Wicked Game

Zombie

They say that in times action, time seems to move a lot slower. 

This is not true. 

In fact time seems to speed up. You see, within these crucial few seconds between life and death the luxury of time is not an option. There is only action or omission. There is no time to wait, to decide and debate. 

Joseph and Annie sprinted round the corner to find Olivia and Nathaniel being backed into a corner by a large man. Annie stopped in her tracks while Joseph carried on rugby tackling the man to the floor. They both landed with a hard thud and Joseph started to beat the man's face and chest. Annie ran over to Olivia who had now placed her head between her knees as she rested up against the side of a car. Annie looked over to where Joseph was fighting the attacker. He had lost the higher advantage and was now taking a beating himself. 

"Joseph!" Annie shouted as she ran over. 

Using all the strength she could muster she rammed her body into the man, knocking him off the weakened Joseph. The man quickly regained balance and set his sights on Annie instead. She pulled out the knife which was strapped to her thigh as the two began circling each other. 

It all happened so fast. He lunged forward. She reacted. 

The knife plunged into the man's side scraping against the bone and gristle around his ribs. Annie let go of the knife as the man fell to the ground, it still stuck in his side. She stood there for a moment above the body of the man she had just killed, deaf and blind to her surroundings. 

She had just killed someone. 

Someone. 

A person. 

Not one of the infected. A real human person. With a heart and a mind and...

The vomit came first as she remembered the feeling of the knife scraping against his bone. She couldn't help it. She looked down at her hands and saw the blood that coated them; bright red and thick. It lathered in her hands as she tried to wipe it off, furiously scrubbing her hands together. 

Fuck.

It wasn't coming off. She could hear someone calling her name. It didn't matter. She needed to get rid of the blood. Yes. That would make it better.

"Annie." 

Joseph's voice broke through the loud ringing in Annie's ears. She looked up to see his worried face. His expression was softer as he looked into her frightened eyes. He grabbed her hands and wiped them with the bottom of his shirt. It smudged the blood around and left a slightly pink stain on her hands. She stared down at her hands. Would the evidence of her crime mark her body forever?

"Annie, look at me"

She did as he said. 

"You're ok. Nathaniel and Olivia are ok. It's not your fault." he stated slowly.

She nodded after every word knowing that she did not believe him. Joseph pulled her into a tight hug which caught her off guard. She took comfort in the affection she was shown and relished in the blanket of human contact. She stayed like this for a few minutes willing herself to be ok with what she had just done. Her eyes darted to Olivia who was still in the same position by the vehicle her eyes wide in shock. Her son Nathaniel knelt in front of her but her focus wasn't on him. It was on the body of the man that was laying at Annie's feet. 

"Is..is he dead? The man... he's dead isn't he?" Olivia finally stuttered. 

Her voice was shaky and nervous. Joseph let go of Annie and turned towards his sister and knelt down so he was at her eye level. 

"Olivia." his voice was quiet. Almost a hoarse whisper. "He isn't going to hurt you."

She let out a sob and Joseph wrapped his arms around her. She began to cry, her tears causing a wet patch to form on Joseph's shirt. They stayed in this position for half an hour until Olivia had cried herself into exhaustion and finally drifted to sleep.

Annie and Nathaniel sat round the opposite side of the truck. Olivia's sobs had soon faded and Nathaniel rested his tired head on Annie's shoulder. 

"Are you OK?"

Annie looked down at the small boy. 

"I'll be OK. Don't you worry about me." she replied. 

"Annie?" 

"Yes Nathaniel?"

"I'm glad you're here. I'm glad you helped mom."

Annie looked into the young boys eyes. That's all he was; a young boy. Too young for the horror of what the world had become. Annie wondered whether things would ever go back to the way they were. A part of her held on to the belief that this was temporary. It would be over soon. She would find her family and they would get a call from the government saying they had things under control and everyone could go home. However, there was a sinking feeling in the pit of Annie's stomach that this incident was just a sign of things to come. Still, as she looked into the boy's eyes there was still the light of youthful hope. One that she knew she could not extinguish. 

"I'm glad I'm here too. We've got to stick together now. Through these difficult times. We've got to have faith that it will get better" 

"It has to get better" Nathaniel whispered quietly. 

===

The small group headed further South down the highway the next morning.

When Annie had woken up she noticed that the body of the man had gone; Joseph must have got rid of it during the night. All that remained was a dark red stain that tainted the dry tarmac. She tried not to look at it as she packed her bag once more.

She had a feeling that the death of the man was a sign of things to come. A sign of a much darker future that any of them hoped for. She had tried her best to stay positive and hopeful but each day, surviving in the apocalypse, suffocated the light at the end of the tunnel.