Defiance | Book 1 [EXTENDED]

CHAPTER 7

I walked out of the house from the back door, just in case of nearby mutants, and through the yard, which was covered in dead leaves from an ancient tree that somehow managed to live longer than the others. I swiftly walked toward the edge of the high white picket fence when suddenly, out of nowhere a bear trap caught my ankle. I screamed in pain not realizing my mistake. 

I heard someone, a particular, unwanted, murderous someone, who wasn't especially merciful. Someone who made my blood curdle with it's voice, as I quickly limped over to the tree's dead, wooden body, dragging my foot behind me along with the trap. This wasn't as painful as the bullet though, it was an old creaky trap and the grip had worn out, thankfully, but it still had a nasty hole that made my blood leak out through the teeth of it that pierced the skin under it. The mutant was close now, I heard his warning, "Is anyone there? I can help you! Come out and I will take you to my leader and you will be taken care of," yeah, taken care of, total bullshit.

I tried to remove the trap, prying the claws with my hands. The mutant was close, all my senses were alert and my hair stood up on my arms.

I grabbed my bag and took out my gun, my hand ready on the trigger.

"Get in the car," I remember my mom saying. That was the day we left Oklahoma. We had heard of a safe house in Manhattan through the radio. That's when they took my parents. When they took their own lives as we watched. My brother and I got out, took our bag, our guns, and ran. I turned around, and watched my parents shoot themselves. We ran for two days. We managed to find more survivors on the way, and that's when we heard of the safe-house, the place where Dylan was abducted, the trap.

"I don't want to harm you, I want to help you," I saw the top of his head from the crack in the fence. I kept quiet and extremely still but he still seemed to sense my presence, knowing I was there with his super-senses.

Suddenly out of nowhere I hear gunshots that rattle my eardrums and make me jump as the once pristine fence was splattered with bright red blood. The mutant fell to the ground with a thud and I covered my mouth in shock. My ears were ringing and I shut my eyes tight and held my breath. My foot was thumping, and I felt myself mentally shut down. I was ready for the 'sniper' to shoot me as he had done with the mutant,

This was it.

It's time.

 "Get up, quickly," I heard Max's voice say, interrupting my last thoughts, before noticing the bear trap on my foot, "We have to stop meeting like this," he says jokingly, opening the trap easily, 

"Is it bad?" I ask, not wanting to look,

" It didn't go through any major muscles of bone, which is good, will take a couple of days to heal, but overall-" 

I cut him off, " you don't get it do you?"

"Get what?" 

"That I have to leave now," I say attempting to get up before falling back down,

"Alex, you can't just leave after you've been injured, you could go into shock or bleed out and di-"

"If I died, I would be happy! Don't you realize we're in a living hell-hole?! Full of psychopathic people and freaking Zombies that constantly want to kill me! I just want it over, I want to be with my family. You don't know what it's like to lose your family, you would understand!"

He looked at me, a hurt expression in his eyes, and then looked down, avoiding eye-contact, "Max I'm sor-" I began but he just hoisted me up and slung my arm over his shoulder walking me towards the house, in awkward silence.