Johnson led the group as they walked toward the stairs leading to the surface. The flashlight was in his hands, causing a beam of light in front of them. Fiona was behind him with Joey in her arms. Ford had his arm tight around Evey's waist. Her blood soaked through both of their clothes.
Evey sighed when she saw the stairwell. They were almost at the hospital. They were so close to the Cure.
Johnson stopped walking and turned off the light. A screech echoed through the tunnel. How many were waiting for them outside the subway? The hospital was across the street. Would they make it?
The sun was rising and provided a faint glow to the stairwell. They had spent all night in the tunnels. The pain of the slash through Evey's shoulder made her not realize the heaviness of fatigue in her bones. Was the rest of the group this tired?
Evey had lost a lot of blood, and her head was spinning. Her knees shook, and she slumped against Ford. He tightened his hold to stop her from collapsing on the ground. Her skin had gone pale, making her freckles more pronounced. She struggled to keep open her heavy eyes.
"Stay with me," Ford whispered into Evey's ear. "We are almost there."
She let out a deep breath and nodded. Forcing herself to walk forward, her body was trembling. Her shoulder had gone numb. A dull tingle was running through her body. How much damage did Gomez do?
Johnson turned off the flashlight as they walked up the stairs. Evey clung to Ford. Her knees were too weak to lift her feet off the ground and onto the steps. Fiona squinted as the bright rising sun shined. The warmth was like heaven compared to the damp tunnels.
Tall buildings and skyscrapers surrounded them. A large glass building with abandoned ambulances was across the street. Evey held her hand over her eyes as she looked up to see the hospital symbol.
They had made it. They had survived.
The base of the hospital had windows that were boarded. There were scratch marks from Infected people's fingernails deep in the wood. Were Infected able to get into the hospital?
Infected wandered the street. Groups of Infected were attacking each other. There was a cacophony of shrieks and screams. The wall of the subway stairs hid the group. The sun was rising, and the street was becoming brighter. They would no longer be able to hide in the dark.
"What do we do?" Fiona whispered.
Johnson let out a deep breath and ran his hand down his face. Evey's dizziness made it difficult to open her eyes. She listened to the distant sound of Infected screaming in the tunnel. They would all die if they hid in the tunnel until nighttime. So many people have died already. It was a blessing that they were somehow still alive.
"We have to get across the street," Johnson said quietly.
"How do we do that?" Fiona asked.
"Cameras," Ford said.
Evey forced her eyes open. Johnson looked over his shoulder and furrowed his brows. Ford pointed up at the hospital.
Security cameras were on the corner of the hospital. One was by the front door. The two sliding glass doors were barricaded. The camera moved from left to right like it was searching for something.
"It's looking for us," Evey said.
Her voice was weak and wobbly. Hearing herself speak scared her. How close to death was she? Would she make it to the hospital?
"Patio," Ford said.
Johnson squinted to look up at the patio wrapped around the hospital's fifth floor. Three men stood at the edge. They had sniper rifles in their hands. One pointed at the group hiding at the top of the subway stairs, and the other two aimed their guns. The one man pulled a radio out from his pocket and spoke into it.
The group was obviously not infected by Thyestean. Blood was not running from their eyes, and they were not foaming at the mouth.
"We need to get across the street," Johnson said.
"How are we going to do that?" Fiona asked.
"They are not superhuman. We are probably faster than the Infected."
"I can't outrun those things while carrying a child."
"It's not far, and the people on the patio have guns. I think we can make it."
"Can't we wait until it's dark?"
"You want to spend another fourteen hours in those tunnels?"
Evey's knees buckled. Nausea was creeping into her stomach. She did not know how she was going to move forward.
"I don't think I'll make it," Evey said. Her words were slurring as her strength left her body. She slumped lower against Ford. "Go without me."
Ford shook his head. He bent to pick her up bridal style, but Evey shook her head and pushed him back.
"I'll slow you down," she said. "Run for it."
Ford scowled as he reached down again. Evey tried to push him off with shaky hands. There had been so many people that had died because of her. She could not have Ford die too. He had to make it.
Evey was too weak to stop Ford from picking her up. He curled her into her body, and Evey whimpered because of the pain in her shoulder. She squeezed her eyes shut to try and calm her light-headedness.
"Where do we run to?" Ford asked.
Johnson looked up at the man on the patio to see him pointing to the right side of the hospital. It was an unbarricaded door they could get through. It was their gate into safety. Unfortunately, they had to make it through the street full of Infected.
"The right," Johnson said. "How good do you think those snipers are?"
"They better be fucking great," Ford said.
"Stay in front. Fiona, you follow. I'll protect us from behind."
Evey groaned in Ford's arms. She could no longer open her eyes. Being so close to death would cause her to slow down the group.
"Let go," Evey muttered.
"No, sweetheart," Ford said. "You're making it."
Johnson motioned for Ford and Fiona to walk forward. Coming to the edge of the stairs, Ford looked from side to side. The Infected were staggering as they walked around on the streets. They were chomping at the air. Their foaming mouths meant that they were hungry.
The Infected standing in front of Ford turned and growled. She bared her teeth and extended her arms. Rushing forward, she shrieked. Ford's heart pounded. He would have to let go of Evey if he wanted to save his life. His knives were strapped to his thighs; however, the thought of setting Evey down on the ground did not cross his mind.
There was a loud bang as blood and brains splattered from the Infected's head. The body crumpled to the ground. The sound attracted the Infected, and they ran toward the hospital. The group watched as their path to the doors was blocked by flesh-hungry Infected.
More shots were fired, and the Infected fell. A swarm of Infected surrounded the hospital. Would they have enough bullets?
The man with the radio ran into the hospital. He came out with something in his hands. He aimed off to the left and fired. It was a flare gun, and the bright light burned through the dawn sky. The hoard of Infected ran away from the building and toward the light. The man shot more flares to the left.
"Go," Johnson said.
Ford ran. Evey's weight barely slowed him down as he sprinted across the street. Fiona struggled to keep up with his pace as she carried Joey. Ford dared not look behind him to see if the group had followed. Evey was dying, and he had to get her help.
Johnson grabbed his knife out of his sheath. The snipers had stopped firing shots. Johnson trailed behind. He wanted to keep Fiona and the child safe and was prepared to kill anyone infected by Thyestean.
Ford came into view of the doors. One opened, and a woman held it open. She was in scrubs and a lab coat. A man was behind her with a rifle. The woman waved her hand to motion for Ford to move faster. He pushed himself to go as fast as he could. The air burned his lungs as he breathed.
Fiona could see the doors and almost burst into tears. It was a safe haven in this nightmare. This was a hell that she had never expected.
Johnson was close behind Fiona. He could see Ford sprint into the hospital with Evey. A man was standing by the door, and he raised a radio to his mouth.
Oh God, Johnson thought. Please, don't.
Johnson's radio crackled. Two Infected turned their heads to look at him.
"How many in your group?" the man said over the radio.
Johnson shook his head. What a stupid question! He attracted Infected by asking a question he could have answered while inside.
He ripped the radio off the back of his pants. Unclipping the microphone from his shirt, he threw the radio to the left. Two Infected shrieked and ran toward him. One tripped on the curly cord, but the other stepped over the fallen.
Fiona froze when she heard the shriek and turned to look at the Infected charging toward them. Johnson pushed her forward.
"Go!" he shouted. "I'll hold them off."
Fiona did not argue and resumed running. Johnson tightened the grip on his knife as he turned to face the Infected. She swung her hand with her fingers in the form of claws. Johnson ducked to dodge her attack. A scream pierced his ear, and it attracted two more Infected. They ran toward him, and Johnson let out a curse.
The Infected woman swung again, which Johnson missed. He lunged forward, aiming for her head but missed. She grabbed his shirt and pushed him back. Johnson stumbled and fell to the ground. The Infected was on top of him. He pushed against her chest to stop her from biting him. She chomped at the air. Letting go with one hand, Johnson swung the knife and buried it into her skull.
Throwing the Infected off him, he could see the group of Infected charging forward. Before he could get onto his feet, one of the Infected snatched his ankle. He pulled Johnson forward and pulled him across the sidewalk. The group surrounded Johnson.
Fiona was almost at the doors when she heard Johnson screaming. She stopped and looked behind her. She could not see Johnson but saw a pile of Infected climbing over each other and clawing at the ground.
"Get inside," a male voice said.
Fiona looked back toward the doors to see a man with a gun. She nodded and rushed forward. Covering Joey's head, she hoped that he would never see this cruel world again. Now that they were at the hospital, their lives would change.
The man slammed the door shut once Fiona was inside. He twisted a chain through the handles and secured it with a lock. The shrieking of the Infected was cut off. Fiona was panting for breath, and her muscles burned. She set Joey down on his feet and stretched her sore shoulders.
Evey was lying on a gurney. Her chest's small rise and fall with each breath was the only sign she was alive. Ford had her face cupped in his hands. His brows were creased in worry. The woman in scrubs was trying to push him away, but he refused to move.
The man behind Fiona cleared his throat. She turned, and he gave her a small smile.
"I am Captain Ross," he said. "I'm glad you finally made it."