He ran as fast as he could as the Apache flew off. There was another second or two of mini-gun fire, before it ceased and the chopper headed for the coast. Bretz remained focused on the current threat of the half-dozen creatures getting ever closer to Baker.
He opened fire, striking a few zombies in the side, doing little more than distracting them. “Yeah, that’s it, come get me!” he yelled.
He ran towards the truck, skirting the ghouls and putting himself between the zombies and Baker, choosing his targets carefully. One by one, he aimed and fired, dropping the monsters in quick order. Once they were reduced to a pile of bodies, he whirled around and clambered up into the truck.
“Baker!” he gushed. “You good?”
The Private was dazed, but conscious, blood running down from his forehead, and turned to look at Bretz with confused eyes.
“Come on man, we gotta move,” the Corporal urged, holding out his hand.
Baker blinked a few times and then reached up to wipe the blood from his face, shaking his head as if to clear it. “What the fuck happened?” he asked.
“Chopper boy blew up a car,” Bretz replied.
Baker grunted. “Nothing like a friendly fire IED,” he muttered.
“Get your stuff and come on,” the Corporal said, motioning for him to come.
Baker nodded and collected his gear, including his freshly packed food bag. They hit the ground and started running towards Bretz’ truck, as Short pulled up behind it.
He unrolled his window. “Is Baker okay?” he asked. “That was wild!”
“Yeah, he’s just dinged up,” Bretz replied, suddenly realizing his heart had been in his throat the whole time he’d been fighting the zombies. The relief at Baker being alive washed over him and he straightened his shoulders.
“What do you want us to do, Corporal?” Short asked.
Bretz motioned ahead. “Get up to the bridge and pick a spot to block off,” he instructed. “Two trucks, don’t care which, block it off fully. Just leave an opening so I can get through.”
“We’ll take care of it, Corporal,” Short replied, and rolled out, bringing the CB to his lips to relay the orders to the others.
Bretz walked to the passenger side with Baker and helped him up into the seat. “We’ve been living off scraps for a month,” he grunted playfully, “how in the hell are you still this heavy?”
“Just lucky I guess,” Baker replied with a lopsided grin.
Bretz secured him and then slammed the door, running around to the driver’s side. He popped the truck into gear and headed off towards the bridge. As he grew closer, there were still several standing zombies, which he bonked as he went by, unavoidable given how they were staggered across the road.
The bridge itself was mostly clear, with only the occasional straggler on it. As he grew closer to the blockade, Hess and Short stood standing outside, picking off zombies within thirty yards of them. There was a truck-sized hole between them, and he easily pulled through. As soon as he was clear, Kent moved his big rig so that the two big vehicles blocked off the entire highway bridge.
Bretz braked to a stop on the other side and hopped down as the other soldiers clustered around him.
“How’s Baker?” Hess asked immediately.
The Corporal nodded. “He’s fine, just got his bell rung when that car detonated,” he explained.
“I gotta admit,” Kent drawled, “up until that point those chopper boys put on a hell of a show. Always wondered what a mini-gun would do to a human body.”
Hess motioned to the tires of the parked trucks, which were coated in a dark crimson goo. “Well, we’re going to be reminded of it until we get rescued, because that stuff isn’t coming off anytime soon,” he said.
“So who is staying behind?” Bretz asked.
Hess and Kent both raised their hands.
The Corporal took a deep breath. “Okay, do me a favor though,” he said. “Take Baker. He’s going to be okay, but with the way the day is going, I need whoever is going to be with me to the main target to be functioning.”
Hess nodded. “Of course, Corporal.”
“Wait,” Kent cut in, raising his palms, “you’re not still moving ahead, are you? There’s only two trucks left! You can only get half the bridge with that!”
“Don’t have a choice,” Bretz replied firmly.
Kent’s eyes widened. “Hell yeah, you got a choice,” he declared. “Stay here and solidify this position. Make damn sure our boys to the east are good. And once they get here, we can move to the north.”
“Wish I could, believe me,” Bretz replied, shaking his head. “But even if it’s only a partial blockade, it’s going to be better than nothing. A significant portion of our troops are coming in from the north, and we need to secure as much of that bridge as possible.” He turned to Short, raising an eyebrow. “Question is, are you game for it?”
“Yes sir,” the Private replied immediately. “We’ll get it done.”
“Good, I like that attitude,” Bretz commended, clapping him on the shoulder. “Hess, Kent, let’s get Baker transferred over.”
The trio moved to the passenger’s side, and Bretz opened the door. Baker stared down at them, looking bewildered.
“Um…” he drawled, “is there something I should know?”
Kent smiled. “Yeah, you’re bunking with us for a few days,” he said, jerking a thumb over his shoulder. “So toss down your shit so the Corporal here can get a move on.”
“Wait, no no no,” Baker said, waving his hands in front of his face. “Bretz, you aren’t going anywhere without me.” He put his foot on the step, and slipped, grabbing the doorframe to steady himself. “I… I just need a few minutes.”
“That’s time we don’t have,” Bretz said gently. “I need you to get out of this truck.”
Baker stared at him, shaking his head, pain in his eyes. “What in the hell are
