Jake's Law: A Zombie Novel (16 page)

“Your shots might draw zombies.” He looked at the snake. “You could have just left it alone. It was inside trying to get out of the sun.”

Reed flung the snake down the aisle away from them.
“Well, excuse me. I thought I was doing us a favor. Besides, it was clear outside.”

Jake glanced toward the door. “You’re sure?”

Irritated by Jake’s questioning, Reed answered, “Yes, I’m sure. Do you think I’m blind?”

“Okay. Okay. Just be more careful next time.”
Jake glanced down at the new belt buckle around Reed’s waist. “Where did you get that?”

Reed pointed to a rack against the side wall, well away from the rear door. “Over there.” He fingered the buckle. “Do you want one?”

Jake tried to keep his voice even, but his frustration at Reed’s lack of concern irritated him. “I thought you were watching the door. How long were you gone?”

Reed frowned.
“Just a few minutes. What’s the problem?”

“The problem
is I depended on you to guard the door.” He shook his head. “Go get Jessica to relieve you while you get what you need. I’ll start loading the jeep.”

Still pouting from his dressing down, Reed marched to the front of the store. After a
few moments, Jake followed him and called to Jessica. “Bring the shopping cart when you come.” He was disappointed by Reed’s lackadaisical attitude. He was a big believer in
Jake’s Law #7 – Trust yourself first; others seldom.

As Jessica approached, she said, “Reed’s pissed.
What did you do?” She handed over the shopping cart.

By the tone of her voice, she agreed with Reed. “He left his post
,” he growled. “We need to know if someone shows up. Keep your eyes open.”

“Is it a firing squad if I don’t?”

He glowered at her. “Don’t tempt me.” He took the cart and rolled it toward the door before she could say anything more.

Between the ammunition and weapons from the National Guard armory and the goods from the store, the
jeep would be loaded down. He was pleased that they had made a good haul. They would have to make fewer trips for supplies. As he neared the door, a shadow fell across him, catching him by surprise. Glancing up, he saw a Runner rushing through the door. He barely had time to warn Jessica and raise his shotgun before the creature was upon him. He shoved the cart in the zombie’s path with his foot to slow it down, as he fired from the hip. With the loaded cart in the way, few of the pellets actually struck the creature, doing more damage to the case of motor oil in the bottom of the cart. The creature changed direction and lunged at Jessica, its teeth bared for the bite. She backed up until a storage rack blocked her retreat. Thinking quickly, she pulled the rack over and jumped out of the way as it fell. The rack pinned the Runner to the floor. Jake placed two quick shots into its head, killing it.

The creature wasn’t alone. Two more
entered, both dangerous Runners. By then, Reed had joined them, looking confused by the presence of the zombies. He brushed off Jake’s angry stare and said something unintelligible, as a quick, short burst from Jessica’s M16 drowned out his words. Now, only one zombie remained. Jake charged it, aiming for the head.
Jake’s Law #1- Aim high; shoot straight
. The creature swerved at the last second and his shot went wild. It was too late for another shot. He lowered his shoulder and dove into the creature like a line backer, lifting it from the ground and slamming it back down again on its back with him atop it. Unlike an opponent in a football game, the zombie was unperturbed. Instead of stunned, it was angry, hungry and angry. Jake fought off its frenzied attacks with one arm, while trying to remove his knife from its scabbard with the other.

After what seemed an eternity, the knife was in his hand, but the creature’s mouth was inches from his throat. Its fetid breath sickened him.
The smell rising from its unwashed body made his eyes water. The starving animal gleam in its mad eyes made him redouble his efforts. He jabbed the knife into the creature’s neck until his hand was slippery with blood, but it didn’t diminish its attack. He placed his forearm under the creature’s throat and pushed its head backwards.

Jessica stood just inside the door
staring at him with a frightened expression.

“Shoot it,” he yelled.
He hoped her aim was true, but it would be better to die by a stray bullet than at the hands of the zombie.

She
hesitated, but then raised her rifle and fired. The bullet struck the zombie in the back of the head, ripping a large exit hole in the right temple. Spurting blood drenched him, but the creature went limp beneath him. He spit out some of the disgusting foul liquid that splattered into his mouth and wiped his face with his sleeve. He rolled the zombie off him.

Jessica had recovered from her shock and was pointing out the door.
“More zombies,” she yelled, “dozens of them, coming from behind the store.” She fired a short burst through the open door.

Jake
wiped the gore from his face and rushed to her side. One creature lay dead on the ground just outside the door, but many more were crossing the rear of the lot, half concealed by the dense undergrowth. At least a dozen of the creatures appeared from around the corner of the building, between the store and the road, blocking their exit. The wails as the creatures recognized potential food sent chills down Jake’s spine. It was the sound of starving animals.

“We can close the door,” Reed suggested, “barricade ourselves inside.”

“No, we’ll be trapped. We have to leave now.”

The pair stared at him dumfounded.
He knew he presented a ghastly picture, drenched in zombie blood, suggesting they fight their way through a zombie horde. He probably seemed mad to them, but he knew he was right.

“If we stay, more will come. It’s better to get away now.”
He turned to Jessica. “Do you have the keys?”

“They’re in the jeep.”

“Good. You and Reed go out the side door into the enclosed area. I’ll draw them inside the building after me. Open the gate when they’re past and crank the jeep. Don’t shoot unless you have to.”

Reed stared at him shocked. “Are you kidding?”

Jake pointed to the group blocking their escape around the side of the store. “We don’t know how many more are around the other corner. I don’t know where they came from. This is a business district. The safest way out of here is past the theater in the Arizona Pavilions.” Reed continued to stare. “We don’t have time for this. Move! Take the cart.”

“The cart?”
Reed moaned.

“Yes, we need
the supplies. We can’t come back after it.”

Jessica
and Reed sprinted for the side door with Reed pushing the cart. A trail of black, viscous oil dripped from the cart. Jake walked to the door and showed himself to the zombies. They wasted no time coming after him. When both Reed and Jessica were safely through the side door, he began backing inside the store, shooting zombies as he retreated. He killed almost a dozen of the creatures but more came in. Where were they coming from? There were no houses nearby. He couldn’t hold them off for much longer. When he heard the jeep crank, he raced for the side door. Outside, just ahead of the Runners, he began toppling stacked rolls of barbed wire in their path. The first ones became entangled, but the ones behind them went around. He cut the rope holding together a bundle of fence posts and pushed it over to slow them down.

“Come on!” Jessica yelled
to him.

He abandoned trying to contain the zombies and ran for the jeep. Reed was still emptying the contents of the cart into the rear. Jake grabbed a
n armload of clothing, tossed it into the jeep, and shoved Reed in on top of it. They would have to abandon the rest. Reed fell into the rear of the jeep huffing and puffing, reaching for his inhaler. Jake cursed under his breath. Reed would be useless for a few minutes as he caught his breath.

“Go,” he called out to Jessica, as he leaped across the jeep and slid into the passenger seat. He fired two quick blasts of the shotgun as two zombies came through the gate

Jessica floored the jeep and slammed him back into the seat. She clipped one creature with the front bumper, sending it rolling across the asphalt. Jake began shooting into the mass of zombies in front of them as fast as the automatic AA-12 would fire. The triple-ought buckshot cut a wide swath through the creatures, but sensing food, they continued to press forward. Most were Shamblers, too slow to present a major problem, but their numbers were increasing. A few were Runners. These nimble creatures seemed to know where the jeep was headed and attempted to cut them off. Jake marveled at their ingenuity even as he fired into their midst.

“That way,” he said, pointing to a road leading toward the
Pavilions Center, an area shopping and restaurant district.

Jessica drove straight through
a chain link fence and across a parking lot. The jeep skidded as she turned down Arizona Pavilions Boulevard. After they passed the KOLD TV station, more zombies appeared from the movie theater parking lot, blocking the road and surging toward them. Jessica stepped on the brakes. The jeep skidded to a stop.

“Which way?”
she asked.

He pointed to
an open lot their left. “That way, toward the river.”

Jessica started the jeep, cut across an empty lot, and
dove over the river embankment. The jeep caught air as it went over the edge. The wheels touched only momentarily on the lower slope. The vehicle bounced wildly as it struck the sandy river bed bumper first, almost throwing Reed from the jeep. The wheels spun in the loose sand before finally finding traction. She pointed the jeep north along the river, dodging large mesquite and brittle brush plants that proliferated in the sandy bottom, slowing down only when they had left the horde of zombies far behind.

Ahead, s
cores of zombies stared down at them from the Cortaro Road Bridge over the Gila River. The starving creatures were moving like migrating herds of bison from the neighborhoods at the foot of the Tucson Mountains toward the city seeking food. It now seemed no place in the city was safe from their threat.

Reed puffed from his inhaler, but his eyes revealed the guilt he felt at letting them down while on guard. Jake saw no reason to further exacerbate the situation by accosting him again. He had learned his lesson
the hard way, by almost dying. Jessica had proved her mettle behind the wheel. They had come through alive. That was a plus in Jake’s book. 

1
5

June 20, 2016    Split Rock Canyon –

The wind picked up
late in the afternoon, howling down the canyon like a pack of raging wolves. Sudden gusts birthed dust devils that careened drunken-sailor wildly until they crashed into the stone wall and dissipated. The animals became restless, pacing nervously in their pens. Like Jake, they could smell the ever-increasing moisture in the air. A storm was brewing. The sky was mackerel-streaked with cirrocumulus clouds, foreshadowing an early onset of the monsoons. The prospect of rain pleased him, but a flash flood could damage his garden. In spite of all of his preparation, he was entirely at the mercy of the unpredictable weather. He blinked as windblown sand stung his eyes.

“Will it rain?”
Jessica asked. There was a tinge of hope in her voice.

Jake
glanced up at the darkening sky. Already, dense mushroom-shaped cumulonimbus clouds were peeking over the mountain tops to the southwest. By nightfall, they would sweep in with a vengeance, bringing heavy downpours. “Fast and hard. Soon, I think.”

“
You’re certain?” She stared at him, but then she glanced away. “At least it’s cooler.”

Jake pulled her close and hugged her.
At first, she stiffened in his arms, but then pressed against him. He thought it odd how contented he felt. The world was in its death throes, and yet, he was at peace for the first time in years. It was a strange turn of events. A loner by choice, he now had friends and a lover. It had taken the end of the world to force him to see the error of his solitary ways.

“Cooler but with a higher humidity,” he
pointed out. “It’s a trade off.”

It was dark enough that t
he lights were on in Reed’s trailer. His shadow passed in front of the window, as music blared from his stereo, a waltz.

“Is he dancing?” he asked Jessica
, incredulous that the non-athletic Reed could dance.

She smiled.
“Probably. He’s a romantic at heart.”

He looked at her, frowning.
“Really? And I’m not?”

“You’re
trying,” she said after a short pause that left him wondering.

“You’re helping. I don’t know what I would have done without you.”

She winced and blinked rapidly, as if sand had gotten into her eyes as well, and then nodded.

A drop of rain splashed his face
, presaging the deluge to follow. “I guess it’s time to close the windows and enjoy the rain from inside.”