Peter was looking at me with a look of shock and rage on his expression. I could see he wanted to scream at me, but he could not even, since it would reveal his presence from the shrubbery, something he couldn't manage just now. So Peter merely specifically looked at his weapon, and I tried to shake my head at him without George having o realize it.He can somehow shoot and kill George, but he'd be killed before he could draw the gun anymore. He realized this and relaxed his shoulders, so I'm not afraid about him blasting up the property. He'd choose the optimum timeframe for a confrontation, which wasn't obvious right now or immediately there."Will you let everyone go and survive if I go gladly with you?" My demeanor was sharp when I questioned George.For a brief while, George contemplated my proposal. "Hmm, you are correct. I need women and am prepared to sacrifice for them. If there was anybody else I needed here, it wa
My tongue was parched, and I was suffering from a migraine, so my heart was beating. My respiration was rapid and laborious, and George had just informed me that I was running a temperature.I hadn't discharged any bodily fluids in a long time, which was neither a positive omen nor an indicator that I would withstand this. My system quenches thirst, and I would die horribly in a short span of time due to dehydration and starvation.A quick glance at Diana revealed that she, too, was not going to endure much further. She's become just as reticent as Gigi, but for various reasons. She was delirious as she spoke, and her utterance was stammering.I'm scared she'll end up dying before she can be damaged if she doesn't receive water quickly. But I also understand that George will not allow such a thing. He loved her too much to let her die of dehydration. George drew my attention with a snap of his knuckle
Departing with Justine offered me the opportunity to have a look all around the campground for the first time. It was modest, with just a few dozen improvised tents and weapons and ammunition cache in the middle. We were just a few hundred meters away from the wharf, where Peter and Ricky were waiting for us with our sailboat. Gigi, Diana, and Nicolette were seated in the backseat, although Diana seemed to be awake. She was drinking from a jug of water and really smiled when she saw the two of us.She offered me a bottle of water and looked at Justine down the hill as she assisted me into the canoe. "Is this the guy you started shouting out for last night?"If she wasn't so distant enough from me, I'd ascend over and nudge her. So I just resorted to glaring at her through the bottle. She just shrugged her shoulders and dipped her tears into a can of broth, eating it coldly and quickly, as if she'd never even seen food before. She most likely h
"I'm not convinced why," Diana grumbled. "We may have a real-life situation here. Where else are we going to have to find anything as secure as this though? There won't be any more until we've gotten rid of all the rottens here. We will no longer have to live in continual terror, continuously watching behind our shoulders. What makes you want to forsake that?"I let out a long sigh. “Because…” I had to come to a halt because I didn't know what to say either.Diana is correct: this location has the potential to be ideal. Ricky and Peter could probably clean out the rottens without Justine's assistance if they were cautious enough. Could we reinforce this location? Diana may be correct if we could. We may be able to live a semi-normal lifestyle here."I know what's going on with your mind right now, Clementia," Ricky remarked. "However, I don't believe we should remain here much longer."“What f
When Gigi strolled up to where we had been standing, I smiled at her. "Hey, how are you doing?" I questioned."Very well, I'd say," she said cautiously. "I'm not quite certain why, but when I woke up this morning, something clicked in my head, and I comprehended something. I'm still here. I shouldn't even be here after what I've been through, yet here I am, still with the three people who saved me. I owe you everything."Justine scratched his head. "You owe nothing to us, Gigi.""I do," she was adamant. "I owe you guys so much. You've protected me from George's troops, as well as a swarm of enraged, flesh-eating beasts. I never imagined I'd live this long, much alone with decent human beings like you, when everything began happening to us.""Decent people must stay together, Gigi."She gave a nod. "I understand. And I'm delighted you guys came to see me the same day in town. A lot of people wouldn’t
Justine shook his head and slid through the front seat next to Peter. I got in the backseat with Gigi and Diana, attempting to keep one eye on Barsha at all times. She doesn't say anything the entire drive to the safe place, and instead of holding her head down and sobbing. She appeared significantly younger than thirteen at the time, and I couldn't believe she was going to be dead in the following day or three.The interior of the home was largely ruined, and it appeared to be so much pitch black that it was hard to go about without flashlights. The person who tried to board up the windows did an awesome job since no light passes through the first level. The darkness obscured the blood-drenched flooring in the foyer and the gory streaks on the ceilings and walls.While Peter, Ricky, and Diana searched the top portion of the home, Justine, Gigi, and I remained downstairs with Barsha. Diana then returned a short time later with a clutch of leng
I nodded and let Justine lean on my shoulder. I pulled the doors wide open and assisted him up the stairs to the cottage.The entrance hall interior has hardwood flooring and ceilings, as well as exquisite carpets and brown suede furnishings. A sofa and a futon mattress sat next to a fireplace mantle, with bookcases on each side. The kitchenette was hidden away in the rear corner, including almost new equipment. It was a bit of a shame they won't function without electricity.I walked Justine over to the staircase that begin right behind the sofa. The stairs had thirteen steps, and I had to assist Justine in climbing each one. When we made it to the top, we peered down into the living room beneath through the mahogany balustrade while he caught his breath and composure.Up here, the hallway consists of the following three distinct rooms, all of which were bedrooms. The first features two full-sized bedrooms, the second a king-size
There were just four of us at the time. One of us was hurt, one of us had never been shot previously, and I was lousy with a weapon. I did manage to count all of them while the rottens kept strolling up the northern, twisting road. I've seen nearly a handful of them so far, and there's really no end in sight to the onslaught of the walking dead.When the first of the rotten got within Peter's firing line, he began to discharge the bullets. Every time he pulled the trigger, a rotten fell, but this gun was considerably slower to function than his previous one, and the rottens were not really being narrowed down very much.Diana and I then began shooting when Peter had to pause and recharge. My first gunshot missed, but my subsequent eliminated one of the front rotten. Diana pulled the trigger, and a rotten fell to the ground and did not move again. She's really fully competent at the handgun, and as she pressed the trigger again, another terribl
Peter nodded. “I’ll go find him some clean clothes to wear. The shirt might be a little tight since he’s so big compared to me, but it’ll have to do for now. You should help him get into the shower while I do that. Do you want me to go find the others?” “That’s probably a good idea,” I said. “Once he’s cleaned up, it should go smoothly.” Turning to Justine, I motioned to the stairs. “You remember where that bathroom is, right? Why don’t you go start a nice hot shower and I’ll be up there in a minute?” I sighed. “It’s too early to tell. He did turn and attack someone, but I’m not sure how much of it he remembers, or what kind of lasting affect it’ll have on his mind. I’m hoping he’ll be able to put it all behind him with some time and love and understanding.” “Be careful being alone with him,” Peter remarked. “I know you don’t wanna hear this, but he might be dangerous. I shouldn’t even be leaving you alone with him to go find him something to wear. The only reason I am is because it
Two months later. Joseph screamed, spit flying from his lips as he swung wildly at Clyde. He knocked another man to the ground before he could get out of the way, and he stepped on his back, vaulting off him and leaping at Clyde. He slams into Allen’s chest and drags him down to the ground with a startled shout. Before any of us could even react, he sunk his teeth into Clyde’s shoulder, tearing through the flesh. Clyde grunted as blood welled up and spilled down the front of his chest, staining his white shirt red. Michael and Billie were there in a heartbeat, dragging a kicking and screaming Joseph away from Clyde. I knelt down beside him, pressing a wad of clean napkins to the bleeding wound while trying to ignore the terrified whispers around the room. Thankfully the wound didn’t look too bad, but I’m sure it couldn’t feel very pleasant. Clyde hissed in pain as I pressed the napkins harder against his chest, trying to stem the flow of blood. “What set him off?” I asked. “I’m not
Unfortunately, I was one of the ones closest to the front.The rottens advanced on us, and Billie pulled the trigger again and again. One more rotten dropped, but the second just staggered as his shoulder jerked back from the impact. Peter fired, and the wounded rotten dropped to the ground, unmoving. The rest of them were on us, and I brought my weapon up. My heart was racing in my chest and my blood pounded like a drum in between my ears, creating a roar that blocked out everything except the harsh sound of my breathing.I pulled the trigger and my hand jerked from the force of the shot, but a rotten dropped. Three more drops to the ground courtesy of Billie and Peter, and I took out an eighth. Only four left; Billie took out two of them with relative ease, leaving the last two for me and Peter while he reloaded. Mine was too close to take the time to aim, so I just screamed in anger and hatred, swinging my weapon up before bringing it back down like a hammer, slamming into the rotte
Justine was going to die in the next couple of hours. He’s going to be ripped away from me, and then he’s going to come back. He'd probably end up being a rotten for at least a little bit while we get the cure to work. He’s going to suffer a fate worse than death.The tears streamed down my face and I started to choke. Justine pulled me closer as I cried, but for once it didn’t comfort me; it made me feel claustrophobic and smothered. Suddenly, I couldn't breathe or function. All I could do was cry and gasp for air like my lungs had been punctured or flattened like pancakes. I couldn’t lose him. I couldn’t. Please…Everyone kept their distance while Justine and I cried it out, and I was forever grateful for it. We needed the space and time to ourselves, even if we didn’t have the time to spare right now. I was dangerously close to breaking, and it was wise for them to keep their distance. All I wanted to do was scream and throw things and pull at my hair, cursing Dr. Melendez, the gove
As the celebration drew to a close, Justine and I headed back to our house. We took our time, enjoying the peacefulness of the night, not really minding the cold anymore as we enjoyed each other’s company. The others wandered along behind us, watching us with obvious concern. I knew they saw us together during the song, and I knew they saw how it affected us so deeply, but none of them know why or what to say. So they remained quiet and just watched, looking for any sign that something was wrong.When we reached the house, everyone gathered in the living room, taking up every available seat on the couch, chairs, and the floor. Clyde, Billie, and Michael joined us, and together we made a rough plan of attack. “Unfortunately, we don’t know the layout of this area where the lab is,” Clyde began. “And we don’t know the extent of the disease. So we’re going in blind and to an extent, we’ll just have to hope that things work out for the best. What we can plan for, however, is what to do in
“You did look a little green up there,” Xander said with a smirk.“You did great. It was a speech to go down in history,” Clyde replied. “I told Millie it would be, so she had someone write down the entire thing word for word, so we can put it in our records. People will remember that speech for a very long time.”Billie clapped his hands loudly. “Well, now that the official business is over with, who wants some booze?”“Yeah, what the hell,” Michael said, getting to his feet. “This might be our last chance ever to get drunk.”The two of them headed up to the front and grabbed red plastic cups, searching through the already open bottles of liquor for something to drink. Billie chose what looked like Captain Morgan spiced rum and he mixed it with coke, making his drink very strong. Michael went with seven and seven, using less liquor and more pop to take it down a notch.“What did they mean by ‘this might be our last chance ever to get drunk’?” Justine asked.“The three of us are headi
A quick glance out the window showed that it was no longer snowing, which was good for us. It'd make the drive tomorrow much easier if the roads don’t get any worse, and it'd be easier on us when we had to ditch the vehicles and continue on foot. I’m not sure of the layout of New York, but I assumed we’re not going to be driving straight up to the front door of a top-secret government facility. At the very least I’m sure there would be a fence, and maybe even more obstacles.I tore myself away from the window, sitting on the edge of the bed with Justine while I pulled on my boots. They zipped up easily, and I waited for him to ready himself mentally. He finally sighed and gets to his feet, following me to the door. The others were already waiting for us downstairs, and I saw Clyde, Billie, and Michael were all with them. This couldn’t be good…“What’s going on?”“Just a precaution,” Clyde assured. “Word got out about Justine being here, and there are a lot of unhappy campers. We just w
“If you’re right and you guys do succeed, everything is gonna change. Hope will be alive once again. We can actually begin rebuilding instead of just surviving. People won’t have to be afraid to search for their lost loved ones, or to fall in love again for fear of losing who they’ve given their heart to. So many possibilities, all because of one crazy scientist, and a group of kids crazy enough to go after him," Clyde looked back at us, his eyes shining with unshed tears and the smile on his face growing. “You’ll all have prominent spots in the community if you decide to return. Everyone will know who you are.”Peter’s cheeks turn red. “I don’t know about that,” he said, looking away. “I’ll be happy knowing we made a difference. I don’t need any kind of praise or validation from others. We had a duty to seek out this cure, and we did it. It’s nothing most people wouldn’t have done if given the chance.”“You really believe that?” Clyde asked, lifting one bushy eyebrow. “Huh. I can’t sa
Millie wasn’t the only person in the tent. There were two men in white coats with clipboards, and they ushered us farther into the tent. One closed the flap behind Justine, and he looked us over closely, probably trying to decide where to start with us. While Millie looked after Isabel, he motioned to several nearby chairs. “Take a seat. We’ll take you behind the curtain one at a time and have you undress for a quick examination.”“You’re shitting us, right?” Peter asked, eyes narrowing a fraction. “There is mother fucking snow on the ground. Do you honestly think any of us are stripping?”The doctor didn’t look up from his clipboard. “It’ll only take a moment. We can’t let you any farther into the community until you’ve been cleared. I’m sorry, but you’ll have to deal. The sooner you strip, the sooner you can get dressed again. You’ll be given some hot chocolate for your troubles while you wait for your friends to finish," he motioned to the screen behind him, tucked away into the c