As soon as they were outside, the older sister turned to face Eric, keeping the rifle loose in her hands. Though she didn't point it at him, her grip remained firm. Still, the boy had just saved their lives, and that earned him at least the benefit of the doubt.
"So," she started somewhat sterner than before, "where are you headed?"
Saying that, the older sister looked at Eric, as if she was studying him or better said his behavior around them. The way she saw it, he couldn't have been more than eighteen, yet unlike most boys his age, this boy had risked his life for them, and that for the older sister was impressive enough.
"Atlanta," Eric said after a short moment of silence, feeling a touch of embarrassment at how unprepared he sounded. After all, as far both women could see, he didn't have any means of transportation.
The younger sister, who'd been silent since their escape, looked up at him. "You are planning on going to the refugee center?"
"Yeah," Eric nodded, then added quickly, "though I'm guessing that's where most people are trying to get to." He didn't want to mention Sarah or Shane – those were private reasons, and he'd learned the hard way that sharing too much could be dangerous in this new world.
The older sister exchanged a look with her younger sibling before turning back to Eric. "Well," she said, lowering her rifle, "seems like we're all headed in the same direction." There was a pause as she seemed to weigh her next words carefully. "And I suppose we owe you one for what happened back there."
Hearing the older sister's words, Eric would lie if here to say that he didn't feel happy being offered a ride to Atlanta. Yes, he barely knew the two women, but worst come true, he should be able to escape.
"Thank you, it would have took me a while to reach the city on foot."
The older sister gave him a small smile before looking at the pharmacy. "We should get moving. Those guys won't stay down forever."
Eric nodded, but before heading to the car, he pulled out his pocket knife. "Just give me a second," he muttered, crouching beside the men's vehicle. Before either of the sisters could ask what, he was going to do, Eric slashed the two tires on his side. It wasn't much, but it would at least slow those bastards down if they tried to follow, that if the infected won't get them before they even reach their car.
"Smart thinking," the older sister said, already moving towards the driver's side of the black Nissan. Her younger sister slipped into the back seat, letting the front passenger seat free for Eric.
Eric didn't waste any more time, dashing to the passenger side and climbing in. The engine was still running, that annoying door-open beeping finally went silent as he pulled the door shut.
As they drove away from the pharmacy, Eric couldn't help but glance in the side mirror, watching the building shrink into the distance. He'd just shot a man – wounded him, at least. It was his first human… alive human he had shot and it made his stomach turn. But looking at the two women beside him, seeing the relief on their faces as they put distance between themselves and their attackers, he knew he'd made the right choice.
"I'm Andrea," The older sister said, breaking the silence that had befall in the car. "And this is my younger sister Amy." She gestured toward the back seat with one hand. "We probably owe you our lives back there, but I don't even know your name."
"Eric," he replied looking at the road. "I did what was right, besides you don't owe me anything. What those guys were doing..." He shook his head, not needing to finish the thought.
"Yeah… You know, they didn't seem mean the first time we met them, but after making it clear that I'm not interest in any of them, I thought my sis and I would be ok, but God… First were those damned things that appeared, then we stopped to relief only to meet those same men robbing the gas station and before we know, Amy and I run inside the pharmacy seeking help, but instead we only trapped ourselves. Maybe Dad was right, we shouldn't have taken that trip Amy…"
To be honest to himself, Eric had no idea what he should say, or if he had to say anything, and just let Andrea speak out her frustration and fear. And so, he decided to keep his mouth shut as the two sisters tried to comfort each other as they drove closer towards Atlanta.
Leaving behind what they had gone thought, the sisters slowly begun to warm up to the boy who had saved them from that dreadful experience, and after some small chat, Eric decided to change the subject to something a bit more, cheerful.
"So, you two were traveling? Before all this happened?"
Amy leaned forward between the seats, sounding slightly happier. "Yeah, I had a break from college. We've been doing these sister trips every year since I started." She paused, and smiled at her older sister. "This was supposed to be our longest one yet - three weeks through the Southeast."
"We made it through the first week just fine," Andrea added, shooting Eric a grateful look for trying to make Amy feel a bit better. "We visited this amazing little place that had one of the best breakfasts I've ever eaten in Charleston. The owner had these ridiculous stories about civil war ghosts..." She shook her head, letting out a small laugh. "Honestly, this feels like a lifetime ago now."
"His wife was such a sweetheart though." Amy said making her sister roll her eyes.
"Because you helped her organize her entire kitchen while I was trying to drag you out to see the city."
Eric found himself smiling as he kept listening to their bickering. "Sounds like something sisters would do. One trying to keep to the schedule while the other makes friends with everyone they meet?"
"Story of my life," Andrea said, shooting an affectionate glance at Amy through the rearview mirror. "Dad always said Amy never met a stranger she didn't like. Made watching out for her as he grew a full-time job sometimes."
After another hour of driving and talking, Andrea decided that with the sun going down, it would be a good idea to park the car somewhere and catch some sleep, before continuing making their way towards Atlanta early in the morning.
"We should find somewhere to stop for the night," Andrea said. "It's not safe driving after dark, and we could all use some sleep."
Eric nodded, as he too was starting to feel a bit tired after what happened today. Besides, looking at the two sisters, it was quite clear that both had been running on pure adrenaline since the pharmacy incident.
"There's a side road coming up," Andrea continued, slowing the car a bit before looking out the window. "That might lead us somewhere we can park without being seen from the main road. What do you two think?"
"Sounds good to me," Amy chimed in from the back seat, stifling a yawn. She trusted her sister's judgment, besides it was no like she found a better alternative to suggest.
"You are the driver ma'am, but, if we can find somewhere elevated, we'd have a better view if anyone approaches." He paused, then added quickly, "Just a suggestion."
Andrea rolled her eyes at him before smiling. The kid had good head on his shoulder, that much even she could she.
Soon enough, she turned onto the narrow road, driving slowly to hopefully not make as much noise and of course to be able to spot any infected that might be roaming around. The pavement soon ended and immediately the "road" become gravel, then dirt, leading them to what looked like an abandoned logging site.
"This'll do for tonight," Andrea said, while parking the car between some trees, in such a way that in case they were forced to run away, it wouldn't take "a year". "This place looks pretty much abandoned so I doubt there will one of those things inside. Also, we can take shifts keeping watch. I'll take first-"
"I can take first watch," Eric interrupted her, then immediately looked embarrassed at cutting her off. "I mean, if that's okay. You've been driving all day."
Eric didn't continue what he wanted to say, but Andrea quickly realized that it was quite obvious her little sister needed her, besides Eric had already saved them once, and he hadn't shown any kind of signs that he wanted to harm them or worse.
"Sure thing Eric. Wake me in four hours, and I'll take over." She turned to Amy. "Let's get some sleep, sis. Tomorrow's going to be another long day."
< Just change "3" with "e" Patr3on Link : https://patr3on.com/meatbunkun>