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Another thing... we may not be able to get the keys for these trucks. Who here, can hot wire a big rig?” Nina said, “There should be a locked drawer or cabinet, just for keys.” Jimmy said, “If not, I can.” Major Scott said, “Okay, we meet on the road, down by Ms. Clea's place, at 7:00 A.M. Sharp. Everyone. Get your group prepped to watch the place, while we are gone. Make sure they stay on the radio. Also, bring a lot of water, in case we run into some kind of trouble. Am I forgetting anything?” Pastor Dom added, “Tools?” They all turned his way. He repeated, “Tools, for breaking in. And, for hot wiring vehicles.” Will said, “I have some.” They all said their good nights. As they made their way back to their homes, they all had hope that things would get better. The next morning, They all met. They made it to the trucking company, first. One convoy at a time, they drove the trucks, loaded with trailers, back to their home. In three days, they had collected enough trailers to close off the front of all three of the properties. By the second week, they had enough raw material to build more walls. As they were returning from their latest supply run, they came up on a group of people who were running from a mob of zombies. Kyle was in the first truck with Will. He yelled, “Whoa! Slow down!” They came to a stop, as they saw a man, two women, and three children running across the roadway. The children were screaming and crying, as the women helped them. The man turned around and shot at the large horde of zombies, moving in their direction. Scott got on the radio. “Do you see that?” Kyle said, “Hurry! Pull in front of the dead. If we can create a barrier for them, it will give us time to help them.” Will pushed down on the gas pedal. The big rig rushed up between the coming horde, and their intended victims. The horde was about one hundred feet away. When Will made it to where the people ran from the zombie mob, he hit the brakes. He hit a couple of the dead. And, some of the horde that had made it to the highway, walked into the truck. The man saw what Will did. He didn't know if, he should run, or stay. Kyle yelled into the radio, “They have kids! I am going to get them.” Scott yelled, “Kyle, wait!” Will protested, “We can't leave them out here. They got kids.” He rolled the window down and yelled to the man, “Hey!” Scott blurted out, “The rest of you get back to the orchard. We'll get them.” Kyle jumped from the truck, and ran along the roadway. He yelled, “Hey! Come on! Get into the trucks! Hurry!” They all ran towards him, and the truck. The kids were screaming. The two women tried to guide the children. The man picked up one of the children and carried her. They ran to Kyle. He led them to the truck. Scott pulled up along side Will. He rolled the window down, and yelled, “Get them! I'll circle around, and block as many of them as I can.” He backed up into the grass, driving over many of the dead. The others drove around him. Also, hitting some of the dead. Aidan and Nina were ahead of Will, now. Nina cried, “We should go back!” Aidan said, “I'll stop, and I'll get out and help them if they need it.” He pulled the truck over a bit, and stopped. Over the radio, Aidan asked Scott, “Scott, do you have this?” The Major was already circling around Will. He yelled into the radio, “Yep! You cover Kyle and Will. As soon as, they are all inside the truck, everyone scat.” Aidan said, “Will do.” He watched the scene from the side-view mirror. He saw Kyle get the group to the passenger side of the truck. They got the children into the truck, first. Then the women climbed up, while Kyle and the man both fought off zombies. The part of the horde that Scott had not run over was upon them, now. Aidan yelled to Nina, “Take over!” Nina started to protest. “No!” But, before she could get anything else out, Aidan jumped from the drivers side door of the truck. She sat in his seat, and watched in horror, as he walked down the side of the truck firing shots at the zombies. He made it to the front of Will's truck. He kicked a zombie down and hit it in the head.
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Another, came from the side and grabbed him. They struggled, he stabbed the huge, leathery- zombie in the eye. Then, four more came towards him. Kyle grabbed one of them from behind, stabbing it through the temple. Now, Kyle was surrounded. He shot the next one in the back of the head. The horde was starting to swarm the truck, from all sides. Aidan threw one to the ground. Kyle kicked another backwards. The man shot two more in the face. Kyle yelled to the man, “Get in! I'll cover you til you get up there!” Kyle shot three more zombies in the head, then another in the eye. He yelled to Aidan, “Get back to the truck!” Aidan started to run backwards, while shooting as many zombies as he could. He yelled, “I'll cover you! You get in the truck! Hurry!” Aidan kept shooting. Kyle turned, and rushed to the door of the truck. He was swarmed by more zombies. Aidan, shot three, before they pulled Kyle into the swarm. One came from the side, he kicked it down. Kyle jumped up onto the step. The door was open, he held onto the handle, yelling into the truck at Will, “Let's go! I need to cover Aidan, so he can get back to the truck!” Kyle kicked a zombie backwards, as he hung onto the bar. Will started to drive forward. Kyle, still holding on for dear life, kept shooting the zombies as they passed by them. The others were inside the trucks, watching in horror. Aidan turned, and bolted for the truck with a horde of the dead in tow. He made it to the drivers side door, and climbed for his life. Once he opened the door, Nina jumped back into her seat. Behind them, the children were screaming from the cab of the truck. Scott yelled over the radio, “Everyone head back home! Run the dead bastards over, if they get in the way!” Will yelled to Kyle, “Get in here! Hurry up!” Kyle hung on to the side of truck kicking zombies down, while shooting them. Aidan started moving his rig. Nina yelled, “Aidan! Are you okay? Why did you do that?” She looked terrified. She had to force herself to breathe. Aidan looked over at her. He said, “I'm okay, Babe.” He grabbed her hand and kissed it. She stared out through the side-view mirror, in fear. They heard a voice come over the radio. It was Will. “Is everyone alright?” Kyle said, “That was a work out.” Aidan answered, “Yes. Let's get home.” The children were still crying. Will and Kyle introduced themselves. Will said, “I am Will Neely. This is Kyle Morgan.” The man spoke first, “I am Charlie. Charlie Beck. This my wife, Heather. My two daughters, Gabby, and Izzy. My sister-n-law, Jennifer. And, her daughter, Mia. Will half turned to see the girls, all were visibly traumatized. The two older sat on both sides of their mother. They were clinging to her. The other child sat on her mother's lap. She had her head turned, and her face buried into her mother's shoulder. All of them were dirty, and terrified. Charlie said, “Thank you. We didn't know what to do. We couldn't do anything, but run.” Jennifer spoke, “Yes. Thank you.” She turned to her sister and brother-n-law, “How are we going to get back to the van?” Kyle asked, “All of you were in one van?” They all exchanged a glance. Heather spoke, “We could not stay where we lived. Those things, they were all over. The only reason we were able to get away, was because, we had a privacy fence in our back yard. Charlie opened the gate, then we drove out before they could mob us.” Her eyes started to water up. Charlie said, “I will have to figure something out. Maybe, I can find us another one.” He ran his hand through his hair. It was obvious that he didn't know what he would do. Kyle and Will exchanged a empathetic look. Both men knew that, these people would not survive with the children, even with another vehicle. Kyle asked, “If you could stay in a safe place.... at least, for now … would you want to stay?” Jennifer asked, “Is there some kind of catch?” Will said, “Nope. We just think that, there may be a better chance of survival if live people stick together. We were coming back from a supply run. We built walls around our place. We have a few weak spots, but we are working on those. There are other people there with us. Other children, too. All that we ask, is that everyone try to get along.”
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An expression of relief came over all of their faces. If they could think any louder, they'd be screaming. Charlie answered, “Yes. And, I worked for the electric company, before all of this.. So, I can help with any work that needs to be done. Also did some work for a security company, too.” He turned to his wife, and half-smiled. Jen
nifer said, “I teach. If there are children. I can help with that. And, Heather, she is an awesome cook.” Will said, “Well, Mrs. S. is going to love this.” Will spoke into the radio, “Renee, you there?” Chloe came on, “She is outside, Mr. Neely. Hold on. I'll go get her.” A few minutes later, Renee came onto the radio. “What is up Will. Heard you all ran into some trouble out there. You all okay?” Will said, “We are, now. We picked up some people. And, some children, too.” Looks like Aidans' aunt was right.” Renee said, “Ooh. She wants to talk to him.” Will and Kyle looked at each other, and laughed. They listened, as Mrs. S. came onto the radio, and chastised him like he was a ten year old. “Aidan! Why did you get out of that truck?” Aidan came back over the radio, “There were children out there Tia. You were right.” Mrs. S. said something in Spanish. Will cut in, “ One of them is a teacher, Mrs. S.” Mrs. S. paused. Then she said, “Okay, Mijo.” They made it back home. The new group members were introduced to everyone. They They were led to one wind of the school. She showed them the rooms. “Right now, we are using this side of the school for anyone that we meet. I know this is not a house. There is the old play ground for the children, and the building is solid. We are going on a supply run this week. The group has been busy building a wall around everyone's place. If you need, or want anything specific, write a list. If it's clothing, please include clothing sizes for everyone. And, we'll try to find what you all need. We already have some things, from our last run. Maybe, we have enough clothing for you all. Just, for now. Go ahead, and try to settle in. I know it is not much, but we are trying to get the things we all need. Give me awhile, and I'll bring you all some food. There is some furniture n some of the offices, if you think that you can use any of it, go ahead and use whatever you need. I'll send Ben and Jose to come and show you all around and give you some help.” Jennifer, Charlie, and Heather all thanked Renee. One at a time, they said, “Thank you.” Renee, closed the door behind her. She went to the group closet. She asked Chloe, Ben, and Jose to help her fill a pick up truck full of clothing, blankets, and supplies for the new members of the group. Ms. Sandoval made them a feast, while Renee and the others loaded the back of the pick up truck. When Renee ,and the others showed up with the food and supplies, the two women started to cry. They had run from the dead for months. Finally, they had a safe place. Jennifer and Heather both hugged Renee and Ms. Sandoval, while Charlie and the teens brought in the supplies. They said, “Thank you.” Renee said, “Don't thank us. Thank my daughter. The first supply run that we made, she said that, we should get extra items, in case we met others that needed help. We have been getting extra supplies, since we made it here. Of course, that was backed by our own Pastor Dom, Mrs. Sandoval, here. And, Nina. They were all in, and helped with putting together a group closet. I know that you're all tired. You all get some rest.” She left them with their new safe home. As they walked back to the house, Mrs Sandoval said, “You see Renee. This was meant to be.” Renee smiled. Will, Major Scott, and Pastor Dom met. They and the others were talking about re-inforcing gates, and weak spots in the walls. Will knew the land. Frank knew how disguise things. They put their heads together and had put together a sturdy set up. Kyle suggested, “We need a plan to keep eyes on the walls. We need guard shacks, and a set of rules, outlining how to deal with intruders.” Scott agreed, “You are right about that. Eventually, we are going to run into bad people. We need to be ready to protect this place from an invading group.”
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Will said, “Well, we need to be watching the ridge then. We only have fencing up there. Someone may camp out up there, and take a walk back this way.” Pastor Dom asked, “You mean, up behind the Orchard? Where the rock formations are? Do you really think that someone will be able to get over that?” Jessie cut in, “I did. I was just looking around to see what was back here. I thought that it was abandoned.” Frank said, “We can build it up higher, more jagged. I can disguise it. How much concrete do we have?” Will said, “We have a truck load. Can you do something with it?” Frank said, “With a truck load of concrete, I build onto the formaton, make it harder to climb. But, we'll have to move the fences.” Will added, “Charlie is an electrician, and he says that he can connect cameras. I say we get some materials for extra solar, and connect cameras there, and around the rest of place, if we can get enough materials. Jimmy and Aidan have an idea about a hidden area, in case we are attacked, and too many of those things get inside the walls. We'll need to hide the women and children. There is a place up in Crown Point. They sold all kinds of electronic stuff. We will need to do a supply run, I'll need some help. I don't know if I can get everything that we need, alone. Either way, I will need to look around, first.” Major Scott said, “That will work. Let us know when you figure out when to go, and we can take a ride up there and look around. You should not go alone.” Pastor Dom said, “Okay, then. We will need a list from Charlie, too. We should get started, and soon.” He pointed along the top of the ridge. Then, continued. “We should go up there and take some measurements.” Major Scott said, “Okay. We keep in touch by radio. Keep each other posted. Pastor, can you oversee the wall?” Pastor Dom said, “You bet.” They went back to Renee's, and Major Scott called a meeting with all three groups. After everyone gathered, he said, “We need to designate look out points along the properties. Even after we get the back closed off, we have to be ready for large herds of the dead. We also need to be ready for people. As we all know, some will not be good. And, they can climb. We have to have protocols in place to see people coming before they get in. Then we can properly, and carefully meet them, then vet them. Just to make sure that they are safe.” Jimmy said, “What he is saying, is that, we have a huge land mass to watch over. If we work in teams, by sector, we can make sure the place is safe.” Aidan cut in, “That is where the training will come in. When you are protecting an area. You need a plan for everything.” Jose asked, “When do we start training?” Scott said, “Well, one thing that we need to do is to get the ridge closed off. Then, we need to put together teams. Each team will have their duties. Older folks can keep watch closer to home.” Ben cut in, “The back is all high ground. Rough terrain.” Major Scott said, “Building it up, and making it inaccessible to outsiders will slow down or stop people from getting in on that side. It will stop the dead, but people can climb. If they are desperate enough, or bad enough, it will not stop them from getting in. Closing it off so it cannot be climbed will give us an edge. ” Ben looked confused. Chloe said, “We should try to help other people. We should not be cutting everyone off.” Aidan said, “Yes, Chloe. But, some won't be good. Some will be desperate, and that will make them dangerous.” Charlie cut in, “He is right. We were chased by a group of men, up in Merrillville. For no reason. It was when we first left home. Right after this all started. Some people won't be civil.” Jimmy, wondered if they were chased by the same people that he and his group got away from. He asked Charlie, “You were chased? How many were there? Were they military?” Jennifer said, “I counted five. One came up out of no where, asking for food. And before we knew it, the others were coming up from the trail.”
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Heather added, “Yes. And, the kicker is, we were going to share what we had with him.” Chloe thought about that, without saying a word. Will said, “I am going out scouting tomorrow. Anyone up for a run with me? I think it's safer, if we all do everything in a group.” He looked over to where Major Scott, Aidan, Kyle, and Jimmy where seated. “Maybe, we could figure out what is going on out there.” Kyle said, “Yes. I agree.” Aidan asked Will, “Are you worried about something happening?” Will paused, and said, “Maybe. Maybe not.” Scott asked, “Why, Will? Have you seen something out there?” Will answered, “ Yes. Well, before. Keith and I were out, and there were vehicles across the road. It was a while back. But, Those vehicles were not there just a couple of hours before. I keep remembering that day. And, I wonder if, we escaped an ambush.” Everyone grew concerned. Nina said, “I will go. We n
eed supplies. Maybe, I can look for some things we all need as a group, while you scout for some other materials.” Aidan said, “I'll go, too. We can take one of the trucks. If we can, we'll get more supplies.” Charlie said, “I'll go with. It's the least that I can do.” Keith said, “I'll go, too.” Rose said, “I should go, but I don't want to leave Granny alone with the kids.” Renee agreed, “ Yes, Rose. It's better for you to be there with your family.” Will said, “Alright, then. We go first thing in the morning. Everyone bring water and radios. It will be a long day.” The next morning, the group met. Scott and Aidan had requested that everyone be on alert. He pulled Renee aside, “Renee, I think that we need someone keeping watch on the place at all times. Especially when a group of us is out on a run.” She agreed with him. She said, “ Sure. Stella and I were talking today, by radio. We were trying to figure out a way to make a pathway for the vehicles. That way, we could drive around the perimeter of the three properties, and keep better watch. She suggested that, we use the horses, just for now.” He said, “That is a good plan. We'll bring that up at the next meeting. Hopefully, we can get supplies and scouting done, today.” Scott said, “I asked Pastor Dom, and the boys, to be up on the school roof today. Some one can relieve them when we return. Will you see that they get some food, and a break, or two? If you move around the perimeter, take someone with you. And, do not open the gates, or go outside of the walls. No matter what. Not even, one foot outside. Okay?” Renee said, “ Okay. I Nina a list of things that we need. We all need to have a meeting about how to get ready for winter.” Scott said, “Yes. Maybe, you and Pastor Dom could do a sit down with Will on that one. We need to finish getting the walls secured, first. Why don't you set a time for a meeting. Get with Stella and the others. Then, we can put together groups to plan for winter and the other things that we need to take care of.” She said, “Will do.” Will and the others climbed into the vehicles for their scouting run. As they made their way into the city, Nina and Aidan argued. “I want you to stop volunteering for this stuff! You need to stay back with the others when we go on runs!” Aidan demanded. “No.” Nina argued. She paused, and continued, “ Aidan, While you guys scout for the stuff we need to keep us safe, I can be collecting things like personal needs and food. Or, clothes. The new families need clothes and shoes for the children. We also need all kinds of things for everyone for winter. If I can get what I can collect, even a little at a time. It will help everyone out.” Aidan said, “I don't like you coming out here. We never know when we'll run into trouble.” She was too flustered to argue anymore. She turned towards the window. The short convoy traveled up the highway. Will came onto the radio, from the front of the line. “Okay. everyone, slow down. Looks like, we got a big herd up here.” He stopped, in the middle of the highway. The others stopped in back of him. Jimmy and Kyle rode in the same vehicle. Jimmy drove up along side Will, then stopped.
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