Ghost Mirror

Chapter 2 - Alone again.

Chapter 2 – Alone again.

            A brief but meaningful service was held for Lester as his severed arm was buried behind the power station that remained silent as though for the deceased. After the service Spencer walked to his car, put his hands atop the car and stared down at the ground.

            “Are you okay?” Gretchen asked.

Spencer remained silent for a split second. “Are we just postponing the inevitable?”

            “What do you mean?” Gretchen asked.

            “Are they going to get us in the end?” Spencer asked.

Gretchen momentarily thought back to her stay in Dunn North Carolina, and her meeting Spencer. She was about to answer when something on Spencer’s back seat caught their attention. It was a book, but not just any book, it was his Bible. Spencer reached into the back seat, grabbed the volume of scripture, and felt compelled to look within its pages. The first verse he came to was in Proverbs 3:5-6. “Trust in the Lord with all thine heart and lead not into thine own understanding. In all thy ways acknowledge him…and he shall direct thy path.”

            Spencer looked up from the biblical pages. “Get in the car. It’s time to go.”

Spencer went to check on Louis and found him by the bed of his truck; he was holding a hand grenade, a finger latched onto the pin.

            “Louis, what are you doing?” Spencer demanded, concern bubbled to the surface.

            “I can’t go on anymore.” Louis replied indolently staring at the grenade in his hand.

            “That’s crazy talk, once we get to Prescott we’re going to find an army of survivors ready to take the fight to the demons of hell, and avenge your friend.” Spencer compassionately explained. Louis turned on Spencer incensed.

            “Lester wasn’t just my friend, he was my brother.” Louis snapped.

Spencer paused to take his foot out of his mouth.

            “A lot of people were killed this week. I lost a friend that was like a brother. I’m sure everybody I ever knew is dead. You’re still alive, but if you want to throw in the towel fine, go die in the trees. But I’m not giving up.” Spencer said before he turned to walk away.

            Spencer got twenty yards before he heard the chink of the pin leaving the grenade and the spoon popping. It was just a few seconds before the grenade exploded killing Louis. Spencer closed his eyes in reverence, but at the same time cursing Louis’ choice to take the quick and easy path.

Spencer felt uneasy about taking supplies from Louis’ truck, but every bullet or MRE would get Spencer and Gretchen that much closer to the safe zone.

After Spencer finished loading the last of the supplies he climbed into the GTO’s driver’s seat. Gretchen was already seated in the passenger seat.

“So, what are we going to do now?” Gretchen asked.

“I think the best thing for us is to continue on to Prescott, we’ll—“Spencer stopped when he heard a sound coming from the direction of the abandoned truck, a sort of scraping and hissing sound.

“Did you hear that?” Spencer asked turning toward the source of the noise.

“I don’t see anything.” Spencer reported, gazing into the driver’s side mirror.