Survival Of The Fittest by Catherine Holland (novel24 .TXT) 📖

rest of the world." Seth nodded, hugging her back, and slinging the back pack over his shoulder.

She watched her brother board the Submarine, helping Sophia and Natalia, Gabby stayed at the docks, watching from the relative safety of her car, as the Submarine faded into the distance, taking away with it, her last living relative.

Chapter Seven

Gabby opened her eyes, as her internal alarm clock went off, she could hear Angel crying in the side room, but no sounds of comfort coming from Danni. She listened for a few moments more, then quickly, but quietly got up off of the floor, and hurried into the side room.

Danni was on her side, sound asleep, Angel was securely in her arms, but clearly uncomfortable. Gabby scooped her up, and grabbed the shoulder bag, then headed back into the kitchen. After making sure that Angel was fed, and changed, she made herself a mug of coffee, and watched as the first rays of the sun shone through from the front of the office.

Ten minutes later, Danni came out of the side room, a look of complete panic on her young face, Gabby smiled, and said, "It's OK, Danni, Angel's with me." Danni nodded and relaxed slightly, then walked over to Gabby and gently took Angel from her arms. "Coffee?" Gabby asked, Danni shook her head, "No thanks, I don't drink coffee."

Gabby nodded, then said, "Tea?" Danni smiled, "Yes, please, two sugars." Danni gently rocked Angel in her arms, and watched as Gabby made the drinks, once they were made, Gabby disappeared into the side room, only to return with Angel's car seat, Danni held Angel closer to her chest, and said, "You're not leaving yet, are you?"

She replied, "Not yet, but soon, I just want to be ready." Danni nodded and gently placed Angel in the car seat, then did the straps up, she then sat down in the nearest chair, and started to gently rock Angel. Gabby was halfway through her coffee, when Daryl and Dominic came into the kitchen, Dominic said, "The infected are down, so what happens now?" Gabby replied, "Wait a few more minutes, then I'll kill, and move the bodies.

"If anyone decides to stay, then I'll have to re-inforce this building." Daryl said, "Re-inforce it? How?" Gabby finished her coffee, reached for a gun, and replied, "Board up all of the windows from the inside, and try to find a key for the main door of the office, if no key can be found, then the door needs to be replaced."

Gabby walked towards the two men, then handed one of her 9mm's to Daryl, "You'll need this, and you also need to know how it feels to put a bullet in a body." Daryl gingerly took the gun from Gabby, then listened in silence as she told him to hold the gun, where they safety was, how many bullets were in each clip, and about the recoil.

She then showed him how to change the clip once it was empty, she was aware of Dominic, watching and listening, and once she'd finished talking, he said, "I guess I'd better learn as well, seeing as how I'm coming with you." Gabby nodded, then handed him a 9mm, and watched as he took the safety off, then loaded a bullet into the chamber.

Gabby made sure that there were no open wounds on either Daryl or Dominic, then checked herself. Once certain that they were good to go, Gabby gave them as many extra clips as they could carry, as well as loading herself up, then led the way to the front of the office, and carefully opened the door. She jumped back, just as several of the infected's limbs fell through the door. Gabby withdrew one of her swords, and moved one of the infected's arms, when nothing happened, she touched the blade to the skin, and drew a thin scratch part way up the arm.

With still no reaction, Gabby breathed a sigh of relief, put her sword back in it's sheath, and carefully worked her way through the infected's bodies. Once clear of the infected, she turned to see Dominic and Daryl copying her footsteps, when they were level with her, Daryl said, "Where do we start?"

Gabby pointed to the infected just inside the door, "We start with them, once they're clear of the door, then we can worry about the others." She then put the gun in the waistband of her jeans, and grabbed the legs of the nearest infected, and pulled him out of the door, she dumped him face first on the road, and put a bullet in his head.

Daryl and Dominic followed suit, three hours later, the front of the office was clear, and the infected within a five hundred metre radius, was dead. Gabby wiped the sweat from her face, and said, "If we pile these infected together, hopefully those that'll come tonight will feast on them."

Dominic nodded, "There's a patch of grass over there, that's where we'll put them." Gabby followed his gaze, and nodded, the patch of grass was a large circle, about twenty feet away from the office. Gabby looked at all of the bodies, and said, "This would go a lot quicker, if we had some extra help."

Dominic nodded, then went inside the office, he returned with four grumpy looking men. They silently started moving the bodies, but kept shooting furtive glances at Gabby, and at the safety of the office. An hour later, the bodies were all piled together, and they headed back into the office. Danni met them just inside, she looked at Gabby, and said, "I'm coming with you, and Angel."

Fifteen minutes later, Gabby and Daryl were on their way to the nearest lumber yard, none of the other drivers were willing to give up the sanctuary of the office, choosing to go their own ways, Gabby stuck to her word, she was going to fin a piece of wood large enough to cover the window, and a replacement door for the front of the office.

The car trip was a silent one, and so was the cautious walk through the yard, killing all of the infected they saw. It took an hour, to find both the wood and the new door, on the way back to the office, Daryl said, "What are we going to do about the travelling arrangements?" Gabby replied, "Can Danni drive?" Daryl shook his head, "No, she can't."

Gabby thought for a moment, "Ideally, we'd need a second car, preferably an estate, something with a large boot, and a bit of leg room. Do either yourself, or Dominic have a car like that?" Daryl nodded, "I do, but I don't think Dominic will give up his car, saying that, neither will I." Gabby smiled wryly, "Typical men, too many cars will use up too much fuel, and I don't know how many petrol stations still have usable fuel.

"Two cars, is a push, and at least one can rest, whilst the other drives. But I have a feeling that neither you, or Dominic, can stand to be around Danni for very long, and now, she has become incredibly attached to Angel." Daryl said nothing to that, and Gabby sighed, it would be easier with two cars, and it made sense to use two as well. Daryl and Dominic could fold down the back seats of the estate, and they'd have ample room for their own weapons and supplies. Their was enough room in Gabby's car, for her weapons, supplies, and everything that Angel needed, and once Danni's things had been added, her boot would be nearly full.

By the time they reached the office, Gabby had made up her mind, "OK, here's how it's going to have to be, you and Dominic, are going to have to share a car, and take turns in driving, I'll have Danni and Angel iin the car with me, we just can't risk having a third car, not with all the variables." Daryl nodded, "That sounds fair, and to be fair in return, you won't be saddled with Danni and Angel all the time, we'll take alternate days. Where if you're too tired to drive, then either myself, or Dominic, will drive whilst you sleep, meaning that Danni, and Angel have to move to the other car, and vice versa."

Gabby smiled, "Danni's not that bad, she's just lonely, if Dominic agrees to the idea, then we're pretty much all set, but if worse comes to the worse, then we'll stop for the night, and just sleep in shifts. It'll probably be easier that way as well, and Angel will most probably sleep through the nights, as long as she doesn't need feeding or changing."

Gabby switched the engine off, and got out of the car, Daryl followed suit, and helped her pull the door from the back of the Jeep, Dominic had been wise enough to take the door down, leaving Daryl the simple task of putting up the new door. Once that was done, both of the men helped Gabby pull the piece of wood from the top of the car, and within ten minutes, the window was covered.

As the three of them headed into the office, Gabby waited until the doors were locked, before she turned to Dominic and Danni, and explained her plan, they were both satisfied with it, and then Gabby said, "I'd like for us to spend one last night here, just to make sure that the wood on the window, and the new door does what they're meant to."

None of them had a problem with that, but they would need supplies to last them through the night. Gabby checked Angel's shoulder bag, and made a mental list in her head of everything they'd need, with that done, she made sure that Danni was OK with looking after Angel, before grabbing two 9mm's and spare clips, and heading out to her car.

An hour later, Gabby came through the office doors laden with bags, she put them on the kitchen floor and left to get the rest, once she was feeding Angel, with a large map of the area spread out in front of her, she picked up a permanent marker, and took the lid off with her teeth, then circled the area where she'd once lived, and put the date in the centre of the circle.

Marking the first day, for her, of the infected attacks, she then said, "Daryl, do you remember the first day of the infected's attack, and if so, when was it?" Daryl looked over her shoulder, as she drew a large circle around Albatross Radio, there was a third and fourth circle, spread apart, with separate dates in them.

He pointed to the other three circles, and replied, "What do these other circles mean?" Gabby shifted Angel in her arms, and said, "About two months ago, whilst on the way to the docks, myself and my brother, retrieved two young girls from their family car, the eldest of the two girls, told me that the first infected attacks she'd witnessed, occured nearly three weeks previously.

"She'd told me the general area, and I remebered the date, this circle here-," she pointed to a circle near the centre of the map,