Zombie Games (Book 4): Road Kill Read online

“Don’t worry, my eyes are peeled for creepy guy,” said Luke.

  The zoo was quiet, except for the constant buzzing of flies on dead carcasses, as they made their way back to the cafeteria. Justice went in first with his gun raised and they followed close behind.

  “It’s clear,” he said, lowering the revolver. “Grab what you can and then let’s bolt.”

  “Oh my God,” said Allie. Squealing, she pulled out a candy bar and ripped it open. “You were just going to leave all of this stuff behind?”

  Justice didn’t say anything. He walked back to the door and stared outside.

  Kids.

  It was obvious to him that he was the only one who realized how dangerous their current situation was. Not only did they have zombies to worry about but now they had that head-case, Darren. From the way the guy acted, it was clear that whatever drugs he’d stopped taking, had unleashed some kind of unrestrained madness.

  Just like Jimmy.

  His stepfather.

  Jimmy, had been diagnosed with schizophrenia only two years ago, but the family had lived with the psychosis for over fourteen. It wasn’t until Jimmy’s sister had been diagnosed with the same condition that their mother had finally reached out for help and gotten him the medication he’d needed. Before that, she’d always blamed his irrational behavior and outbursts on the ‘Vietnam War’.

  “I’m sure it’s the flashbacks from the war, again,” she’d say, after Jimmy had one of his episodes or nervous breakdowns, which were very sporadic. Sometimes he believed he was being watched by the government and other times he wouldn’t leave his bed for days. “We just need to be patient with him.”

  But it was hard to be patient with someone who took it upon himself to train children on how to survive the monsters lurking in the back of Jimmy’s warped mind.

  “You need to learn how to use a knife,” he’d said, when Justice turned eight.

  Because Jimmy couldn’t hold down a job, both Justice and his younger sister were left alone with him during the day while their mother had worked two jobs.

  “No, please,” he’d begged.

  Jimmy had raised his finger. “Don’t be a baby, Justice. Now, I’m going to throw this knife at you and you’re going to catch it.”

  “I can’t! It’s going to cut me!”

  “Not if you catch it like I showed you. Now get ready.”

  “But why do I have to learn this?” he’d asked, scared shitless of the gleaming blade in Jimmy’s hand.

  “Because, that’s what bad guys do!” he’d spat. “They throw knives at you and try to kill you. But you’re going to be a survivor, boy. I’m going to teach you what my daddy never did, or your daddy for that matter. Now, pay attention.”

  And so they’d spent hours going over techniques that Jimmy promised would help him survive, should he ever get jumped by thugs or need to survive in a war. Oddly enough, all of the drills and combat training he’d forced upon him had helped Justice stay alive when the zombies arrived.

  Unfortunately, Jimmy, who was one tough son-of-a-bitch, hadn’t survived the vaccine. He’d turned into a zombie and Justice had been forced to kill him. It had been one of the hardest things he’d ever had to do, because deep down, he’d loved the man.

  “You want a candy bar?” asked Allie, holding one out. “Chocolate makes everything a little better.”

  If only it were really so.

  He smiled and shook his head.

  Justice watched Allie and Kylie, and hoped he could keep all of them safe. They were still just a couple of naïve little girls even through all of this mess. In a way, both of them reminded him of his younger stepsister, Amy, a little girl of eleven who’d wanted nothing more than to laugh and have fun. And she had, until Jimmy had turned into a zombie and had taken the lives of both his sister and mother. Jimmy had been the only one in the family to get the vaccine and the only one who’d died without fear. He could only imagine the complete horror his mother and sister must have felt when Jimmy had gone after them. Before Justice had gotten the chance to save either of them.

  He blinked back tears and tried pushing the image of his mother and sister’s glossy blond hair and lifeless blue eyes out of his head, but it was difficult. He’d never forget finding them mutilated at the hands of Jimmy, who, ironically, had been the monster he’d taught Justice to defeat.

  “Justice, you okay?” asked Luke.

  He wiped his eyes quickly. “Yeah, just got dust in my eyes or something.”

  “We’ve got what we need,” he said, picking up a large blue container.

  “I’ll cover you but we need to move fast,” said Justice.

  “We’ve got some water,” said Allie, struggling with a box filled with plastic bottles. “And I found a few diet sodas.”

  “Give me some of those,” said Kylie, reaching inside. “You’re going to drop that box.”

  “Thanks,” she said. “It was a little too heavy.”

  “Are we about ready?” asked Justice.

  “Yeah, why don’t you make yourself useful and carry something?” asked Allie. “Like those paper towels.”

  Justice grabbed a roll that was sitting on the counter, and slid it down into his tank-top. “Okay, let’s go.”

  Thunder echoed in the distance as they moved to the door. Stepping outside, they noticed that the skies were now ominously dark.

  “Looks like a storm is brewing,” said Luke, glancing up as lightening flashed across the sky.

  “Maybe we should hang out here until it passes,” said Kylie. The clouds were moving quickly and the last place she wanted to be was in Justice’s truck if there was a tornado.

  “No,” said Justice, feeling the hair stand up on the back of his neck. It was much too quiet outside, an eerie calm before the storm. “This place isn’t safe,” he said, looking around. “I’d rather be on the road then stuck here. Besides, we need to get back to the truck, make sure Darren didn’t screw with it. Let’s keep moving.”

  “Oh my God,” said Kylie, turning to her friend as Justice began walking away. “Allie, do you still have the keys?”

  Allie’s face paled and she shook her head. “I…um…left them in the truck.”

  “In the ignition?” asked Justice, stopping dead in his tracks. He turned around.

  She bit the side of her lip. “Well…yeah.”

  He sighed.

  Just then, Allie’s face paled in horror as she stared past Luke, towards the woman’s restroom. Before Luke could turn his head, shots rang out and he dropped to the ground.

  “Luke!” screamed Allie, dropping the box of bottles and scurrying towards him.

  As they all stared at him in horror, it was obvious from the large bloody chest wound, that he was already gone.

  “Oh,” giggled Darren, who was standing behind a dumpster less than twenty feet away, a shotgun in his hands. “Guess he’s staying.”

  Filled with rage, Justice raised his gun and began shooting at Darren, wiping the maniacal smile from his face for good.

  “Luke,” sobbed Allie, kneeling next to his still form. She touched his red hair and moaned. “Oh my God, don’t leave us!”

  Justice knelt down and examined the wound. “Yeah, he’s gone,” he said, his voice thick.

  Chapter Six

  Cassie

  “Have you killed any of the monsters?” asked the pale child.

  I’d been helping Sister Theresa feed the children peanut butter and crackers in the courtyard when the little girl asked me. She’d been sitting alone, clutching one of those American Dolls like she was afraid it would disappear, like everything else.

  “Zombies?” I asked, not knowing exactly how to respond to that kind of question from such a young child. She reminded me of Allie when she was younger, with her light hair and dimples. Unfortunately, her hazel eyes were filled with a haunted sadness that made me want to cry.

  She nodded.

  “Yes, a few.”

  She clutched her doll tight a
gainst her chest. “Good.”

  “What’s your name?” I asked.

  “Kallie,” she said, a shy smile spreading across her face.

  “I’m Cassie,” I said. “Do you have any brothers or sisters here with you?”

  Her eyes welled up with tears. “No,” she whispered.

  She was obviously devastated and I was a complete moron for reminding her of what she’d probably lost.

  How could I be so damn stupid?

  Obviously, she was alone.

  “Oh,” I said, sitting down next to her at the picnic table. I put my arm around her. “I’m so sorry, Kallie.”

  She wiped a tear from her cheek. “The zombies got my mommy.”

  “It hurts a lot to lose your mommy. I know because mine is gone too,” I said. “But you know what? I’d bet anything that they are both watching us right now in Heaven and smiling.”

  She looked up at me. “How do you know?”

  “Because a little voice inside of me said that if I hugged you, we’d both feel better. I don’t know about you, but I certainly feel much better now. In fact, I’m beginning to think that hug was actually from your mom.”

  She tilted her head, thinking about this and then her face brightened. “You’re right. And that hug that I gave you was from your mom!”

  “That’s right. Oh, wait,” I said, putting my arm around her and pulling her close. “I feel like giving you another hug. It must be your mom, again.”

  She closed her eyes. “I miss you mom,” she whispered.

  I smoothed her hair down and kissed the top of her head. “I’m sure that she misses you too.”

  “Is that cute little girl yours?”

  I stiffened.

  Dwayne.

  I ignored him and released Kallie. “Why don’t you go and look for Nora. I think she’s handing out water.”

  Kallie stood up and eyed Dwayne warily. “Okay.”

  “You look a little young to be a mother,” he said as she scampered away.

  “That’s because I am too young to be a mother.”

  His eyes swept over my body and I wished I had more clothes covering me. Because of the heat, my usual attire was a tank top and jean-shorts. “What are you twenty?”

  “Eighteen,” I said, raising my chin.

  He smiled. “You’re still legal.”

  “I’m legal but it doesn’t make me available,” I said, trying not to flinch as his eyes traveled over my body.

  “She’s also engaged,” said Nora, who appeared beside me. “To a martial artist who could take you out with the tip of his finger, if he really wanted to.”

  He looked amused more than anything. “A real tough guy, huh?”

  I nodded. “Yes, but I don’t need anyone’s protection. I can take care of myself.”

  He put his foot on the bench and leaned against his knee. “I suppose you can, if you’ve survived this far. Truth is, I’m not a threat, so you can both just relax.”

  “Everyone’s a threat,” said Nora.

  “Why do you say that?” he asked.

  “Because we’ve both had our share of trouble in the last few weeks and they also tried giving us the same line of bullshit,” said Nora.

  His eyes narrowed. “Oh, is that right?”

  “Yep,” she smiled coldly. “Neither of us are naïve, defenseless, or stupid. So you can save yourself a lot of embarrassment and pain by taking what you need for food, and be on your way.”

  Dwayne reached into his pocket and took out a pack of cigarettes. “I think you have me all wrong.”

  “Maybe, but I don’t really give a shit one way or the other. You’ve obviously been in prison and that tat near your eye, which you’re proudly displaying, speaks volumes. So, if you think you’re going to pull any wool over our eyes, you’re wasting your time.”

  “I got that tattoo when I defended myself in prison.”

  “It’s one thing to defend yourself, it’s another thing to go bragging about killing someone using a tattoo, Dwayne,” I said. “By the way, smoking isn’t permitted in the courtyard.”

  He stared at me for a few seconds and then put the cigarette pack back into his pocket. “Can’t believe I’m letting a couple of little girls like you bust my balls,” he sighed.

  “We haven’t even started,” muttered Nora as he turned and walked away.

  “He gives me the creeps,” I said.

  She nodded. “He’s dangerous too. I just hope they leave soon, so we can get the heck out of here and back to Minnesota. I feel like we’re wasting too much time, here.”

  “I know,” I said. Besides wanting to find my grandparents, my heart ached for Bryce along with the others. I just wanted to finish this mission and get back to the hotel. “But Henry is afraid those two men are a major threat to the nuns. We can’t leave until they’re gone.”

  “Well, they’d better be gone by tomorrow or I’m going to run their asses out of here myself,” said Nora, her jaw set. “And I’m serious, Wild.”

  I wasn’t sure how she’d do it, but there was no doubt in my mind that she would.

  That night we slept on the floor of the church with the children, taking shifts to watch over everyone. Since both men had been in prison, we didn’t trust any of the kids alone with the strangers. Henry volunteered for the first shift, me for the second, and Nora for the final. When it was my turn, I wrapped a blanket around myself and hunkered down on a pew with the gun hidden underneath.

  “Keep your eyes on those two,” whispered Henry as we stared at the two sleeping men. “I trust them about as much as your lead foot.”

  I smiled and shook my head.

  He smiled back and then his face became serious again. “Don’t let them get you alone, Wild. I know you’re good with those karate moves and everything, but those two are giants compared to you. It wouldn’t be too hard for them to pin you down and hurt you.”

  I pushed the horrifying image away. “I’ll be fine.”

  His lips thinned. “I’m serious. You didn’t see the way that dark haired fella’s been eyeballing you. For all we know he could have went to prison for rape.”

  My stomach clenched. I hadn’t even thought of that. “He tries raping me and he won’t live long enough to unzip that fly of his.”

  He chuckled. “I’m sure he won’t. Just remember to keep your guard up.”

  “I hear you.”

  Henry walked to the back of the church, lay down with the pillow one of the nuns had given him and within seconds was snoring so loud I could still hear him where I was sitting.

  Sighing, I stood up and stretched my legs, then walked over to where everyone was sleeping, to check on things. It was early into the next morning and the children, all fifty-eight, appeared asleep. Two of the other nuns were also snuggling with some of the smaller children as they slept.

  “If you’re tired,” said Dwayne, who was sitting against one of the walls, watching me. “I can keep an eye on the kids for you.”

  “No, thanks,” I said.

  His eyes narrowed. “You’re just a young girl yourself. You shouldn’t have this kind of responsibility.”

  “I don’t mind.”

  “Well,” he said, standing up. “I’ve got to go and relieve myself. I’ll be back soon.”

  I nodded and watched him as he walked towards the exit. “Hey, there’s a bathroom in the church.”

  “I’ll go outside. I need a smoke anyway.”

  I watched as he stepped outside of the sanctuary, feeling uneasy. I didn’t particularly like him wandering around where I couldn’t see him.

  “Cassie?”

  I turned and found Kallie standing next to me, rubbing her eyes.

  “Hi honey. What do you need?”

  “I have to go to the bathroom.”

  “Oh, well, okay,” I said. I stood up and walked over to Nora, shaking her gently.

  “My turn already?” she mumbled.

  “No, I just have to take one of the kids to the b
athroom. Can you keep an eye on the others while I do that?”

  She said up and yawned. “Sure.”

  “Thanks.”

  Nora’s eyes narrowed as she looked around. “Where’s Dweeb?”

  “Dwayne? He stepped outside for a smoke.”

  She sighed. “Great. Well, hurry back. Looks like I still have a couple of hours to sleep until it’s my turn.”

  “Yeah, I know. Sorry.”

  “Hey, little girl needs to pee, she needs to pee,” she said, smiling at Kallie.

  “We’ll be right back.”

  I grabbed a flashlight and then took Kallie’s hand in mine. We walked out of the sanctuary into the hallway leading to the bathrooms.

  “Do you need any help?” I asked as we stopped outside of the small bathroom.

  “No, but it’s too dark to see anything,” she said.

  I handed her the flashlight, grateful that there were a couple of lit candles in the hallway. “I’ll wait out here.”

  “Okay.”

  She closed the door and I leaned against the opposite wall with my arms crossed, my mind wandering back to Bryce again. I smiled as I imagined him tucking Bobby into bed, maybe reading him a story. Then I felt guilty for leaving my little sister the way that I did and sighed. She was definitely going to freak out on me when I made it back to Atlanta.

  A loud crash from one of the rooms down the hallway made me jump. It sounded like glass shattering.

  Crap.

  Swallowing back a wave of fear, I tightened the grip on my gun and began walking down the long cool hallway, which seemed more ominous with every step.

  “Hello?” I called, raising the gun in front of me.

  Nobody answered and I had to force myself to keep moving.

  Maybe it was a cat?

  I’d seen a couple of them prowling around the hallways, earlier.

  “Here, kitty!” I whispered, loudly.

  The sound of books or something heavy being dropped onto a hardwood floor stopped me cold.

  “Sister Theresa?”

  Silence.

  With my heart hammering in my chest, I willed myself forward until I stood outside of the room where I thought I’d heard the noise. It was dark but from the shadows in the room, it appeared to be an office.