finally spoke up with a slight edge in his voice . “We’ll take you to a phone. Head back down the hill and stop just before the streetlight. We’ll be right behind you, so drive slowly and don’t veer from that destination.”
Before I could thank them, they stepped back into their cruiser. I reached down to retrieve my hammer and then jumped back up into the Hummer. Kyle and I closed our doors with sequential thuds, and waited as the cops backed up their car. They pulled forward and completed a three-point turn before motioning to us to drive out in front of them.
They escorted us down the winding road past all of the houses, and back towards the small town. I slowed the Hummer to a crawl at the stoplight until they drove up next to us , motioning for me to stop. The cop in the passenger side, signaled to me to roll down my window.
Hitting the automatic down button on the interior of the door, the window slid down as I watched the cop casually stick a finger out in the direction of the pharmacy.
“Last I checked, pharmacies have telephones,” he said with a straight face, looking through his aviator sunglasses. He rolled up his window as the car pulled forward, blocking the Hummer from advancing.
Both cops stepped out of their car, weapons drawn once again, but at the ground. Kyle and I cautiously stepped out as well, and started to the pharmacy.
Just as we reached the entrance, we both stopped dead in our tracks as an ear piercing siren suddenly turned on from beyond the tree line. It was absolutely deafening, and coming from a large tower that we could see sticking up through the trees a couple of hundred yards away. Unable to move, like a deer caught in headlights, my first instinct was that we’d set it off somehow, and that moving would only make it worse.
The cops were momentarily frozen as well. Looks of horror and panic filled their faces, as they quickly started back to their car.
“They weren't supposed to start for another hour!” one screamed.
“What the hell is going on?” Kyle’s voice could hardly be heard.
“You guys better get the hell out of here,” one bellowed as they slammed their car doors shut. We stood there speechless as they sped away, staring back and forth between the retreating police cruiser and the siren tower.
The noise ran for almost two full minutes and then stopped as suddenly as it had started.
“What the hell?” Michael said out loud as Kyle and I just stood there, expecting the worse.
Eyes wide open; my senses were at full alert. At first, it sounded like a distant squirrel rustling through the leaves on the forest ground. However, the single small movement began to multiply, getting louder as it headed in our direction. My hands were shaking with anticipation as we drew our weapons and started stepping back towards the Hummer. We all knew what was out there.
The first creatures came stumbling out from the darkness of the forest one or two at a time, and they all seemed to be converging towards where the siren stood. Small packs and larger swarms followed from every direction, they were all over the place, being pulled in like moths to a light.
“Get in the Hummer!” Kyle screamed.
Slamming the doors shut, I gunned it backward and then headed in the same direction as the cop car. There was no going back down the road we came from.
At the top of the hill, I stopped the Hummer and swung open the door.
We heard a few screams and some gunshots coming back from behind the tree line.
“Do we check it out?” I asked.
“I’m thinking we go down to that house overlooking the trees, and see what we can see from there. Let’s just make sure nobody knows we’re still hanging around.”
I nodded in agreement and then we headed down to the house.
Smarter men would have taken off and not looked back. Our curiosity was what got the best of us.
We made sure that Michael was comfortable in the Hummer, which I had concealed around the
Before I could thank them, they stepped back into their cruiser. I reached down to retrieve my hammer and then jumped back up into the Hummer. Kyle and I closed our doors with sequential thuds, and waited as the cops backed up their car. They pulled forward and completed a three-point turn before motioning to us to drive out in front of them.
They escorted us down the winding road past all of the houses, and back towards the small town. I slowed the Hummer to a crawl at the stoplight until they drove up next to us , motioning for me to stop. The cop in the passenger side, signaled to me to roll down my window.
Hitting the automatic down button on the interior of the door, the window slid down as I watched the cop casually stick a finger out in the direction of the pharmacy.
“Last I checked, pharmacies have telephones,” he said with a straight face, looking through his aviator sunglasses. He rolled up his window as the car pulled forward, blocking the Hummer from advancing.
Both cops stepped out of their car, weapons drawn once again, but at the ground. Kyle and I cautiously stepped out as well, and started to the pharmacy.
Just as we reached the entrance, we both stopped dead in our tracks as an ear piercing siren suddenly turned on from beyond the tree line. It was absolutely deafening, and coming from a large tower that we could see sticking up through the trees a couple of hundred yards away. Unable to move, like a deer caught in headlights, my first instinct was that we’d set it off somehow, and that moving would only make it worse.
The cops were momentarily frozen as well. Looks of horror and panic filled their faces, as they quickly started back to their car.
“They weren't supposed to start for another hour!” one screamed.
“What the hell is going on?” Kyle’s voice could hardly be heard.
“You guys better get the hell out of here,” one bellowed as they slammed their car doors shut. We stood there speechless as they sped away, staring back and forth between the retreating police cruiser and the siren tower.
The noise ran for almost two full minutes and then stopped as suddenly as it had started.
“What the hell?” Michael said out loud as Kyle and I just stood there, expecting the worse.
Eyes wide open; my senses were at full alert. At first, it sounded like a distant squirrel rustling through the leaves on the forest ground. However, the single small movement began to multiply, getting louder as it headed in our direction. My hands were shaking with anticipation as we drew our weapons and started stepping back towards the Hummer. We all knew what was out there.
The first creatures came stumbling out from the darkness of the forest one or two at a time, and they all seemed to be converging towards where the siren stood. Small packs and larger swarms followed from every direction, they were all over the place, being pulled in like moths to a light.
“Get in the Hummer!” Kyle screamed.
Slamming the doors shut, I gunned it backward and then headed in the same direction as the cop car. There was no going back down the road we came from.
At the top of the hill, I stopped the Hummer and swung open the door.
We heard a few screams and some gunshots coming back from behind the tree line.
“Do we check it out?” I asked.
“I’m thinking we go down to that house overlooking the trees, and see what we can see from there. Let’s just make sure nobody knows we’re still hanging around.”
I nodded in agreement and then we headed down to the house.
Smarter men would have taken off and not looked back. Our curiosity was what got the best of us.
We made sure that Michael was comfortable in the Hummer, which I had concealed around the
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