The Zombie Proof Fence Read online

  THE ZOMBIE PROOF FENCE

  TONY THOMAS

  Copyright © 2017 by Tony Thomas.

  Library of Congress Control Number: 2017903240

  ISBN: Hardcover 978-1-5245-6119-2

  Softcover 978-1-5245-6118-5

  eBook 978-1-5245-6117-8

  All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the copyright owner.

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

  Any people depicted in stock imagery provided by Thinkstock are models, and such images are being used for illustrative purposes only.

  Certain stock imagery © Thinkstock.

  Rev. date: 03/17/2017

  Xlibris

  1-800-455-039

  www.Xlibris.com.au

  755322

  Contents

  00:30 AEST: Sydney

  01:40 AEST: QF12

  02:00 AEST: Sydney

  02:05 AEST: BA275

  01:00 SST (03:00 AEST): Singapore

  03:15 AEST: BA275

  03:30 AEST: Sydney

  01:30 SST (03:30 AEST): Singapore

  03:50 AEST: Sydney

  03:55 AEST: Sydney

  04:00 AEST: Sydney

  04:15 AEST: BA275

  02:30 SST (04:30 AEST): Singapore

  04:30 AEST: Sydney

  04:45 AEST: Sydney

  05:20 AEST: Sydney

  05:30 AEST: Sydney

  05:30 AEST: BA275

  05:45 AEST: QF12

  05:50 AEST: Sydney

  04:00 SST (06:00 AEST): Singapore

  06:00 AEST: Sydney

  06:15 AEST: QF12 Sydney

  06:15 AEST: Sydney

  06:20 AEST: Sydney

  06:25 AEST: Princes Highway Heathcote

  04:30 SST (06:30 AEST): Singapore

  06:40 AEST: QF12 Sydney

  06:45 AEST: Sydney

  06:45 AEST: Princes Highway

  07:00 AEST: QF12 Sydney

  07:00 AEST: Sydney

  05:00 SST (07:00 AEST): Singapore

  07:00 AEST: BA275

  07:15 AEST: Sydney

  07:15 AEST: Heathcote National Park

  07:30 AEST (05:30 SST)Singapore

  07:45 AEST: Heathcote National Park

  07:50 AEST: Sydney Airport

  08:00 AEST: Sydney

  06:00 SST (08:00 AEST): Singapore

  08:00 AEST: BA275

  8:05 AEST: Sydney Airport

  08:15 AEST: Woronora Dam

  08:25 AEST: BA275

  08:30 AEST: Woronora Dam

  06:30 SST (08:30 AEST): Singapore

  08:30 AEST: Sydney

  08:35 AEST: Sydney Airport

  08:45 AEST: Sydney

  08:45 AEST: Woronora Dam

  08:45 AEST: Sydney

  06:55 SST (08:55 AEST): Singapore

  09:00 AEST: Sydney

  09:00 AEST: Sydney

  09:05 AEST: Woronora Road

  09:15 AEST: Hordern Pavilion

  07:20 SST (09:20 AEST): Singapore

  09:30 AEST: BA275

  09:30 AEST: Sydney

  9:40 AEST: Picton Road

  07:40 SST (09:40 AEST): Singapore

  09:40 AEST: Sydney

  09:45 AEST: Panorama House

  09:45 AEST: Hordern Pavilion

  09:55 AEST: Sydney

  08:00 SST (10:00 AEST): Singapore

  10:00 AEST: Picton Road

  10:05 AEST: Hordern Pavilion

  08:10 SST (10:10 AEST): Singapore

  10:15 AEST: Sydney

  08:25 SST (10:25 AEST): Singapore

  10:30 AEST: Panorama House Lookout

  10:30 AEST: Sydney

  10:30 AEST: Hordern Pavilion

  10:45 AEST: BA275

  08:45 SST (10:45 AEST): Singapore

  10:50 AEST: Sydney

  11:00 AEST: Hordern Pavilion

  11:00 AEST: F3 Freeway

  11:00 AEST: Sydney

  11:15 AEST: Sydney

  11:15 AEST: Hordern Pavilion

  09:15 SST (11:15 AEST): Singapore

  11:30 AEST: Sydney

  11:30 AEST: Hordern Pavilion

  09:45 SST (11:45 AEST): Singapore

  11:45 AEST: Sydney

  11:45 AEST: Centennial Park

  12:00 AEST: Sydney

  12:00 AEST: Randwick

  12:10 AEST: Illawarra Regional Airport Quarantine Station

  10:15 SST (12:15 AEST): Singapore

  12:15 AEST: Randwick

  12:15 AEST: Sydney

  12:35 AEST: Sydney

  12:45 AEST: Albion Park

  12:45 AEST: Randwick

  10:45 SST (12:45 AEST): Singapore

  13:00 AEST: Sydney

  13:00 AEST: Randwick

  13:15 AEST: Sydney

  15:15 SST (13:15 AEST): Singapore

  14:15 AEST: Lady Fuller Park

  14:30 AEST: Sydney

  14:45 AEST: Lawrence Hargrave Hospital

  00:30 AEST: Sydney

  Working after his wife had gone to bed was a tough habit to break, Dan thought as he settled at his desk. For the last three months, he had needed to work late, fortunately at home, but it was starting to take a toll on his marriage. Tonight, they had watched a movie on TV until just before midnight. It wasn’t exactly quality time, but at least they had been in the same room.

  Dan’s conference call was due to start at 1 a.m. The problem with being a small region in a global company was that most of the conference calls were when they were convenient to the US and Europe, Asia Pacific had a low priority.

  Dan had made a three-cup plunger of coffee before heading for his office. After he poured his first cup, he tuned the office TV to a re-run of Dexter, one of his favourite shows. He then started working through his emails, paying little attention to the TV.

  ‘Waves of violence continue unabated throughout much of the United States. . .’

  Dan’s ears pricked up. ‘That’s not part of the Dexter episode,’ he thought. ‘It must be a newsbreak.’ He turned back to work on a proposal that was almost overdue.

  ‘From early reports, the violence started in the early afternoon yesterday and has escalated overnight, spreading throughout the country.’

  This caught Dan’s attention. He watched on for a few more minutes and then decided he should check the other channels. He surfed through three or four but there didn’t seem to be any other newsflashes. Dan assumed that Dexter had finished and some new movie had started, so he switched back, and continued with his emails.

  Coincidentally, he had been working late on September 11, 2001, and had seen the live footage as the attacks unfolded. On that night, every TV station had been broadcasting the same footage. He had sat glued to the TV all night and into the next day as the drama unfolded. He had watched, unable to tear his eyes away, the replays of the planes striking the towers and then the Pentagon. The horrific collapse of the South Tower followed half an hour later by the North Tower. He had been online as emails started to overload the servers as his friends and workmates tried to work out who was safe, and more frighteningly, who was missing.

  ‘Are multiple reports of extremely violent physical attacks, although this has not been confirmed. The White House is appealing for calm as violence is reported to be escalating throughout the nation. There are reports from. . .’

  On that night, he had nearly woken Gen, his wife, to tell
her what was happening. He had reconsidered on reflection that bad news keeps pretty well and things had settled down after the initial flurry of craziness. Naturally, the footage was repeated hundreds of times over the next few days so she hadn’t missed anything.

  ‘Outbreaks of violence continue to be reported throughout Europe and the Middle East. There do not appear to be any common links between the incidents. Jane Palmer in London for. . .’

  Dan gave up all pretence of trying to do email, if this was a disaster movie it wasn’t one he had seen and he thought he had seen all of them. He changed to the News24 channel just to check if this was real. They were now running a ‘Special Report’ as well. He started flicking between the channels and soon found that all the networks were covering the same story.

  ‘Bloody hell,’ he muttered, as he watched the news unfold.

  It looked like the entire Northern Hemisphere was erupting into violence. There was footage of riot police trying to fight back mobs of people in dozens of cities. The news coverage was extremely disjointed, leaping from country to country with reports being cut-off mid spiel.

  ‘The recent violence in Libya escalated yesterday. . .’

  ‘Violence continued to erupt on the streets of Egypt. . .’

  ‘Despite hard-line law enforcement the fighting continues. . .’

  ‘Incidents in all mainland states. . .’

  ‘Fighting in the streets of Belfast. . .’

  ‘Massive riot in Paris stretching the length of the Champs Elysees. . .’

  ‘Violent outbreaks continue to cause havoc throughout Europe and North America. There has been no official statement on the cause of this violence, although we understand the prime minister will address the nation in the next quarter hour.’

  Flicking to other channels only convinced Dan that this was actually real. Something crazy was happening and it was happening all over the world.

  He turned back to his computer and had a look at Twitter. There was a continuous stream of updates on @Reuters and @CNN about riots and ‘violent disturbances’. The top trending hashtag was #riot with hundreds of tweets coming up every second. As usual, Twitter had really told him nothing, but it did give a little flavour to the news he was getting through the major networks. Dan started writing emails to some of his friends and colleagues in Berlin, Munich, London, and Minneapolis. It was early for the US guys, but he figured most people would check email before work.

  Before he had sent his first message, he received a cancellation notice for his 1 a.m. conference call. A moment later, he received an urgent email from the CEO titled ‘Keep Safe’. He opened it immediately.

  From: Marcus Kopfer

  To: Global-All

  Subject: Keep Safe

  Importance: High

  Attention All Employees,

  As you know there have been outbreaks of violence throughout the world. These appear to be completely random and unexplained. The Vorstand have instructed that all offices are to close immediately.

  Our North American staff should stay home. Do not attempt to come into the offices. Please lock all doors and windows and avoid contact with others until more is known about what is happening.

  For those that are on their way to our offices, our security team have been instructed to only admit staff carrying an identification card. No-one else will be admitted to buildings or offices. All doors will be locked with no further people to be admitted after 09:30 am US Central Time.

  Our European staff may either return to their homes or stay in the offices. The offices will be locked down at 4:30pm Central European time.

  Our Asian offices are all closed. If you are still working, go home immediately.

  The Vorstand will issue further information on office closures and planned actions before the end of the day. Until then please stay safe, avoid any signs of trouble and take care of your families.

  Marcus Kopfer, CEO.

  ‘Holy fuck!’ Dan muttered. This was incredible. He gulped down half his coffee as he again turned to the TV, switching back to the ABC 24-hour news channel—hopefully they would have an Australian perspective. In the few minutes since he had opened and read the ‘Keep Safe’ email, there had been additional reports coming in from Russia, Eastern Europe, and Northern Africa. The news station had displayed a graphic with a rotating globe and it seemed that the violence was spreading like a wave around the world. The only places where nothing had yet been reported were in Southern Asia and the South Pacific.

  Just after 1.15 a.m., the prime minister of Britain gave an address which was broadcast live on ABC24.

  ‘My fellow Britons, a wave of unexplained violence is sweeping the nation, and indeed, the world. It appears the violence began several weeks ago in the Middle East. It has spread through Europe, Africa and into North America. While the original outbreaks were controlled by civil law enforcement officials, they are now stretched to breaking point. Violent outbreaks continue to occur and are now escalating to uncontrollable levels. The Home Office has decided to deploy the military to assist with control of these incidents.

  ‘At this time the reason for this violence is unclear, but appears to be associated with some form of infectious disease. Martial Law has been declared, and an immediate curfew has been imposed. Any citizens found on the streets will be detained until peace is restored. Please remain in your homes, avoid all contact with others, and lock all doors and windows. If you witness an outbreak of violence, stay away from it, but contact the authorities on 999 or 112. A web site has been established which will detail the current situation; the address for this site will appear at the bottom of your screen.

  ‘The Home Office will be making regular announcements to advise on the status of this crisis. Rest assured, your government is taking all necessary steps to restore order. Please stay safe and wait for further announcements.’

  Dan leaned back, rolled his neck, and took a deep breath. This was unbelievable. As a big fan of George Romero–style zombie movies, Dan had seen a lot of variations on the ‘Zombie Holocaust’ theme, and this seemed like the start of something out of any one of a dozen movies.

  Dan collected himself, grabbed a notebook, and started to make a list.

  First things first—if this was to spread to Australia, he needed to be prepared. Food topped the list. For the last twelve years, Dan and his wife had shopped on a daily basis. While there were enough canned and dried foods in the house to last a week or two, it would be slim pickings.

  Next was home defence. He couldn’t go out and get a gun, but he could go to the 24 hour Kmart and buy a baseball or cricket bat. He also thought it might be a good idea to board up the windows. Unfortunately the hardware store wasn’t open 24 hours—he would have to wait until morning to pick up what he needed.

  Again Dan thought of waking Gen, but realising it would serve little purpose and that time was of the essence, he grabbed his wallet, keys, and phone and went for the door. It was 1.30 a.m.

  01:40 AEST: QF12

  As Jeff woke for the eighth or ninth time, he checked his watch, it seemed that this flight was never going to end. He was on his way to Australia to interview a new sales rep. Jeff’s company saw Australia as a foothold to Asia. Once they established a presence in a similar economy, it would be relatively easy to take the leap north either through Singapore or Hong Kong, at least, that was the plan. He wasn’t so sure it was as easy as that, but the VP of Sales had insisted he had worked that method for other companies and it had worked well.

  One of his friends that ‘crossed the pond’ regularly had told him to set his watch to Sydney time as soon as he boarded to minimise jet lag. It had seemed to be a sensible suggestion so he had decided to give it a try. It meant that his 11 p.m. departure from LAX was really only 3 p.m. in his new time zone, even though it was 1 a.m. back home in Minneapolis.

  Jeff had a drink at the Sam Adams bar in LAX before boarding the flight. He was then pleasantly surprised to find that he could have a glass
of wine at no charge during the flight, even in economy class, a surprisingly generous standard compared to flying with American carriers. By the time dinner had been served, he had enjoyed a few Cabernets. Despite trying to stay awake a little longer, he had dozed off at about 7 p.m. Sydney time. After a solid four hours sleep, he had then spent the next two or three hours tossing and turning in his too-small economy seat.

  Jeff looked at his watch through bleary eyes—1.41 a.m.—only about four and a half hours to go. It was nine hours into his trip from Los Angeles to Sydney and he was going to be extremely pleased to get off the plane. ‘God damn economy class,’ he thought. Jeff doubted he would go back to sleep now. Maybe he could get something else to eat—he didn’t think breakfast would start for a few more hours. He turned on the in-seat video and found the ‘Flight Path’ channel, figuring that he might as well see how far they were from land.

  As the screen came on he saw they were still over water. It was only when the map zoomed out to the whole globe that there were any landmarks. He wondered what islands Apia and Suva were on. Either way—the flight time said another four hours and twenty-seven minutes. ‘God this is a big ocean,’ he half muttered to himself.

  Jeff’s next thought was to check if there was a movie he hadn’t seen. He started flicking through the in-seat video channels looking for something to watch. Since he did a lot of travel to Latin America, he had seen all the new releases and most of the ‘Classics’. He ultimately gave up, found a sports update, and zoned out.

  After forty minutes of golf, his bladder got the best of him. He looked around and saw that most people were either sleeping or pretending to sleep in the vague hope that sleep would really come. He had gotten a little luck with this flight—he had a window seat, and Pete, the fit-looking Australian who made him think ‘cowboy’ was on the aisle, but no one was in the middle seat.

  Jeff climbed up to stand on the middle seat, stepped over Pete onto his armrest, and jumped into the aisle. He walked up the darkened airplane to the forward toilets. As expected, there was no queue, so he paid a quick visit.