Free American Infection (Book 2) by Justin Smith Page B

yards we needed to cross. Brian followed, then Rob and myself, staving off the larger number of infected that were approaching from behind.
    I heard Matt shout, something indiscernible, and looked to see him holding his gun in the air. He screamed at Rob to toss him a clip from the bag as two infected breached the alley between two homes and rushed toward him. Rob dropped to his knees, flung the duffel bag from his shoulder, pulled out a magazine and lobbed it fifteen feet to Matt but it was too late. The infected were on him.
    And then they weren't. Again, just as they'd done with Dale, they completely ignored Matt and went straight for Brian behind him. Brian was ready, though, yanked his handgun from his waistband, and fired two shots through the infected's foreheads.
    "What the fuck is going on?" Brian shouted over the thrum of gunfire.
    "He's one of them," I screamed over my shoulder, unsure if Brian heard me. Probably better that he didn't.
    Matt snapped the magazine in place, crossed another yard and cleared all three steps leading to the back porch of a brick double, nearly identical to the rest on the block. Rob, Brian and I were right behind him, working our way backwards toward the porch. As we got closer, Rob turned and took out three infected sprinting along the far side of the double. Brian checked the alley on the near side, fired two shots, then all four of us were on the porch or the steps, still emptying our weapons into the clusters of infected that were tearing through the grass toward us.
    I heard Matt shaking the door, trying to will the bolt to unlock itself. In frustration, he aimed his rifle and fired at the knob. The door began to swing slowly inward until Matt thrust it open the rest of the way and barged into his own home.
    The rest of us followed, shuffling backwards through the vestibule. Soon as we were all inside, Matt swung the door shut and pulled the refrigerator down on its side. We heard the first of the infected slam into the other side of the door. The refrigerator slid slightly. It would slow them down, but not for long.
    The kitchen was otherwise empty. Guns drawn, we walked through a doorway into the dining room, also vacant. As we reached the entrance of the next room, Matt lowered his gun. I slid through the opening next to him, looking into what must have been the living room.
    The bay window looking out onto the street was shattered. The front door barely hung on by a hinge. The TV was flipped onto its face and a loveseat had been thrashed and gutted, its stuffing strewn across the hardwood floor.
    And over the back of two recliners facing Price Street, were the tops of two heads, sitting still and silent, watching the infected meander by on the road below.
    Pretty sure we'd found Matt's parents.

CHAPTER FIFTEEN
    Friday, 8:45 a.m.
    I glanced behind us. The back door had pushed the fridge another foot, and several infected arms were reaching through the opening. It wouldn't hold much longer.
    As if reading my thoughts, Brian sauntered into the kitchen and kicked the fridge with the full weight of his body. It slammed back against the door frame, dismembering a few of the arms and hands that had been poking through.
    Matt rushed around the recliners, looked at the occupants of both chairs, and grabbed the person on his right under the shoulders, pulling him to a standing position. Matt released his hold and the man stood on his own, then reached out and wrapped his arms around Matt in a strong embrace.
    "What the fuck happened to mom, Dad?" Matt asked.
    Just as he finished the question, the front door flew off its final hinge and crashed onto the living room floor. An infected stood in the doorway, deciding which one of us to gorge upon first. It didn't matter, as Rob placed a bullet between its eyes, its body falling limp to the ground.
    "We need to fucking move," Brian shouted, returning from the kitchen.
    Another infected had taken the place of the first in the doorway and Rob