Induction

Dale replied with a maniacal laugh and shouted. “Cocked and locked, motherfuckers!”

I leaned into Adam and whispered conspiratorially, “I think we need to keep an eye on this one.”

He responded with raised eyebrows and a shake of his head.

The sound of the rotors spinning brought my attention back to the land in front of us. We had to yell even louder to be heard over the noise. Small clusters began to break off from the pack to seek out the new, and obtainable, prey.

It was all pretty much uneventful from there. There was a single gunshot and then we saw the helicopter rise into the air. They must have found a lurker in the cockpit because as it lifted higher, a limp body fell from the open door and splashed down into the water. Lowell gave us a salute before he closed the door and they flew off in the direction of Sanibel.

Our group cheered in unison and high fives were given all around. This was it, a new beginning. We would have our happy ending after all. Adam piloted us toward the houseboat. As we rode back, I noticed shapes under the water. Leaning over to get a better view, I realized it was zombies. Those that had fallen in were standing at the bottom, faces looking up at us in hunger and arms reaching toward the sky. I shuddered at the creepy scene and moved to the center of the boat. I wasn’t taking any chances.

Back on the houseboat, the air was alive with animated conversations. We each speculated on what Seth would find; all talk centered on the island still being safe and inhabited by the living.

“Hey, guys?” Meg addressed the group. “How are they going to get back to the boat?”

We all looked at her in confusion. It took a minute, but our large planning snafu caused me to do a mental head slap. Followed by an actual one. We had planned how to get the helicopter off the ground and to Sanibel, but not how to get it back to the ground and get the boys back to the boat when they returned. It wasn’t as if the zombies would just wander away and leave them a swath of land to set down safely. We all groaned in unison.

“Well,” said Jake. “I guess we’ll have to hope Seth and Lowell have more brains than all of us combined.”

Chapter 27 Living the High Life

Less than three hours later we heard the sound of an approaching engine. Our small group gathered at the deck’s railing and waved, cheering as Seth’s black hair came into focus flying wildly in the wind. The green fishing boat carrying him held two other men dressed in fatigues. Seth lifted his left arm and returned our waves. The smile on his face was so broad we could see it even at this distance. Slowing on approach, he let the boat idle in closer to us.

Our three saviors joined us on deck and hugs were shared all around. Seth delivered the happy news that Mel’s story held truth. Sanibel was a safe zone and they were happy to embrace our new group. Survivors had been trickling in for weeks and the island now housed more than six hundred refugees. Seth was welcomed with open arms by his comrades in green, many men he knew from a lifetime of servitude in the armed forces.

Overwhelmed by emotion, Nancy fell to her knees and wept openly. Realization dawned on all of us that the need to live in constant terror would soon be over. The only thing left for us to do was pull up anchor and take the short trip to our new home.

Will took up position at the helm, and we followed the little green boat along the coast. I was humbled by the utter desolation as we passed empty houses and streets congested with abandoned cars. The grumbling of the boat engines was the only sound to cut through the silence.

A wake of undead, ripe with decay, trailed slowly along the edge of the sea as we passed by. Many rose up from a dormant state, others stepped out of doors left ajar in the initial days. While, still, others trickled slowly toward the sounds of life from places unknown. I wondered what these creatures did in the absence of human stimuli.

Our salvation came into focus as we neared the island. Small fires burned close to shore. Instead of the uncontrolled burn of destruction, these flames appeared to be intentional, most likely for warmth or cooking. Visions of camping with old friends came to mind and the memory sat like a heavy weight on my heart, overbearing and threatening to pull me under.

A group of people had amassed at the edge of a boat dock. Panic rippled through my chest at the similarity between this group and the undead that had lined the water’s edge for the last few weeks. I felt my breath quicken and my knees locked with an audible click. Stars began to twinkle in front of my eyes as fear began to consume me. Jake squeezed my hand.

“Are you okay? What’s going on with you?” he asked.