Adam’s legs were cramping.The rotten smell of the zombie on him had penetrated his brain so much that he couldn’t recall what clean air smelled like.He wanted to distance himself as far as possible from everything that smelled of the dead.Still, the zombies move around the rooms.The early morning light cut through the windows and the broken door.Illuminating the four zombies who refused to get out of the house.While Adam and Layla lay underneath the zombies, the zombies came and went.They had all gone towards the dead figure sitting up in bed when they first entered.Then, with sounds of disappointment, they all moved away from the blown-up figure.That was when the frantic search around the room began.When they saw no living being, their agitation calmed down.Most of them looked around in confusion as they snarled, growled, and sniffed the air in turn like hounds.Adam was certain he would never get those sounds out of his head, no matter how long he lived.He wondered how L
With reeking, discoloured purple pajamas and a limping gait, Layla immediately rushed towards the figure on the bed.Adam could see the blown-out jaw of the man on the bed.There was not enough left of his face for Adam to guess his age.But he had a slight paunch made visible by his stained singlet that must have been white once.“See?” Layla said in a trembling tone as she suddenly stopped in the doorway, as if she were afraid to enter the room.“I killed him in his bed. The noise of our crash must have woken him up. I killed him before he could check it out. We broke into his home and I thanked him by killing him!” Her voice rose an octave on the last statement.Adam laid his hand on her shoulder and felt a tremor go through her.“I am a killer,” she whispered more to herself than to him.Her broken voice stopped what he was about to say.He looked over at the room over her shoulder again.Apart from the dead smell rising off him and her, there was another distinct smell too.Adam
Adam and Layla took what they felt would be of help on their way.Since they had no idea what they would be facing on the road, Adam suggested they move as quietly as possible.As much as he would have loved to give the man a befitting burial, all he could do was cover him up fully with the bedcloth.Then Layla lay the ragged doll atop the man.They closed the door on their way out.“You look silly in that,” Layla said quietly with a smile as they stepped out.Adam looked down at the tunic he wore.It looked like a shepherd's tunic.The roughhewn ankle-length shirt was the only clothing of the man that fitted Adam a bit.None of the man’s trousers would do either.So, Adam used the water he saw in the gallon to wash off the dead blood on the trouser he had on.He wrung it out till water was no longer seeping out, and he put it on like that.Ignoring how the linen material hugged his junk, he gave Layla a mock warning look when she wanted to talk.Layla was luckier.Though the women’s
He was waiting for them when they arrived.Adam’s family was so anxious on the three-hour flight that took them from the camp to the government shelter facility on the outskirts of Alagan.They did not get to see the facility, though.Just as the pilot gave them warnings about sitting in their seats as they were about to land, Marriane was already trying to peek out of the window as if she could catch sight of her boy from that distance.As the plane was descending, they could see the massive, white shelter where one of the men announced they were providing for survivors like them.The announcement was not so necessary, as the people could even see military men patrolling the grounds of the facility.Just before they got to the outskirts where the shelter was situated, they could see many dead zombie bodies at the barricade that led to the shelter.The city of Alagan itself was overrun with zombies.Yet, there was none miles from the shelter.The shelter disappeared from view and soon
Marriane’s anxiety grew as the journey seemed to take forever.“Please, where are we going? I thought my son was just around the corner from the facility." She asked anxiously.The driver did not respond.She wanted to talk again, but then Caleb calmed her down.“Calm yourself, my dear. I am sure we will be there soon.” Caleb said.Yet concern was evident in his voice as well, as they headed farther and farther away from the direction where they had seen the facility earlier.They were heading away from Alagan as well, not towards it.All they could see around them were vacant lands on the highways and no buildings.“Are we…Are we going to another city?” Marriane asked out loud again. “We are leaving Alagan? What about the others? Where is my son?!” she said with a bit of hysteria this time as she looked around wildly.Still, the driver said nothing.Caleb spoke up “Young man, I think you..."All of a sudden, they could see a majestic building up front.Away from the highway and alone
The church bell turned out to be type winded by alarm.There was no one there.Adam thought of disconnecting it, but he eventually let it be.That ghost settlement could do with a little bit of noise once in a while.Adam had a perverse satisfaction at the thought that zombies who came along would be put to stress by the bell, as well when they tore into the church, with the expectation of meeting someone there."I never pictured you for someone who would be satisfied with something so childish" Layla said when he told her why he didn't disconnect the alarm."That goes a long way to say that you don't know a lot about me, miss smarty" Adam responded before he swung the water container in his hand upward to have a drink."Hmm, that is quite true, you mysterious man," Layla said as she tried not to breathe harshly while walking behind him."I know quite a bit though," she said as she adjusted the church curtain they had each pulled down to protect their heads under the unforgiving sun.
A door they had not noticed at first opened suddenly at the other end of the room.A well-dressed, formidable-looking man walked through the door, followed by a younger-looking version of him.The older man pinned his glare on Adam’s family and said in a booming voice. “So, these are the family of the murderer?”“What? Murderer? How? Why?” Marriane said in agitation as she came forward towards the man with her hands extended in supplication “Did Adam hit someone with the car when he had an accident?” she asked with tears in her eyes."Adam,” the younger man scoffed.“At least we have a name now,” said the older man, ignoring Marriane as the others followed her.“Sir, can you please tell us what happened?” Caleb asked.“Oh, I will tell you that. Right after this.”Before any of them could react, the man whipped out a pistol from his pocket and shot at Marriane. Caleb pushed her out of the way and the bullet pierced his head.“Dad!” Lisa screamed as Marriane, who was pushed away, fell h
“I told you to forget I said anything, didn’t I? Now, you need to hold on tightly or you are going to fall off your ass."Adam spoke testily as he laboriously pedaled the bicycle they had found on the side of the road.“I don’t know why you have to be the one doing the riding anyway.” Layla grumbled behind him. “I can do it better than you are''“Well, guess what? Life ain’t fair. Deal with it,” Adam snapped.“I don’t have to deal with anything,” Layla fired back.“You are right.” Adam stopped immediately. Then he turned his head to look at her. “You don’t have to deal with it. You have a choice. You can walk.”You are not funny,” Layla said with a mutinous look.Adam sighed suddenly and looked at the empty road they were on.“You are right. This is just stupid,” he said, then put his foot back on the pedal. “Hang on.”With that, he continued pedalling down the road under the sweltering sun.The mountain bicycle was the only thing close to civilisation that they had seen since they c