killed.”
“ How can I prove to you I
wasn’t bit? Those things didn’t lay a hand on me—and I’m not
stripping down for anyone!”
“ Then tell me what
happened. Tell me how you got to be out running around in the
woods.”
She stared at him for what felt like a
long moment, but in all actuality was only the time it took to take
a breath, “I was with a bigger group. There was a whole bunch of
us. Most of us had been surviving on the road and meeting up with
others and joining up and blah blah blah. A bunch of us wanted to
head into Titan City--”
“ Why the fuck would you go
into the city?”
“ A lot of us have,
had—whatever—family there. With nowhere to go it seemed like a good
idea. And it still does. My mom and dad live there. I talked to
them just a few days ago and they said things were getting better.
Anyway, we made it to a school, which is where I ran from. There
was a psycho son of a bitch that ended up traveling with us. Seemed
like a normal guy. Then he killed two of m-my friends, and…and he
t-tried to kill me too. I jumped off the roof—that’s where we
were—and ran for the woods. I heard him shoot at me, but he must’ve
missed. The building was surrounded with those things, those dead
bastards, and I guess some of them followed me. I must’ve sprained
my ankle from the jump or maybe in the woods, and that’s where I
got all these cuts, and well some of the bruises were from that
fucking psycho, but this is all from running in the woods. And
those things are slow, but when you don’t know where you’re going,
and you can barely breathe or see or run they keep up just
fine.”
“ Jesus Christ lady, that’s
a lot to take in. Why don’t we get you bandaged up? I got a fist
aid kit in the bathroom and I know I have a wrap somewhere for your
ankle. Then maybe drink something and get some rest.”
“ Sounds great.”
The man held out his hand after
getting up and helped Sarah to her feet. He showed her to the
bathroom, got the first aid kit for her and backed away.
“ I’ll let you do your
thing. Just try to be quiet. I’ll be back over in my room by the
window if you need me.”
“ Okay, thanks, uh…sorry,
what’s your name?”
“ Jim. And you?”
“ Sarah.”
Jim went back to the window and peered
out. There wasn’t much more action than usual on the street which
allowed him to relax a bit. He still wasn’t sure about this
girl—about Sarah—she seemed sincere enough, but how could he know
for certain that she wasn’t somehow infected with whatever turns
people into these zombies.
Jim was fortunate enough to have been
home when everything started happening. When the first news reports
occurred he thought they were faked. For most of the first day he
thought it was a joke, but by the end of day one it was everywhere.
The coverage was nonstop and far more engaging than Pawn Stars or
Law & Order.
No one could say for definite what was
happening, but as the days went on and the situation continued to
degenerate two sides seemed to emerge from the chaos: Atheists, and
Theists. Both groups only touted their beliefs and found new
reasons for division instead of unison. The media chose sides as
well and any real information was lost in the noise as the great
debate of whether or not this cataclysmic event was God’s will or
some sort of infectious disease.
Faith in things unseen was always
tricky for Jim to wrap his head around. He thought it made sense
for some sort of God or Deity to exist but just couldn’t get
straight with all the ritual aspects of worshipping one. He loved
science, believed in aliens, but he knew there was a limit to what
to science could explain. Even now, at the end of times, he
couldn’t pick a side of course except for the side of the
living.
Sarah peeled her clothes from her body
and turned the shower on. She stepped in and didn’t care a bit that
the water was freezing—she could barely feel it. She grabbed the
soap and scrubbed
“ How can I prove to you I
wasn’t bit? Those things didn’t lay a hand on me—and I’m not
stripping down for anyone!”
“ Then tell me what
happened. Tell me how you got to be out running around in the
woods.”
She stared at him for what felt like a
long moment, but in all actuality was only the time it took to take
a breath, “I was with a bigger group. There was a whole bunch of
us. Most of us had been surviving on the road and meeting up with
others and joining up and blah blah blah. A bunch of us wanted to
head into Titan City--”
“ Why the fuck would you go
into the city?”
“ A lot of us have,
had—whatever—family there. With nowhere to go it seemed like a good
idea. And it still does. My mom and dad live there. I talked to
them just a few days ago and they said things were getting better.
Anyway, we made it to a school, which is where I ran from. There
was a psycho son of a bitch that ended up traveling with us. Seemed
like a normal guy. Then he killed two of m-my friends, and…and he
t-tried to kill me too. I jumped off the roof—that’s where we
were—and ran for the woods. I heard him shoot at me, but he must’ve
missed. The building was surrounded with those things, those dead
bastards, and I guess some of them followed me. I must’ve sprained
my ankle from the jump or maybe in the woods, and that’s where I
got all these cuts, and well some of the bruises were from that
fucking psycho, but this is all from running in the woods. And
those things are slow, but when you don’t know where you’re going,
and you can barely breathe or see or run they keep up just
fine.”
“ Jesus Christ lady, that’s
a lot to take in. Why don’t we get you bandaged up? I got a fist
aid kit in the bathroom and I know I have a wrap somewhere for your
ankle. Then maybe drink something and get some rest.”
“ Sounds great.”
The man held out his hand after
getting up and helped Sarah to her feet. He showed her to the
bathroom, got the first aid kit for her and backed away.
“ I’ll let you do your
thing. Just try to be quiet. I’ll be back over in my room by the
window if you need me.”
“ Okay, thanks, uh…sorry,
what’s your name?”
“ Jim. And you?”
“ Sarah.”
Jim went back to the window and peered
out. There wasn’t much more action than usual on the street which
allowed him to relax a bit. He still wasn’t sure about this
girl—about Sarah—she seemed sincere enough, but how could he know
for certain that she wasn’t somehow infected with whatever turns
people into these zombies.
Jim was fortunate enough to have been
home when everything started happening. When the first news reports
occurred he thought they were faked. For most of the first day he
thought it was a joke, but by the end of day one it was everywhere.
The coverage was nonstop and far more engaging than Pawn Stars or
Law & Order.
No one could say for definite what was
happening, but as the days went on and the situation continued to
degenerate two sides seemed to emerge from the chaos: Atheists, and
Theists. Both groups only touted their beliefs and found new
reasons for division instead of unison. The media chose sides as
well and any real information was lost in the noise as the great
debate of whether or not this cataclysmic event was God’s will or
some sort of infectious disease.
Faith in things unseen was always
tricky for Jim to wrap his head around. He thought it made sense
for some sort of God or Deity to exist but just couldn’t get
straight with all the ritual aspects of worshipping one. He loved
science, believed in aliens, but he knew there was a limit to what
to science could explain. Even now, at the end of times, he
couldn’t pick a side of course except for the side of the
living.
Sarah peeled her clothes from her body
and turned the shower on. She stepped in and didn’t care a bit that
the water was freezing—she could barely feel it. She grabbed the
soap and scrubbed
Similar Books
