shots into the hallway.
“Hurry!” he said as soon as he was finished. “Keep going!”
He ushered Stacy, then Celia, ahead of him. Celia ran past, sparing the slightest look into the hallway as she did. Without stopping to count, she saw at least half a dozen bodies — one, lying face up, had blood smeared across her face and a bullet wound in the forehead. She couldn’t make out anything about the others, nor could she tell which ones her father had been responsible for.
She continued past the doorway, which Andy slammed shut as he followed. With her head turned, Celia didn’t see that Stacy had stopped, and ran into her on the stairs. Only the banister Stacy was holding kept her from falling down to the tenth-floor landing.
Celia started to ask Stacy why she had stopped, but a look ahead revealed the answer — the landing, and more specifically the stairwell that continued below, was already crowded. Frozen, she stared down at the landing, where a group of human forms knelt over a body. Between the gnawing heads, she saw a bright pink top that was now stained with blood. Lower, she saw what looked like a broken heel on her feet. Celia shook her head, realizing the girl from the classroom must have tripped again.
“Z’s are moving down,” Andy said. “They always do.”
At her father’s words, Celia snapped out of her trance and leaned over the railing, looking downstairs. Every few feet, she saw a repeat of the scene on the landing — zombies were eating away at a variety of bodies, young and old alike.
“Mr. Ehrens?” Stacy said, breathless. “Mr. Ehrens, what do we do?”
Andy, too, cast a look over the railing and down the stairs. At a quick look, he counted at least twenty-five zombies over the next two or three flights, and that wasn’t counting bodies that looked dead but Andy knew could rise at any second. He thought about Stacy, who seemed proficient with her weapon but not exactly emotionally stable, and Celia, whom he had taught to shoot but hadn’t armed, and realized that even if she did have a weapon, he didn’t know if he could trust her stability, either.
“We can’t go down these stairs,” he said finally. “We’d never get through.” He looked for his alternatives, and realized that — being on the tenth floor — they were adjacent to the walkways that connected them to the boys’ and parents’ dorms. “There,” he said, pointing to the walkway to the left. “Parents’ dorm!”
He forged ahead of the girls, shooting the two zombies that were working on the improperly dressed girl below him. He herded the girls into the stairwell, then closed the door behind them just before a group of zombies came at them.
The girls had stopped ahead of him, waiting for the door to close. His clip emptied, Andy reloaded his weapon and looked at the two of them.
“Let’s go,” he said.
Chapter 9: Sit and Wait to Die
In his sickly, weakened state, Lambert couldn’t get the door closed. A group of zombies forced their way in, and the first one latched onto his hand and bit down hard. Another followed behind, trying to get to his leg. Two others — Madison recognized one as a guard by his uniform, though she didn’t know the man by name — crossed the room toward her. At the same time, she was making her way to the desk. To her gun.
The zombies, though, were just a bit faster. The first crashed into Madison just as she reached the gun. She shoved it away as the other one lunged at her. Madison grabbed the weapon just as the zombie grabbed her leg. She fired a shot into each of the zombies’ heads, but not before the zombie managed a nip to her right ankle.
It was lucky Madison had fired the moment she had. Another second, and the pain from the bite would have blinded her to anything else, including the gun in her hand. Almost as soon as the Z’s teeth hit her skin, Madison would have sworn her ankle was on fire, and the leg it was attached to was about to ignite. Hot
“Hurry!” he said as soon as he was finished. “Keep going!”
He ushered Stacy, then Celia, ahead of him. Celia ran past, sparing the slightest look into the hallway as she did. Without stopping to count, she saw at least half a dozen bodies — one, lying face up, had blood smeared across her face and a bullet wound in the forehead. She couldn’t make out anything about the others, nor could she tell which ones her father had been responsible for.
She continued past the doorway, which Andy slammed shut as he followed. With her head turned, Celia didn’t see that Stacy had stopped, and ran into her on the stairs. Only the banister Stacy was holding kept her from falling down to the tenth-floor landing.
Celia started to ask Stacy why she had stopped, but a look ahead revealed the answer — the landing, and more specifically the stairwell that continued below, was already crowded. Frozen, she stared down at the landing, where a group of human forms knelt over a body. Between the gnawing heads, she saw a bright pink top that was now stained with blood. Lower, she saw what looked like a broken heel on her feet. Celia shook her head, realizing the girl from the classroom must have tripped again.
“Z’s are moving down,” Andy said. “They always do.”
At her father’s words, Celia snapped out of her trance and leaned over the railing, looking downstairs. Every few feet, she saw a repeat of the scene on the landing — zombies were eating away at a variety of bodies, young and old alike.
“Mr. Ehrens?” Stacy said, breathless. “Mr. Ehrens, what do we do?”
Andy, too, cast a look over the railing and down the stairs. At a quick look, he counted at least twenty-five zombies over the next two or three flights, and that wasn’t counting bodies that looked dead but Andy knew could rise at any second. He thought about Stacy, who seemed proficient with her weapon but not exactly emotionally stable, and Celia, whom he had taught to shoot but hadn’t armed, and realized that even if she did have a weapon, he didn’t know if he could trust her stability, either.
“We can’t go down these stairs,” he said finally. “We’d never get through.” He looked for his alternatives, and realized that — being on the tenth floor — they were adjacent to the walkways that connected them to the boys’ and parents’ dorms. “There,” he said, pointing to the walkway to the left. “Parents’ dorm!”
He forged ahead of the girls, shooting the two zombies that were working on the improperly dressed girl below him. He herded the girls into the stairwell, then closed the door behind them just before a group of zombies came at them.
The girls had stopped ahead of him, waiting for the door to close. His clip emptied, Andy reloaded his weapon and looked at the two of them.
“Let’s go,” he said.
Chapter 9: Sit and Wait to Die
In his sickly, weakened state, Lambert couldn’t get the door closed. A group of zombies forced their way in, and the first one latched onto his hand and bit down hard. Another followed behind, trying to get to his leg. Two others — Madison recognized one as a guard by his uniform, though she didn’t know the man by name — crossed the room toward her. At the same time, she was making her way to the desk. To her gun.
The zombies, though, were just a bit faster. The first crashed into Madison just as she reached the gun. She shoved it away as the other one lunged at her. Madison grabbed the weapon just as the zombie grabbed her leg. She fired a shot into each of the zombies’ heads, but not before the zombie managed a nip to her right ankle.
It was lucky Madison had fired the moment she had. Another second, and the pain from the bite would have blinded her to anything else, including the gun in her hand. Almost as soon as the Z’s teeth hit her skin, Madison would have sworn her ankle was on fire, and the leg it was attached to was about to ignite. Hot
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