Zompoc Survivor: Inferno by Ben S Reeder Read Free Book Online Page A

time, the roster board had each staffer’s name and status on it. Eight of the nine names had the “In” square filled. The ninth name didn’t have either box filled in. I looked at the white clad bodies and did a quick count. Only eight. Where was number nine? I filed the question away and headed for the door.
    “Aren’t you out of uniform, lieutenant?” Hernandez asked when she saw Kaplan. He’d donned the shoulder and arm protection from one of the Monos security guys and had Amy halfway buckled into another set.
    “Uniform of the apocalypse, corporal,” he said. “There’s a set for you and Stewart, too. I had to guess at your sizes.” My respect for Kaplan went up a few notches. He knew a good idea when he saw it, and he wasn’t too proud to use it if it wasn’t his. I grabbed one of the sets and put the gorget on, then slipped my arms through the elbow pieces. Beside me, Hernandez pulled her forearm guards off.
    “Start with the neck piece,” I told Hernandez as she looked it over. “Then put your arms through the elbow cops and strap it on from there.”
    “Did you find an instruction manual for these things or something?” she asked. She grabbed the gorget and lifted it over her head.
    “Nah, I tried on some medieval armor while I was researching my first book,” I said while I snapped the fasteners into place around my biceps. “Basic concepts are the same. But modern snaps are a lot easier to use than leather straps and buckles.”
    “Come on, you two,” Kaplan said from by the nurses’ station. “We’re burning daylight.” He led us to the stairwell and pushed the door open slowly. Silence greeted us, and he carefully moved forward. A window was set in the far wall and ran down the wall all the way to the ground floor. Through it, I could see the vague shapes of the Kansas City skyline. The sunset was turned red by the smoke, making what we could see look like it was drenched in blood. Kaplan leaned over the railing and looked down, then shook his head. I followed suit.
    Infected wandered a few stories below us, strangely silent. He started moving forward slowly, careful to keep any sound to a minimum. The first flight of steps took us halfway to the next floor, and as we started down the next flight, I heard the sound of a shoe hitting tile hard, then the slap of a hand against metal. I looked over my shoulder to see Amy holding herself up on the railing, her face stricken. Below us we heard a moan and feet shuffling. I held up a hand to forestall any more movement, and she froze. Below us, Kaplan moved to the landing and aimed his gun down the stairs. The shuffling continued, then stopped, followed by a moan. When it started again, it didn’t seem to be getting any closer. Kaplan leaned forward and looked over the rail, then pulled back. A few seconds later, he leaned forward again and took a longer look. A perplexed grin had spread across his face when he finally gestured for us to move again. When I drew even with him I looked down to see what he’d seen.
    A zombie was staring at the steps, just a few feet away from me. It shuffled forward until its feet hit the first step and then it stopped and looked down. When its head came back up again, it turned and walked away from the steps. I looked at Kaplan and shrugged. Evidently steps confused it. He returned the gesture in eloquent silence and made his way slowly across the landing. We got to the door, and he peered through the safety glass, then opened it and waved us past him. The door clicked shut the second Hernandez was through.
    Like the floor above us, this one had three hallways. I swept my pistol right to cover the hallway while Hernandez came in with her gun up. I checked the mirrors at the middle, but the image was too small to get a good look much beyond the corner. At least I knew no one was lying in wait there. I moved forward until I was next to the middle hallway and stuck my head around the corner. Two infected