Pandemic Z (Book 1): Pandemic Z Read online

  The chase continued, and the momentary break he’d gotten when he stopped to pick up Isabella had given Harry newfound energy. He pedaled much faster than before, despite the extra weight. It was no longer just his own life he protected but Isabella’s, too.

  Isabella being on the back of the bike didn’t help the deflated tire situation, and the front tire groaned and buckled, but surprisingly, they still turned quickly. The horde of zombies behind them slowly grew larger as they pedaled through the eerie quietness of the Sunday morning street. The arduous Knight Frank zombie was head of the pack.

  Isabella gripped hold of Harry for dear life as he raced down the tree-lined road, the houses zipping by in somewhat of a blur.

  “Ha! Eat our dust!” She cackled.

  Harry tried to keep up the quick pace, but his legs grew weary quickly. As their pace slowed, the thronging zombies pressed closer to the two teenagers on the bike.

  “Uh…” Isabella said, obviously scared. “Harryyyyyyy!” She dragged out his name in desperation.

  “I know! I’m going as fast as I can!” He panted.

  His long, flowing hair had stuck to his head with sweat. He took each breath with great labor. Harry’s chest burned for more air, and his legs felt like they were the consistency of jelly as he forced them onwards in the never-ending cycle of momentum.

  “Go faster!” Isabella’s high-pitched cries told how frightened she was, and Harry forced his legs to push faster. Today he would be the hero; he would be Daines.

  Despite the added speed, the zombies still gained ground at a surprisingly alarming pace. Soon, the Knight Frank zombie brushed the edge of the teetering red milk crate. His clumsy hands couldn’t grab anything, so he smacked his way forward. The milk crate refused to break, and Knight Frank zombie stumbled, giving Harry and Isabella the perfect moment to put a little distance between them.

  “Shit!” she called out.

  “Isabella?”

  “He is right behind us!” she whimpered.

  “Do something!”

  Isabella paused for a moment. There wasn’t anything around that she could use to stop the zombies from closing in, but there was something to hinder their ongoing progress.

  Newspapers.

  “NEWSPAPERS!” She excitedly jumped at the thought.

  Harry looked confused. “Newspapers?”

  “Yes!”

  Harry had no idea what Isabella was planning, but he hoped it would be good. Isabella’s plans were always brilliant.

  “I trust you, Isabella!” Harry screamed as confidently as possible. He imagined dramatic music playing as he pedaled faster to help the newfound plan.

  He fondly remembered a time back in year four when he had to recite all his multiplication tables to the teacher, and he couldn’t remember his multiples of seven very well. He could remember all his other multiplications perfectly but struggled with seven.

  Isabella had laid out rows of seven Smarties and made him count the candies repeatedly until his name was called. The teacher called them in alphabetical order, and luckily for him, his last name began with a W which gave him plenty of time to practice his multiplication table—the Smarties way.

  Isabella grabbed a newspaper from the red milk crate and tossed it at Knight Frank zombie. The newspaper struck a zombie further back, and it stumbled and tripped over the obstacle. Others fell on top of the fallen figure, but they quickly picked themselves up and continued forward.

  “I’ll get you, you little fucker.” She sounded determined and pulled another newspaper from the red milk crate. She swung her arm back.

  He tried to keep the bike as stable as possible as Isabella turned and swung her arm, releasing the newspaper. Her breath caught in her throat as it sailed through the air. The newspaper smacked the zombie across his face, and he stumbled to the ground face first.

  “Take that, you zombie scum!” She delightfully chuckled.

  He thought she was crazy to be so overenthusiastic at her accomplishments, but to hit a zombie from the back of the speeding bike with a lopsided newspaper that flapped wildly in the rushing wind took some skill. Harry was impressed the projectile had hit the zombie leader so effectively. He was still curious about her excitement though. He hoped it would distract him from his jelly-like legs that burned worse than anything he had imagined.

  He wondered if this was how Tour de France cyclists felt. They all looked so triumphant, pedaling away on TV. They looked so sophisticated and even happy to be cycling such great distances. Maybe in reality, they had jelly legs and a burning desire to just stop pedaling and collapse onto the side of the road.

  “I just whipped the shit out of my step-dad, Eli!” Isabella said.

  Harry raised his eyebrow. “Your step-dad’s name is Eli?”

  “Yeah, ugly isn’t it?” Isabella nodded.

  “Totally.”

  “He was a huge jerk!” she added. That made more sense.

  “Was he the Knight Frank guy?” Harry asked.

  “Yep. Pompous son of a bitch.”

  “I knew you could do it!” Harry said a little awkwardly. He didn’t really know what else to say.

  “My mom is out of town, thankfully. But that meant he was extra…” She tried to find the right word.

  “Jerky?” Harry said, glancing at her over his shoulder.

  “Yeah.”

  “Hey, what’s with his trousers?” Harry asked, remembering the oddly patterned Indian design on Eli’s baggy pants.

  “I don’t know. I never understood them really.” She shrugged. “He drank a river of beer every night. He was nicer when he was sober, but even then he was pretty rough.” Her voice was suddenly sad.

  Harry didn’t know what to say to Isabella. He couldn’t imagine having anyone angry in the house. Harry didn’t like his dad, and they fought a lot, but that was about it. He had never physically tried to hurt Harry.

  “But now he’s gone.” She returned to her happy attitude again, and Harry focused on the road ahead.

  The stumbling mass behind them continued on the same warpath. They didn’t even notice Eli on the ground. They walked right over him, pursuing the two fleeing on the gradually slowing bike.

  Harry didn’t know how he could continue pedaling all the way to Oliver’s house, but he knew their lives depended on it. He pushed his legs forward, pretending he was the hero in Dwindling Fire. He pretended he was Daines and continued pedaling.

  He felt invincible cruising through the quiet streets with Isabella happily bouncing on the back of his bike. Nothing could stop him from getting where he needed to go. Nothing would stop him.

  Chapter Eleven

  People were everywhere. Many had jumped from their seats and barged their way to the front of the plane. There was no order and certainly no manners. Everyone wanted to be as far from Sunshine as possible.

  “Get out of my way!” A strong man in a well-tailored suit pushed at the butch football fan.

  “MOVE.” Football Fan, who had been watching his favorite sport, stomped his way through the crowd. “I have an important conference I need to be at.”

  “I have an important lecture to give at Oxford University,” Suit shot back.

  “So?”

  “It is important.” Suit stepped forward, staring down Football Fan.

  “So is my conference!”

  “My name is Professor Jack Enright, and I am the leading expert in the recent discovery of…” The professor formerly known as Suit was interrupted by Football Fan.

  “Yeah, and I’m Dick Francis,” Football Fan proudly said.

  His name is Dick? That’s too perfect, Lena thought to herself as she tried to quiet the bickering men.

  “Dick?” Jack Enright snorted twice before bursting into a loud fit of laughter.

  “It isn’t funny!” Dick Francis protested. “Seriously!”

  Nothing Dick Francis said could stop the professor from laughing. Dick got annoyed even more at Jack’s reaction and pushed him
roughly against the seat. “Get out of my fucking way,” he roughly said.

  “Hey, no need to be a…” Jack smiled.

  “Yes?”

  “Dick,” he finished.

  Dick shoved Jack onto the empty seat. “Fuck you.”

  Jack gritted his teeth and focused his eyes on his aggressor. “Oh, yeah?” he snarled.

  “I have to be at my conference, or I’ll lose my job.” Dick’s voice was low and threatening.

  “Fucking yank. You got nothing to worry about,” Jack mocked.

  “I’ll have you know, I’m from Manchester.” He smirked.

  The two men were nose to nose ready to break out into a fight.

  “BOYS!” a flight attendant cried over them.

  The two men remained in their aggressive position. Dick had a fistful of Jack’s shirt. They looked like they were back in primary school, playing rough on the playground and getting caught by the teacher.

  “I’ll get you,” Dick hissed.

  “Your promise is an empty threat,” Jack replied and tried to push Dick off him.

  Dick Francis let go of Jack and turned his attention back to pushing his way to safety.

  “At least I’m not a dick,” Jack said just loud enough for the broad-shouldered man to hear.

  Dick whipped around and pinned Jack to the seat. Fury filled his features, and he breathed heavily, ready to explode.

  “Enough.” The flight attendant sighed.

  The two men shot death glares at each other they stopped again. The passengers who remained in their seats turned to face Sunshine. Luckily, he’d stopped thrashing. Instead, he sat snarling and growling, threatening to erupt all over again into a violent fit.

  “So… this is really happening?” Hawaiian Shirt asked.

  “Yeah, dude. This is really happening.” Dude had moved quickly when he saw Sunshine. Now, Dude was tucked into the seat next to Hawaiian Shirt.

  A small child stood on a seat and peered over the beaten headrest. She looked at Sunshine with fascination and concern, but there didn’t appear to be any fear on her small face.

  “Stay back, darling,” her mother said softly.

  She picked up the child and retreated, but the kid looked with large curious eyes. Her short arms reached for the writhing zombie, but the woman quickly pulled the child around, so she was facing the woman’s chest instead of Sunshine.

  A kind air hostess approached Sunshine. She stepped closer, reaching out to the zombie.

  “No! Stop!” Lena spoke loudly so the air host could hear her.

  The air hostess was slightly taken aback. “What? Why?” she asked, stopping in the aisle.

  “He’s a zombie, like on TV,” Lena calmly told the flight attendant.

  The woman looked back and forth from Lena to Sunshine, trying to process her words. Barry nodded, even though the woman wasn’t looking his way. She looked shocked, and she paused for a moment before retracing her steps.

  “Zombie. Right.” She repeated that to herself several times.

  “I know it’s hard to believe,” Barry said, comforting the flight attendant.

  Well, that was a close call. Lena sighed in relief. At least the passengers were away from Sunshine. As she finished that thought, another one of the air hostesses slipped out of the row and pushed her way through the crowd. She looked at Sunshine with compassion and took slow steps toward him.

  Seriously? I literally just warned the other flight attendant not to go near him! Lena couldn’t believe what she was seeing, but she knew she had to do something before the other flight attendant got bitten.

  “Seriously, don’t go near him,” she warned, her voice low and dangerous to show she meant every word.

  The flight attendant was tall and had the added height of small high heels. Her pencil skirt hugged her form tightly, and her blouse was flawless. The Virgin Airlines scarf was neatly tied around her neck and fit uniformly under the collar. The way she presented herself was professional and calming, and Lena could easily see why she was a flight attendant.

  “Give me a valid reason not to,” the air hostess said.

  “The disease is transmitted via saliva. If he bites you, then you become like him.” Lena was calm as she warned the air hostess again.

  Barry chattered his teeth, showing a biting motion. The flight attendant ignored his attempts and continued towards Sunshine.

  “But he needs help,” she pushed.

  “There is nothing we can do for him now,” Lena said. “Trying will not only endanger you but everyone else on this plane.”

  The flight attendant continued to press forward, and Lena jumped into action, holding the attendant away from Sunshine.

  “Get off me!” the flight attendant cried.

  Her protests aroused some passengers who couldn’t see the commotion. She put up quite a fuss, and her once flawless uniform wrinkled and creased as she tried to break free from Lena’s grasp.

  “Let her go!” yelled a passenger.

  “Why are you holding her back?” another one said.

  “Please let me go!” the attendant said.

  “If I let go and she gets bitten by him, then we have two zombies instead of one,” Lena said directly to the other passengers, getting frustrated by their comments.

  “I won’t get bitten.” The attendant tried to push Lena away, but Lena wouldn’t let that happen.

  Why can’t the damn women just listen to me? “I can’t risk it,” Lena said.

  “Hey, fellow passengers, listen up!” Barry quieted the crowd and flipped his laptop around to show them the screen.

  “What is that?” a passenger asked.

  “Wow, looks like my brother,” one of the jersey-clad men joked. The man next to him in an identical jersey smacked him. He must have been the brother.

  “Dude,” Dude muttered.

  “Ditto,” Hawaiian Shirt agreed.

  “This,” Barry pointed to the screen, “is him.” He pointed in Sunshine’s direction.

  Barry waited patiently, showing the screen to every other person on the flight. They slowly saw the image on Barry’s laptop was identical to the man sitting in the seat. The once living person in the video grunted and groaned the same way Sunshine did and had the same black eyes. There was nothing more they needed to see to prove the monsters were both zombies.

  Chaos erupted yet again as the reality of the situation settled in their minds. Lena still held back the attendant while Barry sighed and tried to quiet the rambunctious crowd.

  “Guys, please settle down,” Barry said, but it did no good.

  The crowd wild. They pushed and screamed at each other. Dick Francis had forced his way through the crowd and was close to the exit, and Jack Enright was hiding close to the premiere class seating.

  Barry was getting annoyed. “Settle down!” Still, nothing happened.

  An eager bearded man with a Dwindling Fire t-shirt on pulled his phone from his jeans pocket and recorded the events. He hopped on the seat closest to him so he could get a somewhat bird’s-eye view of the crowd going crazy.

  “FOLKS!” Barry’s voice was raspy from shouting so much. When the crowd still didn’t respond, he pulled his laptop back around and hit a few buttons before turning it back to the crowd. The noise fell silent immediately. “This is a video of what happens when Sunshine and his cronies take a little nibble out of people like us.”

  The video footage from a news channel played, showing a zombie with blackened eyes taking a huge bite out of an innocent man’s arm. The man stood motionless for a split second before his pupils slowly grew larger and larger until there was no white left. He snarled and grunted like the original zombie and quickly went about infecting others around him.

  “I bet that’s just off YouTube,” a lady scoffed.

  “I promise it is real. Haven’t you been watching the news?” Barry fought back.

  “That’s insensitive towards those who are dying!”

  “You’re just trying to
make us afraid for your own gain.”

  Barry couldn’t believe what he heard. “What gain? What could I possibly get from a bunch of frightened passengers?”

  This is the real deal! Like a real zombie who will really bite you if you get close, he thought to himself. He knew he had to be careful with his words.

  The man who had been recording everything on his phone panned around to video the passengers’ confusion. He slowly paused on each guest, showing their emotions closely. He zoomed the camera out and slowly guided it back to Sunshine.

  “Fuck,” Lena gasped.

  With all the excitement going on, Lena had loosened her grip on the flight attendant. The flight attendant broke free of Lena’s powerful grip and headed directly for Sunshine.

  “Oh my God!” Barry cried. “Seriously?”

  “The flight attendant is going straight for him!” The amateur videographer pointed at the flight attendant. His finger shook nervously at the woman approaching the snarling zombie.

  “Stay back!” Lena called.

  The woman proceeded to ignore Lena’s calls. Sunshine was kicking in every direction. His thrashed at the air, and his large arms hit everything obstructing his destructive path. The air hostess shuffled closer to him. Her sounds caught his attention, and he pulled himself up in the seat. He looked confused and eager to find the source of the noise.

  “Ma’am…” Lena softly called. Lena didn’t want to attract attention by talking too loudly. Sunshine appeared to have very limited senses. He reacted to noise the way a bear would, and the noise from the approaching flight attendant had perked up his lazy senses.

  “Sherri…” Emily called the flight attendant’s name. “Sherri, you should get back,” she warned.

  It was like every passenger in that part of the plane held their breath, watching Sherri freeze in her steps. Sunshine’s eyes had locked onto her, and he now rocked violently back and forth, trying to rip himself free from the airplane seat. His thick, long arms extended in front of him, reaching for Sherri. She didn’t dare move from her crouched position a few feet from where Sunshine sat.