The Fox, the Hound and the Virus

The Hound

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Chapter Four

The Hound

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Rule Four: —Always have a weapon close at hand

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'Would we... like a ride?' Will spluttered.

Rob nodded slowly, his hands still held up. 'Yes. You said you hiked so I can't imagine you have your own vehicle?' Zoe shot Will another angry look and he knew his sister was never going to let him live this moment down. Still.

'Sorry, but we aren't going anywhere with you,' Zoe snapped brusquely.

Rob looked puzzled. 'I'm not expecting payment if that's what you're worried about.'

'Don't take it personally but we've done well enough on our own. We've seen enough bounty hunting groups to know that we should stay on our own,' Will reiterated.

Rob gave a small nod. 'Alright. That's fair. You don't know anything about myself or my crew. We have no reason to trust each other.'

'Please move,' Will growled. The huge man looked genuinely confused.

'There is a pack of infected moving this way. Do you really not want a lift? It feels like leaving you to die.' He sounded genuine. Will heard his sister sniff, scenting the air. This man didn't stink of fear or nervousness. He seemed genuine. Will hesitated. He glanced at his sister who looked equally torn.

'We aren't joining any crew. We just want to get to the next city,' Zoe said slowly.

Rob nodded. 'I understand. We may not be able to take you the full way depending on what we find, we have our own mission after all, but we can at least give you a good head-start.'

The two fox-shifters didn't know quite what to do. 'Look, we'll be here for another hour or so. Think about it and discuss it. If you want to come with us, you can. If you don't come back, we'll assume you've moved on.' Rob began to back away, hands still up. He gave them both one last nod and walked away, the gravel crunching under his heavy boots.

Will and Zoe darted out of the facility as fast as possible. They didn't speak until they got back to their packs. Thankfully, they were still well hidden. As they dug them out, Will asked 'so what do you think?'

Zoe grimaced. 'If they are as good as their word, it could cut weeks off our journey.'

'Or they could kill us and dump us out on the side of the road for the infected to find,' Will muttered. They dragged out their packs and put them on.

'Do you think that pack of infected are really following us?' Will asked, still fiddling with the straps.

Zoe bit her lip. 'I've never heard of infected doing that. They're usually pretty mindless.'

'Usually...' Will agreed. He had a faint memory from their night on the roof, a memory of a huge black animal framed against the stars. He hadn't mentioned the hound to Zoe. Will himself had been so tired and wound up that he had been half convinced he had imagined the creature. But now... now he wasn't so sure.

'Let's go back. We'll hide close by and listen to them for a bit. If they don't sound like a bunch of maniacs, we'll let them give us a lift,' Will decided finally. Zoe nodded. 'Alright.'

They had to go slower to sneak back into the compound. They crept around the side of the building, heading toward the sound of voices. They peered through a gap in the old metal sheeting.

'I don't know about this chief. How do two kids manage to make it all the way out here on their own?'

'I don't know Josh. Don't get me wrong, they were overly cautious, scared and pretty thin looking. Two people don't generally make a lot of noise or take up a lot of supplies. They seemed pretty smart. It is possible they've hiked their way here,' Rob said as he leant up against the side of one of the electric trucks.