Death By Dawn

➽Chapter 7

"We heard gunshots." Gabriel surveyed the area behind Cap and Alex. "What happened sir?"

Alexander took a step closer to Cap, like a shadow to its owner. His mind was still plagued by questions. Ever since the outbreak, the undead were predictable. After being infected, the virus would penetrate the body's natural defenses seamlessly.

From there, the infected would experience loss of appetite, headaches, nausea, vomiting, jaundice, high fever, and then their last moments would be filled with extremely violent hallucinations.

After death, they would return, completely transformed, husks of their former selves with but one desire; human flesh. They were slow beings, easily outsmarted. The problem arose in their numbers and from the beginning, they had that advantage.

The outbreak was sudden, way too sudden.

Cap stood firmly erected, the piece of leather still in his grip. He raised it to show the rest of his squad and parted his lips. "In any case, we shouldn't talk about this out in the open. We don't have that kind of luxury. Let's finish up here and get back to base," He paused momentarily and his eyes inspected the nearby fence that enclosed the farm. "They're definitely coming here after those shots."

Cap further instructed the team, leading them into the large farmhouse, grass green, and walnut brown in color, carefully inspecting the place before closing the doors behind them.

In the corner of the farmhouse, behind a small counter, two corpses laid rotting, telling a terrible truth, a doleful story. Alex's eyes widened at the sight, there was no doubt about it.

"This...this is horrible." He said, paralyzed by the thought of what had happened.

A small child, a girl, about five years of age, cuddled up closely under a woman. She held her tightly like if the world depended on it and staring Alex directly in the eye was a gun, enclosed in the woman's limp left hand.

The woman's face, now rotting away, still displayed a great sadness, a depression that could only be known to a mother; one that could only be brought about by the loss of a child.

A deep voice came from behind, startling him with the words it brought. Those words, abolishing any form of sympathy, commanded something that went against the human conscience.

"Take the gun."

Alexander rotated his body and raised his neck, staring into the face of the one called Cap. His breath hitched and his eyes searched desperately for any joke in the words but there was none.

Cap was serious.

"Take the gun Kane." Cap repeated, a thicker layer of seriousness this time.

"How can you just-" Alex started.

"You either own your emotions or they own you. Whatever happened here, happened. Leaving a gun behind just because your little heart is weak is stupid. So, take the gun." Cap interjected, turning his back to Alex and walking back over to the group that laid what they found onto a white towel on the floor.

"Update me on what you found." was the last thing he heard in the background before his mind drifted further and further away from reality.

Take the gun?

How can...

They...

Take the gun??? How on earth do I just take the gun? She had to kill her own daughter and then herself...how do I just take the gun? HOW?!