through. Hopefully, he comes up with some kind of magical plan that will get us out of this situation.
“Shit!” Al turns and heads toward the group, pulling himself through the water as fast as he can. Pushing Lila forward as he goes. “Lost my knife!”
We’re low on weapons and the bodies are still coming. All of them are in the water now, headed our way. I scan the group and count twenty-six still standing. It makes my stomach tense with dread. We aren’t going to make it. It’s impossible.
“Guns!” Axl yells, finally coming back to join the rest of us. “No point in tryin’ to be quiet now.”
He reaches my side as the horde of zombies closes in. All around us, dead bodies bob. The hot water seems to be cooking their rotten flesh, making the air thick with the stench of decay. Every breath I take feels more toxic than the last. My lungs burn, and it feels like I have a layer of rot forming on the inside of my mouth, coating my tongue. So thick and vile I can taste it.
Axl, Al, and Winston are the only ones with guns, and the few bullets they have won’t last long. I grip my knife as my heart jumps to my throat. Why the hell did I drop that gun? I feel so useless right now, and thanks to my stupidity we’re in real danger.
“Every shot counts,” Winston says.
He puts himself in front of the kids, and Al takes a place at his side. Axl pushes me back and lines up with the other two men. They stand in a straight line. Putting themselves between us and the zombies. Raising their guns. Aiming at the advancing dead.
Shots ring through the air as the three men fire into the horde. The zombies scream and a few fall, but the ones left just keep wading toward us. I hold my breath as gunshots echo in my ears, making them ring.
Al’s gun is the first to click. “I’m out!”
He falls back, taking his place next to Lila, who’s crying. I can’t blame her. My own eyes are moist. The screams of the children mix with the boom of the gunfire as I count yet again. There are still seventeen zombies. There’s no way we have enough ammo for that many.
As soon as the thought enters my mind, Axl’s gun clicks. He swears and rips his knife back out. Winston fires off two more shots, then his gun is empty as well, leaving us with nothing left but our knives.
I ignore the tension in my body and pull myself through the water to Axl’s side. “Will we make it?”
Axl shakes his head but doesn’t take his eyes off the horde in front of us. “Can’t say.”
Which means no. At least not all of us.
A zombie lurches forward and grabs Winston’s arm. They struggle for a second, but somehow he manages to jam his knife into the bastard’s skull before the thing can take a bite out of him. Winston pulls the body in front of him, then grabs for the next closest one. He piles it on top of the first before going for another. Like he’s making a barricade out of the floating bodies. He’s a genius!
“Axl,” I call as I grab the motionless body bobbing closest to me.
I push it toward him, then go for the next. I don’t know if it will work, but it’s worth a shot. Anything that might buy us some time. All we need is time.
We work together, piling the bodies on top of each other in front of us. The zombies coming our way bump into the wall and scream. They reach out for us, but they can’t quite dig their fingers into us from this distance. Hope sparks inside me, but it’s just a flicker. We aren’t out of danger yet, but the barricade seems to be working. Bad thing is, it also makes it tough for me to reach the dead. My arms aren’t as long as Axl’s and Winston’s, so I can’t quite reach their heads. The best I can do is hack away at their hands. Maybe take out a finger or two.
Joshua and Anne join us with their knives, and we do our best to take the zombies out without getting too close. Some fall, but some just get cut, which releases more of the stinking black goo. Most we can’t get to though, and
“Shit!” Al turns and heads toward the group, pulling himself through the water as fast as he can. Pushing Lila forward as he goes. “Lost my knife!”
We’re low on weapons and the bodies are still coming. All of them are in the water now, headed our way. I scan the group and count twenty-six still standing. It makes my stomach tense with dread. We aren’t going to make it. It’s impossible.
“Guns!” Axl yells, finally coming back to join the rest of us. “No point in tryin’ to be quiet now.”
He reaches my side as the horde of zombies closes in. All around us, dead bodies bob. The hot water seems to be cooking their rotten flesh, making the air thick with the stench of decay. Every breath I take feels more toxic than the last. My lungs burn, and it feels like I have a layer of rot forming on the inside of my mouth, coating my tongue. So thick and vile I can taste it.
Axl, Al, and Winston are the only ones with guns, and the few bullets they have won’t last long. I grip my knife as my heart jumps to my throat. Why the hell did I drop that gun? I feel so useless right now, and thanks to my stupidity we’re in real danger.
“Every shot counts,” Winston says.
He puts himself in front of the kids, and Al takes a place at his side. Axl pushes me back and lines up with the other two men. They stand in a straight line. Putting themselves between us and the zombies. Raising their guns. Aiming at the advancing dead.
Shots ring through the air as the three men fire into the horde. The zombies scream and a few fall, but the ones left just keep wading toward us. I hold my breath as gunshots echo in my ears, making them ring.
Al’s gun is the first to click. “I’m out!”
He falls back, taking his place next to Lila, who’s crying. I can’t blame her. My own eyes are moist. The screams of the children mix with the boom of the gunfire as I count yet again. There are still seventeen zombies. There’s no way we have enough ammo for that many.
As soon as the thought enters my mind, Axl’s gun clicks. He swears and rips his knife back out. Winston fires off two more shots, then his gun is empty as well, leaving us with nothing left but our knives.
I ignore the tension in my body and pull myself through the water to Axl’s side. “Will we make it?”
Axl shakes his head but doesn’t take his eyes off the horde in front of us. “Can’t say.”
Which means no. At least not all of us.
A zombie lurches forward and grabs Winston’s arm. They struggle for a second, but somehow he manages to jam his knife into the bastard’s skull before the thing can take a bite out of him. Winston pulls the body in front of him, then grabs for the next closest one. He piles it on top of the first before going for another. Like he’s making a barricade out of the floating bodies. He’s a genius!
“Axl,” I call as I grab the motionless body bobbing closest to me.
I push it toward him, then go for the next. I don’t know if it will work, but it’s worth a shot. Anything that might buy us some time. All we need is time.
We work together, piling the bodies on top of each other in front of us. The zombies coming our way bump into the wall and scream. They reach out for us, but they can’t quite dig their fingers into us from this distance. Hope sparks inside me, but it’s just a flicker. We aren’t out of danger yet, but the barricade seems to be working. Bad thing is, it also makes it tough for me to reach the dead. My arms aren’t as long as Axl’s and Winston’s, so I can’t quite reach their heads. The best I can do is hack away at their hands. Maybe take out a finger or two.
Joshua and Anne join us with their knives, and we do our best to take the zombies out without getting too close. Some fall, but some just get cut, which releases more of the stinking black goo. Most we can’t get to though, and
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