Race for Safe Haven - I Love This Plan

[Posted by Ted H]

Let's hear it for getting vacation time so I could actually get some writing done!

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[Race for Safe Haven - I Love This Plan]

            "I love this plan," Rhett said while in the backseat of his own car. They had just dropped Matt off where he needed to be, and now they were on their way to the club where the rest of the group was hiding out. "You're a little weird, aren't you?" Steve asked, sitting next to him. Laura sat on the far end while Mike sat up front with Jason driving.
            "You sure they're still alive?" Steve asked, silently hoping Mike would change his mind over the whole endeavor. "Once I'm in position, I'll try to see through the window they were in," Mike said as he held up binoculars "Try to see if I can raise Eric on the radio again, too. You two just get to the fire escape I told you about and let me worry about details."
            He meant that for both Steve and Rhett, who were going to try and get into the club and retrieve the group. Rhett didn't know much about the people inside, and he understood why he had been given the job he had for this. Mike and Laura would take up position in another building and, along with Matt, use the flares to distract the crowd of zombies right outside. Jason, meanwhile, would be the getaway driver. Rhett didn't know what the plan would be afterwards, or even if he planned to stick around, but for now he was involved in this group.
            "Coming up on the van," Jason said as he turned the corner. In the middle of the street up ahead was an empty van, some zombies still standing by it. "That's what you used to get here?" Rhett asked, noticing how dilapidated the van looked. "We found it out in the sticks," Mike said "It was the only thing that worked. Sue me."
            "Stop near the van," Mike said as Jason slowed down. Mike, Rhett and Steve piled out before Jason even stopped as they swarmed the van. Mike took aim and shot the nearest zombie while Steve threw open the van's trunk hatch. "We're already drawing a crowd!" Mike said as Laura ran out and grabbed bags from Steve. Rhett waited by the back of his car as Laura and Steve ran over with their gear and tossed it all in the back. Laura then went back into the back of Rhett's car as Mike hustled over.
            "We'll draw as many as we can," Mike said as he climbed back into the front and Rhett closed the trunk. "Good luck!" Jason called as he sped away, leaving Rhett and Steve alone near the dead van. "I told you I love this plan," Rhett said as he and Steve began running down the street after the others. The car speeding through was suppose to attract the dead, allowing the two on foot to reach the club. "Towards the corner," Steve said, pointing.
            Most of the dead had given chase to Jason as he easily drove away, but enough had noticed Steve and Rhett running to option for the easier meal. The club sat with only a few zombies hanging around, and only a couple by the side they were running for. "Get up the ladder quick, I'll cover," Rhett said as he swung his shotgun at the first zombie and knocked it backwards. He then took his handgun out and aimed at the other, shooting it before it could get too close.
            "Fuck!" Steve yelled as Rhett caught up. The fire escape ladder was up Steve couldn't jump high enough to grab it.  "Gimme a boost," Rhett said as he dropped his shotgun and backed up. "Are you kidding me?" Steve said. "We don't have a choice!" Rhett said as Steve eyed the approaching hoard behind Rhett. "Fine," Steve said as he crouched and locked his hands together. "You can reach it, right?" he asked. "Let's find out," Rhett said as he ran up. He jumped into Steve and up as the other man lifted with all his might.
            For being overweight, Rhett found Steve had an uncanny reserve of muscle, as he was launched high into the air, achieving just enough height to grip the bottom rung of the highly placed ladder. Rhett figured most of that strength came from how scared shitless Steve was becoming from the zombies, but it was a welcome revelation. Rhett pulled on the ladder as he began his fall letting it cascade passed him as he fell to the ground. As Rhett landed, he fell off balance and ended up on his ass.
            "Go!" Rhett yelled as he rolled to the side and retrieved his shotgun. He immediately rose to one knee and readied to fire as Steve scrambled up the ladder. Rhett wasn't entirely familiar with the range of his shotgun, and didn't want to end up wasting any shells, so he held his fire as his trigger finger desperately wanted to tighten at the approaching zombies.
            "What are you waiting for?" Steve yelled as Rhett spun as he turned and made for the ladder. There were zombies approaching from the rear, all converging on the fire escape as Rhett covered the couple feet to the ladder and jumped on. With the shotgun, Rhett could only climb with one hand, but he was still able to scale up the fire escape and join Steve on the landing. Below them the ground was no longer visible through the sea of bloody faces and up reaching arms.
            "Still think this is fun?" Steve asked as Rhett smiled. The two took a moment on the landing to collect themselves, despite the constant moaning below them. Rhett looked at the wall of the building. It was brick, in bad need of repair, with chunks of the wall missing. A cable coming from the roof and trailing near them connected to nothing; Rhett having no idea what it could have been for.