Chapter 18

A kiss. A simple kiss.

No, it hadn't been just a simple kiss, because the intention was as clear as glass. Ellie saw in her more than just a friend, a sister or even a mother-figure, and that was the problem.

She never wanted this, though she had to admit that there had been some feelings that had been leading in the same direction. She had fought them. Tried to suppress them…more or less. But no matter how she wanted to see Ellie, it mostly ended up in seeing the reincarnation of Anna. The personification of her late girlfriend and love. And it was exactly this situation she considered as unfair. Ellie wasn't her mother. Yes, she had her looks and her fire, yet she was so different. And even if she would allow those intimate feelings, others probably wouldn't agree with this. A difficult topic that she probably shouldn't face alone. But who would be trustworthy enough to share such a burden?

Tommy? No, he wouldn't understand and was too hard stuck in the old ways.

Maria? Possibly, but she would give word to Tommy right away.

And then there was just Ellie herself, though she was part of the problem and her side was pretty clear. No, this wouldn't work out.

She was on her own with this and would have to find a solution by herself. But not right now. Right at this moment, she needed to focus on the mission ahead. All participating people were already standing in Tommy's office, waiting for the briefing to begin, whereas Sarah stayed in the background, watching the team.

Two or three of them were simple people, workers and mechanics. Another two were guards, armed with pistols and hunting rifles.

Then there was Matt, a smart engineer and one of the town's most renowned people. Let alone, an old story from the first time Sarah had been in Jackson. He had been one of the people who had been taking care of her during and after the pregnancy, which, at one point, had led to more than she would like to admit.

"Alright, people, listen up!" Tommy announced as he walked in and took position beside a blackboard on the wall, where a big map of Jackson county was pinned onto. "We all know why we're here and that this mission is very important. So, focus and work with me."

He then pointed at a complex right outside of the old town of Jackson.

"Jackson Water and Power used to be responsible for the town's entire economical infrastructure. Fresh water, sewage, electrical power, waste disposal… They ran the entire show, even the dam. Therefore, they were also responsible for maintaining everything, including the generators."

He then pointed at a certain building.

"The company had an entire warehouse, filled to the brim with spare parts, and as some of you know, we already tried to get a hold of 'em. Sadly, somewhere on the premises is a Cordyceps nest, making a large operation impossible, if you don't wanna get overrun by the infected. This is why we never considered going near this place and improvised. Sadly, improvisation won't help us anymore. We need to get those parts and we have to do this on a hush, and this is where my niece comes in…"

From one second to another, all eyes were on Sarah, making her feel uncomfortable. Nonetheless, she walked up to the map and began to present her idea.

"As Tommy already said, somewhere inside this complex is a nest and the first thing we need to do is to find it. We all know that the cordies avoid the sun and hole up in their hidey-holes, but as soon as they hear a sneeze, those motherfuckers will chase you even through the fires of hell."

She then encircled the complex with her index finger.

"The nest has to be in one of those buildings. Hopefully, not in the warehouse or else we won't get the parts without an intense fight. Anyway, we need to find it first and make sure it's no threat to us."

Her finger then went to a structure that was a mile away from the compound and looked at her uncle.

"Is this lodge still clear?"

"Uh, yeah. We still use it as a shelter for patrols that're gettin' surprised by bad weather."

"Wow, so you did actually listen to me," she remarked cynically with a victorious smirk, leaving her dumbfounded uncle standing in the rain while she continued. "Anyway, we'll use this as our foothold. We'll gather there and our team waits there 'til tomorrow while I'll scout ahead and try to find this nest. If anything goes south, we'll meet there again and think about further steps. Hopefully, this won't be necessary."

One of the guards raised his hand and asked "What do you plan to do, once you found the nest?"

"Block the entrance, cage 'em in. We have to improvise from there, according to the situation. We dunno how many infected there are or what their grade of infection is," was Sarah's plain answer, which led to more disillusionment than encouragement. Tommy realized that and immediately took over again.

"Okay, we all know it's a long shot, but also the best chance we have. Fact is: this won't be a suicide mission. So, if anything stinks, you abort everything and come back, no unnecessary risks!"

"But…" Sarah wanted to intervene, but got immediately shut down by her uncle's stern glare.

"Matt is in charge of this mission, this means, you're following his orders…" Again, he gave his niece a deep glare, underlining it with the word "...unconditionally!"

Angrily, Ellie watched how Sarah and the rest of her team were leaving the town on horses and with a carriage.

No hug, no goodbye, not even a glimpse. Sarah had just left her behind with a whole bunch of fucked-up feelings. Once again, Ellie felt the need to just scream out her rage, but eventually decided to take a walk around town and get to know it better.

All sorts of houses, small shops, craftsmanship… This town was living and breathing, not like those quarantine zones, where everything was just dull and people more busy to avoid the next suicide job or an execution by FEDRA.

Ellie enjoyed this vibe so much, that she took a seat on a bench that was situated on a square and simply watched everyone who passed her. Men, women, teenagers and children of every age… The young girl ogled them all until a young woman stopped in front of her and asked, "You're the new girl, right?"

She had a slight dark skin color and curly black hair. From her appearance and the weapons she was carrying, she was probably a member of the town's guards, who were patrolling the streets, walls and surroundings of the settlement.

"Sorry, but you can't just carry 'round your gun like that."

Of course, nobody would just talk to her like that. There always had to be a negative punchline, and this pissed her off!

"Why the fuck not?!" the young girl blurted, earning her a wry smirk by the young guard.

"Well," she answered calmly, "simply said, you're too young. Only persons over 18 are allowed to…"

Huffing out some air and rolling with her eyes, Ellie replied "Geeze, I carried this thing out there for months and nobody got hurt. Sarah gave it to me for self-protection."

"As stupid as it sounds, rules are rules," the guardswoman insisted sternly, before her demeanor suddenly went soft and she giggled. "...and they suck. Just keep that piece on ya, but make sure to conceal it!"

A bit dumbfounded, Ellie watched how that woman slipped the rifle off her shoulder and sat down beside her, saying "I'm Dina, by the way. And you are…?"

"Ellie," was the young teenager's short answer. She couldn't believe that someone was freely speaking to her.

"Nice to meet ya, Ellie!" replied the young woman and patted Ellie on the shoulder before getting up again. "Well, duty calls…"

Dina was about to be on her way again and Ellie felt actually sad about it. But then the young guard turned around one last time, saying "Say, are you free tonight? Me and some of my pals wanna hang out. Wanna come?"

Once more, Ellie got taken aback. Did Dina just ask her to hang out with her and her friends? And though she was asking herself if this was a set-up trap for a prank, the young girl agreed with a nod.

"Great!" was Dina's joyful answer, underlined with a big smile. "You've got a room above the Tavern, right? I'll pick ya up after my shift. See ya then!"

Dumbfounded, Ellie watched how Dina walked away, and though she was still doubtfully asking herself if this was just a prank, she couldn't hide the warm smile of joy in her face.

Sarah wasn't used to riding a horse anymore, and she was feeling it pretty hard in her behind and her inner thighs, because they were sore from hours of traveling over bumpy roads. So, she was more than happy when they finally approached the abandoned lodge.

Swiftly, she jumped off the horse's back and walked the rest of the way, the reins still in one hand and her pistol in the other one.

"Expecting trouble?" Matt, who was still on his horse, riding beside her, asked.

"Always," was her short answer. And while the rest of the group was just arriving and also disembarking, Sarah had already reached the lodge and opened the main entrance. Alone, she checked the building, finding it empty.

"Aright, building's clear," she announced to the group and waited for them to have secured the horses and brought in all the necessary equipment before she spoke up again. "Okay, the sun's already going down, so you guys better settle in for the night while I go and scout the complex for the nest."

"You heard her," confirmed Matt, who was actually in charge, and he made it clear by addressing Sarah directly. "But you won't go alone."

"Matt…" Sarah then sighed in annoyance, only to get countered right away.

"I know, I know… Alone, you're faster bla, bla, bla… But, no. I'm in charge, and I'm saying that someone's goin' with you!"

This wasn't a struggle about reason but authority. A reasonable behavior if someone is trying to undermine the chain of command. Not that Sarah was trying to do this intentionally. Still, she found this very annoying.

"Alright," she answered, already preparing to convince Matt of the opposite. "And who do you think would be best to accompany me? One of the rookie-guards or the civilians?"

Already one hand on her hip in superiority, she thought that this conversation was as good as over in her favor until Matt just gave her a wide smirk, replying "I'm coming with you."

Not having expected this answer, Sarah stared at Matt with unbelief, already wanting to counter him again, but got cut off right away.

"Sarah, I know what you wanna say, but I have to make the decisions here. Which means that above everyone else, I have to make a picture for myself what's goin' on down there, and doin' it with the best scout in the world is my best chance to do so."

Authority paired with flattery, an explosive composition that could end any struggle for power quickly. Matt's arguments were reasonable and were putting Sarah in a spot, where she had no other choice than to agree or else there was the chance that this whole expedition would end in a mess. But nobody said anything about kissing someone's ass. So, she simply grabbed her backpack and left, leaving it to Matt to take that as a silent agreement.

She was waiting and waiting. Waiting for Dina to arrive and pick her up. Although, a hint of doubt still remained lingering in the back of her mind, telling her that the young woman simply pranked her and wouldn't show up at all.

The sun had already set behind the mountains a while ago, causing the temperatures outside to drop. Additionally, dark clouds were approaching the town, probably carrying heavy rain.

A knock on the wooden door brought the young girl back from her thoughts. She didn't know why, but she checked her garments one last time before she wanted to open up, almost falling over her own feet on the way. Eventually, she managed and then gazed at Dina, who was still in her regular clothes, only lacking the weaponry.

"Sorry for keepin' you waitin', but changing shift got complicated since two of our guys went with your mom…"

"Friend…" Ellie corrected, suppressing the need to call Sarah more than that. "She's, uh…my guardian and, uh… friend."

"Oh…okay," replied Dina and cleared her throat, obviously lacking any other words. "Wanna go?"

Ellie confirmed with a nod and followed the raven-haired woman down the stairs and onto the streets, asking her friend "Where are we goin'?"

"A lil' secret place," she returned with a wink and a smirk, leading the young teenager to a less frequently crowded part of the town, where the streets were almost entirely dark. They eventually stopped in front of an old, wooden hut, where loud chatter and laughter chimed from. After opening the rather fragile door, a bunch of other young people, who were sitting around a burning lantern, got revealed.

"Heyyyy, there she is!" one guy called out. He was very hefty built, yet seemed like he could hurt a fly.

"Who's the cutie there?" asked another young Asian-looking woman with a bunch of tattoos on her arms.

Then there was an old guy, who seemed to be out of place. He stayed quiet, yet gave the two entering people a warm smirk and a nod with his head while smoking a cigarette.

"Hey guys!" Dina greeted them all before pointing at Ellie. "This is Ellie. She's new in town."

"Uh, hi guys!" she greeted them with a wave of her hand, whereas the Asian woman was the first one to get up and shake her hand.

"Hey, Ellie! I'm Cat, welcome to the group! C'mon, take a seat 'n' relax! Want a beer or a smoke?"

"Uh…" was everything Ellie could respond, before Dina stepped in.

"Hey, don't get her high just now. She's just, uh…?"

"Oh, I could use a drink," Ellie now said to everyone's surprise, causing Cat to chuckle. But the old man was clearly against it as he began to speak.

"No, you couldn't!" he said and everybody didn't object. "How old are ya? Thirteen? Fourteen? Believe me, you've enough time to waste yourself, but not today."

"C'mon, Eugene. Let her have some fun," Cat countered, already reaching for a bottle of beer. "One bottle won't hurt her."

But he simply shook his head, extinguished his half-smoked cigarette and left, leaving the rest behind. Though, Cat obviously didn't mind as she smirked and mentioned "Well, now that the party-pooper's gone, we…"

But Dina simply took the bottle out of her hand before she could reach it to Ellie, saying "But he's right, Cat. I didn't bring Ellie here to get wasted, but to give her some company since she's new and alone. Now, take a seat."

Being a bit upset upon the denial of her first beer, Ellie sat down on an old crate nonetheless, Dina doing the same right beside her. Cat went back to her seat as well, rolling with her eyes and huffing out some air out of annoyance.

"This is Will, by the way," Dina mentioned, pointing at the hefty guy, who gave Ellie a wry smirk and a wave with his hand. Not wanting to hustle Ellie, she then brought forth two bottles of lemonade instead of booze or beer, handing one to the young girl, who took it with a nod of appreciation. "As I said, we're not only here to get wasted, but to have a good time. And believe me, doing duty with a hangover is a fuckin' pain in the ass."

"Talkin' 'bout good times," Cat then threw in after taking another sip of her beer. "Is Jesse gonna join us, too? A birdie told me, you two finally got busy…"

"Firstly," Dina replied as she became a slight blush on her face. "Jesse on this very important mission with Matt and Ellie's friend. Tommy said that he needs a bit more field experience before joining the patrolmen. Secondly, tell this nosy bitch to finally stop stalkin' us! And thirdly… Yeah, we fucked. Happy now?"

"Oh my god, fuckin' finally!" Will then added to the conversation. "All the work finally paid off…"

Now the other two women were suspiciously gazing at the tall man and a heated conversation about gossip, secret relationships and sex commenced.

At first, Ellie just stayed silent, listened and sipped on her lemonade, trying to suppress the blush that was crawling up her head as some of the topics became very explicit. It stayed like this for a while, until secret crushes came up as a subject and the young girl finally wanted to join the conversation. Plus, that she needed someone to take this burning matter finally off her chest.

"I have a crush on my guardian. Got any tips for me?"

Right away, all eyes were on her, wide open and quizzical, whereas Cat was the first one to answer, cheering "Kudos, girl! Crushin' on older women, you're right after my taste!"

"Cat!" Dina hissed back at her, causing her to only shrug while she then turned her attention towards Ellie again. "Is that true? Do you really have a crush on her? How come?"

Realizing that Dina was showing true interest in that matter, Ellie felt that she could trust her and, awkwardly, her friends, too. And so she began to tell her story with a quiet voice.

"I-I actually dunno. At first, I hated her guts. I mean, we really, really used to get at each other's throat constantly. But then… It changed. We both changed. And I…and I so fuckin' dunno how to tell her."

Feeling desperate, Ellie buried her face in her cupped hands and sighed loudly while Dina flung one arm around her shoulder and pressed her closer.

"I so getcha!" she whispered, brushing softly the young girl's arm, whereas Cat dryly mentioned "Welcome to puberty, girl!" Which earned her another angry glimpse by Dina.

Of course, she ignored it and emptied the bottle of beer, belching loudly before she told her story.

"You wanna know who my first crush was? My art-teacher. Mid-forty, sexy and an amazing artist. She taught me everything I know. When I was your age, she invited me into her studio to paint a nude of her. Well…let's say, she wasn't the only one who got nude that night. When my parents found out, the gates of hell opened above us. We wanted to bail. Wanted to run away together. But the infection made sure that that never happened…"

Suddenly, Cat got silent, all that boldness from before gone. She then unbuckled her trousers and let them glide down her thighs, revealing the tattoo of a gorgeous, nude woman on her right one.

"I painted that just from my memory as I found shelter in a tattoo-studio. And that's my job now. Stitchin' memories with ink on skin. So, if you're up for it…"

A sad story Ellie could relate to. Tragedy was a crucial part of this world. Riley, her mom, Carla… All of them tragic stories that had ended in a catastrophe. Would Sarah's and hers end the same way as well?

"Ellie?"

Once again, the young girl got brought back from her inner thoughts by Dina's voice. It was okay, because spacing out like that was never pleasant since it was mostly leading to negative and unnecessary thoughts. No, she had already experienced way too much shit since they had left Boston, and now she and Sarah deserved a happy ending.

"Dina," Ellie said, her sight fixed at a random point in front of her, "Can you guide me to the place where Sarah and your boyfriend are?"

Being taken aback by this unexpected question, Dina choked on the lemonade in her mouth and coughed, gasping a hoarse "What?!" after she had calmed down enough.

Actually, nobody in Jackson knew where the group went, except some chosen people. And Dina was one of them. Or, at least, that was something Ellie assumed from the context.

"I guess Jesse told you where they would go, right?"

Dina glimpsed into this victorious demeanor with wide open eyes. She was obviously surprised upon this proposal, since she never would've thought that a girl at Ellie's age would freely leave the limits of the community.

"Girl, are you lookin' for trouble?" Will suddenly intervened with stern demeanor, making it clear that he was serious about this. "Listen, Cat 'n' Dina may be fond of you, but doin' shit like this gets people killed."

"He's right, Ellie," Cat concurred, the playful tone in her voice entirely gone. "Although we're in the middle of bumfuck nowhere, it's still very dangerous out there. Our patrolmen try to keep the infected away from the town, but there're always some who get through the net. Besides, how're you planning to get to 'em, huh? The stables are closed at night, and takin' a horse without permission is a huge felony."

"I walk, if I have to!" Ellie replied with determination and fire in her eyes as her feelings began to take over her rational thinking. "I mean, did you ever have the feeling that somethin' was about to go wrong? That-that something's off or-or somethin' bad's about to happen to someone you like? I have this right now! I have the feelin' that something on this mission's about to go south."

"Listen, kid…" Will then returned and got up, towering above her, "...feelings or not, there are fuckin' rules we all have to live by. Maybe out there you were a fuckin' hotshot who was lucky enough to survive because you had a fuckin' babysitter, but that's not how a community works. Here, you - and especially lil' girls like you - sit tight on your ass and wait! You got that?"

Her eyes were welling up. Yet not out of sadness, but anger. Clenching her fists, Ellie got up as well, and though Will was at least a head taller than she was, the young girl met his eyes, frowning directly at him.

"You wanna stop me? Then give it a try, motherfucker!"

Of course, Will found it very amusing that a girl like Ellie was taunting a hefty guy like him. She wouldn't even move him an inch with all her power she could summon. So, he simply scoffed and crossed his arms as he was confident to be victorious.

But as it was written in the old story of David and Goliath, the tall, strong people always underestimate the smaller one. In this case, however, it wasn't a stone but a knee to the testicles that brought the giant to fall. And as he was squirming on the ground, now Ellie being the one towering above him, Cat and Dina just watched this scene with wide open eyes.

"Holy shit, did she just own you," Cat mentioned dryly towards Will, not even considering helping him. "Can I marry you, girl?"

But Ellie wasn't in the mood anymore for such jokes. No, if anything, her bad feelings had intensified and her determination had become even stronger.

Not expecting any help, she turned on her heels and ran back to the tavern, where she grabbed her still packed backpack and was about to leave. Unexpectedly, however, Dina was standing in the door frame with crossed arms and a serious glare, blocking her way.

"Don't even think 'bout stopping me!" the young red-head threatened as both were face-to-face. But unlike Will's, Dina's demeanor was full of concern and uncertainty.

"I have this feeling too, y'know," she said and inhaled sharply. "I actually wanted to stop him. But he was so excited to be a step closer to becoming a patrolman that, despite my feelings, I let him go." She then closed her eyes and scoffed, her voice becoming even softer. "Gosh, I love this asshole so much!" A small pause settled in as Dina had to battle a bunch of feelings, before she said "C'mon, kid, let's go!"

An eerie twilight was laying over the scenery. Heavy clouds were covering the evening sky, foreshadowing a very dark and rainy night.

The industrial compound of the water and power company was right beneath them in a valley. Sarah watched everything with her binoculars as she and Matt were laying in the wet dirt of a hill right beside it. So far, she hadn't seen anything that would hint the existence of infected in the area.

"Still nothing," she mentioned after she had taken another sweep over the compound before handing over the optical device to Matt. "Are you sure that there's a nest in there?"

"Pretty sure," the handsome engineer returned, letting his gaze wander over the area. "About three years ago, a whole bunch of people arrived in the area. At first, they were friendly, yet kept their distance. We traded, labor for food 'n' supplies. One night, though, we got attacked. It was surgical and efficient. Obviously they had used the time they had worked for us to figure out our defenses. Only thanks to Tommy we repelled the attack. Many people were injured, some died. We sent out a scout party, yet didn't find 'em. However, the Cordyceps activities suddenly increased around here, leaving only this place as their hideout."

"So, you guess that these infected are those people?" Sarah asked with a frown, scanning the man's expression for a while as she awaited his answer.

"Before those fuckers showed up, we had this part of the woods almost entirely cleared. But since they arrived, you can't even set one foot into these woods without steppin' on some infected's toe. Besides, three years ago, it was just some Runners. Nowadays, a lotta Clickers. Fits, dontcha think?"

Sarah simply hummed in confirmation, yet kept her stern sight fixed on Matt, who was still gazing through binoculars until he felt uncomfortable and switched his glare towards the blonde, saying "What?"

"Why are you here?" she asked plainly, making him frown.

"What do you mean? I'm here, because I know what parts we…"

"No, that's not what I meant," she interrupted him mid-sentence. "I mean here, with me. You know exactly what I can and what I do and that my reports are accurate enough to make decisions remotely. So, why the fuck are you here?"

At first, Matt just scoffed and shook his head, but eventually looked at her again with a slight smirk.

"Am I that obvious?" he replied with a scoff, now focusing entirely on her. "It's been quite some time since we've seen each other and… I dunno, maybe I just wanna catch up a lil'..."

"Or get into my pants?" Sarah threw in, without letting him finish, scoffing and shaking her head. "You really think that we can just continue where we left off 7 years ago?"

"Sarah…"

Now getting agitated, her voice became even stricter, crescenting into a whispered yelling.

"When I left, I never thought I'd be back. I burnt all bridges, including this thing we had."

"And what was that thing, huh?" Matt returned, getting angry as well.

"Sex, okay. Granted, you were there for me when I needed someone. When I needed to get my clusterfuck of feelings under control. But that's it. Sorry that I'm fuckin' you over, but… You've always been a nice guy. So, why dontcha find yourself a better option than me?"

But Matt just scoffed again, his anger now evaporating.

"Believe me, I tried. But none of those town gals was ever enough. Besides, none of 'em had your awesome looks."

"Oh, shut up and keep it in your pants!" Sarah then jokingly mocked back, feeling a bit flattered. She wanted to add some more as she realized some movement in the corner of her eye. "Fuck, there they are!"

Immediately, the conversation died and both focused on the events below. The valley was now dipped almost entirely into darkness, making it hard to see any details. From everywhere humanoid creatures flooded onto the complex's surface and only from there movements and sounds, Sarah realized that it were mainly Clickers, plus two Bloaters.

"Shit!" she hissed and took the binoculars from her eyes. "I can't see where they're comin' from. Those fuckers are everywhere, maybe even in the maintenance shafts. The whole complex seems to be contaminated." After reaching the optical device to Matt so that he can take a look, too, she sighed, saying "So, what now. Keep goin' or abort? Your call."

"I dunno," he replied, shifting his gaze towards the blonde. "What do ya think?"

A sudden crack of twigs behind them let both turn around and in shock they realized that they were surrounded by infected. A Clicker's cry chimed through the night, followed by the croaking sound of Stalkers.

Sarah knew that she and Matt were in big trouble. They were trapped with no way out. Cut off from the rest of their team. Doomed to stay in position and keep quiet.

"Don't move!" she mouthed to Matt, putting her index finger on her mouth to sign him to don't make a sound.

The rustling of dry leafs came closer and closer until dark figures emerged from the underwood, their erratic movements signing them as Clickers. Luckily, the creatures were making a lot of noise themselves, making it hard for them to pinpoint their prey's location. But soon, one of them would get lucky and stumble over them, if they would stay in position. But there was only one way out: down the slope.

Cautiously, Sarah tapped Matt onto the arm and signed him to follow her. Then, she began to slowly roll towards the edge until gravity began to take over and the velocity increased with every passing until she was spinning so fast that she had entirely lost control and orientation. The injuries she had received in Omaha were still tender and quickly began to hurt again upon the bumpy ride.

She hit a stone and immediately a sharp pain ran through her chest. She fell down a slap and all the air got pressed out of her lungs. This agonizing journey continued until she came to a rest at the bottom of the hill. Her entire body hurt, making her groan and squirm, and she had trouble to catch some air. Only after a minute she was able to catch her bearings and get on all fours. She knew that she had to use her chance to get up and the hell out of there before the other infected would close in on her.

She didn't know where Matt was. If he ended up close by or got stuck halfway down the slope. She simply didn't know. Meanwhile, the rain was picking up, drenching her entirely and reducing the sight to a minimum. Blindly and without much orientation she stumbled along the rusty fence of the complex, combat knife ready in her hand since using a pistol was pure suicide considering the amount of infected in the area.

She heard someone's movement beside her, coming out of the woods, and then the echolocating scream of a Clicker, which turned into a deafening screech as the creature had located her and called for the other infected.

Now she was in big trouble. In contrast to her, Runners and partially Stalkers, Clickers and Bloaters didn't need optical sight to find their prey. And according to the noise around her, she was pretty much attacked from all sides.

At least one Clicker was right behind her, a whole bunch probably not far away. A Stalker wanted to jump at her, yet only hit the rusty fence, producing even more noise, which drew even more infected towards her location.

They were hunting her. Hunting her down until she would be out of breath or gottenq captured. No, she needed some shelter. A place where she would be safe for the moment, catch some breath and think about a plan to get out of this messy situation. But the only buildings close by were the structures of the former company.

Cursing internally about this mess she was in, Sarah quickly made a decision and slipped through one of the numerous holes in the rusted fence, hoping that she wouldn't run into the arms of an infected.

Behind her, a bunch of creatures collided with the metal mash, distracting those who were about to attack her. And then she found a building. A small one. A trafostation to be exact. Her only chance since she was already very exhausted and didn't know how much longer she could outrun the infected.

So far, her luck hadn't run out and the metal door opened effortlessly. Once she slammed it shut, she was engulfed by pure darkness and realized pretty quickly that she wasn't alone in there. But before she could even react, she got caught by two strong arms.