Chapter 8

"Are you feeling better now?" I asked once again still having a hard time believing that this wasn't some trick.

Acting very much older than his five years, he rolled his eyes. "Yes, Mom, I'm fine."

As further proof, he began to wiggle out of my grip, but I grabbed his arm before he could get too far away from me.

"No, baby, we need to get back to the truck," I said standing up and pulling him back to the cab.

"But I wanna go get my toy!" he whined.

"I know, baby, but daddy's really sick right now and he's not being very nice," I tried to explain to him.

"I promise I'll be very quiet!" he said hopefully as he gave me his best puppy dog face.

"I know you would. But we can't, we have to leave. Maybe we have a toy in the truck for you to play with."

"Mom, is Johnathan okay?" Marcus asked anxiously peeking his head out the truck door.

"Yes," I reassured him.

"That was some cold, huh?"

I nodded my head in agreement then checked on Melissa as she hid in the corner watching everything with wide eyes.

"Everything's fine, sweetheart. Johnathan's not going to turn into a monster."

Her eyes dashed back and forth between us all before finally nodding her head and crawling back onto the seat.

After the kids were calmed down, I jumped into the truck and locked the doors. I looked around and watched as the cars zipped past ten-times faster than they normally would. It was becoming clearer that this 'zombie epidemic' that had broken out was causing a mass panic and the whole city was no longer safe. I suddenly realized I had no idea where to go. Where could I take the children and be safe now? How was I going to protect them? I was scared and lost, I wanted to scream, to cry or maybe just hit something. However, before I could decide Melissa piped up in the back seat.

"Is my aunt going to come and get me?" she asked anxiously.

Right! I was waiting for dispatcher lady. Maybe she had a better idea than I did after all she worked with the police. She had to have more information, she just had to.

"Yes. She's supposed to, baby girl," I told her.

"Is she coming soon?" she asked looking around.

"Oh, I hope so."

I was trying hard to disguise the fear in my voice as the seconds ticked by without any sign of her aunt. When I was about to give up and start the truck, a car raced over the curb and stopped within inches of us.

A blond curly haired woman popped out with a gun in her hand and came racing over to us.

"AUNTIE!" Melissa cried happily.

The woman made it to the passenger side of the truck and tried the handle, then screamed in frustration when she found it locked.

"Auntie, the password is Pico Pete!" she yelled.

The woman looked into the back of the truck almost incredulously and her dark green eyes held a wealth of confusion as if she couldn't understand why that piece of information was important at a time like this.

"Pico Pete?" the woman asked.

I quickly unlocked the door so she could hop in. Melissa immediately jumped over the seat and grabbed her aunt in a death grip before she could even hop in and shut the door. This woman didn't seem to mind one bit since she held her back with the same force. Once she got the door closed and was situated, she finally seemed to relax the hard look of anger that had been etched on her face.

"Pico Pete?" she asked again raising an eyebrow at me.

I shrugged. "Piccolo Pete. It's an old password for the kids and I figured it would be a good idea to let them know that I'm fine and to open the door."

Her face looked grave as she nodded as if completely understanding the necessity of such a thing. I wasn't sure if it was just about this situation or in general, I was glad for her approval none the less.

"Honey, are you okay?" the woman asked her niece.

"Yes. But Mommy..." Melissa choked and suddenly began bawling as if she had been waiting and holding it in until her aunt got there.

"What's going on?" I asked, the question bursting out of me.

She shook her head. "We don't know. No one knows, not the cops, not the hospitals, not even the CDC, last I heard."

"That's impossible! Someone's gotta know!" I cried in disbelief.

"If they do, they aren't saying anything except stay inside and stay safe," she said looking down at Melissa as if double checking that she wasn't harmed.

"So, what are they?" I asked.

She gave me a sideways look. "I have an idea, but I don't think anyone wants to believe it."

I just looked out the window of my truck and shook my head. She was right, I knew what they were as well, but I still thought it was impossible. It was like something out of a bad B rated movie and I didn't want to believe that the world had gone to hell like this.

Suddenly a screech came from behind the truck, one that I realized meant that our time had run out. I looked in the rearview mirror and saw a woman standing there. She was still in her curlers and her bathrobe, but her face was unrecognizable. It wasn't until I spotted her monogrammed bathrobe that I realized it was my neighbor, Mrs. Lynwood. She opened her mouth and released another howl as she slammed into my tailgate. The strength of her ramming shook my truck in a way I never thought this lady of sixty-five years could.

Melissa's aunt picked up the gun she had set between the seats and began to scramble for the door. Marcus gasped behind me, and Melissa immediately began to beg her aunt not to leave.

"No," I told her firmly.

She gave me a stunned look. "Why not? These things aren't even human anymore. Look at her, does she look like herself?"

"I know, but still, that's my neighbor. I've known her for five years now, you can't just go killing her!" I cried.

Every one of the little kids began to cry and I felt bad for my outburst even though I knew I was doing the right thing. Something inside me was telling me that there was no way I could let her kill these people. Melissa's aunt gave an aggravated sound but put the gun away and pulled Melissa back on her lap before looking back at me with an angry glare.

"Well, then you better put your foot on the gas and do not let off until we are back at the police station," she ordered me.

I immediately jumped into action and raced away from my house. When I glanced back in the rearview mirror, I saw to see the front room window shatter and my husband come tumbling out of it. He stopped and shook himself off like a dog before racing after someone that was running by.

I choked on the tears again and ignored the look that this woman threw at me as I continued down the road trying to dodge every person sick or alive. I looked over in time to see a woman jump on a teenager and take him down with ease. I went to slam on my breaks, intending to go out to help him.

"Don't you fucking stop. We can't save him, it's too late," the woman said grimly.