Author's note: Sorry I haven't updated in awhile... A LOT has happened and I just didn't have the creative flow to continue writing... I really am truly sorry... Just, don't drink and drive, ok? My school found out the hard way of the fatal consequences that follow. R.I.P JW and GF. I dedicate this chapter to you two. You're always in my thoughts... - Enjoy
Which way did she go? Claire had lost sight of the girl after being ambushed by a few of the infected. I guess we know where all the townspeople went. Her intuition told her she was still nearby, but so were they. The faster she found the little girl, the better.
With extreme caution, she proceeded forward, making sure to be completely aware of her surroundings. It was shocking to her how familiar this scenario had become. All she could hope for now was that her brother and his team were safe. What she really wanted was to go home with Piers and snuggle up on the couch once this was all over. "Yea right." She rolled her eyes at her own thoughts, getting back to reality. Much to her discontent, reality sucked right now.
As she turned the corner, she heard the moans of the dead as a whole hoard of zombies greeted her. The moment she saw them, she stopped in her tracks, holding her breath as she slowly retreated back the way she came. She was almost home free, turning to move in the opposite direction of the danger, when she bumped into a trash can. It toppled over, making a loud racket as it did so. Claire grabbed her handgun from its holster, shooting the first zombie that lunged towards her. "Shit!" She knew that in a manner of seconds, she was going to be surrounded and greatly outnumbered . As adrenaline pumped through her veins, she emptied her clip, making a path through the middle of the hoard to make a break for it. Lucky for her, she escaped without injury, not slowing down to look back. She continued to run, passing more and more of the undead.
She finally stopped, slumping over to catch her breath. When she looked up, the little girl was there, standing just inside of a run down gas station. She knew better than to call out to her with the undead so close by. Instead, she followed her inside, being extra careful to step over the glass in front of the door. She decided it was too risky to try sliding through the door, and instead, went for a direct approach. She regretted it the instant she opened the door and a bell sounded.
The little girl squealed, running into the maze of stocked shelves. Damn! Claire only had a split second to react before a zombie was on top of her. She didn't have time to grab her gun as she fought him off, kicking him in the face to stagger him back. Thinking quickly, she grabbed one of the broken pieces of glass that laid beside her. With a grunt, she leapt to her feet, a glass shard in her hand. As the zombie charged forward, she sank the glass into his skull, spilling blood all over his uniform. He hit the floor, his name tag spelling out the name, Jesse, was now soaked in red. The twinge of guilt she felt for the boy reminded her that she was still human.
A scream woke her up to the world around her. The little girl was being backed into a corner, a dark mass closing in on her. Claire bolted across the store, gun now in hand. As the thing reach out to grab the girl, Claire raised her gun and fired. It limply fell forward on top of her. The girl shrieked, pushing at the corpse to free herself. Claire swore under her breath, racing over the assist the girl. "It's alright! He's dead. He's not going to hurt you, so you don't have to be afraid now." She grabbed the girl, pulling her out from under the now dead... undead. That was when Claire noticed there was something wrong. Terribly wrong. "Your eyes.." The girl looked up at her, revealing a pair of bright blue eyes with an unusual crimson ring around them. Her veins were extremely visible, pulsing dark purple blood through them. They rose up slightly beneath her skin, casting eerie shadows all along her face. A similar face flashed through Claire's mind. Sherry's face. This girl somehow reminded her of Sherry.
Busy comprehending what was sitting in front of her, Claire didn't hear the footsteps coming from behind her until it was too late. Putting a gun to the back of her head, the entity spoke. "Back away from the girl. Now." A rough, yet familiar voice called out to her. She slowly raised her hands above her head, standing up to face the gunman. When she turned around to face him, she froze, and so did he.
"So, this is Garden City." Leon had almost thought he had taken a wrong turn. Much to his surprise, he passed a sign reading the town's name. He already knew something was wrong, and he could guess what it was. It was unusual for government agents to be sent out to investigate remote towns such as this one. The fact that he had been specifically assigned to the mission had only fueled his suspicion.
Deciding it was better to travel the rest of the way on foot, Leon suited up and headed out to check out the town. After walking for awhile with no signs of life, there was finally movement. A few feet ahead of him, a little girl came running out of a side alley. Her blond hair was a tangled mess on the top of her head. It fell into her eyes, but not enough to cover them from Leon's view. For a moment they both just stood there, studying each other. "What happened to you?" Leon whispered when he was finally able to talk. He reached out for her, ready to attack her if she was a mutation. Startled, she scurried away, running into a nearby building.
Planning to follow after her, he stopped when he noticed he wasn't the only one. A figure darted out from the darkness, going after the girl. The moment the figure was inside, a gunshot rang out. Quickly, Leon made his way to the store. After seeing how well opening the door had worked out for the person before him, he decided to slip through the door, careful not to cut himself on the broken glass.
Another shot sounded followed by a small scream. On full alert, he ducked through the aisles until he came out right behind them. In the light from one of the coolers, he could see the girl. She looked terrified, her blond hair soaked a ruby red. The other person was still in the darkness, the only details Leon could gather was that the person was female.
He stopped behind her, putting his gun to her head. "Back away from the girl. Now." The woman slowly stood up, turning to face him. When she saw him, he froze, and so did she.