Lost World (19 page)

Brady runs his hand through his shaggy hair, shaking his head. “Ah well, I figured it didn’t have that much to do with my size. I’m used to it, but with everything else going on, short jokes weren’t something I thought I’d have to worry about. Doesn’t matter. The way I see it, between the two of us we make a whole man.”

I shake my head so he knows I don’t have a clue what he’s talking about. Most of the stuff that comes out of Brady’s mouth goes right over my head. Ironically.

The corner of his mouth turns up. “You know, because I’m a half-man and he’s a half-wit.”

I laugh before I can stop myself, then clamp my hand over my mouth. It was too loud, but I couldn’t help it. Brady may have me confused half the time, but the other half I’m laughing. It’s nice to have something to laugh about, even if it is only Angus’s shortcomings.

“How long do we wait?” I ask, shuffling my feet through the snow.

My body is buzzing with nervous energy and I’m finding it difficult to stay still. Even the thought of losing Angus has me on edge, and it only has a little to do with how hard it would be on Axl. I guess I’ve come to actually like the guy? Hard to believe.

Angus pulls a third shirt over his head, then looks us over. “Dopey and Rambo will drop me at the edge of town, then I’ll cut down the back road. The one that comes right up behind the post office. If I’m lucky, there won’t be many back that way. You gotta give me time to get there, tell everybody what’s happenin’, and get our shit together.” He purses his lips as he jerks on a pair of leather gloves. “Twenty minutes oughta do it. Don’t wanna wait too long or the ones that follow these guys outta town might get bored an’ come back.”

“I’m gonna back that truck up to the post office door,” Axl says. “It’ll be open and we’ll do our best to hold ‘em off, but you gotta get outta there fast.”

“Don’t you worry ‘bout me.” Angus slaps Axl on the shoulder and turns to Parvarti. He doesn’t even acknowledge Brady. “You drive through town real slow, an’ be sure you honk that horn. Get them bastards movin’ away from the post office.”

“We’ll take care of it,” Parvarti says, nodding.

Brady is wringing his hands, and his eyes are wide. He can’t seem to hold still either, like he’s full of nervous energy. I can’t help wondering if this is the first time he’s ever faced a big group like this. He’s been hiding behind that fence, which has kept him alive, but he hasn’t had to fight to live yet.

“We’ll see you on the other side of town,” Brady says, looking at Axl, then me. “Be careful.” He gives us a stiff nod, then heads to the SUV.

Parvarti climbs in the driver’s seat, and Angus in the back. My whole body is tense as I watch them drive away. I’m not sure if I’ll ever get used to the fact that every time someone leaves I may never see them alive again.

Axl puts his arm around me. “We just gotta get everybody back to Brady’s house, then we’ll be safe. For real this time.”

“You don’t have to lie to me, you know. There’s no guarantee Brady’s place is safe. Look at what happened with the shelter. That was out in the middle of nowhere and built specifically for a post-apocalyptic world. Lot of good that did us.”

I don’t mean for the words to come out as bitter as they do, but Axl barely reacts. He gives me a brief squeeze, then his arm falls away and he heads for the truck. I’m left feeling cold and alone, and there’s a sadness in me that I haven’t felt since Emily died. It probably has to do with Hadley.

Dammit, Hadley. Why the hell did you have to go and disappear?

I exhale as much of the tension as I can, then jog to the truck, pulling myself into the cab where Axl is already sitting. Waiting for me.

“What about Hadley and Jon?” I ask as I slam the door shut. “We left that note for them at the hot spring. They’re going to come here looking for us. We have to warn them or tell them where to go or something.”

Axl exhales slowly. “What’re we gonna tell them? If we leave an address on the road, somebody might see it an’ come lookin’ for us. What if they ain’t friendly?”

He’s right. Dammit.

Axl twists in the seat until he’s facing me, and his gray eyes search mine. I reach out and touch the little scar on his chin. It may hold bad memories for him, but I love this scar. It reminds me of him. How he’s been beaten and bruised, but he’s healed. He’s stronger now than he ever was before all this started.

“We gotta consider that they didn’t make it.”

“Don’t say that, Axl. You yourself said she was a fighter.”

“I know, but we gotta be real ‘bout this.”

“But we can’t just walk away,” I whisper. “Not when there could be a chance.”

Axl nods, then turns back to face the front. He puts the truck in gear and eases it into reverse. “We’ll try an’ leave ‘em a trail to follow. That’s ‘bout all we can do.”

I squeeze my eyes shut as he backs the truck out of the forest. “Thank you.”

When the truck is on the road, Axl puts it in park and leans down. He digs under the seat until he finds a can of spray paint, then shoves the door open and hops out. The ground is covered in snow, so there’s no way he’ll be able to leave a message on the road. I scoot over so I can see what he’s doing through the driver’s side window and watch him spray an orange arrow on a tree.

It’s pointing toward the town.

He climbs back in and kicks his feet so the snow falls off, then tosses the can on the seat next to me.

“What are you doing? You’re leading them into town. It’s overrun!”

“We got no other option. We’re gonna hafta leave arrows for them an’ hope they can make it through.” He puts the truck into gear. “I’m sorry.”

I sit back against the seat, suddenly feeling defeated and lost. “You’re right. I know you are.”

Doesn’t mean I don’t feel like shit about the whole thing.

I load guns and organize weapons as Axl drives toward town. The tracks the SUV left in the snow are distorted thanks to the dozens of bodies that staggered after it. Not all of the zombies took the bait, though. There are still plenty left roaming the main street when we roll in.

“You ready?” Axl asks.

I nod as I roll down my window, then climb up so the top half my body is hanging out. It reminds me of San Francisco, back when all this first started. I hung out of the window like this when we saved Mitchell from a horde. He was supposed to be the answer to our prayers. Things didn’t turn out exactly the way we’d hoped they would, though.

“Should I start shooting them now?” I yell down to Axl.

“Might as well. They already know we’re here.”

Good point.

I aim for the skull of the body closest to the post office and squeeze the trigger. The gunshot echoes through the air, and the monster’s head pops like a balloon. Black ooze sprays everywhere, but I don’t look at it long enough for it to really affect me. Instead, I turn and focus on the next one. A putrid thing that doesn’t even look like it should be able to stand, let alone walk. His movements are jerky and so slow it barely feels like I’m aiming at a moving target. I pull the trigger and he goes down, so I move on to the next one. Five are on the ground before Axl slows to a stop.

“Backing up!” he yells. “Hold on.”

I grip the top of the truck as he eases the thing back, getting as close to the post office as he can. Bodies move toward us, groaning like every move they make hurts. There are at least two dozen of them. So many we could easily lose a couple people if we’re not careful. I don’t want to lose anyone else. Not today.

Axl puts the truck in park and I pull myself out of the window, then scramble through the ice and snow onto the roof. I can hear him swearing at me from out here, but I don’t care. I want to be sure I have a good vantage point to take these bastards out.

I pull the trigger and another gunshot echoes through the air. Behind me, the post office door flies open and Angus starts screaming for people to move. Axl shoots from his side of the truck as people rush out of the building at our backs, but no matter how many zombies we take out, more come. Dozens of them, pouring out from between houses and alleys, hurrying toward the sound of gunfire.

“Angus!” I scream. “We have to move!”

“Almost done!” he yells back.

I fire again, then twist to the side, hoping to get a glimpse of what’s going on at the back of the truck so I can get an idea of how soon we’ll be ready to leave. But the sight of the horde coming down the street toward us makes me freeze. There are so many. It’s like all the zombies that followed the SUV are coming back, and they’ve brought friends.

“Axl!” I scream as I turn and slide down the front of the truck, over the windshield and hood.

My feet hit the ground, and I stumble through the snow, almost falling. Somehow, I manage to keep myself upright. A zombie lurches toward me, but I kick him away. He falls back and slams into the bodies behind him as I rush around the side of the truck to Axl, my feet slipping on the icy ground.

“They’re coming!” I yell.

Axl hangs half out of his window, and when I point down the street he has to pull himself up so he can get a good look. His face gets whiter than the snow. He pulls himself back inside, then shoves the door open and slides out, dropping to the ground next to me.

“Get in!” he screams, pushing me toward the truck.

He takes off toward the back as more zombies head our way. I ignore him and hold my ground, firing into the advancing dead. My gun clicks and I drop the clip, then slam in another. My hands shake from the cold and the tension, and my face is covered in sweat. I fire again and again and again, and heads explode. Zombies scream and fall and stumble toward us, cutting through the black-splattered snow. No matter how many fall, it isn’t enough. There are so many it makes my head spin.

“Axl!”

The door slams at the back of the truck, but I can’t look away for even a second to see what’s going on. Someone else fires, and footsteps pound toward me. I squeeze the trigger again, my arms aching from holding them up. But I can’t stop. Can’t move.

Axl runs up beside me and shoves me toward the truck. “Inside!”

I don’t ignore him this time. I pull myself in and slide across the seat, and he climbs in after me. I’m breathing so hard I’m on the verge of hyperventilating. The passenger window is still down, and I move to roll it up as Axl throws the truck into gear. The wheels spin on the icy street before lurching forward, and I’m tossed away from the window. I have to pull myself across the seat so I can get back to it and roll the thing up.

It’s still half down when a zombie climbs onto the side of the truck. He shoves his rotten face through the opening and screams, then gropes at me. I lean back and slam my foot into his face. My heel squishes into his nose, spraying black blood everywhere, and he moans but doesn’t let go. I kick harder as black ooze splatters the inside of the cab. He screams and I kick harder, over and over, and by the time he finally falls, the inside of the truck is covered with black goo and smells like a rotting corpse.

“Hold on!” Axl yells.

I roll the window up the rest of the way and jerk my seatbelt on just as Axl stomps down on the gas. The truck’s engine roars like a lion, and I’m slammed back in my seat as we speed down the road. The horde in front of us is so massive it looks like a wall. We crash into it, and bodies go flying. They smash against the windshield and hood. The side view mirror is ripped off. The window next to Axl shatters, raining glass down on him. He doesn’t slow for even a second.

By the time we make it out of town, the front of the truck is splattered with black goo, the windshield is cracked, and driver’s side window is gone completely. But we’re alive.

“Tell me everyone made it out,” I say, gripping my seat for dear life.

Axl’s hands tighten on the steering wheel, turning his knuckles white. He doesn’t look away from the road. “We got everybody.”

Thank God.

The SUV comes into view less than two miles outside town. Parvarti stands next to the driver’s side with her arms crossed, leaning against the door like she doesn’t have a care in the world, but Brady is pacing through the snow. He stops when we get close, and a relieved smile spreads across his face. Axl pulls up alongside them, and he barely has the truck in park when I have the door shoved open.