They were far too cramped in the Humvee, and within an hour of their rescue, they were searching for a second vehicle. They found the mini van at a rural property. Luckily, the keys were in it. They divided up over the two vehicles and were back on the road before the zombie in the upstairs window managed to bust through. Romy remembered looking back and seeing the thing that used to be a man, stuck halfway out the window and about to take a nasty fall.
They stayed in a farm that night. The next morning, they had to destroy four zombies that had found them. Or maybe they were already hanging around that house. Romy wasn’t sure. Either way, it was not a nice thing to wake up to. Romy did her part by dispatching one of the zombies.
Yesterday was a cluster fuck. They got on the highway, intending to get to the city quickly. But an hour later they came across an impassable roadblock. On top of that, there was no way to get off the highway. So, they had to backtrack and try a different route. Then they got turned around on the secondary roads. When they finally figured things out it was well into the afternoon.
At least there weren’t too many incidents. Except for that village they drove through. The silver minivan received some new scratches and dents in that village. Including some dark stains.
They had taken refuge for the night in a picnic area on the side of the highway. It was literally in the middle of nowhere. The nearest village was almost ten miles away. They were thirty miles away from their destination. Romy couldn’t understand exactly why the other group wanted to go there, other than that there were supposed to be some more survivors in the city somewhere.
Yeah, and hundreds of thousands of zombies. Never mind what else we will run into on the road from here to there.
She turned back to the shelter with a small shake of her head. The building had no walls, but at least it had a roof. They had rigged a couple of tarps and parked their vehicles close, to act as walls and provide some shelter from the wind. Romy was surprised at how much warmer it was inside than it was out here.
She cast one more look east. The glow of light from the rising sun could be detected and the sky there had turned from midnight blue to cobalt. That’s where they were heading.
Romy trudged back to their shelter. She walked back in, without making eye contact with the soldier. The soldier watched her pass and resumed her watch with a shrug.
Chapter Fifty-nine
The Ren
November 3, 9:45 AM
The mood was somber that morning, as most folks at the Ren were still trying to cope with yesterday’s occurrences. People made their way to the lunchroom singly, or in small groups. Eventually, most people had arrived, and breakfast was served.
One positive development was Rosa. She was well enough to join the group for breakfast. Her face was still heavily swollen, and she had trouble eating, but her presence felt like a small blessing.
Craig could see that people needed their spirits lifted, so he got the group talking about weapons classes and aikido sessions in hope that the distraction would help the group. The subject of Patrick’s burial eventually surfaced though.
Mel had created a plan, and the volunteers were anxious but also somewhat reassured by the woman’s confidence. The athletic fields in behind the school provided an obvious location for the grave. The entire school grounds were fenced off, meaning it should be secure. Also, Ern stated that being behind the school meant that it would be much less likely that they would be spotted. The fields provided a flat, wide open area too, so the group would be able to spot any dangers well in advance. The key was to be quick and quiet.
Mel also had a contingency plan, in case one or more zombies showed up.
“If we do run into one of those things, we will have to dispose of it quietly.” Melissa explained.
She explained the tactic that she had outlined the evening before. The tactic was very similar to the one John had used a few days previous. She took her time and talked through it twice, asking questions as she went, to make sure that everybody knew their task.
Bill joined the conversation as well. He waited until Melissa was done to speak.
“I can provide overwatch from the roof.” He supplied hesitantly. When several people looked confused, he explained that he would set up with a rifle up there in case something went wrong. He said his wrist was feeling better, despite the joint being ugly shades of purple and green.
The soldier was healing well. Shelley had taken out the stiches earlier that morning and put a temporary bandage on his face. He’d have a scar. But then again, they all would.
The team decided not to waste any time and get right to it. Sarah, Shelley and Jack went upstairs to retrieve the body and bring it downstairs.
Jack walked into the Bentley’s old room. The smell of blood hung in the air. It smelled... metallic, cloying. Sarah and Shelley followed him in, and they stood over the sheet-wrapped corpse of Patrick. They were deciding the best way to move the body when Joe walked in.
“Are you guys taking the body?” He asked. Jack nodded.
“Well, let me give you a hand.” He stepped into the room.
When he saw the confused faces, he stopped. “Hey, this was the group’s decision. The least I can do, as
