backpacks.'
Hank hit the steering wheel with his hand, 'SHIT!' He raised his hand as if to hit it again, paused and just grabbed the steering wheel instead. Shifting the Fiesta into gear he then used that hand to rummage through his pockets dumping the shotgun shells he had into Juan's lap. 'Well I got these, how many rounds is that?'
'Enough, cinco in the shotgun, a dozen in my pockets, little over two reloads. Kevin, amigo, how many bullets to you have?', asked Juan.
'Ah, how many are in the gun?'
'Only cinco, five amigo, you shoot them all?'
'I think so, how can I tell?', replied Kevin.
'Gimme the gun hombre, you take the shotgun for now, you got bullets in your pockets? A few? Any?', prompted Juan.
'Ah Juan I put them in my pack, I might have a couple in my pockets.' at this point Kevin stretched out on the back seat and fumbled through his pockets, 'Yeah man, yeah, I got a few, four, no six! Here ya go Juan.', he said as he handed the shells up to the front seat.
Hank and Juan looked at each other with worried expressions, then Hank started to laugh, Juan joined him and Kevin sat looking at them puzzled. 'No big deal Kevin, how many guns did you start with? Yeah, unless you were lying you didn't have any and you survived for three days without them, neither me or Juan had guns to start with either, I kept my guns at Juan's place in his gun safe, which is where Juan's were, which is where they all are right now. It's a long story, the short version is we don't have a key to get in right now, Juan's uncle Mike borrowed a rifle to go shoot rabbits with last weekend, he swung by the shop for the key and well, he is not back yet so our guns are all locked up. Safe and sound. Anyway we lived for awhile without guns, they are just a crutch man, nothing more, we'll get by. Guns just make it easier. We will be more careful, unless you would all like to swing around to the Gas 'n Go again? No? Yeah me either. Besides the Mike's Club is just up here.'
'Hank.', said Kevin in a way that made Hank know they were in trouble, 'Check your rear view.'
Hank glanced instinctively up, but the blast that had shattered the front windshield had also taken off the rear view mirror, using his driver's side mirror Hank was able to see well enough. 'Shit, it ain't our lucky day is it? And here I was thinking the day was gonna go smoothly.'
Behind them in the distance Hank could see a lone guy on a motorcycle, a hog it looked like. It suit him, Dave being the current incarnate of pure evil and all. After a few blocks it was apparent that it was Dave and he was following them. However he stayed well back from them, not that Kevin, who now had his reloaded rifle back, or Juan with the shotgun would waste a shot on him yet.
Chapter 6
'Well we are good and corn holed boys, I ain't bringing that shit bag to the Mike's Club, we might not get a shot at him, and he mentioned something about others just like himself, like he was not the only one or something. We gotta set us an ambush or something and finish that asshole off first. Tell me when to stop Juan.'
They drifted in and out of stalled cars for awhile, with Hank heading them south on Havana street until it hit I-25, where they stopped, looking up the on ramp, Hank turned to look back at the hog and its rider. Dave had stopped on the other side of a parked car and ducked down to peer at them through the windows.
'Hank that pendejo knows the windows would deflect a shot enough to give him a flesh wound, he watches, he waits, for what? Nightfall? We ain't gonna get a shot off at him. Take the highway and look for a good place, you drop me off after a wreck and I will wait until he goes by and shoot his head off.'
'Maybe Juan, maybe. Say you think your wife has her phone on? Maybe we could call her now and see if the boys could set something up for us? We ride through and they jump him after we pass?'
'Better Hank, that is better. I'll see okay?' Juan pulled out his phone and dialed his own cell phone number, which his wife had, after a tense moment where Juan was worried that his wife would not pick up she answered, 'Hola?'
A quick conversation in Spanish followed, first Juan had to assure her that he was okay. Then Nanci had to talk to Hank, and Hank had to reassure her that Juan was okay and that Hank was okay and that the guy they were with was okay. Then Nanci wanted to talk to Kevin herself, but Hank killed that by telling her, in Spanish, that Kevin didn't speak any Spanish, as Kevin didn't object Hank figured he was right, he asked if Ramon was around and after a few more minutes of her calling out the news to everyone that Hank and Juan were alone and okay she put Ramon on.
'Kevin keep watch on mister Dave there, okay, this might take a minute or five.'
After that he turned to Juan and said, 'Hey switch me buddy, my back is kinda aching and this clutch is killing me.' Then he hopped out of the car, leaving Juan staring at the deep red crimson stains on the seat that Hank had left behind.
Hank walked around the car and Juan reluctantly hopped out, stopping Hank with a held up hand, he motioned him to turn around and when he did he peeled up Hank's shirt and took a look. The left side of Hank's back was smashed and bloodied, his ribs looked broken. Hank, talking with Ramon, turned around and looked at him, Juan's pale face told the whole story, putting his hand on the receiver he asked, 'That bad?' to which Juan could only nod. 'We gotta get moving then? Help me down?' Seeing the seat he said, 'Aw shit Juan I am sorry amigo, sorry about the seat. Sorry for letting that asshole jump me. Damn.'
Juan hurried around the car and hopped into the driver's seat with barely a glance at the gore as he settled into it. After awhile Hank got off the phone and told Juan, 'Okay here is what we are going to do, we take interstate twenty five down to where it meets highway four seventy east and loop over to South Parker road, then we take that up to the Broncos Parkway and up to Peoria, the boys are going to give Dave a little surprise, they will be ready in twenty minutes tops and will duct tape a towel to a car about two blocks from where the ambush is, they say to keep heading straight up the street from there and hit the gas to make Dave go faster to keep up, maybe he won't notice them then. Oh, the doc and his nurse arrived with all our other guns and supplies yesterday too. Nanci threw a fit when we didn't come home. Why didn't we call her last night amigo? She is gonna be pissed when she realizes we had the phones then, and she'll figure it out too boss.'
Juan grinned and shook his head, 'So? If we come home we come home, she can be mad all she wants then, so long as we make it okay. I am glad the doctor made it.' Switching to Spanish Juan continued, 'I don't think Kevin saw, but you are bleeding real bad Hank, you need the doctor.'
Hank merely nodded and if Kevin noticed the exchange he didn't say anything. Pulling the shotgun up into position Hank said, 'Say Juan pass me a couple shells would ya? Just in case I run out?'
Silently Juan passed over half the unloaded shells. The highway was not cleared, but it was passable, something had been through here clearing the way, anywhere that a the cars would have made a solid block and prevented them from passing through had been opened forcibly, and there were no zombies on the road, only corpses.
Coming up to the intersection of the two major highways, twenty five and four seventy, they noticed a huge pile of cars. Along the side of the road there were bodies lined up, or what looked like bodies anyway, they were all in body-bags. Military body bags.
'Mire Hank', said Juan pointing.
'Yeah I see, I guess we just missed them, looks like they were heading into Denver though, not out. National guard do you think?'
'Si, I think so.'
Juan, like most people, knew someone in the National Guard, someone who had been over seas, and had been a veteran. Someone who told stories of the war and the body bags seen up close and personal instead of the sterile coffins filmed by the media coming out of the back of a plane somewhere.
'None of them are moving around, that many dead someone would have turned, right?'
'Si, that means they know, a cap in the head to finish it. That is good. Hard to do to friend.' replied Juan,
