March 22nd, 2023, 7:00 am
ARRRROOOOOAH
ARRRROOOOOAH
Adam still held the knife in trembling hands, fingers coated in wet, sticky blood. Behind him he could hear the sound of running feet and tinkling glass as shards of the broken shop window were kicked out of the way. The footsteps retreated down the empty mall corridors.
The Purge was over.
Adam stared wide eyed at Zara who stood frozen before him. She still looked pretty, her tangled hair a mess, but her eyes showed fear.
She licked her lips and swallowed.
"Adam," she said. "It's over."
He shook his head and ground his teeth. He thought he might vomit.
She reached towards him. Towards the hand that still held the knife and he jerked away, firming his grip on the blade.
"Don't you touch me," he hissed.
She backed up, her sandaled foot brushing against the corpse that lay on the floor beside them. Her eyes flickered towards it, but Adam refused to look. The memory was enough. He swallowed the bile that rose in his throat.
"Go," Adam said.
She went.
Exhausted, Adam sunk to his knees. He wanted to let go of the knife, but he couldn't make his fingers open. He lifted his head to look at the body. At Mitch.
Closing his eyes, Adam let out a deep breath. His grip loosened, and the knife slid out of his hand.
Groping blindly until his fingers found the brick, he opened his eyes and stared at it. Then he raised it above his head and brought it down hard into Mitch's unmoving face.
March 22nd, 2023, 6:00 am
"Do you hear that?" Daniel whispered.
Adam nodded and put a finger over his lips, his other hand reflexively tightening on the hilt of his knife.
He jerked his head in the direction of Housewares and the two of them crept past the rows of empty shelves towards an old sales counter. Careful not to disturb the layers of dust, the two boys crawled behind the counter and waited.
Daniel tapped him on the shoulder and pointed up, towards the skylight. The sky was noticeably lighter. They might make it after all.
Something whistled past his ear and the counter in front of him exploded into splinters.
"Move!" Daniel shouted, and Adam rolled out of the way as another bullet tore into the shelf behind them.
Scrambling to their feet, they sprinted down the aisle, ducking behind racks as they ran. Adam stumbled and fell into a shelf, knocking it over. A brick that had been resting on top tumbled to the floor.
"We're almost there," Daniel said, reaching down to help him up.
Adam had his mouth open to reply when the front of Daniel's head suddenly exploded.
"Shit," Adam swore. "Shit, shit, shit."
At least Daniel's foot wouldn't bother him anymore.
Another bullet breezed by overhead as Adam struggled to untangle himself from the shelf. Grabbing the brick, he raced towards the large shop window and without a second thought, threw it through the display. Glass shattered, shards spraying everywhere. He leapt and rolled to his feet on the other side, tiny fragments of glass lacerating his legs. He glanced up at the skylight again. It had to be almost 7.
