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trio. “Hey! You dick-heads can't go back there!”
    Jake held up a hand, palm out. “It’s okay man, we're just leaving.”
    The bartender raised his bat and ordered. “Use the front door!” He made a move to stop them when a commotion at the front of the club halted his steps. He turned and hurried toward the front door and a fight breaking out.
    The trio hit the back door just as the front door burst open and several blood-splattered people stumbled into the bar. The horribly injured people staggered into the darkened recesses of the bar. They stood swaying in place until they noticed two women closest to the door. Together, the bloodied abominations fell on one of the women. Screams and curses erupted as the bartender jumped into the fray. Pandemonium ensued. The smell of fresh blood filled the air.
    Curtis pushed open the store room door with a grunt. He pulled Matt through as Larry glanced over his shoulder to see the infected spilling into the bar in mass. People with blood splattered clothes were stumbling into the bar intent on following the trio.
    Larry pushed Matt through the back door then closed it. He leaned against the egress with his backside and dropped a hand to turn a small lock in the doorknob. Across the room, a red sign announced the exit. Jake started pulling Matt toward the metal door.
    “Wait! That lock is not going to hold long.” Larry whispered. “We don’t know what’s outside yet.”
    He dropped Matt’s arm then slid a full case of liquor in front of the door. Without a word, Jake eased Matt to the floor and slid stacks of boxes toward the door where Larry stacked them into an impressive barricade of liquor cases.
    With only empty cases left, they retrieved Matt’s arms and carried him to the metal door below the exit sign. Again, Larry stopped and let Jake bear Matt’s full weight.
    Larry eased the door open a few inches and looked toward the back of the alley. When he saw no one, he opened the door a bit wider and stuck his head out.
    “Good for now.” He commented over his shoulder.
    They stepped into the darkened alley with Matt held between them and heard moans at the back fence.
    “We’re fucked,” Jake whispered as he jerked his head toward the front of the alley. Shadows stumbled into the alley entrance.
    Both men looked from the front of the alley to the back.  Escape was blocked by a fence with dozens of the dead staring back at them. When they saw the trio, they began pounding on the fence and moaning even louder. The undead at the front of the alley turned and began shambling toward them. More and more joined the crowd at the alley entrance.
    “Fuck! Back inside!” Larry whispered.
    “No! We’d be trapped.” Jake answered. “We climb to the roof.”
    “What about Matt? He’s been a dumb-ass lately, but we can’t leave him.” Larry argued.
    “No! Hell no! We put him in the dumpster. We can’t get him up the ladder and the bar is full of those bastards. If we go back inside, we’re trapped.” Jake pulled Matt toward the dumpster. “We’ll seal it and then head up the fire escape. We’ll draw those fucks out of here, and then find a way to get back for him.”
    In the waning light and hidden from the front of the alley by the dumpster Jake climbed the boxes at the side and held the lid open while he ease Matt over the edge of the rim. Larry pushed on his backside while Jake guided him into a pile of cardboard. With a thud and groan, all went quiet. Jake eased the lid closed and secured it with heavy zip ties.
    “Time to go!” Jake jumped to the ground and tossed a box at the side of the dumpster to the opposite side of the alley. “Fuck! Let’s move!”
    Larry tossed two more boxes aside. “I’ll give you a leg up!” He bent over and laced his fingers together in front of him.
    Jake tapped on the dumpster. “Man, I’m sorry about this, but we have to get outta here.”
    Without saying more, Jake stepped into Larry’s laced fingers and vaulted