The Last Alive

Chapter Sixteen - The Loss of One

Chapter Sixteen

The Loss of One to Save a Few

I stormed off down the hall. Tears stung my eyes and threatened to spill over. I knew it was Becca's fault, somewhat, that the world was going to shit. She didn't do it on purpose, but none-the-less she was patient zero. Her body mutated whatever it is she contracted into the zombie virus.

"Emma? Are you alright?"

"I'm fine, Nathan."

"No you're not." He put one of his hands on my shoulder.

I took a deep breath in and slowly exhaled. "Of course I am."

"Scott is getting to you."

"That ape doesn't bother me," I lied.

"You look like you're about to cry."

"I'm fine. I just want out of this death trap." I blinked a few times until the tears that were brimming subsided.

"It isn't your fault."

"What?" I furrowed my brows at the man.

"Everything that's happening isn't your fault."

"I know. Why would you say that?" I asked.

"I thought you were upset because...."

"Are you serious? I don't care what that dick has to say about anything. I know this isn't my fault. It's not Becca's either. She's dead for fuck's sake." I stopped walking and looked at him. "Do you blame her? Or me?"

"Of course not," he replied defensively.

"Uh guys," Scott said from behind us.

"What?" I asked.

"We may want to go a little faster."

"Why?"

"Run!" he shouted, pushing past us.

I looked down the hall and saw nothing but a sea of undead beings lumbering toward us. It looked as though they were trying to run, but they weren't all that coordinated. Nathan and I ran to catch up to Scott. A few feet away Scott had stopped. Ahead of us was another mass of the zombies. They all were quickly converging on us. It seemed hopeless. There was no way that we were going to make it out of this little predicament. I closed my eyes and bit my lip. If I was going to be eaten, I sure as hell did not want to watch it.

"This is why I told you to get the weapons," Scott yelled.

"Yeah, yeah," I mumbled, my eyes still closed.

"What the hell are you doing?" he asked.

"Not watching them eat me!"

"Oh for the love of God, woman! Open your fucking eyes and swing!" He ran ahead smashing one of the walking corpses in the head with his chair leg.

It fell to the ground twitching.

"How are we going to fight through all of them?"

"We don't have to fight through all of them. Just this bunch here." Scott motioned to the smaller group ahead of us.

"Yeah, and that is a lot of zombies." I swung at one of them as it lunged, or fell, at me.

I smashed it in the top of the head as hard as I could and watched as the black goo spilled onto the floor.

"That is going to ruin my shoes."

"You can get a new pair later." Nathan smashed his way through.

I winced as I swung again and again. We were making our way through the hoard rather quickly. My heart slammed against my chest as we neared the back of the group.

"Doors! There are doors!" Scott shouted.

"Oh thank God," I cried, swinging at another of the zombies. It looked like he may have been a doctor. His dark blue scrubs were stained with something. I could only guess blood, but was it blood from doing surgery or from eating his patients?

Scott's face fell as he pushed on the door.

"What's wrong?" Nathan slammed the chair leg into a dead nurse.

"It's locked," he croaked.

"Not possible!" Nathan shouted. "These are the side doors, they are always unlocked during the day."

"Well they aren't right now."

"No! No! No!" I screamed, slamming into the door. "It. Cannot. Be. Locked."

"Well, it is."

"So what now?" Nathan broke the skull of a woman in a hospital gown.

"Up." Scott looked toward the ceiling before knocking down a security guard who was missing half of his neck.

"The panels! We can move the panels!" I exclaimed.

Nathan grabbed me around the waist and hoisted up. Scott grabbed his arm to stop him.

"What are you doing?"

"She's lighter than us. If we go first, she won't make it," Nathan said.

"Survival of the fittest, Nathan."

"You're kidding right?"

He shrugged his shoulders while beating a few more zombies. Nathan shook his head and shoved me into the ceiling of the hallway.

"Nathan, come on," I cried reaching for him.

"Just open the door."

"What if I can't?" I sobbed.

"Then we'll crawl through the ceiling and be there with you." He tried to reassure me even though his eyes were red rimmed.

"You're lying to me. Do not lie to me!" I cried.

"Stop your blubbering and get to that door!"

I slid back a few feet and moved one of the panels. Carefully I lowered myself into the vestibule. I pushed on the door, but it wouldn't budge. I knew it wouldn't.

"Open the door," Scott screamed at me.

"It's locked!" I shouted back at him, tears falling down my cheeks.

I smacked at the thick glass. I couldn't watch anything happen to Nathan. I refused to watch something happen to him.

"Nathan! God dammit! Open! Fuck!" I pounded furiously at the glass. "Nathan!"

"Go." Tears ran down his cheeks.

"I can't leave you! Please, Nathan, just crawl through the ceiling. Please."

"Both of us won't make it, Emma. Just go. One of us will be there with you." He nodded his head for me to leave.

"Please," I begged. "I need you! Don't do this!"

"Go."

I watched as Scott knocked a few of the zombies back and launched himself toward the open hole. He held onto the beam and began to pull up as Nathan continued killing zombies. Scott kicked his legs, struggling to pull himself into the ceiling. He was taking up more and more time. It didn't matter though. I knew that there was no way both would make it. The last one left would be the sacrifice for the other two. Someone was going to die.

"No!" I screamed.

Scott was going to sacrifice Nathan so he could survive.