Chapter 432: The Boardwalk’s Screamer [4]

I tightened my grip on the hand axe and rushed down the corridor.

The Infected around Carmen’s bedroom heard me coming.

One of them turned first, its head jerking toward the sound of my footsteps. Its face was half-hidden beneath blood and torn skin, and its mouth opened wide as it threw itself at me.

I swung.

The axe struck the side of its head and buried deep. I pulled it free with both hands, shoved the body aside, and kept moving before the others could surround me.

Another Infected crawled across the floor from beside the door, dragging itself forward with one arm while the other hung uselessly at its side. It reached for my ankle.

I brought the axe down.

The blade hit the floor hard enough to chip the wood.

"Behind you!" Maribel shouted.

I turned just as an Infected climbed over the railing from the stairs. It had somehow forced its way past the bodies below and was pulling itself onto the upper floor, fingers scraping desperately against the hallway boards.

Maribel fired.

The shot cracked through the corridor.

The Infected’s body jerked backward and fell against the railing. It twisted once, then dropped down the stairwell out of sight.

"More are coming up!" She warned.

"I know!"

I yanked the axe free and stepped toward the remaining Infected blocking Carmen’s door.

There were four of them.

One slammed its shoulder into the door over and over, making the frame shudder. Another clawed at the wood near the handle. The others turned toward me, drawn away from the room by Dullahan’s presence.

Good.

"Come on," I muttered.

The first one charged.

I stepped sideways and drove the axe into its skull. Its body crashed against the wall, and I used the moment to kick the second Infected away from the door. It stumbled back, snarling, arms flailing as it tried to regain its balance.

The third came at me from the side.

I caught its wrist before it could grab my face and slammed its arm against the wall. Bone cracked. It barely reacted. It opened its mouth and lunged again.

I drove the axe into its neck.

Blood sprayed across the hallway wall.

The Infected fell, dragging the weapon down with it. I planted my foot against its chest and pulled the axe free just as the second one rushed back toward me.

Maribel fired again.

The bullet hit it in the shoulder and spun it sideways.

It did not go down.

The Screamer had them moving like rabid animals. Pain barely slowed them. The thing staggered once, twisted toward Maribel, and tried to launch itself at her.

I stepped in front of it.

My axe came down.

The blade split into its head, and its body collapsed at my feet.

The last Infected was still pounding against Carmen’s bedroom door.

I grabbed it by the back of its shirt and yanked it away from the wood. It snapped at me, teeth clicking together inches from my face.

I shoved it against the wall.

Once.

Twice.

Its head struck the plaster with a dull crack. It kept fighting, arms clawing at my chest, trying to tear through my shirt.

I raised the axe and buried it in its skull.

The hallway finally went still.

Not quiet.

The Screamer was still buzzing outside. Gunshots still echoed through the Boardwalk. Infected still snarled below us, moving around the wrecked house and forcing their way inside.

But the ones at Carmen’s door were dead.

For the moment, we had space.

"Ryan!" Maribel called.

I turned.

Two more Infected had appeared at the top of the stairs. One crawled over the railing while the other stumbled through the corridor, stepping over the bodies I had left behind.

Maribel fired once.

The first bullet missed, striking the wall beside its head.

She fired again.

This one hit.

The Infected fell against the floorboards and writhed, still trying to rise.

I ran over, finished it with the axe, then caught the second one as it tried to reach Maribel. I brought the blade down before it could get close.

"Are you okay?" I asked her.

"Yeah," she said, breathing hard. "I’m okay."

I nodded and turned back toward Carmen’s bedroom.

My chest felt tight.

They were behind that door.

I raised my hand and knocked firmly against it.

"Carmen!" I called. "It’s Ryan!"

No answer came at first.

I could hear movement inside. Fast steps. A muffled sob.

"It’s okay," I said, trying to make my voice sound calmer than I felt. "The ones outside are gone. Open the door."

For one terrible second, I thought they would not believe me.

Then the lock turned.

The door opened.

Carmen stood there.

Her face was pale. Her flaxen hair was loose and messy around her shoulders, and she held one hand against the edge of the door as if she needed it to stay upright. The relief in her eyes hit me harder than any of the Infected outside.

"Ryan..."

"I’m here," I told her.

Carmen moved aside immediately.

I stepped into the bedroom and pulled Maribel in after me. The room smelled stale and frightened, the windows shut tight and the curtains drawn. Furniture had been shoved near the door, though it would not have held for long if the Infected had managed to break through.

I closed the door behind us and locked it.

"Ryan!"

Shannon ran toward me.

She crashed into my chest, wrapping both arms around my waist so tightly that I nearly stumbled backward. Her whole body shook. She had been trying to stay quiet, but the second she saw me, the crying resumed again.

"Ryan," she sobbed. "They were outside, and they were making noises, and Mom told me to stay quiet, but I thought they were going to get in—"

"It’s okay," I said quickly.

I put one hand over the back of her head and gently patted her hair.

"You’re okay now. I’m here."

"I was scared..."

"I know."

Her face pressed against my shirt as she kept crying. I stayed still, letting her hold on as long as she needed to.

Maribel moved toward Carmen first.

"Are you hurt?" she asked, checking her arms and neck. "Did either of you get bitten?"

Carmen shook her head quickly.

"No. No, we’re fine." Her voice trembled.

Maribel turned to Shannon.

"Shannon? Are you hurt anywhere?"

Shannon shook her head against me.

"No..."

"Did one of them touch you?"

"No. Mom checked outside hearing the sound and she quickly rushed in and pulled me into her room and we had been locked here..."

Maribel nodded, though her worried expression did not disappear.

Carmen and Shannon were both pale. Their hands were shaking. Carmen kept one arm around Shannon whenever she could, as if letting her go for even a second would be dangerous.

But they were alive.

They had not been bitten.

The relief nearly made my knees weak.

I looked around the room, forcing myself to think past the panic.

The front of the house was already overrun. More Infected were coming in through the open entrance, and the Screamer would keep pulling them toward the Boardwalk until Rico and the others managed to destroy the devices.

We could not stay here.

Not in a room with one door and no real way out.

I crossed to the windows.

The curtains were drawn, but I carefully pulled one side aside and looked down.

The garden faced the back of the house.

There were fewer Infected there. Most of them had been pulled toward the front entrance, where the sound, gunfire, and fighting had drawn their attention. A few bodies lay scattered near the broken gate from my wind attack, but the yard itself was mostly clear.

Then I saw the small cabin near the far side of the garden.

It was old and not very large. Carmen probably used it to store tools, buckets, soil, and anything else she needed for her plants.

But it had walls.

A door.

And enough space to hide Carmen and Shannon for a while.

It would hold.

At least until I could get them somewhere safer.

"There," I said, pointing through the window. "We’re getting out through here."

Carmen came closer with Shannon still held against her side.

Her eyes widened as she looked down.

"From the window?" Carmen asked. "Ryan, that is too high."

I turned toward them. "I can jump without getting injured."

Carmen stared at me.

"I’ll carry you both down," I continued. "One at a time. I’ll make sure you land safely."

"Ryan..."

"Trust me," I said.

A harsh scraping sound cut through the room before Carmen could answer.

Something slammed against the bedroom door.

Shannon flinched and buried her face against Carmen’s side, clutching at her shirt.

Another impact hit the door.

The furniture Carmen had pushed against it shifted by a few inches.

"We don’t have time," I said.

I pulled the curtain fully aside and shone the flashlight across the garden again. The beam moved over overturned buckets, trampled plants, broken pieces of the front gate, and the small cabin near the back wall.

The route was clear enough.

I would bring them down on the side of the garden, close to the narrow paved path running along the house. There was a gate there, and the Infected had not gathered around it. They were too focused on forcing their way through the front entrance, where the house was already open and the noise was coming from.

If we moved fast, we could make it.

"I’ll take Maribel first," I said. "Then Shannon. Then Carmen."

Maribel nodded immediately.

She had the Beretta in one hand and the flashlight in the other, but she passed both to me before stepping closer to the window.

"Be careful," she said.

"You too."

I caught her arm, then slid one arm beneath her knees and the other behind her back.

Maribel gave a small gasp when I lifted her.

"Ryan—"

"I’ve got you."

I stepped onto the window ledge.

The garden was several feet below. High enough that a normal person could get hurt landing badly, but it was nothing compared to what Dullahan had already let me survive.

I bent my knees and jumped.

The ground rushed toward us.

I landed hard enough to feel a jolt run through my legs, but I stayed upright. A dull discomfort spread through my ankles and knees before fading almost immediately.

Maribel held on to my neck for a second longer.

Then I lowered her carefully onto the pavement.

"You okay?" I asked.

"Y...Yeah." She looked back toward the house. "Go get Shannon."

I nodded.

I took several quick steps backward, built up speed, and jumped toward the window. I climbed fast using whatever I could grip on. Eventually my fingers caught the lower edge of the window. I pulled myself up, placed one foot against the wall, and hauled myself back inside.

The bedroom door shook again.

"Shannon," I said, reaching a hand toward her.

She looked at Carmen instead of me.

"Mom..."

Carmen crouched in front of her.

"It’s okay, Shannon," she said, though her voice trembled. "I’ll be right behind you."

She wrapped Shannon in a tight hug.

For a second, neither of them moved.

Carmen pressed her face against Shannon’s hair and kissed her forehead. When she pulled back, I saw tears in her eyes, but she forced a small smile for her daughter.

"Go with Ryan," Carmen whispered. "He’ll keep you safe."

Shannon nodded weakly.

I stepped closer and lifted her into my arms.

She wrapped both arms around my neck, holding on so tightly that her fingers pressed into my skin.

"I’ll come right back for your mom," I told her.

Shannon looked at me with wet eyes.

"Okay."

"I promise."

Her face tightened, but she nodded again.

"Thank you, Ryan."

I gave her the best smile I could manage.

Then I stepped onto the ledge and jumped.

This landing was easier. I lowered Shannon onto the paved ground, where Maribel was waiting for her. The moment Shannon’s feet touched the pavement, Maribel pulled her close and guided her toward the side of the house.

"Stay with me," Maribel told her. "Don’t move unless I tell you to."

Shannon nodded.

I looked back up at the bedroom window.

Carmen was next.

Then I would get all three of them into the cabin, clear the Infected from the house, and find a way to get them out of this place.

I jumped again.

My hands caught the window edge. I pulled myself up and climbed inside.

"Carmen—"

The room was empty.

I froze.

The bedroom door was still shut.

Still holding, somehow.

"Carmen?"

No answer.

My eyes swept across the room.

The bed. The closet. The corner near the window.

Nothing.

"Carmen!"

A faint beam of light came from the bathroom connected to the bedroom.

I hurried toward it.

"Carmen, what are you doing?" I asked as I stepped through the doorway.

She stood in front of the sink with both hands braced against its edge.

The flashlight rested on the counter beside her, aimed toward the mirror. Carmen had turned her face away from it, but when she heard me, she slowly looked over her shoulder.

Her face had gone pale.

"Ryan..." she said.

Something in her voice made my chest drop.

"I..."

I took a step forward.

The mirror showed her reflection more clearly than I could see from where I stood.

There was blood on her right arm.

Not a smear from the hallway.

Not blood from one of the Infected.

The sleeve near her shoulder had been torn open.

My mind refused to understand it at first.

Then I saw the wound.

A bite mark sat just beneath her shoulder.

Two deep rows of broken skin.

Fresh blood ran down her arm.