Just want to say thanks to all of your for the reviews, follows, and faves. Also, a special thanks to my good friend RJRMovieFan for his awesome additions to this story.
The girls follow Chloe's lead and start running back to the front of the school. Chloe is ahead of them with her bow ready, arrow notched. Beca finds herself surprisingly impressed with how Chloe handles the weapon. The redhead comes to a sudden stop when they get to the main hallway. With eyes widened, and fear clearly reflected, she raises a hand to stop them from coming around the corner, and then ever so slowly walks back to rejoin her friends. The alarm is still ringing so she puts up her right hand and flashes five fingers twice in quick succession, trying to convey to the others that there are ten of the Sightless in the hallway ahead.
Beca hugs the wall and eases her head around the corner to see what they are doing. They are all centered in one area and it looks like they are trying to climb the walls. She looks up and notices that the alarm bell is located just above them near the ceiling. It appears they are trying to get to it to stop the noise.
Beca pulls back and motions for the girls to follow her. She continues to hug the opposite wall from the Sightless and slowly makes her way towards the front door. The other girls are close behind. They each have one eye on the zombies and the other on their surroundings, just in case. Suddenly they freeze as there's an eerie screech, and then another, and another, until all ten of the Sightless are shrieking at earsplitting levels. They seem to be screeching at the alarm.
All the Bellas have their weapons ready and quietly turn as one to face the threat. They needn't have worried because the Sightless still don't seem to know they are there. Each woman feels her heart begin to beat again and, with careful steps, they all start moving toward the door. Aubrey takes the lead and slowly pushes the door open, ever so slowly, to minimize any potential noise.
From outside a Sightless is running for the door, directly at her. The noise of the alarm seems to spur it on to greater speed. Aubrey freezes, arm down, gun not ready. The creature is only a dozen feet away and will be upon her in a second. Before anyone can react Chloe releases her arrow and it catches the zombie just beneath its left eye; not five feet from Aubrey. The force of the arrow actually lifting the Sightless creature off the ground and back a foot before it crumpled to the ground.
Stacie is instantly at Aubrey's side, hand on the back of the blonde who is trying to regain the ability to breathe. Beca is in awe of Chloe, who is quite smooth in drawing another arrow and readying her bow while scanning the immediate area. CR and Emily secure the door behind them so none of the Sightless can follow.
Then, as a group, they move away from the former sanctuary. As soon as they are in the clear they check around, knowing the school's alarm is sure to attract more. They see another group of at least twenty of the Sleepless making their way to the school from the opposite direction of the diner. That is all the incentive they need and they scramble to get in the truck. Chloe starts it up as soon as she's behind the wheel and pulls away once she's sure everyone is on board. Driving faster than she usually does, she didn't stop until she had them back at the diner.
"Park around back," Aubrey instructs and Chloe complies. "If there is someone else out there, we don't want them to know we're here."
They all got out of the truck and hurry into the diner. Beca and Stacie immediately went to the front and took up surveillance duty.
"If those people weren't killed by the zombies," Aubrey said. "That means that living humans did it. We haven't seen anyone besides you guys. How did we miss them?"
"I've only walked beyond the strip mall once or twice," Chloe said. "I never saw anyone else."
"Same for us," Beca tells them. "We may have only gone to town a few times but we didn't see anyone. It was just pure luck that we were out when Chloe and Cynthia Rose were."
"From the smell, those bodies could have been there for a while," Stacie said. "The place was air conditioned so it could have preserved them a bit. All that could have happened before you guys found this place."
"You may be right but we shouldn't take any chances," Aubrey said. "From now on, no one goes anywhere alone. No one. We will always go in pairs, even to the farm."
The girls all nod in agreement.
"Maybe we should start having lookouts at night," Chloe suggests. "If there are others out there, and after seeing what we just saw, we need to be more vigilant. Just in case they are out to do more harm than good."
"Oh, shoot," Emily said. "In all the excitement I forgot about this." She pulls some papers out of her pocket. "I found these on the bulletin board just before the alarm went off. It talks about survivor camps on different islands off the East Coast. Maybe we can make it to one of them."
"Let me see that, Em," Beca said holding out her hand toward the younger girl. Emily hands over several sheets of paper and Beca looks at them. The other girls look over her shoulder as she reads them. "She's right. These show several places in North Carolina, South Carolina, and even here in Georgia. We're only about what? A 4 or 5-hour drive from Savannah? We could probably get to Tybee Island or one of the others nearby."
"A survivor camp?," Stacie asks excitedly. "Maybe some of our friends or family are there." Stacie had a hopeful look on her face as she looked around at the other girls.
"Maybe," Beca said, giving Stacie a soft smile. She looks back down at the papers on the table. "We should make a plan on trying to get to one of these places."
"I agree," Chloe said, nodding her head. "I love you girls, but it would be nice to be around some other people."
The girls work out a plan to leave in three days. They want to check out more of the town before they go. Curious to see if they can find anyone else around. They also hope to find a trailer or at least another truck to carry some of their food and supplies to help out the camp.
The girls decide to make it an early night so they can get an early start in the morning. Beca and Chloe take the first watch, promising to wake Stacie and Aubrey in three hours.
Beca sits in a booth in the darkest corner so she can see everything to the left of the diner and Chloe sits so she can see everything off to the right. They sit silently for a while until Chloe asks Beca if she wanted her to make coffee.
"That sounds really good, actually," Beca said.
Beca made sure to keep looking both ways while Chloe was up making the coffee. Chloe comes back and sets a mug in front of Beca. "Two sugars and lots of milk."
"I can't believe you remember how I like my coffee," Beca said taking a sip. "And, it's perfect."
"I remember because I thought you'd be one of those badasses who'd take it strong and black," Chloe said with a playful grin. "The stronger the better."
Beca just smiles and takes another sip of her coffee. They sit and sip their coffee while watching out the window.
"Speaking of badass, when did you become Katniss?," Beca asks Chloe, nodding towards her bow.
Chloe actually blushes and shrugs. "Girl Scouts."
"Why am I not surprised you were a Girl Scout," Beca said with a smirk.
"I really liked it, some of my best summer memories were at camp," the redhead answers a little defensively. "Being a Girl Scout was great."
"I'm sure it was," Beca said with a smirk.
"It was," Chloe grumbles.
"And you learned archery?," Beca asks, deciding not to tease anymore.
"Yeah, I was surprisingly good at it and I really loved the rush of hitting a target from long distances."
"Tell me about it," Beca said, actually quite curious.
"Most of the girls weren't really interested, but I loved Orlando Bloom in the Lord of the Rings, so I was super excited. I remember the instructor guiding me through the steps and then letting the arrow fly for the first time." She sat up, sounding so proud. "I was the only one to hit the target, so I shot again and hit the inner ring. Then on my third arrow, I nailed a bullseye." Chloe was grinning from ear-to-ear at this point. "I actually won a number of blue ribbons for archery competitions," she said quite proudly.
Beca is truly intrigued. "How have I not heard about this until now?," Beca asks, truly confused by this revelation.
The redhead shrugs in answer. "Not much reason to bring it up. It was fifth through eighth grade. By the time I started High School I was mostly done. I had achieved a number of patches and awards. I got busy with school activities and cheerleading, volleyball, and the chorus, of course, so the Girl Scouts faded into the past."
"You missed it though," Beca observes. She can see the wistful look.
"Yeah, there was something about being a part of something that appealed to me, even at an early age. I love the whole ethos of helping others. I learned a whole lot and it was cool to have the uniform," Chloe answers enthusiastically.
Beca just sits there silently enraptured by the redhead. Chloe notices Beca just watching her, and asks, "What?"
Beca shakes herself out of wherever she had just gone and blushes. "Umm, I was just thinking how badass you turned out to be, and…"
"You're picturing me in my Girl Scout uniform, aren't you?"
Beca's blush covers her face. "Maybe…"
"You're adorable," Chloe said with a wink.
"Probably not as adorable as you are in your uniform," Beca counters.
Chloe shakes her head, causing Beca to raise an eyebrow at her. "Not adorable. Totally hot," Chloe said with a husky voice and another wink.
Beca actually blushes more. "You're going to be the death of me." Chloe laughs and Beca loves the sound.
Both women lapse into a comfortable silence. Each dealing with the weird incongruity of being able to tease and flirt, even as they are on guard against monsters in the night, both human and zombie.
"So, what happened with Ashley and Jessica?," Beca quietly asks after a while.
"Ashley just totally freaked out," Chloe tells her. "She was the one that drove us away from you guys that day. We tried to get her to stop but she wouldn't listen. Jessica finally got her to calm down and stop the bus, but by then it was too late. You guys were already gone. We drove around for awhile before we made a plan and decided to drive to Jessica's family's house that was about three hours away. Jessica was driving and there was a group of them on the road. She tried to go around them but the bus got stuck. We would have been fine but Ashley ran off the bus screaming. The screams attracted the Sightless and they came after us. Cyn, Emily, Aubrey, Lily, and I started running and ran into the woods. I looked back and Ashley was just standing there screaming and the Sightless attacked her. Jessica tried to, tried-" Chloe let out a small sob and wipes the tears that had been pouring down her face.
"You can stop," Beca tells her. She moves to sit next to Chloe and takes her in her arms. Chloe clings to Beca and cries. She hadn't really had a chance to mourn because she was trying to stay strong for the others.
"I'm sorry," Chloe said, sniffling. "None of us have really grieved, you know?"
"I get it," Beca said. "Before I had to," Beca stops and swallows. "I cried for about a week after the day it all happened. I cried for Amy. I cried for you, and the rest of the Bellas, thinking you were either dead or one of those things. After that week, I hadn't shed a tear until I had to keep my promise to Jesse."
"I'm so glad we found each other again," Chloe said. "There was a piece of my heart missing and I didn't think it would ever be whole again, until now." She pulls back and looks at Beca.
Beca takes Chloe's face in her hands and uses the pads of the thumbs to wipe away her tears. She leans in and kisses Chloe. Chloe pulls Beca to her and deepens the kiss. They pull apart and Chloe let out a small laugh as she put her forehead to Beca's. They sat like that for a minute or two before Beca pulls back.
"We need to keep watch," Beca said and gives Chloe a quick peck on the lips. Chloe nods her head and Beca moves back over to her original seat. She took Chloe's hand across the table and held it until it was time to wake Aubrey and Stacie for their watch.
*0*0*0*0*
CR and Emily woke the others after preparing breakfast for them all. They ate and got dressed for the day.
"I think we should go into town and see if we can find a trailer or another truck to use," Aubrey suggests. "I also think we might want to make a visit to the army surplus to get a little more firepower."
"Aubrey's right," Beca said. "I'll go."
"Me, too," Chloe volunteers. "How about you CR? Want to go with us? You can drive the new truck if we find one."
"I can do that," Cynthia Rose replies.
"The three of us should go to the farm and get eggs and milk," Emily said, looking a Stacie and Aubrey. "We haven't been in a couple of days and I think we need to check on the animals."
"Good idea," Aubrey said and looks at her watch. "It's 8:30 now, so let's plan for everyone to be back here by no later than 11:00?"
"That gives us plenty of time," Beca said. "Sounds like a plan. Chloe? CR? You two ready?"
"Let's go," Chloe said gathering her bow and quiver of arrows.
CR grabs her gun as well as a crossbow and some arrows. Beca grabs her rifle and the three girls do a quick perimeter check as a safety precaution before heading to the truck. Chloe drives and pulls out from behind the diner. She heads to the mall where they found Beca and Stacie. Beca looks out the window at the structure and swallows, remembering her last trip there. She wipes a tear from her eye and Chloe squeezes her leg to comfort her. Chloe pulls up to a different entrance than before and the three girls get out and look around.
"I think we're clear," CR said.
*0*0*0*0*
Aubrey and Emily lead Stacie to the farm. They stay along the tree line and look all around before heading to the barn where the animals are enclosed. Emily opens the door and the three girls enter.
"Phew," Stacie said, holding her nose. "Definitely smells like animals."
"You kind of get used to it after a few seconds," Emily tells her. She walks over to the two cows and sets down the two pails she had been carrying. She runs her hand over their sides as she walks between them to get the stool to sit on while milking.
Aubrey takes Stacie's hand and leads her over to the chickens. They are all sitting on their nests lightly clucking. "We have to get them to move so we can get at the eggs," Aubrey said.
"Do we really need to do this?," Stacie asks. "I mean, we are planning to leave in like two days. They won't last."
"We need the eggs for breakfast," Aubrey said. "We still have some milk leftover from our last trip here. We're only going to milk them so their udders aren't full when we leave."
"The plan is to leave the door open so they can leave on their own," Emily tells her. "We think it might be worse on them if we leave them locked up in here. If they can get out, maybe someone else will find and take care of them." Emily sits on a stool and puts a bucket under the first cow. She reaches under and starts to pull on the teat. Nothing happens. She tries again.
"Shoo!" Aubrey says and gives a slight push to the hen in front of her. The hen flaps her wings and jumps away from Aubrey.
"There's nothing there," Stacie said as she looks in the nest.
"That happens sometimes," Aubrey said as she tries to get the other hens to move.
"Guys," Emily said getting their attention. "I think we should head back to the diner now."
"Why?," Aubrey asks. "What's wrong?"
"Are you finding any eggs?," Emily asks as she stands and walks toward Aubrey.
"Actually, no," Aubrey said and furrows her brow as she checks all the nests. "There aren't any eggs at all."
"The cows have been milked recently," Emily said as she holds her gun at the ready. The other two girls follow suit and they start moving toward the door.
*0*0*0*0*
Beca stood looking around. She cocks her head to the side. "Do you guys hear that?"
Chloe and CR stop and listen. "Is that the alarm from the school?," CR asks.
"Sounds like it," Chloe said. "We will have to pass the school to get to the car lot. We can check and see how many of those things might still be hanging around."
CR and Beca nod and they continue into the mall. Chloe leads them to the army surplus store and they start loading up their backpacks with ammunition and handguns. Beca grabs all the grenades she can see and throws them in a separate bag. CR grabs three or four AR-15s and slings them over her shoulder. She finds ammunition for them and loads them into a backpack. Chloe is checking out the hunting knives and takes a few along with sheaths to hold them. She carefully sticks them down inside one of the backpacks.
Beca goes over to one of the racks and pulls off a heavy parka and puts it on. She zips it and decides it fits well. "We should get one of these coats for all of us," she tells the others. "It gets cold at night. We may need them."
Chloe and CR find their sizes and Chloe pulls out three for Aubrey, Stacie, and Emily.
"Maybe we should get sleeping bags, too," CR suggests. "We don't know where we might have to sleep."
"We could probably get this all to the truck in one trip," Chloe said. "But, we would be vulnerable if we see any of those things."
"Yeah, but if we make too many trips we have a greater risk of running into them," Beca said.
"I say we do one trip," CR suggests. "We just need to be fast and vigilant."
They manage to get everything to the truck without seeing any of the Sightless. They all get in the truck and Chloe looks at them.
"I saw a car dealership past the High School during one of my walks about a month ago," Chloe said. "There are trucks and vans there so I'm sure we can find something we can use. We can check the school on the way."
"That works," Beca said and CR nods. They both had two guns at the ready just in case.
Chloe starts the truck and pulls away from the mall and goes onto the street. They can hear the alarm bells get louder as they got closer to the school.
"Holy shit," CR yells out. Chloe sees what CR sees and stops the truck. They are about a hundred yards from the school and the school is literally surrounded by the Sightless.
"Where the hell did they all come from?," Beca asks somewhat in awe of the number they were seeing.
"Should we keep going?," Chloe asks watching the crowd. "It doesn't seem like anything's changed with them. It looks like they are all still trying to get to the alarms."
"They may have managed to stop a couple of them," Beca said. "It doesn't seem as loud as before."
"We're in the truck," CR said. "We can outrun them if we have to."
"I think CR is right," Beca said. "We really need to find another truck."
"Okay," Chloe said, biting her bottom lip. "Let's do this."
She puts the truck in drive and starts moving. She speeds up a bit and then maintains her speed so the engine is a continuous hum. She's afraid that going faster may make the engine louder or create some noise that would make them aware of their presence. They manage to get past the school safely, although Beca and CR both shiver as they drive by.
"Did it seem like some of them were following us with their eyes," CR whispers to Beca. Beca swallows and nods her head.
"What? What's wrong?," Chloe asks, sensing a change in their demeanor. "Why are you whispering?"
"It's probably just nerves," CR responds. "But it seemed like some of them were watching us as we rode by."
Chloe quickly checks the rearview mirror. "None of them are following us."
"That's good," Beca said. "Let's just keep going and do what we have to do so we can get back."
*0*0*0*0*
Aubrey gets to the barn door first and slowly opens it. She looks around but doesn't see or hear anyone or anything. She eases the door open a little wider and looks again before she exits the barn.
"Close the door behind us," Aubrey said. "Just in case there are some non-Sightless around, they can use the milk and eggs."
"What if it's the people who killed the folks at the school?," Stacie asks.
"I can't just let them go if someone is already using them for food or drink," Aubrey said. "No matter what they may or may not have done. I just can't."
"I get it, Aubrey," Emily said as she closes the door and makes sure it is secure. "Let's go."
*0*0*0*0*
Chloe drove about ten minutes further down the road and finds the Nissan dealership. She slowly drives around to look for any signs of the Sightless or any other signs of life. They don't see anything, but they do see several cargo vans. Chloe stops near one of them. "That might be good to use. We can carry a bunch of supplies in it."
"Let's check it out," CR said and gets out of the truck. She walks over and tries the driver's side door only to find it locked. "It's locked. I bet we can find some keys inside the dealership."
CR and Beca walk to the door and try it. It opens. Chloe looks around and follows them in. "Check to see if there is an office in the back. That's probably where they keep all the keys."
Beca goes to the back and sees the keys are tagged with the vehicle's license plate number. CR runs out and gets the plate number to the van and they go back to find the right keys. The hurry outside and CR goes to click the button to unlock the van but Beca stops her.
"We don't want to attract any of those things," Beca tells her. "It may not be very loud, but this may make the kind of noise they are attracted to."
"Sorry," CR said and walks over to unlock the door with the key. It opens with no trouble. They both check out the interior and are satisfied that it fits their needs. "This perfect. Let's get out of here."
"Wait," Beca said. "Where's Chloe?"
"Right here," Chloe said from behind her. "I found us a better truck. Come see."
CR and Beca follow Chloe around the corner and see a silver-gray Nissan Titan. "Damn, girl," CR said. "That's one badass looking truck."
"It sure is," Chloe said, her eyes gleaming. "And, I have the keys." She goes over and unlocks the doors. This truck has all the bells and whistles. "It has a backseat so we don't all have to jam into the front. I think we should trade in the old one for this baby."
Beca can't help but smile at Chloe. There isn't much to be excited about these days and it's nice to see her like this. "I think you're right, Chlo," she said with a grin. "Let's load our stuff into this truck and get out of here. Why don't you drive it around to the other side."
Chloe doesn't have to be told twice. "Get in you two," she said and drives them to the other vehicles.
They hurry and put all their new stuff into the new truck. CR climbs behind the wheel of the van and starts it up. She pulls out and Beca tells her to take the lead. CR does and Chloe follows behind. They are traveling at a pretty good speed and Chloe is loving the new truck.
"Oh, my God, Becs," Chloe exclaims, her eyes shining. "This truck is amazing. And listen to that engine purring like a kitten."
Beca can only sit in her seat and smile at the redhead. Beca looks up when she suddenly hears the school's alarm. They are much closer to it than she thought. CR continues to maintain her speed and drives by the school. Chloe does the same and they seem to be in the clear. Beca keeps an eye on the crowd that is still at the school but doesn't get the feeling of being watched like before. She lets out a breath she didn't know she was holding.
"Let's sing," Chloe said suddenly. "I want to sing."
"You're crazy, you know that?," Beca said, smiling at how happy Chloe is. "What should we sing?"
"You shoot me down, but I won't fall," Chloe starts and bursts into laughter at the look on Beca's face. "You're so easy, Mitchell."
Beca just gives her a glare. She starts to say something when Chloe suddenly sits up straight and is looking in the rearview mirror. There's something moving in the distance behind them.
"What the fuck?," Chloe said. Beca turns to look over her shoulder. She spots the movement easily. It's dark and moving fast, and it seems to be gaining on them.
"What the hell is that?," Beca asks.
"I don't know," Chloe answers, she spares a glance into the rearview mirror. "But it's gaining on us." Her foot instinctively pushes down on the gas pedal and the truck picks up speed.
Beca takes no comfort as the mass continues to catch up. She knows she needs to act. "Keep driving and don't stop for anything," Beca tells Chlo. "And I mean anything."
Beca climbs into the backseat and opens the window that leads to the bed of the pickup. She starts to shimmy through, and for the first time in a long time, she's really thankful that she's so petite.
"What are you doing?," Chloe screams at her. She is not liking this plan one bit. Unconsciously she eases up on the gas pedal.
Beca lands in the bed of the truck and looks back at Chloe. "Don't slow down or stop for anything." Chloe looks at Beca in the mirror and their eyes lock. "I love you!" Chloe nods and Beca sees her lips mouth 'I love you, too,' and the petite brunette feels the truck's speed pick up again.
Beca turns and gets the bag with the grenades in it. She pulls one out and removes the pin. Looking up she's shocked to see how close the dark mass is. It's a horde; a horde of the Sightless. But even in her surprised state, she notes that there's something different. She shakes herself free of her hesitation and throws the grenade as hard as she can.
The small metal orb hits the pavement and bounds in the air about four feet, and then disappears among the horde, just before it explodes. She watches as what looks like a half-dozen bodies fly through the air, yet there are still more running on after the truck.
The sight of so many of these new Sightless is fear-inducing. She realizes she can actually hear their feet slapping on the pavement, most are now barefoot. She also realizes they're screeching high pitched keening sounds that leave her cold. She is frozen by all this for a moment.
Chloe must have noticed in the rear view mirror because she honks the truck's horn. This wakes Beca and she scrambles to the bag. She removes another grenade, pulling the pin and throwing it immediately. She throws two more before she pulls out her gun and starts firing. Her first shots are rapid, but then she realizes she needs to be more steady. Taking her time she aims at the ones still coming at the truck. Once she shoots what she hopes is the last one, Beca falls onto her back in the bed of the truck. The adrenaline leaving her overwhelmed.
"Beca!," Chloe is yelling. "Beca! Answer me!"
*0*0*0*0*
"What the hell was that?," Aubrey asks as she jumps up and rushes to the window.
"Sounded like some kind of explosion," Stacie said. She is now standing next to Aubrey as they both look out the diner's front window.
"Can we please talk about how someone has milked cows and taken eggs and we haven't seen them?," Emily said, frustration and fear heavy in her voice.
"Let's just hope those explosions were caused by our girls," Stacie said.
"I'm so ready to get the hell out of here," Emily said and starts gathering her stuff.
*0*0*0*0*
"I'm fine," Beca sits up and yells to Chloe through the open window. "Keep driving. I'm going to stay back here in case any more show up."
Chloe wipes a tear from her face and hurries to get back to the diner. She parks around the back next to the van and jumps out of the truck. Beca jumps out of the bed of the pickup and the two girls grab each other in a bone crushing hug as tears stream down their faces. Beca pulls back and gives Chloe a kiss. Chloe ends the kiss and grabs Beca into another hug. Beca hugs her back and they stand there for another minute just holding on to each other.
"We should get inside," Beca said putting her arm around Chloe's waist as they walk towards the diner.
The door is thrown open and CR is standing in front of them. They see the rest of the girls over CR's shoulder looking at them anxiously.
"What the fuck was that?," CR asks as soon as she opens the door.
"Let's get inside," Chloe said.
CR looks at them and moves aside to let them enter. She secures the door and follows the others into the dining area. They take seats and CR looks at Beca and Chloe.
"What the fuck was that?," CR asks them again.
"I don't know," Beca said shaking her head. "But they were faster than I don't know what and they were running right at us."
"What the hell happened?," Stacie asks. "We heard what sounded like explosions."
"Grenades," Beca said, suddenly noticing she was shaking. Chloe noticed and took her hand to calm her. "Those things are evolving or something. They looked like those infected zombie sightless things but they were running like really fast and came right at the truck. Like they knew we were there. Like they could see us or something. They came at us in a horde. It was...scary."
"This isn't good," Aubrey said, anxiety present in her voice. "We always had the element of knowing what made them tick so we could avoid them. If they can hear everything now...or see."
"We didn't meet up with any of the Sightless," Emily said. "But someone has been to the barn."
"How can you tell?," Beca asks.
"The cows have been milked," Emily responds. "And there wasn't a single egg to be found."
The girls look at each other. They are more afraid now than they've been since this whole thing started.
"We need to leave now," Chloe said. "Get out of here while we can."
"I agree," Beca said. "They die or whatever if you shoot them and the grenades worked on them too. But, if they're evolving we may not stand a chance against them."
"I'm afraid Beca's right," Emily said. "I say we pack the trucks up and get the hell out of here. Try and make it to one of the survivor camps tonight."
They are all in agreement and start making plans to leave. Aubrey pulls out a map and lays it flat on a table. All the women multitask, continuing to gather items to take with them, as they discuss possible destinations. There is a general consensus to head to Tybee Island near Savannah. Aubrey and Beca plot out the best route and both write the directions down so that each vehicle will have a copy to follow.
Once the decision is made on their destination, the girls jump into action and start loading up the cargo van. Emily is insistent they take the mattresses and the other girls relent to keep from spending too much time arguing about it. With the six of them, it doesn't take long to load up both vehicles. They take everything they can from the diner and load it into the cargo van. The weapons and ammunition are placed in the bed of the pickup along with one of the mattresses; the other two are placed in the van.
CR gets behind the wheel of the van with Emily riding shotgun, literally as she checks to see if her shotgun is loaded. Both vehicles have several loaded guns and a few grenades close at hand. Chloe takes the wheel of the pickup with Beca riding shotgun. She makes sure her guns and grenades are within easy reach. Stacie and Aubrey opt to ride in the bed of the pickup, using the mattress to sit on. They have the rest of the weapons and ammunition at their disposal if needed.
The two vehicles head out, with CR taking the lead. They drive away from the diner and each girl feels like she is leaving something of herself behind. Beca glances back in the direction of the mall and sends up a silent prayer for Jesse. Stacie takes Aubrey's hand as they continually scan their surroundings for anything that looks out of place.
Chloe is keeping her eyes on the road but is also scanning from side to side as she drives. Beca looks over at Chloe trying to see everywhere at once.
"Why don't you keep your eyes on the road and look to your left," Beca suggests. "I'll keep watch on the right."
"Okay," Chloe agrees, giving Beca a grateful smile.
Beca can sense how tense Chloe is. She reaches across the seat and gives Chloe's shoulder a squeeze. "We're going to be fine." Chloe gives her a thankful smile and puts her left hand on top of Beca's.
They both go back to keeping watch as they follow behind CR and Emily. They had only been on the road for about an hour when Beca hears Chloe exclaim, "Dammit!."
"What?," Beca asks, sitting up straight and looking around. Not seeing anything out of the ordinary, she asks, "What's wrong?"