Zombie Parade

32: Sacrifice

Percy POV

My gaze wandered between Luke and the group of zombies. The female zombie in the middle had blonde hair that was tainted light red due to blood and sunlight. She was of average height with a stout personality. The zombie walked with a heavy leftward limp. 

While the zombie features masked her personality, I could see the similarity between Luke and the zombie in front of me. The similarities were mild, but they were present. 

"Luke, she isn't your mother. She's a zombie," Annabeth said quietly. 

"She suffered from schizophrenia. As soon as the zombie apocalypse hit, I ran away for my own survival. I left her thinking it would be too difficult to survive with her," Luke explained. His eyes held so many raw emotions. 

"The past is the past. We have to leave."

"Yeah, we all made decisions during the apocalypse that we regret. We've all done things that led to people getting killed out of circumstance," I expressed. 

Luke shook his head while staring at his zombified mother. 

They were only a few feet away. The male zombies rushed past the female and stumbled toward us. I fired my gun and one of them dropped. Annabeth launched her knife at the other zombie to buy us some more time. 

More zombies were starting to flood in from the other streets. They were running into our street from the corners of the block. This isn't going to end well if we don't leave now. 

I grabbed Annabeth's hand and pulled her back. 

Luke wasn't budging though. His gaze was frozen on his mother. I couldn't tell what was going on in his head. Hell, if I saw my mother, I probably wouldn't be responsive either. Annabeth's hand felt warm in mine, and I didn't want to lose her again. 

"Wise Girl, you have to get back to the vehicle. We have to go," I said quickly. 

"But, Luke-"

"He isn't budging. I'm thinking about you right now; then, I'll focus on Luke. Please, I can't think with all these zombies rushing toward you."

I whirled around and jabbed my gun against another zombie. Then, I ducked under another zombie and kicked it in the leg. The zombie crumbled to the ground while I stomped on its head. Body fluid splattered over my black shoes. 

Annabeth stared at Luke once again before rushing back. Her responsibilities stretch beyond Luke's breakdown. As a leader, she needs to help the others and the camp. She ordered the vehicles behind us to bypass Luke's car and keep moving. Her strong voice resonated through the street. The other cars and trucks slowly but surely started driving again. 

I fought against the zombie swarming around us. Luke's mother had fallen due to the zombie horde pushing at each other. 

Luke was simply staring at his mom on the ground. 

He wasn't moving or fighting. I was standing guard fighting for both of our survival. About a dozen zombies surrounded us, and more were running into the street. 

Fortunately, the others were starting to drive through the street. They barreled through the populations of zombies. I watched as George drove his truck past me, and Annabeth took my white Tesla. I knew she would like the Tesla. 

Ugh, Percy. That is not the right thought to be having right now. 

I grabbed Luke's sleeve. "HEY LUKE," I shouted. "We have to get going. We are wasting too much time, and a lot of zombies are swarming around us."

"I can't move. I can't leave her again," Luke whispered. 

I dropped my empty gun and grabbed a steel baseball bat from Luke's car. I swung at the zombies around us. This seemed endless. I can't fight our way through dozens of zombies on my own. The best option is to leave the area.