With a deep growl in her throat, she demanded, "Help the Others," as if to warn him against manipulating her.I won't bother you.

Jake desired to express himself.He wanted to inform her that he was only concerned about her.He wanted to say that all of his efforts would have been pointless if she didn't survive.He was aware of how ridiculous he was being and wanted to say a lot of things.Instead, he shifted his position so that he could peer through the window on the passenger side and fought back the growing fear by biting his lip.

Ryan's head was dangling and turned away.It bobbed up and down in response to the vehicle's smallest movements.As Lucas made a series of frantic movements, he bumped Lucas as his arms hung similarly loosely across the car.In an effort to see more clearly what Ryan was doing, Jake squinted, but Ryan's motionless body and cracked glass made it nearly impossible to see.

Jake lifted the door to the open position by pulling on the handle, realizing that time was running out quickly.He didn't let the fact that it was much more difficult than he had anticipated to open the door straight up stop him.Jake leaned into the doorway as it snapped into place at full extension with a terrible squealing sound.

"I'm stalled!"Lucas yelled at him and pointed to his seatbelt.It won't come loose!

As he took in everything in front of him, Jake frowned.He didn't think he could do much with Ryan in the way, even though he thought he could.Jake found the level of stillness displayed by Ryan to be troubling nonetheless.He reached out and felt the man's pulse at the neck.He could tell there was something wrong as soon as he made eye contact.That shouldn't be how necks feel.He continued to look for a pulse despite resisting the urge to recoil.He had no sensation whatsoever.

He was wrapped in a cold blanket and felt a tingling sensation from head to toe as a result.He slouched down and looked back at the others.I... I believe this one is dead.

“What!?”Rob exclaimed, his face displaying a look of fear.

Jake started, "I... I-," but he couldn't go any further.Rob pushed Jake aside as he jumped to the roof of the vehicle before diving into the door.

“Ryan!”The man yelled out in agony.Ryan!”

Jake sank to the ground, unsure of what was going on but acutely aware of the fact that they were almost out of time.He gave the two remaining people outside the car with him a quick glance.Only he and the two kids were there.He might only be able to save that.He turned and looked for his car, considering whether he should go get it now and worrying about who would accompany him then.

When one of the creatures came around the SUV's side, Jake almost didn't notice because he was so worried.

“Shit!”Before he could self-censor, he exclaimed.He groaned and turned to face Tyler and Mandy once more.He continued, "Um, pretend you didn't hear that."

Tyler warned, "I'm fourteen."The word "shit" has been used before.

Jake gave that a second of thought before shrugging his shoulders in defeat.He responded, "fair enough," and then returned to the more pressing issue.Since it was so close to its prey, the creature was barely moving, as if it were unsure which way it wanted to go.Jake raised his fists and began a slight dance as if he were going to box with the creature, not really knowing what else to do.Okay, "come on," he said to it.Let's get started.He darted the creature forward by repeatedly pounding his left fist into his right hand as he spoke, mocking his bravado.

Even though he had no idea what he was attempting to hide from, he cringed, curled up, and frozen in place as a thunderous noise rang out.He took a moment to realize that his "oppositor" was now motionless and lying on the ground.Gunshots had made the sound.

Jake looked to his left and saw that Francis had raised herself out of the doorway far enough to see the creature approaching and had fired at it from that position.She pulled herself out of the car the remainder of the way after holstered her gun.

"Are you insane?"Jake yelled, "That was loud enough to subdue the entire city!

She replied, her voice full of venom, "Well then, you better go get the car now, and stop procrastinating."

He tried to respond, but only a few guttural sounds and nothing coherent came out of his mouth.He admitted to himself with a sigh that she was correct.He gave the two children the most stern look he could muster.He ordered, "Wait here," and hurried to his car.

One of the creatures crossed his path on the way.He bent over like a linebacker and bowled it down instead because he didn't have time to stop.While it was falling, it tried to grab him, but he was moving too quickly for it to do so.He went full speed ahead, quickly assessing the remaining creatures near his vehicle.He couldn't get to the door on the driver's side because of two people standing near the front left side of the vehicle.He didn't want to keep trying his football technique, especially when he was up against two people so close to each other.A third was actually quite close to the door on the driver's side, and it appeared that they had discovered a faster way to use the stiff-jointed walk that all of the creatures had.It moved quickly from foot to foot, almost waddling, and covered a greater distance in a shorter amount of time than the others.Lastly, a large group of five or six people neared the rear bumper, far to the other side of the vehicle, making it even more difficult to circumvent that side of the vehicle.He hoped he had the balance and dexterity to carry out the plan that quickly formed in his head.

Jake jumped onto the front hood of his car, just out of reach of the two creatures at the front, without stopping to think about how feasible this plan was.He sped off in the direction of the third, which was the one closest to the driver's side door, taking just two quick steps.He kicked straight in the chest with his right leg raised.The creature fell to its backside and stumbled backwards.Despite the fact that his strategy had performed admirably, he had not considered the amount of momentum he would have upon landing.He fell to the ground, stumbled forward for a few more steps, and then desperately tried to slow down.

He finally gained control of his momentum and was turned around.However, this had given the other two creatures along the car's front enough time to do the same, and they were already moving back in his direction.

After frantically searching for any means of escape, a bizarre concept struck him.He actually laughed out loud because it was so out of the blue.After bending over and reaching for the car's door handle, he flung the door open as hard as he could before briefly thanking God that he had remembered to unlock it earlier.

They stumbled back a few steps after the door gave them a loud "crack," but they didn't fall down.Nevertheless, it was sufficient to provide Jake with the space he required to climb into the driver's seat and shut the door before they could grab him.He turned the key into the ignition after hitting the lock on the door.Jake's ears echoed like the most exquisite melody as the car roared to life.He smiled and affectionately patted the steering wheel.In a whisper, he added, "Good car."

He quickly put the vehicle in reverse and pounded on the gas pedal.The car flew backwards as a tire squeal split the air.It was difficult to get through the ambulant undead monsters that had transformed the parking lot into an obstacle course.He had to quickly change course whenever he thought he had a clear path because one or more of them would move in.The restricted size of the parking lot also did nothing to help matters.

He made it through without incident and stopped at the overturned SUV's side despite everything.By this time, Francis had fallen to the ground and was holding Nancy, who had apparently awoken despite having a head wound that was severely bleeding.The two children quickly climbed into the backseat after Francis directed them to the vehicle.The younger woman helped Nancy into place as she stumbled along behind.Francis shut the back door after ensuring the safety of the three people inside.

She turned away and looked up at the SUV's open front passenger door.Rob!”She tried calling, but no one answered.Rob,” she repeated, unsuccessfully, yet again.Lucas?Ryan?Somebody!Hold on!It's time to leave.She repeated her call after waiting a few seconds for any kind of response.She nervously flexed her fingers and bit her lip a few more times.She was told to run away by every muscle in her body, but her heart wanted to help her friends.She was about to give up hope when Lucas' unkempt, hairy face and the long, thin nose of a shotgun emerged from the open portal seconds later.

He got out of the car by himself and fell to the ground.Francis was dismissed as he waved the shotgun at him.Get out of here now!He statedHe started walking around to the SUV's front without saying a word.

“What?”Francis demanded, perplexed.Are you serious?We simply cannot leave you here!

Lucas waved his hand as if to dismiss her worries.He firmly responded, "You must."I'll take care of Rob and Ryan.Try to ensure that they leave this place.The most important thing is to save yourself and the kids.Get it now.Lucas noticed after a moment that Francis didn't move a muscle.He made a U-turn and looked over his shoulder at her.In the midst of such an insane nightmare as the world had become, he smiled a warm smile that couldn't have been more out of place.Hey, don't be concerned about me,” he continued.I'm not being defeated by a jackass who eats flesh.

Francis remained steadfast for what appeared to be an indefinite period.She finally turned and opened the door to Jake's car with an ache in her heart.She gave Lucas one last glance, who was facing her and standing near the SUV's front bumper with his shotgun on his shoulder.He seemed oddly heroic in the evening's dim light.