The Decaying World Saga Box Set [Prequel #1-#2 & Books #1-#2]

by Garza, Michael W.

  “They’re guarding the exit,” Jafar said in a hushed voice.

  “We can get in the gym back there,” Michael said pointing the way they had come. “We can get out on the field through the fire exits.”

  Jafar started moving before the group had time to think about it. He was leading the way with Michael close by. They were midway down the corridor when Michael pointed out the gymnasium sign posted on the far wall. The double doors were partially open, each side showing signs of abuse. The blood-soiled panels offered a foreboding warning.

  “It’s dark in there.”

  Jafar’s statement wasn’t relaying confidence, but Chris’s attention was on the growing sounds echoing in the halls. He guessed the gunmen had reached the main office. “We can’t go back,” he said, whispering more to himself than anyone else.

  “You’re sure we can get out of there?” Jenn asked Michael.

  He nodded. “Yeah sure, I’ve been in there hundreds of times. The doors on the other side open up to the football field.”

  Jafar pulled at one side of the doors, and the screech it gave rang out an alarm. The sudden lack of chatter from the gunmen told Chris their time was up. If the group hadn’t been sure of their location before, they were now. He gave up on surprise and helped Jafar pull the door the rest of the way open. The silence that followed only increased the growing anxiety.

  Chris plunged into the darkness, calling Jenn to follow him. Michael went next with Jafar taking up the rear. He tried in vain to close the door as he went, and the opening made an easy target. Chris hoped they’d be out on the football field before their pursuers found them.

  The pitch darkness was more complete than any of them had anticipated. Once out of the light from the doorway, Chris couldn’t see Jenn only a foot away. He focused on the sound of her breathing and realized there was something else in the darkness with them. Slow but steady, a constant sound rose and fell away at an impossibly perfect rhythm. Chris slowed and then stopped as an all-consuming fear abruptly gripped his mind. He held out his hand and found Jenn’s in the dark.

  Jenn stopped and her hand shook with his. Chris knew at once that whatever the sound was, she could hear it too. Jafar bumped into them from behind but did not call out. They were all deathly still and the rhythmic wave washed over them in the darkness.

  Chris held his breath and let go of Jenn. He slid his hand into his pocket and fished out his lighter. He pulled it up and tried to keep his hand steady as he flicked the wheel. The spark lit up twice before the flame caught.

  Chris saw Jenn’s face first. She was close to him, leaning in over the flame. He turned to find Michael and Jafar a foot behind. Chris raised the lighter up over his head and turned in the direction of the rear wall. The light broke the darkness immediately around them and produced a hopeless beacon, revealing the dirty basketball court beneath their feet. He took a step away from the others, and then froze mid stride.

  The light revealed a shape at its edge that Chris could not piece together. A moment of clarity told him it was an arm and a shoulder. There was no sound above the wave of rolling breath. Chris watched the limb move in unison with the sound and he knew at once, what it was. He moved the light ever so slightly to expose a standing figure, its head tucked down toward the floor. Its heaving breaths were only one small part of the chorus.

  The dark lines on the figure’s skin and bloodstained clothes marked it as one of the infected. The light wavered as Chris felt terror grip his heart. He continued his turn and the glow found one figure after another, more than he cared to count. Each one stood in a frozen stance similar to the first.

  Chris finished his turn and found Jenn, Michael, and Jafar staring at him under the faint light. The look on their faces told him they’d seen what the light revealed and knew what waited in the darkness. A single tear ran down Michael’s cheek as the weight of the moment crashed down upon him. Chris nodded as he tried to gather his courage. He released the tab on the lighter and the flame went out. He reached for the others and pulled everyone into a tight circle.

  “We have to go forward,” he whispered. He wasn’t sure he believed his own advice, but he knew the gunmen would find the gym at any moment. “Michael, I need you to guide me.” He paused, waiting for a response that didn’t come. “Can you do that?” The silence continued for several seconds before the reply.

  “I think so.”

  They spoke no more. Michael maneuvered around until he was in front of the group. Chris slid his rifle over his shoulder and grabbed hold of Michael’s shirt. He raised the lighter up as Jenn and Jafar got in line behind him, all grabbing hold of one another. Chris flicked the lighter and the petty light returned. He had to shove Michael to get him to move.

  They walked like a human centipede at a slow, deliberate pace. Chris felt Michael’s resistance with every step. The first of the infected came into the light and Michael froze. They waited for several agonizing seconds for him to gather the strength to continue. Each step revealed the growing size of the entranced figures. A sea of bodies littered the gym, each marred in stains marking their plight.

  Michael navigated with his eyes focused on the floor, the fear too strong for him to look at his surroundings. The view of the ground offered little relief. Bits of rubbish were mixed with a share of teeth, bones, and smears of unidentifiable remains. The sight of it all highlighted the growing stench among the infected. The excruciating walk came to an abrupt and terrifying end.

  Michael led them to an emergency door and the light shone on a lock and chain wrapped around the handles. Four faces stared at the lock in disbelief. Michael looked back for guidance, but Chris had no directions to give. The flame from the lighter was burning his thumb, but he wasn’t willing to let the light go out. Chris stepped around Michael and approached the door alone. Closer inspection confirmed what they saw; the door was locked up tight.

  A distinct screeching sound pulled their attention to the gymnasium door. Chris let the lighter go out and suddenly found himself standing in complete darkness surrounded by a horde of infected he could no longer see. A lone light pierced the dark from across the gym. The entrance door was forced completely open and the illumination flooded the floor in a rectangular pattern.

  A silhouette filled the doorway, and the rhythmic breaths of the infected hastened. Chris knew their time would soon be up. He felt along the emergency exit, sliding his hands over the chain until he reached the lock. He slammed the lighter into his pocket and slipped the rifle off his shoulder. He pressed the end of the barrel against the lock and waited.

  The scenario that followed played out with a wave of sounds exploding in a series of violent shifts. The rhythmic breathing was pierced by a howling scream. The volume rose as others joined in with the first. A gunshot rang out from the entrance and the infected erupted in a horrific clamor.

  Chris fired his gun, sure the infected would swarm on him at any moment. He felt for the lock and then pulled at the chain. A constant wave of howling and gunfire drowned out everything else. Chris frantically yanked at the chain until the coil unraveled and fell to the floor. One good kick forced the door open and a flood of light exploded in through the opening, setting off a frenzied shrill.

  Chris didn’t look back until he was outside. One by one, Michael, Jenn, and Jafar spilled out of the emergency door, but the infected did not follow them into the light. A rash of gunfire continued from somewhere inside. The turmoil sounded as if the entire building was coming down around them. The horrific howls were only interrupted by the screams of the men trapped inside.

  Chris reached the middle of the football field before turning for another look. Jenn was close to him and Michael had his eyes on the edge of the gym. There was no sign of Sarah or the kids. Jafar kept his pistol aimed on the emergency door, waiting for something to show itself in the light. He called out, his accent thicker in the heat of the moment.

  “We need to keep moving.”

  “Mom!” Michael’s
yell was a shock to everyone’s system. “Mom.”

  “Shut up,” Chris ordered.

  “Chris.” Jenn pulled at him. “She has Jake and Alicen.”

  Chris silently considered if the kids were enough reason for him to go back and look. A moment later, he didn’t have to choose. Sarah’s scream came from somewhere behind them. They all spun around, but there was no clear sign of anyone moving within the trees.

  Michael started running before anyone could stop him. He reached the other side of the field as the dead stepped out into the open. The large shambling pack pushed their way out from under the tree coverage. They moved in various stages of decay focused on the fresh meat of Sarah and the kids running out ahead of them. Sarah screamed at the top of her lungs as she pulled Alicen with one hand and Jake with the other.

  Chris aimed his rifle and then thought better of it. He ran toward Sarah and waved Jenn back as she started sprinting after him. In one awkward turn, he threw the bus keys at her and then continued around and kept going.

  “Get to the bus.”

  Michael reached his mother before Chris got across the field. Chris stopped where he was and steadied himself, taking aim. Michael urged his mother ahead of him and started back as Chris fired. The first round hit a zombie in the leg, and the blow ripped through the putrid flesh and blew chunks of muscle out the back. The second shot caught a female in the face, which exploded like a blood-filled balloon.

  Sarah and the kids rushed past Chris and he slid his gun over his shoulder. He was moving again when Michael caught up to him. They were sprinting full speed, neither bothering to look back at the dead. Zombies didn’t stand a chance of catching up in the open, and Chris knew all they had to do was stay ahead of them. He was more concerned with what might come popping out of the gym.

  They reached the corner of the building, and he heard two distinct sounds. The first hum was the roaring diesel engine of a bus coming to life and the second was a gunshot coming from the parking lot. They passed the school’s main double doors and took in the view of Jafar standing over a dead man and holding his gun on another. The bus pulled back with uneven lurches, plowing the front end into the rear of the bus parked next to it. The bus pulled free and then came to a stop, and the door flung open. Jenn yelled out from the driver’s seat.

  “Get your asses in here.”

  Sarah and the kids ran up the stairs and disappeared inside. Michael was running toward the bus when Chris came to a stop beside Jafar. Chris recognized the man at the other end of the barrel as the one who had locked him up in the storeroom. He had his hands up in defense and a rifle lay on the ground at his feet.

  “You’re going to have to let this one go,” Chris said.

  Jafar took a few steps back, carefully avoiding the dead man at his feet. He never lowered his pistol. “It’s your lucky day, my friend,” he said. “Go.”

  The man turned to run as a hail of gunfire erupted from the school windows. He was hit several times, falling dead before he finished his turn. Jafar was hit but kept moving. Chris pushed him toward the bus and then managed to pick the rifle up off the ground before he followed.

  The bus was moving toward them and Jafar leapt up into the doorway as it picked up speed. The windows along the side shattered as rounds torn into it. Chris ran along the side and dove into the opening as sounds of the kid’s screams filled the interior. The bus swerved as Jenn ducked down, but she kept it heading in the right direction. Two hard turns later and the gunfire stopped.

  Chris focused on Jenn. Her hands were locked on the steering wheel, her knuckles bone white. He stood up and brushed the glass off his lap. He checked himself over and made sure he wasn’t bleeding, and then he scanned the bullet-ridden seats.

  “Is everyone all right?”

  Sarah was crying, but she managed a nod. She had Alicen buried under her arms. The little girl had her eyes closed. Michael was up on his knees in one of the seats, his attention focused on the rear door window. The school was getting smaller as they sped away.

  Jake helped Jafar up into a seat. He had a wound in his shoulder, but it didn’t look bad. Chris turned attention back to Jenn. Some of the color had returned to her knuckles. He rested a hand on her shoulder, and she risked a looked up at him.

  “Impressive,” he said.

  Jenn smiled. “You should see me when I’m really under pressure.”

  15

  It was late. Jenn refused any help driving and once Jafar’s wound was bandaged, there was little for anyone else to do. The group sat in silence, spread out among the rows of seats. Chris stared out the window, thankful that at least for the moment they were still alive.

  His nerves were shot. So much had happened since they pulled out of Denver in that rundown minivan. He hadn’t had any real time to reflect during the entire ordeal that followed their exodus. Now that time was abundant, he didn’t like the thoughts that clung to him.

  Chris had made choices and he realized most of them were as selfish as he’d always been. Had it not been for a few turns of events, he would have abandoned Jenn and the kids on multiple occasions. He knew in his heart that Jenn wouldn’t do that to him. She was stronger than he was. He was no more a leader now than he was when he was on his own. In some ways, he was still that strung out junkie willing to sacrifice anything or anyone to get his next fix.

  The highway was surprisingly clear. The countless abandoned vehicles dotting the road out of Denver gave way to a long open stretch. The highway was lined with endless trees on either side. They passed a few off roads and an occasional sign indicating another small town, but no one lobbied to stop.

  They were safe for now, but everyone knew there were problems ahead. Between the seven of them, they had a few packs of crackers and a sandwich Jake managed to stuff in one of his pockets. Chris figured they would die of thirst long before they starved to death. There was no plan on how to get through the night. They would either risk the sound of the bus drawing attention or stop and hunker down; both posed their share of hazards.

  Chris pushed himself out of his seat and tiptoed past a sleeping Jafar and Jake. He slumped down in the front seat behind Jenn and waited for an invitation. She looked up at him a few times in the mirror above the windshield but never said anything. He wasn’t sure what was going on in her head, but he guessed his lack of response to her question about coming back for her had something to do with it.

  He sat in silence as long as he could and then finally leaned up and looked over her shoulder. The fuel gauge was at fifty percent. The size of the tank told him they had enough gas to get away from Dumont but nowhere near enough to reach Vegas. He added a mental note to the growing list of problems.

  “You want to get some sleep?” he asked.

  Jenn shrugged and tossed the idea around before answering.

  “I think I’m okay for now.”

  Chris looked back at the others and made sure no one was listening.

  “We’re going to have to find some food.”

  “And gas,” she added.

  “I figured that.” He leaned in closer and lowered his voice. “There’s no way to tell what we’ll find out this far in the dark. My guess is we’re too far away from civilization to run into any infected, but I’m not so sure that theory holds up anymore.”

  “I don’t think we should drive at night,” she said. “We’re not up to handling much if it goes bad.”

  Chris was glad someone else made the decision.

  “Just pull over when you’re ready.”

  “Sarah would know where the nearest town is,” she said. “We should make sure we stop short of that. We could try going in at sun up and look for food.”

  Chris nodded, but his mind was on something else. He wasn’t sure he trusted any small town. Dumont might have ruined his impressions for a long time.

  “We need to be careful,” he said.

  “We don’t have a lot of choices,” Jenn replied flatly.

  It was two
hours later when the sun dipped down behind the trees. Most of the group nodded when Chris explained they were going to stop for the night. Only Sarah took issue with it. She made a plea to continue on, but the others were too tired to support her assertion.

  Jenn edged the bus off the road at a wide turn and it came to a stop in a graveled set-aside. She turned the key and the monstrous engine died. The sudden silence was haunting. Chris felt a rush of fear heighten his senses. He started sliding closed the remaining windows left intact from the hail of bullets.

  Jenn double-checked the push bar on the door and then walked back to the center of the bus where everyone had gathered. Alicen lay across one of the seats with her head propped up in her hands supported by her elbows. Her brother sat in the seat across from her. Jafar was lying with his back against a window while Michael and Sarah sat behind everyone. Chris waited for Jenn to take a seat.

  “I think everyone knows most of our problems.” He scanned their faces and saw no argument. “We have to get some food.”

  Jenn cut in. “Do you know anything about the other towns around here?” she asked Sarah.

  Sarah gave a hesitant nod. “But I haven’t been to any of these places since the infection started to spread.” Her pitch rose as the fear grew. “They could all be overrun by the dead or worse. Maybe even a group of those damn men—”

  Chris put his hands up and motioned for her to relax as she started to rise from her seat. “We know that. I’m not saying it won’t be dangerous.”

  “We should only send in one or two people,” Jafar added. “Check it out before we bring in the others, if we bring them in at all.”

  “I’m hungry,” Alicen said. Jake shushed her. “What? I’m hungry,” she repeated.

  Sarah sheepishly looked Chris in the eyes. “We’re not far from Grand Junction.”