Dead.

Chapter Fourteen

Jeff opened fire, Cass staggered backwards and she tried to ready her weapon but she was useless. Her should bit an angry pain at her motions and the crackling of gunfire was enough to ignite the air.

"We have to go." Jeff called over the ruckus and he looked to Cass. This place wouldn't survive it, the wall was broken and all their hard work had been for nought. I'm one fell swoop, the Odd had collapsed it. It was dead, oozing out blood on the floor but there were more calls.

"Get to the vehicles." People were shouting, screaming and cursing. It was all just noise as Cass clambered to Jeff's side and looked around with wild eyes. More Odd were coming, like pack animals. People were floundering to make it to the cars and vans, shoving what belongings they had inside as the gate was opened, pulled and pulleyed by a few brave men.

"Cass, move." Jeff said as he tugged on her. Cass was in a daze, shocked at everything that was going on around her. She couldn't move, they couldn't leave. They had to fight, do something.

"Cass, look at me. Look." Jeff grabbed her by the shoulders and ignored her injury and the pained look on her face.

"Go, get supplies and meet us at the van." He instructed her and Cass stared at him, they could still be at this. Dead filtered in behind the Odd and they were devouring everything in their path. Cass looked to the infirmary and started to move, almost mechanically, through the devastation. The cries and screams became white noise as she shoved open the doors and started to take what she could. It was all stuffed into a little medical bag, something akin to a paramedics bag. It had good space and Cass managed to pack it as full as she could. Rhona and Jinny were a no show, she hoped they were in a vehicle somewhere, safe and out of the chaos.

Cass made for the door and the moment she opened it, a corpse slumped forwards, chewing at the air, aiming for flesh. Cass shoved at it, the action causing her shoulder to strike out in pain. She gasped and kicked instead, gaining some distance as she ducked and looked around. Corpses spilled in through the breach the Odd had made.

"Come on." Jeff hauled her to a stagger as she saw a van up ahead. She couldn't make out the faces inside, the darkness obscuring them as he grabbed her bag to help and shoved her towards the van, covering her with a hail of bullets.

"Cass, Jesus Christ." Francis was there, helping her in the van as the bag was thrown at his feet. Cass looked into the back, there were some supplies, barely enough others were starting to pull off ahead of them in vehicles. The corpses kept coming and despite their slow pace, they were huge in number, drawn in by the sounds of carnage. Cass counted three Odds in total, skidding around, grabbing whoever got in their way.

"Go. I'll catch up." Jeff banged on the side of the van and Cass stared at him.

Her mouth wanted to say something, her mind wanted to object but instead she sat like a fish gaping for air.

As the van pulled into action, sputtering a few times to worry her cargo, Cass looked out the window. Francis shrank beside her, not a word was spoken at the devastation. Bodies were sprawled out and Cass was so sure she saw Jimmy among them but she wanted to believe it wasn't, she willed herself to imagine it wasn't her body laid out being chewed on. Her heart plummeted in her chest. That was it, in one fell swoop the haven was gone and it wasn't coming back. Francis tugged her from the window and he was staring dead ahead, too afraid to look out and see his friends and those he had flourished with being eaten. Even without looking out of the window, the cries and screams permeated the glass. Cass reached out and grabbed his hand, tightly. No words were exchanged, nothing followed them given the banquet available within the broken walls.