The Zombie Chronicles - Book 2 (Apocalypse Infection Unleashed Series) Read online

  “Guys,” Val interrupted, “I found something we can use, so shut up and get to work!”

  A hiss pierced the air, and my heart pounded; my senses told me it probably wasn’t a snake. I was trapped down there with a zombie—or zombies! “There’s one of those undead freaks down here!” I yelled. “Hurry up and get me the heck outta here!”

  “I’m coming!” Nick yelled. “Hold on, Dean!”

  “You’ve got a gun, Dean. For goodness’ sake, use it!” Val shouted. “I know I said not to before, but this is an emergency situation!”

  “Just stay calm down there, buddy,” Lucas said.

  “Yeah?” I said. “Easy for you to say!”

  “Look for a weapon,” he continued. “If you run out of bullets, you’re gonna need something like a pipe to bash its rotting head in.”

  I could hear the others panicking from above, and I began to really panic myself. There’s no way they can move one of those heavy beams, and how am I supposed to get back to the top anyway? Fly? There has to be another way out of here…and I need to find it fast. But before I could even assess the situation, the thing came out of the shadows and directly into the sunlight.

  I whipped out my gun like an old Western movie sheriff, but before I could get the shot off, crumbling bricks and loose plaster fell from the ceiling, hitting my hand, making me drop my weapon. My hand throbbed, and blood trickled from an open wound on my wrist, but I didn’t care. All I cared about was finding my gun in all that debris. The zombie moaned and inched slowly toward me. Searching the ground, I swallowed hard. No gun! On to Plan B. I began searching frantically around the rubble, trying to find something—anything—I could bludgeon the thing with before it bit a chunk out of me.

  I opted for a large piece of jagged asphalt. Before I hit the thing, I stared into its skeletal face, those milky-white eyes. Its clothes were caked in dirt and mud, and it swayed and moaned as it approached. Adrenaline surged through my veins, and I spread my feet in a fighting stance. Game on…and this thing’s going down!

  Chapter 3

  The thin man with pasty green skin, wild black hair, and bulging white eyes stood hissing at me. His sickening stench filled the air, and I gagged with bile. Or maybe it was his peeling scalp pulled back from its skull. Whatever the case, I tried not to vomit. I kicked the thing in the gut with my boot, then smashed the chunk of asphalt against its head, squashing it like a rotted cantaloupe. It was much easier than I expected. Just as I shouted out over the easy victory, two more came at me.

  I kicked the left leg of the first one, demolishing its knee joint, then grabbed the neck of the one missing a bottom jaw. I rammed it hard into the wall, smashing its sorry face against the cold stone. I did this a couple more times before I threw it down, just for good measure and to make sure the thing wouldn’t come writhing after me. By then, the first was back for more, so I kicked it in the stomach with every ounce of might I had, sending it crashing into the wall with the momentum of my terror-fueled kick.

  Next, something clawed at my pants, and cold, dead fingers wrapped around my ankle. My heart lurched. It was the smashed-knee zombie, back for a second try. I swung my boot into its rotten flesh, straight into its brittle skull. A cracking sound, like a dinosaur egg being split open, echoed all around me. The thing took its last gurgling breath, and for a moment, I actually felt some pity for it. I didn’t kill them for pleasure. I just had to survive.

  The stench of putrid, rotting flesh grew stronger, and I knew that could only mean one thing: More were coming. But from where? I didn’t have to wait long to find out. All my senses were on high alert, so the slightest movement from the ground caught my attention. The ground shook as a decomposing hand with yellow bones burst through, followed by dozens more. My stomach lurched. Will they be able to dig themselves out? I didn’t want to find out.

  “Guys!” I yelled. “There’re a bunch of buried zombies trying to break free.” It almost felt like being stuck in a crypt, and even though I had my undead company, I’d never felt so alone. I was by myself in a Night of the Living Dead nightmare, with no backup and no one to cover my butt. “They’re coming to get you, Barbara…” I kept hearing in my head, over and over again, even though my name wasn’t Barbara.

  “We have to get him the out of there now!” I heard Lucas shouting to the others.

  “You think I don’t know that?” my brother retorted.

  While my brother and friends were arguing on the surface, one of the zombies came at me. This one had a gaping wound that marred its neck and ran down its jaw line, but if I had anything to say about it, it would have much more than a flesh wound when I was done. Grabbing another large stone, I pounced on the creature, knocking it down. Like a mighty warrior, I threw down my rock, let out a war cry, and with two strong swings, smashed its skull with everything I had, then wiped the bloody, sticky splatter of gore from my face.

  “Nick!” Glancing around, I tried to look for another escape route. I could hear everything shifting around me as dirt poured from the cracks in the ceiling. It was hard to breathe, so I stretched my shirt over my nose and mouth so I could catch one breath that wasn’t loaded with dirt. I didn’t know how I was going to die, zombies or suffocation. My gaze searched the dirt floor as I looked for my gun. A glimmer of light caught my attention off to the right. I rushed over and snatched up my long-lost weapon, ready for them to come at me. I wasn’t about to go down without a fight.

  “Dean!” Nick yelled. “We moved some rock. I think you can slip through.”

  “Catch the rope!” Val said. “We’ll pull you up.”

  I ran to the old, dirty rope and gave it a tug. “Got it!” Ah…my life raft. I looped the rope around me and tied it into a secure knot that would have earned me a patch in the Boy Scouts.

  “Great,” Nick said.

  Glancing across the room, I could see the zombies breaking free from their dirt prisons and shuffling toward me. “Hurry! Get me out of here. They’re coming!”

  I began firing rounds into the freaks who were the closest. More zombies inched closer, though, a whole horde of them moaning and groaning and carrying on, and a cold chill ran through me. With a jerk, the rope lifted me five feet off the ground, and I clung tightly, with a literal life-or-death grip. Glancing up, I could see Nick through the opening. It now looked big enough, and I was pretty sure I could squeeze through; really, I had no choice. I bit my lip when suddenly I felt something grip my foot in a tight lock.

  My heart lurched again, and again adrenaline surged. I kicked the zombie, but it didn’t let go. Swallowing hard, I aimed and shot the thing right between its dead eyes. I felt its grip loosen and let out a tiny sigh of relief. But it was far from over; just when I thought things couldn’t get any worse, they did. Ten or more had now gathered below, clawing the air, trying to grab me. What if the rope snaps and I fall straight into their undead clutches?

  Nick and the others pulled me up a few more inches, till I was just out of their reach.

  My gaze locked onto the decaying corpses, and I looked right into their undead eyes as they snapped at me like ravenous animals. I cringed at the sound of their bone-chilling moans echoing all around me. “Faster!” I screamed. “Get me out of here!” It was hard not to panic with the stench of death looming in the air, but I knew I needed to stay calm and focused. We all lived in a new world now, and nothing mattered but survival. I had to fight for that, at all costs.

  Inch by inch, my saviors pulled me up. I hovered over the group of undead freaks who waited for my demise; they were just wishing the rope would break so I’d fall into their grips. When I got close to the ceiling, I let out a trembling breath. Almost there, I thought. When Nick reached out his hands, and I grabbed them, squeezing through the narrow opening. I met my brother’s gaze and could tell how scared he had been. I’d never been so happy to see him—or to be holding his hand.

  “That was close,” Nick said, trying to act macho and pretend as if it hadn’t fazed him.r />
  “Too close,” I said as I collapsed into everyone’s waiting arms.

  “Your wrist!” Claire said. “Are you okay?”

  “Just a battle wound, not a bite,” I assured her, untying the rope from around me. “A piece of concrete fell from the ceiling and nailed me.”

  Val whipped out a bandage from her backpack and placed it over my wound. “Sorry, but this is all I’ve got.”

  “It’ll have to do,” Lucas said. “We’ll clean it later.”

  “I’ve never been so scared,” Jackie said, cupping my face with both hands.

  I could see the tears welling up in her eyes, and I believed every word she said. She really cared. I could read the emotion in her face and knew it was genuine. I found myself caring very much about what happened to her, and it wasn’t just because she was pretty, though she was definitely that. There was something more to it than that. I wasn’t sure when it had happened, because the last few days had been a blur. All I knew was that I wanted her with me during all that chaos. Even if we parted once we reached civilization, I’d never forget her—or that mind-blowing kiss we’d shared in the lake.

  “It’s gonna be okay. We’ll get through this together,” she promised.

  Her breath was soft in my ear. I embraced her tightly, before the others came over for a group hug. Trying to soak it all in, I ran a hand through my hair and glanced at Nick.

  “You sure you’re okay?” he asked, stuffing the rope into his backpack for later use, no doubt to subdue Val when she changed.

  “Yeah. It was just freaky, that’s all. You always have my back, Nick—always. And when you weren’t right there…” Fearing that I might be overcome with emotion to the point of tears, embarrassment, and harassment by the macho guys who were with me, my voice trailed off.

  “You did good,” he said. “Fought ‘em off like a champ. I’ve never been more proud of you, little brother. You’re a survivor, a fighter—just like me and Val.”

  Growing tired of all the fanfare, Lucas messed around with the tracking device. “Can we discuss all this mushy froo-froo crap later? Right now, we gotta move it or lose it, people.”

  Chapter 4

  Climbing through the rubble, we finally managed to make it to the side of town that hadn’t been bombed. It was empty and deserted and reminded me of a nineteenth-century American ghost town, except for the fact that we were in the twenty-first century. Swirling dust devils danced in the cool breeze. My furtive glances darted from one side to the other, taking in the lonely streets, dirty sidewalks, crumbling brick buildings, and boarded-up storefronts. I walked up Main Street and turned the bend. A rusty, red pickup immediately caught my attention.

  Claire grabbed my arm. “Look, Dean!”

  “I bet I can hotwire that thing!” Lucas said.

  “No…I can,” Val said.

  Nick rolled his eyes. “This isn’t a competition, you two.”

  I couldn’t help but stare at my sister. It looked like she’d painted her face green for a Halloween party. Her flesh had peeled away on her left cheek to expose a tiny patch of muscle, and what really freaked me out were her eyes. They were turning white, like our elderly aunt with the cataracts.

  A loud moan echoed through the air, and I realized it was coming from the rear of the truck. My brother motioned us back as he walked where a zombie stood, and my heart jumped.

  I stepped closer as the wind whipped through my hair. The thing was tied up inside the bed of the truck by its ankles, thrashing around like a cornered animal.

  Jackie stared at the zombie, and I could see the pain in her eyes. I knew she had to be thinking about the group she had lost to zombies.

  “Looks like someone was trying to stop it but didn’t have the heart to kill it,” I said.

  “It’s sad,” Jackie said. “Nobody deserves to be left like this. That could be any one of us.”

  “I think it’s far more cruel to leave a loved one or friend in this kind of condition,” Val said. “Please don’t ever do that to me.”

  “Never,” Nick said, quickly turning away to hide the tears that were welling up in his eyes. When he’d regained his composure, he turned to face Lucas. “Check for gas, and then you and Val get this truck hotwired.”

  Val smiled. “Guess we’re a team, Lucas.”

  “Right. We’re gonna need—”

  “A screwdriver?” She held one up.

  “You’re not like any girl I’ve ever met,” he said. “You’re cool, tough, and funny—and brave!”

  “Well, I’m not your typical gal. And don’t let the smile fool you. I never give up—not ever.”

  Claire pulled out her gun. “I have to kill that thing, put it out of its misery.”

  “And I hope you all know she’s not talking about me!” Val called back as Lucas pulled her along to the front of the truck.

  Claire met my gaze. “This poor soul wouldn’t want to be left this way. I need to do this if I’m ever gonna make it out here in this crazy world we now live in. I’ve gotta know that I still have some kind of compassion left in me and that I’m brave enough to face one of those things—and kill it.”

  “We’re gonna need you,” Nick said, “and yes, you have to be ready.”

  Claire slowly pulled out her gun and aimed. “I’m so, so sorry,” she said to the zombie, sniffling and wiping a tear from her cheek.

  “Aim straight for the center of the head,” I coached. “It’s the only thing that’ll kill them.”

  She nodded.

  The thing let out a loud howl, and Claire pulled the trigger. It dropped, crashing down with a loud thud, like a lifeless, filthy sack of potatoes.

  It was difficult watching her kill a human being that someone had once cared for. It coulda been somebody’s son, father, or brother. It could have been…Nick, I reasoned, and I felt like I was going to be sick all over again.

  Nick cut the rope, and I hopped into the bed of the truck. Jackie helped me heave the body over the edge and onto the ground, and I wiped my hands on a nearby rag.

  The engine clicked and finally started, so we could all breathe a little easier, knowing we had better transportation than our aching feet. I didn’t know where we were going to go, but the truck would help us get there faster.

  Lucas opened the divider window in the cab of the truck. “I’m driving, and Val’s riding up here.”

  “Sure, leave us exposed to the elements…and zombies,” I joked. But really, I didn’t mind riding in the back. There was only room for two or three in the front anyway, and there was no sense cramming ourselves in there like sardines.

  “Hey, how much gas is there?” Jackie asked.

  “Not much,” he said. “We’ll have to find some, but we have enough for now.”

  I bit my lip. “It’ll have to do.”

  “Let’s get on the road,” Val called over. “I mean, it’s only my fat butt on the line.”

  “For the record, I don’t agree,” Lucas said.

  Val shot him a look like she was shocked that he didn’t want to hurry up and save her life.

  “I mean…your butt’s not fat,” Lucas explained. “If you ask me, I think it’s perfection, and—”

  She playfully slugged him. “C’mon, Mr. Sweet Talker. Let’s get a move-on before all that perfection rots off before your very eyes.”

  In the distance, zombies stumbled toward us. I pounded on the glass window and motioned for Lucas to hit the gas, and fast.

  Chapter 5

  Val and Lucas chatted up front while the rest of us sang songs and told jokes in the back of the pick-up truck. The cool wind whipped through my hair as I watched the blur of scenery pass around me. I hardly saw any zombies on the plains, and it was somewhat comforting to know there were some zombie-less places in the world. Not every single patch of land was flooded with them like the horror movies suggested. We drove through a seemingly endless stretch of gravel roads and farmland. I tried to distract myself and not dwell on our circumstances.
I had faith that we’d find Tahoe and the vials; I had to have faith and hope because that was really all we had to rely on, besides each other. According to the tracking device, we were right on his tail.

  Val slid open the window divider. “Hey, guys, I’ve got bad news.”

  “What?” I asked.

  “The low fuel light just popped on.”

  “Bad news is right,” I said. “We’re gonna have to find a gas station,” I said with a grimace.

  Nick nodded. “Definitely, but gas station pumps aren’t gonna work without electricity.”

  Val squinted at a map. “We should be hitting a town soon. We’ll find some cars and siphon some gas.”

  “With what?” Jackie asked. “We don’t have a siphon hose.”

  “Yeah we do,” I said proudly. “I snagged one from the garage of that glass house for that very reason.”

  Nick met my gaze. “Yeah, after I told you to grab it.”

  He was trying to upstage me, as usual. “You’re just lucky it’s in my backpack,” I said.

  We found a small country store, Morning Glory Farm, on a desolate stretch of road before we reached the next town. It was a lucky find, as there were a few cars sitting in the back parking lot. Once we parked, I walked around to the front of the store. Colorful flowers and white-tipped ivy twisted around the railing and windows. A white sign exhibited the prices of fruits, vegetables, flowers, and firewood. In red, freehand painted lettering, they advertised free hay rides on the weekends. It was almost surreal—as if a little part of normal still lingered there and hadn’t been ruined by zombies.

  Jackie took a seat in the wicker rocker. “Mmm…I love the country. This place reminds me of my grandma’s farm.”

  “Yeah, it’s nice out here,” Claire said, “so peaceful and quiet.”

  “Yeah,” I said. “I would love to hole up here for the night.”

  But we all knew we couldn’t. We were in a hurry to find Tahoe and the stolen vials if we were going to save my sister. That was our top priority, as tempting as it was to sit there, rocking on that porch, pretending none of the horror had happened.