by Davis, James
“AHHHH!” Johnny groaned after a few seconds.
“You could have waited till I was out of the room first!” Roosevelt said through the barely cracked door.
“Oh, I didn’t want to interrupt your self-confidence speech seeing as you're supposedly the perfect specimen of man and all.” Johnny replied with a chuckle. Roosevelts dark cheeks turned red as embarrassment washed over him. He laughed nervously, “You heard that huh?”
“Every word of it you handsome devil you!” Johnny jabbed again. Roosevelt left the hallway to avoid Johnny's continuous jabs for the moment. He would need a massive cup of coffee before he could deal with that so early in the morning. He stepped into the kitchen and spotted Bud dishing scrambled eggs onto three different plates. Sausage patties already sat on the edge of each plate along with a slice of thick cut sugar ham. Roosevelts stomach growled like one of the zeds when he spotted the steaming plates of food. In the middle of the table sat a plate stacked high with flapjacks. Butter melted and ran down the sides of the still warm cakes.
“What's the occasion?” Johnny's voice sounded from behind Roosevelt.
“Electric is getting even more unreliable every day, and I don’t want this stuff to go bad plus that man there can eat!” Bud replied, pointing a plastic spatula at Roosevelt.
“Makes sense. He is the perfect specimen of man after all.” Johnny said with a chuckle giving Roosevelt one final jab. Bud sat the plates down around the table and they all sat down to eat. Roosevelt started with a stack of four pancakes plus the eggs and sausage on the side. Johnny and Bud being more conservative had only a single cake each along with their plate of eggs and meat. Roosevelt polished off seven pancakes, four scrambled eggs, two slices of ham and five pieces of sausage before finally tapping out. Johnny and Bud watched in amazement as he continued to shovel it all in. When he finally stood up his normally flat washboard stomach was pooched out like a woman four months into a pregnancy.
“My God, man, how do you fit that much food in there?” Bud asked, genuinely curious. Roosevelt shrugged before letting out a massive burp. Bud laughed and shook his head as Roosevelt explained.
“I’ve always eaten like this. Even when I was a kid my mother would have to make me stop eating so we didn’t go hungry the next day.” He said, wiping his lips with the back of his hand.
“There’s a town meeting in a half an hour if you two’d like to come?” Bud asked, looking from one man to the other.
“Actually, we’re going to try and hit the road today. We’ve got a lot of miles to cover and a ton of zeds in between and the things are only getting worse every day.” Johnny explained. Bud nodded his head.
“I understand. You boys have been a huge help since you’ve been here, and we would be honored for you both to become Sweetwater residents if you change your minds about leaving. Just something to think about.” Bud said, stepping forward and shaking each of their hands.
“Maybe if we ever come back through Sweetwater, we’ll stick around for a while but as of now we have to get to my old man's place. I don’t even know if he’s alive or dead to be honest with you.” Johnny said, a grim expression covering his face at the thought of losing his father too.
“Well like I said you two are welcome in Sweetwater anytime. I want you to come down to the station with me before you go. I’m sure you both have used up all the ammo I gave you and you’ll need it for your trip. A deals a deal.” Bud said, a warm smile covering his face.
“You sure you have the ammo to give after last night?” Roosevelt asked.
“I’ve got more ammo than either of you has ever seen stashed away. Perks of the job and all.” Bud said with a chuckle.
“Alright then let’s go see this stash of yours then. I also want to swap out pistols. This 1911 is cool and all but I want something that holds at least fifteen rounds or more.” Johnny said.
“After last night I feel the exact same way. Think we could trade up?” Roosevelt asked.
“Yeah no problem at all. I’ll have one of my guys take you back down to pick out something nice while I’m at the town meeting. I'm also sending you fellas out with a few extra rounds since you did help us stop those things from overrunning this place,” Bud said.
“We appreciate that. Every little bit helps.” Roosevelt replied. Johnny nodded in agreement and then fell in behind Bud and Roosevelt as they headed out the door. An hour and a half later they were shoving the last of their things into the back of the bronco. Bud had given them two hundred and fifty rounds of ammo for each of the weapons they had. Roosevelt still had the AK-47 he had taken from one of the men the day before and Johnny had kept the AR Bud had given them. Altogether they now had two rifles, two shotguns and two pistols with enough ammo to get them out of a tight spot at least once if they happened to find more trouble on their way to Denver. Sweetwater had been good to them and they felt bad for the loss the town had dealt with over the past twenty-four hours. They hoped that Bud and his people would quickly bounce back from the low blow life had dealt them.
“Did Dwight take you boys back down to Richey’s to fill that pig up?” Bud asked. Roosevelt reached into the cab of the old fire truck and pulled out two plastic bags full of chips, candy bars and other junk food items.
“He did and he also let me restock my snack stash!” Bud chuckled at the big man's appetite.
“Good. Maybe you’ll make it to Denver without much of a fuss.” Bud replied.
“We sure as hell hope you’re right.” Johnny said. They both sat down in the car and closed the doors as Bud walked over to the window. He stuck his hand inside and gave each men’s hand another quick, firm shake.
“I’ve said it once, but I’ll say it again, you guys are welcome back here anytime. We hope you come back and see us one day but if that doesn't happen then we wish the best of luck to you both.” Bud said.
“Same to you sheriff. If we ever have to come back this way, you can bet we’ll be coming by here. Until then you folks stay safe.” Johnny replied as he twisted the key in the ignition. The engine roared to life as Bud gave them a single nod and stood up straight. He gave the roof of the bronco three quick pats and took a step back as Johnny put the truck in gear and eased down on the throttle. The truck rolled forward at an even pace and Johnny checked his rearview mirror to see Bud and several others waving them goodbye.
Chapter Twenty-Six
9:17 a.m. January 5, 2049
Central Tennessee
"Where we at?" Johnny asked, opening his eyes and yawning as he looked over at Roosevelt. He straightened up in his seat, stretching his back as much as he could while seated in the car.
"A little way outside of Nashville." Roosevelt responded, keeping his eyes on the road.
Johnny nodded, reached into the center console and grabbed a clear one-liter soda bottle they had filled with water back in Sweetwater. He unscrewed the cap and took a long drink before replacing the cap and dropping it back unto the console.
"Fell asleep for a minute," he said.
"Forty-five minutes." Roosevelt corrected. Johnny chuckled.
"Forty-five long minutes." Roosevelt continued.
"Yeah, my bad. Sor…"
"Forty-five long, lonely minutes!" Roosevelt exclaimed, raising his voice as he teased Johnny. He steered the wheel to the right, taking the bronco halfway off the road to avoid a small group of cars parked on both sides of the two-lane road.
"Guess I just needed a little extra beauty rest. I'm no perfect specimen." Johnny said, jabbing back at his friend.
"I know that's right!" Roosevelt replied, looking over at Johnny, "Actually you might need a little more." He joked.
"Man, shut up." Johnny smirked.
"So, what next?" Roosevelt asked. Johnny shrugged.
"We can go straight through Nashville or we can avoid it and go around." He said. Roosevelt stared out the windshield for a long moment, he slowed down, maneuvering around an overturned yel
low semi that had jackknifed and blocked half of the road. After passing the wreck, he pressed his foot down and sped up. The leafless trees on either side of them began rushing past as he raced down the seemingly empty country road.
"Nashville has got to be a disaster. No way we pass through there easily." Roosevelt finally spoke.
"It'll cost us a lot of time to go around." Johnny said, matter-of-factly.
"How much? I don't feel like risking it man. I'm tired, I don't want to run, or fight, or die, or almost die. It costs a few extra hours, but we can spend those hours on these quiet ass country roads, enjoying the scenery, playing eye spy or something." Roosevelt ranted.
"Few hours under normal circumstances, could mean days at this point." Johnny argued. Roosevelt's gaze went from the road in front of him to look at Johnny and then back to the road.
"You wanna go through?" He asked.
"I want to go through." Johnny reiterated.
Roosevelt gave a long silent nod, still staring forward before speaking.
"Let's go through, gotta get to papa Truman," he said.
"Better add the gas Bud gave us before we get there. Probably best not to give ourselves a reason to stop in the city." Johnny suggested. Roosevelt nodded, turning the wheel and guiding the truck toward the right side of the road. The two men climbed out of the Bronco and walked toward the back. Roosevelt stretched his back and looked up at the clear blue sky, using his hand to shield his eyes from the bright sun. A constant cold breeze blew through the area, whistling as it moved through the trees. The sun was moving higher into the sky and if not for the relentless wind, it was certainly warmer than it should be in January.
Johnny pulled open the rusty tailgate with a loud creaking sound his left hand and stepped back. Roosevelt reached in and grabbed the first can, a large yellow ten gallon can with a black spout. He sloshed the liquid around.
"A little over half full." He said, handing the can to Johnny and turning back for the second can. A faded red five gallon can with a yellow spout. The two men carried the cans around and sat them on the road beside the truck.
"I'll pour 'em in, you just watch my back. Don't let anything sneak up on me." Roosevelt said, flipping open the hatch, revealing the bronco's gas cap.
Johnny nodded as Roosevelt unscrewed the cap and placed it on the roof. He removed his pistol from his holster with his left hand and let it dangle at his side before leaning his back against the side of the truck and scanning the area. Roosevelt grabbed the yellow can, placed the spout carefully into the tank, and tipped up the can. Liquid whooshed out, and the can made a hollow gurgle as the gas left it. The strong scent of gas filled the air.
"Sweetwater." Johnny said aloud, almost to himself.
"What about it?" Roosevelt asked, not looking up.
"I feel bad. You?" Johnny asked.
"About the zombies? Yea it sucks what happened. They were good people." Roosevelt replied.
"Well yea, but it was basically our fault, right?"
Roosevelt looked up at Johnny, still holding the can upright as the liquid poured into the truck's tank.
"How so?" He asked.
"I mean, Bud wouldn't have been where he was if we hadn't found ourselves in Sweetwater, he wouldn't have needed help, they wouldn't have had to leave the town unprotected. If we hadn't shown up, they might all still be okay." Johnny said
Roosevelt shook his head, as the last contents of the can poured into the tank. He quickly dropped it to the ground and replaced it with the red can.
"Horde would have found them eventually. Pretty quick too. If we weren't there it may have been worse. You can't put that on us," he said.
"I guess." Johnny replied, clearly not convinced.
They stood in silence for a few moments as Roosevelt finished pouring the last of the gas. Leaves rustling and branches snapping interrupted the silence.
"Zed!" Johnny exclaimed as a single zombie stumbled from the trees about fifty yards away. The zed turned directly toward them and took off in a dead sprint. Johnny lifted the pistol with his good arm and took aim, waiting for the thing to get close enough.
"No need for that, let's just go." Roosevelt said, screwing the cap back in place and closing the hatch. He grabbed up the two cans and tossed them into the back before slamming the tailgate closed. Johnny holstered his weapon and jumped into the passenger seat. Roosevelt took his seat behind the wheel, started the engine, and quickly guided the vehicle back into the road. He pressed the gas pedal and watched as the zed in the mirror grew smaller and smaller until finally disappearing in the distance. Roosevelt kept up the fast pace for a few miles until he was sure that they were far enough away from the zed and any of its possible friends before he lifted his right foot and let the truck slow to forty-five miles per hour.
“What are you doing? Why did you slow down so much?” Johnny asked, adjusting himself in his seat to take the pressure off his wounded shoulder.
“Conserving gas. Don’t know when we’ll be able to get more.” Roosevelt answered.
“We should find an auto parts store somewhere and grab one of those hand pump siphoning tools. Then we can just fill up from other cars right on the spot without having to use the cans.” Johnny said.
“You don’t think all of these cars are dead empty? I bet they ran out of gas sitting here running when people started turning into mindless killing machines.” Roosevelt said.
“Yeah. Maybe you’re right.” Johnny shrugged his one good shoulder.
“Can I ask you a personal question?” Roosevelt asked, looking over at his friend out of the corner of his eye.
“Johnny spread his hands out to his sides, wincing as his shoulder started to burn.
“I’m an open book. Shoot.” He said through gritted teeth. Roosevelt eyed him again and then cleared his throat.
“Do you ever think about Tracy?” Johnny squirmed uncomfortably in his seat at the question.
“I’m sorry man. I shouldn’t ha...” Roosevelt started to say but Johnny cut in.
“I have dreams about her getting eaten just about every night.” Johnny said in a low tone, not telling him that Ruby was the one attacking his beautiful wife in his dreams.
“Damn Johnny. I didn’t know that. I couldn’t imagine how hard that is.” Roosevelt said.
“What about you? Do you think about Ruby?” Johnny asked, lifting his head and looking over at him.
“To be honest, last night was the first time I thought about her since that day. We’ve just been running so hard these past two weeks that I haven't had time to really think about anything else.” Roosevelt answered, shame dripping from his words. Johnny slowly nodded.
“I know man. I haven’t actually thought about Trace besides in my dreams in a while either. You’re right about running too hard though. Problem is that's probably going to be the new normal in most of the country. Hell, maybe even the world. People running in high gear trying to get away from zeds or trying to find food and water.” Johnny said as he watched a large green sign streak past.
“You think it’s spread around the planet already?” Roosevelt asked, glad the subject was moving in a different direction. It was easier to not think about Ruby at least while they were on the road trying to get across the country.
“I think there is no way it hasn’t spread around the globe already. I mean you saw how fast it spread from Houston to the rest of the country in a matter of days. Hell, it was in Florida by the time we made it there less than twenty-four hours later.” Johnny said, wishing he was wrong. Roosevelt seemed to consider this for a few moments before speaking again.
“Yeah it did spread like wildfire. I wonder what the rest of the world is doing to stop it or deal with it.” Roosevelt said.
“Who knows, man, who knows.” Johnny replied as he watched the world through the passenger side window. Both men grew silent as they drove until a couple of hours later when Roosevelt brought the truck to a sto
p at a rest area that was under construction. There was a single car parked in the taped off lot as they pushed through the barricades. They didn’t see a single person anywhere around so they each climbed out to use the bathroom. They walked towards the edge of the thick forest and stopped far enough away to listen for signs of zeds moving in the area. After a few minutes of hearing only birds chirping they decided it was safe to move forward and water the trees. When they finished, they walked back to the car and stood there in silence. The birds' songs and the soft winter breeze was relaxing so they continued standing there with their eyes closed, enjoying the moment of peace.
“You hear that?” Johnny asked as his eyes snapped open.
“I don’t hear anything.” Roosevelt replied as he looked around the area.
“Exactly. The birds stopped singing.” Johnny added as he stared out into the thick forest, looking for any kind of movement.
“Maybe they were just tired of singing.” Roosevelt said, annoyed that the peaceful moment had passed so fast. He started to say something else when a massive roar loud enough to make the two men flinch and hold their ears filled the air. Something crashed through the forest coming right for them as they jumped in the truck. Roosevelt slammed it in gear and stomped down on the pedal speeding out of the rest areas exit road. Johnny watched the edge of the forest as the trees flew by and spotted something huge smashing through trees and underbrush as it kept pace with the truck.
“How fast are you going?” Johnny asked in a panicked voice.
“Thirty-five. I go any faster, we'll never make the turn out of here!” Roosevelt said, guiding the truck back toward the highway. Johnny watched the thing for a long minute as it continued to keep pace.