𝙒𝙖𝙧𝙢 𝘽𝙤𝙙𝙞𝙚𝙨

Chapter Forty

Jennie

There's a stitch on my side but I can't stop running. Beside me Y/N is sprinting, moving with more grace than I've ever seen her.

My heart is aching for her and I wish there was some way I could comfort her. I know that seeing Roo killed was painful for her - it was obvious from the beginning that the two were close. But worst of all was hearing Y/N's agonised shout as Roo died.

Mom.

Roo was her mom. I don't know whether she means her creator or her actual birth mother, but either way it's clear that the loss is hard on her. And yet here she is, charging on, fighting to keep me safe in the way she always has been since the very beginning.

I pivot to fire over my shoulder again and as I do my ankle turns underneath me. I yelp as I fall over backwards, the air rushing out of me when my back strikes the concrete and my head bouncing off the ground.

"Jennie!" Y/N shouts and I can hear her boots scraping across the ground as she skids to a stop a few yards ahead of me.

I can't focus on her though, because one of the Boneys is looming over me.

Trying to steady my swirling vision, I aim my gun and fire. The bullet blasts through the Boney's shoulder with a crunch and it snarls as it bears down on me.

A clawed hand closes around my wrist and twists the nose of the gun away. Its breath is acrid on my face as the Boney leans in and sniffs. I whimper as I try to force the Boney away but it's stronger than me and as much as I try to fight it off, it gets closer.

The Boney suddenly flies sideways and my face is spattered with dark gore. Y/N is standing over me, a fire extinguisher in her hands as she growls angrily at the crumpled Boney.

Y/N steps forward and bashes the Boney twice more in the head before tossing aside the extinguisher.

"You - okay?" she asks, her expression immediately softening from fierce Corpse to gentle human as she turns to me.

"Yeah, I'm okay," I say, rubbing my face to wipe away the Boney sludge.

Y/N holds out her hands and I let her pull me up, and her hands on my shoulders steady me as my ankle twinges.

I look around and see the second Boney in a heap, its head twisted around at an unnatural angle. As I try to get my bearings Y/N is checking me over for injuries, her expression tense and concerned.

"I'm okay, honest," I assure her with a small smile.

"Good," Y/N said and she brushes her fingertips against my cheek gingerly. I smile at the tender motion but we don't get a moment to catch our breath.

A screech from down the corridor makes us both jump and we spot the handful of Boneys drawn in by the noise of the fighting.

Without preamble, Y/N grabs my hand and drags me behind her as she starts running again.

My ankle is killing me but I keep pace with Y/N, never letting go of her hand. It's the one thing keeping me going, the comforting coolness of her palm against mine.

The winding concrete pathways start to blur as she dodges through them trying to lose our followers. We've rounded so many corners I have no idea which direction we're heading anymore.

I can barely breathe by the time we have climbed another sloping walkway and the Boneys are directly on our heels.

Y/N bolts toward a steel door on our left and throws it open, tugging me through after her. We immediately stop short when we realise that a low ledge in front of us is the only thing separating us from open air. It's a small circular balcony protruding from the side of the building.

"Dead end," I pant. Both of us turn to head back the way we came but the doorway is surrounded by Boneys.

My heart drops into my stomach as the reality hits me. Dead end is an oddly accurate description. "We're trapped."

"No," Y/N said firmly. She steps up onto the low cement ledge and then takes my arm, pulling me up with her.

Her gaze meets mine, determined and intense, as she holds my upper arms to help me keep my balance as the morning wind whips around us. "Keep you safe."

Then before I can process exactly what is happening, Y/N wraps her arms around me and pulls me tight against her body. In one swift move she twists and tips backward, sending us plummeting over the edge of the balcony into the open air.