Life After Death

Chapter 26

Third Person POV:

It had been a few hours since the group split apart. Twin leaving twin, friends leaving friends. Friends that a day ago thought they'd only be seperated by death. Now gone, walking completely different directions.

For the first two hours, not one of them so much as batted an eyelid. So set on their own goal, be it to find people or the opposite, that they didn't think about the others. Partly so that they couldn't talk themselves out of their decision, and partly because they were so convinced that they were right, that the others must have got themselves killed by now. And that was something they didn't want to believe.

They had split their newfound provisions between them, but even now, they could tell they were already beginning to wear thin. Particularly the water. Vivian knew that the three of them had to find somewhere to sleep soon, and Nathaniel knew that the four of them had to find who they were attempting to follow soon. It was seeming more like a race against a more and more inevitable death or recapture since they had split up.

A group of their sizes wouldn't be seen as a problem, a threat. It didn't give them the protection a group of seven once might've.

Nathaniels POV

We had wandered what must've been a few miles in the opposite direction by now, the first mile or two feeling somewhat smug, satisfied with our decision. Still under the full impression that we had made the right call. And then, now, it became dreary. Our moods fell almost as quick as they had risen in the first place. Though we did all still believe we had the made the most sensible decision in theory, now it was in practice it just felt wrong.

Leaving the others, no matter ehat for, just felt wrong.

Vivian had been, more or less, the first person I spoke to, interacted with, since me and my sister were split up, and now I had just left because we couldn't think of a compromise? And it wasn't just me, Jade hadn't spent this much time away from Jace since at least months ago when we first met them - not by choice anyway, being held by the Reapers was slightly different. Axel and Javon by now were clearly feeling guilty about leaving Whitney too, it was obvious.

"Come, on, there's some buildings over here, we should stop, have a break, and see if there's anything worth having," Axel said, breaking a silence that had lasted what must've been fifteen minutes.

It wasn't much, a lone street of sorts with a few shabby looking buildings and a long-forgotten town hall, which judging by the crucifixes and prayers written and drawn in paint all around it, also made as a makeshift church during the outbreak.

"This is not at all creepy," Jade muttered as we stepped closer to the door.

Inside was littered with leaves blown in from the smashed windows on the side, and cobwebs from the spiders that must've also seen this as a sanctuary.

There were a few draws we rummaged through, the wood on them as rotten as the planks on the floor, threatening to snap and break at too much weight or movement. And most of these contained nothing more than some bibles and things like broken pencils.

"Uh, guys," Javon called out, staring at a metal door as we regrouped.

And said door was locked and stained with aging and neglect.

"'Holy Mary, Mother of God, pray for us sinners, now and at the hour of our death'," Jade read aloud, a message spray painted onto the door, "What the..."

I wasn't stupid enough to try and open the door, or even want to, but I crouched down, peering through the keyhole. The room was seemingly empty, dried stains of what I could only assume to be blood on the floor. Until, suddenly, another eye, one with burst blood vessels covering more than the actual whiteness, met mine on the other side - scaring me practically out of my own skin.