Gabriel’s looked around. “That means they could be around here somewhere.”
“It’s possible. Either that or they got another car, or maybe even a ride from someone.”
Gabriel glanced past Will, just trying to think, and that’s when he noticed the two buildings for the first time.
“There,” he said, pointing.
They sat facing the interstate, fifty yards away over grass and a service road. One of the stores was an outlet furniture warehouse, and the other was a discount carpet and tile store.
Gabriel was about to run for them when Will grabbed onto his arm.
“Whoa, hold up.” Will pointed up the road. “There’s the exit right there. Let’s just pull up there with the car.”
“I’m driving,” Gabriel said.
Gabriel hurried over to the vehicle and jumped into the driver’s seat. He already had it in gear before Will loaded in beside him.
“What’s going on?” Jessica asked.
While Will explained, Gabriel set the bear beside him and punched the gas.
The exit was less then a quarter of a mile up the road, and Gabriel raced up the ramp, taking a sharp right turn at the end.
Other than a couple of gas stations, the exit was barren. Gabriel sped down the access road and pulled into the parking lot of the furniture store. Several abandoned cars still sat in the lot, and only a few Empties lumbered around. He stopped the vehicle at the curb, halfway between the two buildings.
“We should split up and search both buildings,” Gabriel said.
“Let’s stay together,” Holly said.
“No, he’s right,” Will said. “It’ll save time. We can cover more area. Holly, we’ll check inside the furniture store with the kids. Gabriel, you and Jessica check the carpet place.”
“One of us should stay in the car with the kids,” Jessica suggested.
“I want to help,” Dylan said.
“We don’t have time to argue about this,” Gabriel said, frustration in his voice. “We’re all going.” He opened the door and got out, slamming it behind him.
As everyone else made their way out of the vehicle, Gabriel went to the back and opened the rear cargo area. He grabbed an AR-15, as well as extra magazines for his sidearm, which he had affixed at his side again.
Will got together weapons for himself and the women, then handed Gabriel a two-way radio.
“Keep this on in case of an emergency. Otherwise, we meet back out here in ten. All right?”
Gabriel nodded and slammed the rear cargo door. He was anxious to get inside, and the sweat collecting on his face showed it.
“Just go in there calm,” Will said. “If we don’t find them here, we will at that cabin.”
He slapped Gabriel on the shoulder before getting Holly and the kids and heading toward the furniture store.
Jessica approached Gabriel.
“Ready?” she asked.
Gabriel popped a magazine into the assault rifle, then said, “Come on.”
CHAPTER TWENTY-SIX
Most of the glass on the front of the furniture store had been broken out, and the door was ajar. Will directed Holly and the kids to stay hidden behind the brick part of the building while he sneaked by the glass and peeked his head through the front door.
It appeared to be clear, and he gestured for Holly to join him.
When they arrived beside him, Will looked down to Dylan and Mary Beth.
“You guys stay close to us, all right? Focus and make sure you’re within five feet of us at all times. Don’t wander off. You understand?”
Both children nodded.
He then looked to Holly. “I’ll go in first. Keep them right behind you and watch my back.”
“Just be careful,” Holly said.
Will pushed open the door and entered the store, crunching glass under his feet. It was impossible to avoid, but he tried to step as easy as possible, so as to not make too much noise. The place had no power and no windows other than the ones at the front of the store, leaving it covered in darkness.
“I’ve got a flashlight,” Holly said.
“Good,” Will said. “Don’t turn it on until we at least have an idea that this main room is secure.”
Will stepped forward into the store. A long counter was at his left where employees had likely greeted guests when they’d entered. A computer monitor was tipped over and broken, and paper was scattered everywhere. Will peeked over the counter to see piles of trash: various office supplies, papers, another broken monitor. A drawer stuck out from the counter that looked like it had once held a cash register. But that was gone, likely taken by someone who’d been here in the moments after The Fall, or looters who’d come through later on.
As they moved through the middle of the store, avoiding tossed over furniture, a sound caught Will’s attention and he jerked his head up to follow it. He drew his Glock and pointed it across the room. Looking toward the ceiling when it came again, he saw the silhouette of a bird. It flew to the front of the store, looking like it was going to head out through the open front door, but took a sharp turn at the last moment and landed on a pipe attached to the ceiling.
He scoffed, looking back to Holly and shaking his head.
“Let me see that flashlight.”
She handed it to Will and he clicked it on. When he flashed the beam onto the ground in front of them, he jumped back. Holly stifled a scream and averted the kids’ eyes.
Two corpses lay on the floor between two beds, torn apart and mutilated. The group had become so accustomed to the smell of death that none of them had noticed. Will checked to make sure there were no other bodies in the immediate area, then sidestepped around them, creating a path for Holly and the kids. He kept the light away from the corpses, but their presence was certain.
They reached the back of the store, this being lined with mattress sets and dressers. Will shined the light down the back wall until the beam illuminated two double doors.
“Come on, let’s check in the back. If someone is here, they’re bound to be back there.”
He moved toward the door, scattering the light to look for danger, all while listening.
“I’m scared,” Mary Beth said.
“I know, sweetie,” Holly said. “Just stick by me. Everything’s going to be all right. I won’t let anything happen to you.”
Will’s heartbeat quickened as he approached the door. Like Mary Beth, he was scared, too. If someone, or something, stood behind that door, they’d have the upper hand. Surely they’d know by now that someone else was in the building.
He stopped at the edge of the door and signaled Holly to be still.
“All right,” Will whispered. “When I open this door and go in, I want you right behind me, Holly, with your gun ready.”
“Gotcha,” she said.
“You guys stay right there, okay? We’ll give you the signal when it’s okay to follow us in.”
Even in the dark, Will could see Mary Beth shaking. He kneeled down and put his hand on her shoulder.
“It’ll be all right. Like Holly said, we aren’t going to let anything happen to either of you. Okay?”
Mary Beth swiped her hair from her eyes and nodded.
Will took a deep breath as he turned back toward the door. He aimed the Glock out in front of him, holding the flashlight up with his other hand for light.
Stepping in front of the door, he kicked it open and moved inside.
The door swung all the way in on its hinge and hit the parallel wall.
Will aimed the gun and the flashlight, scanning the room. It was an open warehouse with metal racking covering about half of the space, while the floor directly in front of him was empty. A metal bay door was at the far wall in front of him, big enough for the store to receive shipments through. And along the wall to his right were two more doors like the one he’d just come through, appearing to lead into offices.
He saw all this, but no Empties and no survivors.
“Stay on your toes,” Will said. “Just because we haven’t seen anyone yet doesn’t mean there’s no one here. They could be hiding in one of those rooms, or they might have left and could come back at any moment.”
Will stepped all the way into the warehouse, stopping halfway across the room in the middle of the open floor. He shined the light over, looking down the rows of metal racking. Along with several boxes on the ground, there were what appeared to be two bodies. Though the warehouse was much smaller, Will had flashbacks, thinking about when The Fall had happened and he had been at Element, his former workplace.
He was about to walk over and observe the bodies to see if they could be Gabriel’s wife and daughter when he heard a growl, followed by a scream.
Will turned, shining the flashlight toward where the cry had come from. At the far wall, an Empty had taken hold of Dylan, and the boy was struggling to fend the creature off.
Holly raised her gun to the creature’s face.
The click sounded through the room.
The gun had locked up.
Letting go of Dylan, the Empty lunged at Holly. She screamed as the creature fell on her. Her cry turned to a slurp as the Empty tore into her neck.
“No!” Will yelled even as he moved. He ran over to Holly and kicked the monster off of her.
Then he unloaded every round from the Glock into the creature’s face.
CHAPTER TWENTY-SEVEN
Jessica and Gabriel were just about to walk into an office at the far end of the carpet outlet’s main floor when they heard the faint gunshots. They turned and looked at each other, and Gabriel was the first one to run for the door.
They ran back the way they’d come, jumping over the body of the Empty Gabriel had just taken down with his knife. Rushing through the store’s lobby, they pushed through the front door and ran to the other building.
When they arrived inside the furniture store, Jessica pulled out her flashlight. The walls in the building they’d just left had had several windows, allowing light to come in and illuminate it. This place was much darker.
Jessica and Gabriel looked around, scanning the store. Jessica thought about calling out, but wanted to remain quiet just in case another group of survivors had taken their friends captive.
She was looking toward the far wall when Dylan and Mary Beth came running out of a doorway in the back of the building, screaming and crying.
Gabriel and Jessica ran toward the kids, meeting them at the back of the store. Dylan ran to Gabriel while Mary Beth went to Jessica, each hugging the adults’ like their lives depended on it when they reached them.
“What’s the matter?” Jessica asked.
Both kids continued to cry and scream, unable to calm down enough to say what had happened.
Finally, Jessica bent down to the eye-level of the children.
“Guys, I need you to calm down and listen to me, okay? Tell us what happened.”
Mary Beth buried her head into her hands and looked away, so Jessica focused on Dylan.
“Dylan, what is going on?”
The boy wiped his eyes and pointed toward the back room.
“It’s H-Holly,” Dylan said. “She…”
“She what?” Jessica asked.
Dylan fell to his knees, unable to speak.
Jessica looked up to Gabriel, who ran for the door Dylan had pointed to.
“You guys stay right here, okay?” Jessica said. “Do not move, do you understand me?”
“Yes,” Dylan said through tears. Mary Beth muttered something that sounded like she at least knew what Jessica had demanded.
Jessica stood up and hurried over to the door. As she approached, she slowed down. Her heart seemed to be going a hundred miles per hour. She closed her eyes, not sure if she could look into the room.
When she was just by the door, the crying of the kids faded into sobbing coming from beyond the swinging doors.
Jessica pushed through and shined her light into the room.
Her hand went to her mouth.
Will sat against a wall, cradling Holly’s body in his hands as he sobbed. Blood puddled all around him, glistening off the light of the flashlight. Jessica quickly lowered the light, pointing it away from his eyes, and then ran over to him.
An Empty body lay nearby, its face unrecognizable. It was then that Jessica understood why so many gunshots had gone off.
She kneeled down next to Will. He had yet to acknowledge there being anyone else in the room. He focused his attention straightforward, quivering as he held Holly’s limp body in his arms. He had taken off his long sleeve shirt and placed it over her throat. The light blue shirt was now stained with blood.
“Will?” Jessica said.
He continued to gasp, breathing heavy and staring ahead.
Jessica reached out and placed her hand on his shoulder, and Will jerked, startling her. He breathed faster. Heavier. Almost as if there wasn’t enough oxygen in the air to fill his hungry lungs.
He looked at her with big empty eyes. Blood decorated his face.
She leaned back in toward him and put her hand on his shoulder again.
“Will,” she said.
He stared at her with his eyes wide for another moment before he grabbed onto her hand. Jessica could feel the wet blood on the top of her hand. He dropped his head onto her arm, and Jessica leaned in to hug him.
After several moments, Will pulled away and looked Jessica in the eyes.
“We can’t leave her like this.”
Jessica shook her head. “No, it’s okay. We can leave before she turns.”
“No,” Will said, almost shouting. “Would you want to become one of those things?”
Jessica didn’t have to think about it even for a second. Even though she’d be dead, there was no way she’d want to turn Empty. She avoided his gaze as she shook her head.
“Neither would she,” Will said.
“Take him out of here and I’ll do it,” Gabriel said.
“I can—”
“No,” Gabriel said, cutting Will off before he could volunteer to do what had to be done. “Go outside and I’ll do it.”
With heavy eyes, Will nodded. “Just let me tell her goodbye.”
Jessica ran her hand down Will’s cheek before she stood up and went to the other side of the room.
Will turned his attention down to Holly’s face, and he lowered his head to touch hers as he cried. Jessica looked away.
She went to the door to check on the kids. They both sat exactly where she’d left them, hugging each other on the ground and continuing to cry. Jessica went over to them and they both stood, each taking one side of her and hugging tight.
Will limped out of the room soon after, his shoulders slumped and a blank stare on his face. The double doors shut behind him, and he stood still. His posture made him look like an Empty. Like he was a lifeless creature, with nothing to live for. And Jessica wondered how much of that was true in his mind now. Will had suffered more loss than anyone in their group since The Fall. Even more than Jessica herself. Will had now lost both his parents and Holly. He’d been closer to Marcus than anyone else in the group. And even though he hadn’t died, Will had been looking after Dylan when he’d lost his arm due to the Empty bite. While no one had blamed Will for the accident, he still felt guilty, like he’d been the one who was ultimately responsible.
Jessica wanted to go to him. To hold him. But she resisted the urge, remembering how she had felt after finding her parents dead.
The doors swung open and Gabriel exited the rear of the warehouse. He let out a sigh. Jessica noticed his knife at his side, knowing full-well it was the weapon he’d used to end any chance that Holly would become Empty.
Gabriel approached Jessica.
“I think it’s best if you walk with him out of here.”
Holding back tears, Jessica nodded.
She approached Wil
l, standing at his side.
“It’s time to go,” she said softly. “Come on.”
Jessica placed her hand on his back and Will moved his feet, barely picking them up off of the ground. She saw now in his walk just how much like one of the Empties he looked. He lumbered just like one.
They made it outside and were halfway back to the SUV when Will fell to the ground, nearly sending Jessica down with him. He landed on all fours and sobbed as he faced the concrete sidewalk.
Jessica had started to kneel next to him when he shot up and looked straight into the sky.
And he screamed.
CHAPTER TWENTY-EIGHT
After Gabriel finished checking both buildings, but failed to find his wife and daughter, the group hit the road again.
As had been proven normal, what should’ve been no more than a three hour drive to the cabin was now going to take much longer. Not only had seeing Katie’s car led to a fatal detour, but the highways were nearly impossible to maneuver, only allowing them to drive thirty to forty miles per hour for most of the way.
At first, Jessica was worried about bringing up the idea to stop. They were only an hour away from the cabin, and she feared the idea to find a place to sleep for the evening might set Gabriel off. But they were almost out of sunlight, and from what Gabriel had said about the location of the cabin, it wasn’t somewhere they’d want to be traveling toward in the dark of night. Fortunately, Gabriel didn’t argue about camping for the night. After what had happened, the group needed rest.
Just as the sun was going down, Gabriel pulled into a campground. They’d followed signs and found it next to a lake in a desolate area, just over two miles away from the interstate.
Jessica kept a keen eye out the windows, looking for any Empties or other survivors. A place as reclusive as this one would’ve been the perfect place for survivors to make camp—just as long as there’d been no Empties infesting it already.
When they didn’t see any immediate threat, Gabriel parked.
The area had old playground equipment and a barbecue grill which looked like it had been used several hundred times without being cleaned. Not that it mattered since they had nothing worth cooking on it. The kids had no interest in going and playing on the playground equipment. They’d sat in the back with Jessica in almost complete silence, other than some gentle whimpers that mainly came from Mary Beth. Jessica had given them their space, knowing they’d talk to her or hug her if they needed to.
Empty Bodies (Book 6): Revelation Page 13
