Colony Z: First Days (Vol. 3): Colony Z, #3

By Luke Shephard

Volume 3 of the Colony Z series!

Before they became the Albion Tribe, they were just normal people. Sons and daughters, Moms and Dads, families young and old. Living their lives, blissfully unaware of the shocking events that would soon shake them all. But now the threat is here...

Follow each of them as they struggle to adapt to this new world, and all of the dangers that lurk around every corner...

When the Undead have taken over America, one group of survivors find safety by escaping to a remote, unsettled island.

Will they survive long enough to discover it?

This is their story of their beginning. This is their journey.

Praise for Colony Z:
"So far I'm really impressed with Colony Z and it's shaping up to be a fantastic series. The zombies are unique from anything I've read or seen before, and the writing is well done...The plot is exciting and full of unexpected surprises which made it a real page turner for me. Gotta get my hands on the next book and see what happens next."

"This volume will make one sit up and take notice, for sure! What a beginning and ending for Colony Z. I am still shaking my head at all of the unpredictable events. And, Zero-Hour takes on an all new dimension...Just an incredible read and most highly recommended. Fasten your seat belt for this one."

• Language: English
• Publisher: Roja Publishing
• Release date: Jan 19, 2016
• ISBN: 9781497707092

Book preview

~Volume Three: First Days~

Two scoops of Rocky Road please.

"I said, two scoops of Rocky Road please."

What?

James snapped back to reality, an impatient child standing across the counter from him. The small boy looked back at him in anger and frustration, just a kid trying to escape the heat of the summer day.

But something didn’t feel right about this summer day. No, something didn’t feel right about it at all.

At twelve years old, there wasn’t much James could do about his premonition. He had never had one before, and he didn’t know how to react. So he didn’t. He gave the kid a small, apologetic smile, took his cold ice cream scoop and charged him a whopping $4.00 for a couple scoops of Rocky Road.

Having your Dad be the owner of the most expensive ice cream store in town had its benefits. James was a hard worker, and he learned from a young age how to please other people and work with customers, especially the angry ones. It had gotten to a point where his father wasn’t afraid to leave him alone in the shop. James was proud of that. It made him feel grown-up.

Not to mention the free ice cream.

The store was oddly empty for noon on a Saturday. The boy with the Rocky Road had been James’ only customer in hours. That’s why he had been spaced out, thinking about everything but work. School going back in the fall, what he’d like to do with the money he earned this week, if Jessica Bower would ever talk to him, and then, finally, why something wasn’t right with the day outside.

The streets outside the glass windows were bare now, the young boy long gone with his ice cream. James shrugged it off, scooped himself out some chocolate, and went back to the freezer room with it, figuring he would take inventory for his dad while he wasn’t busy.

Inventory was easy enough, even for a twelve year old. All James had to do was count the number of gallons they had of each ice cream flavor, and then write the magic number down on a clipboard that they kept hanging on the wall. His father didn’t even check his work anymore, though James wouldn’t dream of lying to him about it.

James was just a dorky kid with ugly glasses, greasy hair that he kept pulled back in a ponytail, and a small and squeaky voice. No one liked him, except maybe his teachers. He was a very smart boy, and always excelled in school. He would be entering middle school soon...that both excited him and terrified him. The courses would be easy, but getting to know new people? That wouldn’t be so easy at all...not for the socially awkward ditz that James disappointingly found himself to be.

Creak.

Intuitive as he had learned to be (working in any shop where there might be angry customers teaches that to you), James knew that sound meant someone was waiting to be helped. He sighed, put the clipboard back on the wall, smoothed his apron, and left the freezer. But, when he got to the counter, there was no one there.

Someone probably just didn’t want ice cream anymore.

James told himself this, but he didn’t really believe it. No one came in an ice cream store with no intention of buying ice cream. Especially not on a hot Saturday afternoon in the scorching sunlight. Something was off here, but he wouldn’t admit it to himself. His father wouldn’t be back until five o’clock this evening, and he didn’t need to be shivering and shaking when he returned.

But he would be alone until then, assuming no one else came in for ice cream.

A hand clapped over his mouth from behind him. James tried to scream and kick, but one very strong arm wrapped around his waist and picked up his small body like a Barbie doll.

Kicking and wreathing, James tried to see his attacker, but he couldn’t get a good look at him from his angle. The dark figure made ‘shh’ sounds and he took James back to the freezer, where he dropped him onto the floor before shutting the door.

Don’t scream, James.

It was his father.

James was crying now, terrified. Why had his father done that? Why couldn’t he have just told him to come back here? What was going on?

Why did you do that? James whined as he felt a warmness on his crotch and legs that he hadn’t had five minutes ago. When he realized what had happened, James began to sob.

You shut up! His father said fiercely, clapping a hand back over his son’s mouth. If you don’t stop crying right this minute, you’re going to get us both killed.

That shut James right up.

...what?

You heard me.

Dad, what’s going on? Why are we in the freezer? Dad, I’m cold.

James’ father took off his sweatshirt and handed it to his son, who wrapped it around him tightly.

Now listen to me, son. There’s something very bad going on outside right now, do you understand me? I’m going to go out there and try to find your mother...

Daddy, no!

I have to, son.

Don’t leave me alone in here, Daddy, let me go too.

I’m not going to let anything happen to you, James. Now stay here. His father reached down and kissed him on the forehead. With any luck, I’ll be back in ten minutes. You keep this door locked from the inside, you understand? Don’t let anyone in unless it’s me.

...how do I know it’s you?

Blackberry.

It was James’ favorite ice cream flavor. His father bought it for him special.

James nodded, the tears flowing down his face, but he kept himself quiet. His father opened the door and left him. James stood and locked it behind him.

His father never did come back.

*****

I Love Lucy was, perhaps, the greatest show on television in Willa Baker’s expert opinion.

On Monday’s it was a cooking show, Tuesday it was comedy night, Wednesday nights they would watch crime shows, Thursday was, of course hospital shows, and Fridays? Fridays were the nights when she and Phillip would sit back and watch the TV show that had been around for decades upon decades: I Love Lucy.

No matter what the news said about spreading diseases, epidemics, pandemics, or odd human behavior, Willa knew that she could lay in her husband’s arms and watch Lucy and her antics for hours without a worry or a care. There was something so simple in that comedy of days gone by, something so hypnotizing.

Lucy, you got some ‘spla-

And then the television shut off.

Willa and Phillip must have stared at the blank screen for several seconds before finally turning to one another. Their television had never just shut off in the middle of a beautiful summer evening before.

Umm... Phillip started, but there wasn’t anything for him to say after that. His thoughts, instead of going straight to fear, stayed first at laziness. He was so comfortable with his wife lying in his arms. He didn’t much want to get up.

Well...I guess we better figure out what’s wrong, sweetheart. Willa said quietly.

Sure thing, babe. Phillip kissed her on the forehead and then stood from his position on the couch, Willa shifting behind him underneath the blanket to get more comfortable.

That was when their front window broke into a thousand shards and something reached in with a long, bloody arm.

Willa screamed and jumped up from the couch to try to help her husband, who was now fighting a ferocious battle to get his arm back from the unnamed figure. It didn’t occur to her that she wasn’t the only one in the room that was screaming.

Acting out of pure instinct, Willa grabbed her husband’s free arm and pulled as hard as she could, childishly fearing she would pull it right from its socket from the excessive force she was putting on it. But, if she did, it wouldn’t be her fault. It would be the fault of the monster that had attacked him in the first place.

Willa sent up a quick prayer to the heavens, gave one final tug, and then tumbled to the floor as her husband’s arm was freed from its captor. Phillip wasted no time in bringing her back to her feet and leading her into their kitchen, the one room in the house that had so many windows that it would have been impossible not to see someone coming before it did.

"What the hell was that, Phillip?...Phillip?"

Her husband wasn’t answering her questions. Instead, he was looking around wildly, almost a completely different person; one whose only mindset was to keep his wife safe from harm. Unfortunately, this meant he didn’t care too much what she had to say about the situation.

"Phillip, damnit, answer me or I’m going to walk out that door and look for myself!"

Phillip rounded on her so quickly that her eyes began to fill with tears as he pushed her against the kitchen counter with the force of his weight.

You’re going to stay right here, Willa, and if you try to go outside, I’m going to have to put you somewhere where you can’t. Do you understand me?

Her crazed husband must have noticed her eyes growing wet, because he threw in a quick kiss on her forehead for good measure. He then continued to look around, slowly releasing his wife until she was able to move of her own free will again.

"Phillip, please..."

And then they heard the back window in the parlor smash.

Something was coming in, and that was enough reason for Phillip. He snatched his wife’s hand and led her to the front door, trying to make an escape. But what the young-groom had not anticipated was the swarm of creatures waiting to find their way in.

Willa stared in shock at the beings until, finally, her mouth allowed her to emit a shrill scream. Phillip clapped a hand over her mouth and turned her away, almost dragging her now to the back door, their last option.

It stood open. And a large, gangly sort of monster stood in its place. This one had blood stains on its waxy, leather-like face and its smile stayed in an almost-permanent grin of pleasure, as though it laughed at moments like this, when its prey was close to capture.

Willa screamed again, and Phillip realized that, for once in his life, he didn’t have a backup plan. He didn’t know what these things were or why they were coming into their home, let alone whether or not they wanted to eat his brains. Zombies? Was this some kind of joke?

Phillip didn’t even realize that his wife had stopped screaming, and that the terrible figure was clomping slowly toward them.

Phillip, listen to me. We have to go downstairs to the storage room.

The look that Phillip now gave Willa very clearly said , ‘Woman, we do not need to go to the storage room’, but Willa had no intention of giving her husband an option. There was no time to waste with arguments. She turned and ran to the stairs as quickly as her half-stunned legs would carry her. Phillip looked at the thing, then looked at her, and ran to protect his wife, even though she was certifiable.

While the two reached the basement stairs and tumbled down as quickly as possible, the dead forced their way into their new nest for the neighborhood. This dark, quiet house would be perfect for them during the day, when they avoided sunlight like the plague.

Willa and Phillip shut themselves into the basement storage room, turning off all the lights and barricading the door with old furniture. There was no easy way for them to get out. But Willa was confident her husband would figure something out. He was beautiful and smart, and he wouldn’t let anything bad happen to them.

After all, I Love Lucy couldn’t wait forever.

*****

There were worse things in the world than death.

And Jennifer Marthawitz