The same place. Same weapon.
But instead of Sam, it was her brother. His green eyes stared at her like those of a ghost, a distant image of what he used to be. This wasn’t the brother whom she loved and looked up to, but a man facing his last few moments on earth.
No horde of undead. Just one this time. An undead woman tearing at her brother’s guts.
She hoisted her bat and lifted her foot up. It worked this time.
Creeping up slowly on the unaware woman, she held her breath. One more step….
She held her bat up high, the muscles in her arms tensing. She inhaled. And brought it down-
~ ~ ~
There had been no news from the backup team since the first day of the snowstorm. The last report from them was when they were nearing the closest town in the north. As per protocol, there would be radio silence until the team had cleared the town. But that should have only taken a day at most.
Meanwhile, the snowstorm only worsened. Everything outside was covered in white, the snow having piled up several feet high. The wind howled and whipped mercilessly against the shutters. It was nigh impossible for them to leave the cabin.
Despite the large amount of firewood they had gathered, they tried to ration how much they used. Food supplies were also divided into smaller portions for they had no idea how long they would be stuck in the cabin. But slowly, the lack of sufficient warmth and food was taking a toll on their health. Thankfully, they still had some alcoholic beverages left. And that was what they were downing in the middle of the night as they tried to keep the cold and the demons of their dreams away.
“They’re not coming,” Lou said with a swig of her beer. “Are they?”
Sitting opposite her, Matt kept silent, swirling the can in his hand. She looked at him through half-lidded eyes, noting the heavy bags under his eyes, the dryness of his skin. There was no mirror around but she was sure she probably looked the same way too. Every day, she woke up, drenched in tears and sweat, haunted by the same repeating dream. Forced to relive every loved one’s death.
“They’re just going to die…” she laughed humorlessly. “Because of me.”
Her laughter died in her throat, replaced with salty tears that rolled down her cheek. She downed another gulp, letting the warm liquid burn her throat and her sorrows.
Matt cleared his throat and diverted away from the topic. “What were you doing in that town anyway?”
She expelled a breath and used the back of a hand to wipe away the tears on her chin. “We received word of a successful antidote in the city. Turned out to be a fake. We hightailed it out and that town was the closest to the city. What about you?”
He shrugged nonchalantly. “Just passing by. I’m a scavenger. Wherever my legs take me, I go. I try to save anything or anyone I can.”
She let out a small chuckle, amused at how alcohol had plied his tongue loose. “How many people have you saved, Matt?”
He held up a hand and counted soundlessly. At last, he replied, “Eleven people.”
She whistled in admiration. “How many still alive?”
“One.”
Seconds passed in contemplative silence, the only sound that of the grandfather’s clock in the middle of the hallway. Lou broke the silence first. “Thanks.”
Matt gave an almost imperceptible nod before taking another gulp of his beer.
“No family for you to go back to?” She continued the conversation in a different direction.
His jaw tensed, his lips drawn into a thin line. “Not anymore.”
“I’m sorry,” she murmured, looking away. “Those fucking undead..”
“No, actually it was the Life Eternal drug,” he corrected.
Lou blinked hard before turning her gaze back to him. “You mean the one that caused all this undead shit?”
“Yeah.”
“Sorry.” She added after a pause, “She was one of the human experiments?”
“Nah.” Downing the rest of the beer, Matt scrunched the can in his fist before reaching for another can. “She was involved in developing the drug.”
A cold chill encased Lou and she lowered her gaze to avoid showing Matt the mixture of anger and hurt that passed her eyes. A simple “Oh” was the only word she could muster.
Matt gave a humorless chuckle as he opened his second can of beer. “Say that ten years ago and people think you’re fucking Jesus Christ curing cancer, AIDS and all that shit. Say it now and people think you’re a murderer.”
Lou’s head shot up. “I-I didn’t think that,” she said but the inflection in her tone betrayed her guilt.
“It’s okay.” A soft but tired smile flitted across Matt’s lips.
Shifting in discomfort, Lou’s fingers dug into her can. She bit her lips before hesitatingly venturing a question, “But how did she…”
“After the company grew desperate and started covering up the drug’s failure, she umm,” Matt paused as his gaze grew distant. “She tried to make things right but it was too late. During the retaliation, the angry masses massacred her entire team.”
“Sorry.” Lou meant it but the umpteenth apology from her now just sounded empty. Sitting across from Matt, she saw how his shoulders sagged and his eyes glistened as he swallowed past the lump in his throat. She felt powerless, only able to listen numbly and offer nothing but useless words that brought no comfort.
Staring down at his drink, Matt’s eyes were glazed over, his voice muted. “Until now, I don’t know who to blame. Her? The company? The angry masses?”
“Or me…”, he said softly. “For not being there. So..”
“So that’s why you retired,” Lou finished his sentence for him. She knew all too well the pain of having a loved one taken away and not being there when they most needed it. A jab of sorrow hit her hard at the memory and she downed the rest of her beer.
Matt cleared his throat and blinked away the tears in the corner of his eyes before flicking a finger at her. “So how about you? Family?”
“The remaining ones… undead,” she replied simply, not needing to explain much more. The details were something that would haunt her in her nightmares.
He murmured an apology. “Must have been ugly.”
“So… we have no family, no real goal in life..” Lou trailed off. Her hand squeezed the can until the sides collapsed inwards with a loud crunch. “What’s the point in life then?”
Matt stared into the distance, his expression grim. “None.”
His gaze returned to meet hers and he jabbed pointedly. “You give life a meaning.”
“Huh,” Lou snorted. “Very jaded, Matt. So what’s yours?”
His lips curved upwards in a smirk as a chuckle escaped from his throat. “Surviving. Saving when I can. Killing mostly.”
She lifted an eyebrow. “How many undead have you killed?”
Matt gestured with a show of his fingers. “Two hundred and eighty two,” he said with a hint of pride in his tone. “Promised to treat myself to something when I reach three hundred. Don’t know what yet.”
Lou let out a slow whistle. Holding out her battered can, she said with a smile, “Whatever it is, count me in.”
He chuckled and touched the side of her can with his in a toast. “Deal.”
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