Zomb-Pocalypse 3 Read online

  “Are they crazy? Disarming you with all the shit that’s going on?” He looks like he’s about to blow a gasket.

  “I still have my knife,” I tell him, lifting my pant leg so he can see the handle sticking out of my boot. He looks a little placated at that.

  “Still…you would have a hard time getting that knife out in an emergency,” he tells me, pulling a handgun from behind his back and offering it to me. I stare at the shiny black weapon in his hand; it is identical to the gun my parents confiscated.

  “I don’t know if I should,” I admit. I was never a rebellious child.

  “Jane. Don’t be an idiot. You know what’s out there. Do you really want to be defenseless?” Silas demands, and I shake my head. I do know what’s out there and I do need protection. My parents mean well, but they think I’m still the peppy cheerleader I was when they left for New York—I wouldn’t have trusted that girl with a loaded gun either. But she is not me. I’ve had training from Silas, and more practice on moving zombie targets than I would like. I know how to handle it safely, and I don’t think I’m a danger to anyone who doesn’t deserve it. My fingers tremble as I reach out and take the gun from Silas’s hand. He’s right.

  Silas shows me how to tuck it in the back of my holster and cover the gun with my shirt. “You made the right decision,” he assures me. I smile at him, and he actually smiles back. I wonder if he’s going to kiss me again, but I never get the chance to find out because our moment is interrupted by shrill screams of terror.

  Silas whips another gun from his hip and takes off at a run, and I follow without giving it a thought. I almost reach for the gun but decide to go for the knife in my boot instead. I can grab the gun easily enough and if it turns out to be nothing, I don’t want my parents confiscating this one too because sooner or later Silas will run out of handguns to give me.

  We round the corner of the cabin and I stop short when I see the zombie growling and hissing as it advances on Abby and Natalie, who must’ve just walked out the front door, neither of them has a weapon. Silas doesn’t hesitate as he raises his gun, and his bullet punches neatly through the monster’s brain. The zombie goes down like a sack of bricks, just as my parents and everyone else comes running out to see what the commotion is all about.

  Hank goes running to Natalie and wraps her in a hug. “Are you okay?” he demands, and she manages to nod even though she’s shaking like a leaf. My mom runs over and hugs Abby, and my dad stares at Silas, who still has his gun out and is scanning the area for any more threats. Nothing stirs though, and he tucks his gun back into his holster.

  Dad frowns when he sees me standing outside, but he ignores me for a minute and turns to Silas. “Good job, young man,” he says, and I feel a small weight come off my shoulders at my dad’s approval of Silas. Ryan bursts out of the trailer; gun in his hand, with a towel wrapped around his waist and looks around, frowning when he sees the zombie on the ground.

  “Damn it. I thought we were safe up here,” he mutters, and it’s an echo of the sentiment we are all feeling.

  Damn it.

  Chapter Two

  “Jane, what on earth are you doing outside?” Mom demands as she comes to stand on the porch beside my father. Her eye snags on the zombie and she gasps.

  “I was helping Silas bring in some wood for the fire,” I tell her, and she frowns, though her eyes are glued to the zombie so she isn’t really paying attention to me anymore.

  “I didn’t think they could get up here,” she moans. My dad puts his hand on her shoulder and gives her a gentle squeeze.

  “We don’t know that they did,” Silas interrupts, and we all turn to stare at him. “This guy is wearing hunting camo,” he explains. “He could’ve been out in the woods hunting when he turned.” Everybody looks immediately relieved by Silas’ logic. “Or he climbed up the mountain,” Silas says, reinforcing the idea that we aren’t safe no matter how this thing got up here.

  “We’ll have to beef up security, that’s for sure,” Barry says. I hadn’t even noticed him standing in the doorway behind my parents. “I’ll put it on the list, maybe we can find some building supplies,” he says as he walks away, staring at a piece of paper in his hand.

  Mom wrings her hands and motions for me to come inside. I glance at Silas as he starts to drag the zombie away into the forest. “I’ll be fine,” he assures me, waving me away with a grunt, and I’m left with no choice but to follow my mother into the house. I see Ryan coming back out of the trailer fully dressed, and he rushes over to give Silas a hand.

  “Are you okay?” I whisper to Abby when I enter the living room and see her sitting on the couch, staring off into space. She nods, and I continue to stare at her until she gives in and makes eye contact.

  “That was really close,” she admits, and I let out a shaky breath.

  “I’m glad you’re okay,” I tell her. She goes to get up and walk away, but I grab her hand, remembering my pledge to myself last night not to let another day pass before I work things out with Abby. “You know you’re my best friend right?” I ask her, not really sure of anything anymore. Abby and Megan seem to have bonded, and I’m not really sure of my place anymore.

  Abby gives me a grief-stricken look. “Of course I know that, Jay.” she says, leaning into me, and tears start to fall down her cheeks. “It’s just so hard…” she trails off, obviously not wanting to say that having my parents turn up alive makes her heart ache even worse that hers will never show up and walk through that door. I nod—she doesn’t have to say it. I understand completely. I sit upright with a gasp, accidentally knocking Abby back on the couch. “What are you doing?” she asks, wiping her eyes as she stares at me. She probably thinks I’ve lost my mind.

  “It’s been so crazy since we got here, but I have something for you,” I tell her, remembering the stuff we picked up from her house when we drove through. I feel kind of like a jerk for waiting this long, though I have had a lot on my mind with the zombies and discovering my parents are alive. “Come on,” I tug her to her feet and head for the front door, but she balks.

  “We aren’t supposed to go outside, Jane,” she reminds me, and I can see her point. She did just run into a zombie outside these very doors.

  “I just have to run out to the RV. I’ll be right back,” I assure her, and she looks indecisive.

  “Okay, I’ll come with you,” she relents as she steps up to the door and looks carefully out the window before letting me open it.

  The camper is parked in the driveway, and I give a cursory knock but no one answers. “They must be getting rid of the body still,” I tell Abby as I grab the door handle and pull.

  “Are you sure you should go inside?” Abby asks hesitantly, and I shrug.

  “I’m sure they won’t mind,” I tell her, and she grudgingly follows me inside. I scan the camper; it is a lot messier than the last time I was in here. The boys have their clothes and stuff scattered everywhere. I head to the back bed, and Abby hesitates outside the small sliding privacy door.

  “Whose room is this?” she asks, and I shrug. I’m actually not sure. I haven’t been in here since the day we got to the cabin.

  “It was mine before,” I tell her, like that will ease her nerves about trespassing. The bottom half of the bed flips up and there is storage underneath. I lift it up, relieved to see my stuff still packed underneath. I pull out the garbage bags filled with Abby’s stuff and pass them over to her. Then I grab my own pink rolling suitcase, and we head for the door.

  “What is this?” Abby asks, poking the bags like she expects them to bite her, and I grin.

  “A surprise,” I tell her, and she smiles nervously at me.

  “I’m not sure about your surprises, Jane,” she tells me, and I laugh. You put a plastic snake in someone’s birthday card one time—and they never let you forget it!

  “No snakes,” I promise her as I throw open the door and find Ryan with his hand on the door handle. “Just getting our stuff,” I tell th
em even though they can see that for themselves. They step out of our way and we make it back to the cabin without incident. I notice that both Ryan and Silas purposely hang around outside the trailer until we are safely back inside.

  We drag our stuff upstairs to Abby’s room, and I’m instantly jealous of their space. I need to get away from my parents.

  “We have an extra air mattress,” Abby says when she sees me looking around. Megan is sitting on her own air mattress reading a book and Sunny is sitting on a small futon playing with some dolls.

  “It’s tempting,” I admit as I follow Abby over to her own bed and we sit down with the bags between us. “Open this one first,” I tell her excitedly as I hand her the bag with her grandmother’s quilt in it. She tears the bag open and goes still when she sees the first piece of material poking out.

  “Jane,” she whispers as she touches the quilt gingerly with her fingers. “How did you get this?” she asks, pulling it all the way out of the bag and hugging it to her chest. Her reaction is exactly what I had hoped for, and that makes everything I went through to get it worth it.

  “We drove through Pennsylvania on our way back,” I tell her. “I brought you some clothes too,” I say, tossing her the other bag, and she rips it open and dumps it on her bed.

  “This is amazing. I never thought I’d see these jeans again,” she exclaims as she hugs her favorite pair of jeans.

  “I tried to only grab the stuff that made sense,” I admit, in case she’s pissed I didn’t grab the dress she wore to Jr Prom, or something equally crazy.

  “You’re the best,” she tells me as she leaps across the bed and hugs me, and I’m glad we are back to normal. Everything has felt off since we got to the cabin. Abby pulls away and there are tears in her eyes. I know what’s coming before she even asks. “…Did you see them?” she asks, and my heart breaks for her.

  Tears well up in my own eyes as I nod, and she starts to sob. I reach into my front suitcase pocket and my fingers find the cold jewelry. I’m suddenly not sure if I should do this or if it will make things worse, but I press it into her palm anyway—I know that I would want it.

  Abby wipes her eyes before she looks down. Her hands shake when she sees both of her parents’ wedding rings and the necklace her grandmother always wore before passing it down to Abby’s mother. I took them off their zombie bodies after I got Silas to kill them.

  “Oh, Jane,” she whispers before breaking down.

  “I’m sorry,” I say. “Maybe I shouldn’t have…”

  Abby shakes her head. “No, I’m glad you did.” She takes several deep breaths before she can speak again. “Does this mean that they are...” She can’t bring herself to say it.

  “They aren’t zombies anymore,” I tell her, holding her hand. “They’re at peace, and they were together…” She nods as the tears leak down her face. Megan sets her book down and comes over and hugs Abby as well.

  “That was really nice, Jane,” Megan tells me, and I duck my head.

  “The boys helped,” I admit, feeling uncomfortable getting all the credit.

  Megan and I stare down at Abby awkwardly. “Why don’t I show you where that air mattress is?” Megan says, and I leap at the chance to give Abby some time alone.

  “Sure, thanks,” I say. I will deal with my mother later. I toss my suitcase in the corner of the room and follow Megan to the hallway closet. It’s jammed full of tennis rackets, extra sheets and blankets, camping gear, board games, and a blue inflatable air mattress on the top shelf, still in the box. I reach up on my tippy toes and grab it.

  “Score,” Megan says when we see that it comes with a foot pump.

  Sunny looks up from her dolls when we come back in and start setting up the bed. “You’re sleeping with us?” she asks, clapping her hands in excitement and making me smile.

  I nod, and Megan and I figure out the pump. We almost have the bed fully pumped up when there’s a knock on the door.

  My mom pokes her head in the room with a plate of store-bought cookies on a plate. She frowns when she sees me pumping up the mattress. “I brought you girls a little snack,” she says, coming into the room and setting the cookies down.

  Sunny pounces before my mom has barely gotten her hand out of the way. Mom glances over at Abby, who’s curled up with her Gran’s blanket, and looks worried. I shake my head at her, so she won’t go over and start asking her a million questions.

  “Can I talk to you for a second in the hall?” Mom asks me, and I nod, grabbing a cookie from the plate as I follow her out.

  “Wish me luck,” I mutter to Megan, and Sunny gives me the thumbs up.

  I shut the door with a click and lean against the wall. Mom is pacing already. “What’s going on, Jane?” she asks, and I shrug.

  “I want to sleep up here with the girls,” I say at last—might as well just rip the Band-Aid off and get it over with. My mom looks instantly hurt, and I feel guilty.

  “I don’t know if that’s the best idea, Janey,” she tells me, and I shake my head stubbornly.

  “I love you guys and I am overjoyed that we found each other. I was lost when I thought we’d never see each other again,” I tell her, and she starts to well up. “But, I need a bit of space too,” I complain, knowing I sound like a spoiled kid right now, but she’s my mom and I am a kid. “Besides, being upstairs is a lot safer than downstairs,” I point out, and I can see that she is considering my argument. “I’m not a baby,” I say, and she finally nods.

  “I know you’re not,” she admits, and I smile. This was a lot easier than I thought it would be. “I will try and loosen the reigns a bit,” she promises, and I give her a big hug.

  “Thank you,” I tell her sincerely, and she nods, biting her lip.

  “Why don’t you go back and hang out with your friends—you’re all very lucky to have ended up together,” she tells me, and I hug her again, knowing she is thinking about her own best friend. Mom clears her throat. “Why don’t you girls come down in an hour and give me a hand with supper,” she suggests, and I promise that we will.

  I go back in the room and give the girls a smile. “I can stay,” I tell them, and Megan and Sunny cheer—even Abby looks up from her bed and smiles a little. I look over the room at my hard won freedom and feel bored. What is there to do?

  Megan holds out a magazine to me and I take it, lying down on the inflatable bed so I can spread out and see what the latest Hollywood trendsetters were wearing. They are probably all zombies now, and that thought takes a lot of the fun out of it.

  It’s only been a few weeks since the world changed and fell apart, but already it feels wrong to just sit around doing nothing.

  I sit and stare at the magazine without really seeing it. My vision blurs and my mind starts to wander…

  Abby, shaking my shoulder startles me from my daze, and I look up in surprise. “You’ve been staring at that same page for an hour,” she accuses me, and I give a small shrug.

  “Is it already time to go downstairs?” I ask, and she nods. Megan is helping Sunny put away her dolls, so I follow Abby downstairs. There isn’t a lot to do when you don’t have a lot of food. We have the MRE’s, but the “adults” have decided that we don’t want to use them up in case it’s a lean winter. I see their point, but my mouth still waters when I think about the hearty beef stew and chocolate brownie I could be eating.

  Mom is boiling pasta on the camp stove when we walk in. I spot a couple jars of spaghetti sauce and some mixed veggies. We mix it all together in an enormous pot. Everyone grabs a plate and forms a line in the kitchen to get their share. We all eat in the living room in front of the huge stone fireplace. The adults claim the couch, and us kids sit cross-legged on the floor. It isn’t the most delicious thing I’ve ever tasted—there isn’t any meat—but it’s hot. I wolf it down so quickly that I burn my tongue, earning a reapproving look from my mom when I yelp, and a grin from Abby. I slow down a bit after that.

  “Is everything ready for tomorrow
?” Barry asks my dad, and my ears perk up. Dad looks around like he doesn’t want to discuss it here, but he does nod his head.

  I watch my mother glance over at my dad, worry etched into every line on her face. “I wish you didn’t have to go,” she whispers, and I avert my eyes so they won’t know I’m eavesdropping.

  Dad gives her a sad smile and brushes a finger over her cheek. “You will be safe here with Jane and the girls. Ryan’s offered to stay and watch over them, but I’m afraid Barry wants to take every other able body.” I glance over sharply at Ryan, but he isn’t looking at me; he’s focused on his meal.

  I feel an itch that starts at the back of my neck, and I turn to find Silas watching me. My stomach drops, and I’m suddenly not hungry. Ryan will be safe tomorrow, but Silas and my dad will be going down the mountain, back into the fray. Without asking, I already know that I am banned from even thinking about going on this trip. I realize I’ve been staring at Silas, lost in contemplation, when I see him look back down at his dinner, and I quickly look away.

  My heart aches. I’ve only just found my dad again, and now he’s leaving. If something happens and they don’t come back, we will never know the details. I push my plate away and stand up, offering my share to Sunny, who takes it with a wide grin on her face. She’s lost a front tooth since we got to the cabin, and it’s utterly adorable. I don’t head back to my room when I go upstairs, instead I detour to the large window at the end of the hall that leads out onto the roof. Abby and I used to sneak out here and watch the stars.

  It’s nearly dark, but at least up here I have nothing to fear. The air is cold and I feel it through my jeans as I sit on the shingles and stare out over the rooftop. It used to be relaxing, but now I can’t help wondering what is lurking down in the woods. I hear a scuffling behind me and turn to find Abby climbing through the window.

  “I’d almost forgotten about this,” she says as she settles beside me, and we huddle together to keep warm. “Are you okay?” she asks after a minute where neither of us say anything. I think about faking it, but this is Abby. I shake my head.