A Glimpse of Decay (Book 3): Lost in Twilight (10 page)

“Well baby, we’re gonna fight our asses off, I can tell you that.”  Realizing that he had just called Shondra by a name that was affectionate and usually reserved for a love interest, he quickly apologized.  “Oops, sorry, didn’t mean to call you ‘baby.’ ”

Feeling a bit awkward at Vincent’s apology, she replied, “It’s okay, you don’t have to apologize.  Remember, we’re not supposed to be sorry for anything anymore.  That includes feelings.”

“Okay, cool,” Vincent chuckled.  “I didn’t want you to think that I was like trying to get fresh with you or anything like that.”

“I know you didn’t mean anything by that,” she acknowledged.  She tried to quickly brush away the moment, but she found herself wanting—no, she found herself needing—the comfort and security of a man.  She didn’t even know if Vincent found black girls attractive, but she was wishing that she could wrap herself up in his arms and feel protected from all of the insanity that was going on around them—even though she had known the man for only a few days.

After they finished the rest of their meal—mostly in an awkward silence—the two went back upstairs and made their way onto the roof through an access hatch which was in the room that housed the air conditioner unit.  Forgetting to put on her boots, Shondra found the cracked and rough asphalt roof uncomfortable on her feet, so she went back down to the bedroom and put on her foot wear.

The façade on the front of the building extended above the roof and rose to the height of their chests, forming a small wall.  The two were able to hide themselves from the view of the runners and reanimated down on the street.  The sun was threatening to dip below the horizon and darkness was falling.  Looking north, they were able to see the city skyline over the surrounding trees.

Several large plumes of black smoke were coiling up into the sky and Shondra commented that the smoke must have been from out of control fires.  Down below on the street were several abandoned cars, including one that had crashed into a phone pole.  Its charred hulk sat empty and Vincent thought that he could make out blood smears on the window of the open driver’s door.

Looking back south, several more plumes of smoke billowed up into the darkening evening sky.  The street lights were flickering on and the shadowy forms of the infected and undead were cast in an odd, amber shroud.

“Damn, seeing those lights come on makes me wonder just how much longer the power is going to stay on,” Vincent said.  “I mean sooner or later, it’s got to go off.  Especially if no one’s working the power plants.”

“You’re right, and we’ve got to be ready for that when it happens,” Shondra suggested.  “If we could just get into the ready room at headquarters.  I’m sure they got lots of equipment there, including weapons.”

“Yeah, problem is, they don’t entrust lowly beat cops with the access to get in there.  Anyway, I’m sure someone with the security code already made it in there and cleaned out the place.”

“I’m sure you’re right,” Shondra agreed.

“Well, that just means that we have to go on a hunt tomorrow.”  Vincent pointed at the homes just off to their east.  “That’s the King William District.  We’ll start there.  I’m sure we can come across some good stuff in those houses.  Those are some rich people who live there—or who lived there—so there’s no telling what we’ll come across when we get in there and start looking around.  Plus, I’m sure there’s gotta be some guns too.  Now, the whole trick is…not to get killed while we’re doing all of this.”

As she continued listening to Vincent talk she realized that she really didn’t know very much about the man in front of her.  Here she was, looking at possibly spending that last days of her life with him, and she didn’t even know who he was.

Deciding to make an effort to acquaint herself with him a little more, she asked abruptly, “So, you’re not married?”

Caught off guard by her question, he looked at her with a baffled expression and answered, “Uh…no…I’m not married.”

“Ever been married?”

“Uh, no.  Been close… once.”  He paused and sighed as he reflected on a long ago relationship.  “And you...what about you?”

“I got married when I was eighteen.  Broke my momma’s heart.  She wanted me to go to college and be something important, but I was dumb and I was in love with someone who ended up being a loser.  I was divorced eighteen months later on.  I joined the Army after that…and, well, that’s what brought me here to San Antonio.”

“How long have you been here in San Antonio?” Vincent asked her as he peered over the façade wall.

“I’ve been here for three years.  Been on the department just over two years.”

“Did you have any kids?”

“No…thank God.”  She looked at the rising moon and noticed that it was a full.  “I couldn’t imagine having to go through this with kids by my side.  What about you…you have any kids?”

Vincent chuckled as he looked down, shaking his head.  “No, no kids.”

“”How long have you been on the department?” she asked.

“This makes my eleventh year.”  Turning back to her, he realized that she was interrogating him and he decided to turn the tables on her.  “And you and your boyfriend…were you serious with him?”

“Jamel?” she sighed.  “I had only been dating him for two months.  He was nice and all, but I didn’t get to see him very much because he was still on active duty.”

“Yeah, I bet it made it hard to spend time with each other.”

“It did.”  She sighed again as she reflected on Jamel.  “So, it’s just you and your parents?”

“Yeah, just us.  Guess they didn’t want to have more kids.”  Vincent let his own troubled sigh and looked off into the darkness.  “I just hope they’re okay.  I don’t know where they could have gone to.”

“I hope my momma and my sister are okay back in Houston.”

“I just feel so fucking helpless, but I know that if we go off running around in the city, we’d be putting ourselves in danger.”  He turned and looked at her, trying to smile and hide his uncertainty and fear at the same time.

Stepping up to the façade, she looked over and down at the street below.  Several of the wandering zombies were moaning and groaning and the sounds unnerved her.  “I know that they can’t get up here, but do you mind if we go back inside.  It’s getting dark and I’m kind of creeped out.”

“Naw, I don’t mind.  Anyway it’s time to get inside.  We ought to get sacked in for the night.  We’re going to need our strength for tomorrow.”  He looked out towards downtown one last time and noticed the orange glow of the burning fires as they illuminated the horizon.

As the two made their way back to the roof hatch, Shondra stopped and turned to Vincent.  Apprehensively she said, “Uh, if you want to, it’s okay if you sleep in the bed with me tonight.  I know it’s gotta be uncomfortable on that couch.”

Vincent looked at her in the twilight and he saw fear in her eyes.  He could sense that she was looking for security, and he knew that he needed it too.  Although they had only known each other for several days, he knew that it would feel good to lie next to a warm body for the night.  He needed compassion and reassurance, and although he really wasn’t thinking about anything sexual, he felt comfort in knowing that they would be next to each other in the safe confines of the bed.

“I think I’d like that,” he said as darkness fell over them.

Day 26

San Antonio, Texas: Somewhere in the King William Residential District

“Look, I found a couple of aluminum bats in the closet upstairs,” Vincent said as he walked down the creaky wooden staircase.  “Must have been a kid’s room or something.  It had sports posters all over the walls.”

“Shush, don’t be so loud,” Shondra scolded as she raised her index finger to her lips.  She looked around nervously, hunching down as she peeked through the curtains of the parlor window.  “They might hear us.”

Vincent tip-toed over to Shondra and placed his hand on her shoulder.  “Do you see them?”

“Yeah, there’s two of them right across the street.  They look like the slow ones.  I think I can see another one the end of the block.  He looks like a fast one.  They may have heard all the noise we made when we broke in through the back door.”

Hunching down over her back, Vincent laid his chin on her shoulder, studying the two zombies who were meandering around in the front yard of a large two-story home.  A bright white picket fence and the eye catching yellow paint of the house told of the creativity of the home owners.  One of the ghouls—a woman who’s right thigh had been gnawed down to the bone—was dragging the savaged leg as she walked around in circles.  He noticed that the other walking corpse was starting to turn colors and its complexion was taking on a dark-bluish hue.

“I wonder if those are the owners of that house?” he asked aloud.

“If they are, then that’s sad.  Real sad.  Like they don’t have anywhere else to go.”

“You know, if it weren’t for those fucking things out there, you wouldn’t know that anything is wrong.  Just look at the neighborhood.  Perfect.  Giant, Victorian style homes, big plush yards, gardens and big shade trees.”

“I know.  Makes it even that much more depressing.”  Shondra sighed deeply and shook her head.

After getting his fill of the depressing scene, Trent walked out of the parlor and into a long hallway.  The carpeted passageway fed into the kitchen and dead-ended at the back door.  Although they had wedged a kitchen table chair under the doorknob, he wanted to double check to make sure the jerry-rigged barricade was still holding firm.  “Well, if they did hear us, none of them are trying to get in from the back side.  I guess that’s a good thing.”  He tugged on the chair for good measure to make sure that it wasn’t going to slide out from under the knob.

After reassuring that the two reanimated corpses out front were the only ones close by, Shondra stood up and walked into the kitchen with Vincent.  “So, what else did you find?  Any guns?”

“Nope, no guns, but I found bats.  And right about now, they’re just as good as guns.  We can save our bullets by using these bats.’

“Shit, I don’t wanna get close enough to have to use a bat on one of those things.”

“Well, you might not have a choice if we find ourselves in a jam,” Vincent said as he extended a bat towards her.  “Here, take one.”  Begrudgingly, she took the bat and let it dangle from her hand.

“I’ve never hit anyone with a bat before,” she said.

“That makes two of us.  I guess we just make sure we swing for the head.”

Not wanting to contemplate any scenario where she would be forced to use the bat, she placed the head on the floor and leaned it up against the wall.  She then made her way over to the pantry.  “I’m going to see what they have as far as food goes.”

“Sounds good.  I’m going to look around and see if there’s anything else we might be able to use.”  He watched Shondra for a moment as she opened the door to the pantry.  Although he knew that he was just going to be in the next room, he found himself not wanting to leave her alone.  After shaking off the sudden surge of anxiety, he walked back towards the parlor.  Directly across from the parlor was a living area with a large flat screen TV and several nice leather couches.  After rummaging around the room, he decided to take the batteries from the TV remote control and he placed them in his pocket.

As Vincent continued his hunt for supplies, Shondra took a break from gathering the canned food and crept up to a small window that was over the kitchen sink.  She pulled the blinds to one side to make sure that the back yard was empty.  She knew that the door was barricaded, but she wanted the reassurance of knowing that the backyard was clear of any reanimated or runners.  After satisfying her curiosity, she went over to the pantry again and continued her scavenging.

“Where do you think they all went to?” Vincent asked as he walked back into the kitchen.

Startled at his voice, Shondra spun around and was grabbing for her pistol.  “Shit, you scared me!”

“Damn, I’m sorry,” he apologized.

“I thought you were still looking around for stuff.”

“There’s really not much here.  I took some batteries from the T.V. remote.  I am sure we’re going to need lots of batteries before this is over with.”

Turning back to the pantry, Shondra continued her task.  She pulled a can of spaghetti from the shelf and held it out for Vincent to see.  “They got like ten cans of this.  And canned vegetables and several cans of soup.  Oh, and there’s a case of bottled water on the floor in here.”

Not really paying attention to Shondra’s inventory, he asked again, “Where do you think they all went to?”

“Who, the people of this house?” she asked as she continued to fill a backpack with the canned food.

“Well, yeah, these people…but I mean everyone around here.  Seems like no one is left in the neighborhood.  Or at least that we can see.  There are hardly any cars on the street or in the driveways.”

“Maybe they tried to make it to the evacuation points?  Maybe they’re all safe at some refugee center?”

“Maybe?” Vincent said as he sat down at a small breakfast table.  “Who knows?  Maybe they left town or something.  It’s just weird how the whole place seems so empty.  It’s like we’re the only ones left around here.  I know we’re not the only ones left in the city, but you would figure that we would see at least some people around here.”

Finished with her rummaging, Shondra walked over to the table that Vincent was sitting at.  She eased the bag down on the floor.  “Well, we got some dinner for the next couple of days,” she said as she plopped down into a chair.  “You think we should go to another house?”

Pondering her question for a couple of seconds, Vincent leaned back in his chair, balancing it on its back legs.  “I don’t know.  It seems safe enough right now, but maybe we should just play it smart and head back to the office.  What do you think?”

“Yeah, I think you’re right.  Let’s get back home.  Anyway, we’ve got enough food to last a few more days.”

“Alright, then let’s do this.  Don’t forget your bat.”  Vincent pointed at the bat as he stood up.  He walked over to the back door and peeked out through the window.  “Looks clear.  Now’s the time to make our move.”

With her bat in hand and her rifle slung over her back, she struggled to balance the weapon over the pack she was carrying.  “Okay, I’m ready,” she said in a dogged voice.

Vincent removed the chair, making every effort to keep from creating any unnecessary noise.  With a gentle twist of the door knob, the two slipped out of the house and skirted along the wall as the made their way to the front yard.  With the architect office within walking distance of the neighborhood they had been scavenging in, they had decided to leave the patrol car back in the parking lot of the building.  Shondra was now beginning to regret that decision as she nervously looked around.  Out of the corner of her eye she caught a glimpse of some movement, but she couldn’t tell what it was.

“Something doesn’t seem right,” Vincent said.

“What do you mean?” she asked as she tried to focus in on the activity she had seen.

“Those things.  They’re not around like I thought they would be.”

“Well, there were the two who were across the street, and then the one—oh shit, there’s two more of them over at the other end of the street.”  She pointed to her left.

Turning to see what his partner was talking about, he saw two more figures stumbling around near the far end of the block.  “Guess they haven’t seen us.  Probably because we are so far off.”

“Well I’m glad there aren’t a bunch of them running around.  I don’t care where they’re at, as long as they aren’t here.”

As the two continued their trek back to the office, Shondra looked off to her right and saw a small park.  She sighed and said, “Just think, that place should be full of kids…running around and playing.  And now it’s all empty.  And there’s no telling what has happened to all the kids.”

“Try not to think of things like that.  It only makes matters worse.”  He glanced over at the playground, and as he was about to look away, he saw something that made him take a double take.  “What is that?”

“Where?”  Shondra shifted her eyes left and right as she tried to see what Vincent was talking about.

“Over by the tree there.  At the edge of the park.  It looks like a kid’s car seat.  What the hell is it doing out here?”

Shondra focused on the big shade tree and saw a child’s safety seat sitting behind the base of the tree trunk.  “Should we check it out?” she asked hesitantly.

“Umm, I don’t know.  I guess so.”  Vincent quickly scanned the area around the park, and after making sure that it was clear, he looked at Shondra.  “Let’s go.”

Shondra looked back towards the office and then back at the child’s seat.  The rear side of the carriage was facing them and from where they were standing, they couldn’t see if anyone was sitting inside of it.  A sense of uncertainty was starting to come over her and she was about to tell Vincent that maybe they should just go back to their shelter, but by then Vincent was already out ahead of her.

Shondra trotted after him and as she caught up to him, she began to say “Vincent, maybe we should just—”

“Shush,” he said as he signaled with his hand for her to lower her voice.  “You hear that?”

Shondra stood still as she tried to hear what Vincent was talking about.  And then she heard it.  Coming from the child’s seat.  A sad, lonely moaning—from a whimpering, weak sounding voice.  And then the horror hit Shondra like a pane of glass falling from a ten story building; her senses shattering into a million terrified shards.

“No!” she cried out as she dropped the bat and crossed her arms, clutching at herself.  “Please tell me that’s not what I think it is!”  Tears began to cascade down her face in an uncontrollable torrent.

Vincent knew what was inside of the carriage, and as he grappled with his emotions, anger began to build up in him.  He turned to Shondra; a look of hatred on his face.  “Shut up!”  He walked over to her, grabbed her by her shoulders and gave her a jolting shake.

“But that’s a baby in there!” she cried out as she pointed at the seat.  “And it sounds like it’s one of those things.”

“And crying isn’t going to do anything for it!” he coldly responded.  “So stop your crying because it’s pissing me off!”  Not knowing what else to do, he turned and walked up to the seat.  He kept his vision fixed on the houses in front of him and slowly maneuvered his way around to the front of the carriage.  He didn’t look down immediately as he tried to prepare himself for what he was about to see, and when he finally did glance down, what he saw made him start sobbing like a child.

Sitting in the car seat was Brianna, her head hanging grotesquely to on side.  Her skin complexion was a mixture of green and dark blue, and dried vomit was caked around her mouth and nose.  Her milk white eyes were looking up at Vincent and she whimpered and groaned.

The stench of Briana’s decomposing flesh made Vincent gag and he began to heave between his sobs.  He stepped back from the pitiful sight and he looked up at the sky.  Gripped with an overwhelming combination of fear, desperation and confusion, and feeling like he had been abandoned to this living hell, he no longer felt like he was in control of his emotions and he screamed out in rage and anger.

“Why God?”  He raised his bat and pointed it to the heavens.  “Is this the way you’re going to punish us?  Is this your judgment?”  He stepped up to the carriage and gripped the neck of the bat with both of his hands.  “Then I say this to you!”  With all of his might, he brought the bat down onto Brianna’s head, bursting it like a grape.  “The hell with you!  We don’t need you!  We can make it on our own!”  Vincent raised the bat and continued his assault on the child’s still body.  He grunted and screamed and in a maddening flurry, he smashed the body and the carriage into pieces.

“Stop!” Shondra screamed as she grabbed onto Vincent.  “Please stop!  You’re scaring me.”

Still caught up in his rage, Vincent yanked away from her and continued the assault on Brianna’s smashed corpse.  He was covered in blood and grime and he wailed as he swung the bat.  Soon, there was nothing left to hit and Vincent stood there, out of breath and sobbing.

“Why is this happening?” he cried as he looked at Shondra. 

Not knowing if she should approach him, she stayed back and said as she wept, “I don’t know, but we can’t lose it.  If we do, we won’t make it through this.”

“But do we really want to make it through this?  I mean, what do we have to look forward—”