Chapter Eleven
In the morning, I head into the one bathroom with a bottle of peroxide, a cotton swab, and a fresh bandage. After peeling away the old bandage, I notice the cut on my thigh is a light red color, and it throbs gently when I touch it. The cut is healing, but I don’t want to take any chance it’ll get infected. So I clean it carefully, dry it, and stick a new bandage on it.
Then I dress for the day in the new clothes that Tobe grabbed for me, and I feel fantastic. For the first time in months, my clothes aren’t dirty, torn, or covered in blood. They’re nice, fresh, and clean, and I feel like a brand new person wearing them. It’s strange to think that something as simple as brand new clothes could lift the mood, but they do.
When I join Ryder and Reese, they’re sitting at the small, circular dining room table. Each of them has a bottle of expensive Fiji water in their hands, and they both look incredibly happy about something. When I sit down beside them, they look at me. “Guess what we found in the pantry.”
“More canned stuff?”
“Better. Mountain House prepackaged meals; they’re like MRE’s. They have a shelf life of seven years, and all you need to do is add a cup of boiling water, wait ten minutes, and then serve. It beats fruit cocktail and Vienna sausages any day.”
“What kind of food?”
Ryder nods his head to the kitchen counter, where two blue bags are sitting. “Right now Reese and I are making two pouches of scrambled eggs with ham and red and green peppers. After this meal, you’re gonna feel better than you have in months. I guarantee it.”
Reese gets up, checks the pouches, and grabs four plates from one of the cupboards. Tobe comes out with two more bottles of Fiji water, and hands one of them to me. Reese sets a plate of scrambled eggs and chopped ham with green and red peppers, and I inhale appreciatively.
The eggs smell amazing, and my mouth actually begins to water. As I take the first bite of warm eggs, a small moan escapes my lips, and I don’t feel embarrassed about it. After months of canned beans, tuna, and the occasional vegetable, this is pure heaven. Even though the eggs are a little soggy, and the peppers don’t have much taste, this is amazing.
Everyone quickly finishes their breakfast, and Tobe takes the plates away to wash later. “We’ll need water to wash these. How did you heat the water to make the meals?”
“We dragged a bucket of water up from a well in the front yard, and heated it over a fire pit nearby. There’s some left in the pot, and it might still be warm.”
“So, what’s on the menu for today?” I ask, stretching and rubbing my stomach. For the first time in months, I actually feel full. “Are we gonna start clearing out the island? Or are we gonna fix up the house first?”
“Well, Ryder and I are going to finish unloading the rest of the supplies from the boat, and then we’re going to scope out the property. We think there’s a wooden fence that goes around a portion of it, and we wanna know if it needs maintenance. If you guys don’t mind, we need someone to clean the blood from the front door and the steps. Then maybe straightening out the rest of the place.”
He’s asking, not telling, so I don’t have a problem with cleaning the house all day, especially since I won’t be much use elsewhere. Tobe and I glance at each other, nod, and then turn back to them. “I don’t have a problem with cleaning. At least it’s something constructive to do.”
“Alright,” Reese says, standing. “There’s an outhouse out back, there’s some more of the prepackaged meals in the cupboard, and just holler if you need anything. We’ll come running.” Ryder heads out the door, but Reese hesitates for a minute. “I don’t like the idea of leaving the two of you here by yourselves. Neither of you is particularly skilled with a gun. If something happens…”
“We’ll be fine,” I assure him. “I’ve got a gun, and two extra magazines. If anything does happen, I can hold down the fort until you guys get back.” He still doesn’t want to go, and I have to nudge him toward the door. “Reese, we’ll be fine. I promise.”
He sighs. “Alright. But if you need anything–”
“I know, just holler, and you’ll come running.”
He nods once, and jogs down the steps after Ryder, who’s already waiting impatiently in the front yard. They have a quick conversation, and jog off into the trees, leaving the two of us standing around, wondering what to do first.
“I think we should take care of the blood first,” Tobe says, looking at the pool of red liquid by the open door. “Then we can clean any rotten food out of the kitchen. It should make this place smell a whole lot nicer.”
I had noticed a slightly uncomfortable odor, but didn’t want to complain since this is the safest place we’ve been in since leaving my apartment a few days ago.
I head back down the hall to the bedroom that Tobe and I are sharing, and tuck my handgun into the waistband of my jeans. She’s waiting for me by the front door, and we make our way around the side of the house and into the garage, where we find a large five gallon bucket.
Tobe carries the bucket down to the lake, while I follow closely behind, searching for any sign of movement. She fills the bucket with as much water as she can carry, and we head back up to the house. Tobe finds a bottle of lemony dish soap under the sink, and squirts a little on the blood.
She then dumps some of the water over it, creating a bubbly pool of reddish water. The two of us take brushes with bristles from the kitchen, and start to scrub the blood stain from the wooden porch. It’s had a little bit to settle in, and the stain doesn’t want to clear away.
It takes almost an hour to clear away the blood stain. When we’re done, we use the rest of the water in the bucket to wash away the soap and the remaining bloody water. With the porch outside the front door clean, the two of us head back into the kitchen to begin going through the cupboards for any signs of rotten food.
Tobe is taller, and can reach the top cupboards with ease. I open the fridge, and immediately wish I hadn’t. The smell of six month old rotten milk hits me so violently that I start to cough and gag. Alongside the gallon of spoiled milk are a bag of soft, rotten apples, a carton of eggs, and a container of what looks like homemade, moldy banana bread.
She hands me a black trash bag from under the sink, and I toss the nasty items inside. The fridge still reeks, but once we get the rotten items outside the smell should clear up a bit. I set the trash bag on the floor beside me, and take everything else from the fridge, tossing it in with the milk and apples. The fridge hasn’t been running in a while, and we can’t trust anything that’s been in here.
“Dammit.”
I glance over my shoulder. Tobe’s holding two boxes of cheesy rice, and there’s a frown on her face. “These might have still been edible, if only the damn mice hadn’t gotten to them,” she says, showing me the boxes. There’s a chewed hole in the bottom corner of each, and dry rice and mouse pellets are falling to the counter. “What a waste.”
She tosses the boxes of rice into the trash bag, and six more quickly follow it. She sets some cans of corn on the counter in an “edible” pile, and continues going through the cupboards. While she does that, I grab a washcloth from the sink, dip it in the bucket of lake water, and start scrubbing the shelves in the fridge.
The lemony smell of the dish soap helps the horrid smell, but it’s still there, lingering in the air now that the fridge has been opened. As I scrub the fridge clean, Tobe finishes going through the cupboards. She’s found twelve cans of food to add to our supplies, but nothing else is edible.
I take the nearly full trash bag and set it out by the front door on the deck. When I head back to the kitchen, Tobe is spraying a bottle of air freshener around the room. It helps, but I can still smell a faint hint of sour milk.
She smiles at me. “What should we do now?”
“I’m gonna wash my dirty clothes, so I have more than one thing to wear.”
“Oh, that sounds like a great idea. Then I don’t have to wear the same thing d
ay after day. That’s something I really miss; being able to wear nice things, like that dress I just got, instead of just practical ones.”
We take another garbage bag from under the sink, and grab up everyone’s dirty clothes, even Reese’s and Ryder’s, and head outside. Tobe and I gather another bucket of lake water, and sit out back beneath an old-fashioned clothes line that goes from one tree to another.
We can’t thoroughly clean the clothes with just cold lake water, but we can scrub away the dirt that is caked on. When the clothes have soaked and been scrubbed, we hang them with pins on the clothesline. “I think that’s as good as they are gonna get,” Tobe says, standing with her hands on her hips. “Now I think it’s time I get cleaned up.”
“What I wouldn’t give for a hot shower.”
She laughs. “I know. It’s been so long I think I’ve forgotten what hot water feels like.”
“Well, as long as the water makes me clean, I don’t care whether it’s cold or not. In fact, I think I’m gonna go for a swim in the lake. The guys should be back anytime; do you think they’d wanna join us?”
She shrugs. “I’m not sure, but I’m definitely in.”
The two of us head down to the lake, and I set the handgun on the edge of the dock, where I can get to it quickly if I need to. Then Tobe and I strip until we’re standing in our underwear and camisoles. We don’t have swimsuits, but this will have to do.
Tobe does a perfect swan dive off the end of the dock, and I go for a cannonball. The water is frigid this late in the year and this far north, but it feels great on my skin. I know that we should be more careful about being so exposed, but we’ve only seen one zombie since arriving, and he was already dead. Speaking of the boy, I crane my neck around, looking for his body, and find nothing.
Ryder or Reese must have taken care of it.
Strangely, thinking of the dead boy as it makes me uncomfortable. Should it be so easy for me to think of him as anything other than a person? Shouldn’t I feel more remorse for that boy’s death than I do?
Tobe splashes me with water, taking me from my silent, depressing reverie. I splash her back, trying to enjoy the feeling of letting go and being carefree. This is the first time in months that I’ve felt relaxed and safe enough to even consider enjoying myself.
And I’ve always loved to swim.
I dive beneath the surface, doing somersaults and digging through the sand at the bottom. When I come up for air, I sift through the dirt in my hands, and find a handful of small shells. They’re mostly light pink or tan in color, and they’re nothing special, but I stare at them, unable to look away.
In this world, there’s very little left that could be considered beautiful, and I have the strangest urge to preserve this small bit of beauty. So I dip my hands back into the water, washing away all traces of dirt, sand, and muck, and wade over to the dock. I gently tuck the clean shells into my shirt, and shove away from the dock.
I float back out to where Tobe is basking up the sunlight with a smile on her face. So far, this place has proven safe, and a good idea, and I’m glad we decided to come. That is, until the zombie surfaces from beneath the dock.
It’s been infected for a while, and its features are starting to morph into a genderless mass. The eyes are dark, sunken, and expressionless, and the body is bloated. Its skin hangs loosely from its body, and even though the creature is shirtless, it’s so deformed I can’t tell if it’s male or female. All I know is that it’s seen us, and it’s hungry.
For a split second, Tobe and I just stare at the zombie, unable to move or react. Then it opens its mouth wide, dripping yellowish drool down its chest, and shrieks at us. That breaks us out of our stupor, and Tobe immediately screams.
We’re both weaponless, except for the Glock on the end of the dock. But the zombie is in my way, and I can’t get to it without running directly into the creature’s arms. I begin feeling around in the dirt for anything that might be usable as a weapon. Tobe isn’t much help; she’s still screaming at the top of her lungs, and I hope that Ryder and Reese can hear.
The zombie wades out toward us, fighting the water every step of the way. It’s moving slow, but with a purpose that is obvious. We’ll probably be its first meal in months, and it’s not going to just give up and let us go.
Tobe shrinks behind me, hoping that I’ll be able to protect her. But I have no weapons, and no plan, except to protect Tobe. I was the one that suggested swimming, and it’s my fault we’re in danger now. I’m going to do whatever is necessary to keep her safe now.
“Tobe, head that way, around the zombie, and get back to the house.”
“But–”
“Don’t argue, just go!” I shout, wading forward, toward the zombie.
It opens its mouth and shrieks again. Once I get within reach, it slowly reaches out for me. This zombie is older and not as coordinated, fast, or strong as the fresher ones, so that’s something. This zombie moves so slowly that I can dodge the sharp claws, grab the wrist, and twist.
It snaps, and the zombie howls. I’m not sure if it’s in pain or rage, and I don’t want to think about it. Instead, I bring my arms back, and shove as hard as I can, hoping to knock it off its feet. Instead, my hands tear right through the soft, flabby flesh like it was melted butter.
My hands sink wrist deep into its body, and I grimace. “Oh, gross.”
It leans forward, trying to bite at my arms, and I yank away. My hands come away with fistfuls of thick, congealed blood and skin. I resist the urge to squeal like a squeamish girl, and pull away from the zombie, circling around it. I wade through the water, trying to make my way back to the beach and the dock, where the gun is.
The water gets shallower and my pace quickens. I reach for the gun, and the zombie grabs my arm, yanking me away from the dock and back into the water. I go down hard on one elbow, and desperately crawl to the beach on my elbows and knees. The zombie grabs my hips and drags me farther into the water, and farther away from my gun.
I can feel the pads of its fingers pressed against my bare skin, and take a quick second to thank god it’s not the zombie’s nails. As quickly as it grabs me, I flail wildly about with my feet, trying to kick it and dislodge the creature from my body. It doesn’t work, and I can feel the zombie getting closer and closer to the back of my legs.
I can’t shake it off, and I can’t fight it!
I’m going to die.
There’s a loud shot, and the pressure on my hips lessens. I can feel the zombie slump over my back, and I whimper. I don’t know whether or not it was a head shot, and I don’t want to take the chance it’s not, but the zombie’s body has me pinned on my stomach.
I can’t budge the zombie, and I can’t move. The panic sets in, and I feel the scream building up in the back of my throat. After a second, the weight of the zombie on my back lessons, and Ryder and Reese drag it away from me. I scramble to my feet, wiping tears from my eyes. I just came so close to death I could practically feel it breathing down my neck.
Reese rushes over to me. “Sam, are you alright? What happened?”
“It…it just came out of nowhere. I couldn’t reach the gun. I was helpless.”
Reese steps forward and wraps his arms around me, pulling me close. His embrace is warm, tight, and comforting. He holds me until the shaking and the crying stops, and when he pulls away from me, he has a worried look in his eyes. “Sam? Are you alright?” he asks again. I nod slowly, and he sighs. “From now on, I think nobody goes anywhere without either me or Ryder.”
“Yeah, I think you’re right.”
Ryder steps forward. “Let’s get you back up to the house. Hopefully some lunch will calm you down,” he says, handing me the clothes from the end of the dock. “Here, get dressed first.”
I take the clothes and pull them on with shaking hands. Ryder and Reese both look away while I get dressed, trying to make me feel more comfortable. When I’m done, they walk me back up to the house, where Tobe is already prepari
ng lunch for the four of us.
I pause at the front door, and take one last look at the dock. The body of the zombie is lying on the beach, half submerged in water, bleeding from a bullet hole in the head. All I can think is that if Ryder and Reese hadn’t gotten there when they did, I’d be dead right now, or infected and on my way to becoming a monster.
Tobe is in the kitchen, making macaroni and cheese, and she serves a bag of stale chips with it. The MRE is only meant for three servings, but we split it up evenly, and gorge on the delicious, warm food. Even though it’s not a full serving, the food not only comforts me, but it fills me up more than I have been in ages.
Everyone is staring at me, which is slightly unnerving. “Guys, I’m not going to break just because of one zombie.”
“We know,” Reese says, leaning closer. “You’re strong, Sam, but you’re not invulnerable. You came extremely close to death today. If you wanna talk about it, that’s fine. Any one of us would be willing to listen.”
“Thanks, guys. But I’m alright, really. Just give me a little time, and I’ll be fine.”
Reese lets it go, and he finishes eating in silence. I can tell he’s worried about me, but I’m too tired and shaken to care at the moment. Right now, all I want is to crawl into bed, draw the covers up over my head, and try to get some sleep. I close the door behind me, and climb into bed. Right now, I don’t care that it belonged to a little boy that’s probably dead now. I’m just so tired I close my eyes and fall right asleep.