As the World Dies (14 page)

    "Okay. Let's get this done."

    Eric moved quickly to the trailer and tried to ignore the bloodstains on the blue tarp. He quickly untied the rope holding it in place and slid the tarp off. His luggage and luggage from the lost and found were carefully arranged on the trailer. Bright green tote bags that were used for grocery shopping were filled with food staples and water. He had been lucky enough to find them in the pantry.

    "Should we take it all up?"

    Eric looked toward her and considered this. "I don't know."

    Stacey looked up at the tower again. "Not that I want to carry things up there."

    Eric rubbed his nose then said, "Well, we're in the town we want to be. We just need to figure out how to get into the fort. That could take a few days. Peggy says they are going to clear out the zombies."

    "But if we take it all up with us and we have to leave fast…"

    Eric sighed. "Just half then?"

    Stacey bit her bottom lip then nodded.

    Eric began slinging some of the bags onto his shoulders and groaned at their weight. "This is not going to be easy."

    "We can use the rope to pull them up."

    Embarrassed, Eric blushed. "Oh, yeah."

    He grabbed the huge coil of rope he had packed along with the rope he had used to hold down the tarp.

    Stacey grinned at him. “Mr. So Well Prepared doesn’t know how well prepared he was.”

    “Shush, you,” he playfully said. “I maybe an engineer, but sometimes the simple things confuse me. You know if it’s not something I have to spend hours on and make a dozen designs for, I get confused.”

    “Somehow, I believe you.”

    Eric grinned and headed for the ladder.

    The climb to the top was not easy. Getting past the chain had been a little tricky, but not really hard. But he was tired and had not eaten since morning. His legs and arms burned as he pulled himself up the metal ladder. The cool night air was a welcome relief as sweat poured off his brow. Below, Stacey kept watch with the revolver in hand and Pepe's leash in the other.

    Finally, he reached the top and gripping the handrails firmly, pulled himself up over the edge and onto the catwalk. Turning, the night sky filled his vision and he felt awed by the sight. He was relieved he wasn't afraid of heights as the wind buffeted him and he looked down. The lights from the ATV illuminated Stacey's fit form and Pepe was barely visible.

    The catwalk was around three feet wide and quite sturdy. The water tower was from the turn of the last century and very old fashioned. It had a peaked roof and the edges of it partially stuck out over his head giving slight shelter.

    Shivering from the cold air, he tied the rope around the sturdy wood railing and dropped it down to Stacey. Thankfully, with the second rope tied to it, it was long enough to reach the ground. Immediately, she began tying bags onto it and Eric hoisted them up.

    It took longer than they expected to get everything up, but Pepe remained calm the entire time. Evidently all the dead were at the construction site. Finally, Stacey killed the lights on the ATV, shoved Pepe into the jacket, and made the long climb up. When she reached the catwalk, Eric reached out and helped steady her. She looked tired and overwhelmed in the moonlight.

    "Welcome home," he quipped.

    She rolled her eyes, but thankfully slid down to sit on the walkway. Pepe peeked out and looked around with fear in his eyes.

    "It's okay, Pepe. Just don't get near the edge," Eric said and stroked the little dogs head.

    Stacey gently lifted Pepe out of the jacket and set him on the catwalk. The little dog nosed around and dared a brief look over the edge then darted back to the wall.

    Though he was exhausted, Eric knew they needed shelter from the wind. He had been a very thorough packer and pulled out duct tape and wet wipes. Leaving Stacey to recover from the climb, he wiped down the blue tarp she had folded and sent up earlier. He hated to litter, but he dropped the wipes over the edge so she wouldn’t have to see the blood. He commenced to use duct tape, the tarp and some of the rope to construct a makeshift tent. It formed a long narrow shelter for them to sleep in.

    Stacey pulled the wet wipes over to her and pulled one out to clean her face and neck.

    "Brandy never went anywhere without packing those," Eric said softly. He began to wrap the rope around the railing posts. He basically wove a safety net for them by threading the rope back and forth then finally tying it.

    "What was she like?"

    "Beautiful," Eric answered and tested the rope to see if it was secure. It held and he was comforted that neither of them would roll off in the middle of the night.

    "What else?" Stacey pulled another wipe out and began on her arms.

    Eric sat back in the shelter and thought for a second. The first word that had come to his mind was "demanding", but he was loath to say that. He fumbled for something to say that sounded good, but he was surprised to come up empty.

    Stacey looked toward him curiously. "I guess I shouldn't have asked. Sorry."

    "It's not that," Eric admitted. "I just…she was very high maintenance. My friends called her a bitch and worse. But I loved her. She was so beautiful and stylish and…" He faltered again. "That sounds so shallow."

    Pepe scooted along the side of the water tank and into the shelter. Out of the wind and away from the terrifying view, he relaxed.

    Stacey crawled over to the edge of the shelter and he saw her lips were trembling from the cold. "Sometimes we love the wrong people for all the wrong reasons."

    Eric felt his throat constrict as he realized her words were true. "I did love her. And, yeah, it was for all the wrong reasons. But…"

    Stacey gave him a little hug and crawled over him to sit out of the wind. "I know. I had one of those boyfriends."

    Eric sighed. "Sucks, doesn't it?"

    "Oh, yeah."

    Eric smiled and began to go through the bags. He handed her some cans of food and a can opener while he searched for the bedding and something for her to wear.

    In an hour they were settled in. The comforters from the bed and breakfast were folded over and laid end to end to make a bed for each of them. The king-size pillow would have to be shared and it was set in the middle of the two beds. Stacey stacked some of the bags up at her end of the shelter to keep the wind out and Eric kept the other end open just a bit.

    "I didn't think cold beanie weenies could taste so good," Stacey said after a long moment. She sat with her back against the water tank clad in one of his T-shirts and his pajama bottoms. Pepe was curled up on her lap and she gently stroked his fur.

    "Yeah. I think it’s the best thing I've eaten in forever," Eric agreed.

    He lifted the water bottle he was clutching and sipped the warm water. The moonlight illuminated the world and he could clearly see the outline of the trees and the edges of the town. They were so close now.

    "It doesn't seem real," Stacey said. "Any of this."

    "I know."

    "If anyone told me a week ago that I would be trapped in the community center with zombies for days, then have to run for my life, shoot my undead brother, ride an quad bike with a guy and his dog, and sack out at the top of a water tower, I would have told them they were freaking nuts."

    "I had to kill Brandy," Eric said after a beat.

    Stacey looked toward him. "Really?"

    "Yeah."

    "I'm sorry."

    Eric let out a long sigh. "At least she's at peace now."

    The young woman nodded and then said, "I have to think that way about Sean, don't I?"

    "It makes it easier," Eric admitted. "Better they be at peace then wandering around like that."

    Stacey slowly lay down and Pepe curled up behind her back, squeezing between the water tower and her body. He was obviously afraid of the fall.

    "I know you're right, but…" She curled up and sighed.

    Eric lay down, too. They were head to head, lying in opposite directions. She smelled of baby wipes and it was a strangely comforting smell.

    "We'll be okay," he said softly. He believed it now that they were so close to the fort. "We'll find a way to join the others. We'll be safe."

    She reached her hand out over the top of the pillow and his fingers closed around it.

    It took some time, but finally, they both fell asleep.

Chapter Nineteen

Where It All Goes To Hell

    Eric woke up to the sound of gunshots in the distance. Pepe began to bark and Stacey sat up sharply. The steady pop pop pop of small arms was interlaced with the crack of rifles being fired. Eric scrambled to his feet and shoved past the bags in the opening of the tent. Reaching down, he fumbled through the bag he had shoved his binoculars into and moved along the catwalk to try and see if he could get a view of what was going on.

    "They must be clearing out the zombies at the fort," Stacey said as she joined him. Pepe was in her arms and his ears were perked up at the sounds in the distance.

    The morning light had washed away all the shadows and the town was laid out clearly before them. The downtown area was full of old red brick buildings; several were close to four stories tall. Most appeared to be abandoned. A tall ten-story red brick building towered over the downtown area and the construction site was huddled up against the base of it. Eric could barely make out one area of the fort. What he saw made his heart leap.

    A man and a woman were dangling from what looked like a pulley system over the outer rim defense made up of construction trucks. Under them on the trucks was a mass of the undead that were trying to grab them.

    "Are they bait?" Eric lowered the binoculars and handed it to Stacey.

    She took them and trained them where he pointed. He could see her mouth tense then she handed the binoculars back. "I don't think so. I think something has gone wrong."

    Eric returned to gazing through the binoculars at the fort. He tried to figure out exactly what was going on, but the scene was pretty chaotic. The gunshots continued and he could see the zombies toppling over. "I wonder if the zombies figured out how to get in."

    Stacey held Pepe closer, snuggling him protectively. The little dog's ears were twitching as he listened to the sound of the weapons firing in the distance. "Eric, if they are getting in where are we going to go?"

    Eric looked toward Stacey, hearing the tremor in her voice, and reached out to touch her shoulder gently. With all the grime wiped off her face and her hair hanging around her face, she looked very young and fragile. "We'll be okay. I promise. Somehow we'll find away." He was surprised that he firmly believed his words.

    She smiled slightly and nuzzled Pepe. "What's happening now?"

    For the next thirty minutes, Eric narrated what he saw. It was hard to tell exactly what was happening with his limited view, but it did seem like the Fort was winning. The zombies that had clustered under the dangling people were wiped out. The woman undid her harness and dropped down out of view while the black man was drawn back and lowered out of sight.

    The gun shots died away.

    "They’re lifting a blond woman over the wall. She looks unconscious. And they're lifting a man over, too," Eric said.

    "Do you think they're bitten?"

    "No. Peggy told me it was the bite that was dangerous, so I think they know better than to bring in bitten people. Maybe they got hurt some other way." Eric rubbed his brow and looked toward Stacey. "Let’s get some breakfast than I'll check and see what's up. If it’s clear, maybe we can get to the Fort today."

    "Okay. Sounds good," she answered and set Pepe down.

    The little dog stayed close to the wall as he trotted back to their tent.

    They ate ravioli from a can and drank some water. Pepe munched on the kibble Eric had packed for him. Stacey sat in silence through most of the meal and Eric didn't blame her. Even though they had slept well, they were both emotionally and mentally exhausted. He had to admit he felt the urge to lie back down and sleep. His entire body ached from yesterday and he rubbed his shoulder with one hand.

    Stacey's body was covered in bruises and he felt terrible for her. Her expression was rather empty and he suspected she was trying hard not to think about the loss of her father, brother and entire town. He left her to her silence and went back to studying the fort.

    The activity was calmer now and it looked like the zombie assault on the fort was over. In fact, everyone he could spot through the binoculars was grinning. Feeling relieved, he moved back to Stacey's side. Pepe was lying on her lap getting his ears scratched.