Dead EndEscape

by David Menard

  Anthony caught up to quickly and slowed down, keeping pace with them. They were now walking with their weapons ready for anymore assailants. Anthony caught his breath then spoke. “They set up a fucking trap!” Anthony whispered intensely, his breathing labored. Kelly put a hand on his shoulder to try and relax him. Nothing could soothe him after seeing another person torn apart.

  “Anthony, there is nothing we can do now except keep going,” she said calmly. She shifted her gaze to Burt. “Burt how did they do that? They trapped us, they set up a small pack to get us caught in between them. Another one hid under the truck I was standing on and attacked,” she added realizing her observation earlier was correct.

  “They are evolving; they seem to have one basic instinct, to eat. To do this they hunt, that’s how they set up the trap, it was what they needed to get food. That’s how that bastard in the office got me,” he replied raising his stub. Burt was tough but even he hated losing close ones. Marcy was a friend of his for many years, they played cards every Saturday night since 2012.

  “They were tough before and now they have some functioning brains? How can we escape them?” Anthony asked expressing these thoughts out loud to his friends. They were walking at a quick pace, behind them the undead were nowhere in sight.

  “We have guns, and they are slow. We can escape them, we just have to be quick and accurate,” Kelly said with confidence. She was just trying to reassure herself after losing Marcy. The grand plan was to escape the madness and become a family, living together for a long and healthy life. Chances of survival were slim, she knew that even more, after what just happened.

  Burt spit on the ground mid strife. He then stopped at a mile marker on the road and etched “Marcy”in memorandum. “Just run and shoot and we can make it,” he said glancing over to his left. There was a sign in front of the large driveway. It depicted numerous names of retailers on it, the survivors had reached their destination.

  Chapter 14: The Rescue

  “Wake up guys, it’s time for target practice,” Cindy announced to the group. John was already on the roof preparing the rifles. Gabe and Melody were still sleeping. Cindy woke them up by shaking their tent vigorously. They awoke reluctantly, unzipped the tent and looked at Cindy with tired eyes. “Long night? Meet us on the roof,” she added humorously as she walked away.

  “She is nuts,” Melody remarked to Gabe. She looked over to him and laughed. Gabe proceeded to get up and Melody followed suit. “Hopefully her plan works,” she said as they walked stiffly towards the staircase.

  “Me too, if we get out of here I am bringing you on a date, a nice movie with a large juicy steak for dinner,” Gabe replied smiling at Melody. He could see Melody blushing and that made him blush too. “I had a great time last night,” he added as he slapped her butt.

  “Me too, slugger,” she replied with a corny wink as she mimicked hitting a baseball. Things like that is why Gabe was fascinated with her, he was going to marry that girl.

  Once they were all on the roof John gave each one of them a rifle. He then positioned Cindy’s gun on one side and Melody’s on the other side. “Gabe you teach Cindy and I will teach Mel, that way no one gets distracted,” John said smiling, making both Melody and Gabe blush more than they were before.

  After an hour of practice they decided to call it a day, it was time to leave the store. They prepared as much as they could. John was satisfied with how both girls handled the guns and knew the odds were better with two more proficient guns. The group headed downstairs when they heard gunshots. The four of them ran to the edge of the roof and saw three people running and shooting at the massive horde in the parking lot.

  “John, they are survivors, we must help them!” exclaimed Cindy. She took her gun in hand, aimed and started shooting; John and Melody did the same. “Gabe go down to the door and when I call you open it up for them,” Cindy instructed Gabe as she shot a zombie trying to attack a woman. Gabe proceeded down the stairs. After a few shots John bellowed to get the survivor’s attention.

  “Hey y'all! Up here! Go to the back my son will be waiting for you!” He yelled as he started shooting, clearing a path for the survivors. With six shooters in total, three on the ground and three with an aerial assault, a path was clearing for the three struggling on the ground.

  “Burt! On the roof, they are signaling us. We have to reach the back of the store!” Anthony screamed to his partner as he shot two monsters with a single shotgun blast. He could see from here that the front of the building was barricaded; the back was the only option. Kelly was making quick work of them with her shotgun, if it didn’t kill them, the force would send them flying back. The snipers on the roof were saving them, they would have been dead without them.

  The group had a clear path into the plaza, but again walked into a trap. The gunshots from their previous encounter alerted the dead. When the survivors proceeded into the driveway, the undead appeared from behind abandoned vehicles and forced them into the plaza. When the ascended the small incline of the driveway, they saw the army of the dead. Their first instinct was to go into the Quincy's, their main objective, but they were attacked immediately. After they had fired a few shots, they heard the strangers call for them on the rooftop of the sporting goods store. They ran to the store when they saw the roof people shooting the monsters attacking them.

  “Lets go! Lead the way Anthony,” Burt replied using his one good hand to shoot down as many undead he could. After fifteen shots he was out of ammo and had not time to reload. Had he had two hands, he could have performed the task with ease. He dropped the gun and pulled out the knife. Close combat was a risk but he would do anything to keep Anthony and Kelly alive. No one else in his group would die, not if he had anything to say about it.

  Two undead came from either side of Kelly but two of the snipers kept them away from her. She didn’t know who they were but she was grateful to them and would tell them that if they managed to reach the inside of the store. The three survivors traversed the parking lot swiftly, keeping distance between them and the undead. Anthony knocked over a small grouping ahead of him with a strong kick to the chest of a former Quincy’s employee. The former cart boy flailed back, knocking over five infected behind him, making a clearer path. They finally reached the side of the building and the majority of the flesh eaters were behind them. Burt made sure to protect the front at that point and Anthony reloaded one round into the shotgun and fired at the group closing in on them. His shot killed three of them and then the rest behind all stumbled over the bodies of the dead in front of them.

  They circled to the back and saw a door. They knocked but nothing. As panic set in they banged on the door harder. A wave of the dead closing in, their ammunition was all but gone. Anthony kicked the door. Nothing. Where the hell are these people. Fuck it, I will shoot it open. Anthony backed away and aimed his pistol, ready to fire at the door lock. A young man opened the door mere seconds before Anthony was about to fire and they quickly piled in, the young man locking it swiftly behind them. The dead pounded the door, trying to feast.

  Chapter 15: War Stories

  Cindy and John exhaled and fell on their behinds once survivors were inside. They looked to each other and started laughing. Something finally went right, they were able to save someone. After losing friends and family, the two of them needed this victory.

  Melody was shaking at her gun, her adrenaline was pumping and she couldn’t move. She was immobilized, unable to take her hands away from the rifle. The pressure was intense as she cleared a route for the survivors. Target practice was simple, but that experience was gut wrenching. Every shot had to be carefully considered, but she had to be swift. Cindy looked over and ceased laughing. She saw Melody frozen in place, sat up and approached her.

  “Come on Melody, let’s go meet our new guests,” Cindy said quietly, leading Melody to the hatch. Meanwhile John stayed on the roof to collect the weapons. He was a neat freak, a little obsessive compulsive as a matter of fac
t. He unloaded each weapon carefully and placed the ammunition in his shirt pocket. The weight made his shirt shift awkwardly. He grabbed each weapon and followed the girls.

  Anthony, Burt and Kelly were sitting around a camping display waiting on the rest of their saviors. The young man who let them in didn’t say anything. Kelly figured he was waiting for the rest of his group. She was spot on, introductions began as soon as two women came down from some stairs.

  “Hello there, are you all okay? Are any of you injured?” asked Cindy compassionately. It was nice to see some survivors and she wanted to make them comfortable. She grabbed some bottled waters from the cooler and handed it to them. Each of them took it appreciatively.

  Anthony was the one to speak for the group. Kelly was too nervous and Burt was trying to catch his breath. Old age and sprinting are not a good combination. Anthony stood up and shook the hand of the young woman in front of him. “My name is Anthony, this is Kelly and Burt. Thanks for saving us,” Anthony said to the woman standing in front of him. Not bad to look at.

  “Hello Anthony, Kelly, Burt. I am Cindy, this is Gabe and Melody and John is on his way down,” Cindy said shaking Anthony’s hand. “And it was no problem, we all have to look out for each other,” she added as she sat down. She surveyed their new guests, they seemed like good people. She could tell they were hardened from their experiences out there, something that her group desperately needed. She glanced at the old man’s hand. Now that is a story I need to hear. The bandage looks like it was recently applied.

  “Where is the bathroom in here?” Kelly asked Cindy feeling embarrassed. Cindy looked up and smiled. Cindy was the only one of the saviors to speak to them, Kelly assumed she was their leader.

  “They are right over there, but use the men’s room, the women’s room has a few bodies,” she said with sadness at the end. Gabe winced at the last part and Melody grabbed his arm affectionately. Cindy saw the inquisitive looks on the survivors. “We lost two people. My neighbor and close friend Sharon, she committed suicide and Marie, Gabe’s mother. She died when Sharon reanimated,” she explained. The survivors did not press the subject as Kelly set off for the restroom.

  Kelly stepped into the restroom and gazed into the mirror, her face was caked with blood and her hair was greasy. She stared for a moment longer, tears now cascading down her face. Emotions were setting in, she had experienced so much death. She took a couple of deep breaths and washed her face.

  When Kelly returned she saw a new face. He introduced himself as John Stenson and the two groups began to discuss what had happened. They sat in a circle and were eating the vending machine food that Burt, Anthony and Kelly brought. Jon was going to cook the last of the food after the discussion ended.

  “So I might as well tell you our story first, seeing as we are the hosts, haha,” John said jocularly. He explained the story of how he barricaded his doors, got on his roof and shot down any infected while trying to save any survivors. Cindy also shared how she managed to make it to the store. The new group was surprised that Cindy made it and were even more surprised by John’s quick thinking.

  “That’s one hell of a story there, I commemorate you all. Cindy you are one tough cookie to make it through that shitstorm,” Burt replied in his raspy voice. He trusted these people; they did save their lives after all. He was impressed with their story. “Now let me tell you our story, well what I know of it, I still don’t know yours Anthony,” Burt added realizing he never asked Anthony anything.

  He told of how he found a young girl in his house, how he took her in and taught her to fight the creatures. He even told them how Marcy rescued he and Kelly, and how she died. When he told this part tears welled up in his eyes. The first he shed in many years. Kelly comforted him by rubbing his back. They all looked to Anthony and waited for him to tell his story.

  The lengthy tale of everything Anthony Garrison went through caused to jaws drop across the room. At every juncture he faced a new obstacle, surviving each one. His harrowing tale from the lab had the group at the edge of their seats, literally. He never had a second of rest in this apocalypse, it was a miracle that he was still alive.

  “How did you manage to make it through that sewer?” Melody asked. Anthony’s story made her shake and feel more afraid than before. Gabe held her and awaited the response. Gabe admired the police officer, he was an impressive man.

  “I really don’t know, it was just adrenaline that got me through it, I just wanted to run as far way as possible,” he said holding his head down, only looking up once in a while. Cindy found him to be an incredible person. He went through all that and still stood before them. Cindy found him to be quite handsome, though she would not say it aloud.

  “I am going to make some lunch, then we discuss how to escape,” said John happily as he stood up, taking steps towards the stairs. Burt stood up and followed him. John turned in surprise, and smiled, happy to have company. The two men would have much to talk about, both being military.

  “Mind if I join you? I used to be pretty good a barbeques,” Burt said to John with a smile. He placed his mutilated arm behind his neck, rubbing it. “Just don’t expect me to flip burgers onto the plate,” he added humorously, holding his stub up.

  “Bwahaha! Not at all, I always love the company,” John replied as they both headed upstairs. The two oldest members in the group had left leaving the rest to get acquainted. Anthony approached men’s apparel to see if he could get some new clothes, Cindy followed him. She wanted to learn more about him.

  “Hey, Kelly?” Melody asked unsure if that was the girl’s name. She felt stupid for not remembering right away but she didn’t want to risk saying the wrong name. Names were much more important now more than ever.

  “Yeah?” Kelly asked curiously. She was a little nervous; afraid of any questions they might have. She felt a little awkward without her group around. She didn’t want to share much about her life before meeting Burt. She did not want to bring up Tommy. She had to move on, remembering him brought back the pain.

  “Do you want to play some basketball with Gabe and me? Or maybe some archery? We set up targets by the golf equipment,” Melody asked hoping Kelly would say yes. She wanted to make a friend and didn’t want to hear a no because that would make things awkward. Someone new to talk to was exciting, especially another girl in her age group.

  “That sounds like fun. I never shot a bow and arrow” she replied with a smile. Gabe and Melody stood up and she followed. She hadn’t had any sort of fun since the dead took over. She was actually excited.

  Chapter 16: An Unlikely Connection

  Anthony was looking at athletic performance shirts, he hadn’t worn a new shirt in days. He had been sweating profusely in the hot sun, and his stay in the sewer had only added to the filth. The once white shirt was now maroon in color. He was looking forward to the comfortable feeling of a brand new shirt. He was especially excited to free his nose from the undead stench that accompanied his old shirt. He grabbed a navy blue one of the rack and put it on. He turned and saw Cindy approaching him.

  “Hey Cindy, how are you?” Anthony asked, surprised she came over to see him. He found her to be an attractive woman and had no clue why she would come over to see him. He was nothing special, no Brad Pitt, then again he was not ugly either. He found her to be mysterious, he was intrigued to hear more about her.

  “I am good. I just came to see how you were doing and wanted to get to know you. There may only be so many of us left in the world, so I would like to get to know all of them,” she said with a smile. He sat down on the floor and she joined him and they started to engage in conversation.

  “Where to start,” Anthony paused for a moment. “Well as you know I am a police officer. I took criminal justice classes at Brimington College and also completed the police academy. I am an only child, my mom died a few years back,” he said to Cindy who was now sitting opposite from him. This was the first time he was actually relaxing since the start of everyth
ing. The store was a safe zone, he was able to let his guard down.

  “I am sorry to hear that, about your mom I mean. Did you always want to be a cop or was it just something you fell into? Did you have a wife or kids?” she asked anxious to learn everything about him. Cindy was fascinated by him, and his handsome features made him all the more intriguing. He was taller than her, one of the few men she knew who were, one of the reasons men were intimidated by her. Don’t look desperate.

  “For as long as I remember I wanted to be a cop. The excitement of protecting people makes it an amazing job. No wife or kids for me I am a single man. But enough about me, tell me about you,” Anthony responded smiling. Is she flirting with me?

  “Me? Well I am a cashier at Quincy's, I started working there five years ago after graduating college. I was an English major. I always wanted to be a reporter or journalist but the opportunities weren’t there. Or maybe I was afraid to take the plunge into field. I started writing a collection of short stories since my freshman year, but never finished the project,” she paused, realizing hew flaws. She never could admit her faults, it took the end of the world to evaluate her life. “So as of a few days ago I was working at Quincy's to make a living and to pay off debt. Not very impressive, I know. Maybe when we get out of this mess, I can get back to writing. And I know you are wondering, yes I am single as well,” she added with a huge smile at the end. Well that was fucking bold. Who are you?

  They were locked in conversation about their favorite movies, books and everything they could think of. They told a few corny jokes and laughed with each other. Cindy was overwhelmed with joy and companionship. She had spent so much of her life alone, now she was connecting with someone on a personal level.

  “Okay favorite color, ready? One, Two , Three” Anthony said to Cindy, a smile across his face. He had dated many girls in college, though dating was a loose term. Anthony enjoyed the company of numerous women during his collegiate career, but never felt a connection like this.