Scavengers: August by K.A. Merikan Page B

painful jerks.
James’ heart sank as he realized there was blood trickling on the
man’s coat from the mouthpiece of his mask. What was
happening!?
    “Let’s go!”
whispered James, trying to scan the area from behind Ira’s arms. It
wasn’t easy with the crowd passing them in fear. The situation was
becoming increasingly heated, even though other soldiers were
moving in to take control. James realized that now, he could hear
hungry growls and moans of the freed undead and it sent a shiver
down his spine. It meant they must have moved closer!
    Ira nodded,
pulling James towards the street they originally came from. The
panicking crowd ran in various directions, slowing them down, it
felt like trying to fight a stormy ocean. The older man tried to
shield his partner from the stampeding flow of people, but it was
futile. James felt oxygen being knocked out of his lungs as someone
thrashed into him, brutally yanking him out of Ira’s arms.
    Instantly, he
fought back, delivering an aggressive push with his elbow. He
wouldn’t let someone simply knock him over! After a struggle, he
managed to finally grab Ira’s arm again. He didn’t have a clue
where his lover was leading him, but he chose to trust him anyway.
Ear splitting noise surrounded them from all sides, overwhelming
James’ senses as he couldn’t recognize where they were anymore. He
heard the characteristic roar of the undead, screams of horror and
agony, and he could only imagine that some onlookers must have been
trampled. Had they, themselves come any closer to safety?
    Ira pulled him
close, his heart hammering loud enough for James to hear as he
desperately tried to direct them out of the chaos.
    “Where are we
going!?” screamed James, trying to understand this horrendous human
mush and get away as fast as possible. He saw a sharp move to his
right and it turned out to be one of the soldiers, splitting one of
the undead in half with his bayonet in a precise move. Hope filled
his heart as he saw how well trained those men must have been. It
made him happy to have such brave fighters on their side. His smile
faltered when he saw a small gun appear right at the soldier’s nape
and before he could voice a warning, the man fell to the ground,
disappearing from sight. It was only then that James finally
understood. There were Johners in the crowd, trying to disturb the
actions of the military and help the zombies cause more havoc.
    “Inside this
house!” hissed Ira, forcefully shoving a terrified teenage boy to
the side and pulling James with him. His patience must have
expired, his moves becoming more frantic as he made his way through
the crowd, brutally pushing those smaller than him aside and
avoiding those who were too large to confront. Over his arm, James
saw a military officer brutally arresting Isaac Bell. The preacher
was knocked down with an agonizing scream. If he didn’t know
better, James would have thought the preacher was dying.
    Ira hissed
loudly, pulling him towards an iron gate, which led into a
three-story brick building. Once he managed to get through the last
hindrance and reach the metal door, he simply embraced James with
one hand as he rummaged through one of his pockets with the other.
They were constantly shoved into the gate, but with Ira’s large
body shielding him, James didn’t feel much discomfort.
    He hesitated
for only a second and clung to Ira closely, helping him shove away
the crowd, so he could finally find whatever he was looking for.
James desperately hoped it was a key and indeed, just a few moments
later, he saw a piece of metal in Ira’s hand. After two sharp
clicks, the rusty lock opened, allowing them in with a loud squeak.
Naturally, Ira didn’t want to let potentially dangerous individuals
inside, so he opened the gate very discreetly, pushing his
companion inside before following him in a swift move.
    James almost
fell over as he tumbled into a dusty room and took a quick glance
around. Once he made sure