Tinnitus

Chapter Three

Ari Garcia:

Time felt slow as I felt my ground move. We are being transported somewhere far away. I counted each speed bump and stop I felt. Shortly after I felt a pair of hands guiding me harshly off the vehicle. I could hear them chuckle as if they were enjoying my suffering.

My hands remained tied together as the thick sack had been ripped from my head. The lights harshly blinded me, leaving me to blink as my eyes adjusted to the sudden change in brightness.

As I blinked away the disorientation, I found myself confronted by a large group of people. They watched with fear and suspicion as they surrounded me in a half circle, cornering me against the hall that I just walked in through. On the other hand, the young man was shoved towards the crowd. No one dared to look at him, all eyes were on me and my wounds. They whispered in fear.

"I'm not infected. I was just injured on my way here." I spoke up as my voice croaked. The people talked. "I fought my way out of prison and then I walked for a long time until my feet started to bleed. Really, I'm not infected." Five men with hand-made spears stepped forward.

The men's features hardened after my explanation. They all stared at me as my feet waltzed forward. The men at the front pointed their spears right at me as they shuffled back, their eyes never left me. I was an animal being watched in case I wanted to pounce on them.

Fear wasn't in their gaze but in their hands as they held the spears. Their hands trembled. The women stared at my uniform. They aren't even afraid of the fact that I might be infected. They're afraid because of the uniform that perfectly hugged my body as if it's what identifies me.

My gaze landed on the young man. His eyes scanned the crowd, understanding what was going on. His honey eyes met mine, my heart dropped into my stomach. How foolish of me to trust a stranger who I just met. His eyes begged me to cooperate with the people.

The tension in the air was palpable, thick with fear. I could feel the weight of their accusing stares bearing me down as the men began to step forward. To them, I was nothing more than a potential threat, a criminal that had once ravaged their world.

The young man watched as they forced me back into the hall we walked through blinded. As we reached the end of the hallway, one of the men unlocked a heavy metal door revealing barbed wire walls. No sign of light.

"You're an inmate who escaped prison," A middle-aged man stepped forward from the crowd that followed us into the hallway. "You were bitten by one of the creatures." He pointed at my injured arm. My heart sank deeper into my stomach. The betrayal was strong. The young man looked down. When did he have time to tell them this? I glared at him.

"Are you saying that I am infected? I'm sure I would be showing signs." I stepped forward but a man pressed the tip of a spear against my chest. "Clearly you don't know the symptoms. Perhaps we all are already infected."

"Impossible, we got rid of those who posed a threat to us." The man replied. These people are crazy. I nodded.

"So you got rid of loved ones if they were infected?" My lips nervously shifted up into a disbelief smile. "Why not release them? This world will never be the same, that's something zombie movies teach you." The spear was now stabbing me slightly. The young man rushed forward.

"Let her be. She's harmless..." He pulled back the men with ease. He must play a big role here. I watched how the young women watched him as if he was a god worth worshiping. Voluntarily I walked into the room behind me and shut the door. The people gasped and talked.

The air inside was thick with the stench of decay. There were two sets of bunk beds. I'm used to being locked up but for some reason, I let my guard down. I got too comfortable. I looked around as my eyes adjusted in the dark. It was a new room to memorize.