Don't Dare Call Them Zombies : Books 1-4 (38 page)

“Let’s go,” Candy said.

As we exited Nurse Beth approached, talked to Candy for a moment, and then stepped inside Jennifer's room.

“Walk
with me,” Candy said.

As we walked towards the room where I had been sleeping, I saw a few familiar faces walk down the hallway. The demeanor of the church had changed. When we had first arrived, many of the people here seemed to have a positive outlook, a
nd were quite cheerful despite the dangers they faced. Now the faces I saw were serious and somber.

I opened the door and Candy went in and sat on the cot.

“Hank, Jennifer is lucky to have you,” Candy said.

“I guess,” I said.

“No, she’s very fortunate to have you,” she responded. “She’s an idiot for the way she treated you.”

“Almost all women are like her,” I said. “She
isn’t the only woman I have cared about, even though she was the first, other than perhaps a silly high school crush.”

“What do you mean
?” Candy said as she lied her body down on the cot.

“Women like to chase after the bad boys. They don't want nice guys who don't play the so called “game” they expect. If a guy is too sincere, honest, respectful, or appropriate from the start, most women i
nstantly lock them in the ‘friend’ zone,” I said. “Every woman I've ever cared about has locked me in that box.”

“Not all women are that way,” Candy said.

“Most of them are,” I said. “I've witnessed it too often.”

“I'm sorry,” Candy said.

“Don't worry about me,” I said. “Just get some rest. You have been working for too long.”

I picked up a sheet from off the floor and put it over her.

“I'll keep checking in on Jennifer and Beth,” I said.

“Check in on me every so often too,” Candy said.

“I will,” I said.

Le
aving the room, I headed directly to the social hall. I hoped to find someone that could update me on the situation.

Opening the doors to the social hall, I could see that food was being served. The room was eerily quiet as a line of people waited to be se
rved soup and sandwiches.

“I'm glad you’re on your feet, Hank,” I heard a voice say.

Looking in the direction of the voice, I saw that it was Reverend McMann.

“Come over here and sit with us,” he said.

He ushered me towards a table where a number of deacons were sitting.

“Carol, please go get Mr. Harper a plate,” Reverend McMann said to a woman passing by.

“Yes, no problem,” I heard her say.

I sat down and immediately started to hear apologies.

“I'm so sorry the patrols mistook you for the bandits,” Reverend McMann said. “I sincerely apologize.”

“Your van looked just like the one they were driving,” one of the deacons said.

“We’re all praying for Jennifer,” another said. “We held a prayer service for her.”

I looked over to the door of the social hall and saw that it had been repaired.

“I accept your apologies, but we need to move on. I need some information,” I said.

I took a moment to collect my thoughts and then I looked at the deacons.

“Where is my dog?” I blurted out, suddenly remembering I hadn’t heard anything about him.

“Oh, the children are playing with him in the nursery.
He’s being taken care of,” one of the deacons said.

“Was he hurt at all?”

“No, he was a little shaken up but not injured,” he said.

“Where are Meredith and Robert?” I asked.

“They’re in the bell tower keeping watch,” Reverend McMann said. “Their shift should be over soon and they’ll be joining us for lunch.”

“Have you been informed about the nuclear accident?” I asked.

“Yes, Meredith, Robert, and your new friend Ms. Beetle told me about it,” he said. “We’re keeping most of our patrols inside to limit their exposure.”

“Earlier, I heard gunfire outside,” I said.

“Yes, some of the bandits were taking shots at us from the woods behind the church property. A few patrols went out to try and flush them out,” he said.

“What happened?” I asked.

“We think we hit one of them, and that made the others retreat,” he said.

“Where are my belongings?” I asked. “The things that were in my van”

“They’re right over there,” he said, pointing to a corner of the room.

I walked over to the boxes in which they had placed my things. Digging around inside the boxes, I searched for the printout showing the location of the nearby nuclear power plants. After
having to empty the contents of a few of the boxes on the social hall floor, I found it – along with the folder I was given at the nuclear plant.

I placed the map on the table where the deacons were sitting.

“Look at this,” I said. “According to this map, a full meltdown at the Robert E. Lee power plant will flood this town with radiation. We need to evacuate the church.”

Reverend Sikes walked up to the table. I showed him the map.

“I'm afraid the relocation center has already been evacuated,” he said. “And if it’s not evacuated, we may not be welcome there now. We killed three of their soldiers.”

“Well, even if it is evacuated we could still get inside and use the buildings there for shelter. I'm sure they’ll probably leave supplies and equipment behind as
well. There is a fuel shortage and they’re not going to be able to carry everything with them,” I said. “And the relocation camp is just outside of the radiation zones. We would be safe there.”

“The
radiation levels have been dropping here over the past few hours,” Reverend McMann said. “If we can hold off the bandits, we’ll probably be safe.”

“The radiation seems to have killed off all the freaks in the area too,” one of the deacons interjected.

“But look at this map. There are two other nearby nuclear plants. They’re all going to melt down eventually. The radiation zones all overlap this area,” I said.

“I'm not ready to abandon this church,” Reverend Sikes said. “God will protect us.”

“I believe God will protect us, I believe he allowed us to get this information for a reason. We need to evacuate!” I said.

“Let’s just see how things go,” Reverend Sikes said.

“We don't have time for that,” I said. “The other nuclear power plants could melt down at any time, and Candy needs the equipment at the relocation center to treat Jennifer.”

“God is going to heal Jennifer,” Reverend Sikes said. “Have faith that
he’s going to take care of her.”

“I have faith, but while I wait I'm going to try and get her the medic
al care she needs,” I said.

“We’ll help you in any way we can, Hank,” Reverend McMann said. “But we’re not going to evacuate the church -- yet.”

I stood up and walked away. I was not going to risk Jennifer's life by waiting for them to do the logical thing and evacuate.

Walking out of the social hall, I saw Roy and Kay Bridges.

“We just went in and prayed for Jennifer,” Roy told me.

“I'm so sorry for what happened,” Kay said. “The entire church feels responsible.”

“Thank you,” I said.

“I'm going to see Jenn
ifer now. I need for both of you to start packing. We’re evacuating the church,” I said.

“Is everyone evacuating?” Kay asked.

“No, the pastor won't see reason. But there are two additional nuclear plants about to melt down and whoever stays here is eventually going to die of radiation poisoning,” I said.

“We can't leave the church unless the pastor tells us to,” Roy said. “We’re not going to leave our church family.”

“Then watch as your wife and daughter get sick, throw their guts up, and die,” I said. “That's what’s going to happen if you don't start thinking for yourselves.”

I continued walking towards Jennifer's room.

Sam and Linwood then raced up to me.

“We heard about the nuclear power plants that are going into meltdown,” Sam said. “We also h
eard that you need to get Jennifer to the relocation center. We want to help.”

“That’s great,” I said. “Please go and try to discreetely
convince as many people as possible to get their belongings, make ready their vehicles, and prepare to go. As soon as Jennifer is strong enough to make the trip, we’re leaving.”

“Sounds good to me,” Sam said.

“Just don't let the pastor or deacons know what you’re doing,” I said. “If they find out we could be in deep trouble.”

“We know who to talk to and who not to,” Linwoo
d said.

I walked to Jennifer's room and entered. Nurse Beth was sitting beside Jennifer.

“How is she?” I asked.

“Her blood pressure has improved a little,” she said. “But I don't like her color at all.”

“Does she still have a fever?” I asked.

“Only
a low one,” she said. “But that could be a sign of infection.”

I was disappointed at this news. “Thank you for watching her,” I said.

“You’re welcome -- I'm so sorry this happened,” she said.

“We just have to get her the care she needs,” I said.

“I don't know if it’s safe for her to travel,” she said.

“Well, we’ll have to risk it. Staying here too long is suicide,” I said. “As soon as possible, a group of us are leaving. I want you to come with us.”

“I'll go with you,” she said.

“Okay, when Candy comes back
in for her shift go and pack your things,” I said.

I went up to Jennifer and kissed her again on the forehead.

“Please hang in there,” I said. “We’re going to get you fixed up, I promise. You’re going to be okay.”

I laid my head next to Jennifer's and st
arted to whisper to her. I told her I loved her, that I needed her, and that she couldn’t leave me all alone.

Slowly, Jennifer's eyes began to open.

“Han . . .” she tried to call out my name.

“Don't try to talk,” I said. “Just relax. I'm here Thank God yo
u have come to. I was so worried about you,” I said.

“What happened?” Jennifer said. Her voice was weak and trembling.

I placed my hand on the side of her face as I began to talk to her.

“We were driving to the church and you were shot. It was a horrible a
ccident. They thought we were bandits. But we have been taking care of you. You had lost a lot of blood, but Candy was able to save you,” I said.

“Who is Candy?” Jennifer asked.

“The medic that came with us from the nuclear power plant,” I said.

“Oh, her
. . Jennifer said.

“Don't worry, she has been totally professional,” I said.

“She better,” Jennifer said, her eyes narrowing.

I looked behind me and saw that Beth was holding a glass of water. I took it from her, and put the straw up to Jennifer's lips.

“Take a sip,” I said.

Jennifer started to drink as carefully held the glass and the straw.

“Not too much,” Nurse Beth said.

“Alright,” Jennifer said as she stopped drinking.

“I feel bad, Hank,” Jennifer said. “I'm so cold.”

“
We’re going back to the relocation center very soon,” I said. “They have what you need there.”

“Just rest,” I told her. “I'll be back very soon.”

“Stay with me, please,” Jennifer said.

“I'm sorry, but this is urgent. I have to organize the caravan that will
take us to the relocation center,” I said.

“Hurry back,” she said.

“I will,” I said.

I leaned over, kissed her on the forehead yet again, and ran out of the room.

My heart was beating wildly at the fact that she had awakened, but I was still frightened. She was very pale and weak, and I knew she needed a blood transfusion, badly.

Reaching the door to the room where Candy was sleeping, I slowly opened it. I walked towards her cot and bent down.

“Candy,” I said. “You need to wake up.”

She
suddenly jumped up in a panic.

“What is it?”

“It's alright,” I said. “I have good news. Jennifer’s awake and we’re organizing a convoy to the relocation center.”

“That’s good news,” Candy said.

I saw that she was shaking, and I took the sheet and wrapped it tight around her.

“Are you feeling okay?” I asked.

“Yes, I'm okay. I'm just . . . ” she said.

“You’re just what?” I asked.

“I'm just shaken up. At the nuclear plant I felt a little sheltered from the horrors outside. Yes, it was about to melt down and the radiation would’ve killed me, but I was used to my job there. I knew everyone, and I even had my own office. The day the outbreak started I was already at work, and I didn’t see any of the horrors firsthand. I just watched what was taking place on the news, until they stopped broadcasting. Now, I'm in this strange church, filled with weird people, and I actually feel scared for the first time,” she said.