"Ah!" Sarah screamed, but she quickly cut it off. It was too late—the zombie by the door heard her, but she had bigger problems. She hadn't seen the zombie on the ground just on the other side of the car. It grabbed her leg and sent her falling over. Gravel bit into one of her hands as she tried to catch herself.
Sarah kicked her leg loose and pushed herself along the ground, kicking up dust and gravel as she went, only to attract more zombies from the backside of the house. She felt her back hit the garage door with a heavy thump. The axe sat a good ten to fifteen feet away now.
"Shit."
She moved to the left, away from the few zombies coming from the backyard. The one on the ground was partly on the axe handle, and she could see blood covering the handle. She got to her feet and went to the side of the garage, the zombies still following her. Sarah circled around to the back fence. She pulled herself up and over it and dropped down into the backyard. Sarah moved to the door of the garage. She kicked it hard, and it flung open. Maybe a bit overkill, she thought as she walked in. It was dark but for shafts of light coming in from the small windows that dotted the upper wall. She saw a work bench and moved toward it. It was covered in dust and boxes. Clearly nobody ever used it. She started to rummage her way through the boxes as fast as she could. Sarah found magazines, old tools, and Christmas lights, and she tossed them to the ground as she searched.
Sarah could hear the zombies smacking the fence over and over. The noise was starting to grow louder.
"Come on, where are they? Everyone has some," she said aloud. Then she saw them—a pair of gloves sitting next to a chainsaw. She picked up the gloves, put them on, and looked down at the chainsaw.
"Nah," she said aloud and ran outside. The fence was rattling and making tons of noise along with the moans and other sounds coming from the zombies. She saw the zombie on the ground almost next to the garage now. She moved past it to where the axe was and picked it up.
Thump. The zombie on the ground stopped moving. Sarah pulled and wiggled the axe free from its skull. She moved slowly around the corner of the building and peaked out to see three zombies still beating the fence. There was another two slowly making their way up to the house from the town.
"Hey, zombies," Sarah said just loud enough for the zombies to hear. They all stopped and turned to look at her. She smiled and waved. "I'm over here." The zombies turned and started toward her. Two bumped into each other while another got a few steps ahead.
Sarah slowly started to back up. The zombie closed the distance faster than the other two. She swung the axe, and it hit hard into the side of the zombie’s skull. Both zombie and axe crashed into the side of the garage. The body slid along the wall and hit the ground. Sarah didn't have a lot time before the next two got to her. She placed a boot right on the face of the dead zombie and wrenched the axe loose just as the next two rounded the corner.
Sarah just barely avoided the outstretched arms of the zombies. She moved back toward the car with the zombies following after her. Sarah climbed up onto the hood of the car. She kicked one of the zombies in the face, sending it stumbling backward. Sarah spun the axe handle around to use the blunt side. She moved around on the hood, metal buckling and popping as she did so.
The axe hit the zombie in the elbow. A crack and a pop could be heard as the forearm dangled from the elbow. She hit its temple hard, and the zombie crumpled onto the hood of the car and stopped moving. She pushed it with one foot, and it slid off the car.
The other zombie had recovered and started toward her again. She jumped off the side of the car onto the gravel drive. The zombie was easy to finish off as it tried to walk over the dead one.
Sarah stood there, breathing heavily, knowing she still had at least two more zombies to go. She went to see where they were at. The zombies were almost up the hill. It gave her a little bit of time. She returned to the garage and found a box full of handheld garden tools. She had no idea what half of them did or what they were called, but she picked one out.
"This should work," she said as she picked up one with three sharp claws on the end of it. She put the tool in her backpack and went outside, finding one of the zombies almost had reached the top of the hill. The other one was right on its heels. The hill made it easy to strike the first zombie down with the axe. The axe dug in deep. She let go of the axe, pulled out the claw tool from her backpack, and made sure the dead zombie was between her and the other one. It stumbled over the zombie but didn't fall. That was all Sarah needed to dig the claws of her tool into the top of its skull.
She freed her axe and walked back to the garage. She cleaned the axe handle the best she could with the rags she found. She searched a little bit slower this time around and discovered a second set of gloves. Sarah ditched the ones she was wearing that were now covered in blood. Sarah found a hammer in the box of garden tools and tucked it into her belt loop. She opened up a few other boxes, and a smile crossed her face.
"I may not have a green thumb, but with this many seeds, I hope it doesn't matter." She took the box outside to read the labels better—tomatoes, corn, green beans, pumpkin, and so many more. She closed the box and grabbed the canvas bag. Jeremy was right about this town, she thought. It's a good town.
She opened the door slowly, listening for any zombies. She didn't hear or smell anything like a zombie. The house was dimly lit by the sun, but she could make out everything just fine. She found herself standing in the living room. Sarah moved toward a door on the far side of the room. She hoped it led to the kitchen, but it was the dining room, which was close enough. The kitchen door stood open. She moved quickly to find herself standing in a rather large kitchen. The sight of all the cupboards and drawers made her grin.
It was clear that the people that lived there wanted to keep a stocked house. The first cupboard she opened had tons of cans. She began to pull them out, reading the dates as she went.
"Damn it! Shit, yes! Damn it!" she said as she continued to pull cans. Despite the full cupboard, most cans were bad. After about the fifteenth can, she started to find more cans they could eat. The cans in the back probably had been there longer and most likely less processed than the newer cans.
When she finished, she had about eleven cans and one bag of rice, along with a bottle of hot sauce she found on the counter where she had been stacking her good cans. She opened the cupboard next to it to find dried foods.
"Oh, thank God you're okay." Jeremy’s voice came from behind Sarah.
"Fuck!" Sarah said aloud and dropped a box of pancake mix that scattered across the floor. "What are you doing here?" she added, looking at him as she dusted off the mix from her jeans.
"I heard someone scream a little bit ago. I didn't know if you were in trouble," he said, putting the revolver into his belt.
"Oh, yeah, sorry. I didn't see a zombie on the ground, and I fell over," Sarah said sheepishly.
"You didn't see a handful of zombies?" he asked in a voice that made Sarah confused.
"Huh?" she said before it clicked in her brain. "Oh, yeah after I screamed a few more zombies came over. There was only one at the time."
"I see," he said.
"Look what I found," Sarah said with a smile, holding up a rather bulging bag. "All good food to eat," she said, setting it down with a thump onto the table. "Where are the kids?" she added, noticing they were not with him.
"I told them to stay in the car back at the campsite."
"Oh, well, we can come back to this house. We have enough food for now," Sarah said as she picked up the bag of cans. She followed behind Jeremy as she went out and down to the car.
"Do you mind carrying that box?" she asked as she stopped by it.
"What's in it?" he asked.
"Seeds, all kinds," she said with a grin.
"I don't think we really need seeds," Jeremy said, looking at her.
"Why? We can find a nice place and set up a permanent camp."
"We are going to try and find a refugee camp somewh
ere. We will be traveling a lot. It's a dumb idea to carry around seeds we won't use."
"Well, they may need seeds," she said in defiance. Jeremy didn't say anything. "Fine, you carry the bag of food then," she said, pushing it at him. He took the bag. Sarah took the box under one arm and held the axe in the other.
"Let's go," she said, a note of anger in her voice.
The two walked back to camp almost the whole way without talking. Finally, Sarah spoke up about the seeds again.
"I don't think it's a dumb idea to bring the seeds with us," Sarah said. "I mean, how else will a refugee camp feed people? We can't find canned food forever. Sooner or later, we will have to grow things."
"Fine, it's not a dumb idea. It's just added weight," Jeremy said.
"Added weight? We don't have anything on the cart as it is now," she said rather loudly. "And they are seeds. They don't weigh anything. Why are you being so stubborn about this?"
"We already found a good amount of canned goods, and that was just from one house you went in. We are most likely going to find a lot more and will not have the space. Plus, we are toting around your damn cat and his food," Jeremy shouted back.
"What?" Sarah said, taken aback by Jeremy's anger. "The kids love the cat. I thought you liked him. Plus, I tried to leave him behind, but he wouldn't stay. You're being a real asshole," Sarah said, walking past him.
Jeremy stood there a moment, looking after Sarah as she pushed her way through some small bushes.
"Sarah," Jeremy said, calling after her. "I'm sorry. I'm just hungry. I haven't had much sleep lately. I don't mean to be an asshole," he said as he came through the bushes into the camp. He started to say more when Sarah stopped him.
"Where are the kids?" she said, looking at him. Jeremy rushed over to the car and looked inside. It was empty, and one of the doors stood open.
"Matt! Zoe!" Jeremy shouted. He called again, this time much louder than before. Part of Sarah wanted to tell him to be quiet or the zombies would hear him, but they were his kids after all. He started to search the small campsite and the area around it.
"Where are they?"
"We will find them. They will be okay," Sarah said despite the knot growing in her stomach. "I will go check the road."
"Okay," Jeremy said, not paying attention as she moved toward the forest. Sarah made it to the road. She looked up and down but didn't see any kids. That's when she spotted Matt running through a grassy field.
"Jeremy! Over here!" she shouted as she sprinted toward Matt.
She made it to Matt, and both were breathing heavily. "Where’s Zoe?" she asked between breaths. Matt didn't say anything but pointed. She looked to where his finger was pointing. A school sat at the bottom of the hill. She could see a small kids’ playground down there but no Zoe.
"She's at the school?"
"Yes. We were playing on toys when some weird monster came out of the field. Zoe screamed and ran inside the building. The monster didn't see me and went in after her."
"Go back to camp and tell your dad," Sarah said just before turning and setting off at a dead run toward the school. “Please be okay. Please be okay," she said over and over to herself as she ran. She ran through the opening gate and across the playground toward the double doors that stood open.
She stopped just outside and peered in. The hallway was pitch black. Stepping just inside, she waited for her eyes to adjust a little.
"Zoe?" she said in a whisper. "Zoe!" Only silence returned to Sarah. Damn it, Zoe, she thought as she started to move along one side of the hall. She could now make out doors and lockers on the wall. She moved along slowly, trying to limit the amount of noise she made, the whole while still calling out for Zoe. She reached the first door and tried the handle. Locked.
She peered into the window. She could see desks lined up in a row and kids’ drawings on the walls. She moved across the hall to the next door and tried it. Again, it was locked. She continued to move up the hall and tried two more doors before coming to another hallway. She looked down it and saw more closed doors. Sarah wondered if Zoe would have entered one of the rooms or continued on.
"Damn it, give me some idea where you went, Zoe."
Sarah decided to continue on down the hallway she had already been searching. It wasn't long before she had tried another two doors and found herself at a T-section in the hallway. To her left, a short hallway lead to a large, glass front door, with one of the doors slightly open. Sarah looked down the dark hall in front of her, saw a set of double doors, and moved over to them. She could make out a chain across them and pulled on the door. It barely opened an inch or two. Sarah did her best to look inside, but it was pitch black.
"Damn it, Zoe. Where did you go?" she said softly and moved down the hallway toward the front door. Maybe she ran back outside, Sarah thought as she made it to the doors. She looked outside and immediately pushed herself up against the wall to get out of sight. Dozens of zombies milled about just outside.
Sarah held her breath, listening to see if any zombies had seen or heard her, but none made their way up to the door. She slowly reached out and pulled the door closed, and it shut with a soft click. She then grabbed a wooden chair that sat outside a door that read principal. She did her best to slide the legs of the chair through the door handles without banging the chair on the window. Sarah let out a sigh. She backed slowly away, and that was when she heard the tiny voice.
"Sarah." Sarah stopped in her tracks and whipped around, not seeing Zoe.
"Where are you, Zoe?" she replied softly.
"Over here," Zoe replied. Still, Sarah didn't see her. She started back up the hallway. She was almost to the end of the hallway when she saw a small arm sticking out between the double doors.
"Zoe!" Sarah said in a loud whisper as she grabbed her hand and dropped to her knees by the doors."Are you okay?"
"Yeah."
"How did you get in there?" Sarah asked.
"I don't know. A monster was chasing me."
"Damn it," Sarah said softly, but Zoe heard her.
"I'm sorry. I was scared," Zoe said, and it was clear that she was starting to cry.
"It's okay, Zoe. We all get scared. Please don't cry." But it was too late. Sarah could hear the soft sobs as she held Zoe’s hand. She patted it softly and tried her best to comfort her. Where are you, Jeremy? Sarah thought to herself as she looked around.
"Zoe, I need to find a way in, okay? I need you to stay by this door, all right?" Sarah asked as she stood up.
"No! Don't leave me."
"It will be okay. I just need to find a way in."
"I'm scared."
"It will be all right. I won't be gone for long," Sarah said, starting to let go of Zoe's hand.
"No, don't go. There are weird noises here, and it smells bad," Zoe said. "Like the monster did."
Sarah froze. No, please no, Sarah thought to herself. Please don't be zombies in there. Why would there be zombies in there? Sarah got her answer almost immediately. There, next to the door, a sign read emergency shelter. Sarah’s stomach instantly felt sick, and she slowly squatted down by the door.
"Zoe," she said in barely a whisper. "I need you to be as quiet as you can. Whatever you do, don't make a sound. Squeeze my hand if you can do that for me." Zoe squeezed Sarah’s hand in reply. Sarah wished she had an axe, a hammer, or anything to try and open the door quickly.
"You're going to be a big girl for me, right?" Zoe squeezed Sarah’s hand again. Sarah did her best to fight back tears.
"I'm going to have to try and find a way in, okay? It will only be for a few minutes. Just stay very quiet." Zoe squeezed much harder this time. Sarah thought she wasn't going to let go, but then she did.
Sarah got up quickly and moved back down toward the hallway she had past. When she thought she was far enough away, she started to run. She slid around the corner and continued to sprint up the hallway. As she passed each door, she pulled on the door handle. Most were locked, but there were a f
ew that were not. She quickly looked in to find empty classrooms. She soon found herself at a set of double doors that went back outside.
The distant sound of Zoe’s scream seemed to bounce around the empty hallways forever. Sarah turned and took off at a dead run. The hallway seemed longer on the run back.
"ZOE!" Sarah was screaming as she ran. She didn't care anymore. She rounded the corner and slid into the wall. She pushed herself off and continued to run. Sarah could see Zoe's arm waving.
"Sarah! Help me!" Zoe cried. "The monsters are coming toward me."
"I'm here, Zoe," Sarah said as she slid to a stop in front of the door. "Move your arm in for me. I'm going to try and break the door open." Zoe listened and moved her arm.
"Open, damn you!" she shouted as she pulled and tugged at the door. She stopped, and Zoe's hand came back out. Sarah took it.
"I'm scared, Sarah," Zoe said.
"It's going to be okay, Zoe. Can you get away from them?" Sarah asked.
"There are so many monsters," Zoe said. Her voice filled with utter fear. Tears streamed down Sarah’s face.
"I need you to try and get away from them, Zoe," Sarah said. Zoe had stopped squeezing Sarah’s hand. She was too scared to do anything but sit there in the dark. Sarah held her hand and squeezed it tight.
"You need to try for me," Sarah said, still squeezing her hand. Finally, after a moment, Zoe squeezed her hand back.
"Please, Zoe."
The high-pitched scream Zoe let out filled Sarah’s ears with ringing. Her hand went limp and then jerked a little inward. Sarah dropped Zoe’s hand and scrambled backward a few feet. Her eyes fixated on the tiny hand sticking out from between the doors.
"Sarah!" Jeremy’s voice came from the end of the hallway. Sarah never took her eyes off of Zoe's hand. "Where is she?" Jeremy asked as he ran up. Then he stopped and looked where Sarah was staring. The small hand jerked and then vanished between the doors.
"No!" Jeremy screamed and started pulling and kicking the door. The chain rattled and crashed against the door but never gave way. "Zoe!" Jeremy cried out.
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