The Virus Within: The Road Ahead (Book 1 - SERIES COMPLETED!)

Chapter 34

This part of the road was in terrible condition, and the numerous potholes, branches, and raised sections of tarmac forced Hank to drive slower than usual. Unless my memory was faulty or the pain was just informing me of every little jolt, we were being jounced around far more than we ever had before.

We hit another bump hard enough that everyone braced themselves for balance. Pain lanced through each injury and left me breathless.

I threw a peeved look at the window in the back of the cab. "Hank, are you trying to hit every pothole? Driving is supposed to be like Minesweeper where you avoid potential deathtraps, not like whack a mole! Besides, I severely doubt there are moles hiding in those craters you keep finding."

"Oh! Let me drive!" Nicky piped up enthusiastically.

Ben and Hank both immediately replied, "Not a chance."

Nicky crossed her arms and grumbled. I made a mental note to never let her behind the wheel with a reaction like that from Hank.

Hank replied, "Sorry Trinity, this road has more holes in it than swiss cheese. Lots of the potholes have leaves in them, and it's tough to figure out which ones might be worse until I'm right on top of them."

I glanced at the road behind us, but there weren't quite as many potholes as he was making out. Nor did more than half of them have leaves or debris piled in the indentation. The truck veered to the side as Hank dodged another big pothole.

I jumped slightly when Nicky suddenly cheered, "Awesome! Hank finally drove over the yellow center line!"

As I took a second look at the road behind us, I realized Nicky was correct. Hank had been remaining in the proper lane even if it meant hitting a pothole. That idiot, I grumbled to myself. He's lucky he's inside the cab where I can't reach him.

Now that Hank was driving like a sensible person on a deserted highway, I could relax a bit. The others were also silent. It was barely past two o'clock, and I was tired. It was pathetic. Pretending to watch the scenery, I gazed toward the trees and tried to nap.

Nina had said it was impossible for a zombie to sleep in a moving vehicle, but in reality, it was just extremely difficult. I managed a light doze as time passed far too slowly. Every bump or noise caused my mind to stir as I tried to force it to rest.

I gave up after a couple of hours, although I did feel more rested. I opened my eyes and reached for my water bottle, noticing that Nicky was watching me with a crazy grin.

I narrowed my eyes in suspicion. "And just why are you grinning like the Cheshire cat?"

She chuckled and replied, "I simply can't figure out how you're sleeping in this truck. I can usually never sleep in a moving vehicle, regardless of how often I try."

Her observation surprised me; I had been sitting up and my head hadn't even been leaning against the cab.

Nina shook her head. "Sorry Nicky, but zombies are light sleepers. They wouldn't be able to sleep in the back of a truck. Even if she had, you wouldn't have been able to tell."

"Oh, I was watching. Normally her head moves a bit as she watches things going by, particularly zombies. She barely twitched a single muscle for over an hour, and her breathing was steady without those deeper breaths she takes when sniffing the air. She never did that before, so she was either napping or attempting yoga – and I highly doubt it was yoga."

Considering my temper was fueled by my Nightstalker instincts, yoga probably wouldn't help much. Especially if Nicky was around.

I snorted and denied her claims. "I think you need your head checked."