Annaliese didn’t like the thought of that, but she knew it made sense. “If things get that desperate then, yes, I suppose so. But even better, the petting zoo has chickens and a pair of cows. We can get eggs and milk.”
“This is absurd,” said Shawcross. “We need rescue, not a bloody community project.”
“Yes, we do need rescue,” Annaliese admitted. “But we won’t get it by throwing our lives away. We can keep a look out for help – we’re five hundred feet in the air – but if help is a far ways off then we need to make preparations now rather than later. We need to prepare for the worst.”
Shawcross shook his head. “You’re wrong. I think-”
Annaliese cut him off. “Maybe I am wrong. But maybe so are you. You’re not in charge here, Shawcross. Not anymore. These people can make their own decisions.”
“Of course they can. We’re just talking here, Anna. No need to get upset. I’m sure we’ll come up with the best decision available.”
Annaliese rolled her eyes at his patronising tone. “I’m not upset, so don’t worry yourself. As for coming up with a plan, I think the best option would be to vote.”
“Well, I’m not sure that-”
“I’m happy to vote,” said Mike.
“Me too,” said Alan.
Greg and Michelle also both agreed.
“There we have it,” Annaliese said. “Our first vote is to vote. The second is whether or not we light a signal fire, or whether we dig in and make sure we’re set up to survive here.”
“I vote we stay and prepare,” said Mike.
“All those in favour?” Annaliese asked.
“Everyone’s hands went up, except for Shawcross’s.”
Annaliese grinned. “Motion carried.”
“Fine,” said Shawcross, stomping across the room. “You all just made a very bad decision, but it was yours to make. Just remember that I was against it.” Then he slammed the door and was gone.
“He going to be alright, you think?” Mike asked her.
Annaliese shrugged her shoulders. “I’m sure he will. He just needs to get used to the fact that he’s not the manager of anything anymore. Like you said, we all need to adapt.”
Mike put his fist in the air. “FREEDOM!”
She laughed and punched him on the arm.
Then they all heard something that made their blood freeze. The frenzied screeching of the infected. It sounded like hundreds of them.
And they were close.
Chapter Twenty-Five
Annaliese and the others funnelled out through the building’s entrance and spread out into the courtyard. The screeching of the infected was not coming from the park, that much was clear, but it was nearby.
“Come on,” she said, rushing off towards the edge of the park, to the area near the cable car station that led to the Rainforest Café below. “I think it’s coming from over there.”
“Then we should probably run the opposite way,” said Greg. His sleeves were rolled up, showing how skinny his arms were.
“We need to know if we’re in danger,” said Mike. “We need to check it out.”
Nobody seemed to like the idea, but nor did anybody argue. If they had to make a run for it, their chances would be better knowing what they were running from.
Annaliese started making her way through the zoo. Everybody else followed. It became clearer and clearer that the infected were nearby, but it was also recognisable that they were not within the grounds of the park.
“It’s coming from down the hill,” said Shawcross.
Annaliese nodded in agreement. She altered her course slightly so that she was heading for the cable car station directly. From there she would be able to look down at the guest parking area and the Rainforest Café.
Sure enough, when she reached the station and looked down the hill, she saw hundreds upon hundreds of infected people. But, amidst them all, she saw something else that she could barely believe.
No way!
“There’re uninfected people down there. Look, there’s a man standing on top of the café…and there, look, another!”