Bryce Beattie - Oasis 
1 - The Last Shift
    
    I heard Donald running down the corridor and calling my name, but I didn’t care. I just kept walking towards the door. In fact, I sped up, hoping to lose him so I could get to the parking lot before he caught me. It was to no avail, though, for a short guy, he was pretty fast. He caught up to me mere steps from the sliding doors. He grabbed me by the arm.
    “Hey, Corbin, if I didn’t know any better, I’d think that you were ignoring me.” He said.
    “Huh?” I lied, “I didn’t hear you. This overtime you’ve been giving me must be taking a toll.”
    “Look, we’ve got four coming in, severe trauma, some kind of explosion. You know how things have been going in the ER today, we’re going to need a couple of extra hands. I’m trying to get a team together before they get here. Dr. Dressel is already getting a suit on.”
    “A suit?”
    “Yeah, didn’t I say? We were told it there’s some kind of biological agent involved.”
    “Look, Donald, I just finished an 18 hour shift, and you want me to stay longer so I can play with some horribly infectious disease carriers under the direction of the biggest jerk-off doctor in the hospital?”
    I must have been raising my voice, because Donald looked pretty shocked. He just stood there and blinked at me. “Not tonight, friend. This nurse needs sleep.” I turned to leave.
    That snapped him out of his stupor. “So who am I going to get to come in?”
    “Call the twins, they only live like a block from here.” I called back as the doors opened for me.
    Apparently that idea satisfied him, because he didn’t follow me outside. The sun had already set and the desert air was cooling rapidly. There was virtually no smog and few lights in the city so the stars were plentiful and bright. In the grocery store parking lot across the street the red cross had set up three trailers. One still had its lights on, and was surrounded by a good size crowd.
    I thought that it was odd for the blood drive to be going on so late, if indeed it was still open. That was also way more people lined up outside a blood drive trailer than I’d ever seen in Oasis. It was just weird to see that kind of a line. I glanced at my watch and saw I had half an hour until my bus came, so I decided to check it out. I pulled on my light jacket and headed for it.
    The three trailers sat just outside the main entrance to The Four Brother’s Market where they could inflict the most guilt on customers entering and leaving the store. I made my way across the street and approached the trailers.
    Two of the trailers looked like they had seen many blood drives. The paint was peeling in places, dirt clung to every nook and cranny, and the tires were looking more than a little bald. The third trailer was clean, practically sparkling. It smelled of faintly of fresh paint. Even the metal stairs that led to the door looked brand new. The light was on inside and a small crowd was gathered outside. A hand-drawn sign on the door explained why.
    It read, “Free flu shots today.”
    Something about the whole deal made my gut churn. Oasis never had much of a flu season, in fact, I happened to know that the hospital only ordered fifteen flu shots a year and most of them went to waste. So why would the Red Cross set this up? Why would they do it at the same time as a blood drive? Why would they do it in July? There were just too many questions. Sometimes curiosity wins out over tiredness. I just had to find out what was going on. I headed for the trailer’s stairs.
    A middle aged man flung open the door as I reached the bottom step. He gripped his upper left arm as if it was going to fall off. As he stepped out, he turned his head back to whoever was inside. His jaw was clenched. his voice was raised and shaking. “I’m calling the police.” He brushed his arm and winced in pain as he turned back to the crowd. His eyes darted about the scene as he scrambled to avoid the slowly closing door.
    Instinctively, I reached out to help steady the man. He squinted at me for a split second, then jerked his shoulder away and made a grunting noise. The crowd murmured as the man attempted to stumble his way through. At first I was shocked by the man’s actions. That shock was soon overtaken by a burning curiosity to find out why the man had left the trailer in that manner. I darted up the steps and caught the still-closing door. I stepped inside and immediately confirmed my fear that this trailer had nothing to do with the Red Cross.
    The interior of the trailer consisted of a table with two folding chairs and a wastebasket on one end and a kitchenette in the other. The inside smelled as new as the outside looked. On the table lay a line of uncapped syringes filled with a brownish substance. the garbage can sat on the floor, uncovered and containing a number of used needles. two olive skinned men were scrambling to unload something from the refrigerator. they were so engrossed in their project that they didn’t even notice me slip in. A scream from the parking lot broke their work-induced trance. Their heads snapped up. The closest man snatched up the cooler they had been loading. He sprinted straight at me. The other man yelled something in a language I didn’t understand.
    Before I could consciously decide how to act, before the adrenaline could even hit my veins, I felt my self lurch towards the man.
    The man had at least fifty pounds on me and a good deal of momentum built up as we collided. I flew back against the table and landed on the floor. The man kicked open the door and went out into the night. The second man had been right behind him, but stopped as he reached the door. He turned and glared at me lying on the floor. His eyes narrowed and his jaw tightened. He marched straight for me.
    The instinct for survival had taken over now. Out of the corner of my eye I spied one of the full syringes on the floor. In one motion, I reached for the needle and sat up.
    The second man was now upon me. Time almost stopped for a moment and I saw him draw his right leg back in slow motion. As his kick collided with my stomach, I saw my hand plunge the syringe into his left thigh.
    The man’s fury was immediately replaced by fear. His eyes opened wide. He gasped. Slowly, he staggered back and pulled the syringe out of his leg. He stared at it for a moment and let it fall to the ground. A mumbled prayer or perhaps a curse crossed his lips and he turned to leave. Without a backwards glance he went out into the night.
    My assailant had knocked the wind out of me, and I struggled to get my breathing under control. The sharp pain of contact gave way to a dull throbbing in my gut that kept pace with my heartbeat. I rolled to my knees. At length I was able to extend the gasps into deeper breaths. My eyes went out of focus and I just plain spaced out for a bit.
    The shrill cry of a siren broke my trance. Red and white flashing lights came through the window. The shouting increased from the gathering crowd outside.
    I was still reeling with the impact of it all as I pulled myself up. My legs felt a bit wobbly. As I continued to regain my composure, questions filled my head. Who set up this trailer? What was in those syringes? What were those guys unloading from the fridge? What was up with that guy who left as I came in? So many questions. My stomach and brain were tied up in knots. What was going on outside? Eventually, curiosity beat back the confusion and I decided to leave the trailer.
    The scene outside was one of morbid excitement. A crowd was gathered around someone on the ground about halfway to the grocery store entrance. I could pick out bits of commentary from shouts in the crowd.
    “I wonder what happened to him?”
    “I think he’s having a seizure.”
    “If it’s rabies, he’ll have to get 35 shots IN HIS STOMACH…”
    “He sounds like he’s in a lot of pain…”
    “That nutjob bit me!” cried one man as he forced his way out of the crowd. My ears perked up and I stood on my toes, trying to follow the bitten man’s progress. I lost sight of him in the busy crowd.
    Paramedics were pushing a stretcher toward the ambulance whose lights had shown through the trailer’s window.
    I wondered what had become of the two others I had seen in the trailer. I scanned around the crowd to see they had stuck around. As I looked around I caught a glimpse of the man on the stretcher. It was the man who had stormed out of the trailer as I had gone in. I circled around the crowd so I could get a better view of the victim. I only saw him for a moment as the EMTs loaded him into the ambulance.
    His face was twisted in a painful grimace. He was moaning quite loudly, and could be heard over the buzz of the crowd. He was strapped down to the stretcher, and thrashing violently in the restraints. It looked as if they could break at any moment. As the doors closed I heard him shout a tortured warning.
    “The sssssshot!” I felt it in my gut just like the kick minutes before. The syringes. I reached for a pants pocket and remembered that I was still in scrubs. I found my cell phone in my jacket and dialed the emergency room. The receptionist picked up.
    “Oasis Medical Center emergency room, how can I help you?”
    “Bridgette, its Corbin.” “Great, you want to pick up an extra shift?”
    “No. But listen up, there’s a guy on his way right now.”
    “Are you sure? Because we could really use the help in here.”
    Yes, now you need to send someone out here to get a sample of whatever this guy was injected with.”
    “Yes you’re sure or yes you’ll come in?”
    “I need you to listen.”
    “And we need at least two more nurses in here.”
    “I’m already scheduled to be back in eight hours. There’s a whole trailer full of potentially hazardous material over here across the street. Send someone over. Its the new trailer. They were telling people it was flu shots. I gotta get some sleep. Bye.”
    The adrenalin rush was now over and I was tired enough that I didn’t even feel guilty for hanging up on her. I tried to think of what that brown stuff could have been to cause such a reaction. I tried, but I was just too tired to focus. I needed sleep in the worst way, so I made up my mind to head home and attempt to get some sleep. As I turned to go, I saw what appeared to be half of the Oasis Police Department swarming into the parking lot.
    Flashing lights flooded the once dim lot and sirens drowned out the shouts of the crowd. The squad cars formed a loose circle around us. One of the cops produced a bullhorn, and urged us to stay calm, something about a biological threat, and they just needed to escort us to the hospital for a quick screening.
    Needless to say, I did not intend to go with the crowd. I just needed to coax a plan from my tired brain. I glanced around until I identified what appeared to be the officer running the show.
    
    
2 - Scene At The Hospital
    
    Headed straight for the man who looked like he was giving orders. As I approached him I held up my hospital ID.
    “The name’s Corbin St. Laurent, I’m from the hospital. Are you in charge?”
    “What do you want?”
    “As you get ready to march that group to the hospital, if at all possible separate the ones who have actually been in the trailer.”
    “Is that all?” Something in the crowd grabbed his attention. He shouted into the bullhorn. “Somebody stop those kids!”
    He took a couple of steps toward where the action was happening.
    I decided I’d better make it easy for him to send me away. “Oh, and there’s a guy who got bitten in that crowd if you can identify him, that be just…”
    “We’ll do what we can. No promises.” With that, he took off at a jog shouting instructions all the way.
    I called after him. “I’m just going to head back and get a biohazard suit, OK?” He couldn’t hear me, but some of the surrounding policemen did.
    I was a little worried that someone would stop me, but I suppose my show had worked, because no one said anything as I exited the circle of police. I walked briskly in the direction of the hospital, which also happened to be the direction of the bus stop.
    With all of the commotion, no one noticed that I didn’t go to the hospital. No one noticed that I waited at the bus stop. No one noticed that I got on the bus.
    I woke up late to find my bedroom uncomfortably warm. Summer was in full swing a little early, and my apartment on the third floor always caught the full brunt of the sunrise.
    I stretched and looked at the clock. I was already a half hour late for work.
    I took a thirty second shower, scrambled into a clean pair of scrubs, and threw my wallet, phone and jacket into my backpack. I ran out the door and down the stairs. I sprang into the lobby and stopped.
    Andy and Tim were already watching TV on the big screen in the lobby. Tim was a dentist that lived on the second floor and had his office down here on the ground floor. He used the big central lobby as his waiting room, and often just sat around talking to folks while waiting for customers to come in. Him, I didn’t mind. It was Andy.
    I was never quite sure what Andy did for a living, as anytime I’d ever been home in the daytime, he was staring at that TV. He was by far my least favorite neighbor. He also the dubiously amazing ability to sense who had entered the room without ever glancing away from the screen.
    “Hey Core, is that you? Late for work again, aren’t ya buddy? Come check this out, I think these guys are related to you.”
    A special news broadcast was showing pictures of four middle eastern men. The headline on the screen read “Botched Terror Attack”. A report was going on about how this cell of terrorists had somehow gotten hold of a viral bomb and had set it off while they were getting it ready to be hidden. They were being cared for in the Oasis Medical Center. A reporter was shown near the hospital, and several soldiers were walking by. “The Army has locked down the hospital, we believe to prevent any further terrorist attacks. It is also known that at least two more members of this terrorist cell are at large. They were attempting to spread this virus by giving fake flu shots from this trailer in the grocery store lot across the street.” The camera panned around to the the trailer I had visited the night before. “If you or anyone you know received an injection here last night, or have any information on the men who gave them, please contact the police.”
    Andy turned slightly towards Tim, eyes still on the set. “Didn’t one of those pictures look exactly like Corbin here?” He always spoke just a little too loudly for comfort.
    Tim shrugged and looked at me. “I, I don’t think so.”
    Andy spun around to look at me. I think it was the first time I had ever seen him look away from the television. “Where are you from again? Iraq, somewhere?”
    “I’m from Montana. We had this conversation once.”
    “That’s crap Core. Nobody up there has skin like yours. I’ve been, you know. Plus its on TV all the time.”
    I wanted desperately to bunch up a fist and punch him in the face. Instead, I closed my eyes for a moment and took a deep breath. “My mom was from Spain. My dad’s from Montana, where I grew up. He’s almost as big a redneck prick as you.” I hate it when stuff slips out like that.
    “What did you just… ” Andy stood, with color rising in his cheeks. I had touched a nerve. He was a pretty big man. I had never really noticed that before, because in the year and a half I had lived in the Millers Crossing Apartments I had only seen him sitting, and in that same couch, too.
    I figured I’d better not push my luck, so I just headed for the door.
    Between obscenities, I heard him shout, “Don’t you leave like that, Mr. Corbin, uh, whatever-your-name-is!”
    As I reached for the door, he hurled one last comment. “You turn around. Never turn your back on the offensive line. Offense will score a touchdown every time!”
    I must admit, I really wanted to stay and figure out just what exactly that was supposed to mean. Instead, I left content with the knowledge that I had finally gotten to him.
    
* * *
    
    The bus was detoured away from the hospital, and dropped me off a block behind the grocery store. That meant I was another five minutes late.
    The scene on the street between the hospital and grocery store was alive with activity. The military had flown in overnight and set up a perimeter around the hospital. The trailer where I had been kicked had been covered with a tent. The police had barricaded the grocery store. Reporters, camera crews and onlookers were swarming everywhere, trying to get a handle on the situation.
    I was overwhelmed by the sea of activity before me. What was in those syringes that could have possibly generated this kind of response? I flagged down a guard on the perimeter around the hospital.
    I showed him my hospital ID. “I work in the emergency room. Is there any way for me to get in there?”
    “No, sir. No one goes in or out.”
    “Are you sure?”
    He just scowled at me until I backed into the crowd.
    On some level, that interaction relieved me. At least I won’t be fired for showing up late if I couldn’t get in anyway. I dug around my backpack for my phone and dialed the nurses desk.
    Bridgette was still there. She informed me that the hospital was locked down by the police about an hour after I had called. The military had arrived shortly thereafter and army doctors basically took over the third floor. Everybody that had been infected with the pathogen had been moved there, and hospital staff was no longer being admitted. The doctors who had been treating the victims had told her they were pretty sure it was some type of virus. Before she hung up, she let me know that she thought the whole thing was getting blown way out of proportion, and that she didn’t know what all the stink was about.
    I felt a little better due to her flippant attitude and began to wonder if the whole show wasn’t just a major overreaction. As I mulled the situation over my stomach reminded me that I hadn’t eaten yet. I figured there would be no point in arguing with it, so I might as well get some breakfast.
    As I turned to leave, I collided with someone. A very cute someone. Some one that looked vaguely familiar. Someone who had just been knocked on her butt.
    I extended a hand. “I’m so sorry. Are you OK?”
    “Fine.” She smiled. Her brunette ponytail bounced just a little as she got to her feet. “I was just going to tell you how funny it is that we should run into each other here. I guess this just makes the joke all the funnier.”
    I couldn’t help but smile back. “I’m still sorry, but, how do we know each other?”
    
    
3 - It Fell From The Window
    
    She scrunched up her nose. “Back at the U. We were lab partners for the last couple of weeks in chemistry, weren’t we? Your name’s Corbin, isn’t it?”
    That’s it. Now, what what her name? “Oh yeah, that’s right. I mean, yes it is. Are you sure?”
    “Are you?”
    “I mean about being my lab partner.”
    “You don’t remember me? I’m hurt.”
    “It was that chem for medicine majors, right?”
    “Yep.”
    “And we had that bald professor that always smelled like fish.”
    “That’s the one. Do you remember me now?” She arched her eyebrows.
    “Ok. It’s not that I don’t remember you at all, it’s just that I don’t remember much about you. I had seven lab partners that semester. There was single dad, angry feminist, the crazy one with the boots, goth girl, pot head, sandwich guy, and the cute one. I’m pretty sure you were either goth girl or the cute one.”
    “Goth girl or the cute one, huh?” She raised an eyebrow in a mock scold and folded her arms. “What if I’m still the angry feminist?”
    “Couldn’t be, that was a guy.” Something sparked. “Wait a minute, did you play on the soccer team?”
    “So you do remember me.”
    “Yeah, you were definitely the cute one.” I smiled again. “I mean you are the cute one.”
    She rolled her eyes and smiled back. “That was the lamest line I’ve ever heard. Ever.”
    I decided to take a chance. “Even so, you want to get some breakfast?”
    She lowered her eyebrows and cocked her head. “Oh, I’m sorry. I can’t, I’m married now.”
    “Really?”
    “Not really. Let’s go.” She laughed and grabbed my arm. She pulled a little bit, but then turned back. “Um, I guess I don’t know where we’re going.”
    I pointed in the opposite direction with my thumb. “This way.”
    I asked what she had been doing in the area.
    She told me she had just finished her morning run and her dad had hauled her there with him. She pointed out two men next to The Four Brother’s Market. They were shouting at a uniformed soldier. She explained that one was her dad, and the other her uncle, and they were two of the four brother’s after which the store was named. They were trying to get the army to let them open it up again.
    “Dad’s the one doing less yelling. He’s a little less passionate than my uncles.” She almost looked embarrassed to say it.
    About half a block down sat a tiny café sandwiched between two large office buildings. It had been my favorite since I started working at the hospital. The food was nothing spectacular, but I guess it just felt like I was helping support the little guy.
    The café was empty except for us. I had never seen that happen before. Everybody in the area had swarmed to the hospital to see what was going on. We sat at a table next to the television in the corner so that we could keep up to date if anything exciting happened. The owner came out and took our order.
    We talked a little about our school days. She had dropped pre-med for business and I had finished my nursing degree. I got the job at the hospital right after I graduated, and she had started working her way up the family company.
    The family company was the Four Brother’s collection of holdings. They owned four grocery stores, a couple of sporting goods stores, three department stores, a bunch of pawn shops, gas stations, apartments, and other stuff, about a third of Oasis all in all.
    We were getting along famously, but I still couldn’t remember her name. I could sense it in the back of my head somewhere, but I couldn’t quite get a hold of it. By this time we’d been talking for half an hour or so and I was too embarrassed to come out and ask her. I tried to lead the conversation so that she might reveal it, but found no luck.
    My attentions were drawn to the TV as the some kind of commotion started. The news crew was watching a group of soldiers race into the hospital. What is going on in there?
    “Something’s up.” I was now staring at the TV.
    “I’d better go find my dad.” She was staring, too as even more soldiers went in.
    I was about to respond when we heard the distinctive sound of gunshots. I couldn’t tell if they had come echoing down the street, from the television, or both. A weak “OK” is all I could manage to say for the moment.
    At length I found words again, and turned back to her. “Let’s get you back to…”
    She was no longer at the table. I caught a glimpse of her athletic body darting past the front windows. Beth. That’s it. Her name’s Beth. It figures that I remember now.
    I don’t know why, but I felt an intense responsibility to make sure she found her family out in the crowd. I dug around in my bag until I found my wallet, threw a couple of bills on the table and sprinted for the door.
    More gunshots were going off. The massive crowd was splitting, with one group trying to get away from the situation any way possible and another pressing toward the barricade, trying desperately to see what was going on. The two groups were colliding with, pushing and cursing each other for being so incredibly stupid. Utter pandemonium reigned the moment.
    I felt my stomach drop as I scanned the scene for Beth. I hope she’s OK. I was so focused I hardly noticed the sea of people flowing past me. I plowed toward the place I had seen her father and uncle arguing.
    The crowd was much thinner on the grocery store side of the street, but no less chaotic. People were running in every direction.
    I finally caught sight of her bouncing ponytail. She was flanked by her family and they were making their way around the back of the store.
    I was immediately struck by the calm, direct manner way they walked whilst the world around them was bedlam. Wow, there’s a family that can handle pressure.
    I had little time to contemplate the merits of staying calm and collected, as the screaming increased from across the street.
    I must have been stupid, brave or just too plain curious for my own good. I had to know what was going on. I dodged the still fleeing crowd as best I could. In a heartbeat, I had climbed up on the bench at the bus stop.
    The crowd quieted down enough to tell that the shooting at stopped. The military transports in which the soldiers had arrived were lining up at the main entrance. The hospital fire alarm went off. Patients and nurses began to pour out the front door. Everybody was being loaded as fast as possible.
    As the first transports were pulling away, something new excited the crowd. A number of people were pointing to a window on the third floor.
    I strained, but from where I was I couldn’t see anything through the windows. I couldn’t even be sure at which window everyone was pointing.
    That is, I couldn’t tell which one it was until one of them shattered. A man in a white lab coat fell with the shards of glass into the bushes that lined the front of the hospital. The crowd, whose noise had reached a fever pitch, fell silent.
    I glanced up at the broken window.
    A soldier with some kind of rifle was looking down to examine the grisly scene below. He turned back inside.
    Movement from below stole my attentions.
    The bushes were moving. The fallen man was still alive. Even so, no one among the crowd, the soldiers or the hospital staff made a move. We all just stared on.
    The man emerged. Blood stained much of his coat. His arms hung dead at his side. He did not look around, brush himself off or even say anything. He just limped away from the building. There was something definitely wrong with him.
    I was paralyzed. My eyes were wide, I held my breath and I clenched my jaw. This cannot be happening.
    In fact, the entire crowd seemed to hold it’s breath as the man made his way toward the barricade. Everything about the way he moved seemed unnatural. He made it halfway to the crowd when a soldier who had been keeping the onlookers back took two steps toward him and raised his gun. The man in the tattered, bloody coat just stared blankly straight ahead, and kept walking.
    The soldier fired. The shot hit the man square in the chest, and he was knocked flat on his back. No sooner had he hit the ground than he began to rise. The soldier fired again as the man got to his feet. The bullet caught him in the left arm, which swung back, but he did not make a sound or even seem to notice. The man just kept coming toward the barricade.
    A few other soldiers finally regained presence of mind. The sound of gunshots once again split the uncomfortable silence. The man finally fell motionless to the ground.
    I could do nothing but stare for a time. The whole scenario had shaken me to the very core. I had no idea what to do next, where to go, or even what to think.
    Apparently most of the crowd felt the same way. They just stood, awe struck and staring. No one knew what to do.
    I suddenly felt like an idiot for wanting to see how things were going to pan out. I noticed that the assemblage of onlookers must have been steadily increasing since the panic had subsided. I was now surrounded by people attempting to see the action and figure out what was happening, and it worried me. When it hits the fan again, I’m going to be stuck right in the middle. I could feel the tension building all around me. I just didn’t want to be the one to start a stampede.
    The crowd grew increasingly agitated. The faces of those around me showed only fear and uncertainty. Most were fidgeting or holding their breath, some were slowing backing their way to the edges. It was as if everyone was just waiting for some kind of signal to make a run for it.
    More shooting within the hospital awakened us all from our stupefied trances, and all hell broke loose.
    
    
4 - Chaos In A Crowd
    
    The controlled evacuation of the hospital broke down as soldiers, patients and nurses burst from every entrance. They yelled and waved for the crowd to move back. The crowd was already responding in panic. The frightened mob began pushing in all directions away from the hospital.
    I knew that the insanity of this crowd was likely to end in injury. The idea popped into my head that I could use the bus bench as a protective island until the crowd thinned a little, and then run for it. I crouched down from my perch and held on to the back rest of the bench. I debated for a moment on how long I should wait before diving into the frenzy.
    The question was answered for me as some new horror excited the crowd even more. A new cry of fear arose from the people around me. Someone was pushed hard into the bench exactly where I was holding on.
    I let out a yelp of pain as I pulled my fingers out from where they were smashed. I abandoned my plan to stay put and stood up to see which way was the best to run. I couldn’t help but glance back for a moment at the hospital. Time seemed to stand still as I saw the catalyst to this heightened excitement.
    A chill shot down my spine.
    A second group of people were piling out of every exit. Like the man who was shot before, they almost didn’t even look human. They were just too pale, too beat up, and too creepy to be real. A few of the walking corpses appeared to have been shot several times.
    I didn’t get time to take a good look, as I was pushed from the bench. I spun toward the street and tried to get my feet in front of me. I collided with two large men as I came down. I stumbled forward off-balance, trying desperately to stay on my feet. I knew that if I hit the ground, this mob would trample me.
    One of the large men grabbed me by my backpack and stopped my awkward fall. He took a couple of steps with me to help me steady myself. When he was sure I had my feet back under me, he turned and nodded his head, let go, and disappeared into the crowd.
    I attempted to shout a thanks as the wave of people crashed on.
    Every member of the frenzied crowd clawed, pushed and pulled at each other hoping to get away. The stampede was loud, undirected and uncontrolled. Within a couple hundred feet or so the crowd finally thinned enough to run without constant collisions.
    I tightened up the straps on my backpack, and took off just as fast as I could towards home.
    The crowds thinned to almost nothing within two blocks.
    I glanced back to see why.
    Many were already coughing with exertion and slowing. Many were seeking shelter in the nearby apartment buildings and stores. Many had reached their cars and were speeding away. Only a few had the stamina to keep running.
    I wanted to get as far away as possible. I ran a couple more blocks, then slowed to a walk.
    I could hear televisions all on the same station broadcasting the chaos at the hospital. Through windows I could see folks scrambling to get things together. Cars filled the streets, all headed for the one highway that lead out of town. Pedestrians were scurrying to get off the street.
    As my head began to clear, I became worried about my friends and coworkers at the hospital. I stopped on a corner and fished out my cell phone. On the third number, I got a fellow nurse on the line.
    “Angie, are you OK?”
    “Not really.” Her voice trembled. “Corbin, you’ve got to get out of the city.”
    “What?”
    “It’s a virus. We got a slew of infected patients last night.”
    “But that doesn’t explain…”
    “Yes it does. It attacks the central nervous system. It’s the worst thing I’ve ever seen. Within hours of being infected…”
    The call dropped, and a distant boom echoed through the streets.
    I looked at the phone and saw it had gone dead completely.
    In fact, everything around me seemed to have gone dead. The lighted signs were out. Every car on the street had stopped running. The noise from the televisions of the neighborhood was gone. The stop lights were out. Every electronic device in the city had died.
    My brain couldn’t even think a coherent thought, but my gut said one thing: get home now.
    
    
5 - Home Sweet Home
    
    As I walked through the streets, they became increasingly empty. The noise from the cars, radios and televisions was gone, and it was easy to hear the arguing, crying, and panic happening in the various homes and buildings.
    I feared for what was to become of Oasis.
    The situation was dire. There was a highly contagious and deadly viral breakout. Those affected appeared to have lost all sensation of pain, and had excessively modified personalities. The power was out, and no communication was possible to control or even slow the spread of the disease. And now, without transportation, the city would be held hostage by the desert. It was over 100 miles to the nearest city. Perhaps someone in good shape could make it on a bicycle, but to try the highway by foot would be suicide. It was all like a horrible, bizarre nightmare.
    It took twenty or so minutes for me to make it back to my apartment. As I turned the corner on my block, I heard a familiar clank. It was the closing of the iron grate that locked the front entrance to my building.
    I again broke into a run. I could see Tim struggling with the lock. He was so engrossed in the grate that he didn’t see me approach.
    “Hey Tim, open it back up.”
    His head snapped up and the lock slipped into place. “Oh, um, Corbin. I, uh, can’t.”
    “Of course you can, just stick that key back into the lock, push the thing, and turn the handle.”
    “I, I’m sorry. I just can’t. Andy said not anyone, especially, um, anyone…”
    “Since when does Andy get to decide?”
    “He specifically told me to…”
    “Yeah, well now I’m specifically telling you let me in.” I took a step toward the grate.
    Tim flinched and backed up. “Look, I’ll go ask if it’s…” He turned and scurried off.
    What a pansy. I can’t believe he would actually lock me out. I could have have fumed there on the landing about Tim’s cowardice. I could have built up a pretty good anger. I would have done it, too, if I didn’t have a key. A coward and an idiot. I didn’t really want to be mad at Tim, anyway. It was Andy. I wondered why Andy would want to lock me out so bad.
    After re-locking the gate, I headed for the stairs. As I reached the third floor I heard shouting. I stood still and listened for a moment. I couldn’t tell exactly what they were arguing about, but I could definitely recognize two voices: Andy and Linda.
    Linda lived across the hall and worked two floors up from me at the hospital. We had been friends since the day I helped her move in. She was about fifteen years older than me, and looked great for her age.
    “You’re nothing but a thief!” She was also a little feisty.
    “I’ll go down and deal with him,you idiot. You finish here.” I guessed Andy was commanding Tim.
    I opened the stairwell door and stepped into the hall.
    My door was wide open. I could see the interior of my apartment. It had been ransacked. Andy was standing in my doorway.
    I didn’t have the composure to add a tone of joking. “Don’t bother knocking. Just let yourself in.” I marched at Andy.
    Startled, he turned his head toward me. “You’re not supposed to be here.”
    I heard movement from inside my place. It just fueled my anger. “This is my apartment, you’re the one that’s not supposed to be here.”
    As I reached Andy, he wheeled about and put a gorilla-like left hand on my chest. In his other hand, I could now see a gun. A very familiar-looking nine millimeter. My gun.
    “Just calm down there, cowboy.” He gave me a shove. “We’ve got a situation here.”
    I was stunned. Completely dumbfounded. They had stolen my guns and were now going to threaten me with them. I couldn’t think of anything to say, so I just clenched my jaw and glared.
    “Corbin, I’m sorry, this is all my fault.” Linda had a bizarre look on her face and I couldn’t tell if she were going to burst out crying or screaming. “I just… These idiots…”
    Andy stepped between us. “Someone’s gotta be willing to make the hard decisions, Core. We need to defend ourselves. She told us you had a gun locker. Only two others that we know of even have guns. You weren’t here, so I made the call.”
    Tim and a man I didn’t recognize stepped through the door, each carrying a gun case and a large orange ammunition box.
    The new man spoke. “I couldn’t find any more.”
    “All right. Tell everyone to meet me down in the lobby.” He looked at me. “Except you. You wait here.”
    “Since when can you order me around?”
    “Since an hour ago, when the rest of the tenants voted me mayor of the Millers Crossing Apartments.”
    Again I was shocked. I could speak this time, though. That has to be his idea. Why do people just do what he says? “Mayor? That’s got to be the single dumbest thing I have ever…”
    “Every team needs a coach, Core. If you don’t do what the coach says, you get cut from the team, get it? Now wait here until we finish our meeting.” He looked back to Linda. “I’m going to forgive your little outburst this time. Since you’re all buddy-buddy with Core here, why don’t you keep him company and fill him in on the program?”
    Andy lumbered for the stairs with his cronies close behind.
    I was still pretty mad, but the stupidity of it all almost made me laugh. I looked at Linda.
    “Mayor?”
    She rolled her eyes. “Don’t even get me started.”
    “Well, let’s go see how big of idiots they really are.” I motioned for her to follow, and we went in.
    
    
6 - Companionship Amidst Panic
    
    I took a step into the mess Andy and crew had made. At least I know how do deal with this mess. My stuff could all be cleaned up, washed off or replaced. This was a problem I could wrap my head around, a problem I could fix. What happened at the hospital had no explanation and there was no fix.
    Linda touched me on the arm. “I’m sorry, Corbin.”
    “Sorry for what, Andy getting elected?” I turned back to her.
    Her face was grave. “No, for this.” She pointed in the apartment. “I told him you had guns.”
    I don’t know why, but I chuckled. “It’s OK. Just give me a second to see what the damage is, then you can tell all.”
    Her eyes watered a little, and she threw her arms around my neck. “I’m sorry.”
    I was a little bit shocked at this. Not because she had never hugged me, though. We’d been friends for a while, so we hugged on a regular basis. I was shocked because I had never seen her look so shaken. Not when she told me about her ex-husband, not when she fought with her sixteen-year-old daughter. Never.
    I held her and mumbled, “It’s OK.” It was all I could think to say.
    She seemed to melt into my shoulder, and she wrapped her arms a little tighter.
    It felt good to share a moment with her while the rest of the world was going crazy. I had always thought she was a beautiful woman, but until that moment, I had never thought of her in a romantic way.
    When she pulled away much of the color had returned to her face.
    All at once the thought and the moment were gone. I remembered the mess behind me.
    “Could you wait back at your place while I, um…” I pointed over my shoulder with my thumb.
    “Yeah.” I thought I saw her blush a little.
    The whole apartment was a wreck. It didn’t really look as if someone had been searching the rest of the place as much as just emptying everything onto the floor.
    Clothes and sheets littered my bedroom floor. The lid to the toilet tank had been thrown in the tub. Dishes had smashed on the kitchen floor. Everything was a mess.
    I didn’t have to look in the gun safe to know it had been cleaned out. I had watched most of its contents being carried out the door. With what happened at the hospital, I didn’t know how much of a help those guns would even be.
    The living room was less of a mess. Perhaps they didn’t have time to ransack it before I got home. Good thing, too. On the bookshelf was a decorative wooden box.
    I opened it up and smiled.
    The heat in my apartment was beginning to get oppressive. It was uncomfortable even when I could run the air conditioner all day long. With the power off, it was downright unbearable. And the hottest part of the day was yet to come.
    I realized I was getting thirsty. I hoped there was still something cool in the refrigerator. Luckily enough, it appeared to have not been cleaned out by the morons who messed up the rest of my place. The apple juice was still a little cold and so I finished it off. As I set down the jug I noticed the faucet in my sink.
    If the water is off, too, then we’re already dead. I was afraid to turn the handle.
    Oasis was aptly named, because it did have a natural spring. In fact, the town had been built with the spring as the center. Still, most of the water for the city was pumped in from the mountains almost a hundred miles away, and if the pumps were down, there wouldn’t be enough water for everyone, and we’d die of dehydration. Unless, of course, we caught the virus first.
    I turned the faucet handle. Water came out. I breathed a sigh of relief. I splashed water on my face and it felt good. As I turned to leave, I saw a chain with two keys hanging on the wall. I smiled again.
    There were five storage units on the roof of the Millers Crossing apartment building that could be rented by the tenants. Only tenants who rented one got a key to get on the roof. One of the keys on the chain was to the roof, and one was the storage unit that held my camping and outdoor gear.
    I decided it would be safest to leave the keys and gun with Linda. She would be less likely to be watched, and the crew downstairs might decide to finish picking through my apartment. I tucked the box with the revolver under my arm and grabbed the keys.
    A moment later, I opened the door to Linda’s apartment and called in.
    I heard a drawer open in the kitchen. “You hungry, Corbin?”
    I entered the little kitchen. It wasn’t quite lunch time, but I’ve made it a habit to never refuse food. “I’m always hungry.”
    “I got to eat some of this stuff up before it goes bad.” In the time that I had known Linda, I had never really seen her sit still, but I had never seen her jittery like this. I guessed that her nervousness was the real reason she was preparing food. Her hands shook a little as she cut a sandwich in half. She handed me half. “Here, start with this.”
    I placed the wooden box on the counter. As I took the sandwich from her hand, my fingertips brushed hers. Despite the heat, they felt ice cold.
    Without even thinking, I put the sandwich down and grabbed her hand.
    “Your hand is frozen.”
    “It is? I must be…”
    “Worried?”
    She closed her eyes and exhaled. “Yeah.”
    “Lets go talk.” I let go of her hand.
    “OK.” She nodded and left the kitchen.
    I scooped up the box in one hand and my half of the sandwich in the other.
    I went into the living room and sat next to Linda on the couch. I set the box on the other side of me.
    She seemed to have calmed down a little, probably just happy to be getting something off of her chest.
    “So what’s on your mind?” I took a bit of the sandwich. Roast Beef. Yum.
    “Do you even really need to ask?”
    I hoped I wouldn’t spray any food, but I felt compelled to respond. “Your daughter?”
    “Kim? Yes, but it’s everything. I’m worried about her. I’m worried about me. I’m worried about our coworkers. Mostly Kim I guess.”
    Kim was her sixteen year old daughter. Her only daughter. Linda’s ex-husband was a lawyer that knew all the good divorce lawyers and won custody when they were divorced. He had promptly moved to Oasis, right in the middle of nowhere. Linda once told me that he moved just so she couldn’t see her daughter and “poison her mind”. Linda had then finished nursing school and gotten a job at the hospital just to be near her daughter.
    I had always respected her for having the strength to do what was necessary to be in her child’s life. She was an amazing woman who had been through a lot. I knew that she just needed a little comfort, then she’d be back on her fiery-tempered, iron-willed feet. I put my arm around her.
    “Well, from what I’ve heard, your ex is a dick, but at least he knows how to get what he wants. He’ll keep her safe until you can see her again.”
    “It’s not just that.” She closed her eyes and took a deep breath again. “She was going to stay with me for a couple of days, but last night we got in a fight and she went back to her dad’s. Corbin, what if I don’t…”
    I cut her off. “You will. I promise.”
    She threw her arms around me like she had in the hall.
    I set down the sandwich to completely hug her back. I thought about the situation, and was a little conflicted. She was my friend, and I wanted to help her. I was also feeling a slight pang of some other attraction to her, but that made me feel guilty. Like I was somehow taking advantage. At length I made up my mind to push aside any romantic feelings and just do everything in my power to make sure she had a chance to see daughter again.
    We held each other there on the couch. With each breath she calmed down considerably. Soon she had stopped shaking altogether. We probably sat there for five minutes, when she finally noticed the box.
    “What’s that?” She pulled away.
    “Its a gift. Tell me everything that happened here first.”
    “Apparently I came downstairs about five minutes after you left. Andy was still fuming about, what did he call it, the personal foul you committed and that there’d be a penalty kick or something when you got back.”
    I rolled my eyes. “He’s such a nut job.”
    “I know. Anyway, within a half hour or so, everyone in the building was down in the lobby watching the news. Nobody knew what was going on inside the hospital until someone with a camera phone sent a couple of pictures to the station.”
    “Pictures?”
    “Of infected patients. They appeared to be super strong and crazed, near impossible to control. The few phone calls that made it out said that the infected kept trying to bite anyone who came near. It’s like the virus completely overwhelmed their nervous system. Then it went from bad to worse. The infected began to break their straps, began to escape. That’s when the Army opened fire. The crowd outside the hospital went insane.”
    “I know. I was in the middle of that mess.”
    “It wasn’t much better here. The owner of the fastmart on the ground floor just took off for who knows where. Some newlyweds left for a nearby relative’s place. Andy and his crew almost immediately started talking martial law. Then there was that infected guy who was blasted from a window. Then there was that whole mob of infected that attacked the crowd. Then everything went dead.”
    Linda took a deep breath, then rolled her eyes as she continued, “Then we had a tenant meeting. Andy got himself elected mayor, and they decided to lock the building and not let anyone in until this thing is over. I swear, it’s like half the building thinks that idiot is the greatest thing ever. Anyway, that’s when I tried to convince them you’d be useful if you made it back. I told them I knew you had guns and they wigged out. They were not going to let you in no matter what.”
    I could see in her eyes that the fire was returning. She balled up her fist just remembering how angry she had been.
    “And then you came back and got in. How did you get in anyway?”
    I chuckled and finished the last bite of my sandwich. “Like everyone else in this building, I do have a key to that gate. Tim didn’t have time to chain or padlock it or anything. I scared him off right after he had figured out the lock.”
    She hugged me again. “Well I’m glad you made it back. Thanks for listening. I’m sorry again about your guns.”
    I smiled. “It’s not all your fault. They wouldn’t have been able to get in the safe so easy if I hadn’t cleverly hidden the key right on top of it.”
    She pulled away from me. Apparently she had noticed the box again. “So what’s in the box?”
    “Oh, right.” I pulled the key chain from my breast pocket and picked up the box. “They’re gifts.” I handed them to Linda.
    She opened the box. In it lay my revolver, and a little container that had about 30 rounds. “Where’d you get this?”
    “In that box, sitting on my shelf in the front room.”
    “Sheesh. How many guns do you have?”
    “Well, none now.”
    “Corbin, I can’t take this…”
    “Linda, yes you can. Andy and the idiots will just take it away if they find it and on me. Who knows what’s going to go down? I’d rather you be prepared than give them another gun to waste.”
    She thought about it for a moment, then nodded her head. “And the keys?”
    “That’s more like, for us to share. It’s my key to the roof and my storage shed. It’s got all of my camping and outdoors stuff. Just in case. I don’t want them to take that either.”
    Linda set the box and keys on the end table. She turned back and looked me in the eye. She put her hand on my knee. She was quivering again, but it was different this time. Her mouth moved a little bit before she could speak.
    “Corbin?” She leaned a little closer. Much closer than I would normally let someone get.
    “Linda?” I wondered if this was going where I secretly hoped it would. I leaned a little more toward her. Our lips were now inches apart.
    “Thanks.” She closed her eyes and put her lips to mine.
    I was practically paralyzed. I couldn’t believe what was happening. My head swam with emotion. It didn’t matter that she was older. It didn’t matter that we worked at the same hospital. It didn’t matter what was happening in the city.
    She pressed me back into a laying position on the couch. She pulled at my shirt, and kissed me more passionately.
    I had no idea where this was going to take us, or what it would mean. I didn’t have time to find out, either.
    We were interrupted by shouting from the hall.
    “Corbin! Linda! Get out here! The mayor wants to see you.”
    Linda pulled away, and smiled thinly. She looked a little surprised herself at what she had started, but pleased. Her eyes sparkled as she climbed off a reached out a hand.
    “Guess we’d better go so the mayor doesn’t get impatient.”
    I stood up.
    Stomping noises came from the hall. “Where are you?”
    “In here!” Linda called out.
    We went into the hall. There was a man I recognized as a tenant of the second floor waiting for us. He was in a pressed blue shirt and slacks, looking a little too dressed up for the occasion.
    The man stood up straight and delivered his message. “The mayor wants you two to do something.”
    I fought back the urge to tell him that we were indeed just about to do something when he rudely interrupted. Instead I stood up straight and asked. “What is it the mayor would like us two to do?”
    I heard Linda snicker a little, but my mocking didn’t seem to affect him at all. “He wants to tell you himself.” The man did a quick about face. “Follow me.”
    Linda and I shrugged at each other and followed him down the stairs.
    As we walked, I mused on the bizarre behavior that I had seen that day. The crowds, the guy leading us, Andy, Linda, everybody. For whatever reason, Andy’s behavior made me wonder most.
    In the emergency room, I had seen normally intelligent people do all sorts of crazy things. Once I helped a guy who had dumped a box of jello mix into a gaping wound, hoping it would help thicken the blood and thus stop the bleeding. Another time a lady came in with her pet python attached to the top of her head. She had been asleep, but woke up with a terrible headache. When she figured out that the snake was trying to swallow her, she smeared peanut butter all around the snake’s mouth, hoping it wouldn’t like the taste and would just spit out her head. There is just no logical justification for what some people do under emergency situations. On some level I guess I understood how Andy could have thought tearing my place up and locking me out and electing himself mayor would be a good idea. It didn’t make me like him any more, though.
    We entered the lobby. A group of fourteen or fifteen were seated on the couches and floor with Andy standing in front of the dead television. He had probably been pontificating to the others on something he knew nothing about.
    “Good, you’re here.” Andy called out. “No more bench-sitting for you two. I’ve got an assignment for you.”
   
    
7 - Assignment
    
    Before responding, I took a look around the room.
    Everyone had turned to look at me. Some had their jaws clenched and scowled. A few had their eyebrows up and seemed to plead with their eyes, “Please don’t make a scene.”
    I knew that right then was not the time to have it out with Andy. I had to keep a lid on it until a better time.
    Everyone seemed to be waiting to see what I did, so I spoke. “What would you like, Andy?”
    One of the men sitting on the couch closest to Andy shot to his feet and pointed his finger at me. “That’s Mr. Mayor to you. We voted.”
    I smirked, and had to suppress a laugh. “No, we did not. You voted. Now shut up and let the mayor give out his assignment.”
    The man seemed a little disappointed that I didn’t yell back and sat down.
    “That’s enough, Corbin. I’m glad to see some time in the penalty box calmed you down.”
    “Whatever. What do you want?”
    “First off, Linda, I want you to go with the other women and organize the supplies in the Fastmart, then get some lunch ready for everyone. Go.”
    I looked back at Linda. Color was rising in her neck, but she kept herself under control. “Fine.”
    The five other women timidly stood up. Most of them looked pretty scared. None of them objected to the assignment. At least not verbally.
    As they entered the side door of the Fastmart, I made a quick headcount. 16 men and 6 women total. I didn’t recognize about half of the men. I suspected they weren’t really tenants, that they had just stopped by to watch the news with rest of the crowd. Or better yet, they were friends of Andy’s who had come over before the power went out. Yeah, that would just be special.
    Andy turned his attention back to me.
    I stared at the fat slob who had declared himself mayor. I tried to think of what he could have possibly said to get everyone’s support. I just wanted to pound his face in. Of course, I knew that he had already swung the apartment building to his way of thinking, so it would be useless to start an argument. I had to bite my tongue and control my anger. Maybe everybody would come around to see him for the pompous idiot he was. Or maybe he would just lead everyone to a viral death.
    His beady little eyes narrowed and from the scrunched look on his chubby face I could tell his tiny little brain was working just as hard as it could. At length, he nodded his head slightly and spoke.
    “You know the apartments next door?”
    “I know that they’re there. I’m not going over there if that’s what you’re asking.”
    “It’s not.” He straightened a little. “But even if it was, you’ll play the position I tell you to play, anyway.”
    Several of the other guys in the lobby nodded like Andy had just spoken some great wisdom.
    Idiots. I just wanted to smack each of them.
    Andy continued, “There’s a window in my apartment directly across from one of their apartments.”
    “And?” I really wished he would just get to the point.
    “There’s a guy who got bitten by one of the infected around the hospital today. He’s in a really bad way. I want you to talk to him and his, uh, roommate and see if you can help from over here. And find out anything you can about the virus.”
    It’s next door? It was like another punch to the gut. That meant the virus wasn’t just spreading out from the hospital, it was already in pockets throughout the city. I guess it made sense, I just hadn’t thought about it. The breakout in the hospital was bad enough, and the fake flu shot trailer had probably sealed the city’s fate.
    I wasn’t even sure how it was spread. I had been in a room full of it last night, and I was still fine. Now there was a guy bitten hours ago apparently showing serious of infection.
    Andy grew impatient and pointed a chubby finger. “So, Core, you going to play ball?”
    I looked back at him and set my jaw. “I’ll do what I can.”
    
    
8 - A Neighbor Infected
    
    Andy pointed a finger at one of the guys. “Zeke, come with us. I want the rest of you guys to come up with some ideas for a game plan for tonight.”
    Zeke stood up and all of the guys nodded.
    I really wished they would stop doing that.
    Andy lumbered to the stairwell door. He glanced back. “You coming, Core?”
    I got in line behind Zeke and followed them up the stairs and into Andy’s apartment on the second floor. What I saw inside surprised me.
    His front room looked like a sports museum. Jerseys and photos covered most of the wall space. Signed helmets, baseballs, basketballs and other autographed gear was crammed into three large bookcases. The room itself was carefully lit and immaculate.
    It was so unlike Andy that I almost couldn’t believe my eyes.
    I didn’t have time to look at anything as Andy just plodded down the hall to his bedroom.
    I could smell the bedroom before I could see into it. It definitely reeked of Andy’s signature B.O. What a slob.
    As we entered, it felt much truer to what I knew about Andy. The room reflected him almost perfectly: smelly, messy and generally offensive. In fact, it was messier than my room even after the ransacking.
    Clothes and garbage were piled everywhere. The bed had no sheets, just a blanket piled up in a corner and a caseless feather pillow. A small desk with a computer sat next to one of the two windows.
    Andy waded through the filth to the further window. He hesitated, took a deep breath, and then looked back at Zeke and me.
    “His window is right across from here.” He pointed a thumb out the window.
    Turning back, he shouted, “Hey, Frankie.”
    With that, he suddenly became a little too nervous. He straightened up and made for the door. As he left, he called back to me, “Corbin, go talk to Frankie, and if you need anything, just send Zeke here.”
    I wish I could say that he left and took his stink with him, but I can’t. The room was soaked in it.
    Andy’s bizarre behavior was throwing me for a continual curve. I didn’t have time to muse on his insanity, though. There were more serious matters at hand.
    As I reached the window where Andy had shouted, a man appeared in the window directly across the narrow alley.
    He was thin and looked tired.
    He called out, “So, Andy, you finally…” He stopped short when he saw that it was me.
    “Sorry, I thought you were Andy.”
    “Thank goodness, no. What’s going on?”
    “Andy didn’t say?” I could see distaste on his face every time he said Andy’s name.
    “He didn’t say much, and I don’t trust what that idiot has to say anyway.”
    “Well, my, uh, roommate got bitten by one of those infected crazies outside the hospital today.”
    I could not be shocked again by hearing it. I knew the virus had been spread, and pockets of infected could be anywhere in the city. I was getting into my regular ER mindset. Crisis is what I do, and I knew I could keep it together until this thing was over. I had to do what I could to help the patient.
    “How is he doing now?”
    Frankie’s voice wavered. “Is Carlton going to die?”
    Visions of the infected crowd I had seen outside filled my head. I pushed them out.
    “I don’t know. Let’s do what we can to save him. I just need you to help me out, OK?”
    Frankie nodded. “OK.”
    “How is he doing now?”
    “He’s lying in bed. He’s burning up, and he must be in pain because he keeps moaning and grinding his teeth.”
    “Has he taken anything for the pain or fever?”
    “I gave him four Ibuprofen when he got in.”
    “Did that help break the fever?”
    “No.” Frankie gave a half shrug. “At least I don’t think they did.”
    I turned back to Zeke and sent him to the hall closet up in my apartment to bring down the big first aid kit and every bottle of medicine he could find.
    Zeke looked very relieved to have a job that took him out of the room.
    “I’m sending Zeke to get him something a little stronger to see if we can’t make him comfortable. How long has he been this way?”
    “He got in about twenty minutes after the power went out. Within the hour he had a huge headache and a fever. He came up here to lie down and has been getting worse ever since.”
    “How is his breathing?”
    “Shallow. At least between moans.”
    “Have you been able to take his temperature properly?”
    “Not yet.”
    “But you’re sure he’s running a fever.”
    “His skin is hotter than I’ve ever felt before. On anyone.”
    “OK. Anything else you think I should know?”
    Frankie looked down and shook his head.
    I wondered how long it would take Zeke to bring my supplies. Frankie wasn’t looking too stable, and I knew that if he freaked out, there’d be absolutely no helping Carlton.
    “So, why doesn’t Andy want to talk to you? He left in an awful hurry.”
    Frankie clenched his jaw for just a moment, then sighed. “Carlton is Andy’s twin brother. They haven’t spoken since Andy found out, well, since Carlton came out. Now Andy hates Carlton and blames me.”
    “Yeah, Andy’s not exactly tolerant of anybody who thinks differently than he does.”
    “And Carlton never forgave Andy, either. He doesn’t think I hear it, but I know he still leaves messages on Andy’s phone calling him an uncaring redneck.”
    I almost smirked. That’s why Andy had wigged out when I called him a redneck. I just sat and thought for a moment. I didn’t know what to say, anyway. Complex relationships have never been my thing. Emergency medicine is where I shine. I felt bad for the twin brothers, though. Inside me there was swelling a strong feeling that Carlton and Andy would never get a chance to make up.
    I didn’t have to sit and think in that uncomfortable silence too long. Zeke burst through the door carrying a large white box with a red cross on it and a grocery sack full of pill bottles.
    “Did Andy do that to your apartment?” He tossed his packages on the bed.
    I went over to the first aid kit. “Yep. He’s a real class act.”
    “But Andy said that… never mind.” Zeke shook his head.
    I pulled the small glass thermometer from the kit. “Andy says a lot of things.”
    I was about to launch into a tirade about how dumb Andy was, but a scream of pain from across the way cut me short. I ran to the window just in time to see Frankie leaving his post.
    Within a few moments, the screaming turned into uncontrolled sobbing. Eventually it quieted to a painful moaning. It was a long few minutes.
    “Frankie, what’s going on?” I called out.
    A few seconds later, Frankie appeared in the window. His whole demeanor had changed. He was smiling. “I think he’s past it. His fever’s coming down.”
    I looked up at Frankie. “I still want you to take his temperature. Can you catch?”
    “I guess.”
    Maybe on a regular day he could, too. I underhanded him the thermometer, throwing it as gently as I could. He bobbled it and it fell to the floor inside his apartment.
    I watched him fumble for it a bit. My gut said that the fever breaking would be temporary, if it had really happened at all. Unless Carlton’s immune system was a miracle indeed.
    Eventually Frankie got a hold of it and disappeared again from the window.
    I wished I could see what was going on in there. Quite often in the ER, I knew that a patient was going to die, but at least I see what was going on, and could do something. From here I could only sit, guess and shout instructions. I felt powerless, and I hated it.
    At some point, I became aware of the the fact that the moaning had completely stopped. As soon I a recognized that fact, a new scream cut the silence.
    It was different than the scream before. I shouted for Frankie.
    There was the sound of a door slamming, and Frankie again appeared at the window. He appeared to be having a full blown panic attack. He was shaking, gasping, shouting and hardly making any sense at all. From his frenzy, I could pick out a few phrases.
    “Tried to bite me! What went wrong? He was cold to the touch. What do I… He bit through the thermometer and tried to bite me! What do I do? It broke… What do I do? What do I do?”
    My heart sank. I knew it was too late. The only thing left to do was to get Frankie away from Carlton. “Get out of there! If you can lock the door, lock it, but go!”
    Frankie wasn’t listening to me. If he didn’t listen now, he wouldn’t get a second chance.
    “Frankie, you have to listen. You need to go now. It’s too late for Carlton, but …”
    I froze.
    Out of the shadows behind Frankie stepped a thinner version of Andy.
    Carlton. Infected.
    Blood trickled from Carlton’s lip where the bitten thermometer had cut it. He had that same glazed look in his eyes that I had seen seen at the hospital.
    There was nothing I could do.
    
    
9 - The Last Argument With Andy
    
    The infected Carlton clamped his arms around Frankie in a gruesome bear hug and sunk his teeth into Frankie’s shoulder.
    Frankie screamed. He struggled against Carlton’s grasp, but could not break free.
    Carlton bit him again, this time closer to the neck.
    Frankie thrashed with renewed vigor, but it was to no avail. Carlton seemed to have unnatural strength.
    I was shocked. Witnessing the brutality of the infected completely blew my mind. How is it that someone in so much pain can suddenly become a superhuman monster? I glanced back toward Zeke, only to find he was no longer there.
    In the room across the alley, Frankie and Carlton collapsed on the floor.
    I was desperate to know exactly what was going on, but from the screaming and thumping noises coming from across the way, I could get a pretty good idea. I wondered how long this could possibly go on.
    Within in a few moments, Frankie’s screaming had transformed into uncontrolled sobbing. The thing that had been Carlton stood up. Blood was smeared around his mouth and his face was emotionless. He appeared to be staring at nothing at all.
    Even so, I somehow felt that Carlton was looking at me. In fact, I was sure of it.
    Carlton clumsily began to climb out of the window.
    He’s going to jump across. I no longer had time to think. I had to act. I rushed to my window and slammed it shut. Out of the corner of my eye I spied Andy’s computer chair. Only a couple of feet away. I reached for it, returning my full attention to Carlton.
    He was on the small ledge outside his window, crouching to jump.
    My hands gripped the backrest of the chair.
    A deafening crash shook the room as he jumped. The upper right window pane shattered outward just before Carlton’s right arm broke through the left.
    I instinctively ducked down and spun around.
    Andy’s bulbous form filled the doorway. He clutched a large revolver in his right hand. He was shaking.
    I covered my ears and spun back to the window.
    Carlton was thrashing to tear out the window and enter the room. His arms were already shredded bleeding heavily. It didn’t seem to bother him at all.
    Andy fired again, this time striking the wall above the window. He fired again, finally catching Carlton in the left shoulder.
    Carlton reeled from the impact, nearly falling from his perch. With inhuman strength he held on and swung his left arm back toward the window.
    The gun roared twice more, and this time the bullets caught him square in the chest.
    The force of impact was too much. Carlton had lost his grip. He fell backwards to the street below and landed with a sickening crunch.
    Andy fired one more shot through the window where his brother had fought to get in.
    I exhaled and turned back to Andy, prepared to actually thank him.
    I would have thanked him too, but when I had turned around, I saw that Andy had not lowered the gun. His hand was still shaking, and his face was twisted up in a painful grimace. The gun was pointed at me.
    “This is your fault.” He extended his arm a little more.
    Somewhere in the back of my head, I was pretty sure he had already fired six shots, but it’s still pretty hard to keep your cool when someone has the gun pointed at you.
    “Don’t be an idiot.” I shuffled a little back toward the chair.
    He took a step toward me. “This is your fault!” As he moved I could see a wide-eyed Zeke and another man’s shoulder in the hallway.
    I took a deep breath. “You know that’s not true. He got bitten by one of the infected at the hospital. You know that. He was too far gone by the time you asked me to help. I never even got a chance to treat him.”
    “Don’t lie to me!”
    “Look, I’m sorry about your brother, Andy. But he’s gone now. And this isn’t going to help anyone.”
    No sooner had the words left my lips than I knew that was a mistake.
    Andy’s nostrils flared. “My brother? That fairy hasn’t been my brother for a long time.”
    “OK, fine. Just put down the gun and we can talk.” I shuffled a little closer.
    “Since when do you order me around, Core?” A look of pure hatred crossed his face. Whether it was hatred of me, hatred for his brother, or hatred for what he had done, I may never know. All I know is that it pushed him over the edge.
    Andy a clenched jaw he said “You’re off the team.”
    
    Click.
    
    Empty.
    
    I could have been relieved. Instead, I was furious. He would have killed me. I reached for the chair and flung it with everything I had.
    Andy was either too stupid or too slow to duck. The chair caught him in the upper chest and face. He stumbled backward and slammed into the open door. The two men in the hall jumped back.
    I wasn’t about to give the slob a chance to react. I sprung at him. He looked up at me only an instant before my right fist made contact with his face.
    He wobbled on his feet and threw a clumsy punch with his right.
    I easily dodged and quickly followed up with a left to the side of his head.
    He bent over slightly and covered this head with his arms. His nose was bleeding freely.
    He tried to say something, but I was too frenzied to listen. I just kept swinging.
    I had every intention to just keep punching until I could no longer lift my arms, but within a moment the two guys in the hallway snapped to, ran in, grabbed my arms and pulled me back.
    Gasping for breath, Andy dropped to a knee.
    I kicked at him, but I had already been pulled out of range.
    The fat idiot picked up a filthy shirt off the floor and pressed it to the side of his bleeding nose. He held it there for a minute. He was recovering swiftly from my attack.
    He struggled to his feet. “You’re lucky…”
    “I’m only lucky you’re so stupid you can’t count to six.” I jerked against my guards. “And you’re just lucky you have friends here.”
    I sensed the two men who were struggling to hold me cringe at the word friends. My limbs were shaking. I fought to calm down and slow my breathing. I watched for his next move.
    After a few moments, Andy pulled the shirt off of his nose and looked at the blood. “I tried to like you, Corbin, I really did.”
    “No, you tried to kill me.”
    He looked up from the shirt. “I do what I think is best for the team.”
    “Shut up!” I jerked again and almost got free. “Who do you think you’re kidding?”
    Andy raised an eyebrow. “Who do I think…”
    “You use these insipid sports metaphors all the time, like it makes you look smart or something.”
    Andy raised a hand and opened his mouth like he was going to speak.
    I cut him off again. “But the truth is that you’re just a big, dumb, washed up jock. I have no idea how you conned your way into having the people downstairs fulfill your little ‘mayor’ fantasy. All I know is that you can’t fool everyone for very long. It won’t take long for them to see how stupid, arrogant and irrational you are.”
    Andy set his jaw and stood up. “I’ve heard enough out of you.”
    He took an awkward step through the mess toward where I was being held near the doorway.
    I squirmed against my captors.
    Andy pulled a fat fist back and drilled it into my stomach.
    I tried to give with the punch, but it didn’t work so well. The punch took my breath away.
    Almost immediately after contact, Zeke must have had a change of heart. He dropped my arm. He other guy followed his lead and dropped my left arm.
    Unsupported, I fell to my knees. I fought to get my breath back.
    Zeke took a step forward and Andy took a step back. He raised a finger and pointed it at Andy. “Look, I’m not going to just help you bully people.”
    The other guy chimed in. “Zeke’s right. I only helped pull him off you so that he didn’t get a chance to really mess you up, not so you could take cheap shots.”
    Andy turned to the side and spat onto a the pile of his own dirty clothes and garbage. “Now you guys look. Corbin here is never going to follow anybody’s game plan.”
    Zeke spoke up again. “Well, when your plan is to shoot him while he’s trying to help, I can see why he might not want to follow along.”
    Andy sneered at the three of us. “I have to make the hard calls. You’ll never understand. I was the one who was prepared and shot that thing that tried to blitz us.”
    I shook my head. I did my best to speak.”The only thing you were… prepared… to do is steal other peoples stuff when you got the chance.”
    The room fell silent.
    I was still pretty mad, but it helped knowing that a couple of guys were on my side. Well, at least I knew they weren’t on Andy’s any longer. Each breath came a little easier, but my stomach still hurt pretty bad. I pulled myself off my knees.
    I glared at Andy for a long moment. “I think the Mayor needs to be recalled.”
    Andy started to say something, but I ignored it, turned, and walked out.
    
    
10 - Infection At The Door
    
    I honestly don’t remember much about the meeting that followed.
    All I know is that there was a lot of yelling, swearing, and self-righteous pontificating by Andy and his cronies.
    If we had known a little more about the infected, we would have kept our voices down, moved the meeting upstairs, or at least have closed the large garage style rolling door to the front entrance. Fortunately, someone had the foresight to re-lock the gate after I had come in.
    Andy had just finished giving the dumbest sports analogy that I ever heard, something involving the precision of a curling team, the power of water polo, and the “American-ness” of baseball.
    Everyone present, even Andy’s friends, were temporarily struck dumb by the stupidity of what had just been said.
    The silence was broken by an awkward groan.
    We all spun around to see a man with glassy eyes pulling at the bars of the gate.
    “The infected.” came a voice from the somewhere behind me.
    Panic struck the Millers Crossing Apartment building. Several of Andy’s friends started pushing their way to the stairs. Andy shouted commands that no one heard. Several people screamed.
    I grabbed the closest person, which happened to be the man that had accompanied Zeke before and pointed.
    “Let’s get that inner door closed.”
    We didn’t want to get too close to the infected man pulling at the door, so we stood on opposite sides of the entrance, and did our best to pull the bay door down. At first tug, the door barely moved. It was slow with misuse.
    I spared a glance at the thing outside. It’s gaze fell blankly directly in front of itself. It was bracing on one bar with its left hand and pulling back with it’s right. No exertion was visible on its face, but the slight bend in the thick iron bar betrayed a terrible and inhuman force.
    My helper lost his footing as he tried to put a little more weight into the door.
    The infected dropped to its knees and grabbed my fallen companion’s arm.
    I threw caution to the wind and stepped full in front of the entrance so that I could use all of my weight.
    My new friend thrashed at the infected’s grip.
    Something finally gave, and the heavy door came crashing down.
    The infected man let go and reached up at the door, but the momentum was too much.
    My friend pulled his arm out of the way just as the door slammed into the ground.
    I yanked at the lever and the cross bar slid into place, locking the door.
    Broken fingers stuck out from underneath and moved slightly as the infected man struggled to pull them free.
    I turned to the man inside. “What’s your name?”
    The man rolled over and sat up on the floor. “Steve.”
    “I’m Corbin. How’s your arm?”
    He shook as he held it up. It had a dark red hand print that would probably bruise, but the skin didn’t seem to be broken anywhere.
    He looked up at me with a fear in his eyes. “Am I…”
    I shook my head. “Probably not. It didn’t break the skin, so I doubt you’re at any immediate risk. Let’s get your arm washed off just in case.”
    The closest bathroom was in Tim’s dental office, so we went in and washed him up.
    Steve told me what I had already suspected, that Andy had called most of his drinking buddies as soon as the crisis had begun. He had also told everyone in the building that I had a violent history, and I should be locked out.
    After I made sure that Steve had calmed down and was going to be alright, I went upstairs to see where everyone had disappeared.
    I heard a tremendous amount of shouting behind the door that opened to the second floor hallway, so I just kept climbing and went to my floor.
    Linda was in the hall talking to two couples that looked familiar. They all turned to me as I opened the stairwell door.
    Linda’s eyes went a little wide. “Are you alright?”
    “I’m fine. We got the inner door closed.”
    Linda introduced me to the couples. They were “real” tenants that hadn’t made it out the door for work when the scene at the hospital happened.
    They went back to discussing what to do about Andy’s regime. To me, the answer was simple, so I spoke up.
    “Who else among Andy’s crowd are tenants?”
    One of the men answered. “Just the dentist.”
    “Good. Do any of you guys rent one of the storage sheds on the roof?”
    Everybody shook their head.
    A smile crossed my lips. “Well, I do. Listen to this.”
    
    
11 - Farewell to Millers Crossing
    
    “As often as you can, you need to sneak water and any other supplies up there.” I glanced back at the stairway door. “Andy doesn’t know we have access.”
    One of the husbands spoke up. “What does that matter?”
    “What does it matter?” I raised an eyebrow. “He’s an idiot, and it’s only a matter of time before he and his stupid crew bungle things enough to let the infected in.”
    Linda bit her lower lip for a second. “So, what are you thinking?”
    “When that happens, when the infected get in, while those guys are making a lot of noise shooting my guns at them, you are going to evacuate to the roof.”
    One of the wives half rose a hand. “How would we survive up there? It’s going to be plenty hot.”
    “OK, look.” I shot another glance at the door. “I don’t know how long this crisis is going to last. Could be only a couple of hours, could be a couple of days before the government actually does something. Your best bet is to be prepared for when Andy screws up.”
    Her husband half stepped in front of her. “For when Andy screws up? You’ve got a lot of nerve trying to be a hero, pal.”
    “What?”
    “That’s right. Tell us the truth, were those your cousins that started this?”
    I couldn’t believe it. What had Andy and his friends been saying? I balled a fist and took a step toward him. “Don’t tell me you actually believe that crap he told you?”
    Linda put a hand on my chest and gave a push. “Look, Gary, his mom was from Spain. Not the Middle East. And he’s a nurse, not a terrorist.”
    He squinted his eyes at me. “You sure?”
    “Yeah, I’m sure.”
    “I still don’t trust him.”
    I relaxed my fist. “That’s fine, you don’t have to.”
    He shook his meaty head a little. “And why not?”
    “Because I’m not staying here.”
    Linda whipped her head around at me. Everybody looked like they were in shock.
    Linda dropped her hand from my chest. “No, you can’t…”
    “I have to go. If I stay, it’s just going to keep causing problems. Andy’s crew is always going to hate me, and anyone who sides with me. You’ll have the best chance if I leave.”
    Apparently the whole group was a little dumbfound, as I could feel five pairs of confused eyes staring at me. I took the opportunity to explain my plan.
    “Like I was saying a minute ago, I’ve got the only key to the roof door, and a shed up there. It’s full of camping gear. And you don’t want to hide on the roof yet, because Andy’ll probably be stupid shoot up the doors, but if he’s dealing with the infected, you’ll have a window of opportunity.”
    I pointed to the other end of the hall at the rooftop stairs. “Just put some stuff in that stairwell that you can use to barricade the lower door. There is a spigot and hose up there, but you should probably take up as much water beforehand as you can. That’s basically it.”
    Linda touched my arm. “What about you?”
    “Things will just be worse for everyone if I stay. I’m just going to throw some stuff in my backpack and climb down what’s left of the fire escape on my side of the building. After that, I’ll find a place where I can fit in.”
    No one voiced an objection, so I went into the shambles of my apartment to get myself ready. I changed from my scrub pants to a pair of cargo pants. I grabbed by backpack and threw in an extra set of scrubs, underwear and socks. As I was packing, I began to wonder where I might go, and even if I would fit in anywhere. I pushed the thought from my mind as I found a notebook and some pens, so I could at least document my part in all of this.
    I decided my best best was to head for the light industrial area about eight or ten blocks to the south. It would be the emptiest there, so I could find a place all to myself if I needed. I grabbed some granola bars and the largest bottle of water I could find and crammed them in the backpack as well.
    I was almost ready to go. I took a final drink from the quickly warming juice that was in my refrigerator. I put on the backpack and cinched up the straps. I went back to my bedroom and knelt at the side of my bed.
    It had been a while since I had really prayed. My mother had taught me and at one point, I had been really good at it. After she died, I had little by little lost the will and the skill. I figured if I was ever going to start up again, now would be the time. Mostly, I asked for protection, and not much else. I finished and started to stand, then and idea struck and I dropped back to my knees.
    I groped around in the mess that Andy had kicked under my bed. After a little searching, I pulled out my old baseball bat. I glanced upward and voiced a “Thanks, that was quick.”
    As I stood, Linda walked in the the room.
    She put her hands on her hips. “You’re not leaving without saying goodbye are you?”
    “Look, Linda, about what happened earlier. I don’t…”
    “It’s fine. Weird things happen in extreme situations. Besides, who could resist this?” She pointed to herself.
    I cracked a smile. “Just think, at least now it won’t have to be torn between Andy and I, your two great lovers.”
    She laughed a little, then came over to give me a hug. “Thanks for being a friend. Good luck out there. Her dad lives clear on the other side of the city, but if you do happen to see Kim, tell her I love her.”
    “I’m sure she knows, but I will.”
    I backed away toward the window. With no small effort I unstuck the window and got it open. With one final look back into what was once my world, I climbed out.
    The fire escape was still attached to the building, but barely so. Years of no maintenance whatsoever had taken their toll. After a nerve wracking ten minutes, I finally go to the lowest level. The ladder that went to the ground was stuck, and the whole assembly was about ready to pull free from the wall, so I didn’t bother to try and un-stick it.
    I let my bat fall to the ground. It made a lot more noise than I had planned on hearing. As quickly as I could, I grabbed hold a the lowest bar I could reach, then swung down. I hung to the fire escape assembly until my swinging was under control, then dropped the last couple of feet to the alleyway.
    I cursed myself for making such a racket and looked around to see where my bat had rolled. I walked over and picked it up.
    I turned back toward the street and froze.
    A man with a vacant expression in his eyes had turned the corner into the alley. His left leg was bloody and wounded. His shirt had been torn in places.
    There was no doubt the man was infected.
    He limped straight for me.
 
    
12 - Life On The Street
    
    I wasn’t as shocked at seeing an infected person this time. A couple of years working in the emergency room had conditioned me for crisis. I glanced around to check my options.
    The alley wasn’t a good option. I had no idea what was back there or even where it really went. The only other option was to go through the infected man onto the street.
    He didn’t have to think of a plan. He just kept coming.
    I guessed he was about fifteen or twenty feet away. In between us I noticed two metal garbage cans. I sprinted.
    He continued his limping advance. As I neared he seemed to prime himself.
    I snatched up the lid from one of the cans.
    The infected man jumped at me.
    I spun the lid as fast as I could.
    The infected man grabbed the lid’s rim with both hands.
    I pushed as hard as I could, hoping to bowl him over.
    He yanked the lid.
    The force of his pull swung me around to the side. I felt the lid being torn from my grip. I stumbled, but I knew I was passed him.
    He dropped the lid and dove at me.
    I tried my best to sprint, but I was still off balance. I tripped over some garbage and fell.
    The infected man stretched and groped at me.
    I scrambled to my feet and made it into the open road. I took at glance back at the alley.
    The infected man was back on his feet and shambling for me.
    There was also movement from in front of my building. The man whose fingers I had smashed under the door was facing me, hand still caught. He struggled to stand, tearing at his trapped hand.
    I knew he’d be free soon.
    The other infected man emerged from the alley.
    The little voice inside me was screaming again for me to run, so I turned and ran. I had no idea where I was going, but I knew I had to put some distance between myself and those two infected. Enough distance that they couldn’t follow me.
    I turned at every intersection for the next few blocks. Hopefully that’ll lose them.Eventually I slowed and stopped in the middle of a block. My decision to leave seemed completely idiotic now. I was trapped outside in the heat of the day. I had no friends to help me, no shelter to hide in and no protection other than an old baseball bat. I also had no idea which building might already have infected people in it.
    I caught some movement in the windows around me, and I could feel the inhabitants watching me. I knew they were asking themselves if I was infected or not. Some were probably even wondering if I was one of the terrorists on the TV that started this mess. No one was going to let me in.
    A man’s scream echoed from within one of the nearby buildings.
    I wondered how many buildings across the city were filled with the same screaming.Why isn’t the government doing anything about this? What happened to the Army? Are they going to let the city just die? I decided it wasn’t a good time to debate this in my head. I still needed to get off of the street.
    I remembered my original plan to find a place the among the factories and shops to the south. That still seemed plausible, so I started for them.
    More and more often noises were echoing from some distant house as the virus claimed its victims. One house’s door appeared to have been beaten in.
    My skin began to crawl. I wondered if anyone or anything was still inside. I decided not to check.
    Inside an apartment building up ahead there was a lot of shouting. The shouting led to what sounded like muffled gunfire.
    My resolve hardened. I was consumed with a single thought - find a safe place. I wasn’t about to put myself in harms way by checking out anything that sounded dangerous. I picked up the pace and passed by.
    A door opened behind me.
    I stole a glance to see, and sure enough, it was the apartment building.
    A man stumbled out of the door and fell. He pulled himself to his feet again. He looked as if he had been in a nasty bar fight. He had cuts on his face, he was favoring his right leg, and his left arm appeared to have been bitten several times. He looked around, saw me and started across the lawn.
    “I need help.”
    My heart sank. Up until last night, my whole life was about helping people in emergencies. I wanted to go bandage him up, but I knew what those bite marks meant. There is no helping this man. I took a step back.
    A woman came out of the door behind him. She had the same vacant stare I had seen before. She said nothing, but turned toward the man trying to escape. He didn’t need to look back. He knew who was chasing him.
    “Please help!” He reached out a hand.
    There is no helping this man. To stay and help was suicide. I ran.
    His tortured screams echoed in my ears.
    I kept running.
    Soon enough, the houses gave was to machine shops and small factories.
    My lungs burned. I stopped and gasped for air.
    The look of horror on his face was etched in my memory.
    I felt sick to my stomach. There was nothing I could do. If I had stayed, I just would have gotten infected, too. I knew it was true, but it still hurt to just abandon the man like that.
    A building caught my eye. At three stories, it was the tallest building on the block. The plaque mounted next to the door read “Oasis Medical Center Research Annex Two.” On the door was painted the hospital logo.
    I knew the hospital had several labs throughout the city, but I had never been in any of them. Still, seeing a building with the same logo that was on my scrubs made it feel something like going home. I decided to look for a way in.
    
    
13 - A Very Serious Mistake
    
    I didn’t have to look very hard. There was a set of keys hanging from the lock.
    I wondered what could have had happened.
    The door swung open.
    My heart sank. I realized I had a problem. I had no idea how long the keys had been left there. I only knew that whoever left the keys had made a very serious mistake. I just didn’t know if it had caught up to them yet. I didn’t know if any infected had gotten in. I had no idea who was still there. But at least I knew I could get in and lock the door. Who knows how long it’s going to take to find another open building?
    I set my jaw, gently pulled out the keys and entered. As quietly as I could manage, I locked the door, put the keys in my pocket and explored with both hands holding the bat.
    The first level was filled with bland cubicles but devoid of life. The stairway only went up, and there was an elevator with only a down arrow. As I passed the bathroom, I could have sworn I heard running water.
    I crept up to the door and listened for a good five minutes.
    No noise.
    I opened the bathroom door a crack.
    It was poorly lit by a small frosted glass window.
    My heart pounded. I edged the door open another crack.
    No movement inside.
    I couldn’t take it any longer. I gave the door a larger shove and lunged in, bat at the ready.
    No one here.
    I let out a small sigh of relief and relaxed my grip on the bat. Maybe they did leave the keys during the rush home when the crisis broke. I almost had myself convinced, then I heard it again.
    It was the sound pipes make when water is running through them. The water ran for about thirty seconds.
    My stomach dropped. I froze. I ran through the possibilities in my head. Is it just one person? Are they infected? I figured if they were infected, at least they hadn’t completely lost their mind yet. The glassy-eyed once-humans I had seen didn’t seem like the hand washing type. If I head up there anytime soon, I should be guaranteed a thinking human being.
    That was a small consolation. I didn’t and I couldn’t know what was going to happen once they saw me. Will they think I’m infected? Are they dangerous? And what if there are more than one? I quickly decided it would do me no good to stand around. I headed for the stairs.
    The stairwell had no windows. It was pitch black and very hot. The air felt thick and unhealthy.
    I stumbled as quietly as I could up the stairs to the second floor. Once I found the door I pressed my ear to it and listened as hard as I could.
    Nothing.
    I slowly opened the door a crack.
    Nothing.
    I kept my breathing as quiet as I could, but it sounded like a crashing waterfall in the silence of the stairwell. I slipped through the door and helped it close ever so gently. I raised my bat again to batting position and began to work my way around.
    This floor was full of offices. The walls were white and stark. There was also a break room with a water cooler, a refrigerator, and a vending machine.
    I wondered where the medical research equipment was and decided it was probably only accessible via the elevator downstairs.
    A loud crash came from the floor above me. The crash was followed by footsteps. Footsteps that seemed to be pacing.
    At that point the thought occurred to me that I was going about my exploration a little wrong. After all, If I was holed up on the top floor, would I want someone sneaking around, or would I want some signs of intelligence? And if they were infected, I wouldn’t be much worse off by saying hello.
    I relaxed the bat again and held it only with my left.
    The footsteps continued to pace.
    I headed for the stairwell and went up. This time I didn’t try to be so sneaky.
    The air in the stairwell was hotter and muggier the higher I went.
    When I found the door to the third floor, I paused.
    I was still too agitated for my own good.
    I took three deep breaths of the burning air. I forced my shoulders to relax and rolled them around. I tried to imagine the most non-threatening way I could possibly carry the bat. I took one more breath and pushed on the door handle.
    “Hello?” I swung the door open. “Anybody th…”
    A small man in a white lab coat looked up from where he had been pacing the floor. His eyes opened as wide as they could and he froze.
    I stepped in and raised a hand. “It’s OK, I’m just…”
    The man turned down the small hallway and ran into an open door.
    “Wait!” I ran after him.
    Before I could make it halfway, the man popped back into view holding a gun.
    “Stop right there!”
    I almost tripped trying to slam on my own breaks. My heart pounded as hard as ever. I dropped the bat and raised my hands. “Look, I’m not infected.”
    “Oh, yeah?”
    I edged back a little. “I just want somewhere safe to stay the night.”
    The man narrowed his beady eyes.
    “I’ll leave in the morning. I promise.”
    The man thought for a moment and then lowered his gun a little. “Then take off your clothes.”
    
  
14 - Confessions Of A Mad Scientist
    
    It took me a minute to process what he said. “What?”
    He raised the gun again. “You heard me. Take them off.”
    I tried to figure out why he would want that. I could think of a few reasons, but none of them were pleasant. Still, I decided it would be better to know what was coming that to not know, so I ventured a question.
    “Why do you want me naked?”
    The man raised an eyebrow. “Do you really want to know?”
    I considered it again. “Yes.”
    He looked like he was trying to stifle a laugh. “Don’t be a sicko. I just need to make sure you don’t have any bite marks. I have to know you’re not infected.”
    A small bout of relief flooded my senses. By the time I got my clothes off and had my arms outstretched so that I could be examined, I was back to being a more than a little tense. I turned around once.
    He nodded and lowered the weapon. “Ok.”
    He headed back into the room where he had grabbed the gun.
    I picked up and put on my clothes. What exactly have I gotten myself into? I went in to see if he would talk to me.
    It was an office, sparsely decorated with windows along one side. A file cabinet had been overturned. The man was pacing the floor. “You can’t sleep in here. And tomorrow morning, you’ll have to leave.”
    “That’s not what I came in here to ask.”
    The man seemed to snap out of his train of thought. “Look, I’m sorry if you were embarrassed. If it makes you feel any better, I am a doctor, so it’s not like you’re the only naked man I’ve ever seen.”
    “What else do you know about the infected?”
    He sneered and seemed to notice for the first time that I was wearing a scrub top. “Do you really work at the hospital? Or did you buy that at the gift shop?”
    Too much had been happening for me to be annoyed by his attitude. “I’m a nurse in the ER.”
    He flipped his hand as if to dismiss the statement. “You were a nurse in the ER.”
    I wondered exactly what he was hiding. “Are you going to tell me anything or not?”
    He smirked. His eyes weren’t glossed over and vacant like the infected, but something about him just didn’t look right. “It’s a virus.”
    “I know that. What else?”
    He glanced up at me. “You’re a little pushy. Have you considered the idea that I don’t want to tell you anything? Besides, that’s valuable information.”
    I wasn’t shocked at his behavior. Too much had happened to me in the past twenty four hours. I was certain that he was hiding something serious. I tried to think of something that could to coax a little more information out of him. Then I remembered something.
    “I’ll tell you why I deserve to know.”
    He raised an eyebrow. “You have something to trade?”
    “How about you repay me for saving your life?”
    He raised his voice. “Don’t try to play stupid mind games with me. I’m not an idiot.”
    Not an idiot, just crazy. “Didn’t you wonder how I got in here?” My hand darted into my pocket and brought out the keys.
    His eyes opened wide. He furiously patted all of his pockets. “How did you…”
    I tossed them over at his feet. “You left them in the front door. Now will you talk to me?”
    His eyes swished from side to side as if he were having an internal conversation. Eventually he nodded to himself and walked over to the desk and sat down.
    “You need to keep what I’m about to tell you to yourself.”
    “Fine.”
    “Its our own fault. We made it. And then we lost it.”
    “What are you talking about?”
    His eyes darted around room like he wanted to be sure we were alone. “The virus was originally engineered by the military. When they got stuck, they brought it here and we helped perfect it.”
    I couldn’t believe what I had just heard. I shook my head a little.
    “It’s true. At this lab, we continued to work on the virus. They built us an assembly machine for this lab. The other two labs were trying to find a cure. Our research was always kept separate. I have no idea how close they ever came.”
    “Who would believe me if I even told them that? Why can’t I…”
    “That’s not the important part. The important part is what I know about how they act.”
    I closed my mouth and listened.
    “Our research with live infections has been limited, we only know a couple of things about the behavior of the infected.”
    My stomach churned. They tested this on humans?
    “One. Infected humans can recognize other infected humans. Two. They are drawn to the uninfected humans. In fact, the bigger the crowd, the more they are attracted.That’s what you don’t want everybody to know. If everyone were to spread out, we’d all be in the same amount of danger. As it is, the idiot masses are just going to gather themselves into large groups. They think there’s safety in numbers, but there’s none. The infected will be drawn there, and away from me here.”
    I was stunned. I furrowed my brow. “Shouldn’t people know everything you know? If you don’t try to pass the word, then you are condemning them to death.”
    He narrowed his eyes. “Yes, that’s very heroic, but you know what’s going to happen here, don’t you?”
    “What?”
    “People are going to die. No matter what. All but the strongest and smartest. The infected have use of the normally untapped strength in human muscles. They’re relentless. They only want one thing: to make more infected. The virus is perfect.”
    This man is insane. “You still can’t…”
    “I can and you will, too, as soon as you think about it. There’s no sense in being a lemming. That’s why you’ll be leaving in the morning. I intend to survive.”
    I stared off into space for a moment. There was some sense in what the strange doctor had said, but it just seemed so wrong to let others die. He helped engineer this crisis. Of course he doesn’t care about human life.
    “Why would you engineer such a…”
    “You lack vision. This was a small price to pay. Our viral research was already decades ahead of anyone else. With the machine that we designed and they built, we could do more good for the world than you could imagine.”
    “Like what?”
    “A virus that only attacks cancer cells, for one. Think of the lives that could be saved.”
    “Think of the ones that are going to be lost.”
    “Small price. You’ll never understand.”
    My head was swimming. I stared at him for a moment. I have to know. “How did they get it?”
    “Who, the terrorists? Don’t know. The military picked up the bulk of the viral samples over a week ago. We weren’t told where they were going.”
    I had heard enough. “So where should I sleep?”
    “I don’t care, as long as it’s not on this floor. Just pick someplace.”
    I fumbled my way down the stairs and found an office with a couch and a large window.
    The window looked down on the bleak street. The sun was finally beginning to set. Night would soon fall.
    I looked out the window for signs of movement.
    Nothing.
    I decided I was going to need some rest if the crazy doctor upstairs was going to kick me out in the morning. I reclined on the couch and tried to relax.
    The stars were finally beginning to appear and I was just about to doze off when a flash of light form outside invaded the room.
    Before I could even gasp, The building shook along with the boom that accompanied the explosion.
    That’s what it had to be. An explosion.
    I ran to the window to see what had happened and where.
    
    
15 - A Burning Desire For Solitude
    
    Fire engulfed what appeared to be a truck stop a couple of blocks down the road. The flames leapt at least a high as the building I was in. Thick black smoke poured into the air. The occasional clearing through the smoke showed a gaping hole in the parking lot.
    My first instinct was to run out there and see if there were any survivors in need of help, but I knew deep down that I couldn’t do any good. There’s just no way anyone survived that blast and the current burning. The underground gas tank must have exploded.
    Dusk was deepening, and the inferno made stark contrast to dusty desert sky.
    Then I saw them.
    Several people were coming down the street.
    But not really people.
    They rambled in the direction of the fire. Many of them were covered in bloodstained clothing. A few limped. I couldn’t see clearly in the dim light, but I knew their faces were expressionless, and their eyes vacant.
    Infected. But what were they doing?
    It looked like they were heading toward the fire.
    Within an hour the sky was dark. Between the light of the moon and the light of the now dying flames, I could make out a mob twenty or thirty infected in the street. Each just stood perfectly still around what had been the gas station. It had burnt hot and fast, and now there wasn’t much left to burn.
    My head was again filled with a million questions. Why were they drawn to the fire? What was I going to do in the morning when I had to leave? What had that doctor done? Why was he certain he’d be safer alone?
    I couldn’t come up with any good answers, so I just stared out into the dark. I was so wrapped up in my thoughts that I didn’t hear the door open behind me.
    I felt the impact before I even heard the shot. In fact, I can’t even remember hearing the shot at all.
    I spun and faced my attacker.
    Sure enough, the doctor from upstairs stood there looking all satisfied with himself. He was holding an odd looking rifle, which he lowered so that he could smirk at me.
    “I’m sorry, nurse. I need solitude.”
    I tried to process what was going on. I reached around my back to feel the wound. My fingers wrapped around a thick dart. I ripped it out.
    A tranquilizer? How does that get him solitude? I looked up at the doctor.
    He was already gone and the door was closing behind him.
    A rush of anger swept over me. I tossed the dart and bolted for the door, which was a mistake, because I tripped over a garbage can and a chair on the way out.
    It didn’t matter. I was already set on hurting the doc before I passed out.
    The hallway was even darker than th office. It was only lit by the faint light coming through the open doors.
    He could have hidden anywhere. It didn’t matter. When I found him, I was going pound his face.
    The stairwell door clanged shut.
    I stumbled and groped down the hall until I found it.
    The heat in the stairwell was still unbearable.
    I raced and tripped up the stairs. I slammed into the door.
    It didn’t move. He had already barricaded it, or he was holding it.
    I started pounding on the door. I screamed at the top of my lungs for that coward to get out there where I could teach him a new meaning of the word pain.
    I yelled, cursed, threatened and pounded until the heat swallowed my anger and the tranquilizer sapped my strength.
    It was then I realized my serious mistake. He hits me with a tranq and the first thing I do is run around and get my heart pounding. Just like the stupid… lion on the… the Discovery Channel…
    My heart pounded and pumped the tranquilizer all the faster.
    My limbs became jelly and my thoughts were muddied.
    I knew I needed to get somewhere safer. Maybe my floor. Maybe I could block the door before I blacked out.
    It was too late, though. I collapsed before I even got to the first stair. The last thing I remember was wondering why a viral research doctor would have a tranquilizer gun anyway.
    
    
16 - Undead Eviction
    
    I woke up sometime later with a stomach in revolt and a screaming headache. I was also pretty certain that I couldn’t feel my face.
    The air in the stairwell was still as hot and heavy as it had been when I collapsed.
    Alone and in total darkness.
    I tried to roll to my hands and knees, but found that my body was not responding the way it should. Instead, I sort of flopped face down on the cement landing.
    I tried to gather my thoughts, but still couldn’t think straight. I couldn’t even work myself into a panic. I was in a complete haze.
    I forced myself to take a couple of deep breaths, hoping the extra oxygen would help my situation.
    The air burned as it filled my lungs.
    I blacked out again.
    The next time I came to, the stairwell was noticeably cooler. Not even close to comfortable, but cooler.
    It must be near morning, the building’s not as hot.
    My thoughts were again coherent, and my headache was down to a minor dull throb. My stomach was twisted up worse than ever and I was hesitant to sit up.
    The first sound I noticed was my ears ringing. As that subsided I heard something far worse than dead silence.
    Crashing noises.
    The noises echoed in the stairwell. There was an awful lot of commotion going on somewhere in the building.
    I struggled to a sitting position and listened for a moment.
    The noise had to be coming from the first or second floor.
    A wave of nausea washed over me. My stomach tightened.
    I clutched my knees and tried to breathe through it.
    After a while it subsided.
    As soon as I thought I could handle being on my feet, I reached around until I found the railing. I was weak and shaky, but somehow struggled to my feet.
    Being up made me feel woozy and even more nauseated than before.
    I began to dry heave.
    Harsh, painful contractions gripped my midsection. My legs shook wildly.
    I bent over and leaned on the railing.
    My whole body seemed set on making me vomit, but I hadn’t eaten or drunk anything for a long time, so there was nothing to throw up.
    At long last a load of stomach acid burst from my mouth and nostrils. It burnt terribly and I spit several times trying to get it out. At least the heaving was subsiding.
    I was finally able to take a deep breath. I got a hold of my self and realized I had been making a fair amount of noise. Whoever or whatever was breaking things below could have my echoed groans.
    Could have, and did.
    The clank of a door opening rang out and a faint light entered the stairwell from far below.
    Has to be the first floor. But is it…
    ?Hello?? I called out.
    There was no vocal response. Just the sound of something as it slapped the ground, as if it had tripped.
    I held my breath for a moment and listened as hard as I could. There was definitely movement.
    The door clanged shut and again I was in total darkness. But now I wasn’t alone.
    I knew it was one of the infected. I knew I couldn’t fight it in the dark and without a weapon. I knew the door that lay somewhere behind me was barricaded by a madman. There was only one possible escape. If only I can get there first.
    My heart pumped full speed and adrenaline coursed into my veins. I flailed in the dark for the railing against the wall and did the best I could to run down the stairs.
    I could almost feel the thing racing me to the door on the second floor.
    No time.
    I rounded the corner on the in-between floors landing as fast as I could. Only one problem with that. I misjudged the distance to where the stairs began again. When I to put my foot down, nothing was there.
    I fell face first into darkness. In the moment before my first bounce, I made a grasp for where I thought the railing should be. It was no use. My left arm hit first, followed my the top of my head.
    My momentum carried my body over and my back made the next contact.
    I rolled sort of sideways and banged my knee on a stair.
    After what seemed like and eternity of tumbling, I finally plopped and skidded to a stop on the next landing.
    Pain bit at my arms and legs, but I didn’t have time to care. In a heartbeat, I scrambled toward where I thought the door was but instead found the railing. I spun and launched myself wobbling through the air toward the door.
    I exploded through the door and somehow managed to keep my feet under me. I glanced back over my shoulder.
    Just as the closing door blocked the view, I saw it.
    A bloody arm reached onto the landing, as if its owner had crawled up the stairs.
    No time to block the door. Got to get my stuff. I limped to the office where the doctor had shot me. I flung open the door.
    The bright morning sun stung my eyes.
    I squinted, entered and slammed the door closed.
    In the hall, I heard the stairwell door open.
    I opened my eyes as much as I could stand it and caught sight of a visitor chair. I grabbed it and jammed it under the door handle.
    In between gasps for air, footsteps sounded from the hall.
    I almost despaired. Now where?
    The window!
    I rushed to the large window and nearly tripped over my backpack.
    The infected pounded on the door.
    My eyes still hurt with the light, but I forced myself to face the world outside and scan for options.
    I hadn’t noticed it before, but there was a small cement ledge that ran around the building. The right window pane slid on a track.
    Another crash at the door. It gave a little.
    I fumbled with the locking mechanism.
    Another crash. And a splintering sound.
    I stole a glance back.
    The thing had punched through the door. A gray hand gripped the edge of the hole and tore a chunk free. It wouldn’t take long before it was in the room.
    I was again shocked at the raw strength of the infected. I didn’t have time to think about it, though. I shook my head, focused again on the window and slammed it open.
    A quick shove popped the screen from the window.
    The torso of the infected woman was now visible through the hole in the door. It had been a woman. Her shirt was caked in blood, and deep scrapes covered the visible parts of her skin.
    I didn’t think to check if it was safe outside. I just tossed my bag and my bat onto the street below, then lifted a foot up, over and out onto the ledge.
    A terrible rip splintered what was left of the door frame and a large chunk fell away. The infected stepped through the wreckage.
    Don’t they ever stop? I hopped the second leg over.
    The infected stared blankly ahead and walked straight for the window.
    I dropped to my knees then lowered my legs off the ledge.
    From the window came the sound of the infected plowing into the desk.
    I swung my right elbow free and held the ledge with my left harm and right hand.
    The thing was certainly almost to the window now.
    I tried to swing my other elbow down and fully extend myself. My grip was too weak, and I fell to the street below.
    The drop was not terribly far and the impact was not a great as it had been back on the stairs.
    Still, it hurt plenty as my legs crumpled and I careened backward toward the cement.
    My head made a sickening thud as it made contact with the ground.
    The world around me started spin, and blackness crept in around the edges of my vision.
    If I pass out, I die. I closed my eyes and attempted to take a deep breath as I rolled onto all fours.
    Up above, something fleshy slapped the ledge.
    Pain shot through my leg as I stood. At least it’s still holding weight.
    Up above the infected had flopped itself headfirst out the window onto the ledge. Two battered arms and an expressionless face hung over the edge.
    I lurched for my bag, keeping an eye on the scene above.
    Still on its belly, the infected crawled off the ledge.
    I hopped back further.
    It landed on its head. The crashing weight of the body bent and snapped the neck with an audible crack. The body crumpled into an awkward heap.
    I stood dumbfounded for a moment at what had just happened.
    The infected corpse was motionless.
    I scooped up my bag and bat and made a quick survey of my surroundings.
    The remains of the gas station were still smoldering, but the mob had left.
    Where did they go?
    I looked again at the lab building.
    My stomach knotted.
    The front door had been propped open. He had invited them in.
    I became aware of a noise crackling above. I stepped back to see what it could be.
    I couldn’t believe it.
    On the ledge outside the third floor was a large pile of burning office supplies.
    And he called them here. I tightened my jaw and squeezed the bat.
    I was powerless against the effects of his stupidity, his indifference, his insanity. To make it worse, I knew that I would never get a chance to exact revenge. I could only hope that somehow they would beat down his door.
    Then it struck me. I was alone, in the open and thoroughly battered.
    But not alone.
    Movement from the door caught my eye. The mob of infected poured from the building.
    I was too tired, too beaten, and to pissed off to be frightened like I had been before. I am not going to die here.
    I grunted, turned and half-limped, half-jogged down the street in search of safety.
    
    
17 - The Lonely Side Of The Street
    
    From the time I rounded the first corner, I didn’t see any more of the infected outside.
    The city streets were devoid of life. Devoid of life, perhaps, but not sound.
    Anguished screams echoed around me.
    Unspeakable horrors were occurring across the city. There was nothing I could do to help. I wasn’t sure there was anything anybody could do, short of evacuating the survivors and burning the city.
    I decided I’d be better off walking in the direction that was producing the least amount of noise.
    The shouts and screams became more distant and I arrived at a new commercial development.
    It was an open air mall made to look like a quaint European town. There were two layers of shops that ran the length the project, about two blocks. In places, there were two or three more floors of residential condos.
    I sat down on the edge of a fountain in the middle of the cobblestone walkway that divided the stores.
    The entire area was silent, but I knew there had to be many people hidden in the shadows, or high in one of the condos, watching me and wondering what to do.
    There would be no way I could be accepted by them. With all my scrapes, bruises and limping, I looked just like one of the infected. I knew I would need to recover a little before anyone would possibly take me in.
    I pulled the water bottle out of my backpack and drank. The water was pretty warm, but I didn’t care. I was definitely dehydrated by now, and I needed liquid in my system.
    “D-Don’t move.”
    I jerked the bottle down to see who had spoken.
    About 20 feet in front of me stood a middle aged, long haired man trembling and holding a knife.
    Where did he come from? I glanced down to see how far away my bat was. It was just at my feet.
    He took a half step forward and raised the knife. “You can’t b-be here.”
    I put down my bottle and raised my arms slightly. “It’s OK, I’m not one of the infected. I know I look like a mess, but that’s because I took a tumble…”
    “Shut up!” He stabbed with the knife in the air. “We decided you can’t be here.”
    I closed my eyes and let out a slow breath. “Fine, I won’t stay. Just let me rest a minute.”
    He narrowed his eyes. “How can you prove you’re not infected?”
    I shrugged. “I can’t, other than the fact that I’m not currently trying to bite you. Can I finish my water?”
    He nodded.
    I picked up the bottle and guzzled it down. While drinking, I glanced around. There were a few people staring down at me from the safety of their windows. They probably thought I had been infected and would soon lose my mind.
    I stood up. “I’ll tell you what, if you refill my water bottle, I’ll leave immediately.”
    The man just stood there a minute. His eyes moved from side to side as he considered my proposal. At length he spoke.
    “Fine. Toss it over.”
    I did, and the bottle clanged at his feet.
    Knife still raised, he bent down and picked up the bottle with his free hand.
    I sat down again.
    He backed away, scurried up some stairs and disappeared.
    As I waited I noticed the damage my falls had done.
    I had several scrapes on my arms and legs. They were accompanied by bruises of various shades.
    The longer I sat, the more everything began to ache.
    I turned my attention from my physical pains to the issue of my survival. Where should I go next?
    I imagined at this point it wouldn’t really matter where I went. My reception would be just as poor anywhere. No one in their right mind would allow a stranger that looked as banged up as me into their protection.
    If what the doctor said was correct, then I should probably head to the outskirts of town where there weren’t as many people. Maybe I could find another office building, this time one without a mad scientist.
    I sat for several minutes before the yelling started.
    I looked up, but couldn’t place exactly where it was coming from. Somewhere on the second level.
    There were two men yelling. I was pretty sure one was the man who had confronted me.
    It was easy to pick out that they were arguing about me, but I couldn’t hear which of them was on my side. Or even if either was really on my side.
    I had the sickening feeling again that I wasn’t going to be accepted anywhere until this was all over.
    At length the shouting ceased, and the long haired man appeared at the railing on the second floor. He was rather red in the face, but all the same he looked a little pleased with himself.
    He lifted up two bottles, one in each hand. “I got you an extra.”
    I stood and my knees cracked. “Thanks.”
    He dropped the bottles to me and I loaded them in my backpack.
    It was now time for me to make good on my word and get out of there. “Hey! Just one more thing.”
    The man appeared again.
    “If you do see somebody else that looks like they might be infected, don’t bother coming out and challenging them with a knife. Just hide.”
    I didn’t bother to wait for his reaction. I picked up my stuff and headed south toward the city limits.
    The walk this time was much more quiet. The virus must not have made it this far yet.The day was becoming very hot.
    The commercial area faded into a nice neighborhood. I passed several rows of houses with well kept yards and expensive cars parked in the driveway.
    Here and there I caught movement behind window blinds.
    My injuries were really beginning to stiffen me up. Everything was hurting, and I was favoring my left leg. For a while I was certain that some rich guy and his two large sons were going to burst out their front door and mow me down.
    But none of the residents came out, called out, or did anything. Except watch. Out of the corner of my eye at practically every house I noticed blinds or curtains shuffling to give the occupant a better view.
    It doesn’t matter. I can take care of myself.
    I didn’t dare approach any of the doors. Too many people would assume I was infected. Nobody was going to let me in, and forcing my way in with everyone watching would bring another trip to the house of pain, or worse.
    I had to just keep going until I got to the edge.
    Within a half hour, I saw the wall.
    Oasis had been a military base at one point, about fifteen or twenty years prior. After the base was decommissioned, oil was discovered about 10 miles out of town. From that, the city started to grow. Even with the growth, the city had still not filled all of the space from the original base. Around most and maybe all of the city still stood an eight foot cement wall. As far as I knew, nobody had bothered to expand past it.
    And there it was across a thirty foot strip of grass that probably ran the entire length of the wall. A grim reminder that I was trapped inside a dying city. On the other side lay only desert for a hundred miles or so in every direction.
    Looking to the east a couple of blocks I could see a place where the wall had been knocked down.
    I went over to investigate. What I discovered shocked me.
    A truck had driven through the wall. I know it was a truck because the crumpled blue beast was still visible. The wreckage from the wall had not been cleared either.
    But that wasn’t the worst part.
    The crash looked new, but the hole it made was already patched with a brand new chain link and razor wire fence.
    In my mind, that could only mean one thing. They’re trying to keep us in.
    I guess somewhere in the back of my mind I knew that a quarantine was the best option. It just hurt to be on this side of the decision.
    A distant echoing scream shook me from my stupor.
    With that, I knew the virus was claiming another host. I have to get off the street. I scanned around for the most abandoned looking building possible.
    A self storage lot caught my eye. There were eighteen or so units laid out in a giant “U” shape. Each unit had a regular door on hinges and a bay door for loading large pieces of junk. The neighboring lot had several large trees that kept much of the lot shaded. The “U” opened to the south and the second unit from the opening on the left side was missing a door handle.
    I checked that second unit out.
    The handle was off, but the inner workings were still there. I used my pocketknife to work the mechanism and open the door. The unit was empty.
    Finally some luck.
    I would have to find water somewhere else later, but if I stayed quiet, I imagined it would be reasonably safe to hide out in there. I stepped in and pushed the door shut.
    I hadn’t considered how dark it would be. The only light I had was entering through where the door handle was missing.
    I sat down against the wall next to the door and began my horrible wait. It wasn’t long before I realized my mistake.
    
    
18 - A Long Day And A Longer Night
    
    Over the next few hours, I decided I should not have hid out in a storage shed. I should have kept looking. I just didn’t know how it would really be.
    Several times I considered leaving the shed and finding a better place. Every time I decided against it. I needed to rest and heal a little before I could convince anyone to let me in. And who’s to say it’d be possible to find a better empty place to hide out before I ran in to another mob of infected.
    The day warmed, and so did my shed. At least my side’s in the shade.
    The minutes crawled by. For the most part, my breathing was the only noise I could hear.
    Somewhere between the heat and my exhaustion, I drifted off.
    When I awoke, I was laying on the floor. I imagine I’d have been sore just from sleeping on a cement floor. But that, coupled with my injuries meant that I was stiff enough for my muscles to almost make an audible creaking noise as I pushed back to sitting.
    It was miserable. The many parts of my body that had made contact with the stairs as I had fallen were throbbing. To add insult to injury it finally occurred to me that I was very hungry.
    At least I could do something about that.
    I fished through my bag until I found a couple of the granola bars I had tossed in. I wolfed them down, and was immediately sorry for my haste.
    My stomach churned with the first arrival of food since the partial sandwich back at Linda’s.
    I drank some water, hoping to calm things down in there. I suppose it helped a little.
    As I sat moved over to the corner next to the door, I found I had to urinate.
    Great. Didn’t think of that.
    I stood back up and paced as I considered my options.
    I could rush out and do my business around the corner, but I might be seen or heard by infected. I could do it in the opposite corner, but I hadn’t had a lot to drink, so it was sure to be fairly pungent.
    Was it worth the chance?
    Fate answered the question for me.
    Someone on the street was yelling.
    I knelt by the door and peered out the hole. I could only see a sliver of the street.
    The yelling got louder and more understandable.
    “Come on you idiots! Just follow me a little further! Pay no attention to what’s happening in the street behind you!”
    It sounded like he was trying to get a group of infected to follow him.
    I only saw him for a moment. He looked young, just a kid of maybe 18 or 19. He was wearing bright red running shoes and was walking backwards as he continued his taunting. He was gone from view in a few short steps.
    I wondered if I should go out and help him, or maybe invite him in here. No, that’s not going to work. There’s too much I don’t know about the situation. The metal door was much stronger than the one in the office had been, but I wasn’t too keen on finding out how long it could hold back one of the infected. Plus, I didn’t know how he would react to me. I probably looked worse than whatever he was leading down the street.
    The shouting continued. Soon, the others came into my line of sight.
    About five or six infected shuffled by the storage sheds.
    I wished the kid in the red shoes luck, and silently thanked him for helping me make a decision.
    There was no way I was leaving until I was ready to move on. That meant it had to be in corner.
    After an hour or so, I got used to the stench. After another hour or so alternating between sitting and pacing, I fell asleep again.
    The rest of the day passed without incident, but painfully slowly. If I hadn’t been so tired and able to take the several naps, the long and lonely heat of the day might have driven me nuts.
    The extended silence was unnatural and eerie. I couldn’t shake the growing feeling in my stomach that this was all just the calm before the storm.
    As dusk started to fall, I was almost relieved when something broke the silence. Almost.
    I crept back to my lookout hole to see what was making the commotion.
    A man obviously in pain staggered into the center of the storage units. His arm was clenched across his belly. His breaths were loud, raspy and labored. He fell to his knees and let out a low groan.
    Again I felt the desire to help wash over me. I had to clench my teeth and hold it back. I knew what was happening.
    It had happened to Carlton, and it had already happened to countless others around the city. It’ll probably happen to everybody soon. I could do nothing to help. The virus would take over his body soon enough.
    He struggled back to his feet and went to a unit across the way. He fumbled with some keys using his free hand and unlocked the door. Leaving the keys in the knob, he kicked a box in front of the door to hold it open. Before entering, he took a long look around at the street and other units.
    His face was twisted in a grimace of pain, and for a moment I was sure he had seen me watching him.
    Apparently he didn’t, because he went in and started moving things around.
    Whether he was searching for something, trying to barricade the big roll up door or something else entirely I couldn’t tell. All I knew is that he was making plenty of noise.
    Every few minutes he would stop his work and moan in pain.
    Within an hour or so, it was dark. The man continued moving things around, but at a continually slower pace.
    I decided I didn’t need to squat or kneel by the door just so I could stare at a dark doorway, so I grabbed my bat and sat again in the nearest corner.
    Another hour of this, and the man could no longer move things around. The pain must have been debilitating. He remained in the storage unit. His moans turned to anguished screams as the virus did its terrible work.
    Occasionally between screams, I could hear him thrashing about.
    I sat frozen in place, staring strait ahead of me into the darkness and wondering what exactly was happening to the man.
    The screams intensified.
    I winced. His anguish bit into my soul.
    I have always hated knowing that others were in pain. That’s part of why I became a nurse. Being a nurse meant I could help.
    Now, there was nothing I could do.
    I have no idea how long it took. It seemed like an eternity.
    Eventually the screams died down to sobbing and then whimpering. Somewhere far into the night, the whimpering stopped.
    My stomach knotted. It’s over. The virus has him. I crept up to the hole in the door.
    It was too dark to really see much.
    I didn’t think he had left the shed, but I couldn’t be sure. I couldn’t be sure of anything.
    In my head I knew there was nothing I could do but wait. I laid down again, clenching my bat and using my hard, lumpy backpack as a pillow.
    The rest wasn’t restful and sleep never came. Every time I would almost drift off my mind would create a picture of the newly infected man breaking down my door.
    Every tiny sound in the night made my ears burn. My imagination was positive that it always the sound of my impending doom.
    No comfort.
    No security.
    No sleep.
    It was the longest night of my life. Longer even than the night my mother died.
    As a way to ease the passing of time, I began to have conversations in my head with my baseball bat. We tried to talk about the good times, remember something that could take me away from what was happening. When that didn’t work, we talked about self defense. My bat was a little scared to be called into action.
    Maybe I did fall asleep after all.
    After an eternity of forevers, morning arrived.
    For some reason the bluish light of morning was very reassuring to me. Enough that I thought I’d be able to really sleep for a while before leaving. I closed my eyes again and breathed a sigh of relief.
    Sleep would have come, but fate had other plans.
    Before the sun could finish getting all the way up and before I could drift off, echoing voices caught my attention.
    They were getting closer. In fact, the group stopped at the top of the “U”.
    There were a couple of male voices and a female voice.
    Someone asked if this was the place, and the female voice gave the affirmative.
    As I approached the spy hole I caught a glimpse of a familiar bouncy brunette ponytail.
    
    
19 - Come Out Swinging
    
    When I got right up to the hole, I could see Beth, two men that had been arguing with the cop outside of the grocery store, and one more man. The men were all carrying rifles.
    What is she doing here?
    There was no time for wondering about that. She headed for the open door.
    One of the men called to her. “Wait!”
    The other two raised their guns.
    I wanted to call out and warn her. I opened my mouth and stopped. Those guys will probably start shooting.
    She entered the door.
    I heard myself call out. “Don’t go in there!”
    The three men spun around, searching for the source of the sound.
    I ducked down and fumbled in my cargo pants for my pocket knife.
    One of the men shouted. “Watch out, there’s a group of them coming!”
    I tried to piece together what was happening as my shaking hand tried to jam the knife in the door mechanism.
    Beth screamed.
    “Beth, what is it?”
    Sounds of movement.
    “Paul, turn around and help us out!”
    “She found Bill!”
    “Get back into the corner!”
    Three gunshots.
    “Dad, do something!”
    “I can’t get a clean shot!”
    The mechanism clicked and I pulled it open a crack. Then I grabbed my bat and swung the door wide.
    Two men were shooting at something down the street. The third man sat frozen with his gun raised to the back of the “U.” The infected man I had worried about all night was in between him and Beth. Beth stood flat against the bay door at the bottom of the “U,” eyes wide and gasping for air. No one noticed my arrival.
    The infected man lumbered toward Beth.
    No time for thinking. Only action.
    “Go time.” I mumbled to my bat. I ran at the infected man.
    He was almost to Beth now.
    I sprinted with the bat raised in my right hand.
    Another gunshot or two rang out.
    The infected was closing in.
    Beth finally saw me. She dropped to her knees and covered her head.
    The infected man reached out for her.
    I swung with everything I had. “C’MON BECKY!”
    A loud crack rang out as the bat splintered and broke on the back of the infected man’s head.
    I felt a muscle tear in my chest. The impact spun me clockwise and I lost my footing. I was going too fast to stop myself before I hit the door anyway.
    The side of my legs collided with the crouched girl.
    My shoulder and then head slammed into the big metal door with an echoing clang.
    The infected man crumpled to the right.
    I fell right on top of Beth, which was by far my softest landing in the last two days. Which is not to say that it was really all that soft.
    The impact had taken my breath. I rolled off Beth onto my knees and tried to suck in some air.
    “Are you OK?” Beth reached out for me.
    The man watching us lowered his rifle. “Are you OK, Beth?” He started for us.
    I looked up and finally got a look at what was happening in the street.
    The two men had barely noticed the commotion on our end. They were shooting into a crowd of five or six infected folks that threatened to trap us in.
    I raised an arm, pointed and was able to squeak out, “Help them.”
    Beth looked up and pointed, too. “Dad, go help them!”
    He spun around and jogged toward the others.
    I looked over at the crumpled mess of the infected man.
    He lay perfectly motionless.
    Each breath was a little easier than the last. I looked back at Beth.
    She was now staring at me and her face showed a mixture of bewilderment and gratitude.
    I looked back into her eyes and gave a weak smile.
    She smiled back. “Thanks.”
    The sound of gunfire snapped me out of the trance.
    I looked back to the firing line. The infected were getting close. Their bodies were riddled with holes.
    The memory of being chased from the lab building flashed through my mind. The infected woman landed on her head.
    I glanced again at the newly fallen infected and saw the damage my bat had done.
    In my mind, it finally clicked into place. “The heads! Aim for the heads!”
    I extended my left hand. “Beth, let’s get moving.”
    “Oh, so you remember my name now.”
    She grabbed my hand and we helped each other up.
    “Of course, I always did.”
    Another gunshot and out of the corner of my eye I saw an infected woman drop backwards.
    Beth started to move and gave my arm a tug.
    “Whatever, you just called me Becky a second ago.”
    More gunshots and another two infected fell.
    We spoke in between gunshots, keeping an eye on the battle ahead.
    “Becky was my bat’s name.”
    “You expect me to…”
    I lifted up the broken half that I still clutched in my right hand and showed her the bottom.
    “See, it says ‘Becky’ right there in permanent marker.”
    She raised an eyebrow. “Why would you name your bat ‘Becky’?”
    “Ex-girlfriend in high school. I’ll tell you the story some other time.” I tossed the useless piece aside.
    I pulled on her and we jogged across the courtyard toward the open door.
    The three men finally brought down the last two infected as I reached my backpack.
    Then the three turned to face me, guns still raised.
    One of them spoke. “You! Get away from my niece and explain yourself.”
    Beth let go of my hand and jumped in front of me. “No! He’s OK. He’s a friend of mine, Uncle Carl.”
    The three lowered their weapons.
    Then I remembered. Before I saw him at the grocery store, I’d seen his leathery face all over the place. I’d seen it on campaign posters all around town. He was Carl Cooper, oldest of the four Cooper brothers. As in the Four Brothers who owned so much of Oasis. He had run for mayor and lost a year or so ago.
    Now he was glaring at me. “He may be a friend, but he’s still not coming with us.”
    
    
20 - Munitions Transport Convoy
    
    Carl narrowed his eyes a little. “Not after what he did to Bill.”
    I raised my eyebrows. “Bill?”
    Beth pointed back to the crumpled body. “Bill was one of them! He had the virus and he was going to kill me!”
    The other two brothers glanced at each other nervously.
    “How do you know? How do you know we couldn’t have helped him? And how do you know he’s not… One of them?” Carl took a step forward.
    I was already sick of where this was headed. I stepped around Beth.
    “Look, I know it must hurt. But consider this. How did you know that the people you just shot were after you? How did you know you couldn’t help them?” I pointed to the trail of broken corpses the brothers had left. “I’ll tell you how. Because they were infected, and you don’t come back from this infection.”
    Carl lifted his rifle again. “And how do we know you’re not one of them?”
    Beth tried to get back around me.
    I held out an arm to hold her back. “Me? How do you know about me? Well, for one thing, I’m talking to you. For another, I don’t have that glossy look in my eyes. And to really drive the point home, I’m not currently trying to bite anyone.”
    “I wasn’t talking about you being infected.”
    “Then who..”
    “How do we know you’re not mixed up with those the ones who caused all this?”
    I was dumbfounded. Dumbfounded. I tried to wrap my brain how someone so successful and respected in the community could jump to the same racist conclusion as Andy. I struggled to come up with a response.
    Fortunately, Beth didn’t.
    “Uncle Carl, don’t be an idiot.” She pushed my arm and stepped back in front. “He’s an old friend of mine. I met him more than six years ago at the university. Besides, just because he has darker skin than you doesn’t mean he’s from the middle east and he’s a terrorist. There’s already enough trouble going on in Oasis. We shouldn’t fight amongst ourselves.”
    The three remaining brothers nodded.
    I took a deep breath and found my voice. “On a different note, all that commotion is bound to attract more of them. We should get moving.”
    Carl lowered his weapon and motioned with two fingers from his eyes to me. “Fine, but I’ll be watching you, kid.”
    Somewhere deep inside, I felt an urge to laugh. I fought it back. Now probably isn’t the time to mock his melodrama.
    Beth’s dad finally spoke up. “He’s, uh, right though, we’d better get moving.”
    Carl looked lost in thought for a moment, then walked for the storage shed that had belonged to Bill. “Let’s get the stuff.”
    I leaned over to Beth. “What stuff?”
    “The reason Bill came here in the first place. He’s got a bunch of old guns and stuff in there.”
    Carl turned his head back over his shoulder. “Max, you watch the street.”
    The youngest brother nodded.
    As we crossed the courtyard to the shed, Beth’s dad walked up to me. “Thanks. If it weren’t for you, my daughter would be dead.”
    I nodded. “Sure.”
    “I’m Paul Cooper, by the way.”
    “Corbin St. Laurent.”
    We entered the dim storage shed.
    “Looks like Bill already got it out for us.”
    In the cluttered mess I could make out a pile of ammo boxes and gun cases.
    Carl pointed at me. “You got room in that backpack?”
    I was pretty sure that he really meant that as a command, so I pulled out the water bottles and the few extra snacks.
    He then handed me an ammo box. “See if you can fit all this stuff in there or your pockets.”
    The ammo box was full with little boxes of .22 shells. I crammed as many boxes as I could in the backpack and shoved the rest in the pockets of my cargo pants.
    Max appeared in the doorway. “We got to go. They’re coming.”
    Carl turned to him. “How many?”
    Max shook his head. “Don’t know exactly. They’re coming from both directions. Probably two dozen.”
    “How far?”
    “Couple of blocks.”
    Carl bit his bottom lip. He closed the lid to the box he had been repacking. “OK. Beth, you take those gun cases. Paul, you take those ones. Max, you help me with this big box. And you,” he pointed at me, “what’s your name?”
    “Corbin.”
    “Corbin, you take those four ammo boxes.”
    I slung on my backpack and grabbed two boxes in each hand.
    Everybody else was in motion as well.
    Not a moment to waste, we headed out into the street.
    Max was correct, there were at least two dozen headed for us. We turned right. That way had fewer infected.
    The closest group consisted of three of them, and was about a block away.
    If we could turn it to the corner before they reached it, we hoped we would be in the clear. Trouble was that we were loaded down fairly heavily, and we couldn’t move much faster than them.
    Carl was first in line in our little convoy. He led as briskly as he could carry his half of whatever was in the big box.
    When he reached the corner, the three infected were only about fifteen feet from entering the intersection. He stopped dead in his tracks.
    It only took about two seconds for the rest of us to see why.
    Coming down the road that intersected were another fifteen or so infected. We must have made plenty of noise to attract this many.
    I turned back. Infected people had already reached the storage sheds.
    No time to wait for commands.
    Two blocks beyond the three infected was a group of five more. It was our best shot.
    “Come on!” I moved toward the three. “Get around them!”
    We all picked up the pace as best we could.
    Our path traced a wobbly “C” through the intersection as we went around.
    The three had been tightly grouped, so it was easy enough to get around them.
    My hands already ached. The heavy boxes pulled at muscles I wasn’t used to using. I hoped I wouldn’t drop anything.
    And we were not even close to out of the woods yet.
    There were now at least thirty five of them spread out in the street behind us. There were five up ahead.
    As a group, we were constantly losing speed as our heavy loads tired us out.
    I look over at Beth. “How far?”
    “Turn that corner then up two blocks.”
    I felt a tiny wave of relief knowing it was close.
    We marched on.
    So did the infected.
    We made the corner first and turned right. About halfway down that block, Max tripped.
    The jerking motion of the fall ripped the box from Carl’s hand. Max and the box hit the ground with an echoing thud.
    Carl and Paul went white and stared at the box. They looked as though they expected it to explode.
    Carl reacted first. He grabbed for the box handle again. “Get up. Get up. Get up.”
    Max scrambled to his feet and snatched his handle.
    Behind us, I could hear the shufflings of the infected.
    Beth looked at me and then pointed up ahead with a nod. “There it is.”
    Up ahead and to the right, set back from the street, was an enormous warehouse.
    We walked on, and by now I was certain the infected were gaining on us.
    The older guys were sweating profusely and gasping loudly for air. Beth looked like she was doing alright.
    I was certain that I was about to drop my boxes.
    We had no choice. We had to push on to survive, and that’s what we did.
    We came up to a small set of stairs that led to a door next to the loading bays of the warehouse.
    Carl and Max set down the big box as gently as they could. Carl fumbled in his pocket for moment and brought out a large set of keys.
    I sat down my load, and it hurt to uncurl my fingers. I looked back at the way we had come.
    Fifty yards out, the first of the many infected were visible shuffling toward us.
    A terrible though occurred.
    I looked back up the stairs. “Hey, wait. We can’t go in yet.”
    Carl scowled down at me. “And why exactly not, may I ask?”
    I only hoped he would listen to reason.
    
    
21 - Wild Geese
    
    I looked back at the infected that were rounding the corner, then back up at Carl, “Because they’ll know we’re here.”
    Carl put his hands on his hips and raised an eyebrow. “They’ll know we’re here. That’s it? Who cares?”
    “You should. If we all go in now, that whole infected mob is going to gather on your doorstep. They’ll pound and pound with inhuman strength on your doors. They will never rest. You’ve seen them, that’s all they do is chase after the uninfected. They’ll crowd around your building. You’ll be trapped inside for good.”
    Carl’s eyes went wide, and he stuffed his keys back in his pocket.
    “Good point. Here’s the plan, then.” He pointed at me. “You’re going to lead them away. We’ll leave the stuff right here until they can’t see us take it in. The rest of us will round the corner and get out of sight.”
    I looked back to the street.
    The closest infected was thirty, maybe thirty five yards out.
    I had a feeling that there was a part of the plan that he didn’t say out loud. The part where he didn’t open the door for me when I came back. This plan was Carl’s convenient way of getting rid of two problems, the crowd of walking dead and me.
    Still, I couldn’t let his family be trapped and die just because he didn’t trust me.
    There was no time to argue.
    I nodded and looked back up at him. “Fine.”
    Beth grabbed my hand and started to move. “I’m going with you. Let’s go.”
    The three men called out to stop her. Paul reached out like he was going to grab her.
    We were already out of range.
    She turned back and waved. “Please wait up for us, even if we’re back late. We’ll knock three times on that door.”
    Her father’s face twisted up in agony. “No!” He took a step in our direction.
    We picked up the pace and headed straight for the front of the front of the infected pack.
    “Thanks.”
    She looked straight ahead. “Which way?”
    There were four infected in a clump about ten yards away.
    I pulled on her hand and circled right. “Think we can make it back the way we came a block?”
    “Yeah, they’re spread out enough.”
    We would have to dodge ten or twelve of them to get back to the next intersection.
    I figured that if we could get those ten or twelve to follow us, then Beth’s father and two uncles would be safe to go in the warehouse. The infected that were further back would never even see anyone but Beth and me.
    Beth dropped my hand. “Turn right at the intersection ahead.”
    We had already passed the first four infected. Scattered in the street ahead were another six or eight.
    Beth went to the right, and I went to the left.
    The world felt hazy and surreal. A lot of things weren’t right.
    It was a fine idea to lead the infected on a wild goose chase, but I doubted my ability to see the task through.
    The street was wide enough. All I had to do was weave around the infected and keep moving forward. They weren’t fast, but if I stopped, I would certainly be trapped. To make it worse, I was was tired, hungry, thirsty and injured. They’re everywhere. What made me think I could do this?
    I glanced over to see how Beth was doing.
    If she felt any of the fear that had incapacitated her back at the storage units, she certainly wasn’t showing it. She moved swiftly and confidently. The infected never even came close to touching her.
    Wow, she has a really nice…
    An infected man dove at me.
    I threw my weight to the right.
    His grasping hand passed about two inches from my arm.
    I stumbled and struggled to keep my balance.
    The infected man hit the ground.
    Should’ve been paying better attention. I stumbled for the intersection.
    Beth reached it a good ten or twenty seconds ahead of me. Her eyes darted up and down the streets.
    The crowd of infected continued to close in.
    She grabbed my hand again. “Come on slow poke.”
    We walked fast enough to keep a safe distance between us and the infected, but not fast enough to lose them. Not yet. We had to make sure they followed us.
    “So tell me what happened to you, Corbin.” She gave me a quick glance up and down and gave a half smile. “You kind of look like crap.”
    I was relieved to hear her deal with the situation with some degree of humor. “The past couple of days haven’t exactly been kind to me.”
    “I can see that.”
    I glanced back over my shoulder. Good distance. “Let’s see. I got punched in the stomach. I got shot with some kind of tranquilizer. I fell down a flight of stairs. I kind of fell from a second story ledge. I spent a sleepless night on the cement floor of a storage shed, and i think I tore a muscle in my chest when I broke my bat against the head of an infected man. And to top it off, I’m probably dehydrated.”
    “You weren’t kidding.”
    “Sorry if I’m kind of a grump. I think I need a nap.”
    If we hadn’t kept talking, I think I might have gone crazy at the insanity of it all.
    There were now thirty or forty infected shuffling down the street behind us.
    Beth and I had a good lead, but I was uneasy not knowing how many more infected could be waiting just around each corner.
    We continued straight for several blocks.
    The wear and tear of the past couple of days was taking its toll on me. I couldn’t think very straight, and if Beth wasn’t holding on to my hand, I wouldn’t have been walking too straight, either. I felt like was ready to collapse in a heap at any time.
    I squeezed her hand with what little strength I had left. I think she may have felt it. “You about ready to go home?”
    She looked back at our followers. “I think we stole their full attention. We’ve just got to figure out how to double back without any of them seeing or following.”
    Something caught her attention up ahead. Her eyes opened and she pursed her beautiful lips in a thoughtful expression. After a moment, she sped up. “I’ve got it. Let’s hurry.”
    
    
22 - Amazing Super Sale
    
    My legs felt like jelly, but somehow they kept moving.
    “Up there.” Beth motioned with a nod.
    An enormous American flag hung high above the road. Beyond a full parking lot was a building with a sign that read, “Four Brothers Chevrolet.”
    “The dealership?”
    “Yep. We just cut through, and go out the back. Then we make tracks.”
    “What if it’s locked?”
    She turned and smiled. “Got that covered.”
    She pulled me even faster.
    I struggled to keep my feet under me. It seemed like I was getting weaker by the moment.
    We zigzagged our way through the cars on the lot.
    I looked back.
    We had put a little distance between ourselves and the mass of infected, but they were still headed straight for us.
    The entire front face of the building was glass, displaying the sparkling showroom within.
    Beth hit the front door first. It didn’t budge. She dropped my hand and frowned a little, like she really expected it to be open.
    “But you got it covered, right?”
    She reached in her pocket. “I hope so.”
    I looked back. The closest of the infected was closing in, maybe two minutes until he could reached us.
    She pulled out a keyring and began rifling through the keys.
    “Where did you get those?”
    “They were my uncle’s. I grabbed them from the storage shed.”
    “I don’t mean to doubt, but what makes you think he had the key to this business on that particular key ring?”
    She thrust key after key at the lock. “They all have a master that opens all the big stores.”
    “You’re sure?”
    She shot me an awful look then went back to her task. “I just don’t know which one it is.”
    I looked back again.
    Two of the infected were already crossing the parking lot.
    “I don’t mean to be a pest.”
    “So be quiet and let me do this.”
    Getting closer. I looked around for something to use as a weapon, or maybe a shield. Just on the other side of Beth I saw a heavy garbage can.
    I noticed my hands shaking, and it occurred to me that I wouldn’t be able to lift it.Maybe I can roll it and trip them up.
    “Got it.” Beth flung the door inward.
    She burst in and I stumbled behind her.
    The showroom was bright and shiny, just like you’d expect a modern showroom to be. At the back I saw open double doors that led to the cubicle land where they put the hurt on customers that require a hard sell.
    Beth locked the door behind us and took a few steps back.
    I looked for somewhere to sit.
    Over by the service desk there was a small waiting area, complete with couches, magazines, and what looked like a mini-fridge.
    I wobbled that way. “How long to you think the glass will hold them?”
    Beth backed away from the door. “Not sure, its pretty thick. I guess we’ll find out soon enough. Where are you going?”
    I smiled at her. “Get a drink, if there are any left.”
    She walked after me, all the while checking over her shoulder. “You know we only stock that for customers, right?”
    I opened the fridge door. “So sell me a car while we’re here. It’d better run, though.”
    It was still full of apple juice, coke and bottled water.
    I stared at it a moment.
    A thud echoed around the showroom.
    I looked around and found the cause.
    The leading infected man hit the glass again. Another echoing thud.
    I snapped out of it and grabbed an apple juice.
    A second infected man and an infected woman reached the glass wall. More banging.
    The glass still held.
    I pulled the tab and tried to down the juice in one go.
    Warm juice slid down my throat and met with an angry, empty stomach, which revolted.
    I fell to my knees and vomited.
    Beth ran behind me and put a hand on my back.
    More and more banging filled the room.
    I was definitely a little dehydrated, and felt weak. I wiped my mouth with tissues from the magazine table. I reached back into the fridge and pulled out a water.
    Beth gave me a nervous glance and focused again on the growing mob of infected beating on the glass. “Not sure how long we’ve got. We’d better look for the back door.”
    “You go look, I’ll be right behind.” I opened the water and emptied the bottle.
    My stomach still complained, but this time it didn’t send anything back up.
    The effect the water had on the rest of my body was amazing.
    It was almost as if I had poured a tiny dose of stamina into my veins.
    I grabbed another water and stood. I was shaking less and less.
    Gathered at the door now were fifteen or so infected. The ones around the edges were doing most of the pounding, as the ones in the middle were being smashed flat against the glass by the gathering group behind them.
    I looked for a moment to see where Beth had gone. I couldn’t see her.
    “Beth! Where’d you go?”
    The only reply I got was the incessant pounding on the glass.
    At least two dozen more infected were weaving their way through the cars on the lot.
    The scene before me was a grotesque version of the stupid “Amazing Super Sale” commercial where the hungry crowd tramples the salesman when he unlocks the door on sale day.
    Beth burst through the door to the service garage. “The garage is locked up tight.”
    “Haven’t you been here before?”
    She shrugged. “Not exactly. The family has a lot of holdings.”
    “And don’t you have a master key?”
    “What I meant is there’s only this door right here and the three big bay doors, which we couldn’t lift if we wanted to. You happy now?”
    “I’ll be happier when we’re somewhere else.”
    The pounding grew loud enough that we had to shout to be heard. The large panes of glass were starting to bow with the pressure.
    How long can the glass hold?
    Beth tugged my arm and motioned toward the open double doors to the sales room.
    I took one last look at the mob behind the glass wall.
    What I saw was unsettling sea of blank stares pressing against the door and surrounding panes.
    The sales room was a total mess. Chairs were overturned and several phones were hanging off the hook. The place had cleared out in a hurry.
    She reached out to close one of the double doors, and I took the other.
    We slammed the doors shut.
    A thundering crash came from the showroom. The glass had finally shattered.
    I looked around for another exit.
    There was another door on the wall to my right.
    Not much time.
    Beth saw the other door, too, and pointed. “Over there.”
    I remembered how the infected woman back at the lab had crashed into the desk rather than go around.
    I pulled a chair from the nearest cubicle and overturned it. “Toss some stuff from the cubicles in the walkways. It’ll slow ‘em down a little.”
    We worked as quickly as we could through the aisle.
    By the time we reached the side door, the infected were already pounding on the double door.
    The door led to a hallway.
    I stepped out into it first, checked right, then left.
    Down at that end was the most beautiful exit sign I had ever seen.
    I hoped there weren’t any infected waiting for us in the parking lot that lay behind it.
    
    
23 - Home Sweet Home Again?
    
    We burst from the back of the dealership into the bright morning sunlight.
    I pushed the door closed behind me, and took a look around.
    The parking lot was still.
    I was almost certain that I could hear crashing noises echoing from the building.
    Beth glanced at me. “You think it’s really safe?.”
    I opened the second water bottle, took a swig, and then tossed the bottle into a garbage can next to the back door. “I don’t know. We’d better go carefully.”
    We walked out to the first row of cars, keeping our eyes peeled.
    Beth grabbed my shoulder and crouched. “Corbin.”
    I crouched, too. “What is it?”
    “I thought I saw something on the street.”
    “An infected?”
    “Not sure.”
    “I’ll check it out.”
    I crept up next to a green minivan and raised myself just enough to see through the front passenger window.
    There was nothing, just more cars, then a few small trees that lined the street.
    I turned and put my back to the car.
    “Nothing there, just some shrub-tree things.”
    She crawled a little closer. “I could have sworn I saw some movement. I was looking right in that direction.” She pointed at the side window.
    I rotated to be able to get a look through that window. I knelt on one knees and raised my eyes to see through the window.
    “Corbin!”
    My stomach dropped.
    Straight ahead of my eyes was the chest of a button-up shirt. Over the pocket Was embroidery that said “Four Brothers” and had the Chevy logo.
    The man inside punched at the window.
    I pushed backwards.
    The man’s hand shattered the window.
    I collided with Beth.
    We both went sprawling.
    The infected man was silently trying to pull himself from the car.
    I rolled off of Beth onto one knee, then held out a hand.
    The man had worked out his head and shoulders, and was struggling to get the second arm out.
    She grabbed my hand and we helped pull each other up.
    We ran for the back of the lot.
    Beth got the lead. “We have to stop bumping into each other like that.”
    “Right.” I struggled to keep up. “And good eyes on that movement, Beth.”
    “What? I told you I saw something.”
    We slowed when we reached the end of the lot.
    I looked back just in time to see the infected man’s body fall from the car window. “He’s out, we’ve got to move.”
    We turned down the street and picked up the pace.
    Our little ruse at the dealership must have worked, because we didn’t see any more of the infected on our return trip.
    In practically no time, we were back at the warehouse.
    I couldn’t wait to pass out for a while. Everything hurt, and I would be happy to collapse pretty much anywhere.
    Beth lifted an arm to knock.
    I touched her shoulder. “Wait a second.”
    She turned back and looked in my eyes. “Yeah.”
    Her eyes were warm and friendly.
    It was a nice moment. I spaced out. “I, uh… I mean…”
    A thin smile crossed her lips. She put a finger and put it on my lips to shush me. “I know. I had a really good time today, too. We should go out again sometime,”
    I smiled back. “No, I mean… What mean to say is thanks. Your uncle would have left me to die and then sent me to die alone if it weren’t for you.”
    She bit her lip and then turned her head away for a moment. “We’d better go inside to finish this conversation.”
    She knocked three times.
    “If he even lets me in.”
    “He really is a good man, just so you know.”
    Keys jangled on the other side of the door. The handle turned, the door popped open a crack, and then it flew wide open.
    A disheveled redhead woman dove out and wrapped her arms around Beth. “Oh, sweetie, we were so worried. Come inside, come inside.”
    “Hi, Aunt Janice.”
    Skylights lit the interior of the enormous warehouse.
    Set in a large semicircle and facing the door were 15 or so camp chairs, most of which were occupied by grim-faced folks. I immediately recognized Carl, Paul and Max. Before the door was even closed and locked, everybody had jumped out of their seats.
    Most of the crowd pushed me aside and thronged around Beth. Paul pushed aside Aunt Janice and embraced his daughter.
    I hoped that I could be forgotten for a few moments, but I had no such luck.
    Carl came at me with a vengeance. He grabbed my shirt and pushed.
    I stumbled backwards, trying to stay on my feet.
    He pressed forward and slammed me into the cement wall next to the door.
    None of the others seemed to notice what was going on with me.
    Carl put his stubbly face about two inches from mine.
    “Look, you little worm, don’t you ever try anything like that again. I’m in charge here and I’ll kill you if you endanger any member of my family again.”
    Fire welled up in me. I was to wasted too fight back physically, but there was no way I was going to let him bully me around.
    I tried to keep my voice down. “Maybe you didn’t notice, but I actually haven’t endangered any of you yet. I saved your niece from an infected man. You would have just wasted the rest of your ammo shooting at their chests, and then you would have been trapped in those storage units. Not to mention the fact that the infected would be beating down your doors right now if it wasn’t for me.”
    He slapped me across the face.
    I had nowhere to dodge, and I was too slow at the moment anyway.
    “You watch your mouth, boy, or I’ll shut it for you.”
    “Some gratitude.”
    He balled up his fist and brought it back.
    “Carl, no!” The redhead Janice jumped out of the group.
    Carl brought his punch low and hard.
    It connected with my stomach. I gasped for air, but couldn’t draw any in.
    He dropped his other hand.
    I slumped to my knees and looked up.
    Everybody was crowding around. Janice grabbed his shoulder.
    “Let go!” Without looking to see who it was, he gave her a sloppy backhand. It connected with her ribs.
    Janice let out an “ooph” and stumbled backward.
    Carl’s eyes opened wide, and he knew he had made a mistake. “Janice? I thought you were one of the boys.”
    The family gathered in closer, but stayed silent.
    I finally got in a big breath of air. Everyone’s afraid of him. I don’t know what came over me. I just couldn’t stop it from coming out.
    “Looks like they don’t need to be protected from me after all.”
    Carl spun and I saw rage in his eyes. “You made me do it!” He drew back a foot.
    I extended my arms to cushion the coming kick.
    Paul and several others from the crowd jumped toward him.
    But it was too late.
    I caught the brunt of it with my forearms but the force of it still smacked me and the back of my head into the wall.
    I caught a glimpse of Beth pushing her dad aside and then everything went black.
    
    
24 - Dysfunction
    
    I woke up several hours later with a screaming headache and on an inflatable mattress.
    Somebody was lightly stroking my right arm.
    I opened my eyes and waited for the fuzzy world to come into focus.
    Corbin?
    I turned my head to make sure it was really Beth.
    She leaned forward and kissed my forehead. How do you feel?
    I gave the most devious smile I could muster. You missed.
    She sat back and looked at me. Don’t push your luck, mister.
    Why, are you going to kick me into a wall, too?
    She frowned and tilted her head. Hey, don’t be like that. He’s not usually like that at all.
    I couldn’t fathom why anyone would defend Carl’s actions. I’m just the lucky one, then.
    She bit her lip and looked away. Corbin, I’m sorry.
    I let it drop. It wasn’t her I wanted to be mad at anyway. I rolled to my side and pushed myself up to sitting.
    I could barely do it. Muscles creaked with every movement. Everything was stiff and sore. I saw that my chest was about the only part of my body that didn’t have any bruises. Little bits of blood caked around my various scrapes. Wait a minute, my chest?
    I looked up at Beth. Where’s my shirt?
    Well you kind of threw up on it when Carl, I mean after you blacked out. My Aunt Janice felt bad and washed it.
    OK, so, where is it?
    Over where she did the wash. Do you want a shower or anything?
    Why, do I stink? I thought I’d be good for at least another couple of days.
    She shook her head and stood up.
    I mean yes, I’d love one.
    My backpack was close. It had been emptied of the ammunition, but my change of clothes was still in there. I brought it along.
    I had been put far away from the area that hosted the other bunks and beds. All by myself.
    The warehouse was huge. The shelves were at least thirty feet tall. I didn’t have time to read all the boxes, but it became apparent that this was the central warehouse for most of the Four Brothers retail outlets.
    Beth led and I limped behind. We came to the central isle.
    A chill shot down my spine and goosebumps spread down my arms.
    The bulk of the family was gathered around various tables. Some were playing cards, some were reading, some were just quietly talking. They all stopped to stare up at me.
    I felt rather embarrassed.
    ?Everybody, this is Corbin.
    A few heads nodded a half hearted greeting. A few scowled for a moment longer. None looked like they were all that glad I was there.
    Pretty soon they had all returned to what they were doing.
    Beth led me on.
    Built into the front of the building were some offices and the bathrooms.
    One of the offices had a large window that opened up into the warehouse, so the boss could make sure everything was running smoothly.
    Behind the window Carl, Paul, Max, Janice and one other woman were having some sort of meeting. They had a lantern on a desk to help add to what little light came through the big window.
    They were arguing about something. None seemed to notice as we passed by.
    Near to the bathrooms a couple was cooking in a makeshift kitchen made up of camping gear. Against the warehouse shelves were several six foot plastic tables. All had unlit candles.
    Right next to the bathroom door was a nightstand with an oil lamp and a lighter.
    Beth introduced me to the cooks. Her cousin and his wife. Oddly enough, they actually seemed friendly.
    I thanked Beth, lit the lamp and went in.
    The bathroom had several lockers and a small shower. A neatly folded pile of towels sat on the counter. I grabbed one.
    It was not a comfortable shower. It hurt to move my limbs around, and the water was lukewarm at best.
    After I was washed and dry, I put on my extra underwear and pair of scrubs from the backpack.
    It felt good to be clean again.
    I stuffed the dirty clothes in the backpack and went back out.
    The cooks were getting out plates and silverware. The family was gathering around the tables. Must be dinnertime.
    Beth’s dad walked up to me.
    I extended a hand. Hi, Paul.
    He pulled me aside. Corbin, I just wanted to say thanks. I know you’re a good man. I’m sorry about Carl.
    I reached up and rubbed the sore spot on the back of my head. Yeah. Me, too.
    I don’t know how long he’ll let you stay.
    Is he the only one with a vote?
    Paul looked around, like he wanted to make sure we weren’t being overheard. He’s been the leader of the family since our dad died of cancer twenty years ago. He’s always done a good job. Almost everyone listens to him and does what he says. It’s just that as this situation has gotten worse, so has he. I mean, organizationally, he’s actually doing better than ever. But his temper, that’s another story. And I’ve never seen him… Janice, his wife has… It doesn’t help that I think he knows…
    I wondered what he was trying to get out.
    Oh, good, you’re up. As if summoned by the conversation, the redhead Janice appeared. And you’re in some fresh clothes. Are you all right? You’ve been asleep all day.
    I shrugged. Well, I’m still tired and sore, but at least I’m still alive. I wanted to add No thanks to your husband, but I wasn’t sure how well that would go over.
    She gave a weak smile. I know Carl can be rough at times.
    Paul touched her arm and pointed with a nod. Janice.
    All three of us looked where he had directed. Carl was approaching.
    He stepped close as if to excuse the other two. He looked me over for a moment.
    I didn’t have anything I wanted to say out loud, so I just stood there.
    Corbin, right?
    I nodded.
    He straightened up and glared into my eyes. I’m sorry. I may have treated you more poorly than you deserve. You’re welcome to stay here a couple of days while you recover.
    It wasn’t exactly my definition of a heartfelt apology, but I was relieved to hear I wouldn’t be on my own tonight.
    Thanks.
    He stepped a little closer and poked his pointer finger into my chest. But you be careful around my niece. I won’t have you dividing the family.
    I couldn’t come up with a good response for that.
    Not that he really gave me a chance to respond, anyway. He was done intimidating me, so he wheeled about and headed for the food.
    Dinner was awkward to say the least.
    Night was falling and the warehouse was quickly getting dark. The candles on the table were lit and somebody said grace.
    I sat on the end of the furthest table with Beth and her dad. Our conversation was pleasant enough, but it became apparent that there were plenty of egos and attitudes in the family.
    It was a short meal, but there were at least three different yelling arguments. At one point Carl and his oldest son stood up and got in each other’s face.
    I couldn’t tell what had started the problem, but by that time it had degraded to name calling and threatening.
    At one point Carl raised his arm like he was going to backhand his son.
    The blow never fell, but I was getting a good idea of how things were for this family. There may have been a lot of love, but there was also a whole lot of fear.
    Soon enough, dinner was cleaned up and everyone had disappeared.
    Beth and I stayed and talked for a while.
    I was still hammered and in pain, but it was nice to have companionship.
    As we finished up, Beth mentioned it probably wouldn’t be a good idea for her to be seen walking me to bed. I agreed.
    Before we went our separate ways, Beth leaned forward and kissed my cheek.
    What was that for?
    In the continually dimming light I could see her smile. Just wanted to say thanks for saving my life.
    Hey, no problem. Besides, you’ve already made it even. The dealership thing worked great.
    She gave me a long gentle hug and went off to bed.
    We must have lost track of time, because the warehouse was almost completely dark.
    I started making my way back. I should have at least taken a candle with me, but I guess I wasn’t thinking straight.
    The big space was dark and eerie. The moon threw little illumination through the skylights, and I was having a hard time remembering where my mattress was.
    I turned a familiar looking corner and shuffled down the aisle.
    Up ahead, I heard a muffled noise. I stopped and squinted into the blackness.
    The noise continued.
    I tried to will my eyes into adjusting for the extreme low light condition.
    More noise. Like movement.
    Doubt crept into my mind. Maybe I was just making things up. Maybe it was just a mouse.
    I chanced a couple of steps forward.
    Two fuzzy blobs came into sight. People, standing very close. In fact, It looked like they were kissing.
    
    
25 - The Best Policy
    It was dark enough that I couldn’t quite see who it was.
    I was certain of one thing, though. They didn’t want to be discovered. I figured it wasn’t in my best interest to embarrass them too much, but I still just had to know who it was.
    Once I had backed up to the beginning of the aisle, I faked a stubbed toe to make some noise.
    Up ahead a woman gasped.
    I marched forward. “Is someone there?”
    In my rush, I almost ran headlong into them.
    They were still holding on to each other.
    I took a step back. “Op, sorry.”
    They immediately separated.
    “Corbin?”
    It was Paul.
    I looked over at the woman.
    Aunt Janice.
    So that’s what he stopped himself from saying earlier.
    Janice stepped forward and touched my arm. “Corbin, please don’t tell Carl.”
    I wasn’t quite sure how to play this. I thought about it a moment and came to the conclusion that it would do me no good personally to raise a stink about it. And I knew that the inevitable results of their actions would come around to bite them soon enough. It always does.
    I took another step back. “Don’t worry, I don’t want to cause any more trouble here than I absolutely have to.”
    Paul wrung his hands. “So what happens now?”
    “I have two requests.”
    Janice raised a hand to her mouth.
    Paul put a hand on her shoulder. “Are you going to blackmail us?”
    “No. I just have two requests.”
    In the dark I could see Paul’s jaw tighten. “What?”
    I turned to Janice. “Well, first I was wondering if you could wash the rest of my clothes.”
    I held up my backpack.
    She breathed a sigh of relief and took it. “Oh, oh, of course.”
    I turned to Paul. “And if you could show me where my air mattress is, I’d really appreciate it.”
    
    Morning came a lot faster than I’d have liked.
    Light was coming in through the skylights above. Somewhere in the warehouse, there was plenty of commotion.
    I got the feeling that arguing was just part of the Cooper family.
    My body was as stiff as ever, but at least the throbbing pains seemed to be gone.
    By no means had I caught up on my sleep yet. At least I was feeling human again.
    I did a quick check of my bruises.
    Most were starting to turn green and disappear.
    I creaked out of the bed and found my way to breakfast.
    Cold cereal with reconstituted powdered milk.
    My favorite.
    Carl was here and there, issuing the day’s orders.
    Paul and Beth appeared to be huddled over a stack of papers.
    Beth looked around and noticed I was up. She winked and then came over.
    “How are you feeling?”
    “Maybe not one-hundred percent, but worlds better than yesterday.”
    She leaned over and gave me a peck on the cheek. “Good.”
    Carl saw us talking and came straight over.
    He thrust a finger at me. “I want you to take guard duty on the roof until after lunch. Go.”
    I had to bite my tongue. I knew he was trying to be a jerk and separate me from anyone who might be sympathetic. It didn’t matter. He was in charge, and if I wanted to stay, I had to play by his rules. I’d already been through this at my apartments.
    “How do I get up there?”
    Carl ignored me and walked off.
    Beth pointed into a distant corner. “Way over there.”
    I stood up.
    “One more thing.” She hugged me, leaned close to my ear and lowered her voice. “Do you know what’s up with my dad? He’s been awfully jittery today.”
    “What do you mean?”
    “Maybe it’s just everything that happened yesterday. But still… I don’t know. He’s tried to tell me something three times, but can never find the words. Sometimes I actually wish he were more like his brothers. Anyway, I’m worried.”
    “Give him another chance to tell you.”
    “What?”
    “Tell him if he doesn’t, I will. I’m pretty sure I know what it is, but he should tell you personally. And if he still won’t, I’ll tell.”
    She looked bewildered.
    I didn’t want to give her a chance to dig, so I stepped away and headed for the stairs.
    On the roof was a man in his early twenties.
    He walked up to me. “You my replacement?”
    “Yep.”
    “Just keep an eye out for any of those things. Shouldn’t be much of a problem for you.”
    I raised an eyebrow. “Huh?”
    “At night they’re wandering around everywhere. But during the day they only come out if they’re chasing one of us.”
    He signaled the end of the conversation by turning his back and heading for the stairs.
    I went up closer to the edge and walked around the building.
    The roof was hot, but at least it was quiet. He had been right. I saw a couple of the infected standing in shadows of nearby buildings. But that’s all they did. Like they were waiting for something.
    It gave me the creeps.
    After I had finished a couple of loops, a gray haired woman appeared at the door to the stairs. She was carrying a jug of water.
    I knew she was Bill’s wife. What was I going to tell her? Did Carl send her up here to make me feel guilty? Did she come up her to get revenge? The wife of the man I…
    And then it hit me. My stomach dropped and I felt my heart pound. I didn’t kill anybody. The virus did. By the time they lost control of their bodies, they weren’t infected any more. They were dead. The only thing left was an empty shell and the virus.
    Deads.
    She walked toward me. She looked a little shaky.
    So what am I going to say to her?
    The truth.
    I have to tell her the truth.
    She handed me the jug. There were tears in the corner of her eyes. What happened to my husband?
    I stared off into space for a moment. What did Carl tell you?
    The only thing he said is that Bill is gone. No one else who was out there will talk about it. I think he’s threatened them.
    She set her jaw and stared at me.
    Why didn’t Carl tell her? There’s no way he’d be protecting me. Maybe he was planning on using it against me later. Or threaten me with it to keep me in line. And how did he get the others to be quiet, too?
    Corbin, I deserve to know.
    I looked her in the eye. You’re right. I took a deep breath. Two nights ago I found myself without shelter, so I broke in to a storage shed. Soon after, your husband arrived at his shed. He had been bitten and was in pain. There was nothing I could do, so I stayed put.
    Another deep breath.
    He was rifling around for something but the infection got worse. I heard him scream as it took his life.
    A tear ran down her cheek.
    Only this virus doesn’t just kill, it takes command of your body. In the morning, there was confusion as Beth and your husband’s brothers showed up. The shell of the man who had been your husband went after Beth. There were more of these walking deads coming at the group.
    She covered her mouth. Tears ran freely down her face.
    I came out of my hiding place and… I stopped him from infecting Beth. The virus cannot use his body to spread itself any more.
    She lowered her head and began to sob violently.
    I wasn’t sure what to do. I didn’t know if she held me at fault or not. There was no way to know. My heart went out to her. I reached out and wrapped my arms around her.
    I’m so sorry.
    She didn’t resist.
    I held her head to my shoulder and let her cry.
    I tried to come up with some words of comfort, something that might help. The lump in my throat stopped the sound from coming out.
    After what seemed like an eternity, she got a grip on herself. She pulled away and again looked me in the eye.
    Thank you.
    I shook my head and looked down at my feet. I’m sorry.
    I mean it.
    She did her best to dry her eyes and then went back inside.
    It was to be the only time I ever spoke to her.
    The things I had seen and done over the last few days tore at my insides. I was full of questions. How long can we hold out? Why has Oasis been abandoned? What was going to happen to me?
    I took another lap or two around the edge, but I couldn’t shake the feeling of dread.
    The sun was high and I had finished and sweated out most of my water by the time my replacement showed up.
    When he did, he shot me a dirty look and only said five words. Carl wants to see you.
    
    
26 - Fuel To The Fire
    
    It was plenty hot inside the warehouse by now. As a bonus, the morning’s arguments had dropped off into lazy napping and sitting around.
    Carl was having another meeting with the family leaders.
    As I approached the door, I could see them arguing through the big window.
    I knocked on the door and stepped into the room. You looking for me?
    They all turned their heads and stared at me. It was even hotter in the office than in the main room, and no one looked particularly pleased to be there. My arrival didn’t seem to make any of them any happier.
    It felt like I was on trial.
    Carl stood. Don’t bother sitting, you won’t be long.
    I straightened and looked around at the various upset faces. So, what can I do for you?
    Carl stared at me a moment before speaking. Everybody under this roof has proven themselves both useful and faithful.
    My first urge was to roll my eyes. I fought it back, knowing it would only cause trouble. After all, I had definitely proven myself useful on the way back from the storage unit, and I could think of at least one major bit of unfaithfulness among them.
    Carl folded his arms. As a family council, we’ve decided to give you a chance to prove yourself.
    His statement threw me for a loop. Prove myself? Was this a not-so-subtle ploy of Carl’s design just to get rid of me? Or was this one of the others’ plan to secure me a place in the family once and for all? I had no idea what they all wanted me to say, so I just nodded.
    Carl edged away from his chair. We have almost everything we need to hold out in the warehouse for as long as this virus business takes. One of the few things we could stand to have a lot more of is propane. You know, fuel to keep the cooking fires burning.
    ?So you want me to brave the… I made quote fingers. …elements and get some.
    The faces around the table just continued to stare at me.
    Carl pointed to the youngest brother. Max will go with you to our nearest station. You will haul the canisters, and he will provide protection.
    The idea of going back out on the street bit at me. It was dangerous enough out there, and I was fairly certain Carl and Max had something up their sleeves. I feared the worst. Everything in my gut told me not to go. Unfortunately, I knew the ugly truth of the situation.
    I don’t have a choice, do I?
    Within five minutes, I found myself pulling a large garden cart down the street following the youngest Cooper brother.
    He was armed with a hunting rifle which he carried in his hands, and a handgun worn at the hip.
    There was a peculiar spring to his step as we made our way down the deserted streets.
    Something’s definitely up.
    The replacement lookout on the roof had identified the safest exit from the warehouse and had given us the clearest path that he could see.
    Knowing that we were on probably the safest road still wasn’t a great relief to me.
    As we walked, I wondered exactly who’s side Max was really on. I figured maybe I could get him to tell me.
    So how far to the gas station?
    No reply.
    Maybe another prod.
    What’s the plan when we get there?
    Still no reply from Max.
    So you’re not going to talk to me at all, are you?
    Max chuckled to himself.
    That sound made me feel even worse about the situation. Fine, I won’t play that game.I gave up asking questions and focused on my surroundings.
    The silent buildings around us seemed to crawl with hidden activity.
    Several times, out of the corner of my eye I was certain that I saw a survivor peeking out, or one of the dead rambling within.
    I had the sickening feeling that at any moment a hundred deads would appear from shadowy doorways and trap us.
    A metallic sound followed by a short scream echoed through the streets.
    My stomach dropped.
    Max stopped and raised his rifle. He jerked his head around, trying to figure out the source.
    I couldn’t tell where it came from, either.
    Just another reminder that the city is dying.
    Max apparently became satisfied that whatever happened had happened far enough away to not concern him. He lowered the rifle and set off with a little more haste.
    Two loud pops rang through the streets.
    I couldn’t tell, they might have been gunshots.
    I got more and more edgy.
    The hot desert air felt pregnant with danger, but none showed itself.
    In the ER, at least the problems had a way of getting in my face. I had to deal with the I.V., or help stop the bleeding. The problem was always right there in front of me, and I could at least try to do something about it.
    I hated not knowing where the deads were. I hated not knowing where Max was leading me, and not knowing what he was planning to do.
    I made a silent wish that something exciting would finally happen and break the tension.
    We turned a corner and I saw our goal.
    Up ahead and on the right side of the street a sign read Four Brothers Convenience Store.
    It was a beautiful thing to behold. We were close. Just grab a few canisters and get back as fast as my legs will pull the load. I breathed a sigh of relief.
    Perhaps a moment too soon.
    On the left side of the street was a jewelry store. Its large display windows had been broken. Inside, something moved. Then, something made of glass shattered.
    A ragged form appeared in the window and stumbled off the two foot drop from the display to the sidewalk.
    I hastily repented of my wish for action. I looked over at Max.
    He just stood there, mouth open and paralyzed.
    The dead form got to its feet and walked straight for us. On its face was that unnerving blank stare.
    I glanced again at Max. He hadn’t moved.
    Hey Max. Feel free to do something anytime now.
    He shook his head like he was coming out of a trance and raised his rifle.
    The dead man kept walking.
    I yanked on the handle of the empty garden cart and ran for the gas station.
    
    
27 - Fire To The Fuel
    
    The shot was much louder than I had expected.
    My ears rang, but I could still hear the shot echoing down the streets.
    Another shot, loud and echoing.
    The knot in my stomach tightened. That was too loud. It probably sounded like a dinner bell to deads six blocks away. We have to hurry. I stole a glance behind me.
    Max was examining the dead man in the street, rifle at the ready.
    I hurried on.
    The shops to the left and right had broken windows and smashed doors. Either infection or looting had torn everything apart. The street was in ruins.
    I knew in my gut things were about to get worse.
    On the side of the service station stood a bank of propane tanks in cages. Little flags on the doors gave indication of whether the tank inside was full or empty. About three quarters of them were set to full. Several of the full slots were vacant, looted before our arrival.
    Max was gasping for air as he plodded down the street toward me.
    I turned to where Max was.
    He was almost to the curb of the service station.
    Behind him, my fears were confirmed.
    From the wreckage of various shops appeared three or four deads, lifeless but walking.
    I spun back to the cages. No time to screw around.
    A crowbar and a metal post with some rebar parts welded on were scattered around the propane. Someone had already done the breaking in part for us.
    I flung open a door and ripped one of the full tanks.
    Max arrived and bent over, gasping for air.
    I slammed the tank in the cart and went after another.
    Max tried to stand up straight. Get those things loaded, boy.
    The fear I felt for my life pushed aside most of my annoyance at his attitude. Still my mouth has often operated independently from my brain.
    I pointed behind Max. Did you have to bring your friends with you?
    He turned and stopped his gasping. In fact, I think he stopped breathing altogether.
    I threw in another tank. No telling where there are more.
    Max clenched his jaw and raised his gun.
    The nearest dead from that side was still at least a block away.
    I tried not to consider the fact that there could be more coming around the corner at any moment.
    I reached for Max’s arm. Don’t shoot!
    Don’t be an idiot.
    That’s why these one’s came out. They heard the noise. The more you shoot, the more that’ll show up.
    He shook my hand from his arm. Shows what you know.
    We can outrun those ones, but if many more show up, we’ll be trapped.
    He frowned at me then took his aim.
    I sprung back to the propane.
    Blam!
    Blam!
    I cringed at the noise, but I didn’t bother to look up from my work. I knew he had dropped the closest dead. And I knew deep down that ten more would show up to take its place. Idiot.
    Max mumbled a curse and lowered his weapon.
    I kept loading.
    He turned and squinted his eyes. You done yet?
    I ignored him and reached for the fifth tank.
    A ragged woman stepped into view from the back of the station.
    My heart skipped a beat. I dove back, still holding the tank. Its weight jerked me off balance and I stumbled a step past the cart onto my knees.
    Stay down!
    I ducked further and covered my ears.
    Blam!
    Blam!
    I looked up in time to see her body crumple to the ground.
    I stood and looked at Max. Thanks.
    He nodded once.
    For the first time, I could see real understanding in his eyes. I loaded the fifth tank.
    Max took a few steps and peered around the corner to the back of the station. His face went white.
    Which way?
    He took a step back. Back the way we came.
    I pulled on the cart and looked down the street.
    Five deads from the shops shuffled toward us in a loose group.
    A loose plan formed in my head. Just decoy them enough to get by. I could move down the right side of the road and then swing around to the left…
    Max interrupted my brainstorm.
    Stop here.
    I noticed we were right in the middle of the pumps. I shot him my best What in the world are you thinking? face.
    He understood the silent question. I’m going to clear us a path.
    A vision of the explosion I had seen three nights prior flashed before my eyes. I quickly imagined what it might be like to die in a massive fireball. Better than by the virus.
    He set the rifle on top of a pump then pulled out a propane tank.
    You’re going to what?
    He held the tank at the top and bottom and ran into the street.
    I still didn’t know what he had seen on the street behind the building. I only hoped it was farther away than the group ahead of us.
    He got about fifty feet away and slammed the tank on the ground.
    I just stood there feeling dumbfounded and vulnerable. He can’t think this is a good idea.
    When he got back his face was red and he was huffing and puffing again. Without even a glance at me, he snatched the rifle and ran back in front of the pumps.
    The deads were almost on top of the tank now.
    Max held the gun up and sidled a couple of steps toward them.
    I crouched down and only had a moment to contemplate the stupidity of hiding from an explosion by ducking behind a gas pump. This is it.
    Max pulled the trigger and the gun roared.
    The propane tank didn’t explode.
    At least, not in the way Max expected.
    
    
28 - The Gauntlet
    
    Working in the ER I had treated at least ten serious victims of their own stupidity. I had just never been present for the injury itself.
    I guess there’s a first time for everything.
    The propane tank exploded, but not in a ball of flame.
    The bullet didn’t make enough of a spark to ignite the contents. It did, however, make a small hole in the the front and tore a gaping hole in the back.
    The propane inside exploded outward in a furious burst of pressure.
    I heard a great pop and a whooshing sound and the tank leapt from the ground.
    It slammed into the leg of the dead walking nearest to it.
    The leg flew from the ground and the body was lifted and spun about by the force.
    The collision with the dead was just enough to redirect the hurtling propane tank in our direction.
    My instinct was to duck.
    Max’s was to raise his hands to cover his face.
    The spinning propane missile crunched on Max’s arm and he fell backward.
    I cringed as the tank flew overhead then crashed through the front window of the service station.
    I jumped to my feet to see the damage to Max.
    He had hit his head into a pump on the way down. Glass lay shattered around his bleeding head. His forearm had a new, unnatural bend. Blood pooled around it.
    I suspected that when I lifted it up, I would find a compound fracture.
    The dead continued their march toward us. And there was still something Max had seen behind the building.
    A sudden calm washed over me.
    I was no longer trapped in a desperate struggle for survival. It was just another day like any in the ER, and I had work to do.
    I pulled the handgun from its hip holster.
    It felt heavy and reliable in my hand.
    I released the safety and aimed at the nearest of the dead.
    The blank stare of the dead didn’t change, it just kept walking for me.
    I pulled the trigger twice.
    Its head snapped back then it collapsed in a heap.
    One down.
    The next three dropped just as easily.
    The fifth was crawling my way, its leg having been shattered by the propane tank.
    I laid it to rest like the others.
    Now for the next problem.
    I dropped the handgun and knelt down.
    Max’s head wound appeared to be minor, and the bleeding had already almost stopped. His pulse and breathing were weak, but present.
    A change of position revealed what I was afraid of.
    A jagged piece of bone poked through the skin on the underside of his arm.
    I was grateful that he was already unconscious. He’d be much easier to handle. I stepped around near his head, then braced his elbow with my left foot and pulled his hand.
    The bone slid back in the skin.
    I did my best to put it back in the right place, and then I gently placed Max’s arm on this chest.
    A couple more deads came into view down the street.
    Not much time. Keep moving.
    I scanned the area for options. Not much useful here.
    I yanked the window squeegee from the bucket of blue window stuff.
    The head twisted off easily.
    I tossed the head aside and set the handle next to Max’s body.
    Got a splint, now I just need something to secure it.
    It took precious moments to work his shoelaces free.
    I grabbed a small stack of paper towels from the dispenser, pressed them directly on top of the hole left by the broken bone, then tied the handle to his arm with the shoelaces.
    Time was short. The deads I could see were getting closer, and whatever Max saw behind the station was sure to be here any moment.
    I ran back to the garden cart and flung out all but one of the tanks to make some room.
    Around the corner of the station shuffled a middle aged woman with that telltale blank stare on her face. Her skin looked thin and more wrinkled than it should be. Blood was smeared all over her shirt and pants.
    Out of time.
    I raced around the pumps with the garden cart and brought it beside Max.
    Three more deads rounded the corner.
    The thought occurred to me that I could just run. But that’s not who I am.
    Max wasn’t terribly obese, but he wasn’t exactly fit, either.
    I thought back to the many dead lifts I did in high school gym and gave it my all. I’m still not exactly where I got the strength to lift him, but somehow I got him shoveled into the cart.
    Max let out a groan but his eyes stayed shut.
    Good, he’s still out.
    The dead woman was only fifteen feet away and coming fast.
    Somehow, I still didn’t feel the fear that had gripped me before. Just the resolve to get myself and Max back alive.
    I scooped up the handgun, grabbed the cart’s handle and pulled for all I was worth.
    The dead woman jumped.
    She probably would have been able to grab Max’s foot, too, but her shoulder caught on a gas line.
    The cart lurched just outside of her falling reach.
    Up ahead, several deads shambled into view from various side streets and shops. This part of the city had been still minutes ago.
    In fact, all day, the deads had sat motionless in the shadows. Now, the shadows were crawling with certain doom.
    I checked behind.
    Deads were coming in a steady stream now from both sides of the service station.
    At least the ones up ahead are more spread out.
    There was no turning back. I would only get one shot at this gauntlet.
    I ran to one side and passed the first couple of deads without problem.
    I didn’t dare run the risk of getting lost, so I backtracked the exact route we had come.
    It didn’t seem to matter which way I took, anyway. Deads from several blocks around must have heard our call. Every street I looked down was peppered with them.
    There weren’t any big crowds of them up ahead, though.
    My exaggerated weaving from side to side in the road seemed to be enough to avoid them.
    At least until I was a one and a half blocks away from safety.
    On just my side of the intersection, four deads stood evenly spaced apart in a line.
    Stood, no. They were walking at me, and I was running at them.
    Only one chance.
    I slowed and raised the gun.
    I hadn’t taken a good look, but I was pretty sure it was a 9mm pistol. I knew that their clips could generally hold more than ten shots, but I had no idea how many I had left.
    I steered toward the middle and aimed at the dead just right of the middle of the street.
    I squeezed the trigger three times.
    The dead collapsed.
    The dead just to my left dove at us.
    I twisted and squeezed the trigger again.
    The dead’s direction snapped off course as the bullet tore through its body.
    I knew I hadn’t completely stopped the dead who had just jumped at us, only foiled his dive. My only escape route lay almost on top of the first dead I had shot.
    I stepped high over his outstretched arm and braced for the bump of the cart.
    The cart bounced as the first wheel careened over the arm.
    The cart practically jerked out of my hand on the second.
    The deads on either side crouched to jump.
    My legs pushed hard against the pavement.
    The deads jumped.
    But they were too slow. I was through.
    Behind me the street was filling with deads. Ahead of me lay one clear block and then the warehouse.
    I tossed the gun aside and sprinted. I would need every possible second to wrangle Max inside before the dead caught us.
    My mind was filled with only one question. Will there be enough time?
    
    
29 - First Aid
    
    Max’s body flopped around as the garden cart bounced along the old pavement.
    I just kept on running. If he didn’t have a concussion before, this’ll certainly do the trick.
    The cart hit a particularly hard bump as we entered the parking lot.
    Max groaned again.
    I was relieved to see that there weren’t any deads waiting between me and the warehouse. I ran for the stairs leading to the door we had exited and slowed the cart so it wouldn’t slam into the wall. I looked back to see how much time I had.
    Fifty, maybe sixty deads clogged the road, all making their grim march directly for me.
    I scanned for the closest group and guessed I had a maximum of one minute to get inside.
    I stopped the cart, ran up the stairs and pounded three times on the door.
    Almost before the third knock, the door flew open.
    I didn’t bother to stand around and find out who opened the door. I just jumped back down the stairs and called back over my shoulder.
    ?Max is hurt! Get some help! Go!
    I placed myself between Max and the parking lot. I looked around frantically for some kind of a weapon. I shoud’ve held onto the gun.
    The dead marched on.
    I spun back to the door.
    Shouts came from inside the warehouse and four men burst from the door. One was Paul. The other three looked to be late teens or early twenties. They stampeded down the stairs and reached in to lift Max out of the cart.
    I took a position at the back of the cart. No! His arm’s broken. Pick up the whole cart. One, two, three, lift.
    The cart was much heavier than I expected it to be.
    I spared a nervous glance over my shoulder as we juggled our awkward load up the stairs.
    Three deads lead the loose hoard, and were only about twenty feet away and closing.
    One of the younger guys holding the front slipped. The corner dropped and slammed into the stair. The propane tank smacked into Max’s shoulder.
    The rest of us braced and kept Max and the cart from spilling down the stairs back into the parking lot.
    The youth’s eyes went wide and he scrambled to his feet.
    The deads pressed on, and were almost to the stairs.
    We muscled the cart to the landing at the top.
    Now if we can just get it inside.
    The cart was barely skinny enough to fit through the open door, and the four of us fought to get it lined up just right.
    Too many drivers.
    And then the deads arrived.
    Two of the three hit the bottom of the stairs.
    Paul let out a yelp.
    I looked down.
    The third had reached up through the railings on the landing and grabbed him by the back of his shoe.
    He thrashed his leg.
    The dead man held on with an unnaturally strong grip.
    I stomped a heal down on the dead’s wrist as hard as I could.
    The shoe came off.
    The crew finally got the cart finally lined up. Everybody fell flew through the door.
    I looked back.
    The two at the bottom had flopped forward onto the stairs and were crawling up.
    And then the door was shut and locked.
    It was a thick metal door. Probably just about bulletproof.
    I only hoped it would hold.
    Dad? A teenage boy rushed up to Max.
    It’s not break time yet.
    I rushed to the cart.
    The whole family was gathering around. The faces all bore expressions of fear.
    I took command. Somebody grab a mattress. The five of you help me gently put him on the ground.?
    Five or six of the family gathered around and we reached in to grab Max.
    Bang!
    Bang!
    The two bangs on the door echoed.
    Everyone fell silent.
    We all wondered the same thing. Will the door hold?
    A different kind of bang rang out. It sounded like another gun.
    Everyone jumped a little.
    Then silence.
    I snapped back to my work.
    Come one folks, let’s get him onto the floor.
    We got him out and set him on the cement.
    Now somebody go get me a first aid kit. I need gauze and alcohol and an ace bandage and a couple of long straight hard things to re-splint this arm. Go!
    I put three fingers on his jugular and felt a weak, rapid pulse. I put my ear to his mouth and my hand on his chest.
    His breathing was irregular and shallow.
    I pried open his eyelids.
    They were dilated. He was in shock.
    And someone go get a blanket.
    A good chunk of his hair was caked in blood, but at least it wasn’t openly bleeding.
    His arm was still bleeding a little, and somewhere in all the jostling, the bone in his arm had slipped back out of place.
    At least it’s not back through the skin.
    I worked off the makeshift splint.
    What’s taking so long?
    Somebody come hold his other hand while I set his bone.
    The boy who had called out Dad and run up earlier stepped forward and knelt down. He looked like he might be eighteen. He was crying.
    I stood up and reached down for the broken arm.
    Some motion down the aisle caught my attention.
    It was Carl, coming at me at a dead run.
    Now isn’t the time, you idiot. Can’t you see I’m busy?
    He noticed my glance and pointed a finger.
    You! Stop! What happened?
    He slowed as he entered the circle of onlookers and gasped for air. Just what the… hell do you think you’re doing?
    I considered explaining everything. It would take a while to tell the whole story. Plus, he was never really going to trust me or believe anything I said anyway.
    So I flipped him the bird. I’m doing my job.
    He balled up a fist and came at me.
    Rage flashed inside me. I took two steps toward him.
    He had taken me at my weakest before. I doubt he ever considered that I might be in a better state to resist his abuse this time. He probably thought I was a pushover.
    I had already caught my breath from the run. I was fast. I was focused. I was angry.
    Carl was about to be surprised.
    
    
30 - Life Just Isn’t Fair
    
    Carl ran at me and pulled his hand back to strike.
    His timing was off, and if I let him, we’d collide before he could throw that haymaker. Not that I was about to let either of those things happen.
    I braced against the floor and drove the palm of my right hand into his solar plexus.
    Carl made an audible Whoomph as the air left his lungs. He dropped to his knees and struggled to force a breath.
    Something inside me was screaming for me to work him over now that he was defenseless. I could just kick him in the face, the way he kicked me. I could make him suffer the way he had made me suffer. The family would have to pull me from his broken and bleeding body.
    It would have felt good, too, but I didn’t have time for that.
    I pointed at him. I could have just beat you senseless. Remember that.
    Two burly men stepped forward. They started to threaten me.
    I figured they were just two of Carl’s sons talking tough.
    I cut them off. Look, do you want your Uncle Max to live or not? Your dad obviously just wants to be an idiot and beat me up and watch his own brother die rather than do anything helpful. If you want to do something useful, just hold him back while I get your uncle stabilized.
    I was actually pretty sure the Max wasn’t going to die, but nobody else seemed to know that. He still needed help though. I turned back to Max.
    The family stayed quiet and watched while I went back to work. Within a few moments, a couple of kids with arm loads of medical supplies returned with most of the stuff I had ordered.
    The first order of business was the arm. I reset the bone the same way I had done it before.
    One of the young wives watching ran off and threw up.
    As Carl caught his breath, his wife and boys led him somewhere to cool off.
    At least they can be shown a little reason.
    I cleaned and bound the puncture wound in his forearm, and then used some metal rods Beth had found and a couple of ace bandages to splint his arm. It would protect him well enough if he didn’t do anything terribly stupid.
    By that time, the couple who had cooked last night arrived carrying a mattress.
    We got him up on it, and got him covered in a warm blanket.
    Even though everyone else was sweating there in the warehouse, Max’s skin felt cold and clammy.
    Within a few minutes his pulse began to strengthen and breathing become more regular.
    Max sunk into a deep sleep.
    I stood up and left instructions for someone to always sit with him, and if he woke up to give him all the painkillers he wanted. I left to go clean up.
    Beth followed me. Are you doing OK?
    I turned to her and smiled. I’m not a real big fan of your Uncle Carl.
    She closed her eyes and shook her head. He never used to be like that.
    We walked the rest of the way to the bathroom in silence.
    Something didn’t seem right with her.
    I went in and washed up, and when I came out, she gave me a big hug. Corbin, thanks.
    I held her close.
    She began to cry. My dad told me.
    I held her even closer for several minutes. As we clung to each other in the silence, a single thought crawled into my head.
    What happened to the deads?
    They had stopped pounding on the door a long time ago. There was now a group of at least fifty deads out there somewhere.
    At length Beth stopped crying and pulled away. So what happened while you were out?
    I explained everything that happened.
    When I finished, she looked at me and said only, Whoa.
    I shrugged a little. At least when Max comes to, he’ll validate my story. And then Carl will have to give in a little, even if he still hates me.
    I told her I wanted to change clothes and see what was going on outside, so she went to organize supplies with a couple of her cousins.
    I found my clothes laid out on my bed, clean and already dry. I changed and made a mental note to thank Aunt Janice.
    On my way to the stairs, I checked on Max.
    He was sleeping much more restfully now.
    I also ran into Carl again. I suppose the warehouse was only so big, and it was bound to happen sooner or later.
    It was uncomfortable as always. He just gave me the stink eye while I told him the whole story. When I finished, he just squinted even more and said, We’ll see.
    On that happy note, I climbed up the stairs and went onto the roof.
    I spoke briefly to the current guard, and crawled up to the edge so as not to draw any attention. Maybe I’d be able to tell where the deads had gone.
    What I saw shocked me.
    They hadn’t gone anywhere.
    The deads were scattered about and standing perfectly still. They had only moved out of the sun, and were standing in any shadow available.
    Just standing and waiting.
    A million questions floated through my mind. Why don’t they still pound on the door like they did at the car dealership? When will they move again? Did they forget?
    I went back inside to find something to do until nighttime.
    I ended up helping Beth move supplies around. Once or twice I caught sight of Paul and Aunt Janice, but neither said anything, or even looked me in the eye as we passed.
    I hoped they would get over whatever their problem was before Carl went on his next tirade. I needed some kind of support.
    Around dusk, the pounding began again. At first it sounded like one set of fist, and then two.
    By the time I got to the door, one of Carl’s boys was using an oxyacetylene torch to weld it shut.
    Carl saw me arrive.
    He lifted an accusing finger. This is your fault!
    I just turned and left before another scene could happen.
    Scared faces looked up at me as a passed by on my way to my mattress.
    I laid down and tried to go to sleep.
    As night set in, a new noise began. A low rumbling that seemed to come from everywhere. It took a minute for me to realize it was fifty pairs of dead hands pounding on the cinder block wall.
    The sound was terrifying. It was as a constant reminder that I was trapped.
    I must have eventually fallen asleep, because when I awoke, it was dark and someone was shaking me.
    Corbin, get up.
    It was Beth.
    I pushed myself to a sitting position.
    The moon wasn’t in a good place to cast much light through the skylights. I could barely make out Beth’s outline in the darkness.
    What’s going on?
    Beth groped around until she found my shoulder. Listen, Max woke up about half an hour ago.
    Great.
    No, not good. He doesn’t remember anything.
    I felt a tiny bit of despair in my gut. Somehow, I hadn’t let myself consider that Max’s head injury could cause memory loss. Life just isn’t fair.
    Beth leaned in closer and lowered her voice. I heard the whole thing. I couldn’t sleep at all and I heard Max’s boy come and get Carl. I followed them and stayed hidden. Once Carl learned that Max had forgotten what had happened, he started filling his head with all sorts of lies. He told him that you probably blindsided him and broke his arm and now they’re going to get revenge. Once Max starts telling the story Carl fed him, no one’s going to believe…
    Beth was shaking.
    I reached up and took her hand from my shoulder. I held it in both of my hands and tried to force myself to be calm.
    It’ll be OK. I’ll figure a way to…
    I stopped short as soon as I heard the sound of the approaching angry voices.
    Beth backed away and hid behind a couple of crates.
    I caught the light of a lantern approaching the turn where my aisle met the center aisle.
    I laid back down.
    In a moment or two Carl and a couple of others rounded the corner and marched up to me.
    Corbin, get up.
    I tried my best to fake like I’d been asleep and sat up. Beth had warned me, but I hadn’t been able to act fast enough for it to do any good.
    Carl pointed that annoying finger. Go sit by that shelf.
    I couldn’t think of anything to say, and I figured arguing was not my best option anyway, so I went over and sat by the large metal rack he had pointed out.
    One of his boys came over and used several plastic zip ties to fasten my wrist to the shelf’s support. I didn’t bother to resist.
    Carl sneered at me. In the morning, the family will decide what to do with you. Just now that we don’t take backstabbing lightly.
    I held my tongue.
    As soon as they were gone I struggled at my bonds. Maybe I could wear through them. But then what?
    I looked out through the dark. Beth, you still there?
    No answer.
    Where did she go?
    My pocketknife was in my backpack.
    I felt around as far as I could reach, but no luck.
    And then, in the darkness, I heard the somebody clear their throat.
    
    
31 - Escape?
    
    I couldn’t tell which direction it came from.
    Who’s there?
    Shh, quiet.
    Somewhere behind me. I turned around as best I could.
    A lighter flicked in the darkness and Paul’s face came into view.
    He lit a candle, and finished coming out from behind the same crate Beth had used for cover.
    Where’s Beth?
    He raised a hand like he was signaling cars to stop. I sent her back to her bunk. I’m not going to let you get her into any more trouble.
    He sounded tired, almost hollow.
    I couldn’t blame him too much. He was under a tremendous amount of stress. To cap off the problems caused by the deads, his poor personal choices were catching up.
    I looked him in the eye. So why are you here?
    He clenched his jaw for a moment. I don’t have a lot of time. I’m supposed to be heading up to start my watch right now. I just need to know your answer to two questions.
    I shrugged. OK, shoot.
    What are your intentions with Elizabeth?
    I suppose I shouldn’t have been surprised by the question, but I was. He is her dad, and Carl probably spins all sorts of lies about me.
    To tell the truth, I don’t really have any ‘intentions’ for her right now. I don’t know if you’ve noticed, but my life has been sucking pretty bad lately, and I haven’t had a lot of time or desire to daydream about romance. The bottom line is that she is the only real friend I’ve got right now, and I appreciate her support.
    Paul chewed on that for a moment and then nodded. And what happened out there today?
    I wondered if he had already heard the Corbin’s a backstabber version that Carl was telling.
    I couldn’t think of any story that would be more believable than the truth, so I went with that.
    Your brother shot that monster rifle at the first dead we saw. The noise attracted more, a lot more of them. We needed to clear a path, and I guess he thought he was being clever so he tried to use a propane tank as a as bomb. When he shot it, it just took off like a missile. It hit him in the arm and he hit his head. I got him back and made sure he got the first aid he needed.
    I nodded at my hand tied to the shelving. Then I got the hero’s welcome.
    Paul frowned and looked down. Carl says it was different out there you know. He saw it from the roof. He is the head of the family, and everyone’s going to believe him in the end.
    Paul shrugged. And I don’t know what to believe.
    I felt a desire well up inside me to slap Paul and tell him to grow up.
    After all, he knew I was telling the truth. He was just too weak to stand up to his brother.
    So where does that leave me?
    He stared off into space for a moment, then nodded and reached into his pocket. It leaves you with a choice.
    He wouldn’t look me in the eye. You can escape on your terms, or you can be kicked out on his.
    He pulled something from his pocket and dropped it on the floor next to me.
    He pointed up. I’ll put a candle in that skylight when the east loading doors are clear.
    I Looked down and picked up the object.
    A box cutter.
    He blew out the candle. I’m sorry Corbin, I wish things were different.
    I heard only quiet footsteps as he left.
    I toyed with the box cutter for a moment and thought about my options.
    Most of the family would believe Carl over me. Especially if Carl had been on the roof. That meant I would be punished in his way and on his time. That meant I’d be kicked out regardless of where the deads happened to be.
    Or I could escape now and trust Paul to give me a clear signal.
    Either way I’d end up back on the unforgiving street. A nagging dread washed over me giving me the impression that no matter what I did or where I went, I would be rejected. I would be unprotected. I would be alone.
    This fear was coupled with an ever-growing hatred for Carl and his bigotry. If he was anywhere near reasonable or intelligent, I’d be fine right now.
    But he wasn’t. He was just another idiotic bully, scared of losing power and incapable of accepting anything that didn’t fit with his view of the world.
    I decided that in the end my only real option was escape.
    Maybe I could find him asleep first, and leave him with a parting gift.
    My violent fantasy was interrupted by a shuffling noise coming my way. I had another visitor.
    It’s the middle of the night. Don’t you people sleep?
    I wasn’t sure if I’d have enough time to cut away the stupid plastic chords before my next guest arrived, so I slipped the box cutter into my pocket.
    The moon was finally getting high enough to cast a little light through the skylight.
    In the dimness I could make out an athletic female body.
    Must be Beth. What’s she doing back here?
    As she approached, she flicked a lighter.
    The small lighter cast just enough illumination for me to tell she was upset.
    Corbin, we’re leaving. Hold this. She handed me the lighter.
    I fired it up, and she pulled out a pocket knife, then made short work of my chords.
    I let the fire go out and she grabbed my arm. We’ve got to go, now.
    She was shaking and her voice was wavering. Please.
    I thought she might burst into tears at any moment. What happened?
    Hold on, I’ve got to find my backpack.
    It’s not here. She swallowed hard. I stashed it outside one of the East doors on my way back to my bunk. I wanted to make sure Uncle Carl couldn’t get a hold of it.?
    We made our way into the maze of aisles.
    You sure this is a good idea?
    She stopped for a moment, made several short gasps and fought back the tears. You’ve got to go, and I’m going with you.
    I put a hand on her shoulder and did my best to look her in the eye in the dim light. What? You don’t have to come with me. And I don’t have to go right now, either. We’ve got a couple of hours before dawn…
    She shook her head, then buried her face in my shoulder. No, it’s got to be now.
    Something wasn’t right. I couldn’t put my finger on it, though. She was hiding something.
    What is it, Beth? What’s going on?
    She pulled away and pulled on my left hand, leading me on.
    We turned a corner and I thought I could see the outline of a door at the end of the aisle.
    She was sobbing now, and making way too much noise.
    We’d have to hurry before we lost our chance.
    When we were about ten feet from the end of the aisle, she let go and sped up.
    What is she doing?
    I had known something wasn’t right. I knew she’d been hiding something.
    After I took two and a half more steps, I found out what.
    
    
32 - Betrayal Pains
    
    The blow caught me in right in the stomach. Air exploded out my mouth and my diaphragm refused to take in more.
    I dropped to my knees.
    It hurt bad.
    In the dim light, I could make out Carl’s form hovering over me. He was holding an aluminum baseball bat.
    He had misjudged the distance in the dark and had hit me with his hands when he swung.
    It still hurt, though.
    One of Carl’s boys lit an oil lamp.
    Another hurt was welling up inside me. I looked up at Beth’s sobbing face. She had betrayed me. Led me into a trap.
    I couldn’t believe it.
    Maybe I had wanted to believe she was really going to come with me. Maybe I just really wanted out so bad that I didn’t think about what was going on. I should have listened to my gut.
    I gasped for air. It came in tiny spurts. I was sure I was going to pass out.
    Carl laughed and circled around in front of me. “You probably thought this was your big moment, huh?”
    My breathing came a little easier now.
    “Here’s the thing. I’m the head of this family. If you had just realized that and accepted it to begin with, we’d be friends now.”
    Anger bubbled up inside me. Carl had never given me any sort of chance. Now he was lying to everybody and himself to ease his guilt.
    Beth covered her face and fell to her knees. Through her sobs, I could hear her trying to say “I’m sorry.”
    How could she do this to me? The pain inside was greater than the pain I felt from the blow. She was supposed to be my only friend.
    Carl crouched down and got in my face. “It’s too late for this to work out now. Your crimes are too much for the family to forgive.”
    Crimes? Nobody believes that. Does he think we’re idiots? I narrowed my eyes and shook my head.
    Carl slapped me with his open left hand. “Even when you can’t talk, all you give me is attitude.”
    Carl stood back up and circled behind me.
    My breathing was a little easier now, so I forced myself to stand, too. I turned to face him.
    “So what happens next?”
    Carl toyed a little with the bat in his right hand. “You get punished, and then you hit the street.”
    My stomach and my face throbbed. More than that I felt utterly alone. Beth had betrayed me, and no one was going to stop Carl’s rampage.
    A motion and a light caught my eye.
    A candle flickered in the skylight visible over Carl’s shoulder.
    Paul’s signal.
    Does he know what going on? Is he in on this? Doesn’t matter. I’ve got to take a chance.
    I winced and stooped a little. If I could fake it long enough maybe I could get the box cutter…
    Carl slapped me again.
    He’s too close to swing the bat.
    I stumbled one half step to the side and then one forward. I hoped it looked convincing enough.
    Carl laughed again.
    I jammed my right hand into my pocket, took a step forward, and reached for the bat with my left.
    Carl had no time to react.
    I jerked the cutter from my pocket, snapped it open and brought it across Carl’s chest. The cut wasn’t deep, but I’m sure it was plenty painful.
    Carl screamed and let go of the bat.
    I grabbed it before it could fall to the ground.
    His sons gasped and stepped toward me.
    I dropped the knife and held the bat with both hands. I swung at Carl’s nearest son, who also happened to be holding the lamp.
    He screamed as the bat made contact, shattering the lamp and hopefully breaking bones.
    The sudden return of darkness just added to the chaos.
    I spun and made for the door.
    Beth shouted, “Corbin, wait!”
    I wasn’t interested in hearing anything else from her. Did she think I’d still listen after what she’d done?
    I collided with the door, pushed the bar in, and spilled out onto the landing.
    There was all sorts of screaming inside. Screaming at the pain, screaming for a gun, screaming for justice.
    It didn’t matter, I’d be gone before they could get organized.
    Through it all, I heard Beth call out, “…right of the stairs…”
    I bounded down the stairs.
    The door at the top slammed shut.
    I started across the parking lot.
    Beth’s last words replayed in my head.
    I turned and glanced at the ground to the right of the stairs. I could make out a familiar shape.
    She really did put it out here.
    I ran back, scooped up my backpack and struggled to get it on. I took a glance around.
    A walking dead man rounded the northeast corner of the warehouse. He was grotesque. His face looked like someone had slashed it up with a knife. Blood and grime were caked in various patches all over his body.
    I prayed that most of the deads pounding on the other side of the warehouse didn’t notice. Maybe this is the only one that heard the commotion.
    Like I’d be that lucky.
    The dead man limped toward me.
    Deep down I knew there’d be more just like him, and soon. I chose a side street at random and ran for it.
    I knew I could lose this first dead easily enough, but what then? I had no guarantee that the street I chose would be empty. In fact, the way things had been going, it would most likely turn out to house a huge mob of deads.
    And then what? Keep running? For how long?
    I could outrun the deads for a while, but not forever. I needed to get off the street as fast as possible. Still, I had no idea where to go.
    So I just ran. And ran.
    I would occasionally see groups of two or three deads, but I would just turn a corner and lose them.
    I ran until I was thoroughly lost.
    I ran until my legs shook and my side hurt.
    If I stopped, there was nothing else to do besides think, and all I could think about was how I had been mistreated then betrayed. So I kept running.
    And then, echoing down the street, I heard shouting. Several different voices.
    It sounded like they were crying for help.
    I instinctively followed the noise, even though my brain told me it was a bad idea.
    
    
33 - Help And Red Shoes
    
    The yelling got louder.
    I knew they had to be close, so I slowed down and kept moving toward the sound. I still wasn’t sure why I was going or what I was going to do when I got there.
    Three flares shot up into the air in rapid succession. They came from close by, probably just around to the other side of the block.
    I hugged the brick wall of the insurance office on the corner and peeked around.
    There was a row of stores, mostly antique dealerships and oriental rug shops, all of whose windows had been smashed. Nestled toward the center was a two-story apartment building.
    Gathered around the front door of the apartment building was a mob of perhaps ten deads. They were pounding tirelessly at what was left of the front door.
    I couldn’t be certain, but it appeared that there was at least one survivor on the other side trying to sure up the door with a table.
    Two teenage girls and one middle aged man were at the windows on the second floor, calling for help.
    I recoiled, closed my eyes and took a deep breath.
    What am I doing here?
    I felt a sudden rush of guilt for attacking Carl and his son. I wasn’t a violent person. I had already spent a good portion of my life saving others. Now I seemed to be thrust into situation after situation where I had no other choice but to hurt.
    No, I had a choice.
    That alone was enough to make me feel sick inside.
    Maybe I was trying to make up for my mistakes by helping out here. But what could I do?
    Only one thing to do.
    I tightened the straps of my backpack, held the bat so I could swing it hard, and stepped around the corner.
    One of the girls caught site of me and screamed all the louder.
    I took a few steps and looked up. Get back inside! I’ll try to lead them away!
    What am I doing?
    I pushed away the doubt and listened to my gut. I had to do something.
    Even with the yelling, the deads didn’t seem to notice me.
    I would have to do something more drastic.
    The yellers disappeared into the building.
    It was up to me.
    I set my jaw and clenched the bat.
    Hey! Come get me!
    They still didn’t notice. At least, none of them turned my way.
    I marched up to just a few feet behind them and froze.
    I caught a glimpse of frightened eyes as the table shifted and survivors struggled to get it back in place.
    Listen to me! I took a step and I took a swing.
    Right in the back of the head. Just like with Beth’s infected uncle.
    The infected body crumpled to the ground.
    The three closest deads turned and grabbed out at me.
    I scrambled back. Come on!
    The closest dead missed me by at least a couple of inches.
    I took another two steps back. You want some of this?
    Two deads stepped toward me. The closest one crouched as if to dive.
    I shuffled back and held the bat high.
    The dead man pounced.
    I brought down the bat.
    I caught him mid-air.
    Right on top of the head.
    The bat made a satisfying clonk sound and shook in my hands.
    His hands brushed my arms on his quick trip down.
    No time to celebrate.
    The second dead crouched.
    I stumbled backwards, hoping to get out of range.
    It was enough, but I lost my balance and fell onto my butt. The bat slipped out of my hand and flew somewhere behind me.
    The second dead hit the ground at the same time I did, groping out for my leg. The third just kept walking. The other six still pressed on the door.
    I rolled over and pushed to my feet like a sprinter.
    Out of the corner of my eye, I saw movement down the street.
    The second dead raised up on her hands and the third pressed forward.
    I ran for the fallen bat and took another glance at the movement down the street.
    Several blocks down and running toward me was a man carried by two red shoes. Shoes I had seen before.
    
    
34 - Rescue Operation
    
    At least, I felt like I had seen those same shoes before. I just couldn’t remember where.
    Plus, I hadn’t yet seen any of the deads running, so I decided he was probably uninfected.
    I backed toward the approaching man and yelled at the deads again, hoping to get the attention of a couple more.
    Six deads ignored me and continued beating on the ragged door. The two I had hit lay motionless on the ground. The other two continued their silent pursuit.
    I heard the man in red shoes slow down as he got close.
    I half turned so I could see him without losing sight of my pursuers.
    We looked each other over for a moment, searching for signs of infection.
    He was young, maybe seventeen. He didn’t appear to have any fat whatsoever on his body, but he didn’t look starved either. He wore a t-shirt with a cartoony picture of a knight with the words OHS Knights X-Country.
    I guess that explains his good shape.
    He stepped closer. You send up those flares?
    I shook my head and pointed. They did.
    He looked at me a moment longer and then nodded at the building. How many?
    You mean inside or out?
    Inside.
    I’ve seen at least five.
    You got a plan?
    Just to lead these away and then go get the rest.
    A smug teenager grin crossed his face. Follow me and learn.
    We swung wide of the approaching deads and ran back toward the building.
    In the street, someone had knocked over a big plastic trash can.
    The kid picked it up by its base, spilling its remaining contents on the ground.
    I kept a close eye on the deads behind us. I didn’t want to be trapped.
    He lifted it over his head and hurled it at the group of pounding deads.
    All six whirled about almost immediately and marched for him.
    He motioned toward them. You got to hit ‘em with something. Then you yell to keep them coming.
    How does he knows that?
    What’s your name?
    Kevin, you?
    Corbin. Where do we go from here?
    Just follow my lead.
    I mean once we get everybody out.
    Oh, we’re heading to the hotel.
    Somehow he must have thought that would be a suitable answer.
    The deads kept shuffling. They never stopped.
    I had the feeling they never would.
    Kevin cupped his hands around his mouth. If anyone in there can hear me, we’re going to lead these infected about a block away and then double back. We can take you somewhere safe, but we wont have much time.
    I felt a knot of uncertainty as we backed away and started yelling at the deads.
    I looked around. I couldn’t see any more yet, but I knew they were around somewhere. The deserted shops and dark buildings were undoubtedly full of them.
    Kevin seemed perfectly at ease with the whole rescue operation.
    A memory sparked.
    He’s done this before. I saw him when I was in the storage shed.
    Kevin waxed colorful in his taunting of the deads.
    He probably grew up on video games and skateboarding, and now he feels invincible.
    I wondered how many times he had already done this, and how long he’d have to.
    The whole world had changed over the space of so few days.
    I wanted to lash out and beat back the terror of it all. But I couldn’t. I was just lost and powerless.
    With all my soul, I wanted to do something real and useful.
    The deads continued their unrelenting march for us.
    They had followed us a good forty or fifty feet when the door to the apartment building opened.
    Rather, it fell down.
    Into the street shuffled the tenants. They were carrying something. It looked like a cheap camping cot. With somebody on it.
    I could see blood, but I couldn’t tell how bad the injury was, or even what it was.
    Crap.
    Apparently Kevin had seen it too.
    He waved his hand. Let’s go.
    Kevin took off at a sprint.
    I followed.
    The street was wide enough and the deads hadn’t spread out very much. Kevin went to one side, and I went to the other.
    Holding the cot were six people. Three girls and a boy in their early teens, the middle aged man I had seen in the window, and a woman who appeared to be about the same age.
    In the cot was a man who appeared to be about my age.
    Something had happened to his left leg.
    Kevin only arrived a step or two before me.
    Let’s move.
    I grabbed Kevin’s shoulder. Hold it.
    Kevin spun around and looked a little surprised that I had been right behind him the whole way.
    I looked over at the leg. What happened?
    The injured man was wearing jeans and his thigh had been wrapped with a mess of gauze and ace bandages. Blood had soaked through on the outside of his leg. The bleeding seemed to be centered just above and to the left of his kneecap.
    The woman looked at me and appeared to be a little relieved to see that I was wearing scrubs, or at least a scrub top.
    He was shot. In the confusion.
    There wasn’t anything else to be done for him right then, and the deads were getting closer, so it was time to go.
    I glanced over at Kevin. Which way?
    Just down the street a ways.
    Kevin and I found a spot to grab on to the cot and we all started moving.
    With eight people holding the one small cot, it was hard to really get moving. We had to take shuffling steps or we’d trip over each other’s feet. We weren’t going much faster than the deads.
    I knew something had to change. If more of them showed up, we’d be trapped.
    So after a couple of blocks, I kicked off two of the teenage girls and told them just to stay close.
    With less crowding, we were able to pick up the pace.
    The sky took on a light blue-gray hue, and I new morning was finally on its way.
    Our little group was nervous and quiet. Kevin was the only one that spoke, and only then when he needed to give us directions.
    We lost sight of the eight deads from the time we made the first turn.
    Somehow that didn’t make things any easier.
    Small noises came from some of the buildings we passed. We couldn’t tell whether they were made by living or dead.
    Inside every window I could see shadowy movement. Or was my mind playing tricks?
    I hoped the hotel wasn’t far.
    Besides the physical strain of carrying the injured, the mental strain of not knowing when the next deads would appear got worse and worse.
    We turned a corner and there it was: the Grand Oasis Hotel.
    It was a gorgeous five story building. The only building in the city that didn’t look like it could have belonged to the old military base in which Oasis was built.
    Kevin pointed at a small structure in the middle of the small parking lot. We go in through those stairs. They lead down to the underground parking lot and then in the hotel.
    The structure was basically a box with a metal door. We reached it in short order.
    Kevin reached out for the handle and tried it.
    Nothing.
    He looked back to the rest of us. It’s not supposed to be locked.
    
    
35 - Breaking and Entering
    
    Kevin pounded three or four times on the door. It’s not supposed to be locked.
    The teenage girls gasped.
    The middle aged man’s eyes went wide. What do you mean, locked?
    Kevin continued pounding. Open up!
    I turned and scanned the area. I didn’t see any deads, but I knew it was just a matter of time.
    The woman was shaking. W-what do we do now?
    The boy shook as well, What if they come out now?
    The older man barked at the girls to come hold his corner of the cot up.
    He took over for Kevin, pounding on and kicking the door.
    Everybody but me started calling for help.
    Several blocks down, I caught some movement.
    It was mostly obscured by empty cars and trash, but by the slow, shuffling walk, I could tell it was definitely a dead.
    I decided it would not be best to to mention it to everybody else just yet.
    Things would have to change if we were going to get off the street. Someone would have to step up.
    I took a deep breath and shouted, Stop!
    Silence fell and everyone turned and stared at me.
    We’re not going to get help that way. Who knows if anyone in the hotel can even see us right now? All we’re going to accomplish by making noise is drawing more deads to us. So everybody just shut up for a minute and let’s make a plan.
    The older man’s face went red. He probably didn’t like being told what to do. Still, he didn’t say anything.
    Kevin, is there a direct entrance to the building we might be able to use?
    Shaken from his sudden panic, the confident Kevin was back.
    He shook his head just a little, like he was scolding himself. Yes. The north stairway door.
    I didn’t dare glance back to the dead I knew was approaching. I was sure no one else had seen it yet, and I didn’t need more panic. I needed cooperation.
    I pointed to the man in the cot. What’s his name?
    Nathan.
    Ok, then let’s move Nathan to just outside the north door. Then we’ll spread out around the building. Make sure you move like the deads don’t. Jump around and throw things at the windows.
    Kevin half-raised a hand. Make sure you throw it second story and up if you can. The first floor is empty.
    Great, so, again, the point is to get attention and prove you’re not infected. Let’s go.
    With some kind of a plan in place, everyone seemed much more in control of themselves.
    We shuffled Nathan across the parking lot and over to the door.
    I stole a glance back. The dead I had seen was still making its way down the street.
    We don’t have much time.
    I checked out Nathan again.
    He was still breathing, and he had a weak pulse. Weak, but still there. The pressure of the bandages had appeared to all but stopped the bleeding.
    I didn’t know what more I’d be able to do for him if when got him inside. I highly doubted there was much medical equipment in there.
    Our little group fanned out and began picking up trash from the parking lot to throw at the windows.
    The dead was getting closer and I was surprised no one else had seen it yet.
    Maybe everyone else kept their gaze fixed on the hotel for fear of what they might see.
    The sky got even lighter and the sun would soon peek over the horizon.
    A second dead stepped from the broken glass of a nearby flower shop.
    I looked around for something I might be able to use as a shield.
    Just empty cars and trash. Nothing useful.
    How can the people inside not notice us?
    We needed something to get their attention better than pebbles from the parking lot.
    And then I found it.
    In the back of a station wagon lay a pile of tools.
    I reached for the handle. Locked.
    Fortunately, I had a key that looked an awful lot like a baseball bat.
    The glass shattered with a very satisfying crunch. A couple more swings, and the window was no longer a deterrant.
    The others in my little group spun around and stared at me. Behind me they must have seen one of the approaching deads, because they started yelling and pointing.
    I snatched up a hammer, ran up near the building, and hurled it at a window on the second floor. The crash was not as satisfying, but it was plenty loud.
    The teenage boy ran up to me and pointed across the lot. Back there.
    Three deads were entering the lot.
    Where did they come from?
    It didn’t matter. We had to get inside.
    I looked back inside just in time to see someone’s head disappear back inside the window I had just broken.
    Hey, Wait!
    Everyone ran to the door.
    If they were going to open the door for us, they needed to do it quickly.
    I looked back. I estimated we had three minutes until those first three deads reached us.
    Nathan groaned and stirred a little in the cot.
    I pointed to him. Pick up the cot.
    Kevin nodded. They saw us. They’ll let us in.
    The woman gave him a nasty look. How do you know? Maybe they’re sick of you. It’s not like they let you in the other door. How do you know?
    Silence fell over our ragged band.
    We nervously looked around at each other.
    I knew that physically, we’d be able to carry Nathan for a while. I had my doubts about the teens being able to mentally stick it out though.
    The deads pressed forward.
    The door handle jiggled behind us.
    We all turned and the door flew open.
    A man filled the doorway. He had longish graying hair, a scraggly beard, and all around looked like the sort of guy who should be hanging out with Crocodile Dundee. He even had on a khaki shirt unbuttoned half way, displaying his impressive crop of chest hair.
    He took a step out and held the door. His voice was low and booming. Welcome to the Grand Oasis Hotel. Now get the hell inside.
    
    
36 - Return to the Emergency Room
    
    None of us were about to argue with the man, so we rushed past him and squeezed the cot into the stairwell.
    He pulled the door shut behind us with a final-sounding clunk.
    Dim light filled the stairwell from exterior windows on every other landing but the ground level.
    The door to the ground floor was in shadow and barely visible. It had been barricaded with sandbags.
    The man looked at me. You have medical training?
    I nodded. Yes.
    How is he?
    I haven’t been able to really look him over yet. I’m not even exactly sure what happened.
    OK. Let’s go up everyone.
    We did our best to keep Nathan level as we staggered up the stairs.
    I wondered for a moment why this man was so eager to welcome us in after someone else had locked us out. It just didn’t make sense.
    The man introduced himself as Samson Malsrock, the owner of the hotel.
    He stopped us at the second floor and opened the door.
    I held the back corner of the cot and couldn’t see much of the hall.
    A woman passed in front of the group.
    I didn’t get a good look, but I got the feeling she was someone I knew.
    She stopped just outside my line of vision near the door.
    Samson turned and spoke to her.
    The teenagers were all nervously chatting to each other about how we had escaped and what we were doing.
    I only wanted them to shut up so I could hear what Samson was saying. It just didn’t feel right to yell at them, though.
    The big gray haired man turned back to us.
    You all help get this man into one of the rooms. After that, you in the scrubs stay and see if you can help. The rest of you will come with me, and I’ll explain the hotel rules.
    The way he said hotel rules just didn’t sit right.
    The big man was definitely hiding something.
    The woman he had been speaking to had disappeared by the time the middle aged man and I wedged through the door.
    Samson pointed us into a room with a window.
    The camping cot was not designed to be used as a gurney, so it was difficult to extract the injured Nathan without just dumping him. We tried to be gentle as we moved him onto the bed.
    He started to slip in and out of consciousness.
    Samson shuffled the others from the room. Before he left he looked me over a moment then pointed a thumb over his shoulder.
    The dark-eyed birdie I was talking to a minute ago will be right in to help. I’ll be back as soon as I get this bunch settled.
    He barked a couple of orders at Kevin and led the others back toward the stairwell.
    The sun had broken the horizon and was well on its way to being full in the sky. It shone like a bright ray of hope through the big windows.
    I stared out the window while I tossed my basball bat on the floor and pulled off my backpack.
    Nathan coughed a little. Warm.
    I stopped my daydreaming and got to work.
    Nathan, my name’s Corbin and I’m going to help you. Can you tell me what happened?
    Nathan closed his eyes and groaned. Meg’s husband. …he shh… ugh …broke in… ssshot me.
    I put a couple of fingers on his jugular.
    I didn’t have a clock to time his heart rate, but it felt slow and weak.
    Don’t worry, when I find Meg’s husband, I’ll give him a lecture on gun safety. And I’d suggest you stop seeing Meg.
    A thin smile formed on Nathan’s lips. He chuckled. Not like that. He was… trying to help.
    His chuckle turned into a coughing fit.
    I put a hand on his arm. Things’ll be all right. You’ll make it through this.
    He smiled again, but this time with a different look in his eyes. No, I won’t. But I would like to thank you for your effort.
    He said it with such a matter-of-factness that it was hard to doubt.
    I didn’t understand why. The bleeding had stopped and we could clean up the wound to prevent infection. His pulse was getting stronger, and he was lucid. I’d seen worse pull through, but somehow, I knew it too.
    I looked him in the eye. You don’t have to worry.
    A calm seemed to drape over him. You’re right, I don’t- ‘I am the resurrection, and the life: he that believeth in me, though he were dead, yet shall he live.’
    He struggled to lift his hand and touch my arm. His words were coming harder now. …I won’t blame you. If you get a chance… take a look at my shoulder blade…
    With that, Nathan passed out again.
    I felt his pulse again. It felt a little stronger.
    I sat and pondered the whole situation. Strange that he should be so sure…
    Corbin?
    I spun around.
    In the doorway stood Linda holding a small basin and sponge.
    There’s no way.
    Linda dropped the things she was carrying, charged, and then wrapped her arms around me.
    I was totally dumbfounded. I didn’t even have my wits enough to hug her back.
    She pulled away. I’m so glad you’re OK.
    I forced myself to open my mouth and say something. Yeah, um…
    She looked over at Nathan, and a frown replaced her smile. How’s the patient?
    The mention of the injured man snapped me out of the stupor.
    From what I can tell, his vitals are weak, but improving. I spoke with him a moment ago, though, and he seems pretty sure he’s about to die. You have a cuff??
    Top left hand drawer.
    Linda went back and picked up the things she had dropped.
    I had plenty of questions for her, but they’d have to wait.
    She stepped into the bathroom. I’ll wash him up a little.
    I opened up the small hotel dresser drawer.
    It was full of a random assortment of medical equipment. The blood pressure cuff was on top. The stethoscope took a little digging. I also found a box of examination gloves.
    I put on a pair of gloves then went over and slid the cuff around his arm.
    As I did, I noticed a little spot of red in the armpit of his shirt, just below the shoulder blade.
    My heart sank.
    The shirt was slightly torn, so I stuck in a couple of fingers and ripped it open further.
    There they were. Two rather nasty looking bite marks.
    I hadn’t asked much about what had happened to him before Kevin and I had arrived.
    I wanted to kick myself for not getting the whole story first.
    I stared for a moment at the red and swollen bite marks.
    The bite marks could only mean one thing.
    I knew what needed to be done, I just didn’t know how to do it.
    Linda?
    She turned off the water. What?
    Is that Samson guy really in charge?
    Yeah, why?
    Do you think you could find him for me?
    
    
37 - Difficult Choices
    
    Linda gave me a look. Why?
    He’s been bitten. He’s infected.
    Linda turned and left the room.
    I wondered how long ago he had been bitten, and how long he had until the virus claimed his life and endangered ours.
    I walked over and felt his head.
    It was warm, the fever just beginning to rise.
    I knew it would soon get much worse.
    Nathan turned his head and let out a small groan. He was exhausted from his injury, his infection, and the trip over.
    I wondered how long he would sleep before the pain of the infection would get too strong. I almost hoped for his sake that he never had to wake again.
    It was a horrible thought, but I had seen and heard a couple of people in the painful stage of the infection. Nobody deserved to go through that.
    Somebody is going to have to make a difficult choice, and soon.
    I pulled out a chair from the little table in the corner and watched Nathan breathe.
    His chest rose and fell, but he lay otherwise still.
    I knew the peaceful exterior masked the battle raging in his body. But what could I do?
    He had said that he wouldn’t blame me. He told me to check out his shoulder. He knew he had been bitten. Does he know what has to happen?
    He would soon be in incredible pain. Pain and fever and then nothing. Pain, and then he would become the virus, seeking only to spread itself.
    We can quarantine him in here and wait for the virus to do its work, we can just move him outside alone, or we can…
    I didn’t even want to think it.
    …we can preempt his suffering now, and help him to go without pain, and without endangering the others in the hotel.
    None of the choices seemed like the right one. They all seemed cold and heartless. I had dedicated my career to doing anything to saving lives. Now I was supposed to turn on that?
    But he said he’d forgive me… was that because he knew?
    Even if that is what he had meant, would I be able to deal with the guilt?
    I had shot several of the deads before. That was a matter of life and death. I would have nightmares about it for the rest of my life, but I didn’t feel guilty. Could this be the same?
    What if there really is a cure?
    What if there is something that can be done?
    What if there’s not?
    I stared off into space and ran a thousand similar questions through my mind.
    Samson burst through the door with Linda close at his heels.
    I started answering questions before anyone could even ask.
    He’s been bitten. I don’t know how long ago. The fever has started. It’s only a matter of time.
    Samson set his jaw, stared at me, and then looked over at Nathan.
    I was worried that he would be angry at me for bringing in someone who had been infected.
    His massive frame sagged and his frown deepened.
    I didn’t get the feeling that he was mad.
    He looked more like someone had just loaded him up with a heavy backpack.
    He turned and whispered something to Linda. She spun and went out.
    I wanted to ask him what was going to happen next. I just didn’t have the heart.
    Samson came further into the room. Is he awake?
    I shook my head. He’s been in and out, but I think he’ll stay out for a while. At least until the pain from the virus gets too strong.
    Does he know what’s happened?
    I gave a little nod. Yeah, he also said something about forgiving me. And he quoted scripture.
    Samson sighed a little and closed his eyes. Good. Not that it makes this much easier. Was he a close friend?
    I met him on the way here.
    Linda came back in and handed Samson a vial and a syringe.
    She looked at me for just a moment. There were tears streaming down her face. She turned and left, pulling the door closed behind her.
    Samson pulled up a chair, sat, and looked me in the eye. Two days ago we had a problem with someone we took in. After that we held a meeting and everyone in the hotel voted and decided exactly what would be done with anyone who came in bitten.
    He was a big man, and he didn’t look like he was one for crying, but his voice wavered now.
    They are to be made comfortable, and then they are to be… A tear rolled down his cheek into his scraggly gray beard. One of us has to…
    A sadness filled my chest. I nodded my head. I understand.
    At least, I understand what he is trying to say.
    Samson covered his eyes for a moment with his massive free hand.
    I stood and went to Nathan’s side.
    He was still sleeping, but his face looked contorted with pain. His fists were clenched, and his whole body looked a little stiff.
    I didn’t want to wake him, but without thinking I reached out and grabbed his hand.
    He didn’t awaken, but his hand did relax.
    I turned to Samson.
    He looked like a broken man, at the end of his rope.
    And then a change swept over him and he got up.
    Sadness was still etched into his face, but he stood tall.
    I was shocked at the change.
    Before me stood a man strong and resolute and willing to pay whatever price necessary to secure the safety of others. Before me stood the finest leader I had ever met.
    He walked to the other side of the bed.
    In his movement and composure I sensed an emotional and spiritual strength that matched his powerful physique.
    He put a hand on Nathan’s shoulder then looked at me. I want to make sure he doesn’t wake up for any of this. In the middle drawer over there is a blue glass bottle of ether and some big cotton pads. Let’s do this before it gets any worse.
    
    
38 - A Hotel Divided
    
    Half an hour later the sun was fully up, heralding another scorching Oasis day.
    Samson and I left the room to find several men dressed in leather jackets and welding gloves waiting outside.
    Samson mumbled something about them being the ones to take care of the body and that they wore the leather just in case.
    Linda burst out of a nearby door, ran straight past me, and threw her arms around Samson.
    I didn’t feel hurt by her passing me by. In fact, I didn’t feel much of anything. I was numb.
    The only thing I wanted was to be alone, maybe sleep for a while.
    But what I wanted and what reality handed me had been very different matters for the past five or six days.
    I couldn’t fight the gnawing feeling things weren’t about to get much better.
    Almost all of the doors on one side were open, giving the hall some much needed light.
    I moved aside to let the guys in leather by with Nathan’s body.
    How many will it take? How many can possibly survive?
    Several minutes slipped away as I tried to make sense of the past hour or so.
    A hand on my shoulder snapped me out of it.
    It was Kevin.
    Mr. Malsrock wanted me to tell you what’s been going on here, and then take you to the meeting.
    I looked around. The halls were empty. How long had I just stood there? What meeting?
    I gave a shallow nod. Let me grab my stuff.
    I gathered my things and followed Kevin.
    ?Here’s the deal. When this all started to go down, Mr. Malsrock told everybody they were welcome to stay, free of charge until it blew over. Problem was, as you know, it got worse. By that third day, we rounded up as many of the neighbors as possible to pool our resources and fortify ourselves here. We’ve done everything we can to gather supplies and more survivors.
    He stopped me outside a door. You can put your stuff in here. It’s my room.
    I tossed my bag and bat inside.
    We headed back toward the stairs and Kevin continued.
    Only now there’s a bunch of lamers who just want us to sit tight as long as possible, not let anyone else in, not go find more supplies. That’s what the meeting’s about.
    We went up to the top floor. There were several large rooms used for receptions and banquets.
    Plenty of yelling was coming from inside the second door on the right.
    The first thing I could make out as we approached was not a good sign.
    And then you knew we were going to have this meeting this morning, and you still let them in!
    We rounded the corner and entered the ornate room.
    I guessed there were sixty or so people there.
    The room was split into two section of chairs, turned to face each other. At the front of the room was a raised platform. Samson stood on it with his arms folded and his meaty jaw clenched.
    The group I had arrived with was sitting near the front of the right hand side.
    The group on the left was slightly larger, and seemed to be led by a short pudgy bald guy who was yelling the loudest.
    A vein was throbbing on his bald head. You know we have limited resources, and still, you’ll just let anyone in off the street?
    He pointed at the teenagers who had arrived with me. How can any of them possibly help us? You just took on more dead weight. In fact, if you can prove that any of this motley crew has any useful skills at all, I’ll shut up and sit down right now.
    A rumble of applause spread through the crowd on the left.
    Samson saw Kevin and me standing in the back. His jaw relaxed a little, but he held his tongue. He seemed to be the only one to notice us.
    I caught a glimpse of the middle aged man that had arrived in my group. His face was red and shaking.
    Encouraged by the cheers of his crowd, the bald man strutted over to the teens.
    So tell me, what do you add to our little community?
    The girls looked like they were going to cry, and the boy didn’t appear to be far behind.
    He switched to the middle aged woman, who was sobbing. And you?
    She couldn’t even regain enough control to respond.
    He went next to the middle aged man, who looked angry enough to pop.
    And what do you do for a living?
    I’m an accountant.
    Useless!
    The left crowd jeered.
    The middle aged man balled up and drew back a fist.
    The chubby bald guy flinched.
    A couple of folks from the crowd caught the middle aged man before he could throw the punch.
    The bald guy lost no time in taking advantage.
    See! Useless and violent!
    Both sides erupted in a chaos of yelling, and the bald guy wandered back to his side.
    I rolled my eyes and marched up the aisle.
    The yelling dropped to whispering as I passed.
    Apparently most of them didn’t know I was here yet.
    The sudden hush made me feel weird, like some kind of religious dignitary. I fought the urge to laugh. Am I supposed to say something?
    The bald guy threw his arms in the air. And just who do you think you are, another useless victim?
    A few snickers rumbled behind him.
    I’m not terribly tall, but I could tell I was taller than him.
    I walked up and got a little too close to him. Actually, I’ve worked in an ER for the last six years, the last four as an RN. I’m pretty sure that qualifies me as ‘useful’ in our current situation.
    He turned his head and made a face. Only four years? That’s not much experience…
    I stuck a finger in his face.
    And how many lives have you been responsible for saving?
    He took a swipe at my raised hand. Get that thing out of my face.
    Samson’s voice boomed behind me. He’s a nurse with a lot of emergency training and with more emergency experience than Linda. I think that definitely makes him useful. So, according to your promise you have to sit down and shut up.
    The right side of the room, and I suspect much of the left, exploded again, this time in laughter.
    The bald guy’s eyes went wide and his mouth froze open. He was dumbfounded.
    I wandered over to the right side and sat.
    Samson stood up even straighter. All right then, I think this proves my earlier point. Let’s bring it to a vote. All those who think we should continue to gather supplies and survivors raise a hand.
    It was good timing for a vote. All of the folks on the right side and many of the folks on the left raised their hand.
    Those who don’t?
    The remainder raised their hand.
    I noticed that the bald guy didn’t raise his hand at all. He just sat there with his arms folded, giving me a look of pure hatred.
    OK then, it’s decided. We continue gathering. Meeting over.
    The noise level jumped back up as everyone talked about what had happened and shuffled out of the room.
    On his way out, the bald guy came over to me. This isn’t over. I don’t know who you think you are, but you just pissed off the wrong lawyer.
    I was too worn out to react to his little outburst.
    He glared at me a moment, and then stormed off.
    I see you’ve met Richard.
    I turned around.
    Linda was right behind me.
    I had never heard his name before. I gave a half smile. So your husband really is a Dick.
    She shrugged. It’s nice to see him finally lose a vote.
    Two teenagers I didn’t recognize came up.
    Well, I did partially recognize the one in the lead. She looked like a fifteen year old version of Linda.
    She must be Kim.
    Dad can be such a jerk sometimes.
    The other teen pulled up beside her. Hey, Linda.
    Hello, Lily.
    Lilly appeared to be about the same age as Kim, only much more physically matured. She had actual curves and long blond hair. Even though she was trapped in a hotel, she had found a way to do her too-bright makeup.
    She looked like the kind of girl that was every dirty old man’s favorite dream, and every concerned parent’s nightmare.
    She turned and looked up at me with what could only be described as hungry eyes. Hi, I’m Lily.
    Corbin.
    I could tell that this girl was nothing but trouble. It wouldn’t take too long for her to prove my suspicions right, either.
    Samson came up and put his big arm around Linda.
    The two teens took off.
    Samson ignored them and nodded at me. Thank you.
    I shrugged. Sure.
    Let me give you the tour.
    I didn’t have the heart to say no, even though the only thing I really wanted to do was pass out.
    Ok.
    He let go of Linda and gave me a hefty slap on the back. Good. Besides, there’s some things I want to talk to you about.
    
    
39 - Soap Opera Hotel
    
    Outside the door, Richard and a few of his cronies were huddled in a group, all whispering excitedly. Richard looked up to glare at us as we passed.
    Samson gave a nod, like he was just saying hi.
    Richard just narrowed his eyes and kept staring.
    Samson looked over at me. Never mind them. They’re just plotting our deaths.
    Doesn’t that worry you?
    Samson lifted up his arm to display an enormous and hideous scar. If a hungry crocodile can’t kill me, neither can four overweight lawyers.
    We walked in silence down the hall to the last conference room.
    Samson pulled a set of keys from his pocket and opened the door.
    So what’s their problem with you?
    Power. He and his close buddies crave it more than safety. The trouble is none of ‘em are fit to lead.
    I entered the room and took a look around.
    Hundreds of boxes were high around the room. Everything from Twinkies to chips to Spam.
    This is one of our two big storage rooms. Samson closed the door behind him.
    Samson locked the door behind us and turned back to me. No one should interrupt us in here.
    For a moment, I was worried.
    Samson was huge, and he looked like he knew how to handle himself in a pinch.
    He also didn’t look like someone who ever beat around the bush, so I decided on a direct approach.
    So, why do we need to be in private?
    A couple of things. First, I just wanted to say thanks. Up until now, Linda had really been the only one willing to speak up on my side of any argument. And you’re responsible for her even being here, too. I appreciate your willingness to do what needs to be done and speak up.
    How did Linda get here anyway?
    She spent the one night there with those bozos and then snuck out the next morning. Her ex has a condo about a block and a half away, and that’s where she was headed, when she ran into a group of those things out on the street, and the watchman was actually paying attention, so we got her in. Later on we sent Kevin for her daughter. That kid’s crazier than I used to be. Kevin I mean. Good old Richard just tagged along.
    I could see that he was restraining himself and trying not to get off track.
    He had the air of someone who could sit around and tell stories for hours. He probably had plenty to tell, too.
    And Richard is part of the reason I wanted to talk to you.
    What about him?
    He’s smarter than he looks, and vindictive as hell. You need to watch your step around him from now on. And watch my back if you get a chance.?
    It threw me for a loop. What is he getting at? We just met…
    Look, Corbin. Linda told me what happened back at your apartment building. She told me how well everyone at the hospital speaks of you. I saw it in your eyes when you walked into the hotel. You’re good under pressure, even if you are a little hot-headed.
    I wondered for a moment if she had told him everything I had done at the apartment building.
    Thanks.
    I’m serious. There’s only two or three other people that I really feel I can trust here. I need you on my side so that we have a shot at surviving. I joke about it in the hall, but Richard and his friends are always planning something.
    I yawned. Sorry about that. You’re not boring me. It’s just been a long night.
    Plus, it was getting hot inside.
    He smiled. It’s ok. You deserve some sleep. Go find a room with a bed on the shady side of the hotel and make sure the window’s open. You might be able to catch some sleep.
    Samson moved for the door.
    And Samson?
    Yeah.
    Thanks.
    Be careful.
    He popped open the door and we walked into the hall.
    There was a lot of activity going on. People were bringing boxes of food from downstairs to one of the conference rooms, presumably for lunch.
    Richard and his three buddies were at the far end of the hall, walking for the staircase.
    The two teenage girls I had arrived with and the two I had met a minute ago were walking down the hall in our direction.
    I’m going to make sure everything got cleaned up down in the hospital section. Come find me when you’re done with your nap.
    The teens walked up to me as soon as Samson disappeared through the closest stairway door.
    Hi Corbin. Lily looked up at me with big blue eyes and a hungry smile. Like I was made of steak or something.
    The other teens just giggled.
    Hello?
    We were, um, wondering if you’d like too, you know, hang out with us for a while?
    I do not need to deal with this right now.
    Thanks, but I’m really tired and I need a nap. Maybe later.
    Oh, ok. That’s cool. Maybe later then.
    Lily winked at me, and kept smiling.
    I smiled back in spite of myself.
    The girls giggled off down the hall.
    I wondered for a moment how old Lily really was and what she meant by hang out, then shook the thought from my head.
    Only trouble there.
    I passed the room where everyone had been carrying the boxes. Two people were yelling at each other.
    Another couple was making out in the hall.
    It’s like living in a soap opera.
    I wandered my way back to the room where Kevin had put my stuff. Kevin wasn’t there and there were two beds anyway, so I opened a window and collapsed on the nearest bed.
    I awoke to a knocking on the door.
    To my surprise, a nearby voice called out Just a minute.
    My eyes snapped open, and my heart jumped.
    Kevin was stretching from a nap on the other bed.
    I sat up.
    Kevin stood. Hey, how’d you sleep?
    I yawned and shrugged.
    He bent over and touched his toes. I didn’t see a need to wake you up. I’m doing a night run tonight, so I took a nap. Hope that’s not weird for you.
    I yawned again. It’s fine.
    A couple more knocks on the door.
    Kevin stomped over to the door. Hold on. Sheesh.
    I was only a little surprised when I saw who had been knocking.
    
    
40 - Temptation
    
    Kevin opened the door and Kim blasted through.
    She grabbed Kevin’s hand and kissed him full on the lips.
    Come on, they’re getting dinner ready.
    It probably shouldn’t have surprised me, but it did. I suppose relationships speed right along under extreme circumstances.
    Lily poked her head and flashed a smile. Hi, Corbin.
    I’m pretty sure I rolled my eyes, but if she noticed, she didn’t let it show.
    You want to come up with us?
    I shook my head. I’d like to get a little cleaned up first.
    I reached up and felt my sparse but thickening stubble.
    Pathetic.
    It was, however, a good excuse for staying behind and getting rid of the teens.
    Kevin, you got an extra razor I could use?
    He pointed to the dresser. There’s three or four of them in there somewhere.
    Thanks. I’ll see you guys up there.
    I marched toward the door and herded them all out.
    I thought for a minute about Lily.
    She was obviously doing everything in her power to come on to me. And even underneath the makeup, she was beautiful. Firm body, perky attitude, nice hair. There was only one problem.
    She was just so young.
    I pushed her from my mind and dug through two of the drawers in the hotel dresser until I found a razor and some shaving cream.
    I lit the candle that sat by the sink.
    It wasn’t much extra light, and I probably did a horrible job, but it felt good to shave again.
    I splashed water on my face.
    The cool water felt good in the heat of the building.
    I considered taking a shower, but I didn’t want to run the risk of missing yet another meal.
    I zipped out the door and headed for the stairs.
    Corbin!
    My heart stopped and I just about screamed in surprise.
    I turned.
    Lily was jogging down the hall toward me.
    Doesn’t she ever quit?
    She caught up to me and smiled. Did I scare you?
    Yeah, you’re terrifying.
    I was thinking. Maybe you’d like to hang out with Kim and me after dinner.
    I tried to come up with a good excuse, but the only thing I could think up was, I’m not sure.
    She took a couple of quick steps to get in front of me, turned, and stopped.
    Our eyes met for a moment.
    She cocked her head and bit her lip. Then maybe you’d like to hang out with just me?
    I’m not sure that’s a great idea.
    The smile left her lips and she put on her best pouty face. Really?
    Don’t hurt her feelings.
    You’re cute and I’m sure it would be fun, but I’ve only slept a few hours over the last few days.
    That answer brightened her spirits.
    I made for the stairs, climbed them quickly, and said as little as possible.
    The trouble was that Lily could keep pace and still do enough talking for the both of us.
    Even more troubling was the fact that for all her talking, she didn’t seem like an airhead.
    It also came out that Lily had no idea where her parents had ended up. They had been out of the house on the morning this all started.
    Soon enough we reached the big room where everyone was eating.
    Linda, Samson, Kevin and Kim were all seated in a corner. I claimed a seat by them, and Lily pulled up a seat next to mine.
    Dinner was a buffet of random packaged objects.
    I found some fruit cups, a bag of chips, a package of Twinkies, and a warm hot dog.
    I made a mental note to find out how they managed to cook the hot dogs.
    As I returned to my seat, Samson caught sight of the Twinkies.
    Did you know that Twinkies aren’t cooked?
    I scrunched up my brow. What?
    I’m serious. I saw the machines with my own eyes. Two days ago, we raided the Hostess factory a few blocks from here. As it ends up, Twinkies are squished from little copper tubes. It’s a chemical reaction that makes ‘em foam up when they hit air.
    I couldn’t quite tell if he was joking or not.
    Lily sat down next to me and scooched close.
    The conversations around the room were quiet and strained. No one knew how much time we all had, and no one knew when any of us might really be safe again.
    I only had time to finish off the chips and fruit cups before it happened.
    Across the room, a man got very sick. He rushed to the nearest garbage can, but didn’t make it in time.
    The smell of vomit filled the hot room.
    Within a couple of minutes, a couple more people became ill.
    It ended up being the hot dogs. Pretty much everyone who had eaten one got sick.
    I was glad I never got to mine.
    Linda and I gathered up everybody who had the food poisoning. We figured it would be easier to help if we moved them all down to the ?hospital wing? of the hotel.
    Lily stopped me before I could follow the group out the door.
    So do you think we can hang out when you get done?
    I can’t deal with this now.
    I looked in her eyes. Lily, how old are you?
    Eighteen.
    No, how old are you really?
    She frowned. Sixteen. Next month.
    Look, you’re a beautiful girl, but nothing can happen between us. You’re just too young. It wouldn’t be right.
    You’re wrong.
    She spun around and stormed away. She didn’t look crestfallen or depressed, though. If anything, she just looked more determined than ever.
    Linda and I took all the sickies downstairs.
    We did our best to keep everyone hydrated and comfortable.
    It was late by the time we finished up and could be sure everyone was going to be all right.
    Every part of me was tired as I lumbered back to my room. I tossed my dirty clothes on the foot of my bed then took a quick, cold, and dark shower.
    The moon was full enough to let some light in through the window.
    I opened up my backpack and pulled out the extra underwear and scrubs.
    The door opened behind me as I pulled on my boxers.
    Must be Kevin.
    Back already?
    Back? I’m not Kevin.
    My stomach dropped. It was a female voice. One I’d heard a lot in the past day.
    Did she see my butt?
    I scrambled to put on the scrub pants, which is hard to do when the room is dark and you’re in a hurry.
    Lily stood just inside the door.
    Through the fuzzy darkness I could see that she was wearing a white tank top and a pair of boxers.
    The corner of her lips raised in a seductive smile. I know what you said earlier, but let’s face it, we’re both alone. We could both use a little… love right now.
    My voice wasn’t much more than a whisper. Not like this.
    You’ll thank me later.
    She reached down and tugged at the base of her tank top.
    My tired brain couldn’t think of anything to say.
    She lifted the bottom of her shirt.
    Is she going to…
    Lily pulled the tank top over hear head and let it fall to the floor.
    Whoa.
    Lily took a step toward me, crossing one foot slightly in front of the other. She moved like a cat sneaking up on its prey.
    My heart raced.
    She took her time prowling toward me in all her full and perky glory.
    I couldn’t tell if it was lust, surprise, curiosity, or something else entirely, but I was mesmerized.
    She stepped into the more direct moonlight, which gently lit her smooth and perfect curves.
    She soon stood inches in front of me.
    I exercised every bit of self-control I had to keep my eyes up. I could feel my hands quivering.
    We looked in each other’s eyes.
    Her breath was sweet and tempting.
    I tried to say something, but it got caught in my throat.
    The moral struggle raged deep inside me, but my thoughts were swimming so fast I could no longer make out what the arguments were.
    She raised her two soft, warm arms up around my neck, tilted her head, and leaned in.
    
    
41 - Consequences
    
    Who’s going to know?
    Lily pushed closer and her lips brushed against mine. Come on. We both want it.
    With everything else that’s happened, I deserve a little tenderness. I deserve a little…
    She closed her enchanting eyes.
    I took a deep breath.
    She raised up on her toes.
    
    A wave of sanity washed over me and I put my hands on her hips. I’m sorry.
    I pushed her gently.
    Her eyes popped open.
    I looked at her beautiful young face. I can’t do this.
    She sucked in a breath and gave me a questioning look.
    I kept her gaze and stood silent.
    Her lower lip started to quiver.
    I could only guess at what was going on inside her head. Was it anger? Was it embarrassment? Was it shock?
    I took a step back. It’s just not right.
    Tears welled up in her eyes. Don’t you… want me?
    I didn’t know if she was putting on an act or if she really meant it. The one thing I did know is this, if I stayed in that room with her, I would end up doing something that I would regret. I had to leave.
    She shook her head an took a small step forward. Please don’t let me be alone.
    I side stepped her and headed for the door.
    Her voice shook. She looked like she was on the verge of having a breakdown. Corbin, please. Aren’t I good enough? Aren’t I pretty enough?
    I stopped and did a half turn back, being careful not to look at her.
    Part of me wanted to go back and say something comforting. I opened my mouth but couldn’t come up the right words, so I turned back, opened the door and left.
    The hall was dark and hot. A camping lantern hung on a light fixture in the approximate middle of the hall provided the only light.
    I stood still for a minute, listening for signs of commotion in my room.
    There were none. No sobbing, no yelling, no throwing things, nothing.
    What is she doing in there?
    A noise from the close stairwell caught my attention. Loud voices talking and laughing.
    I watched as Richard and his buddies burst through the door. One of them had an old-style oil lamp.
    Oh, no. What are they doing here? Maybe they’re just going to their rooms.
    I knew they’d never just go on by and leave me alone. I walked their way and just hoped that Lily would stay put for a minute.
    They noticed me and stopped laughing.
    Corbin? What are you doing out here?
    Couldn’t sleep. You?
    Richard smiled. Just heading to bed. Look, I’ve been meaning to talk to you.
    What happened to all that ‘messed with the wrong lawyer’ crap? Something wasn’t right.
    I tried to get a good look at the faces of his friends and get some idea of what was going on.
    OK, what’s up?
    Richard kept a crooked smile on his face and started in on what seemed like a prepared speech. I just wanted to say I’m sorry for what happened this morning. I know it was uncalled for. As you know, life has been more than stressful this past week or so, and we’re all on a short fuse…
    His voice didn’t sound perfectly honest, and the smile on his fat face simply oozed fake.
    What is he getting at?
    I really wanted to turn back and make sure my room door was staying closed. Not that there’d really be anything I could do if Lily came out right now.
    These idiots would just jump to conclusions again, and that’d be it. I’d suffer the consequences for something I didn’t even do. I would most likely be put back out on the street.
    Alone again.
    I was tired of being alone. Why couldn’t I just fit in somewhere?
    …and Corbin, are you OK? You don’t look so good. What are you worried about?
    His false concern just made me madder. He looked like a pig and sounded like a weasel.
    I wanted to punch the smirk right off his face.
    I looked him in the eye and shrugged. Nothing.
    I understand if you don’t want to talk to me about it, but the concern is written all over your face. It’s clearly something.
    His friends all nodded and chimed in agreements.
    When is he going to just leave?
    I decided to prod things along. Well, don’t let me keep you guys. I’ll see you around.
    I suppose you will. We’ll talk more tomorrow. Come on guys.
    The lawyer herd shuffled off down the hall.
    Can’t they move any faster?
    They passed my room.
    I breathed a small sigh of relief.
    I had relaxed too quickly.
    The handle turned and the door to my room pulled open.
    My stomach dropped. Crap.
    The whole group turned to look in.
    A couple of them looked back toward me.
    I thought I saw one of them look down at my pants.
    None of them looked pleased.
    Lily stepped into the hall.
    The blood ran from my face when I saw how she was dressed.
    Lily still had on the boxers, but she was now wearing the top half to the scrubs whose bottoms I had on.
    Hi, guys. She waved to the group and walked straight to me.
    Something in my head told me to run away, but I knew it wouldn’t help. It’s too late.
    She raised up on her toes and kissed me on the cheek. Thanks for, uh, she giggled and glanced back at Richard and friends, You know, for everything. I’ll see you tomorrow, sweetie.
    She took a backward step and gave me a haughty you-shouldn’t-have-messed-with-me look.
    I’m dead.
    
    
42 - Judge, Jury, and Executioners
    
    Lily twirled around and strutted down the hall.
    I considered my options. I could run, but that’d only make me look more guilty. I could follow her, but that’d look just as bad. If I could make it back to my room before they stopped watching Lily, they might leave me alone. Or at least I’d have a baseball bat and a locked door.
    I figured that was my best shot.
    Sure enough, they parted and watched Lily’s swaggering backside as she went by them and down the hall.
    I made a b-line for my room.
    The door was well on its way to slamming closed when it bounced back in.
    Richard had gotten his foot in the way just in time.
    The door swung wide again.
    I was just past its path.
    I controlled my breathing and looked at him. Can I help you?
    What the hell was that?
    A very rude man just stopped my door from closing.
    Color crept up Richard’s neck. That’s not what I meant.
    Maybe you should learn to communicate better.
    He stepped further in. We all heard what the girl said.
    So not only do you barge in on people, but you listen in on their private conversations too? Who made you the hotel Gestapo?
    It was even darker in my room than in the hall, but I could still see him turning red.
    Richard’s cronies crowded behind him, and the whole pack was edging even further in.
    Maybe it was the way they all were holding their breath, or maybe it was the way they all clenched their fists, but I was certain that things were about to get ugly.
    With five of them and one of me, I knew this would be over before anyone else could have a chance to come to my aid. If anyone would come at all.
    I tried to think of where I had tossed my baseball bat. It was my best bet at evening the odds a little.
    They were all inside my room now.
    Richard pointed a finger at me. You know what they do to child molesters in prison?
    I smirked. Aww, were they mean to you while you were in the big house?
    Richard was so angry his face was shaking.
    One of his larger buddies stepped to his side. We’re not going to let pedophiles like you go unpunished.
    I was pretty sure my bat was only a couple of feet behind me, leaned up against the side of the dresser. I only needed to stall a couple of moments more.
    Shouldn’t you guys at least hold some mockery of a trial before you deal out the punishment? Has it occurred to you I might not actually be gui-
    The big guy took a step and a swing at me. He wasn’t quite within range.
    I dove back and groped for the bat. It wasn’t there.
    It occurred to me that I should have run and hid when I had the chance back in the hall. Then in the morning things could get sorted out a little more fairly.
    Too late now.
    Richard dove for me.
    I dodged to the left and caught a glimpse of the bat way over in the corner. There’d be no way I could get it in time.
    The big guy reached for me.
    I sprung at him.
    His arms wrapped around my torso in an iron grip.
    I grabbed at his sides and drove a knee into his crotch.
    He made a noise and dropped me.
    I pushed him to the side.
    Richard landed a clumsy punch on my shoulder.
    I whirled to the right and backhanded him across the face.
    The space in the room was tight, and somehow I had to get through them into the hall.
    A blond guy scrambled around the doubled-over big man to get a shot at me.
    I swung back with the palm of my right hand.
    He flinched and my blow connected square on his nose.
    His arms swung up and he was able to wrap them around mine.
    I jerked at his grasp, but couldn’t get my arm free fast enough.
    One of the others, I couldn’t tell who, barreled a fist into my side.
    Some wind sailed out of my lungs.
    I can’t see anything in here. I made a desperate kick for somebody’s knee. I think it landed.
    The blond guy swung hard, looking for payback.
    I tried to roll with it, but it did me little good.
    The punch landed on my cheek and nose.
    I brought my hands up to guard my head and pushed myself forward, hoping to get to the doorway.
    Another couple of punches grazed off of my arms.
    I’ve got to get through.
    I collided with one of my attackers.
    A punch landed on my kidney.
    The guy I had collided with pushed me away.
    I lost my balance completely and fell backwards.
    I bounced off someone and hit my head on the dresser.
    The guys above me laughed and called me all sorts of names.
    I curled up to protect myself as best I could.
    The lawyers went to work on me, taking turns kicking, spitting, and punching.
    Warm blood trickled from my nose. I wonder if they’re going to dump me on the street with the deads.
    I have no idea how long they kept up the beating. I blacked out.
    The next thing I remember was a frantic Kevin stooped over me saying, Hang in there. I’ll get help.
    Somehow he and Linda got me hauled up onto my bed, and then got me somewhat cleaned up.
    I woke up mid morning with a screaming headache and bruises covering my arms and legs.
    Nothing feels broken. That’s good.
    The sun was already high in the sky.
    Probably missed breakfast.
    I opened my eyes and saw Kevin, Linda, and the massive Samson standing together and talking quietly.
    Hey guys.
    Kevin exhaled and looked relieved.
    Linda narrowed her eyes and looked more than a little disappointed.
    I wondered what lies the lawyer herd had already spread, and if she somehow believed them.
    However, Samson smiled and looked downright happy. Hey, slugger. Next time you get in a fight, call me. I’ve been waiting to take a piece out of those guys since they got here.
    Yeah, I’m fine. Thanks for asking.
    Samson chuckled and turned to the others. OK, go tell everyone its time.
    I pushed up on my elbows then sat.
    Everything hurt.
    Time for what?
    Those damn lawyers said all kinds of things about last night and are insisting on a trial.
    
    
43 - Trial
    
    “Right now?”
    If it were up to them, they’d have already tossed you out.
    Fine, let me clean up a little.
    No. Don’t. That’ll make it harder.
    Harder to what? Get pity?
    Just trust me. Come on. Let’s go.
    I stood and my legs wobbled under me. My ribs hurt and my arms ached. The left side of my face was throbbing.
    I still have to climb those stairs.
    I wasn’t convinced that Samson had any kind of real plan, but I went along anyway. I guessed a little sympathy wouldn’t hurt.
    The bright morning light flooded the room and made it possible for me to see myself in the mirror on the wall.
    I looked even worse than I felt.
    There were patches of dried blood caked about my face and shirt. The left side of my face was swollen and heavily bruised. Scrapes and bruises decorated my arms.
    The sight of my ragged, beaten self made me angry. I imagined grabbing my bat, rushing upstairs, and breaking all five of my attackers before they knew what was coming.
    But what could I really do?
    Samson opened the door and motioned for me to exit.
    I took a deep breath and headed out the door, almost head on into Lily.
    She must have been standing right next to the door and stepped around when it opened.
    I stopped dead in my tracks.
    Lily took one look at me and gasped.
    I clenched my jaw.
    She stepped back and covered her mouth. Her eyes clouded up.
    Corbin, I didn’t know they would-
    I don’t want to hear it.
    She reached a hand to toward my face.
    I brushed it aside. Leave me alone.
    I turned and walked down the hall.
    Samson followed close behind.
    Behind us, Lily started to sob.
    Hearing her cry just made me madder. Serves her right.
    My anger toward everything that had happened fueled me up the stairs, but by the time we reached the top, I was shaking and gasping for air.
    Samson hurried me down the hall. Don’t worry. I know you didn’t do anything wrong. Just trust me.
    He popped open the door.
    A silence fell over the crowd, and they all turned to stare at me.
    My gut twisted up inside. I felt the heat of their angry, accusing eyes.
    Yesterday, I had been a slight irritant to some and a relief to others. Today I was lower than the deads that walked the street. Richard and his herd had probably already worked them into a frenzy.
    Still, I knew inside that I done nothing to be ashamed of. I’d done nothing wrong. I walked down the center aisle, looking around the crowd to meet as many gazes as possible.
    Many of the hard faces softened as they saw my ragged condition.
    Whispers washed over the crowd. What did they do to him? Serves the creep right. He looks like he’s been run over. I never would have thought he- Well, maybe he shouldn’t have molested the girl. That’s just not right.
    I caught sight of the man whose nose I had smashed last night.
    He had two black eyes.
    I was satisfied at that. I looked around for the others.
    None seemed to have any visible marks from our fight.
    Samson led me to a seat on the raised platform and then turned to the crowd.
    All right everybody, let’s calm down.
    The noise level dropped down to silence.
    My eyes raced around the room. Where’s Linda?
    As you all know, Corbin here behind me has been accused of inappropriate conduct with Lily, who is fifteen. This meeting will be to determine if in fact he did what his accusers claim, and then decide what to do about it. And then we have one unrelated matter to discuss.
    The tall guy stood up. We already know he did it. Let’s throw him out!
    A grumble of agreement echoed from the crowd.
    Samson raised his hands. Quiet!
    His booming voice echoed and everyone in the room went silent.
    He glared at the tall guy. I’m not a lawyer. I haven’t spent much time in courts. But, I do know this; there needs to be order for justice to truly be served. If you speak out of turn again, you will be removed from the meeting.
    The tall man frowned and sat.
    OK, Richard, I assume you will be presenting the case against Corbin?
    Richard nodded his fat head. That’s right.
    Go ahead.
    Samson sat down in a chair close to mine.
    Richard stood, smirked at me and faced the crowd.
    Ladies and gentleman, Samson put it too nicely. I am going to prove to you that Corbin St. Laurent raped an underage guest at this hotel and furthermore physically assaulted one of the other guests, my friend Matthew Smith.
    He turned to me and raised an eyebrow. Mr. St. Laurent, What do you say to those charges?
    I fought the urge to roll my eyes, but I knew I needed to control myself if I was to have any sort of chance. I did not rape Lily. I did punch your friend, but it was in self defense, and you know that. That’s what I have to say.
    Richard sneered and turned back to the crowd. Look, everybody. I’m not going to waste your time with all of the formalities of a regular court case. I’m just going to tell you what happened.
    Last night, soon after nightfall, some associates and I were returning to our rooms when we heard a commotion. Corbin came out of his room and looked very jumpy. He tried to distract us, but after a moment, Lily came out of his room. Her clothes were ripped in places and disheveled, and she was crying. She begged us for help. We sheltered her and Corbin became violent. He attacked Matthew and we did what we had to do to stop him.
    I clenched my jaw.
    Richard motioned with his palms up. Would all those who were with me and can verify my story please stand up?
    His four cronies stood up and agreed with everything Richard had said.
    Anger and depression fought for control in my head. I hated Richard and his friends for their lies. Their bigotry and irrationality had doomed me. What could clear my name now? There was nothing.
    Nothing I could say.
    Nothing I could do.
    Maybe if Lily told the truth. But she was downstairs bawling her eyes out right now.
    The only thing to do was wait for this sham of a trial to end and take my lumps yet again. That probably meant back on the street, with ever increasing hoards of deads, and I was too tired of everything to keep struggling. They’d catch me, I’d be infected, and four, maybe eight hours later I’d be one of them.
    What does it matter anyway? The virus is going to take us all no matter what we do. Might as well get my suffering over with all the sooner.
    Richard paced back and forth in front of the crowd. And there’s one more thing.
    He reached inside his jacket and pulled out a sheet of paper. He held it up for the crowd to see.
    I have here a statement written by Lily. She was too shaken, too upset, too broken to come to this trial so she wrote everything that happened in this letter. That’s right, she couldn’t even bring herself to come in front of Corbin and say what happened. So I had her write it down. It’s not very long, but I think it says everything that needs to be said. She’s downstairs waiting in my room until she receives news that justice has been done.
    Confusion filled my mind. Letter? In his room? What is he talking about? I just saw her in the hall.
    Samson stood. May I see the letter?
    Richard swaggered up and held out the paper.
    Samson took it and sat down.
    Well, what do you think?
    Samson stared grim-faced at the paper and nodded. He frowned at me for a moment and then stood again. The letter clearly states Corbin raped her.
    Richard turned to the audience and raised his hands. There you have it, everyone. I don’t think anything else needs to be said about it. We only need to decide how Mr. St. Laurent should be punished.
    The arrogant pig dropped his arms and swaggered back to his seat.
    Silence ruled the room for a very long ten seconds.
    I cringed and waited for the inevitable.
    Someone from the crowd yelled. Kick him out! Let the infected have him!
    All at once, everyone was calling for my removal from the hotel, or worse.
    After a moment of this, Samson stood again. Quiet!
    I marveled again at his imposing stature and booming voice. I just didn’t want to believe that he dumb enough to buy Richard’s lies.
    The noise tapered off.
    Samson held up the note. We’ve heard some pretty damning evidence, but I think we should at least let Corbin have a chance to defend himself. Corbin?
    I winced with pain as I stood.
    Samson turned, winked at me and sat back down.
    What is going on with him? And what am I supposed to say?
    I looked around at the angry faces staring up at me and opened my mouth to speak.
    
    
44 - A Tangled Web
    
    “I don’t really know what I can say that will convince you otherwise, but here’s what happened. Last night, Lily came into my room and attempted to seduce me. I got out of there. In the hall, Richard and friends were just coming out of the stairwell. I did try to hurry them along, but it was no use.”
    I took a deep breath before continuing. “Lily stole my other shirt, came out into the hall, and put on a show for the lawyer herd. She left and I went back to my room. Those five weasels came in to my room and beat me up. I tried to defend myself, but with one on five in a small room, I suppose the result was inevitable. And there you have it.”
    Many in the crowd shook their heads, presumably in disgust.
    But what else was there to do? Richard had created a lie and provided evidence.
    Richard scowled at me. “Is there nothing else you’d like to tell us? Like maybe the truth?”
    I couldn’t take it anymore. “Well, there is one thing.”
    I straightened my self, spoke as loudly as I could manage and pointed at my accuser.
    “I’d just like everyone in this room to know, that as his name implies, Richard is a dick.”
    I heard Samson chuckle behind me. The rest of the room wasn’t quite as amused, or at least they didn’t show it if they were.
    Richard laughed a little, too. “That’s your defense, Mr. St. Laurent? Call me names? I think we’re done here.”
    The crowd started in again on the horrible punishments that should be heaped upon me.
    I went back to my chair, and listened for about a minute to the crowd’s angry whisperings.
    I thought Samson had a plan.
    In the back of the room, I saw the door open a crack.
    Was somebody out there?
    Samson must have seen it, too, because as soon as it did, he sprang to his feet.
    The crowd fell silent without him even yelling “quiet” again. Everyone seemed anxious to vote on a punishment and be done with me.
    “Before we take a vote on punishment, I think I need to tell you a few things. First of all, Corbin was right. Richard is a dick. He has concocted a horrible but believable lie just to get Corbin out of here. He got his friends to lie for him, and he falsified evidence.“
    Samson held up the note.
    I saw a couple of lawyer faces go white.
    Richard went beet red and jumped up. “Prove it!”
    Samson looked to the door. “Kim, could you prove it for the shark here?“
    Kim opened the door and hurried down the center aisle. She was carrying a small pink book.
    She handed the book to Samson and stood beside him.
    Samson opened the book. “Kim, what is this and where did you get it?”
    “It’s Lily’s diary. Sorry it took so long to find it. I found it under her mattress.”
    Samson looked from the note to the book and back again. After several moments he looked up. “Would anyone else like to look at these? I’m no expert, but it seems pretty clear that they were written by two separate people. The handwriting is totally different.”
    A couple of people came up and agreed with Samson.
    Richard leaped back to his feet, as well as anyone that chubby could leap. “She could have faked that!”
    Samson stormed over and hovered directly over him. “Or you could have! You make me sick. Corbin embarrassed you yesterday, and you’re so petty, so stupid, so insane that you’re ready to do anything to exact your revenge. You got your friends to lie for you, you made up evidence, you-.“
    Samson clenched his jaw and his massive fists. He stared at Richard and leaned over.
    Richard went white and fell back into his seat.
    I almost felt bad for Richard. Samson looked like a grizzly bear about ready to tear apart a deer.
    The big lawyer I had kneed in the groin last night stood up. “Where’s your proof? And why don’t you pick on someone your own size?”
    He was just as big as Samson, and perhaps a little taller. His arms and chest were huge, like he spent a lot of time in the gym.
    Still, I guessed it would take a whole lot more than any one man to intimidate Samson.
    Samson straightened and turned. “Davis, you shut up. And you want proof? Linda!”
    The back door opened again.
    Every head in the room turned to see it.
    Linda and Lily walked in.
    I felt a knot in my stomach unwinding. I just hope she tells the truth now.
    Linda led her through the chairs.
    Makeup ran in hideous lines all over Lily’s face. She wore some clunky bracelet on her left hand.
    As they approached the front, Lily looked over at me and mouthed the words, “I’m sorry.”
    I noticed she wasn’t wearing a bracelet at all.
    It was half of a pair of handcuffs.
    Maybe I was too angry to notice it before.
    Lily broke down and cried about every third sentence, so it took her a good half hour to tell everyone what had happened. She told everyone how I rejected her and how she wanted to get back at me.
    Then she explained things I didn’t know.
    After Richard and friends had left me in a pile on my floor, they found Lily and encouraged her to hide out in Richard’s room. She slept on his extra bed. Right before everyone had come upstairs, Richard threatened her and handcuffed her to the heavy table in his room. He told her she’d be fine if she could be quiet until the trial was over.
    A little while later, Linda had found her, then gotten Samson to dig up a pair of cable cutters.
    As Lily went on, I wondered how much of this had happened before I had even woken up.
    Linda wrapped an arm around Lily as she finished her story.
    The whole room was awestruck.
    I glanced over at Richard.
    He looked green.
    Samson broke the silence. “Now the truth comes out. By show of hands, who would like to evict Richard and his four accomplices, by force if necessary?”
    Every hand but five went up.
    “That settles it. We’ll let you pack, one at a time and with supervision while we discuss the other matter. Richard can go first.”
    “No!” Davis, the big lawyer, jumped to his feet and pushed his way through the chairs and people. “You’re not going to treat us this way!”
    He rushed the platform.
    Samson sprang up and pulled back a fist.
    
    
45 - The Punch Heard ‘Round The Hotel
    
    People tend to make bad decisions when they’re angry.
    Or stressed.
    Or tired.
    Davis must have been all three, because his decision was terrible. I’m not sure exactly what he was hoping to accomplish by rushing Samson like that. All I know is that he did not get the outcome he wanted.
    Davis hadn’t even placed his second foot on the platform when it happened.
    Fist met face with a thunderous clap.
    Davis’s head snapped back and his legs sprawled forward.
    Samson followed through the punch, making sure Davis was not just stopped from coming forward, but sent to the floor.
    And sent to the floor he was.
    His legs and hips slammed on the platform, and his head and back crashed against the floor.
    I instinctively jumped to my feet and leaned over the prostrate body.
    Davis’s eyes were rolled back and fluttering. He was out cold.
    The whole room was in uproar.
    The other lawyers were fighting to get free, and the crowd was fighting to hold onto them.
    Samson pointed to the door. Stop him!
    I looked up.
    Somehow, Richard had broken free and was bouncing his fat self right out the door.
    Four or five guys disappeared after him.
    Richard’s crew wasn’t fairing quite as well.
    Davis stayed passed out in a heap. The other three thrashed, kicked and screamed, but it wasn’t any use. The weight of the crowd was too much. It only took a minute or two for them to run out of steam.
    The men who had chased after Richard did not return.
    I wonder what happened. It’s not like Richard’s that fast of a runner.
    Even without the physical struggle, there was a great deal of commotion in the room. The crowd was calling for swift and violent justice.
    The three conscious lawyers did their level best to argue and lie their way out of it.
    Samson raised his hands motioning calm. Quiet! OK, everyone let’s settle down. They’ll catch Richard, and we’ve got these four. They’ll get what’s coming to them, but we need to discuss something else.
    Kevin appeared from the crowd.
    Where has he been hiding?
    ?I sent Kevin out last night to see how things were going in the city. I’d like him to tell you what he told me.
    Kevin stepped up on the platform.
    I had been too battered and dazed earlier to notice, but now I saw something different about him.
    Kevin’s eyes had dark circles and his shoulders drooped. He looked worn and exhausted. He was hardly the confident teenager I had met in the street.
    He turned around and faced the crowd.
    It’s gotten worse out there.
    He took a deep breath.
    How could it possibly have gotten worse?
    The infected are gathering in very large groups. And it’s like they just know where survivors are hiding. I saw them overrunning two buildings last night. Both were big apartment buildings, and everyone there seemed to-
    Kevin shrugged and shook his head. It’s like they know where we’re hiding.
    An uneasy silence settled over the room.
    Samson folded his arms. And what’s our situation?
    There’s a group of about thirty or forty of them outside the north doors. Probably more now.
    My stomach dropped.
    Samson scratched his jawline. Were there others close by?
    Not that I saw. The parking garage exits are still open, I mean both the staircase exit and the car ramp are still clear.
    I looked over at Samson. I didn’t notice before, is the car ramp totally open?
    There’s a metal grate, but I don’t know how much weight it’d hold if they really all started pushing.
    A woman in the crowd stood up. So why don’t we try the desert? At least we can outrun them there.
    Samson thought a moment before speaking. Well, we know the military rebuilt or reinforced the old walls and fences that surround the city. We also know they barricaded up the only road out of town that actually goes somewhere. They’re undoubtedly worried that anyone who leaves town might be a carrier of the virus. They may not let us leave.
    He looked out the window. And even if they’re not actively patrolling the border, it’s a long walk across a scorching desert.
    How long do we have if we stay?
    Without gathering any more food, we may have a couple of weeks before we run out.
    I noticed a few people in the crowd crying. I couldn’t say I blamed them.
    A skinny man stood up. So why isn’t the government sending in any aid?
    A few more chimed in. …don’t even care that we’re dying? Why have they abandoned us? What are we going to do?
    I don’t know the answers to your most of your questions, but the one we need to answer is: do we hole up here as best we can for the next week or so to see if we can ride it out, or do we make a break for somewhere else before we get too big a crowd outside our doors?
    I looked around the room. The anger I had been seeing all morning was gone. All I saw now was fear.
    The room sat in silence while we all contemplated our options and our mortality.
    No matter what we decided, the odds were slim, and we all knew it.
    I’m certain several people wondered if all this trouble was going to be worth it, if we even had a chance to survive. Some probably even considered giving themselves up to the infection right now. Just walk into the street and let it happen.
    It was difficult to ward off total despair.
    What was the point of all this planning if we were just going to starve or become one of those deads on the street?
    Did anyone stand a chance?
    I didn’t know. But I did make up my mind about one thing. I wasn’t going to give up now. I wasn’t about to let all the pain I had already gone through go to waste. I was going to fight until the bitter end.
    Samson stood again and looked over the crowd. So, does anyone have any great ide-
    The back door burst open. One of the men who had been chasing Richard ran in.
    All eyes turned to him.
    The man was gasping for air and had a wild look in his eyes. Richard’s got a gun- and he’s headed down the north stairwell!
    
    
46 - A Failed Escape
    
    Samson bolted for the door. “Where the hell did he… doesn’t matter.”
    I jumped up and followed.
    The crowd was dumbfounded, and all heads turned and watched Samson, hoping for some kind of instruction.
    Samson reached the door and spun around. “Linda, do what you can to organize the evacuation. Get them to carry as much food as possible. We’ll move everybody down the south staircase to the parking garage if this goes bad. I’ll need five or six men who have experience with firearms to follow me.”
    The room burst into commotion and I was glad to leave.
    I hoped we could stop Richard before he got the door to the street open.
    If that door was opened, we’d lose the option of staying in the hotel. There wouldn’t be enough time to get everybody and everything ready for a long desert walk. We’d have to find somewhere else in town to hide. But that’s only if we could hold back the dead long enough to get ourselves out.
    The Coopers’ warehouse would probably accommodate our whole crowd, but I doubted they would let us in, even if we did bring a lot of our own supplies.
    There had to be at least one more location capable of housing the sixty of us. But where”
    Samson bounded down the hallway and into the stairway.
    My legs were still wobbly, and my joints were still sore. There was no way I could keep up. I did my best to chase after him anyway.
    Several guys passed me on my way down the hall.
    It made me a little mad. Normally, I’d be able to whip most of them in a race. However, the past week or so had not been kind to me, and I knew I was lucky to be able to walk around at all.
    I hustled as best I could to the stairs.
    Shouting echoed from below. It wasn’t clear if Richard was still in the building or not.
    A gun fired three times.
    My ears rang. I hoped the shooting meant Richard was in the stairwell. I hoped even more that he missed whatever he was shooting at.
    I hugged the railing and half ran, half stumbled down the stairs.
    Going down was much easier than climbing up.
    I could understand more and more of the words from the shouting.
    “Just stay back!”
    “If you open that door you’ll kill us all!”
    I turned a corner enough to see Samson and the guys who had passed me crouched on the second floor landing.
    They were attempting to sneak a peak at what Richard was doing without putting themselves in his line of fire.
    “Richard, look. There’s at least thirty of the infected right outside that door. I don’t know how many that clip holds or how much more ammo you have. All I know is that it’s not going to end well for you.”
    “Like you care. You just want-”
    “I just want to keep as many people safe as possible!”
    I crept down on to the landing with Samson and the others.
    Samson’s face was red and his fists were clenched. He was beyond angry.
    “Don’t be an idiot!” Samson began motioning for the rest of us to continue, then grabbed the two nearest him and went through the second floor door.
    Richard fired again. A tuft of sheet rock sprang from the stairwell wall.
    The shot seemed ten times louder this time.
    I flinched at the noise. My hands reflexed up to my ears.
    The guys who were still with me started up their yelling campaign again.
    Richard didn’t seem interested in arguing any more.
    Through the ringing in my ears, I thought I heard a crashing sound and a grunt.
    What is he doing”
    My tired brain told me that if he wasn’t shooting at us, and he’s not arguing with us, he must not be paying much attention right now. Somehow my brain and body decided that it was a good time to take a look. So without further thought, I jumped down the stairs onto the half way landing.
    I got there just in time to see it.
    Richard ran at the door. He crashed into the door with a loud, “Oomph!” His firearm clattered to the floor.
    The door was opened only a couple of inches, but that was enough. A bruised and cut open hand thrust it’s way into the crack.
    Infected.
    The door had not opened easily because there were so many of the dead pushing on the other side.
    Richard seemed genuinely startled by the appearance of the deads.
    “It can’t be-”
    The hand became an arm, then all at once the door flew open.
    Deads in tattered clothing filled the doorway.
    My heart stopped for a split second.
    He let them in.
    Richard had singlehandedly created a worst case scenario.
    I stood and stared at the hotel’s inevitable future as the first dead crouched and dove at Richard.
    Richard kicked at the dead man’s iron grip.
    Three more deads spilled through the door, looking like they had already been shot a few times. These new three also pounced at Richard.
    I shuffled a step back. Not one of the deads had appeared to notice me yet.
    I heard Richard pulling at the sandbags that were blocking his escape into the rest of the ground floor.
    It was too late for him, though. He’d never get through.
    Richard let loose a horrible scream. It rang of pain and fear and it tore to my very soul.
    In spite of every scummy thing Richard had done and said, somehow I felt sorry for him.
    He was out of my view now, and I couldn’t see what had caused him to scream. It didn’t matter, anyway. I didn’t really want to know.
    More deads staggered through the open door.
    My tired head swarmed with questions and horrors.
    A meaty hand plopped on my shoulder and yanked me backwards.
    Samson’s booming voice smashed through my clouded thoughts. “More boxes… fourth room on the left… twelve gauge… GO!”
    
    
47 - Moving On Up
    
    I stumbled back a step.
    One of the two Samson had grabbed before lined up at his side.
    A couple more deads pushed through the door. Their clothes were ripped to shreds and they had that horrible empty look in their eyes. They turned toward the stairs.
    Samson raised a large black shotgun to his shoulder.
    I jerked my hands up to cover my ears.
    Samson fired.
    The one on the right was hit in the chest and thrown backwards, colliding first with another dead and then falling to the ground.
    The deads continued to press in.
    I lost sight of the one Samson had shot, but I had the sinking feeling that it was still moving.
    The man who had lined up next to Samson raised his own shotgun.
    I don’t need to watch this.
    I turned and almost ran into one of the others in our little group. He was just arriving with an armload of shotgun shell boxes.
    A second blast thundered through the stairwell.
    Even with my ears covered the noise was loud enough to start them ringing.
    I did my best to take two steps at a time.
    A shotgun boomed again.
    I pushed open the door and stumbled into the hall.
    Up ahead, one of the guys darted into a room on the left, carrying what looked like a pillowcase.
    Shotguns. Is that going to work?
    I had my doubts.
    I thought of the deads that had almost trapped the Cooper brothers back when I had hid in the storage unit.
    The virus attacked and took over the central nervous system. A shotgun just didn’t have the penetrating power to get to the brain or spine. It would knock the deads to the floor, but it wouldn’t keep them down, wouldn’t it?
    Still, it was better than nothing, right?
    More muffled booming from the stairs filled the hallway.
    They’ll have plenty of ammo without my help.
    I continued past the fourth room on my left and went straight to my room.
    I may not get another chance to get my stuff.
    The door to my room was still open.
    I found my backpack, then sat on the bed and dumped it out. My notebook, pens, extra underwear and socks fell out.
    On top of them fell a piece of paper folded just like the notes I used to pass in junior high.
    I was a little surprised. I didn’t remember putting it in there.
    I picked it up.
    It was slightly heavier than I expected, wrapped around something hard.
    I flipped it over and on the other side was written To Corbin.
    The noise of the shooting got louder for a moment.
    Somebody must have come back in the hall.
    I shoved the note in my pocket, hoping I’d get a moment to read it later.
    I gathered up my things including my extra scrub pants and jammed them my backpack. I also looked around the room for anything else that might be useful. The only thing I could think of was a razor for shaving.
    Back out in the hall there was commotion.
    I grabbed my bat, threw on my backpack, and stepped out to see.
    A blond and a red-headed guy rushed into that fourth room.
    They must be burning through a lot of ammo.
    I hustled after them and into the room.
    The room had been outfitted as the make shift armory of the motel. The bed had been removed and against the wall were several stacks of ammunition, some in army surplus green boxes, some in smaller paper boxes.
    Where did all this come from?
    The blond guy looked up and shot me a look. “Where have you been?”
    “You know, I’m still just a little bitter about you calling me a pedophile and demanding my execution.”
    “You know his argument was pretty-”
    I looked around. “Do we have anything besides shotguns in here?”
    The red-headed guy spoke up. “Not really. A couple of twenty-twos, but the infected don’t even seem to feel those.”
    I wanted to punch something. “Is there anything else in the whole building? Because they won’t stop coming at us until something happens to their brain or spinal cord. You need something that’ll penetrate-”
    The blond guy stood up straight. “And how do you know that?”
    I opened my mouth to tell the story of the Cooper brothers outside the storage units.
    The red-headed guy dropped a box and snapped his fingers. “Samson’s got a couple of his hunting rifles up on the wall in the trophy room.”
    “Trophy room?”
    “Right across the hall from the place where we’ve been having those meetings.”
    My heart sank. That meant another long trip up the stairs.
    The blond guy picked up a couple of the green ammo boxes. “Let’s get rolling, we got to get this stuff into the south stairwell before they push us further up.”
    He gave me a shove with his shoulder on his was out.
    I did my best to ignore it. I didn’t have time to pick a fight with him. I needed to find bullets for the hunting rifles.
    I looked close at each stack of ammunition. “How many of those monsters are in the building?”
    “I don’t know, but I do know we’ve got a whole lot more than thirty infecteds outside. They just keep pouring-”
    “Is there ammo for the hunting guns down here?”
    He thought for a moment, then pointed. “Um, over there maybe.”
    I rushed over and started filling my cargo pants full of the various boxes. Then I jammed as many as I could into my backpack.
    One of the others burst through the door. His eyes were frenzied. “Samson and Danny had to back up to the landing just outside the door. Those things never stop coming.”
    I stood and picked up my bat and an extra of the big green ammo boxes. “See if you can tell them to go for the head and hope for some good penetration. That’s the only way they’ll stay down. I’m going up to get Samson’s hunting rifles.”
    The man nodded, and grabbed some more ammo.
    The red-headed guy and I started down the hall toward the south stairwell.
    He opened the door and we entered.
    The south stairs had far fewer windows than the north ones.
    I dropped the extra green box on the ammo pile in the corner and looked up.
    It was a long way.
    I hope I can make it up there in time to do any good.
    
    
48 - Exhaustion
    
    I was breathing heavily by the time I made it to the third floor.
    My legs were shaking, and I felt wobbly all over.
    I had made a mistake. I had overestimated my condition.
    I had barely made it up the stairs that morning. And that was with help. What made me think I could just sprint up them now?
    I was too tired, too tired, too tired.
    People might die if I don’t make it.
    I pushed onward and upward.
    The stairway seemed to push me back.
    Down below I heard the door open.
    They’re delivering the next load of ammo.
    A flicker of hope sparked somewhere inside me.
    I opened my mouth to call for help, but I couldn’t make enough sound. I was gasping too hard.
    The door below closed.
    I tried to take a deep breath. The hot air burned in my lungs.
    This is ridiculous. Only one flight left and I feel like I’m about to collapse.
    Somehow, my legs and my lungs held out until I fell through the door to the top floor.
    The hall was alive with motion. People were carrying empty boxes in one direction, pillowcases and bags in another.
    I stumbled down the hallway. Black spots were appearing before my eyes.
    Don’t pass out.
    I didn’t take two steps before I was noticed. A couple of ladies dropped whatever they were carrying and ran over to me.
    I fell to my knees. “Listen, I’ve got ammunition that might be for Mr. Malsrock’s hunting guns. They’ll need the guns soon. Shoot for the head.”
    The two women just stared at me funny. “Did you catch what he just said?”
    “It didn’t make any sense to me, either. I wonder if he hit his head?”
    A couple more people came running now.
    I heard Linda’s voice shouting somewhere, too.
    Someone bent over and looked at me. “Are you OK?”
    I wanted to say “no,” but the world went black before I could make my complaint.
    
    I wasn’t out long, only a couple of minutes this time.
    When I came to, I was on my back.
    Someone had pulled off my pack and jammed a pillow under my head.
    I opened my eyes.
    Kevin crouched next to me and held out a big glass of water. “Linda says you’re exhausted and probably dehydrated.”
    I raised up on an elbow, and took the glass in my shaking left hand.
    The water was warm, but still refreshing.
    I only spilled a little on myself as I chugged it down.
    “What happened to my backpack?”
    “Someone’s pulling out all the boxes and trying to figure out which gun they go to, if any.”
    It was only a minor relief to know I had been a little help, but at least it was something.
    “Kevin, do you think you could find me something to eat?”
    He grabbed the cup from my hand. “Sure, and I’ll get you a refill on your water, too.”
    I sat up all the way and scooted myself against the wall.
    The hallway was still alive with activity. Every few seconds someone would glance at me with either a look of pity or a look of disgust.
    The looks didn’t bother me as much as my own weakness, though. I felt useless.
    Deads were pouring into the building somewhere, and a small group of men were making a brave stand. Up here men, women, and children were scurrying about preparing to evacuate to who knows where.
    And then there was me, propped up against the wall, weak and helpless.
    “Corbin, how are you feeling?”
    Linda was crouched down right next to me. I hadn’t even noticed her coming down the hall.
    “Useless, and more than a little dehydrated.”
    Linda nodded and handed me my cup. “I sent Kevin downstairs to see how things are going.”
    I drained this cup only a little slower than the first.
    A bizarre feeling washed over me and I realized I was starting to sweat.
    Kim and Lily arrived and dropped off a jar of peanut butter, some crackers, and a couple of juice boxes.
    Lily knelt and looked at me a moment. Makeup was smeared all over her face. Her lower lip quivered and her mouth opened slightly.
    I wondered what was going through her mind.
    She stood up and turned away. I guess she just couldn’t bring herself to say whatever it was.
    At least she wasn’t wearing my shirt any more.
    I looked over at Linda. “How are we doing up here?”
    “About as ready as we’re going to get. We just need to see how they’re managing downstairs. You eat up and try to take it easy for a minute. I’ll make sure someone keeps filling your water.”
    The juice boxes were hot like someone had left them sitting in the sun. The crackers were dry, and the peanut butter stuck to the roof of my mouth.
    It didn’t matter. It was the best feast I’d ever eaten.
    Within a few minutes, my shaking had stopped and I was feeling almost human again. I even started to notice how hot it was in the hall.
    Little by little the commotion in the hall was settling. Without something to do, folks were starting to look nervous and fidgety.
    I just ate, drank, and rested.
    I didn’t get too long of a break, though.
    Within twenty minutes or so, Samson and Kevin burst through the close stairway door.
    Samson looked like he had just stepped from a jungle. His hair was wet and matted, sweat soaked his shirt, and he had wild, animal-like look in his eyes.
    He pointed a me. “You feeling any better?”
    “A little.”
    “Then come with us. We need a plan.”
    
    
49 - Best Laid Plans
    
    The food and drink had done me a world of good.
    Neither my arms nor my legs shook as I pushed myself onto my feet.
    I followed Samson and Kevin into the trophy room.
    The trophy room wasn’t as wide as the other conference rooms I had seen, but it was just as deep, and the far wall was made of windows looking toward the desert outside of Oasis.
    It matched Samson’s rugged exterior better than any room I had seen in the rest of the hotel. It was like a museum. Several plaques and animal heads hung on the walls. Toward the middle of the room was a stuffed bear, a stuffed bison, and a stuffed lion. There were photos of Samson holding up large fish, climbing mountains, and leading a camel through some desert.
    Apparently, he’d been just about everywhere.
    Samson pointed at a bench against one wall. “Sit there for a minute.”
    He turned and left.
    Kevin and I sat.
    I motioned at some of the animals and awards. “Where did he get all of this?”
    Kevin nodded at the center of the room. “Well, the bear attacked his camp, a friend of his drew a buffalo tag, and he bought the lion from a zoo after it died. He shot most of the rest of the heads on the wall. The rest of the stuff he just picked up on his adventures.”
    I looked over at Kevin.
    I didn’t even have to ask the question.
    Kevin just shrugged. “I’ve worked for Mr. Malsrock over the summer since I was fifteen.”
    We didn’t have to wait long.
    Samson, Linda, and another man entered the room and walked over to us.
    “Corbin, this is Dale.”
    Dale had a bushy gray mustache and a bald head. I would have guessed him to be about the same age as Samson.
    I nodded his way.
    He nodded back.
    Samson threw his shoulders back like he was stretching his chest. “Here’s where we’re at. The infected took the second floor.”
    Dale half raised a hand. “What about all that ammo?”
    “Most of it got moved to the south stairway.”
    Dale folded his arms.”How long can we hold?”
    “Not sure. Some of the infected seem to remember how to climb stairs a lot better than others. Some look like they trip on the first step and have to crawl up. The higher up we go, the more they naturally spread out, and the easier it is to hold them back.”
    Dale looked out the window. “So, how long will we hold?”
    “We’ve got the south stairway doors barricaded pretty well, so we should be able to get everyone down them when the time comes. And I really don’t see how we can stay here much longer as our escape routes get cut off. I don’t want to be trapped here on the top floor. It’s just a question of when we leave and where we go. How are we on supplies?”
    Linda looked over at Samson. “We’ve got everything bundled up that can reasonably be bundled. We just need to put everybody in groups.”
    Kevin stood up. “So where do we go when we leave?”
    Samson squinted his eyes. “The way I see it, we’ve got two options. The desert and the hospital.”
    I raised an eyebrow. “The hospital? Isn’t that were all this broke out?”
    Samson smiled. “Oh, that’s right, I haven’t told you or Kevin yet.”
    He looked over at Dale and opened his mouth for a moment like he was about to speak, then shook his head. “I’ll explain later. Just trust me. Now that Richard ruined everything for us, it’s probably the safest place to be in town.”
    Dale frowned. “It’s sure to be surrounded.”
    “You voting for the desert, then?”
    “Didn’t say that. If it was just you and me, Sam, that’d be fine. But there’s a lot of us.”
    I got the feeling Dale was the only person in the world that had license to call Samson “Sam.”
    Kevin spoke up. “Plus, we don’t know if they’re still patrolling or how often.”
    Samson nodded. “True.”
    Linda raised an eyebrow. “Patrolling?”
    Kevin looked a little too satisfied with himself. “Three days ago while scouting around, I spoke to a guy who had tried the desert with a big group. The military showed up and told them to go back. A few of them turned back. The rest tried to make a break for it. The military just…”
    Samson put a hand on Kevin’s shoulder. “Stopped them.”
    Linda poked an accusing finger into Samson’s chest. “Why didn’t you tell me?”
    Samson shrugged. “No reason to give you or anyone else one more thing to worry about.”
    I stood. “I say the hospital. As long as you say it’s secure, I trust you. If it fails, we can still try the desert. It’s the best chance.”
    Dale had wandered toward the window, but now turned back to us. “Looks like Mother Nature has made the decision for us anyway. Desert’s even more dangerous during and right after a storm like that.”
    We all turned to the window.
    Thick, black storm clouds were appearing over the horizon.
    My heart sank. I couldn’t believe it. And then something worse occurred to me. “We can’t wait it out. If we’re going to go, we’ve got to go now, before the storm hits.”
    Linda and Samson spoke at the same time. “Why?”
    “Infection. You remember how much standing water we had after that storm two years ago?”
    Everyone nodded.
    “Well, we know for a fact that there are several thousand carriers of the virus by now out in the streets. We don’t know how well the virus survives outside of a human host, but if it’s resistant to the elements at all and we have to wade through it…” I shrugged. “We’re screwed.”
    Samson spun and headed for the door. “Let’s move.”
    
    
50 - Time To Go
    
    Dale raised a hand. “Sam, aren’t you forgetting something?”
    Samson looked back over his shoulder. “What?”
    “What are we going to do about the crowd of infected that’s sure to be around the hospital?”
    Samson looked and then pointed toward Kevin and me. “Those two are pretty resourceful. They’ll run ahead and figure it out. Now, let’s go.”
    My eyes widened.
    I’m pretty sure Kevin stopped breathing.
    Samson, Dale, and Linda swept out of the room.
    Kevin and I looked at each other.
    Kevin shook his head. “The hospital is near the middle of the city, near the fountain. Throwing a garbage can will get a couple of them, but if there’s many more… I’m pretty sure there’s a lot more. A whole lot more.”
    I shrugged. “I guess we’ll figure it out when we get there.”
    “I hope so.”
    I put on the bravest face I could manage.
    Kevin frowned and moped from the room.
    I figured it would take a minute for everyone to get organized, so I sat back down and tried to think.
    My mind wandered to the note that had been in my backpack. I reached in my pocket, pulled it out and unfolded it.
    The heavy object it had been wrapped around was a key.
    The note itself was written in purple ink, and it was easy to see whoever had written it was shaking.
    The note read:
    
    Dear Corbin,
    I am so sorry. Carl says if we don’t do things this way tonight, then he’ll make things worse for you, and for my dad and me. He said he’d make it hurt. I wish there was another way.
    Thank you for saving my life. I pray you can get through this. If anyone can, I think it’s you.
    Carl doesn’t know I have Uncle Bill’s keys. This is the master key we used to get into the car dealership. I don’t know how many of my family’s stores it opens, but I’ll bet it’s most of them.
    Corbin, I don’t know you hardly at all, but you’ve been the most heroic, most selfless man I have seen since this all began.
    I know this sounds corny, but I love you. Please be careful out there.
    Love,
    Beth
    
    I took a deep breath and let a smile cross my lips.
    Beth had given me a secret weapon.
    I almost felt guilty for being so mad at her when I was kicked out.
    Almost.
    I kissed the key and jammed it with the note back in my pocket.
    There’s work to do.
    The majority of our group was in the big conference room across the hall.
    A few guys were walking out single file carrying chairs toward the north stairwell.
    The red headed guy I had spoken to downstairs emerged from the stairway door. He was carrying one of the shotguns, and he looked horrible.
    He gave me a nod as he approached. “We should have thought of this earlier. The furniture we’re tossing down is tripping them up and slowing them down more than the shotguns were. Good thing, too. We burnt through a lot of ammo pretty quickly.”
    Inside the conference room, Samson had just finished dividing up the crowd into three groups of about twenty.
    The red head and I entered the room, and Samson immediately assigned him to one of the groups.
    Then Samson explained the plan.
    The few guns we had among us were divvied up. Those who had experience with guns were to protect their group.
    Kevin and I were to go ahead and cause whatever distraction we could to help get a path to the hospital.
    Once outside, the groups were to spread out about a block or so apart. If something went wrong, each group could have options for escape.
    Dale, Samson, and the blond guy I ran into in the armory downstairs were to lead the three groups.
    Other than that, everyone was supposed to carry as many supplies as they could manage.
    No one spoke. There was nothing to say.
    A bizarre virus had taken over the minds, had taken the very life of thousands of friends, neighbors, and coworkers throughout the city. Now only inhuman shells of flesh, they would be in the streets hunting us.
    There would be no mercy, no second chances, and no turning back.
    I knew deep down there was no happy ending.
    Samson stood on the raised platform for the last time. “I’m sorry things have worked out this way. We should have been able to safely stay here, but some very bad decisions were made.”
    He took a deep breath and stood tall. “All is not lost, though. We can still get through this. You can all survive today, and survive tomorrow, too. Stay with your group, and most of all, obey your group leader. Now is not the time for argument and dissent…”
    Samson shot a glance at one of the lawyers. “…but for survival. Mark my words, you are all survivors. Let this be your finest hour.”
    The words of his little rally were not the most inspiring even spoken, but he wasn’t just speaking with words.
    More than his words, his natural calm, his unfailing strength, and his fierce courage radiated throughout every soul in the room.
    A ray of hope shone in my heart where there had been none.
    He stepped from the platform. “Let’s move.”
    Kevin and I led the group and we filed out the door and descended the south staircase.
    The entire crowd moved without speaking.
    We picked up the pace as we passed the the second floor. Ammunition was still piled in the corner.
    I hoped someone would pick it up.
    Through the door, we could hear crashing and pounding as the deads conducted their clumsy search for the living.
    They’re everywhere.
    We continued until we reached the door to the underground parking.
    I motioned for the crowd to stop. “Kevin and I will make sure it’s still OK in there.”
    For just a moment, I imagined the whole garage to be already full of deads, just standing there, silently waiting for us to enter. I pushed the thought from my head, opened the door, and entered.
    Kevin was right behind me.
    It was much colder in the garage. And silent, except for the sound of the storm blowing in.
    I couldn’t see any deads. Just cars parked here and there.
    Kevin ran ahead to check the grate at the entrance.
    He doubled back, saying it was still clear.
    We went back to get everybody else.
    It took longer that I’d have thought for everyone to file in. Nobody seemed like they were in much of a hurry to get anywhere.
    I couldn’t say that I blamed them.
    The rolling of distant thunder echoed in the garage, reminding us why we had to leave now.
    Samson appeared last through the door. He had a green duffel bag slung across his back and he carried his big hunting rifle in his right hand.
    
    He motioned Kevin and me to a steel door. “Let me talk to you two for one second before you go.”
    
    
51 - No Calm Before The Storm
    
    The door lead into a large supply closet. Tools of every kind, from shovels to power drills cluttered the floor and bench. In the corner there was a greasy old gas powered generator. The whole room reeked of chemicals and exhaust.
    Samson closed the door behind him and pointed to the generator. “There it is, our little secret.”
    I looked at it closer. “You mean it works?”
    “Yes, indeed. This utility closet is underground and encased in cement. Apparently that was enough to shield the stuff in here from whatever it was that knocked all the electronics out in the city.”
    I raised an eyebrow. “How much good can one little generator do, though?”
    “Down here we also had a few of the radios we use for maintenance. I run this generator for an hour or so early in the mornings to charge my radio.”
    Kevin looked somewhat hurt to have been out of the loop about the working generator. “Didn’t you have two in here?”
    Samson smiled. “How do you think we got those three big boxes of medical supplies? The day Dale and I went over to the hospital, we took a radio and one of the generators. That’s how I know we can go there, and how I know it’s now the safest place in Oasis city limits.”
    Kevin shook his head. “OK.”
    Samson sat down his rifle and his duffel bag. “So now you know, but that wasn’t my point in bringing you here.”
    He rifled through the duffel a little.
    I wondered what else he had hiding up his sleeve.
    At length he pulled a pistol out of the bag. “You know what this is?”
    I took a look. “It looks like a Glock. One of the subcompacts.”
    A hint of a smile crossed Samson’s face. “It’s a Glock thirty. Forty-five caliber. You have ten rounds and a full mag with ten more. Twenty shots. It’s not much, but it’s better than nothing.”
    He handed the gun an extra clip to me.
    Kevin frowned. “What about me?”
    “You’re faster than he is, so you don’t need it.” Samson looked down. “Plus, you’ve got red shoes.”
    Kevin looked up at Samson. “Are we going to make it through this?”
    Samson placed his large hand on Kevin’s shoulder. “We all will if you do your job now.”
    My heart went out to Kevin. I had never talked to him about his parents. I wondered where they were, if they lived in Oasis, or if they just shipped him here for the summer.
    Samson slung the duffel bag over his shoulder and picked up his rifle. “We’ve got to get moving before the storm hits us too bad.”
    He opened the door and went out.
    I shoved the pistol into my empty pocket and the extra magazine into the other.
    Kevin just stood there.
    I looked over at him. “Let’s do this thing.”
    “Don’t worry, I’ve just got to psych myself up first.”
    I went out into the main garage and it seemed even colder than before.
    The wind was picking up and making noise. The air had the faint smell of rain.
    I tried to think back, but couldn’t remember any storms since the one that caused major flooding in the streets about two years before. When it rained in Oasis, it didn’t mess around. Things could get ugly and fast out there.
    Everybody was huddled as close as they could manage in their three groups.
    Almost every face looked pale and frightened.
    Every face but Samson’s and Dale’s.
    And mine. I decided I didn’t have time to be afraid. I had to be strong mentally, emotionally, and physically. Those sixty people were depending on me, and I wouldn’t let them down.
    In that moment, I realized I had felt that feeling many times before. Working in the ER, I had felt it nearly every day. Every day new trauma victims came in. Every day, panicked family members had looked to me to keep their loved ones alive. In those situations, I always had to be strong.
    There was nothing else to be.
    I hadn’t fit in with any group since this chaos had begun. I knew deep down that soon I’d be alone again, but it didn’t matter.
    I had a job to do.
    Samson unlocked and lifted the grate just enough so we’d be able to crawl under.
    I figured that even with the wind blowing, he didn’t want to chance attracting the deads with too much noise.
    Kevin picked up his walking pace almost to a jog. He passed me and went straight over to Kim.
    She threw her arms around him and kissed him.
    I winked at Linda as I passed by. “Wish me luck, neighbor.”
    Linda held her breath and nodded. She looked like she might cry if she even tried to speak.
    Lily was hiding somewhere behind her.
    I crawled under the grate, and Kevin was close behind me.
    He looked like a new man, full of confidence and energy.
    I looked back at Samson. “Just give us a two minute head start. It’s quite a walk for you guys, and we’ll move pretty quick.”
    We marched straight up the ramp and onto the sidewalk.
    As if to herald our arrival, lighting flashed, and thunder boomed very close behind it.
    What appeared to be at least forty deads were gathered around the far end of the hotel, pressing tighter and tighter around the door.
    The sky was gray and quickly turning black. The wind had an icy bite to it.
    A few deads wandered the parking lot and the streets, shuffling toward the crowded hotel entrance.
    I had the feeling they didn’t even notice Kevin and me.
    Not that we wanted to give any of them a good reason to notice us yet.
    We started jogging for the fountain plaza.
    Oasis was not just a clever name for a desert town. The city was built around a small natural spring, which had years later been turned into a fountain.
    The fountain plaza had always been called the center of town, even though it wasn’t in the middle of the map. It was only two blocks from the hospital.
    We jogged and we jogged.
    I remembered feeling people stare at me from every angle after I had left my apartment. There had seemed to be eyes in every window.
    There was only emptiness now.
    Every house was empty. Every door broken in. Every window was vacant. Every building was ruined.
    I wondered for a moment where everyone had gone. Had they all been infected?
    I knew the answer was yes.
    I just didn’t know where they had gone after the virus had taken control of their bodies.
    The streets were desolate. We had only seen a handful of deads since we passed out of view from the hotel.
    We turned a corner and the fountain plaza came into sight. Like the rest of the city, it was empty.
    I looked down the road that passed in front of the hospital.
    Down that street I got a glimpse of the answer to my most burning question. I knew where the deads had gone.
    As we continued, one thing became very clear. Our job of creating a diversion would be even harder than I had imagined.
    
    
52 - Stormy Weather
    
    Another round of thunder shook the ground. A few raindrops were being whipped around by the wind. The temperature was dropping quickly.
    Even the weather was against me.
    We passed the post office and slowed down.
    Up ahead were several clumps of infected men and women, just standing in the street and waiting.
    By the time we reached the fire station, we could finally see some of the crowd that was pressing against the front doors of the hospital.
    The sheer number of deads around the hospital was staggering.
    Kevin turned to me for a second. “How in the world are we going to distract that many of them? There must be three or four thousand of them.”
    “Probably more.”
    Thunder crashed again and the rain began to intensify.
    With every step Kevin and I could see more and more of the deads gathered around the hospital, beating on doors and walls.
    They were everywhere. It was a sea of death.
    None of them appeared to notice us. They all just faced the hospital, and all of them had that same blank stare. It was as if they knew how many more people were hiding out in the hospital.
    Pretty soon we could see the whole front side of the hospital.
    It was enveloped by deads.
    Kevin looked at me again. “Got any ideas?”
    I looked at the hospital, and then across the street to the grocery store.
    And then it came to me. I knew how to make the distraction.
    I touched Kevin on the shoulder. “Actually, I do have an idea. I’ll need you to run back, though, and tell Samson that they need to take everyone up the next street down. The one that runs right behind the hospital. I think it’s called Johnson Street.”
    “And what are you going to do?”
    I looked back toward the fountain.
    Several deads were now following us. The fire station caught my eye again.
    “Make sure somebody keeps an eye out for me. I’ll be wearing a fire fighter’s getup. Now get moving.”
    Kevin hesitated a moment, then took off in the direction we had come.
    The rain was pouring now, and the wind hadn’t let up.
    Alone again.
    I shook my head. I didn’t have time to feel sorry for myself.
    The fire station wasn’t far, and it looked just as empty as every other building.
    I figured it was pretty safe for the moment. That was my mistake.
    One of the front doors was unlocked.
    I just burst right in.
    There was nothing out of the ordinary in the lobby.
    I was pretty sure which side door led to the garage.
    The door was locked with a deadbolt, but the latch was on my side of the door.
    I twisted the latch and pushed open the door.
    I never even considered why the front door was open, but this door might be locked.
    Against one wall was a locker area. A locker was open and I could see the yellow fire gear inside.
    Bingo.
    Rain pounded against the large bay doors to the garage. The noise was enough that I couldn’t even hear my own footsteps echoing as I ran to the locker.
    How was I supposed to hear the shuffling approach of an infected man?
    I didn’t hear it, and so he took me by surprise.
    I reached up and pulled one of the large yellow overcoats off the shelf. That’s when I caught a hint of movement from the corner of my eye.
    Only a couple of feet away stood a dead man. His blank stare fixed straight ahead. He crouched.
    I instinctively turned and held up my arms. I was still holding the coat, and that’s what saved my life.
    The dead man pounced.
    I took half a step back.
    His weight collided with mine.
    I lost my footing.
    We crashed to the floor.
    I pushed down with my arms, trying to get the coat off my face and the infected man off me.
    He was heavy, probably had at least a hundred pounds on me.
    He grabbed at my arms.
    I struggled to breathe with his weight pushing on me.
    And then it happened.
    I felt a horrible pinching on my forearm.
    He was biting me.
    I pushed hard with my arms and my legs.
    It was enough.
    His weight shifted and he rolled off, still clutching the yellow coat.
    I spun the other way and pushed to my feet.
    Still sprawled out on the ground, he reached out.
    He caught the bottom of my pant leg.
    I kicked forward and ripped my pant leg free.
    I stumbled two steps back.
    The infected man rolled over.
    I fumbled for the handgun in my pocket.
    The dead man pushed up to one knee.
    I pulled the gun free.
    The dead man pushed against the cement floor and made a second clumsy dive for me.
    I pulled the trigger and thunder crashed twice.
    The dead man’s head snapped back. His body crumpled to the ground as my feet.
    I took a deep breath and another step back.
    That was close.
    I looked around, but couldn’t see any more movement.
    Stupid.
    I figured the man must have been locked in the garage after his fellow firefighters found out he was infected.
    He was probably forced to face death alone and in total agony here in the garage.
    I felt a twinge of sadness for the poor man. He had been a firefighter, a hero. Then a virus had stolen his life. Now he lay broken in a pool of his own blood on the cold cement floor.
    Would the virus now take my life?
    I looked at my forearm.
    A nasty bruise was already forming, but the coat had protected me. The skin wasn’t broken.
    I stepped around the fallen firefighter and went back to the lockers.
    I grabbed a coat, helmet, and gloves.
    I shoved the handgun into one of the cargo pockets of my pants and put on the fire gear.
    On the side of one of the firetrucks were fastened several fire axes. I pulled one free and headed for the door.
    The rain outside had continued to intensify. Large puddles were filling in the street.
    I ran.
    The deads stood unaffected by the rain, just waiting for a chance to pass the virus on to the next victim.
    I made for the grocery store and went to a side door.
    The pouring rain made the heavy gear seem even heavier.
    I pulled off a glove, undid the coat, and felt around my pocket for the key Beth had given me.
    Two deads had finally taken notice of me, and were stumbling my way.
    I yanked out the key.
    I put it to the door, and just hoped it would get me in.
    
    
53 - A Burning Discount
    
    The wind whipped against me and the rain beat down.
    My hand shook as I fumbled with the key.
    The deads continued their march. Every moment closer.
    Only fifteen feet away.
    The key finally slid in the hole.
    I wiggled it side to side.
    One of the deads raised an arm.
    The lock finally broke free and the key turned.
    I pulled open the door, forgetting about the key.
    The closest dead crouched.
    I scooped up my other glove and jumped inside.
    The dead man sprung, colliding with the open door.
    I caught my balance.
    The weight of the dead slammed the door shut and I was again in darkness.
    I hadn’t had time to see where the where the door was that lead to the rest of store.
    The deads outside pounded on the door.
    Another noise.
    Or was that my mind playing tricks on me?
    My heart raced. I had to find the door. I bumped into a table and a chair before I found the wall.
    I walked and felt my way around.
    There was a sink. And a refrigerator.
    This must be the break room.
    I kept fumbling.
    Did I get turned around in the dark?
    As if to answer, a sliver of light shot in from behind me. The sound of the rain grew noticeably louder.
    I spun around.
    The key!
    One of the infected had done it. Just as some of the deads in the hotel could remember how to climb stairs, this dead had remembered how to turn a key and pull on a door.
    I turned back over my shoulder.
    The door that lead to my escape was only a couple of feet away.
    Lightning flashed outside.
    I wrapped a gloved hand around the handle and pulled.
    The door swung open.
    Dimly lit by skylights above was the main area of the store.
    I checked back.
    Three wet and grisly deads had entered the break room.
    No time.
    I glanced at the door handle in my hand.
    Will they remember this, too?
    I side-stepped, lifted the ax, and brought it down.
    The handle crumpled but didn’t break free.
    I looked up.
    My heart jumped.
    The deads were too close for another swing.
    I hoped the mangled handle would be enough to at least slow them down.
    I pulled the door closed behind me and leaped out of the break room.
    The door swung fast, slammed hard, and shook against the frame.
    It wouldn’t hold long.
    I took two steps back and looked around.
    I didn’t see any movement, but that didn’t mean I was safe.
    I wouldn’t be able to hear if one of the infected came shuffling toward me, the rain pelting the metal roof would cover it up.
    My helmet blocked out much of my peripheral vision. I had to stay sharp.
    One of the deads pounded on the door I had just closed. It made a terrible splintering sound.
    I ran down the aisle toward the front, where I knew there’d be a shopping cart.
    The door behind me cracked again.
    The coat and helmet I was wearing was starting to get heavy.
    I did my best to ignore the fatigue.
    It would be my only protection for what I was about to do.
    A crashing echoed through the store.
    They must have broken through.
    I grabbed an errant shopping cart and ran toward the center aisle.
    I had shopped here many times after getting off work. I only hoped I could remember where it all was.
    I knew I was making a lot of noise, but right now it didn’t matter. If I didn’t get the job done quickly, they would surround me in the aisles and I’d never get the chance to get it done at all.
    Near the end of one of the aisles I saw it- picnic supplies.
    I checked behind me.
    Three deads were shuffling down the center aisle toward me. How many more were behind them?
    I turned the corner.
    They wouldn’t be long.
    Right next to the picnic supplies sat a beautiful sight.
    I tossed the ax in the cart, then pulled off my gloves an put them in the child basket.
    The noise of the pounding rain seemed to intensify on the roof.
    I reached up on the shelf and pulled down two bags of charcoal. Then I scooped an armload of lighter fluid canisters on top.
    The deads had to be getting close.
    I grabbed a package of lighters from the display.
    My hands were shaking with cold, fear, and frustration as I struggled to open the package.
    The first of the deads turned the corner.
    The package finally ripped and the lighters scattered on the floor.
    I gave the cart a shove further down the aisle.
    The next dead turned the corner, all the time staring straight ahead.
    I snatched one of the remaining lighter fluid canisters from the shelf.
    The third dead rounded the corner.
    I popped open the lid and squatted to grab the lighter.
    One of the deads made a gurgling noise.
    I got hold of the lighter and squeezed the canister. The sharp odor of lighter fluid filled my nostrils.
    The deads just kept walking their disfigured bodies forward.
    I backed up and let air rush back into the canister, then squeezed again.
    The lead dead shuffled into the puddle I had just squirted onto the floor.
    The third time I aimed up and squeezed even harder.
    Lighter fluid splashed on the dead woman’s bloodstained shirt.
    I flicked the lighter and stooped, still squirting lighter fluid.
    The dead woman raised her ragged hands.
    I touched the flame to the lighter fluid.
    A stream of flame shot her way across the floor.
    Her movements didn’t change at all as the fire danced up her pants and lit her shirt.
    I squeezed the canister again, this time at the paper towels on the shelf next to me.
    The fire on the infected woman died quickly. She was too wet for it to keep going.
    I flicked the lighter again and put it to the paper towels.
    The flame leaped up again, eating through the plastic and igniting the paper underneath.
    I squirted lighter fluid one last time at the stuff around the burning paper towels.
    Fire engulfed the shelf.
    I looked back at the deads.
    They had turned their bodies to the growing flames.
    I only hoped the fire would keep burning.
    The fire started to climb down the aisle in both directions.
    I ran and tried to put on the gloves while pushing the cart.
    It was harder than I thought.
    I heard several small explosions behind me.
    I hoped it would be enough to start the whole store in flames, but I wasn’t sure how well a cement brick and metal building would burn.
    That’s why I had to keep going.
    There was nothing blocking the sliding front doors. So much had happened when this crisis started that the store hadn’t been closed up they way it should have been.
    The doors were mostly glass with a metal frame.
    I looked out the window.
    The rain was coming down in sheets. Across the street thousands of deads swarmed around the hospital.
    I prayed that my fires would be enough. Several dozen lives depended on it.
    I turned to my cart and wiggled the ax from under the charcoal and lighter fluid.
    I raised the ax and brought it down as hard as I could against the door.
    It met with a satisfying crash, shards of glass exploded out of the building.
    An icy wind tore back in the new hole with almost the same fury.
    I swung again and again until I had knocked enough glass and metal away to get myself and my cart through.
    I stepped out into the wind and rain, then lifted and pulled on my cart.
    With some effort, cart got through.
    I faced the parking lot.
    At least four deads had heard the commotion through the storm.
    They were spread out and walking my way.
    I jumped behind the cart and ran like a madman for the first large and burnable object I could see.
    It was the place curiosity had led me right after my last day at work.
    It was a white trailer, and it had been used by evil men to start the spread of this viral apocalypse.
    
    
54 - Arson & Assault
    
    Dark storm clouds blocked out most of the sunlight. Lightning flashed somewhere and thunder rolled down the streets. The rain pounded down and drowned out all but the loudest of sounds.
    My feet were already soaked. The fireman’s equipment seemed heavier and heavier. I was exhausted and hungry. Still, there was no giving up.
    The lot was littered with debris. A line of police tape had been put up around the trailer.
    The closest deads I could see were not moving very fast, and they were still more than half the parking lot away.
    I was pretty sure that I could get in and out of at least one trailer without engaging any of them physically.
    The cart tore through the police line.
    I let it go and only held on to the ax.
    The rain drowned out much of the noise as the cart crashed into the stairs of the trailer.
    I ran up the stairs and grabbed at the door handle.
    The clumsy protective gloves wouldn’t let me get a good grip on it.
    I couldn’t tell if the door had been locked or if I just couldn’t turn the handle. I looked around.
    I’ve still got enough time.
    I pulled off my glove and turned the handle again.
    Unlocked.
    At least I don’t need to break it down.
    I took one step in.
    Papers had been pushed off the desk, chairs had been knocked over, and on the floor were several syringes filled with a brownish liquid.
    A brownish liquid that carried a virus, that carried pain, and that carried death. But there was no peace in the death brought by the liquid. No rest for the mortal remains of the victims.
    I shuddered.
    No time to waste.
    I grabbed a garbage can and used it to prop open the door. The cart was only a few steps down the stairs. I tossed the ax in then grabbed a bag of charcoal and a canister of lighter fluid.
    I had never really committed arson before, but I figured a sack of charcoal in the corner and a liberal application of lighter fluid should do the trick.
    Within a couple of moments I had everything ready so I pulled off my glove and dug around in my pocket for the lighter.
    I wondered how far away the infecteds were, and if they were even still coming for me.
    Of course they are. There’s nothing else to distract them.
    I flicked the lighter and touched the flame to the floor.
    Fire raced across the carpet where I had squirted the lighter fluid. The charcoal bag flared up and the wallpaper behind it turned brown. Everything was catching fire.
    I shoved the lighter back in my pocket and pulled back on my glove.
    The room was already filling with smoke.
    I pulled the door wider and stepped outside.
    I turned down the stairs and froze.
    At the bottom of the stairs was an infected man.
    His shirt was torn in places, and he had three deep scratches across his face.
    He had bumped the cart aside and had a foot on the lowest stair.
    My blood ran cold.
    Where did he come from?
    He grasped out through the air at me.
    I took a step back and bumped into the railing.
    He crouched.
    I grabbed the railing and jumped.
    The dead’s hand smacked into my foot as I hurtled myself over the railing.
    My landing was bad. I rolled my ankle and fell flat on my face.
    No time for pain.
    The rain continued to beat down.
    I pushed to my feet.
    The dead on the stairs had turned toward me.
    I reached for the shopping cart.
    The dead man reached again for me.
    I hopped just out of his range.
    I knew I could outrun him right now, but I didn’t want to take the risk of him blocking my escape from the next burning trailer. I had to stop him there and then. The gun in my cargo pocket was my first thought.
    It’ll take too long…
    And then the ax.
    The dead man stepped off the stairs.
    I grabbed the ax.
    The infected man grasped with a left hand that looked like it had been chewed on.
    Not an infected man. He’s not a man at all. He has become an “it.” A pile of flesh moving about and spreading disease. He is a zombie. Nothing more.
    I raised the ax. “Nothing more.”
    The zombie made no flinch, no attempt to dodge or block.
    I brought the ax down hard.
    It shattered bone, split tissue, and sank deep into the dead’s head.
    The dead stopped and began to quiver all over. Like all of his muscles were trying to move him in different directions.
    I pulled on the ax.
    It didn’t come free, it just pulled the corpse off balance.
    The zombie fell forward.
    The additional weight was enough to rip the ax handle from my hands.
    I jumped back.
    The dead crashed to the ground.
    I reached again for the ax.
    The body kept shaking.
    Blood and rain formed a pool around the head.
    I pulled and shook my ax free of the zombie’s skull.
    The deads I had seen before were still on their way, but not here yet. The one on the ground must have been just out of sight behind the trailer.
    I threw the ax back in the cart and ran for the nearest red cross trailer.
    I spared a glance back at the grocery store.
    Light from the fire inside danced in the front windows. Smoke was leaking from several places on the roof.
    I hoped it would be enough.
    I grabbed the ax and dashed up the five steps that lead to the door of one of the red cross trailers. I knew this one would be locked.
    I brought up the blood-stained ax and pounded it into the door.
    The collision made a loud clang and the metal door bent in a little, but didn’t give.
    I chopped at it five times. The metal door bent and caved only slightly.
    I wasn’t going to get in.
    I looked around for options.
    The closest deads would be to me in two minutes, three max.
    The fires in the first trailer and the grocery store were growing, but I had to make sure.
    I ran down the stairs, and then I saw my next move.
    The two red cross trailers were placed back to back, and powered by a large propane tank set between them.
    I grabbed the shopping cart and ran for the tank.
    
    
55 - Fire & Rain
    
    The cart shook and rattled as it splashed across the parking lot. The heavy coat weighed heavier and heavier with each step. My socks and shoes were drenched.
    On top of everything else, I knew my plan didn’t have much of a chance.
    I pulled up to the tank.
    I remembered Max Cooper almost killing himself by shooting a much smaller propane tank. Max hadn’t known that a propane tank will not just burst into flames when you shoot it. The thing had taken off like a missile, broken his arm, and knocked him cold. He would have died there in the street if I hadn’t been there to back him up.
    I don’t have backup.
    The rain kept falling and the small puddles were working their way into a complete layer of water.
    The ground wasn’t dry next to the propane tank, but at least the one side was being sheltered from the direct rainfall.
    I hardly even expected this to work, but I didn’t have much of a choice. Something had to be done.
    The closest deads were out of my line of sight now, but I knew that each moment brought them closer.
    I heaved the second bag of charcoal from the cart and wedged it next to the hot dog shaped tank. I used the ax to open the bag and expose some of the charcoal. I emptied most of two canisters of lighter fluid onto the wet bag and briquettes. I stacked the remaining couple of cans on top of the bag, just to be sure. Before lighting the bag, I took a look around to see what my exit strategy should be.
    The inside of the first trailer was engulfed in fire. The inside of the grocery store was an inferno. Thick black smoke poured from every possible exit.
    Too few of the deads were noticing, though. Only twenty, maybe thirty of them were shuffling away from the hospital. A couple of them headed straight for me.
    My insides twisted up with the decision of where to go once I started the fire.
    Should I go back to the city streets, find another safe house? The desert? Head for the hospital?
    I was sick of feeling alone, but there was an entire horde of zombies between me and people I knew. But who was to say I could even find another safe place to sleep if I went back to the city? Certainly no one would let me in at this point. And I had had no gear or supplies for the desert.
    The hospital it is.
    I yanked off my glove and pulled out the lighter. I could only pray this would work.
    The rain beat down.
    I flipped down the visor to my fire helmet, crouched down, and touched the flame to the bag.
    A fireball leaped out at me.
    I dropped the lighter and fell backwards.
    The lighter fluid burned hot.
    I raised up on my elbow and stared at the dancing flame.
    Will the wet bag of briquettes keep going?
    For the moment, it seemed to be enough.
    I breathed a sigh of relief. One step down. I pulled myself up, gathered my glove and ax, and held them in my left arm. With my right I dug out the forty caliber Glock that Samson had given me.
    I turned to see how much time I had.
    About ten feet away shuffled a dead woman in what was left of her pajamas. Her long hair and clothes were soaked and clung to her once beautiful body.
    My heart dropped. Where did she come from?
    I had been too wrapped up in the fires. It had almost cost me my life.
    She took another awkward step toward me.
    I spun my right hand around and raised the gun.
    She stared blankly ahead.
    I reminded myself she was now just a sack of muscles and bone controlled by a horrible virus.
    I pulled the trigger twice.
    The gun sounded like thunder.
    I tried to avoid looking at the mess.
    The damn rain just kept beating down.
    I ran several feet past the corpse and turned.
    Hopefully this’ll be far enough.
    The little fire still burned, but it wasn’t looking very strong.
    I raised the gun and tried to will my hand to stop shaking. I pulled the trigger.
    A clear ping noise echoed back at me, followed by a hissing.
    Too high.
    I fired again.
    The flames leaped up four feet into the air for a moment.
    Must have hit a lighter fluid.
    I squeezed the trigger again.
    Maybe it was a combination of the damage I had already done and the temporarily increased flame, maybe it was just a really lucky shot. I couldn’t tell.
    All I know is that it worked.
    The tank ripped apart. A giant fireball exploded outward and up. It made an angry sound that shook the ground harder than any of the thunderings made by the storm. Shrapnel tore through and tore apart the two trailers.
    The explosive shock threw me back onto my butt.
    Flying debris slammed into the first trailer and ripped it wide open. The fire inside jumped at the increased oxygen flow and flames shot into the sky.
    My heart raced. I rolled to my knees and scrambled to my feet.
    Thousands of blank stares were now pointed in my direction.
    A short lived wave of gratitude washed over me. It worked. I shoved the pistol back in my pocket.
    The feeling of gratitude was kicked out by the new reality of my situation.
    I had to get through an entire city’s worth of zombies if I were to survive.
    The entire mass of deads shambled my way.
    Only one thing to do now. I forced myself to take a deep breath and pulled on my right glove. Go down swinging.
    I didn’t want to run the risk of getting the ax stuck in the skull of one of them again, so I held near the head with my right, and near the end of the handle with my left.
    No wild swinging, Corbin. Just use it to keep them back.
    I wasn’t in any hurry to meet with the crowd ahead, so I walked as slowly as I could manage. Besides, maybe they’ll either spread out so I can get through or bunch up so I get around.
    Despite the warm clothing, I shivered from head to toe.
    Several days earlier, I had stood on a bench and watched as one of the deads was shot or pushed from a window in the hospital. That was the day Oasis had died.
    Now I found myself standing on that same bench looking for some kind of sign that Samson and the other survivors from the hotel were going to make it.
    The horde of deads was not far away.
    Out in the distance I saw the evidence I craved.
    Two men carrying large ladders ran up to the now-free side of the hospital. They slammed the ladders against the building and lined them up with windows on the second floor.
    As soon as the ladders were in place, a crowd rushed out of the drug store across the street and started to climb.
    I did it.
    I felt a new strength enter my arms and legs. I had done it. They were going to make it.
    One last test.
    I raised the ax above my head and yelled.
    The rain drowned out the sound of my shout, but one of the survivors spotted me and waved back.
    I hopped off the bench and headed for what I thought might be the thinnest section of zombies.
    With each step I moved faster and faster. Before I made any contact, I was running.
    I aimed my charge for the space between two infected teenagers.
    I bowled them right over.
    The lethal crowd swallowed me up. Hands grabbed at me, teeth chomped at me, and bodies crashed against me.
    I swung the ax left and right, opening up small spaces where I could step.
    Something heavy collided with my helmet.
    I yelled and pushed harder.
    Through the heavy firefighter’s coat I felt a pinch in my left bicep.
    I yanked my arm free from the infected mouth.
    Something tore the ax from my grasp.
    I swung at a zombie with a heavy fist.
    A beefy dead woman wrapped her mangled arms around me.
    I kicked back at her knee.
    It gave with a crunch and her weight fell back.
    I brought my elbows down hard.
    It was enough to break her grip and she fell away.
    I pushed hard against the crowd.
    The crowd pushed back.
    Two deads got a hold of my right arm.
    I twisted and pulled it free.
    My strength was fading fast. I couldn’t keep this up much longer. I had to get through.
    A grisly dead man leaped and bit at my face.
    His mouth met with the face guard.
    Mud, blood, and spit smeared across my visor.
    I punched a pair of grabbing arms down.
    A heavy hand crashed into my left shoulder.
    I lost my footing and fell to my knee.
    Another crash on the helmet.
    I pushed up with all I had.
    I couldn’t stand.
    This was it.
    I would either be crushed by the horde or infected and left to die in the parking lot of the hospital where I had saved a hundred lives.
    My thoughts drifted to the gun in the cargo pocket of my pants.
    Several more hits to the helmet and my shoulders.
    Another round of thunder crashed through the rain.
    I am going to die.
    
    
56 - Pure Pressure
    
    Countless hands pounded down and brought me to my hands and knees.
    A zombie flopped down on my my back.
    Another teeth-chattering roll of thunder.
    That’s not thunder. It sounds more like…
    A severed forearm splashed in the puddle just off to the left of my head. Thick, coagulated blood oozed out into the water.
    My stomach churned. What would do that? I pushed up my head.
    The zombie who had thrown himself across my back shifted a little. It was heavy, and the extra weight caused my knees to bite into the pavement.
    My visor was streaked and muddied. The crowd of deads thinned out about ten feet feet ahead of me, but that’s all I could see.
    To my right several heavy objects splashed down.
    I shifted my weight a little to the left.
    The dead man rolled off my back and flopped into the water. There was a gaping hole in the center of his neck. He wasn’t moving.
    I turned my head away and peeked up at the horde. It was thinning out more and more as the bulk of the crowd went after the fires.
    Another few moments, and most of the crowd would pass me.
    A haggard zombie reached down at my helmet.
    Thunder struck a third time.
    The zombie’s head exploded and his lifeless corpse flew backward. He wasn’t the only one. A whole line of deads fell to the ground.
    I snapped my head back toward the hospital and lifted my visor.
    Through what was left of the crowd I could see a large man with a scraggly gray beard lowering his immense rifle.
    It was kind of rifle I imagine he would use on safari in Africa to stop a charging elephant.
    Seeing Samson through the rain gave me a boost of strength. I pulled a knee up under my chest and pushed hard against the ground.
    Several dead hands pawed at my coat and helmet. One of them got hold of my left arm.
    I jerked my left shoulder forward and pulled free.
    Samson stepped forward and loaded another of the giant shells into the chamber.
    Only three or four deads between me and open parking lot.
    I shoved a zombie to the side.
    Samson raised the gun.
    Heavy fists slammed against my back.
    I lost my balance and stumbled forward.
    I collided with a dead woman. The impact kept me from sprawling out onto the pavement.
    Samson’s gun roared again.
    I felt the shock as the bullet slammed into and tore through a zombie on my right.
    And then I was free.
    I wasn’t moving fast, but I was free.
    The rain seemed to be getting lighter now. My protective gear was heavier than ever. Underneath it all, my clothes were soaked. My ankle was hurt bad, and I was limping. Still, I was through the horde and headed toward safety.
    Samson pulled back the lever on his rifle and loaded one more shell. He looked up at me as I reached him. His face has hard and his every motion meant business.
    “Keep moving.”
    I grunted out something that was supposed to be “Thank you.”
    He nodded and followed close behind me.
    The hospital wasn’t far now. The ladders had been kicked away, but ropes had been lowered from two adjacent windows. Each rope had a loop tied in the end.
    There was a crowd in the windows shouting instructions.
    Through the rain and my own heavy breathing, I couldn’t understand what they said.
    Pain shot from my ankle up my leg. I pushed harder. Even at that I knew I wasn’t much faster than the zombies.
    Samson touched a hand to my shoulder. “You did it. You got everybody in there. Just keep moving.”
    I reached up with my left hand and flipped off the helmet.
    Real thunder rolled somewhere in the distance.
    I pulled off my left glove and realized that somewhere along the line I had lost my right glove.
    I doesn’t matter now. I got through.
    I spared a look over my shoulder.
    Ten or twenty zombies were giving chase.
    I kept my pace.
    Several more deads appeared in the broken down door of the hospital. It was only a short distance away from our ropes.
    I threw my shoulders back and shook off the heavy coat.
    We arrived at the hospital.
    Samson put a hand on my shoulder one more time.
    “The idiots knocked down the ladders. Just put your good foot in the stirrup and hold on.”
    I looked up at him and tried again to verbalize a thanks.
    He nodded. “Good work, Corbin.”
    I nodded back, then turned to the rope. As soon as I got my foot in the loop, the crowd above started to pull.
    I held on tight and my right hand started to throb like my foot.
    I didn’t have much time to think about it, though.
    To my right, Samson was being lifted off the ground.
    Above me, the shouting intensified.
    Then the worst happened.
    The rope that was hauling up Samson snapped.
    Someone screamed.
    I looked down.
    Samson was alive, but his leg was at an unnatural angle.
    Broken.
    Hands from the window grabbed my arms.
    My eyes couldn’t leave what was going on below.
    Samson turned and started pushing himself up.
    The crowd in the hospital pulled me through the window, dropped me to the floor, and immediately turned their attention back to Samson.
    My heart beat hard against my rib cage. I didn’t want to believe what was happening.
    The deads had only been a few feet away. They’d be on him any second.
    Everyone was shouting.
    I pushed back toward the window to see what was happening below.
    He has to make it.
    I shoved my way through and was able to peek out the window.
    Samson had a hold of the rope in one hand. His other massive hand was balled up in a fist and drawn back. His foot wasn’t yet in the loop.
    The closest zombie was crouched only a few feet away from him.
    It lunged at Samson.
    Samson swung.
    The blow snapped back the dead man’s head, but didn’t knock him back enough.
    The zombie caught hold of Samson’s waist.
    Two guys ripped me away from my window spot.
    More screaming.
    I pushed, but didn’t have the strength to fight my way back to the window.
    It can’t be!
    I staggered back.
    Nobody was pulling on the rope yet. Samson wasn’t coming up.
    The throbbing in my hand caught my attention again.
    I took a look down.
    My hand was covered in blood. A chunk of meat was missing from the fleshy part of my palm, and the wound was circled by a set of teeth marks.
    Somewhere along the way, I had been bitten.
    
    
57 - Into the Unknown
    
    The room was crowded and loud and the air was thick with the smells of excited people.
    Samson was on the street. There was no way out, and no way he could survive that mess. He had been a pillar of strength in a tornado of chaos. Now he was going to die because he had come to save me.
    I couldn’t take it anymore.
    My knees shook. The blood rushed from my face. My vision blurred. Breathing came hard. The noise of the room drifted away.
    And then I crumpled up into a heap on the floor.
    The mercy of passing out didn’t come, though. I was still partially conscious as three guys I didn’t recognize helped me up and half carried me to a room a few doors down.
    My head pounded.
    They put me on the bed and ran off to get help.
    I closed my eyes and prayed they wouldn’t let me become… one of those things. I didn’t even know if anyone else had noticed my bite yet. I had to stay awake long enough to make sure someone saw it. And then I could slip away.
    There was talking and shouting in the hall. People came into the room, hoveredaround me, and talked about me.
    I recognized a voice or two, but I was too tired open my eyes.
    I raised my right hand.
    A gloved hand grabbed my wrist. I could only assume the grabber was studying the bite.
    That was it. Now they knew. And certainly they knew I needed to go before I became a danger to everybody.
    I had done all I could do.
    All that was left now was to slip into unconsciousness and hope they made my passing painless.
    Unfortunately, my sleep was neither restful nor painless. And it was almost immediately interrupted by a violent nightmare.
    I awoke with a start and my brain felt like it was on fire.
    A moan filled the air and it took me a minute to realize it was coming from my lips.
    I tried to open my eyes but the light shining through my room’s windows felt like knifes in my skull.
    Somebody was in the room talking about hydration and rest.
    Why are they still in here? Why am I still in here? Don’t they know I’m infected?
    I tried to raise my hand again.
    Someone put a hand on my arm.
    “It’s OK, Corbin. Just sleep now.”
    I slipped back under.
    Another dream began, but it wasn’t really a dream at all. There were no more pictures. In fact, it was more like a battle.
    The virus had a presence in my mind like a void or a pit, swallowing up every thought. Like it wanted everything to be blank.
    I consciously fought back against the presence by filling my mind with memories. I thought back to my college days, then high school.
    The creeping void grew larger.
    I would start to remember something that had happened, lose my place in the story, and then forget altogether which story I was trying to think about.
    There was no more point in even trying to sleep.
    Pain radiated from my hand and pounded in my head.
    Soon, I could no longer focus on any memories at all. There was only the pain, and the void.
    Occasionally, someone would come in and give me an injection.
    I have no idea how long I lay there in torment. It seemed an eternity.
    The void in my mind which had grown so fast was now taking its time.
    I knew my jaw was clenched. I knew I was moaning. I knew I was tossing from one side to the other. I knew tears ran off my face. I couldn’t control any of those things. I was powerless, alone, and dying.
    The discomfort, stench, heat and loneliness of the storage shed I had hid in days before would be a paradise compared to the agony that tore at my mind and my body now.
    The pain was unrelenting.
    At long last I gave up my mental struggle and was just desperate to die. I had survived almost everything life could throw at me, from false accusations to falls down stairs to sleep deprivation, dehydration, punches, kicks and everything else. I was a survivor, but I wouldn’t survive this.
    A knot tied up my stomach.
    I didn’t want to die, but there was nothing I could do.
    The knot tightened, causing pain that was almost as great as the pain in my head.
    I curled up into the fetal position.
    The muscles in my stomach tightened.
    It was too much. I opened my mouth and tried to scream, but I couldn’t draw a deep enough breath.
    Everything in my core started to convulse.
    I fought to take another shallow breath. I just couldn’t do it.
    A burning crept up my throat.
    I started to vomit.
    There was no food in my stomach to come up. Only bile.
    The burning yellow liquid erupted from my mouth and nose.
    My sinuses, mouth and throat were on fire.
    It came up in waves at first.
    After that nothing came up, but the waves still crashed.
    I gasped for air in between dry heaves.
    At last the convulsions subsided, leaving only burning and stench.
    I was too weak and tired to do anything about it. Too weak and tired to do anything at all.
    Finally, after hours of torment, a bizarre form of relief crept in at the edges of my consciousness. I allowed the blackness to swallow me up.
    Is this what it feels like to die?
    
    
58 - Rest & Recovery?
    
    I gasped and opened my eyes. It felt like my head was finally above water after someone had held it under too long.
    “Don’t do that!”
    Two red shoes were on the foot of my bed. They were being worn by a young man sitting on a nearby chair. His eyes were big and he pretty much looked like he had seen a ghost.
    “You trying to scare me to death?”
    I pushed up on an elbow. “Well, good morning to you, too.”
    He breathed a sigh of relief. “Wow. You’re… how are you?”
    “Would you open those blinds?”
    He stood and let in some light.
    The room was hot and the air was humid, but the sky showed no trace of the storm that had pounded the city.
    My body was sore to be sure, but it felt good to be alive.
    An IV had been set in my left hand. However, for the moment I wasn’t hooked up to anything. The little capped tube just stuck out a couple of inches. The bite on my right hand was wrapped up. It no longer throbbed with pain.
    Kevin sat back down. “So… you know… how are you?”
    I pushed all the way up to a sitting position. “Oh, I’m doing fine. Except, I think I have a hang nail on my thumb.”
    Kevin didn’t laugh.
    Oh well. I thought it was funny.
    He yawned. “That other girl will be pissed she wasn’t here when you woke up. She’s been in here with you all night.”
    “Other girl?”
    “Yeah.” Kevin smiled a little. “Lily wanted to sleep near you and this other girl kicked her out. I thought they were going to catfight all over the room.”
    It couldn’t be… could it? “Beth?”
    “I think so. Something like that.”
    “How in the world did she get here?”
    He raised an eyebrow. “I haven’t exactly had time to interview everyone that was already here when we arrived, Corbin.”
    He was a little testy, but I didn’t hold that against him.
    I was just happy to be alive. I had no idea what had saved me, but I was grateful.
    A slightly naughty idea popped into my head.
    I laid back down. “Tell you what, Kevin. Go find Beth and tell her I’ve been stirring a bit and you think I might wake up soon.”
    I closed my eyes, pulled up the bed sheet, and made an attempt to hold still.
    Kevin ran out of the room.
    A few minutes later, Kevin and another person came in. Kevin was spinning some story about how I had rolled over and muttered something.
    The other person sat on the foot of my bed. “I wonder what he’ll be like when he wakes up.”
    Sure enough, it was Beth’s voice.
    I felt even better now that I knew it was her.
    She put a hand on my shin. “I mean, is his personality going to be the same? Will the virus have changed him?”
    Now!
    I jerked up to a sitting position and raised my arms out straight. “Bbrraaiinnss!”
    My joke was not met with a scream as I had expected, but rather with a swift punch to my face.
    I had no idea that she could hit that hard.
    Kevin laughed. “He’s fine.”
    Beth shook her head and her hand. “Ow! You jerk.”
    I covered the freshly, punched side of my face. “Ow, yourself.”
    “Serves you right. It wasn’t funny.”
    It occurred to me that while I was sleeping and healing, everybody else was still dealing with the crisis. While I was now feeling relieved and revived, they were all still physically and mentally exhausted.
    “Well, I’m sorry now.”
    “Corbin, I’m…” Beth took a deep breath, “I’m sorry, too.”
    I looked up at her. “Why didn’t you warn me?”
    “The worst part is…”
    Kevin stood up. “I’ll just leave you two alone then.”
    We watched him walk out.
    Beth turned back to me. “The worst part is, what I was afraid of happening… happened anyway, and I hated knowing that I didn’t try harder to at least help you.”
    We stared into each other’s eyes for a moment.
    I reached out and touched her hand. “It’s…”
    She pulled the hand free and wiped a tear away. “Carl found out about my dad and Aunt Janice. He threw out my dad, and I went with him.”
    A slight breeze blew in the open window.
    I reached around on my back and felt skin. I was wearing a hospital gown.
    “Where are my clothes?”
    “Another nurse took them last night and cleaned them. Well, rinsed them out anyway. I’ll bet they’re about dry wherever they are. I’ll go look when the doctor comes in to check on you.”
    “Doctor?”
    “Yeah, that squirrelly little doctor that’s the viral expert. He says you two’ve met.”
    “That doesn’t really help. I used to work here, you know. I can’t even count how many doctors I’ve met.”
    “Yeah, but I get the feeling he didn’t work here before. He’s too weird.”
    Someone knocked on the door.
    “Speak of the devil… that’s probably him.”
    A small man in a white lab coat entered. “And how’s the patient?”
    I couldn’t believe it. It was the same doctor who had tried to leave me for dead in the stairwell of the research annex.
    I felt the blood rush to my face and my hands clench into fists. “What the hell are you doing here? I thought you were going to go it alone. Safety in lack of numbers or something.”
    Beth gave me a questioning look.
    The doctor touched Beth on the shoulder. “Miss, if you’d excuse us a moment.”
    She looked to the doctor and then at me again. “Sure. I guess.”
    “And close the door if you would.”
    Before she left, she looked back at me one last time.
    The doctor sat down. “Don’t look at me like that. I know you’re mad, but I saved your life.”
    “Yeah, but you did try to kill me once.”
    “Actually, that’s when I saved it.”
    “What?”
    The doctor smirked. “I lied to you back then.”
    “So how do I know…”
    He held up a hand. “Just shut up a minute. I told you then that I was part of the viral research team. That was the lie. I’m part of the team that’s been working on the cure.”
    “So why didn’t you…”
    He stood again. “Let’s see that hand.”
    I held up the bandaged hand, and he started unwrapping. “I didn’t want you to do anything dumb, and I knew you probably would if you thought I might have a possible cure, which, as it ends up, I did. I just didn’t know it worked at the time, so it’s lucky you showed up here.”
    “So when I was passed out on the stairs, you…”
    “Actually, it was in the dart with the tranquilizer. I only had four different samples that were ready for testing, and between the fact that I’m a genius and you’re incredibly lucky… well, here you are. Your hand is looking much better.”
    It all made my head spin. Could it be true? I’m a test subject? I did get bitten, didn’t I? And now I’m here and I’m living…
    I looked at my hand. “What is it?”
    “What is what?”
    “The cure.”
    The doctor stood up straight. “It’s a bacteria. It has special receptors that fool the virus so when the virus goes through the uncoating process it releases its RNA into a food vacuole where it undergoes phagocytosis instead of replication inside the cell. And yes, I designed it.”
    Yep, he pretty much embodied everything I’ve ever hated about doctors.
    “Wow.”
    “I took a blood sample a couple hours ago after I was sure you were going to make it. From that we should be able to recover enough of the bacteria to make a good culture.”
    “Don’t you have any more?”
    “No. It’s a long story.”
    He walked over to the sink and turned it on. Water came out for a moment, then spat and gurgled, then stopped altogether.
    The doctor stared at the faucet. “Damn it. This wasn’t supposed to happen yet.”
    He turned and ran for the door.
    I was shocked. What did he know that I didn’t?
    Only one thing was certain. My time for rest and recovery was over.
    
    
59 - The Bombs
    
    Beth opened the door to come in and the doctor brushed her out of his way.
    “What’s his problem?”
    I stood up. “Not sure, but it doesn’t sound good.”
    She tossed a small pile of clothes on the bed. “The water’s out.”
    It sank in. I was sweating, but my blood froze. Without water, we’d die within just a few days. Plus, it’d cause a frenzy in here.
    “I know. That’s why the mad doctor just took off. He said it ‘wasn’t supposed to happen yet.’”
    She stepped closer. “What does that mean?”
    I looked straight at her and shrugged. “It means he knew this was coming.”
    She tilted her head. “Yeah, but why…”
    “Wish I knew.”
    She closed the distance with a final step and threw her arms around me. “What are we going to do?”
    I didn’t have an answer, so I didn’t even bother opening my mouth. I just stood there and embraced her.
    I realized I was still in a hospital gown.
    I let go. “Maybe I should put on some clothes.”
    Beth smiled. “I suppose.”
    I pulled the privacy curtain in between Beth and me and started dressing.
    I couldn’t help but think of the water situation.
    The pumps that brought in most of the water for Oasis were housed miles and miles away. There was no reason for them to have stopped working. Unless someone had shut them down.
    But why shut them down now?
    Out in the hall, commotion was picking up. Probably over the lack of water.
    I tugged on my shirt and pulled away the curtain.
    Kevin burst back into the room. “Hey guys, the water’s off. Everyone’s freaking out.”
    I patted the cargo pocket on my right pant leg. “Did you take my gun?”
    Beth shrugged. “What gun?”
    Kevin pointed a thumb behind him. “I think Linda has it.”
    I had almost forgotten about Linda. “How’s she…”
    Kevin looked down at his red shoes. “She’s, you know… I think she’s… I don’t know. Now that Samson’s… well… now that he’s gone…”
    His words dug in like a knife. Samson was gone, and it was my fault. He had saved me. I had been lifted free. He had fallen. The whole unfairness of it all just made me shake with anger, guilt, and fear all at once.
    Beth put a hand on my arm. “You OK?”
    I reached up and touched her hand. “Do you hear that?”
    I could hear some sort of whistling roar somewhere in the distance.
    Kevin ran to the window. “That sounds like a jet.”
    The noise grew louder. Windows rattled. A small wind-up clock fell off a shelf as the noise passed.
    Kevin’s eyes were huge. “I think it was a…”
    An explosion shook the ground.
    I raced to the window.
    Beth was right behind me.
    A column of smoke billowed up from the far end of town.
    I glanced at Kevin. “Did that…”
    “It was the jet.”
    Beth shook her head. “That doesn’t make any sense. Why would the military…”
    I stared back at the smoke. “Maybe they think we’re all already infected.”
    The yelling in the hall intensified. We all knew what was going to happen.
    Over everything else, I could hear the whistling roar again.
    Again it grew louder. Again the windows rattled. Again it passed by.
    A black speck sped through the sky. There was first a flash up high, and then another explosion close to the smoke. The sound of the explosion hit a second or two later. Dust, debris, and more smoke belched upward and outward.
    A pit opened up in my stomach. I didn’t want to believe what I had just seen.
    I bit my lip. “We’ve got to get moving.”
    Kevin didn’t look away. “Do you think?”
    I turned to Beth. “You’d better go find your dad.”
    She nodded. “Corbin, I…”
    She couldn’t finish the sentence. Her breathing was unsteady. Tears welled up in her eyes.
    I didn’t know what to feel. Even with everything that was going on, I was attracted to her. I reached out and cupped the side of her face in my hand.
    No use being a coward now.
    I leaned in and touched my lips to hers.
    She closed her eyes and kissed back.
    The kiss was short but perfect. It was a moment away from the chaos. Probably the last such moment I would ever experience.
    She pulled back and opened her eyes.
    I didn’t say anything as she left the room.
    Neither did she.
    We didn’t have to.
    The whistling roar returned.
    The noise brought me back to reality. I looked back to Kevin and then the window.
    Kevin still just stared outside.
    He probably didn’t even notice the kiss.
    Again a jet flew by. Again an explosion shook the city.
    They’re going to bomb the whole city to the ground. I looked to the parking lot around the hospital.
    The zombies were scattered. Many of them still gathered around the smoldering remains of the trailers and grocery store. Hundreds had wandered off. Several were headed in the direction of the explosions.
    That would make it easier for us to get out of the hospital, but worse for us once we got into the streets. Not that we could stay there long, anyway. The military was seeing to that.
    “Kevin, let’s go.”
    I grabbed his arm and gave a tug.
    He stepped back but didn’t turn from the window. He was in total shock.
    I pulled again. “Kevin. Come on.”
    “Yeah.” He nodded and started moving on his own.
    Every survivor in the hospital was gathering down by the door to the stairway. There was maybe a hundred people total.
    I recognized folks from the hotel, and a few who had worked at the hospital. In the mess, I couldn’t tell where Linda was, or Beth or her dad.
    Someone yelled, “Let’s go!” and the door opened.
    The crowd started pushing into the stairwell.
    I gave Kevin a push. “Go. I’ll be right behind you. I’m just going to make sure the rooms on this floor are empty.”
    Kevin didn’t argue. I think he was just glad to have some kind of direction.
    I ducked in a couple of rooms.
    All empty, and nothing terribly useful in any of them.
    I gave up and decided to head after the group.
    “Corbin!”
    I spun around.
    Down the hall was the short doctor. He was holding two metal thermos-looking objects.
    I wasn’t happy to see him. I suppose on some level I was grateful, but still. He just seemed so underhanded.
    “What do you want?”
    He handed me one of the canisters and smirked. “Come with me.”
    “I think I’d rather go with everybody else.”
    He reached in his pocket. “Doesn’t matter.”
    I clenched my free fist. “Yeah?”
    He pulled a gun out of his pocket. “Let’s just go.”
    
    
60 - Underground
    
    It’s just natural to just take something when someone else hands it out to you. Sales people use this tactic to get you holding a pen, thus making it more likely you’ll sign a contract.
    I had just grabbed the stupid canister without thinking. The doctor had distracted me for one second, which was all the time he needed to pull the gun.
    I scolded myself for not being more careful around a man that I knew couldn’t be trusted.
    The doctor motioned down the hall. “Let’s go.”
    I turned and walked.
    His footsteps trailed several feet behind me. “You should be grateful. At least with me you have a chance.”
    “What?”
    “Well, what do you think the military is going to do when they see your friends, whom they think are infected, wandering across the desert?”
    I knew the answer, but I didn’t want to think about it.
    He doctor gave a disturbing chuckle. “They will remove the threat. They will be swift, and they will show no mercy. And why would they? They know what this virus can do.”
    “But we have the cure.” I held up my canister. “That’s what we have in here, right?”
    “They don’t know that.”
    I thought of Beth, Kevin, Linda, and all the others who were now racing through the streets and heading for the desert. If the zombies didn’t get them before they got out, the military would get them soon after.
    I glanced at the cannister.
    Beth, Linda, Kevin, Dale, all of them only have one shot. The military has to know about what’s in this container.
    The doctor put the gun down. “I know what you’re thinking. You’re trying to figure out a way to contact the military. That’s precisely why you’re going to cooperate with me. I know how, and that’s where we’re going.”
    The building shook again. The bombs would keep dropping until Oasis had burned to the ground.
    I motioned down the hall. “So let’s go.”
    He put the gun in his pocket and we headed for a different staircase than the one everyone else had used.
    I couldn’t hear anything going on downstairs, so hopefully that meant the other group had not run into any problems getting out of the building.
    We walked down the stairs.
    The door at the bottom had been barricaded with pieces of bed frame, IV stands, and a couch.
    The short doctor just sat on the stairs and watched me clear the mess enough to open the door.
    Once it was clear, he pulled out his gun and told me to throw open the door so he could get a good shot if there were any of the infected waiting on the other side.
    I gave it a solid push and stepped away.
    Nothing there.
    We went out into the hall.
    I listened for any signs of the group, or even any movement at all.
    Nothing. The hospital was empty.
    The deads were gone. I didn’t even know if they ever were down here.
    A smashed picture window and smeared blood answered the question for me. They had been here, all right. And then they had left. Gone after the fires, the bombs, or maybe the other fleeing survivors.
    Doesn’t matter.
    The big glass front doors had been broken out.
    I stepped through the shards onto the front walk.
    The doctor was right behind me.
    The grocery store across the way was burnt out. The trailers were in smoldering piles.
    The doctor stepped by and grunted at the ashes.
    Something half in a bush next to the building caught my eye. It was almost under the windows that had made my escape and sealed Samson’s fate. I didn’t want to get my hopes up, but it looked like a big metal pipe.
    The doctor pointed to the object. “Go pick that up. We’ll probably need it.”
    I jogged over and my heart leaped. It was Samson’s big hunting gun.
    But where’s Samson?
    He might have hobbled off and flat lined while trying to escape. Or maybe he was turned into…
    I didn’t want to think about it.
    The thought that I might run into to an infected Samson made me physically ill. I couldn’t bear it.
    “Come on, boy.” The doctor motioned back to me. “Or would you prefer to not try and save your friends.”
    I grabbed the rifle and pulled it from the shrub.
    There was dried blood on the stock.
    I tried not to think about it as I pulled open the bolt.
    The rifle was a single shot beast. The bullet inside was bigger around than my thumb. There was the one live round in the chamber and no more ammunition to be seen.
    One shot.
    The rifle had a strap, so I slung it over my shoulder. “What happens if you inject the bacteria after the virus has already taken command?”
    “The virus is eventually overwhelmed, and the infected host merely collapses like a regular corpse.”
    Another jet streaked by overhead. The ground shook and the giant columns of smoke widened. It wouldn’t take too long for the entire city of Oasis to be pounded into rubble.
    As we walked the streets, we could see the occasional dead man or woman shuffling in the direction of the smoke.
    After many blocks, we found ourselves near the edge of the city.
    I could see the old fort wall that marked the edge of Oasis down at the end of the street.
    The doctor stopped in front of a rather small warehouse. On the door was the hospital’s logo. A plaque next to the door read “Oasis Medical Center Research Annex Three.”
    The doctor was sweating up a storm. He reached a hand into his pocket and pulled out a key.
    He put it in the lock and looked up at me.
    Something had changed during our walk. In his eyes I could see a growing fear. He was reaching his breaking point, and becoming desperate. His hands trembled as he twisted the key.
    I couldn’t let his cowardice affect me. Someone had to stay strong if anybody was to survive this ordeal. If I was the only one who could keep it together, so be it. I was ready.
    The warehouse was empty, except for a little office built into one corner and a forklift next to that.
    The office had double doors, which looked odd for such a small room.
    We entered the warehouse.
    The door slammed shut and echoed in the empty space. It was sweltering inside.
    The doctor took smaller steps now and crossed the room toward the little office.
    I clenched my jaw and followed.
    The doctor reached out to grab the office door handle. “We did the live tests downstairs. We had several test subjects… The holding cell doors were powered by electromagnetic locks. No power… no locks.”
    I nodded. I couldn’t let it get to me. Just one more problem to deal with. I pictured Beth’s face then Linda’s. I wouldn’t let them down. They would only be seen as infected threats by the military. Threats that needed to be neutralized. I couldn’t let that happen.
    The doctor pulled open the door. The room was mostly filled with a large freight elevator. It was kept closed only by a metal grate that folded itself to the side.
    “This elevator was the general’s failsafe… back when this was a base. The actual lab is, you know, down.”
    We opened the double doors as wide as they would go, hoping to let a little more light in.
    The elevator car must be somewhere below.
    I looked over the edge of the elevator shaft, and couldn’t quite tell how far down it went.
    The doctor jittered the grate open and pointed to a recess in the side wall. “There’s a ladder.”
    His nerves were hanging on a thread.
    I knew it and for a moment I wondered if it would be possible to leave him at the top. The problem was I still didn’t know how this expedition was going to place us in touch with the military, or really where I would go once I got down. I still needed him.
    I didn’t think he’d be able to work up the guts, so I would go first. I crammed the cannister into my pocket as far as it would go and reached out for a rung.
    Down and down I climbed. With each rung my surroundings got darker and cooler. After I had climbed down what I thought was about two stories, I reached the elevator car.
    The elevator car had an open top, but in the dim light it was still difficult to climb down onto the floor without falling.
    Through the metal grate door, I could only see a few feet into the darkness.
    Out in that darkness were test subjects. I didn’t know how many, but I could almost feel them just beyond the edge of my sight.
    I helped the doctor down. He reached into one of his lab coat pockets and pulled out a lighter and a candle.
    I almost smiled. “You thought of everything.”
    The doctor started at my comment, his eyes widened, and he raised a finger to his lips.
    I realized what I had done. I needed to be quiet as possible while we were down here. The echoes carried, and I didn’t want to get cornered.
    I lowered my voice to a whisper. “How many are here?”
    The doctor held up four fingers, and then lit the candle. He held it in one hand and his pistol in the other.
    I eased the door open as quietly as I could.
    The flickering light in the cement hall played tricks on my mind.
    Every shadow hid a zombie. Every door was a trap. Around every corner was death.
    My heart pounded.
    Echoing down the hallway I was sure I heard noises. Movement. Deads.
    I pulled the rifle off my shoulder.
    The doctor caught my attention and mouthed the words “Not yet.”
    We reached the room at the far end of the hall.
    I opened the door and squinted at the darkness inside.
    The doctor stepped in.
    The little light of the candle was barely enough to make the room’s contents visible.
    There was an open door on the right. On the wall opposite the doorway we used was a brushed metal door with a keypad on the wall.
    In the room there was also a desk, several chairs, and a TV mounted to the wall.
    The doctor’s breathing was shallow.
    Somewhere in the distance I could have sworn I heard more movement.
    The doctor approached the door.
    “This is why I had you bring the gun.”
    He was getting more and more excited, and as he did he was raising his voice.
    “I knew this door was locked. We can’t unlock it without the keypad, but you can unlock it. It has a single bolt right here.”
    The doctor pointed to a place on the wall. “Right here.”
    “You sure?”
    “You can see it. Just trust me.”
    I checked the door and was pretty sure I could see the bolt, too.
    The doctor stepped behind me.
    I removed the strap from around my shoulder and raised the gun. I put the muzzle right up next to the crack between door and wall. Maybe two inches from the bolt. I couldn’t miss. I prepared for the kick this beast was sure to produce.
    I put my finger on the trigger. “Ready?”
    “Hurry.”
    I took a deep breath and pulled the trigger.
    The thunderous sound tore at my eardrums. The gun kicked like a speeding Mack truck and it tore off my shoulder- at least that’s what it felt like. The rifle leaped from my hands. I fell back into the doctor and we both went sprawling to the floor.
    The candle flew and snuffed out.
    And then…
    
    darkness.
    
    
61 - At The End Of The Tunnel
    
    Darkness and a loud ringing in my ear.
    And a throbbing pain in my shoulder.
    I rolled to my left and scrambled to stand.
    The doctor was shouting something. I couldn’t quite tell what it was - the ringing was still too loud.
    I stumbled over the doctor’s thrashing leg and fell sideways into the desk. It hurt, but it kept me from falling all the way to the floor.
    The doctor kept up his frenzied shouting.
    I couldn’t be positive, but I think he was saying, “Get away from my door!”
    Of course, that made finding the door sound like a really good idea. I groped out in the darkness until I found a wall. I followed the wall until I was touching the metal door.
    The doctor’s yelling intensified.
    I spun around and squinted into the blackness.
    Another bang and a flash illuminated the room for a split second.
    My stomach dropped.
    In that split second of illumination, I saw a face in a doorway.
    And not the face that belonged to the doctor.
    This one was a horrible, empty eyed prune of a face.
    We weren’t alone.
    When fear sets in, all logic flies out the window. The doctor fired his gun again.
    My hands shot up to cover my ears. I couldn’t even tell if the doctor was shooting at me or the zombie.
    Another shot fired, and with it another flash.
    Part of the zombie’s shoulder was missing, and it wasn’t facing me.
    Fear grabbed hold of my mind and my body. I froze in place.
    A tiny light flickered across the room.
    The doctor has found his lighter. His eyes widened when he saw what he had been shooting at.
    The zombie was withered, wrinkled and dry. It was dressed in an orange jumpsuit. The wound in its shoulder oozed a thick, blackish blood.
    I imagined that I would hear it’s body creaking with each slow, methodical step, that is, if the ringing would stop.
    The doctor turned his gaze and gun back on me. “Get away from the door!”
    The little lighter in the doctor’s hand brought only the tiniest amount of comfort. Just enough to regain control over my shivering body. I raised my hands and took a step to the side. At least I can see what I’m up against.
    The zombie shuffled.
    The doctor stepped forward. “I brought you here! You can’t have the credit!”
    “What?”
    “They wouldn’t believe you anyway!”
    The zombie turned with the doctor’s movement. Only a few feet and a desk between them now.
    I spied the rifle on the ground just to the doctor’s right.
    The doctor’s eyes were wild. “I’ll kill you. Then it’s just a walk down the tunnel and I’ll be the hero.”
    Down the hallway where we had entered, a green light bouncing back and forth caught my eye.
    Without thinking, I pointed. “What’s that?”
    The light was getting closer, and fast.
    What can possibly be happening now?
    “You think I’m some sort of idiot? Just move clear of the door and let me through.”
    The zombie crouched.
    The green light passed the doorway.
    The doctor extended his arm and grimaced.
    Somehow, attached through shadow to the green light was a baseball bat whizzing through the air.
    A new voice screeched above the ringing in my ears. “Come on, Carlton!”
    The zombie leaped.
    Th bat crunched into the doctor’s head.
    The gun fired again.
    I gasped and winced, but didn’t feel an impact.
    The lighter went out.
    I dove for the rifle.
    The voice cried out. “Let’s get out of here!”
    My fingers wrapped around the muzzle and I scrambled back to my feet.
    My savior was now behind me, pulling at my shirt. “Come on!”
    The green light was dim, but it was enough to see the limp body of the doctor strewn across the desk.
    The withered zombie bent over him. Its hands clenched his crushed head, and it appeared to be biting into his jaw.
    I was disgusted, but I couldn’t look away.
    “Come on!”
    Something glimmered in the green light.
    It was pinned to the doctor’s lab coat. An ID badge.
    I watched my hand dart out and snatch the badge.
    I shoved the badge into my empty pocket and reached around to the hand holding my shirt. I still couldn’t tear my eyes off the zombie.
    I pulled the soft hand free. “Not that way.”
    I didn’t know why I should go through the metal door. I just knew the conniving doctor had seen it as an escape, and that was good enough for me.
    I tore my eyes off the grisly scene on the desk and headed for the door.
    The bullet had torn clean through the bolt, and a twist of the handle opened the door.
    Light burst through the doorway. I squinted my eyes and entered.
    My rescuer followed close behind and slammed the door shut.
    I spun around to see who had come to my aid.
    As my eyes adjusted to the light, a crop of curly brown hair pulled back in a ponytail came into view.
    I staggered back. “Beth?”
    Around her neck were three glow sticks on a string. She took a deep breath, gave a weak smile, then dove in for a hug. “Miss me?”
    The rifle clattered to the ground and I wrapped my shaking arms around her.
    After a few moments, I looked around. We weren’t done yet. “We have to go.”
    We were standing in a large cave of a room. Light poured in through an immense, pyramid shaped skylight. The floor was paved like a street. Opposite the metal door was a tunnel about eight feet tall and twelve feet wide. It appeared to be lit by similar skylights.
    Over to one side were parked several golf carts.
    “They’re worth a shot.”
    Beth gave me a look. “Where have you been the past week? Nothing in Oasis works anymore.”
    I picked up Samson’s rifle and walked over to the nearest cart.
    “And where are we going anyway?”
    I shrugged. “I’m not exactly sure, but I think this tunnel might take us to a military installation of some sort.”
    “How far is it? What makes you think…”
    Something pounded on the metal door.
    My heart rate picked back up.
    The zombie had finished with the doctor.
    I tossed the rifle in the back and hopped in the driver’s seat.
    There was a key in the ignition. I turned it and the little engine bubbled to life.
    Maybe it was under enough sand and cement to protect it. Maybe it was close enough to the edge of the city that whatever took out everything else didn’t reach it. Doesn’t matter, as long as it works.
    I flipped the little switch marked “reverse” and backed up to Beth.
    More pounding on the door echoed around us.
    She held on to her bat and climbed in next to me.
    I unflipped the “reverse” switch and hit the gas.
    The little cart sped off into the tunnel.
    “How did you find me?”
    “I noticed you weren’t with the group, so I went back. I saw that creepy short doctor leading you away and I followed.”
    “You sure you followed the right guy?”
    “Yeah, why?”
    “I don’t know. Maybe because when you ran in the room back there, you yelled out ‘Come on Carlton!’”
    “Oh, that.” She put on an impish grin. “Carlton’s the name of my bat, see?”
    She thrust the the handle near my face.
    Sure enough, it said “Carlton” in magic marker.
    I chuckled.
    Her grin broadened. “I named it after a boyfriend in high school.” She laughed.
    “I’m glad you think you’re funny. How long have you been waiting to tell me your little joke?”
    “Why we going this way, anyway? We could have climbed back up that shaft and caught up…”
    The smile dropped off my face. “Because they’ll die if we don’t. The military thinks they’re infected.”
    The color flushed from her pretty face. “And how do you know this tunnel will…”
    “I don’t, but its the best chance we have.”
    We drove the rest of the way in silence.
    After about twenty minutes, we pulled into a room similar to the one where we had started. The words “Main Entrance B” were painted over the metal door.
    I parked and strapped the rifle across my back.
    Beth looked at me. “How do we do this?”
    “Knock, I guess.”
    We walked over to the door and stared at it a moment.
    I raised a hand to knock, then stopped. “Beth, before we do this, I’d like to say thanks.”
    She reached over and gave me a peck on the cheek. “You can thank me later.”
    I rapped the door to the rhythm of “shave and a hair cut, two bits.”
    Beth and I took a step backwards.
    After about fifteen seconds, a skinny guy with a bad toupee opened the metal door.
    “Guards!”
    Within seconds we were surrounded by four or five soldiers in full combat gear. They relieved me of my rifle and Beth of “Carlton”, then marched us inside into what looked like the lobby of a small hotel.
    Fake potted plants sat in the corners, a desk lined the wall to our right, and two large sliding glass doors marked the exit to the rest of the facility.
    They marched us through the glass doors into an enormous open space.
    The cavern was a cement-filled cylinder, extending up and up to the point that the ceiling was hidden in the shadows. I hadn’t noticed while driving, but our trip from Oasis must have been steadily sloped, as the walls seemed to climb for at least five stories.
    This must have been a missile silo back when Oasis was a military base.
    The guards prodded us across the space, down a hallway and into an office.
    The office was comfortably decorated and hardly seemed to fit in the austere cement structure.
    A guard told us to sit, and then all but two of the guards left.
    Ever in the back of my mind was the thought that if I failed now, then my friends would die in the desert. I forced myself to keep my composure.
    “I need to speak with your commanding officer.”
    The guards just glared at me.
    “Its a matter of life and death.”
    No response.
    Beth breathed in like she wanted to say something, but couldn’t seem to get it out.
    “Look, the group that just left Oasis doesn’t have to die. Even if someone in it has been bitten, we have a cure. All I need to do is talk to your commanding officer.”
    Still nothing.
    I folded my arms and sat back.
    The room was uncomfortably silent. If there had been a clock on the wall, I was certain I could have heard it ticking.
    The doors opened and and a well-built middle aged man in a lab coat swept in.
    He looked at the soldiers and motioned with his thumb to the door, “You two wait outside for a minute. I’ll take responsibility for these.”
    The soldiers saluted and left.
    The man sauntered to the far side of the desk. “My name is Major Jamal Glover. I’m the head of research at this facility. I have a few questions. First, how the hell did you get in here?”
    My mind raced. I needed to get him to listen, and fast. I pulled the large canister from my pocket. I leaned over and dug out the ID badge.
    “I was helping a doctor in Oasis that had worked in annex number two, and apparently here at this facility, as well. When it became apparent he wouldn’t be able to make it here, he sent the ID with me to help convince you to listen.”
    I flung the ID on the desk.
    Major Glover picked up the tag and examined it.
    “Ike.” He shook his head. “What happened to him?”
    I held up the canister. “We have the cure.”
    “Prove it.”
    “Several days ago, I received an injection of this material.” I shook the container. “A day or two or go, I was bitten, and as you can see, I’m not a zombie.”
    Major Glover stared straight ahead for a moment, then jumped to his feet and swung around his desk. “The bacteria’s in there?”
    He snatched the canister from my hand and unscrewed the top.
    Beth fidgeted and finally spoke up. “So, about the others?”
    Major Glover put the lid back on and looked up. “Unfortunately, that’s not my call. I direct the research, but General Hayseed runs the show. He should be here any second.”
    “But is there anything…”
    He raised a hand to cut off Beth, then looked at me. “So, before he gets here, I’m going to give you one more chance to tell the truth. What happened to the man you stole this from?”
    He reached back and picked up the ID.
    How does he know I didn’t come clean? I took a deep breath and weighed my options.
    “I know Dr. Ikerson, and Ike would never have given this to you or sent the cure with anyone else.”
    Beth was shaking, “I…”
    I put a hand on her arm. “He persuaded me a gun point to be a human shield from the hospital to that warehouse. Once we reached the tunnel entrance, one of his or your experiments showed up. The doctor went nuts and put the gun on me. Beth showed up, and distracted him for a moment, and the zombie got a hold of him. I grabbed the ID tag and we took off.”
    The major looked from me to Beth and back again.
    I got the feeling he was putting the pieces together.
    After a few moments, he turned to Beth. “So you killed him?”
    She started to stand. “It was self-defense! He was going…”
    The Major raised his hand again. “It doesn’t matter. When the General gets here, let me do the talking.”
    I reached out and grabbed Beth’s hand.
    She sat.
    Each second stretched out and felt like forever. I knew time was running out for my friends in the desert. They might already be dead.
    The door burst open again and a stocky bald man stormed in, followed by the two guards who had left a minute before.
    There was a large vain throbbing on the bald man’s head. He spun and put his face about six inches from mine. “How the hell did you get in here?”
    His tone of voice and bad breath made me instantly angry. I balled up a fist.
    Before I could do anything rash, the major responded for me. “General, these two are here because Dr. Ikerson entrusted them to transport a cure he had finished cultivating during the blackout.”
    The general spun about. “Cure? Like one that works?”
    Major Glover pointed at me. “This man is proof.”
    “Ikerson, the short civilian egomaniac? Why didn’t he bring it here himself? I’d have thought he wanted all credit.”
    “The bombing, sir.”
    “Just like the little turd to hold out on us.”
    “However, sir, this change of events might call for a change in strategy in dealing with the group that just left the city.”
    “What?”
    “The survivors, sir. Even if they’re infected, we can deal with it now. They no longer pose a threat.”
    The light seemed to come on in the general’s head.
    “Damn it, you’re right.” He grabbed the phone on the desk and dialed a number.
    “Sergeant? This is General Hayseed. Abort the chopper’s mission. Authorize bravo one seven tango seven nine foxtrot.”
    He slammed the receiver down and faced the major. “You OK with these two?”
    “Yes, sir.”
    The general waved for the two guards to follow him, and then looked at me. “Thank you, boy. You’ve saved lives today.”
    With that, the general whisked out of the room.
    Major Glover sat back at the desk. He stared at the wall between Beth and me for a full minute, then nodded his head. “So what do you know?”
    I looked at Beth and we both shrugged.
    “About what has happened in Oasis. What do you know?”
    My heart pounded. What’s his game? I decided I was done trying to second guess everybody and I was done fighting. I leaned forward in my chair.
    “The virus was designed by the military, with help from the research group at Oasis Medical Center. It somehow got in the hands of those terrorists who let it free. After that, the power went out and we were quarantined. Things just kept getting worse from there until we ended up in your office.”
    The major nodded again. “I’m going to tell you two some things. It is all classified, but, I think you deserve to know why you’ve been in hell for almost two weeks. And once I’ve told you, then I have a favor to ask. OK?”
    Beth and I nodded.
    “Right. This virus has been in development for several years. As you know, it is the most devastating biological agent ever seen. I have always been told it was to be used as a weapon if any foreign power made a successful attack on U.S. Soil. It had been tested on convicts, but a larger scale test was needed. The pentagon decided it would be a good idea to test it on a known enemy, as a trap.”
    He paused for a moment. “We had a CIA officer pose as an employee and establish a dialog with a terrorist organization in the middle east. The plan was for him to give them a booby trapped box that would infect their little cadre as they transported it to their base in Afghanistan or wherever. We underestimated their resourcefulness and speed. Their plan all along was to test it first on Oasis. When they tried to open the box, part of the trap was sprung and four of them were injured. The other two did what they did and got away.”
    I almost smiled to think of what had happened that first night in the trailer. “Actually, only one of them could have gotten away.”
    The major raised an eyebrow. “How so?”
    “I happen to know that one of them had an accidental needle poke while they were in the trailer.”
    “How do you know that?”
    “I did the poking.”
    The major thought about that a moment and the hint of a smile appeared on his lips. “That will make the favor I ask later a little easier.”
    He readjusted in his seat and continued his story. “Things got worse. The media was there and news of our viral weapon was about to be made public in the worst possible way. The Pentagon sent orders, and some of General Hayseed’s men set off an EMP in the center of town, knocking out all electronics within it’s range. The public has been told what they saw were people infected with anthrax, and that a terrorist army, numbering at least one hundred had seized control of Oasis and were holding it for ransom.”
    Beth shook her head. “Who would buy that, it’s the dumbest thing I’ve ever…”
    “The people of this nation did buy it. We faked a few videos and leaked them. People will believe anything that is on the news. As the days went on, I learned there was another problem. We knew Dr. Ikerson was close to a cure, and in fact had engineered many bacteria that just needed to be cultured and tested. A time line was given for recovery of these samples. If we didn’t find the possible cures by the appointed hour, we were ordered to destroy all physical evidence of the virus, including possible carriers. Six hours before the marked time, orders came down from the White House to start early.”
    My guts were twisted up inside. The story he had just told was a pretty big pill to swallow. The president had ordered the murder of innocents. And for what? Media shelter?
    I looked the major straight in the eye. “What was the other problem?”
    The major scratched his head. “Even with what you’ve just heard, I doubt you’ll believe it.”
    Beth and I looked at each other and spoke at the same time. “Why not?”
    The major breathed out and rapped his fingers on the desk. “Well, you’ll believe me in a week anyway.”
    I looked back at him. “Why a week?”
    “The day after we blacked out Oasis, I was ordered to send a vial of virus cells in solution to another research base. The director of research at that facility told me they would be using it on an animal, and the next day I was told that the experiment was a success. I was shocked, because the virus was specifically designed to work only on human nerve cells. It shouldn’t work an anything else. Later that same day the infected animal was shipped here in a bio-safe crate.”
    I half raised a hand. “How could you get it here with Oasis shut off like it is?”
    “We have a second tunnel, a much longer one.”
    Beth scooted to the edge of her seat. “So what was in the crate?”
    “It was the reason we had to hide Oasis from the world.”
    I shook my head. “I don’t understand.”
    “It was an extra terrestrial life form. Extremely humanoid in nature. Enough so that the virus had worked on it, including the control of the central nervous system.”
    “Oh, come on, you don’t expect us to…”
    The major pulled out a key and opened one of his desk drawers. “I’ve been briefed on the whole story, and I assure you this is no joke. Two years ago a small extra terrestrial craft landed in China. Its occupants were captured. Our government made some sort of deal to receive one of the aliens, the one that eventually arrived here in a crate. The night the crisis started in Oasis, a much larger craft set down in a remote area in the forests of Washington State. There have been no open hostilities, but we have good reason to believe they may turn aggressive. That is why the virus was tested on the alien, and that is why the virus had to be hidden. If they find out we have this…”
    The major frowned.
    I still didn’t quite believe it. “So what happens now?”
    He dug through one of the drawers and pulled out a photograph, then put it face down on his desk.
    “One week from today, the President plans to announce their arrival. Chaos will ensue. The government will be too weak and slow to deal with the enormous problems that will explode among the populace.”
    Beth put her hands on her temples. “I still don’t believe what you’re…”
    “Maybe this will help.” The major pushed the photograph across the desk at her.
    She picked it up and flipped it over. Her eyes went big and her hand shook.
    “And that brings us to the favor I mentioned earlier.”
    Beth looked away and handed over the photo.
    I was blown away by what I saw.
* * *
    
    Fifty four hours later I found my self in a beat up old Jeep with clean clothes (at last) on my back, fourteen hundred dollars in my pocket, and no idea how to accomplish the favor I had promised to perform.
    
    But that’s a story for another day…
    

    
The End