Bill blinked repeatedly, then turned to glare at Francis. Francis ignored his glare as he turned toward the other red steel door. Zoey wiped dirt off the shoulder of her jacket. Louis wiped sweat off his forehead, then raised his weapon.

Francis took one step toward the door when he heard someone clear their throat. He turned to see Bill removed his hand from his mouth, glaring at him. A smile crossed his lips as Francis faced his angry teammate. "C'mon, Bill, lighten up," he said.

The biker didn't know why the veteran was angry. He moved over to the only available exit door. The other red steel door was blocked off after they entered the safe house. He lowered his weapon, then extended a arm toward the bar, which had kept anyone outside of the kitchen from entering through that door.

"What the hell was that for?" Bill demanded, scowling. "You didn't have to shoot that damn car!"

The biker's arm paused in mid air. He slowly turned around. He noticed Louis and Zoey were staring at him, probably waiting for him open the safe house door. "It was an accident, alright," Francis lied.

His lips twitched, but were still curved into a smile. Francis turned back to the exit door. "A frickin' vampire attacked me," he continued to lie. "I had no choice, but to shoot it."

"Don't ya mean 'zombie'?" Louis asked.

Francis rolled his almond eyes. Zoey took a step forward. "Francis, if you were attacked, then why did you shoot the car?" she asked.

Francis turned, blinking. "Because... because it stood right in front of the... vehicle," he replied, somewhat hesitant as he faced the brunette woman.

Zoey stared at him, as if she didn't believe his story. Louis had gone over to the pile of ammunition. As he collected additional ammo for his submachine gun, Bill moved closer to Francis. "It's that also the reason you decided to get rid of that Witch?" he demanded.

Francis blinked as he turned back to the door. "You mean the same Witch that was following you?" he asked, removing the bar from the door.

Bill nodded. The biker grabbed the door handle. He turned back to the older man as his smile grew wider. "You mean the same Witch someone'd told me that you almost kissed?"

The elder blinked. "Who told you that horseshit?" he demanded, even though he knew who.

Francis shook his head, still smiling, as he was turning back to the door. He turned the handle, then pushed the door open. He stepped out the room, then looked around. Several infected were roaming around the storage room.

A few shelves were in the room. On top of the shelves were boxes. There were also a few piles of boxes in between some of the shelves or in a corner. A freezer, big enough to be a small room or a closet, stood opposite from the safe house.

The door was left open. When Francis searched the freezer, he discovered it was empty. He turned around to leave. Just then, the biker noticed someone was standing in the doorway.

"What? I didn't know she would run away if we all entered the safe house," he lied as he recognized the person was.

Beside the first witch they'd seen, the other witches they'd encountered, especially near safe houses, would retreat when their target disappeared into said houses. Although, as a group, they only encountered five witches. Bill had encountered six witches. The fourth witch of the six was the one he met outside of Mercy Hospital.

Bill didn't reply as he continued to scowl. "Are you obsessed with witches?" Francis' eyes suddenly lit up after saying that. "You've been seeing and hearing them ever since we went to that hospital."

Bill shook his head as gunfire rang throughout the room. Zoey and Louis were taking out the infected as they searched for items. "Francis, do I have to repeat to ya what I'd told you about her?" the veteran said finally.

Francis went over to him. "'She should join our group, Francis'," he replied, mocking the war veteran. "Bullshit, Bill. You just want to make out with her."

"I do not!" Bill shot back.

Francis grinned at this. "Just admit it, Bill," he said calmly. "You got a thing for witches."

Just as he finished, the gunfire in the background ceased. Francis pushed pass Bill, then exited the Harbor View Hotel's freezer. Bill spun around, raising his weapon. He watched as the biker went over to Louis and Zoey.

The two youths had exited the storage room through the only fully opened garage door. The other one wasn't close, but they would have to crouch down to go through it. Bill blinked before hurrying over. The biker turned just as Bill caught up with him.

Francis raised his pump shotgun, preparing to shoot some infected in the area. A few of them detected his presence and were lunging at him. "Hey, don't worry. We'll find your girlfriend," he smirked before firing his weapon.

"She ain't my girlfriend, Francis," Bill said as he joined his teammate in shooting the infected individuals.

His comment made the biker's smile grow wider. Louis' face twisted with confusion as he turned around. Zoey didn't hear Bill's reply over the gunfire. She was shooting a smoker, who'd stood on the other side of a wired fence outside of the hotel.

The Smoker spat out its tongue, but before it could reach the former college student, the Smoker exploded into smoke. The tongue collapsed onto the ground as Zoey reloaded her weapon. She turned. That's when she noticed a fire escape.

The Survivors could use it to enter the hotel. She turned back to her team. "Let's head back up," Zoey said.

The men turned toward her. Zoey was pointing at the fire escape while holding the submachine gun in her other hand. Just then, the quartet heard a shriek. It was a very familiar shriek.

The Survivors began looking around as they hurried over to the fence. "There's a hunter spookin' around out there," Bill warned.

Suddenly, they heard another shriek, which was immediately followed by a thud. "Get it off me! Get it off me!" cried Louis, trying to push the hoodie-wearing, eyeless creature off himself.

His teammates spun around. The Hunter was ripping his guts out as the dark-skinned male continued to call for help. "A hunter pounced Louis!" Bill yelled.

Zoey was already firing her weapon at the Hunter as she ran over to the duo. She shoved the Hunter off Louis upon reaching them, then killed the creature. Louis quickly got back on his feet before re-equipping his submachine gun. "Thanks, Zoey," he said.

Within that same moment, a boomer emerged from the garage door they had went through and was charging toward the veteran. It let out a groan upon reaching him. Bill immediately spun around - just in time to be covered in its bile.

"Ah, Gee-zus," he groaned.

Bill was struggling to see the Boomer through his blurred vision as he began backing away. He raised his weapon as sounds of common infected began filling the air. Louis spun around. He noticed the Boomer was charging after his teammate as the horde arrived.

"BOOMER!" the young man yelled.

He aimed his weapon at the Boomer, then shot the obese zombie in the stomache. The Boomer was standing too close to the veteran, so when it exploded, he stumbled. He swore as he was splashed by the creature's remaining bile. The stench was horrible.

Just then, the members of the horde surrounded him and began attacking. Louis, Zoey and Francis assisted Bill from where they stood. The veteran had still taken some damage despite the assistance from his team. As they fought off the horde, Bill thought he heard something other than the gunfire and the horde members snarling.

It sounded familiar, but he couldn't really make out what it was over the gunfire. He kept hearing the noise as more infected attacked him. At first, Bill thought he was imagining it. The Survivors finally ceased fire.

As the last infected dropped dead, the quartet reloaded their weapons, then headed over to the fire escape. As they ascended a yellow ladder leading to the platform above, Bill realized the noise had gotten a little louder. He knew this wasn't his imagination. Entering a hotel room through its bathroom window, Bill was able to recognize the noise.

It was the sound of a witch's cry. "It's a witch," Zoey whispered. "Don't disturb her and we'll be okay. Flashlights off."

A smile began to appear on Francis' face as he lightly elbowed Bill's shoulder. Bill turned, narrowing his eyes at the tattooed man. "You should go give her hug," Francis joked.

Bill scowled, but didn't reply. Instead, he turned, then began heading toward a opened doorway. Outside of the room was the corridor. "Or, better yet, you should kiss her!" Francis added, before following the older man out the room.

Zoey and Louis followed soon after. The Survivors didn't bother to search the other hotel rooms. They didn't want to run into the Witch. Her cries echoed throughout the corridor as the Survivors reached a staircase at the end.

The Survivors ascended the steps. To their surprise, only a few infected were waiting for them at the top of the stairs. The Survivors took them out, then scattered as they searched the few rooms on that floor for supplies. Louis was loading another clip into his weapon.

Within that same moment, he heard a growl. Louis turned. Standing on the rooftop of the building next to the hotel was a tank. The Junior Systems Analyst could only make out the Tank's bulging, muscular arm from where he stood. The rest of the Tank was hidden behind a taller part of the building's roof.

His eyes widened in horror as he took a step back. Just then, Francis and Zoey emerged from the bedroom behind Louis. Bill exited a bathroom, holding a pistol in each hands. Louis looked at his teammates one-by-one with a terrified expression on his face.

"Guys, there's a Tank out there," he said, before pointing.

His teammates turned, then followed his finger. Their eyes widened at the sight of the infected's arm. They quickly turned to face one another. The Survivors knew, unlike witches, they would have to kill the tanks.

Witches were avoidable, unless they are in the Survivor's direct path toward safety. Francis blinked as he turned from teammate to teammate. "Anyone got a molotov?" he asked.

Louis nodded as he removed the molotov from his thigh. Francis smashed the window with the side of his weapon before turning back to the bald man. "You're going to have to set that Tank on fire," he said.

Francis moved away from the window, but was still looking at his teammate. "But don't miss him," he added. "We'll be screwed then."

Louis' eyes grew wider, but still nodded his head. He tightened his grip on the bottle as he went over to the broken window. The Tank continued to growl as it waited for someone to show up in order for it to attack. Fortunately for the large creature, humans were in the area.

Would they be able to overwhelm the Tank or would it overwhelm them? The Tank was about to find out. "FIRE IN THE HOLE!" shouted Louis as he threw the molotov toward the muscular infected.

XXX

The Witch was sitting inside of a room, crying. Tears fell out of her gleaming eyes. The corridor had been silent, until a moment ago. The Witch heard muffled gunfire coming from the floor above her.

It was immediately followed by the ceiling shaking. She knew there was a tank on the floor above. The Witch guessed the Tank was attacking some Survivors. She didn't know who the Survivors were.

She knew they didn't search the rooms, otherwise, she would have seen them. The Witch wiped a tear from her eye as the ceiling suddenly stopped shaking. She let out a gasp before looking up. Did the humans kill the Tank?

Before the emaciated female could think of an answer, the ground, especially outside of the room, began to shake. The shaking grew stronger and more intense as the Tank charged through the hall. It let out a roar as it chased a human. The Witch's eyes widened as the gunfire grew louder.

It sounded like they were heading her way, the Witch realized. Suddenly, a man burst into the room. He was loading some shells into his shotgun. The female infected was only able to get a glimpse of the man's face before he lowered his head.

She let out a silent gasp. The Witch recognized who the man was. She was about to call out when the Tank emerged from the hall. The Tank was covered from head to toe in flames.

The Witch assumed the man had thrown a molotov on it. The Tank continued to pursue the human, despite being engulfed by flames. The man turned back to the Tank just as he cocked his shotgun.

He aimed his weapon at its face, then pulled the trigger. The Tank let out a groan before collapsing into a heap on the ground. The flames continued to burn the corpse for a moment before finally dissipating. The man checked his pant pocket for any spare ammo.

This gave the Witch a chance to sneak over. She was crouched as she went over to the man. As he checked his pockets for spare ammo, the man didn't realize a witch was stalking behind him. When the Witch reached him, she wrapped her bony arms around his waist.

The man let out a gasp as the infected laid her head on his lower back. She closed her eyes, smiling. "Bah-eel," she whispered.

The Witch turned her head, then began nuzzling his lower back with her nose. The man, who was actually Bill, shifted in her arms, trying to look down at her. His face was hot from being uncomfortable. She's nuzzling my ass, the veteran thought.

Just then, Francis and Zoey appeared in the doorway. They looked around the room as they entered. Louis was killed by the Tank. He set it on fire, but unfortunately for him, he had been standing by a edge.

He had been the creature's target. So when the Tank had punched him, he went flying off. Francis' eyes paused on the flustered war veteran and the Witch, who had him in her grasp. He laughed at the other man's discomfort.

Zoey turned. When she saw the duo, her eyes widened in disbelief. Bill had shot Francis a glare as the latter finished laughing. "I would say 'I told you so,' but I see you're enjoying yerself here, so I'm not going to kill the mood," he said, smiling.

Bill blinked as he scowled. "This witch likes Bill, huh?" Zoey began to smile. "That's something you don't see every day..."

She turned away, covering her mouth with her hand. The young female began letting out soft chuckles. Bill turned his glare onto her. The biker let out a chuckle, then became serious.

"Don't we have a plane to catch?" he asked, turning from teammate to teammate.

Zoey turned back around. "Yeah, we do," she replied, lowering her hand from her face.

"Then let's go!"

Zoey and Francis began leaving the room. Bill shook out of the Witch's grasp, then hurried over to them. The Witch immediately stood up, knowing he was leaving. She raced after him.

It didn't take long for her to catch up and when she did, the group traced their steps back to the rooftop where they fought the Tank. As they exited the hotel via window, the Witch began wondering how Bill kept vanishing from view whenever he ran ahead. She remembered after she'd saved him from that hunter inside of Mercy's lobby, more members of the horde arrived. She remembered attacking them before they began ignoring her.

The Witch's gaze followed them to a red steel door. She never figured out why they were attacking the door, but she remembered Bill had vanished at that point, in which had caused her to run away. She also remembered seeing an identical steel door on the twenty eighth floor when she was chasing the former college student while Bill ran alongside.

The Witch also remembered seeing that same door outside of the Harbor View Hotel. The same hotel the group had left a few minutes ago. She saw that door when Bill and his friends literally disappeared into that kitchen...

Wait a minute, the Witch realized something about those events. Those red steel doors must have some type of anti-witch barriers, preventing her from entering the safe houses or detecting the Survivors' presence when they're in said houses. Now, she believed she knows another reason why Bill disappears, beside his teammates and him escaping in a rescue vehicle.

The Witch began wondering how she could break those barriers and enter safe rooms with the Survivors. As she thought, the humans searched the rooftop for any supplies. The tallest part of the roof, where the Tank had hid, had four molotov cocktails on top. There was also a crane beside the lower parts of the roof.

It was close enough to the rooftop for the Survivors to climb inside of it. On the end of the crane's arm was a dumpster. It hung above an large alley. The Survivors couldn't access the other rooftop across from them - the rooftop was too far from them.

There also wasn't any bridges made of hardware store planks for them to cross. They had to think of another way to cross. As they thought and collected any explosive they could carry, an idea suddenly appeared in Francis' mind. He turned back to the crane.

After a moment of examining it, he realized what they could use it for. "We gotta lower that dumpster," Francis said as he turned back to his teammates.

Bill and Zoey turned back to the dumpster. That's when they noticed yellow rungs on the side of it. It indicated that they must climb the dumpster to get across. Like the biker had said, they would have to lower the dumpster in order to get to the other building.

The veteran turned back to Francis. "Good thinking," he replied before the group went over to the crane.

When they had gotten inside of the crane, Zoey wrapped her hand around the lever and pulled it down. The place was cramped. The four of them had trouble staying inside without pushing one another toward the edget. Just as Zoey let go of the lever, the crane's arm made loud squeeking noises as it began lowering the dumpster.

Within that same moment, the three humans and the "special" infected heard shouts, snarls and groans of protest. They all knew within a moment they'll have to fight a horde. Soon, the infected citizens of that city came pouring onto the rooftop, all of them determined to kill the non infected. Two of the Survivors opened fire on them.

Francis removed the molotov from his thigh, then raised his forearm. "GRENADE!" he shouted as he reeled back his arm, then threw the cocktail through the air.

The molotov cocktail crashed and shattered on the rooftop, immediately setting the horde's members on fire. They ran through the flames, flailing their arms, trying to brush off the fire. Their bodies collapsed into heaps on the roof as the flames continued to consume them. The Witch watched, wondering if she would get to kill anything.

She turned. She was the first one to spot a boomer. It groaned as it emerged from the window the group had gone through. The Witch opened her mouth to try to warn the Survivors.

The Boomer unintentionally did them all a favor by going through the wall of flames. Since Boomers have the least amount of health in comparision of other special infected, it didn't take long for the obese infected to succumb to the flames. The Boomer exploded into a shower of blood and guts, but it was too far from the humans to splash them in its bile. "Popped it!" Francis said triumphantly.

Zoey rolled grey her eyes. She suddenly heard a shriek. She immediately turned. Soaring in the air toward her was a hunter.

The Hunter's arms were extended out in front of it as it launched toward the brunette. "HUNTER!" she cried, raising her arms as if to shield herself.

Zoey thought she didn't have enough time to shoot it. Her eyes widened in horror as the Hunter crashed into her. The impact caused her to stumble back. Her elbow brushed against the lever.

She thought she had stopped the crane. Her jacket was once again stained with blood. Fortunately for the former college student, it wasn't her blood. The Hunter let out its final shriek as it collapsed onto the ground.

"Got it," Bill said triumphantly.

Zoey began wiping the blood off her jacket. "Good one," she complimented, turning toward him.

She flashed him a smile. Suddenly, Zoey heard a growl. She spun around to see the Witch glaring at her. Her teeth were gritted.

The Witch didn't care if the other female gave him a compliment. She didn't want her to become romantically involve with her man. Zoey tried to back away from the anorexic infected. She seemed to forget there wasn't much room inside of that machine.

Zoey pulled her arms back. She accidentally elbowed the senior in his eye. He lowered his weapon and was about to place a hand on his eye when Zoey bumped him hard in the back. Bill stumbled forward and fell off the crane.

The Witch gasped as she watched him fall. Luckily for him, Bill didn't fall far. He managed to land on his feet on the rooftop. The flames also had fully dissipated before he fell.

He took a few staggering steps forward, trying to regain his balance. The Witch pushed pass Zoey and Francis, then descended the ladder. Just as she placed a foot on the roof, she heard coughing. She looked around.

When she didn't see who was coughing, the Witch climbed the rest of the way down. She hurried over to Bill just as he regained his balance. As she ran, the female infected spotted someone at the corner of her eye. She stopped short, then turned toward the person.

Her eyes widened at the sight of a smoker. It stood on the rooftop across from them. It watched Bill with its only eye as he readjusted the shotgun in his hands. The Smoker let out another loud cough.

Bill turned. He raised his weapon. "SMOKER!" he shouted.

The Smoker gaped its mouth, then cried, "Gahhh!"

It spat out its tongue. The tongue made its way toward the veteran. The Witch gasped before rushing over to him. Just as she reached him, the ashened-skinned woman felt the warm, moist tongue wrapped herself.

She knew the Smoker had grabbed her. The Smoker'd missed its original target. The tall, lanky creature decided to pull back its tongue regardless of her being the wrong target. The Witch screamed as she was jerked off the roof.

Bill opened fire on the Smoker as he rushed over to the edge. The Witch was sure she would plummet into the alley below, so she reached out. She managed to grabbed the ledge, but still had the Smoker's tongue wrapped around her torso. She cried out as the tongue's grip tightened.

The Witch gazed up as the veteran reached the edge. He was still shooting the Smoker. His last shot caused the infected to explode into a cloud of green. Bill was considering to reload his weapon.

"BEEEEL!" the Witch shrieked as her grip on the ledge began to loosen.

Her eyes sparkled as they began to water. She wasn't sure if she'll survive the fall. Bill knelt down as he placed the shotgun on his back. He reached a hand toward one of hers.

"C'mon, grab my hand," Bill instructed. "I'm going to get you back on your feet then we gotta move."

The Witch removed a hand from the ledge, then reached out. She ended up scraping his hand with her overgrown nails. Bill cried out in pain. The Witch gasped.

She had hurt her Bill again and, this time, he was trying to help her. Tears began pouring from her eyes like a fire hydrant hose with the water pressure turned up too high. Bill ignored her cries as he reached out and grabbed her wrist. He began pulling her back onto the roof, despite the throbbing pain in his hand.

He'll have to fight through the pain if he wanted to save her. A moment later, she was back on the roof. The Witch looked up at him as tears continued to stream down her face. She was glad to be saved by him, but she still couldn't get over the fact that she'd caused him pain.

The Witch was surprised he'd willingly helped her despite that. Bill grabbed his hand, then peered down at it. Red scratch marks were on his palm and some of his fingers. Forunately for him, the scratches weren't deep enough to puncture the skin.

Bill's eyes were narrowed as he turned back to the Witch. He reached his other hand out and, to her surprise, began wiping the tears from her face. "Quit your blubbering," he said. "We gotta keep moving."

Bill removed his hand from the infected's face, then stood up. The Witch gazed up at him, blinking away tears. "Save your tears for when we're outta of this hellhole."

He turned around, removing the shotgun from his back. Bill held the shotgun in both hands, despite the throbbing pain in his right one. It'll go away, he thought.

The Witch wiped a stray tear from the corner of her eye before standing up. Zoey and Francis had finally ceased fire. They had finished off the horde and just in time for the dumpster to arrive. "Our dumpster's here. Let's go!" the war veteran beckoned.

Zoey switched to her pistol while Francis loaded the last few shells into his shotgun as they hurried over to the dumpster. Bill placed the shotgun back on his back and was about to ascend the ladder. Suddenly, he felt a hand lightly tap his shoulder.

He turned. The Witch removed her hand from his shoulder as she looked at him. Another stray tear streamed down her face as she moved closer to him. Before Bill could say or do anything, the anorexic woman kissed him softly on the lips.

Zoey blinked repeatedly as they departed. She stared at them in disbelief. Bill and the Witch had turned toward Zoey and Francis. When the Witch turned her gaze on the other female, she noticed her taking a step back.

A smile had crossed the biker's lips as he closed his eyes. "Hell, Louis is right," he exclaimed, shaking his head in disbelief. "Bill did kiss that Witch."

XXX

A few minutes later, the quartet were searching the rooms of a building they'd entered via window. Bill had stepped out of a closet, not finding anything inside. The closet was empty. He closed the door, then turned around.

He took one step forward when he heard someone call out: "Anyone out there? I'm trapped in here! Get me out!"

Bill spun around, realizing the voice was coming from behind. He also recognized the voice. It was the voice of his dead teammate, Louis. His eyes widened when he noticed a orange outline of his teammate inside of the closet he'd just checked.

Just a moment ago, this closet was empty, Bill thought. I still don't get how my teammates come back from dead via small rooms or closets. This shit's worse than 'Nam.

The veteran reached out, then opened the door, "rescuing" Louis from the closet. Louis lowered his arms before saying, "Thanks, man."

Bill had already turned and left. The bald man blinked before stepping out the closet. He followed the veteran as he regrouped with the others. His eyes widened in horror at the sight of the Witch.

"WITCH!" he yelled, terrified, before pointing at her.

The Witch let out a gasp before pulling her mouth back into a snarl. He took step back, still pointing at her. Zoey and Francis turned toward her. Bill turned toward Louis.

"Can ya give it a rest?" He narrowed his eyes at the other man. "She's sticking with the group whether you want her to or not. Pointing at her and crying out 'witch' isn't going to make the situation any better."

Bill turned, then began walking. Zoey, Francis and the Witch hurried over to him. Louis watched, but didn't follow. "You'll just piss her off, which will jeopardize the entire team," Bill added as he pushed a pair of double doors open.

He began exiting the room. "Then why do you want her on our team?" Louis asked suddenly.

Bill stopped short, then turned around. The room became silent as he turned from teammate to teammate before stopping on the bald man. After a moment of silence, he finally spoke. "Because I'd learned to trust her, and I want you people to do the same."

That was half of the truth. The other half he still doesn't know if he'll admit to himself. After all, he only known her for a little less than a day. Bill can't be in love with her.

That's just a crazy thought. She is a zombie after all! The war veteran turned back to the opened doorway. "We're not getting out of this city unless you people learn to cooperate with one another," he added before leaving.

The three humans exchanged glances before turning to the Witch. The female infected wondered why they were staring at her. Did she miss something? She turned to see the bald man ask the other female, "When did Bill meet this Witch?"

The brunette female shrugged. The bald man began scratching his cheek. "I don't remember seeing her when we're going to that hospital."

The biker frowned as he stared at them. "I'm tired of waitin' around here," he complained. "C'mon, let's go."

Without waiting to see if his teammates were following, the biker turned, then made his way out of the room through the same double doors Bill had use. The brunette female and the bald man took one more glance at the Witch before following the biker's trail. She followed them, wondering what was going on. She must have missed what the veteran had said.

If the Witch wasn't so captivated by his beauty, she would have heard him, she thought.

XXX

The pentrad had entered another building. Each floor they had been to were filled with offices. This place was probably once a corporation run by a wealthy business man with employees as the foundation of its success. Now, it was reduced to a wrecked, abandoned building filled with decaying corpses and infected citizens roaming about.

As the group searched the offices, Louis thought he heard something. He turned back to his teammates. Zoey was trying to navigate through the offices. The room was dark and her only light source was her flashlight. A green, neon exit sign lied ahead.

Beyond it was a doorway with stairs that lead to the floor below them. Francis was shooting some infected in the area. Bill and the Witch were nowhere to be seen. They were probably searching another room on the same floor.

Louis turned back to Francis. He was now reloading his automatic shotgun. The group had found more weapons when they'd entered the building a few minutes earlier. They also found some pills in a red, first aid cabinet on the same floor they'd found the weapons.

"Hold on, hold on. Shhh," Louis said, motioning the biker to be silent.

Francis paused, holding a shotgun shell between his index finger and thumb. He turned, narrowing his eyes. "I hear a damn witch," Louis whispered. "Kill the light, man."

The biker blinked as he dropped the shell into the weapon. He turned back to his shotgun just as he cocked it. "She's with Bill," he reminded the younger male. "Don'tcha remember?"

Louis shook his head. "No, I hear another one," he answered quietly.

Francis shook his head before moving forward. Louis let out a sigh, thinking his teammate didn't believe him. A door swung open from behind, startling the young man. He gasped as he whirled around.

Standing behind him were Bill and the Witch. The older male had his beady eyes narrowed. "Who closed the damn door?" he demanded. "I thought I'd told you people not to close the god damn door."

"Bill, did'ja hear that?" Louis asked, interrupting his bickering.

Bill blinked. "Hear what?"

Louis' eyes widened. "I heard a witch's cry."

The veteran shook his head. "I've tried that, kid," he said. "It didn't work."

Louis blinked repeatedly. "I'm serious here. I've heard a witch's..."

He heard another moan. Louis turned toward the sound. Just as it came, it went. He listened out for more cries.

After a moment of silence, the Junior Systems Analyst let out a sigh before turning back to the duo. He noticed the Witch had wrapped her bony arms around the war veteran. Maybe she believed him when he said he had heard another witch's cry? Louis turned his gaze onto the other male.

Bill stared back at him, his expression was a mixture of annoyance and disbelief. Louis raised his arms. "C'mon, man. Why don't you believe me?" he asked.

Bill opened his mouth to speak. Suddenly, someone called out. The two Survivors exchanged glances, then hurried over to the area where they heard the shout. The Witch followed, close behind.

The trio reached the staircase, then quickly descended the steps. Before they could reach the bottom steps, they noticed Zoey and Francis were standing on the floor in front of the stairs. They were blocking the trio's view of the next room. Zoey and Francis were staring at something ahead.

What they were staring at had froze them in their spots. A witch was sitting outside of the doorway. Her cries had been interrupted by the sound of Zoey's voice when she'd called out. The Witch was growling as she began standing up.

Louis turned to Bill, who was peering over Francis' shoulder. "Now do you believe me?" he asked.

Bill pulled his head back, then turned. He narrowed his eyes at Louis. "We don't have time for that," he said before turning back to the Witch.

The Witch beside him was also peering over the biker's shoulder. She noticed the other witch was on the verge of attacking. She remembered she was like that when Francis was insulting her back at the hospital. In any moment, the other Witch would attack.

The emaciated female didn't want her to strike, especially her man. She knew now she had to do something. The Witch raised her arms, then pushed pass Louis and Bill before reaching the bottom steps. Just as she was about to push pass Francis and Zoey, she heard a shriek.

She looked ahead to see the other Witch lunged at one of the Survivors, determined to kill them. She didn't realize her own kind was trying to protect the humans. She struck the former college student, immobilizing her. Zoey cried out as she landed on her back.

The Witch raised her arms, preparing to shred the clothing and flesh off the female below her. Just as she was about to strike, she felt pain in her back. Her arms paused in mid air as she peered down. The pain in her back grew more intense as the seconds went by, until, suddenly, nails, similar to hers, came bursting out from her chest.

The Witch noticed the nails were covered in her blood. Some of the blood trickled off the nails. Some of the blood dropped onto Zoey's face as she turned her head. She noticed another Witch standing behind the one that just about to kill her.

The Witch pulled back her arm back, removing the nails from her brethen's abdomen. The other Witch spat out blood before she collapsed onto the ground, dead. The remaining infected lowered her arm as blood continued to trickled off her nails. Apparently, she had no problem killing her own kind.

The only reason she attacked the other Witch was because she thought she'll go after Bill. Even when she didn't, the Witch still attacked her because she knew Zoey was his friend and if she was killed, he would be affected. Although, the Witch doesn't really care about her, she knows she'll have to learn to if she wanted to stay as a member of the team.

Francis knelt down and helped Zoey get back on her feet. When she was back on her feet, she re-equipped her hunting rifle. "Thanks for saving me," she said, at first looking at Francis, then turning to the Witch.

The Witch noticed a smile had crossed the other female's lips. It was a weak smile, but a smile nonetheless. The Witch's facial expression didn't change. Instead, she turned around.

She noticed Louis and Bill were still on the stairs. The Witch couldn't tell, but it appeared the latter was smiling. It wasn't a wide smile, but it appeared he had a small smile underneath his silver moustache. The Witch flashed him a smile, showing off her rotten teeth.

The pentrad finally entered the next room. To their luck, they found themselves inside of a lobby. A pistol lied on top of the reception desk. "Two pistols, cool," Zoey exclaimed as she grabbed a pistol from the desk.

The three men did the same. Beside the double glass doors lying a few feet ahead, there were two other doorways. One was the employee's lounge, which had a vending machine, a table, knocked over chairs, a coffee machine resting on top of a counter, a sink in the counter beside the machine, and a closed closet inside.

The other doorway, which had a corridor inside, lead to an alley outside of the building. A exit sign hung from the door frame. Bill was peering out the glass doors. He noticed infected citizens were wandering the street.

There was also a car with an alarm parked in front of the building. Other vehicles were piled up at both ends of the street, blocking off the rest of the road. Bill turned. He spotted a storaging place called, "Self Storage," across the street.

He turned back to his teammates. The veteran noticed his teammates were discussing something among themselves. He went over to them. His teammates stopped talking, then looked up at him as he approached.

"Hey, Bill," Louis called. "We're just discussing a nickname."

"For who?" Bill demanded as he reached them.

He noticed the Witch stood beside the bald man. She turned her gaze on Bill, her eyes sparkling. "We're trying to come up with a good nickname for that Witch," Louis answered, motioning toward the infected beside him.

"If she's going to be apart of our team, then she'll need a name," Zoey explained. "We can't keep calling her, 'Witch,' especially when encountering another one. 'Cause if we yell, 'witch,' she'll think we're adressing her, even when we're not."

"Alright, then. What is it?" Bill demanded, tightening the grip on his assault rifle. "What are the names you've come up with?"

"We could call her Crystal," Francis suggested.

His teammates turned to look at him. His face grew hot from their stares. "Y'know, like the glass or gem," he added quickly. "Not like a stripper..."

Bill shook his head. "No, Francis," he replied.

"How about Jan?" Zoey suggested.

Her teammates shook their heads. "What about Selene, like the main vampire character in the Underworld movie series?" Francis asked, smirking.

Louis turned, opening his mouth to say, "she isn't a vampire," when Francis continued. "It seems fitting. They're both short, slender and inhumanly pale. Plus, they both desire the taste for human blood."

Zoey gawked at him. Louis shook his head. "Except, Kate Beckingsale makes one hella hot vampire," the biker added. "This chick here... well, she's far from being considered pretty."

The Witch, by this time, was groaning. It was already bad enough Francis had insulted her back at the hospital, blew her up with a pipe bomb and had shot her in the hands. She was trying her hardest not to attack him. She knew if she did, they'll kick her off the team.

Although, her natural witch instincts were telling her to strike him. She gritted her teeth as she watched. The Survivors were looking at her. They were surprise about her being agitated.

Bill turned his gaze on the biker. He suddenly had a thought as to why the Witch was angry. "Francis, shut up," he said.

Francis immediately turned toward him. "Huh? What did I do?" he asked.

Bill pointed at the raging infected. Francis blinked. "What makes you think I'd pissed her off?"

The veteran lowered his arm. "You insulted her," he answered.

"What? She's a god damn witch, Bill!" the biker exclaimed. "She probably doesn't understand most of the things we're saying!"

"You've got a lot to learn, kid," Bill muttered before turning back to the glass doors.

Francis grumbled a swear at the elder before turning back to his other teammates. Apparently, the two of them had continued to discuss a nickname for the infected, regardless of Bill and Francis' bickering. "Maybe she could be called, Elle," Louis said.

Francis turned his head toward Zoey. He noticed she was shaking her head. "Her name shouldn't be a letter," she replied.

Louis turned to face her. "It's not a singular letter, Zoe," he replied. "Elle is short for Ellen and Elle is spelled..."

"You know what? I just realized I don't care," the biker interjected, cutting him off. "Lead on," he added as he turned to Zoey.

Bill ignored their discussion as he spotted something other than the roaming infected. There was a drawing on the wall beside the entrance of the storage place. He immediately recognized the drawing as the nearby safe house sign. Bill spun around.

"People, we gotta keep moving," he called, motioning with his hand for his team to follow. "Those bastards will show up if we stick around here. There's a safe house across the street. You can give the Witch a nickname when we get there."

"What about Leah?" Zoey asked suddenly, completely ignoring what the old man had just finished explaining.

The senior shot her a glare as she turned from teammate to teammate, waiting for a response. Suddenly, a chorus of shouts, shrieks and groans filled the air. The group knew within a moment, they'll have to fight off another horde. Bill was right - they had been standing in that spot for too long.

XXX

A few minutes later, after defeating the horde, the pentrad arrived at the safe house. As they approached the red steel door, the Witch reached out and grabbed Bill's arm. He stopped short, then turned toward her. He gazed into her eyes as she frowned.

The Witch knew once he took a step into that room, she won't be able to detect his presence. She didn't want him to go into that room, unless she can enter said room, too. The infected believed if the red steel door could be removed, then the anti-witch barrier will be broken. It would allow her to enter the safe house, she thought.

Bill turned back to his other teammates just as Zoey was about to enter the safe house. "People, wait," he called.

The trio stopped short, then turned around. They noticed Bill and the Witch were still near the entrance. "She can't enter safe houses, remember?" Bill continued, motioning toward the Witch. "Someone will have to stay out here with her."

The three humans exchanged glances, then dashed inside of the safe house. The war veteran repeatedly blinked as he heard a metallic CLICK! He knew they had probably locked the door. The Witch moved a little closer to him, lightly squeezing his arm.

Suddenly, Francis' face appeared in the barred window in the red steel door. He looked around. A smile appeared on his face as his gaze landed on the two silver haired individuals. The biker noticed the angry expression on the older male's face.

"What the hel - " Bill began.

"Hey! She likes you better than the rest of us," Francis said, interrupting him. "Besides, if you need protection, she'll provide that for you."

Before Bill could say anything else, the biker disapppeared back into the room. The veteran stood glaring at the barred window for a moment. The Witch lightly tugged his arm, trying to get his attention. It worked.

He turned toward her. The Witch raised her other arm, then extending her index finger. Bill followed her finger. There was a closet opposite the safe house.

He turned back to her. "You want us to go in there?" the veteran asked.

The infected nodded. Bill was sure they weren't have any protection in that room, much less space to stretch. Before he could think of another place for them to rest inside, he heard loud, raspy coughs. Bill knew there was a smoker in the area.

Quickly, he lead her to the tiny room. Bill pushed her lightly into the closet, and when she was inside, he entered, closing the door behind him. He knew the Smoker could break down the door and attack. The door wasn't made out of metal.

The war veteran had his M16 at the ready as he stared at the door, in a crouching prosition. The Smoker should arrive within a moment, especially if it knew a lone Survivor was hiding inside of a closet, and the only thing that stood in its way was a flimsy door. Bill felt someone breathing down his neck. He raised his hand, then waved it back and forward in front of the person.

"Move back," Bill ordered, whispering. "I can't concentrate on shooting with you breathing down my neck."

The Witch blinked before trying to scoot back. She couldn't. The closet was nearly as cramped as the crane. She sat up straight, then lowered her gaze at him.

Bill was still waiting for that Smoker to arrive so he could kill it. As she watched him, the Witch remembered something. She placed a hand on his shoulder, then began tapping it lightly. "What is it?" he demanded, not turning around.

The infected removed her hand from his shoulder. "Wich p-pro-t-t-teck Bah-eel," she said, stuttering.

Bill slowly turned around, but still had his weapon pointing at the door. He was having some trouble understanding what she had said. That's when Bill remembered she was suppose to get a nickname. Was now the best time to give her a nickname?

Suddenly, the duo heard someone pounding on a door. They immediately turned toward the door. They both listened to the noise. It sounded like someone was pounding their fist on a thick piece of metal.

That's when Bill realized the Smoker was attacking the safe house door. The Smoker was trying to attack one of his teammates inside of that room. It was only a matter of time before the infected realized there was another Survivor hiding in the closet behind it. Bill turned back to the female infected as he reached out and grabbed the door knob.

He realized he could save ammo if he had the Witch kill the Smoker. "When I open this door, I want you to kill that Smoker, Leah," the veteran commanded.

The emaciated infected's eyes widened in surprise. Did Bill just call her by another name? She thought he liked calling her, "Witch." That nickname was beginning to grow on her.

For all she knew, "Leah" is the only name he remembered from the discussion the other humans were having earlier. Maybe he called her that by mistake? The infected wasn't so sure about that. She could go along with the name.

After all, she disliked her current name. So, "Leah," could become her new name. She didn't care if his teammates don't address her by that name. It only mattered to her if William addressed her as, "Leah."

XXX

Author's Note: Originally, I wasn't going to give her a nickname, but I made them run into another Witch and I might have confused you, readers. So, I decided to give her one. Anyway, this chapter may be shorter than chapter seven, but it's still longer than the first six. That's without the Author's Note.

I might make the rest of the chapters, especially during "The Sacrifice" campaign (oops, did I typed that?) longer than my original amount of words per chapter length, which is usually around 6000 words. Only time will tell... Anyway, I hoped you'd enjoyed this chapter.

P.S: I know I'm slow with the romance. I'm still trying to figure out how I'm going to make Bill fall in love with the Witch in such a short period of time without making him completely out of character. You might actually know that if you'd been reading my Author Notes (which I'm certain you haven't).