Surviving The Zombie Apocalypse (Book 2): Conflict (40 page)

This
brought up some of the earlier concerns about the enemy circling around to hit
the ranches from behind, many of which were vulnerable due to so many adults
being away with the Ranching Collective’s militia. This information was relayed
to a plane overhead, and they headed south to see if they could help in any
way.

“This is
not good,” said Terrance.

“You
think?” asked Mary. “You should have shot them before they left Yellowstone.”

“We were
told not to,” stated the woman, angrily.

Mary was
unperturbed. “By people far away who couldn’t see what was going on. Now they
can attack the ranches, which aren’t hidden in the woods with lots of hills and
trees and stuff.”

The lady
was getting red in the face. I didn’t particularly care – lots of that going on
lately – because the teenager was correct. They should have ignored the
instructions and launched their ambush. They had a far greater chance of
succeeding there than anyone on the plains could hope for. What might have been
an easy fight was now going to be much harder.

“Mary’s
right,” said Dale.

“Mary’s
smart,” added Tara.

“It is
what it is,” I said. “This group has to be dealt with. You know that, or you
wouldn’t have come all this way.”

“We plan
on helping.”

I smiled
at the woman. Damn, what was her name? Marvin had used it earlier too, just a
few minutes ago. I needed to pay better attention. Really, this was proving to
be a major, ongoing problem.

“Unfortunately,
we don’t know where they are or where they’re going”

There
were too many possibilities for us to just go driving off.

“Airplane
will call in tomorrow morning,” offered Terrance.

“We
might get some information then,” concluded Marvin. “We should be ready to go
as soon as we hear something.”

*
* *

Are you
prepared for yet more bad news? Are you? Yes? No? I’m going to give it to you
regardless. We received the call from a plane flying overhead the following
day, right on schedule. The raiders had been spotted. A group of approximately eighty
was following US-20, just past the point where it veers south and separates
from US-14 outside of Burlington. They were indeed moving toward the central
area of the state where most of the ranches were located.

“You
told us there were two hundred of them,” accused Marvin.

“I
know.” It was the same woman talking. By the way, her name was Clarice. No idea
how I forgot that. “And there were that many. We saw them.”

“They obviously
split up,” I injected. “Maybe they went back into the forest or took another
route.”

“If
they’re on the highways, in the open, the planes would have seen them,” considered
Marvin.

“Back
into Yellowstone then,” mumbled Clarice, “or hiding. I don’t think we have
anybody in place to do anything. Most of my group headed home to where our
camps are. At least they’ll be there if the shitheads somehow do find them.”

I shook
my head. “After all those you killed, they will probably just ride through fast,
trying to get out. I don’t think they’ll tangle with you, not until they get
reinforcements.”

“We
should go here,” interrupted Dale.

The
twins and Mary were looking at the map, along with Terrance.

“That is
a good spot,” he said. “I used to fish there, by Boysen State Park.”

“Is
there someplace we could set up an ambush? If we go up against that many we’ll
have to be able to hit them hard and fast, before they’re ready.”

“Mountains,
rocks,” confirmed Marvin. “It’s the best place along the highway.”

“Good.
Everyone load up. Mary, take the map and hand one of our extra radios to
Clarice.” Marvin already had one. “We can plan on the way.”

*
* *

“Tell
them to turn around.”

“What
Jacob?”

“Tell
them to turn around!” I spun the wheel hard, shooting across the lanes as I
struggled to get the Jeep facing the opposite direction. The map Mary had been
reading flew from her hands. “The raiders are already through!”

To her
credit, my navigator began sending the message before craning her neck in an
effort to see what was happening. The others were well behind us, and I didn’t
think they could see the motorcycles yet, but several had slowed or stopped the
moment I reacted. Now everyone was rushing south toward Shoshoni.

“There
are lots of them,” said Tara. She was on her knees peering out the back window.

“Too far
for us to shoot,” added Dale. He was checking the weapons and chambering
rounds.

“Mary,
tell everyone to go straight in. The raiders are going to follow us, and
there’s no way we can outrun them.”

She
relayed the message, and Marvin called back suggesting a street we should take.

“Tell
him no plans over the radio! They might be listening.”

Mary
transmitted this as well. My mind was whirling, and I could see the bikers
closing in my rearview mirror.

“Tell
them that whoever is closest to the town is to find a spot. We’ll follow.”

Shoshoni
wasn’t a big place, and it had been cleared and looted by the Ranching
Collective months before. Let’s thank the greedy residents of Wyoming for this.
If they hadn’t felt the need to keep their bellies full, we would have had to
deal with a plethora of zombies in addition to the damn raiders. As it was, I
only saw a handful.

The
others had stopped at an intersection, and people were running into buildings,
generally whichever was closest to where they’d stopped. The lack of
organization was making my head hurt. This was turning into a cluster. Damn it!
There was precious little time, but I wasn’t about to park in the street. That
would all but guarantee my Jeep Wrangler got shot up, taking away any chance to
escape. No, that was not going to happen. I instead pulled into an open garage,
attached to a gas station.

“Out!
Out! Out!”

Mary leapt
from the Jeep, pausing only long enough to grab the UZI and her backpack with
the extra clips. The twins were faster, and Tara tossed me my sniper rifle.
Dale had my M-16, along with his own, slung over one broad shoulder.

“We want
high ground.”

The
twins didn’t respond to my instructions, not verbally, but they ran straight
for a three story building, the tallest within reach. Dale kicked the door in,
and Tara quickly entered, a pistol in her hand. It was clear, and we hurried
through the shadowy place to the top floor. Mary peeked out a window as Tara
shot the lock off the trapdoor that led to the flat roof.

“They’re
in the town Jacob!”

“Up top.
All of you.”

The
twins ascended, followed by Mary. After I joined them, I slammed the door shut
again. There was no way to secure it.

“Tara,
Dale, take opposite sides of that corner.”

Shooting
began at that point, coming from the buildings others had taken shelter in.
Standing in the middle of the roof, I couldn’t see the raiders, meaning they
couldn’t see me either. I also couldn’t see any of our friends. We were the
only ones who went up top. Our companions were firing from windows or doorways
at street level.

“Mary,
park yourself by Tara. If anyone comes near the door we entered, unload on
them. Don’t shoot the zombies. They’ll be going for the raiders.”

The
fourteen year old was deathly pale, but she quickly plopped down by the older
woman. To her credit, Tara gave Mary a gentle squeeze on the shoulder before
she began firing.

“Can you
see anyone?” I took up a position on the far side of Dale, by one of the other
corners. We could now cover the entire front and both sides. “Our guys, I
mean.”

“No.”

“I see
Terrance!” yelled Mary. It was difficult to hear her over all the noise. “He’s
across the street.”

Pulling
the trigger, I watched, with no shortage of satisfaction, as a man crumpled to
the ground. There was a good sized hole in the center of his chest. That was
one. I lined up a second shot…

“Down!”

My head
jerked to the side, just in time to see Tara roll, grab Mary by her belt, and
yank the teenager back several feet. The small wall, all of a foot high, which
marked the edge of the roof, exploded, sending debris flying.

“Oww!”

“You
okay?” I called.

Dale
shot the man with the rocket launcher. From my position it looked like his aim
had been off, striking the building well below the roof. Still, the damage was
extensive. I was surprised it hadn’t collapsed, taking Tara and Mary down with
it.

“Just
some scrapes,” said Mary.

She was flat
on her back, running both hands over her body to be sure. Tara had already
returned to the edge, closer to her brother.

“Mary,
can you keep an eye on the side there, above the entrance we went in?” I was
again peering through the scope.

“Got
it!”

Noticing
that the twins had focused their attention on anyone with heavy weapons, along
with those further back, I began to target the nearest raiders, including any
who were attempting to close on our building. However, the streets weren’t
clear. There were abandoned and wrecked cars scattered about, all of which
provided ample cover. With the attackers running and dodging, it was hard to
get them lined up in my sights.

“Jacob!
There’s some coming this way! There almost at us!”

I
dropped the sniper rifle and scrambled past Dale. Grabbing my M-16, I ran,
doing my best to remain crouched, to where Mary was kneeling. She suddenly
lifted the Uzi and fired off the entire clip. Changing it, she emptied a second
one. Then she turned and began to vomit, splattering her blouse and jeans.

“Stay
down.”

I peered
over the edge. They had come from a side street, and three were now lying on
the pavement, two dead with the third screaming as he tried to keep his insides
from spilling out. I could see intestines through his fingers.

“How
many were there? Mary? Mary! How many?”

“Four,”
she gasped. “There were four.”

Hurrying
to the trapdoor, I stood up straight and pointed the M-16 at the thin metal
covering. Less than a minute later it rattled softly and began to rise. I fired
all thirty rounds through it, and letting my weapon fall to the floor, I took a
grenade from my belt. Lifting the door a few inches, I pulled the pin and
dropped it inside. Then I dove to the side and kept moving until I was beside
Mary once more. The blast shook the roof.

“You
stay put, where you are, and keep your eyes on the trapdoor. If it moves,
shoot.” I pressed the Uzi into her hands, having already reloaded it. “Got
that.”

“Yes.”

Her eyes
were wide and brimmed with tears.

“Good
girl.”

Dale had
abandoned his sniper rifle in favor of an M-16, and he was targeting those
raiders who’d circled around and gotten close, many of whom were almost
directly beneath us. For firing at such a steep angle, it was the superior
weapon. Tara, in contrast, continued the slaughter of anyone who had the
misfortune to catch her attention, and with these largely being in the rear, it
appeared the bulk of the attackers were unaware they’d fallen.

Resuming
the role of a sniper, I retrieved the appropriate weapon and chambered a round,
looking for a target. Plenty of raiders were dead, but all needed killing. I
set the crosshairs on one and felled him. There was no hesitation, no remorse.
As with all the other times I killed, I acknowledged that my victims were not real
people. They’d discarded any connection they might have once held with humanity.
All that remained was to exterminate them.

“Across
the street!” yelled Dale.

His
sister swung the barrel of her rifle up and hit one of those who’d reached the
roof. They were only fifty yards away. Another, a woman with long hair dyed a
sickly green color, opened fire. I tried to shoot her, I really did, but before
I had the chance I felt bullets slam into me.

“Jacob!”

Mary was
beside me in an instant, pressing her small hands against my shoulder. Her
fingers were covered in blood. It was a very, very bright red.

“Watch
the trapdoor,” I mumbled. “You need to keep an eye on it.”

I
blacked out.

*
* *

It was
over when I came to. The raiders were all dead, save a few who had been seen
riding out of town, heading north. The twins had killed the wounded, those
incapable of fleeing. Of the defenders, only the four of us and Terrance
remained. He was on another roof, keeping watch while Tara finished patching me
up. Marvin was dead, as was Clarice and all who’d come down from Yellowstone
with her. We’d won, but with these losses it was a pyrrhic victory, at best.