Reanimates, page 14
part #1 of Reanimates Series
“Lucky kid,” said Karen. “Not a mark on her.”
“We need to find out what we can from her,” I said.
Michelle pulled the child onto her lap and started to gently rub her back, an attempt to sooth her I imagined. If the kid was in shock though, there would be no talking to her.
“Sweety, my name is Michelle. What’s yours?”
We all waited to see if the kid would say anything and after a few minutes Michelle repeated herself. This time the little girl blinked a few times and tears leaked from her eyes, but she did not say anything except one word: “Mommy”.
That one word broke my heart and caused the two women and me to shed some tears. Michelle hugged her tightly against her body and made a soothing shushing sound. She started to slowly rock back and forth and before long the girl fell asleep.
Karen went through the four bags that Michelle had carried out of the store and handed out food and drinks to everyone. I was surprised and excited when She handed me a Mountain Dew. This would be my first in several days and I was looking forward to the caffeine rush I would get. We all ate in silence as Frank slowly and carefully navigated the road towards our destination.
As I chewed on the several day-old ham sandwich that was entirely too dry, I realized something that gave me hope. For the first time since all of this had begun, I executed a plan that did not cause one of us to lose their life. I came very close, but we all made it out alive and unharmed. For the first time I had hope.
Chapter 13
We had been driving for a while with nothing really happening in the world that lay outside our windows. A content quiet had settled over all of us. The only sound besides that of the engine was the quiet snoring of our newest addition. I was consumed with thoughts about how best to protect one so young from all of the dangers that faced us in this new reality. We were still adjusting to it ourselves and now we were tasked with protecting a child.
Everything seemed to be quiet, perhaps a little too quiet, yet we drove on without encountering anything except abandoned cars. The further north we went the fewer the cars that were left on the road. We even got to the point where we drove at a normal speed for a while. We were rapidly approaching the bridge that would lead us to Alburg when I saw a Mobil sign on my side of the road. I had Frank slow down and eventually stop in front of the store. It was called Harborside Harvest Market. The lot was empty and there were no reanimates to be seen.
“Looks Safe enough,” said Frank.
I agreed and had him pull in. While he did so I took the time to reload both my pistol and the shotgun. When that task was completed, I looked at my group and smiled reassuringly. “I’m going in alone, and I’ll have no arguments.”
I could see that none of them were happy with that statement, but there were no objections finding voice. I opened the door as quietly as I could so that I did not wake the kid and left it slightly open in case I needed to make a hasty return.
The store itself was not very large, in fact I would estimate that it was slightly smaller than your typical ranch style house. The white paint was peeling off the siding and it looked like it could use some TLC. I did not know if this was on purpose by the owner in an attempt to add some charm, or if it was a result of lack of funds. Either way, it did not matter anymore.
I approached the store with an abundance of caution. If I had learned anything up to this point, it was that I should not trust any situation. I peered into the store through the glass in the front door. I could not see anyone or anything moving around, though to be fair that did not mean anything. I waited there for several minutes to see if that changed. When I was satisfied that it would not, I opened the door and entered.
What stood before me was your typical convenience store that was this close to the lake. There were six rows of shelves that contained easy to carry and high in fat food items. The wall that was to my left was comprised of coolers that held soda and beer and half of the back wall was dedicated to dairy. In the middle of that wall was a door that led to what I assumed was the stockroom. To the left of that was another cooler that held live bait. The section of the store next to that cooler held fishing items, from poles and reels to lures and hooks. Since we were planning on taking up residence, at least for the foreseeable future, on the lake, it made sense to grab fishing supplies.
First things first though. I did not want any surprises, so I headed for the door in the middle of the back wall. I decided to unsling the shotgun and brandish that instead of the pistol. I was under the belief that it would be scarier for any would-be human attackers and it would have a larger area of contact against any undead attackers, doling out maximum damage. The door itself was not very remarkable, it was old and free of paint in several spots. The brass-colored knob and hinges were tarnished. I could tell by the hinges that this door opened out towards me which meant I would have to hold the gun with one hand when I opened it. This would leave me more vulnerable to a surprise attack, but I had no choice.
Although I was fairly certain that if there was someone awaiting me behind that door, they knew I was inside, I still tried my best to be silent when opening it. I gripped the knob in my left hand and turned it with exaggerated slowness until it would turn no more. I braced myself and yanked the door open and jumped back at the same time. My heart was racing, and a few beads of sweat had formed on my forehead, but nothing came out at me. I released the air in my lungs and advanced slowly into the area beyond the door.
To say that this was as stockroom would be accurate but misleading. It was more akin to a very large closet, measuring perhaps ten feet deep by six feet wide and ten feet tall. There were several rows of shelves attached to the walls and those shelves were laden with backstock, which I assumed would also be the freshest items in the store. There was a door in the wall to my right that led to the coolers. This would be the next area I would need to explore, although I was reticent about being that deep in the store without back-up.
The door leading into the cooler was glass so I could see that there was no immediate threat there. I opened the door and was hit in the face by the cold air and felt goosebumps form on my body. I walked in, paying little attention to the various cases of milk, beer and sodas that lined the wall to my left. None of the stacks were high enough to secret anyone or anything. When I reached the corner that that lead to the larger section of coolers, I spun past it with as much speed as my injured body could manage. This too was free of any attackers.
I was satisfied that we were alone at this store and made my way out of the coolers and the closet and back to the front door. When I reached it, I saw all three people in my group looking expectantly at the building. I opened the door but did not leave the store. I waved at the group and Michelle popped out of the door.
“Wanna give me a hand?” I called.
She answered with a nod and came jogging over. I held the door for her and let her take in what the store offered before directing her to gather what I wanted.
“Go and grab several fishing poles, some fishing line, hooks, lures, sinkers and bait,” I said. “I think being able to catch our own food will be great.”
She nodded in agreement and moved to do as I asked. I slung the shotgun over my shoulder and headed to the register where I grabbed all the available bags. From there I went to the closet and tried to find the most nutritious food items that I could to stuff them. I was happy to find several boxes containing jerky and dried fruit. It only took me five minutes to fill the bags, and I turned to leave. In an afterthought I turned back around and grabbed a case of toilet paper.
I shuffled my way to the front door where I found Michelle waiting for me. She held the door, and we went to the Humvee to deposit out pilfered goods before returning to the store to grab cases of beverages from the cooler. We made certain to grab only those items that did not require refrigeration and were back at the Humvee in three minutes. Once we had loaded everything in, we returned to the cockpit and Frank drove away.
That raid went smoother than I could have hoped for, and for some reason that fact made me very uncomfortable. I tuned in my seat to look at Michelle.
“Do me a favor,” I said. “Keep an eye out behind us for the next several minutes. Let’s make sure we are not being followed this time.”
The little girl had woken up and was still cradled in Karen’s arms. She was looking around at of us with wide eyes. I did not want to scare her, so I turned in my seat to face forward and said, “Karen, our guest is awake.”
We drove for several miles with Karen softly coaxing information from the girl. She was just shy of her sixth birthday and her name was Jessica, though everyone in her family called her Jess. A group of the angry people had chased her family into the store when their car had run out of gas. She did not have much more information than that, except for the fact that her family lived on thirty-one Landon Road in South Hero in a white, two-story house. Jess also let us know that she wanted nothing more than to be with her mommy and cuddled up in bed. This broke our hearts and rendered us speechless for a moment.
Karen broke the silence. “Well Jess, we cannot bring you to your mommy right now. Would it be OK if we took care of you until we can find her?”
Jess answered slowly and after giving the question thought. “You do not seem like the angry people. You’re very nice.” This second part seemed directed solely at Karen. “I guess you can do that.”
With that settled, I focused my attention back on the road and realized that we had reached the intersection of Rout Two and Rout Seventy-Eight. Our course would take us straight through that intersection, but we could turn right onto Seventy-Eight and head back towards Swanton.
“Frank,” I asked, “How are we doing on gas?”
After glancing down at the gage, he replied, ‘Decent but not great, why?”
I knew that there was a small gun shop as well as a bait and tackle store. They were both very close in proximity as well so one of us could raid one while another of us raided the other. As the turn loomed imminent, I knew that I had to make a decision. Part of me wanted to get to the fort and set up camp. I was tired of fighting the undead and the living. On the other hand, part of me knew that we were not guaranteed to be the only people that had thought of the fort and we might need to be better armed. It was also logical that if there were others at the fort and we arrived with plenty of food and water that they might just welcome us in with open arms. I made my decision.
“Turn here, please,” I said to Frank.
He turned the corner without question or hesitation. I had fully stepped into the leader role because there were no complaints from the back, only a question.
“Making a pit-stop?” asked Michelle.
I turned in my seat before replying. “Just after we enter the village of Swanton there is a gun shop and like two hundred feet from there is North Country Bait and Tackle. They are a small convenience store with a section dedicated to fishing supplies. My dad used to bring me there when I was a kid before we went fishing on the Missisquoi. I think that one of us should get dropped at the gun store and then one at the other store to see what we can grab in a hurry before heading to the fort.”
I looked from face to face. They all seemed to be on board with this. “Frank,” I continued. “Just before the village is a Ford dealer. I want you to pull in there and you and I will switch spots. I’ll drive into Swanton and that way you can hit the gun store. It only makes sense to have a military man picking out our weapons. Michelle, I want you to raid the other store. The tackle section is straight back from the main entrance, you can’t miss it. Grab as many poles, reels and as much tackle as you can. I don’t remember them having a lot in the way of food, but maybe grab some milk for our little friend?”
Frank gave a nod of approval to my plan while Michelle agreed verbally. Once again, we were going off script, not that I liked the script we had been on up to this point.
For whatever reason, the road between Alburg and Swanton was relatively free of abandoned vehicles. This helped us drive at nearly the speed limit. Before I knew it, we had reached the dealership. We pulled in and Frank drove us to the furthest point in the back of the lot. He left the engine running and applied the emergency brake before getting out of the Humvee. I was much slower to exit than he, my broken ribs protesting every move I made. As I got out of the truck, I took a moment to look around at the surrounding area. With the exception of the five of us there did not seem to be anyone or anything else around, alive or dead. The only sound that reached my ears was that of our idling engine, yet I could not shake the feeling that I had had back in the islands. We were being watched. That thought alone caused the hairs at the nape of my neck to stand on end.
I found it within myself to move a bit faster than my body wanted to allow while rounding the front of the Humvee. I climbed into the driver’s seat and made sure everyone was accounted for before I released the emergency brake. I drove the Humvee back into the main road and headed into Swanton. We drove in silence. Frank and Michelle spent the time checking the guns and mentally preparing for what they were about to undertake.
The trip from the car dealer to Gallup Court where the gun store was located took less than five minutes. The landscape outside of our windows was nothing if not surreal. Swanton was never what one might call a bustling metropolis, but there was always a fair amount of traffic as it was located along one of the few roads that lead to New York. One the typical day, one might count a few hundred tractor trailers passing by. The absolute lack of vehicles on the road alone made things seem creepier than they should have, even in this situation.
As I pulled up to a stop in front of the store, I looked around nervously. Since entering the town, we had not seen one abandoned vehicle on the roads. This gave me a very uneasy feeling in the pit of my stomach. Perhaps I had seen one too many horror movies in my day, or perhaps I was being overly cautious, but I did not like the way things were looking.
No undead wandered the area, there were no vehicles on the roads and the lawns were free of corpses as well. I knew I was not the only one that noticed these things when Frank spoke up beside me.
“Someone has been cleaning things up around here,” he said.
I looked at him and nodded. “Thoughts?”
Frank was quiet for several heartbeats before answering. “We need more guns and ammunition, there is no denying that fact. I think that this stop is necessary, but we should not hit the store. Michelle should come with me and watch my back as I make a quick run through the store.”
I looked at Michelle and Karen, they both seemed to agree with Frank. We all wanted to have a sense of security and being heavily armed seemed to aid in that feeling. I could tell that they all wanted me to have the final say. I thought about everything that had happened since the world fell apart. It had only been what, two days, yet it felt like a lifetime. We had been attacked by the living and the dead, we had lost members of our group, I lost my lover. We had also gained some group members and a better knowledge of what the new world held for dangers. I knew that we needed to protect ourselves and what was ours, but I kept coming back to that uneasy feeling that I got when we got closer to town. We were being watched. I just did not know if those that watched us had benign or malicious intentions.
Frank cleared his throat which roused me from my thoughts. I slowly nodded and said, “OK, I can get behind Frank’s plan. Stay vigilant. I know that you guys are only going to be ten feet from the Hummer, but I have a very bad feeling about all of this. Do not get caught unaware.”
Frank and Michelle exited the Humvee and ran up to the door to the store. They leaned against the wall on either side of it, Frank on the left and Michelle on the right. I could tell that they were listening for any sounds from within the building. When he was satisfied that there was no one inside, Frank nodded at Michelle. She slowly reached out to turn the doorknob. Once her hand found it, she gave it a twist to no avail. The door appeared to be locked.
Frank said something to her that we could not hear from within the truck. She backed up a few paces and took aim with her gun at the door. Frank twisted the shotgun around so that the stock was at his feet. He glanced around quickly before using the gun to smash the doorknob. A loud bang sounded out as the stock contacted the knob. I did not like where this was going, but Frank struck the knob a second and third time before I could move to stop him. After the third blow I saw the knob fall to the ground and the door swung inwards.
Michelle visibly tensed, most likely in anticipation of someone or something rushing out towards them, but that did not happen. After a minute, Frank entered the store with Michelle hot on his heels. Karen and I could do nothing but watch and wait for their return now. I was armed with my pistol, but if they ran into trouble, I was far too injured to get to them before it would be too late.
The minutes slowly ticked by and before we knew it ten of them had passed. I began to wonder if they had run into a problem when a chill ran down my spine. It took me a moment to understand what had caused it. I recognized on a subconscious level that Jess’s breathing had changed. It was now coming in ragged and rushed gulps instead of the soft and gentle sounds of someone that was calm. I turned my head to look to see why and almost screamed.
Gallup Court formed a T with Route Seventy-Eight. On the opposite side of the main road was a line of houses that were built on what was once a farmer’s hay field. The furthest house from us was around three hundred feet away and it was completely obscured by the mass of reanimates that were heading our way. I did not take the time to count, but it appeared that there was close to a thousand of them, almost as if someone had had them corralled somewhere and let them out en masse.
Words failed me, so I reached out and gave Karen’s shoulder a hard tap. She turned to face where I was looking and screamed. “We have to leave, NOW!” The panic was evident in her voice, but I could not believe she was advocating that we abandon out friends. It was lucky that I was in the driver’s seat. I honked the horn, no longer worried about being stealthy. I waited for half a minute and when they did not emerge from the store, I pressed on the horn and did not let up.
