Free Rise & Walk (Book 2): Pathogen by Gregory Solis Page A

sudden sway of Mason’s course.  The truck veered to the right to avoid the gruesome crowd.  Nikki held fast to the rear windowsill as her body was thrown by the change in direction, towards the hungry creatures.  It was not her strength that saved her, rather the shock at the sheer numbers of the dead, some of which she now recognized, which froze her in place.  She dangled precariously over the press of gaping mouths and outstretched limbs, nearly gagging from the sight.   Tony reached out and grabbed her small hips, pulling her down into his lap, and clasped his arms around her like a living seatbelt.  They both looked in awe at the number of creatures attempting to grab the truck, but were spun around or fell as it sped on.  The engine pitched upwards with its effort and after a few tense moments, the vehicle was clear. 
    Desperate, Nikki looked back towards the infected crowd.  A number of corpses stumbled to their feet, righting their unsteady remains with clumsy efforts.  Other creatures tumbled over the fallen like drunks playing a gory game of Twister.  Behind the rotting confusion and the few beasts that still gave feeble chase, was her besieged high school.  The once familiar hallways were silent and empty.  Adjacent to the building and surrounded by the same cyclone fence was the athletic field.  She saw many cars and trucks parked around the inside of the field, some pushed right up against the fence yet there were no lights on in the buildings.  The creatures seemed to be concentrated only in the front area.  She pulled away from Tony’s grasp and crawled towards the tailgate on all fours in the bustling truck bed.  Tony got to his knees and followed.  A light caught his eye and swung in a back-and-forth arc on top of the building.  Nikki saw it too and yelled over the engine noise.  A figure on the roof was signaling with a flashlight.
    “There!” She pointed.
    “I see it,” Tony shouted against the driving wind.  He dragged himself forward, back to the rear window.
    Nikki stared hard at the figure in hope that its shape was familiar; that of her father or mother. She couldn’t recognize the figure but it was some comfort to know that there were people alive within.  She clung to the edge of the tailgate and watched the shadows of her old high school shrink in her view. 
    “Stop and flash the lights.” Tony said poking his head in the cab, giving Margaret an unnecessary fright.
    “Why?” Jack yelled.
    “There’s a dude swinging a flashlight on the roof, we should acknowledge.”
    Without slowing down, Jack flashed his lights on and off wildly a few times.  He looked to Veronica.
    “What now?” Veronica asked. 
    “Any ideas?” Mason said.
    “Ma’am,” Veronica said to the old woman, “Are there any other places in town where people would go in an emergency?”
    The woman considered for a moment and began to think out loud.
    “We would have gone to the Plant in an emergency; that’s while my husband was an employee.  After he retired, we would have gone to the high school.  Some go to the hospital, but that’s people who work there of course.”
    “Back to the hills I guess,” Jack said, “maybe we can hide out somewhere.”  Margaret thought for a moment and spoke.
    “There’s one home up that way but the people there are not very nice.” She said shaking her head.
    “What do you mean, Mrs. McCormack?” Veronica asked.
    “The Richardson estate is the only place on that road, aside from the dam.  But I wouldn’t expect any help from them.  It’s just the Grandson that lives there now.” Margaret said, “His father left town a few years ago to run some other factory out-of-state.”
    A weary smile appeared on Jack’s face.
    “We should drop by; I don’t think they’re home.” Jack said.
     
     

 
    Seven
     
    Billy Tate dashed to join Gabe on the roof of the Whisper Lanes bowling alley with just enough time to see Jack Mason’s truck flash