Zuflucht

8

"Here, hold your arms out." I sprayed the clear fluid on Ashanti and didn't spare any either. I wanna make sure she's as safe as possible and I have plenty.

"Smells like water." She mumbled as I made her turn around and continued spraying her back side.

"It's not supposed to smell like anything." I breathed out. We were currently two days out since we had left the shelter in mid Colorado. The sun seemed to be blazing in particular today and all I wanted to do was hurry and get more gas so we could continue on outta here.

"What's it do again?" She asked as she analyzed the droplets on the skin of her arm.

"It keeps them from smelling you." She looked at it in thought before she tried to smell it again then ultimately gave up when she still couldn't smell anything.
That's the perks of being a chemistry student. When the infected broke out the first thing scientist and the military noticed was they are blind. It's not like they can't see completely but what they can make out is in shadows. They mainly use their keen sense of smell and their hearing to hunt people or things to eat. Shortly after people started eating each other I managed to create a solution with plants and pheromones that basically gave off no smell at all almost making someone seem invisible to the infected. Since then I never leave or travel without it.

Once she was done I then did the same and sprayed myself down immediately after. By the time I was finished Ash came from around the side of the car with the gas jug that was needed at the moment.

"Here, swap me and take this to the car." I gave her the spray bottle and took the jug and made my way over to the vehicle we were parked a few meters from.  I tried to be as quick as possible as I twisted the cap to the gas tank and inserted the tube so I could extract the gas from it.

Pow!

"Damn bandits." I muttered as I spit out the small amount of gas that got into my mouth and placed the tube into the gas jug. The shot sounded too close for my liking and I already know the car will make plenty of noise once I start it up to leave. I noticed Ashanti flinch from it and that itself worried me enough.

"Go wait in the car Ash."

"It's too hot." She grumbled.

"Well open the window just get in the damn car Ash." My voice was more stern than usual and if it wasn't for the current situation I would have apologized immediately.
She didn't argue any further and went and sat in her spot in the passenger side.
I could feel the sweat drip from my brow and onto the jug as the hot sun didn't ease up in the slightest. Just like any normal parent in this situation stress was heavy on my mind and body right now.

Pow!

This shot sounded even closer and I made sure to keep my revolver heavy on my mind. The distance from the current shooter seemed about a football field length away, yet there was still no sign of him.

"Mom?" Called Ashanti although I was too focused to reply.
The stream from the gas started to weaken so I got what had poured in so far and decided it was good enough.

Three more quick shots sounded off and they were loud to the point I blinked with every one that went off. I looked around as my shaky hands poured the gas in and still couldn't see the reason behind the gun.

"Mom?" She asked again.

"Be there in a second!" Another two shots went off and now I could hear the items they were making impact with. One had hit the concrete wall that lined the road to the far right of us an another popped a hole through the stop sign a few yards ahead. I was currently trying my hardest to go as fast as possible so we could get the hell out of here.

"Mom!" Ash screamed out as an ear-splitting shot in particular rang throughout the air. My heart dropped to my knees as I looked over and noticed a man in a brown raggedy leather jacket and ball cap pointing the gun in the direction of the car Ash was in. On instinct, I immediately grabbed the revolver from my belt loop, cocked it back, pointed, and shot in his direction. His body was knocked back a few steps as he fell to the ground shortly after the bullet had went through his chest. My body was visibly shaking as I ran to Ashanti's door at lightning speed to check and make sure she was okay.

"Oh my god, baby are you okay?" I about threw her door open as I looked inside to find blood on her hands. Tears stained her cheeks as she was currently holding her upper left arm.

"C'mon let me see." I gently coaxed her hand away and clenched my teeth the second more of her blood started to ooze through her shirt.

"Looks like a flesh wound. It skimmed past you though the seat." She looked down herself to notice the hole showing through the leather seat behind her. For the next fifteen minutes I spent my time patching up her wound the best I could and trying to stop her from crying. A part of me couldn't help but feel like this is all my fault since I didn't listen to her. All the guilt from not protecting her weighed heavily on my shoulders as I held onto her while her cries subsided.

"How about you take a nap in the back so you can stretch out. How does that sound?" She sleepily sniffled and nodded before climbing out of the passenger side and into the back with the sleeping bags and other supplies.
I myself got into the driver's side and started up the car and drove off into the direction we were headed originally.
After getting a few miles down the road I couldn't help the tears that welled in my eyes as the scene replayed itself over and over in my head.

Am I strong enough to even protect her?