"We're aware of the consequences," Justine stated knowledgeably. "But not all of us will be heading," he said, looking at Ricky and Mikaella. "Those two will be going to have to stay in a nearby establishment, where they will be safe, and sound and we will not have to be concerned about them. Ricky's capable too, but he needs to look after Mikaella. The remaining of us is far more competent than we appear."
"You appear competent," Kelly said, casting a skeptical glance our way. "But some of you don't, I'm sure. I'm not sure what your arrangements are, but you'd be much safer remaining and staying in the neighborhood and helping us out on the homestead. Lesley's leg is deteriorating, and even more so with the impending cold, and we're going to need every support and assistance we might get."
"He's correct," Lesley stated. "You're free and welcome to remain here and help out to make
Peter nodded. โIโll go find him some clean clothes to wear. The shirt might be a little tight since heโs so big compared to me, but itโll 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?โ โThatโs probably a good idea,โ I said. โOnce heโs cleaned up, it should go smoothly.โ Turning to Justine, I motioned to the stairs. โYou remember where that bathroom is, right? Why donโt you go start a nice hot shower and Iโll be up there in a minute?โ I sighed. โItโs too early to tell. He did turn and attack someone, but Iโm not sure how much of it he remembers, or what kind of lasting affect itโll have on his mind. Iโm hoping heโll be able to put it all behind him with some time and love and understanding.โ โBe careful being alone with him,โ Peter remarked. โI know you donโt wanna hear this, but he might be dangerous. I shouldnโt 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 Allenโs chest and drags him down to the ground with a startled shout. Before any of us could even react, he sunk his teeth into Clydeโs 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 didnโt look too bad, but Iโm sure it couldnโt feel very pleasant. Clyde hissed in pain as I pressed the napkins harder against his chest, trying to stem the flow of blood. โWhat set him off?โ I asked. โIโm 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. Heโs going to be ripped away from me, and then heโs 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. Heโs 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 didnโt 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 couldnโt lose him. I couldnโt. PleaseโฆEveryone 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 didnโt 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 otherโs 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. โUnfortunately, we donโt know the layout of this area where the lab is,โ Clyde began. โAnd we donโt know the extent of the disease. So weโre going in blind and to an extent, weโll just have to hope that things work out for the best. What we can plan for, however, is what to do in
โYou did look a little green up there,โ Xander said with a smirk.โYou did great. It was a speech to go down in history,โ Clyde replied. โI 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.โBillie clapped his hands loudly. โWell, now that the official business is over with, who wants some booze?โโYeah, what the hell,โ Michael said, getting to his feet. โThis might be our last chance ever to get drunk.โThe 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.โWhat did they mean by โthis might be our last chance ever to get drunkโ?โ Justine asked.โThe three of us are headi