Mad World (Book 3): Desperation by Samaire Provost Page B

two foot high pile of tree trunks and boulders reached from one end of the street to the other, about fifty yards ahead of us. We were still in the little town, just on the outskirts, in fact, and those monsters had built a flippin’ road block.
    There were more zombies coming out of the side streets, blocking us in, forcing our hand.
    I felt myself grinding my teeth until they hurt, and gripping the seat back in front of me with a death grip.
    It was an incredibly tense moment.
    At the last minute, Dad cranked the wheel and shot down the right hand side street just before the roadblock. I felt the SUV start to tip onto two wheels as it struggled to maintain its grip on the road. Tires squealed, and we instinctively leaned to our right, into the turn.
    After what seemed like forever, the tires touched down and found purchase, and the SUV jumped forward, zombies bouncing off the sides as it went. Dad floored it, and the vehicle shot down the street like it had been propelled by a slingshot.
    It was like a roller coaster ride in the strongest vehicle we’d ever used, driven by the most bad-ass race car driver on the planet, going top speed through rough terrain and the world’s scariest obstacle course, all while being pursued by the hounds of hell themselves.
    It was terrifying and exhilarating at the same time.
    Dad was becoming adept at driving through this nightmare, adapting to the changing waves of monster flesh as it came from this direction, then that direction.
    At one point, after swerving around a huge bunch of zombies that reached two stories tall, and bouncing off a smaller bunch to propel us back on course, I heard myself let out a “Whoop!” of excitement at the thrill of the ride.
     
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    As we drove, the zombie horde started thinning out, until there were no more of the things in front of us. We sped down three more side streets and then hit the main road out of town. We’d gone about five miles on this route, without seeing any other zombies, when the road ended and Dad was forced to turned right down a seemingly deserted side street that curved down to the right and tilted downhill and then came to an abrupt dead end.  Abandoned construction materials lay just beyond a solid looking wooden and steel barrier, waiting for a crew that would likely never show up to finish the job.
    “Oh, man,” Dad said under his breath, bringing the vehicle to a stop against the left curb. He quickly executed a three point turn, and we were soon facing back the way we had come. 
    We idled there for ten seconds, facing the uphill curved street, and then started up it. As the SUV reached the top of the short hill, the view came into focus and we all saw what was there. 
    Dad cursed under his breath and looked to his right and left for an alternative way out. 
    Zach beside me ducked his head to get a better look out the front windshield. I was already hunched down to see better, and I couldn’t believe our bad luck.
    Staring back at us was a crowd of about a hundred zombies, all just standing there staring at us, not growling, not yelling. Just standing there.
    It was like a standoff.
    We waited to see what they would do.
    A gap of about forty yards stood between our front bumper and the zombies. They stood about ten or fifteen yards across, and at least three or four bodies deep.
    “What on earth...?” Dad finally said under his breath, leaning and looking closer.
    “What?” I asked, trying to see what he saw.
    “Jake, what do you see?” DeAndre said quietly.
    “I’m not sure...” Dad leaned closer, his face over the dashboard, staring out at the zombies gathered in front of us.
    By this time, at least five minutes had passed, with not a movement from the crowd standing in front of us.
    We all just sat there, watching the monsters, waiting for something to happen.
    “What are they doing?” Jonathan whispered.
    “No idea...” I answered.
    “I can’t believe this is happening,” said