Chapter Two

The car ride was awkwardly quiet for about ten minutes as the strange guy drove, Rex didnt take his eyes off of him at all and Natalie was pondering from the back seat what to do next, I mean essentially the man had saved them..

"How many more do you got with you" the man finally spoke as he looked at Rex and then glanced at Natalie through the mirror..Natalie went to speak but rex did first..

"a bunch and they will be looking for us" Rex said quickly as he shot Natalie a look..

"really? And yet your both out alone" the guy rolled his eyes..

"its just me and Rex, are there others?" Natalie spit out as rex gawked at her.."what? Whats the point of lying now" she said quickly, honestly all she could think is that they were most likely better off with this guy, dangerous or not. He could of left them behind..

"she's still in shock, she doesnt know what she is saying" rex said defensively..

"seriously how did you make it this far with this guy" the man said with a shake of his head..

"we were just fine before you came along buddy" Rex snapped at him..

"dont get your panties in a bunch kid, I did save your ass back there" the guy said sarcastically.."not to mention got shot in the process" he said as he glanced at the gash in his arm..

"sorry um, about that" Natalie swallowed hard as the guy glanced at her..

"dont apologize" Rex snapped and then looked back at the guy.."you can let us out here"

"Really?" the guy said with a roll of his eyes..

"Rex" Natalie said quickly as Rex looked at her..

"we'll be fine, were always fine" Rex began as he looked at Natalie..

"they are everywhere" natalie said quietly..

"You should listen to her, she seems to be the voice of reason" the guy smirked as he drove..

"and you just want me to trust you" Rex said with a sarcastic laugh..

"You dont have any other choice" the guy glanced at him..

"are there others" Natalie said again as Rex shot her a look..

"not that we want to go anywhere near you, were fine on our own" Rex said again..

The guy ignored him and glanced at Natalie in the rearview mirror.."a few of us across town..but I cant guarentee" the man began..

"trust me we dont want any favors" Rex said with a condiscending tone..

"You know for a kid you got a big mouth on you" the man said back to him..

"Is it safe, where you are" Natalie ignored Rex as the guy looked at her again through the mirror..

"safe enough" he said as he continued to drive..Rex just shook his head..

"Come on rex it has to be better then this" natalie began..."weve been moving for days, your the first alive person we have seen in awhile" she said truthfully..

"yeah well its just up the road here but like I said were not really into taking anymore people in" he said as he drove..

"We will be fine, we should just go" Rex said to natalie but she wasnt hearing it, they had been on the run for days, she was tired and hungry..

"You know you should be a bit more appreciative" the man said with a roll of his eyes..

"we are" Natalie said quickly as Rex now rolled his eyes and huffed.."its just still a little shocking to see someone else out here"

"Yeah well like I said I cant guarentee anything, we'll have to see what the others say" he said as Rex rolled his eyes and natalie shot him a look now and he promply sulked in his seat...

They drove in silence for about another mile until they hit a large motel off the highway, the place looked deserted and with the night falling on them it was giving off a scary vibe.."Put the guns away before we get out" the man said as he stopped the car..

"How do we know your not walking us into some kind of trap" Rex said suspiciously..

"seriously kid you need to lighten up" he finished as he got out of the car and Rex looked to natalie..

"I dont like this, I dont like it one bit" he said honestly..

"Rex if there are others out there then they could help" Natalie began..

"and this guy could chop us into a million pieces" Rex said sarcastically..

"Your wasting time and you dont want to sit around and wait for company to show up" the man said impatiently from outside the car..

"he didnt have to help us and he did" natalie began as she went to open the door..

"and what if he's not helping us, then what" Rex said as he looked at her..

"then we take our chances" she said as she got out and Rex huffed loudly as he got out..

"dont try anything stupid kid" the guy warned and then began walking up the deserted building as they followed..

The door was boarded up as they neared it and the guy began walking to the side of the building, about one story up was a fire escape and he quickly pulled down the ladder as he looked around.."Hurry up, its not gonna be pretty in a minute" the guy said as sounds could be heard in the distance, it was the familiar groaning and moaning again and Natalie wasnt taking her chances as she quickly got to the metal stairs, she took one last look at Rex and then quickly climbed up.."head to the far right window and climb in" the guy called out from the ground as Rex began to climb up next and natalie headed to the open window as she popped her head inside she was met with a shot gun aimed at her face and a tall skinny guy standing behind it..

"dont take another step" the guy said warningly as natalie froze..

"drop the gun Cris, their with me" the man said as he came over with Rex..

"see I told you, I told you this was a bad idea" Rex began to ramble..

"do you ever stop" the guy huffed as he pushed rex back and walked past him..

"who the hell are they, your not suppose to be bringing people back here, are they infected" the guy began to ramble as the man made his way inside and pushed the gun down from natalie's face..

"do I look like an idiot" he snapped at the guy standing there..

"Vince is gonna be pissed" the young guy shook his head..

"I'll deal with him" the man said to him as Natalie and rex looked at each other.."come on and leave your guns on the table"

"they came armed?" the guy with the shot gun said in shock..

"Just do it" the man said to Rex and Natalie as they reluctantly pulled out their guns and the guy with the shot gun held onto his firmer.."You could always go back out there" the man nodded to the window.."wheres Vince?" he then said to the kid with the gun..

"sleeping most likely, he is gonna be pissed John" the kid said, it was then that Natalie realized that this was the first time she had heard the guys name, John, his name was John..

Before anyone could say anything a tall thin woman came walking into the dark and nearly desolate room.."jesus John, we were about to send out a search party" the girl began and then her voice trailed as she looked at Natalie and Rex.."who the hell are they" she snapped angrily..

"Johnny made some friends" the kid said sarcastically..

"watch it Cris" John warned..

"whatever man, im getting a beer" Cris said with a roll of his eyes as he walked to the door..

"You brought people back here, what are you crazy, we can barely take care of ourselves" the woman said with annoyance..

"Calm down Vange, their fine" John began as her eyes drifted from Natalie and Rex to John and then to his bleeding arm..

"Oh my god, are you bit?" she said in shock..

"No..just a war wound" he said as he glanced at natalie and she swallowed hard..

"do you need stitches" Evange said as she inspected his arm and it wasnt lost on natalie that this woman definitely had her territory marked, she wondered if they were a couple..

"Im fine, im going to speak to Vince" John said as he pulled his arm back from her prying hands..

"it looks like a gun shot" she said in shock and then she looked at Natalie and Rex and then the guns on the table..

"its nothing" John brushed it off.."why dont you show these two around" he began to leave the room..

"Your joking right" the woman laughed sarcastically..

"do I look like im laughing" John said seriously and then left the room as natalie and rex looked at each other..

"great, this is all we need right now" she huffed as she stood there..

"Listen were not here to make trouble" Natalie began softly..

"whatever" she said in a nasty tone.."dont get too comfortable" she snapped and then headed to the door..

The place was an abandoned motel, it had four floors and it would seem the only way in and out was through that window, everything else was boarded up, staircases included. Even though Natalie had no idea what they were heading into and the woman they were following was less then pleased to be leading them there, well for the first time since all of this started she felt a bit relaxed, this was definitely better then being held up in some broken down apartment with danger right outside the door..

"keep your eyes open and watch your back" Rex whispered to her warningly as they walked..

"we dont like strangers here" Vange said quickly as they neared a door where music could be heard playing softly.."and we have rules" she stopped at the door and looked at them..

"we'll obey them, I promise, im just glad that" Natalie began..

"save it for someone who cares" Vange snapped at her and then opened the door, John was already in there and so were about twenty other people who were staring at Rex and John with wide eyes..It was intimidating to say the least..The tall man standing beside John just shook his head as he looked at them..

"its safer in numbers" John began as another man walked over, he was the tallest of the group, he towered over everyone and his hair was jet black and long..

"yeah well I say the more the merrier" the guy grinned.."dont be rude, get them a beer" he said to a dark haired guy standing off to the side who didnt question him but quickly walked over to a cooler.."whats your name darling?" the very tall man said as he walked over to them..

"Natalie" she swallowed hard as she looked up at the intimidating man..

"Steele" he put his hand out to her.."at your service" he grinned and Natalie shook his very large hand..

"alright alright, lets get the introductions out of the way, its getting late and we need to go over a few things with the newbies" the man standing beside John said..

"This your man?" Steele said as he looked at Rex and then natalie as he ignored the other guy talking..

"keep it in your pants man" another guy laughed..

"dont mind him, he's gotten barbaric in these times" a petite girl came over with punk rock hair and a soft smile.."Gigi" she said with her hand extended..

"Hi" Natalie said quietly as Rex stood there suspiciously..Steele walked over to John and nudged him..

"Nice pickings man, nice pickings" he grinned as John rolled his eyes and sipped on his beer..

"come on, im sure your tired of standing" Gigi said as she took Natalie's hand and lead her over to a chair as Rex followed, eyeing everyone he passed as Gigi grabbed the beers from the young kid standing off to the side and she handed one to Natalie and the other to Rex.."you can relax a bit, your safe here" she said to Rex who kept his guard up and didnt say anything..

"alright im taking watch" John said as he quickly went to the door..

"Thank you" Natalie called out but he didnt stop, he just kept walking..

"dont mind him, he gets moody" Gigi said with a smile and then natalie watched as Evange headed out of the door too, she would have to keep her eye on that chick, that much she did know. She didnt trust her as far as she could throw her..

As the introductions went under way they met the young kid guarding the beers, his name was Matthew, he looked only to be 17 or so, possibly the youngest of the group. Then there was jessica and brody, apparently a couple by the looks of things. Then there was Cris, the guy with the shotgun greeting, he was around natalie's age. The oldest of the group was a nice woman by the name of Nora and her husband Bo who use to be a police chief. The others were a girl by the name of Dani who pretty much stayed to herself, another guy by the name of Jeffrey who was fidgeting with a radio the whole time, Vincent the apparent leader of this group, another guy named Michael and his girlfriend Marcie who by the looks of it was nearly six months pregnant. Then there was a arguing couple by the name of Todd and Blair, the spent the majority of the time bickering. The rest of the people consisted of a three men by the name of Vickers, Kevin and Joey and two more women by the name of Tea and Kelly.

All and all they were pretty friendly and welcoming even though Natalie could tell that Rex wasnt liking this idea at all.

They all told their story of how they happened to end up here, it was amazing to find out that some were doctors, other lawyers, cops, some just club owners, another a newspaper editor. It seemed as though every walk of life was here and soon Natalie was feeling relaxed in their new atmosphere and that was something she hadnt felt for quite sometime.

Gigi had taken a liking to her immediately and Natalie the same to her. It was nice to connect with someone and soon Gigi was showing her the sleeping quarters as they walked through the large building..

"alot of the rooms are used up but you can bunk with me if you want" Gigi continued as they walked around..

"thanks for being so welcoming" Natalie said honestly...

"weve all been there but its good now, this place has become our home and well yours now too" Gigi said with a smile..

"yeah well I think a couple of the people here arent so happy about that" Natalie said as she fidgeted with her hands..

"Oh you mean Vange" Gigi laughed.."dont worry about her, she is a bitch to everyone, I just ignore her"

"what is her deal" Natalie asked as they stopped at a door..

"beats me, she is just uptight" Gigi shrugged he shoulders.."just stay out of her way and she will leave you alone, your brother on the other hand, he needs to lighten up"

"we had a rough couple of weeks" natalie said by way of explanation..

"I know it sucks but once we found this place" Gigi began as she sighed.."its been nice to actually sleep which im sure your exhausted"

"I am pretty tired" Natalie said honestly..

"well come on, i'll show you my room and get this we actually have beds" Gigi grinned big and they headed down the hallway..

Meanwhile John stood up on the roof of the building over looking the road.."see anything?" Vincent said as he came over to him and John just kept looking out of the building...

"nothing to cause alarm" John said as he scanned the nearby woods..

"I hope you didnt make a bad decision by bringing them back here" Vincent said as he came up to John.."the girl seems ok but the kid, he could be trouble"

"He's just a kid, Vince.. give him some time" John said honestly..

"what made you bring them back" Vince asked.."getting soft in your old age" he laughed some..

"theres strength in numbers" John said honestly..

"were still getting over the blow from a few weeks ago" Vince said honestly..

"and we lost ten people" John said dryly..

"I just hope this doesnt back fire man" Vincent said with a sigh..

"If it does then I will take care of it personally" John said seriously..

"Im gonna hold you to that" Vince said as Evange came walking onto the roof..

"anything out there?" she asked as she came over fully armed with a gun..

"well im going to bed, wake me in a few and I will take over" Vince said as he left and Vange looked at John..

"You should let me take over a bit, you havent slept in days John" she said as she neared him..

"when im tired I will sleep" he said in a clipped tone..

"John you cant still blame yourself for what happened" she began as he looked at her..

"i dont need this speech right now" he said quickly..

"Im worried about you" she said as she touched his arm and he yanked it back..

"dont be, im fine" he said as he walked to the other side of the roof.."You should go to bed, im good out here"

She took a deep breath as she stood there but then turned and left the roof, he too took a deep breath as he stood there and ran a hand through his head and then he continued staring out into the night sky..

It was a few hours later when natalie awoke to a cold sweat and her heart pounding, her nightmares were filled with horrific images and dark places, sort of like the one she was currently in if it not of been for the candle burning across the room, it took her a few moments to realize where she was and that she was indeed safe..

Gigi was fast asleep in the bed across from her as she looked around the room, she wasnt use to sleeping like this, for weeks now she was literally sleeping minutes at a time and she was always on guard, it was odd being here and actually sleeping, her body wasnt use to it.

She climbed from the bed, wanting to find rex and make sure he was ok. The last she had seen him he was playing cards with some of the guys and he had actually seemed to lighten up a bit which was saying something..

She grabbed the candle from the dresser and made her way out into the dark hallway, even though she knew that they were essentially out of harms way she couldnt help the anxiety running through her at every noise and crack of the floor boards..

Every room she passed was occupied with people sleeping and snoring, it was an unusual sound especially considering the circumstances outside the walls..She made her way back to the large sitting room that was now empty except for some beer cans on the floor and a deck of cards on the table, apparently Rex went to sleep after all, she turned to leave the room and banged her leg on a table in the process making her wince as she nearly dropped the candle but what happened next she wasnt expecting cause literally right in front of her face as she turned was that same crossbow aimed at her face..