Dead Cold by Jr. Roddy R. Cross, Mr Roddy R Cross Jr Read Free Book Online Page B

quickly towards the washroom. His business done he went to leave the store but the black sheets covering the cigarette displays reminded him he was almost out. He was almost to the counter when he heard the chewing sounds and recognized the scent of something dead.
     
    Backing away slowly Roland reached for the Desert Eagle in his coat pocket as he bumped into a display; knocking it over with what sounded like an ear shattering crash. Almost instantly the chewing stopped and the all too familiar growl pierced the silence as the thing jumped up from behind the counter its yellow eyes boring into him. It had been a young girl before it died probably only thirteen or fourteen. She was dressed in a miniskirt and an overly tight t-shirt. Blood dripped from her tiny chin and blonde hair as she opened her mouth and growled before lunging towards Roland.
     
    She crossed the short distance between them quickly and Roland found the Eagle was caught on something in his pocket. Letting go of the gun he lifted his hands realizing he wasn’t wearing gloves and grabbing the girl by her midsection before her arms could reach him and throwing her away from himself. She weighed less than one hundred pounds and Roland had tossed her fairly hard slamming her against a wall.
     
    She hit the ground with a light thump and hopped up to her feet charging at him with surprising speed. Giving up on his gun Roland waited until she was close and side stepped grabbing her by the neck and giving a quick twist. Her neck snapped instantly and her tiny body crumpled to the floor the head still moving and snapping its teeth. Roland stared down at the creature; he knew it had been a girl the day before with dreams and hopes now it was a monster that desired human flesh with no trace of its former life remaining. Roland was about to bring his heavy boot down on the tiny blonde head when he stopped. “I’ve killed enough today.”
     
    Gathering up two cartons of his preferred brand of cigarettes and the entire display of Bic lighters Roland left the store in a hurry; the creature’s moans and snarls following him out the door. Climbing into the truck trying to keep his sadness from showing Roland shut the door and buckled his seatbelt doing his best not to look at Emily. “What took so long?” she asked.
     
    “Long lineup.” He tried to joke. “Let’s go.”
     
    “If you say so.” She said; shifting the truck into drive and heading back onto the street for the highway.
     
    The storm had gotten pretty bad; limiting visibility to just past the hood and Emily had the wipers on the highest setting. Roland attempted to make conversation but the events of the day weighed heavily on his mind and Emily eventually turned on the stereo as they reached the city limits. Trying to focus on the music Roland found his mind constantly drifting back to the faces of everyone he had killed or let die since waking up that morning; the homeless woman, James and the others from the mall, the old man at the sporting goods store, the big guy in coveralls, the kid, his ex, Emily’s boyfriend, and now Crystal. Looking at the truck’s clock Roland saw it was only 1:30 PM but he felt as though he had been awake for days. His eyes closed and he felt darkness take him, the faces of the dead burned into his eyelids like a silent movie.
     
    He awoke to Emily shaking him two hours later. “Roland, wake up!” Startled he woke up and looked around reaching for the Eagle resting in his lap. They were stopped at a gas station in Wandering River, the snow still falling heavily and it was quickly becoming dark. Roland could see the lights were still on inside and the store was empty. “We need gas, you run in and activate the pump and I’ll fill up the truck.”
     
    Roland nodded and unbuckled his seatbelt blinking his right eye attempting to clear the fog from his vision; his left eye was now crusted shut and would need to be cleaned soon. Once outside the vehicle he let Eve