Footprints in the Blood

NINE

Day 12


"Addison, take a step back," Carter says, his eyes still trained on my bloodied hands. Kelly continues to cry, unaware of the shift in the mood. But I can't wrap my mind around it either. There's no way she could've been bitten. I would've smelled it on her. 


"Hey," I say, leaning back over to her. Carter's hands are on me, but I push him aside and focus on the girl in front of me. "Kel, what happened?" I'm studying her, using my senses and trying to see if the virus is in her yet. She doesn't feel infected, but there's something there that alerts me to the disease. I can't pinpoint what it is or what can cause it. 


She doesn't seem to hear me at first, but then, it's as if she realizes who's talking. Her eyes grow bigger, the fear evident in the depths of the color. 


"They came at me. I couldn't keep up. For a second, just a second, they looked away and I ran. I thought you left me." The words rush out of her, tumbling over each other and then she throws herself back into my arms. She sobs, her shoulders shaking with the effort. I look up to find Carter watching us and I know what he's thinking. I need to ask the tough questions, even if I'm not going to like the answers. 


"Kel, where you bitten?" I whisper, my heart thudding loudly, as I wait for her answer. She pulls back from me, shock and terror on her face. That's when I realize she doesn't know. Scrambling to all fours, she pushes away from me and scurries toward the wall. I glance at Carter, trying to give him a warning with my eyes and he seems to understand me. 


"Kelly," I try again, as she fold farther into herself. "I need to see. Please?" She shakes her head no, and I'm not surprised. Typically, the virus is strong and fast. Once you're bitten, you don't have much time before it takes over. However, sometimes, it takes a bit longer. It all depends on the genetic make up of a person, their medical history and a bunch of other factors we haven't been able to figure out yet. 


What we do know is that it's never the same. It's almost as if the virus itself is a living, breathing entity and it makes decisions on when and where to take a life. It's a disease and a predator all in one. 


"It's just me." I try again, hoping that the last week and a half has made us better friends. "All I'll do is look. We need to know, Kelly. Before it's too late." I don't say it, but Molly's name hangs between us like a heavy weight. We have to wait her out, that much I know. A part of me is nervous about what Carter will do, but he seems to be taking his ques from me and I'm more than surprised. A man like him doesn't usually take well to being a follower, but that's exactly what role he's playing right now. 


As I wait for Kelly to make a decision, I study Carter a little more fully. He's not as old as he carries himself to be, probably only a few years older than me. But there's an air of wisdom around him that I can't ignore. I have so many questions, but the biggest of all is my response to his nearness. I've never felt so acutely aware of another human being before him. 


"Okay," Kelly's soft word breaks me out of my ogling session and I turn back to her. She sits on her knees, moving closer, as I do the same. "I don't think I got bit, but I don't know." 


"Hold still," I give her what I hope is a reassuring smile, before reaching for her jacket. Pulling it away from her body, I find more blood, but no torn clothing. Next comes the shirt, but after I tug it over her head and she's left in nothing but her bra, I see no open wounds. I glance over at Carter, as he stares at Kelly's unblemished skins in confusion.

"What is it?" she asks, looking over her shoulder at us. I shake my head a little, my focus on the shirt in my hands. The blood is fresh and dark, soaked into her shirt as if from an open wound. But there's no wound to be found.

"It's not your blood," I finally say, realization coming over me all at once. I turn the shirt over in my hands, brining it closer to my face. Inhaling, I breath in the smell of the Infected, but just barely. "It's one of theirs. They bled on you somehow."

"But you didn't feel it?" Kelly asks, turning around in full circle, her fear forgotten. She's more afraid of what that might mean for us, if I can no longer find them.

"There was something, but I guess my senses don't react in the same way to the blood that's no longer in the veins."

I don't understand it myself, but it's the only explanation that makes sense at the moment. As much as any of this would.

"But they still didn't come back for you," Carter's voice reaches us, his eyes on the shirt in my hands. He looks up, knew information making his face light up in this dark room. "They could smell it on you and they thought you were one of them. That's why they left you alone."

"We tried that before," I protest, giving Kelly her shirt back. As nasty as it may be, her skin needs to be covered when we leave this room. "In the beginning, people tried to break through using the blood to cover themselves. It didn't work."

I still remember the screams of the people being attacked as they ventured outside the walls, clothes and skin covered in blood. They smelled disgusting and looked just as bad as any infected, but they barely made it out of the building before the real monsters where on them.

"Maybe it's different now. Maybe the mutation has to be at a particular stage."

"Wait, mutation?" I focus on Carter, sitting up a little straighter. "That's what you think is happening?"

"That's what I've been told," Carter replies, no longer meeting my eye. Before I can question him any further, a noise catches our attention from the outside. Turning to Kelly, I lean over and hope will all my heart she's back to herself.

"You ready to get out of here?"

Her body shakes a few times, until she takes a deep breath and calms enough to answer.

"Let's go."