Looking Back Through Ash - Wade Ebeling Page 0,152

wearing the same gray uniforms and encircling the Warehouse, pouring over the top of the fence.

Within seconds the assault group was swallowed up by the inexorable tide, despite their wild firing. Mouth agape and legs shaking uncontrollably, Daniel watched in horror as this huge faction of people swallowed the building whole, pouring into the interior through the open rolling doors, while dozens of others ran around the sides, looking for additional ways to get in.

Daniel slunk back into the darkness of the shed. He had just watched the hopes, and bodies, of the group get smashed to pieces right before his very eyes. The warmth that had just run down his leg started cooling as he dashed out the open door. Forgoing the stealthy route, once he found the railroad tracks, Daniel turned and followed them to the north. The music had been shut off, but the sounds of a very different kind of party continued on. Twice in his haste, Daniel stumbled, sprawling out as he fell heavily to the ground. The fear had turned his legs into jelly, slowing his pace considerably.

Horrible, selfish thoughts tried to grab ahold of Daniel as he approached the RV encampment. Several young children, along with two women and one old man left to watch over them, were awaiting word of the raid. Daniel knew they needed to be warned and led away from this area as soon as possible. Angered though it made him, he could not stop the thoughts from coming. They were about abandoning those people, and hiding away in the same building that Jason had cowered in. After all, Uncle Jason had proven this a viable option, despite it being a lonely way to spend the rest of one’s life.

Daniel had come to a complete halt, just short of the RV storage grounds boundary. He was trying to give himself a chance to crush down the fear that brought these thoughts about, trying to will the right choice up to the surface. He was very close to moving forward, the way he would go was still up for further internal debate, when shouts of warning came from behind.

“Run! Just keep running!” the breathless, obviously strained, voice of a man shouted.

Spinning around, Daniel saw that the advice was not meant for him. Instead, the voice was urging quicker movement from someone who was falling behind, which the man had turned to face before his warning had been made. Another group was even further behind this pair, charging straight down the tracks. It was immediately clear that the further group was members of the same horde that had just swarmed the Warehouse. Before either group took notice of him, Daniel dove headlong into the thick bushes that thrust up just east of the oily stones that supported the railroad tracks.

Daniel struggled to turn onto his back and point the rifle out in front of him without causing such a ruckus that it would make his presence obvious to anyone close by. A man and woman went hurrying past, struggling to reload internal rifle magazines as they went. Daniel recalled them as a couple that he had assigned to the northeast APC attack group, mainly because they didn’t have kids. Daniel wanted to yell out a warning of his own, threats of harm for leading the horde straight back to camp, but nothing came out. The gripping fear of being seen or heard overrode these urges.

While he chastised them, and himself, as cowards, a dozen men in gray jumpsuits came into view.

Chapter 27

There was no need for Daniel to tell his lungs to stop drawing air, the rancid smell of the invaders flesh took care of that. It was even more of a struggle to keep from gagging when he saw the open sores that covered their face and hands, like each one of them carried some unknown and disturbing plague. Most of the men in gray jumpsuits were carrying clubs, but Daniel was certain that he had seen a rifle or two also. Even after the group of horrifying visions past across his narrow band of view through the overgrowth, their stench remained.

Daniel had never been so afraid. Whether it was the years of conditioning telling him that these strangers were dangerous, or whether it was the new danger of catching whatever horrendous-looking disease they carried, or whether it was just because of their sheer numbers, he did not know.

Despite wanting nothing more than to crawl further into the concealing weeds,