The Walking Dead: Return to Paradise Part Two

Chapter Twelve: The Hunters

"Make sure to stock up on food." Clem said hurriedly.

"Already on it." Violet replied, stuffing items from the cabinet into her backpack.

Clementine picked up a handgun on the ground and checked it the magazine before slipping it into her holster.
She handed a revolver from the ground to Violet. The blonde took the weapon and hesitated for a moment, looking it over, before tucking it into her waistband.
Clementine suddenly remembered the machine gun she had left on the bed. She picked it up by the carry handle and rushed around the room, holding the weapon like a briefcase at her side.
She stuffed more food items into her backpack, they would need as much as they could feasibly carry.

The radio in the hands of one of the dead men crackled to life again.

"We're almost at the cabin, can see it through the trees now."

Violet's expression turned horrified. Clem's face fell. She thought they'd have more time than this.

"Shit. Clem, we need to go." Violet said, starting towards the bedroom door.

Clementine moved quickly to the dead man on the ground. She wrenched the radio from his stiff fingers and clipped it onto her belt.

"We can listen in, know where they are." She explained.

"Smart. Let's get the fuck out of here."

"Let's do that."

The two girls rushed down the stairs, not bothering to be quiet. Violet led the way to a back exit in the laundry room that she had found earlier and they ducked down, creeping through the thick snow.

The sun was beginning to set. The sky above the trees was tinged a radiant orange. Clem and Violet cast long shadows on the pale ground as they moved.

They heard low voices from across the clearing, on the opposite end of the cabin.
Clementine looked over and saw a group of people, ten of them, all carrying guns.
They stepped over the fallen tree branches that acted as a perimeter for the cabin's grounds and began scanning the area, creeping up to the building.

"Everything seems clear outside." The radio hissed.

Clementine's heart jumped and she fumbled to turn the volume down. She and Violet pressed themselves even lower to the ground, practically lying flat to avoid detection.
The crunching footsteps of the hunting party were audible from where they hid. 
Clementine gestured to Violet with a movement of her head towards the edge of the clearing. It was ten meters or so away from them, so they began creeping across the open area.
Clem and Violet crouch-walked, hunched over as much as possible.

"Split up. You five, check inside. Everyone else search the grounds." One of them ordered.

There was a lot of movement as half of the hunting party made their entry to the building.
The remaining hunters spread out and began searching.

"Shit. We gotta go, quickly." Clem whispered through gritted teeth.

She and Violet quickened their pace, shuffling through the snow. The safety of the dense woods wasn't far.

"There's someone over there!" One of the people bellowed, alerting his whole group.

A gunshot rang out and barely missed Violet, impacting into the snow and kicking up a spray of white powder.

"Fucking run!" Clem shouted.

She grabbed Violet's hand and broke into a full sprint towards the tree line.
Another gunshot cracked through the air, Clem could hear it fly past her and hit something in the distance. She instinctively lowered her body, still maintaining the sprint.
The volume of gunfire quickly increased as the man who had spotted them was joined by his group. Bullets zipped past them and the normally serene forest was alive with the booming report of firearms.