Infliction |Infected Book 2|

Chapter 7 - Fight

Cody

As I stumbled through the woods, over the fallen branches and thorn bushes that were making my legs bleed, I imagined Desi next to me.

Her long legs would be stepping over the nature with ease compared to my wounded body, but she would wait for me, hold out her hand to help me. Her blonde hair would blow in the wind, sweeping away from her face, her beautiful face.

"Here we are,"  Durbin interrupted me from my thoughts.  My eyes trailed away from the spot I imagined Desi to be, and to the small cabin-structured general store standing in front of us. 

The red and white sign that was once hung above the door, now dangled on one side, swaying with the wind; the door wide open underneath it.  Soda cans and bags of chips filtered out of the store, rolling along the gravel with the gust of air that ruffled my hair.  The nozzles from the gas tanks in the lot lay strewn on the ground instead of connected to the pump, leaked gas staining the gravel below them.

"It was a lot prettier the last time I was here," Durbin said, cracking a smile.

A sharp throb shot through my leg, causing my back to crack backwards as I reached down to grab the spot it burned the most.  My hand was damp and smeared with blood as I touched the bandage that covered the bite on my leg.

"Let's get you inside,"  Durbin said reaching for my arm.  He wrapped it around his shoulders and led me limping through the gravel lot, no matter how much I refused.  When we got to the open door of the Last Stop I handed Durbin my gun.

"I won't be a good shot right now,"  I said, as he took it from my hands with wide eyes.  "I need water,"  My voice came out as a whisper, almost cracking from my thirst.

When Durbin stepped away from in front of me to walk down an aisle, my eyes connected with a pair of midnight black ones, stained with bloody tears.

"Durbin,"  I whispered as quietly as humanly possible.  He spun back around to look at me then followed my gaze to the opposite end of the small store.

The black eyes belonged to a little girl, maybe five years old.  Her dark hair was ratted around her head, crusted blood masked her mouth, and in her hands was a teddy bear missing one of its legs.  She stood so still, it was as if she wasn't even breathing, silence filling the store with tension.

I looked to Durbin, who was holding the gun steadily in his hands, pointed at the infected girl in front of us.  I felt the need to run and protect her since she was so small, but the thought of what she might be capable of erased all sympathy for this unlucky little infected girl.

A high-pitched laugh rang from her, making me flick my eyes back to her.  A smile crept across her face, revealing blood-stained teeth.  In the blink of an eye, her matted hair trailed behind her as she sprinted behind an aisle, blocking her view from us.

"Shit,"  Durbin whispered next to me, taking a step closer to the cashier counter.  I stood motionless in the doorway, my eyes scanning every inch of what was visible for a sign of the girl.

Another laugh echoed from the right side of the store, at the back of the aisles.  The innocent, yet horrifying sound of her giggle chilled me to my bones, prickling my skin. 

Durbin aimed the gun down the first aisle, saw that it was empty and walked to the next one, doing a process of elimination on which one she might be hiding in.  I followed closely behind him, not wanting to be left alone to defend myself with my broken body.

The infected girl's laugh rang through my ears again, making me cringe.  Durbin stepped to the next aisle and froze, his body tense with adrenaline and fear.  I stepped next to him and gazed down the destroyed aisle of peanuts and beef jerky.