This chapter has no erotic scenes due to the nature of the story. I did not force one in, but the next chapter is more sexually graphic and ready to post. It’ll be here in a few hours or so.
Last time on, Lovin’ in the Apocalypse!
Tom and Gregg leave camp during a state of emergency.
Rachel, unable to resist the pull of physical comfort, seduces Cameron. Using an empty cabin, the two of them made love without regret.
What happened outside the walls while those at camp lived in fear? Find out now!
Chapter 16: The Chase
The flat black truck crept up the road with infinite patience. Gregg was feathering the accelerator, making sure the engine stayed as quiet as possible. All the windows were down so the men inside could look and listen for any sign of the attacker. Rifle barrels poking out of each window, ready to unleash a storm of bullets in any direction. The crunching of the truck tires sounded ominous and loud in the silence of the cab.
“There’s a ranger station about a mile up the road,” Gregg said, finally breaking the silence. “We can check there first.”
The guys in the backseat of the truck all knew where the attackers were and wanted to steer towards them. They had to play it out though. If they gave too much information, it would be suspicious. They also knew they had to find Dave and his posey before they gathered more infected. It would be pretty fucked up to get killed by their own plan.
“Should we split up?” Kenneth asked. “Some of us can check the ranger station and the rest could move to the next area.”
“We only have one vehicle,” Gregg reasoned. “We’d lose more time back tracking.”
“Good point,” Kenneth said, trying to come up with a different approach. “I guess we just have to be quick.”
Gregg and Tom shared a quick look. Neither one of them felt comfortable with the strangers and were certainly not okay with being ordered around by them. They would have to be careful, watch each other’s back, and stay ready for anything. Tom checked over his rifle, making sure the black man-eater was ready for battle. He preferred his bow in most cases. As they were leaving home though, Tom opted to exchange it for an AR-15 and a couple of spare magazines.
When they got to the path that led to the ranger station, Gregg floored the gas pedal. They did need to hurry and with such a short ride from the main road, the engine noise would not give the attacker enough time to scramble. Gregg slid the truck to a stop, just a few yards away from the front door. They all hurried to get out of the truck as fast as possible. Rifle barrels trained on windows and doors as they spread out in front of the station. It looked completely still and untouched. Gregg could tell this was probably not the right place.
“Alright,” Gregg said, gathering their attention. “I’ve been here before, I know the layout. I’ll lead us in and we’ll do a quick sweep. Don’t bother looking for loot, we’ve already picked it clean.”
They formed up on Gregg, appearing professional and comfortable in the unit. These were all survivors and fighters–sweeping a building for threats was something they did nearly every day. Gregg was the only ex-military person with official training, and was impressed with the strangers’ skill. They moved with semi-coordinated ease to the front door of the station. Bruce produced a handgun with a silencer screwed in the barrel.
Tom was not trained or war tested, but he had good instincts. He realized, with Gregg leading the charge, he would need to position himself at the rear. They could not trust their companions enough to turn their backs on them. In the hustle to get to the door, Tom made sure he was the one to get to the door first. He stood with his hand on the handle, ready to pull it open and hold it for the rest of the guys. Gregg gave him a long, knowing look and nodded.
“On three,” Gregg said, holding up three fingers.
He dropped them one at a time and when Gregg’s pointer finger joined the fist, Tom quickly pulled the door open. The five of them filed into the station, keeping their rifles up and ready. Tom went in last, following behind Kenneth who almost hesitated before entering. The dark haired man gave Tom a lingering glance, as if to say, ‘you won this round.’
The small group made quick work of the outpost. Like Gregg said, this place was picked clean and there were no signs that anyone had been here recently. Kenneth was slightly annoyed by the waste of time but kept his mouth shut. He did not tell the group of men about the infected woman that was crawling towards them from behind. He saw her but knew if they turned to look, she would hide from them. Kenneth had gotten into the habit of keeping up with where his wife was, without broadcasting it verbally. Eventually, she will get someone and then they’ll believe him.
The men quickly reconnected at the truck and made their way back to the road. Kenneth looked out the back glass at the abandoned building. The broken and twisted form of his wife was dragging herself out of the front door, following them with a maddeningly slow pace. It seemed impossible that she could ever catch up to them. She would catch them, Kenneth knew. He had been trying to outrun her for weeks. He half hoped she would grab someone soon. The diversion might be a good way to escape her trajectory.
“So,” Kenneth said, showing no signs of his mental breakdown. “Where are we headed this time?”
“There’s a few hidden holes like that ranger outpost on this road. A gas station and general store are a little ways up. Again, picked clean, but they might be laying low in one of those.”
“Cool,” Kenneth said, leaning back in his seat. “We’ll follow your lead.”
The truck that was full of angry and armed men moved up the road at a steady pace. They were headed straight for the gas station.
*
*
*
Dave felt like something was wrong. The warm air and the hot sun were bearing down on him and making him sweat. Running that attack at first light had been risky and tacky. In the past, they moved the infected mobs during the day, when they were less aggressive. Keeping it going during the night was a good way to get killed. That was what Bruce ordered though. The instructions had been crystal clear and they had performed the task flawlessly.
He felt exhausted now, sitting in a lawn chair on top of the gas station. Dave could not relax. Before coming up here, he had given E and Andy each a dose so they would leave him alone. He did not even dig for something from Andy. Dave was too worried about the nervous nagging in his mind. A problem was trying to get his attention but he could not figure out what had him so paranoid. He wished the afternoon sun would set already.
Below him, E and Andy were sitting on a dirty floor with their backs to the wall. Their relationship did not slip back into normal after that time with Dave. Andy could not let go of how E just sat there and let it happen. She realized that she was not important to these men and would be discarded by both in an instant. With that in her heart, Andy was determined to earn her way in this insane job. She pulled her part while rounding up infected and was just as deserving of a payday as E was.
E felt bad about what happened to Andy and wished he could have taken action against Dave. He fantasized about being back in that room when Dave raped Andy. He imagined himself, pulling the fat man off her, and beating him down. He imagined scoopin Andy up, stepping over the broken man, and carrying her away from that awful life. Things were all fine in E’s imagination and that was where the man dwelt.
In the absence of their normal rowdy behavior, a stillness had settled in around the gas station. Dave could hear the sound of the individual bits of tobacco burning as he inhaled the smoke of a stale cigarette. The cloud he blew from his lungs hovered in the air–no breeze was there to carry it away. The land was holding its breath in anticipation. The hair on the back of Dave’s neck stood up. He sat up, could not hear anything, but knew he was in trouble.
Dave threw the cigarette to the ground and stood up. He felt like ants were covering his skin and needed to get moving. A single idea was pulsing in his mind like a strobe light. ‘Escape!’
He quickly descended the metal ladder and grabbed his pack off the ground. Dave had not trusted the junkies enough to leave his shit near them. He hesitated for a half a second and considered grabbing his “friends.” They had just used and would be too slow to react. Dave turned away and ran for the small, grey sedan they used to get here. The trap was closing and he was smart enough to feel it. The other two would be left to fend for themselves.
*
*
*
“Alright guys,” Gregg said, showing his rank with a tone. “The gas station up here has a lot of escape routes. Plus, if someone’s on the roof, they’ll see us coming. We got to hammer down and get in fast.”
Tom let out a long breath and checked over his rifle. The magazine was firm and a round was in the chamber. His finger was resting on the safety switch, ready to flip it as soon as the door opened.
“We’re ready to boogie,” Bruce said with a chuckle.
The men in the backseat all did similar things with their weaponry, making sure everything was in order. Gregg would not need to do such checks, his gun awareness could not be more ingrained into him. He could be miles away from his rifle and know its exact condition. It was even possible that Gregg would be the first one out of the truck and ready to go when they came to a stop.
The truck was nearly at the crest of a hill when Gregg put the pedal to the floor. The engine roared to life and sent the vehicle into action. They saw the gas station as soon as they broke over the hill. It looked deserted, but so did everything else. They could not see anyone on the roof either. It only took them a few seconds to close the distance and Gregg started a hard deceleration in front of the station door.
They filed out of the truck and aimed their rifles at the store. The glass windows were too murky to see through but it appeared that the front door had been recently opened.
“Someone’s been here!” Tom hissed. “Recently!”
“Stay sharp,” Gregg responded, moving towards the door. “Follow me in and spread out.”
He put a hand on the door and took a deep breath. Gregg glanced at Tom who gave him a nod. Letting the breath out slowly, Gregg yanked the door open and stormed inside. His gun was up and sweeping through the shadowy areas. He could not look back at the others; Gregg had to move forward and trust his ass was covered.
“Movement!” Stephen cried out. “He’s got a gun!”
Suddenly the air was filled with a thunderstorm of gun fire. Gregg did not fire, he was strafing to get cover and realized that it would not be necessary. A stranger had poked his head up from behind the cashier counter with a pistol in his hand. The three people from the other group wasted no time in opening up on the man and riddled him with bullets. His lanky body was now draped over the counter and still. A woman suddenly screamed loud enough to cut through the ringing in all of their ears.
Gregg rushed over, keeping his gun ready and peered over the counter. A blonde woman was laying on the ground, a pool of blood spreading out from around her. She looked up at Gregg with miserable, pain filled eyes. He could see blood pouring out through her fingers as she tried to cover the wound in her stomach. She was beyond helping and Gregg would not have tried anyways.
“Why did you attack us?” he asked her coldly.
The woman opened her mouth and nothing but more of her life came out. He stared at her for a few seconds and then moved away from the counter.
“That was too much noise,” Gregg said, facing the others. “Run a quick search of the place. We got to get the hell out of here.”
Bruce and Kenneth made hard eye contact. They knew one more was supposed to be here. Dave should have been with these two. The men spread out and quickly searched for signs of where the rat was hiding. Bruce searched the outside area while Stephen went to look on the roof. Kenneth was nervously scanning the interior of the store, trying not to panic.
‘How could that fucker slip away?’ He thought.
Tom was looking over the bodies, trying to learn something about them. He could see the drug paraphernalia scattered in the murder scene and assumed that’s the reason this raid had gone so smoothly. They must have been too baked to hear the truck coming. He could not see anything else worth digging into. It was pretty on-the-nose that they would be attacked by people with drug problems. Outcasts that only knew how to hurt, even themselves.
Bruce and Stephen both managed to find signs that pointed to another person being here. They shared their findings with the others.
“There’s a chair on the roof; someone was up there recently,” Stephen said. “And there was a cigarette that was still lit. It looks like someone ditched it in a hurry.”
“I found tire marks over there,” Bruce added, throwing a thumb over his shoulder. “Someone just took off.”
“Let’s go,” Gregg said, quickly moving to the truck.
A few infected people were lumbering towards the gas station, drawn in by the guns. Gregg knew they would have to take a different road home; this area would be crawling with them soon. He maneuvered the truck back onto the road and aimed them in the direction Dave had taken. He sped off towards an evening filled with blood and chaos.
*
*
*
Dave steered the car down the road in a panicked escape. He had heard the sound of gunfire–automatic weapons pouring bullets into something close behind him. He was frantically dodging rusted out vehicles and obstacles with no concern for the condition of his ride. Dave’s face was red, covered in sweat, and his eyes were bugging out. He felt betrayed and alone, already aware that this whole operation had been a set up. All the twisted details added up. Dave began to make promises to whoever was listening. If he survived this, he would burn Kenneth’s shit to the ground.
Dave knew he was in trouble. This road was long and had no convenient break away streets. The residential roads were covered in debris and growth, to take one would leave an obvious trail. He considered leaving that path to follow. If he could find a house or something to hold up in, maybe he could set up an ambush. Dave was not exactly defenseless out here. He had a few contingency items in his pack for situations like this. As much as he thought this was the right move, Dave lacked the courage to actually stop the car. He pushed the speed as much as he dared.
The grey sedan rushed towards a hill without a lot of obstacles. An obvious path was on the road, two lines in the growth made by passing vehicles. It was the sign that Dave used to find and attack the camp the first time. That felt like ages ago now. Back when he still had control over his life. He floored the accelerator, hoping to use the clear stretch to gain some distance on his pursuers. At the crest of the hill, Dave glanced in the rear-view mirror and was relieved to see a long stretch of empty road. The glance was just long enough to cause him to miss seeing the random infected human that was crossing the road.
“Jesus!” Dave shouted at the last second before impact.
The car smashed into the creature and it exploded in a burst of red. A chunk of the torso hit the windshield hard enough to send it straight back into the cab of the car. Dave was sprayed with glass and gore that cut his skin and obstructed his view. He reflexively tightened his grip on the steering wheel but any chance of stopping the sideways skid was far beyond his reach. The car’s front tires slid off the asphalt and dug into the soft dirt on the shoulder. The weight of the car, mixed with the speed it had been traveling, dug the front-end into the ground. That was all the leverage required to send the vehicle into a vicious spiral.
For Dave, the accident happened in slow motion. His stomach lurched when the rear of the car jumped into the air. For a half second, he saw the ground moving through the shattered windshield and could almost make out individual blades of grass. When the car slammed into the ground, Dave was sent crashing against the roof. A sharp pain bloomed out on top of his head and the sound of crunching metal filled his skull. The car rolled again and Dave fell against the center armrest. A popping in his chest suggested a few ribs broke during the impact. Another tumble caused him to hit the crumpled roof again and from that point, Dave’s awareness faded to black.
A few moments later, Dave regained consciousness. He was not entirely aware of where he was or why he felt so much pain. An all consuming ringing was in his head and made it impossible for him to focus. Blood was running down his face from a deep laceration on his scalp. He could not take a deep breath, his chest felt full of knives. On instinct, Dave crawled out of the wreck and laid out on the grass. His numb right leg did not seem to be able to help in the escape. The trees and sky were red tinted, spinning, and made him feel nauseous.
The car was currently flipped on its top and black smoke was rolling out of the engine. Dave saw this cloud rising in the sky and felt panicked by it. Adrenaline was flooding his body and the pain in his body was like a distant throbbing. He did not quite understand the flighty feeling but knew staying here was a bad idea. Moving in autopilot, Dave reached into the destroyed vehicle and retrieved his leather backpack. He did not remember why he needed it–the only thought he recognized was the one telling him to flee.
Not too far away from the accident, Dave saw a building that looked like a small grocery story. He began limping towards it, his right leg nearly buckling under his weight. The pain was sobering and each step cleared a bit of the fog from his mind. Dave remembered that he had been fleeing for his life. He remembered hearing the sound of guns opening up like thunder and felt a sniper’s cross hair on his neck. Dave tried to move faster, the distant building promised him cover, but his body could not handle the stress. Sweat and blood poured off him, leaving a trail that even a child could follow.
By the time he made it to the building, Dave was shaking from the pain and shock. He still could not hear anything through the ringing in his ears. The feeling of being hunted like an animal had replaced the confusion. His mind was still reeling from the concussion he received, but Dave was aware of the danger behind him. Once inside the old general store, he hissed out a slow breath, and began to prepare for visitors. Dave opened his backpack and pulled out the small, customized submachine gun. The MP5 looked like it belonged in a science-fiction movie. Dave attached a drum magazine to the weapon and charged it with a slap.
Dave made one more preparation for the incoming attack. Though it was against his policy, certain allowances had to be made. He knew the damage he sustained during the crash would slow him down. The people coming for him would have too many advantages to counter entirely but he could curve some of them. Dave pulled a small bag from his pack and observed the contents. His pride and his doom resting in such an unassuming manner. It did not seem fair to him that this would be his reward for offering a unique opportunity. Who else in this dead world could offer an escape? He opened the pack and dumped the contents into his mouth.
*
*
*
Gregg stopped the truck at the top of the hill. All the men inside were looking at the crashed vehicle with pinched expressions. They had seen the dark smoke climbing into the sky and approached with heightened awareness. They kept their eyes on the surrounding trees. They were lucky to be in a place without many places to hide. The car itself offered some cover but they would be able to see someone pretty easily.
“Do you think it’s a trap?” Tom asked, his finger resting near the trigger of his gun.
“Maybe,” Gregg answered. “If they’re still alive and not beat all to hell.”
“Let’s flank the car,” Kenneth added. “If they made it out, there’s bound to be some blood to follow.”
“True,” Gregg said. “Alright, let’s do it safely.”
The men got out of the truck with rifles aimed at the crash. They could hear a loud hissing as fluids poured out onto an overheated engine. There was no stink of leaking fuel so the fear of an explosion was low. They still kept their distance from the car while they slowly circled it. The scene was calm and ominously still. The men could tell that the area had been abandoned even before their eyes confirmed it. Even though the immediate area was clear, none of them relaxed. They were close to their target now.
“Got something here,” Bruce said, pointing down at the ground.
“It’s blood,” Gregg confirmed, squatting down to see it closely. “Fresh too. Look, it’s pretty obvious which way they went.”
The trail of blood drops was a zigzagging arrow, aimed right at the abandoned building. All the men in the group looked at it with feelings of unease. They had managed to catch some of the bandits off guard at the gas station. This person was not only aware of them, they were also prepared to fight. Storming into this place would likely get them hurt or worse. The afternoon sun was sinking down, threatening them with looming evening shadows. The window of opportunity was closing.
With a rough plan of attack, Gregg loaded his makeshift unit into the truck and began to approach the store. He felt his skin crawling with anticipation and instinctively knew that there was at least one gun aiming in his direction. He wondered if it was pointed at his back. This would be the perfect time for these strangers to assassinate him and Tom. Especially if they were coordinating with the raiders. If this was an elaborate trap, they could not have counted on a car crash. If they had planned an ambush, their plan was now in shambles. He remembered the way the three of them had opened fire on that man in the station. In hindsight, it did seem a little bit like overkill.
Gregg stopped the truck a few hundred feet away from the dark building. He quickly slid out of the seat, taking cover behind his open door. The rest of the men did the same; they held their breath and made no unnecessary noises. Gregg placed his rifle in the crack of the door and scanned the building through the ACOG scope. While he watched, Tom and Stephen moved to the right and the other two sprinted left. Gregg waited until both pairs were in cover before he moved his gun barrel away from the front of the store.
Trusting in the cover from his team, Gregg moved straight for the front of the store. He placed a shoulder against the side of the building, facing the entrance. He could see the blood trail left by the person they were chasing–a smear of red on the door handle. He waited for the others to join him with his weapon ready to fire. They circled the store, checking the surrounding area for traps, and then grouped up on Gregg. They whispered for a few seconds and prepared to storm the building.
On the hill, unnoticed by the men focused on the store, an infected man stumbled up over the crest. He had been drawn by the sound of the wreck. The crash itself offered nothing of interest for the infected, but the humans running around down below were a different story. The infected man felt its insides churn with starvation and knew the warm bodies would fill that emptiness. A moan of agony escaped the creature and it lurched into motion. Behind the infected man, a parade of hungry creatures followed along. They too were curious about the noise from a few minutes ago.
“On three,” Gregg whispered, his hand on the handle of the front door.
Stephen nodded. He had offered to be the first one in and no one argued. They needed to make sure Dave died without spilling the beans. He looked eager with his rifle stock snug against his chest. His eyes were dancing in excitement.
“One.”
All the men took a deep breath, pre-battle adrenaline flooded into their systems.
“Two.”
Safety switches clicked and weapons rose.
“Three!”
Gregg pulled the door open and Stephen moved forward. His rifle was ready but the man never got a chance to pull the trigger. As soon as his profile was squared in the doorframe, a burst of automatic gunfire opened up from the darkness inside. Stephen jerked on the spot as bullets tore into his exposed flesh. The body armor he wore did nothing to stop the ones that flew through his neck, arms and legs. Stephen made a sound of surprise and then toppled as if his bones had disappeared.
“Oh, shit!” Gregg cried out as he fell back.
The other men ducked and moved away from the door. In this moment of wild scurrying, Tom took a look around, and saw the mob of infected. They were close now, already near the truck and its still open doors. Tom knew they had no chance of making it to the truck, nor could they go inside the store. The recent shooting was already making the mob move faster, they had seconds to react.
“Gregg!” Tom shouted, making his partner aware of the threat.
“Fuck me,” Gregg groaned.
“Come on!” Tom said, tugging on Gregg’s arm. “There’s got to be a roof access ladder!”
They hurried around the building, no longer cautious about the hidden man. The looming infected were more dangerous than a single gunman. Tom and Gregg flew around the building and spotted the gated metal ladder that was attached to the store. Without hesitating, Gregg aimed his rifle at the padlock and fired a single bullet. It was a good shot, the lock shattered and fell away. They began to climb as Kenneth and Bruce came running around from the opposite side. Bruce had the good sense to close the safety gate before joining Tom and Gregg on the roof.
The four of them laid on the backs, panting from the exertion of the panicked escape. Luckily for them, the sun was setting on this unreasonably long day. At least for now, they did not have to worry about being cooked. The cries of the infected were all around them now. The store was completely surrounded and the truck was too far away to make a run for it. They were stuck up here, but knew it was about to be a lot worse for the person inside the building. Staying quiet and still, the four men listened to the last minutes of their target’s life.
Dave felt sweat pouring out of his whole body. His limbs were trembling like he was in a freezer. Thoughts swam in his head like slow, buzzing insects. He could not remember why he felt hunted, but knew the danger was real. The gun he recently used, felt too heavy and ungainly in his soaked palms. It had worked perfectly though–chewing up the invader that tried to come into his safe place. Dave clung to the small machine gun as if it was a lifeline. He could see the shapes of more attackers surrounding his place. It made him feel angry.
“Come on,” he muttered with a feverish voice. “I’ll show you a thing or two.”
The business end of his weapon swayed while he trained it on the front door. He could not see through the murky glass but the silhouettes of infected humans were obvious. He waited until one was in front of the door and squeezed the trigger. Several bullets rushed from the gun, the recoil caused it to rise, but most of his shots hit the target. Unfortunately for Dave, it also shattered the glass door. The infected human he shot, fell forward and joined Stephen’s unmoving body. Another being quickly stepped in front of the door and sneered in at the human.
“I’m so hungry,” the infected woman said. “Please?”
“Eat this,” Dave groaned and fired again.
One by one, infected humans died in front of the store. Dave’s mind was starting to wake up and he suddenly realized what he was fighting against. The realization sent him into a panic. He did not have enough ammo to fight a horde. Plus, every shot he fired, would bring more of them. Dave cried out in pain as he stood up off the crate he had been sitting on. He needed to find a way out of here before he was surrounded. He limped to the back of the store and dread fill his bowels. The emergency exit had been chained closed with an enormous lock. He did not have time or a coherent state of mind to consider breaking it.
Dave spun around, feeling his hurt leg buckle under the weight. He cried out and stumbled. The MP5 slipped from his grip when he tried to break the fall. He heard the sound of metal sliding on tile and knew his weapon was lost. It was far too dark to see and the sound of hungry infected people was filling the building. Dave’s breathing became labored as the reality set in for him. When the first of the monsters limped into the stockroom, he began to cry.
“No, please don’t,” Dave sobbed.
“I’m hungry,” a woman with bloody hair and a missing eye said, matter-of-factly.
“No, you can’t! E! E, help! There’s one in here! Andy? Please, help me!”
The infected took a few steps towards him and Dave saw another one come in through the open door. He tried to stand again but his leg would not take any weight. There was nowhere for him to run–a press of bodies closed in on the stock room’s only available door. More mouths than he could count were grinning at him with evil intentions. A mind numbing fear settled into Dave and he knew he was about to die. Worse, he was going to be ripped apart while still alive. He was going to feel it, there was no escape.
“No!” Dave screamed. “Fuck you!”
He shoved his body back as the first infected tried to fall on him. He barely avoided the crashing weight and was immediately pressed by the next infected person in line. It lurched at him with its black mouth open. Dave brought his hands up and grabbed it by the neck. He had just enough strength to hold its snapping jaws away from his face. He bared his own teeth at the monster and roared his defiance up at it. His arms were shaking with fatigue, survival instinct was all that was keeping this mouth away.
Dave felt the weight of something grab his shattered leg. The pain of it made him scream and he felt his strength waver. In an instant, the fight was over.
“AhhhhhHHHHHHHHH!”
The man’s screams took on a new octave when several sets of teeth bit into his flesh. A terrible ripping followed the piercing agony and all Dave knew was pain. His humanity fled, leaving behind a shell of a human to wail out the rest of its life. He felt himself being consumed, torn, pulled apart, but any understanding was far beyond his reach. All that existed was pain. His scream became a gurgle and in his last moments of life, Dave saw Andy’s face. She was glaring at him from the other side of the vail. Her face held a slight smile of satisfaction.
*
Source: reddit.com/r/eroticliterature/comments/vb6a1b/lovin_in_the_apocalypse_ch16_apocalypse_horror