RESCUE

When William burst through the doorway, time almost seemed to slow down for him. He knew he wouldn't have any second chances if he messed up. He needed to act quickly and decisively. His eyes dashed through the scene.

An unknown man was holding Nora back, both of her arms were restrained behind her back, and she was hopelessly trying to break free. They were right in front of the door. William didn't waste any time thinking, such a luxury couldn't be afforded. The knife sunk into the man's neck from behind, all the way through. The damn bastard couldn't even process what had just happened, he gurgled and dropped on the spot.

The entire room seemed to freeze for a moment. He could feel everyone's gazes falling on him. This was his golden chance; an instant was enough. In that short fraction of a second, his brain didn't really bother to recognize faces. It wasn't necessary, he knew what he was looking for. His gun only needed to aim for the biggest person in the room. The one crouched over in a corner, knife in hand, about to cut a girl open.

He fired. A pained scream followed.

…

He missed; that son of a bitch wasn't dead. Jacobs charged at him head first, howling like a rabid animal. His arm was bloody. The bullet had inflicted some damage, enough to make his arm jolt with pain and drop the knife, but not enough to incapacitate him. He crashed himself against William and grabbed his waist, before he had the chance to fire the weapon again. The force of the impact ripped the gun away from William's hand, and threw both of them out of the room.

******

Nora's distress turned into shock, which then turned into panic. What was going on? She needed a couple of seconds to comprehend the situation, everything had happened too fast. Claire's moans got her out of her trance, and prompted her to jump into action.

"Ah…! Claire, hold on…!!" she exclaimed.

She frantically looked around the floor and located Jacob's knife. She hurried over to Claire and started cutting through her restraints. She couldn't believe how badly beaten she was. Several bruises on her face and body, small superficial cuts on her arms and legs, one particularly nasty gash on her left thigh…

"Oh god… Claire, can you talk…!?" asked Nora, as she finished cutting free Claire's arms, which fell down like dead weight.

"Nora…" her voice was weak. "I'm… glad you're… okay…"

"Yeah, I'm okay…! It's all going to be okay…!" her eyes filled up with tears. "Hang in there, we'll get you both out of here…!"

She quickly turned around and rushed over to where Lilian was.

"Lilian...! Lilian, sis, I'm here…!!"

Lilian's head slowly moved around, dazed, while Nora freed her hands and feet.

"Oh dear, what happened to your clothes…!?"

"Norie…?" whispered the girl, still visibly confused.

"Yes, I'm here, big sis is here!"

"Mmhm." that kind of mumble was a good sign, Nora knew her sister very well. She didn't seem to be hurt.

She gently grabbed her and pulled her up. Her small feet touched the floor, and Nora let go of her bit by bit. She stayed up by herself.

"Okay, Lilian, you need to stay very, very close to me! Can you do it…!?" she asked, patting Lilian's head.

"Mhm." In response, Lilian pinched Nora's jacket and cuddled beside her.

"Good girl!"

She went back to Claire, with Lilian following very close behind.

"Come on, Claire…! We have to get you out of here, somewhere safe…!!"

She crouched beside her friend and lent her a shoulder so she could stand up. Claire looked incredibly fragile and weak. When attempting to raise herself up, just moving her injured leg made her let out a cry of pain. She sounded hoarse, and what little voice she had left was a little raspy.

"Kuuuughh…!!"

After a great struggle, Claire finally found herself standing up, and resting against the wall.

"How are you…? Do you think you can walk…?" asked Nora.

"Uh… I… I don't think so…" Claire's eyes looked like they were fighting fiercely to not close on their own. "My… leg… I can't feel my legs… My arms neither… It… hurts…"

"Norie…?" asked Lilian, meekly. "Why are they grunting at each other outside?"

Nora realized all of a sudden that William was still fighting. She gasped and rushed for the door. How could she have detached herself so much from the situation? Her consciousness had completely locked itself on Claire and Lilian, she had literally blocked off what was going on with William. On her sprint towards the hallway, she stepped on something on the floor, causing her to fall down on her side.

"Kyah…!"

She immediately tried to get back up, but then she saw what she tripped with. William's pistol.

"Ah…! This is…!"

Outside, the noise from the brawling could still be heard, although they seemed to have gotten further away from the meeting hall. She got back up and stormed out, gun ready. At least, she thought it was ready. Never before had she fired a weapon. She just hoped that her first time wasn't about to end in failure.

She looked towards the right, where the noises were coming from. William and Jacobs were a couple of meters away. They were both grabbing each other on the floor, trying to immobilize their opponent, exchanging blows, kicking… How was she supposed to aim?

"S-Stop…! Get away from Willian, now…!! I'll shoot!!"

Before she had a chance to fully assess the situation, more footsteps filled the hallway, coming from the opposite side, behind her. When she turned around, she spotted the two remaining thugs approaching rapidly, knives in hand.

"Fuck, what happened here!? Jacobs!!?" shouted one of them.

"S-Stop right there…!!" Nora aimed the gun at them, which seemed to work, since they came to a halt in an instant.

"Woah there, take it easy now… You might hurt yourself with that toy…"

"Go fuck yourself!!" Nora was seriously irritated.

What should she do? She was quite a distance away. How many bullets were in the magazine? What if she missed? Missing and running out of ammo would be a death sentence, that gun was the only thing that gave her an advantage. If she turned around and helped William, they'd pounce her. Getting closer to them might be dangerous as well, they might have more tricks up their sleeves than just those knives. She gulped. Her breathing got heavier and faster as panic struck her again.

'Shit, shit, shit…! What do I do…!? What now…!? Do I shoot…? Do I try my luck…?'

She was carefully pondering on her options, when someone emerged from the corner of her eye, grabbed the gun, and fiercely ripped it off her hands.

******

The pain was blinding, like an electrical current, shaking her brain with every step. But she didn't care. She knew what was happening, and she had seen her chance. It might have been a long shot, but that was all she needed. After that quick moment of respite, anger started filling her up once again. Her friend was suffering for her, fighting for her. Even that man, that stranger, was risking his own life to save her. And what was she doing? Just standing there, slouched over like a rag?

She couldn't stand it.

Claire grabbed the gun and pulled at it, tearing it off of Nora's hands. She felt weak, but her anger seemed to fuel her muscles. As she stumbled out into the hallway, her left leg threatened to fail, bending dangerously close to the ground and forcing her to rely on her left hand to support herself on the wall.

"You… motherfuckers…!"

One of the men standing there in the middle of the corridor had a bandage around one of his hands. Ah, that was the one. That was the bastard she wanted to kill the most. Perhaps it was a bad idea to shoot without restraint. Was there enough ammo? Maybe not. Had she used a weapon before? Well, there's always a first time.

She didn't give a crap anymore.

*Bang!!* *Bang!!* *Bang!!*

The bullets rained down the hallway, one after another. There was a couple of hits. One of the men took two bullets, one to the leg and another one to the abdomen. Everything else missed.

'Serves you well… Fucker…'

"F-Fuck, to hell with this…! Aaah, I'm out of here…!!" the thug with the bandaged hand wasted no time in scuttling away, quickly turning the corner and disappearing from view.

'Ah, shit, I missed the one I was aiming for… Come back…! You coward…!'

"Oh my god! Claire…!? Wait, what are you doing!?" Nora exclaimed at her, shocked. "Stop, you need to rest, don't be reckless…!!"

"Shut up, Nora…! I don't… care…!! Lilian… they dared to…!! I made… a promise…!!"

"What are you talking about…!? Stop, you're hurting yourself…!!" Nora tried to grab her, but Claire refused the help, shoving her away.

******

The injured man screamed in pain, dragging himself across the floor face down, in an attempt to retreat from the scene.

*click* *click*

A clicking sound… What was that? It sounded very similar to those noises guns make when their magazines are empty, didn't it? And it sounded very close to his head. Suddenly, something heavy fell on top of him. He couldn't see what it was, but he felt a pair of hands ensnaring his neck and applying pressure on his throat.

******

'Still alive…! They'll hurt Lilian again…! They'll hurt Nora…! I can't let them…! I won't…!'

Everything she had left, she released it all in that one grip. The man probably didn't have much strength left in his body to begin with, after getting those gunshot wounds. It was only a matter of time until his squirming came to a stop. She felt her fingers sinking deep in his neck, yet she didn't let go. Even when all resistance ceased, she didn't let go.

Hurried footsteps approached her from behind.

"Claire…!? Oh god, Claire…!"

"Shut up… It's okay, Nora… This one won't hurt you or Lilian anymore…"

"Claire, that's not what I…"

"It's just scum, isn't it…? What's one more…?"

"Huh…?"

'That's right, what's one more? I'm just doing what I think is right… Don't judge me… I haven't done anything wrong…! ¡They deserve it…!'

******

William threw his right elbow back, sinking it into Jacobs' side, and causing him to release his grip on his neck and fall off to the side. William hurriedly got up and faced Jacobs again, with his fists up.

Damn, fighting was tiring. He could tell how every muscle in his body was aching, every punch and kick he had gotten had left a burning sensation. But his adrenaline kept fueling him, urging him to keep going, to beat his opponent into a pulp.

They locked sights with each other. They both stepped forward and backwards in some kind of strange dance, measuring the each other's movements, looking for an opening.

He saw the fist coming. Left arm up, divert it, hit back. In a frenzied sequence, he planted his own right fist in Jacobs' face. That jaw was tough as hell. He thought he heard something, like a tiny object bouncing around on the floor. Was that a loose tooth? He hoped so.

Jacobs groaned and stumbled back from the impact. His entire face was swollen, and his nose was bleeding profusely. He spit some blood out. William noticed how he had started to gaze at something behind him. He looked nervous.

Were Nora and the others okay? Gunshots were heard less than a minute ago, and their voices echoed in the hallway, but William didn't risk looking in their direction. He couldn't afford to take his eyes off Jacobs even for a moment.

"Nora!? What's going on back there!!?" he shouted at the top of his lungs, hoping that she heard him.

"Ah, shit…" Jacobs let out a disgruntled reproach before turning around and bolting for the stairs.

Was he running away? For a moment, William didn't know how to react. He never expected that bloodthirsty murderer to disengage without warning.

'Shit…! Where is he even going…!? If I let him run away, he'll come back for more, sooner or later…! Do I let him go and check on Nora…? Do I give chase…?'

…

"Nora! What happened!?"

"Ah…! Well… One of them got away…! We're okay…!" she answered. William noticed how Lilian hid herself from him behind Nora. The girl didn't look hurt, thank god.

Claire, on the other hand… She was sitting on the floor beside the dead body of one of the bandits. She looked terrible.

"No, you're not okay…! Listen, take her to the storage room, it's right in front of the apartment we found them in! Lock yourselves in there. There should be medical supplies in stock. Clean her wounds and disinfect them, she needs help! Look in the second shelving on the left side, bottom shelf!"

"A-Ah…! Alright…!" Nora barely had time to agree before William started running towards the stairs. "Please, be careful…! Come on, Claire! We need to treat your wounds…!"

As he approached the stairs, he saw the scattered trail of blood drops on the steps. It went up.

…

Spiteful and frustrated, William removed the hook on the rooftop's handrail. The heavy metal hook, along with its several meters of rope, came crashing down on the sidewalk five floors below. He greatly tightened his grip on the handrail, as if trying to sink his fingernails into it.

'I should have expected this much… Damn it…'

The sun was now starting to go down in the sky. Somehow, it seemed to have acquired a mysterious red hue. Was it mocking their struggle, rejoicing on the blood spilled that day? Or was it perhaps a bad omen for events to come?

******

Nora held Claire's hand as gently as she could. Her friend was panting heavily, heaving from exhaustion and pain. That apartment wasn't the most comfortable place to keep a patient, but it was the closest one to the storage; they couldn't keep dragging her around in her state.

"Hang in there, Claire… You'll get through this…!" she said, doing her best to cheer her up. There was little she could do to hide her own tears, though.

"Okay, this should be everything…. Antiseptics… Gauze… Painkillers… We should also have some antibiotics around, just in case. I'm no doctor, so I have no idea if all of this will end up screwing her up even more… but anything is better than dying from an infection." William had spent the last hour treating Claire's wounds. Nora had cleaned them up with some sterile water and tried to apply some disinfectant, but those injuries weren't going to heal that easily. "We had someone here that knew his way around first aid. It's a shame I won't be as reliable."

"It's okay, don't beat yourself over it…"

Nora kept trying to comfort Claire. She noticed her eyes were half-closed. Despite her obvious light-headedness, she was looking directly at William, scrutinizing him and following his movements and his actions whenever she wasn't busy grinding her teeth to endure the pain.

"Hey… You can hear me, right?" he asked.

Claire nodded slowly.

"This is going to hurt. This wound is deep, we need to sew it shut. I have a suture kit… but I'm not too good at this kind of thing. I know what I have to do, but it's not going to be pretty."

"…go… ahead…" a thin voice came out of her mouth. "…I'll… take it…"

William nodded back.

"Alright." he handed Nora a rag. "Here, have her bite on this."

Claire's mouth closed on the piece of cloth. Was she really going to be okay? She didn't look like she even had any strength to properly bite down on anything. However, once the acute pain of the needle hit her, she bit so hard she threatened with ripping the cloth apart.

"Kuuuggghhhhhhh!!!!" tears of pain flowed in waves from her eyes.

"Hang in there, you're doing great…!" Nora tightened her grip on Claire's hand.

"Hhhhmmmmmggghhhh…!!"

…

******

"There, this should do it… The pressure clothing should help with the bleeding. We'll have to change the bandages for clean ones regularly." William had just finished caring for the girl's wounds.

"I think I can take care of that." replied Nora.

"Good. I'll leave that in your hands."

"What about you? You're also injured, you're full of bruises…"

"I'll tend to myself later. Come here."

"Huh…? M-Me…?"

"Yeah, you. We haven't properly treated that cut on your right arm, besides some basic cleaning."

"Ah, right…"

…

In all honesty, his medical expertise left a lot to be desired. He just hoped it was good enough to keep them alive. That world wasn't going to give them any second chances.

It could very well give them a break, though. Given what they had gone through in just a couple of days, it was a miracle that Nora and the girls had managed to make it.

'Now that I think about it… Hmm…'

"Hey, girl."

Claire's gaze was lost in the shapes of the ceiling. She was guaranteed to be unfathomably tired. However, she responded to his call, slowly dragging her eyes towards him.

"Good job. You did well."

Her eyes widened. William got up from his seat and started walking towards the door. On his way, he stopped by Nora's side and rested his hand on her shoulder.

"You too. Now rest, both of you. I'll bring you your rations for tonight later. We should be able to catch our breath for now."

Before letting go of Nora's shoulder, he noticed how she had started trembling slightly. He figured he knew the reason. It was okay. He reached the door, but he stopped for a moment right at the doorframe.

"Welcome home."

As he walked down the hallway, he could hear Claire starting to sob. Nora soon joined her. Their sobbing eventually became crying. Bottled up emotions came out in full force, a wailing so bitter yet so relieved at the same time; that even the shamblers outside seemed to just cease their gurgling, and listen.