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found the pistol grip of his AR-15 and was bringing it up at the man on the roof.
    The man on top of the truck was already at a disadvantage; his rifle was further away at his feet and he could only use one hand as the other held the night vision optics so he could see Jim. Jim’s rifle had been at his side. Jim aimed and fired three shots as the man was in the process of awkwardly trying to put his rifle’s buttstock against his shoulder. The man dropped onto to his back on the roof with the upper part of his body hanging over the driver's side. Gravity took over and the man’s body slid off the side onto the ground.
    Jim heard movement from inside the steel box, not sure where the giant man may try to exit, he alternated his aim between the upper hatch and the back door of the truck bed.
    Jim heard the familiar deep guttural growl of the infected. From around the passenger side of the pickup two infected came into view. At the same instant the rear door of the truck flung open and struck the infected male closest to the truck. The thick steel door struck it in the forehead with enough force that it sent the infected flying backward four feet and it landed on its back.
    The other infected, a female, now focused on the giant man as he leaped out from the bed of the truck with a large pistol in his right hand and a flashlight in the left. The infected woman didn’t hesitate and lunged at the huge man before he could take a step, and clung to him.
    Jim aimed his rifle to fire at both the infected woman and the huge man as they fought. As he prepared to fire, he heard more growling and sounds of footfalls closing in. He swung around just in time to see three infected almost within arm's distance of him. Jim fired; killing the three infected, and scanned the area for more.
    Jim turned to reacquire aim on the man and infected woman but they had moved behind the truck out of sight. He could hear the sounds of the big man and the infected fighting from the passenger side of the truck. He heard the large man cursing and growling, just like the infected.
    Jim continued to rapidly scan around in three hundred and sixty degrees. He looked for any infected that approached, and an opportunity to take a shot at the giant man if it presented. When he spun around back toward the red pickup truck, he just caught enough of a glimpse to start to dodge the huge fist swinging at him.
    Jim was struck so hard that he was thrown off his feet towards his right and landed hard on the ground. The NVGs were knocked off his face. Immediately after he hit the ground, the giant man was on top of him, the weight of the man sitting on his waist and lower abdomen was immense.
    Jim instinctually lowered his chin toward his chest to try and prevent his trachea from being crushed as he felt the man’s massive hands reach around his neck. Jim realized at the same time that he was lying on top of his rifle. It was now useless. He wouldn’t be able to move the large man off of him to get to it.
    He could feel it; he was close to losing consciousness. Jim knew he didn’t have much longer before he’d be robbed of air or blood supply to his brain and would pass out. Or he’d just have his neck snapped by the gigantic man.
    Jim tried, but couldn’t reach the knife on his right thigh; it was covered by his attacker's tree-trunk leg. Jim grabbed the knife off his left waistband. The man's height prevented Jim from striking him in the throat, so he thrust the knife twice into the man’s right lower ribcage.
    With each thrust the blade penetrated skin and muscle and scraped ribs as it passed into his lung. The man flinched, his grip loosened as he moaned and cried out in anger. Then his grip on Jim’s neck grew strong again.
    Jim stabbed twice more and then sliced across the man’s right upper leg near his groin to try and sever the man’s femoral artery. Jim could feel the strength waning in the man’s grip after he’d struck him in the chest, and even