The First Days (As the World Dies 1)

Lloyd had destroyed what remained of their life together.

It was time to go.

Wrenching the passenger door open, she looked back to see Mikey hurtling toward her. She jumped in and slammed the door shut just as he impacted with the side of the truck. His battered, chewed face pressed against the glass as he bared his teeth and his growls ripped at her ears.

"Mikey," she whispered. She pressed her hand against the glass, blocking his gruesome face from her view.

She looked away.

The blond woman slammed her door shut and shifted gears. The truck roared into reverse as Lloyd rushed toward them, hissing loudly.

The blond shifted again and the truck lurched forward and accelerated down th

e quiet suburban street just as the sun rose over the tops of the houses.

She dared to look back, dared to see what followed. Falling behind quickly was Lloyd and Mikey: her husband and her son. And they were not alone. Others, bloodied and crazed, were racing out from houses, screaming either in terror or in hunger.

She tore her gaze away from the things running behind her.

And the tiny fingers she knew were still pressed under the door.

2. Together

The old battered truck sped around a corner and nearly sideswiped an SUV that was stopped dead in the middle of the road. Forced to slow down, the blond driver of the truck slammed the flat of her hand against the steering wheel and cursed under her breath.

As the truck glided past the SUV, the blond woman’s green eyes glanced into the parked vehicle and wished immediately she hadn't. A man sat in the driver seat, staring straight ahead. His eyes were wide, unblinking, his mouth moving in words that were too easy to make out.

"Stop, please, stop" she was sure he was saying.

But the woman hunched over him, covered in blood and gore continued to pull ropes of intestine up to her greedy mouth. As the truck passed by, the woman looked up, hissed and slammed her hand against the SUV's windshield.

She slammed her foot down on the accelerator and the truck lurched ahead. She stole a glance at the pale, fragile creature beside her. The woman she had rescued sat silently with one hand pressed against the bloody smear on the passenger side window.

"Hey," the driver said reaching over and tapping the stranger's knee.

"Hey. "

The woman slowly turned her head and the driver saw that her eyes were glassy and distant.

Great, she was in shock.

"Hey, my name is Katie. I need your help, okay?"

"The man," the woman said in response.

Katie turned her gaze back to the road just in time to see a man trying to wave them down. He was drenched in blood and was sobbing violently. She started to slow the truck, but two small children suddenly leapt onto the man, their baby teeth ripping into his throat.

"Just go," the stranger next to her said in a dead voice. "Just go. "

Katie drew in a shivering breath and nodded. "Yeah. You're right. "

She drove on, leaving the man wailing as blood spurted into the air and the children rode him down to the ground. Katie swallowed hard and forced her gaze from the review mirror and concentrated on maneuvering through the suburbia hell she was caught in.

The woman next to her drew her pale pink bathrobe tighter around her trembling body and stared straight ahead. Her eyes were as dark as her black hair.

Katie slowed down just a tad to a quick, but more reasonable pace. The street they were on seemed peaceful and she needed to get her thoughts together. She forced herself to take several deep breaths. She had to keep calm. She knew that much.

"Listen, I need you to take my cell phone and call the first number in the speed-dial. 911 is not working right now, but hopefully we can get through to the police department. I can't pay attention to driving and call. "