Maddox jerked his thumb over his shoulder. “We got a welding torch in the cabin,” he said. “We’ll just have to deal with ole Chucky to get it.”
“That’s not a problem,” Dante said.
“Torch should get us inside without issues,” Maddox continued. “Same with the cell. Last time I was there, they were still using the old school locks with the oversized keys.”
Dante nodded slowly. “Sounds like a secure facility, there,” he said.
“It’s a county jail in a small town,” Tate drawled. “Ninety-nine percent of the people in there got popped for DUI or drugs.”
Dante cocked his head. “And what did Francis do to get in that one percent?”
Maddox chuckled. “He body-slammed two people at a bar,” he replied. “At the same time.”
“Liking this guy already,” Ace said with a grin.
Henry tore a sheet of notebook paper from the pad he’d been writing on and handed it over to Maddox.
“What the hell is this?” the dealer asked, brow furrowing.
“It’s a shopping list,” Henry explained. “There’s a great little farming supply store in Ridgeland that should have everything on that list.”
Maddox crossed his arms. “The fuck I look like, your mom?” he snapped. “Get off your lazy ass and get ready to go to the store.”
“Question,” Lily piped up, holding up her palm. “Does anybody else besides Henry know how to grow food?”
Nobody moved or said anything.
She raised her eyebrows. “Didn’t think so,” she said firmly. “That makes Henry the most important member of this group. So he’s not going anywhere.”
“I’m important too,” Teagan piped up. “So I shouldn’t have to go out there.”
Lily rolled her eyes. “Sucking lil’ smokies ain’t important,” she muttered under her breath.
“What did you say?” the other woman snarled.
“She was just reminding me to ask if you guys had more weapons,” Dante said quickly.
Ace nodded, stifling a smile. “Yeah, our supply is limited,” he added, “to say the least.”
“Tate and I got handguns,” Maddox replied. “That’s about it.”
“Some drug kingpin you are,” Lily scoffed.
He glared at her. “The fuck I look like, the head of the Rivas Cartel?” he snapped. “I’m a small town weed-slinger, I don’t have any need for heavy artillery.”
Before she could argue, Dante patted her leg and got to his feet.
“Well, if you know any place to get heavy artillery,” he said, “if QXR comes a knocking, we could use it.”
Maddox and Tate shared a look, and the latter shrugged.
“We might know of a place,” he said. “But first things first. It’s time for a jailbreak.”
CHAPTER FIVE
The drive to Ridgeland was mostly quiet, with only the occasional zombie sighting on the side of the road. A side street sometimes came into view within sight of the interstate, which was devoid of life.
No cars, no zombies, no nothing.
“It’s like the world just stopped on a dime,” Dante mused. “Don’t think I’ve ever seen an interstate that empty.”
Lily shook her head. “No real reason for people to be on the road, even on a good day outside of going between Savannah and Charleston,” she explained. “Outside of transport trucks, that is.”
“Port of Savannah, right?” he asked.
“Yeah, it’s a trip going over that bridge into town,” she replied with a nod. “Gotta be tall enough for those ships to squeeze under. Really gets you up there.”
Ace barked a laugh. “Hell, it took me til I was twenty-two before I owned a car with a good enough engine to make it up that incline,” he added.
“Well, if these zombies keep slowing down, we might have to pay Savannah a visit,” Dante suggested. “Could be some useful stuff in those shipping containers.”
The three of them thought about it for a few moments as they reached the town line. Ridgeland, much like Hardeeville, was a small town of a few thousand people. The jail was just a few blocks north of the farming supply store, which meant they had to venture into the heart of town.
Maddox slowed his truck to a stop ahead of them, reaching his arm out the window to motion for them to pull up beside. “What do y’all wanna hit first?” he asked as Dante unrolled his window.
“I think it’s going to be smarter to hit the farm supply store first,” he replied. “That said, how close in the jail to the store?”
“Less than a mile,” Maddox replied.
Dante nodded thoughtfully. “I think we should do a drive-by of the jail,” he suggested, “just to see what we’re up against.”
“It’s a fucking jail,” Maddox drawled. “I mean, what are you expecting us to be up against?”
Dante cocked his head. “Well, we had a crowd of zombies around the TV station when we went,” he explained. “These things have a tendency to congregate around buildings if they think there are people in it. If we’re going to have substantial company, it might be good to know, don’t you think?”
Maddox glanced at his brother in the passenger seat.
Tate shrugged. “Man’s got a point,” he said.
“Yeah yeah, all right,” Maddox said with a sigh. “Ace, I’m gonna be hauling ass, so you stay on my bumper.”
“Lead the way, brother,” Ace called.
Maddox smacked the side of his truck to fire himself up before slamming on the gas. Ace hit his, easily catching up to him.
They cut straight through the center of town, moving at a fast clip. As they went by the streets, Dante and Lily peered down to see what was going on.
“Focus on the left,” he instructed, “I’ll cover the right.”
As they flew by the side streets, they looked down them for zombies. While there weren’t any major congregations of them, there were still several packs numbering as high as what looked to be two dozen in a single group.
Dante furrowed his brow with worry. If they weren’t careful, they could have a horde fairly easily.
“There’s the supply store,” he said as he spotted it down one of the empty streets. “We’re looking good down there, at least for now.”
“Let’s hope it stays that way,” Ace replied.
They came out of the downtown
