Feeding Frenzy

Chapter 29

Ford and Johnson had to drag Harrington to the nearest house. Sweat coated Harrington's skin, and he could barely keep his eyes open. He gritted his teeth as he tried his best to walk. Gomez walked behind the group, shaking his head. Josie and Joey walked beside Evey and Fiona, who was talking about the past. They reminisced on times before Thyestean.

When they got to a home, they pulled Harrington inside. Evey walked in, not caring that Ford had not cleared out the home of dead bodies. She crinkled her nose at the terrible stench of rotting flesh. She followed the soldiers as they brought Harrington upstairs and into a bedroom. They laid Harrington on the bed and stacked the pillows underneath his head.

Evey pulled the backpack off and set it on the foot of the bed. What was remaining of Harrington's arm was bleeding through the gauze. Ford had blood soaked through his shirt. His brows were furrowed as he looked at Harrington, who was breathing shallowly.

Evey grabbed her supplies before unraveling the bandage. She cringed when she looked at the uneven stitches from where she had sewn together Harrington's flesh. She rewrapped his arm and listened to him hiss as she moved his arm or touched the wound.

"He doesn't look good," Johnson said.

"I'm not a surgeon," Evey said. "I did my best."

"We appreciate having you in the group, Everett."

"You know that you can all call me Evey, right?"

Johnson and Ford exchanged a glance. They had both been using Evey's full name. Ford had heard Josie and Joey calling her Evey, but he was unsure if they were close enough for him to do that.

"Well, Evey." She looked over her shoulder to see Gomez. His arms were crossed over his chest, leaning against the doorframe. "I think you should give Harrington a peaceful death."

"Excuse me?" Evey asked.

"He is going to change into one of those mindless things and kill us all," Gomez said. "It's him or us."

"Thyestean is not transmitted that way," Johnson said.

"I don't think we should risk it," Gomez said.

Evey let out a deep breath. She turned and walked to Gomez. He raised a brow as he watched her approach. Evey crossed her arms and glared.

"You are disgusting," she said. "You are absolutely selfish. You should have stayed behind and never come with us to Toronto."

"Am I bothering you?" Gomez asked sarcastically.

"You're a fucking asshole," she said.

"No, you're fucking an asshole. We all know that you have been having sex with Ford. If you spread your legs for him, you should do that for the rest of us."

"Leave her alone!" Ford snapped.

He stormed toward Evey and Gomez. His hands were balled into fists. Evey stuck her arm out and stopped Ford from charging toward Gomez. His jaw was hard, and his eyes were cold. Gomez smirked, knowing that he was getting under Ford's skin.

"You're a misogynistic pig," Evey said. "No girl has probably ever touched you, so you are taking it out on me. It is not my fault that you are so unlikable that no girl has ever fucked you. Take yourself and your tiny dick out of this house, and don't come back inside. If you harm Harrington, I will kill you."

Gomez tilted his head back and laughed. He uncrossed his arms and stood straight.

"You're cute, Evey," he said before speaking in a high-pitched voice to mock her. "If you harm Harrington, I will kill you."

"Get out," Ford said.

"He's not going to survive the night," Gomez said. "You cut his fucking arm off."

"Get out," Ford repeated.

Gomez held his hands out in front of himself in defense.

"I'll leave," he said. "Good luck trying to save his life. If you all get eaten, I will not feel sorry for any of you."

Gomez walked away from the door and down the hall. Harrington groaned, and it brought Evey back to the situation. She rushed over to the bag and fished through it for antibiotics and pain medication. She grabbed a water bottle and brought the pills to Harrington.

"Take these," Evey said. "It should help with the pain."

Harrington opened his eyes. She poured the medication into his hand. She was about to hand the bottle to him but noted he would not be able to hold it now that he was missing a hand. She unscrewed the cap of the water. Harrington put the pills in his mouth, and then she passed him the water. Watching him swallow pills brought Evey back to working in the emergency room. Would she ever work as a nurse again?

"I think we should let him rest," Evey said. "I can check on him throughout the night."

"What about Gomez?" Ford asked.

"He is not brave enough to come back into this house," Johnson said. "He may be an ass, but we all know he is a coward."

Evey nodded. The sun was setting, providing an orange glow in the room. They would soon be engulfed in the darkness, just like every night. Evey prayed that there were candles somewhere in the house to provide light and mask the horrid smell.

Ford stepped past Evey and into the house. Evey packed up the medical supplies and filled her backpack. Johnson took one last look at Harrington before walking out of the room. Harrington shifted his weight on the bed and moaned. Evey bit down on her lip as she watched him not managing to settle.

"I'll bring you more medication as soon as possible," Evey said. "Try your best to rest."

Harrington's heavy eyes fell shut. His hand trembled as he wiped the sweat off his forehead. Evey's chest tightened. She was the one that had done this to him.

"Evey," Harrington's weak voice said.

"Yes?" Evey took a step closer so that she could hear him.

"Thank you," he said.

Evey's jaw dropped. She looked at the barely alive man lying in bed. She nearly killed him, and he was thanking her.

"You saved me," Harrington said. "Thank you."

Evey hesitated. She was unsure of what to say.

"I'll check on you throughout the night," she said.

She grabbed her bag and left the room. She came down the stairs, and the backdoor was open. Ford dusted his hands as he walked into the house and then shut the door.

"Get the kids," he said.

"Is there any places for them to avoid?" She thought back to the blood-soaked kitchen yesterday. "I don't want them seeing anything."

"It's fine," Ford said.

Evey nodded before going outside to get Josie and Joey. They were sitting in the front yard and plucking blades of grass out of the lawn. Fiona and Roger were sitting on the ground next to them. Connar and Anjo were on the porch across the street with Johnson. Their group had dwindled to a thin crowd.

Evey joined them on the grass. She was taking glances over her shoulder at the house. She tried to push the thoughts of Harrington dying to the back of her mind, but it was difficult.

Ford came outside and sat on the porch with a gun on his lap. They stared at each other, winked, and Evey broke eye contact. No one else noticed, but the heat rushed to Evey's cheeks. She looked down at her lap to hide her blush.

She couldn't think about a boy right now. She did not have that luxury. She sighed before grabbing the twins' hands and bringing them into the house. They played with Chester on the couch as Evey searched through the canned goods for something to eat.

Evey's mind was jumping between Harrington, Ford, Gomez, Toronto, the children, and a cure.

God, she hoped for a cure.