When All is Lost

Chapter 6

Nowhere to run. Nowhere to hide.

Abby had exited the building and shoved into me. I lost my footing as I tripped over something on the ground. Ian's hold on my wrist saved me from eating pavement. Worried, I looked back to see what I'd caught my foot on and instantly regretted it.

"Don't look." Ian's voice sounded gruff as he started to drag me farther out onto the street.

Too late.

Two bodies were laying on the sidewalk just outside our apartment building. My mind reeled in horror as I processed the sight. They were probably once men, but it was hard to tell. They no longer had faces. Their heads had been completely crushed in, leaving necks and jutting chins amongst a slush pile of gore.

Ian gave me a hard tug, forcing my eyes away from the sight. He gave me a harsh look and then turned his back to me. He searched the street for the best direction to go in but evidently, there were no good options, so I made the call. "Left. Go left!"

Without looking back at me, Ian took off in that direction. Noise exploded onto the street uncomfortably close behind us. I risked looking over my shoulder as we ran and made out four figures sprinting after us.

We kept running and I could feel my lungs begin to burn as my breathing became more labored.

Don't stop. Don't stop. Don't stop!

We were getting close to an intersection when a thought occurred to me.

Why aren't they shooting us?

I glanced over my shoulder again. Between the movement and the darkness, it was nearly impossible to tell what they held in their hands from a distance, but I had no doubt that they held weapons. I just started to doubt those weapons were guns.

At the intersection, I kept looking back at the pursuers as I yelled, "Left!" Only when I bothered to look up did I realize that there was another group of people standing outside of a house off in that direction.

"No. No, no, no," I said, coming to a complete standstill. "Right!"

Our little group took off down the street to the right, but not before we'd gotten the attention of the other group. We kept running as they started to make their way towards us. Like some kind of miracle, they were intercepted by our pursuers from the apartment. I stopped looking back, but I could hear the yelling between the two groups. They were obviously not happy to have met.

Their confrontation only further devolved as the yells turned into screams. The sounds of the all-out brawl followed us into the night as we continued on. My eyes filled with tears as I continued to run, but I blinked them away, choosing to put all of my focus on the streets ahead.

We didn't stop running for another ten minutes until one of Ian's companions pointed out a cul-de-sac lined with charming little houses. We ducked down the neighborhood and stopped at a house with a child's abandoned bicycle laying on the front lawn. Ian had never once let go of my wrist, but as we snuck into the house's fenced-in backyard, he finally released me.

After Abby closed the gate behind us, we all turned to look at each other as we caught our breath. I checked on Abby first. She was wiping sweat from her forehead with the back of her hand but looked no worse for wear.

Ian's companions, on the other hand, seemed to be struggling just as much as I was. One man looked to be in his upper forties. He was short and slim with bottlecap glasses. With his wild and wispy brown hair, he somehow managed to emulate every science teacher I'd ever had.

The other man was almost as tall as Ian, but about twice as wide. He was using his shirt to wipe the sweat from his face. He had a full head of blond curls that bounced with each movement. When he let his shirt fall, I was met with a pair of light blue eyes giving me a wary look. Even still, he reminded me of a cherub, and his cheery red cheeks only added to the look.