Against Zombies Box Set, Vol. 1 | Books 1-4 Read online

  Usually when I was stuck inside the archives room, I would use the extra time to study and get ahead in my classes, but the semester was almost over, and I had already pored over every textbook that was assigned to me. Since I had no idea how long the school would be closed for, I decided to start reading one of the books in my “free time” stack.

  Even though I had lived in the homeless community, gone to classes on campus and worked in the cafeteria, I still spent the majority of my time alone. The way I was living could almost be compared to that of Anne Frank when her family was trying to survive by living in an attic.

  Curled up with my current reading choice, I spent the afternoon reading for fun.

  I had no idea how long I’d been sitting there until the afternoon shadows began to block out my reading light. Sighing, I closed the book and stood, stretching out my muscles. The campus would be almost empty by this point, and any stragglers wouldn't be staying around for long.

  My laptop was in my backpack, so I pulled it out and powered it on to watch the evening news. I was horrified to see story after story of sick families who were suddenly killed when their loved ones came back from the dead only to attack them. The hospitals were overflowing, and the mayor had asked the National Guard to step in and help restore order. There was talk about a possible curfew, but hadn’t actually been issued yet.

  Frustrated at the lack of a solution, I turned on the national news channel, but other than reports that a few cities had broken out in riots, there was no mention of the deadly situation in our city. It was as if they were ignoring the possibility that this sickness could spread across the country, so instead of warning people, they were glossing over an issue that was going to get bigger.

  The backpack I had taken with me to breakfast had my fruits, breakfast bars, and other edibles that would keep me going for a while. I chose an orange and a can of processed meat for dinner. While this might seem like a small meal to most people, for me it was a feast. Having grown up in a foster home, there had never been a lot to eat, and I'd learned then how to survive with less of anything. Some kids had it much worse than I did and weren’t given any food after they left school each day, but my foster family had cared about us. There just hadn't been enough food or money to go around.

  I had managed through odd jobs to make enough money to play softball, but when I was offered a scholarship to play while at college, I knew there would be no help from my foster family. In fact, I was very grateful that they had let me finish out the last two months of school before kicking me out on my own since I had turned eighteen in March.

  Now, two years later, I was almost finished with the spring semester of my sophomore year. The scholarship had been wonderful, but by not staying in campus housing, I was able to save enough money to not have to take out a loan. By working in the cafeteria, that money allowed me to buy books, clothes, and food that would get me through each year. While not an ideal situation, I would graduate with a degree and no debt. I planned to take all the money I’d earned to get an apartment and a car.

  When this sickness finally ran its course, I would have to find a new place to live. Although it had only been in a tent among other homeless people, there had been a real feeling of camaraderie among those living there. I had never felt unsafe, but I was going to miss the friends who had almost become family to me.

  As the shadows lengthened into darkness, I looked out the window at a world that seemed devoid of people. If the world was able to survive this illness, I certainly hoped that the corpses wandering around wouldn’t be the new normal.

  Stacy

  I had been heading to class when several of my classmates passed me, high-fiving each other.

  “Hey, guys, what's going on? Did the professor cancel class again?” I questioned them.

  It was our ancient history class, and the professor was always late or sending his TA to start the lecture because he was too busy doing research to actually teach us.

  “No, they just announced that all classes are canceled.”

  “They're sending everyone home so that we don't spread this virus.”

  “Nah, man, what they're really doing is sending you home to get sick so that your mommy has to take care of you instead of the school doing it.”

  “Wow! I had no idea that there was even a virus going around. Thanks for the info, guys.”

  “Stacy, we're all going over to Ned's house for a party. You're welcome to come with us.”

  “Darn it. I wish I could, but if this is some sort of virus then I'll probably be working for the family I babysit for since the mom is a nurse.”

  “True that. Guess if you or the kid gets sick, she'll already know what to do for you,” he sympathized. “You can still give me a call if you find out you’re free after all.”

  “Thanks, Will. If she doesn't get called in, then I might give you buzz.”

  Heading back to the dorm, I reached to turn my phone off of silent and noticed that I already had four missed calls. Angela must have gotten called into work and would need me to watch Dillion. The only time I ever turned my phone off was during class.

  I pulled up my voicemails and began to listen.

  “Stacy, this is Angela. They canceled Dillion’s school and I won't be able to wait for you. I need drop him off, or is there any way you can meet at the house?”

  “Stacy, this is Angela again. I'm guessing you have your phone turned off, but I really need to get to the hospital. They called in everyone and are expecting the worst. Please call me back as soon as you get this.”

  “I just got to campus and we’ll see if we can find you.”

  “Your roommate Jen is here, but I've got to leave Dillion. As soon as you can, take him back to my house and stay there. This illness is killing people and is highly contagious, so make sure that you stay at home so I know you're both safe. I'll call you when I can.”

  Angela sounded really desperate on the last voicemail. I was trying, but it was difficult to move quickly due to the crowds of students going in both directions on the walkways because of the announcement to cancel classes. Ancient history was in the second time period of the morning, but it had been my first class.

  I texted Angela while I walked: Got your messages. On the way to the dorm now. Will pick Dillion up and take him to your house. Stay safe, and let us know what's happening.

  I had just made it up the two flights of stairs to my dorm room when a text message came through from my roommate.

  Angela just brought Dillion up here because they canceled his school this morning and she has to get to work. Come straight back to our room because the minute you get here, I'm leaving.

  Our room was on the second floor, third door down on the right. When I opened the door, I could see that Jen wasn't kidding. She was in the process of throwing all her clean and dirty clothes into the two suitcases she always took home with her.

  Seven-year-old Dillion was sitting on my bed, watching wide-eyed as Jen frantically ran around the room grabbing her stuff.

  Evidently, from the sounds coming down the hallway, she wasn’t the only one in a hurry to leave. While vacations and holidays were usually met with cheers and laughter, there was a subdued anxiousness behind the voices today. The moving carts had been pulled out of storage, and many were grabbing everything they could to take and load into their cars.

  I glanced out the window and noticed that some of the girl students were running back-and-forth, trying to hurry, while the boy’s dorm seemed to have little to no activity.

  Putting on a brave face, I smiled and walked over to the bed, taking a seat next to Dillion.

  “No school today, huh, buddy?” Even though I wanted to panic, I needed to stay calm for Dillion.

  “So, where are you going to go, Jen?” I asked curiously, due to the fact that her parents had divorced last year and were still fighting to see who she would stay with during the holidays.

  “I went to Dad's last time, so I think I'll go to my mo
m’s. It’s an hour closer, and she lives in a more rural area. Dad's house is in Knoxville, and there’ll be more people around, meaning there’ll be a better chance of getting sick.” Jen eyed Dillion sitting there, and kept the more graphic terms to herself.

  We were interrupted when the RA, Lenora, stuck her head in to check on us. “I'm about to head out and try to beat the traffic before the roads get clogged up. Stacy, are you going to be staying here like you do during the holidays?”

  I placed an arm around Dillion’s shoulders before replying. “We’ll probably go hang out at his house. That way when his mom’s shift is over, she won't have to come looking for us. Do you know how long they're going to close the campus for?”

  “The email we received about thirty minutes ago didn't say. But it did say that we would be notified of when to return to campus. They're saying this is a deadly virus, and that those infected won't make it,” Lenora explained, holding out a set of keys to me.

  “If for some reason you do decide to stay on campus, or to come back before we open it, you'll need these to get inside. I'll call or text you when they send another email about it.”

  I took the keys from her hands, but didn't leave Dillion’s side. Jen stopped packing long enough to listen to what Lenora had to say, but resumed stuffing things into her suitcases and zipping them up loudly.

  Lenora looked torn over leaving us there. “Stacy, I know you have to take care of Dillion, but if you'd like to come home with me, my family could make room for both of you. My sister lives right next door, and her kids are the perfect age to hang out with him.”

  “We’ll be fine,” I tried to reassure her as I hopped up to give her a hug. “Dillion and I are going to enjoy a mini-vacation while his mom’s at work. I have your phone number though, so if we get bored in a day or two and need some company, we’ll give you a holler.”

  There was no need to tell Lenora that staying in large groups of people could be dangerous.

  Jen stopped packing and burst into tears as she sank to the floor. “I'm never going to see any of you again,” she wailed loudly. “We’re all going to die.”

  Lenora looked at me, confused. Jen wasn't normally a girl who cried at the drop of a hat.

  “Jen, I know you're really scared right now.” I tried to place my body in front of her so Dillion couldn't see the expression on my face. “We’re not going to die. This is just a safety precaution so that those who are sick don't infect the rest of us. We know how quickly a stomach bug can make its way through the dormitory.

  “Look at it this way, you get a chance to go home to parents who will fight over who gets to have you at their house and spoil you until everyone comes back to campus. That can't be a bad thing, right?” I questioned, trying to calm her down.

  “I guess not.” Jen sniffled, trying to stop crying.

  “Honestly, I'm excited that we can put studying for finals off for just a few more days.” Lenora’s face held a smile, but her voice lacked confidence.

  “Let me call your dad, and you can hang out here with me and Dillion until he shows up. The traffic is bound to be horrible, and I could use someone to stay in the car with Dillion while I run into the store. We can be there and back before your dad gets here, and it would be a huge help to me. I don't want to take Dillion into the store and expose him, just in case this sickness is more than a hoax,” I urged.

  “That's a great idea. Stacy's right, going into the store will be very chaotic, but the sooner you go, the better. We all know what happens when there's a bad weather scare. The bread and milk fly off the shelves first,” Lenora encouraged.

  “Okay, you've convinced me. I'll give my dad a call on the way to the store.” Jen reached up to give Lenora a hug. “Stay safe,” she whispered.

  We all left together, but I closed and locked the door behind us, hoping that we could do just that—stay safe.

  The frenzy on campus grew as we made our way to Jen's car. After one last hug from Lenora, I backed out into the lines of cars waiting to leave campus. Thankfully, we were headed in the opposite direction of everyone else that was trying to get on the freeway to get home.

  Jen had finally calmed down and was talking to Dillion like she did every day.

  “Don’t you want to call your dad so he can get started in this direction?” I suggested gently, not wanting to send her into another panic attack.

  “No, I think I'll go ahead and drive myself home after we get you groceries. I just had a momentary freak out. I mean, there's really no reason to worry. With all this traffic, it doesn't make sense for him to drive here and then try to go back.” Jen actually seemed to be calm about her decision.

  “If you're sure, I really appreciate it. I didn't want to take Dillion into that chaos,” I commented as we approached the very full grocery store parking lot.

  “Stay here. I don't care how many crazy things you’ll see, I’ll come back to this spot. Will you be okay?” I wanted reassurance that she could keep Dillion safe while I went inside.

  “Yes, I'm really okay. Go, we’ll be fine. Hurry before they grab all the canned peas, and the only thing left in the store are beets and Brussel sprouts.” Jen took her keys back from me and almost pushed me out of the door, locking it behind me.

  The parking lot was full. I grabbed the basket from the edge of the lot, because trying to get one inside would be nearly impossible. This was worse than a black Friday sale after they'd open the doors and let the crazy people in.

  It didn't seem to matter what the item was, people were literally fighting over it. The water aisle was complete chaos. I didn't want to see what the bread and milk aisles looked like. Instead, I headed to the mac and cheese aisle. Thirty boxes later, I realized I would also need powdered milk because we weren’t likely to get fresh milk for a while. The baking aisle still had some people in it, but I guess when the world comes to an end, baking cookies isn’t on the priority list. I added marshmallows, Jell-O, and anything else I could think of to my basket.

  Screams started coming from the aisle next to me, and I couldn't resist seeing what was going on. Two ladies were fighting over a bottle of sparkling water. It was time for me to finish shopping and get out of there.

  I started throwing random items into my basket as I headed toward the checkout. Most of the employees were at the cash registers, while the rest were sending people into the next line to wait their turn. I was three or four people back before actually joining a line, which put me in the pharmacy, health and beauty section, where a different kind of drama was playing out.

  There was an older lady trying to get help from the pharmacy technician. “I know the doctor was supposed to send his prescription over, but it's been two days and we can't wait any longer. His cough is getting worse.”

  “Ma'am, I'd love to help you, but all the doctors and hospitals are backed up. They haven't been sending anyone's prescriptions to us.” The technician glanced around before reaching behind the counter and bringing up what looked like a regular cough syrup bottle.

  “The shelves have been cleared for days, but we put a few bottles back here for absolute emergencies. Now, while I can't give you antibiotics or fill his prescription without a doctor's order, what I can do is go ahead and sell you two bottles of cough syrup to see if that will help.”

  “Oh, thank you so much. You have no idea what this means to us. Poor Howard has just been miserable, and nothing I've done has relieved his cough yet.”

  Thirty minutes later, I was finally headed back to the car when I saw a commotion at the side of the parking lot. The lady who'd been checking out with the cough medicine had run into another car. It looked like the old man in the passenger seat was attacking her. I started to get a little closer when blood hit the window. There was nothing I could do to help her, and the faster we got out of there and to the house, the better.

  Jen had moved to the driver’s seat and Dillion had climbed up front. When she saw me approaching the car at a run, she popped the tru
nk and jumped out to help me. I threw the bags of groceries into the trunk and jumped in the back seat.

  “Dillion, I need you to buckle up. Jen, drive straight to the campus.”

  I was surprised when Jen didn't even question me, but started the car and began to drive out of the parking lot.

  The traffic jam we'd experienced on our way to the grocery store had gone down drastically.

  As Jen parked the car by our entrance door, she finally asked, “Why did we come back to campus?”

  “We need to get your suitcases, and I need to pack a bag since I'll be staying at Dillion's house for a while.”

  I opened the door to get out as soon as she put the car in park.

  “Dillion, sweetie, you need to go ahead and come inside with us. I think it’ll be safer if we all stay together.”

  I could see that Jen was dying to ask questions, but I wasn't about to tell her the truth until we were at Dillion's house.

  “Let's just get our stuff and get out of here as quick as we can. I'll tell you all about it before you leave for your parents’,” I tried to reassure her.

  Since Jen had been in the midst of packing when we left, it didn't take her long to finish up, and I normally kept a bag of clothes and extras, just in case I had to stay at Dillion’s house. There was no telling how long I would be there waiting for Angie to return home, but if what the pharmacy tech said was true, the hospitals were going to be hit really hard over the next few days.

  There was no way I was going to try and travel back-and-forth between their house and the dorm. The thought of staying in the empty dorm held absolutely no appeal. Occasionally, during the holidays or the summer, I would sneak back in to spend a day or two by myself so Angela could have time with Dillion, but this time, things felt different.

  Having lived with my brother who'd been in the military, I was used to moving quickly, so I didn’t have a lot of stuff to take with me.

  Dillion laughed as Jen tried to sit on her suitcase and zip it up at the same time.