The World We Live In | 𝚃. 𝙾𝚃𝚃𝙾 ♤

Chapter 23

The moon was high, casting a pale light over the barren landscape. The air was dry, and the smell of dust filled the nostrils. Cooper clenched his crossbow while he led the way. The rest of the medium-sized group followed him, and Troy was close to his side. Cristine walked a few paces behind them near Blake and Nick, their rifles with silencers in hand. "Stay low, quiet, and follow my lead," Coop instructed, his voice a whisper. The group moved cautiously, their steps light and deliberate. Cooper led them toward where the boar tracks were spotted earlier. They navigated through the thick brush, each step carefully calculated to avoid making noise.

Once they reached the clearing, Coop motioned for them to stop. He knelt and examined the ground, tracing the tracks with his fingers. He pointed towards a distant spot and signaled for the group to move closer. Troy's breath quickened, and his eyes darted their surroundings warily. Cooper cast him a glance, noting his tension, but he didn't let it distract him. "Now, we wait," Coop whispered, eyes scanning the area. The group hunkered down in silence, waiting for the sounders to appear.

Time passed slowly, and the group grew increasingly restless. Cristine shifted her weight from one foot to the other, and Troy's fingers twitched on his rifle. But Cooper remained stoic, his focus unbroken. Finally, the sound of rustling in the bushes broke the silence. Cooper raised his hand to signal for them to stay put. They watched as a group of sounders emerged from the brush; a female and her young.

Cooper's eyes gleamed with excitement as he studied the group. "We hit the jackpot." He gave quick, precise instructions to the others, outlining the plan of attack. Troy and Blake took positions on either side of the hog family, while Cristine, Nick, and a few stayed back to provide cover if any infected appeared. Cooper locked on the mother. The group moved in silence. Their motions were choreographed like a dance, and the attack caught the hogs off guard. Cooper had fired his crossbow. The mother squealed before she went down with a thump, and her young scattered in all directions.

Troy and Blake sprang into action, taking down two young with expert precision. They fired off a few more rounds to subdue the small animals. The pitched squeals pierced the air, but their deaths were quick and clean. In a matter of minutes, it was over. Cristine and Nick performed a sweep to ensure the noise didn't draw infected. Troy released an excited laugh. His eyes were wide with adrenaline. "That was good work," he said, looking around at the others. "Good job, ladies," he said, clapping Cooper on the shoulder.

The group set up camp for the night after their successful hunt. They'd return home tomorrow morning, but for now, they relished in the aroma of two roasting baby hogs and the warm campfire filling the air. Cristine helped Blake strap the mother hog and three more young on the tarp in the back of the truck's cargo bed.

"We'll eat well," Cristine said.

"Yeah," Blake agreed before double-checking their spoils were fastened and sitting on the truck's front panel.

Cristine joined him and looked at the others. Cooper was preparing their dinner with Nick, and the two seemed to be in a heated discussion. Some feet away, Troy addressed the others members, likely about the guard shifts for the night. Cristine smiled and looked at Blake, and the look on her face faltered by her friend's focus on someone. She followed his line of sight and remarked, "Troy put you guys through the wringer, huh?"

Blake flashed Cristine a tired and familiar exhausted smile. He rubbed his brow and shrugged. "Just one of those days," he said, sighing heavily.

"Was he being a pain in the ass again?" Cristine asked in a more light-hearted tone.

Blake looked at her, a pained expression on his face. "Troy and Nick," he said, shaking his head. "They're hard to keep up with lately. Cleaning the infected with them is something else."