Free Snatchers (A Zombie Novel) by Shaun Whittington

so it was up to them to take it.
    Once the large door eventually opened fully, Jamie took his work keys and threw them to the floor. They were of no use to him on the outside, and the radio he had disbanded earlier only worked on an internal network within the prison grounds and was controlled by people from the control room.
    He left the gatehouse for the last time, the door automatically locked behind him once he closed it. Janine also disposed of her equipment, and the pair of them headed for the carrier van.
    There were two prison vans. The one that they took was a white INVESCO, ten thousand kilo diesel van. It had seven cells, a guard seat, a storage locker and a fridge. The other van was similar, but bigger, and Jamie was quite happy to stick to the smaller one that he had chosen, simply because it was smaller, and would need less petrol to move about.
    Janine got into the front, once Jamie opened it by pressing the button on the key fob.
    "Hang on a minute," Jamie spoke to his female confederate.
    He ran to the back of the van and began to empty his rucksack, putting the assortment of food and bottles of water into the van's fridge. He threw the bag into the store cupboard and was pleased to see two large jerry cans full of petrol. It was probably only enough to fill half the tank, but it was better than nothing. Jamie had a feeling that most petrol stations may have been sucked dry, and with no individuals to deliver more fuel, it wouldn't be long before the whole country would have to use their feet as transportation.
    He double checked the seven cells to see if they were empty—he didn't know why he did this—and jumped back out, closed the back doors and got into the front. He started the engine and saw the fuel gauge was full. He blew out his cheeks and a smile developed on his face, Janine looked at the gauge and she also smiled.
    The van left the premises and drove onto the car park; both individuals looked back at their cars sitting on their own. In the car park sat Janine's Renault Clio and Jamie's beloved Porsche, but they weren't practical now; a bulky van carrying food and water was far more practical and safer than their vehicles. Janine's phone was hidden in the glove compartment of her car, as they weren't allowed to take them into the prison in case an inmate somehow managed to steal one of them. Jamie knew that she always kept hers in her car.
    "Do you want your phone? Mine's at home," he asked Janine, as the van slowly pulled out of the car park.
    She looked at Jamie with suspicion. And what if you've changed your mind and drive off? Get the van all to yourself.
    Soaked with paranoia, she murmured, "Just go."
    Their smile turned into a frown, as they knew things would never be the same again. A lot of situations went through Jamie's head, things that he had forgotten to do. He thought that if he and Janine had stayed behind for a bit longer and had more time to think, they could have broken into the numerous vending machines around the prison. It was only chocolate and crisps, but it was food nevertheless and could come in handy one of the days. He also thought about the huge bottles that were inserted into the water coolers; they could have raided the storage cupboard and filled the back of the van with a few gallons of water. And what about the other prison van? If he wasn't in such a panic, he could have spent a few minutes trying to siphon the fuel out of the other van.
    It was too late now; he didn't want to stop. At least they had some food and water. He knew why Janine wanted to stay behind, but what kind of a life would that be? There were resources out there in the big world: fuel, food, and maybe even shelter. Jamie wanted to live the best he could in such a dire situation, not hiding in some cold dark prison, munching on crisps and eating cold tins of beans stolen from the inmates' cells.
    Their windows were down on this glorious day—weather wise, and both individuals had their elbows