BANG!!!

With a deafening explosion the extinguisher combusted, and clattered along the floor, ceiling, and aisles, but it remained in the store. Quickly, the mist spread wide like fingers reached to smother fast to the front of the store. I position the Smith & Wesson toward the front window and prayed for another target. Within seconds I found it. Shiny and proud, the icon for safety and relief from a hot summer’s day was in my range. The street’s fire hydrant, painted as red as a bull’s target, would be perfect. Instantly, I counted the way Jasper showed me and set off two shots before blanketed by the extinguisher. Hidden by sight and watching through a crack under the desk, I counted the shoes and shoeless feet race past me. “Eighteen, nineteen, twenty…”

I waited five seconds, before I jumped up from the floor, and rounded the register counter and ran. Once again, I used the surveillance mirrors to double check, before I race to the bathroom door.  “Jasper, fuck, shit’s real, come out.” I spoke through a crack and reached for the handle, but it was missing. “Smart, but stupid idea for anyone to save you,” I whispered. Instantly, I pulled out a Leatherman multi-tool kit I stole for a vacant hardware shop and flicked the pliers out.  I went to work on that lock, and reluctantly, the door moved from its threshold. Sweaty hairs on the back of my neck stood as I looked inside and immediately, I realized my mistake. Inside wasn’t Jasper, but a tied up stranger.

“Help me, please…” the man whispered through parched lips. However, my body wouldn’t move; everything screamed for me to back away. “…help me,” he ordered. And suddenly the faces of the father and son at the hospital, mixed with the voice of the mother appeared. Any other time I would’ve left, but I just couldn’t, especially when I realized what trapped him.

I moved closer and he watched me with wary eyes. Adjusted the Leatherman to its scissor setting, I studied the toilet handle. A beat up Union Jack belt, identical to Jasper’s, while my companion’ signature knot captured two bloody wrists. “Who tied you here?” Angry blue eyes looked at me, but he didn’t answer. Instead of freeing him, I stood and turned away. I made to walkout when he shouted as answer.

“Some guy I don’t know.” He stopped there and with nothing else to go by, I went back to task at the toilet handle. As soon as his limps arms were free, I stepped back and allowed him room to stand. Slowly, his muscular body moved from the floor and I realized how big he was. My height of five-nine was nothing to his six-four, and while I was a curvy girl chick, he was pure muscle. From his boot-clad feet to his close shaven sandy brown hair, I took it all in, but it was the dog chain around his thick neck that confirmed it. Military…

As long as we traveled we never crossed paths with military. There were many stories about them, tons from whoever came in contact with us, but no one ever saw them. Some stories said that the military was hidden in underground bunkers to wait out the war; others say they sailed to sea with a shitload of rich people; more plausible was that they were holed up on bases, preparing sanctuary and to fight. No matter what tale, people fought to get to whatever base was closer, and even though some invited us along, Jasper thought it was better to follow our own dreams.  As I looked at this damn near, perfect war specimen, I wondered if the stories were true.

At that this point military man stared beyond me. Suddenly, his eyebrows knit together and his eyes shot to me; his whole composure did a 180. Once helpless, now, he grabbed my hand and dragged me from the room. Without a plan, or any assistance, I was at his mercy. We exited the bathroom as I yanked my arm out of his hand, but the scent of Z’s were strong.  He noticed as well and grabbed my hand again. This time he pointed toward a doorway, and I understood his escape plan. I allowed our fingers to intertwined, as he bolted along the back wall. I stayed on his heels as we slipped pass double swing doors and took a right. He kept going fast; half carried me if I slowed. Walls covered with empty shelves, the back room seemed much smaller than the store, yet it contained several walls and doorways. Broken windows at the ceiling brought in enough light for us to navigate, but I had a feeling military man already knew the lay out. With ease and calculated footing, we passed through three small rooms and ended up in a garbage room. He closed the door gently and locked it before looking around.

“What the fuck dude?” I breathed out, bent at the waist as he searched for something.

However, hard, cold eyes captured me in a deadly glare. “Shut up…or everything I just did will count for nothing.” He snapped in a hushed tone. Offended and confused, I placed as much distance as I could and searched for my own way out. There was a reason he was tied up.  

For a second, military man paused, his face softened and he took a deep breath.  With long legs, he took two strides and stood in front of me. “Thank you for saving me, and whatever you did drew them away, but they must’ve smelt me and were coming back.”

“Are you hurt?” I asked and he looked toward his abdomen. He wore a thick black vest over his olive shirt, so the injury was hidden from sight, but the bottom left corner was soaked. “Fuck, were you bitten?” I whispered, imagining his transformation and me stuck in the same room.

“No, he came from the front window,” he answered, but I was still screwed. There was too much blood for us to go unnoticed. We searched a common thought even though words weren’t needed; Millitary man went back to his search while I looked along the floor and wall. We were in a trash room, with several huge trash bins. We could hide in the waste bins, but that wouldn’t last long, or we could…

My eyes landed on a small hidden door in the wall. Trash remnants littered the floor below it and constant spillage left a trail between the garbage cans and the door. It must be a shaft.  “There’s a shaft…” I spoke and turned to see him stare at me, a large black bag across his shoulders. “What’s that?”

“Weapons,” he answered brusquely.

“Oh okay…” I answered, partially shocked that a man so well armed got himself locked in a bathroom by Jasper. He must’ve seen the question in my eyes, yet he cleared his throat and sent a narrow gaze toward the wall. “It has to be a shaft, and right now, our only way out.”  Blue eyes continued their inquiry, before he approached the door. He opened it slowly, with slight difficulty. The metal frame screamed against the assault, but he only sped up his movements.

“I won’t fit.” Finally, he spoke; he seemed perplexed by the option.

“Oh trust me, I’ll make you fit.” I responded and crossed the space to stand behind him. I drew out my flashlight and used it to illuminate the hole. I shivered under his calculated stare. “What is it?”

“The boy who tied me up…you came for him?” and I paused. With his expression masked and his voice level, I didn’t know which way I should take it. I tried to think what Jasper would do, but then I remembered his belt knotted around someone’s wrist, using them as bait.

Just as I felt the tension rise, a bang resonated from the other side of the door. The Zs found us. This was enough to interrupt the topic and force us into action. Military man gestured for me to enter first and I did with speed. I discovered the missing bottom quickly, and held on for dear life to a cable. My feet came next as I swung them towards the opposite wall and held them flat against the surface. “We need to climb with only rope…ahh...” Interrupted, I screamed as another bang came, this time the door cracked. We only had seconds.

“Climb!” The militant yelled. There was a shuffling from the room and suddenly the guy’s head and broad shoulders popped through. Blinded by his headlamp, he yelled for me to climb again.

“There’s no floor, and my arms are killing me,” I called out; my arms shook from supporting most of my weight. However, I couldn’t protest for long, before a crash filled the room and the sound of them was deafening. Fuck…fuck…not again, I thought. The man practically jumped inside. He snatched his bag through the hole, and started climbing.

“Climb!” he yelled. Despite the searing heat eating at my biceps, I move quickly; made room him. I took three steps upward; he cursed. I looked down to see him with one bulged arm on the cable, the other reached out and slammed the door shut, cutting off an undead’s hand in the process.

Incased in darkness with only light from below, his heavy breath was the only sign of him. “Lady, I need you to move right now. Could you do that for me?” I nodded, as if he could see, before I slowly raised on hand above the other.  

By the time we got to the second story door, blisters were on my palms and wetness signaled blood. The steel cable was coarse and unforgiving, neither of us stopped. “We have to get to the roof,” I ordered.

“The second floor is sealed off from the first, I checked. We can go…” he supplied but I dismissed it.

“No, I’m not. If you want to go the second floor, fine, but I don’t trust what’s sealed inside. “There was no answer, but I didn’t hear him stop, either. I passed the identical door as the first, and watched it disappear as we continued to climb. Dazed, tired, and bleeding, I collapsed after we exited through a torn and disheveled grate. However, the soldier went directly into defense mode, his gun out as he circled the roof. My lungs went through a brutal attack as I laid on my back and tried to calm myself. The sound of heavy boots alerted me to his footsteps.

As I took in my fill of the red sky and thick clouds, he called out ‘clear,’ and moved toward the ledge. “Look,” his words traveled to me with despair. I sat up, crawled over to the same ledge as him and looked over. I cursed. What started out as twenty, now doubled. Few were still by the fire hydrant, while others made their way into the store, or littered the street. At that instant, I saw something move across the street from us. Scared to see a Z on the roof top, I eased down and dropped to the floor. However, a sound caught my ear; the black-capped chickadee. Jasper.

More rhythmic to imitate a real bird, the second call came. Within seconds, I repeated the noise. I crawled to the center of the roof before I stood to see jacketless Jasper holding two bags and a full backpack. At this moment, I wanted to weep from the sight, but Jasper had already sent orders. He directed me to go to the right and over six roof tops.

Completely trusted in him, I did what he said without hesitation and was surprised when I heard the military man followed. Jasper, on the other hand, disappeared.  I continued, only to stop when I hit a burnt down building. The ruins fell right in the middle of the block, without bringing down its neighbors. Abruptly, I looked toward the first floor to notice a huge dried fire pit. Throughout bricks, cement, and wood pieces, fragments of human remains littered. I took one second to weigh my options and then dove in.

Careful not to make much noise, I used a charred barrier wall to climb down to the second floor. Creaky wood boards greeted my steps, but threatened to collapse in seconds. With no other escape, I edged toward the fire pit and looked for a soft landing spot. Only a six foot jump between me and the pile up, I jumped with my hands around my head and bent. “Uh…” I moaned in pain as the hard surfaced stab my stomach. The sound of movement had me up and surveying the first floor in seconds. Jasper appeared at what would have an entryway. Quickly, I made my way to his sweaty, dirty body.

“What the hell, Celeste?” He snared, and then his eyes went behind me. “You’ve got to be shitting me,” he slipped out and I could imagine who was behind us.  

“You locked him as bait, however I thought it was you. He whistled…” I explained, immediately. Harsh eyes came back to me, before he retorted.

“Fuck, you’re the reason for the shit ton of Zs. There’s more coming, we need to move.” He dismissed our new addition easily and turned to look of a chance to run. I, on the other hand, felt a stir of anxiety thinking about the guy.

“Jasper, we can’t leave him, not this time. “ I ran behind him and whispered. I knew that negotiating with two people bleeding was risky, but regret seeped deep into my resolve. “Look at him, he’s military. Also, he’s carrying a lot of things that can help us. He only has a scratch. I saw,” I begged and lied, while Jasper tensed up. We didn’t have much time for this life-or-death decision, but I refused to walk away from the stranger.

I stood my ground, chin up and arms folded; prayed my confidence pulled off.  With a deep breath, Jasper finally spoke, “fine, but he’s on you. If he slows us down, if he steals from us, or even try to kill us, I will blame you.” He paused and I nodded, fearful of his threat. However, he softened quickly and wiped a hand down his face. “Now, can we please get the hell out of here before the Zs find us?”

“Absolutely,“ I answered and sent him a smile of gratitude. Once he moved away, I spun around to look at the soldier, who stood about fifteen feet away, perched against one of the building’s walls. His warm, slightly curious, eyes met mine. His gaze never left me as I approached, nor did his position or expression change. “Come with us…” I spoke, quietly. Unsure of my trust in him and a little timid, I kept a five foot gap between us; my hand fingered the steel handle on my hunting knife. “…unless you’re with others,” I added.

“I’m alone.”

“Okay. Well, you’re hurt and I’m not bad at patching people up.” I looked over my shoulder at Jasper, who paced by the entry way. “He’s not bad either. It’s just, we lost…a lot. We don’t have anything more than each other right now. So it would be beneficial to everyone if we put our assets together; it’s not safe out here on your own anymore.”

I waited for an answer, but he stood silent. Occasionally he’s eyes flashed toward Jasper and back to me. Down to an inch of my last hope, he finally spoke. “Is this what you want?” The question caught me off guard; I opened my mouth but nothing escaped. He repeated his question, but this time he closed the distance. Now, he stood two feet apart from me. He limped, and I noticed how pale his skin was, and the yellow of his eyes. Slowly, his hands went to unzip his vest, lift his shirt, and exposed his abdomen. At first glance, there was only a mass of dried up blood along his stomach, but upon a closer inspection, I could make out a five inch wound. It looked to be sewn at wide gaps to keep it close, yet the swelling pushed against its closures.

“Jesus…” I whispered and looked at his face. Though I felt pain for him, he kept a blank façade; his eyes beyond my head. “Let me help you…”

Suddenly, he pulled his shirt down and I picked up on the sound of approaching footsteps. Jasper appeared within seconds, pissed off. “Since you guys decided to have a lovely time out session, we lost valuable time to escape and now the Zs stirring.” Jasper looked toward the other man. “You don’t have a choice, anymore. Let’s go.”

Within seconds and everyone in agreement to go to the farmhouse, we made a fast get away. With the assistance of the soldier, Jasper led us through back alleyways out of the town center, and then through small streets toward the fields. It was halfway across that the newcomer grew weak and Jasper nearly carried him the rest of the way. Once we made it back to the red and white house, we took to the kitchen window for entry. His rifle in hand, Jasper jumped through first and made sure it was still abandoned before the soldier followed suit, however a bad landing sent a hiss out of his mouth. Jasper helped me through and I ran to the man still on the floor, dark spots dripped from his shirt.

“Celeste, I’ll watch down here, while you go treat him in the bathroom. Make it fast, daylight’s almost gone.” True to his word, amber light crept higher along the walls as the sun set. Quickly, I helped the guy up, grabbed two jugs of distilled water from the pantry, and together we made haste to the bathroom.

“I need you to remove your shirt...” I addressed him as I pulled the last things from the medicine cabinet. Only a prescription painkiller and rubbing alcohol was left. I snuck a glance at the man and noticed bulging pecs and washboard abs. I followed his patch of dark hair down his abdomen to stop upon a revolver tucked into his waistband. “...and the weapon.” He looked confused as if he forgotten about it, and only when I pointed did his fingers slid around the handle and he pulled it out.

With a towel in hand, I uncapped one of the jugs and poured water all over the rag. I began to clean the surrounding area, then replaced the water with rubbing alcohol. Ever couple of rubs, I would hear the hiss, but mainly his quick intake of breaths were the only signs of pain. As soon as I could see his skin, I throw down the towel and picked up another rag. I put more alcohol on it and told him to disinfect the wound while I get a needle and thread.

With a grind of his teeth and a little nod, I left him alone and ran to the basement. By memory, I ran to the crafts table and turned on my flashlight. Frantically, I searched for sewing supplies and came up empty. Thinking that they could be in a bedroom, I ran back to the first floor to see Jasper with his hand out to me. “Looking for this?” he asked and I looked down to see a thin needle and a spool of black thread.

“Thank you.” I whispered and took off. I made it upstairs in time to see the injured guy leave the bathroom. He went into the master bedroom and instantly dropped onto the bed. I followed after, only to hear Jasper enter seconds behind me.

“I’m here to help, with a little assistance.” In his hand was a bottle of Scotch, unopened and by the looks, extremely expensive. Jasper tore through the wrapping paper and opened the bottle. He sat next to the soldier and spread his lips wide. “Hey buddy, I need you to drink.” The other guy nodded, before he gulped down three sips. At that time I went to work on his wound.

It took less than twenty minutes for us to patch him and everyone down to the basement. Once the soldier was settled on a makeshift bed, Jasper and I locked down the first floor, made sure to keep everything as it was when we entered, except for the kitchen window; Jasper locked it.

As soon as we closed and locked ourselves into the basement, we were submersed in darkness. With the help of my flashlight, I found the candles and lit one. After being submersed in darkness, Jasper lit two candles. “Only light one, and place on the opposite side of the room than where we are.” The soldier called through the black.

“Why?” I asked, suddenly.

“Because if anything does come in, it will be drawn by the light, and over there, it gives us time to react.” I wasn’t surprised by his knowledge; I knew he held many tricks for us to learn, however, I was shocked by his consciousness. With only my period, I was barely awake from the events of today. After, I followed his advice; I made my way over to my mattress pad and spread low. Jasper sat next to me against the wall, ready to cover the first shift.

I stared at him, his face covered with shadows from the candlelight, and said “Thank you.” I turned away before I could see his expression and snuggled into my makeshift pillow. I closed my eyes when I felt a soft brush against my cheek. “Good night,” he whispered and his sweet words lulled me to sleep.