“Yep. Just watch,” I said. Forty-two.
“How long of a fuse did you put on it?” asked Sarah.
That’s the second thing she said to you today, I thought. “About a minute. I used a sparkler.”
“A sparkler?” Justin said incredulously
“Yeah, a sparkler. Trust me this is going to work,” I said confidently. I hope this works. Thirty-four, I thought.
“So what part of the plan are these for, or did you just feel like blowing something up?” asked Liz.
I guess she had taken a quick break from her little project to check out the bomb. I smiled, “Well, I figured that the girls could use a little help. I don’t want Walkers to flood out of the doors so I figured that a few bombs inside before opening the door couldn’t hurt.”
“What about the fire?”
“The hairspray will burn up quickly so I’m not concerned about anything catching, but we’ll bring some extinguishers just to be on the safe side.”
“This won’t kill them will it?” asked Christina.
This was one of the first times I had seen her away from Thomas’ side since she’d gotten back. He was up on guard duty so he was still close by but I was glad that she felt comfortable enough to be away from him. “No, unless a ball bearing hits one of them in the head then these will hopefully take out their legs, making it easier to kill them.” Twenty-three.
“Well when is it going to blow?” asked Jason.
“We should have about twenty seconds or so but I can’t…” I started but was cut off by a giant boom followed by the sound of crashing branches and splintering wood
“Holy fuck,” yelled Matt, “You made that with a sparkler and some hairspray?”
“Yeah, pretty much.”
“Fuckin’ A,” he said grinning, “I think those will work.”
“Yeah I guess they’ll do.”
We went inside and I made another eight bombs, six to take out Walkers, two to help take out the door. The ones I made for the door were slightly different, they consisted of two cans of hairspray and ball bearings on only one side. I layered the other side of the bomb with a towel and plenty of tape. This would help direct the blast away from us and towards the door. After dinner we went over the plans again, now updated to include our new attack formation and explosives. The new plan was simple and straightforward. We would arrive at the Costco in our trucks, roll a few bombs under the partially open door, rip the door off its rails and mop up any Walkers that wandered out, simple and effective but incredibly dangerous. To get the door off we would use the two bombs and heavy cable used for crabbing. My dad had used to used it to haul downed animals when hunting, it was extremely strong and could take the strain. Our formation and timing would have to be perfect if we wanted to stay relatively safe. If we ran out of bullets, if our lines got overwhelmed we would have to abandon the raid and head home.
I slept alone again that night and when I woke early the next morning I felt a knot in my stomach. No matter how many raids we went on, how much I planned or how many Walkers I killed I didn’t think I would ever be completely comfortable with all of it. I got dressed and passed on eating breakfast. I wanted to keep a calm and confident composure and I didn’t think I could keep food down when I was so nervous. I was decked out in the same all-black attire I had worn when I had rescued the girls, just with different weapons. I had my customary two pistols and Bowie knife, but instead of my bow, I had a shotgun and an aluminum baseball bat. I also wore a backpack containing Duct Tape, lighter, several flashlights, some food and water, a med kit, extra ammo and a can of black spray paint. Everyone who was going was gathered in the living room and patiently waiting. “Everyone ready to go?” I asked the group. I was greeted with silence and determined faces. “Alright, let’s go.” Before leaving I grabbed an ax from the garage. It wasn’t for defense, it was to help breach the door. There was still a body in the way, a body that would probably need to be cut in half to be removed.
We each got into our own vehicle and took off in a caravan to perform our biggest and riskiest raid yet.
It didn’t take long to reach the Costco, or at least it didn’t seem that long as I spent the drive going over the plan again and again. I wanted to be ready for every conceivable outcome. No one was going to get hurt or captured today, I wouldn’t let it happen. We drove through the parking lot, crushing the still bodies under our large tires. “Let’s get a perimeter set up around the doors. I’m going to set the bombs.” They spread out as I banged on the massive door. I waited until my knock was greeted by several loud bangs that grew in number the longer I waited. They were just on the other side and it was time to blow them to hell. I lit and rolled two bombs under the door and yelled “Everyone behind the trucks” They did as I instructed, still keeping their eyes open for any possible threats, and I stared at my watch. We had anywhere between forty to sixty second for the bombs to go off. At the thirty-six mark, I called out, “Brace for the explosion.” Some covered their ears, others ducked, and we waited for the blast. It took another ten seconds or so for the first bomb to go off, the second blowing directly after. The sound of tearing flesh and metal on metal was heard following right after the blast. I stood and walked to the door. There were several dents in the door from the impact of the ball bearings and a small river of blackish blood began to flow from underneath the door. They worked, I thought and I banged on the door again. I waited again until I heard banging from the other side and then rolled another two bombs under. I walked behind the trucks and started the countdown. I didn’t need to tell the others to get ready, they all seemed to be counting in their heads and were ready when the blasts came. I repeated the process again and the door was soon littered with dozens of small dents and the black blood flowed freely. As I examined the door I came to the conclusion that we didn’t need to remove the entire door, it would be easier and smarter to create a hole in the already damaged metal. This would be safer because it would force and Walkers into a bottleneck, making it easier to kill them. I grabbed my remaining two bombs and taped then diagonally across from each other near the middle of the door and lit them. I took cover again and waited with the others. This blast was substantially louder and more violent. After the smoke cleared I examined the door, two large holes had been blasted in the metal and I shined a light into the darkness. I couldn’t see very far into the store but it looked relatively clear. “Someone cover me,” I said as I prepared the cable.
Hannah came over and asked, “What do you need?”
“Keep your eye and your gun on the dark. I don’t need a Walker popping up while I’m prepping the line.” She trained her gun on the pitch black interior of the store and I kept on with my job. I tied a large heavy hook to the end of the cable and put it through the top corner hole, swinging it so it would land near the bottom corner hole. I couldn’t see the line through the bottom hole but I knew it was close. I slipped my hand in and felt my pulse quicken. Fortunately, I wasn’t bitten and found the hook easily. I pulled it through and synched it around the rest of the line. After securing the door I attached the other end of the line to the hitch of one of the trucks. “I’m going to make a hole in the door. As soon as the dust settles I want you in the firing line and ready to take out whatever comes through.” I climbed into the Truck and put it in gear. “Ready? Here goes nothing,” I gunned the truck and the power of three-hundred and eighty horses ripped a hole in the partially destroyed door. I threw the truck into park, turned it off and jumped out, taking my position alongside the others. We stood ready to take on whatever came through the breach and we didn’t have to wait long. The first Walker shambled and tripped its way through its fallen comrades and made its way towards us. Sarah fired and took it down with a single shot to the forehead. It fell and partially blocked the opening. The next Walker fell over the previous Walker and was put down while it was still on the ground. If things continued like this it would take a long time to kill all the Walkers but we would stay out of danger. Unfortun
ately, the Walkers had different plans. It turns out that the Walkers inside were a lot agiler and mobile than we had thought. The first ones that came stumbling out had been damaged by the shrapnel and so were slower, but the ones from deeper within the store were unharmed and eager to get at us. Whether it was the bomb blast, the gunfire or a kind of animalistic instinct the Walkers were highly aware of our presence and their desire to reach us was fanatical. They pressed against the door as they all tried to squeeze through the ragged opening. They pressed and pressed and soon they began bending the edges of the hole, making it bigger. The stream of Walkers grew and we had to work harder to keep them at bay. The front line was working in perfect synchronization when one girl ran out she would yell to switch and was replaced. Matt and Justin kept up with demand for ammo and gathered magazines from the feet of the front line, keeping the magazines filled and stacked in neat piles. Liz had modified four pairs of hunting vests to hold three magazines and they were working perfectly. When one gunner's magazine ran out they could let it drop and reload in one smooth motion, allowing them to kill faster and keep the Walkers at a safe distance. Once the magazine hit the ground it was soon gathered up by someone from the second line. Since the girls were doing such a good job Jason and I had little to do. I bounced my attention between the different groups, the Walkers, and the surrounding area. Even with the increased number of Walkers we were holding our own. The minutes ticked by and the stream held steady. I don’t know how many we killed but we were given several breaks to reload and rest for a moment as the bodies piled up and blocked the hole. The minutes turned into an hour and then an hour and a half and the stream turned into a trickle before stopping entirely.
The ground around the breach was piled with bodies and drenched in black blood. We waited for another ten minutes before I decided to give the go-ahead to enter the building. “Flashlights out, I’ll take point. Stay close until we break up into pairs.” I stepped into the darkness, Sarah right on my heels. We moved in formation, or semicircle of light providing a small comfort in the dark warehouse. We were quiet as we moved and could hear shuffling and movement in the dark. I didn’t want to give this next order but we had to get as much as we could and get the hell out of there. “Ok everyone,” I said in a low voice, “Split up. Fill a cart and load up the trucks. Canned foods, jerky, sugar, flour, and all the dry goods. Get that and then we’ll start grabbing batteries, small propane, and all that stuff. Let’s move.” Sarah and I broke off from the group with a cart and started quickly down an aisle. It was filled with cereal and oatmeal bars. As Sarah began filling the cart with boxes I took a look around the aisle and saw spilled containers and open bags. I didn’t know if it was from panicked shopping or from someone eating it but the floor was littered with garbage and food. It didn’t take long before we were running to the entrance, me in the lead looking for any threats. I’m glad I was because as we rounded a corner there was a Walker within arm’s reach. I raised my pistol and, without breaking my stride, put a bullet in its forehead. We reached the truck and I helped her unload it. We spent the next couple of hours killing any Walkers we found and filling out trucks with supplies.
“I’ve got sleeping bags over here, a lot of them,” I heard Jason yell.
“Ignore them for now. Just focus on filling the trucks,” I called back.
“Alright.”
Things were going better than expected when I heard a pair of screams cut through the relative silence. “Who was that,” I called out.
“It’s was me, Liz and Hannah. Our lights have gone out. We can’t see anything.”
“Stay where you are. When I tell you to I want you to fire a shot into the air, ok?”
“Yeah. Hurry, I think I hear something.”
“Just stay calm,” I yelled. Turning to Sarah I said, “You ok if I leave you?”
“Yeah, go.”
I ran out to the middle of the store where there was some line of site and call out, “Ok Liz, fire.” She fired off a single shot and I saw the muzzle flash in the distance. “Alright, I’m coming.”
“Please hurry. I think there’s a Walker…” and then she screamed and so did Hannah. Their screams were peppered with gunshots and I picked up my pace.
“Girls, stay calm. I’m close but you need to stop shooting. Damn it. Stop fucking shooting.” The gunfire ceased and I closed in on her position. I panned my light around and found the two cowering under a display table. “Hey, you two ok?”
“Y…yeah,” Liz said nervously.
“Uh huh,” said Hannah.
“You’re safe, no Walkers.”
“When I shot I could have sworn I saw…”
I panned my light around again and saw something that made me laugh loudly, “There’s your Walker,” I said indicating with my light.
“You’ve got to be kidding me,” Liz said embarrassed.
My light had landed on a cardboard cutout of a mechanic advertising a tire sale. Liz had put two shots into the cutout’s head and one in the chest. “Nice shot,” I said still laughing
“Shut up,” she said still embarrassed.
I pulled out a small Maglight and handed it to her, “You think you can make it back to the front? I’ve got to get back to Sarah.”
“Yeah, we’re fine.”
“Good, watch each other’s backs. And change those batteries.”
“Gotcha.”
I ran back to where I left Sarah, she was still filling her cart. “They ok?” she asked.
“Yeah, they’re fine. Just got scared when the lights went out. They’re up front switching out batteries.”
“Good.” We finished loading our truck in silence, focusing all our attention on our individual tasks. It took another hour or so before we had every truck bursting with supplies. We even managed to fit two generators in with the rest of the supplies. That’s why I loved Costco, you could pretty much get everything you needed at one place.
“We ready to go?” asked Matt.
“Not yet,” I said reaching into my pack and pulling out the black spray paint, “I want to leave a message for any survivors.”
“Dude, what survivors,” said Jason.
“The ones who locked the door left those sleeping bags you found and hung those three people on the bridge.”
“That place was filled with Walkers, there’s no way there are any left. Someone was probably bitten before locking those doors and turned while inside,” said Justin.
“It doesn’t hurt to try,” I said walking to the intact door. I sprayed a simple message on the door that read, ‘Survivors, You are not alone, there are others still alive. Meet at noon two days after seeing smoke. – J’
“Smoke? What smoke,” asked Hannah.
“That’s what we have to do before we leave. I need two teams to get some tires from inside. I need another team to get me a hose from the garden center.”
“We’ll get the tires,” said Jason volunteering Carrie and himself.
“Us too,” said Jessica.
“Seriously?” said Justin who was paired with her.
“Yes, let’s go.”
“Fine.”
“We’ve got the hose,” said Liz.
“Alright, let’s get this done so we can go home,” I said.
We piled tires up away from most of the cars and I used the hose to siphon some gas from my truck and douse the tires. I spat on the ground, “Yuk. I hate doing that. I’ll taste gas for three days,” I spat again, “Alright, let’s go” They all got into their trucks and drove off. I moved my car away from the pile and lit the long strip of gauze that I used as a wick. The tires caught quickly and oily black smoke began rolling off of them. The smoke would be seen for miles around and I hoped that I was doing the right thing trying to contact other survivors. I hoped they would be better than Cole, I didn’t want to have to kill anyone else.
Back at the house, we spent several hours unloading and stacking all our goods. Since she didn’t go on the raid Christina v
olunteered to take an inventory of all of our supplies. After unloading the trucks I climbed the ladder to the roof to talk to Thomas. “Hey, man.”
“Hey. Glad you made it back man.”
“Yeah me too. Listen, I need your help with something.”
“Sure.”
“Well, you know how we left a message for the survivors?”
“Yeah.”
“Well I’m going to try and make contact in two days and I need you to come with me.”
“What? Why?”
“I need cover. You’re the best shot besides me.”
“I don’t know,” he said shaking his head.
“I wouldn’t ask if it wasn’t important.”
“Yeah I know. Ok, I’ll go.”
“Thanks.”
“No problem.”
The mood around the house that night was a good one. Everyone was happy that we had succeeded in the raid and with no one getting hurt. I was getting ready to go to bed, fully expecting to sleep alone again, when I was approached by Sarah. “James,” she said softly.
Survivors Series (Book 1): Heroes Aren't Born Page 33
