Caitlin started to tremble. Hope… They had hope.
She might see her friends again.
Chapter Eleven
Booker parked the Jeep and got out, slinging his rifle over his shoulder.
“Stay within my eyeline,” he told her as she started off.
They’d seen a large herd of Geeks in a field about three miles back, and experience taught them that Geeks sought out more Geeks—a hive mind of undead creatures. If there were that many heading in one direction, they knew the odds that there were more nearby.
Caitlin nodded and grabbed the revolver and her lockpicking stuff. They had their jobs—Booker syphoned gasoline and car supplies, anything that could be used as a weapon, and food. Caitlin was better at finding clothing and toiletries, and first aid supplies (though those were usually picked over). She could tell what would fit at just a glance, and which vehicles probably had better stuff. She’d managed to find Booker a pair of almost-new boots for when his fell apart just by guessing the folks driving the Lexus SUV weren’t going to carry anything heavy.
She set to work on a hatchback that looked like it belonged to a woodsy person if the mud on the tires and bike rack were a clue.
Popping the lock, she opened the doors to search.
Booker whistled, and she jerked her head up. Geeks—his whistle indicated two, but they weren’t close.
He whistled again.
Across the road, haven’t seen us. Stay quiet.
She whistled back, short and high like a bird.
I see them. I’m fine.
They went back to their jobs, heads on a swivel.
She’d just found a few tank tops and shorts in her size, shoving them in a bag, when Booker strode up behind her.
“Herd,” he whispered, grabbing her hand. “C’mon.”
Her heart leapt into her throat. “Which way?”
Booker jerked his head in the direction of the Geeks stumbling around the cars on the other side of the highway. The wind had shifted. The Geeks could smell them now.
Taking the stuff she’d found with them, she let him lead her to a broken down big rig. He helped her climb up, not into the cab, but onto the top of the container. They scrambled up, keeping their limbs away from the edges.
Geeks weren’t very smart and didn’t have much of an attention span if they couldn’t see their target. All they had to do was stay out of sight and stay silent and the herd would move on.
Lying flat on their bellies, they watched the decaying creatures shamble and lurch forward. It was eerie seeing the undead move in sync with each other without language or signals.
The Geeks made it across one lane, around a few larger cars, but then they all turned, attention drawn by something closer.
Tapping his arm, Caitlin motioned for him to hand her his rifle. She wanted to look through the scope. He handed it over, eyeing her curiously.
It took her a few moments, but she found the minivan the Geeks were starting to surround.
And then she saw someone reach out from under the car, swinging a crowbar at the closest Geek’s head, brains splattering everywhere.
“Oh my God,” she gasped. “There’s a person over there.”
“What?” Booker took his rifle back, looking through the scope. “Holy shit…”
Caitlin’s stomach churned. She couldn’t just watch a person get torn apart. She’d hidden once before—Curled into a ball on the basement floor, listening as Jeremy and his family were slaughtered.
“We have to help them.”
“They’re surrounded,” Booker said, still watching through the lens.
She was pushing onto her hands and knees before she could think. “I’m not watching someone get gutted without at least trying.”
Booker grabbed her arm, pulling her back, but she fought him.
“Jack—”
“Shh, shh.” He tugged her wrist again. “I meant, we’re better help to them here.” He locked eyes with her. “We have a sight advantage.”
Relief flooded her veins. He was good.
Adjusting his position, Booker lined up his shot. “Cover your ears, darlin’.”
She did just as he took the first shot. A Geek dropped in a bloody heap.
Ejecting the shell, Booker lined up his aim again.
Bang.
Drop.
Bang.
Drop.
Caitlin jumped reflexively each time but never took her eyes off the circling Geeks. She could barely make out the person’s arm and crowbar, continuing to fight.
That’s it, keep fighting, don’t give up.
Booker took out all but the two the person had managed to bludgeon.
The silence rang just as loud as the gunfire.
“They ain’t movin’,” Booker said, watching.
Caitlin covered her mouth. “Oh God…”
Seconds ticked by, but still nothing.
“They might’ve—”
“Don’t,” she cut him off. “Don’t say it yet.”
His gaze darted to her and she knew what he was thinking.
Always the optimist.
He was about to speak, but his words faltered. “Wait… They’re comin’ out.” He paused. “Shit, it’s a woman.”
Caitlin squinted into the distance, barely able to make out the reddish hair. “Does she have someone with her?”
“Nah, I think she’s by herself.”
Taking the gun from him, she peeked through the scope. “No…”
Her chest constricted painfully, and tears sprang to her eyes. It couldn’t be… She was hallucinating… It wasn’t…”
“Nicole?” She yelled, tossing the gun down. “NICOLE!”
Booker tried to shush her, but she barely heard him. Scrambling over the edge of the big rig, she climbed down while Booker yelled after her.
Caitlin jumped the rest of the way to the ground, springing up into a dash. She bolted around cars and down the slope of the grassy median.
“NICOLE.”
“Caitlin??” The woman started running for her, skidding down the hill on the other side. “Oh my God, Caitlin??”
The force of their collision brought them both to the ground, but neither cared. Limbs tangled in the tightest hug, rocking each other back and forth. Caitlin sobbed into Nicole’s hair, weeping her name over and over.
“I can’t believe it’s you,” Nicole cried, clutching the back of Caitlin’s head. “You’re alive, you’re okay, you’re here.”
Caitlin couldn’t see from the tears. Her best friend was here. She was alive. They’d found each other again.
“How are you here?” Nicole asked, pulling back just enough to see her face. “How are you… Were you… Who helped me??”
“Booker did,” Caitlin told her, looking over her shoulder.
“Who?”
On the edge of the highway, just before the grassy slope, Booker stood with his rifle slung over his shoulder.
Nicole let out a stunned laugh and cupped Caitlin’s face, bringing their foreheads together.
“I can’t believe you’re here,” Nicole whispered, hugging her again.
“I ain’t meaning to break this up,” Booker called, scratching the back of his neck. “But all that gunfire is bound to bring more groaners down on us.”
Caitlin was spurred into action, helping Nicole up. “He’s right, we gotta get back to the Jeep.”
“You have a car?”
She grinned. “And food and water and stuff to cleaned up.” She looked at the bloody crowbar Nicole had dropped. “You’re really good with that.”
Nicole laughed and picked it up. “Guess softball paid off, huh?”
The women never let go of each other’s hands as they trekked back to the Jeep.
***
Caitlin was nearly facing backwards in her seat, just to keep her eyes on her best friend. Like if she looked away Nicole would disappear like smoke.
“Watch your head,” Booker told her as he guided th
e Jeep off the shoulder of the road.
She barely noticed the bump, too busy focusing on Nicole.
“How did you escape Atlanta?”
Nicole glanced up, still wiping the gore and grime from her arms with the pack of Wet Wipes Caitlin had given her. “They’d started to evacuate people, busing them out to something called an Ark camp. But then…” She paused, stilling her movements. Her gaze grew distant and Caitlin’s heart tripped.
Reaching back, she took Nicole’s hand. “It’s okay. You don’t have to talk about it. I’m just so glad you’re alive.”
“How’d you find your way to Mississippi?” Booker asked, looking into the rearview.
“I was with another group for a little while. They were heading west, trying to get to less populated areas. We got split up when we came across some military guys.” She balled up the used wipe in her fist. “Thought they’d help us… Until they started shooting at us.”
Booker cursed under his breath. “Exterminators.”
“I got turned around, couldn’t find my way back to camp, so I just kept heading west.” She looked to Caitlin. “I was searching those cars for food when… I can’t believe I didn’t hear them.”
“Geeks can be pretty quiet, especially on asphalt,” Caitlin said. “Oh, that reminds me—”
She unbuckled and climbed halfway into the back, searching the floorboards.
“Jesus, Cae,” Booker said. “I’m off-roadin’ here. If we hit a log—”
“I’ll be fine.”
“You’ll go flyin’,” he said, smacking the side of her ass with the back of his hand. “Would ya sit down?”
“Hold on, Booker.”
“Meadows—”
“Found ‘em!” She emerged, clutching a box of Pop-Tarts. “I saved these from a while back. Booker doesn’t believe in eating anything fun—”
“They’re pure sugar, ain’t nothin’ good in ‘em—”
“But you said you were hungry, and… Remember when you were preparing your thesis and I came over with these, and pizza, and coffee and I helped you practice?”
Nicole’s eyes brimmed with tears. She could barely speak, just nodding and staring at the box in Caitlin’s hand.
“So, take them,” Caitlin urged. “They might be a little stale—”
She was cut off by Nicole hugging her, crushing her to her neck as she quietly cried.
“Thank you.”
Caitlin squeezed her back. “We’re gonna be okay.”
After a moment, the women wiped their eyes and smiled at each other. Booker smacked Caitlin’s ass again, making her glare over her shoulder.
“Now will ya sit down? Makin’ me nervous.”
Rolling her eyes, she eased back into her seat. As she twisted, she noticed Booker’s stare flicking up to her cleavage and then back to the grass he was driving through.
She grinned as his ears went pink.
“Okay, dad,” she said, sitting down finally.
Booker wrinkled his nose. “Please never call me that.”
“Duly noted.”
Nicole tore into one of the foil wrappers eagerly. “So, how did you two meet?”
Booker laughed, and Caitlin rolled her eyes.
“It’s not that funny!”
“C’mon, it’s a little funny.”
Nicole paused mid-chew. “What happened?”
Shifting his hold on the steering wheel, Booker glanced over to Caitlin. “You wanna tell it, or should I?”
Caitlin sighed. “Booker found me peeing in a bush.”
He laughed again. “Angrier than a—”
“Hen on laying day,” she finished for him. “I know, I know.”
Nicole’s stare bounced between them. “You’re kidding.”
“Nope. He thought I was a Geek.”
He glanced at her. “In my defense, I’d just seen a few on my way up the road. And you were rustlin’ around like you were stuck—”
“I was trying not to lose my balance!”
“Then you squeaked like a gerbil—”
“I did not.”
“And I kinda figured you weren’t a groaner after all.”
Nicole furrowed her brow. “Groaner?”
“It’s what Booker calls Geeks. And Geeks are what I call zombies.”
She chuckled. “I just call them gross.”
A delighted laugh escaped Caitlin and she turned to look at Nicole again, still smiling.
She had her friend back. And they still had pieces of themselves that survived, were still the same as before.
Maybe they really would be okay.
Nicole’s gaze dropped to the floorboards and she bent down. “Uh, Caitlin?” She sat up, holding a pair of rumpled underwear.
The same one’s Booker had stripped off her the night before.
“Are these yours?”
Caitlin admittedly did squeak like a gerbil that time.
Snatching them from her hand, she turned forward and hid the panties in her lap. “Thanks.”
Her face burned, and she knew she was eight different shades of pink.
From the corner of her eye, she spotted Booker covering his grin with the back of his hand.
“Jackass.”
***
In the fading light, Booker finished setting up the Jeep to accommodate a third person, folding seats down and laying out a couple blankets they’d found.
Caitlin and Nicole had settled beneath a nearby tree, gnawing on jerky.
“Did you miss your flight?” Nicole asked suddenly.
Blinking at her, Caitlin took a moment to catch up. “Oh, no, I was on it.”
“But…” Nicole shook her head. “I heard on the radio as they were busing us out… Planes out of Atlanta got—”
“I know.” She picked at the corner of her jerky stick. “I was the only one who survived the crash.”
Nicole’s hand shook as she reached out for her. “When I heard, I thought… I assumed…”
“I’d have done the same.”
It was getting harder to believe anyone they cared about survived. Caitlin still held out hope, but…
“What about Scott?” Caitlin asked. “Did you talk to him before everything…?”
Nicole nodded. “I called him as we were getting on the bus. Cell reception wasn’t great but… He said he was okay. They were waiting to get into an Ark camp.”
“Do you know which one?”
“He didn’t say. I heard later the North East got overrun pretty quickly—within a week.”
Caitlin’s stomach flipped. “Overrun…”
“There was a rumor you can’t even get beyond the Philadelphia border. It’s gotten cordoned off.”
She stared down at her hands. “I was trying to get back to New York,” she whispered. “I thought… I wanted to try to find…”
Friends. Family. Something familiar.
Nicole squeezed her wrist gently. “I think New York is gone, Caitlin.”
Tears fell from her lashes. Blinking, she sniffed. “Yeah… I was being too optimistic, huh?”
“I think if there’s something this world needs, it’s optimism.”
Closing the Jeep door, Booker walked over.
“Sorry we can’t have a fire,” he said to Nicole. “The light…”
“It attracts them,” she said, understanding. “It’s okay. Not like I’m cold.”
“Y’get enough to eat?”
Nicole nodded. “Yes, thank you. You didn’t have to—”
“Nah, you’re one of Cae’s,” he said, tilting his head in her direction. “Means you’re welcome to anythin’ we got.”
The casual kindness of his words struck Nicole, and she pressed her lips into a thin line to keep from crying.
“You know, when… when I got on the bus to get out of Atlanta, I thought… People will take care of each other. This is so big, so scary… Humanity will prevail. Maybe not in numbers, but in spirit.” Nicole’s voice cracked as she spoke. “But I rea
lized very quickly that wasn’t the case.”
Caitlin stared at her in the blue-grey light. “That week?”
“That hour,” Nicole corrected. “We’d just crossed the city limit when… I thought we’d hit a pothole. The bus’s tire blew out and…” Her gaze was distant as she struggled to find the words. “As soon as we skidded to a stop, that’s when… It came from all sides.”
“What did?”
“Bullets.” Her voice was hollow. “Machine gun fire. It was so loud… and glass went everywhere. I felt something hit my face and I remember thinking I wasn’t holding a drink… And then I realized it was blood.”
Booker ducked his head, closing his eyes in anguish. Caitlin wanted to reach for him, but Nicole needed her comfort more.
“Somehow I managed to only get hit in the arm,” Nicole continued. “And then… When they boarded the bus to be sure…” Tears spilled down her cheeks, streaking through the fine layer of dirt. “I only survived because I hid under a dead woman.”
Her hand flew to her mouth, disgusted with her admission.
Caitlin moved closer, gripping Nicole’s arms. “You did what you had to. No one would judge you for that. You were hiding from the real monsters.”
“She’d just told me she was worried about her sons in California. And seconds later I’m using her corpse as a shield.” She choked down a sob, unable to look her friend in the eye. “I hid until I heard one of them say to burn the bus… And I managed to crawl out of the back. I just… I ran until I couldn’t hold myself up any more.”
Caitlin cast a glance at Booker, expecting him to be just as heartbroken as she was.
He was a statue silhouetted in dusk. His face was turned away, like he was keeping watch on the horizon, but his eyes were pinched shut.
She’d never seen him like that, like he was silently being torn asunder.
Caitlin soothed her friend, telling her she survived and that was all that mattered. They’d all done terrible things in the name of self-preservation.
Her stare never left Booker’s profile as she said that last statement.
***
She found him a few yards away from the Jeep, sitting on a stump as he kept watch. His back was to her, but she knew he could hear her boots as she walked.
Her hand skimmed his shoulder as she knelt beside him.
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