“Ok, we’re where we started,” Candace said, hitching her backpack up her shoulders.
“Yeah. I think it’s to the left. Probably a few miles before we get to the place the RV was parked,” Easton said.
They started off toward what they hoped would be their salvation. Easton had been right about the distance. The road curved around the forest that they had run into looking for Billie Duncan. Easton had his bat in his hand, constantly rotating his wrist and swinging the wood. The last time they were near this area, they were chased by a horde of infected. They could only hope that horde had moved on.
An hour later a tall sign indicated a gas station, and Easton started to jog toward it. Candace followed as fast as she could. They had last seen the RV behind the gas station, parked near the tree line. Easton wasn’t sure what he would find when he got there. He hadn’t seen anyone since they left the station wagon so he knew that the Duncans weren’t there. But part of him feared that the reason they weren’t looking for them was because the horde had caught them.
Easton skidded to a halt behind the gas station. His first thought was abandonment. The RV was gone. The vegetation where the RV had been parked was trampled, like many feet had trudged through. The horde had followed them to the RV. Judging by the infected bodies left, they had to run some of them over to escape.
The feeling of abandonment vanished as Easton suddenly noticed the white Bronco sitting right where they had left it. Candace came rushing to his side. She looked up at him with tears in her eyes, then looked around at the mess left by the horde.
“They left us,” she whispered, tears making her throat thick.
“They had to. Or bring the horde down on them all,” Easton replied. He went to the passenger side door of the Bronco and tried the door. It was locked.
“East,” Candace exclaimed from the other side. He joined her and a grin came to his face when he saw his name spray painted on the fender. Bending down, he stuck his hand under the fender. Victoriously he pulled out the keys. Keys Alex had hidden in a place she had taught him about.
“Alex did this. She wanted us to find the truck,” Easton said. He unlocked the driver’s door, and stuck his head in to look in the back. He saw the bug out bags from the RV. Walking to the back of the truck, he popped the tailgate after unlocking it.
The bug out bags were familiar. Alex had mentioned a few times on the road that she wanted them to have bags for worst case situations. Easton threw his pack and Candace’s Hello Kitty bag into the back of the truck. Opening the bug out bags they found MRE’s, knives, forks, flashlights, and more survival gear. The one item that made Easton cheer out loud was a road atlas.
“Alex showed me this when we were on the road,” Easton explained. He flipped open the book to the marked page, and thrust it at Candace.
“It’s a route, to where, East?” Candace asked.
“The compound, her family’s place! She made sure we could find her. She left us because there wasn’t a choice. But she wants us to come after them,” Easton replied excitedly.
“Can you follow it?” Candace asked.
“A map? Yes I can follow a map. Candy,” Easton said sarcastically, causing Candace to laugh softly.
“I just meant, do you know where Alex would be leading us?”
He studied the map more closely. He remembered sitting with Alex as she highlighted the route she wanted to take all the way to the Montana compound. He had asked her why she had two, and she had replied that she had two of everything for worst case scenarios. As usual, she was prepared for whatever would come her way.
“Yes. See here,” Easton pointed to a red arrow that he didn’t remember seeing before. “I am pretty sure Alex put this here before she left it. This is where we are now. We just head north from here, and follow the directions.”
Candace sorted through the items they had in the bug out bags. The MRE’s would be much more filling than the beans and fruit they had been eating the past few days. She read the directions on one package, as she had never actually eaten one before. The process seemed simple enough.
“I’m going to go back into the gas station. I know we didn’t take everything that was in there,” Easton said. When they first parked behind the gas station they had scavenged what was inside, surprised that it hadn’t been broken into already. Now that Easton knew what was living not far from there, he was even more shocked that they hadn’t found the food to take to Scooter’s kingdom.
“We have everything we need right here,” Candace said, sounding unsure.
“Alex always says you never stop looking and scavenging. That’s what we’re going to do,” Easton remarked.
Candace climbed into the back of the Bronco, and Easton shut her in. He would rather have someone watching his back, but he didn’t want his sister in any danger. Her ankle wasn’t healed, and she couldn’t move that fast if they needed to outrun any infected.
Moving around the side of the gas station, Easton found things to look similar to when they left. His feet crunched across the glass of the door they had broken to enter the store. He moved slowly, checking the dark corners, finding nothing moving inside.
He found an empty box behind the cashier’s desk and starting throwing chips, cookies and mini donuts in. None of those items would survive for long, but he figured with the MREs and the cans they had, these would be a welcomed change. He filled two boxes with items they hadn’t decided to take before.
Bringing his bounty to the Bronco, he found Candace had arranged things in the vehicle. The bedding that the newest member of their group, Marcus, had been using was still in the truck. It would be a fairly safe place to sleep while they traveled. He gave her the boxes to sort as well.
In the driver’s seat, Easton sat looking at the road map. He tried to use the distance key to decipher how many miles they were really looking at. He didn’t want to drive at night unless absolutely necessary. And right now, with their supplies and a full tank of gas, it wasn’t necessary. His best estimation was a day at least of driving, if they drove straight through.
“We have about five hours of daylight left. We don’t have extra gas, so that’s one thing we will need to solve,” Easton called back to Candace.
“So we should get on the road and find a place to stop where we can get gas, right?” She replied.
Easton sat in thought. He would need to go back into the gas station store, and find what he needed to siphon gas. He had helped Alex a few times, but had never done it on his own. He knew the tools he needed, and he would do what was needed to get them to Montana, safety, and the Duncans.
Chapter 11
The road was surprisingly clear. The windows were down and wind blew freshly through the cabin of the truck. Easton kept his speed in a safe zone, even though he was impatient to reach their destination. Candace sat next to him, studying the road atlas in detail, making sure she could be the proper co-pilot.
They had driven three hours when they came to a small town. Small enough that if they had blinked they probably wouldn’t have seen it. There was a small shopping area with a gas station that boasted the best fried chicken on the road, a convenience store, and a coin operated laundromat.
Easton slowed the truck in the middle of the road, surveying the area. People had been through there, he could see places had been looted already. One car was crashed into the front windows of the laundromat and blood stained the open driver’s door and ground below it. The story was clear of what had happened to the driver.
The sun was starting to sink in the sky, and Easton wanted to find somewhere secure to park the truck for the night. Though horrible things had happened in the area, nothing seemed to move, or come out of hiding at the sound of the truck. Easton revved the engine a few times, causing more noise to be sure infected weren’t hiding around any corners.
“We could park behind the buildings, like we’ve done before,” Candace commented, her eyes also moving over the area, surveying and measuring.
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“We’ll drive around and see what we see,” Easton replied as he put the truck in gear and slowly drove behind the gas station.
As with most places in the area, there was green space behind the station. The shadows grew with the setting sun, giving Easton an unsettled feeling. He didn’t like being so close to the woods after losing the Duncans almost a week before. He also couldn’t forget how being in the forest had saved them from Scooter’s wrath.
Easton parked the truck, and turned the engine off. The area was quiet and he could hear his own heart thundering in his ears. He turned and watched, expecting an attack to come at any time. Nothing came.
“I’m going to set up dinner,” Candace said, breaking the silence. She climbed into the back of the Bronco, and began pulling out MREs, water, and a knife. She sliced open the pouches, pulling out the food items and the heaters. Following the directions on the package, she opened the heaters and poured small amounts of water into each. A few minutes later she had both of their entrees sitting in the heaters warming up.
“What’s for dinner?” Easton asked as he climbed into the back of the truck with her. He folded his long body, trying to get comfortable in the small space they had.
“Meat ravioli in red sauce. There’s crackers to go with it. And some sort of dessert. These meals have quite a bit in them,” Candace replied as she showed him all the packets that came out of the main pouch.
“Sounds better than canned green beans,” Easton remarked, making Candace smile.
After a full meal, Candace pulled out a book she had taken from the storage facility. To entertain them both until the sun set, she read aloud. The story was a romance, that Easton made scoffing noises at every tender moment. The story was a sweet distraction from their current setting.
They decided against any sort of light once the sun set. They lay awake in the back of the Bronco for some time. In whispered conversation Easton explained to Candace his plans for the next day. It was simple in his mind. Syphon the last gas they should need for the trip, and get to the compound. Candace felt fluttery excitement mingled with nerves, thinking about finally being off the road with Alex and her children.
The sun fell across their faces earlier than they were ready for. After a breakfast of canned peaches and crackers, Easton set out to search for gas. He was lucky with the first two vehicles that were crashed in the parking lot. Together they filled the Bronco back to full. He then collected an additional ten gallons to keep in the truck, for them to fill up on the road.
Settled in their seats, they rolled the window down to help with the fumes from the stored gas. Candace let her head lay on the door, the wind ruffling through her hair. Neither of them had showered or cleaned up in a week. Easton knew she felt gross, her hair matted and wrapped in a ponytail to keep the greasy strands from her face. Easton’s face was streaked with dirt in some places. Both of their clothes were dirt riddled from their time of running through the forest.
The teens were impatient to end their journey. They ate lunch while Easton drove, Candace holding his food, while he shoveled with a fork. They only stopped long enough to relieve themselves on the side of the road and once when they saw a water fountain at a rest stop. They were surprised water still flowed, but they took it and took the time to boil it so they could drink it later.
By the light of twilight Easton found the dirt road they were to turn down. It wasn’t well marked, and he had almost passed the well disguised road. Alex had marked it well on the map, which Candace read by flashlight in the passenger seat.
“Are you sure this is it, East?” She asked, searching all the surrounding map, and back to the highlighted section. “She didn’t really highlight a road, just an area.”
“Yeah but it’s halfway between these two roads, see?” Easton said, slowing to a stop and pointing to the two roads on either side of the highlighted route. The road they had turned down was well worn, but hidden by the trees on either side. Easton knew it had to be the right road.
They sat, the Bronco idling for a moment, pausing to look at the map together. A crash into the side of the Bronco had Easton jumping in his seat, and Candace yelping in surprise. The growling face of an infected appeared at the driver’s side window, slamming itself into the truck trying to get to the kids inside.
“Crap, well it better be the right road,” Easton said, as he threw the Bronco into gear and moved forward.
“Easton...” Candace trailed off next to him, her voice small and afraid. He glanced at her, and found her looking out the passenger window. He slowed long enough to grasp what she was seeing. The spaces between the trees seemed to move. The first infected wasn’t alone. Another horde had found them.
Easton pushed the Bronco as fast as he dared. The road was dark with trees on either side. The headlights cut through the immediate darkness, but the boy was afraid he would miss any sudden turns.
“The compound should be right at the end,” Candace said, looking at the map again. She let it fall to the floor, not needing further direction.
The truck bumped over potholes, but Easton didn’t stop. An infected wandered into the path of his headlights, and he just sped up, causing the body to bounce of the front fender and fall back into the trees. That had to be it. He knew he couldn’t fight this many infected to protect Candace. Their only other option would be to turn around, and hope for another chance. Fuel levels told him that wouldn’t be the best plan either.
Moments later the headlights illuminated a stone wall branching off into the trees on either side of the road, and a black iron gate with black metal mesh covering it. The gate was closed and there was no signs of life inside. Easton pulled the truck to a stop, and looked around. He groaned when he saw infected coming toward them on either side.
“It’s now or never, Candy. We need to run for the fence,” Easton said, grabbing his bat and swinging the strap of the sheath over his head.
“Ok.” Was all Candace could manage to say.
Easton swung open his door and jumped out first. He rounded the truck to Candace’s door, and immediately was faced with an infected too close for comfort. He grabbed his bat and smashed the infected back with a blow to its temple. It didn’t move and Easton didn’t wait, grabbing Candace’s door and yanking it open.
The pair ran to the gate. Easton slammed into it, yanking trying to open it. The metal didn’t budge for all his yanking. He then noticed a small keypad to one side, and cursed to himself as he realized it was protected by a code, and there was no way he was getting the door open.
“Oh god, please be here! Alex!” Candace cried out.
Easton knew his pulling on the gate wasn’t going to do any good. He swung around, looking at the infected as they approached. Another got into swinging range and he connected solidly with the top of its head. Turning back to Candace and the gate he started praying in his head. This was where Alex sent them. He knew it.
“This has to be it. I followed the map as she highlighted it,” Easton said.
There was no other plan. He couldn’t think of what else they could do. He looked back at the Bronco, seeing at least five infected as immediate threats if they ran back that way. And they were still moving toward the kids at the gate. Looking at Candace his heart plummeted to see the fear on her pale face, lit by the silver moonlight. Had he led his sister to her death?
Movement on the other side of the gate caught his eye and he swung to look back through the mesh. There stood a very surprised woman.
“Alex!” Easton and Candace cried out together.
Her name seemed to push her into action as she shook herself from a daze and plugged numbers into the keypad on her side. The gate smoothly began to slide open, and Easton pushed Candace through as soon as there was enough space. Easton followed and Alex closed the gate immediately.
Swinging around, Alex looked at the teens. Easton knew they looked dirty and worn. But they had made it one piece. He could see Alex’s eyes shining, and she stepped fo
rward to throw her arms around Candace and himself. Easton found his own face wet with tears, and he laughed through the relief. Candace’s small frame shook with sobs and Alex held onto her tightly.
“You made it. You found us,” Alex said.
She pulled back and looked at them both again. She wiped the tears from Candace’s face, like only a mother would know how. Easton felt his heart swell just a little, knowing he got his sister back to safety. Back to the family they had built after losing their own mother. He felt Alex’s hand touch his own face, and he looked down at her, smiling.
“Welcome home,” Alex said.
Epilogue
Driving the Bronco to the gate of the compound had attracted a nearby horde. Easton was worried about the infected slamming into the gate, but Alex took her time getting Marcus from the RV to help them dispatch the mess. Easton knew to trust Alex’s instincts. She was nothing if not thorough in the way she handled the infected walkers.
Marcus accompanied Alex over the hill, meeting Candace and Easton where they waited. His face was full of surprise but also happiness. They hadn’t known the man more than a few days before getting lost, and Easton hadn’t been incredibly nice to the man. His attentions toward Alex had bothered him, and he was sure they still would. But even Marcus and his presence couldn’t dim the happiness radiating from Easton.
“It’s so good to see you two,” Marcus said as he approached.
“You too,” Candace answered with a smile. Easton just nodded his agreement, and left it at that.
“I hope you know, well I mean, I had to force Alex to leave that day. She wanted to go back for you. But....” Marcus started to say. Easton quickly cut him off.
“But it wouldn’t have been safe for anyone. We know. I trust Alex and her decisions. She did what was right,” Easton said.
Sundown Series (Novella): Alone Page 7