"So, what are you going to do?" asked Ted. "Do you have somewhere to go?"
"Yeah, after we find Ca.s.sie and her sister, we"ll be heading back to Atlanta."
Linda"s eyes narrowed. "What do you mean, they"re lost?"
Bryce went over everything that had happened with the Wilds, including the death of Dave and Kris.
Linda"s hand flew to her mouth. "Oh, my G.o.d," she moaned. "Steve and Irene are going to be devastated."
Bryce nodded. "It was a horrible experience for everyone, especially the girls."
"How are they handling it?" she asked.
"Well, they"re handling it because they have no choice. Fortunately, both of them are pretty tough girls."
Linda smiled sadly. "Yes, they certainly are. Well, I"ll say a prayer that you"ll all be reunited soon."
"Thanks," he said, rubbing the back of his neck.
Ted sighed. "What a nightmare, huh? Sometimes I feel like none of this is real."
"I wish that"s all it was," replied Bryce. "A nightmare."
"So, you still think Ca.s.sie is headed out this way?" asked Ted.
"Not sure, anymore. h.e.l.l, for all I know, she hasn"t even made it to her grandparents, yet. I"m hoping when I get back there, she"ll be waiting."
"You"ll find them, son. I have a feeling it won"t be long now."
"Hope you"re right." Lightening lit up the sky and Bryce frowned. "Well, I suppose I"d better get back. My buddy is still waiting for me on sh.o.r.e and is probably mad as h.e.l.l because of who he"s babysitting."
"Babysitting?" asked Linda.
Bryce smirked. "Oh, nothing. Inside joke. Anyway, are you guys interested in returning to Atlanta with us?"
Ted put his arm around Linda. "We"re going to take our chances here. If what you"re saying is correct, the road is dangerous and it isn"t much better in Atlanta than it is, here."
"But you won"t be alone," said Bryce. "You"d be with other survivors, including your friends."
"It"s very nice of you to invite us," said Linda. "But Ted is right- we"re going to hang here. It"s the only place that feels normal and we really need that."
Bryce nodded. "Well, I guess I can appreciate that. If you change your mind, though, we"ll be hanging out at Steven and Irene"s home for a week or two, unless everyone shows up earlier. Otherwise, we"re staying at the Ritz Carlton, in Atlanta beyond that"
"Thanks, Bryce," said Ted. "We"ll keep that in mind."
He climbed back down to the swimming platform. "Well, wish me luck," he said, then dove into the water.
"Good luck!" they yelled after he resurfaced. He waved and then started swimming back to the sh.o.r.eline. When he reached the spot he"d left Billie, n.o.body was there. Thinking they left to get out of the rain, he quickly put his boots and shirt back on, and then headed back towards the truck.
Chapter Seventeen.
"Something"s wrong," whispered Kylie.
She yawned and stretched her arms. "What do you mean?"
"n.o.body up front has talked or said anything for the last couple of hours. It"s so quiet... it"s eerie."
They were still in the sleeper-compartment, which was separated from the truck"s cab by a curtain. Allie crawled over to the curtain, peaked around it.
"Justice is sleeping in the middle," she said, lying back down. "The other two guys aren"t really saying a word to each other," she said to Kylie.
"It"s kind of weird, isn"t it?"
Allie shrugged. "Guys don"t have as much to say as we do."
"h.e.l.lo ladies," said Dwayne sticking his head through the curtain. "Have a good rest?"
"Yes," they answered in unison.
He smiled. "Good. We"ll be stopping soon, so you can stretch your legs."
"Thanks," answered Allie.
"Um, is Justice still sleeping?" asked Kylie.
"Yes, but I"m sure he"ll be waking up soon."
"Are we almost to Minnesota?" asked Allie.
"Almost. You excited to see your sister?"
Allie nodded.
"Good. Now, just hold tight and we"ll let you know when we get to our destination."
"Where is that?" asked Allie.
"You"ll see. It"s a surprise, actually. A place in Minnesota which you"re both very familiar with."
"Oh, okay," said Allie.
Dwayne closed the curtain and Kylie turned to Allie. "Is it me or is that guy creepy?"
She nodded. "Yes. Did you see that tattoo on his eye? I think it"s some gang thing."
"You think he"s in a gang?"
Allie snorted. "h.e.l.lo? Just look at him. He"s got that long-haired hippy thing going on, has tattoos, and wears a jean-vest. Guys in jean vests are almost always in gangs. Haven"t you ever watched Son"s Of Anarchy?"
"No."
"Well, take it from me, they both belong to some type of gang and we need to be careful around them."
"Justice wouldn"t let them do anything," she said. "He"s looking out for us now."
"I hope so," said Allie.
Two hours later, the semi came to a stop.
"We"re here," said Travis, opening up the curtain.
"Thank goodness," said Allie, laying her hand down. They"d been playing cards for the past hour and she"d lost interest in them forty-five minutes ago.
"What"s wrong with Justice?" asked Kylie, noticing that his head was still slumped forward in sleep.
Travis turned and laid a hand on Justice, whose head immediately lifted. "Wake up, son," he said. "We"ve reached our destination."
Justice nodded and mumbled something incoherent.
"Oh my G.o.d!" cried Allie, looking over Justice"s shoulder at the view outside of the truck. "I never thought I"d see this place again."
"What?" asked Kylie, moving in beside her. She leaned forward and smiled, sadly. "Oh."
"The Mall Of America," said Travis, as they stared at the entrance to the ma.s.sive structure. "What a tragedy, huh?"
What was once an impressive infrastructure and one of the world"s largest malls in the world, was now just another victim in the zombie apocalypse. Gla.s.s doors were smashed, graffiti graced much of the outside walls, garbage and human remains lined the white sidewalks.
"It"s horrible," said Kylie, remembering how thrilling the mega-mall had seemed when she was little- especially the indoor amus.e.m.e.nt park, the numerous toy stores, and mouthwatering candy shops. Now, she"d never get a chance to try out the new rollercoaster or see another movie in the mall"s theater. Nothing would ever be the same. Not here or anywhere else.
"Shall we get out of the truck?" asked Travis.
"What are we doing here?" asked Allie. "Getting supplies?"
"That, among other things," said Dwayne with sly grin on his face."
"What"s going on?" asked Kylie. "I thought you were going to bring us to Wolf Creek?"
"All in good time. First we have a very important meeting to attend to," said Travis, leaving the truck.
"A meeting? With whom?" asked Allie after she and Kylie jumped down from the cab.
"With others who want to join our cause," smiled Travis. "You"re certainly invited. In fact, I insist that you come. It will be fairly enlightening."
The girls looked at each other in confusion and then turned back to him. "I"m not sure what cause you"re talking about, but we really can"t stay," said Allie. "We have to go find my sister as soon as possible. Is there any way that either of you could drive us to Wolf Creek?"
"Certainly," said Dwayne. "Later."
"When later?" she asked.
"After the meeting is over. After midnight."
"But, that"s too late!" Allie hurried over to Justice, who still looked disoriented and confused. "Justice, can you get us to my grandparent"s house sooner? Please? Maybe you can hotwire another car, or something?" she said, looking around. They"d parked in a lot across from Nordstrom"s and there were plenty of abandoned vehicles to choose from.
He didn"t respond, instead he raised his hands and began staring at them, as if he"d never seen them before.
"Uh, Justice?" she tried again, stepping closer. "Are you okay?"
"He"s fine," said Travis, placing a hand on Justice"s back. "Just needs a little more fresh air. Isn"t that right, kid?"
"Yes," said Justice, dropping his hands. "I just need a little more fresh air."
"Okay, then can you help us?" asked Kylie.
Justice looked at Travis, who shook his head.
Allie scowled. "What"s happening here? Why aren"t you answering us, Justice?"
"We can"t leave," answered Justice, his eyes still transfixed on Travis. "I"m needed here."
Frantic, Allie grabbed a hold of his arms and tried shaking him. "What in the world is wrong with you?"
Justice tilted his head and stared at her in confusion, his eyes dilated. "I"m needed here."
"Oh my G.o.d!" cried Kylie, pointing towards the road. "Zombies".
Allie turned and gasped in shock.
"Ah, yes," smiled Travis, nodding his head. "Some of them have already begun to arrive."
The girls watched in horror as hundreds of zombies in all of their decomposed glory trudged through the streets towards them.
"We"ve got to get out of here!" hollered Allie, backing towards the semi. "Come on, you guys!"
"Relax," said Travis, turning to her. "You have nothing to fear."
"Uh, yes we do!" she cried. "And so do you!"
Kylie grabbed Justice"s arm and tugged. "Come on!"