Human Extinction Level Loss (Book 2): Substation (The Last Stand of Gary Sykes) (6 page)

“
Hey Bev!  Hold on okay?  I’m gonna try something!
”

Beverly looked around her.  Gary sounded like he was in the closet with her.  Her eyes came to rest on a square air vent set in the wall, high above her head.   

“You found a way out, Gary?” Beverly said, hope creeping around the edges of her voice.

“I think so!   I removed the vent cover.  I was able to get the screws out with a dime I had in my pocket.  If I can climb up into the vent, maybe I can crawl out over the control room,”
Gary called.

“I don’t know, Gary.  Once you’re over the control room, how are you going to get out?” Beverly asked.

  “
Well, the louvers open up wide enough for me to get my arm through. As long as I don’t drop my dime, I should be able to loosen the screws and remove the cover on that end,”
Gary said.

Beverly let out a sigh of relief.  “That sounds great, Gary.  Good thinking.  Just be careful,” she said.

A few seconds later, she heard Gary struggling up into the vent.  As he moved along, the metallic sound of the flexing tin under Gary’s weight bellowed from the square vent in the wall above her head. 

“
Almost… there… Okay, hold on Bev…”
Gary said
.

Beverly heard the squeaking sound of the louvers being pushed open, then there was silence.  After what seemed a long enough time, Beverly called out to Gary.

“How’s it coming, Gary?  Are you out?”

“No… I dropped my dime,”
Gary said.

Beverly closed her eyes as several responses cycled through her mind, all of which seemed to involve yelling something.  She took a breath and tried to say something encouraging instead.

“That’s okay, Gary.  Maybe you can just knock the vent cover out, or… something.”

Gary’s voice sounded from the vent. 
“Okay, hold on a minute.”

Seconds later, Beverly heard the sound of metal rattling. 

“It’s no use, Bev.  I can’t get any leverage in here.  Hang on.  I have another idea.  I’m going to see if I can get the vent to break and drop me out that way,”
Gary said. 

Through the vent Beverly heard the thumping sound of Gary throwing his weight against the tin walls of the duct work. 

“Are you through, Gary?” Beverly called out.

The only response was more rapid thumps as Gary flopped about like a fish out of water.  After several seconds the noises stopped.

“Are you okay, Gary?” Beverly called up to the vent.

Several more seconds passed, then Gary answered.

“
Yeah, I’m okay.  I guess I am not heavy enough to bust through
,” Gary said.

Beverly’s eyebrows raised in incredulity.  “Okay, well try bracing your back against the top and pushing against the bottom.  You should be able to break through then,” Beverly said.

A second later, she heard the sounds of Gary straining. 

“
No good.  God, I am such a pathetic weakling!
” Gary shouted.

“No you’re not, Gary.  Just… get back to the bathroom.  We’ll figure something else out,” Beverly said.

“
Hang on, I think I have another idea,”
Gary said.

With her hands, Beverly covered her face in frustration.  She tried to think of something positive to say, but words failed her.  She let out a breath and plopped down on her bucket.

“Where’s Bruce Willis when you need him,” she muttered to herself.

Above her Gary chuckled.

“
Hey, Bev!  I’m like Bruce Willis up in here!
” he said.

Beverly rolled her eyes.  “Andy Dick, more like,” she said under her breath.  Out loud, she said, “That’s great, Gary!  Just let me know what I can do to help!”

The sound of flexing tin could be heard moving closer. Beverly jumped.  Above her head from the vent, the louvers popped open and Gary’s face appeared.

“
Hey, Bev!”
Gary said.   

“Gary,” Beverly said.

“I think I figured something out.  Hand me up a mop handle, only without the mop part attached,” Gary said.

Beverly looked around the closet and grabbed a mop.  She loosened the tensioner and slid back the flat piece of metal holding the mop in what was essentially an inverted metal triangle.  Casting the mop head down, she started to shove the long handle into the vent through the louvers. 

“
Ow! You got me in the eye
!” Gary said.

Beverly flinched.  “Sorry Gary,” she said.

“
No blood, no foul
,” he said as he scooted backwards and pulled the mop handle in after him.

“
Be right back
,” Gary said from deep in the vent. 

Gary moved backwards through the vent, dragging the mop handle with him.  He did a three point turn at the junction leading back to the bathroom then headed towards the vent over the control room.  When he got to the opening, he peered down at the couch and saw the crowbar.  Gary worked the mop handle through the louvers, and with both arms sticking out of the vent and his face pressed up against the louvers, tried to hook the crowbar.  His arms started to burn from the strain as he flailed about with the mop handle.  It got to be too much and he was forced to rest.  His arms really hurt and he did know how much longer he could go on.  Taking a deep breath, he renewed his efforts.  He started to become desperate when he heard the metal fastener on the mop handle click against the crowbar.  Moving the end of the mop handle the length of the crowbar, he got to the curved end.  After several unsuccessful attempts, he felt the metal triangle of the mop handle catch the curved end of the crowbar.  He gingerly started to pull the mop handle back into the vent.  As the crowbar hung from the mop handle, it swung in the air and threatened to come off.  When it got to the top of the vent, Gary seized it like a prized possession and pulled it in. 

“Better than a +5 Holy Avenger,” he said.

He clutched it to his chest and let the burn in his arms dissipate before making his way back to the opening above the supply closet.

Beverly sat on her bucket and waited.  She looked up when she heard the metallic sounds of Gary approaching.  Seconds later, Gary’s face appeared. 

“
Hey, Bev!  Look out, okay?  I’m gonna toss you down the crowbar!
” Gary shouted. 

Beverly jumped from her bucket and stood with her back against the side wall.  A second later, the crowbar came shooting out from between the louvers and clanged to the floor.

“You’re the man, Gary!” Beverly said, hurriedly retrieving it. 

“
I’m gonna move out over the control room!  See if you can pry open the door!”
Gary said.

“Sounds like a plan, Gary,” Beverly said, going to work on the door.

Several minutes later, the supply closet door flew open and a sweaty, huffing Beverly ran out.

“
Alright, Bev!  Can you reach the vent to get this cover off?  My dime should be around there somewhere… Oooh! Or you could get a screwdriver!
”

Gary’s eyes peeked out from between the louvers in the vent just over the couch. 

“I’ve got a better idea, Gary.  Something quicker,” Beverly said.

She stood on the couch and with the curved end of the crowbar hooked the one of the louvers and pulled down.  The vent cover flexed but did not break.  She gritted her teeth and tightened her grip on the crowbar then jumped off the couch.  The combined weight and her momentum ripped the vent from the ceiling, bursting the ductwork and sending it to the floor.  Gary came spilling out, arms and legs flailing, onto the couch head first.  He lay there motionless, staring up at the destroyed vent above him.

“Of course, I could’ve crawled back to the bathroom and you just opened the door,” Gary said.

Beverly looked chagrined at the bathroom door, still held closed with the other mop handle.

“Huh…” she said.

Gary rolled off the couch and stood, dusting himself off.  Beverly was all action. 

“Alright, Gary.  Let’s get the hell out of here,” she said, gathering her things and heading for the door.

She stopped and turned when she noticed Gary had not moved.  He stood in the center of the room.

“What are you doing, Gary?  You need to get out of here before the meat-heads come back and lock you up again,” she said.

Gary tried to smile reassuringly at Beverly but his inner turmoil betrayed him.  Beverly looked sideways at Gary then took a step closer.

“It’s the zombie apocalypse, Bev.  I know that sounds crazy, but look around, the news, I mean the Undead are trying to eat people!” Gary said.

Beverly clutched her things tighter.  “So what are you thinking, Gary?  What does that mean?” she asked.

“It has already spread to a lot of states, including ours.  In a situation like this, Homeland Security should have been here pronto to secure the infrastructure.  The fact that they’re not means they have their hands full… or… If this thing plays out like all the literature says, the country is gonna fall, Bev.  There won’t be anyone left except a lucky few and life is going to be very hard… like stone age hard,” Gary said.

Beverly did not take the time to question what Gary meant by zombie literature as she looked pleadingly at him.

“I’ve got to get home, Gary.  I’ve got to be with my family… You understand that, right?  You should get out of here too.  If things are as bad as you say, there is nothing you can do to make it better,” She said.

 Gary stared at Beverly in pregnant silence for several seconds. 

“Bev, I’m just a Momma’s boy Nerd…”

Beverly looked at him and he knew she was about to reprimand him for running himself down.  It was the other thing he really liked about her.  She respected him and demanded that he respect himself.  Even when all she could think about was getting home to make sure her loved ones were safe, she wasn’t going to let him get away with succumbing to the low opinions of troglodytes.  He held up his hands, forestalling her need to prop him up.  

“It’s okay, I love my momma, and Nerds rule,” he said. 

Beverly relented as Gary continued.

“One thing Nerds do is spend a lot of time thinking and debating, and planning on things that the cool kids don’t think twice about.  I know the news said this thing probably started in Colorado and has shown up in surrounding states, but… it’s not going to stop, Bev. It’s going to ravish the whole country.  It will spread to the rest of the world, if it hasn’t already.  There’s not going to be a lot of survivors, Bev, and those that do survive are going to be outnumbered ten thousand- No, a Hundred Thousand to one by those… Zombies when the dust settles,” he said.

Beverly’s face revealed her shock.  What Gary was saying washed over her and left her cold.  She had the irresistible desire to run for the door.

“A lot of things must have failed somewhere to allow whatever this is to get out.  A lot more things are going to fail, Bev.  The grid is going to fail.  It’ll be bad enough that those left behind will have to fight to survive, they will have to do it in the dark and the cold because there will be no power.  There’s no way I can prevent the grid from failing forever, but I can maybe prop it up… maybe give the handful left one less thing to worry about for awhile.  Mr. Johnson was kind of a dick, but he was right, what we do here ain’t like a regular job, ya know?  The Power is life,” Gary said.

Beverly was in torment.  She felt the pull of what Gary was taking on, but there was only one priority for her, only one thing she could think of that demanded her vigilance and that was her husband and child.

“Gary, I…”  Her words trailed off, a silent plea to be released from this burden.

“It’s okay, you need to be with your family.  I got this. You need to get home,” Gary said. 

For Beverly it was all her conscience needed to allow her to go.

As she turned, a thought occurred to Gary.  “Your car is in employee parking, right?” Gary said.

Beverly stopped and nodded.  Gary went over to the far wall where several sets of keys were hanging.

“Don’t take your car, it’s too far away.  Take one of the repair trucks.  They’re closer and heavier.  Keep the windows wound up tight and plow through anything that tries to hitch a ride,” he said.  Coming back over to her, he handed her the keys to truck number three.

“There’s a button in the truck that opens the automatic gate,” Gary said.

Beverly nodded, then reached out and pulled Gary into a big hug.  Tears filled her eyes.  She pulled away, then ran for the door and was gone.

Gary sighed.  Mack and Reggie weren’t coming back and he knew it.  Homeland was not going to secure the facility and he knew that too.  He told Beverly that he had this, but the one thing he didn’t know was how to make those words a reality all by himself.

Six