Zero Cell ✓

Chapter 11

Alex wasted no time and quickly swept through the first. Thankfully, there weren't any more monsters besides an already downed zombie; someone else had already shot it. The only room he came across, though, was a janitor's closet filled with cleaning supplies. Adjacent to that was a set of doors blocked from the other side. He groaned out loud, having to return to the stairs. But before he did, something crossed his mind. He remembered the radio attached to his belt.

That's right! Lyra had one, too.

As far as he knew, she was somewhere on the other end of the shelter and could easily open up this pathway. Alex took it off his belt and turned it on. He then changed the channel to seven and pressed the talk button. "Lyra, can you hear me?"

Static came from the radio, causing Alex to slouch and slant his lips. She had to have given him the correct number, right? Or did he forget it? Or was she...? Alex's heart sank. No. She couldn't be. Lyra was too smart to fall victim to them.

A burst of static came through, followed by a female voice. "This is Lyra, over."

Alex smiled, breathing through his nose. "Lyra, thank God. Listen, I'm on the north side of the shelter next to some double doors; everything is blocked off, and I got separated from Keaton. You think you could unblock this area for me?"

"What the fuck? I leave you guys alone for half an hour, and you...!"

"I'll spare the details, Keaton's gonna try and find you. Whenever you get the chance, please open these doors for me."

"You sound like you're going somewhere."

"A kid is wandering alone in this place," Alex responded. "I've gotta find him."

"Great. Alright, I'll regroup with Keaton and head over to your location." Another burst of static emitted from the radio, and Lyra's voice was gone.

Alex put the radio back on his belt and headed up the stairs. At least she was alive. That alleviated some stress he was feeling. But they were far from ready to leave. Hell, they still needed to find an exit out of the shelter on top of regrouping. He wasn't worried about them, though; the kid being alone was more concerning. There seemed to be only a few spots in this office section of the shelter where someone could hide. The little tyke also had the advantage of fitting in spaces most adults couldn't. But kids aren't the best at staying quiet; they still need to have that spatial awareness.

His heart raced faster as he thought about it. If that were true, then something terrible could happen to the boy. With zombies running amok, they could easily overwhelm him. They already can stop adults in their tracks; a kid would cry once panic hit and lure every zombie in the area to them. Not to mention that this boy had already proved Alex's thoughts right before.

We alerted everything in that office, just trying to catch up—If he didn't calm down... Alex tried not to picture the worst. There was still time to rescue the boy from whatever danger lurked. Alex rushed up the stairs, the only thing left to check, and wound up in yet another similar-looking hall. The right side peered off while his front was yet another long corridor. Thankfully, Alex found a door to the left that appeared to lead outside. Next to that were rows of windows that led down the hall.

Alex pressed his hand against the cold window as he viewed the outside street below. So, this was the side we would've passed by if those stalkers hadn't jumped us. Annoyingly, the rain droplets blurred the view. Alex could vaguely make out cars piled up, creating their own zig-zag path on the road. He then squinted, trying to focus through the blur, but couldn't see anything else.

Darn... Wait!

Alex looked across the street and found him. Blurry yet brightly lit yellow boots waddled through a large gate and then ran into an abandoned building. Alex smirked to himself. The kid was pretty close, and Alex could easily catch up. With Keaton secure and Lyra making her way over to him, Alex went for the door to the left; he opened it and greeted the outside world.