Episode 3

The long rectangular brick building looked deserted, and Abraham approached the front door. He turned off the truck, and Bella looked at her father, grabbing her backpack.

"Okay, we stay quiet and searched the place. We want to make sure none of the things are in there when we take a shower," she said, handing him a fireplace poker, and he nodded.

They got out of the vehicle and went inside. After searching the entire building, Bella and her father found the place empty and sighed in relief. They noticed the lights were still on, and Abraham grinned.

"Well, the generator is still working. The emergency lights are on," he said.

"Let's go see if the water still works," said Bella, and her father nodded.

They entered the locker room, and Bella sighed in relief, seeing the high shower stalls. Abraham walked into the first stall and turned the water on. He put his hand under the spray and grinned, feeling the warm water.

"Yep, still works, and so does the temperature," he said.

"Great! I'll take the last stall. You just stay right there and don't look at me. This is already weird enough without thinking my dad is a total creepo."

Abraham laughed and shook his head. Bella chuckled, set her backpack on the bench, and pulled out a pair of boxers.

"I grabbed a clean pair of undies for you. I'll just put them on the bench," she said, not looking her father's way.

"Thanks, Bell."

She ensured her father wasn't looking, undressed quickly, and hopped into the stall. She turned the water on and sighed in relief, wetting and brushing the tangle out of her hair. She looked at the scar on her side that went from her armpit to her hip. She got it during her first motorcycle accident. A piece of metal sliced through her side, and she had to get over two hundred stitches.

Bella got the tangles out of her hair and scrubbed as hard as possible to get the blood out.

"Dad?"

"Yeah, little bird?"

Bella hated the nickname, but her father gave it to her when she started playing on the CB radio, and the name has stuck ever since.

"Did you find anything strange in your room when you woke up beside the note?"

"No, not that I remember. Why?" asked Abraham.

"Because I found another clue to the mystery," she said, popping a toothbrush in her mouth.

"What do you mean, a clue?"

"I think you were right about being hit in the back of the head. When I went into Charlie's room, I found an empty bottle of chloroform and a metal pipe with blood on it. I think someone wanted us to turn into those freaks."

Abraham let the water run over his head and wiped his face.

"Then we should hurry up and get out there. Go find Megan and Charlie," he said, and Bella agreed.

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After showering, Bella and Abraham split up to scavenge for supplies, and Bella went straight for the evidence room. She found big empty duffle bags and stuffed them with large bags of weed, guns, ammo, pain medication, and anything else they could use during their travels. Bella grabbed a few empty bags and found her father loading a bag with guns and ammunition.

Abraham put a uniform shirt on, handed Bella a gun holster and a handgun, and they left the station. They drove by the Base, found it overrun by monsters, and decided it wasn't worth trying to salvage anything from the place.

Bella had her father stop at the liquor store and a gas station at the end of town, and she ran inside with the empty duffle bags. She filled them with bottles of liquor, cartons of cigarettes, lighters, snacks, and anything else she could find and put the bags in the backseat.

"I found cases of water. Help me load them," she breathed and ran back inside.

Bella pulled out six cases of water, a rope, and a tarp. Abraham loaded the cases in the back of the truck, filled the extra gas cans, and helped secure the tarp over the back. She pulled a pack of cigarettes, a small bag of weed, and a lighter from one of the bags, and Abraham grumbled, seeing all the booze and smokes.

"Do you really need all that stuff, Bell?" he asked as they got in the truck.

Bella shrugged, and her father drove away from the gas station.

"When did you start smoking and drinking?"

"When I was fifteen. It's a rare thing. Something to numb the pain of Mom being gone. Don't get me wrong. I love Megan. I just wish Mom was still here," she explained.

Abraham sighed, turned on the empty highway, and headed toward the city. Bella turned on the radio and flipped through the stations but found nothing but static.

"What? Did you think there would be music playing?" teased Abraham, and she rolled her eyes, shaking her head.

"This is an emergency broadcast for Baker and surrounding counties. If you are in seek of shelter, food, and safety, please head to your nearest refugee camp, which is located in Chestnut City. There is food, shelter, and medical at your disposal," said a man in a monotone voice.

Bella gave her father a hopeful look.

"I bet Uncle Steve took them there," she said.

Abraham nodded and stepped on the gas.

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"Charlie!" called Megan, and a brown-haired boy with freckles and bright blue eyes ran up to her.

Megan had long brown hair, brown eyes, petite, and a scar above her left eyebrow.

"Yeah, Mom?" asked the ten-year-old.

"Why don't you go help Mrs. Jefferson clean the fish? I think Sammy is with her," she said, putting dishes away, and Charlie nodded, running off through the campsite.

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BEFORE…

Megan was in the kitchen cooking dinner, humming to the radio, when a distress call interrupted the song.

"We interrupt your regularly scheduled program to bring you this important message. All personnel report to Base and the Baker County Police Department. All civilians, pack your belongings and head to the Chestnut City Refugee Camp located on Main and Route sixty-eight. Please use caution when on the highway and are approached by anyone looking sick or diseased, do not engage with that person. Please be quick and head to the refugee camp as quickly as possible. "

Megan dropped the spoon she was stirring with and ran to the study. Abraham and Steve were in a heated argument, and she yelled at them to stop.

"Whatever your problems are, they can wait. Abraham, you have to head to the Base. I will get Bella and Charlie to the city," she said, and Abraham, Steve, Mark, and Brian looked at her oddly.

"What are you talking about?" asked Abraham, and Megan turned the radio on.

The men heard the broadcast and scattered. Megan went to find Charlie and Bella when she felt someone grab her, and everything went dark. She woke up to Steve shaking her and telling her Abraham and Bella were dead, and he had to get her and Charlie to the city. When she entered the bedroom, she saw Abraham lying on the floor and gasped. Then she noticed her husband's breathing was shallow and tried to wake him up.

Abraham didn't budge, so she quickly wrote a note, crumpled it, and shoved it in his hand, hoping he would wake up and find it. She packed things up, and even though the dust bothered her, she ignored it. Purposely, Megan packed her car and left Abraham's truck behind so if he did wake up, he would be able to get out safely. Steve got in the driver's seat, and he, Megan, and Charlie headed for the city.

Surprisingly, the traffic was at a standstill for hours, and families got out of their cars, got food, and waited for the traffic to start moving again. Megan looked around and then at Steve. He had dark hair and eyes, was tall and muscular, and didn't do well in stressful situations. He saved her and Charlie, and Megan was grateful, feeling she owed him, and they started fooling around.

******************* 

"What's going on?" asked Megan, and Steve shook his head.

"I'm not sure," he said, and he, Megan, and Charlie got out of the car.

Suddenly, they heard screaming about half a mile ahead, and Steve got on the car's roof. His eyes widened, seeing cars drive off the road, people scattering into the woods, and a herd of mutants attacking people. He jumped to the ground and looked at everyone.

"We got to move now! Everyone into the woods, as far back as you can get, and keep quiet!" Steve shouted, and everyone scattered to the surrounding forest.

The survivors watched in terror as a group of mutated, disgusting zombies staggered through the vehicles, attacking the ones who didn't get away and the dead coming back to life. Thanks to Steve's quick thinking, Megan, Charlie, and a small group of survivors were safe. They found a small camping spot away from the highway and devised a survival plan to keep everyone alive.