The Zombie Chronicles - Book 4 - Poisonous Serum (Apocalypse Infection Unleashed Series) (18 page)

“
I’m so sorry, buddy.” Mike pulled the trigger then jerked me toward the back door as zombies flooded down the stairs. I could hear them splashing through the water.

I glanced over my shoulder, gasping. Letting out excited moans, they pounced on Mike and tore at his skin like wild animals. His piercing screams turned into soft gurgles, and then there was nothing but the eerie sound of ravenous crunching and slurping and chewing.

I squeezed through the ragged opening Jackie had made. As we cut through the yard and hopped a silver fence, everything was a blur around me. I had just seen a man get murdered, right before my very eyes, and for all I knew, my brother could be in trouble and might need my help. The wind howled again, and droplets of rain pelted our exposed skin as the moon came out for a split second before dark clouds consumed it.

We avoided the streets and moved slowly from back yard to back yard. Whenever we saw a group of zombies heading for us, we turned and went in the other direction. The trouble was, they were coming from everywhere.

“
They’re surrounding us,” Jackie whispered. “We can’t take them all on. There’re too many.”

Chapter 13

Zombies had spotted us and were coming from the front yard and from the back.

“
They’ve got us cornered,” I said.

“
I know!” Sam said. “Let’s go this way.”

Suddenly, bony fingers grabbed Jackie’s arm, and she gasped. She aimed her gun to shoot, but I was a quicker draw. With one shot, I nailed it in the forehead, sending it back to the grave, this time forever. Blood oozed from the bullet hole as it slumped into the wet grass with a
splash
.

Larry and Sam panicked, darting over a fence without us. I saw zombies in that direction, over by a giant oak tree, so I didn’t understand what they were doing. I tried to warn them, but before I could get a word out, they’d made a fatal error. Gunshots rang out one after another, and I knew they were fighting for their lives. We were trying to get over there to help them when more zombies stumbled from the bushes. If we didn’t hide, we would have been as dead as our friends were about to be, so we had no choice.

I pulled Jackie underneath a dark porch, behind a pile of logs. We made it in the nick of time. They passed by the porch as they shuffled around the yard, squishing their tattered shoes and whatever toes they had left in the mud. I felt pure evil emitting from them. I didn’t move a muscle and dared not even breathe. Through the wooden lattice of the porch, I could see that one was close. I cringed at its signature moan, coming from those decaying lips. It took everything I had not to gag at the sickening stench. Every minute felt like eternity, but finally I watched those filthy brown shoes clomp away as it dragged its useless foot across the grass.

I wondered if it could hear my heart beating, because it sounded like a tribal drum on a warpath. Jackie squeezed my hand tightly, and I held her shivering body close to mine. She nuzzled her head into my shoulder. I felt like her protector, and I was ready to die before I’d let anything happen to her.

I listened to the rain falling, and somehow that steady rhythm carried my thoughts to the men and women we’d lost. All of them had just been trying to survive, just like us. Grief overwhelmed me at the thought. It had taken brave hearts to leave the relative safety of the nursing home to come look for the missing, and Mike was, in my opinion, a modern-day hero. I couldn’t really say that about Larry or Sam who just deserted us, but my heart went out to Mike and Jack. I thought about Mike and shivered. The last thing the man had seen was a good friend of his pulling the trigger on him. I wished I would have done more to save him, and the guilt of that threatened to consume me.
Maybe Nick’s right. Maybe I’m not cut out for this.
I wasn’t coldhearted, and I could never have shot a friend in the head the way Larry shot Mike right before my eyes.

We were stuck under the porch for an hour, listening to those chilling wind chimes. We didn’t dare speak to one other, not even so much as a whisper. After a while, the moans dissipated, and I peeked out. When I didn’t see any trace of zombies, I let out a long, relieved sigh.

I could feel Jackie trembling in the darkness, and I cupped her face. “We’re gonna make it, baby,” I whispered.

“
I know,” she whispered back, her voice cracking.

“
Are you ready?”

She gave my hand a squeeze, signaling that she was, then shined her flashlight.

I started to crawl from our hiding area, confident that we’d make it back in no time. We’d survived the hard part, and I was sure we could sneak back through the vegetation without being spotted. When I went to stand, I could smell the stench of death. A zombie with an axe protruding from its head lurched from the shadows and reached for me. I could clearly see it through the flashlight beam Jackie was shining. Drops of fresh blood dripped from its mouth and blood-soaked shirt, and it was holding a human heart in its hands. I gasped when its soulless eyes met my gaze, its rotting, snapping jaws moving dangerously close to my face. With my heart pounding like the hooves of racehorses, I fired shot after shot. Even after the zombie collapsed in a heap of rotting flesh, I still continued to fire.

“
That’s enough!” Jackie said, grabbing my arm. “You’ll attract more!”

I shot four more times as rage flooded through me. “The fresh blood…that heart…it…oh, Jackie, it had to belong to one of our men! And that axe…I-I’m sure it’s one of ours.” My voice wavered. I wanted to send that demon back to hell. I was about to fire again when Jackie tugged my arm once again.

“
No point in overkill,” she said.

More groans echoed through the air, and I knew I’d foolishly attracted more with the gunfire. The shots were like a megaphone, summoning every zombie within hearing distance. Jackie gripped my hand. “Let’s get out of here!”

I quickly looked around and saw nothing but an empty yard equipped with a swing set where children had happily played once in a far more carefree world. I had no time to ponder the normalcy that was no more, though, so we cut through about ten yards, then hid in a large bush. It was so dark, and I wished we could turn on a flashlight, but I wasn’t willing to give away our position to the undead. I surveyed the area carefully. Jackie peeked out and motioned that it was safe. We stayed within the lurking shadows cast by towering oaks and weaved in and out of trees, bushes, and vegetation.

When I spotted the nursing home, we both took off in a sprint. I knocked on the boarded-up window that we’d used as an exit. “It’s us, Dean and Jackie. Let us in!”

Somebody loosened a board and peeked out. “Dean!” Val shouted.

My heart jumped for joy that she was alive and had made it. Wood planks were removed so we could squeeze through, and—ever the gentleman—I let Jackie go first.

Val immediately hugged me. “Dean, you scared the crap out of me!”

“
What happened?” Nick asked, gripping my shoulder. “When you weren’t here, I went back out with Val, Lucas, and another team, and we searched for you and the others.”

“
I-I—”

“
It doesn’t matter. I’m just glad you’re alive, so I’m not gonna lecture you. All that matters is that you’re here, in one piece.” Nick embraced me in a tight hug, then hugged Jackie.

I hung my head and looked at the floor. “Mike was killed after you left,” I said. “It was horrible, Nick.”

“
Larry and Sam just made it back not too long ago,” Val said. “They filled us in on all the horrible details.”

“
They did?” I asked, shocked.

“
Yep.”

Before I could answer or tell them what Larry had done, Lucas grabbed me and pulled me into a strong-armed bear hug. “You’re beyond tough, bro. You’re downright invisible. I’m proud of you for this one, even if I oughtta kick your butt for scaring me.”

“
Two other guys and one woman made it back too,” Nick said. “We quarantined them to Three West because they’re covered with bites and scratches.”

“
Besides us, Larry, and Sam, I didn’t think anyone else survived,” I said. “If they’ve been bitten, are you going to give them some serum?”

“
They’ve already had it before,” Nick said, “back in Kingsville.”

“
This is new territory,” Jackie said. “I guess we’re not really sure how to tread.”

Lucas shook his head. “Exactly. I mean, how do we know if the old dose will still work? Then again, double-dosing might kill them.”

“
So what are we going to do?” I asked. “If they were bitten, they’re going to turn.”

“
I don’t think it’d hurt to give them the serum again,” Jackie said. “What’s it going to matter? I’d rather die by somebody trying to help me than stand by and do nothing because they’re afraid of double-dosing me. I’m sure they’d feel the same way. Besides, no one wants to turn into a zombie and have to be shot in the head.”

“
We’ll try a drop of the serum and see what happens,” Lucas said. “I have a vial right here.” He motioned us up the stairs.

I walked in and stared straight ahead. Three beds had been placed in the center of the room. “It’s me, Dean,” I said to the brave victims.

The lady moaned. “Dean?”

“
I’m so glad you made it out alive,” I said.

“
Was that crazy or what?” she mumbled. “Bob and Steve are sleeping.”

“
We’ll be quiet,” I promised.

“
Can we look at your wound?” Nick asked.

She pulled back the dressing, and we all examined it.

“
It’s healing already,” Lucas said, “and I don’t see any sign of infection or pus.”

“
This is just like Asia’s bite wound,” Jackie said. “It’s healing.”

“
How about the scratches?” I asked.

She lifted up her shirt to reveal three long, red claw marks stretched across her flat stomach. There was no pus or infection there either, which was a relief, since zombie bites and scratches usually began to fester almost immediately.

Nick stared down in disbelief. “They’re immune to the zombie virus. The cure actually works—like a vaccination!”

The woman cupped her mouth in surprise. “Does that mean we’re not going to turn?”

“
Your body is fighting off the virus,” Jackie said, “and your skin is already healing.”

Sobs of joy escaped the bitten woman’s lips, and she got up and shook the man next to her. “We’re gonna beat this thing, Steve! We’re going to live!” she shouted as happy tears slipped down her face.

“
What?” Steve asked in disbelief, hugging her.

She explained everything, and they all hugged each other, shouting and laughing.

“
We’re going to keep you quarantined for a few more hours, just in case,” Nick said, “but everything is looking good.”

As we walked out of the room, the guy guarding the door smiled. “Thanks,” he said. “This is the best news we’ve had in a while. Last thing I wanted to do was have to shoot my own brother, though I would have if I’d had to.” He clapped Nick’s shoulder and walked into the room.

Though I was glad to be back, I couldn’t stop thinking about Nick leaving me on that roof. I hadn’t pursued the issue yet because too much had been going on, but the horrible feelings weren’t going away, and I knew I had to confront him. Anger flooded through me as I pulled him to the side.

“
What’s wrong?” he said.

An awkward silence ensued before I finally spoke. “Why did you leave me like that, back on the roof?”

“
I did what I had to do to save your lives.”

My throat tightened. “But I didn’t know if I’d ever see you again.”

“
Dean, I know how to handle zombies, okay?” he said. “Just think of me as an expert in the field.”

“
Nick knows what he’s doing,” Val said. “He’s experienced in this area. Just trust his judgment.”

I pointed at him. “Val can stick up for you all she wants, but you’d better never do that to me again,” I said firmly.