Contagious (11 page)

“
Lived, see? No one does anymore.”

He raised the gun so that the barrel was parallel to my forehead. Argos trotted around the house. He stopped and looked at me, assessing the situation. From what I knew about him, he didn’t view humans as threats. If he could just stay quiet…I had my doubts about him not getting shot.

“
No!” the man continued. “You shouldn’t break into other people’s houses, even though times are bad.”

I nearly rolled my eyes. Was he going to lecture me or shoot me? I fixed my gaze on his, unblinking. I’ve always been good at reading people. It’s partially why I’m good at getting away with crap. This guy was as easy to read as a highway billboard, and right now he was scared shitless.

“
Zombie!” I yelled, diverting my eyes to the left. The man jumped, thankfully not pulling the trigger on impulse, and turned. I ducked out of the way, grabbed the gun and shoved it back and in his face. He staggered, crying out in pain, losing his grip on the gun.

And now it was in my hands.

“
Listen here, you little prick,” I said venomously. “Times are worse than bad. For all we know, we could be the only ones left. Don’t waste a human life trying to be all ‘above the law’. There is no law anymore.”

He reeled back, terrified. Someone ran through the decorative planters along the house, feet crunching the lava rocks. I whipped around, my pistol aimed.

“
Orissa!” Padraic called. “I heard the shot. I wanted to make sure you were alri—” he cut off, skidding to a stop. His eyes flashed from me to the man several times. Once he decided the guy wasn’t crazy, he asked. “What is going on?”

“
He,” I jeered, “tried to kill me.”

“
Why?” Padraic blurted, having to be logical.

“
Cause he’s an idiot,” I replied. “It doesn’t matter. I got what we need so let’s go.”

“
Wait,” Padraic said. “Are there more? More people alive?”

“
Maybe,” the man said bitterly.

“
That’s great! You should get them and come with us. We’re going to find the quarantine.”

I clicked the safety on my pistol and stuck it in my waistband, refusing to wince at the pain my shoulder caused me. Switching the rifle to my right hand, I checked the remaining ammo; there were six bullets left.

“
No,” the man said firmly. “We decided to stay. We have supplies.”

“
It won’t last forever,” Padraic said gravely.

“
I have enough,” he said, putting his hand on his chin. I gathered up the hoses and the dog food, plopping them down in front of Padraic. That was when I noticed the sweat running down the guy’s face. Sure, nerves could make you sweaty, but not on this chilly fall day.

“
What kind of food do you have?” I asked.

“
Uh, lots of dried stuff. It will last.” His eyes moved to the left as he spoke.

“
He’s lying,” I called him out.

Padraic shook his head. “Why would he lie?”

“
I don’t know. But he is.” I aimed the gun at him. “Why are you lying?”

The guy shook his head. Blood dripped from his nose.

Padraic inhaled sharply. “You’re infected,” he alleged. “When?”

The guy twitched. “Yesterday.”

“
It’s starting to set in, isn’t it? You’re having violent urges.”

“
Yes, I mean, no! I know it’s wrong. I know she’s wrong,” he yelled, pointing at me. “She broke into that house. I had to shoot her. She broke the law.”

Oh, was Padraic right. The craziness was setting in. Argos growled. We needed to leave, like yesterday.

“
Well,” Padraic appealed. “I’m very sorry about that. Though I really don’t see how it’s relevant anymore.”

“
I was doing what was right,” the half crazy droned. “She was wrong to break in. I had to make it right.”

“
I don’t think we’re going to be able to reason with him,” I whispered to Padraic. “Listen, mister, why don’t you go inside and do what’s right and let us leave, ok?”

“
Are there really others?” Padraic just had to ask.

“
No,” the guy said. “They left me.”

I knew that would pull on Padraic’s heartstrings. They were right leaving him. Obviously none of Mr. Almost Crazy’s friends couldn’t stomach killing him just yet. And I couldn’t either. Not when he was semi-lucid.

“
I’m sorry,” I told him and really meant it. “You know it was the best thing though. And that’s why we have to leave you too.” I backed up.

“
Do I have your permission to go in the house?” he asked, suddenly looking at me curiously.

“
Yes. You have not only my permission, but my blessing. Please go in the house.” Argos growled again. Logan snapped in just minutes. We didn’t have long before this guy turned homicidal. Padraic carried the supplies back to the car, getting in without saying a word.

“
Did you kill a zombie, Orissa?” Zoe asked me, her big green eyes almost alive with excitement.

“
Yes,” I lied. “Two of them, actually.”

“
Don’t lie,” Padraic said. My heart actually skipped a beat. “She killed one and Argos got the other.”

“
Oh,” Zoe said and hugged Argos. “Good dog.”

We drove back to the highway, making it only twenty minutes before we saw the line of unmoving cars. It was impassable, but not entirely impossible.

“
Stop,” I told Padraic. Leaving Argos in the car, I climbed up on the roof of the Range Rover. “Hello!” I called, my voice echoing. Nothing came running out from under the cars, from the grassy median or the overgrown sides of the road. I jumped down, regretting it instantly. What I wouldn’t give for an ice pack right now. I opened the door to let Argos out.

“
What are you doing now?” Padraic asked.

“
Getting gas. Come on, I’ll show you.”

Jason, Sonja and Hilary got out of their car, clueless as to what went down back at the fancy neighborhood. I told them the same lie we had told Zoe and then showed them how to siphon the gas from cars. It didn’t take long to fill up our containers and get going again.

“
Turn here,” I instructed Padraic forty minutes later. I angled the map away from him, though I knew he could see the signs.

“
Where are we going?” he asked, glancing at me.

“
I went to school here,” I explained. “There was a disaster plan. I had forgotten about it until now. It’s worth a try checking out, right?”

“
If you say so.”

I hated that I felt guilty. I didn’t want to feel anything towards Padraic. I wanted to find her—if she was alive—and go to my grandparents’ farm. Padraic wasn’t in that equation.

The campus was full of zombies.

“
Damn it all to hell,” I swore under my breath. Padraic drove slowly, hoping to sneak by unnoticed. I kept my eyes focused on the glove box in front of me. I didn’t want to look at the faces, afraid of seeing someone I might know.

We reached the dorm, passing a dozen zombies. Hilary pulled up next to us.

“
What’s the plan?” Jason asked, too loud for my liking.

I didn’t meet his eyes when I spoke. “Disaster relief planning. Might be inside. I went to school here.” Damn it, I was giving myself away. “I’ll go check it out.”

“
Not alone,” Jason shouted.

“
He’s right, Orissa,” Padraic had to agree of course.

“
Anyone know how to handle a gun?” I asked, with little hope I’d get a response.

“
I’ve gone to the shooting range before, but that’s about the extent of my experience,” Jason admitted.

“
I can shoot,” Lisa’s hoarse voice came from the back.

“
No,” Padraic and I said in unison, finally agreeing on something. The poor girl could barely speak let alone defend herself from crazies.

“
I’m going alone,” I said to appease my guilty conscious. That, and I really didn’t want to see any of my companions get hurt. “If I’m not back in ten minutes, go on without me.”

“
Orissa, no!” Padraic hit the steering wheel. “You can’t do this.”

“
Someone has to. And I know the layout of the building.”

“
Let me come with you,” he insisted.

I raised an eyebrow. “Have you ever shot a gun in your life?”

“
N-no.”

“
Exactly.”

“
Just point and shoot, right? It can’t be that hard,” he tried.

“
If your target is right in front of you, no, it’s not that hard. I’m hoping we don’t have to get that close.”

“
Then let Jason go.”

“
Fine.” I unbuckled my seat belt. “Can everyone else fit in here? You know, just in case?” I turned to face Zoe, who had fallen asleep. “Argos will come with me, so there’s more room. And seriously, Padraic,” I said, putting my hand on his, “do not wait for us.”

“
Ok,” he said. And then he hugged me. It was an odd sensation; his stiff, warm embrace and the pain it caused since his hand settled on top of the stab wound. “Don’t make me leave without you,” he begged.

“
I’ll try my hardest,” I promised and got out of the SUV, calling for Argos to follow. I gave Jason the rifle, warned him there were only six rounds left and stood guard while the others piled into the Range Rover. It was weird, marching into the large, brick dorm, striding past a zombie that writhed on the ground, its legs apparently eaten off. It was such an epic moment, so dangerous and stupid yet here I was, going in without hesitation. I didn’t have time to give an ‘all or nothing’ speech, didn’t have time to prep myself for what I might find.

I was thinking about how lame action movies were in depicting real life when we walked up the first set of stairs. Argos had raced ahead again, wanting to be the first to check everything out. Luck must be on our side, I thought, since all was silent.

I fucking jinxed us.

The hall was full of zombies. I grabbed Jason, pulling him down on the stairs. Fear choked me, not of the zombies but of the realization that there is no way she made it out alive. Not with this many. Oh God, what if she was one of them? What if her pretty face was rotting and deteriorating and her only drive in life was to shove human flesh into her festering, noxious mouth?

No. She was alive. She had to be. I had told her what to do. Ok, I hadn’t told her what to do if the world is overcome with a virus that turns you into a homicidal maniac before you zombify, but she’s smart.

I counted thirteen zombies, groaning as they roamed the halls. And there had to be more that we couldn’t see. It was dark in here, the only light coming from the windows at the end of the hall and the weak sunlight that filtered through open dorm room doors. Argos’ short fur stood on end as he growled. I tried to shush him unsuccessfully. In theory, Jason and I could shoot every zombie in sight. And we’d be screwed and out of bullets. I needed to come up with a plan.

I couldn’t crawl through the ceiling tiles, they’d give way. Investigating upstairs and trying to climb down through an open window wouldn’t work in this brick dormitory; I’d probably fall and not to my death, just break something and painfully lay helpless on the ground while zombie teeth tore through my skin and gorged on my intestines.

Nervously, I chewed on the inside of my lip. A distraction was the only plausible way to go. I just needed to come up with one. Stressed, I bit down hard and made myself bleed. Cursing, I swallowed the metallic substance.

“
Blood,” I whispered, wiping the inside of my mouth with my finger.

“
What are you talking about?” Jason asked.

“
We can distract them with blood, I think.”

“
So you want to bleed all over the floor and run away?”

“
That’s exactly what I want to do.”

“
That’s a horrible idea,” he told me.

“
You got a better one?”

“
Well, no. Do you really want to risk an open wound around them, though?”

“
Who-who told you?”

Jason’s eyes pierced mine. “I’m not stupid, Orissa. If this really is a virus, it will spread like one.”

“
Oh, right,” I said, feeling bad for not giving him more credit. The fact that the zombie virus was contagious through blood wasn’t my secret to keep. I had hoped that by not sharing, it would keep the calm, or what was left of the calm.

“
We need to do something, we’re wasting time,” I whispered.

“
Ok.” He crouched down, peering down the hall. “There’s not really an emergency relief group in here.”

“
No.”

“
Who are we looking for? Your boyfriend?”

“
Nope.”

“
Sister?”

“
Nope.”

“
Brother?”

“
Wrong again. Now shush!” I hissed. My mind turned. I needed to come up with something, anything to get in the hall. Her room was in the middle on the left, right behind a fat zombie, munching on another zombie’s arm.

Sick.

“
Upstairs,” I whispered, holding onto Argos as we tiptoed up. There were no zombies up here. A girl quickly walked out of a room, blood dripping down her face, growling. “Shit!” I cursed. “A crazy.”

“
Did she see us?”

“
I don’t think so. We have to take her out. We-we just have to.”

We sank down on the stairs. The girl looked like a freshman, young and at one point, innocent. And now she was insane, covered with crusting, brown blood. I wondered if she knew it happened, like the guy back at the colonial house. What would it feel like? Confusion, I’d imagine. I’d want to die. If no one would kill me, I’d do it myself. But could I? Maybe my sense of right and wrong would get skewed too.