Death's Little Angels

by Sylver Belle Garcia

  The bus driver reveled up the engine and floored the gas pedal and zipped towards the 13-inch high tall fence. As the bus made its way to freedom Drew looked back and saw a chair, which was broken in half. Mr. Freeman apparently took it from the cafeteria and used the chair as a weapon. Next to the demolished chair laid the disfigured bodies of Billy Duncan and Cookie Rogers. Both of his former classmates lay lifeless with their necks displayed at a bizarre angle.

  Before, passing up the Computer Center, Drew caught a glimpse of Mr. Freeman as he slowly closed and locked the door behind him. His appearance quickly took on that of all the adults that had been bitten by the Eaters….Mummified. Drew reached down and patted the wallet that kept his knife company inside of his back pocket. Loud sounds of hoarse gurgling and moans brought Drew back to reality as he saw a heard of Eaters that included Royal, Kaleb, and many other students moving towards the fleeing bus.

  “Man… he should have come with us,” Drew said as he saw Royal hold out his hands in front him waving blindly. A piece of ragged flesh dangled from Royal’s once picture perfect face.

  “He got what he deserved!” Sue Ellen snap as she rolled her eyes and turned away.

  Mater stared at Drew who in return shrugged his shoulders. Drew felt that the abrupt ending of the world had apparently hardened everyone. A gasp from the bus driver brought everyone’s attention to the front.

  “GET out of the WAY!” The bus driver screeched as his foot kissed the pedal and pushed it all the way to the floor.

  “You are going to hit the teacher!” Drew yelled. Mater covered her ears and Sue Ellen embraced for the impact.

  Drew’s appeal went unheard as the bus driver surged forward towards the once vibrant science teacher who had now fallen to her knees. A loud thud followed by a large bump underneath the tires was the last thing Drew saw of the young teacher before the bus driver brutally plowed her down. The bus leaped through the air as it broke down the locked fence with ease. The bus driver continued down the narrow road leading away from the school and running through several stop signs.

  Along the way, some houses were abandoned while other families were seen swiftly packing their vehicles in an effort to get out of town. There were houses and mobile homes that were boarded up. Drew could not determine if the boarded up homes were from Hurricane Angel or the Eaters but he did know one thing, the town of Wiggins would not hold for much longer due to the rate of this mysterious infection spreading. Drew planned silently in his head.

  Once I make it to the Fairgrounds Center, I will give Mrs. Freeman, Mr. Freeman’s wallet then head off to my Mee-Maws if she hasn’t made it, Drew quietly thought.

  Drew’s grandmother lived approximately two miles from the Fairgrounds Center where the rural area of Wiggins came to life. His next mission, after making it to the Fairgrounds Center would be to get home to his Mee-maw and little sisters at all cost. He stared at Sue Ellen the crush of his life and Mater his good friend and realized they would be okay once they made it to the center as well.

  The bus came to a near screeching halt with the tires sliding on the slick pavement from the recent downpour of rain. They had made it to the railroad tracks, which ran through the heart of the town. The tracks were built over a deep trench that ran about a mile and half long ending right in front of a trailer park. A train had stopped on the tracks nearly blocking the crossroads. At first sight, the train looked as if it had possibly ran out of fuel. As Drew focused in more closer, he noticed a dark skeletal figure sitting in the conductors seat. Drew knew all to well, along with the others, how the poor doomed soul must have met his fate.

  A female student who sat at the back of the bus began to whimper loudly. Mrs. Bond walked back to the student and began to comfort her and the others who joined the young girl like an out of tune chorus.

  “Oh my heavens! What is happening to our town?” Sue Ellen pointed in the direction of Highway 26, which sat displayed to the right side of the bus.

  The highway looked like a mangle mess of jumbled wreckage. Smoke escaped from fresh accidents while the light drizzle of rain caused others. People sat in their cars yelling out of their windows as they lingered impatiently for the line to move an inch. Horns blasted and tires screeched. Some occupants were seen running with their little ones in between cars. Other families were forever sealed in their vehicles, falling victim to the Eater epidemic.

  Gunshots erupted. An older woman had her hunting rifle out blasting away at the Eaters who had ascended upon her family that were barricaded behind a truck. Sprays of blood that looked like rust polluted the air.

  “She is killing kids!” A male student said as he pointed out the window.

  “No she is not! That woman is saving our lives!” Another said.

  Death defying screams that erupted from the front of the bus brought attention back to the more serious matters at hand. The trailer park that sat in front of the railroad tracks was partially hidden by the train. Dread and fearfulness filled the already thick air on the bus as shouts of terror flowed from the mobile homes. The bus driver nervously wiped away the burning perspiration that poured into his eyes. He edged up onto the tracks carefully as not to hit the train. A loud scraping sound like finger nails going down a chalkboard drowned out the horrid yells from the trailer park. The bus jostled violently as the elderly driver tried to prevent the clunker from overturning in the ditch. He cut the steering wheel sharply to the left to break free from the trains grasp. The bus leaned slightly to the left causing the students to topple amongst each other.

  “Everybody rock to the right! Go back towards the right side of the bus!” The bus driver hollered.

  Drew and Mrs. Bond assisted the students in going towards the right side of the bus. The moved worked as the bucket of bolts moved forward slowly and landed back down on all tires.

  “Please guide us, Lord! Help us!” Tarynn yelled as she stood in a seat near Beetle.

  A sigh of relief crossed the bus driver’s face once he thought that he had made it free. The view of the trailer park came into clear view once the bus made it almost past the train. The sight of mayhem and disorder, which was taking place in the trailer park up ahead, frightened everyone on the bus including the bus driver. A group of Eaters that looked to be no more than two to four years old inflicted sheer death and pain amongst those they encountered. They were faster and more monstrous than the Eaters that Drew and the others had previously seen.

  The Eater’s legs moved like a Rooster’s legs, spurring savagely at its prey. They attacked and crawled all over their victims like spiders overwhelming them with tiny bite marks. Drew saw clearly that once the younger batch of Eaters finished with their victims, there was barely anything left that was recognizable. Just a heap of mauled flesh.

  “What in the world are those?” Sue Ellen gasped.

  “Demons not zombies!” Tarynn shouted back. “Those are definitely the Angels of Death!”

  “This only keeps getting worse!” Mater said. Her eyes watered again.

  “Just when I thought we had it good by outrunning those things. The internet didn’t mention those!” Drew exclaimed.

  The students on the bus began shouting and yelling out at the horrific scene displaying in front of them. A young father, who appeared to be in his late twenties, was one of the families trying to escape the slaughter that was being inflicted by the younger Eaters. He carried his son in arms who appeared to be around the age of four. The young man had made it to the entrance of the trailer park, his face covered with fear. The father had a backpack that dangled from his arms as he desperately tried to flag down passerby’s in their cars. The cars hurriedly fled out of the trailer park ignoring the cries from the father and his scared son.

  “For the love of Jesus! Please HELP us!” The distressed father cried as he continued to run with all of his strength.

  A car bailing out of the trailer park, clipped the young father by the leg causing him to fly mid air with his child. The poor un
fortunate soul landed on his neck while the little boy fell on his back in a patch of wilted grass. No movement arose from the young man’s body. The little boy cried as he reached towards his daddy. Drew covered his eyes when he saw the Eaters hungrily pounce upon the little boy.

  What kind of Eaters are those? Drew wondered.

  This breed of zombies was smaller and deadlier. Drew watched as the group of tiny bodies continued to reap havoc upon anything in their path. This smaller version of zombies did not leave any leftovers from its prey. It usually ate them down to the bone unless another live victim caught their attention. Drew shuddered. He knew they were all going to be home free once the bus squeezed past the train. But then the bus stopped….

  Chapter 10

  Oh Drew Jacks, Jacks, Jacks

  All dressed in black, black, black

  With tiny hands, hands, hands

  Clawing at his back, back, back

  “I did it! I did it! Yea! I—“

  The bus driver stop mid sentence as the yellow clunker came to an abrupt standstill. The left back tire made a grinding sound signifying it was stuck in the muddiness of the ditch.

  “Why aren’t we moving? What’s wrong?” Mrs. Bond cried. Her eyes darted back and forth nervously.

  “We are stuck! Can’t move her!” The bus driver shouted back. He switched the gears putting the bus into reverse but to no avail. The old man quickly threw the gears to drive and floored the accelerator. The bus rocked back and forth but would not break free from the earth’s grip. The smell of burnt rubber escaped from underneath the tires and filled Drew’s nostrils. The disgruntled bus driver finally gave up after minutes of fighting with the trench. He put the gears in neutral with the brake on and left the bus engine roaring.

  “We have a problem,” the bus driver said as he stood up to face the occupants.

  “You got to be kidding me…” Drew mumbled.

  The bus driver took a deep breath. “Looks like we are not going anywhere.” He let out a big sigh.

  “I wanna go home!” A male student whined. His red hair was limp from excess heat given off by over crowded bodies.

  “We all want to go home! So shut your face!” Olivia barked. It was her first time speaking out. Sue Ellen slyly grinned at Olivia. She looked like a matted dog with her hair plastered to her skin and face.

  Mrs. Bond raised her hand to calm the feuding duo. “Guys, please…. Arguing is not going to help the situation right now.” The librarian faced the bus driver. She apprehensively glanced out the window.

  “Harry, what are we going to do? We can’t stay here! Or…. Or try to make a run for it! The Children….” Mrs. Bond’s head fell into her hands. The headache that she felt coming on was overwhelming. A soft touch of warmth brought ease to the librarian’s spirit.

  “We can run. I will help you with the little ones and…. With this.” Drew held up his knife. The glossy shine was gone and replaced with tarnished rust. Flakes of crusted blood fell to the aisle. His soft blue eyes gave away the secret he tried to conceal. Fear…

  “I will get us out of this jam,” Harry, the bus driver, said.

  “Who?” Mrs. Bond asked.

  “Me….”

  Harry blinked his wrinkled eyes. He rubbed the picture of the pretty, elderly lady that gracefully decorated his dashboard. The woman he had known and loved with all of his heart for fifty plus years. The lady who bore him five healthy, hardworking children. The lady on the picture was Harry’s backbone, his strength. And now…. There was a possibility that he might never see her again. He rubbed the picture once more and snatched it off the dash startling Drew.

  Noooo! Drew pleaded silently. Don’t take her away!

  Harry placed the picture in the pocket of his shirt.

  “Harry….” Mrs. Bond’s uttered a guttural cry. “Please… Please, don’t go out there! Especially with those little critters running free!”

  “Demons,” Tarynn softly muttered.

  “For heavens sake, Harry! Think of your wife and your family. Look at what those monsters did to that poor baby!” Mrs. Bond cried pointing towards the trailer park.

  Harry studied the students on the bus. He looked at Drew and smiled brightly. It was the only smile that Drew had seen second to him touching the picture of his wife.

  “Mrs. Bond, I have grandchildren these kids here age. And I owe it to them and my wife to get them home safely, even if it means sacrificing my life.”

  Harry gently pushed past the students, in the aisle, and took hold of Ms. Bond’s hand. His touch reserved her. His gaze pierced her soul.

  “I need you to pull it together, Mrs. Bond. I am going to walk outside and give the bus a push. It will only take a minute. I will be right back.”

  “You…You… Can’t!” Mrs. Bond shook her head.

  Harry spoke slowly, enunciating each word carefully. “You. Are going to sit. Behind. The. Steering wheel…”

  “No!”

  “If you don’t help me, Sammie Bond….” Harry looked outside the bus window at the pandemonium that continued to occur. It was only a matter of time before the Eaters recognized the live bait on the bus. “We will all die….”

  Drew watched the interaction between the two adults. For some odd reason he had hoped that Mrs. Bond would put up a fight.

  Fight or Flight, Drew silently thought. I guess we are going to Fight. Drew walked up and grabbed Mrs. Bond’s trembling hands. She slowly blinked back the tears from her watery eyes.

  “I got your back, Mrs. Bond,” Drew reassured her with a half smile.

  Mrs. Bond nodded her head and followed Harry to the driver’s seat. Harry went over with Mrs. Bond how to shift the gears. She gave it a go with much success being that it was an automatic transmission. Harry turned to look over the seats at the frightened students. He rubbed his chest where the pocket held the wonderful treasure of his life. Drew peered out the window, towards the trailer park, to see if he saw the group of deadly Eaters.

  “I want you to go to the back and watch for my signal,” Harry directed at Drew, “I am going to wave my hand. When I do that, I want you to shout to Mrs. Bond to give her some gas. Understood?”

  “Yes sir,” Drew replied as he began to make his way towards the back of the bus.

  In navigating his way back, he noticed Beetle sleeping soundly in the corner. His head rested up against the window. Small beads of perspiration decorated his forehead, his glasses rested on the bridge of his nose. Drew reached out to wake Beetle; his skin was cool and clammy. His friend Beetle was very sick.

  “Man are you alright?”

  Beetle sleepily opened his eyes, “No, not really. I think my blood sugar is dropping. If I don’t get my glucose tabs soon….” He closed eyes and dozed off again.

  “We are going to get there, I promise man,” Drew reassured his friend. He continued to make his way further down the aisle until he made to the back of the bus. Drew sat nervously awaiting Harry’s orders.

  “You kids grab a hold to something,” Harry turned to look at Mrs. Bond, “Close this door as quick as you can. I will be back in a few minutes.”

  Harry took a deep breath, quickly scanned the area, and patted the door. Mrs. Bond pushed the lever causing the door to make a squeaking sound. As soon as the bus driver hit the ground he quickly but quietly made his way around the back after scanning the trailer park.

  “Do you see those little Eaters anywhere?” Sue Ellen gulped. Her big caramel colored eyes blinked consistently melting Drew’s heart even during a crisis such as this.

  “Nah, don’t see them anywhere,” Drew responded. He took a quick glimpse at the trailer park, then the surrounding area that was not blocked by the train.

  “I just want to get to my mom and get out of here as fast as we can. She is all I have left now,” Mater softly spoke. She too kept watch out on the bus. Every shout, cry, or popping sound made her instantly twitch.

  “You have me, Mater,” Sue Ellen smiled.

  “T
hanks, Sue Ellen,” Mater replied. She tried to smile but her lips trembled. Mater did not know if it was from her fear or exhaustion.

  “Don’t see the bus driver anywhere,” Drew said as he crooned his neck over the heads of four students cramped into the back seat. He went to the left side of the bus to see if he could find Harry.

  “Do you think he is?” Mater asked.

  “How many times are you going to say that, Mater?” Sue Ellen asked wholeheartedly.

  “We would have heard those growling sounds by now,” Drew said.

  “I hear growling sounds,” Mater responded.

  “That is in the lumber yard up front,” Drew pointed.

  “That doesn’t sound like a lumber yard to me,” Sue Ellen added.

  “Agh!”

  “What was that?” Sue Ellen was in a panic. Her eyes skipped from side to side.

  “I don’t know,” Drew breathed heavily. He ran back to the right corner of the bus and saw the top of Harry’s fuzzy white head. “Mr. Harry!”

  “Stuck!” Harry managed to muffle. The top of his head was visible as he leaned down.

  Drew dashed through the aisle and headed towards the front of the bus.

  “Where are you going?” Mrs. Bond asked. Her eyes were wide with fear.

  “Mr. Harry.... Needs some help!”

  Mrs. Bond nervously looked into the rear view mirror. She licked her lips.

  “Please! I gotta help him before those Eater things come back!”

  Mrs. Bond quickly nodded her head and pushed the lever with brute force flinging the door open. Drew dashed down the steps and before sprinting to the other side made sure the coast was clear. The smell of sulfuric smoke filled his nares and the once pristine rainy air. He noticed up head, approximately 1000 feet near the stop sign, a man get out of a medium size silver Dodge Charger. Drew saw that the car was not on fire. Where is that smoke coming from? He wondered. He brought his attention back to the Dodge Charger. The faces of two elementary girls were stuck to the back window. The man was frustrated and began kicking the car tire. Drew watched as the guy hurriedly went into the trunk.