Jake Morrison's Arc

Chapter 6 of 54

The front doors screeched again. Jake pulled the group into a huddle by the stockroom. Marcus stood beside him, wrench still in his belt, jaw set. Sofia hovered near the vent with her crowbar. Marisol clutched the radio to her chest. "Here's the plan," Jake said. "The girls grab what they can carry. Food, water. Then they head straight to the sporting goods store. Marcus and I stay and buy time." Marcus wiped his hands on his jeans. "We reinforce this place. Give the doors a few more minutes." He grabbed a shelf and dragged it toward the entrance. Jake helped him wedge it against the failing barricade. The gray arm still clawed through the top gap. Claws snagged the metal. Sofia loaded cans into a canvas bag. She paused, frowning. "There's a better way." Everyone looked at her. "When I started here, my boss showed me a security thing. Iron gates. They drop down over the front, seal it tight. There's a switch somewhere." She shook her head. "I never found it. I only worked two weeks." Jake's mind shifted fast. Iron gates changed everything. If they sealed the supermarket, they might not need to crawl through the vents at all. "Where would a switch like that be?" he asked. "Back office," Marcus said. "Has to be. That's where the panels live." He left the shelf and moved down the aisle. Jake followed. They found a narrow door behind the deli counter. Marcus kicked it open. Inside sat a metal box on the wall, gray with a red handle. Jake grabbed the handle. It wouldn't budge. "Jammed," he grunted. Marcus pulled the wrench from his belt and hooked it under the lever. "On three," he said. They both pulled. The lever snapped down. A motor whined above the front doors. Iron bars rolled down from the ceiling. They slammed into the floor with a heavy clang. The clawing arm vanished behind solid metal. The pounding turned to a dull, distant thud. Sofia let out a breath. Marisol lowered the radio. Jake stared at the sealed doors. The vents didn't matter now. Nobody had to crawl one at a time. They could all wait right here, together, until the truck came. Then the ceiling above the office groaned. Jake looked up. The vent grate over the back room bent outward. A clawed hand punched through the metal. A Feral Wretch dropped down into the office, teeth bared, yellow eyes locked on Marcus. Sofia screamed. Jake shoved Marcus aside and swung. The creatures had found the ducts. The iron gates had sealed the front, but the vents ran through every store in the strip mall, and now something was inside with them.