Made in Mexico: Day One

Written By: A.L. Masopust

For my friends and family:

Thank you for letting me use your names and likenesses. 

Special thanks to Speedy and Deedee for giving me permission to use their RV park as the setting. Beacon Lodge is a truly beautiful place.

Staying there really gave me inspiration.

Chapter 1

Beacon Lodge

Zapata, TX

The early morning sun was just starting to rise over Falcon Lake in Zapata TX.  Falcon Lake was a slowly shrinking lake that divided Mexico and Southern Texas. It had once been the largest lake in the state, but the lack of rain in the area had dramatically reduced it in size over the years. It was still large enough to swim in, but with large logs and rocks in it, people didn’t. Most mornings, there would be a thick fog blanketing the area that would burn off by mid-morning and today was no exception.  The fog permeated every section of the lake and the surrounding land, making vision nearly impossible.

Near the lake was Beacon Lodge, an RV park for sportsmen, construction workers and vacationing families.  The park overlooking the lake looked rather desolate now, with most of the nearby construction jobs finishing up and with hunting and fishing dwindling due to the lake dropping a few inches every month. It was once a popular place to stay, back when the lake was high, and the fish were plentiful.  Next summer, if the lake was still there and hadn’t completely dried up, more visiting families would come, and the place would revive.  It was winter now though. Only a few RV’s occupied any of the spaces.   Those that remained there were from the same company staying through the winter to finish a local windmill power job in San Ygnacio.  Four RVs resided in the small park.

Amber was almost 40, had dark auburn hair, blue eyes and a great body with both of her arms sleeved in butterfly tattoos. She was the wife of one of the heavy equipment operators on the windmill job in San Ygnacio  She was out walking their rottweiler, Caesar, to do his morning business of peeing and rolling in the south Texas dirt when she thought she heard a noise through the dense morning fog.

Since arriving here with her husband and young son a few months ago and experiencing such a dense fog for the first time, Amber thought it was super scary and her imagination would get away from her every time she took him out in the morning and it looked this way. She’d imagine all sorts of creepy things could be in that heavy white mist.

“Did you hear that?” she asked the dog. He had just gotten up from his morning wiggle in the dirt.  He just shook the dirt off and looked happily at her. “What a dumb dog,” she thought, but he was hers and she loved him like another son.  Having not slept well the night before, she shrugged it off thinking that she must’ve imagined it, but then she heard it again.  This time Caesar started a low growling and the hairs on his neck began to stand up.

This made Amber pause and listen again, harder this time and in the direction the dog was looking and growling into the thick, low lying cloud.  She had indeed heard what he’d alerted to.  It sounded like someone or something slowly tromping through the high grass below the cliff overlooking the lake. Her husband and the rest of the crew were at work in San Ygnacio 15 miles away though, and her son Bobby Jr. (she’d given him the nickname Bobboo when he was a baby to distinguish between him and his dad) was still asleep in their camper.  Hell, the office lady didn't even show up until 9:00 a.m. on most mornings, so as far as she knew, it was just her, Caesar and Bobboo there during the day.

Being a ‘crew mom’, she was the only wife to travel with her husband and didn’t work, so therefore she cooked, cleaned and washed the laundry for the whole crew. It was kind of lonely but satisfying in a nurturing way.  It gave her something to do while her husband was gone at work all day.  As she stood there listening, the sound came again and in from what seemed like every direction below her now. She was officially freaked out.  With the dog on edge too, she decided that maybe it was time to head back to their camper.  Well, after the dog was done pooping.

The only way up the hill from the lake was an old boat ramp.  It was once used as the primary ramp years ago, back when the lake was higher. Now, it was just a way to get down the hill to the new boat ramp at the water's edge about 50 yards away.  Connecting the two ramps was a small, winding dirt road for the trucks and their fishing boats.  Small mesquite trees with big thorns, high brush, cactus and large rocks lined either side of the little road.  Amber and Caesar were at the top of the hill in a turnaround that was once upon a time the lakeshore next to the old boat ramp.

Hearing those noises, those footsteps through the fog was rather creepy, but not being able to see anything even a few feet away made it worse. “Hello?” she called out, hoping to ease her racing mind. Maybe it was Border Patrol looking for illegal border crossers or a wayward fisherman coming back from trying his luck at the lake, she thought.  Border patrol often came here, looking for Mexicans that had decided to swim across the lake in hopes that they’d be able to start a new life in the United States.  No one answered her though. No other sounds hit her ears, besides the continued walking, dragging, tromping sounds getting louder.

Being a horror movie fanatic, Amber had seen every manner of scary movie and her mind raced, thinking about who, or even what the owner of the steps had belonged to. Instead of investigating like they do in the movies, she quietly hushed the dog and turned around to take him back to their RV about 200 yards away.  Once she reached the rented space where their 25-foot camper sat, she turned around to see if she could see anything through the fog yet.  She was curious in nature, but after seeing all those movies, she knew better than to walk towards the creepy sounds.

At first, she couldn’t see anything. Concentrating harder and looking again, she started to recognize the form of a person. At least it looked like the shape of a person.  Behind the first shape, she thought maybe she could make out more, but quickly decided that she must be imagining things. “Damn all those scary movies.” she thought.

She turned and hurried into the camper, pushing Caesar inside and locked the flimsy camper door. Shaken, she shut all the window shades, checked on Bobboo to make sure he was still asleep and then grabbed her cellphone to text her husband about the ‘weird shape’ coming out of the fog.  Her fear subsided, having let her husband know what she’d seen.

After a moment of waiting for a reply and thinking about the fog, the shape, the noises and how bad it had all freaked her out, she felt silly for being afraid and her curiosity got the best of her.  She decided to open the window shade just a bit to see what, if anything, was out there.  Raising the shade a couple inches, she peeked out through the glass and into the fog… She immediately became afraid again. She hurriedly speed dialed her husband.

Chapter 2

Windmill Job

San Ygnacio, Tx

Bobby and his crew had just pulled into the parking lot of the windmill job they were working at when his phone chimed with a text from his wife. “Babe I just saw a weird shape coming out of the fog while I was walking Caesar.” was all it said.  Getting out of the truck, he thought nothing of it since his wife was always watching those creepy horror movies and getting all worked up.  He sent back a quick text of “Oh yeah? XOXO” and then he walked up the stairs of the job trailer for the morning progress meeting.

Bobby was in decent shape both mentally and physically for a 40-year-old man who had smoked a pack a day for 20 years, but he had recently quit. He had been running various pieces of heavy equipment for most of his adult life.  He was 6-foot-tall, with dark brown hair and eyes, chiseled jawline and abs that showed all the hard work he’d done throughout the years.

Kirk, an older man who was an actual cowboy back in his prime, and was also Bobby’s boss and mentor, asked about the notification. “Wifey saying anything good this morning?  Did she say what's for supper tonight yet?” he asked. “No, just an update from the Homefront I guess.” Bobby said, and then stepped into the job trailer behind JC, the dozer operator and Justin, the mechanic who were talking together about yesterday’s work and what needed to be fixed on each piece of equipment today.

A few minutes later, Bobby’s phone rang.  This was kind of odd since it was still early in the morning and most of the people he knew from other places he had worked wouldn't be up yet, and if any of them were, they wouldn’t call during work hours, they’d just text.  Amber didn’t usually call him either since she knew that he would most likely be busy running the excavator or hand digging with a shovel.  It was her though. “Must be important,” he thought and answered the phone.

“Oh my God Bobby, there are people outside!” she whispered.  “Ummmm so?” he replied, annoyed that she’d called over nothing. “Wet people! They look like Mexicans!  They must’ve swum across the lake!” she exclaimed quietly.  “And so what?  It’s not your job to police the park Honey, that's what Border Patrol is for,” he said.  “No, you don't get it,” she replied.  “I’ll take a picture…  There…  It’s sent. Now tell me that’s not weird.  I’ve only seen three of them so far, but they look dirty, disheveled and at least one of them is bleeding from his leg and dragging it from what I can see through the fog.”

His phone chimed again, so he put her on speakerphone to look at what she had sent him.  By now, all the guys were intrigued by the call and crowded around him, wanting to know what was up.  “What’s the dill, pickle?” Justin asked as Bobby pulled up the picture on his phone.  The photo was kind of blurry, but he could still make out the shapes through the fog and what he saw sent a chill through his body.  She was right, something was weird.  One of the shapes DID have blood on its leg and its right foot was folded at an angle under its ankle.  He showed the guys.  JC immediately said, “It must be a hoax, a photoshopped picture meant to try to freak us all out.”  Justin looked at it and said “Nah, we all know her, she ain’t that good at stuff like that.  It looks real to me.”  Kirk just glanced at it and chuckled, saying “Back before cell phones and digital cameras and the lot, we’d have to wait a week for a picture to be developed.  Damn hard to photoshop a paper photo.”  Amber replied shakily “Dammit guys, this isn’t a joke!  I’m scared and I don't know what to do.  Bobby, please you guys need to come home.”

Bobby thought about it for a second and then said, “Okay Sweetheart, just calm down.” He looked at Kirk for reassurance.  Kirk nodded and the others began to grab their lunchboxes, hard hats and gloves.  “We’ll be there as soon as possible, in less than 30 minutes.  Just stay inside with the door locked and window shades down and wait for us. Call me back if anything else happens.”  She sighed in relief, “Thank you darling, I love you.  Please hurry.

Chapter 3

Beacon Lodge

Zapata, TX

Amber hung up with Bobby and went to each of the six small windows in the camper, making sure they were all locked and the shades were down.  The metal shades made the camper quite dark and more sound resistant, which she figured was a good thing since she didn’t want anything outside to know that they were inside.  She was scared, but knew she had to keep her composure because Bobboo would be awake soon and she didn’t want him to be afraid. Caesar was still on edge too, the hair on his neck still raised.  He whined, but Amber quickly shut him up.  “Hush!” she hissed, “you’re gonna draw attention to us.”  He quieted down, but stayed close to her, sensing her unease.

After a few minutes of the eerie and strange silence, Bobboo awoke from his sleep, yawning loudly. “Ahhhh, what’s for breakfast mom?” he asked.  “Shhh!”  she said softly, “how about a toaster pastry?  No school today, you’ve earned a day off.  Now, how about you play your video game quietly for a bit?”  “Ok mom,” he replied.  He got out of his bed, went to the kitchen area and grabbed a package of his favorite breakfast pastries.  Then he hopped into the play area under the top bunk where he slept and started playing his handheld video game.

Still freaked out, she went online to see if the local news said anything about illegal border crossings or anything like that.  What she found was a headline that read: Side effects reported due to new Covid-19 vaccine.  The article had just been posted a few hours ago. “Glad I didn’t get that shot yet,” she thought.  She had been waiting since the virus was still relatively new, and the vaccine had yet to be fully tested on humans, although the FDA had pushed it through.  Without proper testing, who knew what would happen, what side effects there would be?  No one else in their entourage had gotten it either, for the same reason.  It just didn’t seem safe enough yet.

The virus, dubbed Covid-19 was an illness that affected the lungs and heart of people with underlying health conditions and people over the age of 65.  Over half a million people had died in the United States alone in the last 10 months or so with a lot more people testing positive every day.  The hastily created vaccine, pushed by Big Pharma, was originally meant to keep so many people from overwhelming the hospitals and dying from the virus so quickly.  The early versions of the vaccine combined mRNA and a weakened version of the virus.  Like the flu shot, it was meant to make the body create antibodies to the virus.  Reading through the article, she found it odd that the article didn’t say anything about what the side effects were, just that they had been reported.

While online, a notification came through.  Someone had posted a video on social media and it was gaining popularity.  She clicked over to the app and pulled it up.  The video featured a shaky cellphone image of a woman laying on top of a man on a busy sidewalk while other people stepped around them.  It looked like she was kissing his neck at first, but they were both covered in bright red splotches that looked a lot like blood. Focusing on the woman, Amber saw what looked like bites on her arm.  She also seemed very pale.  The video maker, a man, screamed “SHE’S EATING HIM!  OH LORD!  THIS CAN’T BE HAPPENING!”  After that, the video cut off.  The comments about the video ranged from ‘nice trick bro’ to outrage at the fact that someone would joke about the state of the nation right now.  Amber didn't want to believe it, but with what she’d seen this morning already, it made her even more afraid.  “Come on Bobby, get here soon.”  she thought desperately.

Chapter 4

Highway 83

Outside San Ygnacio TX

Bobby was in the passenger seat of the work truck beside Kirk, who was driving.  They were heading back to Beacon Lodge with Justin and JC in the backseat.  They were about halfway to the RV park and were all talking about what they’d seen in the picture Amber had sent and how scared she’d sounded when Kirk’s phone started ringing, making them all jump. It was the head boss from Wisconsin calling to ask about what the crew was going to accomplish today and what progress had been made the week before.  “We’re not at work right now, we all need a personal day off,” Kirk said, and he explained what had transpired.

The boss wasn’t happy, but being so far away, he couldn’t really say no.  Especially since they all had personal days built up and the job wasn’t behind in completion.  He told them to be safe and to let him know if they weren’t going to be onsite tomorrow morning.  Kirk hung up his phone and in doing so, dropped it into the floorboard of the work truck. He looked down to pick it up and just as he grabbed it, Bobby yelled “Watch it Pawpaw!” and grabbed the wheel, turning it just enough to avoid hitting a man that was standing in the middle of the lane.  “Whew, that was a close one cowboy!  What the hell was he doing just standing there?  We could’ve hit him!”  Kirk exclaimed wildly as they drove around the man.

In the backseat, Justin examined the man as they passed by him.  He was a Mexican man, wearing loose clothing and no shoes.  He resembled a homeless person except there was what looked like blood all over his face, neck and down the front of his tattered shirt. Justin noticed that the man had bites on his arms when he raised them, trying to grab the vehicle as it passed. Justin pointed it out to the men in the truck saying “Y’all that’s blood!  This ain’t right!  Something is very wrong here.  We gotta hurry up and get back.”  They all agreed, and Kirk stepped a little harder on the gas while Bobby called to check on Amber and Bobboo.

Chapter 5

Beacon Lodge

Zapata TX

Amber’s phone vibrated, alerting her to a call from her husband.  She’d turned the ringer off to stay as quiet as possible, although the vibration seemed loud to her now too.  She answered quickly “Hey babe, you’re almost, back right?  I’m really scared.  It’s hard to stay calm and not let Bobboo know that something is wrong.”  “We’ll be there in a few more minutes my love,” he replied.  She sighed quietly, “Okay good.  Bobboo is awake now.  He’s playing his game and he’s had something to eat.  I’ve got the door locked, the shades are down, and we haven't made any loud noises. The dog keeps whining, but I’ve managed to calm him down whenever he does. I was gonna look out the window again, but I got caught up with an article about side effects of the new Covid-19 vaccine, although it didn’t say what side effects, and a strange video on social media.  Now I'm even more freaked out.  I’m gonna send it to you so you can see it too, hold on.”  She found the video on social media again, shared it to his messages and waited for him to acknowledge it.  “Got it,” he said through the phone.  “We’ll be there in a few more minutes.  It’ll be okay, just stay calm.”  “Show the rest of guys the video too, ok babe?  She asked.  “They need to know what’s going on too.”  “Sure, thing my darling, we’ll be there soon,” he said and hung up.  Amber sat on the bed and waited eagerly for the men to get back, silently willing time to speed up. She didn’t think she had never wished harder for anything in her life.

Chapter 6

Highway 83

Zapata TX

“Hey Bobby, why didn’t you tell Amber about the man in the road?” JC asked.  Bobby replied “Didn’t you hear her?  She’s already freaked out.  Imagine how much worse it would make her if I told her what we just saw.”  “So, what’s the video about?” Justin asked.  Pulling up his messages, they all saw that it was a video of a man being held down on a sidewalk by an older woman while she crammed her face into his neck.  They were both covered in blood.  The videographer was screaming that she was eating him and then it was over.

“That can’t be real, can it?”  Asked Kirk, “Just more of that photoshop y’all were going on about earlier, right?”  Justin said, “I don’t know, it looks real enough to me.”  JC and Bobby both agreed that it looked authentic.  Two minutes later, they turned onto the road the RV park was on and hit a wall of fog so thick that they couldn’t see more than a few feet in front of the truck.  Kirk had to slow the vehicle down to a crawl to keep it on the road. 

As they crept their way into the park, something hit the back-passenger window of the truck, making them all jump again.  “What the hell was that?!?”  Kirk yelled, startled.  “Whatever it was, it had blood on it, don’t stop,” said Justin and he pointed to the dark maroon smear on the window. Thinking about the picture that Amber had sent him, and the man in the road a few minutes ago, Bobby exclaimed “I don’t like this.  We need to get to the campers now.  Who knows what’s going on?”

JC had initially asked Kirk to drop him off at his camper because he had to use the bathroom ‘something fierce’, but the rest of the guys were more worried about Amber, Bobboo and Caesar.  Outnumbered, JC just said “Fine, I’ll walk over there myself when we get there.”  Once on the small tar road that led to the RV’s, they saw dark shapes all around them coming out of the fog.

Just like Amber had said earlier, they looked like wet and muddy Mexicans, in tattered clothing with blood all over them.  One of them, a man, was missing his entire jaw.  Blood covered his shirt and his tongue flopped with every slow step he took.  He was also missing half of his stomach.  His intestines were dragging on the ground in front of him. As they watched, he almost tripped on his own bodily organs, but righted himself before he fell.  JC grimaced, looked around and asked Bobby “Mind if I use your shitter once we get to your spot?  I changed my mind, I’m with you guys.”  Bobby chuckled, “Of course you can.”

Kirk was having a hell of a time trying not to hit what he figured were injured people coming out of the dense fog.  A small part of him wanted to stop the truck and get out to assess the situation to see if he could help in any way, sure that this must have a rational explanation.  People just didn’t make it a habit of shuffling around when they were injured though.  “Zombies…  They’re fucking Zombies.” was all Justin could say.  Kirk laughed, “Hell no they ain’t, zombies ain’t real, dumbass.”

As they pulled into the empty parking space in front of Bobby and Amber’s camper, Kirk asked if any of them had their ‘pistolies’ with them today, thinking that they might need protection.  “No.”  They all said in unison.  “Well shit, I brought mine.  Quick, grab something to whack those folks with if they get too close,” he said as he grabbed his small handgun out of his lunch bag.  Bobby found a large claw hammer in the bag of hand tools in the backseat between Justin and JC.  JC procured a metal pipe from the floorboard where he was sitting.  Justin found a 2x4 behind the seat where he was sitting but traded it out for a heavy pipe wrench from the bag of tools.

They all opened their doors at the same time and got out. Kirk left the keys in the ignition and the driver’s side door open just a crack in case anyone needed a quick getaway.  The four men quickly made their way through the fog to the camper door.  Luckily, Amber had managed to keep the kid and the dog quiet, so no one was alerted to their presence.  Although the truck was loud, the fog was so thick that no one had seen them get out.  If they stayed outside for much longer though, Kirk had a bad feeling that they would be spotted.  Reaching the camper first, Bobby quietly knocked on the door.

Chapter 7

Beacon Lodge

Zapata TX

Amber heard the big work truck pull into the empty space in front of their RV.  She had been nervously waiting for them to get here and was so happy to hear them coming, that she almost rushed out to greet them…  Almost.  Getting to the door before them, she waited for the sound of running footsteps and then heard the quiet knocking on the door.  She quickly unlocked and opened the door, ushered the four men into the small(ish) space and closed the door again, making sure it was locked.

She wrapped her arms around her husband's neck and hugged him.  She was so happy to have him home. Next, she thanked Kirk for bringing them all here safe and sound.  JC used their bathroom while the rest of them sat down.  Once he was done and everyone was seated, she asked “What’s it like out there?  Is it as bad as I’m imagining?”  “We didn't have too many problems getting to the park from the jobsite, but once we got here, things got creepy.”  Bobby explained.  He then told her in detail about the wet and bloody men and women they had seen.

Amber was so scared by the new information that she was shaking and having trouble holding back her tears.  She was happy they were here, but she was oh so frightened!  Having seen a million zombie movies throughout the years, she had knowledge of how to avoid being bitten, eaten or scratched and how to kill a zombie, but the fear of it actually happening for real was just too much for her to face in the moment and she broke down, tears streaming down her cheeks.

The three guys sat there and let her cry.  All being married men themselves or had been married before (in Kirk’s case) they knew that sometimes women needed a minute to gather up their emotions.  Bobby hugged her and whispered calming things into her ear.  “It’s ok Honey, let it out.  Shhh there, there now. It’s all gonna be okay darling, we’re here now and we won’t let anything happen to you or Bobboo.”

After what seemed like forever but was probably closer to a minute and a half, Amber stopped crying and went to the bathroom to compose herself while Bobby tried to explain to Bobboo that his mom was okay.  “She’s done now son.  Ladies just get emotional sometimes, I had to help her through it.”  “OK daddy.”  Bobboo said and went back to playing his handheld video game.  “Ahh kids and their short attention spans,” he said to no one in particular.

Chapter 8

Beacon Lodge

Zapata TX

Inside the safe(ish) RV, everyone sat on the couch or on the queen-sized bed looking at their phones and trying to find out what in the world was happening in the little RV park.  Finding nothing of interest online, Justin called his wife Madyson in Weatherford TX to see if anything was amiss there.  “Mady, anything going on up there I should know about?”  she said no and asked what was wrong.  “Shit is hitting the fan here…” he said.  Then explained the man in the middle of the road, the video on social media and the figures in the fog at the RV park.  He told her to stay inside, that he’d head home as soon as possible and that he loved her.  She said she loved him too and would look around on the internet and see what she could find that could explain what was happening in Zapata.

JC called his wife Karen in Fort Worth TX and basically asked the same question Justin had asked Mady.  He got almost the same answer. He quickly told her about the morning events and then told her that he loved her and then hung up.  Kirk called his son Chet in Hico TX to make sure he and his family were safe as well.  Chet had no idea what was happening either.  Hico was a small town with no local news, so Kirk told him what little he knew.  Chet said that he and the family were going to make sure their compound was well stocked with food, water and fuel. They had plenty of firepower and all the components to make more bullets with.  Chet told Kirk that their house would be a safe place for him and his friends if they could make it to Hico.  Kirk thanked him and said they’d discuss it.

Bobby and Amber both called their moms back in Virginia where they were from.  Bobby’s mom didn’t answer her cell or house phones.  This worried him, since she had just retired from the college, where she had worked at for the last 25 years.  She also had heart issues.  He made a mental note to try to remember to call her again later, praying that she would be ok.  When Amber called her mom, Star, they found out that something was transpiring in the capital city of Richmond.

“Mama what’s going on there?  Is Isaac alright?”  Amber asked, putting the call on speaker.  Isaac was their 15-year-old son.  He had stayed in Richmond with his grandparents when Bobby had taken the high paying job offer from a traveling construction company.  He didn’t want to travel with them, he wanted to stay at the same school and keep his same friends.  “Your big son is fine. He’s 15 and thinks he’s invincible. I’m sorry he didn’t want to travel with you guys,” Star replied.

“The governor made an announcement on the TV last night.  He said that the newest form of the vaccine that Richmond just got in from Mexico isn’t safe and that no one should get the shot.  It’s causing… side effects.” Her mom said.  “What side effects?” Amber asked, thinking back to the article she’d read earlier.  “Well for starters,” her mom explained, “the people that get the new form of the vaccine all die horrible deaths.   Some don't get any symptoms and just die. Others get the same symptoms of Covid-19, but worse and faster.  Fever, cough, sore throat, diarrhea, difficulty breathing and lethargy.  Finally, they die too.  In most cases, choking on their own blood…  But they aren't staying dead.  They have no heartbeat and aren’t breathing, but they wake up and try to attack the next person they see or hear and then that person becomes infected too.”

“They’re like those creatures in the scary movies you’ve told me about, but since zombies aren’t real, I don’t know what to call them.  Isaac, Charles and I have locked ourselves into the house.  Thank goodness Charles didn’t get the shot.  You know, his work wanted him to get the vaccine so he could go back to work in the shop instead of working from home, but…”

“Mama!  Ok, stop talking for a second,” Amber interjected.  “Tell us, did the Government tell you what to do to stay safe?  How is the Government going to stop this?  Did he say anything useful?”  “Not really,” she replied.  “All he said was to stay home, lock our doors and don’t answer it for anyone we didn’t know or anyone that was pale or had blood on them.  How’s that for common sense huh?  He also listed off a bunch of places people could go if they didn’t have a safe place, but we’re not going anywhere.  We’ve got plenty of food and bottled waters right here.  Thanks to Bobby buying his son that rifle and teaching him how to shoot it accurately, Isaac can help defend us if the need arises. Besides, that boy plays all those violent video games.  Not to mention his huge collection of knives.  I think we’ll be just fine.” She said confidently.  Amber replied “Ok mama, just stay safe.  Tell our boy that we love him and that I’ll call again once we get an idea of what’s going on here in Zapata.  I love you mama.”

Amber hung up the phone and looked around at each of the guys.  “Fuckin’ zombies, just like I said earlier.”  Justin said, a little too loudly.  Bobby told him to be quiet “We don’t want any outsiders to know we’re inside.”  Kirk sat there in awe, analyzing the information he’d gathered since this morning.  How could zombies actually exist?  What should they do?  He didn’t have any answers to the questions running through his mind. 

JC was the first one to break the silence.  “We gotta get outta this place,” he said quietly.  Everyone wholeheartedly agreed.  Amber and Bobby exchanged looks. Clearly, they were thinking the same thing. How could they leave?  They didn’t have anywhere else in Texas that they could go to.  They’d sold their house in Virginia to buy their camper when Bobby had taken the job offer, and everything they owned was in it.  The other guys all had homes to go to.

After quietly talking, they all agreed that they needed to wait until the fog cleared to get a better look at how things were outside. Maybe things weren’t as bad as they seemed.  Amber got up and busied herself, quietly making a pot of fresh coffee and some breakfast burritos for her makeshift family.  Cooking always calmed her down whenever she was upset.  When she finished, she brought it all to the table and they all ate in silence.

Chapter 9

Amber and Bobby’s RV

Zapata TX

It wasn’t long before the six people inside the camper grew antsy and were ready for some new information.  Taking a chance to peek out the window, Bobby carefully lifted the window shade.  Not all the way, just a few inches to get a look at what was going on outside.  At first, he didn't see anything besides the fog, which was already thinner than it had been an hour earlier.  Focusing his eyes on the old boat ramp, he saw more figures coming up the hill with the same pale faces as the others he’d seen earlier. Same lifeless eyes, same bloody clothing and they all looked injured in some way. They were all Mexican, and all of them were soaking wet.  Thinking out loud, he said “I think they're coming from the other side of the lake.  It would explain why they’re all wet.”

Hearing this from his play area Bobboo yelled “From Mexico?  But Dad, that’s against the law!!!!”  Everyone shushed him, but it was too late.  The damage had been done.  Bobby looked back through the gap in the shade and saw that a few of the figures had heard his son’s yelling.  Several of them were shuffling in the direction of the camper.  After quickly closing the shade, a horrified Bobby sat on the couch with the others and tried to stay quiet.

They all hunkered down and waited for the ghostly pale creatures to pass by.  A few seconds later, the first sound came from outside the camper and startled the inhabitants inside.  A heavy smacking sound came from the other side of the door. Someone was banging on it. More pounding and slapping sounds came after the first one and everyone inside became nervous as the sounds vibrated through the small space.

Frightened, Bobboo jumped out of his play area and ran to his dad.  He tried to scream, but Bobby placed his hand over the boy's mouth and signaled for him to be quiet.  His eyes bulged in his head and tears started to flow down his cheeks.  Amber motioned for him to come to her and he sat down on her lap, shaking like a leaf.  He was terrified.  She whispered into his ear, “You gotta be as quiet as a mouse, my love. Hopefully they’ll go away if they think no one is in here.”  She held him tightly, trying her hardest not to cry as well.

Just as Star had said, the figures were attracted to sound.  If the sound went away, then logically the creatures should roam elsewhere as well.  After a few minutes of the horrifying slapping and pounding, it died down.  A stray dog was barking somewhere else in the park and when the noises from outside stopped, they heard it.  JC said, “Maybe they’re going for the dog now, we might be safe for the moment.”  Kirk whispered “Whew, another close one folks.  I almost pissed myself when the first one started in with the banging.”  Bobby again lifted one of the shades and peered out.  The fog was lighter still and he could see four of the undead creatures lumbering away from the camper towards the sound of the barking dog.  A collective sigh was released, and everyone calmed down a bit.  A few seconds later, they heard loud growling, and then a yelp from the dog.  The creatures must have gotten to it. “Poor thing,” Justin said.  Everyone nodded, but no one else spoke.

For a while, they all sat looking at their phones, trying to glean more information from the internet.  From what they’d found out, this wasn’t an isolated incident.  The dead weren’t staying dead. The same thing was happening in most major cities all over the country.  They learned that the dead people were still decaying though and that gave them hope that this wouldn’t last forever.  Maybe the zombies would rot to pieces and it wouldn’t have to be the end of the world as they knew it.  None of them could find out if this was happening all over the globe, or just here in North America.  The only other country referenced in any of the news pages or other sites they tried, was Mexico.  Pictures of white dead eyes, videos of pale figures shuffling around, and posts of people being bitten were permeating the social media networks. The internet was exploding with posts about people being devoured by their loved ones or bitten by strangers while they walked down the street. Chaos was everywhere.  The country was deteriorating quickly.

Chapter 10

Beacon Lodge

Zapata Tx

An hour or so later, Bobby looked out the window again.  The fog had finally lifted, and the sun was shining brightly.  It was a beautiful day.  Well, besides the obvious.  Without the fog to hinder their sight, they all took turns looking out of the small openings in the window shade to see first-hand how serious the situation had become here.  The street out in front of the RV was littered with shoes, clothing, splashes of blood, drag marks and what looked like excrement, but could’ve been anything from the 30-foot distance between the small camper and the road.  Through the homemade peephole, they could see a bunch of people (if that’s what you called them) huddled over a form in the road.  They were misshapen figures, some had missing appendages and others had bite marks.  All the figures had blood on them.  The dead were bent over something, pulling pieces from it and putting the bits into their mouths.  When one of them moved, Amber got a look at who it had been. 

It was Cynthia, the office lady.  Her golf cart was abandoned a few feet away from where she was laying.  Her abdomen was hollowed out, the zombies had disemboweled her with their sharp nails and two of the monsters were fighting over her bloody intestines.  Another one of the monsters had her forearm in its hands, taking bites off it as if it were a big turkey leg.  Her eyeballs were gone, her nose had been bitten off and there wasn’t much skin left on her face.  It was a gruesome sight.  “Oh my goodness!  It’s Cynthia!  That poor woman...”  Amber croaked.  She was both saddened and sickened by the sight of the poor lady.  She’d always been so kind and sweet to Amber when she had questions about the internet or paid their rent.  She enjoyed the back and forth banter they’d shared on occasion.

Taking her eyes off the now dead woman, Amber noticed another group of the dead at the end of the street, farther away from their little camper.  They were just standing around.  It was as if they were waiting for a sight or sound to attract them.  Taking a look himself, Kirk said “Oh my… This isn’t good.”  “No, I don't reckon it is.”  Bobby replied.  He looked at his upset wife and asked her how she was doing.  Amber told him she was fine, but in reality, she was scared.  She had more information now than she’d had earlier though and felt a bit stronger because of it.  “Hmmmm, knowledge really is power,” she thought to herself.

Thinking back to the plethora of horror movies she’d seen and all the post-apocalyptic books she’d read, she knew the steps to take to stay alive and avoid being bitten or ending up like poor Cynthia.  She looked through the crack in the window once more and noticed that Cynthia was no longer laying down.  She was now shuffling away from their camper, towards the inactive group waiting for outside stimulus.  She turned away from the sight outside and quietly addressed the group.  “Ok, first off…” Looking at Kirk, she said “They’re really zombies, Kirk.  If they’re dead and come back to life to start eating people, they’re zombies.”  She then looked around the room at the rest of the crew.  “Secondly, you should all know how to kill them.  I know I’m not the only one here to have seen any undead movies.”  Everyone besides Kirk agreed. He didn’t know anything about zombies, he hated scary movies and therefore never watched them.

“By now, everyone in the U.S. should know how to kill the brain.  Smash it, stab it, shoot it.  Doesn’t matter how, but killing the brain is the key.  Shooting them in the chest does nothing besides waste a bullet.  Guns are effective, but they’re loud.  We’re going to need blunt or sharp objects.  We use any guns we have as a last resort.”  She stopped talking and scanned the RV, looking for a weapon.  Her eyes landed on Bobboo standing there looking fragile and afraid.  Amber thought for a second and then grabbed some of the cooking magazines she had bought the week before.  She began to tuck them into Bobboo’s clothes, trying to create makeshift armor for the boy. Next, she got a roll of duct tape out of the cabinet and wrapped his arms and legs in it.  She put his Optimus Prime hoodie on over all of it and zipped it up.  With his hood on, his clothes covered all of his body besides his hands and his face.  That would have to do for now.

While she did that, Bobby got busy packing up all his handguns and ammunition.  Once that was done, he grabbed another bag and put some Vienna sausages, SpaghettiOs, crackers, granola bars, a jar of peanut butter, the rest of their loaf of bread and a bunch of bottled waters inside it.  He also added a set of clothes for him and both his wife and son.  With that done, he sat back down with the rest of the guys and discussed what to do.

“We need to get out of this RV park and get somewhere safer.  If we get surrounded, this door isn’t gonna hold, and the windows aren’t reinforced or anything,” JC told them all.  “Yeah I was thinking the same thing,” Justin said. They all nodded their heads in agreement.  “Where do we go?” Amber asked.  Kirk, Justin and JC all wanted to get their guns and ammo, some clothes and extra food from their respective campers before they all left Beacon Lodge.  They talked about it and decided that they’d go to Kirk’s RV first.  His fifth wheel camper was parked directly across the street from Bobby and Amber’s, so first on the agenda would be to get across the street alive.  Looking through the crack in the shade once more before closing it, Amber wondered if it were even possible. Things were looking bleak outside.  With dead cannibals all around the RV park, could they make it to the three other campers without being bitten?  She decided that the questions weren’t going to be answered from inside this camper. They would have to leave.

Chapter 11

Beacon Lodge

Zapata TX

Having kept their weapons from the work truck, Justin and JC were ready to get on with their hastily put together plan.  Bobboo was all armored up.  Amber had duct taped her biggest kitchen knife to a sturdy wooden broom handle to create a sharp, makeshift spear.  She quickly changed into thick jeans and a hoodie, then put her leather jacket on over it.  Last, she put the backpack full of food and clothes on her back.  Taking Amber’s cue, Bobby put his heavy work jacket on and put his 1911 and gun holster on his hip.  “I’ll be damned if I’m gonna pack them all in a bag,” he said, referring to the gun on his hip. “It’s the best shooting pistol I own.  Better safe than sorry.”  That done, he put the bag full of guns and ammo on his back. Next, he clipped the leash on Caesar, then grabbed a smaller, but still wickedly sharp knife from the butcher block and stood at the door.  He and the dog were ready.

Kirk still had his small .22 handgun, but since learning that the undead were attracted to sound, he opted to put it in his back pocket for ‘safekeeping’ and began scrounging around in the silverware drawer for another weapon.  He found a large hammer-like meat tenderizer and swung it around a few times to get the hang of it.  When he was satisfied with his new weapon, he stood by the door with the others.

With everyone finally ready, Bobby opened the camper door and they all quickly exited in single file.  Bobby went first with Caesar, followed by Kirk, then Amber with Bobboo next to her, tightly gripping her hand.  Justin was next, with JC the last in line.  They followed each other to the front of the work truck, trying to look everywhere at once, their heads on a swivel, trying to spot any dangers lurking around. They were both seen and heard immediately after the door had been opened.  Zombies were everywhere around them and they were seconds away from becoming surrounded with every tick of the clock. Caesar growled softly, willing the undead to come and get him, he wasn’t afraid, he was mad at them. Bobby shut him up and then motioned for them all to follow him as he crept down the length of the dual cab extended bed work truck towards the road they would have to cross to get to Kirk’s.

In the middle of the road laid what appeared to be an actual dead body.  It was once a pretty woman, but now she was missing both of her eyes, her nose had been bitten off, her teeth were visible through a hole in her jaw and she was missing an arm and a leg.  There were bite marks all over her remaining leg.  She looked as if there wasn’t enough left of her to reanimate. It was a most gruesome sight.  Bobby steered the group around the seemingly twice dead woman across the street towards Kirk’s camper.  Caesar began to growl again as he passed by the dead woman, but Bobby told him to hush and hurried across the street.  Kirk quickly followed.  As Amber and Bobboo stepped around the woman, her good arm shot out from under her and she grabbed Bobboo’s foot.  He screamed loudly in terror as she pulled his food to her mouth and bit his ankle, hard.  Amber swiftly stabbed the woman in the top of her head with her spear, killing her.  The damage had been done though.  Bobboo had been bitten!

Kirk turned around and picked Bobboo up, covering his mouth to stop the screaming and quickly headed towards his camper behind Bobby and the dog.  Amber followed closely behind, tears silently falling, praying that her son would be ok.  Justin and JC were the last ones to the RV, with three zombies closing in on them.  As soon as they were inside, JC locked the door and they all pulled down every shade in the place.  Kirk enjoyed natural light and always opened them in the morning before work.  With that done, they all sat down in the living room.  Kirk took his hand away from Bobboo’s mouth, while whispering to him to ‘be quiet while his daddy looked at his wound.’

Sitting him down on the floor, Bobby took his son’s left shoe off and unwrapped the duct tape from his leg to examine his ankle.  Expecting a large bite and lots of blood, the group was surprised to see a bruise forming in the shape of a bite mark, but only one of the teeth had broken the surface leaving a small bloody scratch.  The duct tape had saved him from a terrible fate.  Relieved that their son was going to be ok, Amber and Bobby both let out the breaths they’d been unknowingly holding.  Their little son would not die today.  Kirk looked down at him and said, “That was close little buddy, calm down now.  You want a piece of candy.”  Bobboo smiled through his tears and nodded his head.  Kirk gave him a piece of candy from the lot he had in his pocket (he’d been trying to stop smoking cigars). He assured the boy that everything would be alright.

The three zombies that had been following JC and Justin made it to the RV and began to slap their hands on the camper, startling everyone inside and drawing the attention of other nearby dead walkers.  Bobby looked at Kirk and in a low voice said, “Better get your shit together Pawpaw, we’re gonna have to leave soon or we’ll be surrounded and then we’ll be trapped.”  Kirk winked at him, nodded and then quietly walked up the few steps to his bedroom, found a bag and began to put his essentials inside.  He packed some extra clothes, his toothbrush, deodorant and some toilet paper.  He also packed up some granola bars, raisins, beef jerky and a few bottles of water.  Next, he grabbed his gun cleaning kit and pocketknives.  Last was the ammunition for his small gun.  The rest of his guns were at Chet’s house.  He knew that his son would keep them clean and well maintained.  He wandered around the camper, quietly thinking about what else to pack.

Chapter 12

Star’s House

Richmond VA

Isaac, Charles and Star sat in the living room of their little house on the southside of Richmond.  With the TV on, but muted and the captions on, they watched as the local newscaster talked about the Covid-19 virus, the Mexican vaccine and how to stay safe.  “This just in, we have learned from confirmed sources that the Mexican vaccine had been administered to the whole population of Mexico late last week.  The Mexican government mandated it for all citizens.”  Star looked at Isaac and said, “Maybe that’s why your mom and dad are having issues where they are?  You can see Mexico from their RV park.  The undead are migrating to find a food source.  Your mom needs to know about this.”  Charles agreed with her and Isaac got his phone from his bedroom and started to call his mom.  Star quickly stopped him, “No, text her instead.  No need to call.  The phone ringing might not help her right now, we don't know how bad it is there.”  Isaac acquiesced and sent his mom a text that read:

Mom I luv u.  We just heard on the news that all the people in Mexico got the bad vaccine.  Please be careful and call me when you can.

When he was finished, he looked up with tears in his eyes.  “Nana,” he said “I wish I was with my parents and brother right now.  I hope they’re ok.  Man, I hope she calls me back soon.”  “I know honey,” she replied.  “I'm sure we’ll see them again.  We just gotta survive long enough for that to happen.”  She hugged him tightly and told him she loved him and that she was happy he was here to help keep them all safe.  “I don't know what we’d do without you,” she said.

         After a little while, Isaac felt better and decided to go to his room and play some video game for a bit.  His games always took him away from the real world.  He thought he could use some distraction.  He only played for a few minutes though, his mind couldn’t focus on the task at hand.  His thoughts kept going back to his mom, dad and brother.  He wondered if he would ever see them again.  He was clinging to the hope that everything would turn out, but his optimism was waning. 

Chapter 13

Beacon Lodge

Zapata TX

Amber had just finished rewrapping the duct tape around Bobbo’s leg and ankle again when her back pocket vibrated, startling her and causing her to jump.  She grabbed the phone out of her pocket and saw that it was a text from her big son, Isaac. She quickly opened it and read it out loud in a low voice.  “Mom, I love you.  We just heard on the news that all of Mexico got the bad vaccine.  Please be careful.  Call me when you can.”  She quickly sent a text back to her son, letting him know that she loved him too, thanks for the information and that they were safe for now.  She told him that her phone was on vibrate, she couldn’t call right now, but she’d text him regularly so he wouldn’t worry so much.

“Well that explains why there are so many around here and why nobody upstate knew anything about it earlier this morning,” Bobby said.  “Your mom said that Richmond got a bunch of the vaccine and now a lot of people are dead…  Well dead-ish.  I wonder if Dallas got any of the killer vaccines.  We need to get out of this park and away from the border before the whole damn population of Mexico ends up coming through here!”  They all nodded their heads in agreement.  “Hurry up Kirk!” JC said in a low growl.  Kirk poked his head out of the open bedroom door and whispered, “relax my friend, I’m almost done loading up all my pistolies. I already got some toiletries, snacks, extra shirts and britches.  I even got toilet paper.  Trying to be prepared for anything.”

By the time he was done loading up all his stuff, there was slapping and pounding coming from three sides of the large RV.  Nothing had come around to the end of the camper yet. They all seemed to congregate on the front and the sides of the fifth wheel.  “We need a plan to get out of this tin can, or we’re gonna be stuck.  Sounds like we’re damn near surrounded now,” Justin said.  Looking around at each other, they all began thinking about how to get out of the camper safely.  Just then, Kirk remembered that he had an emergency exit.  He had a trapdoor in one of his closets that led outside, underneath the camper. He told the crew about it.

“I know a way out,” he explained.  “As long as those dead suckers aren’t underneath the camper, we should be able to get out through the emergency exit I’ve got in my closet.  Or, one of us can get out that way and draw them away from the door so the rest of us can get to the next place.  Where are we going next?”  Justin’s fifth wheel was parked next door, but they were almost surrounded by the undead.  They talked about going back across the street to JC’s little 20-foot camper too. It was parked three spaces down from Amber and Bobby’s RV, but it was going to be a tight fit with five adults, a kid and a big dog.  JC said that he’d go by himself, but with the fact that he was such a big guy (6 foot 3 inches tall and 300 lbs.), he wouldn’t fit through the trapdoor in the floor of the closet.  He would need someone to draw them away from the door and then he could head over to his camper and pack his stuff.  When he was done, he would text Amber to let them know that he was ready to leave it again in case he got surrounded while he was inside.

Justin offered himself up and quickly explained what he thought was a better plan for everyone.  “Shit, I’ll go.  Better to take a chance out there than to keep going crazy here.  This pounding is driving me nuts!”  He continued, “I’ll get out there, draw them away from the door, get to my camper and pack my stuff while JC gets his and we can all get into a truck and get the hell out of here.  Y’all should get to whichever truck we’re taking, draw them away from our campers and then come back for us when we call.”  Admittedly it was a good plan.  When no one objected, Kirk led him to the closet where the emergency exit was.  Opening it, Justin poked his head out of the door and checked to see if any of the dead were under the camper.  There were none there, so he motioned to them all to get ready to go, hopped down through the hole in the floor and disappeared.

Chapter 14

Beacon Lodge

Zapata TX

Once Justin was outside under the large fifth wheel RV, he quickly scanned the area and assessed the situation.  He noticed that there were no undead at the very end of the long RV.  Silently, he crawled to the back of the place and got out from under it.  He ran a few steps away and began yelling at the walking corpses.  “Come on over here y’all!  Free food walking!  Come and getcha some!”  Once he’d gotten the attention of the walkers surrounding the camper, he ran over to his RV, climbed the steps to the door and once inside, he slammed the door behind him.  Zombies began pounding on the door that he’d just walked through.

Inside Kirk’s camper, the group heard him yelling, although it was muffled, and they couldn’t make out the words.  The sound of the slapping and pounding abruptly stopped.  A few seconds later, they heard a loud slam.  That was their cue to leave.  Weapons in hand, JC was going first this time, since he had farther to go.  Opening the door, he stepped down the steps followed closely by Bobby, who still had Caesar’s leash.  Amber followed, with her spear in one hand and Bobboo tightly gripping her other hand like before.  Kirk was last to exit the fifth wheel, meat tenderizer in his hand and his backpack on his back, he quickly and silently followed his friends.

When they reached the front of the camper, they split up.  JC went left towards his camper and the rest went straight across the street, back towards the waiting vehicles.  Bobby decided that Amber’s truck, a big dual cab long bed Chevy truck with a brush guard would fit them all.  It had a reinforced bumper and a full tank of gas.  The slip tank in the bed of the truck was empty, but to him, it was the perfect choice.  He’d bought her that truck six months ago when her old Volkswagen's motor blew, and it was worth every penny he’d spent.  Amber always left the keys in the ignition, since she feared losing them if she didn't.  Getting to the truck first, he threw his backpack into the bed. Then, he opened the back door and pushed the big dog into the backseat.  Kirk quickly dumped his bag in the bed as well and followed Caesar into the back of the truck. Once he was in, Bobby shut the door, opened the driver's door and hopped in.

Amber dropped her bag into the bed of the truck like the others and crawled into the passenger’s seat.  Next, she put Bobboo on her lap.  As she was pulling the door shut, a ragged looking woman who was covered in blood, missing an arm and had lost most of her body organs through a hole in her abdomen, slammed into the closing door.  This caused Bobboo to yelp with surprise and fear.  Caesar barked loudly at the woman, but he didn’t accomplish anything more than hurting everyone's ears.  Kirk put his arm around the large dog to try to calm him while Bobby started the truck and backed out of the parking space.  Amber sadly took one last look at the home they would never see again.  She loved their camper, so many memories had been made inside that small place.

Once out of the space, Bobby started driving slowly, honking the horn to get the attention of all the undead in the area.  This was extremely effective, and the truck had a large following before they’d even made it to the end of the tar road that led back to all their campers.  As he drove, he explained his plan.  “I’m gonna go around the park a few times to round up all the stragglers and then once we’re on the backside of the park and the guys call, I’ll gun it.  That should give them plenty of time to get to the truck.  These things aren’t very fast.”  “That’s good thinking Hoss,” Kirk said, “You got a good head on yer shoulders.” 

Chapter 15

Star’s house

Richmond VA

“Nana!  She texted me back!  They’re ok!  Thank God!” exclaimed Isaac.  He had been worried that something had happened to his family.  “I’m glad they're safe Mysaac.  You have to be quiet now though.  You can’t be yelling or we’re going to end up with those things outside trying to get in here,” Star said.  “Sorry Nana.” Isaac whispered.

The house they lived in had a chain link fence surrounding the front yard, so they felt relatively safe for now.  Star suggested they get some lunch, and then after they’d eaten, Isaac should show her and Charles how to sharpen his knives and how to aim his rifle.  “I have a feeling that my little pink taser won’t be very effective at killing those things out there if we have to.  Better to be safe than sorry,” she said.  Isaac agreed to show them what he knew after lunch.  He had a massive collection of knives.  He’d been collecting them ever since his mom had given him her father’s old buck knife for his 8th birthday.  He’d left it to her when he died. She passed it down to him when she felt he was old enough to be responsible.

They went into the kitchen to find something to eat.  “Let’s use the stuff from the fridge first, we don’t know when or if the power will go out,” Charles said.  They agreed and made turkey and cheese sandwiches and salads with ranch dressing for lunch.  With their lunch ready, they sat down in the living room to watch the news some more while they ate. Isaac daydreamed about what he’d be doing right now if he was with his mom, dad and brother.

After he’d finished his lunch, Isaac parted the blinds to see what he could see outside.  He saw one man pounding on the door of the house across the street.  He noticed that the pounding was attracting others, five of the people on the street were slowly heading towards the house as well.  Looking further down the street, he observed more figures shuffling in the direction of the sound of the pounding.  He counted ten. 

Suddenly, the door across the street flew open and their neighbor, Mr. Jones came out onto his porch.  Isaac watched as the old man pushed the guy that was pounding on his door off the porch.  He shoved the man so hard, that as he fell, the man did a backwards somersault before landing on the ground.  The others that were attracted to the sound were in the front yard now, and Mr. Jones started yelling for them to get off his lawn.  None of them heard or complied to his demands.  As they inched closer, the man Mr. Jones had pushed off the porch, stood up and started up the steps again.  Mr. Jones raised his hands to strike the man, but the man grabbed his wrist and pulled his arm towards his mouth.  Mr. Jones screamed and tried to get his arm free, but the man was very strong.  He cried out in pain as the man’s teeth tore a chunk of flesh from his meaty arm. In all his wriggling, trying to get free, Mr. Jones failed to notice that the people in the front yard were all now ascending the three steps to get to him on the front porch.  Before he could scream a second time, the man bit him again, followed by two more that had made it up the steps.  They pulled him down onto the floor and the dead surrounded him and dropped to their knees.  He was torn to pieces on his own front porch.

A few minutes later, the undead monsters all got to their feet and stumbled off the porch, away from Mr. Jones.  Seconds after that, Mr. Jones himself sat up.  He got to his feet and tumbled from the porch.  He stood back up and began to follow the rest of the creatures out of the yard.  Isaac closed the blinds.  He had seen enough to last him for a while.  He didn’t mention it to his grandparents.  He didn't want to worry them.

Chapter 16

Beacon Lodge

Zapata TX

Inside his camper, Justin quickly packed up his large dark blue duffle bag.  He had his .45 handgun, 2 boxes of ammunition, some Vienna sausages, granola bars, homemade venison jerky, a few cans of ravioli and two sets of clean clothes inside the bag. He thought for a second and then turned around, went to the bathroom and grabbed two rolls of toilet paper and his hairbrush and deodorant.  He threw his cellphone charger in the bag last, hoping that whichever truck Bobby chose had a working charging port in it.  From outside, over the pounding of the ghouls, he heard a vehicle start and then a horn honking a few seconds later.  The pounding and slapping immediately stopped and he knew then that he’d be safe until he could get to the truck.  He looked out one of his windows to confirm his thoughts.  The undead were indeed following the truck.  A group of at least 20 of those suckers were trailing behind the white Chevy.  Justin called JC to check on his progress.  “Hey man, I’m ready and the rest of them are in the truck.  How are you doing over there?” He asked.  JC replied, “I’m almost ready. A few of those zombie things followed me over here and one of them almost tripped me up as I got to my steps. I made it, but now there are a bunch of those dead fucks outside my door, banging, trying to get to me.  I couldn’t find my big bag.  I must’ve left it in my truck.  I’ve only got my small red laundry bag in here with me.  It doesn't fit as much stuff in it though. I’m just grabbing the last few things I can get into it.  We need to give Bobby some time to gather all the undead bastards he can get.  Can you fit any of these cans of Italian green beans in your bag?”  JC loved those beans and ate them every day for lunch at work.  When asked why it was all he ate for lunch every day, he simply said that they were like candy to him and who doesn’t like candy?  Justin replied, “Well man, if you can carry them out to the truck when they come get us, I’m sure there’ll be room for them.  Just don’t forget a can opener if you bring them, my food has pop tops.”  JC said, “that was the first thing I put in the bag, my friend.”

As JC packed, he started a conversation about what he thought Dallas might look like.  JC was a nervous talker, so he just humored him.  Justin didn’t know what Dallas looked like, but he knew how Beacon Lodge looked.  If Dallas was anything like here, then they were going to have a hard time getting back home. That didn’t mean he wouldn’t try though.  He would give his life for Madyson and would do everything he could to get home to her.  Justin stayed on the phone with JC until he was finished packing and then hung up and called Amber to let them know he was ready, so they could bring the truck around.  He was ready to get out of there.  His pregnant wife would be waiting for him, almost 500 miles away.

Chapter 17

Amber’s truck

Zapata TX

Bobby drove the truck slowly down the road surrounding the RV park with a throng of dead cannibals trailing behind them.  He was being careful not to drive too fast so the dead would stay interested in the meal tucked inside the vehicle, but fast enough so the dead wouldn’t overwhelm the front.  He had to run down a few stragglers that had stepped in front of the truck. They’d gone around the park three times already.  “One more time around and Justin and JC should be ready,” he said.  “I’ll head down the opposite side of the park and then gun it once one of them calls.  That should give the guys plenty of time to get to the truck and get inside.”  Amber’s phone vibrated.  It was Justin calling.  She put him on speaker, no need to stay quiet right now.  He was ready to be picked up.  “Hurry up, JC is bringing all his damn beans and he’s gonna need extra time to get his ass in the truck,” he said.  Bobby said “Okey doke, on the way,” and then Justin hung up.  JC sent a text saying that he was ready, but to pull up as close to his camper as they could get so he didn’t have to try to run so far to get to the vehicle with all his stuff in his arms.  Amber quickly replied with a thumb’s up emoji.

Bobby revved the engine and took off fast, leaving the horde of undead that had amassed behind the truck.  He turned the corner a little too fast for Caesar’s liking and he whined in the backseat.  He didn’t care much for car rides, and if they weren't careful, he’d eventually get car-sick and throw up.  They came around the park at break-neck speed and then came to a quick halt outside Justin’s camper.  Justin rushed out, slamming the RV door and hauled ass to the truck.  He threw his big bag into the bed of the truck, pulled open the back door and threw himself into the backseat and closed the door after him as Kirk quickly slid out of his way.  “Whew!” was all he said.  One more time around the park the truck went.  Bobby stopped the truck in front of JC’s camper and honked the horn once more, signaling to the man that they were here.  JC’s door flew open and out he came with a small laundry bag stuffed to the brim with items on his back and cans of his favorite beans in his arms.  He lumbered over to the truck, dropped his bag and his beans into the bed of the truck and opened the back door.  Caesar hopped into the front seat between Bobby and Amber while JC crammed himself into the backseat with Justin and Kirk and then shut the door.  They had done it!  Everyone was alive and had their essentials with them.  Even the dog seemed happy with their outcome, although neither Bobby nor Amber had remembered to bring his dog food.  As they drove out of the RV for the last time and headed for downtown Zapata, they discussed their next steps.  All the men in the back wanted to get to their families.  It was understandable, but with all of them in one vehicle, it would be impossible to get to them all at once.  The real question was whose place was the closest to them?

Chapter 18

Star’s house

Richmond VA

Isaac found himself sitting alone in his Nana’s room, checking and then rechecking his phone every five minutes hoping to hear from his mom.  His mind weighed heavily on the sight he had seen across the street earlier.  Sighing heavily, he opened the blinds of the single window in the room and peered out.  Outside, he saw a group of people shuffling around in the road in front of their house.  He watched as a big black cat came walking across the road in front of the people.  He was filled with horror as he watched one of the people, a man, pick the cat up, bring it to his face and take a big bite out of the poor feline’s belly.  The cat yowled in pain, twisted around and then half jumped, half fell out of the dead man’s hands.  It took two or three steps and then tripped over its own innards as they began falling out of the hole the man had created.  Isaac screamed and quickly closed the blinds.  That was enough of that, he thought.

He went out into the living room where his Nana and Papa were and told them about the cat.  Star parted the blinds and looked out towards the front of the house.  She was shocked to see that several of the group of people Isaac had told her about were now pressing themselves up against the chain link fence surrounding the area.  She saw Mr. Jones from across the street standing against the fence as well, trying to get in.  He looked so pale and he was covered in blood.  He had a hole where his stomach used to be.  It was truly a scary sight.  She felt such sadness for the man.  Mr. Jones was such a nice man; he always came to their barbecues whenever they invited him.  The undead outside must have heard Isaac scream, she thought.  The others not leaning on the fence were tearing the poor dead cat apart and eating what they’d recovered from it.  This sight compounded with how Mr. Jones looked made Star sick to her stomach and she looked away, closing the blinds.  “It’s a good thing I always buy extra food and bottled waters at the store when I go.  Bet you’re both glad I’m such a hoarder huh?”  She was happy they had enough of everything, she never wanted to leave the security of their small home.  Charles argued that he never said anything about how much she bought.  He said, “Always better to have more than we need, rather than not enough.”  Isaac agreed with him.  He loved all the extra snacks that she brought home.  His belly was always satisfied.  They all calmed themselves while looking back at the news channels, hoping to find a ray of hope coming from the man speaking from a teleprompter.

Chapter 19

Amber’s truck

Zapata TX

At first glance, life seemed to be going on as usual in the small downtown area of Zapata. The more they focused on the world around them however, those in the truck began to take notice that some of the people on the streets were dead and some were alive, just going about their normal routines.  As they looked on, it was getting easier to tell who had a pulse and who didn’t.  The dead all had the same gait as they walked.  It was a slow shuffling and their knees did not bend.  The zombies were soundless, which made it harder for anyone on the street to hear them coming up behind them.  The dead were roaming the sidewalk at a slow pace, some in groups, some alone.  Amber saw a lone zombie slowly making its way towards a woman pumping fuel at the local station and rolled down her window to warn the woman.  “Look out lady!” she yelled out of the open window, but the woman either didn’t’ hear her or didn’t think she was hollering to her.  The woman’s back stayed turned to the dead cannibal silently creeping up behind her.  As they turned the corner to get to highway 16, she saw the zombie grab the woman by the hair, pull her head back and bury its face in her neck.  Bright red blood squirted from her neck as he pulled away, chewing the mouthful of flesh he’d just rendered from the woman.  The woman fell to the ground screaming as they pulled out of sight.  “Oh my God, I think I’m gonna be sick,” Amber said.  Bobby pleaded with her to get a hold of herself. He explained that throwing up in the truck would be awful for all parties inside. She took a few deep breaths and her stomach calmed down.  That was a close call, she thought.

In her lap, Bobboo had fallen asleep in the space of the few minutes they’d been in the truck.  He hadn’t even woken up when she screamed at the now dead lady.  She reached down to brush his hair out of his eyes and noticed that he was warm.  No, not warm… Hot.  The boy had a fever.  Looking at her husband, she said “He’s got a fever babe.  He was fine this morning when he got up.”  Bobboo started coughing and the fit woke him up.  “I don’t feel good Mama,” he said and started coughing again.  It was a rattling cough from deep inside his lungs.

The three guys in the backseat all exchanged worried looks.  He was a part of their makeshift family and they all loved him in their own ways.  “No, this can’t be good at all.  The little man hasn’t been sick at all in the six months we’ve known him,” Kirk said.  “We could stop at a pharmacy really quick and get him some cold medicine if you think it would help,” Bobby said while driving the truck down highway 16.  “Screw that!” Justin exclaimed.  “You guys already forget what we just went through trying to get out of the campers?  If it’s a cold, he’ll feel better soon.  We need to keep moving.  I told Mady I’d be there as soon as I could.”  “Justin is right,” Amber said. “If it’s a cold, it won’t last long.  Let’s just keep going.  I’ll keep an eye on him.  If he gets worse, we’ll decide then.  Right now, it’s too early to tell what’s wrong with him, I’m no doctor.”

From the backseat, JC asked “So what’s the plan then guys?  I’d like to see my Karen soon, make sure she’s still ok.” Kirk answered, “Hico is about 6 hours from here.  Let’s get there first so I can check on my son Chet and the grandkids.  After that, we can head north towards Weatherford and Fort Worth to get Madyson and Karen.”  “How are we gonna fit everyone in the truck?” Bobby asked.  “We’ll burn that bridge when we get there cowboy,” Kirk answered.  They all fell silent as they looked out the windows at the carnage.  There were a large number of crashed vehicles on the road.  Bobby went around those he could by navigating the big truck onto the shoulder and in one case, out into a field, giving the smashed-up cars a wide berth as they passed. This doesn't bode well for the passengers of the truck.  They’d all thought that once they left Beacon Lodge, they would be safe.

Chapter 20

Star’s house

Richmond VA

From inside the house, Isaac, Charles and Star could hear the chain link fence squeaking as the dead people pushed against it.  They had turned off the TV and all the lights but needed to keep the furnace on since it was so cold outside.  Charles had health conditions that demanded he stay warm; his body couldn’t handle cold weather.  Every time the furnace kicked on, the people at the fence heard the sound it made and pushed harder against the old fence, trying to get to the noise.  It was an old fence, installed over 20 years ago when Charles and Star first bought the little home.  The fence wouldn’t take too much more pressure before it gave way.

Wrapped in a blanket and laying on the floor, Isaac willed his phone to ring or something to let him know that the rest of his family members were safe.  He was going to give his mom 30 more minutes or so before he texted her himself.  The suspense was killing him.  He hoped beyond hope that they’d be able to get away from the RV park safely, since it was so close to Mexico.  He had flown out to see them for his birthday the month before and he knew how close the border was from where his family stayed and had also seen the lake.  Even he noticed how quickly the water was dropping during the short two weeks he was there visiting. He thought that by now, the dead Mexicans could probably just walk across.  This thought scared him, but he was sure that his family would find a way to get to him eventually or that he’d find a way to get to them.  He missed his family more than he thought he ever could, and he longed desperately to hug his mom.

Star looked down at Isaac laying there on the floor and whispered to him to come over to the chair where she was sitting.  “Come on over here Mysaac,” she said, “let me hug you.  I’m a little scared.  Nana needs some love from her biggest grandson.”  He got up and went to where she was and hugged her tightly.  Once in her arms, he started to cry.  Big tears, full of anxiety and fear for his family, ran down his face.  She held him while he let it out, telling him it was okay to cry, and he’d be stronger because of it.  He cried on her shoulder for a while, until all his worry and fear fell away.  When he was done and lifted his head, he wiped the tears and snot from his face and did indeed feel better.  He was more clear headed and felt stronger, like the fear had all left his body through the water from his eyes.  His face showed resolve and his eyes grew hard.  He was ready to defend his home and his grandparents to the death if need be.

He grabbed his phone off the floor and sent his mom a text that told her that he loved her and not to worry about him or his grandparents.  He would give his life to protect his family and that he would see her again.  As he pressed send, he sent up a silent prayer to God that his mom was safe and she’d text, or better yet, call so he could hear her voice.  Man, he missed her.  From outside, the sounds of the squeaking got louder.

Chapter 21

Amber’s truck

Highway 16

Hebbronville TX

Amber’s phone vibrated, alerting her to a text from Isaac.  She read it aloud. “I love you mom.  We’re still okay here.  Don’t worry about me, Nana and Papa.  I will keep them safe.  I know I will see you again.  I’m sorry I’m not there with you right now. Please let me know you guys are alright,” she finished.  Once she’d read it to her companions, she called her son.  “Hey baby!  I love you too.  I’m so glad you’re safe.  What’s going on there?”  Isaac quickly told her about the now decimated cat, the furnace and the dead people that were pushing on the fence.  He assured her that they would be alright.  Amber could hear the strength in his voice.  She knew that he’d do everything he could to stay alive.  She told him to keep his phone charged and that she’d keep hers charged as well. 

Next, she told him about his brother’s close call with the dead woman trying to bite him and how it only left a bloody scratch, thanks to the duct tape.  She also explained that his brother was now sick and coughing with a fever.  “That's not good Mama,” Isaac said.  “That’s what happens when someone gets Covid-19.  He needs to be tested…  Oh no, he’s gonna die and then wake up again isn’t he?” Not wanting to entertain that idea, she said “We don’t know what’s wrong with him yet, it could just be a cold.  Just need to have hope that he’ll be ok.  We will keep you updated on our location and your brother's health as often as we can.  We are heading to Pawpaw’s son's house in Hico.  We made it out of the RV park and away from Zapata now and are driving away from Mexico.  We stayed away from Laredo since Nuevo Laredo borders that big city and those things could be all over that place too.”  “Okay Mom,” he said.  “I love you so much and I miss you and Dad a lot. Hug Bobboo for me and call or text me when you get to Hico ok?”  She answered quickly, “You got it son.  I love you too.  Call me if something happens there that I should know about.”  They said their goodbyes and Amber ended the call.  Sitting there quietly holding her son, she looked out the window and got lost in her thoughts for the next hour while Bobby drove the truck north.

Pulling her back to the present, Bobby said “That big boy is going to be just fine.”  Justin agreed.  Amber nodded and looked down at Bobboo while he slept.  She was sure that Isaac would be alright, her gut told her so.  His little brother though, not so much.  She felt him again and he was hotter still.  “You guys, what do we do if he does have the virus?” she asked.  “I can’t kill my own son.”  The three guys in the backseat stayed quiet.  What could any of them say?  She looked over at Bobby and asked, “Could you do it?  I mean hypothetically.  He’s our baby boy, I can’t handle this.”  He thought for a minute before speaking, knowing that he’d have to choose his words wisely or else he’d cause her to cry.  “I wouldn’t want to have to do it, but if it keeps you safe, then… Yes.  If he dies, then he’s dead.  If he wakes up again, then it won’t be Bobboo that wakes up.  It’ll be a Mexican made demon spawn.  Our little boy will never become a zombie, I can promise you that.”  Kirk put a reassuring hand on her shoulder and left it there, trying to comfort her.

Suddenly, Bobboo started coughing again.  This time when he did though, he started hacking up blood.  He looked extremely pale, his eyes were sunk into his head and his breathing was very shallow.  Right then, Amber knew that Isaac was right.  This was no cold.  The dead woman had passed the virus onto him.  Bobboo was going to die and then turn into an undead monster.  “We need to stop somewhere rural before we get to another town.  He’s going to die Bobby…  My baby boy is gonna die!” she said in a trembling voice.  She began to sob uncontrollably; her heart was broken.

Chapter 22

Star’s house

Richmond VA

The sounds from outside were getting louder.  Charles peeked through the blinds to see how bad it had become out there.  He was nervous that the dead would get inside the fence.  He saw that the sound of the shaking fence had alerted more zombies to their presence and now he could even see the road behind them.  He counted at least 30 all pressed up into the fence, trying to get to the house.  The view outside made him tremble.

When Charles turned back from the window, Isaac was staring at him.  “Is it bad out there Papa?” he asked his grandpa.  “The look on your face says it’s bad.”  Charles answered, “Yeah kid, it’s not looking good at the moment.”  He didn't know what else to say to the boy.  Charles was a realist and didn’t believe in sugar coating information for anyone.  Especially now that dead folks were up walking around trying to make more dead folks.  Isaac went back to cleaning the little rifle he’d gotten from his dad a couple of years ago.  It was a .22, very easy to load and shoot.  He’d practiced in the backyard of his old house for hours and hours.  By now, he was a crack shot and could almost field strip the gun and reassemble it with his eyes closed.  He had four magazines for it, but now he wished he had more.  The three boxes of bullets he had for it didn’t seem like enough.  He also had his collection of freshly sharpened knives sitting on the floor with him.  Huge buck knives, stilettos, switchblades, hunting knives, knives with engraved handles etc.  You name it, he probably had one.  He even owned a machete.  His mom had gotten that for him before a camping trip and he’d whacked down a small tree with it.  He loved knives and guns and had plans to go into the military once he turned 18.  Guess that probably won’t happen now, he thought.

Charles owned a .38 pistol and had a box and a half of ammunition for it.  He pulled it out of the lockbox where he kept it and asked Isaac to clean it for him and to make sure it was ready to fire just in case the front door or a window was breached.  Isaac happily obliged.  If what Charles was thinking was correct, they were going to need all the firepower and knives they could get their hands on.  Charles silently thanked God that their grandson was here.  With his bad heart and only one working lung, he didn’t think he and Star would make it long without Isaac.  Especially since Star had a broken hip and the moment, and she wasn’t very agile to begin with.

Outside, the fence suddenly made a horribly loud screeching sound.  At that moment, he knew that the fence had given way.  It was only a matter of time before the dead would be at their doorstep.  They would need to stay silent now, or the cannibals would hear them.

Chapter 23

Amber’s truck

Highway 16

San Antonio TX

“He’s not breathing Bobby!”  Amber screamed from the passenger seat.  “Stop the truck, let us out!  We gotta do something!”  Bobby obliged and pulled the truck to the side of the desolate road.  They hadn’t seen any zombies for a while.  There were no people or vehicles on the road either, for that matter.  Thankfully, this stretch of land was practically uninhabited.  As soon as he put the truck in Park, Amber opened her door, carried Bobboo out of the truck and sunk to the ground with him in her arms.  Bobby and the rest of the guys in the backseat got out as well.  Even Caesar jumped out.  He went and sniffed around the area, peed and then went back to the truck and laid down.

“What do we do?” Amber asked.  She knew what had to happen, but her heart just couldn’t bear the thought of losing her young son.  Kneeling down next to her, Bobby whispered “Say your goodbyes and get back into the truck, my love.  We will take care of this.”  With tears forming, he turned and looked at Kirk, his eyes pleading for help. “I love you so much my sweet baby boy.  I will think of you always.  I’ll miss you every day and I will never forget you.  You made my whole world complete.”  She held his lifeless hand and kissed his face for the last time and then gently placed him on the ground.  She stood up, unsteady on her feet, and slowly walked to the truck.  Once inside, she folded in on herself.  The men could hear her mournful wailing from outside.

Kirk pulled out his pocketknife and knelt down beside his dear friend and Bobboo.  He held it out to Bobby and told him “Easiest and quickest way will be to put this in his ear.  I know it’s hard, but you know it must be done.  Soon he will change and then once his eyes open again, it will be harder.  I’m here with ya.”  He looked around at JC and Justin and said, “We all are.”  Bobby took the knife from Kirk with shaking hands.  He hugged his son’s lifeless body for the last time and then slowly pushed the knife into his son’s ear.  He broke down in sobs right then.  He couldn’t fight it anymore.  Kirk laid his hand on his friend’s shoulder and left it there until his buddy stopped crying.  Once Bobby had composed himself, he got into the truck to console his poor heartbroken wife.  He hugged her tightly as she screamed and cried.  Caesar howled, sensing the loss as well.

Justin and JC found a couple of shovels in the bed of the truck and began to dig a grave for the small boy while Kirk said a prayer over Bobboo’s body.  They didn’t have anything to wrap him in, but the dead don’t care.  When the hole had been dug, Kirk helped Justin play Bobboo inside with his Optimus Prime hoodie over his face and covered him up.  Although he wasn’t actually family, they had all grown close to the boy over the last several months, and it was like losing a member of their family too.  They were all sad.

Having buried the boy, the men got back into the truck.  Kirk said a prayer out loud for everyone inside to hear.  “Lord, take this innocent boy into your arms and into Heaven.  His time on Earth is through.  Be with us as we try to go on with our lives and please help to heal our broken hearts.  Thank you for sending him to us to touch our lives.  We pray this in Your name, Amen.”  With that done, Bobby started the truck through tears in his eyes.

Chapter 24

Star’s house

Richmond VA

Slapping, pounding and thumping sounds came from outside the house.  The screen door rattled, with every smack the undead made.  Charles had deadbolted the thick metal storm door hours earlier and thanked the Lord above for the foresight to buy that door a few years ago.  It had been on sale at the local hardware store and although his door at home was still fine, he couldn’t pass up the deal.  Star had thrown a fit when he brought it home, saying it was a waste of money, but calmed down once he’d installed it.

Star and Isaac sat huddled together on the couch.  Isaac had his rifle in one hand and his machete in the other.  Star was holding a small knife and her taser.  They were prepared for them to break down the door.  Star was very frightened.  She had never seen any zombie movies and couldn’t stomach blood and guts when it came to movies.  She even fainted if she saw blood in real life.  Amber was the one that loved zombie movies not her, she thought.  Star knew from her daughter that the only way to kill a zombie was to break their brain, but she was not made for this.  Isaac did his best to keep her calm and assure her that they’d be ok, he knew what to do.

For the moment, they were still relatively safe.  The door was made of thick metal and all the windows had bars on them.  The part of Richmond they lived in had gone downhill over the years, so recently Charles had them installed on every window.  He’s gotten a deal on those too.

Charles turned off the furnace, put on a sweater and sat down with Star and Isaac.  He silently hoped the things outside would give up and go away.  “You’re gonna get sick if you don’t stay warm,” Star whispered.  “I’ll be fine,” he replied, patting her hand reassuringly.  “Maybe if the creatures outside don’t hear anything, they’ll go away.  I’ll live without heat for a while.  Besides, we got blankets, sweatshirts, coats and a heating pad.  Don’t worry about me.” 

While they sat there, Isaac began to feel a weird, second sense that something was wrong with his Mom.  He set his machete down, got his phone out of his back pocket and sent her a message asking if she and his brother were alright.  He just knew in his gut that they were not.  He also told her of the dead breaking the fence and that they were now at the front door.  He assured her that they were still safe for now and told her he loved her and to get in touch soon.  He put his phone into his pocket and then picked his machete back up.  He wondered how long they’d have to wait before they either left or got inside.  He was getting tired of sitting around waiting for something to happen.

Chapter 25

Amber’s truck

Highway 16

North of San Antonio TX

Bobby turned on the radio to check the local stations to see if anyone knew anything yet.  The radio announcer had just started telling news stories from all over the country.  “Top news today, gasoline prices have hit an all-time low with a national average of $1.49 per gallon.  News out of Austin says the new vaccine is causing side effects and doctors recommend staying home if you feel sick in any way.  Canada has closed its borders again in light of the recent election results and Mexico has gone dark folks.  That is to say that no one in their Government has been available for publicity shoots of the new vaccine.  No one even answers the phone.  Next up, weather.  Hold tight folks, get a new song coming atcha right after these words from our sponsors.”

“Great, so Austin got the Mexican vaccine too?  I thought it was just Richmond,” exclaimed JC.  “If Austin got it, then Dallas could’ve gotten some of that shit too.  I'm going to call my wife.  Dallas is less than an hour from Fort Worth.”  He called Karen.  Karen told him that she was fine, not to worry about her, and that nothing was out of the ordinary around their place. She ended the call by saying “You just hurry up and get your ass back to me.”  Then she hung up.  JC chuckled, “she always has to have the last word.”

Justin said “shit, I’m calling Mady.  Weatherford isn’t far from Dallas either.  Lord I hope she’s ok.”  Madyson was 5 months pregnant with their first child, a boy they were planning to name Terrell after Justin’s father.  He’d passed away a few months earlier and thought it was a great way to pay tribute to the great man.  She had been working on the nursery while Justin finished the windmill job.  He has assured her that he’d be home before she gave birth to their baby.  She’d had a Dr. appointment and an ultrasound the day before.  Her and the baby were both healthy on previous visits, so he hadn’t been worried.  When Mady answered the phone, her voice sounded hollow and she was coughing.  “Mady, how are things there?  Are you and the baby okay?  Why are you coughing?” Justin inquired.  “The baby is fine. I’m sick though.  Dr. Clayborne said it could be Covid-19, so he ran a covid test and then gave me the vaccine and told me that I should feel better soon.  This cough won’t go away though, so I’ve been taking some cold medicine too, just in case.”  Justin hung his head and sighed, “Oh Lord Mady, did the Dr. say where the vaccine came from?”  “No, he didn’t, but he said it was a new version his office had just gotten in and that I’d feel better soon.”  Justin’s shoulders slumped and his face went pale.  She had just confirmed his worst fears.  She’d gotten the bad vaccine and was going to turn into one of those dead fuckers.

Just then, she started coughing again.  It was a hacking cough, much like Bobboo’s had been.  It sounded terrible.  “Is it worse today, honey?” he asked.  “Yeah it is, and my chest hurts,” she said.  “I think maybe I’ve got bronchitis or pneumonia or something.  I’m going to urgent care shortly.  My mom is gonna drive me.”  Justin said “Well call me as soon as you leave and let me know what’s wrong with ya.  I don’t want to alarm you, but Mexico created a new vaccine that doesn’t make you better.  It kills you and turns you into a zombie.”  She giggled.  “Ha ha, very funny.  I love you, you big dummy.” She hung up the phone.  Justin sat there looking down at the wallpaper on his phone. It was an ultrasound picture.  His sons ‘first photo’ he’d thought, when he put it on there.  Now he sat there thinking about that picture being his son's only picture and a tear escaped his eye.

Shortly after the call with Mady, Amber’s phone vibrated, a text from her son.  He asked if everything was ok and told her of the dead breaking through the fence and being at their front door now.  He was okay though and he loved her.  They were staying quiet, hoping the dead would go away.  “How do I tell him about his brother?” she asked out loud.  No one answered her question.  They didn’t know any better than she did.  She thought for a moment of what her words would be before starting the text: 

Hi son, I’m glad you’re ok.  Me and your dad are ok too, but you were right about the scratch that dead lady gave Bobboo.  He got sick pretty fast and then he couldn’t breathe and choked on his own blood.  Bobby and the guys laid him to rest.  He’s not in any pain anymore. I’m so sorry I couldn’t keep him safe.  PLEASE STAY ALIVE.  I don’t know what I’d do if something happened to you too.  I can’t lose both my sons.  We’re only a few hours away from Hico now.  I’ll text again when we get there. Let me know if anything changes.  I love you.

With the message sent, she put her phone away and then stared out the window, focusing on nothing in particular.  She felt numb and empty inside right now.

Chapter 26

Star’s house

Richmond VA

Isaac had put his phone on vibrate earlier but jumped up startled when a text notification came from his pocket.  I was from his Mom. He opened it and read it in a whisper to his grandparents.  When he was done, they were all crying.  “Oh no.” Star gasped, “My poor BB!  I’m so sorry Mysaac.”  Isaac just sat there in disbelief, thinking about all the fights they used to have.  He truly regretted every mean thing he’d ever said to him and now he would never be able to apologize or make it better.  He just hoped his brother knew how much he really did love him.  As he sat there thinking, tears leaked from his eyes and snot ran down his face, but he barely noticed.  He looked down at his phone again and started scrolling through his camera roll.  Selfies he’d taken with his brother and his mom dominated the screen.  “At least I have those,” he said quietly as he plugged his phone up to the charging cord.  If it lost charge, he’d never see them again, so he made up his mind to print them out in a little bit, so he’d have them just in case.  The power wouldn’t last forever.

Charles grabbed some Kleenex from the box on the table beside the couch without saying a word.  He didn’t know what there was to say.  He hadn’t spent much time with Bobboo, he didn’t know how to connect with little kids.  He spent a lot of time with Isaac though, and it hurt him to see his grandson in pain. It was unfortunate that the little boy had died.  “At least we’re safe for now,” he thought to himself.

The zombies that were at the front door had wandered away in search of something to chew on, since they’d turned off the furnace and had been quiet.  Without movement or sound, they easily lost interest and moved on to the next sight or noise.  Charles was cold, but he didn’t dare turn the furnace back on.  He put a jacket on over his sweater and sat down on the heating pad he kept in his “special chair.”  It was just a lazy boy recliner, but it was the most comfortable spot in the house.  He sure hoped the power didn’t go out anytime soon.  It was projected to get below freezing tonight and he didn’t know how long he’d last without at least a heating pad to help keep his core temperature up.  If it got too low, he would start coughing and his heart would beat irregularly, and that could trigger another heart attack.  With things as bad as they were outside, he would die without medical support and doubted an ambulance would even come.

Star sat there quietly with tears streaming down her face, trying her hardest to keep her emotions in check.  She felt she had to be strong for Isaac.  If he lost it, he wouldn’t be much help and as much as she wanted to scream and cry out how unfair it was that her 7 year old grandson died, in her heart she knew that what this world was becoming was no place for little kids.  Hell, it was no place for her either for that matter, she thought.  “He’s in a better place,” she said to herself.  “No more running for him.”

Chapter 27

Amber’s truck

San Marcos TX

The drive had been a quiet one since Justin’s conversation with Madyson.  No one knew what to say to him.  There was no way to cheer him up and both Amber and Bobby were still grieving their lost little boy.  Bobby broke the silence.  “We’re not far from Austin now, I hope things aren’t as bad there as they were at Beacon Lodge.”  Kirk said, “If they are, we need to be ready to plow those dead suckers down cowboy.  Are you still ok to drive?  I’ll take over for a while if you want, give you some time to hug your wife and such.”  Bobby quickly agreed that he’d rather ride than drive, especially if they were gonna have to run folks over.  The pain of losing his son was still too fresh and needed to comfort Amber anyways.

Bobby pulled the truck to the shoulder and they all played Chinese fire drill, getting out and rearranging their seating arrangements so Bobby and Amber could be together in the back.  JC hopped in the front passenger seat beside Caesar, and Justin scooted over to the far side to give the couple some room together.  The one in the truck to have the same seat, was the dog.  No one spoke as Kirk pulled the truck onto the road and drove the 30 miles to the outskirts of Austin. 

Austin was bad.  Like really bad.  Walking corpses were everywhere, and they heard lots of gunshots and screams through the closed truck windows.  Kirk weaved around dead cannibals with their arms outstretched, trying to catch the truck.  He did the best he could, but with the brush guard on the truck reinforcing the radiator, he ended up just driving over the ones he couldn’t avoid.  The dead splattered blood all over the truck as they were hit, making the vehicle a red, nasty mess.  No one inside cared about the mess though, they just all silently hoped that Kirk wouldn’t stop for anything.  The ones he hadn’t killed, got back up and followed the truck.  Soon, they had a following again.  A parade of dead cannibals shuffled closely behind, attracted to the loud motor as it went down the street.

As they passed through Austin, they saw a woman on the second floor of an apartment building standing on her balcony and holding her sliding glass door shut.  They couldn’t see her face, but they could hear her screaming “Frank stop! It’s me, Margaret.  I’m your wife!  I love you.  PLEASE FRANK, DON’T DO THIS!”  They heard the glass shatter and saw her get yanked through the now broken door.  The screaming stopped and they knew she was dead.  Well dead-ish.

This made Kirk drive a little faster.  “Just gotta make it a few more blocks and we’ll be out of the heavy populated part of the city,” he said.  “We’re gonna need fuel soon though.”  That was a scary thought. Bobby said, “Let’s get out of the city first and then we’ll find a roadside gas station or something.” He continued, “We’ve all got weapons and there’s enough of us to watch from every angle while we’re stopped.  Once we do, it’ll be enough to get us to your son’s house Pawpaw.  Hico is a small town, so maybe it’s real safe there.  I for one would love to get some sleep and I know Amber needs the rest too.  It’s been a long day,” he finished with a sigh.

Chapter 28

Madyson’s house

Weatherford TX

Madyson had just gotten back from the urgent care center.  She was indeed sick, and it was the Covid-19 virus.  The vaccine only made the symptoms worse, and the Dr. on call there couldn’t do anything for her.  He just sent her home.  She was so bad by theme her mom drove up the driveway that her dad had to carry her into the house.  She was just too weak to walk.  As he laid her on her bed, she asked for her phone.  She wanted to call Justin and tell him what was going on with her.  She knew in her heart now, that Justin wasn’t joking about becoming a zombie due to the vaccine.  She’d made up her mind that she wasn’t going out like that.  She’d leave this world on her own terms.  Just as soon as she talked to her husband one last time.

With trembling hands, she dialed his number.  When he answered, she said “Honey, don’t say anything.  I need to tell you some stuff and I need you to listen.  I’ve got the virus.  You were right, I’m gonna be a zombie soon, I can feel it.  Terrell hasn’t moved this whole time; he might be dead already.  I want you to know that I love you very much and you’ve made me a happy woman in the years we’ve been together.  My high school sweetheart, the love of my life.  You take care of yourself.  Don’t come for me, I’ll be dead before you get here.  I have my gun and I’m gonna use it on myself when I’m done talking to you.  I don’t want to hurt my parents by coming back from the dead.  They’d never be able to put me down.  Don’t forget me.”  She stopped talking and waited for a response from Justin.  She’d said all she needed to say.  He told her that he loved her too and she thought she heard his voice waver, but in all the time they’d been together, she’d never seen or heard him cry, not even when his father passed away.  She felt her chest tighten and she wanted to cough SO bad.  She told him she had to go and hung up, never hearing what his last words to her had been.  She had heard that he loved her, and that was enough for her.

She dropped her phone on the floor next to the bed and grabbed the.38 snub nosed pistol from under her pillow.  She put the barrel into her mouth, cocked the hammer back and pulled the trigger.  Her world went black, she did not wake up.  Her parents had heard the gunshot and came running into the room.  They saw her lying there, her brain and skull splattered across the headboard.  They knew that she wasn’t going to put them through the ordeal of having to kill her for a second time, after the virus killed her first. As much as they would miss her, she had made their home safe by bravely taking care of the problem on her own.

Chapter 29

Amber’s truck

Austin city limits TX

Justin’s phone rang.  It was Mady.  He answered and she spoke, cutting him off before he could say anything more than “Hello,” He listened while she spoke, his face unreadable.  After a moment, he croaked “I Love you too Madyson.  You’ve made me happy too…”  But she had hung up after he told her he loved her.  She was gone.  He tried to call her back, but it just rang and rang.  He hadn’t cried since he was 10 years old.  His father had always told him that tears were a form of weakness and real men weren’t weak. But at 24, he couldn’t hold it in anymore.  He screamed loudly with tears streaming down his face.  He’d lost both his wife and unborn baby with one prick of a needle.

Amber reached over and tried to hug him, but he shrugged her off and faced the window, closing his eyes and said in a gruff voice, “Mady got the virus.  She killed herself. She thought the baby already died earlier today; he wasn’t moving at all in her belly… I’m fine, leave me alone for a while. Let me know when we’re gonna stop for gas.  I need to kill something.”  The rest of the people in the truck were shaken by news and didn’t know what to say.  They all knew Mady, she sometimes came to spend time with Justin on the weekends.  She came to all their parties, whenever they threw them too.  She was a good friend to Amber when she was lonely, and on occasion, would come down for the day just to hang out with her.  They would all miss her.

They still had a ways to go until they would be far enough away from Austin to even consider stopping for fuel.  There were still lots of zombies roaming the highway.  The ride would give Justin time to grieve now too.  They rode in silence, each lost in their own thoughts, hiding their minds from the reality of the world as they knew it. 

Kirk wondered if his broken friends would be able to perform when they needed to, heartache tended to screw a person’s head up.  He decided to give them the benefit of the doubt, they were a strong bunch, but they’d already been through so much.  People can act irrationally when they’re pushed past the limits of what their brains can comprehend. How much more could they take before one of them cracked?  He said a silent prayer that they’d all live to see tomorrow morning and the mental burden wouldn’t last.  He truly hoped the old adage was true.  Time heals all wounds.

Chapter 30

Star’s house

Richmond VA

Night was falling down around them.  It was almost 6:00 in the evening and the temperature was dropping rapidly.  Charles sat shivering in his chair.  The heating pad warmed his posterior, but the rest of him was freezing.  Star noticed Charles shivering and asked Isaac go into their room and get the heavy comforter from their bed as to help keep Charles warm.  Isaac obliged.  When he returned, he had a quizzical expression on his face.  As he handed the blanket to Charles, he asked Star, “Isn’t there a heater in your ‘yarn barn’ Nana?  I could go out to the backyard and get it.”

“What?!?  Go outside?  No, you can’t do that!  The monsters are out there,” she answered.  “Sure, I can,” he said.  “The backyard has the tall privacy fence all around it, and I can be really quiet.  Plus, I’ll take my machete with me.  You can stand by the back door and wait for me.  Then, when I come back, you can lock the door behind me.  I won’t let Papa get sick knowing I could’ve done something to help him.”  She relented and he changed from the sweatpants and t-shirt he was wearing to some thick jeans, a hoodie, heavy boots and a leather jacket his father had given him.  He picked up his big machete and held it expertly in his right hand.  He was ready.  Next, he motioned for his Nana to follow him to the back door.

At the back door, they both peered out the small window on the door into the backyard.  Nothing moved, no sounds came either.  It looked safe from what they could see.  She quickly unlocked the door and Isaac slipped out into the cold night air.  Once on the deck, he creeped down the steps and cautiously made his way across the backyard to the shed that he had helped Charles build for Star last summer.  She did a lot of crafting and crocheting and had a lot of customers, so she needed a place of her own in which to work.  He quietly opened the door, stepped inside and shut the door.  He let out a sigh of relief that he’d made it to the little shed unnoticed. He had been shaking.  He was scared, but he wasn’t going to let that stop him.  Once he caught his breath for a moment, he felt around for the heater.

He regretted not grabbing one of the many flashlights they had inside the house but decided that a shining light might attract some of the dead.  Searching in the pitch-black building, his hands fell onto what he assumed was the heater.  He knelt down to get a better look at it in the dark.  It was the heater, like he suspected.  He set the machete down on a crafting table for a moment and picked up the heater.  Balancing the heater in one arm, he opened the door quietly with the other, and then picked the machete up.  He left the yarn barn door open and cautiously made his way back through the backyard towards the house.

On his way to the deck, he struggled to see his path and stumbled over a root that had been sticking out of the ground.  He almost dropped the heater, but he managed to keep a grip on it as he went to one knee.  He became aware of the sound the heater made as he jostled it around, which worried him.  It was going to attract attention.  A loud banging sound came from the privacy fence, followed by another and then more.  He knew he had to hurry and get inside, or he was going to attract even more of those things.  He had his machete, but he really didn’t want to have to use it tonight.  He didn’t want to try to use it in the dark either.  It didn’t take more than a few seconds before the whole fence was rocking.  It was a nerve-wracking ordeal with the heater being so big, but feeling around, his foot finally found the steps.  As he ascended the deck stairs and made his way to the door, he could see over the fence where the dead were pounding on it, trying to get to the fleshy bits on the other side. 

One of the dead cannibals was their neighbor Mr. Wills.  In life, Mr. Wills was a nice older man in his 60’s.  He always had great stories about his life.  He’d been in the Vietnam war, and since Isaac intended to join the military as well, he hung on every word the old man said.  He also paid Isaac very well to cut his grass during the summer and would reward him with a popsicle if it was a hot day.  Now, the old man was shirtless, with large bites taken from his chest, his nose had been bitten off and both of his ears were gone!  The sight of the man in such bad shape made Isaac sick to his stomach and he almost retched.  He looked away and composed himself as Star opened the door.  He hurried inside and she quickly closed the door and locked it behind them.  They both let out a sigh of relief.  He had done it.  He was back inside safe and sound.  “I told you I could do it Nana,” he said “Now Papa can be warm.  That’s one crisis averted.”  He took the heater to the living room to where Charles sat shivering and plugged it in.  With the heater warming the room, he and Star sat down on the couch and he told them about Mr. Wills.  Charles shook his head saying “That poor man.  He probably opened the door for the dead when they pounded on it.  He loved to have company over, and he could’ve thought it was one of the other neighbors coming over for a cup of coffee and some conversation.  Hell, it might’ve been one of the other neighbors that pounded on his door and he didn’t think about dead people being outside.  I mean, who would?  It’s not as if this happened all the time.  If we make it through this alive, remind me to call his daughter and tell her about it.”

Star agreed to remind him, although she didn’t think his daughter would want to know that the poor man had been trying to get to Isaac.  She thought his daughter would only want to know whether Mr. Wills was alive or not.  They sat quietly, listening to the dead pound on the backyard fence for a while, hoping they wouldn’t knock the damn thing down too. 

Chapter 31

Amber’s truck

Gatesville TX

Kirk drove the truck to the outskirts of a little town called Gatesville.  It was a small town with only 2,427 people, according to the roadside sign they’d just passed.  It was far enough outside of Austin that Kirk thought might be safe enough to stop for fuel.  The truck was basically running on fumes anyways, if they didn’t stop now, they’d be out of gas soon.  Slowing down, he found a small sign advertising a gas station and turned right, following the directions printed on the thing.  Pulling into the parking lot, the gas station looked deserted, but there were pumps.  There was also a newer car parked in a space out front, so he knew that someone was around.

They hadn’t seen many zombies in the area, and those they saw didn’t seem to notice the truck, or so they thought.  Kirk asked if the rest of the crew felt safe enough stopping here.  They all did.  Driving through Austin had been very scary for all of them and they were all still on edge.  Justin just kept saying that he needed to kill something.  He was still extremely upset about his wife and unborn son.  Kirk pulled into the station lot and parked next to the pumps.  Before anyone got out, they would need a plan to keep them all safe while he pumped fuel.  “Everyone is going to need to get out,” Bobby said.  “I’ve gotta piss and I’m sure Caesar does too.”  Caesar whined when Bobby said the word ‘pee’, so that confirmed his needs as well.  Amber spoke in a low voice, “Yeah I gotta go too.”  The others in the truck agreed that this was the place to get that take care of too.

“So, how do we want to do this?”  Justin asked the group.  He was looking around to see if anything was coming from the direction they’d just come from.  Kirk looked at the pumps.  They were the old kind, the ones that didn’t have a credit card slot in them.  He looked back towards the others and said “We’re gonna have to go inside and get the attendant to turn the pumps on for us.”  He gestured to the wall near the end of the building,  “I see the sign for the bathrooms pointing around the corner of the building, how about Justin comes with me into the station with his weapon ready to re kill any of the dead that could be inside, and we’ll get the pumps on.  While we're there, if it’s safe, we’ll grab some cold drinks and snacks for the road and a bowl or something for water for the dog.  JC can take Amber to the bathrooms really quick, and Bobby can take Caesar to do his business.  Sound good to Y’all?”  Everyone agreed, grabbed their weapons and got out of the truck.

Kirk and Justin headed towards the doors in the front of the building.  JC motioned to Amber to follow him around the corner of the building, towards the restrooms.  He was a few steps ahead of her and decided to check the ladies’ room for predators before she got there.  Cautiously, he opened the door and looked around, his metal pipe held high over his head, ready to bash a dead person's skull in if the need arose.  Seeing nothing out of the ordinary inside, he lowered his arm as Amber walked up beside him.  He moved away from the door, and she quickly went in,

Seeing that the women's bathroom was empty, he let his guard down, assuming the men’s room would be unoccupied as well.  When he opened the door however, two figures immediately grabbed him and pulled him inside the bathroom.  The door swung shut behind him.  He screamed “OH SHIT!” and tried to get away from them.  He whacked at them wildly with his pipe, but they were on him.  Man, those suckers were strong!  He managed to get away from them momentarily, by locking himself into one of the filthy stalls, but one of them were pounding on the stall door, and the other…  Where was the other one?!?  He heard it drop to the floor and start dragging itself under the stall!  He screamed “HELP ME!  SOMEONE HELP!” at the top of his lungs.  He hoped that Amber would hear him from the other bathroom and get the guys or something, or he was going to die.

Amber had just finished up, when she heard JC yelling from next door.  She grabbed her spear from the floor where she’d laid it down and bolted out of the ladies’ room door.  Bobby had heard the commotion and yelling as well and was running over to the bathrooms too.  As Amber came out the door, they collided and fell to the ground.  They both shot to their feet and went to the men’s room, flinging the door open, not knowing what was in there with JC, or how many.

There were two zombies in the room with the large man.  One banging on a closed stall door and the other was crawling slowly across the floor, trying to get under the stall.  “I got the one standing up,” Amber said quickly.  She jabbed the spear into the back of its neck.  It turned around as she pulled it out, but she swiftly jabbed it again. This time, the spear went straight into its right eye, effectively putting it down.  Bobby still had his 1911 in its holster on his hip, so he pulled it out and shot the crawling monster in the head twice.  Both were dead in a matter of a few seconds.

Bobby knocked on the stall door and told JC it was safe to come out now.  The danger was over.  JC had blood on his shirt but convinced Amber and Bobby that it was the dead people's blood, not his own and that he was perfectly fine, just rattled.  He kicked himself for not keeping his guard up.  He’d have to do better, or he wasn’t gonna make it.  “Damn the luck,” he said.  “Had to pee so bad, I pissed myself when the fuckers pulled me in.”  Bobby smirked, “At least you were in the bathroom.  You might want to change your pants though; I don’t want to ride in the truck with you smelling like piss.”  JC nodded and went to the truck, retrieved his laundry bag from the bed and grabbed the extra pair pants he’d brought.  He went back to the bathrooms to change.  He left his dirty pants on the floor with the twice dead zombies and went back to the truck.

Inside the service station, Kirk and Justin found an old woman lying on the floor with a bullet hole in her forehead.  The cash register was open and empty.  “Looks like this place got robbed,” Justin exclaimed.  “Guess we don’t have to pay for fuel or drinks now.  It really is the beginning of the end, isn’t it?”  Kirk just nodded his head, “Go check out the back room for something for the dog to eat and drink from.” he said.  Justin walked through the curtain separating the back room from the store and disappeared.  Kirk looked around the counter for a button or lever to turn the pumps on.  He found a red button under the counter, below the register and pushed it.  The pump dinged from outside.  He hollered to Justin to hurry up, while he grabbed an empty sack and filled it with bottled waters and candy bars.  On second thought, he grabbed a case of his favorite beer as well.  He stood at the door, waiting for Justin.

Justin materialized a few seconds later with a small grin on his face.  He had a candy bar sticking out of his mouth and a metal bowl and a bag of cheap dog food in his hands.  Together they headed out the door towards the truck.  They met up with JC, Bobby and Amber outside.  They quickly told the two men what had transpired in the bathroom.  “Aww man, I wanted to kill something,” Justin whined.  “All that was inside was a dead woman with a hole in her head.  Got some dog food though.”  Caesar, who had been forgotten by Bobby when JC screamed, had heard the word food and came up to Justin, sniffing the bag in his hand.  “Okay,” Kirk said. “Y’all get in the truck.  Me and Justin will fill up the gas tank while Caesar has a drink and a bite to eat.  Here, take this bag of water and case of beer.  I have a feeling we’re going to want the beer later.”

Amber, Bobby, JC and Caesar got into the truck.  Amber handed out bottles of water from the bag Kirk had just handed her and poured one into the metal bowl Justin had found.  Caesar lapped greedily at the water.  When he’d finished, she opened the bag of food and put some in the bowl for him to snack on.  She opened another bottle of water for herself and chugged it down.  “Crying makes you thirsty,” she said sadly as she watched Kirk pump gas while Justin stood lookout.  The slip tank in the bed of the truck had been empty earlier, but Kirk filled it up as well.  When the fueling was complete, Kirk and Justin got back into the truck and they headed down the road in the general direction of Hico.  No one noticed that the red spot on JC shirt was getting bigger.

Chapter 32

Star’s house

Richmond VA

With the heater on, the living room had a bright orange glow.  Isaac realized that the light would be seen from outside if they didn’t cover the blinds or move to another room in the middle of the house.  “We need to move to my bedroom,” he said to his grandparents.  “We don’t want anyone to see the light from the heater and know we’re in here.”  They agreed and picked up their weapons, blankets, phones and the heater and moved to Isaac’s room. 

Isaac’s room was smaller than the living room, had no windows and was next to the bathroom.  It also contained a futon he used for playing his video games, a computer desk with comfy chair and his loft bed.  Posters and pictures lined his walls and matched the various collectables he had accrued over the years.  To him, it was the ideal space to hide out in.   He spent a lot of time in his room, especially since the schools had been closed and all his learning had to be virtual.  He loved his room. 

Charles helped Star to sit down on the futon, her hip was paining her pretty badly from the short walk from the living room.  Meanwhile, Isaac plugged the heater in using the flashlight app from his phone to see with.  “Smart thinking kiddo,” Charles said.  “We shouldn’t be seen in here, as long as we don’t leave the door open for the light from the heater to bleed out.”  Having moved everything, they needed into Isaac’s room made them hungry.  It was dinnertime after all.

After discussing how to get food from the kitchen without being noticed, they decided that they would need to take the lightbulbs out of the refrigerator and microwave if they wanted to remain unseen while they used the appliances at night.  The kitchen had windows on two sides of the room.   One window faced the backyard, but the other looked out at the neighbor’s yard.  Their neighbor didn’t have a fence or anything to keep the dead from entering the backyard.  The light from the fridge or microwave might be seen from the road and ‘better safe than sorry’ was the new motto these days.  The first time opening the appliances would be tricky, but once the bulbs were out, they’d be good to go.  Charles elaborated, “Fridge will be easiest.  Need two people to do it quickly though.  I’ll open the door, and Isaac, you can reach in there real fast and push the button that turns it off when the door shuts.  After you’ve done that, I'll unscrew the bulb, and we’ll be golden.  “That’ll work,” Isaac replied.  “Let’s do the fridge first,” Charles suggested.  “Ok Papa let’s do it now, I’m hungry,” Isaac said.

They got to it.  It was a relatively easy job.  With the refrigerator light bulb gone, they loaded up a basket from the top of the fridge with sodas, bottled waters, ketchup, string cheese, yogurt and finally a pack of hotdogs intended for the microwave.  As an afterthought, Charles retrieved a box of granola bars and a pack of hotdog buns from the cabinet next to the refrigerator.  Next, came the hard part.  The microwave would be trickier.  “Let’s do it the same way, this time I’ll open the door and you unscrew the bulb, Papa.” Isaac whispered.  Charles nodded.  Isaac quickly opened the door and Charles stuck his hand into the microwave to retrieve the bulb.  He couldn’t get it unscrewed though.  This wasn’t going as well as planned.

Suddenly, a noise came from outside the window facing the neighbor’s house.  Both the men jumped at the sound, and Isaac almost screamed, but was able to stop himself. He had been concentrating so hard on what Charles was doing, that he hadn’t been paying attention to anything else.  The noise came again followed by a loud smack on the window.  A hand was reaching through the bars and was now pounding on the window.  A few more slaps came, followed by the sound of cracking glass.  A second later, the glass shattered, and a hand came reaching through the curtain.  Isaac quickly shut the microwave door and he and Charles grabbed the basket and quickly made their way back to Isaac’s room.  Star was waiting for them and once they were in the room, she shut the door.  They ate cold hotdogs along with their yogurt and string cheese for dinner, while they tried to stay quiet, hoping the dead outside would go away.

Chapter 33

Amber’s truck

Outside Hamilton TX

The group wasn't too far from Hico now.  As the miles went by, they started seeing more signs that the dead were here or had been here.  Looking out the window, Justin pointed out some large shapes in a field on the right side of the highway.  “What the hell are those?” He asked aloud.  “Looks like a herd of sleeping longhorn cattle,” Kirk replied. “I used to rope and wrangle cows back in my heyday.  I can spot a heifer from a mile away,” he said proudly.  “Those aren’t sleeping cows,” Amber pointed out.  She was staring at the lumps.  She continued “They look dead and some of them are lumpier than others.”  Kirk slammed on the brakes and they all looked around.  “By golly, I think she’s right,” Kirk said.  He honked the horn, and a few of what resembled cows, moved.  They quickly discovered that the lumps in the filled were cows, but they weren’t just cows.  Surrounding the cattle were zombies of all shapes and sizes.  They were eating them too!  The sound of the honking horn alerted the dead cannibals that something was still alive and the virus inside them, pushed them to spread it.  About 30 in total left their messy meals in the field and shuffled slowly in the direction of the truck.  “Time to get out of her Pawpaw,” Bobby said in a low voice.  “Sure thing Hoss,” Kirk replied and got the truck rolling again.  “We’ve only got about 20 more miles until we get to my son’s house anyhow.”  As they headed down the road, the zombies trailed behind them.

The devastation caused by the virus fueled death was everywhere here.  There was an old farmhouse with what looked, from a distance, like a truck had crashed through the front door.  There was a wall of undead surrounding the house and from the truck, they could see fire coming from under the wreckage.  There was a figure on the roof of the farmhouse.  When Kirk saw the person on the roof, he immediately turned onto the long dirt driveway that led to the house.  When he got closer, they saw that it was a boy on the roof.  He saw them and started waving his hands at them, screaming for help.  “We can’t leave that poor boy to die.  If the zombies don’t get him, he’ll fall or die of thirst or something,” Amber said, still heartbroken by their little boy's death earlier in the day.  Bobby quickly agreed saying, “We have to find a way to rescue him.  If it was our son, I’d want strangers to help him.  Quick guys, think!  What do we do?”

“Run ‘em over!” JC said through gritted teeth.  He had noticed that he had been bitten as they were driving away from the gas station back in Gatesville, but since he didn’t feel too bad then, thought maybe he was immune or something and didn’t say anything to any of his fellow passengers.  He was feeling it now though.  He wanted to cough, but held it in.  His brain was flashing images of him biting Caesar, and his mouth watered uncontrollably.  His brain longed for steak.  Or better yet, meat.  Any meat would do.  He was starving.  He had to actively resist the urge to take a chunk out of the other passengers in the truck.

We don’t have a ladder; how do we get him down from there?” Justin queried.  “He had to get up there somehow,” Kirk replied.  “Let’s start with the dead folks surrounding the house and then we’ll play it by ear.”  He whipped the truck around the back side of the house, plowing through the crowd of zombies, throwing them to the left and right of the truck.  One monster landed on the hood of the truck and immediately started slapping the now cracked windshield, trying to get to the meaty bits of flesh inside.

“This isn’t going to work Kirk.  They’re gonna tear the truck up and then we’re gonna be surrounded,” Bobby said.  Kirk replied, “You gonna let one dead sucker on the truck ruin that boy's chances of survival?”  He was surprised that Bobby wasn’t more worried about the poor soul on the roof of the farmhouse.  As they continued their drive around the house, they spotted a conveniently placed ladder.  The boy must have used the ladder to climb to the roof and the clumsy zombies knocked the ladder down.  “So that’s how the kid got stuck!” Kirk gaped.  “I’m gonna the ones nearby over with the truck.  JC and Justin, Y’all got out there and get that ladder back up.  Bobby, you and Amber hop out and run away a bit, yelling.  That should get the dead's attention away from JC and Justin long enough for them to get that ladder up and the boy down.”  Kirk was the boss of the crew at work and his voice now commanded compliance.

Kirk slammed into the wall of creatures again, knocking them over and running some of the under the tires.  As soon as he stopped, everyone exited the truck with their weapons ready.  Even Caesar joined the effort.  The dog began taunting the undead that were getting back up by running near them and then running away from the arms reaching to grab him.  He barked and howled, leading some of the creatures away, into a grove of trees behind the farmhouse.  Amber and Bobby quickly retreated from the truck and began screaming at the top of their lungs, trying to get the attention of every zombie they could.  When the monsters reached them, they used their weapons.  Amber speared the ones following her, when they got close enough.  Bobby drew his 1911 and started shooting the ones closest to him in the head, which drew more attention to him and away from the ladder.

JC and Justin had a small window of opportunity to get that ladder up.  Kirk hollered to get the boys attention.  He yelled for him to be ready once the ladder was up against the house.  JC grabbed the ladder and manhandled the thing upright and then Justin helped him push it against the house.  The boy was waiting at the edge and as soon as the ladder was positioned, he started down it, taking one rung at a time, being careful not to fall.  Justin held the ladder for the boy and urged him to descend faster.  “Come on kid, we ain’t got all day!  It’s almost dark and we won’t last much longer if the ones we passed on the road are headed this way too.  Hurry kid, hurry!”

JC had stood back once they’d gotten the ladder in place.  His mind wasn’t working like it should.  Coherent thought was almost impossible now.  He was SO hungry!  He needed to eat something, MEAT, NOW!  His brain once again flashed images of him chewing on flesh and his mouth drooled.  Vibrant images of him devouring his friends filled his mind.  The virus fueled grey matter in his head led him to the open driver's side door where Kirk was standing.  Kirk saw him coming and asked, “What’s up pardner?  Get in the truck, yer job is done now.”  JC didn’t hear him though.  The only word he heard in his head was ‘MEAT’ and she shambled closed.  Kirk noticed that his eyes looked funny as he walked towards him and knew something was wrong.  He pulled his .38 out of his pocket and aimed it at his friend.  “Stop buddy or yer gonna get it right between the eyes!” he yelled.  JC just kept coming.  His brain had shifted completely and now he was no different than the other undead.  Kirk had no choice.  Only a few steps from him now, Kirk pulled the trigger.

Justin turned around, surprised to hear Kirk yelling and saw JC walking towards Pawpaw, who had his pistol out, pointing it at him.  “JC stop!” Justin screamed, but it was too late.  Kirk aimed and shot JC in the face, shattering his cheekbone and left eye socket.  The bullet didn’t stop JC though, he just kept coming for Kirk.  Justin let go of the ladder the boy was still climbing down and dove for JC’s feet.  His impact with JC knocked the man down two steps away from Kirk, who was stunned that this was happening to one of his very best friends.  He recovered quickly though and shot his buddy in the back of the head as JC tried to grab at his feet.

Reaching the bottom of the ladder, the boy hopped down and ran towards the truck.  Justin quickly got up off his now dead pal and got into the backseat.  Kirk jumped into the driver’s seat once the boy had made it into the backseat with Justin and slammed the door.  Safely inside, Justin yelled “Where are Amber, Bobby?  Where did the dog go?  We have to find them!”  Kirk started the truck and reversed it from the house and backed away just in time to see more undead coming towards them.  Turning the truck around, he saw Amber and Bobby fighting back about 10 of the creatures that were trying to get to them.  They were quickly becoming surrounded.  He honked the horn and drove towards the crowd.  A few of the creatures turned away from the couple, attracted to the sound of the truck horn.  That act gave Amber and Bobby the opening they needed to stab and shoot their way towards the truck.  Kirk rolled down his window a few inches as he drove towards them and hollered out of the partially open window for them to hop into the bed of the truck.  When they got close enough, they jumped in the back and Kirk took off again, this time towards the grove of trees where Caesar had gone earlier.  They couldn’t see the dog anywhere, so Amber and Bobby both began yelling and whistling for their companion.  “Caesar!  Come on boy!  Let’s go! Come here!”  Caesar came slowly limping out, yelping with every step.  Bobby leaped from the bed of the truck and hauled ass over to the 110 lb. dog.  He scooped him up and began a slow jog back to the truck.  When he reached the bed, Amber jumped out and helped her husband place the dog into the truck, then they both got into the cab with the others.  Kirk got the truck moving again and turned it around, facing the driveway.  He plowed over the dead that were in the way and they made their way back to the deserted highway.

Once they were back on the road and everyone had caught their breath, Amber noticed that they were missing a person.  “Where is JC?” she asked.  Kirk looked back at Justin through the rearview mirror and they shared a pained look.  “He turned into one of those things,” he said sadly.  “He was fine one minute and the next, he was coming for me with a hungry look in his eyes.  I shot him in the face, but he just kept coming at me.  I’d be one of those things too, if it hadn’t been for Justin.  He threw himself at JC and knocked him down, giving me the time, I needed to get off a second shot.”  “Well that’s a damn shame,” Bobby said. “He must’ve gotten bit when we stopped for gas earlier.”

“What’s your name?” Amber asked the little boy.  “My name is Tyler and I’m 9 years old.  Thanks for rescuing me.  I’m sorry you lost your friend back there.  I lost my Mama and Pop too.  They were the reason I was on the roof.  When I came home from school today, they were wandering around the yard.  They must have crashed the truck.  When I got closer to our house, they came for me.  I got scared and climbed the ladder and then they knocked it down trying to get to me.  I’ve been up there for hours.  I’m so thirsty, ya got any water?”  Amber handed him a bottle of water and a candy bar from the bag of stuff they’d acquired from the gas station and told him he was safe now.  He was now to be a part of their makeshift family.

Chapter 34

Star’s house

Richmond VA

The trio stayed quiet into the night, though no one slept.  The sounds of the pounding and slapping didn’t stop like they had hoped.  Remembering the attic, Charles said “If they get into the house, we can get into the attic.  The ceiling has a door with a ladder attached that pulls down.  It’s right outside Isaac’s room.  We could go up there.  There’s a vent we could use to get onto the roof and from there, we could climb down to the cover I put on the deck last summer.”  Star shook her head sadly, “I’ll never make it.  My hip already hurts and there’s no way I’m going to be able to climb the attic steps.”  “Nana you have to try,” Isaac said, scared. “I’m not strong enough to carry you.”  She agreed to try if it came down to it, but really hoped it didn’t.  She knew that if the dead made it inside, she would never get out of this house alive.

They sat in the dark with only the glow from the heater to light the room, contemplating whether this would be their last on Earth while the banging continued.  About an hour or so later, there was a loud crash that sounded like it came from the kitchen.  A shuffling sound followed, and more thumps came after that.  “We gotta go now, before we get overrun!” Isaac screamed while gathering all the weapons he could get his hands on and throwing them into his backpack. He made sure to include the box of granola bars they’d gotten from the kitchen hours before.  Charles agreed and grabbed a knife from his grandson’s collection and flung open the door.  He looked down the hallway towards the kitchen and saw five zombies bumping around into each other.  They all noticed him as soon as he poked his head out and started their slow, shambling gait down the hall.

Charles swiftly pulled open the attic door and folded the ladder down.  He yelled at Star and Isaac to “Get a move on!”  Isaac came out of the room first, his backpack on his back and his rifle in one hand while he shoved his phone into his pocket with the other hand.  He high tailed it up the ladder.  Charles stepped up the ladder a few rungs and motioned for Star to follow him.  Star came hobbling out of the room and started slowly climbing the ladder.  He coaxed her up, one rung at a time, pulling at the hands as the undead neared the end of the hallway.  He willed her to climb, but she was moving too slowly!  She was going to be eaten if things didn’t progress faster.  “GO!  GO!  GO!” He yelled wildly.

Star screamed out in pain as one of the creatures grabbed her ankle and pulled her down a couple steps.  The undead monster bit into her calf hard, pulled away a chunk of flesh and chewed it.  More hands grabbed her, and she screeched as they yanked her down the rest of the way and started chomping into her.  “Get outta the way!” Isaac yelled from behind Charles.  He turned around to see Isaac aiming his rifle down the stairs.  When Charles moved, Isaac shot a single bullet straight into his Nana’s head.  She didn’t move again.  With tears in their eyes and mournful hearts, they pulled the ladder up and closed the attic door.  Isaac wailed loudly with pain in his heart for his now dead grandmother.  He’d broken his promise, he failed to keep her safe.

Chapter 35

Chet’s house

Hico TX

Pulling into the drive, the truck full of people were talking about JC and how he had turned.  “You think he got bitten back at the bathrooms?” Amber asked her husband.  “It makes the most sense,” he answered.  “I don’t know why he didn’t tell any of us though.”  Justin muttered, “Maybe he knew we’d put him out of his misery…”  Kirk said loudly, “He was a good man, maybe he thought he was immune or something.  Did any of you hear him cough or see any symptoms?”  No one answered.  None of them had noticed anything out of the ordinary, but then again, their focus hadn’t been on anything inside the truck.

Stopping in front of his son’s house, Kirk put the truck in park, and they all got out.  Amber and Bobby went directly to the bed of the truck to check on Caesar’s wounds.  He had been bitten several times and he was whining with every labored breath he took.  Bobby looked at his wife and said sadly, “I don’t think he’s gonna make it.”  She shook her head and started crying.  Justin came up behind then and asked, “Do you want me to take care of him?  You shouldn’t have to put two of your family members down in one day.”  They both nodded and Amber backed away from the truck, turning towards Kirk’s son’s house and trudged away.  This day had been horrible.  She’d lost her son and now their dog in the space of less than 24 hours.  She looked down at her fitness tracker on her wrist.  It was only 7:30 in the evening.  Bobby caught up to her and grabbed her hand.  They both made their way to the house.  “I can’t believe our baby is gone, and now Caesar too…  I hate today,” Amber said harshly.  “Me too,” Bobby replied sadly.  A few seconds later, a small pop came from the back of the truck and they knew their dog wasn’t suffering any longer.  Bobby squeezed his wife’s hand a little tighter and tried his best not to cry.

Kirk’s son Chet came running out of the house and wrapped his father in a big hug.  “I’m so glad to see you!  We’ve been worried about you all day!  Was it hard to get here?”  Kirk smiled and said “Son, I’ve missed you too, where are my grandkids?  Yeah, it was rough going today, seems like it took forever to get here.  We rescued a little boy, but we lost a few good people today, including their son and dog,” he said pointing to Bobby and Amber.  I’m so sorry, folks” Chet said to the couple.  Looking back at Kirk, he said “The kids are in bed.  They’ve had a long day.  We’ve not had anything happen here; they’ve been worried about their Grandpop.  They’ll see you in the morning, let’s let them sleep.  Y’all look like you could use hot showers and some food and a safe place to sleep.”  He walked up the steps of the porch to the front door and motioned for them all to follow.  “Come on inside, there’s a big pot of chili and my wife, Alana makes the best cornbread.”  The group followed him inside.  They had finally made it.

Once inside the warm home, Amber pulled out her phone and texted her son, Isaac to let him know that they’d made it to Kirk’s son’s house safely.  She told him that she loved him and then about Caesar being hurt while helping to save a little boy.  He had earned his place in doggy heaven.  She asked him about his grandparents and told him to call or message her back as soon as possible so she knew he was okay.  With the text sent, she put the phone back into her pocket and walked into the kitchen where the rest of the group were gathered.

Chapter 36

The Attic

Richmond VA

Isaac and Charles tried to stay calm after the trapdoor had been closed.  They both knew that the dead couldn't leave the house, having crawled in through the window between the bars.  The pair decided to wait in the attic overnight, so they’d be able to see the zombies roaming around outside when they made their escape from the attic vent.  While they waited, they discussed what their next step would be.

Just then, Isaac’s phone vibrated in his pocket.  It was a text from his mom.  He opened it and read it to his Papa.  “Hi son, we’ve made it to Kirk son Chet’s house.  I love you so much and I miss you terribly. I hope you’re safe.  Caesar got hurt today, helping to save a little boy from dying and earned his place in doggy heaven.  Justin laid him to rest this evening.  Neither me nor your dad could bear to do it.  Are you and your grandparents still okay and safe?  Please call or text me back and let me know as soon as you can.”  Isaac started crying again.  “No, not Caesar too!” he whispered.  After a few moments, he calmed down and texted his mom back.

“Nana is dead.  The zombies got in the house and pulled her down the attic ladder.  They bit her, so I had to shoot her.  I’m sorry I couldn’t keep her safe mama.  I really tried.  I love you too mom, I want to be with you.  You and Dad and Papa are all I have left.”

Once he put his phone back into his pocket, he turned to Charles and said “With Nana and Bobboo gone, I need to be with my mom and dad.  We need to get to Texas.”  Charles thought quietly for a minute before answering. “Well,” he said Texas is a long way away kiddo, but since the only thing we’ve got left to lose is our lives, let’s take the gamble.  There’s nothing left here for us anymore.  Grab a few blankets out of that box over there,” he said.  “We’ll huddle together for warmth tonight and as long as I make it through the night without freezing to death or dying, we’ll make a full plan in the morning.”

Isaac complied, and once they’d made a bed of blankets, they laid down together.  Hold each other to keep warm, the pair tried to get some sleep.  Tomorrow would be a big day for them.  As the sun began to rise over the horizon, the guys awoke.  They were both cold, but they were safe and had managed to survive the night, though neither of them had gotten much rest.

Charles’s mind kept replaying his wife being pulled down the attic steps and Isaac shooting her in the head.  Over and over, it played in his mind.  Isaac slept about the same, except he kept seeing the grotesque faces of the undead cannibals tearing the flesh from his beloved Nana.  In his mind, shooting her was the right thing to do.  He wouldn’t have been able to live with himself if she’d become one of those creatures.  He mourned the loss of his brother and the dog as well.

While they ate some of the granola bars Isaac had in his backpack, they talked about their plan.  Their first step, in theory, would be easy.  Get out of the attic and onto the roof.  Charles had already made it clear how they could accomplish that the night before.  The next step would be to get off the roof.  They would simply climb down the poles of the deck covering.  The third step would be harder.  They would use the remote started on Charles’s keys (always kept in his pocket) to Charles’s truck to lure the undead to it and try to get to Star’s smaller SUV.  It had a lift kit and big tires and they’d just had it serviced the week before.  It was in good shape, well maintained and the service shop always made sure it had a full tank of gas.  Star hadn’t driven it since it had been serviced.  She couldn’t drive with a broken hip.  Step four would be to get to the highway heading west and pray.  They had no plan after that, they didn’t know the extent of the damage the new vaccine had done to other areas of the state.

With the plans made, they jumped into action.  Charles pulled the vent cover out of the hole that would lead them out onto the roof.  Next, they grabbed their weapons and backpack and creeped out of the attic and made their way across the roof, towards the back of the house where the deck was.  They could see the whole backyard where the deck was, and it looked empty.  Not a soul in sight.  The pavilion that Charles had built over the deck was unattached to the house, so they had to hop from one rooftop to the other.  Once on the pavilion roof, they quickly and silently shimmied down one of the poles that held the roof up and quietly landed on the deck. They crept to the gate in the privacy fence and Charles gave Isaac a boost so he could see over it.  Not seeing anything, Isaac motioned to Charles to let him down.  They opened the gate and crept towards the front of the house where the vehicles were.

Once in range, Charles took the keys out of his pocket and pressed the remote start button.  The large truck roared to life, alerting the zombies in the area of fresh food.  Their plan was working!  Now all they had to do was get to the SUV.  Charles shoved the keys back into his pocket.  He didn’t want to lose them; the keyring had the SUV keys on it too.

With the nearby zombies distracted, they tiptoed towards the vehicle.  Silently, they made it 30 feet to the SUV without alerting the creatures to their presence.  One at the Jeep, Charles got the keyring out of his pocket again and quietly unlocked the driver’s side door.  He got in and reached over to the passenger side and unlocked Isaac’s door.  Isaac climbed in and they both shut their doors at the same time, as quickly and quietly as possible.  “Whew,” Isaac said and let out a big breath. Charles looked at him and said “When I start this up, we’re going to be noticed.  Be ready for anything.”  And with that, he placed the key in the ignition and started the motor.

Chapter 37

Chet’s house

Hico TX

After a great meal of chili and delicious cornbread, Bobby and Amber excused themselves and asked to use the shower.  Chet showed them to one of the two bathrooms and told them where to find towels and washcloths.  “We’ve got a solar well here, so you’ll have plenty of hot water.  The soap and shampoo are in the shower already.  Take your time.  After the day you’ve had, you deserve a long hot shower and some time alone.”  with that said, he left them and went back to the kitchen.

The couple took their time cleaning up, they did indeed need a few minutes alone.  When they were done washing and were drying off, there was a knock on the door.  It was Justin.  He had gone back out to the truck bed and retrieved all their bags.  “Here’s some clothes for ya both,” he said and handed them both sets of clothes that Bobby had packed them earlier that morning.  They got dressed and left the bathroom after hanging their towels to dry. They made their way to the large living room and sat together on the couch.

Kirk went into the bathroom next and washed up while Justin sat on the couch near the couple and discussed what they’d do next.  Tyler was still sitting with Alana at the table in the kitchen.  She was asking him questions about his life.  “Where ya from little man?” she queried.  “Hamilton,” he answered proudly.  “My Pop said I was born in the house where Mr. Kirk and the others found me.  Lived there my whole life.”  she smiled at him; he was a cute kid.  Alana was good with children and secretly hoped that he would stay here with them if the rest of the people decided to leave.

In the living room, Justin, Bobby and Amber were deep in conversation.  “So, what do we do from here?” Justin asked.  His wife and unborn son were dead, and his father had died a few months ago.  His mom had lost her battle with pancreatic cancer back in 2010.  He had no one now, and nowhere to go.  His wife’s family was in Weatherford, but they never approved of him and Mady being together since he wasn’t rich and couldn’t offer them anything.

We need to go get Isaac,” Bobby replied.  Amber pulled her phone out and checked it.  She was surprised to find an unopened text from her son.  She must’ve missed the notification while her and Bobby were showering.  Opening it, she read it aloud to the men on the couch.  “Nana is dead.  The zombies got in the house and pulled her down the attic ladder.  They bit her, so I had to shoot her.  I’m sorry I couldn’t keep her safe.  I really tried.  I love you too mom.  Tell Dad too.  I want to be with you guys.  You, dad and Papa are all I have left.”

She looked at Justin and Bobby and said, “That’s the plan.  We’re gonna try to get to our son.”   They both nodded their heads.   “Not tonight you’re not!” Kirk exclaimed as he walked into the room.  He was freshly showered with clean clothes on and an old cowboy hat he’d loaned his son for the last rodeo they'd attended together.  “You three need a good night's sleep and a chance to feel safe for a bit.  Me and Chet will stand guard tonight.  You need time to grieve your lost loved ones and we’ll make sure you’re not disturbed,” Kirk said.  He yelled into the kitchen, “Alana!  Show these three to the guest rooms so they can rest please.”  She jumped up and told Tyler she’d be right back.  “There’s cookies in that jar over there on the counter if you want one for dessert,” she told the boy as she walked out of the room.

Leading the trio up the stairs to the second floor, she told them about how Kirk and Chet had built this house with their bare hands, and with the help from a few family friends, in just a few months.  “Bought the land and before I knew it, we were moving in.” They were all impressed by the craftsmanship of the hand railing and the door frames at the top on the stairs.  Alana led them down the hallway passing the first doors on either side of the hallway.  She pointed out that those were the kid’s rooms.  They’d get to meet them in the morning.  At the end of the hall were two more doors on either side of the hallway.

She opened the door on the right and said, “Here’s one, it’s got two double beds in it.”  She turned around to the other door and opened it.  “Here’s the other.  It’s only got one bed in it, but it’s super comfy.  I'll leave you three to figure out the sleeping arrangements.”  Turning to Bobby and Amber, she said “I’m really sorry about your son.  I really love my kids; I don’t know what I’d do if I lost any of them.”  With that said, she walked back down the hall and down the steps to the kitchen to talk with little Tyler some more.

Standing in the hall, Justin spoke first.  “Do you mind if we all sleep in the same room?  I really don’t want to be alone tonight.”  They both agreed and all went into the bedroom on the right and closed the door.  The couple chose the bed at the far end of the room near a window.  Justin flopped down on the remaining bed and sighed.

“Why did this all happen?  How did I lose my son before he was even born?  What kind of God would let this happen?”  Bobby answered the best he could. “I don’t think God had anything to do with it.  The news Amber’s mom heard said it was people that caused this.  The Mexican government to be precise.  I know it’s gonna sound harsh, but maybe it’s for the best that baby Terrell hadn’t been born yet.  This world is going to shit now.  It’s not really a place for children now is it?”  Amber chimed in, sounding bitter “No it’s not.  Just look at what happened to Bobboo.  And that little boy, Tyler, would’ve died on that roof if we hadn't come along and saved him.”  Justin sighed again, “Yeah that’s true, I guess you’re right.”

“Come on guys, let’s try to get some rest.  I don’t know about you two, but I’m exhausted.  Tomorrow isn’t going to be any easier if we intend to leave here,” Bobby said quietly. The couple laid down and Bobby held Amber tightly as they tried to find sleep.  Justin was snoring within minutes.

Sleep didn’t come for Amber for a long time.  She heard Bobby’s breathing slow down and knew he was asleep as well.  Her mind wandered through the events of the day.  She thought about her little Bobboo and how mad she was at the world for this happening. Caesar had basically sacrificed himself for the sake of another little boy.  That dog was a hero in her eyes. She was so proud of him.  He was a good dog. Her last thought as she drifted off to a fitful sleep was of her big son. It was now just him and Charles now in Virginia and they were almost 1500 miles away from Texas.

Chapter 38

Isaac and Charles

Richmond VA

They’d made it to the SUV.  The second Charles turned the ignition and the engine came to life; they'd attracted the attention of a few curious undead creatures.  Most of them were still distracted by Charles’s loud truck.  They pulled out of the driveway and headed down the road towards the Highway entrance.  They used the GPS on Isaac’s phone, hoping that the satellites didn’t fall out of the sky or the cell company didn’t shut down or something.  They didn’t have a map or road atlas and they were going to need directions.

Charles had never been out of the State of Virginia.  Hell, he’d barely left the county and recently he hadn’t even left the house due to the pandemic.  Star had done all the shopping and ran all the errands for them.  The thought of her put a knot in his throat and he almost choked on his own saliva.  He managed to control himself though.

Isaac opened his phone and called his Mom.  “Hey mom.  We made it out of the attic and now we’re on the road in Nana’s SUV.  We had to leave the house, or we’d have died like Nana or died of thirst or starvation or something.”  “Where are you going?” his mom asked him.  “Texas, Mama.  We’re coming your way.  Want me to send you the route we’re taking?”  She asked, “You’re coming here?”  “We’re gonna try,” he replied.  “I’ve got my backpack full of knives and all the bullets for my rifle.  I got my rifle too.  We got a full tank of gas and if we run low, Nana has a garden hose and a gas can in here.  I’ve learned how to syphon fuel from gas tanks on the internet.  I mean, I’ve never done it, but we got this.”

His mom said “Good thinking son.  We’re going to head your way too, so yeah send me your route and we’ll come the same way, just backwards.  Maybe we’ll meet in the middle and be able to find a safe place for us all.  Please be as careful as possible. Remember, the dead people don’t make any noise.  They’re nothing like the movies.  They’re soundless and super scary.  Especially when in a big pack.”

He agreed with her and then said “We’ll be as safe as we can, but don’t worry about us.  I might not have been able to keep Nana alive, but I’m not afraid anymore.  There’s no room in my heart for fear Mama.  I love you and I’m determined to get to you.”  She assured him that she loved him too and so did his Dad.  They would do their absolute best to get to him, wherever that might be.  “Don't forget to send me that route,” she said.  “I won’t Mama,” he answered and then hung up the phone.  He sent her the route from his GPS as the SUV drove onto the highway on ramp, heading west.

Chapter 39

Chet’s house

Hico TX

Amber woke up before the two men.  She’d had terrible dreams in her sleeping mind.  Her brain kept replaying the events of the day and made her dream of what her mind imagined had happened to her mom.  When she opened her eyes, she heard laughter coming from downstairs. She quietly got out of bed and went down the stairs to investigate.  She hadn’t heard laughter in what seemed like forever.

Kirk noticed her as she reached the bottom of the stairwell.  “Good morning Dearie,” he smiled brightly.  “I’d like you to meet my grandkids.  GIrls!  Come on over here and meet one of the best women I’ve ever known!  She’s like my mom when Pop Pop is out on the job.  She cooks for me, cleans up my camper and washes all my clothes…  Well, she did.  I guess not so much anymore.”

The two little girls were adorable.  They both had blonde hair and sparkling blue eyes.  One was named Jessa, and she was 5 years old.  The other little girl was named Casey and she was 7.  “Same age as my Bobboo,” Amber said sadly.  Tyler was up as well and after the girls politely introduced themselves, they went back to play with their new friend.

“Have you been up all night?”  Amber asked Kirk.  “No ma’am, Chet and I took turns.  I watched out the window for the first few hours.  Chet took over halfway through the night.  It’s still early if you feel like you need more rest.  Not a peep from outside, so we’re still safe for the moment.” 

“I’m up now.  Is there any coffee?  I’d love a cup if there is,” she replied.  With a wink, Kirk said “You got it sister.  I’ll be right back.  Cream and sugar, right?”  She nodded to him and sat down on the couch in the living room and looked out the window.   He was back in a minute or two with a piping hot mug of coffee, made just the way she liked it.  She loved Kirk like a father.  It was going to be a shame to have to leave him, but she couldn’t stay here, her son needed her.

As if he heard her, her phone rang.  When she answered, he said “Hey mom.  We made it out of the attic and now we’re on the road in Nana’s SUV.  We had to leave the house, or we would’ve died like Nana or died of thirst or starvation or something.” “Where are you going?”  She asked, surprised at his statement.  He told her that they were heading towards Texas.  He said he would send her the route they were taking.  “You’re coming here?” she queried.  “We’re gonna try,” he replied.  He told her about having all his knives and his rifle and ammunition.  They had a full tank of gas and if they ran low, they had a hose and a gas can.  He had learned how to syphon gas from gas tanks from the internet.  He was such a smart kid.

“Good thinking son.  You’re smart to think like that.  We’re gonna head your way too, so yeah send me the route.  We will head east.  Maybe we’ll meet in the middle somewhere and we can find a place that’s safe for us all.  Remember son, the dead people don’t make any noise.  They’re nothing like the movies.  They’re soundless and super scary, especially if they’re in a group.”

He agreed with her and said, “We’ll be as safe as possible.”  He told her that he had no room in his heart for fear and that he loved her, and he was determined to get to her.  She said “I love you too son.  So does your dad.  We’ll do everything we can to get to you.  Don’t forget to send me that route.”  He said, “I won’t mama.” and then ended the call. 

She took the steps two at a time heading up the stairs to wake Bobby and Justin up.  “Y’all wake up.  I’ve talked to Isaac.  He and Charles are in my mom’s jacked up Jeep and they’re on the highway heading West.  We gotta go.”  “Wait, what?” Bobby asked sleepily. He had slept like a rock and didn’t dream at all.  He was groggy, but well rested. 

Justin just opened his eyes and looked at her.  He was not a morning person and regardless of the events the day before, he wanted to go back to sleep.  “Come on, there’s coffee downstairs,” she told him.  Hearing this, he sat up.  If he had to be awake, at least there was coffee.  He was the only person in their group who hadn’t showered the night before and he stunk.  He vowed to get cleaned up after his first cup of coffee.

They went downstairs and Kirk had a steaming cup of coffee ready for them.  As Justin sat down at the kitchen table to drink his, Kirk said “Whoo wee! You smell ripe there pardner! “I hope you intend on cleaning up a bit before breakfast.”  Justin replied that he would and went back to sipping the liquid of the Gods.

Bobby took his coffee and sat down in the living room next to his wife.  They enjoyed their cups for a moment before he asked, “Now, what were you saying about Isaac?”  She told him all about the call and that their son had sent her the route that he and Charles were going to take.  “Okay, so we know he’s traveling west and that we’re going to go east.  Did you two talk about where we’d meet up with them?”  “No”, she admitted.  “We don’t know what we’ll come across out there.  This thing has just started.  It’s going to get worse; we all know that.  At least we know what direction he’s traveling.  If we take the same route heading east, we stand a chance of seeing our son again.  We can’t stay here and just wait for him to come to us.”  Bobby agreed.

Justin finished his cup of coffee and from the kitchen he overheard the couple talking.  “Don’t leave me here,” he said, walking into the living room.  “I’m going with you.  I mean, if you’ll let me.  Kirk doesn’t need me here; he’s got his son to help keep this place safe.  You guys can use my help.”  Both Bobby and Amber quickly agreed that they did, in fact, need him.  He was like a brother to them and he was welcome no matter what.

“I just need to shower and change out of these nasty clothes.  Y’all should talk to Pawpaw and see if he can help us with supplies.  The beans JC put in the bed of the truck won’t get us too far.  Plus, you should see if Chet has a printer and print out the route we’re going to take.  That way we have a hard copy of the directions in case we can’t charge your phone.”  With that said, he went into the bathroom to get washed up.

From the kitchen, Kirk heard his name and went to check it out.  “What’s that?” he asked them.  Bobby explained their plan and asked if they could spare anything.  “What we got, you got.  You’re all family around here too,” he said.  Alana and Chet already offered up some extra food and clothes.  They added a couple blankets, just in case.  There are two full tanks of fuel behind the barn outside.  One has gasoline and the other, diesel.  We’ll top off your tank and fill the slip tank as well. I hope you understand why I can’t go with you.  My family here needs me.”

They both understood completely.  Kirk had to help keep those kiddos safe.  That was a job that wasn’t going to get easier as the days passed.  “Let’s get some breakfast inside those bellies and then we’ll get you all packed up and ready to go to find that boy of yours,” he said with a smile.  “Thank you both for helping me get here.  We all appreciate you.”

They went into the kitchen and sat down at the big dining room table.  Alana had prepared a huge breakfast for them all.  Eggs, bacon, sausage, fried potatoes and flapjacks covered the table.  Justin emerged from the bathroom a few minutes later smelling a million times better.  They all ate as much as they could and then got themselves organized.

Kirk helped Bobby fill all the tanks with fuel.  Chet and Alana packed up a box of clothes and blankets.  They had also put together a box of canned food and a case of bottled waters.  The kids played while the adults got things ready.  Alana pulled Amber to the side and Asked her in a low voice, “Can Tyler stay with us?  The girls really like him, and we’ve always wanted a son.  I know you just lost your little boy and I’d never insist he stay here if you need him to help you get over the death of your baby.”  Amber agreed that he should stay with them.  “The open road isn’t going to be a good place for children.  We don’t know what we will come across out there.  We may all die.  I couldn’t ask that little boy to gamble with his life.  He’ll be happy here with You, Chet and the girls.” Alana nodded, gratefully.  “One more thing,” Amber asked. “Do you have a printer?  My son sent me directions for the route he’s taking, and we don’t know how long the cell service will last.  It would help us enormously if we had a paper copy, just in case.”  Alana said that she did and led her to a small office off the living room.  She easily printed the papers out for her new friend. 

Alana gave Amber one last hug and wished her safe travels.  With everything packed away in the truck, the small group got into the truck and headed down the long driveway.  They turned onto the road and headed east towards their son and whatever lay ahead of them…

To be continued…