by Thomas Baker
He didn't have that extra stress, his parents had both died years ago, and he was an only child. He had lots of acquaintances, but was mostly a loner. He wasn't as freaked out by the violence either. He had lots of experience in fighting, being a bouncer, along with working in security. He had firearm training, he was into survival shows. He had lots of confidence in his abilities to survive this.
Her friend Ashley, man was she the total opposite. He felt like he knew her whole life story by now. Plus, she was almost always very upbeat. He looked over at her in the passenger seat. Today she seemed wired, like she drank three Red Bulls this morning. She was practically vibrating in her seat. She had a hundred things to say and she commented on every dead body they passed, both the truly dead ones and the ones still walking around.
JT again looked down at the bright yellow light, warning them they were about to run out of gas. He followed the signs for a gas station realizing that it was a long shot that they would even have fuel. He was willing to give it a try though, he was tired of trying to siphon gas from other cars. A male zombie wearing a bright red sweat suit stepped out into the road in front of him. JT couldn't help but smile as he plowed over the walking corpse. The jeep gave a satisfying bump.
"Ew gross," Ashley said from beside him."Was that really necessary?"
He watched in the rear view mirror as the zombie turtle rolled, limbs flailing . JT was so intent on watching the zombie, he almost smashed into an abandoned garbage truck.
"Look out!" Ashley screamed.
He slammed on his brakes, missing the truck by inches. JT sat there for a few moments, his heart whamming in his chest. As he began to calm down and his hands stopped shaking, he noticed a few zombies down the road in front of him.
Quite a few of them he thought as he watched. They seemed to be focused on something else and didn't even turn in his direction, even with the sounds of the screeching stop.
"Way to go. Do I need to take over driving for you?" Ashley said sarcastically.
JT just ignored her.
"I saw a sign for a travel stop a few miles back. I don't remember how far away it said it was but we have to be getting close," Hannah offered, sitting up and looking over his shoulder.
"I saw that too. I have been following them for awhile," JT said.
"Well let's hope we make it," Ashley said.
"And let's hope we can find gas there. You ladies ever siphoned gas before? I think it should be one of you this time." JT laughed at himself.
Both the girls made faces at the sheer thought of it.
Feeling in control of himself again, JT continued on down the highway, a little slower this time. He went around the zombie pack this time. He tried not to show it, but it made him very nervous to think they could run out of gas out here in the middle of BFE. He felt a small sense of relief as they pulled away and the zombies disappeared in the rear view mirror.
"There!" Ashley squealed a few minutes later. "Burton's Travel Stop three miles." She seemed proud of herself for seeing the sign and reading it aloud. JT glanced back at Hannah as she rolled her eyes and gave him a smile. JT smiled back as he shook his head.
"Burton's Travel Stop it is," JT said.
The next three miles were agonizing as JT flicked his eyes from the road to the fuel gauge and back again. Buildings came into sight. Not a moment too soon.
"Wait here," JT told his passengers.
JT coasted into Burton's Travel Stop. It looked like one of those dying breeds of gas stations, half truck stop half diner. JT had pulled up to pump number two. The gas gauge needle sat at E. The jeep was pretty much running on fumes. Turning the jeep off, JT felt a sense of relief that they had made it. Now to find a way to get some gas into the jeep.
"I'll go in first. If or when it's safe I will give you ladies the all clear." JT gave the girls a knife and a bat before he hopped out of the Jeep. "Honk twice if there's trouble." He tucked his 9mm into his waist and disappeared through the door, another ball bat in hand.
Hannah had crawled into the front driver seat to be next to Ashley. Both women's eyes were wide as JT turned and walked towards the doorway.
JT stood just inside the entrance, letting his eyes adjust to the dim light filtering in. He felt like he was a character in a Resident Evil game as he scanned the store. To his left was the diner, its seats a dull red upholstery that was cracked and worn. Straight ahead was the store, with two aisles leading back to a row of coolers. Everything still looked relatively fine. Funny though, he could see a few bullet holes in the outside glass. Inside the store, he couldn't see much that was trashed or even damaged.
He strained his ears, trying to hear the sounds of anyone, or anything inside. Could it really be this easy? he thought to himself. It looked as if they could easily rummage through the store and carry off enough food and drinks that would last them days.
JT held his breath without even realizing it as he walked down the center aisle, he looked through the cooler windows and even checked both bathrooms. He found nothing out of the ordinary. Still he felt the hair on his neck standing up, as if he was expecting an undead army to come crashing through the walls at any moment.
JT made his way back and crossed over into the diner area. On the way he picked up a flashlight and filled it with batteries. It clicked on, giving him more light.
The diner was a big open space. He swept his flashlight over the tables, some of which still had dirty plates on them. He didn't think there were many places someone could be hiding over here. Looking behind him, JT saw they had restrooms on this side too, as well as a door marked 'Employees Only'. He guessed that led to the kitchen and the stockrooms.
JT eased open the door to the men's room.He shined his flashlight into the dark room and couldn't stifle a laugh as the wall lit up with drawings of zombies with penises for heads and a barbaric character yielding a giant sword along with the caption "Captain Gravy vs. The Zombie Dickheads!!"
He found himself giggling again as he cleared the women's restroom next. This time he was treated to a unicorn with a penis for a horn impaling more dick headed zombies. JT couldn't believe it when he noticed #zombie written on the mirror.
For a small moment JT forgot about this whole mess and instinctively reached into his pocket to grab his phone. He wanted to snap a pic to send to his friends or show Hannah. That feeling quickly faded as he remembered those services no longer existed. That world was gone for now. He got back to the job at hand.
He turned around and noticed what looked like hundreds of bloody footprints and stains looking like bodies had been dragged along the floor. They lead through the 'Employees Only' door. JT slowly followed them until coming into sight of the freezer.
Painted on the door in orange were the words "SAFE HAVEN AWAITS"
"What the fuck?" His words echoed in the empty kitchen.
The freezer door had a screwdriver through the padlock hole that would prevent it from being opened. JT approached the door and nervously leaned against it listening for any movement on the other side.
He couldn't hear anything. He slowly pulled the screwdriver out of the handle, took a deep breath and released the handle to open the door.
"Blah!" JT exclaimed as the stench overtook him. He slammed against the door and dropped to his knees heaving and feeling like he was going to puke. There was a pile of dead bodies inside. A big pile. It was the worst thing he had ever seen and the worst smell he had ever encountered. With one arm draped over his nose and mouth, he grabbed the screwdriver with his other hand and jammed it back in place.
His stomach was still churning from the smell as he leaned on the prep counter in the kitchen, trying to control his breathing and regain his composure. Frantic honking made him forget all about the horrible smell.
JT sprinted for the front door, drawing his gun while in full stride. He hit the door open and was shocked to see two men around the Jeep. Ashley still sat inside, clearly in terror. Hannah was standing by the front of the Jeep, t
he bat cocked back over her shoulder. The man wearing fatigues had his rifle trained on Hannah. The other had a meat cleaver in his hand but was holding it loosely at his side. He was looking between the man and Hannah anxiously.
"Hey! Back the fuck off!" JT shouted, raising his pistol up. He swept it back and forth between the two men. From the corner of his eye he saw an older man huffing and puffing across the parking lot.
"Now, now, now let's not get all Hatfield and McCoy here boys. Dusty, drop your gun and let's talk about this," the older man said in a ragged breath.
JT stole a glance at the girls. Ashley looked like she was going to cry at any moment. Hannah held the bat, she looked nervous but still poised to unwind at any second.
"Come on now people. We really going to do this?" the older man continued. "My name is Gus, the hyper sensitive guy with a gun in these lady's faces is Dusty. Next to him is Alan."
"Hannah, what's going on?" JT said, never taking his sights from the two men.
Dusty turned from Hannah to JT. "Drop the weapon punk!" He ordered.
"Not a fucking chance!" JT took another step closer to Dusty.
"These guys looked like they were rushing the store. I jumped out to stop them. I didn't want them to attack you from behind," Hannah explained.
"Hey, how about you guys put the guns down and lets talk before someone gets killed," Ashley squeaked out the window. "We have enough to worry about without you getting into a shooting match."
JT did a quick evaluation. Dusty looked ready to shoot them all and not lose any sleep over it. Alan looked more hesitant as he just stood there limply holding a cleaver. Gus was weaponless. He seemed trustworthy, but it wasn't just his life in his hands now. If he made one wrong decision, all three of them could be killed.
"I have your back JT," Hannah said, tightening her grip. "Why don't all you men put your guns down."
"You need a woman to stand up for you?" Dusty sneered.
"On second thought JT, shoot this condescending prick. Then we can go." Hannah cranked back the bat a little more.
"Damn it Dusty! Stand down. They seem like normal folks, just like us." Gus sounded worried.
"Dusty?" JT laughed. "Lame name. You look like more of a Dick to me."
"Stop, just stop!!" Ashley screamed from the jeep. Both men turned to look. Gus and Hannah exchanged a glance, then both stepped in between JT and Dusty. Alan took a couple of steps back.
"Let's all play nice now children," Gus said, pushing Dusty's rifle out of his face.
"Old timer," Dusty scowled, "if you ever do something like that again, I will leave you on the side of the road to fend for yourself."
"Yes sir, Sarge sir and all of that," Gus sarcastically saluted. JT was unable to help a small chuckle from escaping him.
"We just stopped in to use the throne and hopefully find some snacks before continuing our road trip to hell," Gus continued. "Lord knows we didn't expect to find other survivors. Now that things are a tad bit calmer, what's y'alls names?"
JT was hesitant to answer. He was still jazzed, his temper pounded in his head. Gus seemed like a nice enough old man, funny too. Dusty, he still wanted to knock his teeth down his throat.
"Gus, I'm Hannah," She dropped the bat to her side and shook his hand. "Next to me is JT and Ashley is the one in the jeep."
Gus turned and waved over to the blue SUV they had arrived in. Out of it popped another person.
Turning back Gus said. "That over there is Tyrone. We are just one big happy traveling family, as you can tell."
Again JT grinned against his will. Maybe these guys weren't so bad after all. There was plenty to share in the store. They could all grab what they needed and go their separate ways.
"How is it in there?" Dusty asked as he slung his rifle over his shoulder. "Did you do a full recon?"
"It's clear, " JT replied. He wasn't going to take any shit from this guy, questioning his abilities. "Also, surprisingly, the store isn't in bad shape. There is enough stuff in there that we don't need to fight over it. I just wouldn't go in the freezer, if I were you."
Harold was driving back from another excursion into town. He had grabbed a few things that were rattling in the back of his pickup. His real objective though was scouting things out, trying to plan which need had the highest priority. He was clearing out the zombies he found during each trip. That made things easier for the next time.
The empty stores were like abandoned gold and silver mines, waiting to be reclaimed, which he was happy to do. If he could just figure out a more efficient way to get everything back to his cabin.
He was so deep in thought, he almost didn't see the woman ahead of him walking alongside the highway. She was walking towards him. He slowed down as he approached and could see she looked to be about his age, red hair, in pretty good shape. She carried a knapsack slung over her shoulder and had a big, brown sun bonnet on her head. It had a purple flower jutting out of a band that went around it right above the brim.
She looked up, locked eyes with him and began waving both her arms in the air. Harold came to a stop right beside her.
"An honest to goodness truck on the road. It's been awhile since I have seen one of those," she said, leaning on the open driver side window. "Hi, I'm Barb."
"Barb." Harold echoed.
"Yep. Say, you wouldn't mind giving me a ride would you? My feet are killing me and I have no idea how much more walking I have to do."
She headed around to the passenger door and jumped in before Harold even gave a reply. His eyes widened in astonishment.
"Where are you going exactly?" he said with a start.
The woman, Barb, had really thrown him off. This was about the last thing he expected today.
"I'm not so sure where I'm going. I started seeing these signs for someplace called Safe Haven, with arrows pointing the way. That's got to be some kind of survivor community. That's what I think anyway. I've just had a bear of a time finding it. I have been on my own for so long, walking in circles, I felt like I was about to go crazy. It's nice to find you, ya know? Say, you know anything about Safe Haven? Please tell me you know the way."
Harold contemplated before answering. He had started spray painting the Safe Haven signs not long ago. It was a compulsion he didn't really understand but was impossible to ignore. The impulse came to him one day. A message from God, his Dad would have said. He tried to reject it. Then the pounding headaches started and he began to have strange dreams about his mother. It all went away right after spraying the first sign. Now here was this woman, Barb. She was the first fruits of his labors. She had nearly been drawn right to his doorstep by the signs. The woman awoke something in him, and even though he didn't know what his plan was beyond making the signs, the start of one coalesced in his mind.
"Yes, I know where it is," He finally answered. "I have a cabin nearby, right at the top of that ridge ahead. We'll have to go there for the night. Tomorrow we can start out for Safe Haven."
Barb became visibly deflated. "It's that far away, we can't get there today? What a bummer."
Harold put the truck back in drive. From the highway he turned onto the dirt path that led up the ridge to his cabin. Barb talked non stop all the way there. It was overwhelming for Harold. He felt like his brain might blow a fuse. He didn't know if he even heard half of what she was going on about.
When he was almost there, he jogged his truck off the road for a little bit, tearing up tire marks in the grass.
"What, you like to go off roading?" Barb asked jokingly, bounding around in her seat.
"I am working on tightening security around my property. I've had a few of the zombies wander close to my cabin. I ran into them while going about my daily chores. I don't like surprises."
"So I have set some trip wires, dug some spike pits. One of the pits is behind us, where I went of the road. Already had to refill it once. Yesterday, as I was leaving, I found a huge zombie had fallen in. One of the wooden spikes had rammed through his fa
t belly and came out through his mouth. Still, he wriggled around like a worm on a hook. I shot him in the head, cleared him out and reset the trap."
Barb just looked at him with an open mouth as he told this story. She shivered at the end. Harold thought she must have been very impressed with his ingenuity. She was a lot less talkative the rest of the way. When they arrived, he led her inside.
"I have a spare room in the back. You can stay there for the night. In the morning, I will take you to Safe Haven."
Harold pulled right up to the front of his cabin. He stopped and killed the engine.
"Alright," said Barb, stepping out of the truck and having a look around. "Say you have a nice set up here. Looks like it could be in one of those great outdoors magazines. If you have already done this much all by yourself, I bet Safe Haven will be great. Like living before all of this happened. What is it, a military base? A government run camp?"
Harold walked off without answering her. He went into his room. He laid back on his bed and rubbed his temples. Another voice inside of his head, like a part of him but separate, started to talk. It filled his mind with comments on how nice Barb seemed, how chatty she was, just like his mother. Another part started to question him. What he was doing, bringing her back here? Didn't he just finally rid himself of everyone that could interfere with his life not that long ago? What about Safe Haven? There was no such place. How was he going to solve that problem? What was he going to do with her?
He laid there, taking deep breaths in and out, listening to the voices compete back and forth. Then he had an idea. He went into his closet and pulled out a book. It was bound in handsome black leather, with a gold plate on the front. Stamped on the gold plate were the words Safe Haven. He caressed the cover lovingly. It was given to him by his mother, shortly before she died. She meant it to be a place where he could put all of his thoughts, where no one else would see them.
He found a pen, sat back in his bed and began writing in it. It was the first time he had used the book since losing his mother. He hunched over it, scribbling furiously. The voices in his head ceased and a kind of clarity came over him. He wrote about Barb, and decided what he would do with her. His encounter with her had awoken something in him. He was beginning to feel maybe he didn't want to be alone here in the cabin after all. He wrote until his hand cramped and his eyes began to slip shut. He lovingly put the book back deep into his closet, and slept the sleep of the content.