Feeding Frenzy

Chapter 10

Johnson regretted bringing Connar into the mall as soon as he twirled the knife and stabbed the air. They crept through the mall as they made their way to the hardware store at the end of the hall. Connar was slicing through the air with his blade. Johnson stopped and turned to scowl at Connar.

"Stop it," Johnson whispered. "Or I am leaving you behind."

Connar lowered the blade.

"I'm just being prepared," he said.

"Focus on keeping your eyes open," Johnson said. "I'll do the killing."

Connar stuck his lip out in a pout.

"Come on," he said. "I want to kill a zombie."

"They're not zombies."

Johnson turned and continued to walk. Connar sighed and followed.

They made their way to the hardware store. The glass door was shattered. The faint sound of growling came from deep in the store.

"You'll probably get to kill one," Johnson mumbled to Connar.

"What are we even looking for?" Connar asked.

"I thought that you were the apocalypse master? Shouldn't you know?"

Connar scoffed.

"I am," he said. "We need camping gear and weapons."

"Good," Johnson said. "Now, let's go."

Johnson walked through the shattered door and into the store. He stepped into the first aisle to see it was full of gardening tools. Johnson smiled as he put his knife in the sheath. He grabbed an ax hanging on the wall. Connar's eyes went wide as he looked at the variety of tools.

"Pick a weapon," Johnson said. The inhuman cries grew louder. "You're going to need it."

Connar picked a pair of garden shears off the wall. There was a screech, and they turned to see an Infected man. Blood was pouring from his eyes and he chomped at the air before running forward. Johnson tightened his grip on the ax and swung. The blade buried deep into the side of the Infected's head. Johnson struggled to hold onto the handle as the blade stayed in his skull while his body fell. Johnson put his foot on the man's chest as he pulled the ax free.

A growl came from the other side of the aisle. A woman, who was foaming at the mouth, was standing there. She let out a screech.

"This one is all you, bud," Johnson said.

Connar sucked in a deep breath. The woman ran with her arms reaching out into the air. Connar opened the blades and ran forward. He stabbed the blades into the Infected woman's chest. Blood spurted from her mouth and mixed with the saliva foaming on her chin.

"The head," Johnson said. "I thought you knew what you were doing."

Connar gritted his teeth as he ripped the garden shears free. The woman charged at Connar and knocked him off of his feet. She swiped at Connar and he dodged her attack. He put her head between the two blades and he forced them closed. Blood sprayed down at him and soaked his clothes as he cut her head off.

The woman's head rolled to the side and Johnson kicked the head out of his way. The decapitated body fell onto Connar. He shuddered and pushed the body off.

"Good job, killer," Johnson said. He turned his wrist to look at his watch. "Let's get what we can carry and get out of here."

Johnson reached down and helped Connar back up onto his feet. They hurried to the camping aisle and were grabbing supplies when they heard gunshots.