“Madison,” Todd whines, mimicking her tone of voice. She smiles, and he grins back. “We can’t swim it, not in this weather. We’d freeze to death before we got anywhere safe. Even if we managed to build a fire and dry off for a bit, we’re still at risk for pneumonia or frost bite.”
“We’ll have to find a way to cross,” Aaron says, looking at his group mates. “But if we can’t, don’t worry—we’re not swimming across this.” He looks at Ryder, who nods his head in agreement.
Ryder turns away from the bank and begins walking along the length of the river. I follow after him closely, like I always seem to do. I hear Todd groan behind me as he picks up his bag and begins to follow. I’m sure his bag is probably wet, seeing as there’s enough snow on the ground to crunch beneath our boots and stick to our hair. I’m surprised there’s no ice in the river, but I guess it probably moves too fast for that to happen so early in the year. Probably by December we would have been able to just walk right across and save ourselves a lot of time and effort.
But the last thing we would need is for one of us to fall through the ice…
We walk along the river bank, moving farther and farther away from the spot where we came out of the woods, losing the hidden path along the way. I don’t know how we’ll manage to find this place even if we do manage to find a way across the river, since I didn’t see the path pick back up on the other side of the river. We can’t just wander around the woods and hope we find the right way to go. We don’t have the supplies, the stamina, or the morale for that.
We don’t have to go too far before Ryder stops. I see what he’s staring at, and I can feel my stomach clench at the sight of it. There’s a mostly rotted tree that’s fallen over and is being held upright only by a large boulder placed beneath it. It extends a good portion of the way over top of the river, and if we can push it off the boulder so that it hits the water, we may be able to create a bridge that gets us all the way across.
Can we move a tree that large? Even with all of us working together?
Ryder looks back at our group. “This is it, our only option for crossing safely. If we can push this tree away from the boulder and down to the ground, we can walk across it to get to the other side. Our shoes may get wet if we have to jump the rest of the distance to shore, but the water shouldn’t be too deep to worry about it. Give me a hand with this,” he orders.
We all drop our backpacks, except for Naomi and Daisy. She’s still in pain and Naomi is still trying to support most of her body weight by herself. Ryder positions us all where he thinks we’ll do the most good, and I find myself between Reese and Madison, with Aaron on her other side. I put my hands on the damp, cold bark and brace myself, waiting for Ryder’s command.
When he says ‘now’, we all shove against the tree as hard as we can. I can hear it scraping against the boulder, and chunks of bark rip away and litter the snowy ground around us. Slowly, inch by inch, the tree moves away from the boulder, and it hits the ground with a crack like thunder. Waves roll away from the tree where it hits the river, and we watch as the water rushes around the tree, leaving a patch of the tree dry and above the surface.
Perfect for walking on, I think to myself with a smile.
“Good work everyone,” Ryder says, grabbing his backpack. He hoists it above his shoulders. “I’ll go first. I’m the heaviest, so if I make it across, we know the tree is sturdy enough and will hold for the rest of you.”
“And if it doesn’t hold?” Reese asks quietly. “You won’t be able to swim with all of that ammo on your back, and if you fall in, there’s no telling if we’ll even be able to get you out of there. You could drown, or get hypothermia.”
“Someone has to go first,” Ryder points out. “Might as well be me.” He looks at me. “We’re going to be split up for a few minutes, stranded on opposite sides of this river. I want you to come right after me, so that I can protect you if anything happens. Think you can do that?” He sounds worried, like he can tell that I’m nervous about crossing this river.
I nod my head. “I’ll be fine. I can do this.”
“I’ll be there to catch you at the end,” he says quietly. “I always will be.” He leans forward and gives me a quick kiss, before stepping up onto the fallen tree. It creaks under his weight, but it doesn’t budge. He takes a second to steady himself and secure his backpack before taking tiny, careful steps toward the opposite bank.
I hold my breath as he balances precariously on the tree. Nobody in our group makes a sound in case we mess with his concentration. We all just watch in quiet trepidation, wondering if each new step he takes will be his last. I fight the urge to lift my hands to my mouth and chew on my nails, a habit I thought I had broken myself of years ago. But watching him out there risking his life just to make sure it’s safe for the rest of us is nerve racking and it makes me want to chew them down as far as I can.
He finally reaches the end of the tree, and he shrugs his backpack down his shoulders and tosses it to the bank. It rolls to a stop, and he takes a step back. He pushes off, easily clearing the gap between the end of the tree bridge and the bank. Turning back to us, he shouts, “Alright, Sam. You’re next! I want Daisy and Naomi after you.”
Reese helps me up onto the thick tree, and I wobble uncertainly. He reaches out to steady me, and looking up, I see a look of worry cross Ryder’s face.
“Just take it nice and slow, Sam. It’s not a race. Just pretend like we have all the time in the world.”
Taking a deep breath to steady myself, I take my first tremulous step. I can feel everyone’s eyes on me, and I try not to let myself worry about them. Right now, I’m going to focus on nobody but myself. I have to keep my mind clear and put one foot in front of the other. Soon enough I’ll make it to Ryder’s outstretched arms and I’ll be on solid ground once more.
The tree wobbles beneath me and my heart stops, my breath hitching in the back of my throat as I freeze. I don’t dare move, or even breathe. “You’re doing great, Sam. You’re halfway there. You’re closer to me than you are that bank. Just keep your eyes on your feet and watch where you step.”
I take another deep breath and force myself to keep moving. Ryder’s right; I’m almost to the opposite bank—to him. Not only is he waiting for me, but so is our destination. We’re so close to finding out if this cure is all just a wild goose chase or if we can really help to make a difference. We have to make it now! We’re so close; there’s no stopping us.
I reach the end of the tree without further problem, and I toss my backpack to Ryder. He drops it to the ground beside him and holds his arms out to me. “I got you,” he promises.
I nod, trusting him completely. With one leap, I push off from the tree and fly over the last little stretch of water, landing in Ryder’s arms. He staggers back a step but manages to keep us both upright and out of the water. He holds me tightly to his chest as I quiver from fear and adrenaline. I can’t believe I just did that, but I know Ryder had faith in me the entire time.
Ryder beckons for the next person, and Naomi begins her crossing. She’s a high school athlete who is still in great shape, so she makes it across with no problems. Ryder helps her with the last bit just like he did for me, and we wait for Daisy. I can see her shaking from all the way over here, and I wonder if she’s going to need help to make it across.
“Come on, Daisy!” Ryder shouts. “You can do this!”
I can see Madison saying something quietly to her, but Daisy just shakes her head back and forth. “Daisy, you don’t have a choice,” Naomi says, her words carrying easily. “You can’t stay on that side of the river by yourself. It’ll be dark soon, and you’ll be eaten alive…if you don’t freeze to death first.”
It’s strange to think that being eaten alive by ravenous monsters is no longer the first thing on our list of stuff to worry about killing us. It’s almost surreal to think that something natural like the cold could be more dangerous than monsters that will literally hunt you down and eat
you alive, but there’s always a chance to outrun zombies. You can’t outrun the weather. Sooner or later the cold catches up to you, and you can pay the ultimate price if you’re not careful…
Aaron guides Daisy to the tree and hands her the backpack that she relinquished earlier. “It’s okay,” I hear him say. “We’re all here to support you.” She opens her mouth and he cuts her off. “Nothing is going to happen, okay? But if it does, you’ve got all of us all here for you. We won’t let anything bad happen to you.”
She nods, but she still looks terrified and I doubt she’ll be able to make it across the tree without some kind of help. It’s not wide enough for one of us to walk beside her and keep her steady and feeling safe. And even if it was, I’m not sure the rotted wood is sturdy enough for two people to walk on it at the same time without it breaking. Daisy will just have to listen to our encouragement and find the strength to do this by herself.
Reese and Aaron help her up onto the tree, one on each side of her so she can get her balance. The second they let go of her, she wobbles and nearly falls. They quickly grab her arms to steady her again, and I can see the tears on her face even from here. I don’t know if Daisy is secretly afraid of the water or what, but she’s not taking this very well at all. Part of me wonders if she really can’t do this.
“Daisy, get down on your hands and knees if you have to. Crawl across nice and slow,” Ryder says encouragingly. “Like I said, it’s not a race.”
She slowly crouches down until she can touch her knees to the damp wood, and I swear the second she’s down I can see her entire body relax just a little bit. She looks like she’s so grateful to not be wobbling over the water that she wants to just lean forward and kiss the tree. I’m not sure how well she’ll be able to crawl along the tree with that heavy backpack on her shoulders, but someone else can’t walk across with two on their back, so she’ll have to figure it out for herself.
Gingerly, Daisy makes her first move. Her movements are slow and uneasy, but she looks more calm and steady than she did while standing. She just stares down at the log and places her hands out in front of her, digging the nails into the wood. She drags her knees along behind them, reminding me of the way a caterpillar moves, by bunching up and extending.
She slowly makes her way across the tree, one arm’s length at a time. As she passes the halfway point, she drags her feet up behind her, and part of the rotted tree falls away beneath her. Daisy loses her grip on the tree and tumbles off, hitting the water with a scream and a splash.
“Daisy!”
We’re all frozen in horror as Daisy’s head disappears below the surface. Her arms flail above her head, breaking the surface as she tries to claw her way back up. The river carries her away down stream, and even though the river isn’t too deep, her backpack is weighing her down, making it impossible for her to kick her way up.
Chapter Nine
Before the rest of us can even react, Naomi has already stripped off her boots and her coat and is jumping off the river bank. Her running leap is massive and it nearly closes the distance between Daisy and the bank. Seeing Naomi spring into action like that has the rest of us moving to do anything we can to help. Ryder and I run along the bank, looking for anything we can throw to Naomi, or at least a shallower place where they can climb to safety.
“Daisy, hang on!” I shout.
Naomi latches onto Daisy and draws her in close. I can see her hands fumbling with the straps of Daisy’s backpack, trying to free her from the weight of it as the river caries them both down stream further away from the tree and from us. Finally the backpack slips away and Daisy’s head breaks the surface and she gasps, sucking down a lungful of air as if she’s been starved of oxygen for days.
There are a few scattered bushes devoid of leaves along the river bank, and Naomi reaches out and snags one. They jerk to a stop and part of the bush uproots, leaving them dangerously close to floating away once more. But the rest of the roots hold fast, anchoring Naomi and Daisy in place and giving Ryder and I time to climb down the bank and get to them.
The river pulls at them, trying to uproot the bush and free them, but Ryder grabs a handful of Naomi’s sweater and hauls them back toward the bank. He’s in the river up to his knees, and I can only imagine the biting cold they’re all feeling. But Ryder ignores that numbing pain and drags Naomi and Daisy partially up the bank, getting them away from the current that tried to drown them.
“Sam, go get Naomi’s coat!”
I run as fast as I can back to where Naomi took her dive and gather her things in my arms. Ryder has already taken off his coat and given it to Daisy, trying to keep her warm. I see her soaking wet coat and sweater on the ground nearby. Ryder has his arms around her, trying to use his body heat to keep her as warm as possible out here in the snow.
Naomi shrugs out of her wet sweater and t-shirt and takes her coat from me, teeth chattering and hands shaking from the cold. Her long dark hair is coming undone from her normal French braid, and it hangs down her face, already freezing to her skin. She wraps herself in the coat and zips it up, pulling her arms in through the sleeves to hug them tightly around herself.
I hear footsteps coming up rapidly behind us, and I find Aaron and Reese running along the river bank. The others are crossing the tree bridge as quickly as they can while still being careful, but I’m not sure how much help they’ll be. “Someone needs to build a fire,” I say, looking around for any dry wood we can use as kindling. It doesn’t have to be big, but they need to dry off before they get hypothermia and die.
“We don’t have time,” Reese says breathlessly. “There’s a horde of zombies heading this way. They must have heard Daisy scream when she went down. We’ve got like two minutes to get them on their feet or we’re zombie food.”
“They can’t move in this shape,” I argue.
“What are we supposed to do? We can’t carry them both—we’d have to leave even more supplies behind. We already lost Daisy’s bag of water, which leaves us up shit creek without a paddle.”
“I c-c-can w-walk m-myself,” Naomi says, teeth still chattering like crazy. Her entire body is shaking, and I’m not sure she can even stand. But I know her well enough to know that she’s going to try, no matter what. Somehow she’ll get on her feet and she’ll keep up with us, forcing herself to keep going. She won’t give up without one hell of a fight, and I admire that so much.
“What about Daisy?” Madison asks, joining us. “She’ll never be able to keep up. Who is gonna carry her?”
“I can,” Todd says. “I’m not totally useless. If someone can take my backpack, I can take her.”
“I got it,” Madison says quickly. “Mine just has blankets and extra clothes in it. We can take the empty clothes out and get these guys dressed in something warm, and we can get out of here.”
“Alright, let’s hurry,” Ryder says as the sounds of moaning reaches out ears.
Madison drops her backpack and empties the contents onto the ground, searching for anything that Naomi and Daisy can wear underneath their coats. She comes up with a thick wool sweater and a long-sleeved thermal shirt. Naomi snags the thermal shirt, leaving the warmer sweater for Daisy, who takes it with a grateful look.
Daisy has soaking wet boots on her feet, but we don’t have an extra pair for her to wear. I’m worried about the damage soaking wet boots and socks might do to her feet, but unfortunately we don’t have the time to stop and fret about it now. We have to get out of here or we’re all going to be in trouble. And like Ryder said earlier, the place we’re looking for can’t be too far away. We might be able to get Daisy and Naomi someplace nice and warm and they can get the help they need.
Madison discards her backpack and takes up Todd’s. I notice her grimace at the weight of it, but she doesn’t complain. She keeps her mouth shut as she tightens the straps, ensuring that it won’t fall off her shoulders during the run. When her backpack is situated, she clicks off the safety on her weapon and we all get m
oving. Ryder lets Aaron take the lead so he and I can stay toward the back of the pack with Naomi in case she needs any help.
With Todd weighed down and Naomi struggling to keep up, we’re slow moving and definitely an easy target for the horde hot on our trail. I can hear them stumbling through the leaves and branches that litter the forest floor. Zombies are slow moving, but when there’s a lot of them, things can get dangerous really fast. And I can’t be sure since I’m not a tracker, but if I had to guess, I’d say there’s probably at least thirty of them, maybe even more.
We can’t fight that many of them, especially with Naomi freezing and Todd carrying Daisy. Two of our shooters are out of commission, and a third member of our group is a semi-conscious half-frozen ball of uselessness that will just get in the way.
Naomi stumbles and goes down on her hands and knees, and Ryder and I pull up, covering her while she gets back up. She’s shaking so badly it’s a miracle she can hardly move, and I’m not sure if it’s from the cold or fear. As we try to catch up to the rest of the group, I can see the first zombie through the trees, no more than twenty yards away, coming up on our left. They’re gaining on us, and one look at Naomi’s face tells me that she blames herself for holding us all up.
I would probably feel the same way if I were in her position. I can't imagine how she feels right now—stressed, angry, in pain, scared, and confused—all because she did the right thing and saved a friend's life. Now our entire group is in danger of dying, not just Daisy. Will more of us get hurt because of the choice Naomi made? It was a spur of the moment decision; there was no time to think about other options or consequences. She had to act, and she did.
Whether she made the right decision or not we'll never know, but I'm incredibly glad that Daisy is still with us, even if our lives are in danger at the moment. We won't be able to outrun them forever, and if we don't find this place soon, we're as good as dead. Naomi and Daisy will freeze to death, and the rest of us will most likely be eaten alive. If we don’t take matters into our own hands first, at least…
Zombie World (Zombie Apocalypse #3) Page 12
