Return of the dead

Chapter 11: Darkness

The sound of feet getting dragged woke me up. It sounded near to the tent. Hopefully, it wasn't a walker. I rolled over to see everyone asleep. That meant no one was keeping watch. I got up and packed a few things as the sound came closer. I woke up Charlie and he wiped drool off his face.  He listened and looked around. He smiled and kissed my cheek before going out into the woods to check. I woke up Henry and Matt before waking Mary and Beth. We walked out of the tent and I had my bag ready to go. We waited and listened. Nothing. I began to get worried. It was still dark out and I could barely see a thing. Matt was carrying Beth in his arms as she continued to sleep. Then I heard it, the pounding of feet and the screeching of those dead people. My heart seemed to stop as I saw Charlie's figure.
"Run!" Charlie shouted and we all took off.
Charlie caught up to us but we could hear them right behind us. We had to be careful not to fall or crash into things or we would get caught. My feet hurt as I stepped on a sharp rock and I heard Beth whimper. I looked at Charlie and he looked pale. I know I shouldn't have looked behind us but it seemed as if an invisible string made me turn my head. I couldn't help it, I screamed. How could all those walkers come out of nowhere? They were in a big crowd and it was impossible for them all to be in the woods. That's when the Henry called out to us.
"There's a dirt wall. We need something to distract them. Go this way now. Take a right." He shouted as we picked up the pace.
They continued to run until they hit the dirt wall and I bent down to grab a rock. If I was right, there was a a small little lake near there. If I skipped the rock across it, it would sound like we were going through it. It would get them out of our path and we would be safe. I looked at Henry and he looked shaken up. I had to do it for him. I closed my eyes and threw it. Sure enough, I heard the sound of the lake. It was loud as the small rock hit another rock, causing the bigger rock to break apart and make more noise. The dead people walked away towards the sound and I sighed with relief. We continued to run, not wanting to risk it. We were home safe. We had just reached the other side of the dirt wall and were climbing up onto it when we heard it. Another angry groan. I gasped as Henry and Matt helped Mary up. It was just me and Charlie left. I turned and saw three dead grown men running towards us.
"Run! Go up in a tree and stay there. We'll go get you later." I said and they obeyed.
Charlie looked at me with panic in his eyes. We had to make the choice. Would I sacrifice myself or would he decided to become the bait? I had no time to think because Charlie pushed me. I gasped as I flung my arms to keep my balance. I hit my arm on a tree and looked at him.
"Climb up that tree and stay up there. When it's over, make sure I don't come back as one of them." Charlie said, pushing me up onto the tree branch.
"Charlie-" I began to say but didn't finish my words.
The zombies had grabbed Charlie and he screamed. I screamed to and felt tears in my eyes.
"Climb up before they get you too." Charlie said, staring at me.
I climbed up as they tried to grab my feet. I was a safe distance away but I could still see them. I could still see those dead men ripping apart Charlie. I tried to close my eyes but Charlie's screams were horrific. I looked at him again and felt my stomach give out. I turned and puked out my stomach acid. My throat stung and my eyes watered but I couldn't take my eyes away. Charlie's spine was drenched in blood and loose skin that those dead fuckers pulled off were getting thrown around. I couldn't help but cry. I cried loudly and didn't care of those dead men heard me. Charlie stopped moving after a while but that didn't stop the men. Suddenly, it hit me. There was no stopping this. We couldn't stop what was happening because they never died. Their hunger never ended and soon enough we would get caught. If we kept running we would go mad. What if this was never cursed like the last time? We would be living in hell for the rest of our lives. Hiding in fear and waiting for it to be over. I laughed to myself and began to climb down. If that was how life was going to be then how could we call it living? I would give that all up. My feet hit the dirt but the dead guys were gone. I looked at Charlie and ran to the tree. I threw up until I felt like I was about to faint. His face was missing and all you could see was his eyeballs. His spine and clothes were bloody and the skin was covered in dirt. I dragged Charlie's body and threw it in a ditch. I dug around the bag and pulled out the shovel. I dug dirt and covered him before grabbing a handful of flowers to lay on him. I wish things didn't end that way. I wiped away my tears and began walking away towards the direction that everyone headed. It was no use finishing him off. He was eaten too much to ever come back again. Even as I walked towards the rest of my team, I was still surrounded in darkness.  It was as if time had stood still. I reached the tree that everyone was hiding in and met Henry's eyes. I shook my head and he looked away. I couldn't take it anymore. There was no use keeping it together every single minute of the day. I broke down. I clenched the dirt and cried and cried. Even after they all looked at me, I didn't stop. There was no use trying to be tough when I had just lost another important person in my life.