by Michael Blue
Erlina was in the room where she could look out the window and see the man making his way to the backdoor. Her window, as well as any other, was safely blocked for her safety. When the man made it completely out of sight, Erlina's eyes widened and she remembered something crucial: The backdoor. The backdoor and upstairs window above it, were probably the only two places that weren't blocked off. The backdoor was capable of being locked and it had a padlock, but that didn't mean that it couldn't be kicked right off after rusting of old age.
"Joshua!" Erlina whispered sharply.
He didn't answer, being too focused of the man's whereabouts.
"Joshua!" she called again.
Looking enraged, Joshua turned his attention to her with his flared, but long, nose.
"He's coming in through the backdoor!" she said with a worried look on her face.
That's when Josh heard the gunshots from upstairs. Erlina and Joshua's guess was that Pamela was trying to shoot him from the upstairs window they both had climbed in earlier. Joshua quickly leapt to his feet and ran out of the joining room. He bolted past the kitchen and made it into the dining room. Erlina, frantically poked her head out, but reeled herself back in for her own safety. Not from the bandit, but from Joshua's scowling. Just as he entered the dining room, he made a left that led into an office with the backdoor. The doorknob was seen being rattled.
"You could just surrender!" Joshua shouted. He had his handgun grabbed firmly with both hands and he placed his head down to hear a response. The knob stopped moving.
"You killed my men. I'm not going down without a fight!" the man shouted.
Immediately, shuffling was heard. What Joshua didn't know was that the group of men had purposely hidden their weapons and that this guy was carrying a shotgun; ready to blow one's head off. That's when Joshua's eyes widened when he heard a loud 'click'. Joshua ran as soon as the door was blown off its hinges and scattered wood flew to the floor. The man charged in and spotted Joshua turning in another entrance to the kitchen, at the far corner of the dining room. The bandit didn't hesitate to shoot his shotgun, and he shot at Joshua's thin leg just as he dove into the next room. Joshua yelped and held his lower leg in pain. He reached down and rolled up the bottom of his pants. It hadn't been impaled by any bullets, but it was largely grazed. He looked up at the wall that was in front of him and it had about four to five bullet holes. Joshua imagined how lucky he was that he hadn't gotten directly hit, because he would've been a goner.
He was groaning in pain and he began crawling away from the bandit after hearing his footsteps cautiously near him. Joshua quickly turned around and aimed his glock at Gus, the bandit who was now standing over him. Joshua had now gotten a good look at Gus. He had a large brown beard and a full head of sweaty hair that was neck length. Using the stock of the shotgun, he knocked Joshua's hand back with much force as possible. The glock flew back and slid to the entrance that led to the joining room. Keeping his eyes on the handgun, Joshua stood up to chase after it. However, Gus hit him right in the face with the stock of his shotgun. The hit was so powerful it partially stunned him. From this point on, Joshua was already bleeding from his forehead. He groaned even more in pain and looked up at the bandit, seeing five Gus's towering him. Slowly, Joshua turned over and tried crawling to his handgun.
"No, no, no! You're not getting away," Gus mocked as if he were hunting for food.
He walked behind him and kneeled over Josh's body. His slimness compared to the huge guy was such a contrast. He took the barrel of his shotgun and placed it underneath Joshua's neck, forcefully trying to crush and choke his throat by pulling the gun against it. Joshua was gasping for air and kicking his legs while Gus sat his whole body upon his back.
"NO!" Erlina shouted by the entrance of the kitchen.
Gus looked up, and Joshua forced himself to squint open his eyes. She had the handgun in her small trembling hands.
"Don't worry," Gus said loosening his grip from the barrel on Joshua's neck, "A little girl like you can't kill in cold blood. I know you can't...and just when I'm done with him," he adjusted himself over Joshua's body to prevent him from struggling free, "I'll hang your ass from a tree,"
Joshua glared up at him and struggled to get free, but it was of no use. However, from behind, Gus felt a sharp pain in his shoulder, turning his head over to see a cleaver being pulled clean from his flesh and bones. He let out a massive yell of pain and held his shoulder. In addition, he released the grip of his shotgun. It dropped to the floor and Joshua was free to linger away. Erlina ran to his side and helped sit his back up to a wall. Using the wall as support, Joshua fought himself to his feet and took the handgun from Erlina. They both watched Pamela drag Gus by his hair to the cupboards on the other side of the kitchen and she struck his leg with the cleaver to avoid him from escaping. Again, he let out a massive yell, whimpering. He tried to use his good arm to sway a smack at Pamela, but he missed. Pamela stepped over him and stepped back, not taking her eyes off the bandit, to help her son stand straight. Joshua released his mother's arm, showing that he could stand on his own. Erlina stood behind the two.
Gus's skin was red and flushed. They could tell that he was confused, scared, and angry all in once. His eyes turned red and he began crying. Erlina couldn't believe it, and even looked up at older cousin and aunt to see if they'd have the same reaction she did.
They didn't.
"You-you fucking killed my friends," he said whimpering and breathing heavily, "I-I just wanted to aven-avenge their deaths,"
Joshua raised his gun at him.
"Please!" he said placing one arm up since the wounded one didn't have the ability to, "Please, I have a family waiting for be back at home. I-I just want to go see them. I promised them I'd make it back alive from this..." he said as more tears streamed down his face. He was whimpering and sobbing loudly at this point.
"How do we know you're not lying?" Joshua questioned; his voice sounding weak and raspy.
Gus cried even more.
"I-I won't ever come back here again. I-I promise." he said with his voice crackling.
Joshua took a long moment to process what was going on and what could've happened if he let this guy go. Either way, it probably wouldn't end well. Pamela would've let him go, because her conscience hadn't completely left, and she still made the right choices but that didn't mean they weren't stupid. Erlina on the other hand, was worried about this man's family. It was just one question that surrounded all of their minds: Was he telling the truth?
That was when Joshua exhaled and placed his gun down to his side.
Gus looked up, thinking that there must've been a little more time for him to roam this shitty, moss covered planet. He saw the little girl on the far left, the young man in the middle, and his mother slightly to his right. That's when Gus realized his mistake: Coming after this innocent family instead of just staying with his own.
"I'm sorry..." Josh mumbled.
Hesitantly, but quickly, Josh lifted his arm up and shot Gus right in the head. Erlina shrieked and turned away after seeing the stranger's blood splatter all over the cupboards. His body was heard sliding to the floor and Pamela crossed her arms and looked down. Normally, a mother would question her son's intentions...but she understood it and was in no place to question his actions.
* * *
"Ouch," Joshua winced.
"It needs to be stitched or else this will take months to heal," Pamela said, "Also, we don't have any of the proper medication for it..."
Joshua groaned and placed his head back on the couch with his leg extended on the coffee table.
"It could get infected. You've already lost a lot of blood," she explained even more.
"Can't an infection lead to death?" Josh asked.
His mother nodded.
"Yes, but you're not going to die. So, stop talking like that." she said rather calmly.
"You can't say that," Joshua said drawing the facts together. They were practically deadbeats
when it came to items that could actually save their own lives rather than kill others.
His mother glared at him and pursed her lips in annoyance.
"Anyway, I'm going to toss that bandit's body in the basement with the two others...then afterward I'll see if I can prepare something to eat." she said getting up and putting on her elastic gloves.
"Make sure you change gloves," Josh commented jokingly.
She laughed before exiting the room.
Erlina was in her bedroom, quietly listening to everything. After hearing about Joshua possibly dying, she leapt off her bed and closed her bedroom door. Leaning on it momentarily, she locked herself inside and threw herself back on her old mattress. She stared at the ceiling and tears began to flood her eyes and they ran down the sides of her face. She began sniffling and placed her forearm on her face, trying to smother her whimpers. Biting her bottom lip, she stared at the ceiling for a long time. Thoughts of her father infiltrated her mind because that's what the thought of losing someone close to her always led to. If she could run to the moon and back just to see her father one more time; guaranteed she would.
Turning to her side, she inhaled and exhaled with a slight tremble. She watched her musty room that was lit by only three candles on her dresser, and the moonlight from the night sky. Coincidentally enough, that's when Erlina noticed her bows, quiver, and arrow leaning against the wall, lit by the rays of the moonlight. That's when she wiped her eyes and cleared her throat. Erlina thought very long and hard about the choice she was going to make. Her conversation with Joshua from earlier today replayed in her head. She was still clothed in the same garments from that evening, so she was practically prepared for another hunt. She placed on her boots and grabbed her weapons and tools. Meanwhile placing on her shoulder bag, she slowly opened the door to make sure no one was nearby.
She thought out her escape as she stood by the doorway. She heard her aunt in the joining room, which was the only way through the back. The front door was obviously not an option, it'd be too obvious. That's when the light bulb finally lit. She exited the room and shuffled her way upstairs. Thanks to that godforsaken house, the old steps squeaked every step you made. Nervously, Erlina placed her fingers on to her mouth.
"Erlina?" Joshua said slightly distant. He was falling asleep.
"Hmm?" she answered quietly afraid to look back.
"What are you doing?"
She was fully braced to plead the fifth. She turned around, having her braids fly over her shoulder, but she stopped after noticing that he hadn't even moved a muscle. He was facing the opposite direction and there was no way he could tell that she was armed to her own tooth.
"I-I was going to the bathroom..." She said unsurely.
"But there's a bathroom down here,"
He began moving his head a little to the side. She needed to think of something quick or else he'd have a reason to look at her.
"I left my flashlight upstairs..." she lied.
"Oh alright, go get it. Quickly," he spoke sternly.
Nearly dying from a thousand heart beats per second, Erlina's nerves calmed down. Finally, she was able to slide past and continue with her trek. Continuing up the stairs to the second level of the house, she took out her flashlight out of her bag. It was the small LED flashlight, and it was large enough to fit through the small strap on the shoulder of her denim jacket. The night summer breeze was felt through the old, rooftops and ceilings that had broken spaces in them. It felt better up here since going outside was so rear.
She quietly, made her way to the small room that she had climbed in through earlier that day. This was going to be the difficult part. She bent down, tossing a bunch of her hair over one shoulder and tried touching the ladder. Lifting it only by a few inches, made a bunch of noise. Bumping from wall to wall, she had no choice but to cautiously rest it back down. The ladder was too big for her to carry and if she even could get it out the window, she'd make a crap load of noise. She'd probably drop it before even getting to go outside with it. Erlina sighed, resting her dry palms on the windowsill and resting her forehead on the stained glass. She sighed, thinking to herself how much of a stupid idea it was in the first place.
Startled by something that caught her attention on the far right of the window, she noticed it was nothing but a cute, harmless squirrel. Pulling her head off the window, she smiled. Examining its movements, the squirrel did nothing but sniff around for a bit. She guessed its curiousness was only temporary because right away, it ran off the roof top to a thick three branch across the roof. The squirrel ran down the tree truck and quickly jetted off.
It hit Erlina right in the face. She looked at the tree truck, and she could almost feel that the tree was waving, waiting to be noticed as the breeze blew most its thinnest branches. She quickly opened the window and began shuffling her way onto the rooftop. Mimicking an acrobat on a wire, she tried walking with the softest steps. Reaching the edge, she examined the branch. It was thick, and really sturdy. Erlina wildly guessed it could handle her weight. Erlina backed up to the window once more and closed it. Running for more velocity and a better chance of reaching the tree, she leapt off the edge. She made it onto the tree branch, but only had her torso and arms upon it. Her lower half dangled and kicking her legs made it worse. Her upper body strength wasn't something she could really depend on, so trying to climb up was no use. Therefore, she began losing her grip. Ultimately, she fell unto another branch beneath her. It somewhat slowed down her fall, since it caught her, but it snapped.
"Oh no!" she cried after hearing it snap.
She managed to turn her body over and she fell unto the tall crowds of weeds and grass. The fall hurt, of course, but not as much as she expected. She groaned and fixed herself up, sitting in a crouched position. She extended her arm backwards and rubbed her back. Her eyes watered, but she fought off the tears.
"Ugh, damn it!" she cursed, covering her mouth afterward.
That's when she turned her attention to the house after hearing knives and boards being placed on the table through the joining room window. Her aunt stopped focusing on the food and that wasn't a good sign. Erlina immediately got up out of the weeds and picked up her speed, hiding behind a stack of three old tires and a broken down picnic table. She could hear the back door being pushed open. Every bush and tall plant was in the way of a light that explored the back yard. Erlina stayed in the shadows, avoiding to be seen by her aunt's flashlight. After a couple of seconds of silence and sweat, her aunt returned to her duties.
Poking her head above the tires to make sure the coast was clear; she beamed through the backyard and made her way over the short fence by using her short legs to haul herself over. She ran from the house, lingering a couple of yards away. Thankfully, it wasn't a far travel. Walking across the street, she climbed up a sloped parking lot drive-in. She walked a little further and stopped, standing in the middle of the parking lot.
"Alright, there's got to be some antibiotics in there..." she said desperately to herself.
She looked up at the old, worn out; large building that stood in front of her and read the large, dusty sign on the side of it.
"St. Gerard Catholic School..."
Summer
* * *
She listened closely, looking around her to make sure that no one or thing followed her. It was late out, and she could hear a couple of Runners miles away. Coming to a place like this probably had to be the worst. She felt so stupid after remembering the shotgun that the bandit left in their house. It was still lingering in the kitchen, and she should've taken it. All she was now was a little girl with a bow and six arrows. She could guarantee that there were more than six infected in that place. She gulped, not just thinking about Clickers, but Runners and everything else; the ones that could actually see her. As the thoughts surrounded her head meanwhile she explored the area, something caught her eye over by one of the entrances. She stopped thinking. It was small, and it wasn't moving. She walked over to it t
o get a closer look; it was a gas mask with an old paper underneath, and there was something written on it. Picking it up, she read it:
"Nate,
James and I will be waiting for you inside the school. Like we said we'd do, I'm really excited for clearing out the infected and claiming this place as our own. Just in case you forgot your gas mask, I brought a spare. Use this to get inside the school. You know large places like this are usually swarming with spores in certain rooms. James just managed to open a passage to the basement. See you later, brother.
-Everett."
She exhaled after reading the letter. Erlina folded the note and shoved it in the back pocket of her black jeans.
"Sorry, Nate..." she said picking up the gas mask and putting it in her bag.
Her best guess was that these guys never made it in or out, considering the gas mask was just left there. There were three noticeable entrances around the school building. One on each side and one in the front. The front and other side of the school were very large entrances. They were those typical church doors, and they were presumably locked off. Erlina was by the other side entrance and it was one of those metal, regular sized doors that you saw in every building. Erlina placed her hand firmly on the large door handle, and pulled with all her might, but her small tugs did nothing.
That's when she turned her attention to the far left of the building. She noticed a large gate, and it looked like it was guarding another path into the school. She slowly paced towards it, and noticed that the gate's padlock had been broken off, laying on the ground. Slowly, she pulled open the squeaky gate, she realized that it led to some stairs. Then the stairs proceeded to a lower entrance; the basement perhaps. Thankfully, the doorway was left cracked open; Erlina guessed for Nate.
So far, luck was on her side, and Erlina used her hands to open the small door. Not completely; but slightly more. Immediately, she heard clicking and moaning once she was in hearing distance. She brought her foot slightly back. Maybe coming here wasn't such a good idea, she thought. But Joshua's injury entered her thoughts again. She had to do this for him, or it could be just her and her aunt this time. Immediately, she spotted millions of microscopic spores with the help of the moonlight that peered in from behind. What perfect timing, she thought. Reaching in her bag, she put on the gas mask and began breathing no differently. It was a surprise to her because she thought breathing underneath a gas mask would be different. In the basement was some more stairs she had to climb down; probably just five. As she made her way down, she hid near the very corner of a stage. It stood high enough to hide her from any Runner. She examined the basement and noticed that it was similar to a cafeteria. Surprisingly enough, there were open lunch tables already turned on their sides and a couple of dead infected. Erlina turned on her flashlight, and it brightened certain areas in the room.
