“Deep breaths, Maggie,” Michelle said as she wrapped her arm around her shoulder.
Max knocked the teeth off then gently pushed her pant leg up, holding his breath as he prepared himself for what he was going to find there. There was a half-circle red mark but no blood. He examined it more closely and noticed there were no teeth marks, no imprints of any kind. He ran his fingers over the smooth, unbroken skin and breathed a sigh of relief. When Maggie threw herself forward, she had saved her own life. The zombie had missed its chance to bite down on her with only a second or two to spare.
“You’re okay, Maggie,” Max said with a smile. “There’s no bite. Your skin is just a little red; I’m not even sure it’s going to bruise.” Maggie collapsed entirely into Michelle’s arms as her tears of relief flowed. She’d thought she was done. Everyone knew that even the tiniest break of the skin was a death sentence. She couldn’t believe that she was okay. Her hands were scraped, and her knees took a hard hit, but she was okay. She pulled herself together as Michelle and Max helped her to her feet. She hugged Michelle again and tried to express how grateful she was. “Thank you,” was all that she managed to say. Michelle gave her another squeeze then let her go.
The range of emotions from fear, not knowing, and then finding out Maggie was okay caused everyone to take pause for a moment. Relief flooded through every last one of them. Max grabbed some water, and everyone took a break for a few minutes. They kept a close watch on both the parking lot and the store's entrance, but they all relaxed for a moment. They had come so close to losing one of their own, but the quick actions and reactions of everyone working together had started to become second nature and helped to ensure their survival. Max lit a cigarette and offered the pack to Junior and Frank. There were no more zombies in the parking lot or on the street, and as far as they knew, there weren’t any in the store. It felt good to take a few minutes after the scare.
Max eyed the parking lot more closely and noticed an oversized black truck at the far end of the lot that he didn’t remember seeing earlier. He hadn’t exactly counted cars or anything when they got there, so he dismissed it when he saw no movement around it. The street remained free of zombies, and the parking lot was quiet. Across the street, there was a free-standing restaurant in front of a pond with several empty parcels of land around it. A slight movement caught his eye when he just happened to look in that direction. A half dozen or so zombies were slowly shuffling out from behind the restaurant. It would take them a while to get to the street and even longer to get to the store, so they probably wouldn’t be an issue. He mentioned them to the others to err on the side of caution.
“There’s at least half a dozen coming from behind the restaurant across the street,” Max said. “We’ll probably be out of here before they become a problem, but I wanted to make sure everyone saw them.” There was no such thing as being too careful.
“Let’s start getting this water loaded up,” Junior said. “We can relax when we get back home.” It was getting late, and they wanted to get back to the house before the sun went down.
They started bringing all of the carts of water out to the trucks. Emily and Anna watched everyone’s backs inside the store while Michelle and Maggie kept an eye on the parking lot. Loading the water would make some noise, and they were bound to draw in a few of the dead. It took a while, but Max, Frank, and Junior managed to fit most of the water in the beds of the three pickups. They filled the rear seats of two of the trucks with the rest. It was a tight fit, but they got it all in. There were two cases left, and those could be stuck in the backseat with Michelle in the third truck.
They hadn’t even begun to go through the store for other supplies. With water being such a huge priority, they planned to make more runs in the future for other supplies they needed.
Exhausted from all of the heavy lifting, they all stood around for a minute to catch their breath. “You know,” Frank started, “we need to find a way to close the front door. So the next time we come back, we’ll know the store is still clear.”
“Either that or block it off. The zombies always go for the path of least resistance,” Junior said. “If there’s no one inside to attract them, they’re not going to try to get through any kind of barricade.”
“What if we make a big line of carts?” Anna asked. “They’re heavy when you have a bunch of them. We push those in place, and the dead aren’t going to get inside.”
“That’s a great idea,” Max said. There were two cart corrals nearby that he pointed out. “We take those two rows, put them together, and push them in front of the doors.”
The long rows of carts were heavy and difficult to steer, so they broke them down into a few smaller groups. Max, Frank, and Junior each pushed a bunch in front of the doors and made one long row of them when they were done.
“Probably more than we needed,” Junior said. “But it’ll definitely keep the dead out.”
The group of zombies from the restaurant had grown to about two dozen, and they were halfway through the parking lot heading toward the trucks. “We’re ready to go,” Max said. “Let’s just leave them. No need to take unnecessary risks.”
They got in their trucks and turned out of the parking lot before the zombies could pose a threat. A handful came up from the rear side of the store, but they were too slow and still too far away to be an issue. Max turned onto the main road with the others following him. The trucks were weighted down with all the water they had loaded, so Max was careful about hitting holes or driving off shoulders. They made it a mile before they had to take a slight detour. About two dozen zombies were shambling in the road, and it wasn’t worth the risk to stop and take them all out. Max cautiously turned down a side street that he knew would bring them back out on the other side of the dead. The little street had quite a few shot-up cars. There were so many bullet holes that it was impossible not to notice the destruction. He looked to his right at the nearby houses and found that two of them had been shot up as well. Shaking his head in frustration, Max picked up the radio. “You guys seeing these cars and houses?” he asked.
“Yeah, those cars would have been hard to miss. It just doesn’t make any sense,” Junior replied.
Anna’s voice came over the radio. “This shit is starting to freak me out. Do you still think they’re just destroying property, or do you think they’re killing people?” she asked.
“I’m not sure, but I don’t like what I’m seeing,” Max answered. “Let’s just get home.”
Max continued around the block until they were back on the main street, and the zombies they’d detoured to avoid were well behind them. He concentrated on the road in front of him because there were quite a few static cars and little pockets of zombies to weave around. By the time they got around them, they were only about a mile from home. Max was on high alert as they got closer to the house, making sure there weren’t any zombies on his street. “Keep an eye out, Maggie, so I don’t miss anything,” Max said.
“It’s empty,” Maggie responded. “Maybe they all followed us out when we left earlier. Could be the zombies we passed coming home are all from the neighborhood.”
“Well, other than the neighbor yard and that big group last night, we haven’t had too much activity since the horde came through here,” Max said. Reminders from the horde were all over the street. Dried blood stained nearly black, tattered remnants of clothing, occasional odd shoes, intestines and bodily organs that were drying out in the summer sun, and even random limbs still lay in and around the road.
Max picked up the radio and called Damon at the house. “We’re almost home. If there aren’t any zombies around the house, we should be there in about two minutes. Is everything good there?”
“All clear, Dad,” Damon said. “No problems. I’ll go open the gate for you.”
Max slowed as he neared their house when he saw three zombies on a sidewalk. A closer look into the front yard revealed several more. It was the same house they’d cleared tog
ether the day before that had the backyard full of zombies. He wondered if something was drawing them there.
He called the others over the radio. “Quick stop. Three zombies on the sidewalk and maybe half a dozen in the front yard,” he said. Frank and Anna responded, and they all pulled over. Everyone got out because they weren’t sure if there were more coming. They needed numbers if they ran into more of the dead. Frank and Junior quickly destroyed the three zombies on the sidewalk. They all entered the front yard together but spread out so they could safely kill the zombies there. Anna, Emily, and Michelle went to the left, Frank and Junior stayed in the middle, and Max and Maggie went to the right. It wasn’t too hard taking out the first six zombies, but then they saw another dozen a bit further back. Where the hell are they all coming from? Max wondered. He focused on the few closest to him and started killing. A few of them were too close together, and as Max stabbed one through the eye, another grabbed his arm. He swung around fast and plunged his knife through its ear before its face got anywhere near his arm. Maggie took out the third one that was nearest to her. Their area was clear, so they looked toward the others to make sure everyone was okay. They were all finishing off zombies of their own, and then it was quiet again.
“I’m going to check the gate. I can’t figure out why they’re attracted to this yard,” Max said quietly to the others. He approached the gate and found it was still secure from how they had left it. He walked back over to the others. “Maybe we should check inside the house. What do you guys think?” Max asked.
“The door is closed, and the window isn’t broken. I’d say it’s a fluke,” Frank offered.
“Yeah, they weren’t in the backyard this time, and the gate was secure,” Junior said. “Maybe the boys were out here while we were gone and made a little noise. If the zombies didn’t see them, they would just linger around the last area that had their attention.”
Max thought about it for a moment. Everything Frank and Junior said made sense. It had to be a fluke that the zombies were there because there was no other way to explain it. “Alright, let’s get back in the trucks. I want to make another quick pass to make sure none showed up on the street while we were busy.”
They slowly reversed down the street about a dozen houses and didn’t see any of the dead. They drove back toward Max’s house and beyond to make sure things looked clear that way. Everything looked good, so when they reached the house again, Max pulled into the driveway with the others close behind him. Damon was there waiting and opened the gate to let them through, then closed and locked it behind them.
Chapter 35
Day 6
Everyone got out of the trucks feeling tired, hungry, and ready to get inside. It was nearly dark outside, and it had been a very long day. Walking into the house, they smelled freshly cooked food that took all of them by surprise. Camille and Lucia stood grinning in the kitchen with counters heaped full of steaks, burgers, baked potatoes, and grilled vegetables. With the power out, everyone was momentarily surprised. Anna and Max hugged their kids and said hello while Michelle did the same with hers.
“How did you guys pull this off?” Anna asked. She looked around at the many lit candles that allowed them to see well enough and noticed the patio door. One of the boards was taken down, but two of the iron bars still covered the doorway, and the sliding glass door was in place.
“We grilled out back by the pool,” Joey said with a big smile. “The door is still secure with the bars over it and the boards on the other side.”
“We can put the board back up if you want,” Damon said. “We had all this food thawing in the freezer since the power went out, and we figured we could cook it on the grill instead of letting it go to waste.”
They could all see that the kids were very proud of themselves, and everyone was hungry after the work they’d been doing all day. “Looks good,” Max said as he grabbed a plate. Everyone else followed his lead and piled their plates with some of everything. They got comfortable and ate, savoring every bite until they were full. No one knew when they would have a real meal again. There weren’t any more steaks or burgers anywhere in their near future. They had plenty of canned and dried goods, but perishables wouldn’t last another day.
With dirty dishes from eleven people piled in the sink, Camille and Lucia started cleaning up. They knew the water wasn’t going to last much longer, so everyone took turns taking cold showers. No one minded the cold too much because the house was uncomfortably warm without AC and no open windows to create a breeze.
Max stepped into the living room to talk to Frank and Junior. “We’re going to have to figure out something to make the temperature in here tolerable. It’s going to be an oven in here all summer,” Max said.
“The generator can’t run the AC. It’s just too much,” Junior responded. “I’ll think on it and see if I can’t come up with something.”
“Knowing Damon and Joey, I wouldn’t be surprised if they figure out a solution,” Frank said with a laugh. “Those boys are damn near incredible with their ingenuity.”
Max grinned as he took pride in the boys. They were doing better than a lot of grown men would be in the same situation. They were creative, determined, and damn near fearless.
It was fully dark outside, so there wasn’t much to do. Michelle went into the kitchen to see if there was any more food that was salvageable from the freezer. It was full of thawed vegetables, melted ice cream, and liquid popsicles. She dug around and found a large package of chicken hidden under the soupy mess. It was thawed but still cool to the touch, so it was definitely safe to eat. “Hey Joey,” She called. “Is the grill still hot?” She held out the package of chicken.
“It might be warm but not hot enough to cook that,” Joey said. “Damon and I can get it fired up again.”
“Hey, we need to go grab what’s left in the Wright’s freezer,” Damon said. “There might still be some stuff in there that we can throw on the grill.”
“I’ll get the grill going while you boys check next door,” Max said with enthusiasm. “I thought we just ate our last home-cooked meal. I’ll cook up whatever you boys can find.”
Damon and Joey checked the flap on the board by the window near the front door to make sure the yard looked clear, then happily headed out to get more food. They silently made their way across to the fence and climbed up and over into the Wright’s yard. Once inside, they went straight to the farm-style kitchen at the rear of the house and used their flashlights to check the freezer.
“There’s still a lot in here,” Joey said with a grin as he pulled out packages of steak, ground beef and pork chops. Everything was thawed out. Damon went to the mudroom off the kitchen to grab a couple of bags to carry the meat in, eager to bring it back home to grill.
Back at the house, Max, Frank, and Junior cracked open semi-warm beers from the fridge in the garage as they stood around the grill out back by the pool. “Tomorrow, we’re going to have to go looking for solar panels,” Max said. “The generators are going to help, but they’re going to burn through gas pretty fast, and I honestly don’t know how much noise they’re going to make. We’re probably going to have to use them minimally. The solar panels should help out quite a bit.”
“That’s going to mean hitting another big box store,” Frank said. “Are we bringing everyone or leaving the kids home again?”
“Michelle and Anna are going to want them at home,” Junior replied. “They’re going to give you a hell of a hard time if you want to bring them.”
Max ran his fingers through his beard as he thought about it. They could really use Damon and Joey for extra muscle. Lucia and Camille could stay at the house to keep an eye on things. Then he thought of Anna and Michelle. He knew they would both be against it, but he figured it couldn’t hurt to discuss it. The kids knew how to defend themselves, and they wanted to help out. If they left them at home, the boys would probably go out on their own anyway to scavenge more neighbor homes. They couldn’t stand be
ing stuck in the house while everyone else was out doing important things. “I’ll run it by the momma bears. Hopefully, they’ll go along with at least bringing the boys and leaving the girls at home.”
“Good luck with that, mano,” Junior said with a laugh. “Anna and Michelle are pretty scary when it comes to the kids.” The guys shared a good laugh and enjoyed their beers while standing around the grill. It almost felt like an ordinary evening grilling out back by the pool.
Inside, Anna, Michelle, Emily, and Maggie were relaxing on the couches in the living room. They were all tired from spending the entire day on supply runs. Anna had enough candles spread around that they could see well enough. The house was stuffy, and the candles weren’t helping, but it wasn’t too bad. Daytime was going to be much worse.
“I don’t know how we’re going to handle it in here all summer,” Anna said. “It’s going to be hot as hell and everyone is going to be miserable.”
“We’ll figure it out. Hey, maybe we could use the generator to keep the pool up and running,” Michelle said with a laugh. “Jump in to cool off anytime.”
“That would be amazing,” Emily laughed as she wiped the sweat from her forehead. “I think the guys might have other ideas.”
“I’m just picturing us all lounging around the pool in the middle of the damn zombie apocalypse,” Maggie laughed. “Laying on our floats and sunbathing.” She laughed harder, and the others joined in.
“Ah, one can dream,” Anna said as the laughter died down. “No more bikinis for us.” She would miss all of the family time they had spent in the pool over the years with the kids and the cookouts with Jesse and Michelle. She felt a pain in her heart thinking of Jesse and glanced at Michelle. She worried about how her best friend was holding up because she couldn’t imagine what it would have been like if Max hadn’t survived. It seemed like Michelle was doing her best to keep busy, but Anna knew she was probably shedding many tears whenever she was alone. It was nice to see her laughing about the pool.
SUBURBAN JUNGLE: A Post Apocalyptic Zombie Survival Thriller (Chronicles of the Undead: Book 2) Page 25