Chapter 2 - Escape

"Alright, let's move it folks. We need to go." said Mr. Collins. As the one person who everyone respects, he took charge quickly. Everyone who wanted out was working around the clock to get the convoy ready to roll. As the man who started this mess, I had the pleasure of making the necessary mods to the trucks to get them out and on the road. This was mostly make plows and shielding for the rigs.

"Marcus! Come on the final meeting is starting and we all need to be there, especially you mister 'Man with a Plan'." José said with a grin. Over the last week, I had done more work to my truck and trailer than I had initially planed. after some small tug tests I found out that my truck was fast but not fast off the line. So I needed to change my plan for leading the charge.

"José, pass me the 3/8 socket and the plyers please."

"Dude, we have 4 hours untill the convoy is supposed to leave and you are fitting a gun rack on your truck. We don't have GUNS. We have bats and bricks and pointy sticks. WTF."

"Okay fine I'm coming." I sigh as we make our way to the gym. As soon as we get inside the meeting starts.

"Alright, settle down. You know why we're here. All our work is about to be put to the test. We have worked hard this last week and I thank you for it. At dawn we load up and roll out, and we are not stopping until Jackson. If you want to stay there then be my guest, but that is not the end goal. We are headed to the coast and the guns. After that we're gunna build a safe-haven and hole up. If you need a place to go after you find your family, come find us. If you find someone who needs help, send them to us. If we can make it out of here, it will be the first step towards a less shitty tomorrow." At this everyone relaxed. "We have done all we can so let's get some sleep, cause tomorrow I plan to kick some ass and get the hell out of here."

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We all make our way to the trucks, already loaded and looking good. Altogether, the 4 truck convoy was an interesting sight to behold, 3 semi-trucks and a heavily modified Ford F-350. The plan was simple, I was in the Peterbuilt up front, José is in my F-350 in second, and the two Freight-Liners in the back.

As the front door to this shindig, I was the most armored truck. Boasting a massive plow and too much horsepower, anything I hit would be gone. Climbing into the seat I quickly started the rig, the roar quickly followed by 3 more as everyone strapped in and held on for dear life.

"Alright, this is it boys and girls, let blow this popsicle stand." I call over the radio as I pull off. We had one chance to go or we were as good as dead. My truck hit the gates doing 30, and boy was it FUN. The feeling of power was intoxicating as I grabbed gears and floored it out of town.

"The hell is going on? The whole town looks empty, and not a Bugger(infected) to be seen." As we hit the highway, we notice the lack of resistance or any signs of life. Mr. Collins was holding the back end of the line as we started on our long-haul. After a week of stress, boy was this easygoing. Remind me to stop smelling the roses, as karma was a bitch. Shit.