Two Worlds, Book 2

Heartfelt | Chalice | Midnight | Day 70

The forest pressed in around them, the rain hammering down in sheets, drowning out their ragged breaths but amplifying the guttural shrieks behind them. The mud sucked at their boots as they sprinted, the infected crashing through the underbrush in pursuit.

"Don't look back! Keep moving!" Alan's voice cut through the storm, sharp and urgent.

Kyle led the charge, shotgun raised. A deafening blast—an infected crumpled mid-lunge, but more surged forward. Ms. Martinez and Andy stumbled through the sludge, breathless and wild-eyed. Sharon and Kara ran just behind them, their soaked clothes clinging to their skin.

"They're gaining!" Sharon shouted, snapping her rifle up. A single shot—one fell, but the others barely slowed.

Kara's foot slipped. The ground rushed up, knocking the air from her lungs.

"I—" She gasped, panic flashing across her face.

Sharon was there in an instant, yanking her up with a bruising grip. "No time! Move!"

Lightning streaked across the sky, briefly illuminating their salvation—a dark, hulking building through the thinning trees. The windows were empty voids, but to them, it was hope.

"There it is!" Kyle shouted. Another shot, another body dropped. The next infected tripped over the corpse, buying them precious seconds. "Run!"

The trees broke into an open clearing—too much space, too much ground to cover. Their feet pounded against the mud, the infected right behind them.

Alan spun mid-stride, shouldering his rifle. A breath. A crack. The lead infected's head snapped back, its body folding like a ragdoll.

It wasn't enough.

"Go!" Alan barked, slinging the rifle over his shoulder as he tore after them.

Heartfelt | Chalice | Daria's Camp

Kyle reached the door first, slamming his shoulder into it. The wood groaned but held. "Inside! Move!" he barked, waving the others through.

Ms. Martinez and Andy stumbled in, dripping wet and gasping. Kara and Sharon followed, gripping their weapons like lifelines. Alan was last, leaping through just as an infected lunged—its fingers grazed his jacket before Kyle threw his weight against the door, sealing it shut.

The first impact hit like a wrecking ball. The door shuddered.

"Help me block this!" Kyle gritted out, bracing against another hit.

Andy scrambled for a nearby table, Kara right behind him. Together, they shoved it against the door just as another violent slam rattled the hinges. The snarls outside grew frenzied, clawed hands slamming against the door.

Alan turned, chest heaving. "Anyone see Ethan, Mia, or Daria?"

Kara, still catching her breath. "They should be halfway back home now."

A sudden crash splintered the air.

Glass shattered behind them.

The group whipped around as an infected tumbled through the broken window, its body twisted and feral. A guttural shriek tore from its throat as it lunged.

Kara flinched.

Kyle reacted first. A shotgun blast thundered through the room, the infected's head snapping back in a spray of gore. Its body collapsed in a heap, twitching.

"Shit," Kyle breathed, racking another shell.

Alan didn't hesitate. "We're not staying here. Upstairs, now!"