Mike could hear Ron sit up, his cobwebs of sleep quickly dusted away. "I'm listening," Ron said.
For the next forty-five minutes Mike proceeded to tell him everything that had happened that night, from the mushrooms to the hot girl, to the drool, to the evil trees and the walk up the stairwell, finishing up with his now hiding out in his room. Ron patiently listened to his baby brother rattle off a tale of a bad trip, offering words of encouragement along the way. "Just stay in your room, Mike. It will be over in a few hours."
"Will I be the same? Will I be sane?"
Ron laughed. Mike instantly felt at ease. "You'll be fine and even a little wiser for the wear."
"Ron, thank you," Mike was nearly in tears. "I didn't think I was going to make it there for a while."
"You weren't planning on doing anything stupid, were you?" Ron asked with concern.
"No, nothing like that, I just, I've just never felt this way. I am completely fucked up."
"Good night, Mike."
"Good night Ron, thank you."
"Any time."
'Any time' ended up being twenty-eight and a half minutes later. "Hello," came Nancy's voice again. To her credit there was not a hint of menace.
"Uh hi, Nancy, is Ron there?"
"Ron..." Nancy said, handing the phone to him.
"Hey Mike," Ron said. "What's up?"
"Still fucked up," Mike told him.
This time it only took a half hour to get Mike away from the abyss of despair.
"You alright this time?"
"Yeah, I think I'm over the hard part."
"You call me if you need anything, you understand?"
"I'm okay now, I think."
"Alright then, good night again Mike."
"Good night, Ron." Mike did feel better. It only took one more call before Mike was back onto fairly even ground. He would not sleep at all that night and when Paul showed up the next afternoon he found Mike sitting on the mattress, his back up against the wall.
"Holy crap, roomie, you look like shit!' Paul exclaimed.
"Yeah, but I feel much better than I look."
And that was it. It was that act of kindness alone that pushed Ron from distant brother to trusted friend. The bond had only intensified as the years went past. Mike could think of no place he would rather be when the walls of Little Turtle fell than at his brother's side.
AFTERWORD (OR AFTERTHOUGHT) - JOURNAL ENTRY 31 -
Almost decided not to put this in my journal but once I figured I was going to I had no room so I put it here at the end.
So when I was sitting in the hospital at Camp Custer (obviously before Eliza came a calling) doing my best to not go insane, strapped to a bed because apparently I'm a bad patient, this assh…, I mean guy comes up to me, says he found my first journal. I almost shit myself, which given the circumstances wouldn't have been a memory worthy incident. I'll relate how the encounter went.
Just so you know, I was almost asleep at the time when the guy grabbed my foot.
"Hey are you Mitchell Tulbert?"
"What?" I asked coming out of a drug induced stupor.
"Mitchell Tulbert, are you him?"
Now normally I won't give my name to anyone who didn't know me, it's that whole paranoia thing. But I was pretty heavily morphined up and I didn't have all my faculties. "I'm Michael Talbot."
"Yeah that's what I meant. I've been looking for you."
Now it's never good news when someone you don't know is looking for you, it usually revolves around a warrant.
"Are you from the IRS? Fast Tax said that I could claim any kids under the age of 18 living in my household and Henry is as much one of my kids as any of them. I mean he never talks back, hardly ever complains. Sure, he smells like wet garbage sometimes but that's sort of his appeal."
Assh… I mean Guy says, "No, I'm not from the IRS. You have a kid that smells like wet garbage?"
"Long story," I told him and would have waved an arm to disperse my words if I wasn't restrained.
"No, I was foraging for some food out in Colorado, in a place called Little Turtle. Not much left except one row of housing and the sign to the complex."
My heart at this point is thudding in my chest.
"Gotta admit man, coming across your place saved my life. We were running out of everything, food, clothes you name it. So I'm rummaging around in what I guess was your office."
Why do I feel violated?
"Sure did have a lot of Red Sox stuff, was a Philly fan myself."
"Of course you were," I said, urging him to keep talking.
He looked at me sideways and then kept going. "Man, you had more MRE's than we could carry. Sat there for a week fattening up on them. I looked over your books too. You had a lot of zombie fiction, wasn't really in the mood to read any more about them."
Couldn't blame him there at all.
"Then I come across your journal. That was some informative stuff. You sure did have a lot of grammatical errors and what not."
"You do realize it was a journal right?" I asked him, and he nodded in reply.
"Yeah but it even looked like you made up some words."
"I'm sorry Ass… I mean Guy. I was struggling to survive at the time. I was just trying to get a point across anyway I could. Didn't really have access to a dictionary or a thesaurus."
"Yeah, but couldn't you have cleaned it up a bit?"
"Dude, what are you, an English professor? Don't read it if it upsets your delicate constitution. Just give me the damn thing will you!"
He looked down at his feet. "Sorry, I can't."
I was boring holes through his head with my eyes.
"We used it for kindling somewhere outside of Kansas."
"So how the hell did you track me down and for what fucking reason? To let me know I might have used 'there' instead of 'their' or I used one too many commas? Do you see a tweed sweater with leather patches on my elbows?" I was pretty much screaming at this point.
BT moved his privacy curtain over and eyed the man. "Talbot, you want me to kick his ass?" he said menacingly.
Douche…, I mean Assh ..., I mean Guy backed up, having got a full look at BT.
"No, he's fine. As soon as he clarifies a couple of things he's leaving on his own."
Guy again looked over nervously at BT. Even in traction the big dude could impose fear in a badger.
"Well…well, um your journal said you would be going back east and when I ran into this place (meaning the base) I thought that maybe you might also be here, so I started asking around."
"Wow, now isn't that just my luck. Tracked down by a critic," I said, and BT laughed.
"He's giving you shit about what you wrote in a private journal? What an ass," BT echoed.
"You'd think I was charging him," I said. BT and I both started laughing like loons. The guy left in a huff sometime during our outburst.
If you find this journal could you please not use it for kindling I would greatly appreciate it.
Check out these other titles by Mark Tufo
Zombie Fallout
It was a flu season like no other. With fears of contracting the H1N1 virus running rampant through the country, people lined up in droves to try and obtain one of the coveted vaccines. What was not known, was the effect this largely untested, rushed to market, inoculation was to have on the unsuspecting throngs.
Within days, feverish folk throughout the country, convulsed, collapsed and died, only to be re-born. With a taste for brains, blood and bodies, these modern day zombies scoured the lands for their next meal. Overnight the country became a killing ground for the hordes of zombies that ravaged the land.
This is the story of Michael Talbot, his family and his friends. When disaster strikes, Mike a self-proclaimed survivalist, does his best to ensure the safety and security of those he cares for. Can brains beat brain eaters? It's a battle for survival, winner take all!
Zombie Fallout 2: A Plague Upon Your Family
Zombies h
ave destroyed Little Turtle, the Talbot’s find themselves on the run from a ruthless enemy that will stop at nothing to end their lineage. Here are the journal entries of Michael Talbot, his wife Tracy, their three kids Nicole, Justin and Travis. With them are Brendon, Nicole's fiancée and Tommy previously a Wal-Mart door greeter who may be more than he seems. Together they struggle against a relentless enemy that has singled them out above all others. As they travel across the war-torn country side they soon learn that there are more than just zombies to be fearful of, with law and order a long distant memory some humans have decided to take any and all matters into their own hands. Can the Talbots come through unscathed or will they suffer the fate of so many countless millions before them. It's not just brains versus brain-eaters anymore. And the stakes may be higher than merely life and death with eternal souls on the line.
Dr. Hugh Mann – A Zombie Fallout Prequel 3.5
Dr Hugh Mann delves deeper into what caused the zombie invasion. Early in the 1900’s Dr. Mann discovers a parasite that brings man to the brink of an early extinction. Come along on the journey with Jonathan Talbot is bride to be Marissa and the occasional visitations from the boy with the incredible baklava. Could there be a cure somewhere here and what part does the blood locket play?
Zombie Fallout IV: The End…Has Come and Gone
The End…has come and gone. This is the new beginning, the new world order and it sucks. The end for humanity came the moment the U.S. government sent out the infected flu shots. My name is Michael Talbot and this is my journal. I’m writing this because no one’s tomorrow is guaranteed, and I have to leave something behind to those who may follow.
So continues Mike’s journey, will he give up all that he is in a desperate bid to save his family and friends? Eliza is coming, can anyone be prepared?
Indian Hill
This first story is about an ordinary boy, who grows up in relatively normal times to find himself thrust into an extra-ordinary position. Growing up in suburban Boston he enjoys the trials and tribulations that all adolescents go through. From the seemingly tyrannical mother, to girl problems to run-ins with the law. From there he escapes to college out in Colorado with his best friend, Paul, where they begin to forge new relationships with those around them. It is one girl in particular that has caught the eye of Michael and he alternately pines for her and then laments ever meeting her.
It is on their true ‘first’ date that things go strangely askew. Mike soon finds himself captive aboard an alien vessel, fighting for his very survival. The aliens have devised gladiator type games. The games are of two-fold importance for the aliens. One reason, being for the entertainment value, the other reason being that they want to see how combative humans are, what our weaknesses and strengths are.
Follow Mike as he battles for his life and Paul as he battles to try and keep main stream US safe.
Timothy was not a good man in life being undead did little to improve his disposition. Find out what a man trapped in his own mind will do to survive when he wakes up to find himself a zombie controlled by a self-aware virus.
Please look also for:
the story ‘My Name is Riley’ published in the Undead Tales Anthology by Rymfire books!
Follow Riley an American Bulldog as she struggles to keep what remains of her pack/family safe from a zombie invasion.
Mark Tufo, The End
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