The van sat exactly where I’d left it. There was movement in the distance, but not too close.
At least not yet.
We had a little time, but not much.
When I got back to the room, they looked much worse than they had when I left.
Lucas was upright—barely—leaning against the wall, breathing hard, eyes open but unfocused. No sign of the filmy grey that covered the infected’s eyes.
Adrian was down, lying flat on his back. No movement whatsoever.
“Of course, this wouldn’t be easy,” I muttered.
I crossed to Lucas first, grabbed his shirt, and hauled him forward. His skin was burning up, but his breathing was steady.
“You still with me?” I slapped both of his cheeks.
“…fuck…yeah.”
“You’re walking, or you stay here,” I said with no sympathy.
I had neither the time nor the desire to coddle these boys. If they couldn’t handle this, then maybe they weren’t the right ones to help me protect Taryn.
He grunted.
Good enough.
I shoved his arm over my shoulder, propping him up against the wall.
Kneeling, I pressed two fingers to Adrian’s neck. His pulse was fast but still there. I hooked my hands under his arms and dragged him up. He was dead weight and no help whatsoever.
I hauled Adrian backward first, boots scraping across tile, then shifted and heaved him up just enough to get his weight over my shoulder.
It wasn’t easy, but I got it done.
“Move,” I snapped at Lucas.
He stumbled forward, nearly dropped, then caught himself on the counter.
“Are you going to make it?” I didn’t think I’d have time to come back for him if he couldn’t make it out on his own.
Another grunt.
I kept going, Adrian’s weight getting heavier with every second that passed. I wasn’t as young as I used to be.
The back hall stretched on for what seemed like forever.
Finally, we reached the doors, and I slid through with Lucas right behind me.
I saw it before it saw us.
“Don’t stop,” I muttered to Lucas.
I lowered Adrian enough to reach my knife just as the infected turned toward me. I stepped in, driving the sharp point through his eye, dropping him before he could take a step.
Lucas stumbled, hitting the side of the van, and two infected barreled from around the corner a few seconds later.
“Get in,” I snapped.
