“
Just getting some weapon tips and religious advice from our fearless leader here,
”
Isabel says. Her eyes stay trained on Devin
’
s.
“
One-stop shopping.
”
“
Ouch,
”
the fireman winces.
“
You are fierce, woman.
”
“
You don
’
t know the half of it,
”
Chris mutters. His deep voice almost sounds timid around his former babysitter.
“
Alright then,
”
Devin says, business returning to his tone.
“
We best pack a little heavier while we can. Were there more bags back here?
”
He eyes the door again before walking into the shadows at the rear of the store.
“
Aisle five,
”
Isabel yells.
The fireman returns with a long, black canvas equipment bag. He grabs handfuls of shell boxes and more weapons, stuffing them on top of the chips and water already inside. He holds out the small carry-on he borrowed from Isabel back at the grocery store.
“
Told you I
’
d give it back, love,
”
Devin winks.
“
Look inside.
”
She unzips it, an amazed smile spreading across her face.
“
How did you
…
?
”
“
I have two of my own,
”
Devin says,
“
so I know how important those first memories are. I picked it up just before we left that store lot.
”
“
Thank you,
”
she whispers, looking down at her wrinkled ultrasound photo. Tears begin to fall from her eyes.
“
You are most welcome,
”
Devin smiles.
The bell on the front door suddenly begins to jingle. Deep, maniacal laughter rushes through the shattered entryway.
Devin
’
s eyes go wide.
A cluster of orange jumpsuits surround the broken glass.
The fireman hurtles toward the door, aiming his shotgun
as
h
e
screams.
“
I said bugger off
…
”
The figures duck away just as a flaming cocktail explodes into the door. Huge tongues of fire shoot into Devin
’
s body. The fireman instantly drops, rolling to put out the burning liquid on his arms and chest.
Chris pulls him back right as another firebomb crashes into the floor. It blooms across the bubbling linoleum in front of them.
Terra
’
s voice shrieks out. The fire quickly spreads across the front of the store, only feet from the gun counter. Chris
’
s head whips toward the sound, his stomach twisting.
“
Over here!
”
Isabel shouts. Flames writhe and grow all around them. She grabs Terra
’
s hands and pulls the teen to her feet.
Heat surges against their skin. They run, legs driving down the tile floors. Terra
’
s hand suddenly slips out of Isabel
’
s. Ammunition sparks and bursts from behind them, fragments ricocheting and exploding through the air. The burnt stench of used gun powder fills the black swirling around them.
“
Come on!
”
Chris barks. The basketball star pulls Devin up and both men scramble back into the jumbled maze of aisles.
Terra stops, dread freezing her footsteps. Monstrous voices shout at her through the flames. Sinewy legs kick through the windows, their orange tentacles twisting and moving like the fire itself. Dozens of evil faces flash in the red light. The savageness of their smiles devours all shadow, slicing like white daggers through both innocence and faith. Her body shakes. Her knees buckle.
Devin
’
s shotgun thunders through the glass at the bodies starting to climb through. It rips into vicious souls too consumed by their own violence to even feel the flames.
Chris slides to a stop like in one of his basketball line drills.
Something
’
s wrong,
his gut screams. He touches his hand to the floor for balance and pivots, his eyes darting around.
“
Terra!
”
he yells.
The basketball star leaps out of the starting gate. He lunges over the debris-covered floor, pushing through the low metal shelving around him. Fire is everywhere. He tips down a display full of sunglasses, fighting toward the other side of the store. His heart catches.
The beautiful woman is kneeling just in front of him, bathed in a circle of orange. Softly, Chris takes her shoulders. His eyes lock onto hers. Flames flicker behind her pale face.
Evil approaches with them. The red and orange shapes of predators are so close they
’
re reflected in Chris
’
s dark eyes.
“
I won
’
t let them hurt you, Terra. Not again,
”
he says. His jaw tightens.
“
I promise you that.
”
She looks up at him, her haunted eyes desperately longing for protection. Strength.
“
We have to go now,
”
he says. Orange jumpsuits are just feet away now. Their hands claw out even as the store crumbles down upon them.
“
Come on!
”
Chris takes her hand and turns to lead
Terra
into the fiery chaos. Flames leap and pulse at them. Chris
’
s chest burns. The growing heat sucks the very air from their lungs. He drags her forward, gasping
,
forcing
them both to keep moving.
“
Almost there!
”
The voices fade. Still, Chris
’
s long legs drive on, slashing and kicking a pathway toward the back of the building.
Hand in hand, Chris and Terra emerge from the flames. They leap past the storage room and out into the stormy night. Swirling wind whips at them, slamming the thick raindrops down.
Lightning flickers overhead. Four shapes stumble into the alley behind Warshal
’
s Sporting Goods, their steaming bodies begging for rest. Unusually warm showers bite into their skin, doing little to cool the weariness.
Devin and the others turn and head up the narrow pathway. They force their feet on, eyes darting around for any new signs of danger. The world is black. Even the light has abandoned them.
The group staggers over the uneven ground toward the glow of fires along Second Avenue.
“
Got turned around a bit in there, mate,
”
Devin whispers to Chris. The fireman crouches down behind a large dumpster at the alley mouth. He motions for the rest to hide.
“
How do we get back to the freeway?
”
People running down Second pass the alley fewer in number now. Only a couple of orange jumpsuits can be seen before the street clears once more. Flames inside scorched storefronts and vehicles light up an apocalyptic view. Darkness dances back and forth with fire, shining all across a city of death.
Chris leans carefully out. His eyes narrow. The basketball star
’
s left hand is clutched tightly by Terra
’
s. His right firmly grips the gun handle at his back. He sees a flicker of orange on the peripherals of the roadway fade into the shadows as prisoners continue to let loose upon the night.
“
The freeway
’
s straight ahead,
”
Chris says, ducking behind the dumpster again.
“
About five blocks.
”
Terra looks up at him. Fear still stiffens her face.
“
It
’
s okay,
”
Chris says. He takes her small hand with both of his.
“
They
’
ve moved on. I
’
ll lead the way out to make sure.
”
Icy doubt stares back at him.
They
’
re hiding
…
The thought shrieks inside her mind.
Waiting in the darkness
.
Terra
’
s shoulders start to shake, feeling the cold touch of demons in the shadows.
Chris
’
s eyes never falter. Their certainty slowly fills Terra
,
c
alming her with a stolen confidence. She nods. The teenager squeezes tighter with both of her pale hands.
The survivors inch forward, moving slowly toward the light. Her heart pounds.
“
Easy, now,
”
Devin whispers. He cringes as Chris leans out into the wavering street glow.
Isabel clutches the back of Devin
’
s suit jacket. Her fingers dig into the fabric so tightly her hands begin to throb.
They wait
—
f
or an eternity of doubt
—
in the darkness
.
“
Go!
”
Chris growls.
Fear drives their fatigued legs. Hands cling resolutely to weapons and one another, crossing onto the six lanes of Second Avenue. Devin
’
s head snaps from side to side. His eyes scan over the rain-splashed streets. The shadows on the other side are almost
forty
feet away.
Breaking glass crashes beside them. Devin spins, training his 12-gauge.
Orange jumpsuits kick in the remaining windows of the sporting goods store, throwing another brilliant cocktail inside.
Devin pushes Isabel and Terra forward.
“
Move!
”
he barks, still
thirty
feet from the safety of the alley shadows.
Their legs burn to double the pace. The orange whips of Satan himself are upon them in the rain.
Cracked asphalt blurs under the survivors
’
feet. Voices scream out at them through the storm. The sound booms like thunder. Barbaric echoes bounce all around. So close
now
…
The group moves faster and faster, lunging into the welcoming shadows of the alley. All of the buildings along both blocks are on fire now. A red glow covers the entire world in blood.
Devin spins, stumbling backward through the black. His weapon trails across the bright fires behind them. It rockets into the surging orange, sending two convicts crumpling to the ground. Dozens more glare back. Evil looks out at him from the abyss,
hungering.
Aching.
The readiness in Devin’s eyes
is enough to keep their thirst at bay
.
Hesitantly, the orange drifts down the street.
The glow of chaos gradually dims as Devin and his group pass several more blocks. They sink into another alley heading east.
* * *
Bitter rains pound down. Seattle
’
s streets reflect images of devastation and despair up to the heavens. But no angels take flight to save them. Only more tears rain out, strengthening the approaching storm of men.
Weaving along Spring Street, Chris
’
s eyes widen. The dark shape of the freeway is just below.
“
Finally,
”
he says. His legs move faster towards the thankful sight.
Once they emerge from the alley shadows, his feet suddenly skid to a stop. The curving on-ramps and overpass supports lay cracked and crumpled upon the Interstate
’
s base
twenty
feet below.
“
Damn it!
”
Isabel shouts. The pregnant flight attendant pulls Terra closer to her. Both of their bodies steam and shiver in the downpour.
A broken web of civilization
’
s intersections looks back at them.
“
Figures,
”
Devin mutters.
A s
ea of tinfoil cars sit crushed underneath the massive chunks of concrete, their drivers still entombed.