The Days Are Tired (Book #1 of the Dark Skies series) - A Zombie story

Chapter 35: Damage

No wheels, no food, no first aid (which was all in the bags they had taken). We found ourselves stranded with basically nothing.

This wasn't good news for Cain. He was bleeding out on the ground as Lacy pressed her hands against his wound, trying her best to stop the flow. Instead, the red liquid slipped through her fingers, rolling down her skin like uncontrollable tears. The sight of all that blood had my stomach cramping as I fought off the urge to puke and scream.

The Reds seemed to have this freakish ability to sniff us out. I didn't know if they had some way to heighten their senses or if they were just simply lucky. Either way, we were in danger.

The bird-like screeches had gotten somewhat closer, making my heart pound. It seemed like a pattern. One particularly loud screech would ring out and then a group of them would answer with a screech of their own.

Call and response. Checking their positions?

They were hunting us. But it was hard for me to believe that they were really that smart, or rather, I didn't want to believe it.

Would they really be able to find us?

The only weapons we had were my bat, Will's axe, and Leo's hammer. I wasn't feeling overly confident in our odds, especially if we went off on how great our luck had been already. Which spoke for itself.

Two dark figures scurried out of a particularly thick patch of trees. I reflexively lifted my bat, ready to fight off this new threat. But my sudden hardened edge wasn't necessary. The two figures were Flin and Ava. I hadn't even noticed their absence with all the chaos that had happened. The pair had leaves sticking out of their hair and dirt on their clothes. They must have hidden when things went south, smart on their part.

Flin had on two shirts, a white T with an open flannel on top. He hurriedly pulled off the flannel and knelt by Cain's injured arm, pushing a pale Will out of the way. He went to work tying the fabric above the pulsing gunshot wound. Ava crouched beside him with a sturdy-looking stick in her hand, her pink nails clashing with the brown rough oak of the wood. Flin made a knot before taking the stick from Ava and creating another knot. He moved with a steady efficiency, using the stick to twist the shirt tightly.

I was pretty sure he had just made a makeshift tourniquet.

Cain tried his best to breathe through the pain, but let out a few involuntary grunts as the shirt added more pressure to his arm. The bleeding suddenly stopped like a fuse fizzling out. Flin quit his twisting, somehow using the access fabric to secure the stick in place.

"I can't believe this is happening. Is he gonna be alright?" Leo asked, giving Flin a dubious look.

Flin stood with a hop, wiping his brow with the back of his calloused hand. "I don't know, buddy. I ain't no doctor... but what I do know is that we have to get out of here before those things center in on us. I've stopped the bleeding for now, but all I've done is delay the inevitable. If we don't get to a doctor, or at least get our hands on some first aid, then he'll either bleed out or die from infection."

Will shot up to his feet, fist clenched. He was ready for a fight. "My uncle is not dying. And we're not going anywhere. He's in no condition to move!"

Leo waved a hand. "Wait, let's be logical about this! Lanky here has a point; we can't stay here waiting to be eaten. We gotta keep it moving." He gave his crying sister a concerned look.

Will's eyebrow rose in challenge. "You must not have understood me, Leo, so I'll say it again. I will not be leaving my uncle."

"Woah! No one said anything about leaving him," Leo said, placing a calming hand on his friend's shoulder. "Do you really think I would just up and leave Cain? He may be your uncle, but he's like family to me too! Now, we can figure something out. Just give me a second to think." He rubbed aggressively at his eyes.