The Rift

Chapter Twenty-Seven: Shattered

Here it is, the final chapter before a longish hiatus.
Like I said before, it won't be that long. A month at least but it's only because I want to spend time on Mad City.
But here you go, a fresh new chapter.
And enjoy this song (No Dreaming by Wye Oak) while reading the chapter :)

With my right arm across Grace's back and my free hand holding hers and the M-16 strapped across my back, the two of us make our way down through the mall and to the outside.

Eli, Evan, and Lisbeth stand near the exit, but they see us without Cody.
"Where's Cody?", Evan asks.
I don't answer, I just keep walking with Grace tightly beside me.
"David?", Eli questions me with his sword in hand as he, Evan, and Lisbeth follow us outside.

They look to their right and see Cody's corpse, red liquid pooling on the concrete and seeping into the cracks.
Lisbeth covers her mouth and gags, her eyes starting to water.
Eli and Evan stare in shock, quietly gasping at the grotesque sight. Lisbeth then releases a muffled cry, "Oh...oh my god..."
"Get in the car, Lisbeth", Eli tells her while walking over to the driver's side of the SUV.

Lisbeth just stands there, still covering her mouth in awe and staring at Cody's corpse as it slowly stirs.

"Lisbeth...", Eli softly says.

The thing that was once Cody slowly lifts its blonde haired head toward Lisbeth. Its limbs are twisted and bent in a horrible way, making it unable to move.
Its eyes a milky blue-gray, the creature bares its teeth at Lisbeth as she stands a few feet in front of it. She backs up away from the resurrected Cody.
Evan and Grace try not to pay attention, and climb inside the car.
Eli draws out his sword and walks back over to the living corpse, then he turns back to me and gives me a look seemingly asking for my permission.

I give a nod.

With a swift downward motion, Eli sinks the tip of the blade into the walker's skull.

Its head goes limp, and Eli yanks the blade free.
"Let's go", he says, heading for the car, "We'll have to squeeze in-"

"What about his body?", Evan asks through the car window, "We can't just leave him here, we need to have a burial-"
"We don't bury killers", Eli firmly tells Evan.
Evan opens his mouth to say something but then shuts it.

"I'll sit in the trunk", Lisbeth calmly announces, wiping her eyes and opening up the back of the SUV and climbs up into the vehicle.
I shut the trunk door once she's safely inside.

I walk to the left side of the car, open the door and take a seat next to Grace.
I shut the door and Eli starts the engine, then drives away from the curb.

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When we're a few minutes away from Haven, no one has spoken a word since we left the mall. Grace tightly holds my right hand as she sits between me and Evan. She rests her head on my shoulder, still traumatized by the events. And I don't blame her.
I watched one of my closest friends fall to their death.

And it's all my fault.

"What happened up there, David?", Evan suddenly asks me.

Maybe it's the fact that I am filled with guilt, but I turn my head to face Evan and I say, "I...He jumped...I tried to stop him..."

"That's a little hard to believe", I hear Lisbeth mutter from the back of the SUV.

I turn my head farther back towards Lisbeth and hiss, "What the hell are you trying to say? That I pushed him?"
"No, David. No one is thinking that", Eli assures me from the driver's seat.
"Bullshit", I growl, "I did not murder my best friend. Grace was there to watch when I tried to stop it. Go ahead, ask her."