Dead America: Lowcountry | Book 6 | Lowcountry [Part 6] Read online

  DEAD AMERICA

  LOWCOUNTRY

  PART 6

  BY DEREK SLATON

  © 2021

  CHAPTER ONE

  Day Zero +4

  The sun peeked through the blinds, shining right onto Dante’s face as he laid on the couch. His first instinct was to pull the covers over his head and roll over, but he quickly succumbed to the inevitability of being awake. He sat up slightly, looking around the empty room.

  Ever since they’d cleared out the house across the street, there was a lot more room to move about. No more cramped sleeping quarters, no more piles of sleeping bodies, although there weren’t quite enough beds to go around yet.

  As he lamented the discomfort of the couch, he took pause, and pressed his palms to his head. Be thankful you have this, he thought to himself. Grace could be sleeping on a whole lot worse.

  He took a deep breath, not wanting to imagine the horrors she could be going through. She might not even be sleeping at all.

  She’s a tough girl, he thought firmly, shutting down that thought process. She’ll be okay.

  The sound of coffee mugs clanking together perked him up, and he sat up. He slipped off of the couch and approached the kitchen, peeking in to see Lily standing in front of the coffee maker, tapping her foot impatiently. The little appliance seemed to be struggling, pumping out a tiny trickle of the black gold.

  She grunted in frustration as the machine sputtered.

  “Having some issues this morning?” Dante asked, and she squeaked, leaping off of the ground as she whipped around to face him.

  She put a hand over her heart. “Jesus tap-dancing Christ Dante,” she breathed.

  He cracked a smile, and she returned it, lowering her hand and shaking her head.

  “Sorry, I didn’t mean to startle you, there,” he said, chuckling.

  Her smile widened, and she waved him off. “It’s okay,” she said, and then turned back to the coffee maker, smacking the side of it before unplugging the cord. “On the plus side, I don’t need this to wake up, now.”

  Ace wandered into the kitchen in just his boxers, rubbing his eyes with his fists and yawning. “Well some of us do, Lil,” he groaned, scrubbing his hands down his face. “Especially when they are woken up at the ass crack of dawn by a couple of knuckleheads in the kitchen.”

  Said knuckleheads shared an apologetic glance.

  “Sorry cuz,” Lily said.

  “Maybe they have some across the street,” Dante suggested.

  Ace ran his hands through his hair. “Well, why don’t y’all go check,” he said thickly, stifling another yawn. “I’ll stay here and try to figure out what the fuck I’m doing.”

  “Well, there goes his morning,” Lily quipped, and led Dante out of the kitchen away from her pasty scantily clad cousin.

  There was a clear path leading from Ace’s front door to the house across the street. On either side of the yard was a stretch of cars and other debris, creating a makeshift barricade. It wasn’t much, and wouldn’t protect them from a horde of any significant size, but it would buy them a bit of time should problems arise. At least problems with the undead.

  As they walked towards the other house, they spotted Cam and Phillip standing guard, looking down the street towards the gas station, only occasionally looking back in the other direction.

  “Come on man, Jason Voorhees is way more of a bad guy than Michael Myers,” Cam was saying, and the argument already sounded heated, as if it had been going on for a while. “He’s got a higher body count and is more indiscriminate with his kills.”

  Phillip threw his hands up. “Michael Myers killed his teenage sister!”

  “So?” Cam scoffed. “Jason has killed enough teenagers to fill a high school football stadium.”

  Phillip cocked his head. “Yeah?” he asked and then pointed a finger at his partner. “Well, Michael spent an entire movie trying to kill his ten year old niece! Jason never tried to kill kids, now did he?”

  “Part six!” Cam shot back. “He broke into the bunks and scared those kids.”

  Phillip shook his head. “But he didn’t try to kill them, now did he?” he asked.

  His friend thought for a moment, his excitement fading, but then his eyes widened as another thought dawned on him. “Oh, oh, oh!” he exclaimed. “But in that Nintendo game, he totally killed the kids!”

  “Really?” Phillip rolled his eyes. “We’re bringing video games into this now?”

  Cam sneered. “You’re just mad because you lost the debate,” he accused.

  “Two things,” his friend said flatly, holding up his pointer and middle fingers. “One, the kids die off screen, so it doesn’t count. Two, Michael Myers actually kills a kid on-screen in his game.”

  Cam scowled. “When the hell was there a Halloween video game?” he demanded.

  “Atari 2600, my friend,” Phillip declared, puffing out his chest.

  His companion rolled his eyes. “Oh yeah, the system with games featuring square tanks, square bullets, and square circles,” he drawled, sarcasm heavy in his tone. “I’m sure the deaths were all kinds of realistic.”

  “Had blood and everything,” Phillip argued, “so realistic enough to piss off parents back in the day.”

  Cam shook his head emphatically. “Man, how in the hell do you know so much about the ancient times?” he asked.

  “Well, you never know when you might have to converse with someone who is ancient,” his friend explained with a laugh.

  “Morning guys,” Dante said as they reached them. “Sounds like you have a hell of a debate going on here.”

  “Case in point?” Phillip asked, jerking a thumb towards Dante. The boys chuckled, the two newcomers shaking their heads in confusion.

  “Come on, let’s leave Beavis and Butthead here to do their thing,” Lily said, rolling her eyes.

  Phillip held up a hand. “No, no, wait,” he said. “We could actually use your help.”

  “Okay, shoot,” Dante replied, crossing his arms.

  “Well, we’re trying to say who the most evil villain in film history is,” Cam explained. “I say it’s Jason Voorhees, and he says it’s Michael Myers.”

  Phillip nodded. “So who do you think it is?”

  Dante contemplated for a moment, and glanced over at Lily, who shot him an amused smirk and playfully motioned for him to share his thoughts.

  “Well, as fate would have it,” Dante began, “I actually know a little about this topic. Out of the two, I would have to say Michael Myers is the more evil of the two.”

  “Boom!” Phillip cried, raising both his hands in a faux explosion.

  Cam gaped at him, shaking his head. “How, man?!” he blurted. “Jason has a much higher body count than Michael does!”

  “It’s not about the number of kills,” Dante replied, “but where he killed them.”

  The younger man raised an eyebrow. “I don’t follow.”

  “Of course you don’t,” Lily drawled, “because you’re an idiot.”

  “I mean, it’s pretty simple when you think about it, really,” Dante continued. “Crystal Lake is his home, and outside of killing Alice at the beginning of the second movie, pretty much every single one of his kills has been people who came to Crystal Lake. Or, in his mind, people who were invading his home. Granted, that case isn’t as airtight as say, Leatherface’s, but it excuses a lot of the murders when compared with Michael, who just hunts and kills all over town.”

  The boys looked at each other and shrugged, finally nodding at the answer.

  “What are y’all talking about?” Ace asked as he sauntered up
behind them, finally fully clothed.

  Dante chuckled. “They were having a debate on who the most evil movie character was,” he explained.

  “Oh yeah?” Ace asked. “Who won?”

  Phillip puffed out his chest. “My pick, Michael Myers,” he declared.

  “Eh, not a bad choice,” Ace said, tilting his head back and forth. “A hundred percent wrong, but not a bad choice.”

  The younger man raised an eyebrow. “Oh yeah?” he challenged. “Who is your pick?”

  “Oh, that’s easy,” Ace drawled. “It’s Jenny from Forrest Gump.”

  Everyone froze and stared at him with blank expressions.

  “I’m… almost afraid to ask,” Lily said slowly, closing her eyes. “But why is Jenny the biggest movie villain?”

  Ace balked at her. “Are you serious?” he asked. “She raped a mental midget who she knew was in love with her, completely abandoned him afterwards, then showed back up years later to dump an AIDS baby in his lap and then took advantage of him yet again, so she’d have someone to take care of her as she died.” He took a breath, having spouted all the information without breathing. “That’s way more evil than a few dumb sex-crazed teenagers meeting the business end of a machete.”

  Lily facepalmed so hard she was sure she’d given herself a minor concussion. The rest of the group was speechless.

  “Based on your reactions,” Ace drawled, “I’d say I won that round.”

  His cousin sighed. “More like you killed so many of our brain cells that we lack the ability to respond,” she said.

  “Before he shares more film history thoughts,” Dante cut in, “do you boys have any coffee?”

  They shook their heads in tandem.

  “Only thing they had in the house was decaf,” Cam replied.

  Lily grimaced. “Now that’s evil,” she said.

  “Come on, we’ll get some at the gas station,” Ace suggested. “Need to fill up that dirt bike with gas anyway.”

  His cousin furrowed her brow. “When did you get a dirt bike?” she asked.

  “Found it yesterday, going through that last house’s garage,” he explained, jerking a thumb over his shoulder. “Doesn’t look like it’s been run in a while, so I need to put it through its paces so it doesn’t break down.”

  “If you want to grab that,” Dante said, “I’ll grab my handgun and we’ll start walking.”

  Ace nodded. “Yeah, good call,” he agreed. “Grab my knife if you don’t mind. Can’t be too careful these days.”

  As the trio headed off, Cam stepped forward.

  “Hey, will you bring us back a cup, too?” he asked.

  Dante paused, glancing over his shoulder. “How do you take it?”

  Cam smirked. “I take my coffee like I take my women,” he said, waggling his eyebrows.

  “Then you already have it, since the only women you take are imaginary,” Lily quipped.

  He opened his mouth, but then just hung his head, prompting laughter from everyone, especially Phillip, who bumped his shoulder in his mirth.

  The trio walked up the street, Dante and Lily up ahead as Ace pushed his shiny new dirt bike a few yards behind them. They walked quietly, just enjoying the peacefulness of the morning.

  Dante glanced over at Lily, unable to keep his eyes off of her, and she side-glanced him back, the two blushing a bit and immediately averting their eyes.

  Ace saw the exchange and rolled his eyes, speeding up to a jog to catch up to them. “It’s the apocalypse, this ain’t the time to slow play it,” he quipped.

  Both of them started to argue as he jogged by them, pushing the bike, but clamped their mouths shut to avoid further embarrassment.

  He looked back over his shoulder as he jogged ahead. “You know I’m right,” he called in a singsong voice, “which is why neither of you are saying anything. Now would one of you make your damn move already, so we can get on with our day?”

  He turned his back to them and rushed off towards the gas station.

  When he was out of earshot, Dante scratched the back of his head nervously. “I… I know it’s only been a few days since we met,” he began, avoiding looking at her. “But I do kind of like you.”

  She chuckled, unable to hold in her smile. “I know it’s only been a few days,” she echoed, “but I kinda like you too.”

  He smiled down at her, reaching out and grabbing her hand, and she laced her fingers into his. They walked along, enjoying the human contact and the peaceful morning for a few moments.

  “Just so you know,” Dante finally said playfully, “I don’t put out on the first date.”

  Lily winked. “Just so you know,” she replied, “I do.”

  They shared a laugh and were still chuckling when they reached the gas station.

  Ace spotted them from his perch next to the bike, the gas pump firmly lodged in the tank. “Well, it’s about damn time,” he drawled, throwing his hand up dramatically.

  “I’ll get the coffee going,” Lily said, shooting Dante a smile as she pulled away from him, lingering her fingers on his as long as possible before letting go.

  He watched her sashay off into the gas station and took a deep breath. “Some solid wingman work there,” he commended as he stepped closer to Ace.

  “Well, one of us needs to be decisive,” the redneck quipped, and finished topping off the tank, replacing the nozzle on the pump. “You know anything about dirt bikes?” he asked.

  Dante shook his head. “Not really,” he admitted. “Wasn’t great with machines growing up. My father was a graphic designer, so there wasn’t any of that learning at my father’s knee stuff as he fixed the car. Now, if you need me to drive it down to the mechanic to have the oil changed, I can handle that for you.”

  Ace laughed as he pushed the bike towards the store. “Well come on, I’ll give you a quick run through on this bad boy, so you’ll at least know what the working parts are.” He held up a finger. “Now just so we’re clear, Lily’s my cousin, so I can’t show you how that works.”

  Dante barked a laugh. “Don’t worry,” he said, “I’ve got that one covered. Believe it or not, I didn’t always look this pretty.” He motioned to his face.

  Ace stopped short, brow furrowing, face a rare expression of seriousness. “Hey man, you know Lily don’t care about that,” he said. “I mean hell, you met Maddox, so it’s pretty obvious she ain’t about looks.”

  Dante chuckled and patted his friend on the back. “Come on, let’s check out this bike.”

  CHAPTER TWO

  The bike stood on its kickstand by the front counter. Ace knelt down on one knee, pointing out some things on the engine as Dante looked over his shoulder. He nodded along with everything the redneck said, intently focused on it even though much of what he was saying went over his head.

  “Coffee’s on, boys,” Lily declared, and both men looked up as she held out two tall cups of liquid gold. “Savor it, because in another week or so we’re going to be out of the light roast,” she added, as they both nodded and thanked her for the brew.

  “Looks like we have something to add to the shopping list,” Ace said.

  Dante raised his eyebrow. “You mean it wasn’t already?” he asked.

  They chuckled before turning back to their engine lesson, sipping the steaming brew.

  Lily walked back to the coffee maker, pouring herself a nice tall cup, mixing in a couple packets of the powdered creamer. She took a deep sniff of it, enjoying the steamy scent of fresh brew. She walked over to the front door, enjoying the peace and quiet as the sun crested the horizon.

  The view from the front window of the store wasn’t too impressive—at least on a normal day. But with the sun creeping up over the trees in the distance, and no flesh-eating monsters in sight, it was beautiful enough for her to enjoy it.

  The beauty was short-lived, however.

  Lily froze at the sight of two large SUVs in the distance. She opened her mouth, but her voice came out in a quiet squeak.


  “Dante…” she rasped, and then finally found her voice. “Dante!”

  The boys raced over to her, concerned.

  “What is it?” he asked.

  She motioned to the vehicles. “Down the road,” she gushed.

  They squinted and quickly realized that the SUVs were similar to the ones QXR had on the marine base when they were there a few days ago.

  “Fuck man, how in the hell did they find us?” Ace breathed, pressing his hand to his forehead.

  Dante shook his head. “I don’t think they have found us,” he replied, “or they don’t know that they have. Look.”

  The trio watched as the vehicles stopped a hundred yards away at the first set of houses on either side of the road. Eight men got out, standing around for a moment before seven of them headed off to investigate various houses.

  “They’re just doing a sweep,” Lily said, relief in her tone.

  Ace nodded. “Well, let’s get the fuck outta here,” he said.

  “How?” she asked, shaking her head. “As soon as we start up the truck, they’re going to be on us. We don’t have the firepower to take them on!”

  Her cousin crossed his arms. “Well what do you propose?”

  “We gotta pull them away from here,” Dante cut in firmly.

  “What?” both cousins exclaimed at the same time.

  He held up his hands. “If we don’t pull them away, they’ll just follow us down to the school,” he explained.

  Ace swallowed hard as the insinuation sunk in. The last thing they needed was QXR finding their farming operation.

  “Well, how in the hell are we gonna do that?” he asked.

  Dante motioned to the dirt bike.

  Ace shook his head. “You wanna outrun a bunch of mercs on a dirt bike?” he demanded. “And go where?”

  “We head back towards the prison where we broke Francis out,” Dante explained. “Lose ‘em in the town and hightail it back down south.”

  “We?” Ace asked, raising an eyebrow.

  Dante nodded. “Yeah, we,” he confirmed. “I’m assuming you know how to drive that thing?”

  “Been riding since I was four,” the redneck replied proudly.