Loving In The Apocalypse: Zombie Attack!

I answered Mom's phone with trembling fingers as footsteps pounded down the hall. "Dad, something's really wrong with Mom."

"Thank God! I've been worried sick. There was a horrible accident on the interstate. It took forever to get around it, but I should be home in ten. Why haven't you or your sister been answering your phones and where is your mother? I've been trying to get a hold of her. Wait, this is her phone. Why are you answering her phone? Where's your phone? You better not have lost it again." Dad hadn't listened to a word I said.

I tuned him out as he rambled on like Mom wasn't sick and unconscious.

A shadow crept over the bed, suffocating Mom's frail form. I glanced up. Suzie inched into the room with her hands covering her mouth and squeezing her nose. We had to do something. Mom's brain could be boiling right this very minute. She could die.

"Call 911," I instructed my sister.

"What?" Dad asked from far away.

I stared wide-eyed at Suzie as I waited for her to follow my orders, but she just held her hands securely over her nose and mouth, staring at Mom.

"What happened?" Dad asked.

"Suzie!" I screamed.

As if I'd slapped her, my sister jolted back to life and finally looked at me.

"Mom is boiling hot and I can't wake her up," I spoke slow. "Call 911. Now."

Suzie nodded with tears in her eyes. She removed one hand from her face and pulled out her phone.

"Oh my God! I should've come home earlier. Damn it! I knew something was wrong with her this morning, but she said it was only the flu and..." Dad kept talking, but his voice faded out.

My heart raced as I waited for Suzie to get through to 911.

"It's busy." Suzie shook her head. "Why's it busy, Case? I thought 911 always answered."

"Give it to me." I reached for her phone and handed Dad over to her. Both of us were shaking.

"Dad? I'm so so sorry. I should've answered when you called." Suzie's voice trembled as she backed out of the room.

I dialed 911. "If you would like to make a call, please hang up and try your call again."

Ending the call, I glanced at the phone to make sure I dialed the right three numbers. I did. What the hell?

I re-dialed manually. Busy signal this time. What the hell was going on?

I called back two dozen times and still wasn't able to get through.

"What good is 911 if we can't get through?" I screamed at the busy signal.

Suzie walked back into the room and handed Mom's phone to me. "Dad will be here soon."

I let out an angry breath and flicked on the bedroom light.

We both gasped.

Mom looked like someone had used her face as a punching bag. Her entire face was swollen and covered in nasty bruises.

A greenish-yellow substance clung to the edges of her mouth and her eyelids, gluing them shut. What kind of sickness was this? She was completely unrecognizable.

Dad would help us get her to the hospital when he got here, but we needed to do something for Mom now.

"We have to wait for Dad," I said. "Go start Mom a cold bath. We need to cool her down."

Suzie nodded and ran into the bathroom.

Bending down to Mom's face, I listened for any breathing, but couldn't hear anything. I held my fingers under her nose.

Relief ran through me when a hot stream of air escaped her nostrils, but it was barely there just like her pulse. I stood at the sound of the bathroom faucet.

"Su, I need help getting Mom to the tub." I yanked the bedding down and my stomach flipped inside out at the gut-wrenching sight.

I doubled over and threw up all over Mom and Dad's floor.

We never got Mom to the tub. After I heaved everything in my stomach onto my parent's bedroom floor, I held my breath and tried to lift Mom, but she was freaking heavy.

Suzie wouldn't come anywhere near Mom once she saw the disgusting mess of feces on the bed. My sister ran out of the room and refused to come back in.

Thank goodness Dad got home in record time after Suzie ditched me because I didn't know what else to do. The shock on Dad's face once he saw Mom was something I'd never seen before.

Dad was actually scared.

After trying to wake Mom up with no success, he told me to grab a blanket from the linen closet. He moved Mom from the bed of her bloody feces to the blanket, cleaned her face, and forced ibuprofen down her throat before carrying her to our SUV.

Five minutes later we were speed racing to the hospital until Dad slammed on the brakes. Somehow, we'd landed in the middle of bumper to bumper traffic only a mile from the hospital.

"Casey, go see what the holdup is." Dad's voice was shrill.

I could tell he was contemplating doing something drastic in order to get Mom to the Emergency Room.

"I'll have an ambulance come to get her," I said.

Dad's stiff demeanor didn't ease. "Just hurry."

I jumped out of the car and took off.

"Hurry, Case! I can't take this smell much longer." Suzie hollered. Her head was hanging out the window, red hair and all. At Dad's insistence, she was still trying to get through to 911.

As I ran down the dark sidewalk, I noticed a bunch of vehicles with people that had swollen, bruised faces like Mom. After about three-quarters of a mile, I slowed to glance inside a small sedan filled to the brim with kids of all ages. There had to be at least six kids stuffed inside. The young woman at the wheel was on the phone freaking out and was way too young to be their mother. Maybe she was their babysitter.

Two toddlers with lumpy and bruised faces were asleep while the older ones were struggling to keep their gooey swollen eyes open. They all had similar symptoms to Mom.

I continued running until I discovered the cause of the traffic. Empty cars with their doors hanging open were triple parked chaotically along the road next to the hospital. They formed a blockade across the entire street, stopping all traffic from both directions.

The parking lot had reached capacity a long time ago and everyone was blocked in.

My stomach dropped at the realization that the hospital had become a freakshow. It would become a memory I would never forget.

Hundreds of people struggled to walk with their nearly unconscious loved ones in their arms. My gaze locked on one man holding two unconscious toddlers in his arms like rag dolls. He struggled to keep the children from flopping out of his grip.

Most of the sick were just as bad or worse than my mom. Some were puking on the walkway, splattering vomit onto bystanders.

Away from the clusters of people, an elderly man caught my attention. He was sitting motionless against the building and it took me a moment to come to the conclusion that the shadows covering his skin were dark purple bruises. A dark liquid oozed from his eyes and ears. Was that blood?

People had collapsed on the grass, sidewalks, and even on the asphalt because they were too weak to stand or hold their loved ones upright. Those who still had strength were mashed together in a huge group, pushing and fighting to get inside. Some were staggering back and forth as others were shoving one another.

Several people were angrily shouting and threatening each other about why it was more important that they see a doctor first. I couldn't understand why they were fighting because there wasn't one medical professional in sight.

What the hell was going on? Where were all the nurses and doctors? Or police? Because this craziness was getting way out of control. People were close to throwing punches if they hadn't already.

Help had to be here somewhere because police cruisers and ambulances were haphazardly parked in front of every entrance with their lights blazing, but I couldn't find one officer managing the madness and not one EMT was visible. We all needed help. Where were the professionals?

I had to see what was going on inside. Mom needed help hours ago. There had to be nurses checking people in.

Maybe there was a list I could sign her up on. There had to be some sort of organization to this madness.

But what if there wasn't? The thought scared the crap out of me. If we couldn't bring her here, then where would we go, and more importantly, how much time did Mom have left?

I maneuvered and ducked my way through one crowd to see that the waiting room was packed solid.

And holy crap, it stunk. Bad.

Sick people were everywhere. Some were passed out on the floor and others were stepping directly on them.

I noticed several hulked out men decked out in non-descript black uniforms and medical masks, forcing people to stay away from the doors that separated us from the patient areas. It looked like they had rifles slung over their shoulders.

I jumped up and down to check for nurses or staff, but they were all MIA. I noticed the elevator was also being guarded by more of the huge bouncers wearing the same get up, but these guys were also sporting handguns on their hips.

What the hell? They didn't look like police.

Some guy, trying to pass me, yanked my hoodie and pushed me to the side. I tripped over a teenage boy not much younger than me. He was hunched over on the tile floor, face down and unconscious.

I struggled to stand and nearly stepped on his arm. Dark red blood oozed out of his swollen eyes and ears. Was he dead?

Before I could check, someone elbowed me in the face almost hitting me directly in the eye. This crowd was going to kill me. Trying again not to step on the possibly dead boy on the ground, I found my balance.

"Where are all the doctors? Why aren't they helping us?" A woman said beside me. She hugged a wailing infant tight to her.

"My brother is dying in my car. There are people waiting for miles to get in. What are you people doing here?" The man that pushed me over was standing on top of the front check-in desk, yelling at the men holding guns.

The crowd started egging him on.

"Help us!" A couple people yelled.

"We need medicine!" A woman screamed.

"Daddy! Get up!" A little girl cried. "Daddy!"

"My wife just stopped breathing!" A man yelled. "My wife's dead! Please save her!"

The voices became louder and louder until people started pushing from the back of the crowd. I tried to stop them from stepping on the sick boy under me and from pushing the small woman with the baby, but they were way too strong.

The force of the furious crowd throttled me forward into the back of a woman that smelled exactly like my seventy-year-old neighbor, but she wasn't nearly as nice. The woman grabbed my hair, wrenching my face over her shoulder and held it there.

"Wait your turn!" She screamed at me. Then, she punched me in the side of my face over and over again.

She was one of those women that had big rings on every finger. I mean, yeah, they were most likely costume jewelry, but that didn't mean they hurt any less. Damn, I'd definitely underestimated the scrappy old broad because she landed some decent hits before we were both thrown forward by the angry mob.

The woman was forced to let go of my hair in order to protect herself from hitting the floor.

I got to my feet. I had to get out of this shit storm. I didn't pay attention to who I kicked or stepped on, I just wanted out.

Wherever we were going to find help, it wasn't going to be here. Once I finally made it to the sidewalk, my body jerked at the pop of gunshots. I took off running at full speed.

People yelled and screamed. I couldn't tell if they were fighting the armed guards or if they were trying to get away, but I didn't care. This hospital had no intention of helping any of us.

As I ran toward my family, I spotted the car full of kids. The woman was pacing outside the car.

"Hey, I saw you run past here earlier, didn't I?" Her eyes were glistening with unshed tears. "Were those gunshots I heard?"

I slowed my pace. "Yeah, go somewhere else. This hospital isn't helping anyone."

"Where?" She yelled as I passed her.

"I have no idea. Just don't go here!" I couldn't turn to see her face. All those sick kids in her car squeezed at my heart, but I had no answers. This was a crap storm no matter which you looked at it.

"Where's the ambulance?" Dad was pissed. He must've yelled it ten times once he spotted me.

What I was about to tell him could send him into hysterics.

As my feet pounded closer, I noticed he and Suzie were standing beside a group of four strangers. Three men and a woman. Other people who'd lost their patience were leaning against their vehicles, waiting for the traffic to clear.

I sprinted up to Dad and bent over, struggling to catch my breath. Running on full throttle in the cold night air forced a sharp cough to erupt from my lungs. "No ambulance... is coming. Cars... are full... of sick people all the way to the hospital... and both roads are completely blocked."

Another hard cough raked out of me.

"Don't get me sick, too." Suzie backed away from me.

I threw a mean glare at her. "I'm not sick. I ran my butt off to get back here, you little brat. Excuse me for breathing."

Dad set a hand on my shoulder, analyzing the side of my face. "Tell me what happened."

I glanced over at Mom reclined in the back seat. She still looked awful, but no blood was coming out of her eyes or ears. Yet. "Is she... okay?"

"She's still breathing." Suzie lifted a compact mirror up. "Dad showed me how to check if she's breathing with this."

The weight on my shoulders eased for now. Mom was okay.

"Casey?" Dad's tone was heavy with distress as he continued to examine my face. "What happened?"

I shook my head at the memory of the chaos. "Most look sick just like Mom. There are hundreds of people, Dad, and there aren't any doctors or nurses helping. There weren't any police either. People were unconscious on the ground. The ones that weren't sick were arguing and fighting. It's really bad."

"Is that what happened to your face?" Some guy asked from the small group of strangers. He sounded curious and maybe a little concerned.

"Um..." I reached up to my cheek, wincing as my fingertips skimmed over wet, shredded skin. My face was bleeding. How hadn't I noticed that before? "I was able to get inside, but I didn't see any nurses or doctors. There were armed guards in black uniforms with medical masks and guns.

"They were guarding all the patient access doors and elevators. People were screaming and freaking out. The crowd shoved me into an older woman who punched me a few times. Her rings must've cut me. I barely made it out of there before the gunshots went off."

Instead of laughing at the fact that an elderly lady beat me up, they all gaped at me, speechless, like I'd spoken a foreign language.

As if I'd conjured them into existence, a variety of short pops and bellowing booms echoed down the street. More gunshots.

"Holy shit, Dad. Did you hear that?" Curious guy took a step forward.

A big round man took off his old trucker hat and scratched his nearly bald head. "Sounded like more gunshots."

You think? I could've told him that.

Dad pressed his palms to his forehead as he began pacing. "Your mother probably just needs some antibiotics. It has to be some kind of bacterial infection since she's ejecting everything from her system. Damn it! I don't know. I'm not a doctor. If anything will help, it's antibiotics. If this is a virus, God help us."

"My husband and baby girl are in bad shape like your wife." The tiny brunette woman with large round glasses clutched her waist, searching the ground like all the answers were going to miraculously sprout up. "They need to see a doctor."

The big man grunted. "We can't wait in this mess. My other boy is complaining like my wife was earlier. And now she's burning up and throwing up all over the place. It's only a matter of time for my boy."

"That's not all she's doing," Curious guy added. I knew exactly what he was talking about because Mom wasn't just throwing up either.

Giving Curious guy a once over, I realized he couldn't be much older than me. He tilted his head smoothly to the side, moving a lock of dark hair out of his eyes.

"Mom needed medicine a long time ago, Dad. It could already be too late." Suzie whispered.

Wow, little sis, just wow. You've officially won today's sensitivity award. I opened my mouth to yell at her, but Dad beat me to it.

"I've had it, Suzie! Go check on your mother." Dad's bark made both of us jump and a sob came from my sister as she shuffled toward Mom. His pacing started up again and he didn't even spare Suzie a glance. "Your mother will be okay. She just needs medicine. They sell antibiotics everywhere, right? We need to find a pharmacy and..."

The big man pursed his lips and rocked on his heels, placing the hat back on his head. "We might have a solution. Derek?"

Derek. That was Curious guy's name.

Derek jingled something in his pocket as he shrugged. "I don't know. I don't want to break the law."

Dad stopped pacing and turned his focus on the two men. "It's okay, Son. You won't have to."

"Now, wait just one minute. I can't be thinking about breaking no law." A silent lanky man interrupted. He blew out a thick cloud of cigarette smoke. "I've done enough time already."

Dad's eyebrows shot up as he faced the weathered man. "Look, I'm not sure what type of emergency your family is in, Sir, but I trust what my daughter said about the frightening situation she escaped. From what we've all experienced, every emergency number has been busy for the last hour and if I'm not mistaken, we all heard the gunshots up ahead.

"I have yet to see or hear one officer of the law so far and the love of my life is facing a life or death situation here. So, if you don't want to be part of our solution, which may include breaking the law, please let us discuss this alone."

"You damn right I don't wanna break no law. Martha's just gonna have to take cold meds." The man flicked his cigarette at the road causing it to explode into a barrage of orange sparks as he spun and walked away. He threw open the door of a small white car, sat down behind the wheel, and slammed the door.

I waited for the tiny woman to follow his lead, but she didn't. She remained rooted in place. If she was willing to do something illegal, I had to assume her family was in dire need as well.

Dad released a ragged breath. "Okay, Son, please continue."

Shifting uneasily from foot to foot, Derek raised his eyes to mine, which were blue in the moonlight. His gaze slid to Dad. "Well... I work in a large storage facility that stores and transports wholesale items to the big membership clubs. You know, like Smith's Club and Cost Savers. We carry typical household supplies, food, baby stuff, tools... you know what I mean? Anyway, we also store... um... pharmaceuticals. I'm just a forklift operator, so I don't know what the stock looks like now, but my buddy works in that area and he says they usually have high demand meds like antibiotics and painkillers."

Dad looked from Derek to the big man. They all shared a moment of contemplation.

"Not a bad idea if you ask me. It's out away from the hustle and bustle of things so it shouldn't be too difficult," Big man jutted his chin toward the line of vehicles. "This mess is only getting worse."

"Do you have a way to contact your friend?" Dad glanced at Mom.

Derek nodded. "Shouldn't be a problem."

"Thank you, Son." Dad looked at the big man. "If for any reason he can't get the antibiotics without getting caught, I'll take care of it."

"But they have twenty-four hour security," Derek's gaze met mine and remained on me until I looked at Dad.

"You'll take care of it?" My brow pinched.

"I said I'll take care of it." Dad's tone didn't leave any room for question. He was going to do whatever he needed to do to get Mom the medication. Hell, or high water.

My face heated, irritating my wounds. All eyes were on us.

The small lady sniffed and stepped toward us. "I don't mean to be a nuisance, but I want to help. Do you mind if I bring my family along?"

Dad shook his head. "No, but you'll have to let me take the fall. I don't want you to get into any trouble."

What the hell? Let Dad take the fall for all these people? No way. If he was caught, he'd serve major time. If Dad went to prison because he was fighting to save Mom's life and the lives of others, I'd never forgive myself.

If anyone was taking the fall it was me. It had to be me. Dad was the one who put food on the table. If Dad went to prison, we'd lose everything.

"No, Dad." My tone shocked everyone. I was putting my foot down. And for the first time, Dad was listening. "Take everyone to our house and I'll be the one to take care of it."

"Casey," Dad whispered. "I can't let you do that."

"She's right, Sir," Derek spoke up, surprising the hell out of me. "Taking everyone will be suspicious and will only cause problems. I'll get a hold of my buddy, Thomas. He'll help us get what we need."

Big man folded his arms and lowered his brow at Derek. "And if he doesn't?"

Derek mirrored big man and folded his arms, standing his ground. "Then I go in there and get it myself. How difficult can it really be? If anything, I'll talk to Thomas and find out where they keep the antibiotics. We'll be back in a hour flat. That'll be better than waiting here until morning. Meanwhile, you all can take everyone to their house," Derek dipped his head toward us. "That way you'll be able to keep everyone safe until we get back."

I studied Derek, trying to figure him out. Where did all that come from? Why was he on my side? Could he really pull this off without a hitch?

"Dad?" A good looking teenage boy ambled toward us, holding his stomach. "What's going on? Why're we still sitting here?"

Big man moved to his son's side. "The hospital's too busy, but we're still gonna get you and your mom some medicine."

Suzie suddenly reappeared and jogged toward the boy, wiping tears from her cheeks. "Grant?"

I glanced at Dad, wondering if he caught the infamous name. It had been the catalyst for multiple arguments in the past week. I could tell Dad knew because his frustrated expression hardened even more, if that was possible.

"Suzie?" Grant squinted in pain. "How're you here?"

Suzie stopped right next to Grant, almost touching his arm. "My mom's really sick."

Grant winced like he was in intense pain. "Mine's sick too."

So, Grant was related to Derek and the big man. Great. This complication couldn't have come at a worse time.

Grant was a younger version of Derek. Both had messy dark brown hair long enough to constantly fall in their eyes. I could see why Suzie was infatuated. They were both screaming bad boy rocker. Tall and built, but not overly muscular. Just athletic.

Derek had a maturity about him that spoke volumes about how much more experience he had under his belt than Grant. The confidence coming off Derek was overpowering.

"I hate to break up this reunion, but..." Dad interrupted. "Derek?"

Derek spun to face Dad. "Yes, Sir?"

Dad eyebrows lifted. "I think you have a friend to call."