Sam puffed up his chest and nodded solemnly.
Relief flooded Savannah’s face when she spotted them. “Oh, good, you’re here! Josh, Sam, and Troy, get your stuff. I already got food for the little ones.” She held up a plastic bag. There were containers of chocolate milk, water, cheese and crackers, and cookies in it.
“Yay! Chocolate milk!” Oscar grinned with delight.
Drake wasn’t paying attention though. They were close to the front doors, and Josh noticed their dad was visible as he walked along the side of the Metro bus escorting the girl in the wheelchair. Drake was obviously watching him.
“Daddy is right there,” Drake said with relief.
“Yup. He’s taking care of us,” Josh replied.
Jamie hopped into the bus to help load the chair on board.
“Don’t leave, Daddy!” Drake shouted. “Don’t leave me!”
In an instant, the little guy was running toward the exit. Savannah made a grab for him, but Drake skidded around a couple entering and raced through the open doorway.
Chapter 13
Josh started after his little brother, but Savannah grabbed his arm. “I’ll get Drake! Get your food and drinks!” Savannah raced after Drake, dragging Oscar behind her.
Yessica ran after Savannah and Oscar clutching her plastic bag of food and drinks.
Sam attempted to catch her. “Stay here, Yessica!”
“We’re supposed to stay with her!” Yessica said, panicking. “She’s the group leader!”
Yessica was faster than Sam, and ducked around him. She scampered out the door after Savannah.
Sam started after her, but Josh stopped him. “Do what Savannah says. Let’s get our stuff and get out of here. The smaller kids have their stuff. Savannah will take care of Yessica.”
“Yeah. They’re almost to the bus anyway.” Troy pointed to where Drake was scrambling onto the bus.
Savannah and the other kids were close behind.
“We’re old enough to take care of ourselves,” Josh said with confidence.
“Yup. Let’s get our stuff.” Troy sauntered toward the racks of chips, probably looking for his Takis.
“Where’s your girlfriend?” Sam asked Josh abruptly as they trailed after Troy.
“Corina’s not my girlfriend,” Josh said automatically.
“Okay, so where is your not girlfriend?” Sam chewed on his bottom lip while studying the vast display of chips, popcorn, and other salty snacks.
Josh swiveled about, looking for Corina in the crowded aisles. Panic rose in his chest, though it didn’t make any sense. They were safe inside the building. Guards were in the parking lot. Corina was safe.
Troy triumphantly held up a bag of Takis. “Mission accomplished. Oh, they have jerky here!”
Following his friends, Josh grabbed a random bag of chips and a tube of Mexican vanilla cookies from the shelves. Again, he searched the crowded aisles for Corina. A few people weren’t even waiting to get back to their vehicles to eat and were shoving food in their mouths. Josh caught sight of Clare and Hector chatting with smiles on their faces. The food and drinks were already making a big difference in the mood of the travelers.
“They’re so dumb.” Troy noticed who Josh was looking at across the store. “We’re not safe yet, and they’re not hurrying.”
“I want to get a fountain drink,” Sam decided.
“They’re shut off. See? Grab something from the cooler.” Josh shifted his things around and pulled open a glass door to reach for a soda. The cold air felt good against his sweaty skin.
“Can you get me a Sprite?” Corina appeared at his side wearing a pink t-shirt with glittery blue bonnets emblazoned across the front. Her torn skirt and leggings were gone, too, replaced with jeans with a lot of studs and rhinestones on the hem and pockets.
“Did you steal those?” Sam said suspiciously.
“I figured if we can take the food we can take other stuff, too,” Corina answered defensively. She also had a big denim tote bag embroidered with the State of Texas on the front and a braided leather strap slung over her shoulder. It was bulging at the bottom.
“How much stuff are you stealing?” Sam eyeballed the tote.
“I got something for Yessica to wear. She’s covered in blood. I also already got my food, some deodorant, and disposable toothbrushes. I just need my water and a soda.”
Josh handed her the drink she asked for, and grabbed one for himself. “I’m sure it’s fine, Sam. Let her be.”
“Maybe I should get a shirt, too. With an armadillo!” Sam eyeballed the big display of t-shirts.
The water bottle area was quickly emptying, so Josh hurried over to people gathered there. Corina went with him while Troy and Sam veered off toward the souvenir area where the clothes, hats, and belts were arranged. Josh noticed a few other people were swapping out bloodied clothing for new pieces.
“I wish they’d hurry,” Corina said in a tense tone.
“I’m sure we’re safe,” Josh assured her, but he felt the same way.
Slowly, the group in front of the cooler grew smaller as people moved on. One guy chugged a whole bottle of water, then reached for another one before finally letting the kids close enough to get their own.
“Get some for Troy and Sam. I bet they won’t remember Savannah said to get water.” Corina opened her tote bag, and Josh dropped the bottles inside. “Add your food, too. Might as well keep it together.”
“I’ll carry it in the bag then,” Josh offered.
“Because it’s heavy and I’m a girl?”
“Uh... yeah,” Josh stuttered.
“Boys are dumb.” She shook her head, but she looked amused.
“Hurry up, people!” a voice said loudly. It was the Latino officer near the door. “We need to get you back to your vehicles.”
“Let’s get the others, Josh.” Corina started to weave through the crowd toward Sam and Troy, who were trying on hats.
Josh felt a hard jab on his back.
“So did you really kill zombies?”
Josh spun to face the teenager with the braces and black eye from the bus. “Yeah, I did.” He didn’t feel pride in his answer, but guilt. He didn’t want to think about Arturo slowly turning into a zombie while crying for his mother.
The boy’s brown eyes narrowed. “Oh yeah? How?”
“Like his friend said,” Corina replied in a defiant tone. She’d stopped in her tracks to stand at Josh’s side.
The blonde boy was taller than both of them and scrawny beneath his thin plaid cotton shirt. His one eye was nearly swollen shut. “But you’re just a little dude.”
“I’m twelve. Not little,” Josh retorted.
“I’m fifteen. You’re little compared to me.” The older kid scoffed at Josh. “I got this black eye fighting a zombie. It hit me square in the eye trying to get into my dad’s car. I was that close to it.”
“I held down a zombie while Josh killed it,” Corina replied. “So?”
Josh wasn’t sure if she was boasting or trying to prove a point.
The smirk that flowed across the boy’s face was probably supposed to be charming. “So you killed it and let the shrimp take the credit, huh?”
Josh had the urge to punch him.
“No. Josh killed the zombie. He killed a lot of zombies. And he saved my life.”
“Well, I’m Chad. And I fought a zombie in hand-to-hand combat.”
“But didn’t kill it,” Corina finished for him.
Chad shrugged. “I would have if my dad didn’t drive off.”
“So your dad saved you.” Corina stared at Chad straight in the eye.
Averting his gaze, Chad shrugged. “I guess. He’s dead now, so it doesn’t matter.”
“Josh, look! It’s like my dad’s hat!” Sam joined the group wearing a fake sheriff hat that read “Deputy Hero” on the embroidered badge.
“You look dumb,” Chad said dismissively.
Josh cocked his head, studying the o
lder boy. What was his problem? Slowly, it dawned on him that Chad was trying to impress Corina.
“He looks good.” Corina adjusted the hat on Sam’s head so it wasn’t tilted upward and making him look goofy. “You look just like your dad in that, Sam.”
“Did his dad look dumb and fat?” Chad laughed a little too loudly.
Without a word, Corina turned and walked away. “Come on, Josh and Sam. Let’s get Troy.”
They found the younger boy staring out the front windows, and wearing a Dallas Cowboy cap with the tags still attached.
“Troy, you ready?” Josh asked.
“Check this out!” Troy called out.
Stepping next to his best friend, Josh immediately saw where he was pointing. There was a large plume of smoke on the horizon that hadn’t been there before.
“That’s bad, right?” Sam asked worriedly.
Corina looked sharply at Josh. “An accident, right?”
Josh swallowed hard. “Yeah. Probably. Or a house fire.”
Over the loud conversations going on around them, Josh heard the squawk of a walkie-talkie. Standing on his toes, he peered over the shelves toward the front of the store. The Latino officer was talking into a handheld radio while pacing in front of the doors. The grim look on his face was alarming.
“Guys, we need to get to the bus,” Josh declared. “Right now.”
“What’s wrong?” Troy asked immediately.
“The bus smells like fart. Do we have to?” Sam pouted.
“Yeah, we have to. Something is wrong. We need to get out of here before other people realize it and panic,” Josh said in a lowered voice.
Corina gestured outside. “He’s right. The guards are moving toward the highway.”
“Zombies?” Sam exclaimed loudly. “There’s zombies?”
Josh, Corina, and Troy all shushed him.
“Dude, do you have a volume control?” Troy asked.
Sam reddened. “Sorry.”
“Let’s go,” Josh ordered.
Pivoting about, he started toward the front entrance.
A second later, the popping sound of gunfire erupted outside.
Chapter 14
The store instantly quieted. People froze where they stood, wide-eyed with terror.
The steady pops of gunfire continued outside.
“I need everyone to stay where you are and not go outside,” the Latino officer announced. “Everyone needs to stay calm.”
“What’s going on?” a woman cried out.
“Well, ma’am, there’s a small pack of those... things–” the officer started to reply.
“Zombies,” Troy breathed. “Why won’t they say zombies?”
“–out there. They’re just clearing the area before we move you back onto the vehicles. Remain calm.”
“Shouldn’t we get back to the road and get out of here?” a man with a battered red baseball cap asked.
“Let us secure the location before you go out there. It’s not safe at the moment,” the other officer replied. He was tall, deeply-tanned from hours in the sun, and his pale blue eyes were rimmed with red as though he’d been crying.
“We could make a run for it. You can’t even see those things out there right now,” another man that Josh couldn’t see said.
“I need you to stay inside where it’s safe,” the tall officer answered.
The guy in the cap stalked over to the officers, his hands in tight fists at his side. “I’m not staying in here waiting for them to swarm us!”
“Sir, please stay inside the building where it’s safe. Let the guards finish clearing the area.” The Latino officer raised his hand in front of him. “Just calm down. You’re upsetting the children.”
“I’m not upset. I’m scared that he’s going to do something stupid,” Troy muttered.
“I’m upset,” Sam said. “Really upset. There are zombies out there!”
“You can’t keep me and my family in here. We’re leaving right now before this gets worse,” the angry man declared.
Corina’s fingers gripped Josh’s upper arm. “Josh, what do we do?”
“We do what they say,” Josh replied. The plan made sense even though it was hard to wait for the all-clear. The steady, echoing shots meant the guards were doing their jobs.
The walkie-talkie hissed again. The taller officer grabbed his radio, set it to his ear, and covered the other ear with his hand to listen.
“We’re American citizens. You can’t force us to stay in here. This is dangerous!” the angry man continued.
Still keeping one hand up, the Latino officer said, “Sir, everyone in here needs to remain calm and orderly.”
Josh glanced toward the bus. The doors were closed and he could see some movement inside. Drake, Oscar, and Yessica were safe at least.
The taller officer finished his conversation on the walkie-talkie and turned to face the upset people. “We’re evacuating! In an orderly fashion, please form a line and group together by vehicle. We’ll be escorting each driver outside, and they’ll pull up to the front of the store so the passengers can board as quickly as possible.”
Chaos broke out immediately. The angry man in the battered cap shoved the Latino officer into a display of souvenir key chains and sprinted to the entrance. As the two officers shouted for everyone to stay in the store, the man shoved the doors open and people spilled into the parking lot.
Swearing, the Latino officer shoved through the throng, trying to squeeze out the exit. When he reached outside, he tried to gain control of the situation by directing vehicles away from the pumps and toward the parking lot exit.
After a moment of hesitation, the second officer followed to help.
“Josh, what do we do?” Sam gasped. “Do we run out there with the zombies?”
The man in the cap ran ahead of two other men, a woman, and two small children to a big pickup at one of the pumps. Others ran in packs toward cars, vans, SUVS, and the buses. The situation was out of control, and fear froze Josh to the spot where he stood.
“Should we follow?” Troy asked, his brow furrowing.
“Josh?” Corina tugged on his arm.
Torn, Josh watched the mad scramble to get out the front doors and listened to the roar of the starting engines. The sound of gunfire was increasing, not decreasing. Running outside while people were firing weapons and zombies were nearby was not safe.
“No,” he finally said. His father had stressed trusting the adults in charge. “We need to obey the highway patrolmen.”
“But... but...” Sam stuttered, his eyes wide with fear.
The panic was palatable. The various vehicles all started to move at once. Brakes squealed. Horns honked.
The knot in Josh’s stomach tightened. It was like he was watching a movie and he knew instinctively what was about to happen next.
The man in the red cap rammed his truck into a smaller hybrid car to knock it aside, attempting to skirt through the area between the pumps and the front of the store. The hybrid spun about and slammed into another car trying to squeeze past it. Gunning the engine of the pickup, the man who had caused the panic swerved around the accident he had caused, nearly clipping the tall highway patrolman. An SUV, desperate to escape, plowed forward and struck the front end of the smaller hybrid car again, whacking off its front headlight and bumping it aside.
Josh saw what was going to happen seconds before it unfolded.
“Run!” he shouted, rushing to the back of the store.
“OHMYGAWDTHEY’REGONNACRASH!” Sam shouted.
Corina grabbed Sam’s arm and dragged him along behind Josh and the others instead of leaving him to gawk at the unfolding chaos. “C’mon, Sam!”
Josh slid behind a huge shelving unit just as the SUV burst through the front windows, glass showering those still inside the store. The vehicle plowed through counters, shelves, and stacks of merchandise. It finally came to a stop near the entrance to the restrooms covered in broken bricks, cement dust, an
d metal beams. Ceiling panels fell and the lights popped, plunging the store into an early morning gloom. Another car struck the front, making the whole building shudder. The terrifying sound of more collisions thundered through the store. The acrid smell of an electrical fire burned Josh’s nose.
Lying on his side, breathing heavily, Josh raised his head to see Corina, Troy, and Sam jumbled together at his feet. Coughing on the steam billowing out of the car engine and a cloud of cement dust, Josh rolled onto his knees. “Is everyone okay?”
“He hit the patrolman,” Sam gasped. “I saw the truck hit him!”
Several other kids were crouched nearby, including Chad. The woman with the big blonde hairdo was screaming at the end of the aisle and wringing her bloody hands.
Outside came the continuous sound of gunfire and engines revving.
“That truck hit the store,” Sam gasped out the obvious. “And then a bunch of other cars hit it too!”
“Really? I didn’t notice,” Troy said, rolling his eyes. “Josh, what do we do?”
“Get out of here,” Josh answered.
Concrete dust rained from his hair when Josh stood. His skin was stinging from where he’d been nicked by flying glass. The front end of the store was consumed in the white steam billowing out of the SUV. Two more vehicles were rammed through the windows, though not as deep. The pickup that belonged to the angry man in the red cap was crumpled against a pole near the front entrance. Inside, the man who had started all the chaos was draped over the steering wheel. Beyond the crash, barely visible through the steam and dust, the rest of the convoy continued to escape the parking lot. Tires screeched and voices shouted as some barely missed the guards rushing toward the store.
To Josh’s relief, the buses were still in position near the pumps.
Corina got to her feet, and surveyed the damage. Her eyes widened. “Oh my gawd.”
Now that the dust was settling, it was easier to see despite the steam. Josh winced when he saw why the blonde woman was screaming. Her husband was under the front tires of the SUV. Quite a few other people were also smashed against the vehicle or trapped under the rubble. Some were moving, but most were not. A few adults stumbled through the ruins of the store, dazed looks on their faces.
The Living Dead Boy (Book 2): Lost in Texas Page 7
