Episode 2 Prompt here
Episode 1 Winner (Our Story Thus far...) here
Tim shouted “NO!” as both Clive and the cop began moving towards the hit-and-run "victim". Tim reached out a hand, grabbing the cop by his arm, saying, “I wouldn't do that man...”
“Sir, please remove your hands from me,” the cop said forcefully, hand dropping to the butt of his weapon.
Tim quickly released the man and shrugged, saying, “These things aren't like normal people. There's something wrong with them...”
"Bullshit," the cop said and turned to rush to the downed man. Tim was already hopping on the bike, when the cop turned and shouted to him, “Stay there!"
Tim was shocked. Judging by his look, this guy was ready to bundle him into his cruiser and take him to jail, zombie apocalypse or not.
Clive reached the “victim” and knelt down slowly, choosing to ignore the other three that the car had missed. As he reached for the mans neck, one of the others grabbed Clive and jerked him backwards, sinking his teeth into Clive's neck. Clive screamed and the others set on him.
“Holy fucking shit...”the cop whispered, stopping suddenly. They both stood spellbound as Clive disappeared beneath the knot of frenzied attackers. The cop began shouting into his radio and drew his gun, his hands shaking. The heads of the 3 of the attackers turned in unison at the sound of his voice and Tim could see that one of them had, at some point, lost the right side of it's face. Raw bone showed through in places where the flesh hung in ribbons, black blood oozing. As quickly as they had set upon Clive they turned from him and began marching slowly towards Tim and the cop.
“C'mon!” Tim shouted, grabbing the cop and pulling him onto the motorcycle. The cop offered little protest as Tim gunned the bike and they sped off.
As they drove south on Havana Street, the warehouses and strip malls were a frenzy of wrecked cars and groups of zombies. They had only been going for a minute when the cop began to shout and to not-so-gently hit Tim on the shoulder. Tim brought the bike to a sudden stop just before they reached the intersection at the Denver County jail. Tim could now hear the cop shouting “Clive! Oh God, Clive! Go back motherfucker, go...” the cop's voice trailed off and he backed away from Tim. Tim turned to look.
From the west, a train was coming along the tracks that lined Smith Street. It was going fast and Tim could see smoke pouring from its stacks, but what really drew his attention was the mass of writhing figures clinging to the front glass of the locomotive. A sudden screeching sound filled Tim's ears and he watched as the train began to rock back and forth on the tracks, like a drunken man trying to weave his way out of an alley. It was a sickening, slow-motion rocking that got bigger with each sway. Tim's stomach slowly turned over as the train gave a final lurch and jumped from the tracks, train-cars decoupling and flying south, the engine skidding across Smith Street and plowing directly into the jail with a horrid crash. The dull, red-brick facade of the building flew apart. Explosions filled the air and black smoke rolled from the hole that used to be the jail.
The cop dashed forward, screaming incoherently. Tim grabbed his shoulder and the cop spun. Tim suddenly found the cop's Colt 1911 .45 caliber service pistol only a couple of feet away from his face.
“You!” the cop spat, his voice high and panicked.
“Sir...” Tim began, “Rory.” Tim thought that using his name might bring him back to reality.
“You will address me as Officer Stapelton.” The cop said flatly. “We are in an EMERGENCY situation here sir, and I need your cooperation. We are going back to the 7-11. You are gonna help me get Clive. He's my brother and he's hurt."
The cop was shaking and Tim could see the light of sanity flickering out in his eyes. As they stood there facing one another, the absurdity of the situation struck him and Tim began to snigger. This developed into a full-on belly laugh that had Tim doubled over for a second.
The cop stepped forward and, in a high pitched voice, shouted angrily “All right, motherfucker, DOWN ON THE GROUND!”. As he did, Tim swept his right arm upward in a twisting motion,grabbing the cop's arm and causing him to bend backward, splaying out like a starfish. When he did, Tim delivered a swift punch to the mans temple, rendering him immediately unconscious. “Sorry Rory.” Tim said regretfully. “Clive's gone.”
As the cop slid to the ground, Tim plucked the pistol from his hands. He quickly retrieved the 4 clips of ammo from the cop's belt. Looking around, he wondered, What do I do with him? To their right was a small office building. Although “For Lease” signs were posted in two of the three glass fronts, the last held a simple, hand-painted sign that said “Loony Tunes” with stylized cartoon characters surrounding the lettering. Swinging the cop across his shoulders, Tim ran towards the office fronts, reaching the doors as a man inside was locking them.
“We're not one of them!” Tim shouted. The man inside relented and Tim quickly entered, sliding the heavy cop from his shoulders to slump against the wall.
Tim could see that it was a record shop, with several racks of vinyl records lining the large room. The man locked the door and quickly made his way towards the rear wall, motioning for Tim to follow. Glancing at the cop, Tim made his way after the man and discovered 3 women crouched low behind a bin filled with cassette tapes.
“What the hell is going on out there?” asked one of the women.
“It's zombies, Tina, I told you!” the man spat at the woman.
“Fuck you, Brad!” Tina spat back. “That's ridiculous.”
“Then how do you explain Ray...” Brad began.
Tim cut him off.“Stop.” All four looked at him, their eyes begging him to give them anything to make sense of what was happening. Tim didn't have time for this. “Look, Tina, it IS zombies. I don't like it either, but it's true. Now, after I leave, LOCK THAT DOOR!” Tim turned towards the front of the store.
“Hey man, where you goin?” Brad said. “You can't just leave us here! We're Vegan!”
Tim pointed at the glass front. “They aren't. And they don't care what you eat.” Tim strode to the glass door, scanning the parking lot for the creatures. All seemed clear for the moment. Jacob. Allison. He chanted their names over and over in his head.
“What about him? What do we do with him?” Brad said, pointing at the cop who was still unconscious.
“Tell him I'm sorry about Clive. We couldn't save him,” Tim said, a twitch of anxiety in his belly.
He exited the door and raced to the motorcycle. Firing it up, he sat looking at the train wreckage, wondering how he was going to get to Lakewood now. Overhead, jets raced far too low. Tim had seen this many times before. They were coming in for a bombing run. Tim actually heard the clamps snap open as the Hellfire missiles released and streaked towards the city center.
“Oh Dear God...”
Will Tim reach Jacob and Allison? Will Rory seek vengeance for the death of his brother, Clive?is the military really firing Hellfire missiles on the city of Denver? Tune in next week.....
