Dante looked at the ground, picking up the shotgun and his handgun before grabbing the other woozy officer and shoving him down the hallway towards Brandt. Lily collected the rest of the weapons from the dead bodies.
“What do you say we go get Francis?” Dante asked.
The group walked down the hall to another gate, and Tate forced the Sheriff to open it. Around the next corner was the cell block, and Francis sat inside, six heads stacked up nearly in the corner. Six headless zombie corpses lay in the hallway.
“It’s a good thing we risked our lives to come rescue him,” Ace drawled. “He might not have been okay otherwise!”
Lily rolled her eyes. “He still needed to get out of the cell,” she said, poking him in the ribs.
“Hell at this point, I’m kinda surprised he didn’t bend the bars,” her cousin shot back.
“Get his keys,” Tate said.
Maddox ripped the keyring from Brandt’s belt and opened the cell next to Francis. “In you go, Sheriff douchebag,” he said with a flourish.
Tate shoved him in, and Dante guided the still wobbly officer in after him. Maddox slammed the cell shut and locked it.
“You’re making a huge mistake there, buddy boy,” the Sheriff growled.
Maddox smirked. “Oh, am I now?” he asked. “Doesn’t look like it from my perspective.”
Brandt leaned on the cell door, staring menacingly through the bars. “You should know my officers are out there, and they’re going to come find me,” he hissed. “And when they do, I’m going to hunt you down, find the deepest hole in all of the Lowcountry, and throw you in it.”
Maddox made a puppet out of his hand, pretending to mouth along. “Blah blah blah,” he mocked. “And how many days have you been thinking that while locked in that little office, huh? Do you have even the foggiest idea of what’s going on out there?” He leaned in, smirking. “Nobody is coming for you. Any officers you have out there are probably already dead, and if by some miracle they aren’t, they sure as shit aren’t risking their lives coming to rescue your ass. The world outside is dead, and the people who are still alive couldn’t give two shits if you ever get out of that cell.”
The Sheriff clenched his jaw, eyes finally showing a flicker of fear. “So you’re just going to let us die in here?” he asked. “Lock us up like animals to starve to death?”
“Yup,” Maddox replied brightly. “That’s what you were going to do to us. That’s what you were doing to Francis. Why should you be any different?” He hocked a big loogie into the Sheriff’s face. “That’s for breaking our deal, asshole.” He headed off towards Francis.
Brandt reached through the bars towards Dante, eyes wide. “You’re not a part of their group,” he pleaded, “don’t throw your life away, son.”
Dante stared down his nose at him. “If you do get out of here,” he said in a level tone, “hopefully you’ll have learned your lesson and will honor future deals.” He headed off, Lily beside him, raising her hand to flip off Brandt as they moved away.
Maddox unlocked Francis’ cell door, throwing it open.
The beastly man sat on the edge of his bed, which was barely enough to accommodate even half of him. He was leaning forward, elbows on his knees, in such a casual pose Dante almost wanted to laugh.
“You ready to blow this joint?” Maddox asked.
Francis cracked a smile and stood up, joining the group. Dante, Lily and Ace stood in awe, even the tallest barely coming up to his pecs.
“Good to see you, cousins,” Francis said, his voice a deep rumble. “And new friends.”
Tate motioned to the others. “This is Dante, Ace, and Lily,” he said.
The trio nodded politely and said hello in unison.
“Is it true what you told the Sheriff?” Francis asked, turning to Maddox. “Is it really that bad out there?”
The redneck nodded. “It’s actually a whole lot worse,” he admitted. “So I hope you’re ready to bust some heads.”
“Oh, I’m ready,” Francis replied, cracking his knuckles. He glared at Brandt. “And if we don’t leave now, I’m going to get started.”
Tate clapped him on the back. “Let’s get going, then.”
The group headed off, and Maddox hung back, dangling the keys in the air in front of the Sheriff. He turned and shot them like a basketball into the cell across from them, grinning as they splashed into the toilet.
“Always thought I could have gone pro,” he quipped, punching a victory fist into the air. “Well, enjoy starving to death, asshole,” he declared, and then glanced at the officer who had finally sat down on the bed. “Oh, and if I were you, I’d make the first move. Because this dick is totally going to kill you in your sleep and cannibalize you.”
The officer’s eyes widened, and Maddox laughed, sauntering off. Brandt kicked the bars and screamed curses, but they fell on deaf ears.
CHAPTER TEN
The trucks pulled up to the school outside of Hardeeville, and it looked like it had been abandoned for ages. The grounds were overgrown with tall grass and weeds, the front door completely ripped off, and graffiti covering just about every square inch of the building.
The group hopped out of the trucks, standing in front in a line to appraise the situation.
“Looks like a grade-A shithole,” Ace drawled.
Maddox grinned. “Yeah, but it’s our grade-A shithole,” he said, smacking the other man on the shoulder.
“There any signs of civilization around here?” Dante asked.
Tate shrugged. “Couple of mid-sized neighborhoods about half a mile away,” he replied. “Other than that, there’s not much.”
Dante nodded. “I think we should proceed like those people evacuated and took refuge in the school,” he suggested. “Come too far to get caught off-guard now.”
They nodded and collected their weapons from the vehicles.
“Well come on,” Ace
