Fight, Flight, or Freeze: The Healer's Story
Chapter 126: Ask Me If I Care

Chapter 126: Ask Me If I Care

The Reavers didn’t have to stop for food or sleep; they could go for days on end and never tire as they looked for their prey.

But humans had to stop for food and rest, or at least, that was what Rip had assumed. But they were going on three days, still following a scent on the wind.

The fighter was smart, well prepared, and probably a power user of some kind or other. There was no other explanation for what Rip was experiencing right now. The horde had flowed through City I, looking for the man, but no matter how hard they searched, he was nowhere to be found.

His scent was still as strong as when he had left the camp, but that was to be expected. The Reavers didn’t need much to be able to follow it; a single drop of sweat was enough to keep them going in the right direction for days. So why couldn’t they find him?

"We need to stop for gas," grunted Alpha as the convoy drove up to one of the few gas stations along the side of the highway. The fighter had taken this route instead of deciding to go through the forest. Not like the second option would work in his favor either, but they were headed east... away from Camp Hell and Wang Tian Mu.

Rip nodded his head and jumped off of the SUV as they pulled off to the side of the pumps.

One of the Reavers went to the hole where the gas was stored. The pumps weren’t working as a result of the EMP that took out all electronics, but there was always more than one way to skin a cat. Pulling out the long hose that was hooked over his arm, the Reaver ripped off the cover and inserted the end of the hose into the tank.

Putting his lips to the other end, he sucked the gas up like it was a straw.

Swallowing the gas that had made its way into his mouth, the Reaver turned to the modified car that was driving the Alpha and started filling up the tank.

Once the gas started to come out of that tank, he turned around and started filling up the next one. Over and over again, one vehicle in front and then the one behind him until all of the cars were full.

Taking a drink of the gas one last time, the Reaver pulled the hose out of the storage tank and quickly rolled it back up again.

Some of the Reavers had decided to go into the store to see if there was anything that they wanted, taking a break for the first time in four days.

Rip decided to go into the store, too. Maybe there would be some chocolate bars or something along those lines for Wang Tian Mu. He refused to focus on how long he had been gone or how long it would take him to get back. Instead, he would find things from the outside world that would make her happy.

Flowers just wouldn’t cut it in this situation.

Pulling open the door, he stopped short as he saw the group of humans huddled in the back corner of the store, the other Reavers playing with them.

Ignoring them all, he went to the shelves and started grabbing what was left on them. Bags of chips, chocolate bars, candy, jerky... if it was there, it went into his arms.

Realizing that there were more supplies than he could carry, he walked over to the counter and looked on the other side.

Finding a whole box of plastic bags, he started putting everything into the bags. As soon as one was filled, he grabbed another bag until he had successfully emptied the store. Even drinks in the fridge weren’t spared from him.

"Stop!" screamed a man as he took his attention away from the Reavers in front of him long enough to see what Rip was doing. "We need that to live!"

Rip turned around and raised an eyebrow. "Ask me if I care," he snorted before grabbing the almost 30 bags and bringing them to the SUV he was riding in.

The human protested, but Rip knew that he wasn’t going to be living long enough to need the supplies.

As soon as the door closed behind him, the screaming started.

The other Reavers were just as scared of him as Alpha was, so they were on their best behavior in the store. But once he was gone, all bets were off.

"Don’t let anything happen to these things," grunted Rip as he opened the trunk of the SUV, glaring at the driver.

The driver nodded his head, his eyes never leaving the ground in front of his feet.

"Funny, I didn’t think you ate human food," smirked Alpha as he poked through the bags in the trunk. "Is this for a particular meat bag?"

Rip turned around and looked at the other male. "Are you sure about this?" smiled Rip. Just because he didn’t want to take over the horde didn’t mean he wouldn’t rip the other male’s head off of his shoulders.

Alpha paled for a second before snorting and turning around. He walked over to his car quickly and let out a roar. The Reavers inside the store raced out and got into their own vehicle, covered in blood. One even had a forearm in his hand that he was eating like a turkey leg.

Rip jumped back up onto the hood of the SUV and sat down, the bars of the cowcatcher acting as a seatbelt of a sort.

Taking in a deep breath, ignoring the scent of blood that was overpowering almost every other scent, he fixated on the one that was keeping him away from his woman... and potentially killing her at the same time.

He knocked on the windshield and pointed in the direction they needed to go in. The driver nodded and took off, not caring about the Alpha’s car or any of the other vehicles. His job was to follow Rip, and he wasn’t dumb enough to disregard a direct order from the Boogeyman of the Reavers.