Free Zombie Day Care by Craig Halloran Page A

held before her like a club.
    The room was empty. Her painted eyes darted back and forth. She stepped into the doorway and peeked outside into the main office. The cubicles and office were dark, where the overhead fluorescent lights were only on in part. She liked the dark, but not today. Along the outside of the break room, she began flipping on more switches, and the office became as bright as could be.
    Sighing she sat back down and said, “That’s better.”
    Eating her pizza she checked out a copy of USA Magazine. Nate McDaniel was on the cover, and she wondered if she would get to meet him. Henry had told her a few interesting things about him. She found that man fascinating, but not as good looking as she hoped. Coughing on a big bite of pizza, she took several big drinks from the two liter jug.
    “ Damn!” she said, still coughing as she went to the sink, she began drinking from the spigot. Something was stuck in her windpipe and she was hacking hard. It flustered her, but she got it washed down.
    “ Whew, that was scary.”
    She felt a pair of hands on her hips.
    “ Ah Henry, my hero, you came to save the day.”
    Turning to face him, she recoiled in horror, shoving Jimmy’s leering face away.
    “ Son of a bitch!”
    She rounded the other side of the table. She had men paw at her since she was thirteen, she learned to handle them, but this man gave her the willies.
    “ Ah come on Tori, it ain’t like you don’t want me,” he said, followed by a heavy sniff. “Remember that time we went to the movies?”
    The ball cap was twisted on his head, half covering his long grubby hair. She could see the dandruff flakes on the shoulders of his sports jersey. He looked her up and down, brown eyes wild with lust. The strong odor of alcohol mixed with sweat replaced her hunger with nausea. Jimmy’s face had turned from good-looking, like his brother; to an unkempt miscreant no one wanted to know. Long ago, she had gone to the movies with him in school and she had been naughty. Now, she felt like all of those sins had caught up with her. Her knees were locked as he made his way between her and the door.
    “ Go away Jimmy,” she managed to let it out. “That was a long time ago. I don’t even remember it.” She did remember it however, now it came back to haunt her.
    “ Well I sure do,” he said on his approach.
    He reached out and grabbed her cheeks in one big hand and squeezed them. She couldn’t believe she wasn’t moving. Some strange power kept her still. Something kept her near, something dangerous. His breath was on her neck and she felt him inhale her. He was like a snake when he whispered in her ear.
    “ Henry ain’t got nothing on me girlie, and you know it.”
    Something inside her snapped. Her weakened will turned to iron as anger replaced her weakness. She launched her knee into his crotch. He groaned aloud as he sank to the floor, cursing.
    “ You bitch! You bitch! You bitch!”
    She didn’t hear a word as she ran away as fast as her legs would go. Tears were streaming down her cheeks as she entered the elevator. She felt exposed and worthless. She couldn’t tell Henry, he wouldn’t understand. She just had to keep it inside and pray Jimmy left soon or died.
    She wanted out of this place, but didn’t know where to go. The elevator opened into the parking garage and she ran for her car, shutting herself inside, hoping no one would miss her. It was a long time before she settled down. She was crying so loud that she almost didn’t hear the elevator open. She crouched deeper into the backseat of her car and buried her head. She heard footsteps shuffling over the gravel close by, and she couldn’t remember if she had locked the door.

 
    CHAPTER 16
     
     
    He saw colors and heard sounds that were familiar. There were shapes and people, some moving and others not. Everything was new whenever he opened his eyes. A hunger and curiosity burned inside, but he didn’t know what that was.