The Road to Macon: A Zombie Novel by Micah Gurley

bloody. Various parts of their bodies were missing or had been torn apart. They were currently standing behind the lieutenant or to his side, and all of them were trying to reach forward and grab someone. Kyle had to do a double-take on the strange scene in front of him. He was amazed at the stupidity of the creatures but thankful for the time. He had dragged Tim a good twelve feet, when he reached down to check his vitals. There were none, he was gone. Kyle looked down at his friend and just felt sadness. So wasteful. So stupid. He had just begun to ponder on his feelings when he looked up to see the lieutenant reach too far over the rail and flip right over it. He hit head first with his body crashing loudly behind
    “Oh crap,” he said out loud. Crazy, that was all he could think to describe it. Even worse was that he got right back up and started walking in that stumbling, disoriented manner. The guy wasn’t running, but he was fast enough to get to Kyle quickly. Kyle jumped up and started to run back toward the security building.
    “Merge right, Kyle,” a voice came through on his radio. Kyle lunged quickly and shots began to ring out from the towers on each end of the long street. Kyle didn’t turn to look, but made sure no one was coming from his sides and made it to the security gate that surrounded the building. He took out the hanger-shaped piece of metal that kept the latch secure and bolted through. Refastening the metal latch, Kyle turned around to see how close the lieutenant was when an ‘all clear’ was called on the radio. Kyle walked to the side of the building, slumped to the ground and closed his eyes, trying to control the shaking that was racking his body.
    The door to the building slammed open and Patrick burst through.
    “You okay man? That was intense! Did you see the lieutenant flip over the rail? Man, I’m shaking, look at this.” He held his arm out. It wasn’t shaking.
    “Patrick, give me a second, okay?” Kyle pleaded. As usual, after battle or in this case fleeing for your life from your friends who were eating people, he was hitting the come down. It usually resulted in him shaking so bad that he needed to sit or kept him from holding anything in his hands for a few minutes.
    “Sure man,” Patrick said. “I’ll get you a Coke, or a Mountain Dew...Do the Dew ya know?”
    “Patrick!”
    “Sorry, just talk a little when I get nervous. Oh yeah, the brave Neil made it inside also. He's in the lieutenant’s office,” he said, and darted back inside. Kyle leaned his back against the metal building. He didn’t check his watch, didn’t need to, Kyle knew it was time to get out.
    Kyle sat there for a few more minutes and drank the soda that Patrick gave him. He had stopped shaking and was only left with rage and sorrow, both at Neil for what had just happened. He pushed himself off the ground and dusted his hands off, throwing the can onto the ground beside the door. He opened it and walked through.
    Neil was in the lieutenant’s office when Kyle walked through with Yolanda and Patrick following him. He was dialing numbers and kept slamming the phone down only to pick it up and dial again.
    "Neil," Kyle said, standing a few feet from him. Neil slammed down the phone again and looked at Kyle with loathing.
    "You’re responsible for what just happened," Neil snarled. "You’re cowardice caused Tim do die. I intend to have charges brought up against you."
    Rage. It was one thing to make a bad call, but another to lie to yourself and everyone else about it. Then to run away and leave others paying the price for it? It was too much for Kyle. Kyle almost jumped across the room to deliver a powerful roundhouse to Neil's smug face. It was a sloppy throw that if it had missed would have completely caused Kyle to lose his balance, but he didn't miss. His knuckles met the side of Neil's head, dropping him instantly. Kyle, all reason gone, picked Neil up the by the shirt and delivered two