Justice looked up. “Shit!” The zombies must’ve been closer than he thought. One must’ve grabbed Merlin through the fence or jumped on the car or something. Justice didn’t know what had happened, but what he did know was that he’d put his partner in jeopardy for no good reason and now he felt terrible.

He made light of losing so many partners, but it took its toll. No man, no matter how big a jerk, deserved to be ripped apart by zombies. Not even Merlin.

In a heartbeat, Justice pulled the parking brake and grabbed his ax and shotgun. He burst out of the cab, gun leveled, ax strapped to his back. “Merlin? Merlin, just stay still. I’m coming for you.”

“Yoo-hoo!”

The sound was above and behind him. Justice brought up his gun, ready to shoot. He whirled around and froze when he saw Merlin sitting cross-legged on top of his car.

Looking unimpressed, Merlin patted imaginary dirt from his suit. “Asshole. You could’ve gotten tire marks on my couture.”

To avoid shooting him as much as to keep abreast of their situation out in the open, Justice whirled back around. “How did you get up there? Did a zombie throw you?”

“Hah!” Merlin jumped from the roof of the Hummer, landing just behind Justice. “A zombie throwing me! No. I jumped, you homicidal maniac. You were going to run me over!”

Justice pointed the shotgun at the gate and then whirled around again, aiming down the long, dusty road to the factory proper. It was lined with weeds, but there were ruts where vehicles drove through. “I didn’t see you jump.”

“I’m very fast.” Merlin helped himself to the ax on Justice’s back.

“A little too fast. Are you sure you’re not part zombie?” Justice started down the road toward the building without looking back. He was annoyed that Merlin hadn’t brought his own weapon, but his heart was still pounding.

“Yeah, because zombies are known for their swiftness.” Merlin double-timed his steps so that he stood in line with Justice. “Try to think of me as a blond ninja.”

The way Merlin held the ax, it wasn’t hard to picture him with a katana. Justice took a deep breath as the groans from the dildo factory carried on the wind. He patted his pocket to make sure he had more shells before advancing. “Remember, some of these zombies are laborers; we don’t want to hurt the productive ones.”

“That’s a pretty liberal attitude for an enforcer.” Merlin kept advancing, not even slowing as they stepped past a little pond and finally onto the edges of a gravel parking area. “You think they’re still people? That there’s a way back for them?”

Ahead, the heavy metal door was open, decorated with a spray of blood. Bloody drag marks led the way inside. “Nobody knows. It could just be a virus. Maybe it’s something we’ll find a cure for.”

Merlin rolled his shoulders back to brace himself. “Sounds like you have a dog in that fight.”

A zombie lumbered out the door; its long, scraggly hair was caught in its bloody mouth. It wore a T-shirt and jeans, could’ve been anybody. Its eyes were bright red where the white should’ve been; its nose was missing, possibly chewed off.

Justice shot. Its head skidded off its shoulders, slammed against the door behind it, and then exploded from the bullet spray. “Don’t want to talk about it.”

Out of the corner of his eye, he could see Merlin giving him a questioning look, but rather than responding, he reloaded.

“Fair enough.” Merlin faced the door, stepping toward it as a skinny girl with a surprisingly round posterior ran out. She was screaming, waving her arms.

Justice couldn’t see her face to identify whether she was dead or alive. Merlin held his hand up and crossed in front of Justice to get close enough to see.

She howled and threw her head and arms back, screaming at the sky, and then charged at Merlin.

“Get down!” Justice shouted.

“No, don’t shoot.” Merlin spread his fingers, not turning around to face him.

The woman leaped for Merlin. He caught her, and she sobbed on his shoulder.

A woman. Alive. Justice held his gun up to approach. “There’s a red Hummer around the corner. It’s safe. Wait for us there.”

The woman didn’t look as if she wanted to let go of Merlin, but he managed to slip from her grasp. “It’s okay, lady. It’s going to be all right. Just get in the car, okay?”

She looked at them both and shook her head, grabbing her hair. “Don’t go in there. Don’t go in!”

Justice shook his head. “We’re ZoCOS, miss. It’s our job to go in. If you don’t see us in another hour, the keys are in the ignition. Take yourself to safety.”

When he turned around, Merlin was studying him again, so hard that he didn’t appear to hear the zombie creeping up behind him. Justice grabbed Merlin by his bratty little tie and threw him aside as Justice leveled the shotgun on the growling scab-bucket and shot.

~~This series will continue in daily increments through the end of March 2026. After that, it will be once a week on Tuesdays~~