"Karmen?"
Noah ran toward her as she fell to the floor. He'd seen the terror on her face just before she lost consciousness.
What had she been thinking, coming here alone?
He shook her gently by the shoulders and called her name again, but she was out.
She'd probably seen him and thought he was one of the rotters. And she was lucky he wasn't one of them. Here in the cool darkness of this empty house, it was the perfect place for a group of them to hide out. Hadn't he and Parrish warned her several times about coming over here?
Stupid.
That's when he noticed the streaks of blood and dirt on the carpet. Crap. Some of them had gotten inside for sure. He needed to get her out of here.
"Karmen?" He shook her harder this time and her eyes fluttered open for a brief second, then closed again. "Come on," he said. "We've got to get out of here."
She moaned, but didn't open her eyes. He didn't have time to wait for her to come-to. There was no telling if whoever had gotten in here was still hiding out somewhere in the shadows or not. He'd have to carry her.
He took her arm and threw it over his shoulder, then put his other hand under her knees. He lifted her from the ground, noticing again how light and easy she was to carry.
He brought her out into the warm sunlight, kicking the door closed with his boot.
Overhead, the sound of helicopters. Lots of them.
Noah squinted against the sun. At least half a dozen helicopters passed over him, dropping flyers that fluttered to the street of the neighborhood. Soldiers sat at the very edge, machine guns in hand. It looked like four or five in each one.
Noah stood still, watching as they passed. Part of him was relieved to see enough people alive to still form some kind of army, but part of him was confused about why they were up in the air instead of on the ground helping them. Where were the soldiers come nightfall?
He put most of Karmen's weight against one hand, then bent down to pick up one of the flyers. He stuck it in his back pocket. He'd read it later. For now, he needed to get them both inside and out of danger. It was still hours from getting dark, but they were better safe than sorry.
Quickly, he walked back across the street to his house and through the back door. He set Karmen down on the couch in the living room, then went to secure the door again. This time, he nailed on twice the number of boards.
When he was done, Noah went back into the living room and sat down on the coffee table, staring at Karmen as she slept.
He was pissed. How could she be so careless? What if she had gotten attacked over there? She'd be dead for sure. And if he hadn't seen the open back door in time, the rotters could have just walked right into his house and gotten him and Parrish too. They'd all be dead, just like that.
He ran a hand through his hair. Of course, he was the hypocrite here. Wasn't he the one putting them all in danger?
Exhausted, he sat down in the large leather chair next to the couch. Somehow he'd ended up in this position where he was taking care of these two girls. He felt responsible for them, but he also needed to do what he could to take care of his dad.
Remembering the helicopters, Noah reached into his back pocket and pulled out the piece of paper they'd dumped all over the area.
MANDATORY EVACUATION
This area has been contaminated by people infected with the super-flu. Survivors who are showing no signs of illness are required to report to McLean Memorial Hospital for transport to a designated safe zone. There will be food and shelter provided.
Each citizen will be checked for fever, bites, festering wounds and other signs of infection. Anyone who does not pass the initial inspection will be denied transport.
Everyone will be allowed to carry one small bag of belongings with them. Please think carefully when choosing items to bring with you. Bring only necessities. No weapons will be allowed in the safe zones unless you are a registered active duty military or decorated veteran of the US Military. This includes items such as scissors and knives.
All survivors are required to report to their designation pick-up point before 3:00 P.M. on Thursday.
This evacuation is mandatory.
Noah's hands trembled as he read the notice.
He thought of his father in the basement, his stomach sick.
They had four days to evacuate. Or what? He knew there had to be more to it. Would they be bombing the area? Coming in with guns and killing everything that moved? Surely they weren't planning to just leave the world to the rotters without some kind of plan.
The nightmare just kept getting darker. Noah stood, then placed a blanket over a sleeping Karmen. He needed to talk to her and to Parrish about the evacuation, but for now, he just wanted another few hours with his dad.
He headed down to the basement, careful to lock the door behind him.
Thanks again for reading along with Death's Awakening!