Another came at Shay, holding his gun with both hands. It took only a few moments to process- her eyes widened and she ducked just as two bullets buried themselves in the wooden bar behind her, the gunshots echoing throughout the bar.
`With that, chaos erupted. People began to stream towards the exits, pushing and shoving to get out. One person was shoved into the cop preparing to shoot Carson, knocking his weapon out of his hands. Carson took advantage of this and lunged at him, grabbing him by the collar and slamming him against the wall. He released the officer as he began to cough, not striking him once. There was no point.
She snaked her around her back and snatched the gun, whipping it back around to point it at the officer. He eyed it for a few seconds before she snapped it forwards, slamming it against his nose. As he recoiled from the shock she twisted and knocked the gun out of his hands.
She felt hands on her waist as he grabbed at her, trying to pull her towards him in an attempt to restrain her. She smashed the butt of the gun against his fingers, cringing at the crack that followed. Behind her, he released a cry of pain.
"Shay!"
She whipped her head to the side to see Marena struggling to push two officers aside that were blocking the exit, the others crowded behind her. She stepped away from the bar, careful not to walk on the body of the unconscious officer, almost gagging at the reek of his blood in the air. The bar had since emptied out- it was just them and the cops now.
She broke into a run and barreled into one of the officers, knocking him into the wall. He fired his gun once, but was unable to get his arms up. The bullet went straight into the floor; although just shy of her foot. Startled, she jumped backwards, blood roaring in her ears. This officer had already been infected somehow- she didn't have that to her advantage this time. Calculating her possible moves, she clocked him once in the jaw, just hard enough to daze him. He tripped over his own feet and fell to the floor, gun flying out of his hands.
She turned, realizing she'd provided the needed distraction for the others to escape. Everyone except Axel, that was. He was still standing there, frozen, his facial expression identical to how he had looked after infecting the woman.
She rushed forwards, grabbing his wrist and tugging. He didn't move.
"Axel, come on!" She ordered him, keeping her eyes fixated on the officer behind him. He was holding his gun with quaking hands, his finger hovering over the trigger. The wild look in her eyes made it clear he was going to do it. "We need to leave this place now!"
"Who are you, Shay?" He spat, the coldness in his words stunning her. "I didn't believe it. I didn't think you and the others could really be those killers the media chalked you up to be… But it looks like; it looks like I was wrong."
"Goddammit, just come on! He's going to shoot you and then I'd have to kill him, and nobody died here tonight. I want to keep it that way." She commanded, her voice stern and urgent.
The officer fired the bullet flying so close to them she could feel the air rush after it. That seemed to snap some sense into Axel- his eyes widened and he snapped his head around and back before darting out the doors, leaving Shay alone in the bar. She looked around hastily, knowing she needed to book it out of there quickly. All the officers were recovering, and advancing on her. The other was preparing to shoot again.
So she turned, shot the one with the gun in the foot, and hightailed it out of there. The others weren't waiting for her- she could see them down the road, running as fast as they could to safety. She didn't hesitate to follow, feet pounding over the asphalt, adrenaline still coursing through her bloodstream.
Chapter 21
It took maybe three minutes for the sirens to start wailing behind her. Shay twisted her head around to see red and blue flashing out of the parking lot and swerving onto the road, following her and the others. Carson and Marena had stopped with the others up ahead, waiting for her and Axel smack in the middle of a bridge. She increased her pace, hoping to get to the bridge before the cops got to her.
It took another thirty seconds, but she closed the distance- however, so were the officers. She turned to look at the oncoming troopers then back to the Carriers a few times, trying to figure out a way to escape quickly. After checkout at the motel that morning they'd parked the truck in an empty campsite back in the woods- they could follow the river upstream and get there, but it would take too long. They needed cover, or a much quicker escape route.
She rushed over to the edge of the bridge, peeking over the side. The river was slow, brown water unmoving on the surface. The distance from the top of the bridge to the water wasn't much, nine, ten feet possibly, and she knew the water was deep enough. They'd have to jump. If they could all do it in time, they might stand a chance.
"Guys, we gotta jump!" She shouted, turning to face the rest of them. The confused, even disgusted glances she got in return were anything but desirable.
"Are you serious?" Carson asked as he walked up beside her, taking one look over the side before turning to stare at her, eyebrows raised.
"It's not that high and we're running out of time, come on! Just trust me!"
The sirens were growing louder, and more were wailing in the distance. Great, they radioed backup. As she eyed the rapidly advancing troopers Katrina climbed up onto the railing, grinning widely.
"Sometimes I'm not sure if you're a genius or batshit crazy, Shay." She smirked before pinching her fingers over her nostrils and jumping, screaming with excitement on the way down. Her splash was heard moments later. Owen went next, loyally following his girlfriend over the edge.
Two police troopers reached the edge of the bridge. They slammed on their breaks and the vehicles swerved, stopping almost immediately. Upon their arrival Kyleigh flung herself over the edge, screaming until she hit the water. With her gone five remained besides herself- Marena, Carson, Axel, Laylia and Jaycee. Three of the six of them had guns, and three out of three had them aimed at the officers that exited the vehicles. She counted four, presumably the ones who'd sustained lighter injuries back at the bar.
"Drop your weapons!" One shouted. She turned her head, looking at Marena first, then Carson. Both of them dipped their heads, telling her they wouldn't stand down.
"Laylia, Jaycee, jump, now!" She ordered them through gritted teeth. Out of the other three they were the ones in the most danger if shit hit the fan- neither of them were fast or had ever handled a gun. She pondered telling Axel to follow them down, but in case one of the others fell he'd be needed. He knew how to shoot.
"Not until I see if they made it to the other side! It's way too quiet down there!" Laylia hissed back. "I'm not going to jump to my possible death just because Miss Alpha ordered me too."
Whirling around on her heels, Shay aimed her gun directly at Laylia's head, focusing in on the patch of skin right between her narrowed eyes. She could feel her nostrils flaring and could sense the animalistic look that was plastered on her face, yet she found she didn't care. Now certainly wasn't the time for the petty mockery. We're right in the middle of a standoff and she has the nerve to call me that!
"You want me to shoot you, put one right between your eyes? That way I'd eliminate the very small possibility of you dying from a nine foot fall!" The anger dripping from her words even surprised her. Throughout this entire ordeal, she'd managed to relatively keep her cool. There'd been a few times when her and Marena had been in some screaming matches, but she'd never felt so infuriated, especially directed at one being alone.
"Oh please, your aim isn't that accura-" Laylia began, the self-assured smirk angering her even more.
"Jesus Christ, don't provoke her Laylia!" Jaycee stepped in, her eyes flickering from her close friend to their very pissed off leader. "We know what she's capable of. We saw it. Those agents said words almost as bitter as yours."
"I don't care Jaycee, Shay can go shove her capability up her ass. I'm checking." She seethed back, even going as far as shoving the almond-haired girl out of the way. The look
of hurt that followed was heart wrenching.
"Jaycee, jump. Leave her." Marena told her, taking a few steps towards her.
Jaycee turned towards Laylia, who had almost made it to the middle of the bridge. She opened her mouth to say something, but the shouting of one of the officers silenced her.
"Do not move! Stay where you are or we will shoot you!" One commanded. Laylia froze in her tracks for a few moments, head cocked to the side. Her circular face was illuminated clearly by the headlights, the terror so obvious. She had no idea how to save herself.
Laylia turned her head the other way to look at them, as if asking what to do. She swallowed hard- she didn't know what to do. All four officers had their guns pointed at Laylia- if they shot at them she'd be dead before she had a chance to run. She may not feel fondly towards her, but all these people were under her watch and she wasn't letting one die.
Don't do it, don't do it, don't- her silent pleas went unanswered as Laylia took three quick steps towards the rest of the group. They fired once, but the bullet seemed to have a wide berth from her- it was a warning shot.
"Freeze! That was a warning! Move again and we will shoot you!" Another officer shouted. She heard Marena inhale sharply beside her and Carson and Axel exchange hushed words. The tension was crackling in the air; everyone could feel it- and they all knew it was going to break soon.
"Don't move!" Jaycee cried as she tried to rush forwards, but Marena and Shay blocked her path.
"You don't want to do that. She got herself into the situation; let her get herself out of it." Marena instructed coolly, looking to her counterpart in a way of asking what to do next. She shook her head. If it was Marena out there and someone tried to block her path from saving her, she'd punch them right in the face, and she knew the situation could be reversed and the outcome would still be the same. She doubted Jaycee had the nerve to punch either of them, but once the desperation kicked in anything was possible.
For a moment she believed they'd quelled her spirits, as she backed up, but instead of remaining there she burst forward, slamming into both the girls and breaking through them. Even though she'd never been associated with the word athletic, the small girl could cover the distance fast. She grabbed hold of her friend's arm and tugged hard, but she didn't budge.
For some reason Laylia was now rooted to the spot, a deer in headlights. Jaycee was tugging and pleading, her voice full of concern and desperation, yet her cries were falling upon deaf ears.
"Come on!" She cried, yanking as hard as she could. Laylia stumbled a little to the right, but didn't move any more. Her expression was blank, the wind whipping her dark hair in every which direction. Besides her, Shay felt Marena tense up, as if she was preparing to spring into action.
"Don't," she whispered quietly as she rested her hand on her shoulder, telling her to stand down. Marena's muscles relaxed instantly.
"Laylia, please!" Jaycee begged, trying to pull even harder. Seeing the desperation and fear on the girl's heart shaped face was painful to watch. She'd had the wrong idea of her all along- she wasn't like Laylia, cold, seething and spiteful, but a genuinely nice girl, just quiet and misunderstood. She wanted to step in, yet her predispositions towards Laylia stopped her. She'd be risking her life for someone she was tempted to shoot not five minutes before. Her logic would become questionable at best.
A loud, earsplitting noise ripped through the night. Confused she looked to the sky, expecting to see dark, boiling clouds, but she was met with the twinkling of stars. The noise registered seconds later. Eyes going wide, she whipped her head back in time to see Jaycee stumble backwards, hands over her lower abdomen.
The light gray material around her hands was drenched in blood. The thick liquid was bubbling between her fingers and rushing down her hands in rivulets. She felt her breath hitch in her throat as Laylia released a strangled cry. Illuminated in the beams of headlights, the expression of stunned agony was etched into Jaycee's face. Her lips were parted, eyes round and hazy with pain. A little dribble of blood slipped from the corner of her lip. She removed her hands from the wound and held them out, her legs seeming to buckle upon seeing all the blood. Her palms were painted crimson.
It happened too fast- another gunshot. Jaycee's head snapped back and blood and thicker matter splattered the asphalt behind her, some even landing on Laylia. She instantly screamed as the thin girl's body fell backwards, striking the pavement with an audible smack. Her head bounced a few times on impact.
"Oh my… Oh my God." Was all she managed to choke out. They shot her in the head. They shot Jaycee in the head. Nobody survived that. She'd failed. She'd failed her mission to keep everyone alive. She knew it immediately after her body struck the pavement.
Chapter 22
Nobody moved an inch. Time seemed to slow and then falter as Laylia fell to her knees, hands covering her mouth. Her almond-shaped eyes were wide with horror. For the first time since Shay could remember she saw something besides disdain and spite present on the girl's face- her features were a mask of grief and shock, mouth agape, eyes round as eggs. She could see more of the damage done to Jaycee than the others could, which was presumably mortifying. She just sat there, staring at her friend's body, unmoving.
Back on the right side of the bridge, all was silent. She watched on as a numb feeling crept through her body, her lips parted and eyes wide. It had taken a few moments for the shock to properly sink in, but when it did it hit hard. One of them was actually dead. They'd been getting confident- they'd made it this far with no casualties. Oh, how wrong they'd been to get cocky.
It was then Laylia started screaming something so raw and filled with grief it sounded more animal than human. She was shaking Jaycee's body lightly, even though everyone could tell it was no use- there was a growing pool of blood around her limp body and Laylia was covered with it as well. It didn't stop her from trying- she'd just lost her best friend, her one companion in the group, and it was her fault. She could see it in the creases in her face as she cried and the undertones of her sobs that she knew she was responsible.
"Those bastards." Marena spat softly. She nodded limply in agreement. She could feel her hand clenching tightly around her gun, the shock gradually being replaced by something much darker.
Turning around, she saw the expressions mirrored in the rest of the group. Axel looked as if he wasn't even there. His stare was blank, visage empty. Carson was slumped up against the railing, a blank expression on his face. His hand was holding his weapon in a death grip, almost as if he expected them to turn and shoot at him.
"Why… Why did they shoot Jaycee? She didn't even have a weapon!" Axel stammered.
"She was moving when they told her not to." Marena said back numbly.
"Well then why didn't they shoot Laylia?"
"She wasn't moving."
Axel shut up instantly and Marena turned her back to him, muttering something under her breath she couldn't hear. She snaked her finger down to the trigger, pondering if she should take aim and open fire on the cops or not. In she'd had her m-16 on her it would have been a lot easier, but all she had was the 9 mm.
Laylia had stopped shaking Jaycee's body. She pulled her hands away, the headlights making the blood on her hands and the tears on her freckled cheeks glisten. She drifted her gaze over to the cops, who were standing behind open doors of their vehicles. One was reloading his weapon, ready to shoot again.
"Marena, Carson!" She cried, immediately getting both of their attentions.
"What?" He snapped nervously.
"That bastard's reloading. If we don't do something, he'll kill Laylia too."
"But why would you car-"
"Because nobody else here is dying, I'm making damn sure of that!" She shot back, gripping her gun and springing to her feet. "Except," she began, pointing her weapon towards the officer responsible for ending Jaycee's life. "Him. Incapacitate the others, or at least make it so they can't harm us."
Marena mimicked her actions, ru
shing off a split second before she did. The girls had the element of surprise, only it might not last long. They'd have to strike quickly.
Before she had time to wonder where Carson was, he and Axel came rushing past them, each charging an officer on either side. It felt odd that Axel, who'd seemed disgusted by her actions back at the bar, was launching himself into battle, but until now Carson had been rather reserved as well- they'd killed one of their own. It couldn't be allowed to slide.
The two boys split up, each slamming into an officer on either side of one of the troopers. Axel seemed rather reserved, as his punches were sparse and aimed more to wind, not damage. Carson on the other hand had wrestled his opponent against the metal of the car, smashing his face against it repeatedly. After several times of this he dropped the officer, letting his limp body slip to the concrete.
Shay had forgotten she'd been standing right in open air, directly in the line of fire in the case one decided to use their gun. She heard the gun fire, but had little time before a bullet rushed directly between the space between the curve of her neck and rise of her broad shoulders, the wind that followed the bullet blasting her skin. Holy shit, way too close there.
Adrenaline coursing through her she rushed to the nearest source of cover, which ended up being the other police vehicle. Axel had the officer he'd been fighting pinned and was currently struggling to secure him with handcuffs. She ducked down beside him, blindly firing over the hood of the car a few times.
"You won't hit anyone that way," Axel muttered, digging his elbow into the cop's back as he twisted and swung at his jaw. His knuckles scraped across his face, just the edge of what was undoubtedly a powerful punch. "Hey, do you want me to taze you, asshole?"
Peeking around the grill of the car, she caught the tail end of a fight between Marena against one of the cops. He aimed a blow at her, yet she was prepared, ducking down and in turn lunging for his exposed stomach, striking him right in the gut. As she doubled over, notably winded, she took the butt of her handgun and slammed it against his face. The officer's figure crumpled instantly.
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