Rise of the Dead

Chapter 4: The Restraints

"Anxiety, I will transform you into something useful and productive. I will not bow down to you." ~ Jaeda Dewalt

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I wake up to bright lights shining above me, a clinical tint is cast around the room and I shiver bitterly. My thoughts gradually wander back to what happened yesterday and I start to panic again, anxiety coursing through my veins and raising my heartbeat. I didn't want to test on Amelia, but I had to know if the cure worked. I love my family and friends more than anything in this dying world, I hate hurting them. I was so caught up in the possibility of freedom from this virus that I blanked out the consequences, there's not a day that goes by that I don't regret it.

I just hope that if Amelia can- did, forgive me, then the others can find it within themselves to forgive me also. Tears blur my vision as I grasp the fact that I will never see her face or hear her voice again and I sob loudly, if only she was here one last time. I didn't even get to say goodbye, to thank her for all she's done and to beg her to stay.

But she can't. She's dead.

Guilt washes over me as I realise that I blamed Toby for the exact same thing I did when I realised what I'd actually done to Amelia, I ran too. I was scared, terrified, of what everyone would think about me. I ran away from my mess like a coward, I just ran away.

It's no different to what Toby did if anything my betrayal and cowardice was worse. He'd just seen his girlfriend get murdered, nobody would be thinking clearly. His mind would be foggy with panic and terror, the only thought he could form was acknowledging that retrieving her body would be a suicide mission.

I try to get up but restraints hold me down tightly, my heart rate quickens and I panic against the cool metal table. I reach to my left and reach for a scalpel shakily, I don't want to know why it was there. I reach down and cut the straps off my wrists cautiously, I roll my joints and sit up carefully doing the same to my ankles and ignoring the throbbing in my temple.

I silently slip off the metal table and wander to the door, I walk out of the room and down the wallpapered hall towards the murmur of voices. As I walk around the corner I see Josh, Toby and  Sophie with Ashia in her arms all perched uneasily on the two couches.

"Hey..." I trail off awkwardly as they look around to face me, Josh springs up and runs over to me, placing a kiss on my forehead whilst Soph wraps her free arm around my tiny waist in a gentle embrace. When they let go I walk over to Toby sheepishly, "Look, I'm so sorry that I overreacted, it was wrong of me to judge you for not going on a suicide mission whilst in shock. I just couldn't really believe that Amelia..." I trail off my apology and Toby smiles up at me sympathetically.

"It's o-" Toby's starts but is cut off when someone steps out from beside him, I turn around to look at them but I feel a hard blow to my jaw. I fall backwards unprepared, my arms flying out to protect my fall but I smash into the glass table. The glass shatters into my arms and I scream out in pain, I hit the floor with a thud and a moan escapes my lips. I look down and see blood trickling down my arms and through my fingertips coyly, the floor is stained and the table completely shattered.

I feel Josh pull me into his arms but immediately stopped when I screech out in pain, Soph comes over with antiseptic wipes and starts to clean and bandage my arms gently- her face deep in concentration. I look up at Toby whose expression is completely surprised and almost dazed, his arms outstretched as if to catch me besides I toppled backwards.

I glance to his side but before I can see who stands beside him blood starts to trickle into my eyes, I raise a splintered hand to my forehead and feel a deep gasp along my brow and down the side of my face to my mouth. The metallic rusty taste of blood fills my mouth and I spit it out disgusted, I start to feel light-headed as someone starts to stitch the wound and white searing pain erupts along my face.

I hear footsteps crunch the broken glass and feel Josh stiffen behind me, his breathing becoming ragged.

"Back off," I hear Sophie spit but the footsteps continue relentlessly.

I feel breath close to my ear and a new voice breathes out, their tone chilling.

"I'm Maria- and if you ever hurt my brother again, I will kill you," she seethes.