I woke up with a start in a darkened room, lying on a comfortable mattress enfolded by cool sheets. By the dim light in the room I could make out faint details of which I was not familiar. At first I was feeling very disoriented not knowing where I was or how I got there. As I laid my head back on the pillows, it started coming back to me and I remembered everything. I closed my eyes and fought with myself on choosing, going back to sleep or getting my brain synapses going enough to bring me to wakefulness.
I turned my head to left and right trying to find a clock of sorts to get an idea of at least the time. Last I remember before going to sleep was that it was near 6:30 in the evening, or that's what I remembered Maggie telling me before she crawled into bed naked, curling up next to me and drifting off to sleep. She was gone now, presumably talking with her Dad or her 12 year old son, James. At the moment I didn't fret about it.
It was quiet in that room. Awfully quiet for someone who has slept out of doors and in the abandoned sleepers of dead semis along the highway. No birds, no wind, no ominous shuffle of feet somewhere. Just wasn't used to that much quiet.
In that quiet I heard footsteps approaching the bedroom door, which was shut, (locked?). There was a quiet knock and I heard Frank's voice calling my name. The tone was gentle, questioning, to see if I were awake. I hesitated but replied: “Come in.”
“You're going to have to say “open” for the door to unlock, John” was his response.
Well, that was good to know, as my eyebrows went up. I wondered at just how secure the door was. At least from physical forced entry. Electronically it'd be too easy to get the computer to open the door. I still had the sense of being watched 24/7 no matter where I was, even if I was taking a dump. “Uh, open” I said hesitantly. Sure enough, there was a quiet click and the door slid open into it's recessed holder in the wall. I couldn't help but chuckle that at least it didn't make a “whiss” sound when it did. It was nearly silent in the stillness of the room. The lights came up automatically as he entered.
Frank walked in and was dressed in civilian clothes. He waved me down as I began to get up out of bed. “Please make yourself comfortable. We need to talk.” it was in that commanding tone of his but it was at the same time gentle enough to soften the stern-ness of it. Neat little trick, to me, it was the sign of a good commanding officer who knew how to get things done but not be so bossy and superior, yet still expected to be obeyed. Such men are difficult to disobey if they have your respect and it's been reciprocated.
He pulled up a chair and sat by the far corner of the queen sized bed Maggie and I shared. “I must first apologize for not being open enough with you. My family owes you that debt of our lives and that we, in the long history of my family have always repaid the debt, part of the debt payment is to remain as honest and keep the friendship's integrity as solid as possible. In this age of ours, we're finding out the meaning of those words, with each moment.”
He passed his hands in front of his eyes for a moment, then shook his head to clear it and move on. It looked kinda weird to my eyes at first but before I could dwell upon it he spoke again. “It's important that you know exactly what's going on and why I've done what I did to get you into this facility. Also to tell you why there are several of the dead down here with us.” He hesitated a moment as if debating whether or not to add on to it, then plunged ahead.
“It's also to let you know that I have something important to impart to you. But we'll get to that later.”
Before I could say another word, he moved on deliberately before losing his courage. From what I gathered at the moment was that he either already was in trouble or was going to be for bringing in an outsider without proper clearance. I'm sure that my personal records have been gone over with a fine a comb as they could have. A computer powerful enough to manage a facility this big would be chocked full of information, including personal records of every single individual in the country, illegal or not. My prints are all over the place as we came down. Even if I were careful they'd search the truck, my gear and everything else and find my identifying markers all over the place.
Frank began, “This is a medical research facility just like the CDC/Wildfire base in Atlanta. There's no way that they'd just have one for the whole country. There's another one in Stovington, Vermont and there's the fourth one out in Colorado. It's connected to the NORAD base located there.
“Now, everytime there's a pandemic or outbreak of anything, these bases go on full alert and full operational status. The best minds in microbiology, chemistry and various other experts are brought here with their families to work on the disease until a cure is found or the danger is past. It's also used to protect members of the government and selected civilians who would be beneficial to rebuild upon.
“But of course that all changed with the rising of the dead. So folks are taken in, screened and,” he hesitated again, “inoculated.” I remained silent, letting him continue, clearly there was a lot that he didn't want to talk about but felt out of obligation to me and his family to do so, national security be damned.
“This place” he began again, “is working on finding a cure for the disease that is making the dead rise up. It's also working on killing the element that is causing people to die after being bitten. We're still not sure exactly what it is that making all that happen but we do know that it can be combated and they've been successful John, successful in fighting it. Only trouble is they been successful as far as the petri dish. But take the success and inject it into the human body and it fights it for a while but eventually the test subjects succumb.” He held up his hand, “Yet with each new batch the length of time between bites and death become longer, so they're close.” At this point I had to jump in.
“So as far as the ones that are resurrected there's no hope for them, right? But the ones who have been bitten, there might be a cure?”
Frank nodded, “that is what they're working on. They can explain in more detail in the lab when you go to the interview. But what I must stress to you is this. Part of the immunization cocktail that they injected us with is the latest batch of the “cure” that they've been working on. The soldiers that are above ground; the guards, roving patrols, dock workers, and so forth are given a new batch each week because they've been exposed to the outside air, where they feel the plague, virus, germ, whatever it is is out-there. They're still not sure if it's airborne or transmitted via fluids.
“The zombies that are in the lab are folks who have been brought in that were already bitten and they're quarantined immediately and put into an observation room. The attending doctors and nurses are all in sterilized riot gear to protect themselves but they make sure that the victims are made as comfortable as possible in their last moments. In their moments of death they're transported to the zombie holding facility and there they resurrect and are studied.”
This time I held up my hand to stop him, “Frank, this is all well and good info but what the hell does it have to do with me and why lie about my credentials?” At this Frank sighed deeply. “Because you already know all of this what I just told you... your former job was the Presidential advisor. One of hundreds, called in whenever their credentials fit the need. If it were a nuclear threat then those guys are brought in, biological, meteorological, astro-physics, whatever, the President has a host of people to call upon to help him make the right decision.”
Once again I felt my jaw drop. Will there be no end to it? Ever since I met Maggie and James and then Frank, I've been shown a world where nothing is ever what it's supposed to be and neither were we. “Frank,” I began gently, “I'm nothing but a glorified tour guide. I don't even have the education to even know zoo-cryptology's definition. I go in there and start making stuff up, they're going to bust me, you and Maggie and...” he raised his hand and there was a slight grin on his face. “John, your job will be to explain the habits and idiosyncrasies of the walkers. The men in the lab have been down here since the first outbreak and thus their information about the zombies is scant at best. Eye-witness accounts and what little video that was transmitted to this base cannot begin to tell the scientists here what they need to know. You have been out on the road for a long time, since the beginning. You have the perfect knowledge of the whats, hows, whys and wherefores of these things.”
His hand opened up in his lap in a pleading gesture. “Please, this is important or else ...” he drifted off and looked me in the eye. “Please John. We must keep trying to find a cure for this or all of humanity may be lost. By knowing the habits and ways of the zombies then we might figure this out.”
At this I hung my head and thought for a moment. My biggest concern was being busted as a fraud and it's something that I hate most. A friend told me a long time ago that the best thing about me was my integrity, at how I refused to accept responsibility for something that I didn't do, no matter how great it was. If someone had accredited me with a brilliant idea and it wasn't true, I'd be the first to speak up and say it wasn't so and give credit to whomever actually came up with it. On several cave rescues I've been on, the folks involved tried giving me credit for the success and I blew it off and gave it to those who worked the hardest and admitted to only doing my small part. It was how I was brought up. I never liked the limelight anyway.
Frank sat there quietly letting me make up my own mind on whether or not I was going to live up to this lie, it was a little white lie when you think about it. “Frank, if I decide not to go with all this? What happens?” Frank nodded as if he were expecting me to ask him that. “Well, then, not much really except you'll be moved out of the VIP area and placed on restricted access status. Meaning that all areas below the laboratory would be off limits to you. Trust me,” he grinned, “accommodations here are much nicer.”
At that I had to snort. Class separations even at the end of the world as we know it. Sheesh. I was too tired to even think anymore. I thought about Maggie and how she must be expecting me to play along for a little while. We would be separated like two lovers from opposite ends of the railroad tracks. I wrestled with it and then gave in. “Alright” I muttered, then louder. “Alright dammit, fine. I'll go along but I'm not going to pretend to know the meaning of something if someone throws a $20.00 word at me and expects me to understand.” Frank laughed for the first time. “No, of course not. As far as they know you have a specific line of education and anyway nobody up in that lab speaks scientific gobbledygook anyway. They found it too tedious. But I think you'll do fine. You're a smart man John, you'll be able to ease your way in with no trouble.”
He leaned back in his chair satisfied and then gave me a long look, before speaking again. “Now there is a personal matter I wish to speak to you about. More of a request and something I wish to give to you. I can only hope that you will accept.” I steeled myself because it sounded like something he wouldn't normally do from the tone of his voice. It was almost pleading and about as humble as I've heard the man since I first met him. “It's about Maggie and James. I know all about the tree house and how you three met. And while I know Maggie can take care of herself and James, while he still has a lot to learn for a boy his age, can manage quite well on his own, I still would feel better if they had a man around to keep an eye on them. You've done well in-so-far and Maggie trusts you. Yes, she even loves you. That is something I've been waiting to hear from her for a long time. When she lost her husband she was devastated and lost. Brian was a good man, a good soldier, loved his country and loved his wife and son. She went on for years isolating her self from loving anyone else. I think it's just a matter of timing when you came along and she was ready to not be alone anymore. So I'm asking you to please stay with them. Care for them, watch over them. Ward them from danger as best as you can. It's all a father can ask for his family.” he paused for a moment, locking eyes with me again. “Also if anything to please make sure that they do not come back as one of “them”. His eyes went to the ceiling, looking beyond the facility and to the surface high above us. I didn't have to ask what he meant by “them.”
“Frank, Maggie and I have already discussed this and we agreed that if we were going to be bit or whatever, is to take care of each other quickly and painlessly as possible. Same with James. But I think I know what you're asking. It's the same any father asks his future son-in-law on the wedding day or day before.” I shrugged “I don't know if Maggie and I will get married or not, but I never thought I'd end up feeling for her the way that I do. So, I'm committed to her, and James.”
Frank closed his eyes and nodded. “Thank you. I'm grateful.” was all that he said. He got up and he moved the chair back to where it was. He looked at his watch and nodded. “Well you still got a few hours left before they're expecting you. Maggie is wandering around with James getting to know the place a little better. We plan on meeting in the cafeteria at about 1700 for dinner.” I glanced at a clock by our bed, it read 1423 instead of 2:23 pm. “Get some sleep and we'll see you there.” his voice was back at that conversational command tone. Without a word he turned and left the room. The door slid shut and there was that faint click of the door locking. I laid back down on the bed letting the conversation replay in my head and tried my best to keep it from spinning my skull off of my body, which it threatened to do.
From tour guide to Presidential advisor. Boy would the guys back at the cave be laughing their asses off right about now if they knew. Charlie would be busting a gut for sure. A question popped up in my head and I got out of bed and walked quickly to the door, it slid open without my having to say anything. In our living quarters the room was empty. I went to the entry door and stopped. I looked down and saw that I was dressed only in a light blue pajama bottom. I turned and went back to the bedroom and found a pair of slippers and put them on. These were a nice pair, leather covering a fleece lining, with a thin rubber sole to prevent slipping. The room temperature was warm enough that I didn't need a shirt. I headed back out to the living quarters and went to the entry way.
The door slid open and I stepped out into the corridor. All at once I had a sense of abandonment, aloneness. I oriented myself best as I could and walked down towards I thought was the front desk. I reached the “lobby” and my sense of being alone was heightened when I saw no-one at all. The front desk was empty, the lobby itself deserted. I could see into the PX and there no-one in there at all. Over to my left the cafeteria was empty as well. “Hello,” I called and gotten no reply. There was no spooky echo thank God, but it still didn't prevent a case of the creeps from washing over me. I walked deeper into the lobby, trying to look everywhere at once. I looked towards the glass walls of the PX and thought I spied movement. I headed on over there quickly but quietly as I could. That sense of wrongness began to grow on me. As I got closer I could barely make out the figure moving among the shelves of the store. Something about it wasn't quite right. I shifted right as the figure was moving left and soon we were aligned up and I could see that it was a zombie.
Instinctively I dove for cover behind a set of low tables and chairs in the lobby. My heart pounding. One (or more) of the zombies from the lab had escaped and everyone evac-ed but forgot to tell me. No, Maggie would've come and gotten me, of that I felt sure of it. What about Frank? Wouldn't he have turned around and warned me? The zombie turned and started heading up the aisle towards the main entrance of the PX. I moved on my hands and knees, trying to stay as low as possible. I got my bearings and moved back towards our room. Hopefully my sword and other weapons weren't confiscated. I felt naked and alone.
As I reached the beginning of the corridor leading to my room I looked up and saw that the far end was filled with zombies. Some dressed as soldiers, others in blood splattered white lab coats and a couple dressed in civilian clothes. What the hell? I decided to worry about how it all happened later. I heard a growl behind me and saw that the zombie in the store had made it's way out and spotted me. Damn. I stood up and looked around quickly. My eyes fell upon the elevator doors and saw above each were a series of lights. One of them shining bright red. Not 100% sure, I felt that it meant the elevators were locked down. Wishing that I had a floor plan of sorts memorized I sought for another way out, my eyes darting left and right, occasionally falling upon the zombie who was shambling closer to me with each moment. I turned my head down the corridor and saw that the group was also moving quicker, as if the growl from the store zombie had alerted them that dinner was nearby. The only place I could think of next was the cafeteria. I bolted in that direction, causing the store zombie to shift directions and try to close the distance between us.
I leapt over the small lounge chairs and ottomans that were between me and the cafeteria. As I entered the cafeteria, I noticed for the first time that there were bodies lying on the floor. Torn apart, devoured, blood splattered and smeared everywhere. I wondered if one of them was Maggie.
I didn't take time to check as I weaved through the tables and chairs of the cafeteria. From behind me I could hear the store zombie had been joined by the group from the corridor and they were making their way towards me in earnest. My mind was racing, wondering how the hell it happened and where could I go and was there anything I could use as a weapon? Steak knives, yeah right... NOT! Kitchen knives from the chefs? Maybe one on one but not a whole group. Cursing I turned to find the entry to the kitchen. If I was lucky I could find a service entrance to bust out of.
I went through the double swing doors of the kitchen and saw more bodies and blood everywhere. Off to my right one of the bodies stirred. Oh great! I looked frantically for a service door or even a dumb waiter. I couldn't find any. I turned my head up to the ceiling and was dismayed to see that it was solid. Trapped! After all this time, escaping and evading zombies and carefully checking out places, I was now good and trapped. The first of the zombie group burst their way through the kitchen doors and were growling as they spied me moving through the kitchen trying to find a way out. I saw the reefer and thought about it. Yeah great, just like that guy back in the store where I met Maggie for the first time. Locked himself in and suffocated while bleeding to death. Not to mention that the power was still on and thus I would be frozen before I could suffocate. At least I wasn't bleeding.
Something grabbed at my foot and I looked down and saw one of the bodies had turned and was trying to get it's first meal, me. I kicked at the hand and moved backwards, trying to keep it and the ever growing group of zombies piling into the kitchen area in sight. I bumped into something and turned, it was another zombie, dressed in kitchen bloody kitchen whites, the cap still on it's head. I gave it a hard shove backwards and it stumbled and fell over the body of another kitchen worker that was beginning to reanimate. I searched frantically for those kitchen knives and saw that they were along one wall but a section of the group had broken off and were already past them. Turning around I could see a line of empty bread racks that I might be able to put between me and them. I hustled on over and got behind one of them and pulled it close as I moved towards a corner along the far wall. It was the only thing I could think of, and by then it was the only option I had left. The group had reached me and were grabbing at me through the spaces of the shelves of the empty bread rack. I held on as tight as I could but the weight and numbers overwhelmed me. The rack as shunted aside as several zombies pushed their way past and hands reached out and grabbed at me. I fought off as best as I could, receiving scratches in the bargain.
I roared my defiance at them, angry at myself for letting myself get caught and I punched and kicked as hard as I could in that corner. It didn't matter, as those who were crawling on the ground managed to get my legs out from under me and I went down. I felt their hands clawing at my body and skin. As it began to tear I was dimly aware that there was no pain involved. I always imagined that it would be since all those before me that I've seen getting torn apart, as I was being now, screamed horribly. But here, there was no feeling as I saw strips of my flesh being torn from my body and raised to hungry mouths. I felt grabbing down by my crotch area and looked down and to my horror before I passed out from fear it was Maggie, part of her face was gone and she growled as her mouth opened wide to bite me. I screamed in horror.
And woke up back in bed. The room was dimly lit and I was not alone. Maggie was sitting on the end of the bed, her back slightly turned to me. I was breathing hard and sweat covered my body. “M-maggie?” I managed to stammer out. She turned to me and while she looked perfectly normal, what was wrong was her blood stained mouth. She smiled and spoke like a small child, “Oh goody you're awake, are you hungry?” and she held out a large bloody piece of meat to me in both hands, “It's fillet of James” she giggled. She raised it to her mouth and took a bite, tearing the flesh apart with her teeth. Her mouth chewing as she gave me a bloody grin. I jerked backwards and hit my head, my shoulders shaking violently.
“JOHN! Wake up! John!” I heard Maggie's voice, urgent and frightened. I woke up and saw her, normal and clean. No blood, nothing. She was shaking my shoulders in an effort to wake me up. “C'mon John, please wake up!” I spread my arms wide to take her hands off my shoulders and nodded.
“Ok, ok I'm awake! I'm ... I'm awake.” She sighed and rubbed my arms. “Thank god. You were having an awful nightmare. I came back to tell you we were meeting for dinner and you were thrashing around on the bed and yelling.” I shook my head and had to give her an embarrassed grin. “Thanks, I don't think I could've handle much more of it. Please don't ask me what it was about.” She nodded “Zombies? Yeah I dream about those bastards too. I suspect we all will for a while to come.” She got up and moved to the door. “C'mon get up, take a shower and get dressed, we'll wait for you in the cafeteria.” and before I could say anything, she opened the bedroom door to a nightmare. The space beyond was full of zombies. She stood there in stock horror and screamed when they reached for her and pulled her into the next room. She fought as they began tearing her to pieces, biting and ripping her apart, already feeding upon her. “John!!” she screamed at me as the door closed. I screamed back.
Then woke up once more. In the darkness of the room. I sat up, breathing hard, my body soaked in sweat and I could feel the sheets and blankets were a wreck all over the bed. “Lights, gradual please” I muttered. The lights came up slowly, allowing my eyes to adjust. I looked around. The room was normal, except the messed up bed. I spied a note on the end-table by the bed and grabbed at it. It was a note from Maggie asking me to meet them in the cafeteria at 1700. I thought it was cute that she put in parenthesis (5:00 pm), in case I mightn't known what 1700 was. I looked back at the end table and saw the time reading 1611, which meant that I had time to shower and change before dinner. I knew this time I wasn't dreaming. My heart had already slowed from it's rabbit-racing pace and my emotions boiled to the surface.
I dropped the note on the bed and put my face in my hands and cried for a long time.
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