Despite the refugees' frantic waving, all four emaciated bodies pressed on obliviously, as if they weren't even slightly aware of anyone's presence but their own.
The crowd parted, scrambling backwards, as the stage-threes hobbled toward the center of the square.
But they weren't moving toward any of the refugees at all. This became clear as the crowd moved even farther back from the square. All of the stage-threes, in a strange, oblivious choreography, descended onto the sacks of food that we'd stacked beyond the fire pit. They tore open a bag of potatoes with trembling fingers and began silently devouring the starchy vegetables raw.
They were starving.
They were so hungry that their desire to consume calories had completely over-ridden their desire to have sex.
As I backed away from the square, a shape stumbled from the shadows, and what could only have been yet another stage-three collapsed onto the ground with what sounded like a painful crack of bone against stone.
It was a man, and he'd fallen just at the edge of the lantern's glow. He moved to lift his shoulders, but he was too starving and weak to pull himself to his feet.
Instinctively, I reached down to help him up.
He was filthy, covered in dried mud, wearing heavily worn Home-Guard issue boots and a soiled black parka with stuffing trailing from the elbows.
A voice from the crowd, maybe Chris's, shouted at me to stand back.
I tentatively grabbed the man's shoulder, but I wasn't able to lift him. He slipped from my grasp and fell onto his back.
Then, in the lantern's dim white light, the man looked up at me.
He had a shock of dark, uncut hair and a ragged beard. His eyes were sunken, but as they met mine, I realized, suddenly, that I recognized them.
In a voice that was weak but clear, he whisperd, "Ashley . . . ?"
It was Ian.
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Please VOTE 🌟 before continuing! Thanks! ;) xxBailey
You've reached the end of Part 10: Bleeding Out
DEAD IN BED Continues with Part 11: Love Is In The Air...
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DEAD IN BED By Bailey Simms: The Complete Second Book
Mystery / ThrillerThe highly anticipated follow-up to the ⋕1 Wattpad hit DEAD IN BED is here. Bailey's and Ashley's sagas continue in the heart-wrenching finale to Adrian Birch's totally unique meta novel. ----------------------------------------------- Haven't r...
