getting out of here without some help. I'm going to have to call Al.”

  Chapter 2

  “Who the hell is Al?”

  “Al lives across the street from me. He's an ex-marine and I guess you could call him a survivalist. Al's got a huge bomb shelter in his back yard. He came over the other day when I was having all our survival gear delivered and it turns out he knew about the zombies before Tim told me what was going on. We're teaming up with him.”

  “You said OUR survival gear?”

  “That's right. I planned on you joining me the entire time. I hope the clothes I bought you fit.”

  “Really? Well, what all did you buy?”

  “Well, there's some fatigues, nice low-cut tank tops, lingerie, KY jelly, a camouflage bikini, and thong underwear.”

  “You're kidding me.”

  “Yeah, but I did get you some fatigues and tank tops. Which may or may not be low-cut.”

  “Okay, okay, just call Al.”

  I tried his cell but all the circuits were busy. I kept trying but wasn't having any luck. Meanwhile, the zombies were getting pretty stirred up. They were trying to get to us through the windows. I suggested we go up on the roof of the store and watch what was going on. There was lots of traffic heading out to Highway 364. The motor room was in back. That was where the compressors were located that powered the coolers and freezers. The roof hatch was located there.

  We went up the steps going to the motor room and I climbed the ladder and unlocked the roof hatch. It was a nice night out. The skies were clear and there was a full moon out. It would have been kind of romantic if not for all the noise. You could hear sirens, gunshots, screaming, and constant moaning coming from the zombies outside the store. I kept trying Al but kept getting the same results. All the circuits were busy.

  There were still too many zombies outside for the two of us to get to the Hummer. Every time a car went by, they would start to go after it but would then turn back after the noise of the engine faded away. It seemed like the ones outside knew we were here and wanted to get at us. There got to be about forty of them milling around on the lot. A police cruiser pulled up and two officers got out. They started shooting the zombies but there were too many of them and the policemen were soon overwhelmed. The zombies ripped them to pieces. At least they wouldn't be coming back as zombies. I wish we could have helped them but they were too far away to shoot with our pistols.

  “If we try to get out of here, that's what will happen to us.” Gina said. “We'll never be able to get to your Hummer.”

  “You're right. I'll keep trying Al.”

  When I started to try him again, my phone rang. It was Al.

  “Finally! This goddamn phone sucks. I've been trying to call you for hours. Did you find your gal?”

  “Yeah, she was here at the store and she's fine. We're trapped at the store though. Those fucking zombies are everywhere and we can't get to the Hummer.”

  “I'm already on my way. Unless the roads are blocked, I should be there in a minute. We'll see if we can thin the herd a bit.” r />
  I looked at Gina. “He's on his way.”

  A few minutes later the U-Haul came flying onto the lot.

  “Look, Steve, there he is.”

  “How did you know that was him?”

  “Oh, well, I may have been by your house a few times and saw that U-Haul parked in your yard.”

  That Al could really drive. He just kept making passes around the parking lot running over as many zombies as he could. After about ten minutes, he'd smashed almost all of them. Some weren't dead but they sure as hell weren't going to be chasing anybody any time soon. Actually, it didn't seem that hard. They wouldn't even try to get out of the way. They would try to chase after the truck and just line up, waiting to be run down.

  Gina and I went back into the store and went to the doors to let Al in. He was parked right out front and was shooting the remaining zombies as he made his way to the doors. The last two zombies he shot were Bill and Linda, my regular customers. When I opened up to let Al in you could tell he was pretty proud of himself. He was grinning ear to ear.

  “Hey, man, it's good to see you. We would have never made it out of here if it wasn't for you. You coming in or are we leaving?”

  “We're coming in. There's somebody I want you to meet.”

  He turned back to the truck. “Come on out Cindy. It's all clear.”

  I didn't need any introduction. Cindy lived up the street from Al and me. She was the talk of the street. Cindy was around my age, probably a little older and widowed. All the wives on the street hated her. It was most likely because up until two years ago, when Cindy cut her grass, she wore a bikini top and the tightest shorts she could squeeze her ass into. I wasn't surprised at all that Al had brought her along.

  Chapter 3

  As Cindy climbed down from the cab of the U-Haul, I intentionally kept my eyes on Al. The last thing I needed was for Gina to see me admiring Cindy's long tan legs. You could see Al's eyes light up as his attention went from those long legs to her slim waist. From there, his gaze shifted to her firm breasts. Cindy was wearing a white V-neck tee shirt and as always, no bra. The material on her tee shirt was thin enough that you see her perky pink nipples. So maybe I wasn't able to keep my eyes on Al the entire time.

  Gina moved closer to me and put an arm around my waist. I wasn't sure if she was marking her territory or if she was trying to distract my attention from Cindy.

  “Shouldn't we get back inside?” She suggested. “We're drawing a crowd.”

  More zombies were filtering into the lot. Any activity seemed to draw them like moths to a flame.

  “Before we go in, we need to move our vehicles.” Al said. “Is there a loading dock door we can use around back? We're going to need to get into the truck. I'd like to load more supplies in it.”

  “What about the Hummer? Should I bring it up here by the doors?”

  “No, the governor has declared marshal law. We wouldn't want to draw any unwanted attention. We could end up being mistaken for looters and get ourselves shot. The National Guard has been deployed. We'll have to move it around back too.”

  “I can't open the doors in back from the outside. Gina, can you open up for us?”

  “Sure, just show me which key to use and tell me what doors you want opened.”

  “Steve, maybe you should open the doors. Gina, can you drive the Hummer?” Al asked.

  “Whatever you need me to do.” Gina confidently said.

  “I don't want her out there. The zombies are almost to the Hummer now.” I angrily told Al.

  “I can take care of myself.” Gina responded as she held up her gun and started for the Hummer.

  I just shook my head. “You'll need these.” I handed Al the keys for the Hummer. “Come on Cindy, let's go to the back and open up.”

  Al handed me a walkie talkie. “Keep this turned on. I'll talk to you when we get to the back.”

  Cindy and I went back inside the store and locked the doors. We stayed up front and watched Al and Gina make their way to the Hummer. Gina was telling the truth when she said she could take care of herself. By the time they got there, the zombies were almost on them. Gina took up a firing stance and opened fire. She took out four zombies in quick succession. At the same time, Al shot five zombies, opened the door to the Hummer, handed Gina the keys, and shot two more. Gina got in and they exchanged a few words before Al turned around and ran back to the U-Haul. He got in, fired it up, and they both headed for the back. While they were doing all this, Cindy and I properly introduced ourselves.

  “Hi, Steve, Al told me all about you. I'm your neighbor, Cindy.”

  “Yeah, I've seen you around the neighborhood.”

  “I've seen you too. You live across the street from Al. How is it we've never met before?”

  What was I supposed to say? I was too busy watching you cut your grass in your bikini? Fortunately, that was when Gina got in the Hummer.

  “We need to head to the back. Follow me.”

  I ran to the back and Cindy followed me.

  “You have a nice ass.”

  That stopped me. “Look, Cindy, I care about Gina.”

  “I know. Al told me. But I have seen you watching me cut my grass. Turn about is fair play, you know.”

  “Yeah, I'm sorry.” I chuckled.

  “You don't need to be sorry. I just wanted to embarrass you. We better keep going.”

  When we got to the back, I unlocked the overhead door and showed Cindy how to open it. Then I went and waited by the entry door. I heard a few gunshots and my walkie talkie crackled to life.

  “All clear. Open up.”

  I opened the door and stepped out with my gun drawn. The U-Haul was backed into the bay door and the Hummer was parked in front of it facing the truck. The two drivers' doors were on the same side. It would be possible to go from the truck to the Hummer with limited exposure. Al was standing next to the Hummer. There was a dead zombie about five feet away from him. Gina got out and they ran in.

  That's when Cindy opened the door and screamed. There was a zombie pinned between the truck and the dock. Even though it was nearly split in two, it was trying to grab Cindy. Al stepped up and shot it in the head.

  “Sorry, babe. I thought I had just backed over him. I didn't know he was trapped back there.”

  Cindy hugged Al and sobbed. “Goddamn it Al. You know I'm no good with this shit.”

  He pulled back and kissed her. “Don't worry, babe. I'll take care of you.”

  Al looked at me with a big shit eating grin on his face. It was obvious they were better acquainted than I'd originally thought.

  Chapter 4

  Al wanted to do some “shopping” while we were here. We could always use more water and canned goods. He also wanted to raid the pharmacy. We had a first-aid kit but now that we had Cindy with us, Al thought we should load up on medical supplies. Cindy was a registered nurse and she worked with a surgical unit. Our medical capabilities had just expanded.

  We unloaded what we thought we'd need for the next night and got ready to settle in. There was a television in the conference room that was used for training videos. There was no antennae but we had that covered. I'd brought along a digital antennae and we hooked it up so we could see if there was anything on the news. We all picked out something to eat from the frozen department and settled in to watch a little TV. It felt almost like a normal evening at home with friends.

  Three of the major networks were still broadcasting. They were all basically running the same stories over and over. The National Guard had been mobilized. There was a curfew in place. Anyone out past dark was subject to arrest and all looters were to be shot on sight. It was a good thing we had decided to stay for the night. There was no way we'd have been able to make it out of the city tonight. We all decided to put on the Meyer's uniform shirts in case the Guard decided they were coming into the store.

  The local news affiliates didn't have much live footage to show. I was assuming they either couldn't find any film crews willing to go out and get killed or that the government still wasn't allowing much information to leak out. The national news was about the same as the local. They were advising people to stay in their homes and wait for assistance. We were also being told not to go to the local hospitals. In most areas, the outbreaks were getting started at local medical facilities. It was lucky for Cindy that her shift had ended just as the first bite victims had begun coming in.