'With what, Einstein? If there were another working car around here I wouldn't need to jump this one.'
'Jeez Katie, no, there aren't any other working cars, but I bet the batteries in those wrecks work just fine. Find a screw driver and a set of jumper cables. Then we'll get the car started.'
'Yeah. Right. My dead partner will help me get a dead car working.' Katie paused, 'Sure. Why not? A screw driver you say?'
'Or a wrench. Look around a little.'
Katie saw that the back end of the sports utility vehicle was full of camping gear, heaped in untidy mounds. The automatic release button under the dash didn't open the rear door and earned her a look of disgust from Randy.
'Hey, you never know!' she protested.
'No power. No power doors. It's not even as complicated as field stripping a rifle.'
Katie took the keys out of the ignition and used them to manually open the rear hatch, which swung up slowly with no power. Under the camping gear she found a roadside emergency kit, which contained not only screwdrivers, but also jumper cables. She found a good battery in the station wagon that was on its side a few car-lengths into the wreck and with a few quick turns of her borrowed screwdriver she pulled it out. With Randy directing her she sat the battery down by the side of the car, ran the jumper cables to its battery and gave the ignition a turn. It started up on the second try.
'Nice. I owe you one.' Katie said.
'Take off the black cable on this car first and then the other black cable…'
Katie grabbed the center of the cables and pulled, jerking the clamps off of all of the battery terminals at once.
'Or that works. Not the recommended method though.'
Katie lowered the hood on her car, tossed the jumper cables into rear seat and got in behind the wheel. The vehicle couldn't have been more than a year or two old, everything looked new, even if it had lost the 'new car' smell.
They drove in silence for a while, Randy looking out the side window, while Katie scanned the road ahead for wrecks and deer.
'What's it like, being dead?' Katie eventually asked.
'I can't complain. You?'
She shook her head, 'I still don't get you sometimes.'
'Where are we headed?'
'Some place warm. I am thinking Florida. I can get down in the Keys, find me an island, pure white sand, blue ocean and palm trees. I could go for that.'
'A hammock?'
'You know it. Just me and you buddy. Drinking a few beers, maybe fishing a little and heading to the mainland every once in a while to stock up on food.'
'What brought this plan on?'
'You made me think about it a little. I know it's summer now, but the weather isn't going to last. Soon it will be cold and snowy. How would I heat anyplace up here? If I go where all I need is a sweater I should be fine.'
'What about hurricanes?'
'Don't be a dream squasher.'
Randy shook his head. 'Okay. So…Florida, island, hammock. Any other plans?'
'The world has ended. Do I need more than that?'
'What about the zombies?'
'I am going to kill every one of them I see. Every fucking one.'
'That's…interesting.'
'Hey can you check and see if this tub has a map in it?'
'Sorry, being dead has its limitations. There probably is one in the glove box. If not just pull up to any gas station you see, they're bound to have one.'
'Good point. I'll just stay on this road. I have to go south as it is, then pick up a map when I stop for fuel.' Katie said.
'I wonder where the guy who owned this car is? I mean, it wasn't wrecked. It was just sitting by the side of the road.'
'Probably got dragged off and eaten. You know how it is.'
'Well, not really, I didn't turn.'
'That's right, you jumped first, fucker.'
'Either that or stay and eat you.'
'It wouldn't have been the first time.' Katie said.
'It would have been the last though. I don't think you'd have capped me. What happened after I jumped.'
'Why'd you care?'
'Just curious. Don't you remember?' asked Randy.
'I shot the target. Service before self.'
'Then what?' pressed Randy.
'I called down the artillery.'
'And then?'
'Jeezus Randy, why the third degree? I got out, went down into the building and almost got blown up, my clothes were gone, I woke up in an office somewhere…' Katie was having a hard time remembering what took place on the top of the building, concentrating she closed her eyes and tried to bring back the memories of what had happened.
'Katie!' Randy yelled.
She opened her eyes to see three deer on the highway in front of her. She hit the brakes and skidded to a stop within touching distance of the lead animal.
'For fucks sake!' the deer didn't move. Katie honked the horn and the three animals bounded off into the woods. 'Jeezus, good thing you were keeping an eye out, I'd have slammed into them.' When Katie looked beside her the seat was empty again.
Chapter 19 — Max
'Driving without a windshield; that was brilliant.' said Stewart shivering.
'I can't believe how cold it is!' Max answered, nodding his head. Bill was driving and Max and Stewart were on the front bench seat beside him.
Bill had made them press on, instead of finding a place to hold up for the night. After three hours, when they were nearing the outskirts of Knoxville, he finally pulled off of the main highway onto a side road that he said would allow them to skirt the main city and reconnect with 75 further south west.
'I don't like it either.' Bill said, 'But the road is clear and we might as well put as much distance between them and us as we can. I'm just happy the truck lasted this long.'
The truck hadn't given them any problems at all. Aside from the shot out windows it was still working fine.
'Besides, who is tired? It's only about eleven now. We've made good time.'
'Okay, I will give you that, but I think we need to find another vehicle. Or two. Traveling like this sucks.' Stewart grumbled.
'Where are we?' asked Max.
'Sign at the exit said 'Heiskell'.' Bill answered.
