Sorry but it is coming Authors Note

Hey folks, didn’t just give up, life had become very difficult for the last couple of weeks, pressing criminal charges against someone is not fun, especially since they were given every chance in the world to stop being assholes, have been running 5 days or longer on only a couple of hours total of sleep is not conducive to writing. Hopefully I can get some sleep soon. Have worked out an outline, now just gotta flesh it out.

North Carolina-Almost Hell Chapter Seven

Four days after the fencing project began, Amanda was preparing to enter her fifth house of the morning with a combined team of her fellow Deputies and Town Police officers.  They had decided to use this particular team as they could be recognized by locals and their uniforms would hopefully indicate to people that they were not looters. “Gideon, Will, Pogue, you guys are with me. The rest keep an eye out for any of those pus bags.”

Amanda indicated for Gideon to grab a breaching tool and follow her. The house was a smallish one with a porch along the entire front. All of the curtains were closed, making it impossible to look inside. The four cops stacked up at the door, Pogue in the lead. Rapping on the door, Pogue tilted his head to listen for any noise from within. Seconds later, they heard a muffled thump. Pogue checked the doorknob, it turned easily. Amanda nodded and Pogue reacted quickly by pushing the door open with force.

“Shit! We’ve got a lady down here!” Pogue called out to the rest.

Will grabbed him by the collar and yanked him back. “Whoa man, we gotta do this right, what if she’s one of them? That’s why we have this so called snake stick.”

Will then stepped to the side and pulled a three foot long forked pole from a strap on his backpack and placed the forked end on the neck of the woman on the ground. “Ok Pogue, now you can check her out.”

Amand watched as Pogue check for a pulse on the woman’s wrist. “So, is she alive? ”

Nodding, Pogue then started speaking softly to the woman, “Maam, can you hear me? We’re here to hep.”

The woman’s eyelids fluttered open. “Yeah, I can hear you. I’ve been laying here for days,I fell down the basement steps , I think I broke my legs, I had to pull myself up the steps as quick as I could, my Brother is down there, there’s somethig wrong with him, he tried to kill me. I think he might be one of those things they were talking about on the tv before the power went out. I tried to yell for help, but no one heard me, then I heard noises next door, the only window I could get to was the one at the door . I think I passed out for a minute. Then here you were. Thank you so much. Does anyone have any water?”

Amanda knelt down and offered the woman sips of water from her bottle. “Someone get on the radio and get one of the Docs. We need to also get one of the ambulances from the courthouse over here. “What’s your name maam?” she asked the injured woman.

“Shirley, Shirley Ryan. I’m was here visiting my brother Ronnie, I live in Atlanta, or at least I did until this. I guess I’m lucky I was here in a way.”

“Yes, you are lucky, from what I understand, Atlanta was overrun very quickly the day this all started. We were a little luckier here, but not by much. Now you just relax, we’ll take care of you, and get you to a Doctor as soon as we can”

“The Sheriff says that Doc Michael and Linda are on the way, they were at the courthouse just in case someone got hurt on the fence crews.” Pogue announced.

“Good, once we get Shirley out of here, we’ll finish up here.”

A few minutes later, an ambulance pulled up to the front of the house, several armed men climbed out of the back, as well as Michael. “Ok, where’s the patient?”

“Right inside the front door, looks like broken legs, we might still have a threat in the house, so make it quick, ” Amanda replied.

After the ambulance pulled away with Shirley the team once again entered the house. They cleared all of the rooms quickly, without incident. When they finally reached the basement door, “This is gonna be a bitch kitty.” Pogue muttered.

The door was closed, but they could hear a faint thumping coming from below. “Ok guys, I’ll go first, Pogue you next followd by Giddeon then Will, watch your corners, Will you have our rear.”

Amanda slung her M4 and drew her Glock 17. then, after flipping on her flaashlight, she flung open the door. The stairs were steep and narrow, there was no visible movement, but they could still hear the shuffling noise from below. Taking a deep breath, Amanda started down the steps. Listening intently, she could hear the shuffling, it sounded like it was behind her, but only her living teammates were there, then, as she reached the bottom of the steps, she looked at the steps, the risers had no backs she saw the arm reaching for Will’s ankle just a little too late. ” Will!” she yelled as he was pulled off balance.

Will let out a a piercing scream as his lower leg was pulled into the gap between two steps.  Amanda raced to the side of the steps where she saw the zombie bite into Will’s calf just above his boot. She placed her pistol barrel to the things head and pulled the trigger, tears in her eyes. She already knew Will was a walking dead man.

Pogue and Gideon pulled Will free of the steps and laid him on the floor. Will looked at his leg, then at Amanda. “I guess it’s a good thing I’m not a family man.” He said softly.

“Aw man,” Pogue muttered,”I should have checked the steps first.”

“Not your fault guys, Damn this hurts!” Will screamed out the last of his response.

Amanda knew what had to be done, she knelt beside Will. “How do you want to do this man?”

“Just wait till I die, then do it. I want every last second, but don’t let me get anyone.”

You got it friend, thanks for all of your help since this started, I know you saved lives here. No one will forget you,” Gideon told their fallen friend.

Everyone was quiet as Will began dying. It only took minutes before he took his last breath. Amanda drew her pistol and waited. When Will’s body twitched, she took aim, when he turned his head to look at her with mily white eyes, she pulled the trigger. She holstered her gun and walked slowly up the steps, “Bring him with us, he deseves a funeral.” She told the remaining two men with a sobbing voice.

“Three coming out, plus one casulty,” She spoke into her radio. Damn, this is not what should have happened. she thought as she walked out the front door. What next? What can we do to protect more people from this shit? Then she remembered Maggie Valley, all of the motoercyle based businesses, all of the leather. Maybe, just maybe, that was the answer, but ten miles in this mess might as well be a hundred. We have to figure this out, soon, she thought as she watched Will’s body being placed in the back of the truck.

North Carolina- Almost Hell Chapter Six

“First thing we want to do is to check out the 211th MP Armory over in Clyde. I want to see if there is any usable equipment inside. We tried to get their yesterday, but with only three of us, we realized it wasn’t worth the risk. The interstate parallels the primary route there, hopefully with a full crew, we can get there. Any ideas?” Amanda asked as the group looked at a map of the area.

“I think we need to focus on setting up a safe zone here in Waynesville. I mean, your farm is wonderful, but you only have so much room for survivors. If we can barricade an area, we can set them up there. It will also be good to have a place in town to hole up in case we have a problem. We also need to check day care centers and schools for any kids. Hopefully we’ll find some alive. In my opinion, we need to start with those before we go out looking for anything else.” Carl said.

Around the table, everyone nodded, including Amanda. “I do have a few ideas, I think we can block off downtown Waynesville, we can start at the intersection of Wall and Main, fence off Wall, and all of Main to say Pigeon St. We might even want to go a block or two over from Main, this will allow for some supplies to be secured, as well as for housing in town.”

Carl smiled, “Great idea, but where do we get the fencing?

North Carolina-Almost Hell Author’s note

I just realized that I changed perspective on my story from first to third person. I will have to make changes for continuity, but heck ,that’s what editing is all about…will decide what to do with posts already made, but will continue with the story. Research for the area is kicking my butt, as well as trying to tie in with other stories based on the Adrian’s Undead Diary world. Also shout outs to Chris Philpot and Okelly, you guys are the reason why this monster is in my brain.

North Carolina- Almost Hell Chapter Five

June 24th dawned to a new, horrific world. Large cities were over ran with the still mobile dead. Pockets of survivors hid, wondering how long they had until they too become one with the staggering, flesh eating creatures that had once been their friends, family and neighbors.

Amanda rose with the sun. She smiled as she stepped over two sleeping huskies beside her bed. Their presence was comforting. Thinking about the necessity of finding a Veterinarian, she walked into the bethroom and frze in her tracks…leaning on the counter was her father.

“You know, I always wanted dogs, but I was traveling all over with the Army, by the time I ertired, I was too busy with everything else. I’m glad to see you have them here. Sam and Linda did well with them. Between showing them and training them to pull, they came out with some wonderful creatures.”

“I know Dad. That and they are beautiful. So, what other news do you have for me?”

“Well, now that the world as you know it has changed, you need to remember some of the things you learned from that man in Tennessee. Jared, wasn’t it. I didn’t know why you went over there any time you were able to take a vacation, but I guess God had a plan after all. Also, I can now tell you that there is a reason to hope, to survive. Over East is the Scribe, he will find a way to bring this to an end of sorts, and your friend Jared has a part to play in all of this. Just keep up what you are doing for now, I’ll be back when I can. I love you little girl.”

“I love you too Dad. But what in the world does Jared have to do with all of this, and a Scribe?”

“It will make sense, when the time comes. Until then, stay alive Amanda, you too have a part to play in all of this.” Then he was gone.

With the converstion playing on a loop in her head, Amanda showered then dressed in her tactical uniform. As she was lacing on her boots, Sam tapped on her door.

“There’s some folks in the living room waitng for you”

“Thanks, tell them I’ll be right out.”

As Amanda entered the living room, Joey stood up and smiled. “I’ve got someone you need to meet, he showed up about an hour ago, shocked the shit out of me to be honest. This is Sergant Carl Smith, he is a member of the 1st Special Forces. He was on leave, camping up in the National Park when this happened. He got a call on his sat phone telling him to report for duty, but couldn’t get out. He saw us yesterday down in Waynesville, but was stranded in a shop downtown. He was helped by on of the city cops who told him about the farm.”

“Glad to meet you Carl. I assume you are going to try to get to your unit. Not that you aren’t welcome here, but I understand your duty to serve, my father was army, an M.P.” Amanda said as she extended her hand.

“Good to meet you too,” Carl said as he shook her hand. “I wish I could get back, but with no planes flying, I don’t think that is an option. I sure as hell can’t walk back. And unless I take every dirt road and trail, driving really isn’t an option right now either. So, after hearing of your group, I decided to offer my services.”

Amanda grinned, “In that case, Welcome to your new home. For now, until this shit ends in any case. We can use you here, that’s for damn sure. Would you be willing to help us out today? I understand you are probably exhauted, but we have things to do.”

Actually, I got some sleep until around midnight. So yes, I’m more than willing to help. I just need to come up with a weapon or two. All I have is my tomhawk and knfe right now. They’re great for up close work, but I’d rather have something that gives me a little space. Espcially with those creatures.” carl replied.

“I think we can help you there. Thankfully, I have some extra stuff down in the basement, follow me.”

Amanda walked to the stairway leading to the basement, “Just bear with me, This place is still pretty disorganized, but I think you can find what you need down here.” She led them to a door to the right and unlocked it.

Carl stepped into the room behind her and stopped, “Damn woman, are you a prepper or something?”

“I guess you can call me that, only, I started collecting these five months ago, not as a way of life, but…well it’s a long story. Anyway, we have M4 enhanced, some Armalite M15 .22, as long arms, then over thee are the M9’s and Glock22’s. I personally like the P226, but you get to chose what you want. The ammo is on the back wall. Help yourself, I’m gonna go get some coffe and grab a bite. Meet me in the kitchen when your ready. Oh, by the way,tac gear is back in the door under the steps. You should find evrything you need there.” Amanda left the basement.

Carl looked over Joey, “Ok, what is up with her? Why does she have all of this stuff?”

“Honestly, I don’t understand myself. She’s a Deputy with the Sheriff’s Department here, but I just don’t get all of the changes she’s gone through. We pretty much grew up together. She’s one of my best friends as well as my cousin. And, she’s single.” Joey said as he wiggled his eyebrows.

“Hey man, don’t try to play cupid. I just wondered why she… aw hell, you’re right, I was curious about her. I mean, she’s good looking and she knows how to handle herself, what more could a guy want?”

Slapping Carl on the back, Joey couldn’t help but laugh. Carl had already told him that he was career Army, joined at eighteen, now thirty five, only four years older than his cousin Amanda. The man had worked his way up the enlisted ranks to Sergant Frst Class, the same rank as Joey himself.  joey had to admit, Carl’s blue eyes and black hair complimented his cousin’s blonde hair and green eyes.

“Whatcha thinking Joey?” Carl asked.

“Nothing, let’s just get you set up and then we’ll get to work.”

Amanda sipped her coffee as she looked out the living room window. She saw the dogs playing in the yard, and again thought about their welfare. she knew that she had other things to do, but thought about the dogs anyway. Those dogs had a purpose as well, and she knew that they would be useful in the winter, especially if the snows were heavy enough. But, that was a few months away, for now, she had to get back into town. After meeting Carl, she knew there had to be other survivors out there. It was time to try to find them.

North Carolina-Almost Hell Chapter Four

Chapter Four

“Ok, here’s what we know about our area right now,” Jason Schmidt, the County Manager said to the group assembled in the conference room of the Sheriff’s Department.

“We have around five hundred and fifty square miles in the county. Total population is fifty nine thousand for the entire county. Then we break that down into the towns in the area. Waynesville has ninty eight hundred, Canton has forty two hundred, Clyde, twelve hundred, and Maggie Valley has close to twelve hundred. then we add lake Junaluska, that’s twenty seven hundred or so.  Then we have God only knows how many tourists in the area. With that said, we need to come up with a plan. Sheriff, what do you think?”

William looked around the room for a minute, then his eyes met Amanda’s, she nodded. “Well, it’s not looking good right now. I can tell you that of my sworn officers, only twenty are accounted for. Of those, I have seven jail Deputies, Nine Patrol Deputies, and four of my Court Deputies. Thee is one small ray of light in this, Deputy Carter had some company up at her place when all of the shit hit the fan, ten U.S. soldiers, They are pitching in where they can. One of them is even a helicoptor pilot. That should come in handy. We are doing pretty well on ammunition for now, but we have to think about getting more just in case this doesn’t end fairly soon.”

“Thank you Sheriff,” the County Manager said, “Next we have the Police Chief of Waynesville.”

“Hey folks, this thing caught us flat footed. I usually have 34 full timers and seven part timers, at this point, I can honestly say I only have ten effective officers. Around one this afternoon, I lost five officers, twice, once to the zombies and then, to their fellow officers a few minutes later. Just before I came in for this meeting, I was informed that we have lost all contact with both the Clyde and Maggie Valley forces. It may have been equipment failure, but as small as both of those forces are, it’s more likely that they didn’t make it. And, Canton was down to only two of their nine officers last I heard. Just getting down here fom my office was a nightmare. I saw bodies everywhere, some just walking around and some just plain dead. I went by my house earlier and it was surrounded by those monsters. I couldn’t get close enough to get to my family. I can only hope that they are ok.”

Amanda looked over at her shoulder at Joey, “Hey cuz, why don’t you get a few of your folks to check that out. When you get them out of there, bring them here first, after that, I think you need to take them up to the farm. Sam will know what to do from there. Also, leave me Carla and Bobby, I want to check out the Guard Armory and see if there’s anything useful there.”

“On it, I’ll send them in. By the way, Sheriff, do you have any car thieves in that jail of yours? If so, try to get them to start hot wiring some big rigs, we can use them as barricades. I also noticed you guys had some k rails in that service yard, they would make great barricades.” Joey got up and left.

“That guy seems to have a good head on his shoulders, I’m glad he’s here.” The County Manager said.

“Yeah, he’s my older cousin. He’s seen five tours in Iraq and Afganistan. I don’t know what could shake him up anymore,” Amanda replied.

“Anyway, I, UH, I, ” sweat beaded up on the County Managers face and he began to shake uncontrollably.

Jason, are you okay man?” The Sheriff asked as he approached.

“Boss, don’t get too close yet, we don’t know what is going on with him.  Jason, have you been bitten?” Amanda asked firmly as her hand went to her pistol.

“Uh, no, but I did get something im my eyes on the way in when one of the firefighters outside bashed one of those things in the head when I was coming in.” he mumbled weakly.

“FUCK!” Amanda yelled as she pulled her gun, “Everyone get back, he’s infected. GET BACK NOW!” Jason fell out of his chair heavily.  His breathing became labored. Not wanting to kill a living man, Amanda decided to wait until he stopped breathing. She didn’t wait long. Within ten minutes, his body twitched and his eyes opened, they were milky white. Amanda pulled the trigger. “Who’s next in line for his job?” she asked the room.

No one answered, they were all trying to absorb the fact that they had just watched a man they worked with regularly die. It brought it home to all of them that they were far from safe, even inside a protected, well fortified building.

“Ok,” Amanda exhaled, “Let’s get on with the next step.”

North Carolina- Almost Hell Chapter three

Chapter three

She followed the Sheriff as he slowly made his way into his office.  She didn’t see any blood on him, but from the slump of his shoulders, I knew something was up.

“Sit down Amanda, we have to talk….NOW”

“What is it Boss?” She asked as she took a seat.

“First off, thanks, my wife and kids are up at your place now, I had no idea you were doing all of that up there, how did you know?”

“Well, after I won the lottery, I decided to do some remodeling up there. I know you had to approve some of the paperwork for the class three stuff, but I didn’t tell a whole lot of folks why. I just had a feeling it was going to be needed.”She stammered.

Nodding, he went on, “I see, So, do you have any other feelings I need to know about? Or are you going to surprise me some more?”

“Ok, here it is. I know that people are dying, but getting back up, why? I have no idea. I know that people are going to need our help, but there’s only room for so many people up at my place, we need to set up several more safe areas. The logistics are going to be a real pain in the ass, but we have to do it. And, I know that we have to protect our own, as in our own county, we can’t expect help from outside anytime soon, if at all.”

“Ok, I agree with you on that last part. I have been trying to get in touch with other agencies with no luck. However, some news channels are still broadcasting, so we can try to piece together as much info as we can. Now, here is something you need to know, as of right now, we are the local Government, no elections, in a state of emergency, we are it. The County Commissioners are all missing, I can only assume they are dead. The hospital is teeming with those things, and  I am at a loss right now as to what to do next. I think we need to take a step back and reassess what we need to do. ”

Amanda nodded as he said this. “I agree, I think we need to take a deep breath here and try to plan. We also need to find some essential people,Nurses, Paramedics, Doctors, to start with. After that, we need people that know how to survive off the land, teachers, and the like.  The next priority is to set up blockades to prevent any further infected people from entering the area.  And last but not least, we need to assess all of the supplies in the area, and get them protected from looters, however, we need to let survivors get things they need, within reason. After all of that, then we make further plans.”

“Then let’s get on with all of that first. It’s one thirty now, we have at least seven hours of daylight left. Get up a list of folks you want to work with, have it to me in half an hour. I have some ideas of my own, but I have a few people to talk to first. See you in thirty” The Sheriff said as he stood up and walked out of the office.

I looked out into the parking lot, Joey and his people were waiting. He had a grin on his face as I approached. I wondered what was on his mind, but, knowing him, it was something good.

…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………

“So, this is what you were talking about.” Amanda said as she scanned the railroad yard just outside of town. She saw a few staggering figures wandering around, and nodded. “So you say you spoke with your commander on your satphone. I had no idea that you had brought one. So, what do we have on that train?”

Joey looked out over the yard, ” Quite a bit of stuff, but mostly clothes and other equipment like that. I know it’s summer now, but this is mostly cold weather items, things that will come in handy in a few months. But, there are some things we can use now. We just have to figure out how to get it moved. Any ideas?”

“Not yet, let me think on it. Right now, we have to get over to the walk in clinic, Apparently, it is surrounded by these walking freaks of nature, and from what we have heard, they only surround buildings when there are people inside. Let’s roll out.”

within ten minutes, they were looking at the clinic. Amanda could only guess, but it looked like fifty zombies were milling about, some pounding on the building, some just standing there like frozen observers. There were only eleven of the team members, but she thought they could get the job done.

“Just remember, don’t shoot if there is a chance to take out any windows or doors, if there is anyone alive in there, we don’t want to let those monsters in,” Joey reminded us. He sent half of his people around to the back of the building while the rest of us stayed where we were. Amanda was as nervous as she had ever been, this was not going to be pretty. I had already recognized some of the walking dead, hell, there were even children out there. She forced myself to focus on the task at hand. They had to clear them out, ans they had to get inside that clinic.

Amanda waited for the prearranged signal from the other half of the team, two clicks on the radio. She was already taking aim when the second click sounded.Her first shot, took her target, the Town Mayor in the neck. As he recovered from that first round, she took aim again and the second bullet entered his skull, dropping him like a sack of potatoes. “That wasn’t too bad, she muttered to herself as she shifted to her next target, an older woman missing her left arm from the elbow down, the wound was fresh, but not bleeding. One stroke of the trigger later and she too was really dead. Suppressed shots sounded around me and bodies fell.  Amanda was so focused on what was happening in front of her, she was shocked when she felt a hand on my shoulder. Thinking it was one of my team, she turned her head, and let out a scream. All she could focus on was the mouth moving towards her neck. It was Mrs. Burgess, the Manager of the bank she used. Before Amanda could bring her gun up, the head exploded, brain matter splattering across the shield of my riot helmet.

“Heads up cuz,” Joey called out softly. “Keep an eye open all around you. I’ve been watching our six, but I can’t be everywhere.”

“Thanks JoJo,” Amanda called back as she reached into my leg pocket and pulled out a bottle of water. A few moments later, face shield clean once more,Amanda returned to the wholesale slaughter of the dead around the clinic.

“Okay folks, lets just see who we have in here, Amanda said as we approached the doors to the clinic. Amanda took the lead followed by Joey, then Allen Simpson and Carla Walker, two of Joey’s people. She tapped on the door glass and waited to see what would happen. Nothing, no movement of any kind. She then reached for the door handle and pulled, it opened with ease. Amanda looked over her shoulder, Joey shrugged, Then nodded the go ahead. We entered quickly and quietly, not knowing what to expect. The lobby was empty. To the left were two doors, the restrooms, both doors propped open. Straight ahead was the reception window, a splash of blood on the counter, not much, but enough to let them know they might have a problem. To the right was the door to the back. It was closed, another splash of blood on the knob….not good.

Joey whispered, “Let’s clear the bathrooms, then go from there”

The restrooms were empty, a sink faucet still running in the men’s was the only sign that anyone may have been there recently.They returned to the lobby. The frosted glass at the reception area was locked, so they moved to the last door. They stacked up again, Amanda tried this one, and it too, was unlocked. “Okay, there’s four exam rooms two on each side of the hall as we go in. Just past those, is a small lab on the right, and an xray room on the left, then, we have two offices and a storage room around the corner. This all loops around to the reception slash file room and a break room for staff.  Let’s do this.”

I threw open the door and rushed in heading right into the first exam room, followed by Joey. Allen and Carla went left. Both rooms were empty. We moved on around the hallway until we came to the breakroom. As I entered, I heard a muffled cry just before I saw the people.

“Hold your fire!” I called out as the rest of the team entered the room. Looking back at me, were the staff of the clinic and about a dozen other people. I recognized the two nurses and the doctor, as well as Mrs. Byrns, the office manager. Then, my heart sank. Sitting on the floor was Jake Walters, the man who had handled all of the constuction on my farm, his left hand was wrapped in a bandage.

“Jake! What happened, why are you in here?” I asked quickly.

“Aw, I slashed my hand when I was loading up some sheet metal from my shop here in town. I came in and had the Doc here sew me up. As I was gettin ready to leave, a buch of those freaks swarmed the parking lot. We all came back here to get out of sight.  We tried phonin’ for help, but the lines are dead. I’m just glad they didn’t get in. We all forgot to lock the doors, I don’t know why they didn’t open’em.”

“I don’t think they know how anymore,” Joey answered. “Now, we have to get everyone out of here. And, get this place locked up, for now. I don’t know about anyone  else, but I could use a break before we do much more.”

North Carolina-Almost Hell Chapter Two

North Carolina-Almost Hell Chapter Two.

North Carolina-Almost Hell Chapter Two

Chapter Two

I woke up early, four and a half months down, two weeks to go rang through my mind as I padded into the kitchen. I ran the checklist in my head.  All the walls were complete. Two warehouses were built and filled. Farm equipment in place. Thirty cabins built. Fuel tanks in place and filled. Invitations extended to folks to come up for visits in two weeks, in the guise of a get together. Weapons and ammo to last for quite a long time. Some of them not quite the norm of course, but I did what I could.

I knew that I was as ready as I could be, I just hoped that I was wrong about all of this. That my parents and Evan had just been figments of my imagination. Not that I was complaining, I had won that huge jackpot.  I had to believe something was going on when that happened. But, what if it really was going to happen? Had I done everything that needed to be done? All I could do was pray.

A knock at the door pulled me from my revery. “Come in,” I called out.

Sam walked into the kitchen and poured a cup of coffee for himself. ” Amanda, I sure hope you know what you are doing. we’ve got Pogue and his family in the cabin out at the back gate. He says the crops are doing wonderful. That wife of his is already planning all of the canning.”

” Sounds great. Has Jake moved in yet?”

“Doing it now. He says that two of his crew are coming out too. Those guys seem to believe something is coming also. And to be honest, I feel it too. I just wish I knew what it was. I have this bad feeling that I’m not going to like it, but, well, thanks to you I feel pretty safe here.”

“That’s the whole idea. By the way, I got an email from my cousin Joey. He wanted to know if he could bring a few of his men and their families, I told him yes. I think we can figure on at least thirty more. I think we need to set them up in the RV’s out at the campgrounds until we can figure out what else we can do with them, they will be here next week. I also told him to pass on the invite to any of his folks, we can never have too many military folks here in my opinion.”

” I have to agree with you there. So what else do you want me to do?” Sam asked slowly.

“Well, my plan is to have you bring Linda over here. Since she’s a nurse, she is too valuable to have out in the back corner where you guys live. I have three extra rooms, you guys get one. I think you need the mother in law suite. It will give you more privacy, besides, this house is just too big for me alone.”

Smiling, Sam nodded in agreement, then asked, ” What about my dogs? I can’t live without them you know, and I’ve got two of my girls getting ready to have puppies. If they can’t come, then you’re not getting Linda and me.”

“I figured as much, bring all of them, all what 15 before the pups? That’s why I added extra fencing around this house, I knew it would be the only way you guys would come.” I smiled at him, “Besides, those huskies just might come in handy.”

“So, you finally admit it, my fur kids are pretty darn good to have around? I let Linda know. We should have everything here in two or three days. Anything else?” Sam asked quietly.

“Yeah, just so you know, I’m expecting six or seven reefer trucks today. they are loaded with the last of the essentials. Coffee and dog food especially. The medical supplies will be here tomorrow.” I paused, “And your son, Michael is coming in tonight. Since he will be the resident Doctor, we should be good to go….What did you say to convince him?”

“Nothing, he said he had a good long talk with his Grandfather, my Dad, but I just don’t understand, the man has been dead for ten years.” Sam said softly.

“I know Sam, I know. I can’t explain it, but I believe it.” I told him as I looked out the window. “You’ll just have to trust me on all of this. We’ve got an expected sixty three folks coming in, and room for at least fifty more, let’s just hope they all show up. Now, Let’s check out everything, and don’t forget, those propane generators need to be ready for the reefer trucks. Can’t have things going bad on us.”

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Death Day June 2010
Amanda knew it was time to go. She had been watching my computer for days now. Then it happened. A man in Africa posted something about attacks. People eating people for no reason, people dying, but not staying dead. She was ready.

Reaching for the radio mic, Amanda decided to get Joey and his guys to the house immediately. They had to help if They could. Thankfully,the nearest town was small. They would do what they could. Keying the mic, Amanda announced that se wanted Joey and his team to meet in twenty minutes. He had ten men and women with him, they were a great bunch.

“So folks, as you can see, the shit has hit the fan, we need to be ready. We are twenty minutes from town, I am monitoring the scanner, Grab your gear and be ready to roll in five minutes, the trucks are fueled up and ready. Amanda looked at Joey,” cuz, I know these are your people, but this is my county, I never left the Sheriff’s Department, I won’t leave my people to die if I can help it. We need to work together to do the best that we can, do you agree?”

Joey smiled, “Amanda, you brought us here, it’s your ball game. My people will do whatever it takes to help folks survive.”

With that, they all filed out to get ready. Amanda looked around the living room, hoping that she could deal with all that she knew her people would have to face.

“You’re ready little girl” my father said as he appeared beside me. “I knew you could do it, now, listen carefully, the dead will be here in the next hour, some jerk flew in from Africa this morning, he was infected. He is now driving into town. You won’t be able to save everyone, but, you will be able to save many. The one thing you need to remember, to kill these things, you have to destroy the brain. One bite, one drop of blood or saliva on an open wound,in your eyes or your mouth, will infect you too. Use your wits. Let your people know. Protect yourself at all costs, you have too much to do. And remember, I love you. Now gear up yourself, your people are coming.” With that he faded away.

“Crap,” Amanda muttered, “I wish I knew that before Dad, but I’ll do the best I can. ” she walked into her room and started pulling on riot gear.manda wasn’t looking forward to all of this, but she wondered what her Dad had meant when he said she had too much to do. Shrugging, she decided to break out a few of the class three items she had collected, she had a huge surprise for the crew going out with me. Noise would not be our friend. Silencers were going to be the answer.

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After arriving in town, we all knew that things were going to be ugly. On the ride in, Amanda found out that she was not the only one in her group to have been visited by loved ones. She was comforted by that, but couldn’t help but wonder how, and why. Amanda decided to start at the Sheriff’s Department, after all, she did work there. And, she couldn’t think of any place else to go.

“Carter, glad you’re here, ” Sheriff William Thomas called out as she entered the building. He eyeballed the group that followed her in, then looked back at me. “What the heck are they doing here?”

“Boss, you wouldn’t believe me if I told you right now, but these folks are here to help. Just trust me on this. Please.” she answered. “I have a feeling they will come in handy fairly soon, so, what is going on?”

“The Staties are shutting down the interstate. Asheville is rioting and we are not going to do the same. I can’t get any information other than that. The local  tv stations are reporting some pretty far fetched stuff. They’re saying that the National Guard is being activated. That the President is in hiding and that people that are reportedly saying that the dead are not staying dead. Or rather, the newly dead are not staying dead. What do you think of that load of crap?” The Sheriff asked me angrily.

“Boss, I think you need to get your family up to my place. Tell them to pack all the food they can, as well as any medicine they may need for now. Tell them to get moving, and to not stop for anyone. Sam is waiting up there for folks to arrive. Also, contact the rest of the Department folks and tell them the same thing. Trust me on this, these folks with me are active duty Army, they came to help, now what can we do?”

He looked at her then at the crew with me, “Who’s in charge of this group?”

“I am Boss, I am,” Amanda told him softly as his face went pale. “So, where do you want us?”

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Thirty minutes later, they heard the first gunshots. she was driving through the WalMart parking lot when it started. Reflexively Amanda reached for her radio and called it in. Seconds later, other reports of gunshots came over the radio from around town. I pulled up to the curb in front of the store and climbed out of my cruiser. Looking around, she saw a man lying on the ground covered in blood. There was another man kneeling beside him, a handgun lay on the ground nearby. manda drew her pistol and approached slowly. As she got to within ten feet, the man on the ground sat up and grabbed the man beside him.Amanda didn’t have time to respond as the wounded man bit into the arm of his victim. A scream split the air.

Amnda stopped as she noticed that the biter had dead white eyes. Without another thought,she took aim and fired, the bullet struck him in the forehead and he fell back, dead. The man that had just been bitten looked at her in shock, blood flowed freely from the jagged hole in his arm. “Oh shit'”Amanda thought, “It’s really happening, Zombies!” One of her favorite type of horror movies was no longer relegated to fiction, it was real.

“He just went nuts and attacked me, I had to shoot him!” The still kneeling man called out. “I don’t know what it was about, he just grabbed at me and kept trying to bite me, now he has, what happened? Why did he come after me? I had to shoot him to get him off of me, I never thought I’d have to shoot someone.”

“Sir, just stay where you are,” Amanda told him, I’ll get you some help as soon as I can.” She reached for her radio. As she started to transmit, she heard another shot ring out not far away. Well, at least I wasn’t the only one with a gun here.

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Three hours and untold bullets later, Amanda decided to return to the station. When she pulled up, it was chaos. Cars were jammed into the parking lot. People were milling about looking lost. The Sheriff was standing on the front steps making an announcement.   “Right now, we just need everyone to go home and shelter in place, we have no idea what is really going on here, but remember this, if you see someone bleeding, get away from them, call for help, but stay away….it’s all we can say at this time. DO NOT go to the hospital. Do not try to get on the interstate, just get to your home or to the home of a friend. Stay in place until further notice.”

With a lot of grumbling, people slowly moved away towards their cars. I met the Sheriff’s eyes and they were troubled. He turned to go back into the station and I followed. A sense of dread filled me as I saw blood on the front door.

 

North Carolina-Almost Hell

North Carolina-Almost Hell.