Footprints in the Blood

FIVE

Day 12
I hear the clock chime midnight as we walk into the front doors. We move through the building, weaving in and out of traps we set up earlier. I don't turn around, but I can feel Carter close behind me. For being such a large man, he moves surprisingly quietly. Matt is walking in front of me and I can see the stiff set to his shoulders. I want to pull him aside and ask what's going on, but the world is no longer made up of those kinds of moments.
"Kel, its us." Matt calls out when we round the corner. I see the shadows move and then the door opens. Kelly opens her mouth, but she notices the men with us and promptly shuts it.
"We're getting out of here," I say, as she studies the group behind me. At my words, her eyes land on me and then do another sweep of the group.
"Molly?" She whispers, but she already knows the answer by the look in my eyes. Her mouth clothes with a snap, but just like I did, she doesn't shed a tear. Not yet. Not right here.
"Who are they?" Dan's voice comes from behind her, as he steps into the doorway.
"Our knights in shining camo," I mumble, moving toward the room. I hear a chuckle behind me and I know Carter heard me. Sammy is laying on the floor, curled up into her sleeping bag, while Kenneth sits facing the window. He looks up as I enter, the disappointment evident on his face. He's Matt's best friend and he seems to hate me.
"Don't look so excited, Kenneth. You might hurt yourself," I snap, because apparently the apocalypse has made me braver. Well, that's what I'm going with for the moment. He rolls his eyes at me, but doesn't speak. Just gets up off the floor and heads for the door.
"Hey Sammy," I kneel next to the girl, touching her gently on the shoulder. She's had it the worst out of all of us. Her family was visiting when the outbreak began. She had to watch her parents tear her sister apart, before they tried coming after her.
"We're leaving. Let's get some stuff together, okay?"
She looks up at me, her eyes glazed over and I wonder if she'll ever be able to come back from this. If we end up surviving.
"Okay," she finally says. I help her pack up the sleeping bag and fill up the backpack with the leftover food and personal items, before moving on to my own bag. There's not much left, but I make sure to include my hygiene items and the couple of granola bars with have left.
"You ready?" Carter asks, stepping inside the room. I haven't noticed the others packing their own things, but I felt the moment Carter is in the room. Briefly, I wonder if it's my superpower kicking in, but I squish that thought.
Matt walks over, as I stand up and I'm glad to see he looks more like himself. He gives me a quick smile and we turn to the group.
"We'll go the way we came. There's trucks parked downstairs." Carter says. The moment he finishes that feeling of foreboding enters my body and Matt snaps to attention. It's like he's attuned to my behavior now.
"We got to move," Carter's second in command, Tom, says.
"Hold on," Matt calls, waving his hand in their direction and stepping in front of me. "What is it, Addy?"
"We don't have time for this."
"Tom," Carter snaps at him, watching us closely. He takes a step toward us, as I look up at Matt.
"At least seventeen," I finally say, focusing on the boy in front of me. "Maybe more. They're...they're being stealthier than usual."
Sammy whimpers behind me, moving closer and I can feel her shaking.
"What are you talking about?" Carter asks, staring down at me intently. There's something in his eyes I can't quite place and I'll have to figure it out later.
"Carter, we need to go." It's now Carter's turn to hush the room, he won't take his eyes off me.
"There's at least seventeen infected in the building." I say, "And they're moving to this location."
"How do you know?"
"I can feel them."