This was better, right? She would fall asleep and before she’d know it they would be on her and she’d be dead. Of course, she hoped she’d die in her sleep before that happened.
No matter how he tried to rest his thoughts, to know that Quinta was out there, alone and in danger, consumed Dane's body. This kept him awake for much of the night even though Leon and Addie had fallen asleep hours before. Little did Dane know was that Addie was about the same as him and she just pretended to sleep. All she could do was silently cry and weep on her own for both her brother and her new sister. That alone kept Dane up. Eventually, a few hours before the sunrise, Dane exhausted himself and passed out.
The next morning Dane didn't wake until the sun filtered through the cracks of the wood boards and fell across his eyes. Flinching, a few moments passed that he was blissfully unaware of what happened the previous night. Within seconds, though, every moment of the previous day jumped back into his thoughts and he jolted up. Getting to his feet quickly, he glanced around the warehouse before he checked on the bathroom with sense of false hope.
She hadn't come back. Better yet, she didn’t make it.
Leon stood just out of sight and shook his head, he too had risen early just to keep an eye and ear out in the hopes of Quinta's return. Dane was fired up and determined at this point. He had hours last night to make his decision and no one was going to stand in his way.
Leon took a step back as Dane approached him swiftly with his finger pointed in his face, “I can't do this alone, you're coming with me.” Dane stated.
Leon lifted his brow slightly before they tucked together.
Sliding his slate eyes away from Dane, he stared over at Addie before he huffed a breath from his nose, “That's suicide. I'm not going and neither is Addie.” He answered.
Dane narrowed his eyes as it became rather clear that his anger had boiled over, “Excuse me?” He questioned as he closed in on Leon.
Leon tried to clarify before he was met with Dane's fist again, “You're not going either. You've still got time, Dane, if you don't over exert yourself you can make it. I know it hurts but just because Quinta went to hand her life over to them doesn't mean that I'm going to let the two of you run off and kill yourselves going after her.” He said.
Dane face was hardly five inches away from Leon's as he stared in Leon's eyes, “Who says she's dead? What if she's alive right now?” He asked through gritted teeth.
Leon's expression hardened while he became mechanically and systematically cold. Dane was having trouble accepting the fact that Quinta was a lost cause and he could not let this man put them in danger. Even though Leon understood the immense pain Dane held within himself, Leon couldn't lose all of them.
“It'd be a sacrifice for the better of us.” Leon stated.
Dane had to use all his restraint not to spit in Leon's face where he stood.
Clearly, he was upset by that notion and he stormed away to grab his things, “And all the times that Quinta has had our backs. How she helped us survive and did her part to help ALL of us. Signed up for this fucking job for the riches and benefits that YOU pushed us towards? That means nothing? We're just going to leave her behind before we make sure that she's even alive? You and your troop of assholes can rot in fucking hell.” Dane ranted.
Taking a bit of noise to wake her from her deep sleep, Addie released a gasp before her head snapped back. Dane gave Addie a look, one that dripped of his stubborn intentions when he made up his mind on something.
Staring at her for a long moment, he could feel himself lying but as of now he had no care, “I’ll see you at the chopper.” He said in a lackluster tone.
Dane knew for himself that staying or leaving made no difference, he was going to die but he wasn't about to be a coward and let his woman perish without a fight. Especially when she had every chance in the world to carry on. Removing the barricade, Leon appeared behind Dane and in a heated state of being told off, let down by the ones he looked up to, and overwhelmed with his own emotion.
Leon gave Dane an ultimatum.
“If you leave Dane, don't bother coming back for pick up. You won't make it and if you do find her, you might as well crawl into a nice, deep hole and die somewhere together. It'd suit the both of you for the foolish mistakes you have made.” Leon snapped.
Ignoring Leon’s voice, Dane slammed the door shut behind him without another word. A zombie wandered out around the area and set its clouded sights onto Dane. Stumbling over, this thing made a weak attempt to attack only to receive a nailed bash to the jaw. Dane's bat ruptured its jaw with such force that his head ripped half off at the neck. Its body tumbled across the asphalt as Dane stepped past it before he took off in a run across the streets. Hot-tailing it, he wasted no time to return towards the largest building in the area; the hospital.
Standing in its midst, Dane saw a building that induced nightmares worse than most horror movies before the fall. Adding the eerie air of the place there was a far off rippling and continuous sound of an alarm ringing. Stepping into the entrance that Quinta had made for herself, Dane took account for the lack of zombie presence in the lobby. He took a moment to gauge his surroundings before he took off towards the alarm while following the signs towards the pharmacy just as she did. There were many times he'd thought of making this trip in anxiety filled moments but now it wasn't the pills he was after. Nor was it the pills that he needed.
It was her.
Taking the same turns and halls as she did, he turned down the hallway to find a tight crowd of zombies. They all struggled, clawed, and fought one another for the source of the alarm right beneath the red light and the pharmacy sign. With common sense, Dane could figure out what she'd done and just where she was. Feeling a shadow of hope, Dane ducked around the corner and slid his bag from his shoulders. On his knees he rummaged through the main compartment before he pulled out a Molotov and a lighter.
They were attracted to heat and vital signs this he knew. Flicking the lighter with his thumb, he lit the end of the cloth that hung from within and stood. His guns hung from his sides and his bat in one hand, he stepped out into view and threw the cocktail. Soaring through the air, it crashed in the middle of the crowd. The fluid in the bottle splattered on them and ignited the hall in a quick fire. This excited the ones that didn't fall with the initial explosion. Once the flames died down enough for him to move, Dane wiped his brow with his wrist, geared up, and rushed over to bludgeon the group.
The fire spread throughout the crowd which illuminated Quinta's slumped form beyond the window of the pharmacy. Suddenly, another alarm rang out like a rattling bell and set the sprinklers off. The water sprayed fire that had engulfed the corridor, snuffed out the flames, and soaked Dane in the process. Using the curtain of heavy smoke, Dane held his breath and smacked his way through the weak ones first. A sudden, sharp pain punctured through Dane's left arm, this caused him to grunt out and stagger back with the sudden weight. Unable to reach around him with the bat, he grabbed at the pistol that hung from his waist, and tilted his head away before he shoved the barrel on its forehead with a shot. The hold that constricted him loosened and dead weight caused him to fall to the ground. Grasping out, he crawled beneath the smoke and felt strong hands grab at him and pull at his clothes. His coat left with them while his hands deftly felt around and finally gripped onto his bat.
Getting to his feet with shaken legs, Dane's hands trembled and in his rushed panic he started to swing. His bat cut the air and the smoke which broke into skulls and sent rotten brain matter flying across the walls, his body, and his face. Once again there was a sudden weight on his back with teeth bearing down onto his shoulder. A sharp cry escaped him before his fist swung back and collided with its face. Breaking its nose and ocular bone, the thing stumbled back onto its ass before it scrambled to stand up again. Dane pushed himself to the limit to annihilate each one until nothing in the hallway moved.
The floor was littered in mess, grime, and the silh
ouettes of scattered bodies. Dane's forearm and both shoulders throbbed and bled through the gashes from the bites down his wrist and back. His expression was hollow from exhaustion but he found the strength to push his body against the door and move the Coke machine out of the way. His ears rung from the constant alarms now and his eyes had grown accustomed to the dark. Even then it was difficult to see within this room for his vision had begun to slightly blur. Dane propped the door open to allow whatever light could to filter into this hell.
In the lights wake he saw the outline of a single person laying on the floor. His heart fell into his stomach as he knelt by her side in his weakness. His elbow propped against his knee while he stared down at her. He had given and fought all he had and despite this he still felt regret for not aiding her sooner. His hand fell onto her smooth arm, still warm to the touch, before he rolled her over. He wanted to at least see her once more. When she fell onto her back he could see the peace on her features.
She was beautiful.
Reaching out cautiously, Dane hadn't thought through on touching her and he couldn't imagine that she was sleeping through all the noise. He had simply assumed that Leon was right. She was dead. In his muddled sense of darkness, the constant blaring sounds, and sudden loss, he shook with a weakened, pained cry.
With her back turned towards the commotion, Quinta didn’t know what was going on nor was she conscious to tell them apart. In all honesty, all the gurgles and moans had blended together in the background. She didn’t have any thought of what time it was and even as she slept she could feel the tightening in her stomach. This told her that the dead had left and she was now alone.
The sounds of the door being “attacked” again caused her ears to twitch. Her mind tried to clear itself of sleep which was relentless to let up. Her eyes rolled from side to side behind their lids as she could feel something touching her, moving her…they had found her. SO SOON?! Adrenaline pumped through her body which then caused her eyes to snap open, widened with fear as her sight was still blurred. The stench of the things body told her that this was the end.
A shriek escaped her mouth before she began to ram her fist against Dane's hands and slapped her fingers up and down along his arms and shoulders. Her legs kicked repeatedly against him before she sat up quickly and her bashed her forehead against his chin.
Within a change of events Dane found himself assaulted by her. At first a part of his memory lapsed and he believed that she had turned into one them. Her actions and her screams semi confirmed that he traveled all this way just to be killed by the one he intended to save.
Great.
The hard, dull pain through the underside of his face caused him to flinch and not much else. He expected to feel her teeth next and he would let her because he was too weak to defend himself. Yet, nothing came.
Quinta crawled away from him and into the corner as quickly as she could and felt a high lift through her body as she prepared for her last breath. Only, he didn't attack her. There was no gurgle or even a murmur and when she calmed down a bit she took notice that he was different. In the dark until the red light flickered on, she finally saw that it was Dane.
Quinta's stomach dropped and her heart pounded against her chest, “DANE?!” she called out to him in her surprise. Flipping onto her knees, she crawled across the blood-stained floor and sat on her feet before she cupped both of her hands around his chin, “Wut yuh doin 'ere!” She exclaimed tearfully.
Dane glanced up at her through his bangs. The sound of his name in her sweet tone enraptured him. She was closer than ever before. With her small hands on his face and body, that was the best feeling in the world in that moment. She pulled away all too soon and still Dane rested there and did not move. Not worried about herself for a second, Quinta could see the blood seep from his shoulders and forearm. Touching along them for a moment, she wiped his blood on her pants before she realized that there was not a zombie in sight, at least not near them. He had come all this way and risked his life just to save hers.
Her stomach felt sick while she looked over him, “We 'ave ta get yuh out of 'ere...” she whispered.
Quinta took the time to push herself to her feet and return into the small room that teemed with pills. She now took everything from the shelves and stuffed them into her bag. She was filled with newfound determination to get him home and pay for whatever he'd need to survive. In a rush, she knew the time was ticking now. The fact that sunlight broke though the smoke screen from a window across the hall, all she could think about was the helicopter.
Time was not on their side.
As Quinta busied herself in the other room, Dane said the first thing that came to his mind, “I came here to get you. We have a flight to catch.”
Stooping down, their hope of survival rested on her shoulders. She took a strong hold of his arm and pulled him to his feet. He placed quite a bit of his weight on her at first with a bit of a stagger. His legs weren't injured, the bites were just what they were, and he was a fit man who had been through tight situations before. But, these last three days were taking their toll on him. Something within him was not right. His vision tunneled and blurred around the edges.
Quinta stared into his face for a long moment with her hand pressed to his cheek, “Yuh okay to walk on yuh own?” She questioned quietly.
Dane stared down at her and swallowed every word he wanted to say. All he wanted to do was scold and vent at her in his frustration. He nodded his head in a delayed response before he took one step from her and then another. Losing his bearings, he stumbled back against the wall and shut his eyes to regain himself. His Adams apple shifted with a swallow while he cleared his throat. He'd been off the pills since late last afternoon. Normally, a day or two would have to pass before he’d began to feel the side effects without them. But with the bites and over exertion surely accelerated his state of weakness.
Quinta took note of all that was direly wrong with him. The bite marks and the lack of medicine became quite clear that he was on borrowed time. Dane had wasted the last of his healthy hours just to save her and that weighed heavy in her heart.
Pushing himself from the wall, he dipped down for a moment and pulled his coat out from the clutches of one that stole ripped it from him. Dane pulled the coat on to cover his wounds while his vision brought itself into focus. Even though this boost in energy was temporary, he insisted to carry on for her sake. As he stopped in the hallway for his items, Quinta fumbled with her backpack to try and find a double dose for him.
Looking to her face, he took a hold of her hand, and led her back the way he came towards the entrance. Their boots trudged through the putrid mess they left in its wake all before they stepped back into the light and out of the place that almost took their lives. Quinta's eyes involuntarily shut while the bright sun hit against their faces. The air was fresh compared to the walls behind them.
Dane inhaled a deep breath before he looked to her once again. There was in urge to say at least this from deep within his core. This showed that he was angry and that he cared a damn lot about the one he spoke to.
“Don't you ever. Do that again.” He said seriously.
Quinta nodded her head while she struggled to look at him, “I promise.” She answered to him affirmatively.
Turning his head up towards the sky, Dane didn't like the position of the sun one bit. Far too close and right above them he gauged the time around 11:00 through 11:30 AM. The hold he had on her hand tightened as Dane pushed himself to his limits and broke into a run. Letting her go once they were up to speed, he noticed halfway there that she had begun to pass him, and grown to be faster than him the longer they went.
The landing pad for the helicopter was on the roof of the warehouse and they could hear the chopper blades whirring in the distance. So close yet so far. A sudden, sharp pain pierced Dane through the chest and caused him to grab at his jacket. He couldn't give up now, they were right there, he could hear the freedom, he had a chance.
> “Keep going, keep going...” Dane wheezed out to Quinta through labored breaths.
Bursting through the doors of the warehouse, Quinta already saw that Leon and Addie had made their way to the rooftop and there was no way to tell how long they'd been there. Dane dragged behind especially once they were inside. She knew that it was only a matter of time before the sounds of the blades over them would draw out the infected. Tipping over a few workbenches, Quinta rushed after Dane who had already started up the spiral staircase.
She huffed up the steps and pushed her aching muscles to pass him while she whispered to him, “Don't yuh quit on me Dane. We've made it dis far. Come on!”
Quinta would glance back down at him every so often with the sounds of the helicopter growing closer and closer.
Addie chewed down on her bottom lip as pilot of the copter turned his face back to her, “Look, we've got to get you guys back! We can't wait any longer!” He said back to her.
Addie's puffy, red eyes stared at the door with hope that her brother and Quinta would come through like they always did. She knew they weren't coming back and yet she still held on.
The World We Once Knew Page 33