 
# Zombie Sheriff

Copyright © 2015 by Razor Blade All rights reserved.

No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any electronic or mechanical means including information storage and retrieval systems, without permission in writing from the author. The only exception is by a reviewer, who may quote short excerpts in a review.

This book is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents either are products of the author's imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, events, or locales is entirely coincidental.

# Prologue

In 1843, a large wagon train of over eight hundred people set off on the Oregon Trail to the west to find new land to colonize. During this trip, a cholera epidemic struck at the intersection of the Snake River in Idaho and the Oregon Trail that wiped out over one hundred and fifty men, women and children. In order to stop the spread of the contagion, the bodies were quickly buried using the materials from the wagons and the contents they held. All in all, the spread was contained and the pioneers continued onward towards the west coast.

One hundred and twenty years later, a catastrophic flood covered southeast Idaho and filled the Snake River to overflow. The pressure caused the Teton dam to burst sending thousands of gallons of water downstream killing hundreds of people and thousands of cattle. The resulting catastrophe covered the now lost cholera graveyard with ten feet of water allowing the caskets to percolate to the surface and expose the once buried bodies again to the surface.

Months after the flood, bodies were still being found strewn along the countryside tangled in fencing and piled in ditches. They were then gathered up and buried deep enough to never see the light of day again in a new cemetery on higher ground. That is except for the three zombies found at a campsite feasting on a family of vacationing campers. The former pioneers were now the undead and surviving on their own until they were captured and held for study at the University of Idaho department of biology.

Twenty years later, the ACLU sued for the zombie's civil rights and won the three their freedom. After two years of community college, the zombies were reintroduced into society as free people. One was immediately burned by an angry mob upon release and another ran for Sheriff of Pine Bridge Idaho. Once elected, the third zombie was hired as chief deputy. This is their story.

# 

# Chapter 1

# October 16, 1976

Sheriff Ed Pool drove down the highway like he did every night checking for speeders, drunks and whatever came his way. He had been the Sheriff of Colfax County for two years and usually worked the evening shift by choice. This made it difficult for his staff to do the basic work needed at the department since he wasn't around during the day, but it worked best for Ed. He liked the evening shift and that allowed at least one deputy to work days that would have had to work evenings.

Keeping an eye on the radar mounted to his dash, Ed kept track of the speed of the cars that drove past him in the other lane. His car was dirty brown with a rack of lights on top and could be easily seen from a distance. Most nights were slow, especially during the week, but tonight a car sped around him to his surprise and took off doing at least seventy in a fifty five mile and hour zone weaving in and out of the lane. Ed didn't need his radar to know this car was doing something illegal and put on his lights and siren.

As he picked up speed, Ed caught up with the car and called the license into the dispatch. He had seen this car before and had an idea who it might be, but was surprised when he heard back from dispatch that the car belonged to a county commissioner, one of his bosses. "What the fuck?" Ed said out loud. The car pulled over to the side of the road and stopped. Ed kept his headlights on the car and gathered his ticket pad and flashlight.

Outside the car, Ed slowly approached on the driver's side and shined his light into the window. What he saw was an obese woman digging through her purse looking for something. This made Ed very nervous. "Ma'am, please put down your purse," Ed said.

The woman looked up at Ed and squinted in the bright light from the flashlight. "I'm looking for my driver's license," she replied. Her name was Anita Cole, the wife of county Commissioner David Cole.

"Ok," Ed said, "Take your time."

Anita pulled her driver's license from her pocketbook and handed it to Ed. She looked up at the sheriff and saw his grey skin and white eyes. "You're that zombie sheriff aren't you?" Anita asked.

"Yes ma'am, have you been drinking tonight?" Ed asked.

"What kind of a freak are you?" Anita asked.

"I'm asking the questions," Ed replied. "Have you been drinking tonight?" Ed smelled alcohol on the woman's breath and she was acting erratic.

"I had a few drinks at cards tonight," Anita replied. "But I'm fine to drive."

"I'd like for you to step out of the car," Ed said.

"You're kidding, I'm not getting out."

"I need to do a field sobriety test and a breathalyzer."

"You only have that contraption because my husband voted for the funds to buy it."

"Yes, and I'm grateful for that, now will you please step out of the car."

"No, I won't, and when my husband hears about this, you'll be out of a job."

Frustrated, Ed stood back for a moment to think. He could call dispatch, but there wasn't another officer to send for backup. His other choice was to haul this woman out of the car and arrest her for interference with a law enforcement officer. He wanted to make this as easy as possible and as smooth as he could. "Ma'am, I'm doing my job, you passed me doing at least seventy, swerved in and out of your lane and now I can obviously tell you're intoxicated. You can either get out of the car willingly, or I will be forced to remove you from the vehicle."

"I'm leaving," Anita said. She put her hands back on the keys and turned the engine back on.

Thinking quickly, Ed reached into the car and tried to grab for the keys. As his cold dead skin touched Anita, her reaction was to pull back and try to get as far away from his as she could.

"Get off me you sick freak!" Anita yelled.

Ed grabbed the keys, turned off the engine and removed them from the car. "Get out now or I will arrest you for failure to comply with an officer of the law during the execution of his duty!"

Anita opened the door and stepped out. Her two hundred and fifty pound body exited the car leaving it an inch higher off the ground. She then grabbed for the side of the car when she became dizzy from the effects of the alcohol. Her heels didn't help much. "Help me you zombie bastard!" she yelled as she regained her balance.

Ed moved in close and she backed away when she saw his white eyes coming at her. Distancing herself, she lost her balance again and fell to the ground in a heap. She then threw up and tried to avoid laying in her own vomit. "See what you've done!" Anita yelled.

Ed pulled his handcuffs and bent down. He grabbed her right hand and placed the cuff around her hand while she was distracted trying to scoot away from her mess on the highway.

"What are you doing?" Anita asked.

"I'm cuffing you, give me your other hand," Ed replied.

"Fuck you," Anita said and pulled away.

Ed wrestled for her left hand and grabbed it. He pulled it in close and cuffed that hand as well leaving Anita lying on her belly, on the highway cuffed next to a pile of her own vomit.

"You zombie bastard, when my husband gets through with you, you won't be able to get a job anywhere in this state, let alone this county."

"Where is your husband?" Ed asked.

"None of your fucking business."

"I'll need to call him when I get you down to the station."

"He's busy."

"Too busy to come down and pick up his wife? Guess you'll be spending the night in jail."

"He's too busy fucking that new waitress he hired."

"Really? Sorry to hear that," Ed said. He wasn't really sorry at all. "Now I need to get you in my car, can you stand?"

Anita rocked back and forth, and with Ed's assistance was able to get to her feet. "What about my car?" Anita asked.

"I'll lock it before we leave and send a tow truck to pick it up. It will be at the impound lot until you pick it up," Ed replied.

"Tell me something first," Anita said. "How can you be dead and sheriff at the same time?"

"Honesty, nobody knows. And this isn't the time to discuss it anyway," Ed replied.

Anita was led to the sheriff's car and put in the back seat. She smelled like booze and vomit which made Ed wretch. Ed locked Anita's car, got back in his and turned off the lights.

"I want to get that fucker back," Anita said.

"What do you mean?"

"My husband, he thinks he can go fuck any girl he wants. I've been married to that loser for twenty three years and he's screwed around on me more times than I can count."

"Why don't you divorce him?" Ed asked as he drove back onto the highway.

"I'm planning too," Anita said.

"Well, that should fix that."

"No, I want to get that fucker back."

"Revenge will get you nowhere," Ed said.

"You ever been cheated on?"

"No, I was happily married before the disease wiped out my family."

"You married now?"

"No."

"I don't suppose anyone would want to marry a dead guy," Anita said.

"I don't suppose," Ed said.

"If you weren't so gross I'd fuck you, to get back at David. Do you even have a cock anymore or did that fall off?"

"I'd rather not discuss my personal life if you don't mind," Ed said.

"What else do you have to do? It's forty miles to town."

"You said you were playing cards tonight?" Ed asked.

"Yeah, me and my girlfriends play cards twice a week at Shirley's place."

"Do you always drink so much when you play cards?"

"No, this was special. I got in a fight with David and I was pissed."

"What did you fight about?"

"His fucking whore girlfriend."

"Did you tell him about the divorce?" Ed asked.

"Oh yeah, and how I was taking his money, and the business. My dad loaned him the money to start that fucking restaurant in the first place."

"How did that go?"

"He told me I was a fat cow and that I deserved to be cheated on. He said sex with me was like fucking a dead whale," Anita replied. "Bet you never knew your boss was such a prick."

"Oh, I've been at plenty of commissioners meetings. I know what he's like," Ed replied.

"Yeah, I know, he said they tried to fire you a few times but you got a lawyer and stopped them," Anita said.

"That's true, they tried to say I wasn't qualified once, then said I was doing a lousy job. Then one time they tried to blame me for some money problems down at the station. All bullshit."

"Did you know they set you up?" Anita asked.

"What do you mean?"

"That money, they took it and tried to blame it on you."

"How do you know?"

"David had the county clerk take it."

"Where's the money now?"

"I'm pretty sure David kept it and used it at the restaurant," Anita replied.

Ed was livid, he went through hell when that money came up missing and now he knew exactly where it went. "Can you find it?" Ed asked.

"It's long gone I'm sure. They cashed it out from the bank so there's no record," Anita replied.

"I think I might be paying a visit to your husband," Ed said.

"Oh, please do, and tell him I sent you," Anita said. Then she felt nauseous again and threw up on the back seat floor boards.

At the station, Ed set up Anita for her booking photo. Her hair was a mess, she had scratches from falling on the asphalt and was smudged with vomit. She seemed to be less pissed and was willing to take whatever was coming her way. Then her husband and county Commissioner David showed up. Dispatch called Ed out of booking to meet David at the desk.

"I heard you have my wife here?" David asked. He was trying to act calm but was pissed and embarrassed.

"Yes, I was in the process of booking her when I got called out here," Ed said.

"What did she do? You're dispatcher wouldn't tell me."

"Speeding, reckless driving, driving while intoxicated," Ed replied.

"You're kidding right?"

"No, she blew a .10 percent on the breathalyzer."

"Holy shit," David said as he shook his head in disbelief. "This will be front page news."

"I can't help that."

"Yes you can," David said.

"What do you mean?"

"Cover this up, whatever you do, don't put her in jail."

"Too late for that, I've already started the booking process. And dispatch knows all about it. Plus, why would I cover this up for you?" Ed asked.

"I sign your paycheck," David said.

"So do three other guys," Ed replied.

"Not for much longer if you ignore what I say."

# 

# Chapter 2

# Meeting

The next morning a special meeting with the county Commissioners was scheduled at the courthouse concerning an allegation made against Sheriff Ed Pool by Anita Cole. Once she sobered up, she reported to her husband, county Commissioner David Cole that the sheriff had made sexual advances towards her during her DUI arrest. Mrs. Cole was not present, but she submitted a written statement that was to be read during the executive session. No press were allowed during the meeting due to personnel issues.

At the front of a long room set a desk with four men sitting behind facing back towards a gallery made up of folding tables and chairs. To the side of the desk the county clerk sat with a laptop ready to take meeting notes. Sitting a few seats back was Sheriff Ed Pool and the county attorney Cindy Kubrick.

"We call this meeting to order," the county clerk said. Her name was Gail Scott.

Commissioner Cole lifted a sheet of paper from the old wood desk and adjusted his glasses to read the statement made by his wife. "Before I read this, I want to make it perfectly clear that this statement was not coerced in any way."

"What statement is that?" the county attorney asked.

"Yeah, what's going on?" Ed asked.

"Seems the sheriff here has been accused of sexual misconduct with a citizen of this county. I have her statement here and I'm going to read it into the record if you don't mind," Cole replied.

"Should I have a lawyer?" Ed asked. He was in a panic.

"You're not being charged with anything," Cole said. "Yet. This is a hearing to get the facts out."

The county attorney spoke up, "Can I read that before you enter it into the record?"

"No, you may not. Now let me proceed," Cole said as he pulled the paper close to his eyes. "On the night of July twenty-fifth, Sheriff Ed Pool attempted to gain sexual favors from me in exchange for being let off for a bogus DUI charge. I told Sheriff Pool many times that I would take no part in any sexual favors and he then became belligerent towards me using my profane words in an attempt to persuade me differently."

"That's bullshit and you know it!" Ed yelled.

"There's more," Cole said. "After much argument, the sheriff then forced me into the back seat of his patrol car where he then handcuffed me and molested me against my will. When he was finished, I tried to escape and fell to the ground scraping my skin and causing bruises."

"She fell down alright! Fell down drunk," Ed replied. "I had the breathalyzer to prove it."

"Where is this breathalyzer you speak of?" Cole asked.

"I keep it in the glove box of my patrol car."

"Does this breathalyzer maintain a history?"

"No, I don't think so."

"Then you have no way to prove that Mrs. Cole was indeed intoxicated do you?" Cole asked.

"I use that breathalyzer all the time in court and it holds up fine. Hell, you guys paid for it!"

"I do believe we did," Cole said.

"I don't know what's going on, but I didn't lay a finger on your wife and you know it."

"She has the scrapes and bruises, I've seen them myself."

"You weren't there. She fell down drunk!"

"That's your word against hers."

"Yes it is," Ed replied.

"I don't see much choice other than to put you on suspension until a full investigation can be conducted."

"You're just doing this to get back at me for her making the paper. I was doing my job, that's all."

"I'll have to admit, I never understood why the fine people of this county would vote in a dead man to be their sheriff, but that's not for me to decide. But when I get allegations like this, I have to act. I can't leave a potential sex offender on the payroll with authority granted by this county who might be pursuing women in exchange for leniency."

"I can't believe this. Last night I probably saved your wife from an accident and this is how you repay me?" Ed asked.

"You have your job, I have mine."

"This has to be voted on by all four of you, I can't believe that you all four believe these lies."

"You'll still be on the payroll, don't worry," Cole said.

"Is that right?" another commissioner asked.

The county attorney spoke up. "Yes, that's policy during an investigation."

Pissed, Ed replied, "You're doing this to punish me. I didn't lay a finger on her except to help her off the ground and cuff her. Where is she? I should be able to face my accuser."

Cole replied, "She doesn't feel safe around you."

"Around me? There are six other people in this room besides me. That's insane."

"It's a safety issue, sorry," Cole said.

Ed turned to the county attorney. "I know I have the right to face her, I know it!"

"I'll look into it," the county attorney replied. "Something here doesn't seem right."

Cole looked to his left and to his right. "Let's put this to a vote."

The county clerk then stated, "All in favor of suspending the sheriff with pay during the investigation raise your hand."

The only hand to raise was Cole's to his surprise. The other four commissioners kept their hands down and waited for the count.

"One for, three against," the county clerk stated. "Motion denied."

Ed smiled and leaned back in his chair. "Fuck yeah," Ed said.

"This is an official meeting, please use proper language," the county clerk stated.

Cole shook his head and pushed the paper across his desk towards the county clerk. "I still want this in the record."

"It already is," the clerk replied.

"If that's all, I'm leaving," Ed said and stood up from the table. "You can conduct your witch hunt without me."

"You're still under investigation, I will have someone interviewing you soon so don't get too comfortable," Cole said.

"I gave you my side of the story, there's nothing else to say."

"I want it official, not something you said at a commissioners meeting."

"Fine, do what you want, the answer's the same," Ed said. "And I do have some advice for you commissioner, you might want to keep your wife in check. She's an accident waiting to happen."

Ed walked to the end of the room and didn't look back. He entered the hallway and walked towards the exit when he heard his name called out to him. He turned to see Commissioner Cole with a briefcase in his hand working the lock. Not sure what was going on, Ed looked at Cole who was exasperated, poking at the keys of the lock until the case opened and the top popped open spilling papers all over the floor. In the flurry of white sheets flying through the air, Ed didn't see Cole pull out a pistol and point it at him.

In a blur, Ed noticed the gun in Cole's hand and saw the muzzle flashes as the commissioner shot at the sheriff repeatedly in the face and chest. The bullets did no harm as the sheriff was not a living being and Ed just stood there watching until the entire clip was spent. As smoke rose into the air, Ed stepped over to Cole and pulled his handcuffs off his belt. "You're under arrest for the attempted murder of the sheriff of Colfax County.

"You can't arrest me for attempted murder, you're already dead," Cole said.

"That's for the lawyers to decide, you're going to join you wife in jail so put out your hands," Ed said.

Cole smiled and dropped the briefcase on the wood floor. He put out his hands and let the sheriff cuff him. "I bet you're loving this aren't you?" Cole asked.

"I have a job to do," Ed replied.

"Yeah, harassing my wife and forcing me to get revenge."

"Force? I have a half a dozen witnesses that saw what happened. I'm surprised you didn't shoot me in the back," Ed said.

"Fucking zombie, you should have never been voted into office."

"My car is this way," Ed said as he pointed down the hall.

At the law enforcement center, Cole was brought into the booking room for his mug shot. At the counter was Deputy Pam Reed. She was Ed's first hire as sheriff and his biggest regret. "What do you have sheriff?" Pam asked as she stepped around the counter. She was dressed in a low cut custom made uniform top and a matching brown skirt that would make a stripper blush and heels. On her hip was her gun belt with her deputy badge attached.

"You didn't hear from dispatch? This is county commissioner David Cole. He tried to kill me down at the courthouse this morning," Ed said. He pointed to a bullet hole on his shirt and at one above his eye."

"No, I didn't hear anything," Pam replied. "I was late for work."

"Again?" Ed asked. "What this time?"

"Lady problems," Pam replied.

"You always say that, I'm going to have you tested at the clinic if you're late again. Now can you book Mr. Cole?"

"Yes sir," Pam said. She didn't like getting barked at by her boss.

"And what did I tell you about wearing heels to work?"

"I don't have anything else that matches this uniform."

"You can't run in heels, what if you had to do a pursuit on foot?"

"I'd kick them off," Pam said.

"I don't think that would work," Ed replied.

Then Cole spoke up. "Why do you let your deputy dress like a hooker? What kind of fucked up sheriff are you?"

"I'll deal with my employee," Ed said. "You worry about what you're going to say to the judge."

"Are you fucking the help?" Cole asked with a grin.

Pam was livid. "I'm no hooker you asshole!" Pam snapped.

"Where did our fine sheriff dig you up?"

"None of your business," Pam replied.

"I heard you were a stripper before he hired you."

"What I did is none of your business."

"I know what's going on down here, everyone in town does too."

Ed spoke up, "Don't let this asshole get to you. Book him and put him in a cell. Preferably one next to his wife."

"Yes sir," Pam said.

Ed left the room and Pam directed Cole to stand against the wall for his mug shot. She walked back behind the counter and made sure Cole was centered on the screen. Once she was satisfied, she clicked the "Ok" button on the screen and entered his photo into the booking database. This picture would end up on the front page of the paper the next day. Once she entered the booking information, she led Cole out into the jail area of the law enforcement center and put him in a cell next to his wife Anita.

"When do I get my phone call?" Cole asked.

"Whenever you want," Pam replied.

"Why didn't you say that when you were booking me?"

"You didn't ask."

"What a dumb bitch."

"Yeah, well I'm not the one in jail now am I?" Pam asked.

"I want my call now!" Cole snapped.

Anita heard the conversation and spoke up. "David, is that you?"

"Yes dear, it's me," Cole replied.

"What are you doing in jail?" Anita asked.

"Don't say anything, I'll let our lawyer tell you."

# Chapter 3

# Dr. Doom

Dr. Dorn sat in the conference room of the clinic he and his three partners owned. It was seven at night and the clinic was closed but the three other partners called a meeting to discuss something important that they didn't want to say over the phone. Dr. Dorn was a bit nervous and had an idea what the meeting was about, but was hoping for the best. He had recently had a string of medical errors that put the clinic in a bad light and caused an investigation by the state that hurt the clinic's reputation.

The doctor looked at his watch and tapped his foot repeatedly. Then he heard voices in the hall and four men entered the room, his three partners and what looked like a lawyer with a briefcase. The men sat down at the other end of the long wood table as far away as they could. It sent a visual signal that didn't sit well with the doctor in the hot seat.

"Brent, this is Eric Day, he's an attorney we hired." Dr. Newman said.

"We have an attorney," Dr. Dorn replied.

"Yes, but Eric specializes in corporate law."

"What's going on John? What's with all the cloak and dagger bullshit?"

"Brent, we've decided to remove you as a partner in the clinic."

"I see," Dr. Dorn said.

"You had to know this was coming," Dr. Newman said.

"No, not really, I thought you were bigger than this."

"Brent, everyone in town is talking about what you did. We have long time patients that are driving a half hour to Clarks to doctor. We're losing money."

"It was a mistake," Dr. Dorn replied.

"You know that, and I know that, but they don't know the details. All they know is that one of your patients ended up in ICU because of something you did."

"Yeah, and how the fuck did they find out? Who at the clinic has the mouth? Did you bother to find out?"

"That's water under the bridge, what matters now is that as long as you're associated with the clinic, we'll continue to lose revenue," Dr. Newman said.

Dr. Dorn leaned back in his chair and looked at the other two doctors who were too spineless to speak up. "What about you two? Usually you don't shut the fuck up, now you won't say a word."

"Our attorney advised us not to say anything," Dr. Newman said.

"What a bunch of fucks," Dr. Dorn said. "I make a mistake, a mistake you probably made a million times, but when there is an adverse reaction, I get nailed. How many times have you missed a lab and didn't change the dose? Probably happens a few times a year."

"Yes, and I'm sorry, but you got nailed. It's not fair, but shit happens," Dr. Newman said.

The attorney spoke up, "I wouldn't offer any information," the attorney said. "Just keep to the facts as we discussed."

"So that's it?" Dr. Dorn asked. "No meeting to try to fix this problem? Just toss me out like garbage?"

The attorney replied, "You are terminated as of this point, your partners have voted you out of the corporation and you will be paid for your services up to this date. They have included two weeks' severance as well."

"Two weeks? Jesus John, I've worked here for sixteen years," Dr. Dorn said.

"And in those sixteen years you've made a lot of money."

"I'll sue you fuckers if that's all you're offering."

The attorney stated, "According to your corporate agreement, they don't have to pay you anything beyond what you earned. The two weeks' pay is an act of kindness."

"Tossing me out on the street isn't an act of kindness, its bullshit and you know it. In six months nobody would remember what happened and the clinic would be fine. You're scared and acting like idiots. Just let it go."

"No Brent," Dr. Newman said. "The mistake was the straw that broke the camel's back. We had been considering removing you for some time."

"For what?" Dr. Dorn asked. He was pissed.

"Your conduct was below what we consider professional. We had many complaints from patients who said you were rude. Some said downright mean. They said you were sexist, condescending and short with them."

"I tell it like it is, I'm not a pussy doctor like you that lets your patients run you around."

"Pussy?"

"I've seen you give antibiotics to people who don't need them just to shut them up. I've seen family members tell you how to treat their parents, I've seen you kiss so much ass it's embarrassing. I never let anyone push me around. If someone comes in with a cold, they don't leave with 500mg of Levaquin, they leave with a lecture on how antibiotics don't work on viruses."

"Most doctors give antibiotics for colds," Dr. Newman said. He was starting to shake.

"And most of them are wrong, but do you see them getting fired for doing their jobs?"

"You're being fired for not checking an INR and not changing a Coumadin dose. Because of that, the patient bled out so much they had to be hospitalized in the ICU."

"That was the nurse's fault, they didn't get the lab."

"You didn't order it."

"How am I supposed to keep track of every fucking lab draw?"

"You're supposed to order it, we all have to do this," Dr. Newman stated.

Dr. Dorn shook his head, he knew he wasn't going to win or keep his job. "Do you know how hard it will be for me to get new patients? This is a death sentence for me. I'll have to get a job waiting tables after this."

"Sorry Brent, you did it to yourself."

Dr. Dorn swallowed hard and tapped his fingers on the conference room table looking at the ceiling. "So now what?"

The attorney slid a sheet of paper across the long table. "We need you to sign at the bottom of the sheet and initial each section."

Dr. Dorn pulled the sheet in close and read it. It was very official looking and read like a legal document. "No, I won't sign, if you're kicking me out, I want more than two weeks' severance. I'll take you to court and that will cost you way more than that. If you want me gone, I want ten thousand."

"That's not going to happen," the attorney said.

"You'll pay more than ten grand fighting me, give in and pay me."

Dr. Newman signaled to the attorney that he wanted to speak in private. Leaning in, he whispered in the attorney's ear. Once the conversation was done, the attorney addressed Dr. Dorn. "Would you mind stepping out for a while, Dr. Newman has requested a private meeting with the rest of the board."

"I'm still on the board, I haven't signed anything," Dr. Dorn said.

"Please, if you don't step out, we will. It will make things run smoother if you do as we ask."

"Fine," Dr. Dorn said. Frustrated, Dr. Dorn got up and left the room. On his way he had an idea, left the building and walked to his car. At his car, he popped open the trunk and fished out the rifle he kept next to his shotgun and spare tire. This was going to go his way or no way.

Two hours later Dr. Dorn got a call on his cell from the University Hospital. He was the surgeon on call and was needed for an emergency operation to save the life of a man who had been shot in the chest with a rifle. Three other men didn't survive the attack at the clinic he worked at but one was still hanging on for life and now Dr. Dorn was charged to save him.

At the hospital, Dr. Dorn learned that the surviving man was Dr. Newman, who had received three shots to his upper torso, and one that had nicked his descending aorta filling his chest cavity with blood. Once the x rays were examined, and the doctor was scrubbed in, he took his place at the operating table. Laying on his back, draped, tubed and ready to go, was Dr. Newman who was getting closer and closer to his death.

"Scalpel," Dr. Dorn said aloud and the OR nurse handed him a scalpel. With one continuous cut, Dr. Dorn split the skin and tissue along Dr. Newman's sternum to the bone. "Saw," Dr. Dorn said and he was handed a bone saw. With a sharp buzzing sound the saw cut the sternum splitting it in two allowing the doctor access to the chest. "Retractor," Dr. Dorn stated and the nurse handed him the rib splitter. Once in place, Dr. Dorn turned the crank and opened the chest revealing a large pool of blood that had filled the chest cavity. "Suction," the doctor said and the nurse put the tip of the catheter in the pool of blood and sucked the cavity as dry as she could.

"Blood pressure 70/50 and dropping," a nurse said.

"Hang Lactated Ringers, run wide open," Dr. Dorn said. "And another unit of whole blood."

The nurse adjusted the rate on the I.V. and then called the lab for a unit of whole blood to be delivered stat.

Then the doctor stopped what he was doing and leaned back as if he was confused or thinking about something. He looked over to the anesthesiologist and shook his head.

"Something wrong?" the anesthesiologist asked.

"No," Dr. Dorn said as he returned to his patient. "Kelly clamp," the doctor said and the nurse handed him a clamp. Quickly, Dr. Dorn cut open the pericardium and clamped off one of the four main large vessels connected to the heart. Immediately a warning buzzer sounded alerting the staff to an emergency. "Kelly clamp," the doctor said and the nurse handed him another. Once again he clamped off a vessel. He continued this until all four large vessels were occluded.

"What are you doing?" one of the nurses asked. She had never seen a doctor do this before.

"Scalpel," Dr. Dorn said.

The nurse handed the doctor another scalpel and watched as he cut the four vessels, pulled the heart out of the chest and threw it against the wall. It fell to the floor with a wet plop sound.

In shock, the nurse screamed as Dr. Dorn pulled off his surgical mask and tossed it on the floor heading back to the scrub room.

The nurse didn't know what to do so she ran to the phone and called a code. It was too late and emergency measures wouldn't do anything at this point but she followed her training anyway. As she walked back to the operating table, she leaned down and picked up the heart and dropped it in a sterile bucket. The monitor showed asystole.

"Somebody call the police!" one of the other nurses yelled.

Dr. Dorn left the hospital and drove away leaving Dr. Newman dead on the table. He was sure he had killed him back at the meeting but now he was positive. It would only be a matter of time before the law caught up with him, so the doctor decided to go for a nice ride until they did. How about seeing the countryside? The doctor thought to himself. Once he was away from the hospital, he drove down the highway leaving town to head towards the lake. The same lake he and his partners held their annual 4th of July party.

On the radio played some country song that took his mind away from his stressful day as he waited for the lights and sirens to come up from behind him anytime. It took longer than he thought, but eventually he saw the flashing lights of the deputy's car and heard the sirens. He might be fucked, but at least he managed to take down the rest of the assholes with him. That alone put a smile on his face as he recalled throwing Dr. Newman's heart across the room.

Up in the distance, the entrance to the lake came into view. Dr. Dorn slowed down and pulled into the drive that led to the camping area with the patrol car a few feet behind him. He didn't try to run, he just drove slowly looking at the nice trees and grass and he moved closer to the lake. He was planning on giving himself up, but he wanted to do it on his time, not on the law's side. Once he drove to the parking area by the lake, he stopped his car, and rolled down the window anticipating the sheriff, or whoever was working today.

As he looked in his rearview mirror, he watched a deputy step out of the car with his gun drawn. The deputy looked grey and dead, like the sheriff, he too was a zombie, the only other zombie on the force and lead deputy.

"Out of the car!" the deputy yelled. "Hands where I can see them!"

Dr. Dorn opened the door and stepped out facing the deputy. He wondered how this officer could function as a dead man. As a surgeon it made no sense, but here he was face to face with a zombie with a gun and a badge.

# Chapter 4

# Questioning

Sheriff Ed Pool pulled into the driveway at the law enforcement center and stepped out of his patrol car. He had been called in early to work to deal with the capture of Dr. Dorn who had been arrested for the murder of Dr. John Newman and his business associates. He knew he was in for a long haul unless the doctor lawyered up which he half expected. Then a call over the radio from dispatch. "Sheriff, you're appointment is ready."

"10-4," Ed said and entered the building.

Through the bulletproof glass, Ed nodded to the dispatcher who was busy on a call sitting at her station behind a row of computer monitors. She buzzed the sheriff into the interrogation room and went back to her work. Sitting at a table in the small room was Dr. Dorn and across the table sat deputy Pam Reed, still dressed like a hooker in uniform. Ed pulled out a writing pad from the cabinet and sat down across from the doctor. He clicked his microphone and told the dispatcher to start recording of the interview.

"What's going on?" Ed asked. He had only knew a little from what he heard from dispatch. He knew it was a murder case, but that's all.

Pam spoke up, "Dr. Brent Dorn has been arrested for the alleged murder of Dr. John Newman and three other doctors as well as an attorney."

"That's quite the charge Dr. Dorn, what can you tell me about the incident?" Ed asked.

"What are you?" Dr. Dorn asked.

"I'm the sheriff of Colfax County, see my name tag?"

"No, I heard about you, but I never imagined you were for real."

"We're here to discuss your alleged murders, not me," Ed said.

"I'm a doctor, can't you see how strange this seems? I mean, you're dead."

"According to medical standards yes, but there is more to it than that. Now, tell me what happened."

"We have time for that later, I want my questions answered first," Dr. Dorn said. "You won't get anywhere with me until I'm satisfied."

Realizing that this man was not going to cooperate unless he got what he wanted, the sheriff decided to play along. Normally if someone asked him about his past he would refuse, but since this man was a doctor and had a lifelong interest in medicine, Ed decided to answer. "I'll answer your question, but you will answer mine when we're done, right?" Ed asked.

"Absolutely," Dr. Dorn replied.

"So you want to know what I am? I'm a zombie, that's what everyone calls me," Ed replied.

"How? Medically you make no sense."

"The great state of Idaho decided to keep me a prisoner for twenty years while they figured this out. It's on the internet, I'm surprised you haven't looked it up."

"I wasn't interested until I met you face to face," Dr. Dorn replied. "Now tell me how you survive?"

Ed sat back in his chair. He had given this talk a zillion times and almost had it memorized. "I have a gene mutation," was his reply.

"I figured it would be something like that. Go on."

Ed thought he could get away with the simple version, but no, the doctor wanted more. "Fine, we have plenty of time. Pam, can you get some coffee?" Ed asked. Pam didn't like being used as a secretary, but Ed was her boss so she got up and left the room. Her ass sashayed all the way to the door. "Spring of 1843 I was part of a wagon train heading from Missouri to Oregon. We had around two hundred in our section when we came to a pond to water our animals. From what I read years later, this pond was used constantly for watering animals and drinking and never caused a problem, but something was different this time. The water was infested with cholera bacteria. We had no idea what cholera was at the time, but by that night three people were dead."

"That fast?" Dr. Dorn asked.

"Yeah, we were all shocked. By the next day over thirty more were dead and we didn't know what to do. We were used to a rough life, but this was off the charts."

"I studied infectious diseases in school, I don't remember much about cholera. I know it's a water based bacteria."

"I had plenty of time at the university to look it up during those twenty years, and you're right, it lived in the pond water. Anyway, a few hours later I had the shits like you wouldn't believe. I couldn't drink enough to keep me hydrated and then I died. I don't remember dying, it's all surreal to me now. But there were over a hundred that followed me."

"It must have been hell to live back then," Dr. Dorn said.

"Yeah, there I was on a wagon train heading to somewhere I never been before with no money, no plan and then a month later I'm dead."

"Did your family die as well?"

"Yes. We went with another family as sort of a hired hands. I helped with the animals, that sort of thing."

"I see, so then what happened?"

"Next thing I know I'm floating in a river. Turns out it was over a century later and there was a flood that covered the land and caused a bunch of bodies to rise to the surface. Back then they couldn't dig six feet down, they were lucky to dig one foot down. I ended up washed up in a mud pit next to a highway. Things had changed a lot."

"I bet."

"Well I knew something wasn't right, my skin was all grey and I felt weird. All the land around me looked different, it didn't look wild anymore. Not like the prairie I was used to seeing. I dug myself out of the mud and walked till I found a campground. I was starving and looking for help when they attacked me. Looking back I can tell why, I must have looked like something from a horror movie. I managed to kill a man who attacked me and dragged him off into the woods and ate part of him."

"Cannibalism was common back in those days, ever hear of the Donner party?"

"No, but it don't surprise me," Ed said. "So the next thing I know, I'm captured by the state police and hauled to the University of Idaho for study. I spent twenty years there locked up in a lab."

"What did they find out?" Dr. Dorn asked.

"Turns out I have a gene coded for reptilian tooth replication that was turned on. Very rare. Because of that gene, my body changed the way it processed oxygen and my body regenerated itself."

"But you were in the ground for over a hundred years? How did you survive?"

"They said it was hibernation due to the conditions I was in. It was a low oxygen, low light atmosphere. Once I was exposed to fresh air, I snapped out and essentially became alive. Although technically I never died in the first place."

"If that's the case, why don't we have more zombies around now?"

"There were two others from my party that also had the same condition. Thing is, you guys bury your dead so fast and so deep that you never see them. There are probably thousands of zombies buried right now that would be walking around if they could get to the surface."

"That's scary," Dr. Dorn said. "Do you eat?"

"Yes, I have a very slow metabolism. I only require about a thousand calories a month. Because of that I also have less energy than most. I probably couldn't chase down a perp if I had too."

"Do you have a special diet?"

"Man you ask a lot of questions. Yes, I have to eat human tissue, don't know why, but anything else makes me sick," Ed replied.

"And where do you get your food?"

"I get it from a hospital waste facility. They usually burn most of the body parts sent to them, but they save me enough to live on."

"You mean the leg I chopped off a diabetic might end up in your oven?" Dr. Dorn asked.

"I've never eaten a leg, usually I get placentas and gall bladders. Things that are more common."

Dr. Dorn gagged a little. "I've seen a lot in my day as a surgeon, and that makes me sick."

"I might have one placenta a month, come on, it's not that big of a deal," Ed said. "Now are you satisfied?"

"Yeah, thanks," Dr. Dorn replied.

"Now let's get on with my questions. Can you tell me what happened?" Ed asked.

Dr. Dorn smiled and gave a smirk. "I killed those fuckers."

"So you confess?"

"Four operating nurses and an anesthesiologist saw my cut the heart out of Dr. Newman, I don't think I really have a chance to deny it," Dr. Dorn replied.

"Would you like to write out your confession?"

"Sure, no problem," Dr. Dorn replied.

Ed handed Dr. Dorn his notepad and a pen. "I'll have to stay here with you until you're done. In case you try to stab yourself with my pen."

"Good idea, in my condition, I don't know what I'll do," Dr. Dorn said.

Once the doctor was done writing his confession, he slid the pad and pen over to the sheriff and leaned back in his chair. "There you go, oh, and I want immunity from the death penalty."

"That's up to a judge," Ed said.

"What? I'll take back my confession."

"It's on video."

"I don't care. I was joking, I didn't kill anyone."

"I'm giving this to the county attorney. He can sort this out. My job is done," Ed said.

"Wait, I can help you with your condition," Dr. Dorn said.

"Are you trying to bribe me?" Ed asked with a smile. "I had the best doctors at the university studying me and they couldn't change me back. Why should I think you can do anything?"

"I might not be able to change you back, but I can make your life much easier."

"We're still on video, you might want to cut your losses and shut the fuck up now," Ed said.

"Your loss," Dr. Dorn said.

"No, I've been like this long enough to know what I can and can't do. I'll be fine."

"That bullet hole in your head, how long is that going to take to heal only taking in a thousand calories a month?"

"A while," Ed said.

"You're like a diabetic that can't heal, there are ways to fix that."

"If I were a normal human yes, there would be. But not with my condition. Sorry, but you can't help me. And if you could, I wouldn't let you. I don't want someone who rips the heart of a patient on the operating table as my personal physician."

"Fine, you won't last forever. One good trauma and you won't recover."

"I know, that's something I deal with every day."

"You don't have too,"

"I'll have Pam book you and put you in a cell. You'll see the judge in the morning," Ed said as he walked to the door. Ed clicked his radio and told dispatch to send Pam back. "If you have anything else to add, tell my jailor," Ed said.

Ed heard a knock on the door and Pam came back in the room. "Book him, I got what I needed," Ed said as he left Pam to do her work.

"Hey sheriff," Dr. Dorn said. "Don't forget my offer, it's good anytime."

"I'll think about it," Ed said as he left the room. The idea of becoming more human did appeal to Ed, but he knew the doctor was grasping at straws after he realized his screw up not asking for immunity from the death penalty at first. In a way, what the doctor said to him pissed him off, making him feel less human that he already was.

# Chapter 5

# The road to hell

#

Dr. Dorn stood before the judge dressed in an orange jumpsuit, leg and waist cuffs. Standing beside him was his lawyer Cara Hamilton, a tall thin lanky woman with a long ponytail. The bailiff called out the case and the judge asked the defendant's plea.

"Not guilty your honor," Hamilton replied.

"From what I understand, your client made a full confession yesterday, why are you pleading not guilty today?" the judge asked.

"We contend his confession was coerced your honor,"

"Fair enough, I set bond at one million dollars," the judge said and struck his gavel. "Next case."

Dr. Dorn was led back to the courtroom exit by deputies Pam Reed and zombie officer Matthew Shultz followed by his lawyer. As they left, Hamilton made some comments to Dr. Dorn and they parted ways. The two officers and Dr. Dorn walked down the hallway surrounded by reporters trying to get interviews and pictures. Dr. Dorn reveled in the attention.

One of the reporters shouted, "Dr. Dorn, why did you do it?"

Dr. Dorn paused to address the reporter. "Do what?" Dr. Dorn asked with a grin.

"They call you the surgeon of death, how does that make you feel?" another reporter asked.

"I feel fine, how about you?" Dr. Dorn replied as if he didn't have a care in the world.

The deputies rushed Dr. Dorn down the hall and to the staircase to get away from the reporters who were following close behind. Down the stairs they went and out the front door to the waiting patrol car.

"Is it true you cut out Dr. Newman's heart and threw it against the wall?" a reporter shouted.

Dr. Dorn raised his hands as far as the chains would let him and shrugged his shoulders. "You'll have to ask him," Dr. Dorn replied.

Once in the patrol car, Pam pulled out and drove away from the courthouse towards the jail. She liked the excitement of her job and hoped her makeup and outfit looked good on camera. She wore an especially short skirt today and her favorite six inch black heels. "How did I look?" Pam asked Matthew.

"Like a whore," Matthew replied.

"You're jealous because you look like death," Pam replied pissed.

"Back in my day, a woman who dressed like you would have been treated much differently."

"I bet, back in those days you owned everyone and everything. Things have changed zombie boy, get used to it," Pam replied.

Dr. Dorn decided to get in the conversation. "I think you look great," Dr. Dorn said.

"Thank you," Pam said with a smile. She looked back at the doctor in her rear view mirror through the steel mesh that separated the front and back seats.

"Didn't Dr. Newman do some work on you at some point?" Dr. Dorn asked.

"Don't get me started," Pam replied. She turned and was no longer heading towards the jail.

"Where are you going?" Matthew asked.

"I need to stop at home and get something," Pam replied.

"You can't do that, we need to get him back in his cell."

"I'm on the rag and need to get my tampons, ok?" Pam asked.

"Don't they have those in the women's bathroom?"

"I have an extra heavy flow, I can't use those."

"You can go to the store after we put him back," Matthew said. He was getting nervous and a bit angry.

"If I don't get them now, you'll be washing blood off these seats," Pam said. She was lying, she wasn't on her period at all, and she was attempting to kidnap Dr. Dorn.

"You better call the sheriff then."

"I won't take long, keep your panties on."

"Its procedure to call dispatch, and you know that!"

Pam refused to reply and kept driving towards the edge of town.

"You don't live anywhere near here," Matthew said as he looked out his window.

Pam kept going, heading out of town and onto the gravel road that took her farther and farther away from the law enforcement center.

"What's going on?" Dr. Dorn asked.

"I'm taking you somewhere safe," Pam replied.

Matthew didn't know what to do. Should he pull his gun on his coworker? "Pam, you need to turn this car around now!"

"Matthew, you can go along with me or get the fuck out of my car."

"Explain to me what you are doing," Matthew said.

"Fine, Dr. Dorn did me a huge favor, he killed that fucker who botched my boob job."

"What are you talking about?"

"I had my tits done two years ago, Dr. Newman did the surgery and fucked it up bad. When he was done I had one D cup and one DD. Almost an E cup. He refused to correct the problem and I tried to sue him but I couldn't afford a lawyer on my pay."

"That's malpractice, what lawyer wouldn't jump at that?" Matthew asked.

"Dr. Newman fixed it in his charting to make it look like it was my fault. He wrote a note stating that I was told that there might be a difference in the size and that I agreed anyway."

"Did you sign anything?"

"I signed the authorization for the surgery, but he put the note in after he fucked up," Pam said. "So I was screwed."

"Are you serious?"

Dr. Dorn spoke up, "I remember that, he fucked up those augmentations all the time. You weren't the only woman he pissed off."

"I heard," Pam said. "It would cost me another six grand to fix what he did and I didn't have the money. I cursed that fucker every day after I got out of the shower and looked in the mirror."

"But you don't look uneven to me," Matthew said.

"I wear pads to even them out," Pam said.

"Oh, I never noticed."

"So Dr. Dorn did me a huge favor in killing that fuck. I think I own him something for that," Pam said.

"You'll never get away with this, he'll get captured and you'll go to jail for kidnapping. And what do you think I'm going to do? Just sit here and let you do this?" Matthew asked.

"I'll admit I haven't thought this all the way through, but I can't let my hero die for doing what needed to be done."

"You need to stop the car," Matthew said.

"If I do, you're getting out," Pam said. "You can't use deadly force to stop me, I'm not threatening your life."

"What makes you think I'll get out?"

"I don't think you will, that's why I'm not stopping the car."

"This is pointless. Stop while you're behind. This will only get worse."

Pam thought about what Matthew said. In her heart she knew he was right and that her ill-conceived plan would fail. At this point, she'd be arrested for kidnapping and would be put in a cell next to Dr. Dorn. "This isn't right, when people get what's coming to them that should be it. Dr. Dorn doesn't deserve to be punished."

"Dr. Dorn also killed four other people that night."

Pam pulled over to the side of the road and put the car in park. Frustrated, she hit the steering wheel with her hand and began to cry. "This is so fucked up," Pam said in tears.

"I'm calling for backup," Matthew said.

"Who are you going to call? We only have one patrol car and the sheriff doesn't come on duty till six."

"I'll call dispatch."

"No, don't," Pam said.

"Why not?"

"I'm too far gone to go back now. I'm not going to spend the next ten years of my life in prison," Pam said and clicked the unlock button on her door. Once the button was pushed, all the doors in the patrol car were unlocked, including the doors that held Dr. Dorn prisoner.

"What are you doing?" Matthew asked.

"I'm letting him go," Pam replied.

Matthew fished for his gun and pulled it out. He tried to relock the door but Pam blocked his access. "Nobody move," Matthew said.

The doctor spoke up, "We seem to be at a standstill."

Matthew reached for his radio microphone keeping an eye on Pam and his gun pointed at her chest. He pressed the button and said, "Dispatch, I need assistance on 745 road one mile north of town. Send backup, I have an officer attempting to kidnap Dr. Dorn."

"Please repeat," the dispatcher said over the radio.

"I have an officer attempting to kidnap Dr. Dorn, please send back up to 745 road one mile north of town."

"10-4" the dispatcher replied.

Dr. Dorn smiled and rattled his chains. "Did you know the sheriff before he hired you? I mean back when you guys were on the wagon trail?"

"No, I never met him before," Matthew replied.

"I talked to your sheriff, offered to help him out with your zombie condition."

"I know, he told me."

"I can help you too," Dr. Dorn said.

"No thanks, I'm fine," Matthew replied.

"You realize you won't last forever. With your delayed healing, one good trauma and you won't heal back."

"I'm aware of that."

"I can help you."

"I spent twenty years at the university, they treated me like I was an eggshell. They said there was no way to fix what happened."

"If that's the case, why take a job with such a high risk for injury?"

"There wasn't a lot of opportunities out there for zombies, I took what I could get," Matthew said.

"I'm offering you an opportunity now," Dr. Dorn said.

"What can you do that the university doctors couldn't?"

"Gene therapy."

"They tried that."

"Things have come a long way in the last few years. I know people who can help."

"You're bullshitting me to get away," Matthew said.

"Once I'm back in jail, there won't be another chance. One good fight and you'll be living in pieces."

Matthew knew the doctor was right. If his arm was cut off it would continue to live on due to the way his cells used oxygen. He could in fact live on indefinitely in many pieces. This would be a life beyond hell, living on forever in separate parts. As long as his parts found a food source, he would become the monster he dreaded. "Pull out," Matthew said.

"What?" Pam asked.

"Drive, now, before they get here!"

Pam put the patrol car in drive and took off down the gravel road. "Where am I going" Pam asked.

"In two miles, turn right, head seven miles till we get to the Henderson hog farm and pull in."

Pam followed Matthews's directions and headed towards the Hog operation. "What are we going to do there?"  
"I know the owner, he'll hide us," Matthew replied.

"So will everyone else that's working there today," Pam said.

"It's all I have right now," Matthew said.

# Chapter 6

# Fence post

The next day Ed was high above the ground in a state patrol helicopter searching for the missing fugitive doctor and his two deputies. Nobody knew if the doctor somehow subdued the two officers and escaped or if they took off as a group. Then a call came from a state patrol officer on the ground, they had found the deputies vehicle abandon on the side of the road nine miles from town.

The helicopter landed and Ed got out along with another state patrol officer. They approached the abandon car that was being taped off by state patrol officers at the scene. As Ed approached, he noticed the tires were covered with mud which stood out as odd since it hadn't rained in weeks.

"We didn't find anyone in the car," an officer said. He was writing down information on a notepad. His name was Alan Wagner.

"Did you notice the mud on the tires?" Ed asked.

"Yes, it's a red clay, very common around here."

"I know, but it hasn't rained in weeks."

"They must have been driving near a pond or the river, who knows?" Wagner asked.

"Hopefully you will soon," Ed replied. The sheriff felt groggy and tired. It had been weeks since he had last eaten and knew he should contact the hospital for supplies.

"You alright?" Wagner asked. He noticed Ed was having a hard time focusing on what was going on.

"I need to eat," Ed replied.

"You're diabetic?"

"No, but I get the same way if I don't eat enough."

"I got some gum, will that help?"

"No, sorry, I have to make a call," Ed said as he took out his phone to dial the hospital. Once he had someone on the line, he had the call transferred to the morgue to speak to his contact. Wagner listened to Ed as he spoke. "Yeah, could you send me out something, I'm not feeling my best," Ed said. Then silence while the tech on the other side replied. "That'll be fine, you can send it to my house." Another pause and they said their goodbyes.

"What did you order?" Wagner asked.

"They have two hysterectomies scheduled for today, they're overnighting the results to my house. I should have them by morning."

"Hysterectomies?" Wagner asked.

"Uterus, ovaries and fallopian tubes," Ed replied.

"What are you going to do with them? Use them as fish bait?"

"No, I eat them," Ed replied.

"That's fucking sick."

"No more sick than fast food if you ask me," Ed said.

"You're eating human flesh, how can you do that? Isn't that illegal?"

"I have special permission. Most people don't know about it because I don't make it public. Sorry you had to hear that," Ed said.

"What? You have a permit?"

"No, they passed it as part of some farm bill, hid it in there so nobody would know. You can look it up online."

"They passed a law just for you?" Wagner asked.

"Yes, sort of, it was one line in a huge farm bill. They mix up shit all the time in different bills. It's all legal, I have connections to three hospitals for supplies. I call, they deliver and they send me a bill."

"Like ordering pizza?" Wagner asked with a grin.

"Yes, like ordering pizza," Ed said shaking his head. "Now about this car, what have you found out?"

"Well, nobody was in the car, we haven't found anyone or anybody nearby. Like you said, the tires are covered in mud but there are no other obvious marks to be found. Our crime lab truck in on the way to dust for prints and do a fiber search. Nobody's been in the vehicle, we taped it off as soon as we got here."

"Very good, so no signs of foul play, just an abandon deputy's vehicle with mud on its tires and no sign of the passengers," Ed said.

At the Henderson hog farm, Dr. Dorn and the two deputies sat on the ground tied to a metal gate that led to a three acre hog pen. It seems Deputy Shultz contact wasn't as friendly as he thought they would be.

Then a farm hand approached. "Mr. Henderson is coming out to see you," the worker said. He was Hispanic and spoke in a broken accent. Once the worker said what he came to say, he walked off and left the three sitting by themselves.

"I thought you had a friend here?" Pam asked.

"So did I," Schultz replied. "He was always nice to me before."

"Maybe there's a reason why he was nice to you."

"What do you mean?"

"Maybe he had something to hide? Did you ever think of that? He was kissing your ass."

"How would I know?" Schultz asked.

Dr. Dorn spoke up, "Stop arguing, we'll find out soon enough, here he comes."

A large farm truck pulled up and parked next to the fence kicking up dust that blew in everyone's face. The driver's side door opened and a short thin man stepped down onto the ground and approached the three tied to the fence. It was Henderson's son Jason. "What's going on?" Jason asked. He was holding a shotgun.

"Hey, where's your old man?" Schultz asked.

"Out cleaning hog shit, why do you care?"

"Why the hostility?"

"Maybe because a patrol car pulls up on my property."

"You got something to hide?"

It was silent for a moment as Schultz realized he may have hit on something.

"I don't like uninvited guests on my property, especially the cops," Jason replied.

"Sorry, I wanted to talk to your dad about something and I didn't have his number to call first."

"Why would you want to talk to my dad?" Jason asked.

"I needed some help, and still do," Schultz replied. "And may I ask what you did with my patrol car?"

"I had Carlos get rid of it."

"Get rid of it? Why? We didn't do anything wrong."

"You came onto my property uninvited that in my book is wrong. Now what did you want to talk to my old man about?" Jason asked.

"We needed help disappearing," Schultz replied. Once he said the words he regretted them.

"My hogs can make you disappear in about a day."

"We came for help, not to rob you."

"You're trespassing, I have rights."

"You don't have the right to kill us and feed us to your hogs."

"I don't think they'd eat you anyway, you look like you have a disease."

"Technically I do," Shultz said. "They call it zombification."

"If the hogs won't eat you, I'll grind you up and spread you in the field."

"Why are you so hell bend on killing us? Can I speak with your father please?"

"He told me to take care of you myself," Jason replied.

"What's going on? What are you hiding out here?"

Jason got a shit eating grin on his face. "Wouldn't you like to know," Jason stated.

"Yes I would," Schultz replied.

"You don't get to know, it's feeding time in two hours," Jason said. He turned around and got back in his truck. As he drove away, the truck kicked up more dust that blew in their faces.

"Now what?" Pam asked. She had lost a heel as she was pulled from the patrol car and dragged over the ground that covered her in dirt.

"We only have once chance," Dr. Dorn replied. "Matthew will have to tear off an arm in order to get loose from our bindings."

"What the fuck?" Schultz asked. "You want me to rip off my arm?"

"That's the only way, then you can free us," Dr. Dorn replied.

"My other hand will still be tied up."

"Yes, but you will have the freedom to use your free arm to untie us."

"No, I'll still be tied to the fence, just with a torn off arm."

Dr. Dorn thought for a second. "Maybe you're right. "But if you're arm is torn off, you can loop it around the fence and escape."

"Yeah, so I'm free but my hands are still tied together and I have my whole arm dragging behind me tied to my other hand by a rope."

"Run to the shed and find a saw, you can cut off the rope and come back and free us," Dr. Dorn said.

"That still leaves me with a missing arm," Schultz said.

"Better a missing arm than ground up and spread on a corn field," Pam said.

"What makes you think I can tear my arm off like that?" Schultz asked.

"You're a zombie, you were practically dead for a hundred years. You have so much rot that I can't believe you held together in the first place," Dr. Dorn replied.

"Yeah, but they did stuff to me at the university, pumped me full of drugs and did rehab. I'm not like that anymore."

"I still think you should try," Dr. Dorn said.

"I'm sure you do," Schultz said. "It's not your arm."

"Even if I wanted to, I don't have a knife to cut with and I can't chew off my own arm, not like you can."

Pam spoke up. "I agree with the doctor, you should chew off your arm."

"Fuck you both! I'm not chewing off anything."

"Then I guess we're hog food," Pam said.

Schultz sat there shaking his head. He couldn't believe what these two were asking him to do. But at the same time, that seemed to be the only option. He swallowed hard and leaned his head back against the fence thinking about what to do. He desperately wanted a second option."

"We can jump them when they try to feed us to the hogs," Schultz said.

"They'll shoot us while we're tied to the fence," Pam replied. "We won't get that far."

"Is there any way you can get loose?" Schultz asked Pam. "You have smaller hands."

"No, they're tied so tight I can't feel my fingers anymore."

"What about you doc?"

"If I could get out I'd be out by now. Now stop asking stupid questions and start chewing!"

Schultz realized there was no other option. "Fine!" he shouted and turned his head to the right to start chewing.

"Are you right or left handed?" Dr. Dorn asked.

"Right," Schultz replied.

"Then chew off your left arm, you'll need your right."

"I'm really starting to hate you," Schultz said.

"You won't hate me when you're free."

Schultz turned to his left and dug his teeth into his shirt. His teeth weren't strong and ripping through the fabric was very difficult. Tug after tug he managed to make a small hole and get the shirt to tear.

"There you go, good job," Dr. Dorn said.

"Fucking shut up, I don't need a cheering section," Schultz said and continued to tear his shirt apart until he had enough skin exposed to start chewing his arm off. After taking a good long look at the grey dead looking skin on his shoulder, Schultz dug his teeth into his skin and tried to take a bite. It hurt like hell but he knew it was either take off the arm or be hog food.

For the next half hour, Schultz bit into his shoulder and took out chunks of flesh, tendons, veins, arteries and whatever else he could find.

"God that smells," Pam said.

Pissed, Schultz turned and spit some tissue into Pam's hair. "Fuck you Miss America,"

# 

# Chapter 7

# Pam

Ed heard a click on his radio, then his Deputy Matthew's voice. "Sheriff, 10-25 Henderson hog operation, 10-33!"

"10-4," Ed replied into his microphone. "I got him!" Ed yelled to the state patrol officers at the abandoned patrol car. "Henderson hog farm!"

Deputy Matthew Schultz stood inside a large steel building searching frantically for a vehicle to use to escape his captors. Instead, he found his and Pam's guns setting on a bench unattended and empty. After the call to the sheriff he found to his amazement, row after row of what looked like horse tanks filled with seaweed. Above the tanks hung rows of fluorescent grow lights like he'd seen at indoor hydroponic marijuana operations. He stepped in close and looked down into the water trying to figure out what they were growing. Then he heard a gunshot and felt a pelt in his chest. He looked down and saw a hole in his shirt but felt only a prick.

"Get back!" a voice called out.

Matthew didn't move, but spied the man who was yelling at him from across the building standing in an office doorway. "What's this stuff?" Matthew asked.

The man stepped out of the office and walked towards Matthew with his gun pointed at him. "How did you get in here?" the man asked. "And what happened to your arm?"

Matthew looked down at the ground where his left arm lay still tied to his right wrist by a rope. "I chewed it off," Matthew replied.

"Did you call someone?" the man asked as he looked at the radio in Matthew's right hand.

"The sheriff."

"No fucking way!" the man yelled. He aimed his pistol at Matthew's face and shot him in the forehead. Matthew didn't budge. Since he no longer processed oxygen the same way he used to, a lack of blood supply didn't really phase him. Noticing that the deputy was relatively unharmed, the man shot again, and again until he had three shots in Matthew's face. "Why don't you die?" the man asked.

"It will take a while, but I can explain it to you if you'd like," Matthew replied.

"No thanks, I got to get the fuck out of here," the man said. He then turned and took off running out the door leaving Matthew behind.

Once again Matthew bent over and looked at the green leafy plants growing in the horse tank. He reached in and pulled some out to look at it. It looked like the kind of crap he used to clean off his boat propeller if he got too close to the shore when fishing. Nothing special. Then he heard shouting and the sound of cars rushing by the building on the way out to the road. It sounded like the rats were abandoning a sinking ship. At least now he knew something was up and the reason why Dan Henderson was always so nice to him and why his son wasn't.

Walking outside, Matthew saw Pam and Dr. Dorn still tied to the fence and still alive. In the distance, he could hear the sounds of sirens and the sound of a helicopter above. Shielding his eyes, he looked up and saw the state patrol chopper fly in close and touch down in a clear area between the house and the building he was standing by.

Then he heard Pam shout out, "Untie us!"

Matthew stepped over as he dragged his arm on the ground behind him. He could still move the fingers on the hand to his amazement, but then realized he forgot to find a knife to cut Pam and the doctor loose. "Wait a second, I need to find a knife!" Matthew yelled over the sound of the chopper blades. The wind the helicopter kicked up spread dust all over making it hard to see. It also spread the smell of the hogs which caused a huge stink.

Before he knew it, Ed was running up to Matthew waving his arms stopping him from going back into the building. The chopper was shutting down so they could now hear each other. "What's going on?" Ed asked.

"We found some sort of illegal drug operation," Matthew replied.

"What happened to your arm?"

"Had to chew it off to escape."

"What were you doing out here looking for drugs? You were supposed to be transporting the doctor back to jail," Ed asked.

Matthew had to scramble for a good lie. "On the way back, I noticed suspicious activity in one of the hog trucks. I decided to follow."

"Why didn't you call dispatch and tell them?" Ed asked.

Matthew knew his lie was a longshot. "I don't know, I guess I forgot."

"You forgot?" Ed asked.

"I was caught up in what I was doing."

"We can sort this out later, what did you find?"

"In the building, they're growing something in water."

"Show me," Ed said.

"What about Pam and the doctor? They're still tied up."

"They can wait."

Realizing that the troops were on the way, Matthew decided to play along and try to make himself out to be the good guy. He didn't know how long or if it would work at all, because he was sure Pam or the doctor would eventually tell the truth. Returning his focus to police work, he picked up his arm and led Ed into the building.

"Holy shit!" Ed said with his jaw hanging in awe as he looked into a tank.

"You know what this is?" Matthew asked.

"No, but it looks big. You might have stumbled onto something gigantic."

Matthew smiled knowing his stock just went up. "Thanks boss."

"Just so you know, I don't believe any of your story. But this does look good."

"What do you mean?"

"I know about Pam's boob job, she complained about it nonstop. And one of the janitors filled me in on her plan to kidnap the doctor. I just never thought she had the balls to follow through, especially with you in the car."

"You left me alone with her knowing what she had planned? I could have been killed!"

"You're a zombie like me, we don't die that easy."

"Maybe not, but we fall apart, look at my arm!" Matthew said.

"That can be sewn back on," Ed said.

"It will take six months to heal!"

"So you get six months of workers comp. Don't complain."

"What about Pam?"

"What about her?" Ed asked.

"She is just as responsible for this find as I am."

"Was it was her idea to follow the truck?"

"Actually there was no truck, I made that up. We came out here because I knew Dan Henderson, or at least I thought I did. The doctor promised to make me more human."

"So Pam had nothing to do with it."

"I guess not," Matthew replied.

"I think she'll get ten years in the women's prison," Ed said. "Too bad, she wasn't a bad deputy, just held too much of a grudge."

"So now what?"

"First, we get Dr. Dorn back to jail, book Pam and get this, whatever it is looked at."

"What about me?" Matthew asked.

"Depends on what Pam and the doc say. If they toss you under the buss, there isn't much I can do. I can play dumb until then," Ed replied. "As far as I'm concerned, she kidnapped you as well."

Back at the station Ed personally decided to book Pam. He brought along a female officer from the police department to cover him for sexual harassment claims. Once Pam was brought into the booking room, Ed told her to undress.

"You'd like that wouldn't you?" Pam asked.

"What do you mean?" Ed asked.

"You've been stripping me down with your eyes ever since you hired me, now you get to see it all for free."

"How many perps have you done the exact same thing too?" Ed asked.

"Doesn't matter, it's me that you want to see. Probably jack off after we're done, if you still have a dick."

"Why so hostile? I'm not out to get you," Ed said.

"It's not just you, it's all men. You all want to fuck me anyway you can," Pam replied.

"I know I'm going to get hell for saying this, but you do dress like a dime store whore most of the time, you even had your uniform custom made so your ass would hang out as much as your tits. What do you expect?" Ed asked.

"Just like a man to blame a woman for what she wears. I bet you think women deserve to be raped as well," Pam said.

"No, I don't think anyone deserves to be raped period. But I do think you get what you put out there."

"See, just like a man."

"Take your clothes off, I have to do a full body search before I put you in a cell, you know the procedure, you've done it yourself," Ed said.

"You just want the chance to put your fingers in me," Pam said.

"No, Jill here is going to do that," Ed said.

"While you watch."

"Yep, while I watch, I'm the sheriff, that's my responsibility."

"Like I said, an hour later you'll be in the patrol car jerking off thinking about what you saw. You'd like nothing more than seeing a woman with another woman's finger inside her. You fucking pervert."

"I'm not going to argue with you Pam, you kidnapped the doctor, and this is all on you. I'm the sheriff of Colfax County and you're under arrest. I have a female officer here to do the search and here as a witness. If you won't comply, I'll have you restrained while she does her job," Ed said.

"Fine, do what you want, you call it a search, and I call it rape. Woman or not."

Ed nodded to Jill to get started.

"Please remove your uniform," Jill said.

Pam begrudgingly yanked off her top, then slid down her skirt. From there she removed her bra showing her different sized breasts to Jill and the sheriff. "See, I told you he screwed up my surgery!"

"I'm not contesting that Pam," Ed said. "I'm doing my job."

Pam slid off her panties and stood naked.

"Please turn, bend over and touch your toes," Jill said as she put on a pair of gloves.

Pam did as Jill said and the female police officer did an anal cavity search. Then a vaginal search. Pam stood up and turned around. "Are you happy?" Pam said.

"I'm satisfied, let's put it that way," Ed replied. "Now put on your jumpsuit so I can get you in a cell."

Pam put on the jumpsuit and was led to her cell. She stepped inside and the door was shut electronically by the dispatcher. "I want a lawyer," Pam said.

"I figured you would, that's why we skipped the interview room and put you straight in the cell. Who is your lawyer?"

"My ex sister-in-law, Susan Hanson," Pam replied.

"I'll call her for you, sit tight, no hard feelings. This is strictly business."

In the hallway on the way back to the dispatch, the female officer stopped Ed and pulled him aside. "I need to tell you something," Jill said. "I didn't find anything during the cavity search, but there was something very odd going on."

"What do you mean?" Ed asked.

"When I had my finger inside her, she felt cold."

"What do you mean cold?"

"I can't explain, have you ever touched her before?" Jill asked.

"No, she'd probably sue me for harassment. She's that kind of woman."

"Did you notice she seems to wear an awful lot of make up?"

"Yeah, but I thought that was because she used to be a stripper."

"She's covering up something, I'm not sure what."

# Chapter 8

# 18 months later

Pam stood upon the gallows dressed in a custom made outfit she had designed for her execution. Kidnapping had become a capital offense which carried the death penalty even without the death of the kidnap victim. Her intent to subvert the law by freeing a man who was being tried for the murder of four people was enough to be charged and found guilty. Today, in her low cut shirt, mini skirt and heels, she waited for the executioner to fulfil his duty.

Specially built for the occasion, the gallows stood on the lawn at the corner of the courthouse facing a huge crowd who came to witness the hanging. Along the edges were protesters and vendors both taking advantage of the publicity. And standing next to Pam was the county clerk who was holding a script to read to the crowd. Once the courthouse bells chimed twice signaling it was two in the afternoon, the crowd hushed and the clerk raised the paper to read aloud into a microphone. "Here ye, Here ye, we are gathered today to witness the execution of one Pam Reed, convicted of the kidnapping of Dr. Brent Dorn and Sheriff's Deputy Matthew Schultz."

"She didn't do it!" a voice yelled out from the crowd. "She was framed!"

"Please be silent," the clerk replied. "The ruling of the court is final."

Matthew stood in the crowd off to the side not getting involved in the execution. The sheriff gave him the day off on purpose so he could stay away but decided to come anyway. There was a lot of contention on whether or not Shultz had anything to do with the kidnapping or not. Dr. Dorn wasn't allowed to testify so it was a he said she said between Pam and Schultz.

"Are there any final words you'd like to say?" the clerk asked Pam.

"Yes, I do," Pam said.

The clerk picked up the microphone stand and brought it over to where Pam was standing over the trap door. "Say your peace," the clerk said.

"Ok, first of all, yeah, I kidnapped the doctor. So fucking what? He did the world a favor killing that asshole who botched up my surgery. As far as I'm concerned, he's a hero, not a murderer. And second, I didn't do this alone. Deputy Schultz should be right behind me and he got off with no punishment. Do you think I could kidnap a grown man with a gun?"

"Are you finished?" the clerk asked.

"Screw you!" Pam said to the clerk. "I got two minutes to live and you can't spare me a second of it?"

The clerk backed off.

"I want all of you to know that I was royally screwed over. You will see one day I will be vindicated, but by then I'll be in the ground!" Pam stopped talking and looked away.

The clerk took the microphone and nodded to the executioner to go ahead with his job. Grabbing a black sack from a satchel, the executioner placed it over Pam's head and then placed the noose around her neck pulling it snug. Once he was happy with the placement of the rope, he backed away and walked to the lever that controlled the trap door. Checking with the clerk to make sure it was alright to proceed, the executioner pulled the lever sending Pam down through the trap door towards the ground. Then everyone heard a popping sound and watched Pam's body hit the dirt without her head. Looking up, they saw her head as it dangled from the rope.

The crowd gasped in horror as Pam's body moved on its own without a head.

"It's alive!" someone yelled. "Kill it!"

Pam's body continued to crawl around until it reached one of the upright posts that was part of the gallows structure. The body grabbed the post with both hands and used it to guide itself into a standing position. A bit wobbly, the body managed to right itself and stand facing towards the right side of the crowd trying to keep its balance.

Once the executioner heard the crowd and saw what happened, he pulled up on the rope until the head was back above the trap door and resting on the wood floor. He then leaned down, pulled the rope off the neck and removed the black sack revealing Pam's living head. Her eyes looked at the executioner and her lips and jaw moved, but no sound came from her. Shocked, the executioner pushed Pam's head on the walkway and backed away.

"What's going on?" the clerk asked.

"She's not dead!" the executioner yelled.

"What do you mean not dead?"

"Look for yourself."

The clerk stepped over to Pam's head and moved around until he could see her face. It was then he saw her blink and then her mouth move. "Call the sheriff," the clerk said.

"I'm already here," Ed said as he climbed the stairs of the gallows. Once to the top, he ran over to where the clerk was standing and looked down at Pam. "What the fuck?" Ed asked.

"Do something," the clerk said.

"Do what? This looks more like a medical issue."

"She's supposed to be dead."

"What am I supposed to do about it?"

"Kill her."

"You tried that, I think it's illegal to do it twice," Ed said.

"Then remove her, we can't have a scene. The television people will put this on the news."

"I'm sure it already is, those are live trucks parked around the courthouse."

The clerk shook her head in disgust. "This is your problem, I'm a clerk, and you're the sheriff, take care of it."

"Maybe you should get a judge on the phone, or maybe the mayor," Ed said.

"I don't have time for such nonsense. My job is done, good day," the clerk said and she walked away to the steps and left Ed behind to figure this mess out for himself.

The first thing Ed thought of was to address the crowd so he walked over to the microphone and raised his arms to get everyone's attention. "Excuse me!" he yelled. "I need your attention. We seem to have a situation here and I need for all of you to please vacate the area. We have a possibility of biological contamination and for your own safety, you need to go." Ed thought that was a pretty good lie and might actually work until he could figure out what was going on.

Then a reporter ran up to the front of the dispersing crowd with a camera person yelling, "Sheriff! What can you tell us about this botched execution?"

"Botched execution? I have no idea what you're talking about."

"Look down here, her body is still alive!"

"Don't believe everything you see, now get back in your truck before you get sick."

"What kind of contamination are you talking about?" the reporter asked.

"What kind of stupid are you? I said get back in your truck. You want to die?"

"Does this have something to do with you being a zombie? Did you spread some sort of virus that brings back people from the dead?"

"No comment, now move along."

"Are you spreading a disease?"

Ed was at the end of his rope and about ready to shoot the reporter for being a pest. "If you don't leave now, I will have you arrested for unlawful gathering. I told you this area is unsafe and you need to leave!"

Ed looked down and watched as the reporter told his camera person to get a good close up of Pam's body as she balanced herself against the gallows uprights.

"You got to the count of ten to move or I'll do what I have to, to make you leave!" Ed yelled.

"We have rights!" the reporter yelled. Then the reporter told the camera person to point the camera up at Ed. "You do anything to us and it will be live on television!"

Ed knew he was fucked and decided to back off. He then reached down and picked up Pam's head and noticed something he never saw before. With her make up smudged, she looked a lot like him. Like a zombie. "Pam, I hope you can hear me, is there something you want to tell me?" Ed asked.

Pam moved her lips but no sound came out.

"Stop," Ed said. "I'm going to ask you a question, if the answer is yes, blink once, if it's no, blink twice."

Pam blinked once.

"Are you a zombie?"

Pam stared at Ed and didn't blink at first, then she blinked once.

"So there were more than three of us that survived the cholera?"

"Pam blinked once again.

"Where have you been living all this time? Never mind, I'll figure that part out later."

That night, Ed came to the hospital where a surgeon had attached a hose from where Pam's trachea tore apart on her body to the same spot on her head so she could talk. Her head rest between two pillows on a bench while her body sat in a chair next to it. Although raspy, she could be heard and understood.

Ed sat down beside her on a hospital bed with a notepad in his hand. "Hi Pam, I see they got you all hooked up."

"Yes," she replied.

"Earlier I asked you about where you've been all this time, I'd like you to fill me in if you could," Ed said.

"While you were being held prisoner at the university, I was out living a life," Pam replied.

"Did you look like me or Matthew? I mean we don't blend in well."

"I learned how to use make up fast. At first I played like I was sick, but it wasn't hard to blend in," Pam replied.

"How did you support yourself? Where did you live?" Ed asked.

"I did what I did before I got the disease. I found a job doing housework and cooking for families. I got paid under the table and there was no trace of me."

"Why didn't you seek help? You could have gone to a hospital."

"I spent my life living on my own and making my own way. Going for help wasn't something I was comfortable doing. Plus I wasn't that hungry most of the time and only required a roof over my head."

"Then how did you get into law enforcement? Why did you apply for the deputy job?"

"To get close to my own kind. You and Matthew never hid what you were, and I admired that. So in a way I wanted to share what I was going through with people who also were going through it."

"Why didn't you come out and tell me right away?"

"I figured you'd find out eventually," Pam said.

"And what about this boob job? You were asking to be found out."

"I was found out, but the doctors can't legally say anything."

"So Dr. Newman knew all along you were a zombie."

"Yes. And so did his partner Dr. Dorn."

"Is that why you kidnapped him?"

"No, I kidnapped him because he killed that fucker Dr. Newman."

"How did you expect any doctor to do surgery on someone whose body no longer functions like a regular person? You set him up to fail."

"He could have fixed what he did, he refused," Pam said. She was pissed.

"We don't heal at the same rate as normal humans. It would take years for your boob job to look right."

"I gave him long enough."

"How long?"

"I said long enough."

"You've never been a patient woman."

"He got what he deserved, I didn't kill him," Pam said.

"You said Dr. Dorn also knew, why didn't you blame him?"

"I did at first, for not sticking up for me, but when he blew that fucker away, he became my hero."

"Interesting, so now your head and your body is connected by a tube. That's going to take years to heal as well."

"They can put in rods till it's healed, you won't be able to tell the difference," Pam said.

"Yeah, but you're also supposed to be dead, by court order."

"No, double jeopardy, I'm a free woman," Pam replied.

"I don't think it works that way," Ed replied.

# Chapter 9

# The next week

Pam sat in a cell at the courthouse awaiting her fate. The county attorney put in a request that the execution be held again, this time by a method that would be sure to end Pam's life. From what she heard, the recommendation was burning at the stake or put in a wood chipper. Then she heard the sheriff walking down the hall talking to a woman, the voice she recognized as her lawyer and ex sister-in-law Susan Hanson.

"How are you doing today?" Hanson asked as she approached the cell.

"They reattached my head, temporarily," Pam replied. "They have to order some parts to make it permanent."

"I have news for you," Hanson said.

"Are you coming in the cell?" Pam asked.

"Yes," Susan said as she looked to the sheriff.

"Sorry," Ed said and signaled the dispatch to open the door.

With a clink and a clunk, the door slid open and Hansen stepped inside. Ed signaled for the door to shut and walked away leaving the two women to discuss Pam's case.

"What's the news?" Pam asked.

"Well, the bad news is that the county attorney wants to hold a second execution as soon as possible, tomorrow if he can get away with it."

"Is there good news?"

"Yes, the ACLU called and offered their services. They are in agreement that since you are one of only three known zombies that your sentence should be commuted to life. They also disagree with the decision to make kidnapping a capital offense."

"Why is it a capital offense? Nobody died," Pam asked.

"It wasn't always like that, the law was changed a few years back due to some knee jerk reaction to some crybaby politician who was kidnapped. He made it his mission to change the law and got his way. You have protesters outside the jail right now."

"I do? Cool," Pam said. "So now what?"

"So now I go down to the courthouse and put in a motion to have your execution stayed until we can get this straightened out," Hanson said.

"What if he says no?"

"They always say yes, if he says no the ACLU will file and if the judge loses on appeal he won't get reelected."

"So I'm safe for now," Pam stated.

"Yes, for now," Hanson replied. "But I do have to say that there are protesters out there who are against you as well."

"What? Why?"

"They think you're going to get special treatment because you're a zombie. They don't think you should be able to get around the law just because of what you are. To them, the law is the law," Hanson said.

"Fuck them," Pam said.

"I'm not here to agree or disagree with them, I'm here to serve my client to the best of my abilities. But I'd watch out if I were you. If any reporters get ahold of you, don't say a word. If it gets out that you're a belligerent bitch, they'll roast you out on the courthouse lawn in a second."

"Will I have another trial?" Pam asked.

"No, you've been convicted, the issue is the punishment. We'll stand before a judge again to argue, but you will serve some sort of punishment. Just depends on what the judge says," Hanson replied.

Two days later Pam and her lawyer were in the courtroom of Judge Vern Bramhall ready to make the argument that another attempt at killing Pam was double jeopardy. They were also going to claim that Pam was no longer human and therefore human laws no longer applied to her. The last argument was that she was rare and that killing her would be tantamount to species extinction. They were confident that one of the arguments would work and that Pam would receive life in prison and not execution.

"All rise," the bailiff said and everyone stood as the judge entered the chambers.

"You may be seated," the judge said and everyone sat down.

"Your honor, we have Reed versus the county of Colfax," the bailiff said aloud.

"What does the county have to say?" Judge Bramhall asked.

The county attorney stood up and walked away from his table. "The county asserts that the condemned serve out her sentence of death immediately that is all."

"How does the defendant respond?' the judge asked.

Hanson stood up and stated, "We contend that another attempt at killing my client would put her in double jeopardy, we also contend that since she's a zombie and no longer human, that human laws no longer apply to her. And lastly, we call upon the court to realize that as a zombie, she is one of only three living examples alive today. Killing her would be a tragedy of epic proportions."

"Thank you, the county will begin arguments," the judge said.

The county attorney stood again and found a spot to stand halfway between his table and the judge's bench. "I would like to address all three points made by the defendant one at a time. First, double jeopardy does not apply to the punishment phase of a court action. It only applies to the trial itself, once the defendant was found guilty of the capital crime of kidnapping, her options were gone. In double jeopardy, you can't be tried for the same crime twice, but there is no provisions for not being executed twice.

The second point I will address will be the contention that the defendant is no longer human and no longer is subject to human laws. The defendant has not brought in any medical experts to establish her claim as fact. Just saying the defendant isn't human doesn't make it so. She may be different than the rest of us, but that doesn't make her anything else. She had human parents, I've never heard of anything but a human born from a human. She may be a zombie, but to me that's neither here nor there.

The third point I want to address is the claim that executing the defendant would be the same as exterminating a species. There is no scientific proof that zombism creates a different species. From what I have read, it's more like a medical condition, like leprosy or flesh eating bacteria. I don't claim to be an expert in the medical field, but I believe it is apparent that the defendant is not a separate species and in fact is as human as the rest of us," the county attorney said.

"How do you reply?" the judge asked Hanson as the county attorney sat down.

Hanson stood up with papers in her hand. "I have medical studies that proves the county wrong," Hanson said as she held the paper up for everyone to see.

"Did you provide those to the county?" the judge asked.

"Yes your honor," Hanson replied.

"Go on."

"According to the studies done at the University of Idaho, zombism is more than a medical condition. It actually changes the persons DNA. It creates a new species. Zombies can't breed with other humans that is one of the hallmarks of what makes a species."

"If this is true, why didn't you bring it up at trial?" the judge asked.

"I didn't know this evidence existed at trial. It wasn't until yesterday that one of the professors at the university read about the trial and brought me this information."

"Let me see that," the judge said. The bailiff took the paperwork from Hansen and set it on the bench. "I'll read this in my chambers later, what else do you have?"

"We do contend that attempting to execute my client would be double jeopardy. There is a case in Ohio right now of convicted killer Romell Broom who was repeatedly stuck with IV needles at his execution. They couldn't find a vein and survived and is now suing to have his execution stayed permanently due to double jeopardy," Hanson stated.

"Objection!" the county attorney stated. "I've read about that case, they never got the injection started so there is a claim that there was no execution to start with. You can't have double jeopardy if the procedure didn't occur. If the lethal injection made it into his body and still survived, I'd see your point, but they never got that far."

"I'll take that into consideration," the judge said. "I can't rule on that until I do some research. Is there anything else you want to say?"

"We rest your honor," Hanson said.

"Does the county have any further arguments?"

"No your honor," the county attorney stated.

"We will recess until tomorrow at two, I should have my decision by then," the judge said.

Back at the law enforcement center, Ed came to Pam's cell with some papers in his hand. He was smiling and trying not to freak his former deputy out. He rattled the papers and got her attention. "How's it going?" Ed asked.

Pam sat up from lying on the cold steel bench dressed in her orange jumpsuit. "I don't know, I think I have a good chance, but it could go either way. What do you have there?" Pam asked.

"This is the report from the Henderson hog farm. Remember those water tanks filled with pond scum? Turns out the Henderson's were trying to cross lake plants with pot and make some sort of hybrid."

"What the fuck?" Pam asked.

"They had some ingenious plan to hide a drug operation by growing it in lakes and ponds. They figured nobody would look for it there."

"What did they find?"

"Turns out hog farmers should stick to farming hogs. All they did was get busted for growing the pot. The water plants didn't do anything. They would have been better off putting fish in those tanks, at least then they could have started a bait shop," Ed said.

"They shot Matthew over some stupid science experiment?" Pam said with a smile.

"Yes, and because of that, the Henderson's are now either in jail or the state penitentiary. The farm was seized and the hogs were sold off."

"What a bunch of dumb fucks," Pam said.

"I thought that might cheer you up."

"Yeah, thanks," Pam said. "Have you heard anything about my case? Are they putting up a wooden stake outside the courthouse to burn me up?"

"I hear rumors, but rumors don't mean shit," Ed said.

"What kind of rumors?"

"Coffee shop rumors, I shouldn't have said anything."

"No, you brought it up, what have you heard?" Pam asked.

Ed hesitated and shuffled around. "Just some assholes saying you're not going to win, you know how people talk in this town."

"Yeah, I do," Pam said. "They're probably printing t shirts right now that say burn the zombie. People are assholes."

"Exactly, so don't get worked up about it. I'm sure the judge will do the right thing," Ed said.

"I've been on the stand in his court plenty of times testifying. I'm not a big fan of his," Pam said.

"Then why didn't your lawyer ask for a different judge?"

"Because Judge Bailey would have been ten times worse," Pam replied.

"You're probably right about that," Ed said. "I think you have a great case, don't worry about it, you'll be fine."

"That's easy for you to say, you're on the other side of the bars."

"Hey now, they did say I'm a freak too you know. This affects me as well."

"Like how?" Pam asked.

"If they rule you're not human, that means I could lose my social security, not be able to have a driver's license, all sorts of shit. I might lose my job as sheriff and end up living on the street begging for food."

"You eat human flesh, who's going to give you that?" Pam asked.

"That brings up an interesting question, where did you get your food all these years? You didn't have a contract with a hospital,"

Pam looked away and didn't answer.

# 

# Chapter 10

# Trinity

Pam was called to stand to hear the decision the judge made in the argument on whether or not a second execution would be double jeopardy. Standing beside her was her lawyer and ex sister-in-law Susan Hanson.

"All rise," the bailiff stated and the judge took his seat.

"Be seated," the judge said as he gathered his papers before him. "This was a first a difficult decision but became very clear to me once I looked at the law and the evidence. The issue that led me to my decision was whether or not the defendant was in fact a human and fell under the umbrella of human law. The issue is what makes a human a human? Is it how you were born? Can that change over time? It leads to the very idea of having a soul. If indeed the defendant was born human and somehow evolved or morphed into something else, did her soul stay with her or leave?

I do realize I am speaking from a religious point of view, but science has not defined what a human is now that we have zombies living amongst us. It is obvious from the science that something has changed, but the very definition of human no longer covers the zombie population. Yet they exist and have most of the human characteristics we humans do. So I had to abandon that line of thinking and go with what I consider to be the law. I had to do this because in my gut I feel that zombies are not human and are not covered by human law. In saying that, the trial that sent her to the gallows should never have taken place. But it did and we can't go back and change that.

Therefore, as I see it, since the defendant did go through with the execution, an illegal execution at that. She should not be executed again. Not under the law as it reads. Until the lawmakers can address the zombie population, and include them in our laws, I rule that the defendant, Pam Reed be allowed her freedom."

The crowd erupted once the judge's decision was read. It was a bombshell as most people expected to see Pam burned at the stake later that day. A wooden pole had been erected in the courthouse lawn just to accommodate that very event.

Sheriff Ed Pool stood at the back of the gallery and felt very nervous. He could see he had a mob in the making who were planning on seeing a zombie burn to death and now were very disappointed. As a zombie himself, Ed felt like his life was in danger. Then he heard a voice on his radio, it was Matthew. "Sheriff, you better come out here, there's a group of kids messing with your patrol car."

"10-4" Ed said and took off out the door and out of the courthouse. What he saw was a group of ten or so high school aged kids rocking his patrol car side to side as if they were trying to tip it on its side. With a rush of adrenaline, Ed took off running across the lawn, past the wood stake and over to his car. He drew his gun and pointed it in the direction of the crowd. "Back away!" Ed yelled.

The mob stopped rocking the sheriff vehicle and turned to face Ed. One of the kids stepped close and raised his arms as to say shoot me.

"Get away from the vehicle," Ed said. He tried to use a calm steady voice.

"You're not human, I don't have to do anything you say," the kid said. His name was Mike.

"That's not what the judge meant, and he doesn't have the ability to make that ruling. I'm as much a human as you are."

"You're in denial, he said you're not human, don't you listen? If you're a human, why do you look like a freak?"

"It's part of the disease process, I have an illness, that's all."

"Illness my ass you're an aberration of nature," Mike said.

"You need to back off and disperse, this is an illegal gathering," Ed said.

"You don't have the right to tell me what to do anymore, you're not the sheriff."

"Until I am recalled by the county, or I quit, I'm the sheriff, now I said disperse!"

"How are you going to make us do anything? There's one of you and ten of us."

Ed knew the kid was right, how he was going to stop them when he was so greatly outnumbered. Looking back, rushing the scene was a bad decision. He called dispatch. "I need backup at the courthouse, send state patrol," Ed said.

The dispatcher replied, "10-4."

Then Ed saw a pickup pull up to the curb and two men jump out and walk to the back. They pulled out two more long wood poles and dragged them across the lawn to where the first pole was erected for the burning of Pam. In his mind he had an idea that those two new poles were for him and Matthew. Once the mob turned into a riot, he wouldn't stand a chance. But his vehicle was blocked and he had nowhere to go.

"See that?" Mike asked. "You and your deputy are going to join that bitch on the pole."

Now Ed began to panic, he needed to get away before these kids grabbed him. "You lay a finger on me and I'll put a bullet in your brain," Ed said as he pointed the gun at Mike's face.

"Somebody shoot the fucker, he won't die so aim for his gun," the Mike said.

One of the kids ran over to his truck and pulled a deer rifle out of the back seat. He brought the rifle back and tried to hand it to Mike. "No, you shoot him," Mike said.

"He's the sheriff," the kid with the gun said.

"Not anymore."

Then a shot rang out and the gunman bolted to the right. He turned back with a draining bullet wound in his chest. The sheriff didn't shoot so they knew someone else did but no one knew who it was. Then a call from Ed's radio. "Tell them if they don't back off I'll shoot again," Matthew said.

Ed spoke into his radio, "They hear you loud and clear."

The kids knew the deputy was hiding somewhere taking aim at them. And they knew it was time to go. "If I were you, I'd be leaving soon," the Mike said. "On second thought," Mike added as he looked over Ed's shoulder.

Ed turned to see another mob coming his way. This group was armed and was made up of mainly pissed off adults. "Tie him up," one of the men yelled. "They got the poles in the ground."

Ed looked over at the courthouse and saw that the spot where the single pole was erected now had three side by side.

"What are you doing Stan?" Ed asked.

"We expected a roast and damn if we're not going to have one!" Stan replied.

"That's murder and you know it!"

"I don't see it that way Ed, I see it as exterminating a diseased freak. You never should have been voted in as sheriff in the first place. I don't know what the people of this county were thinking."

"My deputy has a rifle and he's going to shoot you if you touch me," Ed said.

"No, he's being dragged down off the clock tower as we speak. He'll be tied up soon," Stan replied.

"I didn't commit a crime, neither did Matthew."

"Like I said, you have a disease and I don't want you infecting everyone. We're doing the world a favor."

"I had a disease, I had cholera, I don't have it anymore."

"You look like a dead man, you scare the kids when you come around. People despise you and your kind," Stan said.

"That's no reason to kill me," Ed said. "According to the university, I'm not contagious."

"What about the woman?"

"Didn't you read the papers? She was a zombie to start with, she was hiding this whole time!"

"No, she was in your jail and you infected her. Now she's like you," Stan said.

"You have no idea what you're talking about. You're going to burn me to death based on incorrect information! You're letting your emotions get to you!" Ed yelled.

"I'm not stupid sheriff," Stan said. "Now give me the gun."

Ed raised the gun and pointed it at Stan's face. "No," Ed said. "Take it from me if you're so smart."

"You're prolonging the inevitable, give me the gun."

"You think I'm going to give up that easy? I died once, I've been through more hell than you'll ever know and I never gave up. Fuck you Stan," Ed replied.

Then Ed felt someone slam into his side and tackle him to the ground. Before he could let off a shot his gun was pulled from his hand and he was dragged across the lawn to where Pam and Matthew were being tied to poles. Raised up on a ladder, a group of men held Ed against the last erect pole while another man wrapped rope around his body securing him. All around the base of the poles was chopped wood that was scattered around and piled up for the fire.

It took only a few minutes to tie up the three zombies to the wood stakes. It took less time than that for a huge crowd to form to watch the show. No one stood up to speak on behalf of the crowd and no one spoke on behalf of the three zombies that were about to meet their fate. Two men poured gasoline on the wood and another tossed on a match lighting up the fuel in a blaze that consumed the three in an instant.

The next day in the paper, it read that a mob had taken the three zombies and murdered them in cold blood on the courthouse lawn. The state patrol came in and found the men who had set the fire and placed them into custody. In the ashes of the fire, a single arm was found, still moving on its own. It was determined that the arm belonged to deputy sheriff Matthew Schultz and was sent to the University of Idaho to be kept for study. It was true that zombism is not a disease and that it can't be transmitted like the flu, but it did scare a lot of people. The same people who found it so easy to murder three innocent victims because they looked different than anyone else.

In the law enforcement center, a plaque was hung to commemorate the three zombies who had worked for the sheriff's department and how they died that morning. The county commissioners considered for a time renaming the law enforcement center the "Ed Pool memorial law enforcement center" but it was decided not too since it would remind everyone around what a horrible atrocity was done. The last thing Colfax County needed was bad publicity that made the towns people seem less human than the zombies they killed.

The End

