The Virus Within: The Road Ahead (Book 1 - SERIES COMPLETED!)

Chapter 66

I crossed Daniel's scent wall and resumed my patrol, going at a slower pace after burning so much energy. It was almost a relief when the sun finally set and the darkness dropped around me like a cloak.

My anger had faded, but I still felt slightly wound up for some reason. I rubbed my temples as I jogged, noting that my headache hadn't faded, which was odd.

The scenery farther ahead hazed slightly for half a second, from the ground up, like a heat haze above a road on a hot day. I slid to an abrupt stop, baring my teeth at the unexpected event. Heat hazes did not happen in a cool forest at night. What the hell was that?

I took a cautious sniff but didn't smell any gases or anything else that seemed out of place. Not all gases had odors though, and as a zombie, I might not notice a drop in oxygen levels.

I tilted my head, I stared at that spot and listened hard, although I didn't see anything out of the ordinary. Nor did I hear anything unusual, such as an underground gas pocket hissing with its rapid escape.

Did I imagine it? The haze had only been present for a split second. If I'd blinked, I could have missed it. If there had been any fog rising, I wouldn't have noticed the faint change.

As I edged closer to the spot, I let my instincts come forward in case they could pick something up. They had strengthened when the sun set, but they seemed more restless than usual. I tested the air again but remained clueless as to what had my instincts unsettled.

I glanced back but didn't see any fog or anything that looked like a gas cloud. Admittedly, I was in a forest; sometimes strange things happened among the dense trees, particularly around rotting stumps.

My instincts stirred restlessly, as if tipped off by something. The foliage hindered my sight as I continued scanning the forest around me. With a faint frown, I wondered if something could be following me. It didn't explain the odd haze, but it could explain why my instincts were so high.

I had been jogging openly along the path, so anything could have been tracking me. I rarely made the mistake of traveling in such an open fashion along a deer trail, and I was once more reminded I was a Nightstalker.

With that in mind, I eased into the foliage and went into full stalker mode. I circled around and doubled back, trying to find what had my instincts on edge or perhaps catch another glimpse of that haze and figure out the source.

Nothing.

I climbed up a tree and watched for a few minutes to ensure nothing was following my scent. Almost obsessed, I circled the area a dozen times, yet still came up empty. Nothing seemed to be trailing behind me, nor could I spot another trace of that haze.

With a mental shake, I dropped to the ground and resumed my patrol, opting to remain in stealth mode. If something happened here on my next lap, I would note the area and have Daniel check it during the day. Until then, I would put it down as a false alarm. I was almost tempted to believe I imagined it, but the way my instincts were behaving prevented me from dismissing it.

My actions might have been a bit paranoid, but I broke my scent trail several times in case someone was trailing me at a great distance. I kept my eyes open, although none of the various animals I saw seemed to think anything was wrong. Unless they caught my scent, they went about their lives as they normally did.

No alarm calls from squirrels or other creatures came from behind me. Even the regular zombies were acting as they always had. I took a few minutes to hunt down a rabbit, hoping it'd help me settle down. It was barely after midnight, so I left the carcass for the scavengers.

Despite hunting and breaking my trail, my elevated instincts left me feeling on edge and restless, which was a stark contrast to the quiet night. I shook myself off and relentlessly scanned the area again, but I didn't see anything out of place. My instincts hadn't strengthened or shifted regardless of where I was or which direction I faced, so I had no clues to go on.