The Last Days (25 page)

“Mr. Jones’ house had so many cobwebs on the porch, the man from Huntington said we should be called Webville. I guess the name stuck. When we started to get mail, all our addresses on the envelopes said Webville.” Billy said.

Mike grinned as he looked at Kelly.

They drove slowly down the road. The terrain was level here and the little car’s electric motor didn’t have any trouble moving along at eight miles an hour.

“I live right around this bend.” Billy said. “It will be the third house on the right side of the road.”

Mike was feeling hopeful that a solution to his problem would be right around the bend.

When they rounded the bend, his feeling of hope turned to panic.

Up ahead were two cars parked sideways, nose to nose to block the road.

Six mountain men, it looked like members from the Hatfield of the McCoy’s clan, leaning over the cars. Their rifles fired one after another at the fifty or so dead that were pouring down the road at the men.

Another three men with rifles came running to help the men at the cars.

Mike looked at the scene playing out in front of him. The men looked hopelessly outnumbered. The dead started to crawl over the cars and around the sides to get at the men.

Mike didn’t know what to do. The car wouldn’t go much further before the batteries ran out of power. If he kicked it into regular engine mode, the car would overheat and stop, stranding them.

It didn’t look like he would be getting his car fixed here.

Mike felt like his options had just run out.

“Quick, pull over.” Billy yelled. “I’ve got to get my gun and help Pa!”

Not feeling he had any other choice he asked. “Billy, you have an extra gun, maybe I can help?”

“Pa has an extra gun.” Billy answered hurriedly.

Mike stopped the car.

Billy jumped out leaving his sister sobbing in the back seat.

“Kelly!” Mike yelled. “Lock the doors. If we are going to get out of here, I have to help.”

Kelly looked stunned as she saw the dead crawl over the cars and attack the men.

“Kelly?” Mike added. “If this doesn’t go well, put the car in EV mode and go back the way we came as far as you can until you can find someplace that looks safe.”

“But Mike!” Kelly said staring at Mike with tears in her eyes.

“I love you both!” Mike said, closed the door and ran after Billy.

Mike ran towards the house where Billy had gone inside as he closed his car door.

It looked like all the other houses. One story constructed of rough wood that must have come from the local saw mill. All the houses had a large porch, probably where everyone spent most of their time doing whatever it was they did around here. Probably drinking moonshine and waiting for a groundhog to wander into their yard so they could add it to their evening stew.

Mike arrived at the house as Billy was coming out carrying two rifles, one in each hand.

Billy pushed one of the guns at Mike. “Here Mister, take this one.”

The sounds of rifle fire and screams coming from behind them made Mike want to hurry up to go and help the outnumbered men, but when he saw the gun Billy handed him he stopped.

“What kind of gun is this?” Mike asked as he looked over the gun with an over under long barrel and glossy polished wood trim.

Billy yelled. “It’s my Pa’s. It’s a shotgun and a thirty caliber rifle. It’s a real monster.”

Mike looked at the twenty-two caliber rifle Billy had. “Would you want to trade guns?”

“This is a little peashooter compared to that one.” Billy replied.

“I can shoot the peashooter.” Mike said. “But I have no idea what to do with this thing.”

Billy grabbed the over under and pushed the twenty-two into Mike’s hands. “Come on we have to hurry!”

“Remember to shoot them in the head!” Mike yelled as they got closer to the cars.

Four men where shooting at the oncoming mob while three men were engaged in hand to hand combat with the dead that had reached the cars and were crawling over the vehicles to get at the men.

Mike began to shoot at the dead that were coming around the sides of the cars.

He didn’t know why half the men crawled up on the cars to try and knock the dead back down off the cars as they slowly climbed the vehicles to get at them.

The cars slowed the dead’s progress. It would have been easier and safer to shoot the slow moving dead as they struggled to climb up on the cars.

They dead were terrible at climbing. It would have been like shooting fish in a barrel as they crowded and pushed against the cars.

The dead didn’t think or look like they were trying to execute any complex strategy. They just moved directly at where the men were standing.

It had been a good idea to park the cars as a barricade or an obstacle to slow the dead.

If the men would have just stood on top of the cars, they could have easily picked off the stumbling dead.

Apparently the dead weren’t the only ones around here that didn’t think.

Maybe it was just some kind of mountain macho thing to fight with them with their bare hands.

It could be that these people had no idea what they were fighting against. If they knew, they would have stayed as far away from the dead as they could.

Mike moved to the side of the cars. As the dead came at Mike, he shot them in the head. He gave ground when he had to reload and then started to shoot again.

The mountain men wouldn’t give up any ground. When they ran out of ammo, they would punch and swing their rifle butts at the dead. Then they would reload.

The men that stood their ground to fight off the dead probably felt like they were bravely defending their ground against the sick looking infected, but what they were doing was signing their own death certificates.

Maybe this was why the infection had spread so fast. People didn’t know what they were up against as they fought off their attackers. They thought they were fighting off the attackers, but in reality they were getting themselves infected.  They were unwittingly helping the dead.

Mike went through an entire box of shells. He was nervous and his hands shook as he shot.

The mountain men where all steady shots, but they didn’t always aim for the head.

Mike was not about to tell them what they were doing wrong.

He would have probably been shot or received a rifle butt to the head for his efforts.

These people didn’t know him and would probably not take too kindly to an outsider telling them what to do.

Ten minutes later the dead had all been eliminated.

The men were walking back from the cars, laughing about their battle with the infected.

Mike froze as he saw the men. Six of them had blood running down their arms. Large scratches and bite marks covered their arms.

As mike stared at the wounds on the men, Billy ran over and grabbed his arm.

“Come on, I’ll introduce you to my Pa.”

Mike followed Billy but he couldn’t take his eyes off the bleeding wounds.

“Pa, this is Mike!” Billy said. “He saved me and Liz. We were in the old Dodge when it gave out. Before we could get out to walk home, we were surrounded. If Mike wouldn’t have come along when he did, we would have been goners!”

“Thanks for saving my kids. I’m Merle!” Billy’s Dad said. “I must admit, I was watching you and you don’t seem like much of a fighter.”

“I do what I can!” Mike replied.

“What are you doing around these parts? Merle asked.

“My family and I are just passing through trying to get home.” Mike answered. “When I stopped to help Billy, I hit one of those infected creatures and poked a hole in my radiator. Billy said you might be willing to put some gunk in it to plug up the hole.”

“I’d be happy to help for what you did for my kids.” Merle said. “Billy, go run and fetch me that can of gunk from back of the house!”

“Sure Pa!” Billy said then turned and ran off.

“You look like one of them city slickers.” Merle said. “Where you from?”

“I live by New Stanton, Pennsylvania.” Mike replied. “Not quite a city slicker but close.”

Merle laughed.

Mike’s face turned serious. “Merle. Why did all these men let themselves get bitten and scratched? They are all going to die and turn into one of those things.” Mike said pointing to all the dead that were lying around the barricade.

“What are you talking about Mister?” Merle said looking warily at Mike. “Those poor folks probably just went and got themselves into a bad batch of moonshine. Moonshine poisoning destroys a man’s brain. When that happens there just isn’t anything you can do for them. They go crazy and then die. It happens up here in the hills from time to time. It’s sad but it’s just a fact of life in the mountains.”

“No this is something else. There is a virus spreading around the country that is killing everyone who comes into contact with it.” Mike protested. “When someone gets infected, they die and come back to attack anyone still alive. They spread the virus by biting the living. Your men there should be locked up before they turn and attack you and your families.”

“Mister, you’re talking crazy. I don’t want you spreading this crazy talk around here. I appreciate what you did for my kids, but I think you should be moving on.” Merle said looking angry. “We’ve had problems with your kind before. We don’t need people like you around here talking crazy.”

Billy came running back holding an old blue and yellow can. It was so heavily covered in grease you couldn’t read what was written on the can.

“Billy!” Merle said sternly. “You put some gunk in this man’s car and send him on his way.” Merle glared at Mike then walked away.

Billy watched his Pa walk away. “What’s got Pa so all worked up?”

“I was just trying to tell him what I know about this sickness and he got real upset with me.” Mike replied. “I was just trying to help.”

“Folks around here don’t take kindly to outsiders telling them anything.” Billy smiled.

Mike led Billy over to the Prius and opened the hood. He watched Billy pour half the bottle into his radiator. Billy then filled the radiator with water from the pump in the yard near the road.

When he was done, he closed the hood. “Drive slow for the first mile or two, after that you should be OK.” Billy said.

Mike looked at Billy. “Do you know what is going to happen to all those men that got bitten on the arms today?”

Billy thought for a minute. “Well it will probably hurt like hell for a few days but they will be alright.”

Mike shook his head. “No Billy. They are going to die and then turn into one of those mad things that attacked you. That’s how this virus spreads.”

“You’re joshing me?” Billy said sounding skeptical.

“It seems no one around here wants to believe anything I say.” Mike sounded frustrated. “But, Billy. Do me a favor. You can think I’m some crazy city slicker that doesn’t know his ass from a hole in the ground, but just do this one thing for me, then you can think whatever you want.”

Billy looked at Mike like he was crazy.

“For the next two hours.” Mike said. “Keep yourself and your sister away from the men that got their arms bitten. If what I said is true, it could save your lives. If I’m crazy, then all you did was waste two hours. I’m not crazy Billy. I’m just trying to save you and your sister, again!”
Billy didn’t say anything, he just looked at Mike.

Mike opened the door and helped Liz get out of the back seat. He looked at Billy. “Liz, you go with your brother. He will protect you. You just stay close to Billy tonight.”

Liz walked over the held her brother’s hand.  Between the attack earlier and now the one here at her home, she was still scared.

Mike got in the car and closed the door.

“What was that all about?” Kelly asked. Kelly had heard some of the conversation through the closed car doors.

“We’ve been asked to leave.” Mike replied.

“What?” Kelly asked.

“I tried to tell Billy’s Dad what was going to happen to the men that had been bitten on the arms. He said I was crazy and said he didn’t want our kind spreading any nonsense around here. He told Billy to put that stuff in our car and send us on our way.” Mike said. “I was trying to warn Billy. He seems like a nice kid so I told him to keep his sister away from everyone for a couple hours. If he listened to me maybe he and his sister will have a chance. In about an hour the population of Webville is going to drop to zero.”

“Isn’t there anything we can do?” Kelly asked as she watched the residents of Webville gather onto one of the large front porches and start passing around a bottle of moonshine.