Four

Chapter Four

Estell’s POV

A loud crash came from behind me, making me jump.

I turned my head, but before I could see what had happened, Asher grabbed my arm and pulled me towards him. He pushed me behind his body, shielding me with his back as something heavy crashed against the wall.

“Stay behind me!” he ordered.

I grabbed the back of his jacket, my heart pounding as I tried to understand what was happening.

Another crash followed, and a terrible growl filled the unfinished building. I slowly raised my head and looked past Asher’s shoulder.

My blood ran cold.

Three creatures stood near the entrance.

They looked like humans, but there was nothing human about them anymore. Their skin was pale and covered with dark marks, their clothes were torn, and their mouths were stained with blood. One of them had a large wound across its face, yet it didn’t seem to feel any pain.

“What are those things?” I whispered.

“Infected,” Asher answered without taking his eyes off them.

I stared at the creatures, unable to believe what I was seeing. I had heard people talking about infected people since the disaster, but I had never seen them this close before.

One of them suddenly rushed towards us.

“Get down!” Asher shouted.

I immediately crouched as he moved forward, pulling a weapon from his waist. The creature lunged at him with its mouth wide open, but Asher moved out of its way and struck it with his weapon.

The creature fell heavily to the ground, but it wasn’t dead.

It struggled to get up, making horrible sounds as it tried to reach him again.

Asher didn’t hesitate. He struck it once more, and this time, it stopped moving.

I covered my mouth, trying not to scream.

The other two creatures charged at him almost immediately. Asher moved quickly, avoiding their attacks while keeping them away from me. He looked like someone who had done this many times before, and I wondered how he could remain so calm when those terrifying things were trying to tear him apart.

“Run outside!” he shouted at me.

I looked towards the entrance, but another creature suddenly appeared there.

My eyes widened.

There were more of them!

I stepped backwards, almost stumbling over a broken piece of wood. Asher noticed my movement and quickly turned towards me.

“Estell, don’t move!”

One of the creatures used that moment to attack him from behind. I screamed when its claws caught his arm, tearing through his jacket.

“Asher!”

He turned sharply and kicked the creature away before striking it down.

For a moment, he looked at his injured arm, but he didn’t stop fighting. The remaining creatures continued moving towards him, and he positioned himself between them and me.

I wanted to help him, but I had no idea what to do. My hands were shaking, and my legs felt too weak to carry me.

Another creature rushed towards him.

Asher ducked, grabbed it by the neck and slammed it against the wall. The impact was so strong that part of the already damaged wall broke apart.

I stared at him in shock.

Who exactly was this man?

He had told me that he owned the land, but there was something about the way he fought that made me realize he was far more experienced than an ordinary man.

The last creature suddenly lunged at him, catching him off guard. Its claws scratched across his side before he managed to push it away.

He grunted in pain, but he still managed to finish the fight.

When the creature finally fell, the building became quiet again.

I remained where I was, breathing heavily as I stared at the bodies scattered across the floor.

“Are you alright?” Asher asked.

I looked at him.

He was standing a few steps away, breathing heavily, with his weapon still in his hand.

“Am I alright?” I repeated. “You were just attacked! Are you hurt?”

“It’s nothing.”

He lowered his weapon and began checking the entrance, as though he was more concerned about whether other creatures were coming.

I quickly walked towards him.

“Let me see your arm.”

“Estell, I’m fine.”

“You’re bleeding!”

I reached for his injured arm, but he moved it away from me.

“I said it’s nothing.”

I stared at him angrily. “Do you expect me to believe that? I saw what happened. One of those things scratched you, and you are bleeding.”

“It’s a small injury. I’ve had worse.”

I couldn’t understand how he could speak so casually about something like that. There were deep scratches on his arm, and blood was slowly running down towards his fingers.

“At least let me clean it,” I insisted.

Asher finally looked at me, and I noticed a faint change in his expression.

“You’re more worried about me than yourself,” he said.

I frowned. “Of course I am. You just protected me from those things. What would have happened if they had hurt you badly?”

He didn’t answer immediately.

Instead, he looked down at his arm and then back at me.

“I told you to stay behind me, and you did. That’s all that matters.”

I shook my head.

“That doesn’t mean you should ignore your injury. You cannot keep acting as if nothing can hurt you.”

A faint smile appeared on his face, but it disappeared almost immediately.

“Trust me, Estell. This isn’t the first time I’ve been injured.”

“That doesn’t make it alright.”

I reached for his arm again, and this time he allowed me to examine it.

The scratches looked painful, and there was a small cut near his elbow. I swallowed as I looked at the blood.

“We need to clean this before it gets worse,” I said.

Asher glanced towards the entrance.

“We need to leave first. The noise may attract more of them.”

I looked at the fallen creatures again, feeling a fresh wave of fear.

He was right. We couldn’t remain there.

Still, I couldn’t stop thinking about his injury.

“Then let’s leave, but you’re going to let me treat you when we get somewhere safe.”

Asher looked at me for a moment before nodding.

“Alright.”

He picked up his weapon and moved towards the entrance, but I remained close behind him this time.

I had already lost almost everyone I trusted, and although Asher and I were not close, I couldn’t bear the thought of losing the only person who had helped me since the disaster.

I didn’t know why I cared so much, but as I followed him out of the building, I silently prayed that his injury wasn’t as serious as it looked.