Night Disease

Chapter 8 EDITED

Mr. Jones rushes towards the commotion at the news of people. As the crowd surges out the door, I veer off the path, edging my way to the fence. With my fingers interlaced in the mesh, I pull myself up and over, landing on a car's hood.

Stealthily, I traverse the cars to reach the gate's forefront, taking cover beside a vehicle and peering through its window at the people outside. Five suburban cars are parked on the road, flanked by four large trucks. Approximately 40 individuals roam in clusters, examining the painted inscriptions on the stores.

The group is comprised of various ages, from teenagers to adults in their thirties, with a handful of children mingled within. They are armed with spears akin to those we fashioned in our first week; some have large hunting knives fastened to their belts. They move cautiously, sticking near the trucks while a group of zombies, previously positioned in front of the stores, inches closer to them.

They eye the weird fence we erected; all of them conceal themselves while observing the group emerge from behind it. Mr. Jones peeks out, waving to the onlookers. The group's hearts flutter as he appears. Mr. Jones then cups his hands and calls out to the group. "Are you alright over there?"

They flinch, edging closer to their cars. A woman cups her hands, shouting in response "Not great, could you help us? Our cars are nearly out of gas, and we have children with us."

Mr. Jones pauses to think, and as Jim appears beside him, they engage in a brief discussion. Turning back to the group, Mr. Jones shouts, "If you mean no harm and have no ill intentions you may come in."

"We promise you we mean no harm," the woman shouts.

Mr. Jones gestures frantically, "Then come in quickly!" He signals to the people at the gates, who have been awaiting his cue to open them.

The group hurries, seizing their belongings, and the children are scooped up as they dash, swiftly covering the half-mile distance. The gate swings open, allowing the breathless individuals to enter safely. Jim leaps from the watchtower, meeting with the people below. "Was anyone bitten or injured in any way? Was any blood ingested?" He asks skipping right to the point.

The woman comes to the front shaking her head "No one was bitten or injured. Thank you for letting us in."

Jim nods "For safety, we'll have the medical team examine you. Kaitlyn, please escort them to the medical room." Kaitlyn nods running over to lead them away.

The woman stays by Jim's side watching as the people follow Kaitlyn inside. "You have a lot of people here, and the setup is...interesting. How long have you been here?"

Mr. Jones joins the two on the ground "He has been here from the beginning; we joined them a week later," Mr. Jones states. "Did you retrieve everything from the trucks?" he asks.

The woman shakes her head. "No, we were in too much of a rush; anything we couldn't carry we left inside the cars."

Mr. Jones nods waving for Neil to go over. "Could you retrieve the items they've left behind? After that, you may proceed with your raid."

Neil nods. "Sure," he says, turning around and cupping his hands before taking a deep breath. "MY TEAM, GRAB THE PEOPLE'S THINGS AND THEN HEAD OUT FOR THE RAID!" he bellows.

Covering my ears, I sigh and climb to the top of the car, waving to Neil. "Sure thing, boss, just don't shout so loud next time," I call out before jumping off the truck to the ground and dashing towards the five cars on the road. The rest of my team swiftly follows suit.

The ten of us swiftly unload the vehicles until they're empty. After four trips, all five Suburban's and trucks are unloaded. The women observe as we efficiently complete the task in 15 minutes, having led the zombies away without any issues. Her eyes widen as the final member of our team sets down the last bag, panting from the effort. "Children going out without worry, what about the zombies that were there," she breaths watching us catch our breaths.