Jeff’s heart pounded as he scrambled back inside the RV. He was relieved to see that everyone was out of the bedroom and George already had Teddy’s unconscious form over his shoulder.
George gave him a questioning look, but Jeff ignored it as he faced Megan. As he closed the distance between them, she smiled. Her expression changed as she saw the look on his face.
“Take the kids and find someplace to hide.”
The words hit Megan like a ton of bricks. Jeff grabbed her hands. “I’m going to try and lure away as many of those things as I can from.”
Megan’s eyes widened as she heard the sounds from the street. Everyone else was coming to the same dark revelation. The crash had been so traumatic that no one had the time to think about anything other than getting out of the smashed-up RV, until now.
“How many of them are there out there?” Lydia asked.
Jeff gave her a bleak look that told her everything she needed to know. She had Sadie in her arms, and Nathan and Joey clung to her, dazed and frightened as they stared at Jeff. Everyone could hear the howls and cries of rage building in volume as the undead that hadn’t been distracted by Ben’s antics drew closer to the RV.
Jeff dragged Megan forward, and the rest followed them until she set her feet and stopped him. “Wait a minute! You can’t just leave us! This is insane.”
Jeff turned to her, his eyes sad. “Ben’s already left. He lured away as many as he could, but it’s not enough. I have to do this.”
Megan shook her head, tears flowing as she gripped Jeff’s hands tighter. She tried tugging him back inside the RV, but he resisted and pulled her toward the broken windshield.
“Everyone outside now. Megan and I will be there in a couple of seconds.”
Jeff gave a pleading look to George, who nodded solemnly. The older man herded the others outside, urging them forward as several sets of eyes remained on Megan and Jeff.
When they were gone, Jeff turned to Megan, who was already starting to mount a new protest. “Megan. Megan! Listen to me! If I don’t do this, we’ll all die. Do you understand me? But if I can get those bastards’ attention, you’ll have a fighting chance.”
Jeff had a tight grip on her shoulders, and when Megan shook her head, he squeezed them until she stopped and stared up at him, her eyes wide with panic.
“You need to pull yourself together. Please! Do it for Jason and the children. Do it for me!”
Jeff’s eyes burrowed into Megan, and she stared blankly in response. When he shook her roughly, she was able to blink and then nodded. Not giving her a chance to change her mind, Jeff yanked her outside. He pushed the stunned woman toward George, who wrapped his free arm around her before going back to staring at what was happening around them.
Ben had left a wake of bodies following his trail. Jeff could no longer see the big man, but it was obvious which street he had taken from the movements of the crowd. His heart sank as he saw the mass of bodies still surging toward the little group of survivors. Gripping his bat, he turned to the others.
Teddy had regained consciousness, and George and Jason were supporting his weight. He looked groggy and was the only person not staring at Jeff. Lydia had the children calmed down and seemed prepared for whatever she had to deal with. As Jeff’s eyes moved toward Jason, he could tell the kid was putting on a brave face. It heartened Jeff as he looked back at George, who nodded in return. George understood what had to be done, that he was now the group’s guardian. Jeff silently mouthed the words ‘thank you,’ and George gave him a sad smile. Finally, Jeff turned back to Megan. She looked miserable and angry and didn’t speak as she glowered at him, her blue eyes icy.
“Get out of here,” he said. He pointed at a street that appeared to be clear of shambling bodies. “Head down that way and try to find a place to hide out.” Megan’s expression softened as she realized he was serious about leaving them.
Jeff backed up. “I’m going to lead as many of them away as I can. Now move!” He started to jog in the opposite direction from the one in which he had pointed. Several staggering ghouls took notice and shifted away from the stationary group. Jeff’s eyes narrowed, and his lips curled into a devious grin. Gripping the bat loosely, he picked up speed and took off running.
The last thing Megan and the others heard Jeff say as he rushed the horde was, “Find someplace safe to hide! I’ll find you! I swear to God I’ll find you!”
Then he gave a loud war whoop as he swung his bat at a ghoul reaching out to grab him.
Chapter 7
George took the lead, ushering everyone away from the wreckage. They could smell the diesel fumes as they moved past the rear of the RV. The tank was cracked, and fuel flowed beneath their feet.
As they moved away from the intersection, George found a stout piece of wood that had been part of a doorframe, and Jason, following suit, found a slender piece of metal in a pile of crunched-up glass. Teddy, who was coming around, joined in and picked up a few chunks of pitted metal and rocks light enough to throw.
They moved north, up the road Jeff had recommended. He had lured most of the stray infected with him in the opposite direction, and their path was clear for the moment.
The small group was in the heart of town, with streets flowing in all directions. They were surrounded by buildings and storefronts for several blocks. As they moved, Lydia managed to keep the children calm and quiet by suggesting they make a game of it. Whoever could remain quiet the longest won. They were still terrified, but it served as a good enough distraction to keep them from crying out.
Megan suppressed her anger and disbelief at what Jeff had done as her survival instincts kicked in. She kept Nathan and Joey next to her, relieving a grateful Lydia of the burden of tending to them as George and the two older boys walked ahead, scouting in silence.
The survivors soon turned down a side street with several free-standing buildings—offices, boutiques, and a couple of chain restaurants. The area appeared abandoned, and George suggested that they move a few more blocks away from the RV before picking a place to hide.
It was not long after George spoke that they heard the first shots. The sounds echoed off the buildings making it hard to pinpoint their source. Everyone froze. There was no movement nearby, so after a few moments, George urged everyone to get going again.
Megan had not thought much about Michael, Cindy, and Frank since the accident, but she guessed they were involved with the gunplay. She couldn’t help feeling a twinge of guilty pleasure at whatever predicament they had gotten themselves into after they had so willingly abandoned her and the others. As a small grin of satisfaction found its way onto her face, she spied a ghoul staring at her.
A startled scream escaped Megan’s lips as she watched the monster stumble out of the McDonald’s they had just passed. The rotting figure’s neck was broken, its head dangling from a bloated tube of flesh with split marks running down its length. It was like some over-ripened melon whose insides had burst free from the rind. A badly soiled uniform with a nametag pinned to it completed the picture. Megan could see that the teenager was named Jamie, and he was missing several fingers from the hand that reached out to her.
Nathan and Joey began to cry, tugging hard on Megan’s hands, urging her to run. She remained frozen as she watched Jamie approach, fascinated by whatever dark magic was keeping him upright.
Jamie’s skin had gone from gray to an almost brownish black. Though his neck was broken, his equilibrium seemed adequate enough to close the gap between him and Megan.
George rushed past, with Teddy and Jason close behind. Teddy let loose with one of his heavy chunks of metal, grazing Jamie in the shoulder. It did no visible damage, but served to knock the walking corpse off balance, and he stumbled before getting his uncoordinated feet back underneath him.
Jamie stepped out onto the street, stumbling between two crumpled cars with matching flat tires and shattered windows. As the infected boy moved beyond the wrecks, Megan noticed the way hi
s sneakers flopped loosely around his ankles. The shoes had burst at the seams as Jamie’s feet swelled with fluid. The canvas was like some sort of tent covering the huge blackened feet.
The thick piece of wood George wielded came crashing down. A spray of soupy gruel splashed up as Jamie’s head popped free of his neck like a swollen tick. The boy’s hands stayed elevated even as his body followed the trajectory of his detached head toward the ground. They finally flopped to his sides as the former McDonald’s employee hit the asphalt.
“Is everyone okay?”
George wiped splatters of fluid off his face as he glanced around at everyone. They all seemed okay, but Megan had a dismal look on her face.
“I’m so sorry I screamed, George. I won’t do it again, I promise,” Megan said with remorse.
George shook his head. “Don’t worry about it. Your scream warned me he was coming.” He nodded toward Jamie’s corpse. “We’ll be fine as long as we keep moving.”
Before Megan could say anything else, they heard more shots off in the distance. George strained his ears to ascertain from which direction the gunfire was coming, but he knew it was a pointless task.
Dismissing the sudden distraction, he patted Megan on the shoulder. “Come on, let’s get going.”
George moved back to the middle of the road, and the others followed suit as their eyes searched every doorway and window for more trouble.
Less than a minute later, two shapes separated from the shadows near a small shop and limped out into the open. Before George could react, the two teenagers leapt into action, darting in opposite directions. It was clear almost immediately that this tandem of rotters was even slower than normal due to a lack of muscle mass. They had been thoroughly mauled before turning, and only a few shreds of meat and tendon remained on their torsos. The boys lured the slow-moving creatures in separate directions, giving George the chance to take care of them individually with a few efficient swings of the heavy plank he carried.
Jason and Teddy were still high-fiving one another when Lydia spotted another group of stiffs coming out of a vacuum repair shop nearby. She was ready to yell to George, but he saw them only a split second after she did.
The leader was clad in motorcycle gear, and his left leg was chewed down to the bone. The remains of his torn chaps slapped against his leg as the monster limped toward Jason, his closest target. The biker reached for the boy and let out a froglike croak.
In his euphoria at his and Teddy’s success, Jason didn’t hear the low sound right away. It was only when the ghoul gave an excited squeal that he whirled around. Jason’s eyes went wide as the biker grabbed his arm and leaned in to take a bite.
He screamed and tried to back up as the stiff lunged forward. The monster’s teeth snapped on empty air, but it tightened its grip on the boy’s elbow. Jason’s scream changed from terror to pain as he felt something tear under his skin. The infected man pulled the twelve year old closer to his gaping maw, insensible of the boy’s struggles to break free. The ghoul gurgled in anticipation.
George crashed into the biker, causing the rotter to release his grip on Jason’s elbow and slam into the sidewalk. There was a snapping sound as several brittle bones broke in the monster’s arm from the force of the blow. George kept rolling, avoiding the stiff’s claws as he bowled into the other three creatures that had also come out of the vacuum repair shop.
Teddy rushed up and launched several chunks of metal and rocks at the bodies struggling to grab at George. He threw the missiles one by one as he steadily slid forward, focusing most of his effort on a particularly decrepit creature. George was throwing punches and landing kicks on the other two from where he lay on the ground, but the one on which Teddy had zeroed in had escaped the burly man’s attention and was rising up to strike. As a sizeable stone bounced off the slug’s head, it turned and hissed at Teddy. The boy’s eyes were wild as he growled, “Come on!” and continued to taunt it.
Jason shot a glance toward the biker as he struggled to slide backward on his butt. It was clear his friends were too busy to help him, but the blinding pain in his elbow was making him dizzy. His movement was hampered as he cradled his injured arm protectively. Jason had no idea what was damaged; all he knew was that his arm felt as if it were in the steel grip of a vice. He could barely move it, but fear helped him ignore the jolts of pain as he inched away from the battle. The leather-clad ghoul’s arm may have shattered, but unlike the twelve year old, the inhuman monster felt no pain. Its tongue licked the air in anticipation as it closed the distance between it and its prey.
Jason tensed, preparing to kick out at the looming figure as it got closer. The hand that had damaged his arm reached for him, and Jason bit down hard on his tongue, forcing himself not to scream. His eyes narrowed, and he waited for the right moment to strike.
There was a sudden blur of movement as Megan crashed into the biker. Jason could only gape in amazement as she lashed out with a thin, whip-like sliver of metal, jabbing it at the ghoul’s eyes.
Before the biker could respond to the surprise assault, Megan was able to drive the broken car antenna she had picked up off the street through one of its eyes and deep into its brain. Wrenching it up and down, she screamed like a madwoman until the antenna broke off in her hand.
Rolling off the inert body, Megan popped up into a crouch as Jason watched in stunned silence. She scanned the area and saw that Teddy was in danger as well. He had whipped the last of his rocks at one of the ghouls that had been harassing George and was now preparing to go toe to toe with the rotter as it advanced on him.
Megan charged in like a halfback, plowing into the female ghoul’s chest with the full force of her ninety-pound frame. She landed on it with a heavy thud, and there was a whip-crack sound as its skull hit the pavement. Raising her hands to the leathery, tight skin of the monster’s forehead, Megan slid her fingers into a tangle of hair. She drove the skull into the asphalt several times, her palm forcing the forehead forward even as her fingers yanked up on the scalp. She only stopped when a small spatter of liquid covered the pavement underneath the fractured skull.
As she rose, Megan felt the buzz of adrenaline dying inside, leaving her aching and exhausted. When she looked back to make sure the boys were okay, Megan’s eyes widened. Teddy had already dragged Jason several yards away, and they were screaming for her and George to run. Turning to look past the vacuum shop, she understood why.
The screaming Megan had done as she attacked both ghouls endangering the boys had blasted her eardrums to the point where she could hear nothing else. Not Teddy’s or Jason’s warnings, or the screeching howls and moans as a second wave of infected rolled down the street toward them. All the noise the group had been making, all their screams and shouts to one another as their battle raged, had drawn a crowd.
George had also just stood after rubbing the second fiend’s face into the sidewalk like sandpaper and snapping the first’s neck. Aware of the moans and caterwauls coming from down the street as he fought, he’d done his best to make quick work of his two opponents.
He’d also heard the boys screaming and spotted the impending attack. There was no time to count how many ghouls were coming. All he knew was that there were too many. Megan was standing next to him with a dazed expression on her face and blood on her hands. The body at her feet told the desperate man all he needed to know. Jason and Teddy were still waving frantically at them as they followed Lydia and the children between two small office buildings across the street.
Making a quick decision, George pushed Megan in their direction.
“Go! Get out of here! NOW!”
His words snapped Megan out of her daze as she stumbled back. George knew that was all he could do for her as he turned to face the first attacker. The big man’s meaty fist shot out, dislocating the nurse’s jaw. The cannibal jittered sideways and fell to the ground. As three more monsters lunged at him, their teeth gnashing, George let out an enraged howl and body checked them into t
he next group of ghouls coming his way.
As he waded into a mass of monsters, he screamed at the others.
“Get them the hell out of here. I’ll hold these things off as long as I can!”
His arms were a blur as George drove his elbow into the temple of one of the people tearing at his clothing. He whirled around, bumping another malnourished form to the ground.
As more of the townsfolk of Manchester closed in on him, their howls and screeches filled with inhuman rage, George spied Megan backpedaling. Lydia and the children were already out of sight, along with Teddy, but Jason was standing near the opening of the alleyway, his eyes filled with horror as he watched what was happening to George.
“I’m right behind you!” George shouted as he lashed out with his foot and turned away from his friends. He tried to repeat the words, but they were cut off as a small wriggling body smashed into him. The big man lifted the rancid child above his head and launched it at two more stiffening forms coming straight at him.
George growled as he twisted away from another set of shattered teeth that snapped and gnashed at him. All he could see was gray, putrid flesh and milky white eyes as more and more hands tried to pull him to the ground.
As he continued to fight, images of his family flashed through his mind. They seemed farther away now than ever. The people he’d met over the past few days were all too real, but his wife and two daughters seemed like nothing more than a dream.
Shaking away the despair that threatened to take hold of him, George gritted his teeth as he landed another punch and broke free from a throng of bodies.
“I’m still coming for you, babe. No matter what, I’m still coming for you and the girls.”
It was all he managed to say as he barreled into another pile of corpses.
Chapter 8
Megan picked up her pace and urged Jason to keep up. He kept looking back as if expecting George to come running up behind them. She urged the kid on, but was careful not to jar his injured elbow.
The Dark Trilogy Page 39
