Among Monsters (Page 35)

I pulled my eyebrows together, watching him closely.

“Are you Scarlet’s girls?” he said, his eyes wide.

“Jenna!” Halle said.

Joey laughed once and covered his mouth. “Holy shit, you’re Jenna and Halle! Your mom is right down the street!”

“What?” I said, my eyes instantly tearing.

“Mommy!” Halle said, standing.

I gathered my composure and pushed Halle back behind me, repositioning my gun.

Joey held his hands higher. “I swear. We’ve been coming this way almost every day, helping her clear the teds to make it safer for you girls to get to Red Hill. Where’s your dad? Andrew?”

Once he said Dad’s name, I relaxed, and my gun pointed toward the floor. Halle threw her arms around my butt in excitement. I breathed out and began to sob uncontrollably.

“It’s okay, Jenna. Mom is just down the street!”

“It’s…it’s okay,” Joey said. “Can I…can I hug you?”

I didn’t respond. All I could do was bawl. So much relief and happiness came over me, two emotions I hadn’t felt in a very long time. It was too overwhelming.

Joey approached us slowly. He took the gun from my hands, clicked the safety, and then put it on the floor nearby before gently wrapping his large arms around Halle and me. My knees gave way, but he effortlessly bore my weight.

“Okay,” he said in a comforting tone, “we’re going to get you to your mom. She is going to…I don’t even know. I can’t wait to see her smile.”

That thought helped dry my tears, and I looked down to Halle. “Get your things. We’re going to see Mom.”

Halle ran to fetch her backpack, and I grabbed mine before slinging the rifle over my shoulder.

Joey picked up his weapons, shaking his head. “I can’t believe I found you. I can’t believe you’re both alive.”

“Does she think we’re dead?”

“Nope. She’s been watching the hill for you every day. She never gave up.”

For the first time since the morning we’d left for Red Hill with Dad, I was filled with hope.

“Here, let me carry those,” he said, taking our packs. “It’s dark, so listen for anything shuffling around. Stay close.”

“Okay,” we said in unison.

This is really happening. Mom is just a couple of minutes away.

Joey stepped out of the back door, and I began to follow him, but then the door slammed in my face.

Joey turned to face us while an infected sank its teeth into his neck.

“No,” I said, looking into his wide eyes while flattening my palms against the Plexiglas. “No!”

“Stay inside,” he whispered before pushing backward and then stumbling away. Several infected followed him, and then he disappeared into the darkness.

Halle took a breath and began to scream, but I covered her mouth and pulled her to the floor. I reached up and turned the lock, and then I rocked her while we listened to the crickets and the excited moans of infected shuffling through the yard after Joey.

I concentrated on my breathing, trying to slow it down. My eyes began to get fuzzy, and my nose felt numb.

I held my breath for a moment, and then I took in a shallow breath through my nostrils before blowing it out. The next one was more controlled. After several more of those, I felt better.

I realized I was still rocking Halle, my hand covering her mouth. I quickly pulled my hand away, and she wiped her eyes.

“Are we still going to see Mom?” she whispered.

“It’s too risky. We’ll catch her in the morning before she leaves town.”

“He has my backpack,” Halle said, her bottom lip quivering.

“I’ll find you a new one.”

I pulled a dresser in front of the bottom of the stairs and set drinking glasses and vases on top, just like we had done our first night. Then, I did the same at the top of the stairs.

Halle and I didn’t attempt to sponge bathe like usual. We just went straight to bed. I knew that no matter what happened, the next day would be a long one.

“I want Mom,” Halle whimpered.

“Me, too. We’re going to see her tomorrow.”

“You keep saying that, but we never do.”

“I promise, Halle. One way or another, we will see Mom tomorrow.”

“Okay,” she said.

It took Halle longer than usual to fall asleep, and then she jerked and muttered and cried in her sleep, likely dreaming about Joey or Dad.

The moaning outside continued for hours, and I wondered if I was ever going to fall asleep. The heat didn’t help, and neither did thinking every noise was an infected trying to get into the house or thinking about seeing Mom the next day.

I thought about the first time I had seen the group, and I wondered if the woman I had seen was Mom.

Did she look so different that I wouldn’t recognize her? Would she recognize us? Would she think we had changed? Had she?

I thought about Connor and how different he was from the boy April had described and how quickly he had changed. We had been apart from Mom for months, and by Joey’s description, she was now in the business of killing zombies so that we could get to Red Hill. I imagined what she was like now. It didn’t matter how much she’d changed though. With her was the only place I wanted to be, and it was worth anything to get there.

My eyes finally began to feel heavy, and I let it take me away from Shallot to the halls of Bishop Middle School.

I walked and talked with Chloe, confused about where my classes were, and I was frustrated because I couldn’t remember my locker combination.

Chloe shook her head and frowned at me. “Jenna?”

“Yeah?”

“Wake up.”

I opened my eyes to see Halle leaning over me, pushing up her black-rimmed glasses. “Jenna? Are we seeing Mom today?”

I pushed her to the side and sat up, seeing the bright sun shining through the windows. “No. No!” I said, running to the window at the top of the stairs.

They would have left at first light. I’d overslept. I’d missed them.

“Fill the canteen with water, Halle!” I said, pushing the dresser out of the way. “We’re leaving!”

I stuffed the last slices of beef jerky into my back pocket. I grabbed the rifle, the last box of ammo, and then a sack full of newspapers with a box of matches.

“Get the bat and Dad’s hunting knife,” I said.

“What are you doing with that?” Halle asked, pointing to the matches.

I looked outside, seeing several infected in the backyard. The street had several, but there weren’t so many that we couldn’t outrun them.

“We’re going out the front door.”

“Why?” she asked. We’d never done that before because there were often infected in the street.

I dumped the bag of papers onto the couch and pushed it against the wall, draping the curtains over the cushions. I lit several matches, held them under a few newspapers, and then watched as it turned into flames. The other papers caught, and I tossed some of the bullets into the fire.

“What are you doing?” Halle cried.

“Creating a diversion,” I said, watching as the flames climbed the curtains.

The room quickly began to fill with smoke, so I opened the front door and pulled Halle through.

We ran out into the street, straight into a group of infected.

We ran the other way, stopped by several more.