Clifton Falls (19 page)

Hazel was on duty again, and with her were Jason’s parents and Wayne.
“How’s he doing?” Mike asked her.
“He’s stable at the moment, but that could change at any time. He’s become very weak and I don’t think he’ll make it through the night.”
Mike couldn’t bear to think that he was about to lose another officer. It was all too much.
The dying man’s parents wanted to be here for him during this awful and nightmarish ordeal. The poor, helpless man had already taken a turn for the worse within the past hour, so it wasn’t looking good for him. Donald and Dawn now stood with their heads down, praying. This was their way of coping.
“Let’s hope we find a cure soon. I don’t want any more of my officers dying on me this week, so I’m going to try really hard to save this one.” Mike said, hoping that Jason would recover, but knowing that he probably wouldn’t.
Everyone, except for Shane listened attentively to Mike’s words, and all ignored the stranger. Shane seemed detached from the scene as he stood, staring at a lifeless Jason in the bed, a man who was invisible to him, a man laid out inside a private glass chamber.
“Do you know how long he’s got?” Mike asked.
Hazel was aware of the tension in the air. “I’ve just been in to check on him and he’s not looking good. That bite is very infectious now and spreading, so once it reaches his heart it’ll be the end for him.” Mike watched her lips and followed every word she spoke, but still hoped for a cure to arrive. “I’m sorry, there’s nothing more I can do. If we don’t find an antidote for this soon then he’s going to die.”
Shane still felt weary on the subject but somehow, his eyes filled with tears. He now realized that the chief thought the man was ill because of his mixture. He felt confused and saddened, but didn’t know how he could help. How could he prevent everyone’s hearts from being ripped out of their bodies once the poor man in the bed faded off into the blackness of no man’s land? Mike swallowed hard before turning to him. “Could you come with me please?”
Both men moved away from the scene, walking round the nearest corner. There was no need for the chief to re-structure a conversation on what happened here, Shane wasn’t stupid and knew there was a connection between himself and an officer lying half dead behind a glass cage. The fertilizer was sending him from hero status to villain, so was he still going to stand by his creation after all this?
“I’m confused. You’re saying I’m to blame for all the tragedy and then you say maybe I’m to blame. Which is it?” Shane asked.
“Let’s just say that whenever there’s a victim, your stuff ends up being top of our most wanted list,” Mike snapped back.
“Okay, I’m here to help if you need me.”
“I know you are.”
Mike smiled, but it wasn’t the smile between two friends, it was more of a ‘you aren’t going anywhere until I say so’ smile.
He left Shane to hide for a few more minutes while he spoke to Wayne. “I’m off back to the station now. I want you to keep me informed of any progress.”
“Will do...”
Mike said his farewells to the other people. He walked back to Shane, but still no one asked why he was there. They’d a more important person on their minds at this time. The two men made their way out of the building.
Mike passed Blake’s phone number to Shane. If he were so intent on helping then he would have to team up with the guy who bought the fertilizer. They spoke back at the station for another fifteen minutes then Shane received a dozen reminders of the contact details before eventually leaving for the night.

TWENTY-THREE

Wayne became solo. He remained seated outside Jason’s private quarters when the clock struck 9.00pm, but an attempt to stay awake failed him and he nodded off. While Wayne slept, Jason’s heart stopped beating. His arteries finally clogged up with the deadly virus. This was the first sign of the deadly change. Moving eyes now hid behind lifeless lids as the latest victim to the other side lay beneath the sheets.

Chris had caught up with Mike back at the station. The news on Jason’s health shocked him, so the nosey reporter re-visited the hospital. Hazel spotted him entering the building and watched him closely. He may’ve fooled her before with that stupid disguise but she was on top of the situation now. She smiled when the memories drifted back into her head.

“All right, love. Do you know where I can find Officer Strong?” “Yeah, I know where he is.” She couldn’t let their last meeting slip by without saying something. “You’re that little shit who gave me a load of crap about being related to the dead couple.”

Chris stooped down his head, but it wasn’t because he experienced a sudden surge of embarrassment about what he did. In fact, he was actually sniggering to himself.

“Yeah, I’m sorry about that, but I needed some information. It’s in my job description to talk crap. I have to do what it takes to get the job done.”

“Why didn’t you just tell me who you were - And that you’re working with the police?” Hazel asked.
“That would’ve been too easy. What would I do with my many disguises if I couldn’t use them every now and then?” he replied.
“Whatever.” Hazel said.
She led him to the corridor of gloom, then left to carry on with her own work. Chris made his way to the room of the latest catastrophe. Wayne was sleeping like a baby so he browsed over to the bed, seeing for himself the proof that Jason was ill.
A man lying down and not moving wasn’t a good sign at all.
Suddenly, Wayne bolted upright, wiped his eyes and stared at the human standing in front of him. He glared at Chris and bellowed out. “What the fuck are you doing here?”
Chris remained calm, taking his attention away from the sick man to focus on Wayne. “I’ve come to see how you are and to check on the patient.”
A sly smile escaped from the sergeant. He knew Chris was a snake and probably up to no good. “Fuck off. You’re up to something.”
“This is off the record. I’m not working now. I’ve just left Mike and thought I’d pop down to keep you company. He’s rushing around trying to find the answer to solving this.”
Those words left Wayne thinking suspicious thoughts.
Was he being genuine? Or did he have something up his sleeve?
“So, you want to keep me company. I’ll accept that for now.”
He made it clear that he wasn’t in the mood for any sneaky bullshit, but would let the other man prove his worth. They began to discuss Jason’s progress. Chris was dismayed to hear that there’d been no improvement.
“Have you spoken to him recently?” he asked.
“I haven’t spoken to him for a while. Hazel told me to let him sleep.”
Both men looked over at the stiff sight. After a couple of silent minutes the reporter did the right thing and changed the subject.
“So, Wayne, do you have a girlfriend?”
He took his time to answer. “Yeah, it’s early days at the moment so not many people know.”
“Have you considered getting hitched? Or having kids?”
Wayne seemed pleased that Chris was trying to distract him. He knew he needed to think about normal, everyday life. The conversation developed and Chris even managed to make him smile. The reporter had plenty of enemies through his job choice but was able to escape from awkward situations because of his ability to make them laugh. By the time people stopped laughing, they’d forgotten to hit him.
“Thanks, Chris,” Wayne said, shaking the other man’s hand.
“For what...?”
“For making me smile, for being here at this moment in time, for not being a complete twat. You pick one?”
Chris waited for Wayne’s words to stop flapping in the atmosphere before commencing with his own.
“Can I pick all three?” There was a slight intermission before both men smiled at each other. “So, can we bury the hatchet and become friends now?”
“I’d rather bury the hatchet in your back than become friends with you.”
Wayne tried hard to keep a straight face, but couldn’t maintain it. Chris knew he was joking and so the tension wall tumbled down.
“Would you like a cup of coffee? I need to stretch my legs,” Wayne said, lifting up from his seat.
“Yeah, that would be great. Could you put two sugars in mine please?” Chris glanced over at Jason. “I’ll keep an eye on your mate. If I notice any change, I’ll let you know.”
“Cheers,” a very tired Wayne replied.
The sergeant headed off. He took another route before fetching the drinks and walked outside the building. He’d been doing well with not smoking, but at this moment in time couldn’t stop thinking about sucking on a cigarette to feel relaxed.
Chris noticed a movement from beneath the sheets of the patient’s bed, so watched closely for more activity. It happened again and again. The covers were being manoeuvred by the figure underneath them. He scratched his head. “The poor guy probably just turned in his sleep,” he muttered, feeling slightly apprehensive now.
He didn’t want to alarm Wayne with this information so continued to watch. The covers moved more rapidly now, spooking him out, but being the daredevil type he decided to enter the forbidden chamber to check on the man. Chris stood next to the bed and stared at the figure before nervously gripping the sheet covering Jason’s face. It was pulled past the nose. The dead man’s eyelids shot open like a roller-blind, instinctively knowing someone was near. A bloodshot, white focus now formed around his eyeballs. Chris jumped back from the sudden shock but didn’t anticipate Jason to be one of the living dead. He just thought that the sick man had woken up. “Wow, man, you scared me. How you doing...?” Chris said, slapping his left hand against his chest.
There was to be no answer as the body that was now starting its next life of cannibalism hoisted up in the bed.
Chris could definitely tell now that something was wrong because as the sheets disappeared away from the body he saw Jason’s colouring had changed dramatically. However, in Chris’ mind this sight still wasn’t proof that the other person was indeed dead. He now thought this might’ve something to do with the drugs being pumped into Jason’s veins. “Jason, mate. Are you all right?”
After receiving no response, Chris started to fear for his own safety.
If this was what one of the walking dead looked like then it was fucking scary
, he now thought.
His mind had gone blank by this time. All he wanted to do was open the door again, get out of there, but couldn’t do it. The vision of what was in front of him seemed totally amazing, and it wasn’t in a good way.
The creature uprooted from the bed, revealing killer eyes that targeted the small man. The trance-like stance had gone. Chris stepped back a couple of feet, viewing what was in sight. This transformed zombie wasn’t impressive anymore. He regained full mobility of his feelings but now didn’t want to leave. He smiled at the monster and began to enjoy being in this life threatening state. The risk of being killed by some rampaging, bloodthirsty freak excited him. He knew that one false move would end up with him being the first meal for the creature, but he was also one sick mother who relished living on the edge.
“Come on you piece of shit. Do you think you can kill me?” Out came Chris’ tongue, as he now pulled faces at the monster. “Well, do you?” He taunted the creature.
The nervous, but exhilarating laughing sounds squealed out of his eleven stone body frame as the zombie followed him around the room. The smell of fresh meat caused the creature to lick its lips upon closing in on him, but Chris waited until the zombie was at touching distance before ducking down and rolling underneath the bed. This reaction caused the newborn monster to sigh as its food disappeared, but a chuckling man returned out of the other side blowing a raspberry at it.
Wayne was on his way back and could hear noises coming from the intended room. It was a bit vague at first so thought nothing of it, but after turning the corner leading to his destination, noticed the sounds came from one person.
What was that prick up to?
he thought.
He moved at a faster pace now and saw the other man in the noentry room. The recently bought drinks crashed to the floor as Wayne entered the fighting arena. “What the fuck are you doing?” he shouted.
“I’m just having a laugh,” said Chris.
“A laugh is you telling me a joke, not you risking your life.” Wayne’s hatred for the other man brewed up again. The stupid reporter was up to his old tricks and pissing people off. He was a fool. “Are you fucking crazy, man, this thing will kill you,” the words blasted like a fiery cannonball out of Wayne’s mouth.
Chris allowed the shouting to bypass his eardrums. He wasn’t prepared to listen. “I know, but it won’t catch me, it’s too slow.”
The zombie paid Wayne more attention than Chris did, and now stared at him.
Wayne reached for his gun, but stopped in his tracks as the creature began to cry. This was like an exorcist moment when the little girl became overtaken by an evil being. It was as if Jason tried escaping from his new body. Wayne could imagine words being written onto the dead man’s belly, just like the movie, but these words weren’t “Help me,” they were “kill the fucking reporter, not me.”
A quick shake of the head and Wayne was back to reality again. He had to avoid being sucked in by what the beast used to be and needed to un-knot the ropes of emotion before being trapped inside other thoughts that would distract him. The monster’s expression quickly changed again as it moved closer to Wayne, but he wasn’t ready for it and couldn’t shoot the beast. Chris sensed something was wrong so yelled out to rotate the monster’s attention away from the now shaking man. “Hey, come over here you sack of shit.”
The shouting wasn’t having any effect so it was time for plan B. Chris tapped the zombie on the shoulder.
What was he doing?
Wayne thought.
Whatever he was doing, it was working. The dead man turned around, acting totally surprised. If the two guys weren’t in a dangerous position then this scenario would’ve been quite comical.
Chris put on a show for the hungry beast and went back to pulling faces, and making strange noises. Wayne watched as the other man copied the throat sounds that every now and then spilt from the creature’s mouth.
“Chris, stop messing about and get out of there.”
“All right, all right, I’m going. I just wanted you to see that there’s nothing to fear.” He pulled one more stupid face before finishing his sentence. “Now I’m going.”
Wayne needed the reporter to stay clear of the area. He had to shoot the creature and didn’t want the stupid man getting in the way.
Chris’ stupidity could end up being his downfall as he wasn’t focused enough on the thing in front of him. He tried passing but allowed himself to be caught by the beast. An eerie hand gripped onto his jacket. Chris swiftly strived to shake it off, but the enemy’s grip remained tight.
“Fuck off. If you want to touch somebody so badly then touch yourself...”
Wayne couldn’t believe that the other man still pissed about with the monster even though he was close to death. He had to rescue him.
The zombie threw Chris against the wall, so Wayne jumped on it, wrestling the beast, but he too was brushed to one side with great ease. The zombie saw the chance of freedom and headed for the escape entrance. It somehow didn’t seem interested in biting these men, maybe because it knew them – Or, had a better idea? Wayne dived onto the zombie’s back again but ended up back on the floor.
Chris returned to his feet. His head was a bit sore after cracking it against a solid surface, but his focus was still on full alert.
“Chris, you have to stop it from getting out of here.”
The reporter now realized the full extent of what needed to be done. Maybe it was the knock on the head? But he now understood that this was no game and very serious. He picked up a chair that was situated next to the bed and instantly aimed it at the creature’s head, crashing wooden legs against the back of the skull with an almighty ‘SMACK’. This sent the monster sprawling across the floor. Wayne and Chris watched as the zombie shook off the attack and returned to its feet. Chris lifted the object again, hoping this attempt would be the last one. “Right, if that didn’t bother you then this one will.”
Wayne gripped onto one of the legs just as the chair was about to be struck against the zombie again. “Wait.” he shouted. A look of complete bewilderment came from the reporter, but he could tell by Wayne’s distraught expression that there was a reason behind all of this. “I don’t want it to be done like this.”
“What do you mean not like this?” Chris replied.
“I made a promise to a dear friend, and I need to fulfil it.” The zombie was in a position to strike, but didn’t. The expected bash on the head never arrived, so what was going to happen next? “This is between me and Jason. Go outside and wait for me.”
Wayne made it clear that Chris wasn’t invited.
“Fuck the help, man. I’ve got the beast in my sights. This’ll be the end for the shit,” said Chris, who was now high on adrenalin.
Wayne wasn’t impressed by his ignorance and needed to stop him. “I said no. If you don’t get the hell out of this room now then I’ll kill you instead and give the zombie your job. I’m sure nobody would tell the difference between the pair of you.” he shouted. Chris was lost for words to reply to that message. Wayne reached for his gun, pointing it at him. “Look, Chris, I don’t want to hurt you but that thing over there used to be my partner, so I think I should deal with this on my own.”
Chris finally took the hint, knowing now that this meant a hell of a lot to Wayne. He produced a quick smile before racing out of the room.
Wayne and the zombie stared at each other before Wayne made an effort at finishing off his old friend. He nervously aimed the weapon at the creature, but his ex-partner seemed to crumple with despair. However, Wayne wasn’t falling for it a second time. “I’m sorry for doing this mate, but you did ask me to. I just hope you find happiness in the next life.”
The docile fiend quickly changed from being a staring corpse, to a frantic lunatic, as the sight of the gun triggered its memory button. It pounced again. This time it wasn’t going to stop and both bodies straggled across the room. The gun fired a bullet into the ceiling before finally dislodging away from Wayne’s grip. He managed to stop the monster from tearing at his face but the corpse swung at him, connecting a hand against his nose and forcing an eruption of reddened liquid to pour out of his nostrils. Wayne grabbed hold of the zombie’s striking fist. He then placed a leg behind its legs, forcing it down until the monster lay on its back. Now he’d gained the upper hand. He lashed out with his left foot, booting the zombie in the face before picking up the gun, but as he was about to fire, the zombie was up again, closing in at a higher speed than normal. Wayne swung a fist, but the monster got lucky and snapped jaws onto the incoming hand. The bite ripped away skin from the knuckles. This attack caused Wayne to panic and the gun never fired. He now became trapped in a mixture of mind-games as the likeness of his friend looked at him.
Something else interfered with his movements now. Wayne heard faint noises closing in from down the hallway. Mike had gone to the hospital to keep an eye on the reporter, but upon reaching the reception area had been surprised to see a terrified Chris rushing up to him, grabbing onto his arm and telling the story at twice the normal tempo. Both men now raced down the corridor to save Wayne from the new recruit to zombie-hood.