by T. Gault
“Get in the back!” I said, pointing toward the camper shell.
Jim flung open the tailgate and they both started climbing in. I didn’t want to start driving off until they had the tailgate closed. Several of the carriers slammed into the passenger’s side of the truck and a pair of hands came in through the passenger’s window. The shards of shattered glass on the floor reminded me that the window was already broken. Beth began to punch and shove the creature outside the vehicle as hard as she could while sitting down, but the arms just kept grabbing and pulling on whatever they could. Beth was having trouble keeping the carrier back, and the little girl sitting next to her started to strike the rotting arms pulling at Beth. The little girl leaned over and hit with all of the power that an eight-year-old girl could deliver.
The rancid hands let go of Beth, and clamped onto the girl’s arm. She began to scream at such a high tone that my ears hurt. Beth grabbed onto her and held on. The female carrier started to drag itself into the cab with the girl and I could clearly see its head. I pulled out the Glock and leveled my aim at its head. POW! The corpse went limp.
I glanced over my shoulder and saw that the other guys had finally gotten the camper shell closed. I shoved my foot onto the gas pedal and began to navigate my way out of the parking lot. Beth and the girl heaved and forced the remains of the carrier out of the window. I could see Beth watching the carcass bouncing on the pavement in the mirror.
I heard Sid in the back of the truck let out a, “Whew! That’s what I’m talkin’ about!”
I looked over at Beth and cracked a weak smile, but she maintained a straight face and looked out the window, squeezing the little girl a little tighter. In the rear view I could see Jim sitting still staring at the bed of the truck. Sid sat across from him and looked like he was reloading his shotgun.
I tried to stick to the plan and drove away from the sporting goods store. I told Beth about the plan to lead them away from where we were going to stay. She suggested that I turn on the lights to the truck and also turn on the blinking hazard lights while we distracted the hoards. I drove for about ten minutes before we all decided it was time to try to head back. I had tried to contact Matt over the radio several times while we were driving, but the range of the walkie-talkies was only a couple of miles. I decided that it would be best to try to drive without headlights on the way back. It would attract less attention.
We were almost back to the area of the clothing store when I heard Matt come across, PFFFF, “…anybody. You guys are taking way too long.”
CLICK, “Matt! We made it out. We’re all fine. It worked,” I replied.
“It’s about time. I ran out of things to talk to Curtis about...or he got sick of listening. He fell asleep,” replied Matt.
“We’ll be back to you in about a minute, so get ready. We’re coming to the back door,” I said.
“You guys have an entourage?” asked Matt.
“We’re still turning heads as we go by, but I’ve got the truck blacked out now.”
“Okay, I can’t see much up here, but I’ll do what I can,” said Matt.
I told Beth that she and the girl would be the first to get inside the store and the rest of us would cover them as they moved. I could tell that the girl was scared to go back outside after being relatively safe inside the truck. I could hear Sid and Jim psyching each other up for our next encounter.
“Let’s do this thing,” said Jim.
“You know it,” said Sid as he held up his twelve-gauge.
I could see the sporting goods store in the distance and I continually scanned the roof for any sign of Matt. The sun had been down for a while and it was getting very difficult to see where I was going. Most of the power grids in the area had been out for the last couple of days.
CLICK, “Matt, we’re about to roll up in the lot,” I said into the radio.
PFFFF, “C’mon in. Curtis has got the door,” responded Matt.
I saw a few quick flashes from a flashlight on the roof, just as I hit the parking lot. I was about to pull up into the same spot that I had stopped before, when I saw movement swaying back and forth. I slowed the truck down and watched ahead.
CLICK, “Matt, I think we’ve got a welcoming party,” I quickly said.
PFFFF, “Where? I didn’t see anything,” said Matt just as he swept his flashlight over the crowd in front of the truck.
There were about twenty of them all jammed together, standing where I had started the truck when we left.
“Oh, crap!” I yelled.
I shoved my foot into the gas and drove past the mass of gawking faces. I heard Matt’s rifle crack through the cool night air several times while I drove around the building.
PFFFF, “Where are you going?” Matt yelled into the radio.
I was too focused on driving to answer him. I looked over at Beth and she glanced over at me.
“Go around again. We’ll make a break for the door,” she said with a quiver in her voice.
“They’re chasing the truck. It might work,” said Sid.
Jim moved his head from side to side, looking out the back of the truck, “It looks like it’s the whole lot of them on us,” he said.
“Okay, when I get to the door, Beth and the girl are going to run for the door. I don’t want a jam at the door, so Jim, you and Sid are going to make a try for the door on the second pass,” I said as I rounded the corner leading back to the rear door.
I pulled up and slammed on the breaks. “Go!” I yelled to Beth.
“C’mon, sweetie,” she said, grabbing the little girl’s hand and running for the door.
She pushed the girl inside just before the first of our rancid pursuers came around the corner. Beth quickly slid inside and I saw Curtis poke his head outside with a confused look on his face.
I pushed my foot back into the gas pedal and started my second loop around the walls.
“Alright, you guys are next,” I said looking into the rearview mirror.
“You’re coming too right?” inquired Sid.
“Like I said, I don’t want a jam going into the door. You saw how quickly they caught up to us,” I replied.
“Alright Bud,” replied Sid.
“He’s a big boy,” Jim said with a smirk.
I heard Matt’s rifle firing a few more times while we made the second trip, but the group didn’t seem to be getting any smaller.
BUMP-BUMP! I rolled over one of the bodies lying on the asphalt and could feel the bones crunch. The sudden jarring motion caught me off guard and sent me swerving into the wall of the building. It was only a glancing blow into the cinder block wall, but it felt like much more.
“Wow bud! Keep’er under control!” yelled Sid from the back.
I corrected the steering and continued around the last corner.
“This is it!” yelled Jim as he flung open the door to the camper shell.
I slowed to a stop and they both jumped out and ran to the door. I waited for a second to make sure that they were inside before I went back around. Jim was first to the door, but the door didn’t open. He started pounding on the metal door. I could see panic in his eyes. Sid turned and looked back at me and lifted his shotgun up and pointed it toward the corner.
BLAM, click click, BLAM, click click. Sid had let out a volley into the approaching group. He started to run back toward the truck, just as the back door opened and I saw Beth look out.
“Get in here!” she screamed.
Jim rolled into the opening and Sid slid on his boots to stop. He fired one more shot into the rotting carriers before getting inside the building. I let out a sigh of relief and looked into the rearview mirror.
WHAM, THUD...THUD.
One of them ran into the back of the truck. The tailgate was still down and the infected was crawling into the bed. I jammed the accelerator to the floor and heard a dull sliding noise in the bed of the truck, but as the truck leveled out, I realized that I had not lost the hitchhiker. It was still th
umping around in the back. I could tell that the carrier was getting closer to the cab. I raced around the building just praying that I would make it to the back door again before the thing in the back made it to the cab.
As I made it around to the front side of the building I saw movement by my right shoulder, out of the corner of my eye. I glanced over and saw that a boney, rotting arm was reaching through the open window from the camper shell. I jerked the steering wheel from left to right and the arm disappeared with a loud thump.
I had bought myself a little more time. I continued around to the last corner of the building and took a deep breath. I envisioned exactly how it would happen.
I would come to the rear of the sporting goods store. I would see the door open. I would stop the truck. I would shut off the truck and take the keys out. I would get out of the truck and run inside the store.
That doesn’t sound that hard right? I thought to myself.
The door came into view...it was shut. I pulled the truck up to the door and shut off the engine. The arm came through the window again and grabbed my shirt. I opened the door and pulled until my shirt came loose. I turned and ran for the door. I glanced to my left and saw the tireless crowd stumbling around the corner of the store. I looked back at the truck and realized that I had left the door open, and left the dome light on. I could see that my unwelcome passenger had pulled most of his upper torso into the cab and was still trying to get through to come after me.
I heard the door unlatch behind me and someone grabbed my shirt, dragging me into the store. I remembered the step this time and didn’t fall. I turned to look and saw that Matt had pulled me to safety.
“Crap!” I yelled.
“I was expecting more of a, ‘Thanks’ or a ‘You da man,’“ exclaimed Matt.
“My keys...the door is still open. The battery is going to die. There is a...one of them in the cab,” I stammered.
“Well, we all made it,” said Beth giving me a look as though she thought I should be happy.
“Yeah, we did,” I said, calming myself down.
Then I heard it. Someone was crying and saying, “You’re alive!”
I looked over at Sid and Jim. They were looking at Curtis, who was holding the little girl and hugging her. I turned back to Beth and she raised her eyebrows and shook her head. I looked over at Matt and he mumbled, “I think it’s his sister.”
I quickly looked back at Curtis and just watched him walking back and forth with the girl. I let out a very uncomfortable chuckle and almost started crying myself.
“That’s incredible,” I said looking back at Matt.
I let out a sigh and looked down at the floor to try to hide my welling tears. Then I saw it. Any concern I had for the battery in my truck evaporated from my mind. There were blood droplets on the floor. They weren’t old, dried blood droplets either. I’m sure my face went pale as I realized what this possibly meant. Everyone else was still looking at Curtis and joining into this little bit of joy…that little bit of hope.
I tried not to look panicked. I slowly looked around the room, examining every one for signs of a bite. I understood that whoever it was might not have even noticed themselves yet because of the adrenaline. I looked at Matt’s feet and saw the drops starting near the door, but they moved across the room. They seemed to have dripped all over, but finally I saw the source. There was a noticeable circle around Curtis’s feet where he had been spinning.
My mind flew back to the scream the girl had made when we were leaving the store, the rotten female that grabbed onto her arm. I looked at Matt’s face. He still hadn’t noticed. I looked over at Beth and decided that she may be a little more understanding than Matt, but the entire group needed to know.
I found myself standing in silence for several minutes, until I noticed that Sid was trying to get my attention.
“I’m sorry, what?” I responded.
“I said, ‘Are you alright bud?’“ repeated Sid.
“Uh...yeah, I’m fine...I just...they got her,” I mumbled.
“What?” said Jim as his happiness vanished.
“Who?” said Matt from behind me, changing his posture.
“Was there someone else at the store that didn’t make it?” asked Matt.
Beth looked confused and said, “I’m fine they didn’t…” She looked over at Curtis.
“No...no...I protected her. She’s fine...they didn’t...they couldn’t have,” Beth struggled to get out. Then she saw the blood and saw the bloody sleeve of the girl’s shirt.
“Maybe she cut herself on something,” I blurted out.
Curtis suddenly caught onto what we were talking about. He put the girl down and looked at her sleeve. With scared eyes he looked around the room at everyone else.
“I picked this out for you,” said the girl in a very small voice, holding up the plastic bag from Game Stop.
Curtis took the bag as she handed it to him and looked inside. It was a game that he had been asking his mom to get him.
“I’m sorry it’s not wrapped and I think I missed your birthday. It was yesterday I think,” the girl said.
“Oh, Frannie...” he sniffed, “it’s okay. It’s just the one I wanted.” He tried to keep himself under control.
“Okay, let’s not panic,” Beth said while she walked over to Curtis and his sister.
“What do you mean let’s not panic!” yelled Curtis. “You’ve seen where this leads. We all have.”
All of us were a little thrown aback by Curtis’ outburst. None of us had seen this kind of personality out of him. The infected outside the door began to pound more violently when he yelled.
“Look, keep your voice down. We’ve got first-aid kits in this place. We can patch her up good as new,” said Jim, trying to calm Curtis down.
“Good as new? She’s dead...she doesn’t have a chance!” screamed Curtis.
Francine began to cry and pulled away from Curtis. She ran over to Beth and hugged her around the waist.
Curtis’ anger disappeared and was replaced with surprise at his sister having just run to someone else for comfort.
“I...I’m sorry Frannie. It’s just...I don’t know what to do,” mumbled Curtis.
“Let’s start by taking a look at it,” said Beth as she walked over to Jim with Francine.
“The kits are over here on aisle twelve,” Jim said quickly.
Jim kept his eyes on the shattered windows of the front of the store and stayed low as he moved. Sid and Curtis walked quickly behind them as they rushed off to examine the wound. I started to follow them, but Matt grabbed my shoulder just before I was out of reach. I looked back at him with a puzzled look on my face.
“What’s up?” I questioned.
“I had a little talk with Curtis just before he fell asleep earlier, when we were on the roof. I found out why he was flying down the street when he wrecked,” said Matt very seriously.
“Is this really the time to...” I started to speak but Matt cut me off.
“He was looking for her...and his mom,” said Matt.
“So, his mom is still out there too?” I replied.
Matt looked slightly ticked off for a moment, “I doubt it. What mother would let her eight-year-old fend for herself out there?”
“But there is a chance that she’s out there?” I questioned.
Matt was clearly beginning to lose his temper, “Okay, this is not why I brought this up. I’m not purposing that we set out another rescue party in the morning. I’m saying that this guy is reckless when it comes to his family. Alright...his mom and...what is it, Frannie, went to the shopping center to buy him some birthday presents. That was the day all of this started. They never came back. He sat at home...and didn’t do anything for the first couple days. He saw all of the stuff on the news, but when the news cut off he just couldn’t take wondering what happened anymore and jumped in the car. Did you see any weapons in his car? Or any kind of self-control when we first ran into him?”
; “Well, no, but...” I tried to get into the conversation.
“There’s just something about him that makes me worry. I’m not sure what it is. I know that right after...they got Jenny, I thought about just giving up, walking out into a crowd and letting it happen. I had to make the decision to fight and he will too,” Matt said.
“We don’t even know that she was bitten and if so, we’ll deal with it,” I replied.
“Whew!” I heard Sid exclaim from the middle of the store.
I looked at Matt and started walking over to where everyone else was gathered around Francine. As I walked I glanced back at Matt, but he just stood there with his arms crossed, slightly shaking his head.
