Leading the trio up the stairs to the second floor, she told them about how Kirk and Chet had built this house with their bare hands, and with the help from a few family friends, in just a few months. “Bought the land and before I knew it, we were moving in.” They were all impressed by the craftsmanship of the hand railing and the door frames at the top on the stairs. Alana led them down the hallway passing the first doors on either side of the hallway. She pointed out that those were the kid’s rooms. They’d get to meet them in the morning. At the end of the hall were two more doors on either side of the hallway.
She opened the door on the right and said, “Here’s one, it’s got two double beds in it.” She turned around to the other door and opened it. “Here’s the other. It’s only got one bed in it, but it’s super comfy. I'll leave you three to figure out the sleeping arrangements.” Turning to Bobby and Amber, she said “I’m really sorry about your son. I really love my kids; I don’t know what I’d do if I lost any of them.” With that said, she walked back down the hall and down the steps to the kitchen to talk with little Tyler some more.
Standing in the hall, Justin spoke first. “Do you mind if we all sleep in the same room? I really don’t want to be alone tonight.” They both agreed and all went into the bedroom on the right and closed the door. The couple chose the bed at the far end of the room near a window. Justin flopped down on the remaining bed and sighed.
“Why did this all happen? How did I lose my son before he was even born? What kind of God would let this happen?” Bobby answered the best he could. “I don’t think God had anything to do with it. The news Amber’s mom heard said it was people that caused this. The Mexican government to be precise. I know it’s gonna sound harsh, but maybe it’s for the best that baby Terrell hadn’t been born yet. This world is going to shit now. It’s not really a place for children now is it?” Amber chimed in, sounding bitter “No it’s not. Just look at what happened to Bobboo. And that little boy, Tyler, would’ve died on that roof if we hadn't come along and saved him.” Justin sighed again, “Yeah that’s true, I guess you’re right.”
“Come on guys, let’s try to get some rest. I don’t know about you two, but I’m exhausted. Tomorrow isn’t going to be any easier if we intend to leave here,” Bobby said quietly. The couple laid down and Bobby held Amber tightly as they tried to find sleep. Justin was snoring within minutes.
Sleep didn’t come for Amber for a long time. She heard Bobby’s breathing slow down and knew he was asleep as well. Her mind wandered through the events of the day. She thought about her little Bobboo and how mad she was at the world for this happening. Caesar had basically sacrificed himself for the sake of another little boy. That dog was a hero in her eyes. She was so proud of him. He was a good dog. Her last thought as she drifted off to a fitful sleep was of her big son. It was now just him and Charles now in Virginia and they were almost 1500 miles away from Texas.
Chapter 38
Isaac and Charles
Richmond VA
They’d made it to the SUV. The second Charles turned the ignition and the engine came to life; they'd attracted the attention of a few curious undead creatures. Most of them were still distracted by Charles’s loud truck. They pulled out of the driveway and headed down the road towards the Highway entrance. They used the GPS on Isaac’s phone, hoping that the satellites didn’t fall out of the sky or the cell company didn’t shut down or something. They didn’t have a map or road atlas and they were going to need directions.
Charles had never been out of the State of Virginia. Hell, he’d barely left the county and recently he hadn’t even left the house due to the pandemic. Star had done all the shopping and ran all the errands for them. The thought of her put a knot in his throat and he almost choked on his own saliva. He managed to control himself though.
Isaac opened his phone and called his Mom. “Hey mom. We made it out of the attic and now we’re on the road in Nana’s SUV. We had to leave the house, or we’d have died like Nana or died of thirst or starvation or something.” “Where are you going?” his mom asked him. “Texas, Mama. We’re coming your way. Want me to send you the route we’re taking?” She asked, “You’re coming here?” “We’re gonna try,” he replied. “I’ve got my backpack full of knives and all the bullets for my rifle. I got my rifle too. We got a full tank of gas and if we run low, Nana has a garden hose and a gas can in here. I’ve learned how to syphon fuel from gas tanks on the internet. I mean, I’ve never done it, but we got this.”
His mom said “Good thinking son. We’re going to head your way too, so yeah send me your route and we’ll come the same way, just backwards. Maybe we’ll meet in the middle and be able to find a safe place for us all. Please be as careful as possible. Remember, the dead people don’t make any noise. They’re nothing like the movies. They’re soundless and super scary. Especially when in a big pack.”
He agreed with her and then said “We’ll be as safe as we can, but don’t worry about us. I might not have been able to keep Nana alive, but I’m not afraid anymore. There’s no room in my heart for fear Mama. I love you and I’m determined to get to you.” She assured him that she loved him too and so did his Dad. They would do their absolute best to get to him, wherever that might be. “Don't forget to send me that route,” she said. “I won’t Mama,” he answered and then hung up the phone. He sent her the route from his GPS as the SUV drove onto the highway on ramp, heading west.
Chapter 39
Chet’s house
Hico TX
Amber woke up before the two men. She’d had terrible dreams in her sleeping mind. Her brain kept replaying the events of the day and made her dream of what her mind imagined had happened to her mom. When she opened her eyes, she heard laughter coming from downstairs. She quietly got out of bed and went down the stairs to investigate. She hadn’t heard laughter in what seemed like forever.
Kirk noticed her as she reached the bottom of the stairwell. “Good morning Dearie,” he smiled brightly. “I’d like you to meet my grandkids. GIrls! Come on over here and meet one of the best women I’ve ever known! She’s like my mom when Pop Pop is out on the job. She cooks for me, cleans up my camper and washes all my clothes… Well, she did. I guess not so much anymore.”
The two little girls were adorable. They both had blonde hair and sparkling blue eyes. One was named Jessa, and she was 5 years old. The other little girl was named Casey and she was 7. “Same age as my Bobboo,” Amber said sadly. Tyler was up as well and after the girls politely introduced themselves, they went back to play with their new friend.
“Have you been up all night?” Amber asked Kirk. “No ma’am, Chet and I took turns. I watched out the window for the first few hours. Chet took over halfway through the night. It’s still early if you feel like you need more rest. Not a peep from outside, so we’re still safe for the moment.”
“I’m up now. Is there any coffee? I’d love a cup if there is,” she replied. With a wink, Kirk said “You got it sister. I’ll be right back. Cream and sugar, right?” She nodded to him and sat down on the couch in the living room and looked out the window. He was back in a minute or two with a piping hot mug of coffee, made just the way she liked it. She loved Kirk like a father. It was going to be a shame to have to leave him, but she couldn’t stay here, her son needed her.
As if he heard her, her phone rang. When she answered, he said “Hey mom. We made it out of the attic and now we’re on the road in Nana’s SUV. We had to leave the house, or we would’ve died like Nana or died of thirst or starvation or something.” “Where are you going?” She asked, surprised at his statement. He told her that they were heading towards Texas. He said he would send her the route they were taking. “You’re coming here?” she queried. “We’re gonna try,” he replied. He told her about having all his knives and his rifle and ammunition. They had a full tank of gas and if they ran low, they had a hose and a gas can. He had learned how to syphon gas from gas tanks from the internet. He was such a smart
kid.
“Good thinking son. You’re smart to think like that. We’re gonna head your way too, so yeah send me the route. We will head east. Maybe we’ll meet in the middle somewhere and we can find a place that’s safe for us all. Remember son, the dead people don’t make any noise. They’re nothing like the movies. They’re soundless and super scary, especially if they’re in a group.”
He agreed with her and said, “We’ll be as safe as possible.” He told her that he had no room in his heart for fear and that he loved her, and he was determined to get to her. She said “I love you too son. So does your dad. We’ll do everything we can to get to you. Don’t forget to send me that route.” He said, “I won’t mama.” and then ended the call.
She took the steps two at a time heading up the stairs to wake Bobby and Justin up. “Y’all wake up. I’ve talked to Isaac. He and Charles are in my mom’s jacked up Jeep and they’re on the highway heading West. We gotta go.” “Wait, what?” Bobby asked sleepily. He had slept like a rock and didn’t dream at all. He was groggy, but well rested.
Justin just opened his eyes and looked at her. He was not a morning person and regardless of the events the day before, he wanted to go back to sleep. “Come on, there’s coffee downstairs,” she told him. Hearing this, he sat up. If he had to be awake, at least there was coffee. He was the only person in their group who hadn’t showered the night before and he stunk. He vowed to get cleaned up after his first cup of coffee.
They went downstairs and Kirk had a steaming cup of coffee ready for them. As Justin sat down at the kitchen table to drink his, Kirk said “Whoo wee! You smell ripe there pardner! “I hope you intend on cleaning up a bit before breakfast.” Justin replied that he would and went back to sipping the liquid of the Gods.
Bobby took his coffee and sat down in the living room next to his wife. They enjoyed their cups for a moment before he asked, “Now, what were you saying about Isaac?” She told him all about the call and that their son had sent her the route that he and Charles were going to take. “Okay, so we know he’s traveling west and that we’re going to go east. Did you two talk about where we’d meet up with them?” “No”, she admitted. “We don’t know what we’ll come across out there. This thing has just started. It’s going to get worse; we all know that. At least we know what direction he’s traveling. If we take the same route heading east, we stand a chance of seeing our son again. We can’t stay here and just wait for him to come to us.” Bobby agreed.
Justin finished his cup of coffee and from the kitchen he overheard the couple talking. “Don’t leave me here,” he said, walking into the living room. “I’m going with you. I mean, if you’ll let me. Kirk doesn’t need me here; he’s got his son to help keep this place safe. You guys can use my help.” Both Bobby and Amber quickly agreed that they did, in fact, need him. He was like a brother to them and he was welcome no matter what.
“I just need to shower and change out of these nasty clothes. Y’all should talk to Pawpaw and see if he can help us with supplies. The beans JC put in the bed of the truck won’t get us too far. Plus, you should see if Chet has a printer and print out the route we’re going to take. That way we have a hard copy of the directions in case we can’t charge your phone.” With that said, he went into the bathroom to get washed up.
From the kitchen, Kirk heard his name and went to check it out. “What’s that?” he asked them. Bobby explained their plan and asked if they could spare anything. “What we got, you got. You’re all family around here too,” he said. Alana and Chet already offered up some extra food and clothes. They added a couple blankets, just in case. There are two full tanks of fuel behind the barn outside. One has gasoline and the other, diesel. We’ll top off your tank and fill the slip tank as well. I hope you understand why I can’t go with you. My family here needs me.”
They both understood completely. Kirk had to help keep those kiddos safe. That was a job that wasn’t going to get easier as the days passed. “Let’s get some breakfast inside those bellies and then we’ll get you all packed up and ready to go to find that boy of yours,” he said with a smile. “Thank you both for helping me get here. We all appreciate you.”
They went into the kitchen and sat down at the big dining room table. Alana had prepared a huge breakfast for them all. Eggs, bacon, sausage, fried potatoes and flapjacks covered the table. Justin emerged from the bathroom a few minutes later smelling a million times better. They all ate as much as they could and then got themselves organized.
Kirk helped Bobby fill all the tanks with fuel. Chet and Alana packed up a box of clothes and blankets. They had also put together a box of canned food and a case of bottled waters. The kids played while the adults got things ready. Alana pulled Amber to the side and Asked her in a low voice, “Can Tyler stay with us? The girls really like him, and we’ve always wanted a son. I know you just lost your little boy and I’d never insist he stay here if you need him to help you get over the death of your baby.” Amber agreed that he should stay with them. “The open road isn’t going to be a good place for children. We don’t know what we will come across out there. We may all die. I couldn’t ask that little boy to gamble with his life. He’ll be happy here with You, Chet and the girls.” Alana nodded, gratefully. “One more thing,” Amber asked. “Do you have a printer? My son sent me directions for the route he’s taking, and we don’t know how long the cell service will last. It would help us enormously if we had a paper copy, just in case.” Alana said that she did and led her to a small office off the living room. She easily printed the papers out for her new friend.
Alana gave Amber one last hug and wished her safe travels. With everything packed away in the truck, the small group got into the truck and headed down the long driveway. They turned onto the road and headed east towards their son and whatever lay ahead of them…
To be continued…
Made In Mexico | Book 1 | Day 1 Page 9