red hill - jamie mcguire

line.
“Of course,” Ashley said. “How could we possibly star in a horror movie without something
catalyzing like that happening”
“Catalyzing” Cooper said with a smile.
“Shut up,” she replied, barely acknowledging his playful teasing.
The truth was, Ashley had done significantly better on her SATs than I had. She’d always been a
straight A student, even taking college courses in high school. She’d inherited our dad’s intelligence,
but my mom’s inability to handle any amount of stress. She was an emotional ball of nerves and tears.
Cooper once told me that his mother was the same way, and that’s why he was one of the few guys in
school that didn’t find her high-maintenance. One late, drunken night when everyone else had passed
out, Cooper shared with me that he actually found her neediness and constant need for assurance
comforting, which was just . . . odd, and maybe a little co-dependent, but they were perfect for each
other. Cooper understood Ashley, and made her happy like no one else could. They clung to each
other because they believed it, too.
I don’t know. I guess it was sweet. Even weird people deserved to be happy.
“Well”—I breathed, hating what I was about to say—“look on the bright side. There is a gas
station in Shallot.”
“But we’re so close,” Ashley said. “Let’s just drive around and go home.”
“We can’t make it home.”
One of the dead ones seemed to notice the Bug, and she took a slow step toward us. She was
young, and her long, blond hair might have been as beautiful as Ashley’s if it wasn’t ratted and
covered in blood and . . . other things. Her movement drew the attention of another dead one, and then
another. Soon, several were walking slowly but with purpose. Their eyes were milky and lifeless, but
their mouths were open. Some of their upper lips were quivering, like a growling dog. The blonde
reached out to me, and a low but excited moan pushed from her throat.
I pulled back on the gearshift and pushed the gas pedal to the floor. A few days ago, I had parked
the Bug in the middle of nowhere to avoid door dings, and now I was driving it like a go-kart. I
whipped us back and away from the approaching dead ones, and then followed the road on the right
into Shallot, praying that there wasn’t another herd behind the hill, and we wouldn’t be boxed in.
“Whoa!” Bryce said, as I cut across a median. Everyone’s head but mine hit the ceiling.
“Sorry!” I said, grabbing the wheel with one hand over the other quickly as I turned to keep
control.
“Ease back, babe,” Bryce said. “We’re okay.”
The town was vacant, and I sighed in relief to see a grocery store ahead, with a gas station directly
behind it. I pulled around to the station, and we all climbed from the Bug, stretching and taking a
moment to breathe.
I was relieved that even in the early hours of the morning, it was warmer than the day before. The
previous day’s rain had brought with it a cold front, and I was worried Ashley and I would be
miserably cold before we made it to Dad’s. For just a second, I thought about pulling out my cell
phone to check the forecast, but then I realized I hadn’t had service since yesterday. None of us had.