markson721

Death comes to the House on the Corner

Well you look like hell dont you? Eric waited on his reflection to respond. The image on the mirror just shook its head at him, the only answer he was going to get to his question. With his index finger he pulled down gently on the heavy purple bag under his right eye. The retina was bloodshot from sleep deprivation. The lid fighting to stay closed with more energy every time he closed his eyes. Thats what Eric got for covering the night shift. Hed gotten off work at 8am and had been struggling desperately for sleep ever since getting home. Lindsey was on his mind, though their fight from the evening before was a background noise compared to the craziness that was lurking in the darkness when his eyes closed.

Eric was starting to regret his decision to get a Masters degree in social work. Shortly after graduation he had taken a job with one of the local hospitals doing mental health evaluations and drafting paperwork to hospitalize people against their will. Sure someone had to do the work but in the nine months that Eric had been doing it he had become cynical and jaded beyond description. It was the reason that Eric and Lindsey had been fighting the last few weeks. He was burned out and wishing for something more fulfilling. Somewhere where he could actually help people get better rather than see them at their worst. Lindsey had talked Eric out of it again. She was still going to school and wanted to get married in before Christmas and the money was hard to beat especially in the small town of Spokane which they called home.

Eric had grudgingly gone to the hospital to cover a co-workers shift and get a solid eight hours of time and a half. The night had been like most, a bevy of alcoholics and drug addicts eating up his time. All of them trying to force Eric to hospitalize them so they could spend a couple of nights off the streets and get a handful of good meds tossed to them. The only case that Eric had worked where he had almost been forced to hospitalized the guy was a strange case and that was saying something from a guy whos idea of crazy was warped by career experience. Like that guy in Florida a year or so ago the guy Eric had been called to evaluate had been found gnawing on another person. Thankfully the guys victim was still alive. He was however missing a few fingers. AMR had brought the two guys in and cops were waiting by the crazy mans bedside when Eric got there. The guy had been completely no responsive, refused to answer Erics questions in anything but ape-like grunts. Eric had started drafting the paperwork back at the nurses station when an ear splitting scream tore through the chaotic noise of the E.R.

A nurse ran screaming past Erics desk at the nurses station holding her forearm right below the elbow and trying to stop the bleeding. A second later the guy was being hauled out of the E.R. by four Spokane Police officers who had the guy bent over and cuffed behind his back. Eric felt bad for the nurse who was quickly seated in an E.R. bed and a doctor was examining her as Eric grabbed his detention petition and started ripping it to shreds before tossing it in the industrial shredder box. He was glad the evaluation was cancelled, if he had had to complete the evaluation he would have been stuck for two more hours at the hospital and his shift was up in twenty minutes.

He had driven home as soon as the clock hit eight and had been grasping for sleep ever since. He had agreed to cover another night shift tonight if his swing shift had been covered. Eric guessed they had found coverage cause the hospital hadnt called him in yet. Eric ran his fingers through his oily hair pushing the front up in a crazy spire of hair. He scratched at his stubble and eyed his razor before deciding against it. He thought woman found him more handsome when he let his beard get a day or two old. He was starting yearn for a little female attention since Lindsey had been too consumed with work and school lately to pay him any attention. It was all just a little harmless flirting but it worked to stroke his ego and put him in a better mood. He looked down at the small beer belly he had started developing. He was up to three or four beers a night before bed and he was starting to think he needed more than wanted those beers. Was it possible Lindsey didnt find him attractive anymore? Maybe Ill get back to the gym starting tomorrow, Eric thought.

Eric decided to give sleep another try and was just about to head back to the bedroom when a furious pounding jolted his nerves. Eric thought about ignoring it, the cluster of elderly neighbors surrounding his house wandered over to his house anytime they saw his car in the drive way. Lots of times it was to ask about what they could do for friends and relatives as far as therapy and his consistent refusal to give second hand assessments on their families hadnt deterred them. Eric turned from the mirror and was heading into the hall when the pounded at his door started again. It shook the walls with its desperation. Eric went to the door and tugged it open.

The familiar face of John, Erics elderly neighbor was staring at him with frightened eyes. The mans thin white hair was mussed up, highlights of red streaking through his hair as it fought to cover his scalp. He held a napkin to his neck and from the dribbling stains cascading from under the napkin near his collarbone Eric wondered how the man had been injured. The old man said something but it was drowned out by the screech Erics alarm. He had forgotten to disarm the instant alarm when he went to the door and was turning to go back when and enter the cancel code when the John grabbed him with fingers as strong as tree roots. My wife Taras hurt Eric. Please come help us.

Without waiting for a response John began to drag Eric down the cement walkway and across the street. The neighbors directly across the street for Eric and Lindsey had an enclosed patio between the house and the garage that normally was treated as a lounge. Eric and Lindsey had been over once for beers and Eric had lost an entire Saturday afternoon of yard work that day. John continued to tug Eric towards the patio door and throw up open charging in ahead of Eric despite his injury. As John stepped aside Eric got a look at a gruesome scene. There were empty beer cans and smoldering cigarettes still in the ash tray but flung around it all around the debris of a liberal afternoon drinking was trails and pools of blood. The only thing missing were bodies.

John seemed equally stunned. His mouth was hanging wide open his eyes searching the entire backyard for his wife and the neighbors. Jenna and Kevin invited us over for drinks. Kevin said Jenna had been sick for most of the day so she was inside but when she came out she bit into Tara and took a piece of her shoulder. Kevin and I tried to wrestle her to the ground and his bit Kevin in the hand. When he pulled away from her she clamped down on my neck. We finally got her settled down and back in the house. John turned his eyes to the closed door of the kitchen and then turned back to Eric.

John I left my iphone at my house let me go back over and get it. Eric turned a concerned glance at the kitchen door leading off the patio. There looked like a fist sized smear was coating the glass on the inside. Dont go inside John. If Jennas sick she might be contagious and we should probably limit our exposure to whatever shes got. Eric turned from his stricken neighbor and started walking back to his house. This nerves were fried but the mix of shock and adrenaline was sparking like downed power lines through his body keeping him moving.

Erics foot had just hit the first step of his porch stairway when he heard another scream. From the sound of it this one was a few houses down on the other side of the street. The sound seemed muffled and Eric assumed it was coming from someones backyard. He hesitated for a split second between getting his phone and going to see what happened when the squealing of car tires brought him around.

Two black and white police cars pulled into his street doors flying open and guns being drawing. Eric instinctively through his hands up as the offices leveled their guns at him over the doors of their cars. Get on your knees! was the lead officers commands. Eric complied. Two officers from the second vehicle came forward and took up positions on either side of Eric. The third officer kept his gun leveled on Erics chest. From his cover behind the door the lead officer barked at Eric, Whyd you break in there kid?

Eric was still surprised that at thirty people were still referring to him as kid. He sure as hell didnt feel like it especially after nearly twenty-four hours awake. Sorry officers its my house I just forgot to deactivate the alarm.

Oh yeah smart guy well whats the alarm code then, the lead officer straightened up a little probably deciding that Eric didnt look like the regular burglar stealing high price items for meth money. Eric recited the two codes the number code to deactivate the alarm and the four letter code to authenticate that he was in fact the owner of the alarm system. After checking his computer officer eased up and holstered his gun. The officers on either side of Eric relaxed and moved a few steps back. So what happened here Mr. Pyle?

My elderly neighbor came over pounding on my door and said his wife needed help. Hes not in good shape either officer he says she bit him before they could get her into the house. It looked pretty bad. He had a towel or napkin on the wound but that things got to be drenched in blood at this point.

A shot of fear spiked in the eyes of the lead officer. Eric felt both officers near him tense too. Eric turned to his left and say the younger officer put his hand back on the grip of his gun. Eric could feel cold beads of sweat begin to tumble down his back. His knees were aching against the concrete of his walkway. He slowly pushed himself up trying to make his motions as no threatening as possible. What house are they in son? The lead officer was surveying the neighborhood his gun in front of his face following the mans eyes.

Eric lifted his right hand and pointed at the green and white house behind the police cars, that one over there. I think thats John coming over, weve got to help him. The lead officer leveled his gun at John who was starting to stagger and sway like a drunk. Eric wasnt a nurse but he had been in the E.R. long enough to know that when a person lost enough blood their control of movements went to crap.

Erics body tensed as he thought about dashing forward to help his neighbor when the young officer to his left whispered out of the corner of his mouth, If youve got a gun and know how to shot Id go get it if I was you. He turned to Eric and fixed him with a haunting hard stare. The seriousness of the young officers eyes left no doubt in Erics mind that he had two choices. Do as the officer said and live or die.

Eric dove into his house at a full tilt sprint and ran to the bedroom. Ignoring the still blaring scream of the alarm Eric thundered through the hallway to his and Lindseys bedroom. He knelt by an end table and pulled a few books and magazines off a low shelf. He pulled up on the shelf once the books were cleared off he pulled up on the edge of the shelf revealing a hidden compartment. Inside rested a large box of over 9mm bullets and a Sig Sauer pistol. Eric was glad he hadnt taken off his cargo pants. He stuffed the box of ammo in his left pocket which added a good two pounds of weight to his left side. Eric then grabbed the Sig and his pre-loaded clip. He jammed the clip into the open mouth of the grip and then pulled back the slide chambering the first of eight bullets. Eric was just pushing of his knee when he heard the first of a storm of bullets.

He ran toward the front door and watched as the officers fired a second barrage of bullets into John. The elderly man refused to go down shrugging off the bullets as if they were mosquitoes nibbling at his skin. The third officer, a portly Hispanic male with a thick mustache was the first to reload his pistol and took an extra second to aim before firing. He didnt fire at a clip emptying pace but squeezed off a calculated marksmens shot. The bullet hit John in the head below his left eye and took most of the back of the mans head with it as the bullet wailed down the street. Johns body fell to the asphalt like a ton of bricks.

Eric stood rooted to this top step of his patio by shock. His gun hanging heavy in his right hand and his mouth hanged open in surprise Eric took in the scene before him. He could smell the sulfurous cloud of spent gun powder drift into his face on the wind. Still see smoke spiraling out of the officers gun barrels but what he had just seen just wouldnt register in his mind. It was like trying to put a square block through a round hole.

The rough shake of the Hispanic officer brought Eric out of his stupor, the violent tug of the mans hand on his shoulder accompanied by the staccato of more gun fire. Erics eyes refocused and data started streaming into his brain again as he watched the two officers on the street struggling between fending off angry neighbors clamoring into the street and reloading their guns. If Eric thought the officers firing on civilians was weird then the image of Travis shrugging off bullets while the stump where his left arm had been sputtering blood on the street was horrific.

The younger officer was exposed to the growing crowd. He didnt have the comfort of his car to protect his body from the wave of bodies slowly but steadily lumbering towards him. Eric didnt bother to count but he could tell even in a brief scan that there were nearly two dozen people lurching towards the officers and him.

You werent bitten where you? The Hispanic officer had grabbed the back of Erics head and pulled his eyes away from the gunfight. There was a fear in the mans eyes but it was warring with an emotional Eric had never seen before. It was the look he saw in nature programs of predators just before they attacked their prey. Feral rage, was that it? No a survivors instinct.

No I wasnt. Why Erics eyes wanted to drift back to the firefight taken place outside his front door but the officer head his head in place.

His voice was harsh but honest and that was the scariest part of it all. Cause Im not bringing you with me if youre going to turn into one of those things. His were slammed into Erics mind with the undying conviction of a man who believed every word he spoke.

What are those things? Eric was stunned. He jerked his head to the left and saw another one of his neighbors take a bullet to the head and go down. He was scared, there were kids in the group of neighbors marching on the cops.

Theyre zombies, kid. Eric looked for the hint of insanity in the officers eyes but found only steely confidence. Welcome to the end of the world kid.