The Virus Within (Original rough draft)

Chapter 22

Hank turned the truck off and climbed out as we looked around. It was another small town with maybe fifteen buildings total. Daniel was already jogging to lure the zombies away. Most buildings were houses, and from the smell, quite a few had zombies trapped inside.

I went to check the three stores. The hardware store had a zombie inside, but the other two were clear. The corner store had no food left on the shelves. None of the stores were exactly secure enough for my tastes. I went back to the hardware store to grab a ladder. It took two snarls before the resident zombie let me shoplift the long ladder.

I leaned the ladder against the corner store, this building had a flat roof and it would be a much better spot to camp. I went back to the hardware store to claim two of the big pavilion tents and a raised firepit. The tents would keep any rain off and help the humans stay warm.

The firepit was to avoid burning down the store. It struck me as idiotic that most roofing materials were made from oil byproducts and sealed with tar, making them quite flammable. What genius came up with that idea? No wonder my house insurance had been so high.

Daniel brought a load of firewood up the ladder. Most of the others were trying to set up the tents. Chloe barked from below and whined. Tom glanced over the edge, "Too bad there isn't any way to get her up here. Poor girl."

I walked over to look down at a rather sad looking Chloe. She was too big for a human to carry up and she would panic if I attempted to pick her up. I dropped off the side of the building to go back into the hardware store. I had an idea. I had to growl again at the zombie inside, I must have smelled pretty strongly of humans for him to be bothering me so.

I used ratchet straps to secure a dog carrier to a two wheeled dolly cart. This was going to be interesting. I took it back to the store.

I went down on one knee and spoke softly to Chloe, "Come on girl. Want to go up? Get in the dog house."

She didn't know the word kennel, but she knew what a dog house was. She came up to me a bit uneasily, but went inside the kennel. I closed the door behind her and secured it. I tied a thick rope to the handle of the dolly and ensured the knot was secure.

I grabbed the other end before climbing up to the roof. I braced my feet on the edge of the roof and started pulling the rope up hand over hand. The dolly tires gently hit the wall and slowly rolled the kennel smoothly up to the roof as I pulled.

I grabbed onto the handle and backed up before opening the kennel. Chloe bounded out excitedly while wagging her tail as she was finally with people again. I went over to help manhandle one of the tent sections. Nicky was discovering her inner pyromaniac as she started the fire. Yeah, I was staying away from that area until she was done.

By the time both tents were up and well secured, Nina had already started cooking. I sniffed the air and got up, "Come on Daniel, let's go have a talk with a Runner. We will be back before supper is done."

He got to his feet and followed me as we both simply jumped off the roof. I took off toward the forest while following the scent. He followed me in silence. I paused as I finally caught sight of the zombie. I looked over at Daniel, "Do you want to try first, or do you want to see me do it?"

He examined the oblivious Runner, "Ladies first."

I snickered before dropping into the typical Nightstalker crouch as I pretended to cross the clearing. The Runner growled at me and I returned it. My sunglasses hid my eyes and the Runner came closer with a snarl to test the truth of my identity. I turned to face the Runner with a louder snarl as my hands were held out from my sides a bit as a challenge and warning. I held no weapons, my fingernails were weapons.