CHAPTER 14
Johnny was facing the opposite direction of the group but he could still feel their eyes on them. That was a bold statement that he just made and he had to face the group on that.
"I mean, I admire your fearlessness, but do we really have the strength to go outside and attack what the hell took the girl? There could one, five or hundred of them. We're risking it all by going in randomly. Maybe we should send someone to scout first?", Huggins said as he approached Johnny.
The old man is right, Johnny thought. That was the biggest problem, not knowing the strength of the enemy.
"Well, I guess we can organize both a recon and a rescue squad, but the most important thing is that we have do it as fast as possible. The sooner we depart, the more chance Lola will have of being alive...", Johnny said as he turned around towards the group.
He looked left and right to analyze the group carefully, to choose who to take to search for Lola. The choice looked pretty simple.
"Wolcroft and Lincoln, you'll come with me. Huggins, Jay and Bobby, you'll stay here and guard the school in case of another attack", Johnny sighed.
The rest of the group exchanged confused looks.
"You're taking Lincoln with you? Why's that?", Jay asked while putting his hand on Lincoln's shoulder.
"This is his sister we're talking about. He's already lost two sisters, three are missing and not to count the parents. I know this looks ugly and shitty, but times like this force you to grow up faster than it's predicted, you know what I'm saying?", Johnny responded as he took a deep look at the boy.
"If Lincoln goes, then I'll go too. Lola's my sister as much as she's his and you're gonna have to tie me down if you don't want me to run after you", Lynn furrowed her brow as she crossed her arms.
Johnny turned towards her and smirked. It was a long time ago since he saw someone so determinant as the thirteen-year-old-girl that stood before him was.
Lincoln quickly glanced at his older sister only to receive a cold look of hatred, which reminded him of last night, probably the worst night of his entire life.
Very well then, I like your optimism. Grab your bat now. Lincoln, I'll give you my knife, just in case. Be ready in ten minutes near the front door, until then be sure to eat and drink something, we don't know how much this is gonna last. Go now.", Johnny ordered them as he went back to main hall to grab a can of beans for breakfast.
Ten minutes quickly passed by and the rescue team assembled at the front door. Johnny and Wolcroft were armed with their guns and whatever ammo they had left, Lynn had her lucky bat and Lincoln held the knife that Johnny had given him.
Hopefully I won't have to use it, Lincoln thought.
"Okay then, we'll try and make this as quick possible. Bar the door behind us and don't let anyone in here until we return, not even if they beg you or have children, is that understood", Johnny rasped. Bobby and Huggins nodded.
The group of four stepped while Bobby and Huggins immediately shut the door down and barred the door.
"So, where to? We don't even have an idea where they could be hiding", Wolcroft said with a sad tone in his voice, as he knew that this was partially his fault too.
"I don't think that we're gonna wait for that long, look", Johnny said as he pointed to the several bottles of water that were laying down around fifty meters away from the school. The group quickly rushed to them.
"They must have dropped them in a hurry, I guess?", Wolcroft wondered.
"No, it's not that. Take a look again.", Lynn said as she pointed her finger at the bottles which looked like a botched attempt of an arrow.
"What the hell's that? It looks like and arrow or...", Wolcroft asked.
"It's a sign, they are pointing to their position", Johnny coldly stated.
"What do you mean? They did it on purpose?", Wolcroft scratched his head in confusion.
"Probably, this must be like a game to them. Fucking psychos. Actually, when I think about it, my friend Ryan, who stayed at the police station, did mention that a bus transporting convicts on death row was missing, presumably crashed due to the infection. And unfortunately, all signs lead me to believe that we are dealing with those prisoners...", Johnny calmly said as he took a deep breath.
Lincoln quickly glanced at Lynn, who was staring at Johnny with a visible look of concern on her face. Lincoln too, could feel it now, the growing anxiety coming all the way from his feet and up to the top of his head, his emotions were now jumping between anger and sadness. If he lost Lola too, then...
"All right, let's go now. Follow and keep a low profile, we'll try to go from cover to cover, use anything you can, a trashcan, a mailbox, whatever.", Johnny said as he signaled with his right hand towards east, where the clumsy arrow of bottles pointed.
The group slowly advanced east of the middle school, encountering the infected but managing to successfully evade them. But the thing that confused them the most is relatively low number of the zombies they encountered. Other survivors must have taken care of them, Johnny concluded.
Several minutes later, the group came to a dead end as several ruined buildings stopped them from progressing any further. Wolcroft and Lynn exchanged worrying looks, while both Johnny and Lincoln knew that something was feeling off here. Wolcroft and Johnny pulled out their guns, just in case, while Lynn hardened her grip on her baseball bat. Lincoln also followed suit and pulled out the knife that Johnny gave him.
"Lola's tiara! Look!", suddenly Lincoln shouted as he ran towards his younger sister's headwear. It was lying about fifty in front of the biggest ruined building. Lincoln picked it up and it drew a big smile on his face.
"Wait, Lincoln, get back, this seems like a trap!", Johnny yelled. Lincoln glanced at him then started to run towards him.
"She must be near somewhere around here, this is a sign, I can feel it", Lincoln barely managed to contain his excitement.
"I'd like to believe that but this is too suspicious. Maybe we should-",
"Lincoln!", a high pitched voice shrieked around the four of them as they all looked in shock when Lola was walking towards them.
"Oh God, she's alive!", Wolcroft happily shouted. Johnny and Lynn smiled at one another.
Lincoln ran over to her side to hug his sister, barely containing his tears of happiness but just as he was about to wrap his arms around her, a gunshot froze them all in place.
A bullet hit Lola from behind right in the head, splattering blood all over her older brother as she fell onto him. Lincoln fell to his knees as Lola's lifeless body fell down, right into his arms. Lincoln's face was now full of tears, tears of sadness, as he looked at her face: she was still smiling. Not even the pain from the bullet could stop her from smiling at the sight of he older brother, as she called him, 'Linky'.
"I'm gonna fucking kill them all!", Lincoln screamed from the top of his lungs.
"What the fuck, killing a child like that...", Wolcroft whispered. Johnny and Lynn just stared at the scene that just unfolded in front of them.
"Drop those fucking weapons or the boy dies too", a grave voice rasped at them, causing the them all to snap out of their trance. They all dropped their respective weapons.
"As expected, our heroes have arrived to save the day, but they failed, sadly", someone sarcastically said from the front building, while some laughing could also be heard. Finally, some people stepped out from the building.
Joe and his Boss were the first to step out, each holding a gun and grinning. Then, a large African-American man, who was easily seven foot tall, stepped out, wearing a black jacket over a basketball jersey and blue jeans, and finally a much smaller man left the building after him, wearing a baseball cap, an army shirt which was sewn on many places.
"On your knees, now", the large rasped, with the group immediately listening, they didn't want to test this guy's patience. Lincoln was still holding Lola's body in his arms, but he had stopped crying.
"Sorry for your...sister, right? Well, it doesn't matter, she's fucking dead now", the Boss chuckled.
"Should we just kill them all?", the man in the baseball cap asked.
The Boss, seemingly ignoring his inferior, stepped towards Lincoln and ducked right in front of him.
"My name is Goke, pleased to meet you all. I wish that we didn't meet in circumstances like this but it is what it is. Anyway, the three of you come closer here, I want to take a better look at you all.", Goke smiled, which was a horrifying scene to witness.
The group members slowly got up and walked towards the four thugs and Lincoln. Johnny quickly glanced on his gun but knew that it was suicide to try anything here. Finally, they arrived and got on their knees, forming a line along with Lincoln.
Goke stared right at Lincoln and the boy returned the look. The first he noticed were Goke's eyes: his right eye was blue while his left eye was green. His blonde hair seemed dirty and greasy and unkept.
"Now, if you would kindly give me the rest of your supplies, I'll let the boy and girl go. For you two grown up farts, I might gonna need you for something", Goke grinned.
"Yeah, okay, just let the kids go, please", Johnny said, in desperation.
"Of course! A deal's a deal, right? What, do I really look like someone who could hurt a child?", Goke laughed with the rest of his men joining in laughter.
"Fuckers...", Lynn whispered.
"Who the fuck said that?!", Goke yelled. The group members froze.
"Who. The. Fuck. Said. That.", Goke said again more silently but also with a threatening voice.
He wasn't suppossed to hear this, now someone's gonna get hurt, Lynn instantly regretted her decision to cuss at them.
However, just as she opened her mouth, Lincoln raised his hand.
"I did it, I said that, you fucker.", Lincoln calmly said, with a murderous intent, looking straight in Goke's eyes.
Goke turned his attention to Lincoln and chuckled.
"And I thought that the girl said it. How stupid of me, right? Well, boy...wait, you didn't tell me your name, neither of you. And if we're gonna be great then we need to properly know each other, no?", Goke winked at Lincoln.
"I'm Johnny, the soldier is Wolcroft, the boy's Lincoln and the girl's name is Lynn, now please, let the kids go, and you can do whatever you want with us two adults", Johnny said, while glancing at Lola's corpse which now lay on the ground as Lincoln had lost his grip on her.
"Thank you Johnny, even though I was asking Lincoln. Tiny, please show Johnny what happens when people talk without permission.", Goke signaled to the big man, whose nickname was the most ironic thing in the world right now.
Tiny stepped up, swinging his huge right leg and kicking Johnny right across the face, causing him to fall back, while spitting some blood over his split lip. The rest of Johnny's group twitched at this terrible sight.
"Fucker", Tiny grunted.
"Now, back to our fearless boy hero, Lincoln, who was named after Abe Lincoln, right? Hah, I'm just joking, calm down. I'm gonna have to teach you a lesson, you know, because I can't really stand troubled youth, delinquents, however you want. But first let me ask you, is Lynn your sister, since the two of you kinda have some resemblance, or am I the only one who sees that resemblance.", Goke cheerfully said. Lincoln just absentmindedly nodded.
What is that idiot doing, he's gonna get himself killed! This is my fault and I should take full responsibility, but this creep said that he was gonna let us go, Lynn's was fighting with herself in her own mind what to do next.
"Ah, then I should make a compliment and say that your sister is a very cute, beautiful young girl, that's just waiting on her prince, no? Maybe I'm gonna be that prince-"
"If you touch her, I'm gonna fucking kill you, you understand me, stay away from her!", Lincoln yelled, his eyes full of anger and fury. Goke just smiled.
Johnny and Wolcroft glanced at each other, both mutually agreeing that they need to do something.
"No need to be so hostile Linc, here let me show you something", Goke grabbed Lincoln's knife that laid in front of him and Lola's corpse but held it in reverse.
"Now I'm gonna show you why it's not a good idea to speak without permission...", Goke coldly said as he swinged the knife at Lincoln and hitting him in the left eye with the handle of the knife. Lincoln screamed in pain and fell on his back.
"No, get away from him", Lynn screamed at lunged at Goke but Joe hit her in the head with back of his gun, temporarily knocking her out.
"Little bitch!", Joe rasped.
"Oh man, this is fucking exciting!", Goke moaned as he hit Lincoln in the left eyes again and again.
Johnny and Wolcroft just blankly staring at the mortifying scene that was unfolding before them. They wanted to move, to attack them, anything, but they just couldn't get up, at all. Was this genuine fear or something else?
Goke hit Lincoln several more times, finally stopping until his screams of agony ceased. Did he die? Goke didn't know nor did he care seemingly, as he was busy caressing his bulge in his pants, this horrible beating gave an erection which he didn't have in a long time.
Lincoln's left eye was now a beaten pulp, completely shut, black and purple in color, with some tints of dark blue, blood was around it and in the wound, the swelling was getting bigger and bigger, but Lincoln was still breathing though, causing Johnny and Wolcroft to sigh in slight relief.
"That was fucking awesome dude!", Goke shouted.
"I think that you may have overdone it a little, boss. I mean, he's just a kid afterall.", Al, the man with the baseball cap said.
"Boss! What is goi-", but the fifth man that left the main building stopped dead in his tracks. Johnny looked in horror.
"No, no fucking way...Ryan, what the fuck are you doing here? Please just don't tell that you work with this asshole here", Johnny said in disbelief.
"Johnny...but how...shit not now, boss we got zombies entering the building, the gunshot must have attracted them including all the voice you guys did", said Ryan, who was in his police uniform and stared right in Johnny.
This was worse than a nightmare for Johnny, first the girl he tried to save was dead, then the boy he took with him was beaten to near death and now his best friend was working for the people who did all the above. If he could just...
"Oh shit, here they come! Boss, we gotta get out of here, now!", Tiny yelled.
A large wave of zombies was bursting through the big building behind Ryan and the building to the right side of the group.
"Fucking hell, everyone with me!", Goke screamed as he ran towards the only building that wasn't overrun.
"What about them?", Joe asked as he quickly followed his leader.
"Fuck them, they're dead meat anyway, the infected freaks can eat them thus providing us a distraction", Goke grinned. Al, Tiny and Ryan followed them but not before Ryan glanced at Johnny with a sad expression.
"Thank God, he's still alive. Wolcroft grab Lynn and her bat, I'll take Lincoln and our guns, go now!", Johnny yelled as the infected creeped in closer.
Wolcroft swiftly grabbed Lynn, who was still unconscious, and her bat.
"Where to now?", Wolcroft panicked.
"Towards the school, go!", Johnny shouted while grabbing the heavily injured Lincoln, the two guns and his knife.
"This can't be the end of this...", Johnny whispered as he and Wolcroft ran desperatly towards the school with the huge horde of the undead on their tails.