“No, but it would have been helpful,” he said, straightening.
I nodded and we reached the third floor landing. I snuck a quick peek out into the hallway through the window, but it was hard to see anything. The stairs looked out into a hallway, but the only thing I could see was a wall. I really didn’t want to burst out into a floor full of zombies, but I had little choice. Charlie and I held a brief powwow and we agreed that it would be better to blast through the door and kill anything on either side.
I was going to take the left, Charlie was going to follow me for a step, then take the right as the door closed. I braced myself with my rifle, making sure magazines were within easy reach and unobstructed. I also made sure my weapon light was ready. No point wasting shots in the dark if I could help it.
Charlie pushed the door open and I slid out, moving forward enough so Charlie could let the door close behind us. Immediately to my front was a small gaggle of zombies, loitering around the nurse’s station. They turned to look at me, then as it registered what I was, they let out a collective moan that sounded like a roar in the small hallway, and started shuffling forward.
“Fuck you very much, thanks for asking,” I said as I fired into the group. A doctor-looking zombie took the round in his eye and fell to the ground, tripping two more behind him. Another zombie fell from another shot, and a third as it got up from falling. The immediate threat over, I waited for a better shot as Charlie opened up on his side, firing two shots close together, then two more. I would have chastised him for wasting ammo if I didn’t know he had just nailed four zombies. No more firing from his side as two more advanced on me. I put their diseased carcasses down for good, then motioned Charlie to follow me.
We moved quickly down the hall, passing a bank of elevators. I roughly knew where I was going, keeping to the points of the compass. I had to hit the end of the hallway, then turn south. That back hall should have the nurse’s lounge. It was the only wall that faced south and if my directions weren’t totally screwy, we should be able to find it.
Coming to a main hall crossway, I looked around the corner and nearly lost my cookies. I had seen a lot of carnage since the Upheaval, but this was unbelievable. It was if someone had thought to insulate the hallway in blood and entrails. The guts didn’t look like they had been merely torn out, they looked like they had been tossed aside after being torn out. Body parts lay everywhere and all of the parts had teeth marks or bites taken out of them. The slaughter was immense. I couldn’t imagine what this must have been like, the screams and moans must have driven anyone witnessing this to insanity.
Charlie bumped me with his elbow. “Down the hall movement.” He turned on his light and aimed down the way. “Aw, hell.”
I flicked on my light and looked for myself. “Dammit,” was all I had to add to the conversation.
At the end of the hall was a sign that read “Welcome Friends!” It was brightly painted to alleviate the fears of the admitted patients. As I looked at the advancing horde, nothing could have prepared parents for what had actually happened. It was a children’s ward and the little victims were headed this way, looking for revenge.
“No time,” I said to Charlie as he let out a breath to begin firing. He stopped himself just in time. “We’ll deal with them on the way out.” I squirted some ammonia to keep the scent off and we passed the hallway of horrors.
Rounding the corridor corner, I popped a zombie lurching towards the junction, his glowing eyes like beacons in the dark. My bullet entered his right eye, blowing his slightly glowing brain all over the wall behind him. A chorus of little moans answered the shot and the sound gave me the chills.
“Found it!” Charlie said, opening he door. He jumped back as a zombie fell out, it must have been leaning against the door. Charlie quickly stomped the Z in the head, killing it. He looked over at me with a slight grimace on his face, but a quick check with my flashlight showed the Z wasn’t Ellie. I shook my head and Charlie’s shoulders sagged a bit in relief.
As I moved towards the door, another sign got my attention. ‘Medical Supply’ was on the door and I opened it to find a virtual cornucopia of drugs and supplies. Charlie looked over my shoulder and said, “I’ll get what I can, the doc can sort it out later.” He grabbed a sheet from a nearby room and began placing boxes of supplies in the center.
I moved into the nurse’s lounge and quickly scanned it for additional surprises. There weren’t any and I made my way through the couches and chairs to the balcony doors. I opened the door and let in a great deal of sunlight into the lounge.
On the balcony, there were several tables and chairs, all of them empty. My heart fell as it looked like Ellie wasn’t out here. I was going to have to leave without closure after all. I turned back to the door and looked over to the corner of the balcony. A chair had been overturned and it looked like something was in the corner, hidden by the chair.
I walked over, and as I got closer, I saw a body was in the corner. Hoping against hope, I approached the body, the light of the sun blocked by the floors above.
I reached out a hand to move the chair, and I was surprised at how nervous I was. I pulled the chair away and looked down at a small body. It was curled up on its side, seeming to be sleeping. One look at the skeletal arms and head and I knew this person had been dead for a long time. The elements hadn’t been kind, wasting the body away to a thin, dried out skeleton. I stood up and was about to walk away when something sparkled at me. I knelt down and pulled the left hand closer. When I got a look at the ring on the finger, I dropped to my knees and took off my goggles and mask.
“Oh, Ellie.” The ring on her finger was the little wedding band I had bought when I had no money and worked part time to get extra cash for her ring. It was a small diamond, but Ellie had told me at the time that it looked big to her and that was all that mattered.
I gathered her into my arms as I knelt there and just held her for a moment. It didn’t matter that she was dead, that she was just skin and bones. It mattered that I had lost her, that my world had been turned upside down. But I lived and our son lived and part of her would always be alive in him. “I kept my promise, Ellie. I kept your baby safe. You probably know that, but I just wanted to tell you. He’ll grow to a fine man. I promise.” New tears fell on her face as I cried. “I’m so sorry I couldn’t save you. I’m so, so sorry. Please forgive me.” Sobs racked my body as I held her close, shaking the two of us.
25
After a long moment and a deep breath, I gently laid her down and put my mask and goggles back on. I took her wedding ring and engagement ring off and put them in my breast pocket. They were for Jake when he wanted to get married. His mother would have approved. I picked Ellie back up and brought her into the lounge where I wrapped her in a blanket and laid her down on the couch. I had no intention of bringing her out, but I did intend to bury her as I left. As I stood up, I thought I felt a gentle touch on my cheek and my heart inexplicably felt lighter. I immediately knew I had done the right thing and I also knew I was forgiven.
“Get busy living,” I said to no one in particular. Patting my pocket, I headed for the door just as Charlie burst in.
“We gotta go and we gotta go now!” He panted, stealing a glance at the door. He was carrying a huge sack over his shoulder like a kick-ass, zombie-killing Santa Claus. He looked down at the couch. “Did you…”
I nodded. “I found her. I’m good.”
“Are you bringing her with us.?” Charlie asked.
I shook my head. “No, but I’m going to make this place her funeral pyre. It killed her, now I’m going to kill it,” I said, the rage building inside.