Chapter Four

It was another bright and sunny day in Savannah. Down one of the streets was a small auto shop that had just opened for the day. Stepping inside was Ellis, smiling at his co-workers and friends along with the receptionist who watched him walk past, her eyes firmly locked on his rear. Putting his favourite cap neatly on his head, Ellis immediately set off to work. There were three cars in the shop that day that needed some sort of repair, nothing too taxing for the team that worked there. Ellis got underneath a small Eyewitness 10 News van, fixing the many faults the van was suffering from. To the front of the van, the bodywork was severely damaged. The van looked as if it had run into something. The front lights were all shattered and the windshield was completely cracked. Looking underneath the van, Ellis noticed that the vehicle's brake fluid had been completely drained over time from a small leak. Finding this odd, he pulled himself out from under the van and wiped his greasy hands onto his clothes.

'Hey, Keith,' Ellis called out. Keith emerged from around the corner. 'Where's the owner of this here van?' Keith shrugged.

'They were some big wig reporter types,' he scratched his head as he spoke. 'Said they'd be back in a couple of days.' Ellis sighed and rubbed his own forehead.

'Well,' he explained, 'cuz it looks like they've been breaking their car quite a bit. It's gonna cost them extra.'

'Just fix it,' Keith told him, 'and we'll charge them whatever we want. They look like the type of people who can throw money around.'

'Okay,' Ellis nodded, feeling that Keith's plan was slightly dishonest. He turned back but Keith stopped him.

'You cool for going out for a bite later?' he asked. 'My girl's got someone she wants you to meet.'

'Another girl?' Ellis asked, grinning slightly. Keith winked at him.

'A hot one.'

'Sounds good,' Ellis nodded. 'Can't wait.' He then went back to the van and continued working, feeling excited about the evening.

*

Running through the food court, Ellis knew that it was not a good time to get something to eat, as there were hundreds of infected behind him who wanted exactly that. Firing blind pistol shots as he ran, Ellis found himself becoming tired very quickly. He dodged tables as he made his way through the food court where the infected simply knocked them out of the way or leapt over them. In the distance was an escalator; Ellis' next target. Reaching the foot of the now motionless stairs, he bolted up them as quick as he could. At the top on the second floor was a small waste bin, which Ellis eyed closely. As the stairs forced the infected to funnel upward in single file, they were slowed down as they each tried to ascend the stairs at once. Reaching the top, Ellis looked down and saw them slowly making their way up. Pulling the bin to the mouth of the stairs, he kicked it down, the heavy cylinder rolling down and knocking over the infected that got in its way, causing a huge problem for them back down on the first floor.

Using his newfound head start, Ellis turned and ran in the first appealing direction; past the empty, looted stores and facilities. He saw a door that went to the management area, so he made his way there, slamming it closed as he went through. Sprinting down the long, white corridor, Ellis encountered some stray infected that were falling around the hallway and the various offices. Shooting them with relative ease, Ellis pressed on, looking for a place to hide. Coming to a t-junction, he stopped to look both ways. In one direction there were more doors and in another was a Jockey.

The Jockey overpowered Ellis immediately before he had a chance to react. Struggling while the beast laughed hysterically as it squeezed him, Ellis tried bashing it against the walls to loosen its grip, to no success. Finding it hard to breathe, Ellis stumbled down the corridor desperately searching for a way to get the infected off him. Crashing through a door he ran into a room with a few common infected standing around. They instantly made their way for him. Ellis managed to kick one of the three out of the room, it crashing against a wall and slumping down while the other two began to claw and scrape. Ellis could not handle them by himself and soon fell to the ground as the infected began to mercilessly assault him.

At that moment, two gunshots rung through the air and the common infected were dispatched. A hail of bullets then made their way to the Jockey and it soon fell off Ellis, dead. Disorientated, Ellis looked up and saw a man in stained and tattered racing overalls, aiming his weapon at him.

'Hell, you ain't no mutant,' the man observed, putting his gun away and holding out his hand to help Ellis off the ground. His vision still blurry, Ellis could only just make out who the figure was. At first he could not believe his eyes; what he was seeing could not possibly be true. Then Ellis thought he may have died and gone to Heaven as the person standing in front of him, holding his hand out with his iconic racing overalls, trim beard, neat moustache and very light brown hair was Ellis' hero; Jimmy Gibbs Jr.

*

Still on the rooftop of one of the small shops, Coach, Rochelle and Nick were debating their next plan. Their discussion was becoming rather passionate as Nick did not share the same intentions as his companions, choosing to take a more realistic stance on the situation than Coach and Rochelle.

'We should just get the hell out of here,' he told them, fists clenched. 'I mean, look at it reasonably; he's dead!'

'We don't know that!' Coach cried. 'You don't know that! Is that what being in a team means to you; leaving your friends behind?'

'He wasn't my friend,' Nick said rather coldheartedly. 'He wasn't yours, either. He was someone we teamed up with, that's all.'

'How can you say that?' Rochelle asked, clearly disgusted by his attitude.

'We're working as a team, Rochelle!' Nick gestured toward the mall. 'He took one for the team but he's gone now. If we go over there to try and save him then we'll just end up getting killed and his sacrifice will be in vain!'

'Are you even listening to yourself?' Rochelle shook her head at him. 'Are you hearing what you're saying?'

'If we don't look out for each other what makes us any different from them bitches?' Coach asked.

'I am looking out for you,' Nick insisted. 'Christ, we need to look out for each other or else we'll all die but going on a mission inside a confined building to try and rescue one person is not looking out for him or yourselves; it's suicide!' Nick took a breath, rubbing his face. 'It's not as if we'll go in there and find him hiding in a closet or something. If we lived long enough we'd either find him dead or find him turned into one of them. Now I for one don't want to waste any time because we need to find some shelter for the evening. The sun's setting in a few hours and I'm not sure what those things are like during the night but it's going to be a shit lot harder to keep them at bay in the dark.'

'It'd be easier if we had a fourth person,' Coach said, his tone very matter of fact. Nick rolled his eyes and put his hand to his head, sighing.

'We're going in, Nick,' Rochelle told him. 'We have to try and save him.' Nick shook his head, knowing that he was never going to be able to convince them.

'You can come, too,' Coach added. 'I mean, three is better than two, right?'

'Three is better than one in my case,' Nick corrected him. Exchanging looks between the two, Nick finally sighed and gave them a curt nod. 'Might as well die with you idiots than on my own.' Rochelle frowned at him but looked thankful that he was joining them.

'So what's the plan?' Coach asked. 'It's probably not a good idea to run in at the front where they all are.'

'This place was a small base for CEDA,' Rochelle told them, adjusting her camera. She was rewinding old footage, looking for something particular. 'I filmed this place shortly before all this happened, when I was still looking for a story. You know; "the survivors tale" and all that.'

'What's your point?' Nick asked. Rochelle shot him a distasteful look.

'My point is,' she continued, 'I think I saw something around the back while interviewing people that would... there it is!' Rochelle stopped the footage from rewinding and tapped the screen, flipping it around so that the others could see. The paused image was of a man being interviewed, however in the background was an elaborate network of scaffolding that extended as high as the screen could show. Nick's eyebrows rose as he looked at the image while Coach grinned and clapped his hands.

'That's our way in, then!' he said. 'Let's go!'

'Can I see that?' Nick asked, reaching for Rochelle's camera. Handing it over to him, she sighed.

'Looking for a flaw in our plan?' she asked him as he examined the screen. 'I know what you're going to say; it might not be there anymore, it might not reach the rooftop or it might collapse while fatty here is on it!' Rochelle gestured over to Coach.

'Hey!' Coach moaned.

'Well we can just improvise something,' Rochelle went on to say, ignoring Coach's glaring looks. However, Nick was not listening to her. His hands trembled slightly as he held the camera, examine the image to make sure what he was seeing was what he thought it was. It was the man being interviewed, he recognised him. He knew him well, or at least he thought he did. It was his father, Peter.

Nick's mind was racing. He assumed Peter was dead since he had not heard from him after he had vanished, a reasonable assumption considering the current climate in Savannah. He had accepted that Peter was dead and actually felt better when he thought that he was dead and now here he was; alive and well. The timestamp on the image told Nick that the footage was taken two days ago and considering that this was CEDA evacuation centre, he could very well still be alive. He could also still have the briefcase; Nick could not be sure as he could only see Peter's head in the shot.

Handing the camera back, Nick sighed.

'Let's go,' he said, now more enthusiastic about heading toward the mall. Maybe he could find out where CEDA had transported the survivors to.

*

It was the end of the day and Ellis and the others had finished all their work. The only people left in the auto shop were Ellis, Keith and the receptionist. Stood in the garage, Ellis was putting away some equipment when Keith joined him.

'You all set?' he asked him. Ellis turned around, looking confused.

'For what?' he queried. Keith gave him a flat look.

'For going out tonight?' Keith reminded him. 'My girlfriend is setting you up with her friend. She's hot. Don't you remember?' The receptionist stepped into the garage.

'Goodbye, Ellis,' she smiled, waving and walking out. Ellis watched her walk out and then looked back to Keith.

'I don't fancy that anymore,' he sighed.

'What?' Keith protested in disbelief. 'How come?'

'I dunno,' Ellis shrugged. 'Just don't really like the idea of being set up with someone.'

'You were all for it this morning,' Keith pointed out. 'What's changed?'

'I dunno,' Ellis shrugged once more. 'I guess I just... I'm happy as I am, truth be told.' Keith sighed, scratching his forehead irritably.

'Fine,' he said. 'I'll call and cancel. They're gonna be pissed off though, you know that.'

Ellis gave Keith an apologetic look before he walked off into one of the offices to make the phone call. Ellis continued to put away the rest of the tools and equipment and moved to the large garage door. Stepping outside, he pulled the door shut and locked it, the entire place sealed for the day. Walking to his small truck, Ellis looked behind him and saw Keith walking up to him.

'Well,' he said angrily. 'I guess I don't have any plans this evening.'

'What's up?' Ellis asked, not wondering how Keith got out of the shop before he did.

'Girls gotta stick together, bro,' Keith told him. 'You cancel on her so she cancels on me.'

'Aw, I'm sorry,' Ellis said genuinely. 'How about we go grab a bite?' Keith closed his eyes and then nodded.

'Yeah, sure,' he agreed. Ellis jumped into the back of his pickup truck and pulled off his messy shirt, finding his favourite clean one and pulling it down over his head. His body was slim and toned and he had a rather large scar on his back that ran down from his left shoulder to under his pants. It was an old scar and definitely not a birthmark.

'Let's go!' Ellis smiled enthusiastically, getting into the driver's seat and starting the engine.

*

To the back of the mall was the atrium, a large open space that housed numerous shops over several floors. On the ground was an elaborate promotional display with a 1968 Dodge Charger taking centre stage. Considering the disarray that surrounded the area; bodies, debris and general destruction, the car was in remarkable condition. Hanging from the ceiling were banners with Jimmy Gibbs Jr. on it, stood confidently with his arms folded and legs apart. Running underneath the bright banners, Jimmy and Ellis made their way into a small bookstore. Moving around the rearranged bookshelves that formed a makeshift barricade, the two arrived in the somewhat secure backrooms. Dotted around the small room were a few crates accompanied by some books and a small refrigerator. There was also an upturned table, which Jimmy put on its side and pushed it to the doorway, forming another barricade.

'How you doing, kid?' Jimmy asked. Ellis let out a relieved breath, falling onto one of the crates and attempting to absorb everything that was suddenly happening. 'That's a hell of a black eye you got there,' he said, referring to the injury Whitaker had given him. Looking up at Jimmy, Ellis let out a vague croak, unable to speak. Reaching into the fridge, Jimmy took a bottle of water and handed it to Ellis. 'This place must've been the break room or something,' Jimmy hypothesised. 'I've been holding out here since all this shit began. You're the first person I've run into who isn't... one of them.' Ellis gave Jimmy a grateful look, still unable to find the will to speak. 'So what's your name? You out here on your own?'

'N-no,' Ellis shook his head after swallowing some water. 'I mean I'm not on my own. M'name's Ellis, Mr. Gibbs.'

'You know who I am?' Jimmy asked, not sounding too surprised.

'Oh yeah!' Ellis nodded enthusiastically. 'I'm, like, your number one fan, sir!'

'Oh please,' Jimmy waved his hand, 'no "Sirs" or "Mr's." Call me Jimmy.' Ellis nodded but still found it difficult to say.

'Okay,' he replied. He was sat in front of his idol, the man he had respected for nearly all his life. 'It's just... I'm a real big fan! I've been to see you so many times. I even came here a few days ago to get your autograph.'

'Really?' Jimmy asked. 'I'm sorry; I don't remember. The past few days have been exhausting.' Ellis nodded understandingly. His fear had been momentarily replaced by excitement; the joy of being sat opposite Jimmy was overwhelming. 'So you're not on your own?'

'Oh, yeah,' Ellis smiled, 'I met some people on the way; they're my friends. We've not been together long but we were working well together.'

'Where are they now?' Jimmy asked. Ellis sighed.

'We got separated outside,' he explained. 'Zombies chased me in here. I think they got away safe.'

'Well at least someone did,' Jimmy sat down on a different crate. 'So many people have died...' Ellis nodded and drank some more water. A moment of silence passed before Jimmy leant forward. 'We need to get out of here,' he told Ellis, who in turn leant forward as well.

'There are too many zombies outside,' Ellis told him, 'we won't survive just walking out the front door. They'd kill us.'

'I know that,' Jimmy nodded, 'that's why we're not going to walk out. We're gonna drive.' Ellis looked confused. Jimmy tilted his head in the direction of the doorway, smiling somewhat. 'My car,' he elaborated. 'We're gonna use that to get the hell out of here. With it we can drive through or outrun them bastards.'

'That's such a good idea!' Ellis grinned. 'How come you ain't left before?' Jimmy looked slightly embarrassed.

'Well,' he explained. 'There's a couple things wrong with the engine. Since I drive cars like that for a living I'm ashamed to say that I can't fix the bastard. Plus I need to get a few more supplies.' Ellis smiled at him.

'As luck would have it,' he said, 'I'm a mechanic.'

'You are?' Jimmy beamed, he could not believe it. A mechanic had practically landed in his lap.

'Yup,' Ellis nodded. 'I'll fix the car for you; then we can find my friends and get out of Savannah!' Jimmy's smile disappeared. He patted Ellis' leg and sighed.

'Look, kid,' he said, 'I know you care about those people but they're probably long gone by now.'

'No they're not!' Ellis insisted. 'You don't know that.'

'Trust me, Ellis,' Jimmy said solemnly. 'They've probably already made their own plans now and are getting the hell out of here. We should do the same.' Jimmy groaned as he got to his feet, stretching his back. He continued talking, mentioning something about a few spare parts that the car needed before he could get it running again but Ellis did not hear him. He was thinking about Nick, Rochelle and Coach. They surely wouldn't abandon him, would they? They'd come look for him. It was too soon to just give up on them now, right? Ellis, looking heavily conflicted rested his head in his hands as he thought. He couldn't imagine his friends suddenly abandoning him like that; well maybe Nick but he didn't know him too well. Then Ellis realised; he didn't know any of them that well and they didn't know him. They had only been together for a few hours after all, not long enough to form a special bond. Why would they risk their lives to rescue him when they did not really know him? Ellis put himself in their position and asked himself: would you go back to attempt to help? Ellis thought about it...

*

Comfortably sat in the back of his modest pickup truck, Ellis looked up at the stars while Keith hastily ate his burger. Ellis got a chilli burger and was savouring the taste. The evening was a beautiful one. The sky was clear and full of stars with not a single cloud visible. Behind them was a large forest, with the leaves in the trees rustling together in the gentle cool breeze. Ellis liked it here; it was peaceful. In front of them was a large field. The sound of crickets chirping was relaxing, making Ellis feel slightly drowsy. Hearing Keith take another massive chunk out of his burger, Ellis sat up and began to eat his own, albeit much more politely with smaller bites.

'This is a pretty sweet place,' Keith told him through a mouthful of meat.

'Yeah,' Ellis nodded. 'I come here sometimes to relax or to think.'

'Oh yeah?' Keith swallowed his food. 'What about?'

'Just stuff,' Ellis said vaguely. 'I think about mom and dad, school and work...' He paused for a moment. 'I think about stuff I did and the choices I made.'

'I never knew you were such a deep thinker,' Keith commented, thinking for a moment. The cool breeze subsided somewhat. 'Do you think you ever made the wrong choice?'

'Oh no!' Ellis cried. 'I mean, yeah maybe sometimes I wonder what life could have been like if it was a little... different. But right here and now; I'm really happy.' Keith nodded as he listened to his friend.

'What if things change?' he asked.

'Things won't change,' Ellis shook his head.

'What if they do, though?'Keith asked him once more. 'You can't expect things will stay the same forever, it just doesn't work that way.' Ellis sighed.

'Well if things do change I dunno what I'll do,' he told him. 'I guess it depends on what changes.' Keith nodded as he listened. 'As long as I have my job and my friends like you, nothin' will be too tough to handle.'

Keith smiled at Ellis and nodded. The two continued to eat their meal. The rustling in the trees and bushes returned, the noise relaxing Ellis. However, where the rustling returned the breeze that caused it did not. Sitting up slightly Ellis looked around to see what made the noise to look down the barrel of a double barrelled shotgun.

'Shit!' he gasped, shuffling backward.

'The fuck you doing on my land?' the farmer asked. 'This is my land, private property.'

'We didn't know,' Keith told him.

'Hey, man,' Ellis said shakily, 'we'll just go if you want.'

'Shut up!' the man spat. 'You're always coming here! I seen your truck pulling in down here frequently! Why you coming here all the time in the middle of the night, huh?'

'We won't come back,' Keith said but the farmer acted as though he didn't hear him.

'We just came here to relax,' he told him.

'We?' the farmer repeated. 'How many more of you are there?' He pushed his gun forward when Ellis decided to act. He kicked the shotgun up into the air and threw the burger at him, the chilli sauce getting into his eye.

'Go, Keith!' he yelled, jumping out and pushing past the farmer. The two got into Ellis' truck and he began to drive away as fast as he could. Wiping the sauce out of his eye, the farmer took a blind shot and fired on the truck before it got away. Ellis looked behind him and saw that they were not being followed. 'You alright?' he asked him. He looked over and saw Keith holding his arm, blood staining his clothes. 'Shit, you been hit!' Ellis cried.

'I'll be okay,' Keith shook his head, dismissing the injury.

'The hell you will!' Ellis cried. 'I'm taking you to the hospital.'

After a brief drive the two arrived at the hospital. Parking in the emergency zone, Ellis got out and put his arm around Keith, pulling him toward the emergency room.

'Sir!' someone yelled out. 'You can't just park there!' Ellis, angry with the man's attitude looked at him up and down.

'Tow it,' he told him, believing Keith's injuries were more important than his car. Inside the emergency room, Ellis sat Keith down on a chair as he was in too much pain to move. Running over to the reception he pushed past some people and spoke to the nurse.

'My friend's been shot!' he told her.

'Sir, you have to wait your turn,' she told him.

'Damn it, he's been shot and is bleedin' damn it!' The nurse sighed.

'Where is he?'

'I sat him down there,' Ellis pointed.

'I'll send a Doctor,' the nurse did not even look to where he was pointing. 'Now will you go and wait in line?'

A sudden shriek of terror interrupted the transaction and made the entire emergency room go quiet. Looking over to the door leading to the surgery wing, everyone heard the commotion of heavy violence and pain. Bursting through into the room, causing everyone to jump was a pregnant woman; Tilly Franklyn. She was now a Spitter. Sending acid everywhere, people started to scream as things burnt around them. The nurse got covered in the acid and began to scream in agony as it destroyed her flesh and bones. Ellis dived out of the way and ran to Keith, lifting him from his chair and pulling him out. The Spitter caught up with him and swiped at them but Ellis kicked her away and ran to his car. Getting inside he started the engine and began to drive as the Spitter retched acid onto the side of the vehicle. As Ellis drove off the door began to disintegrate and fell off. After driving a little more, the wheels buckled and the entire car came to a miserable stop, still falling apart. Taking Keith in his arms, Ellis ran down the street as fast as he could.

*

Norah was pacing the corridors worriedly. There was very little that she could now do for the country; she had to rely on the armed forces to do their bit. Washington was now under the influence of the infection. The White House was near empty as people who had left the previous evening never showed up the following morning. Norah arrived there to work and apparently, Edward had never left. Stepping out of an office, Edward walked into Norah, looking surprised.

'You startled me,' he tried to speak lightly, given the situation. 'I was just about to head to my office, would you care to join me?'

'Actually, Eddy,' Norah sighed, 'can you come with me to my office?' Edward nodded and followed Norah. As they walked he looked out of the window, a grim expression on his face.

'We gave it a good shot,' he said dejectedly. Norah stepped inside her office and offered Edward a seat. Sitting at her desk she put her hands together and looked at him, deadly serious.

'The other day when we had the evac meeting with the others, I went into your office, remember?'

'I do,' Edward nodded.

'I put my phone on your desk and something was stuck to it when I lifted it up; a fine white powder.'

'Oh?' Edward looked slightly worried.

'Look, Eddy,' Norah sighed, gently massaging her eyelids. 'I trust you more than I trust anyone else in the building, in my life, even. We've known each other longer than I can remember so I'm just going to be blunt out of respect. You can tell me anything, you know that right?' Edward nodded.

'Of course,' he said. 'And you know I take that very seriously. You were the first person I came out to, after all. I trust you completely as well. It's why we've been so good together, politically.' Norah wet her lips slightly.

'So you don't have anything you want to tell me?' she asked solemnly.

'I don't think so,' Edward smiled. 'You know I can't keep secrets from you.'

'Oh, really?' Norah asked. 'Because, what I felt on your desk, I thought it was something like cocaine.'

'Cocaine?' Edward repeated, sounding shocked. 'That's absurd! You know I'd never risk my integrity or your reputation by doing drugs.'

'Really?' Norah asked.

'Really,' Edward nodded. 'I am drug-free and perfectly able to my job, uninhibited.' Norah nodded slowly, a painful look on her face. Reaching into her desk drawer, she pulled out and placed on her desk a small wooden box that she had found earlier in Edwards room. Not enjoying Edward's look of horror when he saw it, Norah sat back in her chair.

'We both know what's in there,' she sighed, giving him a questioning look. 'Why, Eddy?' Looking plainly at Norah, Edward licked his lips and shuffled in his chair.

'With everything that's been going on lately,' he explained, 'I needed something to take the edge off... I didn't mean to get hooked on it but I need it to function at my best.'

'Come off it, Edward,' Norah spoke dismissively. 'You're sounding like an addict.'

'I am an addict,' he told her. 'I make no illusions to myself that I am in control because I am not; it's that!' He pointed to the box. 'All I know is that I am no good to you right now during this crisis when I'm coming off it.'

'It will kill you!' Norah protested.

'Oh fuck you, Norah!' Edward shouted, standing from his chair suddenly, making her flinch. 'Do you really think I'm going to live long enough to die from this stuff? I mean; Christ, we've got millions being mutated into abominations out there! Canada has been fucked by this, it's spread to Mexico and South America, this part of the world is entirely fucked, Norah! So I think me taking a bit of coke is the last of your fucking problems!'

Norah stood up, moved around the desk and slapped him forcefully. She was so angry with him; her hand left a red mark on his face. Stepping back slightly, Edward glared at Norah venomously.

'How can I trust you, now?' she asked. 'If you've lied to me about that then what else have you lied about?'

'Don't try to pin your inability to defend this country against that magic flu on me!' Edward roared.

'I'm not!' Norah cried. The was a brief moment of silence while she composed herself. 'I know it is my fault, all my fault. But you let me down, Eddy. You let me down.' Edward shuffled slightly on the spot. Norah was no longer angry, she was more upset. Walked past her, Edward took back his box and left the office without saying another word. Norah leant on the desk, tears welling in her eyes. 'Shit...' she sighed.

*

Infected stumbled and fell dead as Coach, Nick and Rochelle shot them all dead. Around the rear of the mall there were significantly fewer problems to deal with, so in a matter of moments they arrived at the scaffolding. Rochelle's plan seemed to be working so far, the scaffolds were still standing and indeed went up toward the rooftop of the mall.

'We can go up there,' she spoke with slightly short breath, wiping the sweat off her forehead. 'Then we can get down into the mall and look for Ellis.' Rochelle looked around for a moment. 'Where's Nick?'

The rear area of the mall car park had numerous tents and trailers, just like the front. Nick was inside one tent investigating. In this particular one were numerous beds, forming some sort of makeshift ward. On a table were papers with bold red words stamped on them; terminated. Seeing it made him feel slightly sick so he left and went continued looking. He had to know where everyone went.

'Nick!' Rochelle called out behind him, causing Nick to stop and close his eyes in frustration.

'What is it?' he asked, turning around. 'I'm just looking!'

'Ellis might not have a lot of time,' she insisted, heading for the scaffolding. 'Come on!' Nick sighed and looked to his left, seeing a large trailer. Instead of following Rochelle he went inside.

'Where's Nick?' Coach asked, climbing a ladder.

'He's coming,' Rochelle nodded, following him. The scaffolding appeared slightly rickety; it was made of metal tube supports and simple wooden planks for walkways. At the top of this ladder was a level of planks that went around the mall. They had to walk a little bit over them to get to the nearest ladder to ascend to the next level. This system appeared to go up as far as the mall did.

Inside the trailer, Nick ignored abandoned laptop computer that had long since run out of power and flicked through drawers and cabinets. The trailer was a essentially a portable office, although it still smelt foul, like most trailers from this part of America, Nick thought to himself. After a moment of haphazard searching Nick had found nothing. Smashing his fists on a table in anger, he jolted a computer, which he had failed to notice was plugged into a socket. The screen turning on, Nick looked over at it, suddenly optimistic. There was an open video file that had been paused. Resuming playback Nick was looking at a face unfamiliar to him; the director of CEDA.

'-orders,' the Director continued talking. 'Finally, teams will come by periodically to evacuate the survivors that you have been holding. From your area, survivors will be taken to New Orleans where special facilities have been constructed to handle infectious agents. They will, from there, be evenly dispersed to other evacuation zones near the coast where they will be airlifted...' Nick flipped the screen down, he had heard enough. He had to get to New Orleans and quick if he ever wanted to see Peter again. He realised that he might have already been rescued but Nick knew he still had to try.

Nick also discovered what the foul smell was inside the trailer; as emerging from the bathroom door was a Charger.

'Oh my God,' Nick gasped.

Storming out of the trailer, Nick ran for the scaffolding as fast as he could. Rochelle and Coach, who were already on the first level, looked down on him.

'Where have you been?' she called out. The trailer ripped apart answered her as the Charger burst out, following Nick, who jumped onto the ladder and climbed up. The beast crashed into the scaffolding, knocking everyone off balance. Rochelle and Coach held onto pipes as Nick continued climbing. Reaching the same level as the two, he stopped by them.

'What the hell were you doing?' Coach cried.

Suddenly, the whole scaffolding lurched and from where Nick had been, began to fall apart.

'Oh shit...' Nick gasped.

'Run!' Rochelle ordered, storming for the nearest ladder. Running ahead of the collapsing metal, the survivors barley had any time to get up. A fall from this height would kill them for sure. Rochelle and Nick jumped onto the first ladder they came to, bolting up to the top but Coach continued running forward, climbing the next one he came to in a few hundred yards. Rochelle reached the top first and helped Nick up, then continued to dash to their escape. Coach started climbing, slightly slower than the other, younger survivors.

'Come on, Coach,' Nick yelled out, 'pretend that when we get to the top, the roof is made of chocolate!' Reaching the top, Rochelle and Nick pulled the man up as they continued running. There were only two more levels left. Climbing a nearer ladder, all three survivors made it to the next set of planks where climbing upward would put them on the rooftop. However, the only ladder they saw going up was to the right, and had just been taken down by the falling scaffolding. Running as far as they could to the end, the survivors were trapped.

'Now what?' Coach yelled. Nick got on his hands and knees.

'Climb up on me and you can reach it!' he cried.

'I'll crush you!' Coach declined. Not having time to argue, Rochelle climbed up and jumped into the air, pulling herself up. Coach then lifted Nick up as the scaffolding had nearly all collapsed. Reaching up as far as he could, Coach could not grab Nick's outstretched arm.

'Come on!' Nick yelled.

'Move over, Shorty,' Rochelle said to Nick, reaching out for him. Coach grabbed Rochelle's hand just as the scaffolding fell beneath him. Unprepared for the weight, Rochelle nearly fell off but was caught by Nick at the last second. Dangling in the air, Coach looked down and watched the whole of the scaffolding they had been on collapse into a massive heap. He let out a massive, hysterical scream.

'A man of my size should not be in this position!' he screamed.

'You're telling me!' Rochelle gasped, struggling with his weight. Nick managed to pull them both up onto the rooftop and they all lay on the ground, resting for a moment. Panting heavily, Nick looked to Rochelle.

'We're never doing one of your plans again!' he gasped.

'Deal,' Rochelle nodded. Coach got up and took a deep breath, nodding to the roof access door.

'Well guys,' he said, 'it's now or never.'

'We have no other way of getting down anyway,' Nick sighed, standing up and helping Rochelle to her feet. 'Let's get going.' Coach opened the door for them and they all went down together.

*

Cans of gasoline, food rations and first aid supplies were loaded into the trunk of the Dodge Charger. Slamming the lid down, Jimmy patted Ellis on the shoulder after he moved around to the front of the car. There were slight mechanical difficulties that had prevented the car from moving before, a deliberate retardation to prevent someone from stealing it from the mall during the night.

'Never thought I'd have to steal my own car,' Jimmy commented, appreciating the irony. 'Good thing I ran into a handy mechanic.'

'We are gonna go look for my friends, right?' Ellis asked, wanting definite confirmation.

'Sure we are,' Jimmy nodded, not sounding completely genuine, not that Ellis noticed as he was too blinded by his adoration of him. 'The more the merrier, right? I'm sure we can fit an extra three people in the back. Might be a bit tight, but oh well. We'll manage.' Ellis gave him a weak smile and continued working on the engine.

*

A few days had gone by and Ellis was sat with Keith in his house. The entire town had begun to fall apart with news reports telling horrific stories of the flu that had been going around making people crazy and mutating some others, like he saw in the hospital. Keith was lying in Ellis' bed severely unwell. He had a high fever. Ellis put a damp washcloth over his head. Keith's eyes opened slowly; he had been asleep for a few hours.

'How you feelin'?' Ellis asked. Keith shook his head.

'Shit,' he told him. Ellis nodded and continued to care for him. 'I'm gonna die, Ellis.'

'Lots of rest and plenty of liquids,' Ellis ignored him. 'That's what mom always said is the best medicine.'

'Not for this,' Keith grabbed Ellis' arm. 'Not this.' The two looked at each other grimly. 'You've seen the news. There's no stopping it once you get the symptoms and I got the symptoms.'

'I can't let you die!' Ellis yelled, tears forming in his eyes. 'I just can't.'

'I wasn't saying that,' Keith told him. 'I want you to kill me.'

'What?' Ellis cried in disbelief.

'What happens if I turn into one of them crazies or somethin'? It'd be safer if I...'

'Shut up!' Ellis yelled, a tear falling down his cheek. 'If I ain't gonna let you die I ain't gonna kill you!'

'Then give me a knife or something!' Keith insisted. 'I'll do it myself!' Ellis got close to Keith.

'I ain't gonna do this!'

'You need to move on,' Keith told him, catching Ellis off guard. He did not understand what he was saying. 'You know sometimes I don't get you, Ellis. You always different every time I see you; sometimes you want to be set up, other times you hate the idea altogether.' Ellis frowned at him, wondering what that had to do with the current situation. 'You need to move on, man. I ain't gonna be here much longer. Like it or not things are changing and you're gonna have to adapt if you wanna survive.'

'I don't think I can,' Ellis shook his head.

'Then you'll end up like me!' Keith coughed. Ellis stood up and took his empty glass.

'I'll get you more water.'

Stepping into the kitchen, Ellis ran the faucet. Where television and radio had all but cut out, they still had running water... for the time being. As the glass filled he looked over to the knife rack. He contemplated killing his friend who was in so much pain, but he could not imagine how he would cope without him. Ellis knew he was being selfish but just could not stand the thought of being without him. He was weak and he knew it. Ellis knew that Keith would be a good friend to him and put him out of his misery if there was no other way. Ellis wondered if he was a good friend or not. The water began to overflow in the glass and Ellis turned off the faucet.

Back in Keith's room, Ellis handed him the glass and sat next to him, thinking. He continued thinking for a few more hours while Keith fell back asleep. Using all his might he went back down to the kitchen and took the sharpest knife he could find. Standing over Keith his hands trembled as he prepared himself. He raised the blade up and with one powerful swipe he swung the knife down to Keith.

Stood over him, the knife in his hand, Ellis let out a loud scream.

*

Coach led Nick and Rochelle into the upper levels of the Atrium of the mall. Rochelle, who was filming their progress, sighed.

'I never thought I'd see this place again,' she muttered to herself, looking over at the large banners of Jimmy Gibbs Jr. She shuddered as she remembered her encounter with him and stood close to the railing, looking down over the side. On the ground she saw the Dodge Charger and Ellis stood over the engine. 'Oh my God, it's Ellis!' she exclaimed. Running down the nearest stairs, Rochelle called out to him. Ellis looked up and saw his friends running toward him. He could hardly believe his eyes and dropped the tools he was using and ran for them. Rochelle was the first to make it to the ground floor and she embraced him as Nick and Coach joined them moments later. Nick gave Ellis a slightly jealous look while Rochelle had her arms around him. She let go of him and kissed him on the cheek. 'I'm so glad you're okay.'

'Yeah,' Ellis nodded, 'you too. I can't believe you guys came back for me.'

'Of course we would!' Coach insisted. 'We would never leave you or anyone else behind.' He looked over to Nick who rolled his eyes and nodded.

'Why didn't you think we'd come?' Nick asked.

'Jimmy thought you wouldn't,' Ellis said rather sheepishly.

'Jimmy?' Coach asked. 'As in, Jimmy Gibbs Jr.?'

'Yeah,' Ellis said, sharing Coach's enthusiasm.

'Who?' Nick asked Rochelle who shook her head at him.

'Don't ask,' she said.

'Hot damn!' Coach cried. 'Is he here now?'

'I sure am,' Jimmy said, causing Coach to jump in surprise. He turned around and saw Jimmy Gibbs Jr. stood before him, holding supplies for the car. Packing them into the trunk he waved.

'Dear... God...' Coach shook his head in disbelief. He turned to Nick and Rochelle. 'This man is an American hero.'

'If the laws of nature would allow it, I would bear his children,' Ellis added making everyone feel suddenly uncomfortable.

'So,' Jimmy broke the silence. 'You all are taggin' along eh?'

'I guess so,' Rochelle looked to the car. 'It's gonna be a tight squeeze.'

'There ain't nothin' wrong with a tight squeeze, young lady,' Jimmy stood close to her, winking.

'Hey!' Nick pushed him away from her. 'Show some respect.' Jimmy suddenly raised his weapon to Nick's head causing everyone to step back.

'How about you show me some respect, boy?' he spat. Nick narrowed his eyes and stepped forward, putting his head on the muzzle of the gun.

'Well?' he asked casually. 'Are you going to shoot?' Jimmy, surprised by Nick's lack of fear, hesitated. Nick moved fast and disarmed him, kicking the man away. 'Asshole.'

Jimmy fell backward and landed on the ground. Irritably, he stood up and gestured to Ellis.

'I help your friend here and this is how you treat me?'

'Let's start over,' Coach suggested, proceeding to introduce himself, Nick and Rochelle.

'I swear I've seen you before,' Jimmy said to Rochelle who rolled her eyes.

'You've met?' Ellis asked, totally disbelieving. 'That's incredible.'

'Why's that?' she asked.

'Round these parts,' Coach explained, 'Jimmy Gibbs Jr. is as famous as Elvis.'

'Or the President,' Nick added, jokingly. However Jimmy took his comment seriously.

'Now you're getting it!' he winked at him, moving over to Rochelle. 'So where did we meet?'

As Jimmy flirted in vain with Rochelle, under the watchful and glaring eye of Nick, Coach stepped over to Ellis and patted him on the back.

'You alright, kid?' he asked. Ellis looked up at Coach, all of a sudden slightly emotional.

'I'm just so glad you came back,' he told him, embracing him suddenly. Coach, not really knowing what to do just patted him on the back again. Ellis stepped away from him and composed himself, clearing his throat. 'Sorry,' he said. 'I didn't know what to think.' Coach smiled at him.

'A reporter, eh?' Jimmy asked Rochelle as they stopped by a closed video store. 'Were you one of the lucky ones who got an... exclusive interview?' Rochelle could not believe what he was saying. She shook her head.

'I didn't, oh well poor me. Maybe next time.'

'Maybe when this is all over you and me could sit in front of the couch and watch a movie together?' Jimmy suggested, stepping over to the locked door.

'I'll pass,' Rochelle declined.

'Come on now,' Jimmy winked at her. 'Nothing's more romantic than a nice cuddle in front of a DVD.' Jimmy kicked the door open, a move he soon regretted as it activated blaring store alarms.

'You idiot!' Rochelle spat. In the distance the wail of the infected echoed around the Atrium. 'Are you really that stupid?'

'Ro!' Nick called out. 'Hurry the hell up!' Rochelle and Jimmy ran for the Dodge Charger. Ellis slammed the hood of the car down.

'Is it fixed?' Jimmy asked.

'As fixed as it's gonna be,' Ellis replied, failing to enforce any confidence. As they went to get inside, a Smoker tongue wrapped around Coach and dragged him away. In the distance infected ran around the corners. Using his hunting rifle, Ellis shot the Smoker, who was a few stories up, dead. Coach stood back up and ran for the car. Jimmy was already in the driver's seat.

'Y'all get in the back, I'm biggest!' Coach ordered.

'That's for sure,' Nick sniggered as he, Ellis and Rochelle climbed into the back. Coach ran in and then Jimmy began driving.

The car spun around on the spot and drove through the oncoming infected. Ellis and Nick leant out of their windows and fired at a few of the infected. Turning a corner, Jimmy drove past the food court.

'If it weren't for them bitches I'd make you stop,' Coach commented.

'We may have to stop!' Jimmy cried, looking ahead. There were doors in front of them but the car could not drive through them.

'Keep going!' Coach told him. 'I got the key.' Leaning out of the window, Coach took his grenade launcher and fired.

Outside, the doors blew open in a fiery blast and the Dodge Charge rocketed through the flames. On the streets of Savannah, the survivors continued driving away from the mall.

'I love this gun!' Coach smiled.

'Where do we go now?' Ellis asked.

'New Orleans,' Nick told them.

'Why there?' Jimmy asked.

'They're evacuating people there, I know it.'

'Seems like a good a place as any,' Jimmy nodded. 'Let's go.'

As they drove, Rochelle glanced at Nick suspiciously. She wondered why he hadn't mentioned New Orleans before. Ellis meanwhile was resting his head against the window, smiling. He could not believe they had got out of there alive.

*

Ellis was standing over Keith, tears falling from his face.

'I'm sorry,' he told him. Tears fell onto Keith's cheek, the knife Ellis had used thrusted into the pillows next to Keith's head. He could not do it; Ellis sat back and threw the knife away. He was unable to kill his best friend. Ellis sat there for a moment, weeping.

It was after a few moments of crying that Ellis realised that Keith had not woken up yet. He had made a lot of noise just then and Keith was still asleep? Ellis stood up and looked at Keith. He was still, not moving. Ellis checked his pulse and his breathing. There was nothing to speak of. Feeling sick, Ellis staggered away from Keith and ran for the bathroom, vomiting into the toilet. Because of his selfishness; Keith had died a miserable death. Ellis felt weak and ashamed. Wiping his mouth, he stood up and left the toilet, looking over to his room. Keith's bed was now empty.

Keith suddenly emerged behind Ellis and began attacking him. He pushed him down the stairs and ran after him. Ellis tried to fight him off but Keith was far too strong. Reduced to nothing more than the common infected, Keith punched, kicked and scratched at Ellis who tried to get away. Kicking Keith in the chest, Ellis managed to get into the kitchen. Keith followed him and Ellis grabbed the nearest knife but Keith already jumped onto him, pinning him to the ground. Still holding the knife, Ellis used all his strength to loosen Keith's grip on his wrists. Head butting him, Ellis managed to get his hand free and stabbed Keith in the side of the head. Keith stopped making noise. Blood flowed from his wound and his eyes. Keith fell off Ellis onto the floor.

Ellis lay there and began weeping, curling up into a ball. He cried until the sun came up and continued crying until it went down again.

He was alone.