7 Chapter 7

My mouth was hanging open as I stared at the cell tower ahead of us. It had definitely alerted any infected that would be nearby because it didn't fall silently. It had landed on a couple of cars whose alarms were now beeping furiously.

"Oh, shit," came Daniel's voice.

This is shit happening.

I half expect Faye and Clareta to immediately run out of the building but the beeping started seconds ago. And as much as I wished they were, they weren't Barry Allen. I didn't even know if they had gotten to Clareta's apartment.

"Come on, come on," I mutter.

Buried under the alarms going off, I heard glass breaking and a feeling of dread crept up from the pit of my stomach as a couple of infected appeared. They moved toward the cars like they were entranced by the beeping.

"I should go get them," Daniel said as he moved to open the door and I immediately grip his arm.

"Don't, don't leave me."

The amount of infected moving to the road was a cause for worry and I didnt like the idea of getting trapped in the car if they noticed us.

"Let's go together." I grab the cleaver from the backseat and Daniel opened the door as quietly as possible before getting down.

I maneuver to the driver's seat and hold my breath as my feet hit the ground, thinking an infected would rush me but nothing happens. They hadn't noticed us yet.

I began to take hurried steps towards the glass doors. A dog leaped from the roof of one of the cars that blocked the other road. It started bounding towards us when I saw Faye and Clareta run towards the door, motioning for us to go back. Daniel immediately retreated, opened the back door while watching the infected people investigating the blaring cars and I hurried back to the car.

Hold up... What kind of freaky dog is that?

The back had been too high and it no longer seemed like a dog as I thought about it. My head snapped back to where I saw it and there was nothing there, a cursory glance around revealed nothing. Where did it go? I turned when Daniel raced back and saw Clareta on the ground, Faye helping her up. A couple of infected were in the lobby, almost at the doors.

Crap.

I went to the driver's side as it seemed I was now the getaway driver. I had gotten one foot into the car when a shriek tore through the air. It sounded close, way too close for comfort. My head instantly jerked up to see the dog on the roof of the car. Except it wasn't a dog.

Motherfucker!

"Enny!" Daniel yelled.

My heart tried to push through my ribs as the infected sniffed me and cocked its head, almost looking confused. I stumbled back and swung my hand at it as hard as I could. It was what I did whenever I didn't want Jack to jump on me and it always worked. But that was also the arm I held the cleaver tightly in. A shot rang out as the blade went through the front of the infected's neck.

My stomach lurched as warm blood spurted from the neck and onto my chest as a bullet hole appeared in its forehead. The body fell forward as it had been leaning over the edge and I quickly stepped over the body into the driver's seat.

The people ahead were no longer interested in the blaring cars and were headed towards us. It was not the time to stop to think about the infected lying on the floor or the blood currently soaking through my shirt. A hand shot out to hold the door before I closed it and I moved to the passenger's seat. Daniel got in and started the car as the back door was shut. Clareta's face was contorted in pain as she held her ankle while Faye wrapped a cloth around it. The infected in the lobby were pushing up against the glass doors as we drove away from the building.

I could hear snarls as we drove past a couple of running infected. Daniel cracked his knuckles over the steering wheel as he picked up speed. He began to barrel over the infected in our way and I could hear my heart pounding over the roaring of the wind and the shrieks when we got closer to the end of the road. They were too much. We can't run over all of them.

Daniel must have thought the same thing because he suddenly fishtailed the car; it swerved to the right and he headed for an alley that I hadn't noticed was there. The wing mirrors snapped off as he drove in. The end of the alley was in view and the moaning of infected people was coming from all sides now. We had no idea what we were driving into as an infected appeared at the end of the alley, followed by another. Maybe it was a trap and maybe it wasn't, it didn't matter, we were committed.

He ran the two over and clipped a third as he drove into the street. I let out a breath I didn't know I was holding. The end of the street came up quick and we took a right onto the freeway. Another car was driving onto the freeway, coming from the trail that led to where the cell tower once stood. I could hear the men in the car singing along to N.W.A.'s Fuck Tha Police that blasted from their speakers when they pulled up to our left. They looked at us and smiled, giving us a little wave before Daniel stepped on the gas.

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I look up as the door to dad's man cave opens and Zeke steps in.

"Greetings, sibling of mine," he says cheerily.

I return my gaze to our family portrait on the wall. Dad, Mum and Zeke are beaming while I look angry. Zeke was the one who pissed me off because he ate my chocolates and later assisted me in looking for them. Alison isn't in it, it was taken before she was adopted.

"I thought I heard you in here." He lies down beside me on the carpet and I sigh.

"The room is soundproof," I mutter as I turn to lay on my back so were both staring at the ceiling.

Daniel had cut my shirt off with a scissors when we got home because I really didn't want to pull it over my head. After I showered, Daniel stayed with me till it was his turn to be on watch. I had twenty minutes left in isolation. It was their way of taking precaution in case I got infected through the blood that sprayed on me.

"What up?" he asked.

The times I had answered when he asked, he told me that he didn't actually want to know what was up, he was just trying to be polite.

"Well I actually want you to answer now," he added.

I let my head fall to the side and roll my sleeve up, showing him the bite mark.

He quickly sits up and grabs my arm, "Today?"

I shake my head sideways.

"Yesterday?"

I nod. I probably looked pitiable because he pulls me into a sitting position and hugs me.

"Eww," I mutter but still hug him back.

"Why didn't you tell me?" he sounded hurt.

I shrugged. "I didnt want you to worry." I was beginning to feel drowsy but I didn't want to sleep. I was afraid that if I did, I'd dream about the dog person or I wouldn't wake up as me.

"Was that the person Clareta killed?" he asked.

"What?"

"The person that attacked you."

"She killed him?" I didn't actually think about what happened to the man. All I know was that he stopped moving. It made a lot of sense now. That's probably why the screwdriver was missing from her tool belt. I didn't -

"Mum called." The corners of his mouth twitched as he said it .

My eyes widen and I quickly grab my phone from the floor, "Now?"

"No, when you guys were out," he replied.

I instantly deflated. "She called me too."

"Daniel said so." He suddenly beams at me, "They're okay. Mum and Dad and everyone... They're all okay."

It felt like a huge weight had been lifted off my chest and I let out a laugh. Everyone meant my aunt, uncle and cousins. Ezra's family. That's why he was smiling when we got home, even at the sight of me bathed in blood.

They're okay.

Tears began to run down my cheeks and I lean forward, resting my head on his shoulder. It felt really good to hear that. Even though I'd give anything to talk to them, knowing they're okay is enough.

The door opened and Jack trotted in, followed by Daniel.

"Enny," a familiar voice called out just as the person came into view.

"Cassandra?"

She looked worse for wear with blood splatter and dirt on her clothes. Her blonde hair was matted and dirty.

I stood up as she got to me and pulled her into an embrace. She had a musty smell but I didn't care and I hugged her tighter because right then, it felt like everything would be okay.