The Virus Within: Third Wave (Book 2)

Chapter 46

Daniel's eyes were glowing a furious red as he looked over to see how we were faring. Once he saw the three humans sitting on the ground beside me, some tension left him, and he focused on our assailants.

"Stay where you are," he told us and Otto, who was still hiding behind a car.

He braced himself, then darted across the short distance to slide behind a van. He was farther away now, but with Otto between him and us, he wouldn't want to lure any gunfire toward the older man.

Another shot belatedly rang out, but once more, the shooter missed. Not that they had much time to react to Daniel's speed across such a small distance. Still, only one shot had been fired when he ran, which meant they likely only had one firearm.

Since their attention was mostly on Daniel's new hiding spot, I turned to the three people who were sitting on the ground against the shed.

"Stay here. Do. Not. Move." I emphasized the last three words with force.

Both women nodded their understanding while Justin just stared at me like I was crazy. He was going to owe me big time for saving his ass.

Rising into a half crouch, I examined what I could see from here without moving. I hadn't been paying attention to the buildings ahead since I'd been mulling over the scents, so I wasn't sure which one our lunatics might be in, nor what kind of hiding places might be around.

Daniel once more darted across the opening between his current hiding spot and the next vehicle. It looked like he was trying to work his way over to a garage, which would give him a lot more room and options.

People were shouting in the background, trying to figure out what was going on while getting under cover. A few began mentioning the new people who had just come in the gate. I gritted my teeth as they blamed us; if we got targeted by every person here, we were in serious trouble...

"It's not the visitors!" Justin shouted, hearing the same voices. "It's someone else!"

At least we had someone vouching for us. I'd still have to remain alert for overzealous defenders in case someone decided we were bandits who'd slipped in.

Daniel peeked out from behind the truck and promptly ducked down as another gunshot echoed around us. Since their attention seemed to be on Daniel, I decided to circle the other way.

The distance between this shed and a nearby truck was more than what Daniel had crossed, but it was still close enough to be feasible. If I get shot again, I'll be extremely pissed...

Taking a deep breath, I raced across the open space and slid behind the truck. I waited motionlessly for a gunshot, but it never came. They were either waiting for me to try again, or they hadn't noticed me in their attempts to take out Daniel.

It was a promising start, but I wasn't getting anywhere by sitting in the dirt. There was a large building nearby, but it was twice as far as my last attempt. I got to my feet, taking care to remain completely concealed behind the car.

Bang!

The distant ping of the bullet striking metal came from somewhere near Daniel, so they were still targeting him. Once again tapping into my Nightstalker speed, I dashed across the open ground and disappeared behind the building. I heaved a sigh of relief when no shots were fired in my direction.

Without wasting any time, I climbed in a window and ran down a hallway. The offices and rooms were empty, although I could smell one or two people hiding in several as I went by, mostly women and children. Ahead of me, a woman stepped into the corridor with a fully drawn bow, and I slid to a stop. There were no nearby doorways for me to retreat into.