They Walk

Chapter Fifty Seven

No sooner am I out of the car and running, do I wish I stayed inside.

It’s a mass of bodies and bullets out here and I have to dodge a young couple that are holding a baby and running in my direction. Keeping the ax at my side, I practically bump into Gabe as he materializes in front of me. He’s with Noah and the three of us make for the front of the building. I glance behind me not being able to help it, and see that my dad is getting out of a car that is a couple paces from Noah’s and headed for my mother. That makes me feel better for some reason, and I turn my attention back to where I am going.

We approach the front of the building and have to go around in a wide sweep.

There is a firing squad out front.

They don’t pay us any attention though, as they are busy with the endless supply of the dead.

We reach the doors with no problem.

Noah goes inside first with his gun pointed out in aim in case of a threat, and Gabe and I huddle close and follow behind. The doors close behind us, and it’s so empty and quiet that it seems so surreal. Just yesterday, this place was busy with activity and life, and now it’s been abandoned and the life is outside. Chills go down my spine as we take in the destruction the lobby is in, belongings and such are discarded without care. At least there is no sign that the dead got inside, but that makes me fear what is really going on. That’s when we hear voices, familiar ones too.

And they are coming from the rec area down the hallway off to the left.

“Stay close.” Noah says in a hushed voice as he starts for the source of the voices.

Shaking now, I let Gabe go ahead and I trail close behind.

He is brandishing a handgun like Noah, and I have a thought to where the machine guns went too. Then I remember that the ammo for them is in Noah’s car, and they probably ran out. Shaking my head to clear it, I focus on where we are heading and I notice that the voices are getting louder and much clearer to me. Noah is just reaching the double doors leading into the rec area, when I place who’s voices are coming from inside.

It’s Claire and Hanna.

Noah figures this out at the same time, and he pushes through the half opened doors with a bang, causing them to jump in surprise. I notice they aren’t alone either, when Gabe and I walk into the room after Noah. Claire’s mother Barb, and Hanna’s boyfriend Logan are with them and it seems that they were all arguing over something. It’s not hard to imagine over what, given the state of the entire place.

They stare in shock at seeing us.

It’s not long before they instantly rush at us and are shouting out questions at the same time that Noah literally whistles and makes them stop. “One at a time please, and first of all what is going on here?” Noah demands.

Claire and Hanna are shocked into silence, and glance at each other before turning to Logan and Barb for confirmation before turning back to us. The whole thing is really making me uncomfortable, and I’m not sure I want to know what happened.

“You guys were gone longer than we thought. Did you find your parents though?” Claire asks me hesitantly and softly.

Glancing between Noah and Gabe, I feel like we are two different teams and are about to fight the battle of our lives against each other. Which shouldn’t be like that at all, but why does it feel that way?

I nod my head slowly anyway, and watch them in confusion.

“Oh thank goodness, we wouldn’t have to time to look anywhere else for them.” Claire rushes out.

Before I can ask her what she means, Gabe interrupts me.

“Claire, why wouldn’t we have enough time and what happened after we left?”

She looks at him with wide eyes before turning back to Hanna for help, and Noah throws up his hands and sighs.

“Are you serious right now? Just spit it out all ready the suspense is really grating on me nerves.”

The girls still look worried over something, and Barb comes over and takes a shaking Claire in her arms to calm her down, and now I’m really starting to freak out. I’m shaking so bad myself, I surprised I’m even still standing. Logan had been inching towards Hanna this whole time, and finally steps up so he is in front of them and facing us, like we are bullying them or something.

“It’s not good Noah, not at all, and you’re not going to like it.”

“I don’t know that unless you tell us what is going on. So I say AGAIN, what the hell happened?” Noah practically shouts, as he steps up close to Logan and in front of us.

“After you left, the soldiers picked up a transmission from Washington. The dead are growing too rapidly and will consume the whole United States unless it’s stopped.”

Logan pauses and takes a deep breath before continuing, and I swear I hold my breath while I wait to hear the rest, and I sure so do Noah and Gabe.

“Any survivors are urged to head for the nearest borders and take cover, because in forty-eight hours, the entire continent is going to be air bombed.”

“Shut the front door.” Gabe says in a hushed voice from beside me.

At least I think what he says is quiet, because my ears are roaring so loud now.

A pulsing throbbing pain is back behind my eyes, making me feel lightheaded.

There is no way that the whole US is going to be bombed.

That can’t just happen, can it?

“That explains why everyone is tearing out of here faster than the Kentucky derby.” Noah says as he bends over and leans on his knees.

“What the hell are you guys still doing here though?” Gabe asks.

“That’s what we were arguing about when you got here. Some of us wanted to wait and others wanted to leave.” Claire says heatedly while fixing Logan with a severe look at the last part.

Logan turns on her and his face gets red with anger.

“I have to look out for my family, so don’t you judge me.”

Glaring back at him, Claire steps out of the safety of her mother’s arms and advances on him, but Noah gets between them.

“There will be none of that, got it? What’s done is done, and we’re here now. We can all leave together, sound good?” He asks glancing between the two of them.

Everything is happening to fast and I don’t know how to process it.

Noah is still trying to talk to Logan and Claire, but the sounds fade to a distant hum, and black spots dance before my eyes making me wobble on my feet. The argument seems to be getting heated now, and Gabe walks over to them to intervene and leaves me alone off to the side. I want to reach out for him not to go, but my limbs feel so heavy and I can’t make them move.

My stomach rolls on me.

I feel bile rise up into my throat and I have to hold my breath so nothing comes up. But that only makes me so dizzy, that I feel like I’m being tossed around in a funnel. I reach out for anything to grasp onto, but nothing is there so I stumble forward a step before regaining my shaky balance.

“…Gabe.” I whisper so softly, that I’m not sure it even comes out as words.

But it must have though.

He turns to look at me and I must look as bad as I feel because his face goes pale and his eyes wide. My vision starts to go grey as he rushes over to me, but it feels like everything slows down and he’s moving through syrup. My head is pounding so strongly now that my mouth waters and my stomach turns over again.

Gabe reaches me and places his hands on my shaking arms. My fingers go numb and the ax I’m still holding falls to the floor with a clang that echoes inside my throbbing head.

The others turn to face us then, but my fading vision is just for Gabe. He’s leaning in so close to me and trying to tell me something, but it’s lost to my defining ears. My body starts to feel hollow and full at the same time, and I’m not sure what is up or down.

But then everything shutters inside me.

My vision narrows down to Gabe’s light eyes before me and all I feel is tired. His eyes go even wider now, and I think he might be shaking me, but my vision goes black suddenly.

Everything disappears.