IV
I woke up I don’t know how much later, it was still dark. Nancy’s face over me was dark, but I could see dark creases in her face where it was knotted up in a grimace. She held the crowbar out in front of her cautiously.
“What is it?” I asked sitting up.
“I don’t know yet,” she said, and shushed me.
The sound of voices was coming quietly, clearly from the front of the Streamline, near the truck.
“Give me the crowbar.” I said. Nancy gave it to me.
“Its not Stanley,” she said.
“Stay here,” I said. I opened the door to the trailer as quietly as I could, staying behind it, and peeking through the curtain. I couldn’t see anyone on the right side of the trailer or truck, and I though about how to protect myself under various circumstances.
I dropped to the ground to try and see any legs standing on the other side of the trailer or truck but it was too dark, and the grass was too tall to see three feet in front of my face. I got back up and as I got closer to the truck the voiced resolved into a distinct one, one that was not my fathers. I got to the trucks cab, and squatted down under the window and peeked up slowly.
I was confused as soon as I could see in the window, and leapt back when I realized that I was looking into the barrel of a rifle. The door swung open and the cab lights turned on to reveal my father leveling a gun at me for the second time in two days.
“What are you doing?” he asked, breathily.
“What are you doing,” I whispered reaching in to shut the light of manually. “Shut off that radio,” I hissed, “and don’t move.” I hurried back to the Streamline door, and whispered; “It’s me,” so Nancy wouldn’t be scared when I opened the door. Her hands were clenched around a hammer, holding it beside her head. Her expression quickly changed from wide-eyed horror to simple relief.
“Jesus!” She said sighing.
“I said it was me.”
“What is it?” she asked sitting back down on the sofa.
“My dad. He turned the radio on.”
Nancy seemed to let out a breath that she’d been holding in, and breathed deeply a few times. “My god.” she said.
“It’s okay.” I said, “I’ll be back in a little.”
I raced back to the truck and popped the door open, the light didn’t illuminate.
“What the hell are you doing?” I asked, “Do you want to lure them here?”
“I was listening to the radio,” he said, “quietly.”
“Nancy could hear it.” I said, “That’s too loud.”
“You didn’t hear what they said. They’re everywhere.”
“What?”
“They’re everywhere. They had a guy on who escaped his car. The east-west roads out of the city. I went faster than lightning, people couldn’t get out of their cars. Shit, he said he saw his wife die, and come back to life.”
“Alright.” I said holding up my hands, “that’s enough.” I noticed the bottle on the floor of the cab, by the passenger seat. It was almost full of whiskey. There were two, maybe three shots missing. I tore my eyes from it to look into my father’s dark face. “We’ll stay here tonight.” I said. The lights and noise’ll just draw attention.” My father shook his head. “No more radio, and don’t use that rifle, its too loud. I’m going to go tell Nancy, and then we’ll switch.”
“Okay.”
“Don’t frighten her,” I said, and slipped out of the cab to go back and explain things to Nancy. She was understandably terrified, even though I omitted the reanimation parts. “It’s alright.” I said. “Things’ll be okay. We picked this place for a reason.” She nodded.
I went back up to the cab, and sent my Dad back to the Streamline with his rifle. I was worried that I wouldn’t be able to stay up for the second night in a row, but I didn’t have any trouble. The dark got to me, and I eventually started seeing dark silhouettes moving between the trees that weren’t there. At one point I got out of my car and tried to stealthily sneak up on one, but I couldn’t find anything. I had gotten plenty of practice opening and closing the doors quietly though. I imagined Nancy in the streamline sitting up wide-eyed.
—Introduction and Dramatis Personæ
I woke up I don’t know how much later, it was still dark. Nancy’s face over me was dark, but I could see dark creases in her face where it was knotted up in a grimace. She held the crowbar out in front of her cautiously.
“What is it?” I asked sitting up.
“I don’t know yet,” she said, and shushed me.
The sound of voices was coming quietly, clearly from the front of the Streamline, near the truck.
“Give me the crowbar.” I said. Nancy gave it to me.
“Its not Stanley,” she said.
“Stay here,” I said. I opened the door to the trailer as quietly as I could, staying behind it, and peeking through the curtain. I couldn’t see anyone on the right side of the trailer or truck, and I though about how to protect myself under various circumstances.
I dropped to the ground to try and see any legs standing on the other side of the trailer or truck but it was too dark, and the grass was too tall to see three feet in front of my face. I got back up and as I got closer to the truck the voiced resolved into a distinct one, one that was not my fathers. I got to the trucks cab, and squatted down under the window and peeked up slowly.
I was confused as soon as I could see in the window, and leapt back when I realized that I was looking into the barrel of a rifle. The door swung open and the cab lights turned on to reveal my father leveling a gun at me for the second time in two days.
“What are you doing?” he asked, breathily.
“What are you doing,” I whispered reaching in to shut the light of manually. “Shut off that radio,” I hissed, “and don’t move.” I hurried back to the Streamline door, and whispered; “It’s me,” so Nancy wouldn’t be scared when I opened the door. Her hands were clenched around a hammer, holding it beside her head. Her expression quickly changed from wide-eyed horror to simple relief.
“Jesus!” She said sighing.
“I said it was me.”
“What is it?” she asked sitting back down on the sofa.
“My dad. He turned the radio on.”
Nancy seemed to let out a breath that she’d been holding in, and breathed deeply a few times. “My god.” she said.
“It’s okay.” I said, “I’ll be back in a little.”
I raced back to the truck and popped the door open, the light didn’t illuminate.
“What the hell are you doing?” I asked, “Do you want to lure them here?”
“I was listening to the radio,” he said, “quietly.”
“Nancy could hear it.” I said, “That’s too loud.”
“You didn’t hear what they said. They’re everywhere.”
“What?”
“They’re everywhere. They had a guy on who escaped his car. The east-west roads out of the city. I went faster than lightning, people couldn’t get out of their cars. Shit, he said he saw his wife die, and come back to life.”
“Alright.” I said holding up my hands, “that’s enough.” I noticed the bottle on the floor of the cab, by the passenger seat. It was almost full of whiskey. There were two, maybe three shots missing. I tore my eyes from it to look into my father’s dark face. “We’ll stay here tonight.” I said. The lights and noise’ll just draw attention.” My father shook his head. “No more radio, and don’t use that rifle, its too loud. I’m going to go tell Nancy, and then we’ll switch.”
“Okay.”
“Don’t frighten her,” I said, and slipped out of the cab to go back and explain things to Nancy. She was understandably terrified, even though I omitted the reanimation parts. “It’s alright.” I said. “Things’ll be okay. We picked this place for a reason.” She nodded.
I went back up to the cab, and sent my Dad back to the Streamline with his rifle. I was worried that I wouldn’t be able to stay up for the second night in a row, but I didn’t have any trouble. The dark got to me, and I eventually started seeing dark silhouettes moving between the trees that weren’t there. At one point I got out of my car and tried to stealthily sneak up on one, but I couldn’t find anything. I had gotten plenty of practice opening and closing the doors quietly though. I imagined Nancy in the streamline sitting up wide-eyed.
—Introduction and Dramatis Personæ
