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They were putting the things that they carried into an RV. When they came back into the house, Major Scott stopped them. He said, “Everyone, this is Ava and Jasmine. They are coming, too.” He turned to Ava, it was obvious that, he was a little frantic. He quickly introduced her to Nicole, and the others. “This is my wife, Nicole. This is Pastor Dom. And, this is my son, Devon.” They nervously, greeted each other. Nicole added, “ We didn't know anyone else was coming. The RV is packed full.” The Major asked, “What all else needs to go? We do not a lot of time. That herd is big. Oh, and, we have a pickup. Jimmy can drive that, and the rest of us can go in the RV. The Hummer is out of gas, there was no time to scrounge for extra fuel. Jimmy, is there anything inside the Hummer that we need to take with us?” Jimmy said, “Maybe, the maps. I'll grab them. Ava and Jasmine can come with me. If the RV is full of supplies.” He looked at Ava, and waited for the reply. She said, “Okay. Sure.” Nicole cut in, “We need to bring the rest of the canned food, and the blankets. And, the guns. How close are the dead?” Scott said, “Not far. How much ammo do we have?” She said, “You two should look at it. If we can get out fast, and not get ambushed, we'll be okay. But, we don't have what we did have. We'll have to find another supply of ammo soon.” Scott went to the back room. He started to rifle through the chest he had been keeping all the weapons in. He also had a make-shift cabinet, holding different sized weapons. He said, “Pastor. Can you go to the look out, and tell me if you see the herd coming, yet?” He offered his rifle with the scope to Pastor Dom. The Pastor took it. “Yes.” He walked out through the back door. Scott said, “We have enough to get us through this. But, we have to get out, now.” He picked up the guns, and shoved what he could inside the chest. He had to carry the larger weapons. He said, “Everyone get's a gun, and some ammo. Use it, only if, you have to. Ava,can you shoot?” She looked at him, then at Jimmy, then at Nicole. “Yes.” He handed her a gun. He continued, “Okay. Load up on everything.” Pastor Dom rushed back into the room. I can see them at the clearing. Where all the prairie grass ends. They are minutes away.” Devon blurted out, “I want to leave.” Ava cried, “Mommy, the monsters are coming. We need to hide.” Jimmy said, “We take only what we need. Get what else we can carry.” Nicole said, “Let's go.” They finished putting their things into the RV, and the truck.
Scott took out a map. He said to Jimmy, “Okay. We go south down forty-one. If that goes sour. Then, we turn due east, on fourteen. Stay on the radio.” Jimmy said, “Okay. I'll drive the truck in front.” They went to get into their vehicles. Some of the herd had made it to the back fence. They could hear a sea of growls. They were trying to get through, by clawing at it. There were so many living dead pushing on it that, within minutes, they pushed the fence down. They were not inside the vehicles, yet. Nicole screamed, “They're coming! Get the kids!” Both children started yelling, and crying. Devon frozen with fear, had to be yanked by his arm to the RV. They all started running to the vehicles. The zombies were coming for them. They staggered, in a stream, from the side of the house. Devon and Jasmine were still crying, as they were led by their parents. The Pastor shot one that almost grabbed Devon. He yelled, “Get in the RV, Devon. Hurry!” Nicole pulled him to the RV. Pastor Dom stabbed another one in the eye. Jimmy fought off two zombies. He shot one in the head, while stabbing the other in the temple. Ava, held her daughter's hand, while rushing to the truck. Jasmine ran along side her mother. She was screaming and crying, “Mommy! Hurry! Mommy! They're coming!” Ava shot two coming at them. She opened the door to the truck and put her daughter inside. She turned around to see Nicole getting into the RV. The dead were everywhere. Within minutes, they had filled the yard. It looked like they were walking around inside the house, as well.
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She saw Jimmy fighting a zombie. He threw it on the ground, swinging his hatchet at another, hitting it on the head. It fell to the ground. He ran to the truck, “Hurry up! Get in!” She yelled, “Where is your friend?” Jimmy yelled, “He is in the RV...Come on!” Jasmine cried, “Mommy! Please hurry.” Another dead one grabbed Ava, it snapped at her, and tried to bite her. Jasmine screamed, “Mommy!” Ava shot it in the face. She turned, and rushed into the truck. Once she made it inside, Jimmy took off. She blurted out, “Did they all get into the RV? What about the boy?” Jimmy said, “They got in.We have to get out, now. Or, there will be too many of those things to drive through.” He looked at her. She was visibly terrified. She had already grabbed her daughter and was holding her tight, while still holding onto her gun. Jimmy said, “Ava, take your finger off of the trigger.” She stared out the window. She was in shock. “Ava!” She looked at him wide-eyed, like a deer caught in the headlights. He repeated, “Take your finger off of the trigger.” He pointed down at her hand, still holding the gun. She gasped. She said, “Oh.” She loosened her finger from the trigger. She pulled her daughter closer to her. Jasmine was shaking. She was crying into her mothers side. Ava looked like she wanted to cry, but could not. Jasmine cried, “Momma. I'm scared. They're going to bite me, again.” Clearly, she has been traumatized; Jimmy thought. He tried to comfort the young girl, “Jasmine. It will be okay. We are getting away, Honey.” They left out through the front gate. They sped towards the highway. They passed a few living dead here, and there. As they came to the highway, they saw some cars that were abandoned on the shoulder. Jimmy and the Major spoke over the radios. Jimmy said, “I don't think that we should stop. Those things are too close.” The Major said, “You're right. Keep going.” Jimmy drove up the empty road, the Major followed with the others inside the RV. Ava sat motionless. She started to speak, “There is a school, a few miles from here. I think that it is empty. I was thinking of bringing Jasmine there. It's all fenced in. It sits back off of the roadway. We found it by accident. Bob, Karen, and I, we wondered why it was sitting in the middle of nowhere, by this big house. Just surrounded by trees. Anyway, we never made it. They never made it.” He looked at her, “Where is this place? Can you show us how to get there?” She said, “Its thirty miles out. There is a pathway. It has it's own back road, that is just an overgrown pathway, now. We could not figure out how it came to be empty? How it came to be there?” They drove for a few more minutes. She pointed to an old grassy turn off. It looked like a driveway that had been neglected. She said, “There. Turn in there.” As he turned the truck into the grass, Jimmy could see that some of the bushes had grown into trees. The branches created a wall in front of what was a road. He pulled further in, and stopped the truck. He and Ava stepped out of the truck. Jasmine followed her mother. The RV stopped behind him. The Major stepped out of the RV. “Jimmy, what are you doing? Why did you stop?”
“Major, she says that there is an old school back there, somewhere.” The others, now came out of the RV. The Major looked at Ava, “Is that true? How do you know this?” Ava said, “ When everything, fell apart, we met a couple of survivors, back in that town. Anyway, we would take turns looking for a safer place, and we were getting ready to move on. Bob, one of them, used to go out and hunt and fish for us. He came back one day, and told us about this place. So we came out here, to make sure that it was safe. There were more of us, then. We could leave the children back in town with some of our group, while the others went to look for what we needed. Anyway, we came out here. It was just what we needed. Had a fenced in play ground for the children. We could not figure out, why it was so far out. And, so well hidden. There is a huge house there. We just figured that it was some kind of private school, or something. I have not been back here in weeks.” Nicole asked, “Why didn't you all get back here, right away?”
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Ava answered, “We tried. We were moving out, we got just out side of town, the bus that we were using broke down. All of our vehicles were out of gas. Bob found the old bus, somewhere. It had gas, and we could ride together inside. So, we agreed to use that. We packed it up, and started on our way. It stalled a half mile outside of town. Aft
er it quit running, Bob was trying to get it started, when we were ambushed by a couple of men. They killed Bob, and they took our guns. They came out of nowhere. They made Karen, the kids, and I get into the bus. They kept us there all night. We were not sure what they were going to do. We knew that they would not let us live. The following day, they started to argue about something. I heard the one man say, “I'm not killing any kids.” Next thing that we knew was, they started to fight. As they beat the heck out of each other, a group of those things came up, and attacked them. They started shooting them. When a couple of them took one of the men down, we decided to make a run for it. We opened the emergency door on the back of the bus. Then, we all ran. I heard several shots. After a few minutes, I realized that those bullets had hit Karen, and the others. When I turned around, they were on the ground, motionless. I ran with Jasmine, until I could not breathe. We made it back to town. When we made to town, the dead rushed us. One of them, grabbed my daughter. I pulled her away, and ran through the field. After I knew that we had lost them, I went back to the house. No one seemed to know that we were there, before we left. Then, I realized that Jasmine had been bitten. I could not believe...” Jimmy interrupted her,” Whoa! Jasmine was bitten? How long ago?” Now, all were staring at the little girl, with concern. She answered, “ A few weeks ago. I thought she would die. I watched her fight a fever for days. Then, she woke up one morning, and she was alright. I could not believe it. My little girl was bitten and came out of it, when others died. I just needed to try to keep us safe and hidden. We were there all alone. I kept thinking about getting back out here, but I didn't have enough gas in my car. I didn't think, that I would ever see people that I could trust, again.” They all listened to her speak. Afraid that the girl had just been bitten, Nicole asked, “Can we see where she was bitten?” Ava could see the worry in Nicoles' eyes. She knew that the woman thought her daughter would turn, and attack them. Ava said, “Okay.” She looked at her daughter, “Honey, we're just going to show them your bite. No one is going to touch it. Okay?” The girl, shyly, looked around to each one of them. “Okay.” She held her little arm up in the air. Her mother rolled the girl's sleeve up higher, baring her small forearm. They all stared, in shock. This little girl had a bite-scar on her forearm that, looked to be newly healed. She said, “She is not a threat to any of you.” Devon said, “You can stay with us.” He looked at his Dad. “Right Dad? They can stay with us. We can all sleep in the RV.” Scott was amazed. He stared at her arm. He said, “Yes, they can, Son.” Jimmy said, “I can't believe it. Was her father bitten?” Ava said, “ Yes. And, he turned.” Nicole whispered, “She is immune.” The disbelief could be heard in her voice. Scott said, “Ava, I am a doctor. Has she had any odd symptoms since this healed?” Ava answered, “Not really. She was sick for a few days. Fever, flu-like stuff. I thought that she was going to die. I spent the whole time crying. Then, the third day in, she woke up and told me that she was hungry. She had no fever, and acted like she had never been sick. I was so happy that, I let her eat pancakes with chocolate syrup.” The Pastor said, “Praise God! Ava, this is a God send.” Scott added, “If her father became ill from the bite, then she may have obtained immunity from you. There may be a chance to make a vaccine from her DNA. Possibly yours, as well. This is the only time that we have seen this. And, Jimmy and I, we have seen a lot of people get bitten. They all died.”
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Ava said, “You cannot use her as a lab rat. If she is immune, there have to be others that are, as well. I won't allow you to experiment on her.” Pastor Dom said, “Ava, we would never try to do that. God may use you and your daughter to save mankind.” Scott said, “I would never suggest that, Ava. We'll protect her. We'll protect both of you. We have to. It's just the right thing to do. Even if she had not survived the bite. We would still welcome you.” Ava looked from Scott, to the Pastor, Nicole, and Jimmy. Then, she looked at Devon and Jasmine, who were aleady becoming friends. Jimmy said, “The Major and I will go check this place out. Ava, where is it? Is there a trail? We should talk about this, after we make sure that it's safe to get in there.” She said, “Just follow this overgrown back road. You will come to a hill. It is just on the other side.” Scott cut in. Okay. You all stay inside the RV, just in case any of those things come out. Keep the doors locked to both vehicles, until we get back. Ava, you should take your things to the RV. That way, no one has to be outside for any reason. There is room for everyone inside.” Ava agreed. “Alright. Thank you.” Scott kissed Nicole. “We should not be long. Keep the radio near.” He looked at Pastor Dom, then back at his wife, “If we don't come back in two hours, leave. Just in case, we run into trouble.” While the Pastor nodded in agreement, Nicole protested, “Uh. Not!” Scott cut her off, “Jimmy has the keys to truck. If we run into trouble, and we get away later, we'll find you.You stay on that radio, and leave us clues, if you can.” She said, “No! I won't leave you....” He cut her off, again, “Honey. We have talked about this, before. You get to safety. Leave me clues, and I will find you later. Keep the radio on. Because we may have to warn you, or tell you to leave out.” He addressed the Pastor, now. “Go east, if you have to leave. Unless, we tell you by radio to change direction. In that case, you change direction due west.” Now, he addressed them all. “And, don't talk about direction. Just go. We'll follow.” He kissed his wife, again. He and Jimmy, turned and walked through the branches. Nicole said, “Okay. Come on. Let's all get into the RV.” She turned to Ava, “Ava, do you need help getting your things?” Ava said, “Sure. Thank you.” They started to walk towards the truck. Jasmine, Devon, and Pastor Dom, all followed them. Pastor Dom took a big bag, and a duffel. Ava, took Jasmine's duffel. She reached over to middle of the seat. She picked up Jasmine's baby doll and handed to the little girl. They all walked back towards the RV. Once inside, Nicole showed Ava where everything was. She said, “We have water in the tank, for now. We have food in the fridge. I was going to make something to eat. Help yourself to what we have. You are one of us, now.” Ava's eyes teared up, she said, “Thank you. I appreciate this. I didn't think I would meet anymore good people. Ever.” Pastor Dom cut in, “We understand, Ava.” She said, “I didn't even thank Jimmy.” She looked down. She felt ashamed, after she thought about how she had behaved when she saw him I her house. Pastor Dom said, “Well, Ava. Jimmy is a pretty good guy. I am sure he understands. Glad to have you as a part of our group.” He extended his hand, as a gesture to shake her hand. She shook his hand, and said, “I am glad to be here. Thank you.” Nicole had begun cooking for everyone. She made hamburgers and opened a few cans of mixed fruit. She said, “Okay, everyone. It's all done.” She made a plate for the children, first. Then, she served Ava and the Pastor. “Thank you, “ Ava said. She took the plate. The Pastor said, “Thanks Nicole.” Nicole said, “Today, we have apple juice.” She poured their juice into a glass for each child. The kids smiled. They both took their juice, and guzzled it. Nicole said, “Devon, slow down. You will get sick.” Ava said, “ You kids are thirsty...Huh?” She took Jasmine's glass of juice, and set it back onto the table. Ava watched, as Nicole took some dried cheese from the cupboard.
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She sprinkled the cheese onto her hamburger. Nicole saw her watching, “I used to love cheeseburgers. Still do. This, is the next best thing.” Ava smiled, “I understand. I would kill for a slice of hot pizza, right now.” Pastor Dom cut in, “Or, Ogliolio and chicken, with a side of garlic bread sticks... Oh, I miss that.” They all smiled. Devon asked, “What's that?” Nicole answered, “It's pasta and chicken.” She tickled him on his side. Ava saw her daughter smile. She was so terrified, earlier. It made her feel better, knowing that, they may have found a nice group of people. After they ate, the children went to a corner of the RV. Devon had a few toys, and Jasmine had her doll. Ava had found a couple of coloring books and crayons in Jasmine's little backpack. She said, “Kids. Do you want to color?” They both, blurted out, “Yeah!” She said, “Here we go. Sh
are these crayons, now.” They both sat at the small table and colored. The three adults sat at the pull down dining table. As they looked outside, they talked. Nicole said, “It has been over an hour. Where are they?” She looked at her watch. She was getting nervous. Pastor Dom said, “They are hiking, Nicole. They'll be back. We need to stay by the radio.” She looked out each window. She said, “I know. But, I don't like it.” Ava said, “Maybe, they're looking around. It's is a big place, with several buildings.” Jimmy and Scott heard a female voice, “Drop your weapons! Now! What are you doing here?” They froze, then exchanged a surprised glance. They, slowly, put down their guns. They both turned towards the voice. They saw a young girl, with long auburn hair. She was no older than sixteen years old. Major Scott spoke first, “I am Major Scott, this is Jimmy. We thought that this place was empty. We were just looking for a safe place for our people. That's all. We aren't here to hurt anyone.” She responded, “Major, huh? What kind of Major? Are you the people from the hospital? Answer me! They realized that, this girl did not trust military. Mostly, because of the actions of some military, after the dead started to rise. They both knew that, they needed to calm her down, in case she became more agitated. They looked at each other, then back at the girl. Jimmy said, “No. We weren't at any hospital. We are with a small group of people. Five adults and two children. We thought that this place was abandoned. Really.” Chloe held the gun pointed at the two men. She didn't know if she should believe them. She had to think about what he said. He said that, they had two children with them. Aidan had warned of other people. He said, that they had to be careful. But, what if they were telling the truth? She spoke on a radio. “Mom. Hurry! There is someone here.” Another female voice came over the radio. “Chloe? Where are you?” She answered Renee. “By the school. Hurry!” Scott said, “Miss. I know that you need to be careful, in these times. But, I can explain to your Mom.” Chloe didn't respond. She just watched him. A few moments later, a group of people came running towards them with guns in their hands. Ben pointed his gun at them. “They are soldiers. We should kill them, now.” Renee said, “Whoa! Ben, wait a minute!” She pushed his arm downwards. Jimmy said, “Hey! Calm down, Kid. We aren't here to hurt anyone.” Scott said, “Ma'am. We thought that this place was abandoned. We didn't know anyone lived here. I am ..” Chloe cut him off, “He is a soldier, Mom. They both are.” The Major said, “Miss. We aren't like other military that you have met. We left our unit, a while back. We have two children in our group. We were just looking for a safe place for them. That's all.” Renee asked, “You have children in your group? How old?” He answered, “Eight, and Five years old.” Ben said, “He might be lying, Mrs. G.” Renee looked around. She studied the two men. She asked, “What are your group members to you? Are they your family?” Scott said, “The boy is my son. My wife. Then, Pastor Dom, Ava, and Jasmine. We picked them up. They ….”
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