Asia returned the grin.
“I can drive you to the main road, but that’s as far as I can go without looking too suspicious,” Sandy said. She peeked out of the flap of the truck. “It looks clear. Just stay hidden back here till I come for you.”
We nodded and crawled back to our hiding places under the boxes and tarps.
The engine clicked, and the truck started.
“Hold it, Sandy!” a man’s voice called.
My stomach lurched.
“I’ve gotta go pick up one more load,” Sandy lied.
“But we haven’t even unloaded yet.”
“Stop the truck!” another voice demanded.
Before she could even answer, some men jumped into the truck and started gathering boxes. I wondered why Sandy didn’t just floor it to get us the heck out of there. Asia was probably wondering the same thing, because she looked at me, confused. I bit my lip hard when the tarp shuffled over my head; I was sure they were going to discover us any minute. When a man huffed as he scooted a heavy box away from me, I held my breath. Please don’t let them find us!
Another man slid another box away from me, leaving me nowhere to hide and nowhere to run. My only hope was that he’d get distracted, that Sandy could think of something to throw him off our tail. So many thoughts rushed through my head that I almost grew dizzy. My heart was racing, throbbing in my temples, but I knew I needed to stay calm and focused and keep my head straight. Panic would only make things worse, but it was hard not to panic; I know all too well what Z would do to us if his men got their hands on us. I’d been there, done that, and it wasn’t fun.
Then, in a heart-stopping flash of a second, a man glanced down at me with a cold, chilling stare.
Busted. And at that very moment, I realized just how ludicrous our plan had been.
Shouting curses, he jerked me up by the shoulders and threw me out of the truck as if I weighed nothing. My breath caught in my throat when a boot hit me in the pit of my stomach, sending me tumbling backward, only to land with a thud on the snow-covered grass. I gulped, shook my head, and swallowed down the pain.
“Take him to Tent D,” the man ordered, “and take the girl to Tent F. It’s best to question them separately so we can catch ‘em in the lies I’m sure they’re gonna tell us.”
As two men dragged me off, I slammed my elbow into the stomach of one of my captors. When he loosened his grip, startled, I ran in a burst toward freedom. Another muscular bodyguard grabbed me and threw me on the ground like some kind of wrestler, while the other fiercely kicked me. My throat tightened, and I could barely breathe. He threw me over his shoulder and carried me inside a tent while stars danced in my vision from the blow. They set me roughly in a chair, pulled my hands behind my back, and tied me up securely. A piece of dark cloth was wrapped around my eyes as a blindfold. Of course I struggled in my bindings, but that was to no avail.
A few minutes later, a man walked in. “Z doesn’t like trespassers,” he said. “What are you doing here?” he asked when he pulled my blindfold down and peered into my eyes like some kind of enraged animal.
“I’m a survivor, just like you. I was just trying to get some food,” I fibbed, hoping he’d buy it and that he had some shred of compassion left.
“Nice try, Dean. Your little girlfriend told us everything.”
“Obviously, you don’t know her as well as I do. She’d never do that.”
“Right. So she’s not your girlfriend. You prefer redheads, don’t ya? Like that Marla chick.”
“Her name is Claire.”
“Many people here recognize you. We know who you are. Did Max send you?”
I laughed. “What makes you think he did? I’m a big boy, perfectly capable of going out on my own and—”
“So you’re claiming you were out looking for food and just stumbled upon us accidently?”
I didn’t answer.
“You’re a liar and a fool, Dean, but I’m sure Z will deal with you accordingly. He’ll be here shortly, and you can tell your little fairytale to him.”
“Look, you seem like a nice enough guy, mostly on the sane side,” I said, trying to kiss up and appeal to any humane side he might have, “so why are working for a psychopath?”
He chuckled. “Not for him, Dean. I work with him, as his second-in-command. Now, why don’t you spare Z the interrogation and just tell me all about Max’s operation?”
I decided it was best to tell him as little as possible. I sat motionless, with my head slightly bowed, avoiding eye contact. From that moment on, I’d only speak if spoken to, and I refused to show any emotion. Max hadn’t told me all his secrets anyway, and I had no idea where he stored most of the weapons. In fact, I really didn’t know much at all. Max was very secretive and only confided in a select few, a sign of a truly great leader.
My interrogator’s calm demeanor quickly faded as I sat quietly, staring at him without saying a word, and he asked me the question once again. “Well? Are you gonna talk, or do I have to call Z in here?”
I refused to answer, even when I felt a jolt of pain radiate across my chin as he punched me.
The man grabbed the front of my shirt and shook me. “What kind of weapons does Max have?”
“I-I don’t know. Rifles, I guess—lots of them.”
Burning pain radiated across my jaw when he slapped me, trying to scare me into talking. “That’s not telling me anything! Everybody’s grandma has a freaking rifle nowadays. I’m sure Max has some kind of arsenal. Now what other weapons does he have?”
“Well, for one thing, I know he doesn’t have a tank!”
He repeated his question, this time in an even more demanding, threatening tone.
“Look, I’m relatively new there and only eighteen, a kid in most people’s eyes. Why the heck would Max tell me anything? Do you and Z go around telling teenagers your secrets? And shouldn’t you be more worried about those hybrid creatures lurking around your camp?”
Another punch came, and more pain exploded across my cheekbone. I wondered how long the interrogation would last, and I hoped Asia wasn’t receiving the same brutal treatment. He asked me question after question, beating me when I didn’t answer, until trickles of sweat began to roll down my face and I tasted salty blood at the corner of my mouth.
When he finally tired of using me as a punching bag, he let out a long string of curses, like he had a textbook case of Tourette’s.
A woozy feeling overcame me as I blinked. I winced, my head reeling.
“Remember what my brother did to you, how he hung you upside down over those zombie heads?” the man said.
Wait...Z has another brother? Great...and I bet psychosis runs in the family.
“Well, I was there, and I saw how scared you were. If you don’t start cooperating, Dean, you’re gonna find out real quick that what you experienced was just child’s play.”
My blood began to boil. Z had said his brother was killed in the lab, but there were obviously more of the evil spawn. I decided then and there that if I managed to get away, all of them were going down. I half-grinned as I imagined pounding on my captor like there was no tomorrow.
Suddenly, the tent flap opened, and I heard Sandy’s voice. “You said you’d wait for Z,” she said. “We aren’t supposed to do anything without his consent.”
He cursed at her, making it clear that there was a power play going on between him and his brother.
“I’ll let you have a few minutes,” the man said. “Get some vital information before we execute him.”
“I’ll try,” she said.
With that, he nodded and left the tent in a huff.
“Sandy,” I managed between gasps.
She touched my bleeding face and looked deeply into my swollen eyes. “My gosh, Dean. What did he do to you? This isn’t right. We’ve gotta get you out of here. I won’t stand by and watch Z kill another innocent person.”
I struggled, battling with the ropes that were tied so tightly
they were cutting off my circulation and cutting into my flesh. “Where’s Asia? Is she okay?”
“She’s...” Her voice trailed off.
“She’s what? Where is she? Tell me, Sandy!”
“They roughed her up too, Dean. They’re...heartless.”
The words fueled my anger, to the point where I was unable to speak.
“Z’s brother has the authority to kill you,” she said.
“Then what are you waiting for? Untie me and get me outta here,” I said.
She fumbled around with the ropes, nodding her head. “That’s the plan.”
When the ropes were finally loosened, The blood rushed to my hands, causing them to tingle. I quickly reached up and wiped the blood and sweat off my face.
“I’m so sorry about this, Dean,” Sandy apologized.
“I’m alive. That’s the important thing, right, neighbor?”
She smiled. “My sister’s on our side too. She already untied Asia and helped her escape. Asia has your rifle. She’s waiting for you in the woods, on the south side of the camp.”
“Thank you.”
“Just get word to Max. Destroy this camp and then destroy Z. I’m sorry, Dean. I guess...well, I didn’t see Z for the maniac he really is. This whole thing has blinded people. Everyone is so worried and scared...just trying to survive.”
“But now you know the truth, see Z and that fiend brother of his for their true colors.” “Definitely.” She peered out between the flaps of the huge tent. “Run straight into the woods. If you go right now, you can make it without being seen.”
I nodded. “Thanks again...and don’t forget to invite us to your housewarming party.”
She smiled and handed me a rifle.
“What’s this for?” I asked.
“Use it to knock me out. I’m gonna tell them you hit me, then loosed Asia and took off. I don’t want them realizing my sister or I had anything to do with this, or we’ll be next on Z’s chopping block. The only things he hates worse than trespassers are traitors.”
“Sandy, I can’t hit you. What kind of neighbor would I be?”
“You have to, Dean. It’s the only way to save my life. They can’t know I helped you. They’ll kill my children back at the warehouse. You’ve gotta knock me out or shoot me, or else you have to get back in that chair and let me tie you up again. Now hurry up and pick one.”
I gripped the gun and hit her on the head, trying to do it as humanely as possible. When she collapsed, I gently checked her pulse to make sure she was all right, and then I muttered, “Sorry, friend,” and ran out of the tent.
Outside, the place was swarming with guards. I ducked behind a pile of crates and boxes, then sneaked behind a truck. I crouched there and scanned my surroundings. The woods didn’t look to be so far away, so when the coast was clear, I emerged and crept to the next tent. I peeked around it and rushed over to a smaller tent. I crouched down and squinted across the camp and spotted the woods Sandy had mentioned. Just one final sprint, I told myself.
Ruff! Ruff! a little dog barked, threatening to alert my enemies to my presence.
“Chill out, Fido,” I whispered, then leapt into a nearby snowdrift, with a shower of bullets flying over my head.
Chapter 20
Footsteps crunched in the snow as I slid under the vehicle. The ground was cold and solid, as if I was lying on an iceberg, and I could smell smoke from a nearby fire. I kept perfectly still as my body shook. I have to get out of this camp. I was surrounded by the enemy, and I only had this one opportunity to survive. If I screwed it up, I would be a dead man, and I wouldn’t have a chance to warn Max of Z’s evil plans.
I peered out and considered my options and escape routes. I thought about hotwiring a car I saw not too far away, but there were too many men standing around it. I could run east, straight to the forest, but that area was even more heavily guarded. If I went west, I’d have to sneak through the most populated part of the camp. All things considered, east seemed like my best bet, so I tried to mentally calculate the distance.
Five armed patrolled the area, cursing and laughing about my demise. My life meant nothing to them, and that was a scary thought.
I used my elbows and feet to Army-crawl over to some tall weeds, hoping they’d give me cover. Someone had fired at me, so it was a bit frightening to know that they knew I was out there somewhere. I wasn’t completely hidden yet when a pair of grungy black combat boots stopped right in front of my face, and I froze, other than the wild thumping of my terrified heart. I debated inching back a bit; I knew even the slightest noise would give me away. When the man moved on, I crawled deeper into the brush.
I glanced around and saw that it was as clear as it was going to get. Like I was competing in some kind of Olympic decathlon, I jumped over logs and ran around huge rocks as branches whipped across my face. My feet crashed through the underbrush, but I kept going, never looking back, knowing my reward would be much more valuable than a gold medal: I’d actually live.
When I realized I’d finally made it, I leaned against a tree for a moment to catch my breath. An owl watched me from a snow-covered limb high above, then hooted nonchalantly and flew away. I looked around for Asia’s footsteps in the snow, but I only saw deer tracks. I kept moving, but when a twig snapped somewhere in my vicinity, I jumped and darted my gaze all around me, my eyes wide. My shoulders slumped in relief when I saw a rabbit hopping away, into a pile of debris and logs.
Another bullet whizzed by my head, and yet another ricocheted off the tree trunk in front of me, sending a shower of bark everywhere. A hail of bullets slammed into the tree trunk next to me. As they continued to fire, I dove behind a huge tree and contemplated firing back. They’d been too busy torturing me to bother taking the ammo out of my pockets, and there were still some bullets left in Sandy’s rifle. Still, I thought it was a better idea to keep moving and save my ammo for when I really needed it—like when we had to trek back home through all those zombies. There was no use firing aimlessly into the woods, wasting all those bullets without even hitting anything.
As if I didn’t have enough trouble on my hands, I heard a mindless moan and turned around to find a zombie with a hollowed-out face. Its eyes remained, but they looked possessed and empty, and it snapped its jaw at me, much faster than the average zombie. Black ooze dripped down its blood-stained chin as it hissed at me, and I almost threw up at the site of its putrid face, with all that exposed, torn, shredded muscle. I felt even more nauseous when I saw intestines dangling in its decayed hand. I knew Asia was out there somewhere, and I only hoped I wasn’t looking at part of my friend.
The thing was tall and muscular, and I wasn’t willing to gamble that I’d win a fight against it. I aimed my weapon; it was a precarious situation, well worth a bullet. I was sure the gunfire from my enemies had drawn it there in the first place, so one more shot wasn’t going to matter.
Another zombie burst out of the vegetation and grabbed my leg just as I fired. It was crawling so I was able to easily crush its skull in. Because of the distraction, I hadn’t nailed the towering zombie standing in front of me. The round hit the deceased in the neck, and I quickly took aim again. My finger squeezed the trigger, and this time, I nailed it in the head, putting a huge hole in its cranium. A shower of crimson and bone fragments sprayed the tree beside it, and the moaning abomination fell back against a boulder. When I looked to the left, I saw a fallen deer in the brush, surrounded by pinkish-red snow. I felt sorry for the creature, but I was a bit relieved to know that—and not Asia—was what the undead abomination had been feasting on before I came along.
More zombie moans filled the air, and dread washed over me. I was already on the run, and those hideous monsters were the last thing I wanted to deal with, but it seemed I would have no choice. I peered through my scope and scanned the landscape in front of me. I took a deep breath and shot four more, then fumbled in my pockets for more ammo and reloaded. I spun around to make sure nothing, human or
zombie, had sneaked up from behind, and I was relieved to see that I was alone out there. A second later, though, more zombies shuffled through the towering ferns toward me. I felt the rifle recoil gently on my shoulder as I took out three more of the infected, putting them out of their sorry misery and mine.
Another twig snapped, and I spun around to stare into the powder-white complexion of a rancid zombie with the biggest, gaping head wound I’d ever seen. It was shirtless, so I could see its ragged torso. I didn’t know which was fouler, its arms and neck bent at unnatural angles or the oozing scratches running down its face. The zombie was also missing some fingers, and I was sure it had been in some sort of horrible accident or—worse—had been partially devoured by another zombie. My stomach dropped at the thought, but I fired off a shot, straight into its cranium.
In spite of the cold, sweat began to roll down my back. I clenched my teeth as a sick feeling nestled in my gut. My life was in jeopardy; I could face a violent, painful death from a bullet hole in the head or a bite from the undead, and neither of those options seemed appealing. I thought about the island, my old life, my parents, and my friends. It was as if a million thoughts whirled through my head at once, like my life was really flashing before my eyes. Will I make it out of this? After everything I’ve been through, am I gonna die out here, alone, in the woods?
Something hissed behind me, and I spun around on my heels. A zombie with one good eye staggered toward me like a drunk. Its other eye was hanging out of its eye socket by a reddish-purplish thread, a vein. It had swollen lips and a broken nose. As it reached hungrily for me, I aimed and squeezed the trigger.
Pure fear washed over me as shells crashed into the snow not far from where I was hiding, gasping for breath. Even a leg shot could be fatal, because I had no access to a doctor or medical supplies, and I still had to get back to Fairport on foot, through a zombie-infested forest. A gunshot wound would slow me down and make me vulnerable, an easy mark for the living dead. Realizing that, I tore through the snow, moving rapidly and zigzagging around huge rocks and tree stumps. Bullets snapped through twigs and limbs as they passed my head, and I wondered just how close the shooters were.
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