Chapter 33: The Park
Bill was taken aback when he saw Zoey and Francis emerging from the supermarket, the latter carrying a six-pack of beer under his arm. "Are you crazy?"
The biker dumped the alcohol on the ground and opened a bottle, taking a swig with a grimace. "Mmm, nothin' like warm beer... But I guess it's better than nothin'."
"Did you hear me, son?" Bill repeated. "I've got enough problems, without having to worry about whether some drunken idjit's gonna blow a second hole in my ass!"
"Relax, Bill! It's just a beer! Besides, I figured we could use them to make more Molotovs."
"...Hm, that's actually not a bad idea," he mused. His look of thoughtfulness quickly turned to a scowl when the other man leaned back against a car, shooting him a smug look. "Alright, smartass. Since it was your idea, you can make 'em."
Francis fumbled and nearly dropped the bottle in his hand when the canteen of petrol was thrown over to him. "Alright, but I'm havin' a few first."
The old man rolled his eyes and walked over to where the others were sitting cross-legged on the ground, an impressive spread of granola bars, canned fruits and vegetables set out before them. Louis was eagerly scooping handfuls of Milo cereal straight from the box. Bill accepted the tinned tomatoes that Zoey offered to him and prised the can open with his knife.
"Did you have any luck finding a radio?" she asked between mouthfuls of a granola bar.
He shook his head. "'Fraid not, kid. They're all either busted, or gone. I figure the army must've taken the good ones with them when they pulled out of town. By the way, I found this in the back of an APC." He produced a battered-looking M-16 and handed it down to her. "Merry Christmas."
She shoved her pistol back into the holster at her hip and lowered the assault rifle into her lap. "Aw, gee, thanks!" She shot him a playful look. "But I didn't get you anything!"
"Consider it payback for saving my life last night."
"Twice," she shot back teasingly. "I'm still gonna hold you to that beer."
Bill gestured down to the six-pack at Francis' feet. "Help yourself."
Zoey made a disgusted face. "He can have them."
"I think I'll have one," Louis piped up suddenly. "It's been a while since I've had a drink. Hey, Francis! Throw me a beer!"
"Fuck off."
After the trek through the sewers the previous day, the survivors took the time to have a wary picnic in the sun, and then took to scavenging what ammunition and supplies they could from the street. When it came to making forays into nearby shops, they went in pairs, covering each other. Fortunately, there were very few Common Infected lurking indoors, and they taken care of quite easily.
However, the situation made Louis feel uneasy. If most of the army in the town had been wiped out, there must have been a lot of Infected. So where were they all?
Zoey and Francis' backpacks were soon relatively laden with dry food. In addition, everyone's holsters were bristling with ammunition for their various weapons, and a Molotov hung from each, courtesy of Francis' alcoholism.
"Alright, ladies," Bill said aloud, slinging the sniper rifle across his back. "Riverside was a bust. Let's get to the river and get the hell outta here."
With that, the group set off again, making their way north through the town. A sombre silence hung over them as the dreary sunlight filtered through the pall of clouds overhead. On a pleasant Sunday afternoon, a walk through Riverside would have taken little more than an hour. In the middle of the apocalypse, it took well over three.
Though there were few Common Infected lurking in alleyways, behind dumpsters, and in shadowy doorways, their very presence was menacing. The four survivors advanced slowly and carefully, covering each other. Bill or Francis killed any offenders with their knives, and a firearm was not discharged unless absolutely necessary. The quiet was overpowering, and Zoey personally could not wait to get out of this town. She would have chuckled with the irony of it being her idea to come to Riverside in the first place, but could not bring herself to do so.
"It ain't so bad. At least I got a beer out of this trip," Francis said to her quietly as they walked past the loading docks behind a row of industrial buildings, causing her to roll her eyes.
The sky darkened quickly as evening approached, casting an ominous atmosphere over the area. Luckily (or not) by that time, they had reached the edge of the town and stood at the entrance to a dirt trail running between two dirt ridges cropped by trees, most of them without leaves. A wooden sign next to a low wooden fence proclaimed: RIVERSIDE PARK. It was impossible to see very far, courtesy of the fog that hung over the area
"Well, this looks… cheerful," Louis muttered sarcastically.
"We can get to the river through the park," Zoey pointed out.
"Let's do it," Francis said. "I'm sick of this town."
The team carefully made their way along the trail, their flashlights leading the way. For a while, nothing attacked them, but everyone became increasingly unnerved as they moved up the hill. As they made their way further and further into the park, frightful sounds could be heard – low snarls, sorrowful moaning, heavy breathing. Sometimes far off, sometimes disturbingly close.
A startlingly loud shriek caused Zoey to jump in fright. She looked toward the sound to see a gaunt, pale woman charging out of the trees. Francis raised his shotgun, only for Bill to push it back down. The infected woman leapt into the air with a strangled cry, only to be stabbed through the throat. Bill kicked the body to the ground and cleaned the blood off his knife before shoving it back into his holster.
"I don't like this, man," Louis said quietly. "They can come at us from anywhere – "
He fell silent when the older man shot him a glare. "We've gone through the options. This is the one we picked. It's too late to turn back now. I'm going to see it to the bitter end, and you're all comin' with me."
The grim certainty to his words seemed to rally everyone into the right mindset. They took extra care, covering all sides and making slow but steady progress. Whenever they came across Common Infected, they made sure to take them out as quietly as possible. After a slow and bitter progression through the darkness, Francis pointed toward lights in the distance.
"Over there. Maybe the army came through here when they retreated."
"It sure would explain why there are so many Infected in the park," Bill grunted in agreement.
At the top of the hill, the team came across a tall stone structure with a picnic table under the cover. On the table, they found several folders and documents, outlining the evacuation plan of Riverside, when it had actually been in effect.
"There's a boathouse where those floodlights are at the riverfront," Bill commented, poring over the maps by torchlight while the others kept watch. "According to these notes, the military used it as a supply base. They kept all sorts of stuff there – petrol, food, radios."
"Maybe they left some stuff there," Louis said hopefully.
Zoey peered over Bill's shoulder and could not help but notice the isolation of the boathouse. Oh, nice. A cabin in the middle of nowhere. I know how this movie ends…
As they made off toward the lights that they now knew marked the location of the river, the dark and twisted ambience of growls, snarls and moans echoed throughout the trees. The Infected were out there, and it sounded like there were a lot of them.
AUTHOR'S NOTES:
Holy geez, we're nearly at the grand finale. Are you as excited as I am? I hope so!
Thanks for reading. I greatly appreciate the reviews, they always make me smile. Please keep them coming.