She jumps up and stares out at him. “What are you doing? Have you lost your freaking mind?”
“They won’t hurt me,” Thomas says. “Listen, if I get you the key, can you drive the car?”
The woman seems too surprised to answer right away. The zombie woman comes staggering around the car. For one terrible second, Thomas is sure she’s coming for him. That he was wrong, that he’s not immune after all. He jumps back a few steps. But the zombie woman only pays attention to the woman inside the car.
The redheaded woman stares from the zombie to Thomas. “Why … why isn’t she attacking you?”
“That doesn’t matter right now. Can you drive the car?”
The woman looks down at his feet. “Why are you standing on one leg? What happened to your foot?”
Thomas sighs. “I’ve been contaminated, all right? That’s why they won’t eat me. I guess they can smell I’m already …” He doesn’t know how to finish the sentence.
The woman’s eyes are even bigger now. “But … but you …”
“I don’t have long, so could you please just answer my question? Do you … know how to … drive the car?”
The woman nods.
“Great. And do you happen to know where your husband keeps the key?”
The woman looks over at her husband. She says something inaudible.
“What’s that?”
“In his pants pocket, I think.”
Thomas turns around and jumps back to his own car. He supports himself on the hood as he jumps around to Dan’s side where the zombies are standing. Both of them are completely absorbed by Dan, who’s staring out with a frightened expression.
Thomas reaches out and nudges the black guy. He sways gently, but doesn’t react. Thomas sticks his hand in the guy’s pocket. Nothing. To reach the other pocket, he has to position himself behind the guy. He grabs the guy’s shirt for support. Still, the zombie doesn’t seem to notice him at all. Thomas plunges his hand into the pocket and feels metal. He draws out a key ring.
“Bingo!” He jumps back to the woman’s car and pushes the button to the central lock; nothing happens. “Why doesn’t it work?”
“I control it from in here,” she says.
“Well, then unlock it.”
The woman peers out at him, worried. “Are you contagious?”
The zombie woman bumps into the side of him in order to get closer to the window where the redhead is sitting. Thomas shoves her back hard with both hands, causing her to topple over in the gravel like an overgrown toddler.
“No,” he says, looking in at the woman. “It only infects via blood.”
The woman doesn’t look particularly appeased. “How do I know I won’t get contaminated if I touch the key? How did you get it?”
Thomas briefly explains about the broken glass in the bedroom. “Now, please open the door. I guarantee you won’t get infected.”
The woman considers for a few more seconds. The zombie woman has climbed back to her feet and approaches once more. Thomas pushes her over once more.
The redhead finally decides to trust him and unlocks the door. She opens it a few inches. Thomas hands her the key. She immediately slams the door again.
“Good,” Thomas says, grinding his teeth as a new avalanche of pain floats through his leg. “Now we just need to get Dan into your car.”
The woman has already climbed to the driver’s seat. She sticks the key in the ignition, turns on the engine and puts in drive.
“Wow, wow!” Thomas bangs hard on the windshield. “What do you think you’re doing?”
The woman glares out at him. “I’m going to get help, of course.”
“No, damnit! If you drive off, we risk the zombies following you. We can’t let them leave this place. Don’t you get it? We put the whole world at risk if they get to leave.”
The redhead looks like she’s churning over an internal conflict. After several seconds of thinking, she finally shuts off the engine. “What do we do then?”
“We need to get Dan …” Thomas sways, as a sudden fog clouds his vision, and he struggles to keep his balance.
“You okay?” The woman’s voice seems far away.
Thomas rubs his temple. “Yeah, I’m all right,” he manages to croak. “But we’d better hurry.” He takes a few deep breaths, forcing his head to clear up. “I’ll get Dan over here. Just be ready to open the door for him, okay?”
“He’s not infected, is he?”
No, he’s not infected, you stupid fucking bitch, Thomas thinks, feeling a raging fury. So don’t worry, I’m sure you’ll get out of this with your freckly ass in one piece!
He knows the rage is really because he’s afraid, and he understands the woman’s worries, so he says calmly: “No, he’s not infected.”
“All right,” the redhead nods. “I’ll be ready.”
Thomas skips back to his own car once again, now starting to feel surprisingly weak and tired. He feels like lying down, but he knows he probably won’t get up again if he does.
“Listen, Dan,” he says through the window. “You need to get into her car. I’ll help you. If you get out over here on my side, I’ll make sure none of them touch you.”
Dan doesn’t look like he approves very much of the plan, but makes no objections.
“You ready?” Thomas asks, spitting into the gravel, his saliva sour from fever.
Dan nods.
“Right, go!”
Dan climbs over the gearshift, hits the button, and the central lock snaps open.
The black guy and the girl have already begun to make their way around the car, as Dan opens the door and steps out onto the gravel. He stands on his good foot, and Thomas grabs him by the arm. Together, they jump awkwardly towards the woman’s car. Behind them, father and daughter lumber after.
The zombie woman apparently senses more accessible meat behind her, because she turns around and comes towards them. Dan instinctively draws back, but Thomas drags him along, reaching out his other arm and pushing the zombie hard backwards, feeling for a brief moment like a quarterback making his way through
