Chapter 91: The Way Home Part I

Chapter 91: Chapter 91: The Way Home Part I

"Two blocks sounds significantly better than thirty meters did earlier."

Ben gave him a look.

"We almost died in those thirty meters."

"Which is exactly why two blocks concerns me."

Penelope adjusted her grip on her machete.

"We’re not going back the way we came."

Everyone looked at her.

She pointed toward the alley.

"The zombies followed the noise toward the front of the store. If we circle through the service alleys instead of returning to the main street, we might avoid most of them."

Erik considered the surrounding layout.

"The buildings in this district share rear delivery access."

Killian nodded.

"We stay behind the storefronts until we’re parallel with the truck, then cross."

Their decision was made.

No debate.

No unnecessary discussion.

Killian opened the door wider.

"Stay close."

They slipped outside one at a time.

Killian went first.

Penelope followed.

Ben came next, then Kai.

Erik exited last and quietly eased the metal door shut behind him.

Nobody spoke.

The difference between the front and rear of the jewelry store was unsettling.

Beyond the buildings, the city remained alive with chaos.

Distant screams carried between the streets.

Car alarms continued blaring.

Occasional crashes echoed from several blocks away.

Somewhere farther into the city, a siren wailed continuously, apparently abandoned by whoever had activated it.

But the alley itself was almost completely silent.

Penelope could hear her own breathing.

Every footstep suddenly seemed too loud.

Killian moved ahead at a steady pace, keeping enough distance from the dumpsters to see around them before passing.

Erik watched the rear.

Kai and Ben remained between them while Penelope stayed close enough to either side to respond if something emerged from one of the recessed doorways.

They had learned quickly tonight.

Nobody wandered.

Nobody allowed unnecessary gaps to form.

Nobody assumed an empty alley was safe simply because they couldn’t see anything moving.

They reached the first intersection between buildings without incident.

Killian stopped.

His fist rose.

Everyone froze.

A faint dragging sound came from somewhere ahead.

Penelope tightened her grip.

Something moved beyond a dumpster.

Ben shifted his weight, preparing himself.

Kai’s attention fixed on the darkness.

A figure slowly wandered into view.

One zombie.

Its back was turned toward them.

It dragged one foot as it moved, apparently unaware of their presence.

Killian glanced toward the alley branching to their left.

They could avoid it.

Erik saw the same route.

He pointed silently.

Killian nodded.

The group changed direction without engaging.

They didn’t need to kill everything they encountered.

Tonight had already taught them that lesson.

Every fight created noise.

Every noise created attention.

Every unnecessary battle increased the possibility of someone making a fatal mistake.

They moved through the adjoining alley.

The zombie never knew they were there.

Kai waited until they were several buildings away before whispering, "I greatly prefer that method."

"So does everyone else," Erik replied quietly.

Kai glanced over his shoulder.

"You could let me pretend I made a profound tactical observation."

"You didn’t."

"I could have."

Erik’s expression remained unchanged.

Kai smiled slightly and turned around again.

Penelope shook her head.

She had missed this.

The thought came unexpectedly.

Not the apocalypse.

Definitely not the zombies.

She had missed this feeling.

Her brothers beside her.

Their familiar voices.

Kai’s ridiculous comments.

Erik’s dry responses.

Even in a ruined city surrounded by the dead, some things remained unchanged.

Penelope’s gaze moved briefly toward Killian.

He was several steps ahead, scanning the alley.

He didn’t belong to that familiarity.

Not yet.

He was still someone standing just outside the circle of a family that had spent years learning one another so thoroughly that entire conversations could happen through a glance.

Yet Killian didn’t seem uncomfortable with it.

He didn’t force himself into their dynamic.

He simply observed.

Listened.

Adapted.

Penelope found herself wondering what he thought of them.

She dismissed the thought almost immediately.

There were zombies outside.

This was hardly the time to wonder whether Killian Remington thought her family was strange.

They reached the next block.

Then the smell hit them.

Kai’s expression changed immediately.

Ben covered his nose.

"What is that?"

Nobody answered.

They didn’t need to investigate.

Whatever had happened somewhere beyond the alley had happened recently, and none of them had any interest in finding out more.

Killian changed direction.

"This way."

They followed without question.

The alternate route took them behind a restaurant.

The rear door stood open.

Boxes of produce had been abandoned beside the loading entrance, along with several plastic crates and an overturned handcart.

Penelope glanced toward them as they passed.

Then she stopped.

Kai nearly walked into her.

"Penny?"

Penelope looked at the abandoned produce.

Fresh vegetables filled several crates.

Tomatoes.

Onions.

Potatoes.

Peppers.

There were also boxes bearing the names of food distributors.

Oddy immediately became interested.

’Host.’

Penelope already knew.

’I see it.’

Kai followed her gaze.

Then he understood.

"We are not grocery shopping."

Penelope looked offended.

"That’s food."

"We just emptied a jewelry vault."

"Gold isn’t edible."

Kai opened his mouth.

Then stopped.

Ben looked between them.

"She has a point."

Kai turned toward him.

"You are becoming dangerously supportive."

Ben shrugged.

"It’s free food."

Erik had already assessed the situation.

"Thirty seconds," Erik said.

Kai stared at his brother.

"You’re encouraging her?"

"We have a space user standing beside abandoned food."

Erik gestured toward the crates.

"Leaving usable supplies behind when collecting them costs us almost nothing would be wasteful."

Penelope smiled triumphantly.

Kai pointed at her.

"Thirty seconds."

She was already moving.

Penelope touched the first stack of crates.

They disappeared.

Then another.

And another.

She collected the boxes beside the loading entrance before stepping just inside the open restaurant door.

Kai immediately caught the back of her jacket.

"No."

Penelope looked over her shoulder.

"There’s probably more inside."

"There are probably zombies inside."

"There’s probably a refrigerator."

"There’s definitely death inside."

Penelope stared at him.

Kai stared back.

"We have food at home," Kai reminded her.

Penelope sighed.

He was right.

Unfortunately.

She stepped backward.

"Fine."

Kai released her jacket.

"I’m proud of your personal growth."

"Don’t push it."

They continued.

Less than a minute later, Killian stopped again.

This time, everyone heard it.

Growling.

Not one.

Several.

The sound came from the street ahead.

Killian moved carefully toward the corner and looked around.

The truck was visible.

So were the zombies.

Ben quietly exhaled.

"Of course."

Their black pickup sat exactly where they had left it, partially hidden behind several abandoned vehicles.

Unfortunately, six zombies wandered between them and the truck.

Another three stood farther down the street.

None had noticed them.

Yet.

Kai leaned slightly toward the corner.

"Nine."

"Six immediate," Erik corrected quietly. "The other three are far enough away that we may not need to engage them."

Killian studied the street.

The truck was approximately forty meters away.

They couldn’t simply sprint toward it.

Running would create vibrations.

Opening the doors would create noise.

Starting the engine would announce their location to everything nearby.

They needed enough time to get inside before the street converged on them.

Penelope looked toward an overturned metal trash can farther down the alley.

Then toward the opposite end of the street.

Killian noticed.

Their eyes met.

Penelope pointed.

"Distraction," she whispered.

Killian followed the direction of her finger.

Erik did the same.

A narrow side street branched away from the truck approximately twenty meters ahead.

If they created enough noise there, the zombies should move toward it.

Erik nodded.

"That could work."

Kai looked toward the trash can.

"Throw it?"

"Too close," Killian replied. "The initial impact would draw them toward us before they determined where the sound came from."

Penelope smiled.

"I can put it somewhere else."

Killian looked at her.

Her space.

Erik understood immediately.

"Can you place something at a distance?" Erik asked.

Penelope’s smile disappeared.

"No."

Kai looked amused.

"That confidence lasted approximately two seconds."

"I had the beginning of a good idea."

Ben studied the street.