Chatter

Chapter 6

The group peered into the building wondering what could be the problem. They had seen their share of odd and disgusting in the last day but Vick had never reacted like this before. The building itself was in decent shape. The grounds itself left a little to be desired however. The grass and shrubs were dead and tall. There was an old beat up boat in the parking lot that looked as if it last saw water in the Nixon years.

They all walked in with Vick and saw where his horror laid. It was a building for children's gymnastics. There looked to be about twenty girls strewn about the mats, all dead. One girl must have climbed the rope to hide but fell. Her body was misshapen after hitting the ground from such a height and her head was completely sideways.

The pack slowly walked through the gym looking for any life. Body after body of young girl lay dead in various stages of gore. "I don't think they were infected," said Cade looking about. "Someone got to them."

They walked past one poor little thing with her back broken over a balance beam, guts torn from her stomach. He face looked as though it were eaten; eyeballs gone. In fact as they checked each body all of the faces were torn away with eyes missing.

"Do chatterers take the eyes," asked Trina.

"Everyone look around, there could be a few lingering," said Cade. "Be careful."

One by one they split up and began looking for survivors and monsters. The building itself was not very big. There was a large workout area with beams and bars which they were in. Cade could make out a few other doors and a stairway. Some must be rest rooms or changing areas, and maybe a viewing room for parents and an office for the manager slash trainer or both.

Vick and Cade looked through the rest rooms finding only one dead little girl. It appeared she was trying to hide under a bench from whoever attacked. Her eyes and face were missing and her fingernails were gone leaving bloody stumps in their place. "Poor little girl must have been dragged out of hiding," said Vick.

Dwayne was in the manager's office. Nothing was in there alive or dead. He searched through drawers and found some bagged snacks. In the mini fridge there was a case of bottled water, "This will come in handy."

The three girls stayed in the workout area looking around. Autumn was stuck to Keiko like a leech. They looked at each girl for signs of life but found none. The chalk stand was spilled over with one girl inside it. Two little ones were under mats. At least ten were strewn around the room in various designs of gore. 

They all met back by the door to leave, Dwayne showing off the water he had found. Cade looked around disheveled, "Well we may as well go; we were too late to find anyone here." He gave the place a quick gaze, "And I sure as hell don't wanna stay the night here."

"Wait. Where is dad," said Autumn with concern.

"Ah shit let's find him fast," called Dwayne and Vick together.

He only place no one had gone was up the stairs. He had to be there somewhere. All of a sudden they heard, "Ahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh." Climbing the steps three at a time they got up in time to see Hank on the floor with a woman on top of him. 

She had clawed his chest open deeply. Her face had transformed into a toothy horror. The thing bit at his neck and chest working up the face.

"No, shoot it," cried Autumn.

Vick ran over and slammed the butt of his shotgun into the woman's head. She reeled over onto the floor with parts of Hank clinging to her teeth. He cocked his gun and squeezed the trigger. "Boom," rang out in the attic space. 

The chatterer exploded. Her face and head tore into fragments spraying the area with blood, bone, and muscle. Vick dropped the gun and puked.  

"No dad, no," screamed Autumn.

Hank lay there gurgling and sputtering on the floor. His bare ribs were showing through the torn flesh. The man's face area was a mess. Blood was everywhere. 

The rest of the group backed up as Autumn went to her fallen father. "You can't leave me daddy, you can't," she cried. Tears rolled off her little cheeks and onto Hank. He gurgled noises as if trying to speaking but nothing intelligible came out.

Suddenly his eyes rolled back into his face. His nose began sniffing loudy. "Oh shit," said Trina. She grabbed Autumn and the group ran down the stairs and outside. Only Cade remained, though no one noticed.

"I'm so sorry Hank. I tried to get us all to safety. Don't worry about Autumn, we will look after her. I promise you."

Hank was trying to get to his feet. The newness of the infection made it slow. "Is this why there are chatterers and sniffers? The originals chatter and the ones they turn sniff?"

Cade wiped a tear from his eye and lowered the pistol. Hank stopped moving, somehow maybe knowing what was coming. He put the pistol at Hanks brain, "I am so sorry."

"Bang."

The would be leader went outside with the others. They all were consoling Autumn who was on her knees in tears. "You killed him," she cried.

"Sweetie he was already dead," said Cade wiping more tears that had fallen to his dirty cheeks. "But yes I shot him. So he wouldn't hurt anyone who might come here next."

Vick and Dwayne closed the gymnasium door and put a chain around the handles that was on the ground. Vick then told Cade to hitch up the boat and park it tight against the doorway.

"That way no one gets in or out, without a lot of work," said Vick.

After securing the door with the boat they got back on the interstate. The group was quiet except for the occasional wailing of Autumn crying for her, "daddy."

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