That Guy Isn't Bad

Gavin caught the keys and tossed them directly to Madison.

Madison walked toward the Old Ford belonging to William and the other man, opened the door, and began rummaging through it quickly.

About thirty seconds later, he returned with an 8x scope and a short shotgun, his pockets stuffed with shells.

"Gavin, look at this unexpected haul."

He held up the short shotgun to show Gavin.

"He had a lever-action shotgun in his car, a Winchester M1887—the kind the Terminator used. It's badass!"

"Is that so? Is that why you took so long to come back?"

Hearing this, Gavin took the 8x scope, weighed it in his hand, and shook his head.

"If you had been any later, you wouldn't have needed this thing."

As he spoke, Gavin raised the 8x scope, using the moonlight and the faint glow of the streetlights to peer at the figure in the distance.

The figure had drawn much closer to them; in fact, it was quite clear now.

But what Gavin wanted to see was whether there were more figures trailing behind it.

Satisfied that the stumbling figure on the road was alone, Gavin exhaled, hung the 8x scope on his belt, and turned back.

"Only one zombie, wearing a gas station uniform. Looks like the clerk has come to collect our payment, pal."

"Is that so? Then I'll really have to negotiate the price with him~"

Madison replied with a grin, simultaneously working the lever of the shotgun to chamber a round, then aimed the barrel at Eugene on the ground.

William, standing to the side, was dazed and completely immersed in his grief, but Eugene, who was still quite drunk, caught Gavin's words and quickly asked, "You said that figure over there is a fucking zombie? Is this some kind of metaphor, or are you fucking mocking me for crashing the set?"

"Heh."

Gavin didn't answer Eugene. Instead, he walked over to Madison and patted him on the shoulder.

"Keep an eye on them. I'm going to handle this."

"Just you?"

"Is there a problem? We'll have to get used to dealing with zombies sooner or later. Since there's only one, I might as well use it for target practice."

"Besides, I don't feel like explaining the details to those two. It's better to just give them a bit of a visual shock."

With that, Gavin holstered his Colt and returned to the store to grab a military knife.

He carried the knife to the car and, while driving, kept a close eye on the distance between himself and the zombie.

At that moment, his car was about six hundred meters away from the lone zombie.

As the car continued forward, Gavin stared fixedly at the zombie on the road until he was only a hundred and forty meters away.

Gavin noticed that the zombie, which had been shuffling along, suddenly shifted into a full-on sprint!

"The sound of a standard engine attracts zombies from about a hundred and forty meters away."

Gavin muttered to himself, then brought the car to a stop, grabbed his knife, and stepped out to wait for the zombie to approach.

Watching the zombie draw nearer, Gavin took two quick steps to close the distance and slashed his knife into the zombie's shoulder.

He used so much force that the zombie, which had been lunging to bite him, was slammed flat onto the ground by the blow.

Before the zombie could crawl back up, Gavin's blade descended repeatedly, hacking its head clean off.

Even after being decapitated, the clerk-zombie continued to open and close its mouth in a silent roar, much like Gigi.

Gavin spat, reached down to grab the clerk by the hair, and carried the head back to the car.

He hung the head outside the car window to avoid staining the interior with blood and returned to Eugene and William, still clutching the trophy.

William was still somewhat dazed, but the moment Eugene saw the head, he let out a shriek of pure shock.

"God, Jesus Christ, that thing is still moving!"

"He killed someone? Gavin actually killed someone!"

William cried out in sudden realization, but the words had barely left his mouth before Eugene smacked him on the backside.

Interrupting William's foolishness, Eugene gritted his teeth and continued, "Look closely, that head is moving! Am I fucking high or something?"

"Holy shit, it really is moving!"

Prompted repeatedly by Eugene, William finally saw the zombie's mouth twitching.

Just then, Gavin casually tossed the zombie's head at their feet.

The head hit the ground and rolled twice before stopping right under William's feet.

In the light of the gas station, William watched in horror as the decapitated zombie head actually tried to bite his shoe!

Terrified, William lashed out with his right foot and kicked the head away.

As the head flew toward the convenience store door, William began to howl in pain, clutching his right foot.

"Fuck, I didn't even get a good look, you idiot!"

Eugene didn't laugh; instead, he cursed William with dissatisfaction and leaned in closer to get another look at the zombie's head.

But just as he moved to act, Madison's gun barrel pressed against him.

He had no choice but to lower his gaze and look at Gavin.

Gavin waved his hand and said, "Old Mac, that's enough."

"Hmph, consider yourself lucky!"

Old Mac nodded and struck Eugene's back with the butt of his rifle.

Ignoring Old Mac, Eugene lunged at the zombie's head, his eyes wide as he hoisted it up.

"Fuck..."

He stared into the zombie's eyes for a long time before shoving the head in front of William.

"Let's go, get in the car, we're going home!"

"What... what do you mean go home? Fuck, why is the head still moving after being chopped off? Am I dreaming, Eugene?"

"Get your shit together, we need to get home fast!"

"My sister and my nephew are still at home, and your damn father and brother are too. Haven't you realized something happened to Texas? I don't have to go to jail anymore, but this is way worse than jail, fuck!"

Eugene threw the zombie head aside and dragged the bewildered William back to the car.

As he shoved William into the passenger seat, he turned back to glare at Gavin and Madison.

After a moment of silence, he muttered, "Next time... next time I see you two, I'm going to blow your heads off from a hundred yards away!"

"Asshole, save the tough talk for when there actually is a next time. Be careful on the way back, and watch a few more zombie movies."

Gavin chuckled and waved at the posturing Eugene.

With a face as pale as a sheet, Eugene climbed into the car and drove the Old Ford away.

Until the Old Ford vanished from their sight, Madison leaned toward Gavin and nudged his arm. "That guy wasn't bad—the short guy with the buzz cut, Eugene. You're just letting them go? They would have been more useful if we kept them."

Eugene was only about 175 centimeters tall with short hair, so he was indeed a shorty in front of the two of them.

Faced with Madison's suggestion, Gavin shrugged and teased, "I thought you were pretty annoyed with that guy. You two were shouting at each other pretty hard."

"So what? I know exactly what kind of bastard he is. You have to be tough with people like that, but he's sharp and cautious."

"The young cop named William is just a greenhorn, but Eugene is definitely a seasoned veteran. My annoyance with his mouth and my appreciation for his competence are two different things."

As he finished speaking, Madison looked at Gavin expectantly.

Gavin shook his head and said, "Didn't you hear him? They have a reason they have to go home. In the face of a disaster, who would stop a man from seeing his family?"

"I suppose so. That's one of the reasons I think he's alright. At least the first thing he thought of was his sister and that greenhorn's bastard father."

After the small talk, Madison didn't need Gavin to urge him before he went back into the store to pack things up.

Gavin lit a cigarette and continued to browse the store's inventory while savoring the smoke.

In America, convenience store stock was generally comprehensive, or perhaps chaotic; Gavin even found a box of simple gas masks.

However, thinking you could clear out an entire convenience store with just a pickup truck was a fantasy. After six or seven minutes of picking and choosing, the truck bed was nearly full.

Gavin tossed two jugs of mineral water into the back and looked at the load, muttering, "That's about it. Let's go. Maybe we'll see my place before the sun comes up."

"Whatever you say. Besides, there isn't really anything good in a small convenience store anyway—they don't even have a Fleshlight."

Madison said with a cheeky grin, then piled the last four cans of fuel onto the truck bed.

Afterward, he looked at the driver's seat and said, "I'll drive this time. You really should take a break. I know the way to Karens Town; isn't your place near there?"

"Indeed."

Gavin agreed and walked over to the passenger side. Madison excitedly climbed into the driver's seat and gave the steering wheel a firm rub.

Watching Madison start the car, Gavin tapped on the window with his finger and warned, "Don't stick to the main road. The highway ahead cuts straight between Ennis Town and Corsicana Town."

"I know, we have to avoid the crowded areas. But speaking of Ennis..."

Madison couldn't help but look at Gavin.