This Would Be Paradise (Book 2)-A Zombie Novel

Chapter 5

I awoke to the sound of feet running up and down the hallway and screaming. I shot up, having to take a second for the dizziness to dissipate. Dim light was shining through the cracks between the window and the upturned table, allowing me to see; barely.

"Bailey?" Chloe appeared from the bedroom, having been jolted awake like I had. "What's goin' on?"

"I don't know," I said as I got up and took a look out the glass.

The sky was a gnarled mass of blue tinged clouds. I'd seen only a handful of rainy days here in the last few months and today had to be one? If I was the type, I'd say it was a sign. Luckily I didn't believe in that stuff. A burst of gunfire made me yank my view to the ground where I spotted the source of the commotion.

The surrounding street was littered with infected. They were ambling towards the apartment in unhurried numbers. Roy was on the street showcasing an automatic weapon and two others from inside were out on the street with him. I ran to my bag and rummaged for my handgun. It was loaded with a full magazine and I pocketed some extra bullets just in case. I needed my axe, which I had stupidly left in the car. I didn't want to freak anyone out by bringing in the intimidating weapon. There was a reason there was the term axe murderer.

"Stay here."

"But Bailey-"

"This isn't negotiable, Chloe."

She looked at me like she had every intention of sticking her tongue out, but just nodded stiffly. I slid the chain lock out and twisted the deadbolt, exiting the stuffy apartment. As I ran to the stairs I noticed some people were hiding in the other rooms, huddled on beds and couches. I took the stairs two at a time until I hit the bottom, almost knocking over Elaine.

"Help me round up everyone!" she demanded.

"You do that, I'm going outside to help with the infected," I inched around her.

"Do you even know how to use that?" Elaine eyed the gun in my hand, with a superior look.

"Care to find out?" I wasn't in the mood to pretend to be pleasant. "Perhaps you should leave the work to the people who know how to defend themselves."

With a glare, she turned from me and headed to the next floor. We both had better things to do than compare cup size. I ran down the hallway and found the doorman gone from his post. He must have been one of the others out there. The door behind the desk was wide open, showing the stash of weapons they had.

I looked around to make sure no one saw and let myself in. The room was the size of a small storage closet and metal shelves lined the tiny area. There were boxes of bullets, guns and various melee weapons. Clearly this room should be locked up tight, but the guard was currently MIA. I'm sure they wouldn't mind me using something if it was to help.

I quickly scanned the shelves, my eyes passing over the AK-47 and other automatic weapons. I would be no use with those. There was a solid, wood bat that I grabbed and pocketed some extra 9mm bullets. With my borrowed weapon in hand and I pushed open the front doors, fat droplets of rain greeting me. The burst of automatic gunfire was echoing in the streets, spurring on the infected. Roy and the others were too afraid to get any closer and it showed with their aim. They were just wasting the bullets as they sailed through the fray.

An infected had started to creep up from the side of the building, the rain cleaning off its messy face. Its nose had been chewed off and part of its scalp was torn, hanging like a bad toupée blown off by the wind. It didn't seem to notice me; perhaps the rain obscured our smell. Instead, it started to head towards one of the guards who had their back turned.