The Virus Within: The Road Ahead (Book 1 - SERIES COMPLETED!)

Chapter 21

Hank turned the truck off and climbed out as we looked around. Daniel was already jogging toward some feral zombies to lure them away from the small highway-side town. I counted fifteen buildings, most of which were houses. From the smell, quite a few had zombies trapped inside.

The humans waited by the truck while I went to check the three stores. The hardware store had a zombie inside, but the other two were clear. The corner store had been thoroughly looted and no food was left on the shelves.

None of them were secure enough for my liking, so 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.

The corner store had a flat roof which would make an excellent camping spot. I leaned the ladder against the wall and went back into the hardware store to claim two big tents and a raised firepit. If it rained, the humans would need the tents to stay warm and dry.

The firepit was mainly 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 carried a load of firewood up the ladder while the others attempted to set up the tents. Chloe barked from below and whined.

Tom glanced over the edge. "It's too bad there isn't any way to get her up here. Poor girl. We can put her in the truck cab at night. At least it'll keep her safe from any zombies that may come by."

I walked over to look down at Chloe, who looked rather sad at being unable to find a way up. She was too big for a human to carry up a ladder, and she would panic if Daniel or I attempted to pick her up. I dropped off the side of the building and went back into the hardware store. I had an idea.

Once again, I had to growl at the zombie inside. The smell of humans must really be clinging to me if he kept bothering me like this. It took a bit of searching to find everything I needed.

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

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

She came up to me a bit uneasily, and after tossing a few treats in the back of the kennel, she eventually went in. I closed the door behind her and tied a thick rope securely to the handle of the dolly.

I grabbed the other end of the long rope and climbed up the ladder. After bracing my feet on the edge of the roof, I started pulling the rope up hand over hand. The dolly's tires gently hit the wall and rolled their way to the roof as I pulled.

Chloe was jittery by the time I was able to grab the handle and bring the dolly and the attached kennel onto the roof. When I opened it up, she bounded out and wagged her tail, happy to be back with people again.

With Chloe now safely on the roof with the rest of us, I went over to help manhandle one of the tent sections. Nicky was discovering her inner pyromaniac while lighting the campfire and I eyed her gleeful grin warily. Yeah, I was staying away from that area until she was done. Far, far away.

By the time both tents were set up and secured with buckets of rocks from the ground, Nina had already started cooking.

I sniffed the air. "Come on, Daniel. Let's go have a talk with a Runner. We'll be back before the food is cooked."

In silent curiosity, he followed me as we both dropped off the roof and headed down the road. I slipped into the edge of the forest so we could get closer without being spotted.