Chapter 10
Elle lived in a comfortable house about an hour's drive from the estate.
On the way, Rainier turned the radio on to drown his thoughts about what he had just seen. The unknown announcer speaking in a monotonous circle helped until the voice suddenly grew in terror.
"This just in, it has been confirmed that there was an Infected Individual spotted out-"
He switched it off.
His ear had finally given it's last trickle of blood when he made it to the front of Elle's home. A mini-van lied silently in the front driveway, blocking any entrance from any foreigner. He decided to park parallel to the front of the house.
Slipping the gear into park, he sat quietly. His hands slipped into the familiar shirt pocket to come back empty. He had left his cigarettes on his nightstand back in...
Instead he slipped the keys out of the ignition and strode to the front door.
A soft knock, for it was almost two in the morning.
The faint thumping of feet down stairs.
Slap, Slap, Slap! His father's bare feet struck the hardwood floor.
The door opened to a bleary eyed Elle. Clutched in her arms was her two year-old child, Lyle, who was babbling non-stop about how he wanted to play with Copain, their large golden retriever.
She gasped at the sight of him and quickly slammed the door back on his face. He heard thumping sounds frantically go back up the stairs. Thinking she was not going to answer again, he turned to go back to his car until he heard the faint thumping growing louder. The door was wrenched open and a thin hand grabbed his arm, effectively keeping him from moving. He turned to face her and noted she had put her son back upstairs, probably because of the blood soaking the left side of his once white dress shirt.
"I need your help."
"I can tell, Rainier."