900 Miles (Book 2): 900 Minutes Read Online Free Page A
job.
Pinning the chef to the ground, I brought the full force of the hammer down through the Z’ s skull. As he was still violently twisting on the ground, I brought it down once again, feeling the metallic head crash through the monste r’ s face, hitting the concrete floor with an audible clank. Wiping my forearm across the plastic faceplate covering my eyes and mouth, I managed to smear away just enough of the blood splatter to see the fire continuing to waltz gracefully toward the medicine cabinet.
Glancing at Rodgers, I watched as he moved in on the flaming Z. Roaring with an all-too-familiar scream as it charged, I couldn't help but think that the creature looked more like a pissed-off version of Satan than the undead.
With rage screaming from his bloodshot eyes, Mr. Rodgers lifted a double-barreled shotgun from his hip and pulled the trigger, pumping a round of buckshot through the chest and skull of the Z. A perfect shot, with one exception. The creature hit the ground hard, but not before it fell backwards against the oversized cabinet that held the medication.
Watching in horror, I stood helpless as the fire engulfed the entire cabinet in just seconds. Knowing we could n’ t let it spread, I turned my head from side to side, looking for an extinguisher before my eyes lifted to the ceiling. Why the hell had n’ t the emergency extinguisher gone off?
With my eyes focused on the small metal sprinkler closest to the flaming wall, I darted toward it, took a running jump, and drove the head of my hammer through that malfunctioning piece of shit with an audible metal on metal crack.
In the moment before I looked up to see Kyle drop one of the creatures across the room, I saw the metal sprinkler head hit the ground in front of me, sliding to a stop at the edge of the che f’ s apron. An instant later, small drops of water began to rain from above.
With that blow, the tides turned in that little skirmish, and our team made quick work of the rest of the Zs; the fire quickly extinguished to nothing more than a smoldering ash pile. The Med Center was a mess, and blood was spiraling into pools on the concrete floor. That shit never truly washed out of the concrete. If you looked close enough, yo u’ d see light pink stains scattered throughout the halls of Avalon.
A stain. It is all that is left of us once w e’ re gone.
“ Jesus, man, I thought Mr. Rodgers was nuts ,” Kyle said as he walked up to me and patted my shoulder.
Keeping my eyes fixed on the melted plastic and cracked glass of the medicine bottles, I did n’ t respond. It had n’ t hit me ye t… what this really meant. At the time, I thought we had some additional meds in storage.
“ We need to get you some cardio ,” Kyle continued as he tapped two fingers against the armor across my stomach.
I laughed but still did n’ t respond to his quip. Hell, I was in better shape than I’ d been in since high school. Before the apocalypse, I’ d spent ten years sitting in front of a computer. The most exercise I would get in an average day was walking up and down the stairs in the parking garage, and that was only because it was an easier route than walking across the full length of the garage to get to the elevator. We were bred to be lazy back then.
And I was as pathetic as the rest of them.
Pulled from my introspection, Kyle caught my attention as he crossed the room toward a smaller sized cabinet. Nodding his head up toward me, then glancing back down at the metal handle just below, he motioned for me to walk over toward him. As I approached, he crouched down a bit and whispered that h e’ d seen someone crawl in there, but was n’ t sure if they'd been bitten or not.
With the adrenaline still coursing through my veins, I lifted the hammer above my head, ready to strike while Kyle reached one arm down to the cabinet. Taking a deep breath, I nodded to him as he touched his hand to the handle and yanked.
Stepping forward, ready to bring the
Pinning the chef to the ground, I brought the full force of the hammer down through the Z’ s skull. As he was still violently twisting on the ground, I brought it down once again, feeling the metallic head crash through the monste r’ s face, hitting the concrete floor with an audible clank. Wiping my forearm across the plastic faceplate covering my eyes and mouth, I managed to smear away just enough of the blood splatter to see the fire continuing to waltz gracefully toward the medicine cabinet.
Glancing at Rodgers, I watched as he moved in on the flaming Z. Roaring with an all-too-familiar scream as it charged, I couldn't help but think that the creature looked more like a pissed-off version of Satan than the undead.
With rage screaming from his bloodshot eyes, Mr. Rodgers lifted a double-barreled shotgun from his hip and pulled the trigger, pumping a round of buckshot through the chest and skull of the Z. A perfect shot, with one exception. The creature hit the ground hard, but not before it fell backwards against the oversized cabinet that held the medication.
Watching in horror, I stood helpless as the fire engulfed the entire cabinet in just seconds. Knowing we could n’ t let it spread, I turned my head from side to side, looking for an extinguisher before my eyes lifted to the ceiling. Why the hell had n’ t the emergency extinguisher gone off?
With my eyes focused on the small metal sprinkler closest to the flaming wall, I darted toward it, took a running jump, and drove the head of my hammer through that malfunctioning piece of shit with an audible metal on metal crack.
In the moment before I looked up to see Kyle drop one of the creatures across the room, I saw the metal sprinkler head hit the ground in front of me, sliding to a stop at the edge of the che f’ s apron. An instant later, small drops of water began to rain from above.
With that blow, the tides turned in that little skirmish, and our team made quick work of the rest of the Zs; the fire quickly extinguished to nothing more than a smoldering ash pile. The Med Center was a mess, and blood was spiraling into pools on the concrete floor. That shit never truly washed out of the concrete. If you looked close enough, yo u’ d see light pink stains scattered throughout the halls of Avalon.
A stain. It is all that is left of us once w e’ re gone.
“ Jesus, man, I thought Mr. Rodgers was nuts ,” Kyle said as he walked up to me and patted my shoulder.
Keeping my eyes fixed on the melted plastic and cracked glass of the medicine bottles, I did n’ t respond. It had n’ t hit me ye t… what this really meant. At the time, I thought we had some additional meds in storage.
“ We need to get you some cardio ,” Kyle continued as he tapped two fingers against the armor across my stomach.
I laughed but still did n’ t respond to his quip. Hell, I was in better shape than I’ d been in since high school. Before the apocalypse, I’ d spent ten years sitting in front of a computer. The most exercise I would get in an average day was walking up and down the stairs in the parking garage, and that was only because it was an easier route than walking across the full length of the garage to get to the elevator. We were bred to be lazy back then.
And I was as pathetic as the rest of them.
Pulled from my introspection, Kyle caught my attention as he crossed the room toward a smaller sized cabinet. Nodding his head up toward me, then glancing back down at the metal handle just below, he motioned for me to walk over toward him. As I approached, he crouched down a bit and whispered that h e’ d seen someone crawl in there, but was n’ t sure if they'd been bitten or not.
With the adrenaline still coursing through my veins, I lifted the hammer above my head, ready to strike while Kyle reached one arm down to the cabinet. Taking a deep breath, I nodded to him as he touched his hand to the handle and yanked.
Stepping forward, ready to bring the
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