Dying Days 8 Read online

  While she felt proud she’d been picked to lead this group of twenty, she was also nervous. April didn’t feel like she’d proven herself yet.

  The northernmost walls had been punched out in places when The Lich Lord began to throw his power around and the trench he’d dug through the street and into some of the buildings on either side was the path April followed.

  When most of the population of The Promised Land had been killed, everyone had given up the outskirts to the zombies. Even when the zombies had pulled back, they didn’t have the manpower to clear the bodies or put out the remaining fires.

  April noticed the group was bunched together. She stopped and waved her hands.

  “Spread out. I want no more than two close together. Stay within sight of everyone else but start to get a gap between you and the next person. If we’re really about to face a living enemy, they’ll blow us away with a few good shots,” April said. She smiled at Carlie. “I want you to go all the way to the back.”

  “No way. I’m tough,” Carlie said.

  “I’m more worried about what mom and dad would say if something happened to you. Just do what I say. The last thing I need is for someone to question me when I’m supposed to be the leader,” April said.

  Carlie covered her mouth with a hand and nodded, something she’d been doing since she was a little kid and knew she’d get in trouble if she said another word.

  “We’ll get as close to the end of The Promised Land as we dare and watch for signs of anyone trying to get inside,” April said.

  Once they found a solid position, she’d spread them out so a group was watching A1A and the road ahead while a second group watched for a river assault. The third would watch the beach.

  April hoped they had no trouble and the newcomers were just bold enough to try getting in the front door.

  She felt good about being given this assignment. It meant despite screwing up over Terry she was still valued in the community and could move up in the ranks.

  Her parents were going to hate this, especially since she was dragging her sister into it, too. They worried too much.

  In all fairness, there are zombies trying to bite us and other people trying to shoot us, she thought. Maybe they weren’t acting any different. Maybe they should be even more worried than the normal day to day stuff they should be going through, like April going out on a date with a guy they didn’t approve of or her getting another tattoo or another piercing.

  April knew if she ever had kids of her own she’d never let them out of her sight, no matter how old they were. She also knew it would be a selfish and horrible thing to have children with everything wrong in this world.

  Carlie was a few feet to her right on what was left of the sidewalk, watching for anyone hiding in the buildings.

  As they stepped over rubble and April tried to ignore the body parts littering the street, she kept her eyes open for an ambush.

  There were quite a few buildings still up in one form or another. A damaged wall to her left. A hotel to her right with the windows busted out but the inside dark, the parking lot leading to the beach.

  It was amazing how a few minutes of raw anger from The Lich Lord had done so much damage. The months they’d toiled to create this perfect sanctuary had been wasted as it had been destroyed so easily.

  April knew there was a lesson in all of this but she didn’t want to dwell on such a negative.

  Live, suffer, die, she thought.

  They’d rebuild. Make The Promised Land bigger and better.

  With the influx of new survivors, things would be odd for a few weeks until everyone settled into a new routine. They’d find new purpose and begin to create a new world.

  The clothing store her family had been running had been flattened by The Lich Lord. Nothing had been left to salvage but it wasn’t going to stop the Hand family.

  Her father had already begun to bother everyone he thought was going to go over the wall, to scavenge, about bringing back any clothing, shoes and even drapes or fabric.

  If he couldn’t outfit everyone in clean clothes, he’d make his own.

  April had to smile when she thought of how lucky she was to be with her family. Not many people could say it these days. Hell, most people were alone now.

  She knew how lucky she was and glanced at Carlie again to make sure she was still pacing.

  Her sister looked so content to be out in the air, wandering around as if they were looking for rocks to throw across a pond instead of walking towards what could be a firefight.

  Carlie seemed oblivious to most but April knew she was just always positive and looking at the good in everything and everyone.

  Something crashed to her right and she turned quickly.

  “Sorry,” a thin man said, as he picked himself up off the ground and dusted the dirt from his dirty jeans. “I wasn’t looking where I was going.”

  “Everyone needs to spread out a bit more,” April said. The group was getting too close together and they were almost at the end of the street and to the wall.

  April needed to focus. If they could get to the wall and up top, they’d be able to see anything coming from the north and be able to warn Main Street.

  “Excuse me but I didn’t get your name,” April said to the man closest to her. He’d been trailing her for the last hundred feet. They were within sight of the northern wall. It looked intact, which surprised her.

  “I’m…” the man didn’t have time to say his name because the bullet pierced through his mouth, taking out part of his jaw.

  April turned to see a dozen snipers on top of the wall.

  They’d let April lead her group right down the middle of the street to an exposed area.

  A killing field.

  April didn’t have time to shout to retreat or get to cover as the bullets began to fly.

  Chapter Twenty Three

  Terry didn’t want to be this close to The Promised Land.

  He was hiding close enough to the bridge to see people milling about on top.

  The really bad part was the amount of other people also taking a look at the bridge, and they didn’t look too friendly.

  “What should we do?” the guy next to Terry whispered, causing Terry to jump.

  “Talk again and I’ll gut you. Get away from me, in fact. You stink,” Terry said.

  He needed to concentrate on what was going on.

  He counted maybe four dozen people but they didn’t seem in a rush to do anything other than listen to their leader, who was a puny guy with glasses actually wearing a dress shirt and tie loosely around his neck, yelling into a bullhorn.

  It made no sense, unless…

  Terry smiled. The Promised Land didn’t see what was happening.

  “This is a bluff. They’re keeping everyone busy so they can attack from another direction. Maybe a couple. Brilliant,” Terry said.

  He needed to get word to Mister Borden. Let the zombie bastard know what was happening. Maybe Terry could find a way to use this to his advantage.

  If a battle ensued and The Promised Land fell but at great cost to the marauders, Terry could swoop in with firepower and take it over for himself.

  Mister Borden would more than double his kingdom and Terry would be a hero to these idiots.

  Terry turned to the guy near him who smelled like he’d not only bathed in shit but had eaten it for lunch. “Go tell Mister Borden there’s a situation. We might be able to take advantage of it if he gets me a bunch of people with big guns to clean up the leftovers.”

  The guy hesitated and Terry slapped him in the face. He was growing tired of people not understanding that what he was saying was important. It had taken too long for the idiots in The Promised Land to see he’d been right and The Lich Lord needed to be eliminated.

  “Mister Borden is going to destroy you if you screw this up,” Terry said. He shook his head. “Don’t any of you get it? The guy’s a… a very powerful man. He can use this for our own good, unless
you screw it up. Go, motherfucker, and hurry.”

  Terry went back to watching the scene unfold.

  He knew Tosha was on the bridge somewhere, looking hot and pissed off. She was a smart girl. She’d figure out what the real deal was.

  Terry didn’t know if she’d figure it out in time, though.

  “What do we do?” another loser asked.

  Terry sighed. “We wait for backup. We see if they’re really going to attack from the front or if they’ll be coming from another way. My guess? They’ll come from the ocean side. They’ll have lots of beach to land on and get really close.”

  Based on what was at the bridge as a distraction, Terry guessed maybe fifty trying to sneak around. He couldn’t imagine any more than that. There weren’t big groups of marauders out there, right?

  He hoped so or The Promised Land would fall.

  Terry wanted it for himself. It’s all he’d really ever wanted. The first real goal he’d ever tried to accomplish.

  If someone with bigger numbers and better weapons conquered it, they’d eventually turn their sights on Mister Borden.

  Had he done the wrong thing by taking out The Lich Lord? He was sure their plan had been successful. If the zombie still lived, he would’ve been standing on the gate, with a wicked grin on his face, killing people with ease.

  Mitch had killed him. After all was said and done, a simple perfectly placed bullet could still destroy these creatures, no matter how tough or invincible they seemed.

  Terry would need to remember that.

  It gave him hope the human race wasn’t as fucked as Terry had thought, but it also meant The Promised Land no longer had the protection, unless The Lich Lord was waiting to make a dramatic entrance into the battle.

  Terry had been near the monster enough to know he wasn’t very subtle. His move was always to throw a bolt of lightning at the enemy and scatter them. He wasn’t interested in working things out or asking the other side what their intentions were.

  The asshole with the bullhorn would’ve been fried like bacon before he got out his second word.

  The men around Terry were getting restless.

  “We need to make sure this group we can see is the only one on this side of the river. I’d hate to get captured while we’re not in the fight,” Terry said. He pointed at two random people. “Go back as far as you can, one to the south and one north, but keep us in sight and make sure no one is sneaking up on this position. Can you handle that?”

  Both men must’ve thought they could handle it because they were off without a word.

  Terry looked around for a better vantage point but felt like he was in the best position for cover, if guns turned in his direction, and he had an escape route, to his rear they might miss, through rubble and overgrown lots.

  He wasn’t going to lead a charge against anyone. He’d be the leader who stood in the back of the line and directed the action and be the first to slink away if need be.

  Terry wasn’t worried about pride. He was only worried about number one. It had kept him alive this far.

  The distant sound of shooting began and Terry sighed. Unless Mister Borden showed his people what he really was, he’d never make it in time.

  Terry wanted to rule but not over a pile of burning rubble and dead bodies.

  A double blast sounded from Main Street and Terry smiled. “They’re coming from the ocean like I thought.”

  A single blast.

  “From the north. Wow. These bastards are bold.”

  Three quick blasts.

  Terry was no longer smiling. “They’re coming from all sides. The only way you do that is if you have enough men to do it right.”

  “What does that mean?”

  Terry closed his eyes. “It means we’re fucked whether Mister Borden gets here or not.”

  Chapter Twenty Four

  It would take too long to drive back and get the rest of the crew. Unfortunately, the few people they had weren’t going to do much damage once they lost the initial surprise.

  “Send someone back to the mall to get everyone else and we’ll make do with what we have,” Tosha said.

  “I don’t like the odds,” Mitch said and shook his head. “If we show ourselves, they’ll cut us down in seconds. There’s a machine gun on the back of one of their trucks. Might even be two. Who knows how many more are lurking around? They’re not dumb. They’ll have scouts in the bushes and we’ve probably already been spotted.”

  Tosha laughed. “There’s only two ways I want to die: fucking or fighting.” She tapped the shotgun. “Right now I’ll settle for my fingers wrapped around this barrel instead of a cock.”

  “You missed your calling as a poet,” Mitch said.

  They had nothing to do but watch and pace until the others finally arrived from the mall.

  Jada was in the lead and she looked like she was ready to kill.

  “We’re outnumbered. Once we fire on this group, they’ll fuck up most of us immediately. The only thing we have is surprise and it won’t last,” Tosha said.

  “Then why are we wasting time chatting? Let’s kill shit,” Jada said.

  “We need to figure out the enemy’s relative strengths and weaknesses. Troop movement. Leadership expertise. Weapon placement. Escape routes. Estimated casualties on both sides,” Tosha said.

  Jada was looking at Tosha like she had two heads.

  “Just fucking with ya. We’re just going to start shooting and see what happens.” Tosha smiled at everyone in their group. “We’re royally outnumbered and will all probably die. Anyone wants to run away now, go for it. The zombies are coming soon anyway. We’ll get totally fucked when they start moving.”

  No one ran off.

  “Burn the bridge behind you. Leave no retreat,” Jada said, without any emotion.

  “There’s only one way home,” Tosha said and grinned. They were quoting the heavy metal icons Manowar. It put Tosha in a calm mood. What they were doing was what needed to be done. No looking back now. What’s the use?

  “I’m ready,” Jada said.

  “Everyone make sure you leave nothing behind. We take every last bullet and we use it. This is going to get bloody,” Tosha said.

  Tosha looked at some of the faces in front of her. They looked scared. They needed to be. She was gripping the shotgun so her hands wouldn’t shake so much.

  How many times have I been in this spot? Tosha thought. Heading into certain death. The odds firmly against me. Everything else in the past. A finite amount of ammo and blood left to expend.

  So far so good. Tosha hoped there really was an afterlife so she could see Mathyu again and play a few video games with her sister. Maybe in Heaven she’d be able to beat her twin, too.

  “Spread out a bit. Wherever you line up is your immediate area. No one needs to get cute. Just shoot anything directly in front of you until there’s nothing left to shoot or you run out of ammo,” Tosha said.

  “You’re still talking,” Jada said and shook her head. “People need to die.”

  “Let’s get into position. I want to shoot their leader in the head. I called it,” Tosha said. She kept the shotgun but got a rifle from the car. She needed distance and accuracy for what she needed to do.

  They got as close as they dared, less than a hundred feet. At this range, Tosha had an easy shot at anyone she wanted. Their car engines were still running, which masked the sound of their movement as well.

  Jada looked at ease as she aimed and Tosha thought she saw the woman trying to hide her grin. The bitch was enjoying the thought of the coming action.

  “That little runt is running this? I call bullshit,” Tosha said. She had him in her crosshairs, standing and chatting with a woman like he didn’t have a care in the world.

  “He’s wearing a suit. That’s not proper attire in Florida,” Mitch said. He was next to Tosha, his hip touching hers.

  “I’m not going to fuck you,” Tosha said.

  “Not sure why you’d say th
at, especially when we’re about to kill a few people and start a shitstorm against us,” Mitch said.

  Tosha bumped her hip against his. “You act like I don’t know what’s on your mind. Dudes are so easy to read. If I said to forget this shit and take me into the nearest bushes, what would you say?”

  Mitch looked around with a smile. “Hold on. I’m looking for the nearest bushes.”

  “Exactly,” Tosha said. “It’s not ever going to happen so get over it. Stop taking it personal, too.”

  “I’m not.”

  “You most certainly are. Really hard like a chick that’s just been cheated on during prom. Like the chick who thought the big dance was all about her until the pig’s blood got dumped on her head,” Tosha said.

  “Can we focus on the task at hand?” Mitch asked.

  Tosha smiled because Mitch looked equal parts embarrassed and pissed. He actually thought he still had a chance with her.

  Her sister might’ve called her loose and a slut a few hundred times in their life but Tosha still had her own moral compass. If she wanted to sleep with a guy, it was on her own terms, and once she was done with you she was completely done. She never understood a weak woman who kept going back for more abuse from a guy when there were millions more out there, waiting to give their best lines to get her jeans off.

  Tosha put her finger on the trigger.

  “Where are you going? We don’t have a plan,” Mitch said.

  “Of course we do. I shoot their leader and the rest of you shoot the rest of them. Foolproof plan if you ask me. Once Bernie hears the first shot, she’ll do what needs to be done. I guess the best we can hope for is to catch them by surprise and get our asses back over the bridge,” Tosha said.

  She glanced at Mitch, who was staring at her.

  “And then, when we’re safe back on Main Street, I’m going to give you the best blowjob you’ve ever had,” Tosha said.

  “Really?” Mitch asked.

  Tosha shook her head. “No, you fucking idiot. Man, you’re so easy to mess with. It’s not even fun anymore. No means no.”