Alone

Chapter 12

The sun hurt my eyes when we walked outside. I really didn't want to go on anymore rescue missions, but I guess I was part of the team now. I kept sneaking glances over to James. He seemed to have grown up a lot the past year. His shoulders were broader and he was much taller. Amazing things can happen in just a year I suppose.

It was strangely warm for an autumn morning so I shed my sweater and tied it around my waiste. I learned that Max and Macy were twins. It was amazing how they had stayed together for so long.

"Angie, what happened to your sister?" James suddenly asked.

"Abby, she, uh, didn't make it," I stated and began counting my breaths.

"Oh, Angie!" Jack said exasperated.

"She was one of the first to go at the camp actually. She got sick. I tried everything to keep her safe, but they found out eventually. They always found out."

"You don't have to go on."

"That was all anyways," I said as a finality.

James then slung his arm around my shoulders and gave them a squeeze. We walked for a good ten minutes like that. It was much needed comfort that I had always taken for granted in the past, but I now treasured every moment of tenderness no matter how sparse and far and inbetween these moments were.

"Right over that hill is the house we were ambushed in," James informed us.

"Wait, you were ambushed?" Stacy asked, her voice raising on the word ambushed.

"Yeah, it was the strangest thing," James said.

"We were just ambushed! Almost like it was," Stacy paused, "organized."

"That's not possible though, is it? I mean, it could have been a coincidence," I tried.

"I don't think so. I think some of them are becoming more intelligent," James stated.

There's no way that this could be happening. These creatures didn't think for themselves. They killed whatever breathed and had a heartbeat. I didn't want to think about that and concentrated on climbing the hill James had pointed out.

"Right there," James pointed to a neighborhood, "it's the light blue one with the wooden garage doors. I'm guessing she ran for the trees over there."

The neighborhood was badly ravaged by the great fire that spread throughout four different states when the sickness first took hold. Why would they bother searching for anything there in the first place?

"Let's go," I heard someone say, and we took off jogging down the hill towards the charred houses.

The neighborhood was a ghost town. There wasn't a sign of life anywhere, but I started to have a feeling of unease in the pit of my gut. Those gut feelings I got were usually right. But yet, there was nothing here, not even a sign of a struggle anywhere near the house when we drew nearer.

"It was the same when we came through earlier. Peaceful. But then all hell broke loose and we were attacked." James informed us.

"C'mon." Jack said, and we were off again towards the tree line.

The trees were just as burned as the neighborhood. It would be nearly impossible to find someone in here. I guess the point of this search was more for the closure that she was more than likely gone for good than anything else.

I heard a scuffle in the black underbrush, and a brave squirrel leaped out and scampered away into the nothingness. I wanted to tell it that there was no hope, that it was only going to die like the rest of the world was.

A few minutes later I saw a piece of red cloth flapping from a branch on the ground. I inched slowly away from the group and towards the forming shape on the ground. It was a girl for sure and I could see her fingers twitch slightly.

"Jack! I found someone!" I shouted at them. They obviously hadn't noticed me leave the group (big surprise) and turned to see what I was talking about. It finally registered to them what I had said and they ran over to where I was standing.

"Macy?" I heard James say.

The girl's eyes opened slightly at the sound of her name and a look of realization fell over her face, but her body didn't move. She didn't even speak, she just made a gurgling in her throat. I didn't think she was going to make it, but I didn't dare tell anyone that and just looked at their faces.

We stood there in silence as we watched Macy struggle for breath. I felt bad for her and that I couldn't do anything to help her.

"We have to do something," Jack spoke up.

Macy's fingers twitched as if to tell us something.

"What do we do?" Stacy asked, as if she didn't already know.

I looked down to where Macy was and saw that she was trying to form words with her mouth.

"Guys, shut up," I whispered.

I leaned down closer to try and hear what she was saying. "Do it," were the only words I heard.

I didn't need to ask what she meant. I knew exactly what she wanted us to do. By the looks of her, she seemed to be paralyzed and she was choking on her own blood. I couldn't say that I haven't seen worse, but it still made me feel awful for her.

"What did she say? Did you hear her?" James asked.

"She said, uh, she said do it."

The others nodded knowingly and said their goodbyes to the girl I didn't even know. Stacy took longer than the rest. They must have been close.

"Goodbye Macy, I love you," Stacy said through the tears that were streaming down her face.

I could have been seeing things, but I could have sworn that I saw a tear come from Macy's swollen eyes and run down her mutilated face. My heart went out to her, but I knew this was best for her.

"We have to have to take her back and have a proper burial for her when we get back, I can't even imagine the animal that did this to her coming back and finishing what it had started. It sickens me."

"Okay Stacy, we can do that," Luke says as he put a hand on her shoulder.

It was a quiet and solemn walk back to the camp. All of Stacy's bubbliness was long gone and she had lost her enthusiam. I stared straight ahead as we approached the camp.