Just want to start off by saying thanks for the reviews and the positive feedback. I was a little hesitant because I don't normally do this kind of thing, but thanks to skyeze.10's prompt and encouragement (i.e., boosting my ego), and RJRMovieFan's incredible additions, I am enjoying writing this story. I hope you continue to enjoy reading it.
"We need gas," Chloe tells her. "I should have checked the gas gauge when we took the truck."
"God, woman," Beca said looking at Chloe with her hand over her heart. "Don't scare me like that."
Chloe gives her an apologetic smile causing Beca to smile back at her. "Pull up next to CR so I can tell her we need to stop."
Chloe speeds up the truck and is side by side with CR. She looks over at them and Beca put down her window. "We need gas," she yells. CR nods and points to a sign showing gas at the next exit.
Chloe slows up and pulls back in behind the van. CR leads them up the exit and heads toward a gas station. Beca climbs into the backseat and opens the small window leading to the bed of the truck. Stacie sticks her head down so she can hear and Beca tells them they were stopping for gas.
The girls were all on high alert as they make their way to the gas station. CR pulls into one and parks at a set of pumps; Chloe pulls up on the other side. They all look around before getting out of their respective vehicles.
"Does anyone know how to operate these things without a credit card?," Beca asks checking out the pump.
"We'll have to go inside," CR tells her. "I used to work at a gas station. I can do it."
The girls all grab a gun and head toward the entrance to the station, save for Emily who watches over the vehicles. CR carefully pulls on the door and it opens. They all walk in and look around. The foodstuff had been ransacked and there was stuff laying all over the floors.
"Somebody's been through here," Aubrey mutters.
CR goes behind the counter and searches for something. "Aha! There it is." She does something under the counter and looks at the girls with a smile. "Let's pump some gas."
The girls head out the door with CR and Chloe heading to the pumps to fill the two vehicles. Aubrey and Stacie position themselves at intervals with Emily to keep watch.
Beca decides to grab some bottles of water from the cold drinks section and is left alone in the station. She had just opened the cooler door when she hears a noise. She glances quickly to her right where the sound came from. She swallows and quietly closes the door and makes her way out to get the girls, keeping an eye on the aisle in case someone, or something, came after her. She steps outside and whisper-yells, "Guys!" Aubrey is closest and turns to look at her. Beca rushes over to her.
"I heard something inside the store," Beca says looking over her shoulder. Aubrey is immediately on alert. She goes over to Stacie and tells her what's going on. They watch the door and stand ready to enter the store once everyone knows what's happening.
Beca grabs Emily next and has the young girl walk over to Chloe with her. She tells Chloe and they leave Emily to continue pumping gas into the truck. CR is looking over at them with a furrowed brow, wondering what was going on. Chloe goes over to tell her. She then gets Emily's attention. "You guys finish pumping the gas," Chloe tells them both. "Be vigilant. We'll check out the store and be back as fast as we can. If anything happens to us, just go." She doesn't give them a chance to say anything else before rushing back over to Beca, Stacie, and Aubrey. "Let's go check it out." The four girls get their weapons ready and slowly make their way back inside the station.
Beca leads the way, quietly taking steps toward the sound she initially heard when another sound came through the quiet. Beca thought it came from the end of the aisle and looks to the security mirrors; she cusses under her breath because the mirrors don't show what's at the end of the aisle. She points to Chloe and directs her to go to the left of the aisle opposite where the sound came from. She points to Aubrey and Stacie to stay where they are. She nods at Chloe and they both start inching their way down their respective aisle. Beca watches Chloe's progress in the security mirror so she can get to the end of the aisle at the same time. They come to the end and both quickly poke their heads out for a quick check. They both gasp when they recognize the lone girl who jumps up ready to swing the baseball bat she was holding. "Lily?," Beca said in surprise.
Lily freezes with the bat over her head when she hears her name. She looks from side to side and stops when she sees Beca looking at her wide-eyed. A tear falls down Lily's face as she just stares at Beca. Her head jerks around suddenly and her grip tightens on the bat when she hears someone running down the aisle toward them.
"Lily!," Stacie's high pitched voice yells when she sees the girl. Followed quickly by several shushes.
Lily relaxes once she sees Stacie and Aubrey, both of whom stop short as soon as they see Lily. Lily is still holding the bat over her head and is now staring at them as if they may disappear if she looks away. Chloe moves slowly so she is in front of Lily.
"Hey, Lily," Chloe said. "It's Chloe. Can you look at me? I'm just going to take the bat, okay?" She slowly reaches to take the bat from the girl. "It's okay. We're not going to hurt you. I promise."
Once Lily realizes who is talking to her she let's go of the bat and throws herself into Chloe's arms causing her to fall back against the shelf behind her with an 'oof'. The bat and Chloe's gun fall and clatter to the floor. Chloe's eyes soften and tear up as Lily starts crying. Chloe does what she does best and just puts her arms around the younger girl and holds her. "Shhh, it's okay," Chloe said as tears fell from her eyes. "I've got you. You're safe."
"Stacie, go let CR and Emily know what's happening," Beca said taking charge. "Aubrey, can you do a quick check on the other side of the station? Just in case we've attracted any attention. Chloe and I will get Lily together and be out in a few minutes."
The two girls nod and go do as Beca directed. Beca stands to the side of Lily and Chloe and gently puts a hand on Lily's shoulder. Both she and Chloe notice the way Lily flinched.
"Hey, Lily," Beca said softly. "It's just me, Beca. We're going to get you out of here. Okay?"
Lily nods and slowly pulls away from Chloe. Beca could see the tears still falling down her face. She pulls Lily into a hug as Chloe reaches down and retrieves her gun and the bat.
"We're really glad to see you, Lily," Beca said as she continued to hold the girl.
"Oh, my gosh, Lily," Chloe said, joining the hug. "I can't believe we found you here."
"I'm not alone," Lily said quietly.
"What?," Beca asks, as she and Chloe pull back and look at Lily, not sure they heard right.
"I'm not alone," Lily repeats causing Beca and Chloe both to go on the alert. They step back, weapons at the ready, and look around.
"What do you mean, you're not alone?," Beca asks as she checks the security mirrors.
"Follow me," Lily said and walks toward the back of the station. Beca and Chloe follow, with Chloe glancing out the window to see how the others were doing. They follow Lily into a back room. Chloe and Beca are shocked to see two little girls huddled together. Lily kneels down in front of them. The two girls look up at her and then to Beca and Chloe.
"It's okay," Lily tells them softly. "These are my friends." The girls visibly relax. Lily turns to Beca and Chloe. "This is Sammy and Taylor."
Chloe smiles and puts her pistol away in the back of her pants. She holds out both hands and kneels next to Lily. "Hi, Sammy. Hi, Taylor. I'm Chloe and over there is Beca." Beca gives them a small wave. The two girls smile and wave back.
"We should probably get out of here," Beca said. She's nervous because they've been here longer than she expected. "Lily, we are happy to take you all with us. We are trying to get to a survivor camp we read about."
"I read about them, too," Lily said. "That's where I was headed before I got carjacked by a group of guys. These two found me and brought me here. They protected me for a bit and I promised I'd take care of them as well."
"How have you managed?," Chloe said. "What about food?"
"We've pretty much stayed here because the girls hope their folks will be back to get them," Lily tells them. "We usually go out about every two days to get food from some of the other places around here. We've managed to do pretty well for the past month or so."
Beca was impressed. Sammy and Taylor didn't look like they were more than 6 or 7 years old. "So, are you coming with us?"
"Please?," Chloe said looking at the three. "We can keep you all safe. I promise."
Sammy and Taylor look at Lily, unsure of what to do.
"What if mommy and daddy come back?," Taylor asks softly. "They won't know where we are."
Chloe and Beca can feel their hearts breaking for the two girls. Beca looks at Chloe and gives her a look. Chloe just nods, knowing that Beca is silently asking her to try and get the girls to leave with them.
"Why don't we leave them a note?," Chloe suggests. "Tell them where we're going so they can come and find you. You can stay with us until they come get you. How does that sound?"
Taylor and Sammy look at each other. Taylor whispers something to Sammy causing Sammy to look at the three women. She turns back and whispers something to Taylor. Taylor smiles and nods her head.
"We will go with you," Taylor said, causing all three women to smile.
Chloe stands up and reaches down to help the two girls stand. Chloe writes a note on some paper she found and leaves it on the counter. Beca grabs as many bottles of water as she can carry and they all walk out of the station and over to the others. Emily rushes over as soon as she sees Lily and pulls her into a hug.
"I'm so glad to see you," Emily whispers.
"I'm glad to see you, too," Lily whispers back. "All of you."
"Guys," Chloe said. "This is Sammy and this is Taylor." The older women all give them a greeting. Chloe then looks at the two young girls and points out each of the women, giving their name. "You guys can ride in the backseat of the pickup."
"We should really get going," Aubrey said. "CR? Chloe? Do you want one of us to drive for a while?"
"If you don't mind," CR tells her handing her the keys to the van. "I could use a break. Especially after this morning's adventure."
"Okay," Aubrey said. "Stacie, you want to ride with me?"
"Sure," Stacie said and the two girls go over and get into the van.
"Chlo," Beca said. "I'll drive for a while so you can rest a bit."
"Okay," Chloe agrees. "Thanks, Becs."
Lily and the two girls get in the backseat. CR and Emily get into the bed of the truck.
"Em, would you put these in the cooler?," Becas asks and hands the waters to the young girl before climbing behind the wheel of the truck.
Emily puts the waters away and she and CR settle down on the mattress, their backs against the truck's cab. The two vehicles pull out of the station and head back to the highway.
"You can lay down and rest for a bit if you want," Emily tells CR. "I'll keep watch."
"Are you sure?," CR asks.
"Yeah," Emily said. "I know you've been through a lot this morning. And, no offense, but you look like you could use it."
"Thanks," CR said with a relieved smile. Emily moves to let CR get settled and then gets back into position to resume watching the road behind them.
In the distance they hear an inhuman screeching, it sends shivers down both women's spines, then their blood goes cold as they hear other screeches, seemingly in reply, some closer, much closer.
"We should go," CR says through the back window. Beca nods and starts the vehicle. Everyone feels more comfortable once the two vehicles are moving again.
Chloe looks back at Lily and the girls. She smiles and asks Lily, "What happened to you? You just disappeared and we had no idea where you were or what happened."
"One night while I was keeping watch," Lily said. "I spotted a whole pack of the zombies. They were headed straight for where we were holed up. I moved out, and," Lily blushes, "I started to beatbox..."
"You started to beatbox?," Chloe asked incredulously.
"Yeah," she may have blushed deeper. "It seemed to confuse the zombies, especially if I changed up the sounds or rhythm."
"That's amazing, though I could see it working on the Sightless," Chloe said.
"Sightless?," Lily asks.
"Yeah, that's what we started calling the zombies," Chloe explains. "It just seemed surreal calling them zombies, though I guess Sightless is pretty stupid..."
"No," Lily responds, "It's actually a perfect monicker."
"So it worked?," Chloe asks.
Lily nods. "Better than I expected. I was able to lead the pack almost two miles away." The young Korean woman pauses, "I was just about to give the pack the slip when…"
Chloe was on the edge of her seat. "When?," she prompts
Lily sighs, "Someone got the drop on me and I was knocked out and taken somewhere else. When I woke up, there were like six people standing around me. When they determined I wasn't infected, I told them about you girls and how we had been traveling together. They decided they would take me back and maybe join up with us. By the time we got back to where they captured me, you guys were gone. So, I stayed with them."
"Where are they now?," Beca asks.
"I don't know," Lily responds. "About a month or so ago we ran into a group of those mutant zombie things. We were hiding in a parking lot around a bunch of cars. One of the women got freaked out when they got close to us and she ran. She fell into a car triggering the alarm. Those things heard the alarm and went over to it. The girl started screaming and they zeroed in on her. A couple of the guys ran over to help her. They all got attacked and the rest of us just started running. We lost each other and I wasn't able to find them."
"How about these two?," Chloe asks. "How'd you find them?"
"They actually kind of found me," Lily said with a light chuckle. "I had seen a flyer about the survivor camps. I found a car and started heading East. Like you, I pulled into the gas station to try and get gas. I was jumped by three guys who beat me unconscious and took the car. These two had been hiding inside and came out to check on me. I was knocked out and they managed to get me into a toy wagon and dragged me to where they had been hiding. I woke up still in the wagon with the two of them staring at me. We've been together ever since."
"You girls were very brave," Chloe tells them. "Thank you for saving our friend."
"You're welcome," Sammy said softly, speaking for the first time since they were found.
Chloe gave her a big smile and Sammy returned it.
"How old are you girls?," Chloe asks.
"I'm seven," Taylor replies. "Sammy is five."
"What about you guys?," Lily asks Beca. "What happened to Jesse and Donald?"
Chloe saw the look of pain and sorrow in Beca's eyes when Lily asked about Jesse and Donald, so she gave Lily a brief synopsis of what happened them.
"I'm sorry," is all Lily said.
"Another thing you should know," Beca adds. "Those things are evolving or something." She proceeds to fill Lily in on what happened earlier that day.
"I was afraid of that," Lily said. "It tends to happen with a virus starts to mutate. Each new victim of the infection has different reactions. It sounds like some 'newer' zombie-like mutants are able to hear more sounds. We need to really be careful."
"We are," Chloe assures her. "That's why we left today instead of waiting. We hope to find one of those survivor camps."
Taylor tugs on Lily's shirt. "Lily, I'm hungry," the little girl said quietly.
"Me, too," Sammy said.
"We made some sandwiches," Chloe tells them, having heard the girls. "There's plenty for everyone. We'll find a place to stop and eat. Okay?"
"Help me find a spot that's flat and open all around," Beca said, looking ahead. "That way we can see everything."
"Okay," Chloe said. "I can't believe it's only Noon. It feels like it should be eight or nine at night."
Beca speeds up and pulls in front of Aubrey. Aubrey knew something was going to happen so she fell in behind Beca.
"Up there, Beca," Chloe said pointing out a spot. "We can park in the median and see all around."
Beca doesn't say anything, she just pulls the truck over and checks to make sure Aubrey was doing the same. She finds a decent spot and stops the truck. Aubrey pulls in front and parks the van.
CR sat up when she felt the truck stop. "What's happening?"
"I'm not sure," Emily said and sees Chloe getting out of the truck. "Why are we stopping?"
"We're going to eat," Chloe tells her. "Can you get the sandwiches we made out of the cooler? And grab some waters for everyone, too. I'm going to tell Brey and Stacie."
Chloe walks towards the van as Stacie and Aubrey get out.
"The girls are hungry so we're stopping for a bit," Chloe tells them.
"Thanks, Chlo. We were both just saying we were kind of hungry," Aubrey said as the three girls walk back to the truck.
Everyone grabs a sandwich and Beca opens up some chips. Aubrey and Emily sit on the tailgate of the truck, CR and Stacie sit on the left side, Beca and Chloe sit on the right. They were all scanning the area the whole time.
Lily had taken her food and was now sitting on the roof of the cargo van. She sits facing forward and was keeping her eyes peeled for anything happening on the horizon. The two young girls were sitting on the mattress in the bed of the truck and quietly eating. Chloe had to laugh when Sammy took her first bite and let out a satisfying 'mmmm'.
"Did Lily tell you what happened to her?," Emily asks Chloe.
"Yeah," Chloe said and told the other girls what Lily had told her and Beca.
"Damn," CR said.
"And we thought we only had to worry about the Sightless," Emily said. "Now that we're on the move we'll probably run into more of those types. This fucking sucks."
"Emily!," Aubrey said, chastising the girl. "Language." She nods her head towards the two girls.
"Sorry," Emily said. "But it does."
"No one's disagreeing with you, Em," Chloe said. "Sadly, we'll be hearing more stories like this when we finally get somewhere safe."
"We should probably get started," Beca tells them. "I'll keep driving. Aubrey, you good or do you want someone to take over?"
"Stacie already said she'd drive for a bit," Aubrey responds.
"Okay, then," Beca said. "Let's go. Lily! We're ready to head out."
Lily climbs down off the top of the cargo van and walks back to the truck. Everyone gets into the same places they were before they stopped. Stacie pulls off and Beca follows behind.
Chloe and Beca continue to chat with Lily and the two young girls. They had only been driving for about 30 minutes when Beca notes Stacie slowing the van to a stop.
"What's going on?," Beca mumbles to herself as she pulls to the left and stops beside Stacie. Once she moves from behind the van, they see that about a half mile in front of them was what looked to be a roadblock. It was just one car parked across the double lanes and two people standing in the road next to it.
"What the hell?," Beca asks. "They don't look like police or the military from here."
"Should we keep going?," Chloe asks.
"I'm going to take CR and go talk to Aubrey and Stacie," Beca said. "Come up with some kind of a plan. Lily, you stay in the truck with the girls. Chloe, have your bow ready just in case they start coming at us. I'll have Emily stand ready as well."
Chloe nods and gets her bow ready, notching an arrow. Beca gets out of the truck and calls for CR to come with her. She yells up to Emily to keep an eye on the two guys. Beca and CR stand by Stacie's door. "What do you think we should do?," Beca asks.
"I think we should at least see what's going on," Aubrey said leaning around Stacie so she can be heard. "If they were those things, they'd have come for us by now. Since they're staying back, I'm guessing they're being as cautious as we are."
"I have to agree with Aubrey on this one," CR said. "We'll all have our guns ready just in case."
"Beca," Stacie said, looking at the shorter brunette. "If things look shady, I'm hitting the gas and going around on the right because it's flat and I shouldn't have to worry about getting stuck. You go left. That truck will power you through."
"Got it," Beca said. "I'll get out and talk to them. Brey, can you come with me? And make sure you have a gun on you somewhere."
"Don't worry, Beca," Aubrey said. "I got your back."
Beca nods and everyone returns to the vehicles. The girls check their guns and CR passes a few grenades to Chloe who put them on the seat between her and Beca.
"Lily, put the girls down on the floor," Beca tells her. "Stay down with them. If there's any shooting I don't want them to get hurt."
Lily did as Beca said and put the girls on the floor. Chloe passes Lily the Beretta pistol she's been carrying, telling her the safety is on. The young Asian woman double checks that it's loaded and the safety is off and then kneels down with the two young girls, readying herself to use her body to shield them both.
"Here we go," Beca mumbles as she and Stacie slowly start driving again. Beca kept the truck even with Stacie as they drove. "Chloe, watch the tree line, shout if you spot anything." She sees Chloe nod in her peripheral vision, even as she keeps her eyes on the would-be roadblock. She can see two guys standing in the middle of the road waving them down. Stacie and Beca both stop about 10 feet away.
"Chloe," Beca said quietly. "I'm going to get out and see what's going on. I need you slide over here and be ready. If anything happens, and I mean anything, you get the hell out of here. Go around them on the left because Stacie is planning to head to the right. Do you understand?"
"Beca, no," Chloe said and pulls Beca to her. "I'm not going to just leave you. Don't ask me to do that, Beca. Please. I've got a bad feeling about this."
"I love you, Chloe," Beca whispers, laying her forehead on Chloe's. "I need to know that you're going to keep everyone safe. That you'll be okay. Please? For me?"
"That's not fair, Becs," Chloe said as a tear falls down her face. "Let me do it. I'll go talk to them."
"No," Beca said and pulls Chloe to her. "I need you to stay alive. I'll be fine. I promise." She gives Chloe a smile and a quick kiss. "Lily! Watch her."
Lily pops up from the back and grabs Chloe, holding her back as Beca gets out of the truck.
"Lily, let me go!," Chloe yells as she fights to break away from her. She lets out a sob and holds onto Lily's arms.
Beca walks to the back of the truck. "I need you two to get an AR-15 and put them on these guys."
"You got it, Becs," CR said. Seconds later CR and Emily both stand in the truck bed with the guns aimed at the two men. Seeing the automatic weapons pointed at them, the men both step back and hold their hands up.
Beca puts her handgun in the waistband at her back and loosely tucks her shirt behind the gun so she can get to it easily. She looks at Aubrey who is standing at the back of the van waiting for her. Beca nods at her and the two walk towards the guys.
Chloe watches as Beca and Aubrey approach the two men. She looks over and sees Stacie watching as well, hands on the wheel, ready to pull off.
"I'm okay, Lily," Chloe said and wipes her tears. Lily holds tighter for fear that Chloe may try to get out of the truck. "I promise. I'm not getting out. I'm just going to get behind the wheel in case things get bad."
Lily nods and lets Chloe go. She stays at the ready until Chloe has situated herself behind the wheel. Once she's satisfied she crouches down to protect the two younger girls, who surprisingly haven't made a sound since the truck stopped.
Chloe keeps her eyes on Beca through the windshield as Beca put her hands up to show the guys she was currently unarmed. Aubrey stops about 5 feet away from them and Beca takes two more steps before she stops.
"What's going on, guys?," Beca asks.
"Do you really need to have those guns pointed at us?," the first guy, an African American, asks looking up at CR and Emily.
Beca looks over her shoulder at Emily and CR and then back at the two guys. "Yes."
"Look, we're just trying to get to a survivor camp we read about," the first guy said. "Our car broke down a couple of hours ago and we've been worried sick that those things were going to come from out of nowhere to get us. You don't know how relieved we are to see you guys, I mean ladies."
Everyone tenses as screeching is heard again in the distance. "Will you please take us with you?," the second guy, a white military type, asks, he looks around as another screech is heard. "I'm begging you." He then drops to his knees and literally begs Beca to take them. "Please?"
"We have some guns and ammo in the car," the first guy said. "It's all military issue. You can have it all if you just get us out of here."
Beca was slightly taken aback by this. Beca steps back to stand beside Aubrey. She looks at her and quietly asks, "Should we take them with us? It couldn't hurt to have extra weapons." To emphasize the point another series of screeches carry on the wind.
Aubrey looks around and there was nothing as far as the eye could see. "There's no place for them to hide except the car. I say we take them, but make sure someone keeps an eye on them the whole time."
"I agree," Beca said. She turns to the guys. "Dude, get up. We'll take you with us." Before Beca can say anything else, the second guy jumps up and wraps her in a hug. Chloe tenses up and CR and Emily tightened their hold on their weapons.
"Thank you, thank you, thank you," he cries.
"Okay, dude," Beca said. Feeling uncomfortable she gently pushes the guy off her. "Brey, can you help get the weapons out of their car? We just need to load them into the truck and then we can leave."
The second guy wipes his face and nods his head. "It's all good. We'll be fine now."
"Emily, you and CR keep watching them," Beca yells looking at the two girls. At Emily's nod, Beca turns to the two guys and points to the side of the road. "You guys stand over there where they can keep an eye on you. And don't move."
The two guys did as Beca said and she and Aubrey walk to the car and start unloading the weapons the guys had. They were both impressed with the amount of firepower the guys were carrying. They both carry two bags of weapons back to the truck.
Beca stops at the window to talk to Chloe. "We're taking them with us," Beca tells her. She then calls Lily's name and she pops her head up from the floor in the back. "Lily, it might be better if you and the girls rode with Stacie and Aubrey. We're going to need to put some of the weapons and ammo back there. There are mattresses in the back of the van so you'll be comfortable."
"Okay," Lily said.
"I'll help you with the girls," Chloe tells Lily and exits the truck. She chances a look at the two guys and they haven't moved from the spot Beca told them to stand in. She couldn't help the small smile that came to her face thinking about how badass Beca was.
Chloe helps Lily get the girls out of the truck and settled into the van. After the girls are out, Beca and Aubrey put the weapons in the backseat of the truck. They then rearrange some stuff in the bed of the truck and move some of their weapons and ammunition to the backseat of the truck's cab. They left a few ammo clips for Emily and CR. Once they had everything situated, they wave the guys over. They both come running.
"You will sit back here near the tailgate," Beca tells them. "If you make a move toward the front, they will shoot you. If you attempt to do anything but sit here, they will shoot you. Do you understand?"
The two guys gulp and nod their heads. Chloe hides her smile behind her hand. It was kind of hot watching badass Beca Mitchell order these guys around.
"Good," Beca said. "I'm Beca. This is Aubrey," she uses her thumb to point at Aubrey. She points to Emily and CR and introduces them. Chloe is standing by the side of the truck and Beca gives her a smile before pointing her out and saying, "That's Chloe."
The guys nod at each of the girls as they are introduced. "I'm Zeke," the African American guy tells them. "And this is Chicago."
"Okay, gentlemen," Beca said. "Get in. There are some sandwiches and water in the cooler. Ask Emily and she'll make sure you get something to eat. Em, could you hand me a couple of waters?"
Emily reaches into the cooler and pulls out two bottles of water and hands them over the side to Beca. "Thanks."
"We should get out of here," Aubrey said, the last series of screeching seemed a lot closer.
Beca nods and jogs to the passenger door and gets in. She places the two water bottles in the cup holders. Chloe climbs behind the wheel and fastens her seat belt. Aubrey hurries over to the van and hops in. Stacie and Chloe put the vehicles in drive and maneuver around the car and head down the road. This time, Stacie stays in the right lane and Chloe stays in the left. They continue down the road, traveling side by side.
"May I have a sandwich?," Zeke asks Emily.
Emily nods her head and reaches into the cooler. She grabs two sandwiches and tosses one to each of the guys.
"Water?"
"Yes, please."
She tosses them each a bottle and they both say "thanks."
"So, what's your story?," CR asks them. "How'd you come to be out here?"
"We were stationed at Fort Benning," Zeke replies. "We were safe and didn't have any problems with the infected. The base had become a refuge to a few survivors and things went well for a while. On a mission to town to secure food, the convoy was attacked. It was civilians. They were heavily armed and we got separated from our unit. So we hid until we thought it was safe. We found this car and had managed to get this far before the car just died. We weren't able to do anything to get it started again."
"Zeke and I did try to find whatever was left of our squad, but never did," Chicago said, continuing the story. "We found some flyers about survivor camps and decided to head to one of them. We walked for two days, carrying all the weapons and ammo in our packs. We made sure to find shelter at night because there isn't much light on the main roads at night. We finally found that car you saw back there and thought we were finally going to make it until it broke down." Chicago sighs and leans his head back on the tailgate. "Thank you for stopping and bringing us with you. I swear we can help if we run into any of those things. We're not a threat to you."
"We understand," CR said. "But, we've haven't made it this far without using every precaution we can."
"Roger that," Zeke said and tips his water bottle to her.
"Do you think those guys are okay?," Chloe asks looking in her rearview mirror.
"They seem okay," Beca said. "Emily and CR are keeping an eye on them just in case."
"When we get to this survivor camp," Chloe said glancing over at Beca, "do you think we can find some time to be alone. Just you and me?"
"I'm sure we can," Beca tells her. "I'll make sure we can." Beca smiles at Chloe and squeezes her hand. "Shit!"
"What?," Chloe said looking around. "Dammit!" Chloe decreases her speed and Stacie does the same. She and Aubrey saw the same thing Chloe and Beca did.
Up ahead on the opposite side of the road to their left, was a group of the infected zombies. They were just standing there, milling around. They were, by Beca's estimate, a little over a hundred yards away.
Beca climbs into the backseat and yells through the window. "Look alive guys. We've got company."