Z Zone

Page woke with a start when she felt the engine of the truck cut out suddenly. Her senses perked and she could her the muffled sounds of voices from the cabin of the truck. Someone was issuing orders and she could her people running off into the distance and around the truck. Finally she could face her sick captors. And hurt that brute who had jumped her and practically broke her jaw. The bruise was more promenent now on her jaw. The trailer door slide open behind her and she turned around to see who it was. A white blinding hit it her full force in the eyes. Coming into focus from the light was the shape of a human. Not a zombie she thought, as most shuffled and had limps or some impediment. The person jumped up into the trailer lightly. He was young she saw. Maybe the same age as herself. He carried a bundle of what looked like her clothes in his arms. His face was strong and chiseled if not handsome, framed by longish brown hair. He wore combat trousers with a pistol strapped to his leg and a bullet proof vest over a rolled up blue shirt. He looked able to take care of himself from the prominence of his veins bulging from his arms as he passed the bundle of clothes to her.

‘Here put these on now quickly.’

Page leaning on her elbows tried to speak through the tape across her mouth that she was tied to the floor and half naked and that she would kick his ass right now otherwise.

‘Oh, sorry, forgot bout them.’

‘My names Steve by the way, you can trust me, I saved your ass back there from the rest of the gang so dont freak out ok?,’ he said pulling off the tape over her mouth.

She gritted her teeth in pain from the removal of the tape. Maybe it was better it stayed on she thought.

‘Ok, I promise,’ said Page eyeing Steve.

As soon as he undid her restrains Page launched herself at him punching him in the face as hard as she could. Lightning like pain shot up her arm. He fell more from shock of the attack then the trike of the punch. Page tore at him and screamed. Steve’s arms encircled her, holding her tightly. Damn it she thought, as he almost like a robot regained his footing and lefting her with him off the ground in his strong arms.

dont break a promise to me again ever! steve told her with suprising venom. his eyes cold and deadly.

Page felt afraid down to her soul. She had killed zombies handy enough but this young man, he was beyound her. His eyes froze her and held her as tight as his arms. The moment seemed to last forever. His arms never loosening around her half naked form.

‘Hey kids, when your finished what ever you kids do these days come inside and help barricade the door. Pretty please.... leave him with her for a second, continued the huge man to himself, standing at the foor of the trailer wathcing them curiously.

Steves armed suddenly removed themselves from her allowing gravity to take control with Pages body as she landed on her ass with a loud thump.

‘Put your clothes on, I’ll be wating outside,’ He said jumping down and sliding the trailer door shut behind him three quarters way letting some light in.

Page picked herself up and found her jeans and struggled into them. Then her dusty shin high leather boots. Page looked at her t-shirt, it was almost black with stains and dirt. Rooting through her backpack she found a chocolate bar and ungracefully devoured it while pulling off her old t-shirt and putting on her ‘I heart New York,’ t-shirt and a hoody over it. It was so freezing now that it was winter. The rest of her things followed. Her long black great coat and her guns and knife belts. Ready Page lifted up the door up on its hinges to see her surroundings.

All around her and as far as she could see was field after field covered in a thick blanket of show. The countryside looked so beautiful and regal in the morning sunlight stretching over the land. Stepping from the back of the truck holding her hand Page saw she was outside a huge mansion build to mimic the old victorian architecture of the eighteen century. It was a big house on big grounds. A garage that almost matched the house for size. maybe there was a plane in there she thought.

The boy Steve was waiting as he said. He was leaning on the wall next to the porch door into the house.

‘What’s wrong with your hand?’

‘Hitting your hard head hurt more than I thought.’

Give it here, I’ll see if its broken,’ he offered.

Page obeyed, readily feeling needles of pain in the tips of her fingers. Steve held her hand gingerly and made her make a fist. That brought tears to her eyes. Dont cry she thought. Be strong.

After a few more seconds of prodding her hand Steve told her the news.

‘Its broken, I’m sorry. I’ll have to banage it as best I can with what we find inside. Follow me.’

Page followed him inside the house finding it as grand on the inside as it was outside. Chandeliers, rich oak furniture, gold gild and frills on ever edge and velvet over every surface. It almost made Page sick with jealousy at the people who could live here. They walked through the house and into the kitchen which was as upper class as the rest of the house. In the distance she could hear sawing and hammering, knowing it was whoever else was in Steve’s gang cutting up furniture to barricade the windows and doors. They weren't idiots anyway, she gave them that.

Steve checked all the shelves for any medic box finding one in a cupboard while Page put her hand under the tap. The cold water numbing the pain in her fist. How could she defend herself if her hand was broken to smithereens? She was effectively easy meat for any zombie dumb enough to see her. Steve found bandages and began wrapping them around her wrist and moving up her hand. He did this gently and with robotic precision. Page guessing he must have some kind of medical experience. Finishing with her fingers wrapped up, he put on a split he had also found in the medic box.

‘A thanks would be nice?’

‘What???,’ Page retorted incredulously. Right first of all, you knocked me out, then stole my clothes and chained me to the floor of a trailer for god knows how long and then punching you broke my hand and then you tried to suffocate me and now you want me to say thanks....thanks a whole fucking lot!’

Steve stunned by Page’s verbal assault said nothing. What could he say he thought. Things hadn’t quite gone as planned and Page was the victim because of it.

‘Your right I’m sorry and I apologize for everything thats happened,’ said Steve.

Page looked down at her broken hand wrapped in pink bandages. Tears fell into her palm. Sitting down abruptly Page let the tears roll silently down her face. The stress and fear of the past two months surviving the zombie invasion erupted right there. Were she had been hard and determined not to cry and alone for so long and now in the company of other humans made her iron hard barriers collapse around her.

Steve walked over and knelt in front of her.

‘Dont cry ok, you go off to the shower upstairs and clean yourself up, take as long as you like. Have a rest and I’ll let you know when diner is ready. Can you do that for me page?’

Page looked up quizzically at Steve with beads in her eyes.

‘How’d you know my name?’

‘I found on the cover of you diary’.
‘I didn't read it either by the way!!!,’ he quickly added.

‘Ok...... I believe you. I’m going to find the bathroom,’ Page declared serenely. All trace of tears gone. Barriers up again.

Yeah, first door on the left up the stairs.

Page left the kitchen. This Steve guy must own the house page thought to herself. The stairs were all made from dark mahogany and covered in blood red carpet edged in gold. Gaining the top of the staircase page walked straight into the first room on the left of the stairs. The bathroom was easily three times the size of her room back in the city. It was black marble tiled along the floor and walls. With a white bath tub set in the floor in one corner and on the opposite corner was a walk in shower.

Dropping her backpack to the floor after locking the door Page reached into the shower and got the water running so it was ultra hot when she got in. She was naked in moments afterward in her desire to have a shower. How had she lived this long without a shower she didn't know. Once in the shower Page became immersed in a cascading waterfall of boiling hot water. After washing her hair of dirt and grit page could she its real color again. Pages mind shut down and she let the water seduce her body into the ultimate bliss and relaxed every muscle she possessed.