When All is Lost

Chapter 58

Like a shutter door closing, Anton wiped all signs of emotion from his face. "Nothing," he answered plainly. "I'm going to do nothing. Now run."

I blanched. I knew I should have expected his answer, but it still caught me completely off guard. Without him, everything was lost. My hands were quite literally empty and I knew I was pushing the limits of my luck running around without a weapon.

Make the choice.

There were mere seconds to decide just how far I was willing to go. I'd promised Ian I'd be smart, but if I wanted to save the group, it looked as though I was going to have to put everything on the line.

Whatever it takes.

Taking a deep breath, I knew my decision had long since been made. I just needed to find the courage to take it to the very end. It was one thing to tell yourself you'd be willing to die, but it was a whole other thing to actually act upon it.

Fuck it.

"How many are there?" I wasted my time to run to gather more information. "How many did you kidnap?" If Anton wasn't going to help me, I'd just have to do it myself.

Anton's eyes slightly narrowed and, for a second, I thought he wasn't going to answer. "Fourteen."

Okay... that's a lot.

I heard the sound of crunching as boots rapidly hit the snow and I knew my time was about to be up. My eyes flicked between Anton and the open fence gate that I was sure about filled with people. "And you guys don't use guns, am I right?" Anton's lips pursed slightly, giving me the answer I needed. "Thanks."

Turning heel, I ran. Only I didn't bother being sneaky. Instead, I let out the loudest scream my lungs would let me and held the shrill note as I ran back down the way I'd originally come.

They didn't like guns for a reason – the noise. They were afraid of what a loud bang would attract. It had taken me a bit to catch on to the reason behind their scorn for the weapons, but seeing the scattered zombies turn in my direction as my shrieks permeated the air, I began to understand the full extent of how easily noise could change the outcome of a situation.

I didn't dare look back. My focus had to be on the zombies. They had been building up during the trek, but my screams were urging them on, rushing them to come, gather, and feast. I was building my own horde and they were coming fast.

Panting between my screams, I barely heard the woman sprinting to catch up to me. I only noticed her when her outstretched hand grazed the back of my jacket. My shriek became a screech as I jolted in surprise.

Despite the agonizing pain in my side, I pushed myself even harder and dodged into a large gap between houses. I couldn't count the number of zombies I was gathering – not when they were coming from so many different directions – but I was sure that I'd seen at least ten.

It's enough. It has to be enough.

Another two figures appeared at the far end of the gap and they were headed right for me. I heard the woman behind me skid to a stop, but I kept going.

Add them to the horde.

Add them to the horde.

Add them to the horde.

They wouldn't touch me. There was just enough space to maneuver around them if I was quick and careful. I held my breath as I got closer to them and practically kept myself glued to the side of the brick house on my left to avoid the zombies as they lunged for me.

One zombie missed completely and faceplanted into the snow. The second zombie, however, caught ahold of my torn sleeve. Its bloody fingers clung to the fabric with frenzied determination, nearly shredding what was left of the sleeve in the process.