“Shit! They boxed us in. Get in before they get too thick outside of the door. Bud shouted as he twisted the ignition. The UTV roared to life, sounding absolutely nothing like it did when Johnny and Roosevelt had traded it to Bud.
“What the hell did you do to this thing?” Roosevelt asked.
“You’d be amazed what a set of new sparkplugs and wires will do for an older engine. Put some premium fuel in it too. Thing runs like a scalded ass ape now!” Bud shouted over the growing sound of zeds slamming into the doors and walls.
“You best buckle up and hold onto your nipples! It’s about to get wild!” Bud said as he revved the screaming engine. He stomped the pedal to the floor while holding his foot on the break and the tires began to scream sending a cloud of putrid smoke into the air. He let off the brake and the side by side shot forward, smashing through the thin metal garage door. The UTV smashed through the rows of infected as they desperately reached for the fresh meat inside. The garage door finally broke free and slid under the tires taking down several zombies with it. Bud yanked the steering wheel hard to the left as they bolted out onto the street causing the tires to screech as the buggy slid sideways. Regaining control Bud eased back on the throttle giving the massive crowd of infected a chance to catch up. Bud kept at a constant pace leading the crowd of zeds down the road. They were sprinting as hard as they could in a frenzy for the meat that was just barely out of their reach. Roosevelt was turned around staring back into the lifeless milky white eyes of the things as they ran. Their faces were mostly torn to shreds and just about all of them were missing huge chunks of muscle and skin on some part of their body. Even if we did find a cure, we couldn’t bring these people back. They’re bodies are just too far gone. Roosevelt thought as he continued to watch the screaming monsters chase them.
The rows of suburban homes with large oak trees scattered throughout the front yards gave way to cracked sidewalks and old brick buildings as they passed into the commercial side of town. Small storefronts and employee owned businesses littered each side of the road as they led the speeding zombies toward the kill box. Roosevelt turned back to the front and looked over at Bud. He started to say something, but an extremely loud roar sounded from the surrounding forests. The roar was louder than any of the zeds chasing them. It sounded like the roar of a silverback gorilla mixed with that of a pissed off lion.
“What the hell was that!” Roosevelt asked, peering out at the surrounding forest. He couldn’t see very far into the tree line as the sun was almost down for the day, but he was pretty sure he already knew in which direction the roar had come from.
“Ever heard anything like that before?” Bud asked, concern covering his words. Roosevelt shook his head.
“No. Have you?” He asked.
“Nope. Not sure I want to know what it was either.” Bud explained. Roosevelt just nodded and then pointed ahead.
“We’re getting close. Go ahead and speed up away from them. We’ll be in place in a couple of minutes.” He said before turning to watch the sprinting zeds grow smaller in the distance. Bud guided the side by side down the road toward the buildings everyone was set up on. After a few minutes of distancing themselves from the growing crowd of zeds they finally came to a stop just outside of the kill box. Mick and Dwight rolled up next jumping off a pair of four wheelers as soon as they came to a stop.
“Here they come!” A voice shouted from above them causing the four men to kick it into high gear. Roosevelt raced to the blue metal door of the building Johnny was on and grabbed the doorknob. He gave a twist, but the knob didn’t budge. Roosevelt began to panic as he turned back to the other three men and said in a shaky voice, “Someone locked the door.”
Chapter Twenty-Three
7:38 p.m. January 4, 2049
Sweetwater, Tennessee
"Open the damn door!" Bud shouted slamming the toe of his cowboy boot into the door several times.
Roosevelt watched as the horde of zombies began to round the last corner and race toward them. The herd was tightly packed and running full speed toward the four men. Bud continued his assault on the metal door as the other three readied their weapons, prepared for their final stand. Zeds bounced off buildings and each other, their screaming growls growing louder as the stampede of footsteps echoed throughout the evening air.
"Open the door!" Bud screamed, panic creeping into his usually deep voice as he continued pounding his foot and now his fist into the metal door. Several shots sounded behind him. He glanced back just as Roosevelt, Dwight, and Mick opened fire on the first small group of zeds that approached.
"Damn it!" Bud cursed, turning, and drawing his revolver. He quickly fanned three shots from the hip cowboy style, exploding three zed heads. The racing zombies stumbled as the bullets pierced their brains, and they fell for the final time. The dead directly behind them tripped over the motionless corpses creating the first traffic jam the small-town street had ever seen. The fumbling corpses quickly recovered, returning to their feet, and getting back to their pursuit. A loud clang filled the air behind them, barely audible over the growing commotion before a voice sounded from the door.
"Come on!" Johnny shouted, moving aside while still holding the door open. Roosevelt, Dwight, and Mick continued firing shots at the relentless horde stampeding through Sweetwater.
"You waiting for a formal invitation? Get your asses in here!" Bud screamed,
