Feeding Frenzy

Chapter 47

 Johnson led the group as they walked toward the stairs leading to the surface. The flashlight was in his hands, causing a beam of light in front of them. Fiona was behind him with Joey in her arms. Ford had his arm tight around Evey's waist. Her blood soaked through both of their clothes.

Evey sighed when she saw the stairwell. They were almost at the hospital. They were so close to the Cure.

Johnson stopped walking and turned off the light. A screech echoed through the tunnel. How many were waiting for them outside the subway? The hospital was across the street. Would they make it?

The sun was rising and provided a faint glow to the stairwell. They had spent all night in the tunnels. The pain of the slash through Evey's shoulder made her not realize the heaviness of fatigue in her bones. Was the rest of the group this tired?

Evey had lost a lot of blood, and her head was spinning. Her knees shook, and she slumped against Ford. He tightened his hold to stop her from collapsing on the ground. Her skin had gone pale, making her freckles more pronounced. She struggled to keep open her heavy eyes.

"Stay with me," Ford whispered into Evey's ear. "We are almost there."

She let out a deep breath and nodded. Forcing herself to walk forward, her body was trembling. Her shoulder had gone numb. A dull tingle was running through her body. How much damage did Gomez do?

Johnson turned off the flashlight as they walked up the stairs. Evey clung to Ford. Her knees were too weak to lift her feet off the ground and onto the steps. Fiona squinted as the bright rising sun shined. The warmth was like heaven compared to the damp tunnels.

Tall buildings and skyscrapers surrounded them. A large glass building with abandoned ambulances was across the street. Evey held her hand over her eyes as she looked up to see the hospital symbol.

They had made it. They had survived.

The base of the hospital had windows that were boarded. There were scratch marks from Infected people's fingernails deep in the wood. Were Infected able to get into the hospital?

Infected wandered the street. Groups of Infected were attacking each other. There was a cacophony of shrieks and screams. The wall of the subway stairs hid the group. The sun was rising, and the street was becoming brighter. They would no longer be able to hide in the dark.

"What do we do?" Fiona whispered.

Johnson let out a deep breath and ran his hand down his face. Evey's dizziness made it difficult to open her eyes. She listened to the distant sound of Infected screaming in the tunnel. They would all die if they hid in the tunnel until nighttime. So many people have died already. It was a blessing that they were somehow still alive.

"We have to get across the street," Johnson said quietly.

"How do we do that?" Fiona asked.

"Cameras," Ford said.

Evey forced her eyes open. Johnson looked over his shoulder and furrowed his brows. Ford pointed up at the hospital.

Security cameras were on the corner of the hospital. One was by the front door. The two sliding glass doors were barricaded. The camera moved from left to right like it was searching for something.

"It's looking for us," Evey said.

Her voice was weak and wobbly. Hearing herself speak scared her. How close to death was she? Would she make it to the hospital?

"Patio," Ford said.

Johnson squinted to look up at the patio wrapped around the hospital's fifth floor. Three men stood at the edge. They had sniper rifles in their hands. One pointed at the group hiding at the top of the subway stairs, and the other two aimed their guns. The one man pulled a radio out from his pocket and spoke into it.