Dead Calm (13 page)

You go Heather, he thought to himself; grateful he
had her and Tick-Tock's help.

After Brain, Mary and Cindy had come on board, Mary
had headed straight for the nearest shoe store while Susan and
Cindy went to shower. Trying to calculate how he would split the
remainder of his people up to help secure their new environment,
Steve was stymied when a few minutes later, Brain was struck with
what he called motionless sickness. They all felt a little queasy
standing on something stable after being on the sailboat for so
long, but it seemed to hit Brain especially hard. Twenty minutes
after his feet hit the deck of the Dead Calm, the tech found he
couldn’t stand up straight and starting vomiting. Thus, it was
Steve, Heather and Tick-Tock who went over every inch of the
Centrum to make sure their position was secure. Once satisfied,
they turned their attention to making certain their means of egress
were clearly marked, in case they had to make a hasty exit. Using
the paint Steve had carried with him on their initial exploration,
the walls and floors of the Centrum and the dining room now sported
blue arrows pointing toward the hatch where The Usual Suspects was
tied up.

Tim had been assigned to kitchen duty but grew bored
and instead helped with the painting. When they were done, he
showed them where to access the crew passageways that ran behind
the stores. He provided a crowbar he'd found in one of the
maintenance areas and they used this to lever open the door of the
shops they wanted something from. Although they all had a craving
for fresh food, one of the first places they used the crowbar on
was the Ship's Store so they could raid its snack counter. Then
Steve went to relieve Heather at the stairs so she could grab
something for herself before heading to the shower.

“Where's Brain,” Steve asked, watching with amusement
as a blush crept up Connie's neck to bloom in her cheeks.

In a quiet voice, she replied, “He went to get us
some water. The pump for the kitchen is out, so we have to bring it
from the bathroom at the other end of the Centrum.”

Susan added, “Actually, we didn't need any water, but
he’d recovered from his love sickness-.'' Connie shot her a dirty
look, so she amended, “Sorry, motion sickness. And I got tired of
walking around him every time he threw himself at Connie's feet, so
I told him to get us some water to get him out of the way.”

Steve smiled. The hot topic of gossip for the females
was how Brain and Connie reacted to each other when they first met.
After Brain had secured the sailboat next to the hatch, he helped
Mary and Cindy aboard. Ignoring everything around him, he was
talking excitedly to Steve about what they could get from the ship
when his eyes settled on Connie. Stopping in mid-sentence, his
mouth dropped open and he could only gawk. Later, he told Tick-Tock
she was the most beautiful girl he had ever seen.

And it wasn't a one-way street either.

Susan had seen Connie watching Brain's every move as
he tied up the sailboat and came on board. At first, she hadn't
understood the attraction, and it was only when she stopped and
took a good look at the tech that she no longer saw the overweight
slob she had pegged him for when she first met him. He was still a
little heavy but nothing compared to what he used to be.
Additionally, where before he would only shower a few times a
month, he’d started cleaning up every day and even on the boat took
pains to keep up his hygiene. Later, when she mentioned Connie and
Brain to Tick-Tock, he sighed dramatically and commented, “Oh, to
be young and in lust again.”

Susan decided right then that Tick-Tock was something
she needed to sort out. She had no doubt she was attracted to him,
but to what degree she wasn't sure. Despite Steve's order, she had
snuck up to the cockpit quite few nights while Tick Tock was on
wheel watch and everyone else was asleep. While she still had
feelings for Mary, she had come to realize that her former flame
was too shallow and selfish for her.

The HWNW virus and its aftermath seemed to bring out
different qualities in everybody, she reasoned. As if reading her
mind and showing her the bottom end of the spectrum, Steve asked
where Mary was.

Cindy spoke up, “She's looking for clothes. She said
tomorrow she'd take me into the Centrum and teach me how to
shop.”

Steve thought about this for a minute and said, “We
should put Mary's skills to use then. We’ll make up a list of the
things we need for the sailboat and have her find them in the
stores. Cindy and Tim can go along and help.”

Heather entered through the doors from the dining
room with Tim in tow. After a quick look around, she asked,
“Anything I can do?”

“We’re almost finished, but thank you,” Connie
said.

“We’re going to serve it buffet style, from here,”
Susan told them as she flipped steaks in the broiler. “Everything's
ready, so if you round up the rest of the crew we can eat.”

Steve and Heather volunteered to go in search of the
others, finding Brain first as he came toward them down the Centrum
with a galvanized bucket of water in each hand and a lovesick look
on his face.

Steve told him the food was ready. After he hurried
off, Heather asked, “Why don't you look at me like that?”

“Like what?” He asked.

“A love sick puppy,” she replied.

Moving around so he could put his left arm around her
waist and leave his right free in case he needed to un-sling his
rifle, Steve let his mouth drop open and his tongue loll out. “Like
this?” He asked and started panting like a dog.

Heather laughed, “Sounds more like you're in heat,
but I guess it’s close enough. Just don't let me catch you looking
at Connie that way.”

“I’m happily whatevered to you.” Steve said.

“Whatevered?” She asked him with a raised
eyebrow.

“Attached, coupled, devoted, enamored, tied, living
in sin, pan caked-.”

“Pan caked?” Heather cut in.

“It's something I saw in a porno movie once.”

“Hmmmm, maybe we can try it tonight,” she said with a
half smile.

“Okay,” Steve said, “but first we need to find a live
chicken.”

Heather covered her face with her hands. After
catching her breath when her laughter subsided, she held up a hand
and said, “Enough. No barnyard guests in bed. I have a rule about
that.”

“Prude,” Steve said under his breath.

“What was that?” She asked accusingly.

Steve shrugged and mumbled just barely loud enough to
be heard, “Tickle your ass with a feather?”

“What?” She exclaimed with a laugh.

Clearing his throat, Steve replied innocently, “I
said particularly nasty weather.”

“I heard what you said the first time, and the answer
is maybe. But no live chickens.”

They approached the end of the Centrum and still
hadn't seen Mary, so Steve said, “I'll try the shops on the other
side. You can go tell Tick-Tock that I'll be by in a little bit to
spell him on stair duty, so he can eat and get some sleep.”

Heather nodded and veered to where Tick-Tock had set
up his observation post behind a square of planters with seats
built into them, facing an ornate fountain. Steve headed toward the
line of shops on the port side of the ship, but after taking only a
few steps cut back to rejoin Heather.

In a low voice, he said, “We're being watched.”

Out of the side of her mouth, she asked, “Where?”

“Near the top of the stairs. Looks like a woman
maybe. She's set up in the entry to that 50's style diner. The one
with all the chrome.”

Heather nonchalantly gazed around as if taking in the
sights before saying, “I see her. Just inside the doorway. You
think it's one of Reverend Ricky's people down here spying on
us?”

“Gotta be. If it was one of the dead, it'd be coming
at us by now.”

Stopping just short of Tick-Tock's position, Steve
said in greeting, “Jehovah's Witnesses selling time shares and
Avon. Is your husband home, ma'am? Beautiful cave you have here
Mrs. Flintstone.”

“You're only funny to you,” Tick-Tock told him.

Steve said, “We've got a visitor upstairs.”

“Yeah I know. She's been there for about ten
minutes,” Tick- Tock replied. “I spotted another one earlier, but
he's been keeping a low profile.”

“Another one,” Heather exclaimed. “Where?”

“Behind the tipped over tables at the sidewalk café,
right next to the sushi restaurant. The tables look like they got
knocked over by accident but they're set up too neatly, and they're
the only thing around that's out of place. Took me a while to spot
him, but the chick's been pretty much in the open since she
arrived.”

“Setup?” Steve asked. “Get us to approach the woman
and expose ourselves so the guy can snipe us?”

“I don't think so,” Tick-Tock answered. “She hasn't
been looking down here much, she's been checking out her own deck
like she's worried about being spotted.”

Steve thought about this before saying, “Think it
might be someone like Connie and Tim who's trying to get away from
Ricky?”

“Might be,” Tick-Tock said. “It fits with the way
she's acting.”

“Then we need to help her,” Heather said.

Steve considered their position and told Tick-Tock,
“Draw a bead on the guy at the cafe. If he makes a move, take him
out.” To Heather, he said, “Cover our rear. I don't think it's a
setup, but we don't know for sure.”

Heather turned as if taking in the sights of the
Centrum spread out behind them and asked, “What are you going to
do?”

With a shrug, Steve replied, “Invite her down.”

Hoping he was making the right decision, he looked
directly to where the woman was hiding and raised his hand,
beckoning her to come to him. Her attention was so focused on the
area around her that it took a minute for her to notice him. Even
then she didn't move, so Steve called out, “It's safe. No one will
hurt you. Come down the stairs, but keep your hands in sight.”

Hesitantly, the figure detached itself from the
shadows and moved toward the stairs. The sun had set, and with the
only illumination coming from the emergency lights, Steve could
tell it was a woman by the outline of her hair. Beyond that, he had
a hard time determining if she was young, old or in between.

At the top of the staircase, the woman stopped and
looked around again before suddenly uttering a small scream.
Bolting forward, she took the steps two at a time in a headlong
rush downward. Wondering what had set her off, Steve flipped off
the safety on his rifle. Shouldering the weapon, he looked
anxiously around for a target. When the woman reached the base of
the stairs, he finally saw what had spooked her. Coming out of the
shadows, at the top of the grand staircase, were a dozen shapes
that moved in a staggering lope that was all too familiar to
him.

“Z’s,” he called out loud enough to warn the others
before setting his sights on the lead figure. Squeezing the
trigger, he saw the outline of its head disintegrate as his bullets
smashed into it. Switching targets, he heard two quick shots from
behind him that almost sounded like one. In rapid succession, two
of the walking dead dropped in their tracks. He knew it had to be
Heather adding her firepower to his because no one else in the
group could shoot that rapidly or with that kind of accuracy.

Steve shot another zombie, but before its body could
hit the deck, more shapes materialized from behind it. Heather took
down two of the newly arrived dead with head shots that painted the
store fronts with black goo, while Steve hit one in the chest with
a burst of high velocity rounds. Not even fazed by this, the zombie
kept coming. As it stepped into the glow of the emergency lights,
Steve could see the damage his bullets had done. Bone splinters and
rib ends protruded from gaping holes in its chest as black slime
oozed from the wounds. It paid no mind to what would be a fatal
injury if it were alive.

Adjusting his aim, Steve switched the selector on his
M-4 to single shot and fired into the zombie's head. A chunk of
skull and dead flesh flew upward and then dropped to the carpet
with a wet plop. The dead thing staggered to its left and cart
wheeled to land half way down the stairs.

The remaining dead started down as Steve and Heather
moved forward to deal with them. With alternating shots, more of
the dead fell in sprays of brain matter and black sludge. One
tripped over its own feet and rolled down the stairs to land at its
base as they both fired into its body, missing its head. Heather
moved to within two feet of it and pulled the trigger of her
CAR-15. She was rewarded by a click as the firing pin fell on a
dud. The dead thing reached out with dirty hands to grab at her,
its nails raking the denim of her jeans on her lower leg. Cursing,
she took a step back and ejected the dead round as the thing
scrambled its hands and feet to get at her.

Seeing she was in trouble, Steve drew a bead on the
thing’s head and squeezed the trigger. The bullet entered just
above its ear and whipped its head to the side, as it was about to
lunge forward to bite Heather. Distracted by this, he suddenly
realized that two of the dead were almost within arm’s reach. Too
close to swing around and fire at the nearest one, he slammed the
butt of his M-4 into the center of its face. This gave him the time
and space to swing his rifle around and shoot it in the forehead,
while Heather brought her rifle back into the fight by putting a
round into the forehead of the other.

Looking around wildly, Steve could only see the inert
bodies of the dead scattered on the deck and stairs and the haze of
gun smoke, which hung in the air.

Pounding and rattling noises drew Steve and Heather's
attention to the secured double doors leading into the cabin area,
and they zeroed in on them with their rifles. The sound of gunfire
had attracted the zombies trapped inside, and they were trying to
break free. Steve watched the doors open slightly, as the chain
securing them was pulled taut. Dirty fingers clawed through the gap
and groped around furtively to see what was restraining them.
Remembering that he hadn’t gotten the chance to check the chain
securing the doors, Steve kept a close eye on the barricade to make
sure it held.