The hallway she was in stretched to the left and right, the right side ending just past the gymnasium doors and a set of washrooms that she didn't particularly want to hide in.
She heard the front doors of the community center open as heavy and hurried footfalls stormed in. It felt like leading herself right into the belly of the beast, but she ran to the left end of the hallway and around the corner which led to the entrance.
She saw the soldiers coming for her in the distance, searching around a seating area next to a café. A set of stairs led up to a few rooms on the second floor, and a couple troops went up there while the rest searched around on the ground floor.
The entrance to the library stood next to Sarah, and it was her only option for the moment. She moved behind a big wooden planter box that gave her cover from the foyer, clutching the laptop under her arm. When she was inside, she opened the laptop to see what the progress was at, but it was only at twenty-three percent. She could hear soldiers stepping in through the windows in the gym and coming through the hallway where she had just been.
The library she found herself in was large and filled with rows and rows of shelves, tall enough to hide behind and dense enough not to be seen through. Dusty old books neatly lined the shelves, and it seemed that aside from the grime, this part of the building had been little picked through after the apocalypse.
Sarah ran to the back of the dark library, no windows spanning along the back walls at all. She pulled up the laptop's screen again and was disappointed to see the progress only climbed to a measly twenty-seven percent.
If she could just get out of here, find an opening to slip through their ranks, she would just take the whole thing back to the lab and be done with it. But as the thought ran through her head, she heard at least one soldier enter the library. Then she heard the front doors of the community center being flung open and slamming into the walls next to them as heavy footfalls echoed in the building.
She swallowed a lump in her throat, knowing the monstrosity that Kenny had become was in the building, and he would be searching for her.
"Clear!" someone's voice called from out in the main foyer area. "She's not up here!"
"She's not in the gym, either," someone else said from the other direction.
Sarah closed the screen of the laptop again and kept on the move, running along the back of the library. Aisles occasionally broke up the sections of shelving that she fled across, and she would pause at each one and peek around the corner before she moved past.
Suddenly there was a huge ruckus out in the foyer by the café. The sounds of tables and chairs being flung and crashing against the floor or walls reverberated through the building like a bowling ball in a china shop.
The other soldiers became distracted as they all stopped what they were doing and watched Kenny rip the place apart.
Sarah watched the commotion from behind a shelf. She could see a cascade of plastic chairs sailing through the air and bouncing off the smooth cement floor. Then a table came and crashed through a glass insert outside the library. If Kenny could indeed be coerced to work for Glass even though he was a zombie, maybe there were still a couple of kinks in their system.
The soldiers backed away from Kenny, glancing at each other nervously as they headed in other directions to search and giving him a wide berth.
Sarah decided to use the ruckus to leave out another door of the library that came out on the other side of the foyer, but just as she approached the door, Kenny was finished tearing the cafeteria apart and stepped through the door ahead of her. She backed away and he didn't see her, but he began tearing apart every inch for her, tipping over shelves and sending books flying through the air. The shelves were made of wood, and some of Kenny's thunderous blows tore through them, sending huge bursts of splintered wood in every direction. Shredded pages fluttered through the air like money falling from the sky and all the dust that had accumulated over the years climbed up in a great cloud and wafted through the dingy area.
Sarah tried to be clever as she moved from shelf to shelf, attempting to work her way around him, but Kenny was throwing her whole plan out the window along with everything else in the room. Instead of being forced to go around the obstacles, Kenny simply plowed straight through them. Now it was like trying to get out of a swimming pool for Sarah while a great white shark barreled through the water.
She tried to slip past a shelf, but it suddenly and unexpectedly tipped over and fell on her legs. She was knocked to the ground and the laptop fell out of her arm and slid across the carpeted floor. A great pocket of air was expelled from her lungs, and Kenny suddenly stopped, hearing the noise. And then, as if his fury wasn't intense enough, he scaled it up twofold.
Sarah had never seen a man (or something close to a man) able to move through solid objects like a bird gliding through the air before, but the library was being split in two at a terrifying pace, and she could see vague shapes flying up every which way in the darkness as the path of destruction closed in on her.
She pulled with all her might, knowing her life depended on it, and managed to pry her legs out from under the overturned bookshelf. She scrambled across the floor and snatched up the laptop then scurried behind a half-destroyed bookshelf.
Kenny stopped his chaos momentarily, standing on the spot and seething like a bull that lost sight of its victim. He looked over the wreckage that he had sown and began to slowly sift through it, flinging little bits of debris around as he moved. If there was an overturned bookshelf next to him, he would grab it and fling it out of his way like it was a feather.
The other soldiers in the building had redoubled their efforts, having already checked the entire place and not finding Sarah, but not wanting to go anywhere near the library.
Sarah made her way to the other entrance on the other side of the foyer, hearing Kenny's deep and labored breaths in the darkness behind her.
There were two troops standing by the front doors of the community center, though their attention was directed toward the other end of the library where Kenny was. As she looked around the corner and up the stairs next to her, Sarah saw a soldier just reaching the top and checking the rooms up there again.
But the coast was clear for her to slip around the stairs and continue down the corridor. She didn't know where it led, but she would have to take the chance.
She moved silently, hugging the laptop into her armpit. She only had a knife and her Sig Sauer with her, electing to leave her rifle in the woods as she snuck up on the soldiers one by one. If she could get outside and get to it, it would at least give her a little bit of peace of mind as she fled back to the lab. But for right now, she had to find some way to escape. She didn't know how many men were still outside, and where they were, but she would have to take it a step at a time.
When she passed the staircase, she crossed in front of a few resource rooms, working her way around a bend after checking that the coast was clear and coming to a conference room and a janitorial closet at the end of the hallway.
But there was no door to exit through, and as she poked her head in the conference room, she saw that there were no windows at all.
Just as she began to curse her luck, she heard someone coming around the corner from the foyer. She slipped back into the hallway and looked around, quickly deciding to hole up in the janitor's closet. She opened the door and silently shut it behind her, finding herself enclosed in a tiny, dark space.
But as she watched the crack underneath the door and saw the faint shadow of the soldier walking by, she noticed that she could see in the dark closet more than she had expected to. Curious, she twisted around and looked at the wall behind her.
Past the two shelves on either side of the cramped room, a small window sat high up in the wall, letting sunlight into the room. Clouds had formed over the sky, letting in a murky, diffused glow.
Excited, Sarah hurried to the window. She carefully stepped onto one of the shelves and pushed herself up to look th
rough the glass.
She could see a soldier standing near one of the Humvees in the parking lot with his rifle toted in his arms. But there was a section of wall that extended out from right next to the window to the parking lot, giving the soldier a narrow view of the window. If she could slip out and press herself to the wall, she would be hidden until she could escape.
Sarah carefully opened the latch and slid the window open. It didn't move easily, skipping in its frame over years of built-up grime, but she opened it without anyone hearing.
Keeping the laptop clutched to her very carefully, she slowly and awkwardly went out the tiny window, having no choice but to go headfirst. When her torso was through, she had to let herself fall; it was either that or drop the laptop, and she didn't want to risk damaging it. So she rolled forward out of the window and her body twisted in the air.
She landed on the grass with the soft thud, and the soldier waiting by the Humvee snapped his head over toward the window.
Sarah picked herself up and hid along the side of the wall before the soldier could see her, but he was sure he heard something.
When he walked around the corner, Sarah grabbed hold of his collar and kicked the back of his knee out. She slammed his head into the sidewalk, and as he writhed on the ground, disoriented, Sarah ripped his helmet off and drove her knife through the back of his head. Bright crimson sparkled in the sunlight that was now coming out from behind the clouds again and it pooled on the sidewalk in rolling spurts.
Sarah looked around. The coast was clear.
She stopped momentarily and opened up the laptop screen to check its progress.
Fifty-six percent.
She skirted along the wall away from the parking lot and headed toward the woods. She stopped at the corner and saw another soldier standing outside by the tree line, keeping his eye on the community center. But she waited until his head was turned the other way and she darted out for the trees, slipping behind them and disappearing into the shade.
She worked her way through the edge of the woods, electing to ignore the soldier standing guard, and she made her way back to her rifle. When she was there, she opened up the laptop again and her heart lurched.
The download bar seemed to be frozen and a pop-up was layered over top of it, flashing red. It warned that the laptop was no longer connected to the local network and was locked out until a link was reestablished.
"No..." she whispered. She couldn't just take the laptop back to the lab and have the download finish on her way; she would have to finish it at the community center. Perhaps that was why Ron gave her the flash drive in the first place instead of telling her to simply pilfer the laptop. But if he knew about this, he certainly wasn't forthcoming. She lamented this only for a moment; she knew she had to go back, as dangerous as it was. It was now or never.
She traveled to the edge of the woods next to the grassy field, and she stopped behind a tree and stared at the community center. She didn't know exactly how close she had to be, but she knew the laptop worked perfectly fine in the gym, so she would try to get as close to it as possible. There were two guards standing around that had a view of her path from the woods to the gym in front of her, and normally there would be no way to get close. But as the tall weeds in the grassy field were blown and swayed roughly in the wind, she knew exactly her strategy.
She lowered herself down onto her belly and crawled out of the woods, entering the rough and itchy grass. She felt it scratch against her skin, but she moved on, keeping her head up just enough to keep her sense of direction.
The dumpster sat against the gymnasium wall at the back of the community center, and one side of it was hidden from view from the watching soldiers. She would try to crouch there if she could and wait for the download to finish, then slip back out through the field.
She made her way through the grass and weeds. The swiveling heads of the soldiers didn't see her movement as the strong wind camouflaged her.
When she was almost to the edge of the field, she opened up the laptop just enough for the screen to come on and see if it was close enough, but the flashing warning was still there. She raised her head up from the grass, and when the coast was clear, she got up and made a break for it.
She crouched down next to the dumpster, hidden from view, and pulled open the screen, hoping against hope that it would be enough and she wouldn't actually have to go back inside. She stared at the blinking warning for a few seconds, and then it disappeared, the progress bar continuing from where it left off.
It reached seventy-five percent, but then the sound of doors being ripped open echoed into the otherwise peaceful summer day. A roaring grunt filled the air and Sarah knew that Kenny had already torn the whole building apart and was ready to move the search outside.
Her heart rate increased as she stared down at the screen, mentally willing the numbers to go faster.
She heard his heavy footsteps break into a run around the corner of the building, coming closer to her. Sarah didn't know how he found her; no, he couldn't have. But he was coming in her direction, all the same, and she couldn't run. She would have to hide.
She looked at the dumpster next to her and reluctantly opened the lid.
An unholy smell hit her nostrils and almost made her vomit. Whatever garbage had been stuck in the dumpster had been there for a very long time, and the animals clearly hadn't been able to get at it. She climbed over the edge and stepped into the putrid filth, ignoring the heaving feeling in her throat. She lowered the lid down over her, and it sealed off any fresh air from coming through to her nose and giving her some kind of reprieve. She kept the laptop shut for the moment, letting it run in the background, while she listened to Kenny's rapid footfalls slapping against the pavement.
She hoped this would work; if he checked inside and found her, there wouldn't be much she could do. But the hope of him simply passing by and letting her climb out of this nightmare was dashed when his footsteps stopped next to the dumpster. Her heart thumped harder than ever and she knew there was no escape.
As quietly as possible, she slowly started to worm her way underneath the garbage, letting it cover her body and her face. If Kenny had the same highly-tuned sense of smell that the scratchers did, she certainly wouldn't have to worry about him picking up her scent.
The lid of the dumpster was flung open, causing the whole thing to rattle on its wheels. Sunlight spilled into the filth, and Kenny bent over the edge, inspecting the rubbish. Sarah had done a good job hiding, and no part of her was visible above the trash. But that didn't stop Kenny's whirlwind of rage and destruction as he grabbed the dumpster with both hands and slammed it against the wall of the school. Bricks chipped on the wall of the community center and mortar puffed into the air in small clouds as the steel of the dumpster dented. He pulled it back on its wheels again and threw it into the wall. The garbage shifted around inside, and Sarah didn't know if it was totally covering her anymore. Underneath the trash and commotion, she wormed her hand under her hip for her pistol.
Kenny clamped his hands down on the edge of the dumpster again, his big meaty palms themselves starting to bend the steel, then he slammed the dumpster into the wall one more time and shoved the container over. After it skidded along the pavement and jostled around, it tipped over again and partially crushed itself down on its own lid, propping itself at a weird angle. Trash spilled out all over the pavement and Sarah felt the laptop fly out of her grip and smash against it.
But Kenny didn't notice the noise of it under the din of the ruckus. He stared at the overturned dumpster for another moment, then he decided to turn and direct his rage elsewhere.
When he was gone, Sarah crawled out from the mangled mess, fearing that the twisted lid could break at any moment, causing the rest of the dumpster to fall on her. But she snuck out and grabbed the laptop from under the garbage. She huddled beside the mess, glancing around to see if there was anyone near her, but the coast was clear.
The frame of the
laptop was cracked, and she prayed that it was still working. She gingerly lifted up the screen and the light came on. The download was at ninety-eight percent. She waited for another tense minute, and then when the number turned to a hundred and the transfer screen disappeared, she pulled the flash drive out of the laptop and left it on the ground.
She checked left and right, then she hurried to the grassy field, throwing herself onto her stomach once again and disappearing from view, leaving Kenny and the men with him behind.
The troops wrapped up, deciding that she'd gotten away, and as they began to head back for the Humvees, Kenny still searched the perimeter of the community center. He was far beyond the parking lot now, standing next to the grassy field where it ended at the sidewalk. There was a thin strip of earth between the sidewalk and the road where the grass had died, and in it was a single footprint. Kenny bent down and inspected it more closely. It looked fresh to him.
He followed the direction of it across the street and found more tracks in the dirt on the other side. He traced them with his eyes as his gaze slowly drifted up to the direction she had gone.
11
Round Up
In the evening, Sarah headed through the tunnel to the lab, splashing through water in the rubber boots that she kept near the entrance, hidden behind a rock. She took some time before she got there to wash the horrible stench of garbage off of her in a creek, but she still felt filthy. When she reached the room just before the passageway, she felt around on the wall, trying to find the right brick, but not quite being able to remember which one it was. Maybe it was because she was too excited, having found the information on the laptop that they needed. She knew Ron would be proud of her, and they would all be one step closer to finishing the project. In fact, if her count was right, all they would need was one final item.
The Eden Project (Zombie Apocalypse Series Book 6) Page 11
