Hunted

by TicTacToeUK

When Joel woke up this morning he was expecting a relaxing day. By himself. For a change. That was before the shouted threats. And gunshots. And the explosion. This story takes place after the ending of the game, so there may be one or two minor spoilers.

4. Chapter 4

He waited around fifteen minutes until he heard faint movement outside. His shoulders ached from being tense but his ears had stopped ringing. He shut his eyes and concentrated hard. Footsteps quietly approaching from the front of the cabin to the left.

Here we go. He thought.

He waited. Gun trained. Ready.

The footsteps approached. Not four people. Only two. Close now.

The footsteps stopped near the door and Joel could sense the indecision of the people outside. He guessed that whoever was there wasn't the leader of the group, and was now standing deciding whether to bet his life on the risk that Joel was dead and to simply open the door and come into the cabin. All because his boss, who now was hiding fifty meters away had told him to. He raised the gun slightly, aiming at head height in the middle of the door - directly at the small hole where he had previously shot thorough. His finger squeezed the trigger a fraction of an inch. Ready.

A shadow approached closer and formed under the door but it did not linger and passed by the small hole, slowly moving to the right. This was followed a second later by another brief shadow. Not trying the door so aparently not complete amateurs he thought.

Joel followed the slow movement and aimed at the window. He saw the pistol first, followed by an arm and then a face appeared at the window, peering through the dirt for a glimpse into the cabin. The scavengers eyes searched the inside for a second or two and Joel could see his pupils widen slightly and his face contort in shock as the two men made eye contact. The last thing the scavenger saw was the flash from the muzzle of the rifle as Joel pulled the trigger. No warning. No delay. The window shattered and sprayed glass in all directions outside. Joel immediately heard a shout, not from the man who he had shot, but from his companion. He jumped from his sitting position and ran to the front of the cabin, risking a quick look out of the window. He saw the second man who had been close outside ducking around the left hand side of the cabin. There was not enough time to take another shot. He looked down at the ground outside at the latest body. It was still.

Two down, He thought.