Buckley followed the kid's arm and saw the golden, finger-long snack cake and decided right there and now that if Gert and MacHenry could have crazy, end-of-the-world, monkey sex, then he could at least have a Twinkie. He snatched one of the Super Soakers from the sidewalk, checked to make sure it had been freshly reloaded, then cocked it until there was enough pressure to fire. Grabbing a flashlight from his waist, he turned it on. With flashlight in hand and the rifle cocked on a hip, he turned to Little Rashad. 'I'm going Twinkie hunting. Who's with me?'
Sissy rolled her eyes, but Little Rashad brightened and jumped at the chance for sugary sweets. He handed Sissy his trumpet, grabbed a Super Soaker of his own, pumped it like he saw Buckley, then fell in beside the older man.
'I'm with you, Mr. Adamski.'
'Good boy. Cover my back and I'll catch you a Twinkie.'
Without waiting for an answer, Buckley strode into Pauline's Place. Most of the tables were still standing. Only one body littered the floor, but flesh and maggies were long gone. Whoever had been the unlucky soul, he'd been picked clean and rendered skeletal. A pinball game with the words DEATH RACE 2000 and a garish depiction of David Carradine mowing down an old lady with a shopping cart squatted near the door. Beside the long counter that separated the serving area from the cooking area stood a tall rack of plastic encased confections. It was to this rack they strode. When they arrived, both Buckley and Little Rashad stopped and stared. There wasn't just one Twinkie, there were dozens- a virtual Twinkie Eldorado. Buckley grinned from ear to ear.
Each of them ripped one open, stuffing the golden cakes into their mouths, the white filling squishing free. Buckley grabbed two more, and shoved them one after the other, until his face was chipmunk full.
When he finally swallowed, he shook his head and smiled. 'Let's get these out of here. I bet the others will want some.'
They began stacking Twinkies into their arms and were about halfway done, when a sound intruded upon their gluttony.
'Did you hear that?' Little Rashad asked.
Muffled pounding from deep inside the restaurant.
'There it was again.'
Buckley heard it this time. He dropped his cache of Twinkies and snatched his Super Soaker from where it leaned against the counter. 'Who goes there?'
Little Rashad had paused in mid-bite. A half-eaten Twinkie poked from his mouth as he stared at Buckley. Several seconds passed as Buckley scanned the back of the store. Seeing nothing, he lowered the weapon.
'What was it?' Little Rashad asked, from around the edges of the confection.
'Dunno. Thought I heard something.' Staring at the pile of half-crushed Twinkies on the floor, Buckley sighed and bent down to retrieve them. 'Give me a hand. I can't pick up all of-'
The sound of pounding erupted from the back.
Buckley whirled to the sound, his rifle leveled.
Little Rashad gulped the remains of the Twinkie and fumbled with his own rifle. By the fear etched on his face, it was clear that he'd never meant to trade his safety for a golden sponge cake with creamy filling.
'This time I know I heard something,' Buckley said. 'What about you? Did you hear something?'
Little Rashad nodded rapidly.
Buckley switched the flashlight back on. Holding it over the barrel of the Super Soaker, he panned it across the back of the store. The light illuminated a wall locker, a walk-in freezer and a back door. The light danced back and forth between these three things as Buckley edged slowly forward.
'Who’s there?' he called again.
Creeping only an inch at a time, he arrived at the door to the outside first. Checking it, he discovered that the deadbolt was set from the inside. Nothing could get in that way unless he opened the door, something he didn't plan on doing. He placed his ear to the wood as he panned his light back to where the boy stood at the front of the store. Buckley raised his voice, packing as much authority into it as he could. 'Come on, if you’re here, let us know. We’re not going to hurt you.'
Nothing.
After several seconds he moved on. Next in line was the walk-in freezer. Checking the door, he saw that the latch was engaged, promising that whatever was inside, if something was inside, was locked inside. He placed his ear against the cool metal of the freezer door, listening for any whisper of noise, any indication that something was inside.
'Olly Olly Oxen Free,' Buckley screamed as he grinned at Little Rashad. 'Come out, come out, wherever you are.'
Five seconds passed. Just as he was about to pull away, Buckley jerked back as pounding from the other side of the door erupted. He spun, slipping and twisting as he went down in a pile of broken plates and crashing silverware. A brace of pans clattered to the floor with a deafening chorus of rings and clangs. Buckley spun reflexively and fired a burst of water at the metal freezer door. The water dribbled harmlessly to the floor.
Over his shoulder Buckley whispered, 'Get Sissy in here.'
'I’m here. What’s going on?'
Buckley swung the light to the doorway and illuminated Sissy. She'd come a long way this journey. No longer was she the wilting wallflower. She'd become something else, something more mature. She was GI Barbie, with kung fu grip and ready for combat, crouched in the doorway, sighting along the length of her Super Soaker.
'Find some Maggies?'
Buckley swung the beam back to the freezer door. 'I don’t know what I found.'
'There’s something in there,' Little Rashad whispered. 'And it knocks.'
Sissy stood straight and began to walk into the room. She lowered her rifle. 'Then there's no problem.'
Buckley eyed the door. 'How do you know?'
'Maggies don’t knock.'
Buckley blinked twice, then stood slowly. 'Very true.'
'Well?' Sissy asked. 'Are we going to open it?'
Buckley watched as a Maggie popped free of his trigger finger and fell to the floor. He stomped it. 'Yeah. You better cover me just in case, though.'
Sissy sauntered over to the island where the dishes had been stacked and took up position. On her knees, she rested the barrel of the Super Soaker across the metal surface, aiming directly at the door. She snapped her flashlight on and set it on the counter beside her, illuminating the latch. 'You open the door, Mr. Adamski, and I’ll squirt whatever’s inside. If it’s human, they won’t mind a little salt water. If it's something worse, well, let's hope they have the same aversion to salt as the maggies.'
Not sure if he liked the new Sissy, Buckley stepped back to the door. He gripped the latch, careful to leave Sissy a line of fire. He took several deep breaths.
'On my count of three,' Sissy said. 'Ready?'
Buckley nodded as sweat and a pair of maggies dripped from his forehead. Ignoring them, he remembered the last time they opened a door with someone knocking on the other side.
'One.'
'Two.'
'Three.'
Buckley flung open the door and pinned himself to the wall behind it. A tiny creature stood in the doorway, illuminated by Sissy's light. It screamed. Blonde hair and blue eyes, she couldn't have been more than seven years old.
Aiming like a sniper, Sissy squirted salt water directly into the girl’s face. The screaming stopped as the little girl began to gasp for air.
There was no sizzle.
