Tainted Grace by M. Lauryl Lewis

crying. This whole mess was hard enough on me at twenty years old; it must be so much more difficult for someone as young as her.
    “We need to look Aldo over. Try to figure out what happened. Let’s take extra precautions to not come into contact with fluids.”
    “We have some gloves,” said Nathan. “I’ll grab them.”
    Nathan shuffled through some boxes back by the bar and produced a zip-lock baggie full of latex gloves. “We found these under the kitchen sink,” he explained. “They’re kind of small but should work ok.”
    “Thanks,” said Gus. “That’s perfect.”
    Gus, Boggs, and Nathan all donned gloves and set to work undressing Aldo.
    “I’ll be in the back room,” I said. I didn’t want to see the dead man naked. He had been creepy enough while alive and clothed.
    “Ok, Zo. Be careful,” said Boggs.
    “’Kay.”
    I walked to the bedroom door, which was shut, and knocked softly. “It’s just me, Zoe,” I said quietly.
    “C’mon in, Zoe,” called back Em.
    I opened the door only part way and squeezed in. I knew Abbey would want privacy, figuring she might be undressed while the other girls made sure she wasn't injured.
    “Everything going alright in here?” I asked.
    Abbey was still crying softly, her sister holding and rocking her.
    “Abbey looks ok, no bites or scratches,” said Susan. “What happened out there?”
    “Aldo turned,” said Em. “He’s gone.”
    “How?” asked Susan.
    “The guys are looking him over for wounds now,” I explained. “We should stay in here for a while. Let the guys clean up out there. Abbey, I want you to stay in here for now, ok?”
    Abbey nodded against Kelsey’s chest.
    I thought about how it’d be nice to be back at our cabin, where the girl could take a hot bath. Maybe I’d mention it to the others later. We’d need to regroup after this horrific loss.
    Nathan knocked on the door to the room where we all huddled together for warmth.
    “Girls, we found bite marks on Aldo’s arm. All we can figure is he got bit when Bill went down. We just don’t know why he turned so fast. We need to figure out where to go from here.”
    “Are we still going to try to leave right away?” asked Kelsey, who had tears filling her own eyes.
    “I talked to the other guys and we can salvage what we can from here, but the mess is really extensive. We all agree we should head back to the cabin and make plans from there. The step van is still packed, so we should load what we can into the Suburban and head out today. If the rest of you agree.”
    “How long do you suppose we’ll stay there until we make a move to the Sound?” asked Em.
    “Maybe a week, maybe less. If you all agree, Boggs and Gus and I will start loading up food and carrying it out to the SUV. We can be ready to leave in maybe an hour.”
    “Sounds good to me,” said Susan. “Can I help pack?”
    “Sure,” said Nathan as he held a hand out to her.
    “I should stay here with Abbey,” said Kelsey. “Until we’re ready to leave.” She had tears falling down her cheeks.
    “I agree,” said Emilie. “Zoe, why don’t you stay here with them and Susan and I can help get us packed up. You look a little pale.”
    I shook my head. “No, I want to help. I think we should leave as soon as we can. Get Abbey warmed up, get her a bath.”
    Emilie nodded her head instead of arguing with me. I was glad.
    “Nathan?” asked Abbey as she wiped tears from her cheeks.
    “Yeah Abs?” he asked back. “What is it?”
    “Can you make sure you pack my books?”
    “You bet, kiddo.”
    “Thanks.” Abbey forced a small smile to her lips. She looked pale. She looked tired.
    I straightened the hem of my shirt and took a deep breath before leaving the room. I wasn't looking forward to seeing the bloody mess waiting in the next room and hoped we could leave soon. Once inside the larger room where three of our new friends had just died, I recognized the sickly-sweet smell of dead zombies. It stung