Zombie Rage (Walking Plague Trilogy #2) by J. R. Rain, Elizabeth Basque Page B

woman? There went that theory of Anna’s. Splat. Her brains were gone. I turned to the next and did the same. There were too many of them. They just kept coming. How many bullets did I have left?
    “ Jack!” It was Carla, on the other side of them. “I can’t see you. I don’t want to fire in your direction.”
    “ Get inside!” I hollered. “Get Anna safe!”
    I guess hearing my voice was enough for Carla because she started firing at the ones to my left. I heard more shots on my right; that must have been Jared. So much for listening to me.
    There was no time to argue. I whirled around just in time and fired almost point blank. Blood and brain and bone splattered on me.
    I took out three more. That these had once been people, neighbors, tourists and even friends, was too horrific to imagine now. Thank God I didn’t recognize anyone. I heard Carla and Jared firing, firing...and then silence. The zombies were gone or dead.
    I came around to the other side of the truck where I could see them. Bodies spread out on the ground, everywhere. Then...
    “ Anna, duck!”
    She hit the ground as the three of us pointed our weapons in her direction at once, and took out another one.
    Now my daughter was in my arms. She had an iron rod and she was covered with blood. Holy hell.
    “ Quiet,” I ordered. We stood still. No movement. I glanced at Carla, who was amazingly calm. “Is it unlocked?”
    “ Yes.”
    “ Inside. Now. Everyone.”
    “ I’ve got food and water—”
    Carla jerked her head to her patrol car.
    I nodded. “Good. We’ll get it. Anna and Jared, get up there. We’ll bring the food inside.”
    Jared grabbed her hand and pulled her up the stairs.
    Carla had been thorough. She’d thought of food, water, first aid, even a deck of cards. It took two trips for us to carry everything up the stairs. Jared opened the door just long enough to bring the bags inside.
    We were just getting the second load together when we heard more crazies in the distance.
    “Come on,” I said. We rushed up the steps. Carla tripped, dropping a case of water. Bottles scattered down the stairs. I rushed my load to Jared and then went back to help Carla. Water was our most precious commodity; if the observatory was really closed up, the drinking fountains might not be working.
    Outside, they were coming closer. Another fifteen or so. How did this happen so fast?
    “Leave the rest,” I told her. She picked up one more and we dashed for the entrance.
    Inside, Carla relocked the door. All the doors and windows were glass in the observatory, but they had strong brass crisscrosses barring the way for any intruders. We all collapsed in the main entry, breathing hard.
    Anna found her way over to me. “I thought you’d died,” she told me. “Dad, I thought you were gone for sure.”
    “ Not me.” I tried to sound brave. “I’m not going anywhere, angel.” She snuggled up to me. Rested her head on my shoulder. I could see Jared had conflicted emotions. He wanted to comfort her. Or, more likely, he probably wanted the comfort of his own parents. The thought of his parents worried me all over again.
    I held my daughter until we heard movement on the steps outside.
    “They’re here,” whispered Carla.
    The observatory was dark. Whoever had left last hadn’t taken time to set the alarm. That was good for us. We had to move, though. No more time for comfort.
     
     
    Chapter Thirty-two
     
     
    “ Get out of sight, out of hearing distance,” I said.
    I felt worlds better now that I knew Anna was safe. At least physically. I was back, and I was calling the shots.
    We moved to the other side of the large enclosed circle with the pendulum that counted seconds. It was a real crowd pleaser. In normal times, that is. Now, there was no one to admire it but us. Still, it was solid, and we were hidden from them on the far side.
    We took a moment to calm ourselves, catch our breaths. I said quietly, semi-sarcastically, “Family meeting.