“Lyriiiic…” It was a ghostly call from beyond the veil—well, from beyond the back door of a café—a hellish moan that invaded her like a violent chill. Her name it had uttered, as if it knew her, no longer held any meaning.

That thought made it easier to ignore—she had to, anyway—as she hurried to her car. There was nothing left for her here, the realization of loss twisting into her heart like a dull, rusty knife. People she’d worked with for years, with whom she'd shared the monotony of her life, now nothing but hollowed, hungry distortions of their former selves. They no longer knew identity, nor kinship, seeking only to ravage flesh in a mindless attempt to satiate a voidless appetite they would never fulfill.

As she reached the driver’s side of the dark SUV, anxiety began to vibrate through her nerves. A scream that sounded far off startled her as much as if it had been directly in her ear, and the sounds of sirens finally rushing down Main Street could be heard. Lyric fumbled for her keys as she cursed herself for not having them ready before she’d even reached the car. She’d always mocked the people in horror movies. Why did their hands tremble so much? Why did they always trip or drop things at critical moments? Despite telling herself to calm down over and over in her head, she couldn’t stop the trembling in her fingers as she struggled to find the fob that would unlock her car.

“Stop shaking, damn it!” Lyric hissed under her breath. Despite the soft whisper of her cursing, she nervously scanned her surroundings once more, as if she'd just screamed at the top of her lungs. However, there was nothing and no one around, so what exactly was she so nervous about? Lyric pressed the unlock button on the fob, almost simultaneously pulling at the door latch. She slid inside quickly, every nerve and pore and hair on her body tingling as she gripped her steering wheel. She took a moment to catch her breath, but only for a second, locking her car before shoving the key in the ignition. With a purposeful twist, the engine sputtered to life.

“Thank God,” Lyric breathed, shifting the car into reverse. She was soon peeling out of the parking lot, turning onto Main Street, which ran through the heart of the town. Everything had changed drastically since she was last out here checking out the smoke earlier. A time when people were actually people seemed like nothing more than a distant reverie now. And now, those people were everywhere, looting stores or running from people who'd transformed into things that were no longer people.

A collective blockade of debris, abandoned cars, and distraught townsfolk fleeing—things that hadn’t been there earlier when she’d gone outside to check the smoke—caused her to slam on the brakes. Lyric tried to inch past a few human runners without hitting them, but was stopped by even more, a couple of which ran head-on into the grille of her car. She gasped, startled, throwing the gear into park as her heart pounded angrily. They didn’t get up and she couldn’t crane her neck far enough over the hood to see anything.

But she damn sure wasn’t about to get out to check.

The figures who had collided with her car finally rose, their fists raining down on the hood in a discordant rhythm of rage. Their voices followed—shouts laced with venom, echoing through the metal like a curse.

Lyric inhaled slowly, dragging the breath deep into her chest as if it might steady the storm unraveling inside her. She forced her gaze ahead, away from the chaos clawing at her windows. She couldn’t let herself spiral—not now.

This mess wasn’t something she could muscle through behind the wheel. Not yet. Not like this.

Her fingers hovered on the steering wheel, torn between staying put and abandoning the car altogether. Wait it out, or risk the streets?

Each choice felt like a gamble.

Each second stretched, heavy with the weight of what might come next.

Should I just stay in my car for now?

Even without the townsfolk rampaging about, there were still too many cars and obstacles in the road. She was surprised the emergency vehicles had been able to get through earlier. With a sinking feeling, she realized she’d never be able to maneuver her car like that. At least, not within a timely manner. 

Someone slammed into her car again, banging on the driver’s window pleading to be let in. Before Lyric could even debate his frantic request, another figure came sprinting full-force, squishing the man’s face into the glass as they tore into his neck. Lyric stared, wide-eyed, unable to look away as she got a front-row seat. There was something different about seeing the life drain from a stranger’s eyes versus someone she knew. She couldn’t help but think about Charlise, tears threatening to spring free once more. She rubbed her eyes roughly, blinking them away. She could cry later. 

The man disappeared from view, buckling onto the ground below. The creature that had attacked him smeared the congealed mix of crimson and dirt across the glass, growling and gurgling as it clawed at the barrier between them. It was a man, of it had been once. There was a terrible wound on his neck, a location on the body zombies seemed to favor. Its eyes appeared made of glass, its mouth hanging open. Its teeth were stained with blood and looked as if he hadn’t brushed his teeth in years. Being so close, yet out of reach, was unsettling. She’d never been able to examine one this close and she wondered how long until it either figured out how to get to her or lost interest. 

Well, she didn’t have the patience to wait and find out. Lyric put her car in reverse, crushing the gas pedal beneath her steel-toe shoe as her tires screeched fiercely, shooting the vehicle backward with a violent jolt. 

The momentum caused the zombie to fall to the ground. As Lyric watched it scramble to get back up from the short distance she’d created, something overcame her. Was it borne of the anger she’d repressed, or the fear she’d felt when she’d watched people die before her very eyes? 

It didn’t matter. Lyric switched the gears to drive, slamming the pedal flush against the footboard. The car shot forward before jumping, sending her unbuckled body up into the air for just a moment as it pinned the disheveled mass of former human beneath. Running it over was so satisfying, it was almost debilitating. She shook hard from the adrenaline and excitement, from the contentment that flooded her. She wasn’t sure if she could walk, her legs feeling like noodles right now. But it didn’t matter. 

Because she didn’t have the luxury of time or choice.