by Ted Hill
Jimmy clapped his mouth shut for the second time with a definite clapping sound. Then he opened it again. “Why am I back here?”
Kids started yelling outside and the three of them were distracted for a moment. The shouts grew louder. Catherine shrugged. “You probably have a job to do.”
And then she headed for the door. Molly smiled at Jimmy and followed Catherine. Jimmy glided after them because he’d been on his own for a long time. It was nice to have someone to talk too.
Outside, the sunshine blinded him. Jimmy adjusted his hat to shade his eyes, which did absolutely nothing. Now he understood why ghosts only spooked at night. He thought about closing his eyes but didn’t want to accidentally float through anybody. He opted to tough it out until he discovered who was making the ruckus. Then he would hurry back to be with his family.
“You son of a bitch, I’ll kill you!”
Jimmy’s head snapped up. He couldn’t believe his ears. Sure, he’d heard Scout curse before, just not in the middle of Main Street in front of all the younger kids.
Mark carted his brother-in-law off like a duffle bag with twelve angry cats inside. Samuel bent over and helped Raven to her feet. Blood trickled down her face.
“This has got to be Billy’s doing,” Catherine said. “He’s been avoiding me like the plague.”
“Billy?” Jimmy said. “You mean that little kid that Hunter found in Denver.”
“He’s been skipping his therapy sessions with me lately,” Molly said. “Hunter’s been worried about him ever since he started hanging around Dylan.”
“Hunter worried?” Jimmy smiled at that. Paybacks were sweet, even in the afterlife.
“Let’s find out what’s going on?” Catherine said. “Raven looked like she needed some medical attention, and Luis has his hands full.”
“Did you want to go back to your family, Jimmy?” Molly asked him.
Jimmy thought about it and shook his head. “I think I’ll tag along with you guys.”
“Yeah,” Catherine said. “Ginger probably has her shirt closed up by now anyways.” She ran across the street, hooting with laughter.
“She’s something else,” Jimmy said, watching the little girl go.
Molly stepped off the curb to follow. “You have no idea.”
Sixteen
Hunter
Hunter awoke and shot off the ground with fists clenched. He looked around for someone to punch. A dozen skinny kids stared at him like he was crazy, and then they looked at each other like maybe they should run away.
Barbie raced over and grabbed Hunter’s hands. “It’s okay. It’s over.”
“What? Where’s Tommy?”
Barbie smiled and motioned her hand at all the Cozad kids. “The cavalry came and your Tommy decided to lick his wounds elsewhere. You really took it to him with that broomstick. Where did you learn to fight like that?”
Hunter searched up and down the street, making sure it really was okay to drop his guard. Even the six little cannibals were gone.
“Well?” Barbie asked.
“I play lightsaber with the younger kids back home.”
Barbie narrowed her eyes. “You hit little kids like that?”
Hunter smiled, and then noticed the tiny mob of pale skeletons standing around in the sunshine. The Cozad kids watched him with sunken eyes like he held all the answers.
“Where did Tommy’s group go?”
“We locked them up behind bars in the police station for now,” Barbie said. “It’s the only way to stay safe. I don’t know if I can save any of them. They’re too far gone.”
“Are you sure?” Henry asked. “My… my sister is one of them.”
Barbie took his hand. “I’m sorry, Henry. We’ll wait until they wake up. Maybe I can undo whatever that boy did to her.” Tenderly, she kissed his cheek.
Hunter expected to see him breakdown. Instead, Henry nodded and looked to Hunter. “I can’t believe you’re still alive.”
“I can’t either,” Hunter said. “I’ll let you know when I find out how that’s possible. Thanks for coming to my rescue. That was very brave.”
Henry’s smile reflected the sunlight. “We got braver as the fight went on. After Barbie knocked out all the little kids, we knew something big was happening so we came outside and watched you whack that guy over and over with your stick. Then when he stabbed you in the stomach, we just sort of knew it was up to us.”
Henry looked back at his group and they stood taller and some shook their tiny fists. Combined, all forty-one of them weighed less than a ton, but they had numbers on their side and anger in their hungry stares. And now something else—pride.
Barbie gripped Hunter by the arm and squeezed. “We need to get everyone out of here before Tommy recoups. He’ll try and free his group first. We probably have until nightfall, but I can’t guarantee that.”
“All right, Henry, I can take you guys to Independents. We have food, shelter and no demons. But we have to find transportation. The town is a hundred and sixty miles from here.”
Henry scuffed his shoe back and forth on the pavement. “What about the school bus?”
“Does it run?”
“The last time we drove it was about a month ago before all this started. We use it to go on scavenging field trips. We’ll have to charge the battery with the generator. There should be enough fuel in the tank to get us to Lexington. We can fill up there.”
“Take me to the bus.”
They walked in a dense herd, following Henry through Cozad. The children moved faster when the big yellow bus came into sight. Hunter knew the bumpy ride ahead would be terrible, but whatever. They needed to get everyone out of town and this was their only option.
Henry and another kid named Brandon grabbed a generator and a battery charger out of a nearby shed. Hunter noticed the oil-stained coveralls draped over Brandon. His hands were smeared with grit and grime from time spent working on the bus. Brandon popped open the hood like he knew what needed to be done.
Hunter stayed out of the way. He looked around for teeth gnashing monsters and figured they were safe for the moment. “I’ll be right back,” he said to Barbie. “I have to get my stuff.”
He ran, blowing past the 100th Meridian sign, and circled the grain elevator until he found the busted rifle on the pavement, ruined by the long drop. He continued to the stand of trees by Interstate 80 where he’d left his KTM. His side cramping from the hard pace, he slowed before the deep shade of trees, not wanting to go blindly into trouble. He walked under the leafy canopy, his boots crunching over fallen brushwood. His eye adjusted, and there was his orange and black KTM motorbike, right where he’d left it.
Hunter caught his breath and untied his backpack from the seat. He broke out his water bottle, took a couple of deep swallows, and saved the rest. He stripped off his jacket and held it out for inspection. There were holes in the shoulder and chest. It had been a rough twelve hours on his brand new apparel. Hopefully Molly would be willing to patch the holes.
He dug out a clean shirt that wasn’t in shreds and tossed the ruined one to the ground. He looked down at his bare chest and shoulders, expecting to see scars, but none were found. Packing the jacket and water away, he slipped on the blue shirt.
He started the bike and gave the throttle a couple turns, revving up the engine and thinking about going home. Scanning the sun’s position in the clear sky, he noted there might be seven hours of daylight left. He popped the clutch and headed back to Cozad.
* * *
When Hunter rode up, everybody who wasn’t helping with the automotive repairs was huddled inside the bus with the windows partway down. He stopped next to Barbie and cut the engine. The noise was replaced by the quieter hum of the generator. He propped the bike against the bus and Barbie gave him funny look.
“What?”
“They thought you’d left. Most of them didn’t blame you.”
“I’m not leaving unless it’s with everyone.” He said i
t loud enough for all to hear. “How is the bus coming along?”
Brandon tapped the gauge on the battery charger like the needle would give him the desired answer. His shoulders slumped as he looked back to Hunter. “We still have about an hour, give or take.”
Hunter nodded, trying to stay positive even though sitting around waiting for the boogey man to return was not ideal. “That’s okay. We’re going to make it out of here. We’ll take the generator and charger with us, just in case.”
Barbie grabbed hold and hugged him like they’d been apart for over a year instead of ten minutes. Hunter liked her hugs. Not as back breaking as Catherine’s and a little more… grown up. He enjoyed this one very much, until he remembered Molly.
“I’m glad you didn’t leave us,” she whispered. Her warm breath tickled his neck.
Hunter moved out of her embrace and backed away. “We need to make sure everyone is ready to go.”
Barbie tilted her head and smiled. “I’m sorry if I make you nervous.”
A howl sounded from inside a nearby building. The tortuous wail traveled the length of his spine and tingled across his scalp. Gritting his teeth, he eyed the building as another howl joined the chorus. The battery couldn’t charge quick enough.
“You don’t make me nervous, Barbie.” Hunter nodded toward the sounds. “They do.”
Seventeen
Hunter
He couldn’t ignore it any longer. The noise had to stop. The possessed cannibal kids continued wailing like they smelled fresh meat. The other kids—the normal but famished kids— stayed in the bus, trying not to listen to their former friends. It was tough, even if you weren’t half starved and about to pass out.
Hunter took to a knee and opened his backpack to inventory his essentials. He pulled out his clothes and left the food hidden in the bottom. Peering inside, he found an apple and some dried meat and some flatbread. Not enough to share with the group without a fight breaking out.
Barbie grabbed his briefs from the pile of clothes. She held both ends of the waistband and gave them a shake. They were bright red.
“Oh, I like these. Here, try them on for me.”
Hunter ripped them from her hands and buried them in the pile.
“Why are you so boring?” Barbie leaned over and gazed at Hunter.
Her eyes didn’t catch his attention, but her drooping shirt collar did. He quickly averted his gaze to the pile of clothes and ignored the urge to look back. “Why do you have to make this whole situation harder than it already is?”
“What situation? Am I a situation?”
“No. This town and all the kids are the situation. You’re the distraction.”
She leaned against the bus and arched her back. “Am I? Oh, I like that.”
“Yeah, well, I don’t. There’s too much going on here for you to keep messing with me. Plus, I have a girlfriend.”
“You sound like a broken record.”
“What’s that?”
“It’s an expression.” Barbie shrugged and held out her hand. “Let me see your backpack.”
“There’s no more underwear in there if that’s what you’re hoping to find.”
“Good. I really don’t want it rubbing up against the food more than it already has.” Her face scrunched up with disgust. “You really should separate your edible items from the nonedible ones.”
Hunter pulled his pack close to his chest and looked to see if the starving kids on the bus had overheard Barbie. With all the howling, most had pushed their windows back up. “I don’t have enough for everyone.”
“Leave that to me.” Barbie took possession of his bag and moved to the door of the bus. Hunter followed her out of curiosity and also to provide protection in case she was mobbed by ravenous skeletons. She stopped at the steps and bowed her head.
Hunter thought he heard thunder roll overhead in the sunny blue Nebraska sky.
Barbie climbed into the bus and moved to the back. She slowly walked backwards up the aisle and excited murmurs followed as she handed out the contents of Hunter’s bag. Kids brightened as she moved past, and then the bus fell silent except for the chomps and chewing of thirty-nine happy mouths.
She passed Hunter, who stood stunned by the big round steering wheel. Every kid on the bus had an apple, a stick of dried meat, and a whole piece of flatbread. He stumbled down the steps after her. Barbie had given a grateful Henry and Brandon some of the fare before handing Hunter back his bag. She bit into her bright red apple. Juice ran across her chin, and Hunter quickly looked into the bottom of his bag. There was the apple, dried meat and flatbread for him left to eat.
He didn’t have the appetite at the moment. “How did you do that?”
“Do you really have to ask?” Barbie said. “I thought you were used to miracles by now.”
Hunter rubbed his brow like he could clear the fuzziness from his thoughts. It didn’t really accomplish anything. He focused on the broomstick lying on the ground nearby. One of the kids must have brought it along. The dried blood on the pointy end made him uncomfortable.
First bullets and then the stick shoved into his guts—would a nuclear bomb stop him? Did Catherine bringing him back to life cause this invincibility? That had to be it, because this kind of thing just didn’t happen on its own. Hunter broke his arm a year ago and that hadn’t magically healed. Well, not until Catherine magically healed it. What about the pain in his shoulder that never healed or the blind eye and missing teeth? He wasn’t regenerating new parts.
“Don’t worry so much.” Barbie patted his hand. “The answers will come.”
“How about you just tell me what I need to know?”
“I can’t. It’s against the rules.” She nodded in the direction of the howling coming from the police station. “Let’s check the prisoners.”
Hunter shuddered at the idea. Going to see those crazy kids had all the appeal of spending a day plucking chickens. “I’d rather bite off my tongue and eat it.”
“I just want to make sure there really isn’t anything I can do for them before we leave. I mean, if I could save one then I have to try.”
The other kids were milling around outside of the bus now, looking for water. Their nervous behavior floated around like a contagion. Wes and Carissa were the closest, and although Wes appeared healthy after his possession, he still seemed a little shaken ever since Tommy and his gang had appeared.
Hunter rotated his bad shoulder, feeling the dull ache that would not quit. “Why do you need me there?”
“Backup.”
“Backup for what?”
“If I can save one, then I need you to hold off the others while I work to reverse whatever that kid did to them.”
Hunter considered the task before him and wished he’d left when he had the chance. His hand trembled as he gripped the broomstick. He patted his pocket for the reassuring weight of his lock blade knife. He wanted to be prepared for last resorts.
“Why can’t you just zap them all and then check them out?”
Barbie rolled her eyes like he was stupid. “They have to be awake. That’s why I couldn’t do it when we dragged them into the jail. Any more questions?”
Hunter shouldered the stick and headed for the screams. “Will I make it home alive?”
Barbie followed. “Sure, if you remember to say your prayers.”
They hit the street and were halfway across when they noticed the shuffling of a crowd following. Hunter turned to find every kid out of the bus and on their heels.
The horrible howling continued without pause, like an angry wolf pack caged in an undersized kennel. Hunter imagined how terrifying it would be inside and his knees jittered.
“Uh, you guys don’t have to come in there with us,” Hunter told the crowd.
Carissa took a step forward. “We feel safer with you guys. Is it okay if we wait in the lobby?” She nodded her head toward the rest of her group to find out if that would be okay with them as well. They seemed pretty happy
with the idea.
Hunter waved them on. “Let’s go. The more the merrier, right?”
“They’re not a very merry crowd,” Barbie said to him.
“It’s an expression.”
Hunter pushed open the door, stepping onto the tile flooring. Light flowed through the glass doors and front windows. The place had been gutted, leaving the counter and a dark entrance where the noise continued to grow like a cold wind.
“How the heck did you see to get them back there?” Hunter asked.
From the counter, Wes retrieved a Coleman lantern that burned white gas. He pumped the primer before igniting the mantles with a disposable lighter. “I’ll hold the lamp for you guys.”
Carissa stood next to her brother. “Then I’m coming too.” She held his free hand and together they walked toward the darkness.
Hunter tapped the broomstick on the ground to make sure it wouldn’t break, and then he followed the light. “Let’s go play with the crazy kids.”
Darkness fell on top of them as they moved farther away from the comfort of daylight. The lantern only worked to draw their eyes into a tight circle. What might lay beyond that circle made Hunter nervous. The howling grew louder until they stood in front of a closed door that separated the hallway from the nightmare. Wes walked past the door and held up the light.
“Are you going in?” Hunter shouted the question over the cacophony and Wes flinched. Hunter tried to smile but the screaming was working on his nerves, making simple facial expressions tricky. He held out his hand. “Give me the lamp. You follow.”
Handing the lantern to Hunter, Wes produced a shaky, but grateful, smile. Carissa cowered behind her brother, but at least she’d come this far. If Wes went through the door, Hunter knew she’d be right with him.
Barbie stared at the entrance, her face strained at the rising tone from the hungry, flesh-eating children beyond.
Hunter nudged her. “Are you all set?”
Still staring at the door, she held up a handful of crackling electricity. At least Hunter thought it crackled. It certainly sparkled. The white light enhanced the illumination from the yellow glow of the lantern.
