Darwin ran as fast as he could , not taking a break to rest or think , he only just kept running . When he saw a turn , he took it and rammed straight into Liam .
" Aww fuck ! " Liam swore as his skull felt like it had been hit by a hammer , " what the heck ! "
" What are you doing here ? " Ross said looking at Darwin , who only looked behind him anxiously .
" Hey , nuts for brains , we asked you a question ... what , is that - a bite ? You're infected ! " Liam took out his Skillet and aimed it at Darwin .
" Hey , put that thing down . Don't you see he's taken medicine ? He's no longer infected . " Ross shouted at Liam , who still kept his gun up .
" I don't care . Something is wrong . Why is squad 19 here ? " Liam asked .
Darwin fell to his knees and shuddered with a sob , shocking both Liam and Ross . The man with shades , shook and sobbed softly as his heart broke . He started crying right infront of them and made the situation very uncomfortable .
" Put that fucking thing down . Look what you did !? " Ross said to Liam with a glare and Liam just looked confused .
" They're .... They're ... why ... , " Ross sobbed out a few words that made Ross curious .
" Hey , it's okay . I'm sorry that my teammate is such an idiot - "
" Hey ! I was - " Liam tried to defend himself but Ross carried on talking like he did not hear him .
" - and a fool . Tell us what happened . Why are you here and where's your team ? " Ross asked getting down and giving the distraught man a hug .
The only problem was that him hugging Darwin did not make the other men feel better . For Ross , it was a huge effort and he had to not try and think about ... things he rather forget .
Liam frowned as he saw Ross comforting the distraught and crying man . He didn't know that Ross was a hugger . How come he never saw him hug anyone before ?
As for Darwin , as soon as he heard the word teammates , his grip tightened and he held Ross as if for dear life . It was as if without him , he'd plummet back into the horror of what was happening below their feet .
Ross just held on to him and rubbed his back , letting the guy clear out all his tension and calm down . It took five minutes but at the end , Darwin was finally calm enough to talk .
" You feeling better now ? " Ross asked him with a forced smile .
" Yeah , thanks man . " Darwin said getting up .
" So , what happened and why the fuck are you here ? " Liam asked harshly .
" Hey don't be mean . " Ross said kindly .
" Don't be such a mother . Hugging him , I've never seen you give hugs before . " Liam shot back .
A shadow passed infront of Ross's eyes but he just turned away from Liam and towards Darwin . It was true that Ross did not hug people ... but he had his reasons .
" So , why are you here ? How did you get bit and where are your teammates ? " He asked .
" They're ... dead . " Darwin said looking down , " There was a zombie horde and it surrounded us . Justin helped me escape after giving me medicine , when I got bit . I didn't want to leave them , leave him but he told me run . He ... "
Darwin took a shuddering breath so as not to fall into a panic again .
" Zombie horde ? " Liam said looking behind them , " Shouldn't they have chased you up here ? "
" No , they didn't . Maybe she has something to do with it . " Darwin said as his hand tightened into a fist . He grew angry thinking about her , Death and what she'd done to them .
" She ? Who ? " Ross asked and Darwin told them everything .
.....
Liam gave him a massive right hook , when he was done telling them , and he landed on the floor . Ross did not rush to him , instead he stood next to Liam , just as livid . These bastards are the reason that there were more zombies than usual . It was true that Crossview hospital had zombies roaming through it , but not so many as to form a horde .
" I'm sorry , okay ? " Darwin said with an open palm , " It wasn't my idea . "
" You didn't even argue or stop it . " Ross said folding his arms .
" Will is not the type of guy who takes an objection . " Darwin said and Liam pointed his gun back at him .
" I really want to shoot you and so you should stop fucking wasting my time . " Liam snarled .
" Out time ... ," Ross whispered under his breath .
" I'm sorry . What do you want me to do ? " Darwin asked them , " I can't go down and fetch my captain to talk for himself . I'm the only one left of squad 19 . "
" Not for long if you don't start talking sense . " Liam said nudging him with the gun , " What happened to my cousin ? Why did the zombies not chase you ? Why do you act like a baby ? "
" Does that last sentence count as a question with sense ? " Ross asked him with a raised eye brow .
" It makes more sense than what he's saying . A zombie kid , a scary lad who says she's Death and my cousin taken by a zombie . " Liam gritted his teeth and shoved the barrel onto Darwin's throat , " Start talking . "
" I did , you just won't listen . I'm telling you what happened . What reason do I have to lie ? "
" You lured zombies here and tried to kill us , why would we trust you ? " Ross asked him .
" I... I ... forget it . " Darwin let his hands drop , " Shoot if you want. My captain and my teammate are dead . I should have been too . It's not fair ... I shouldn't have ran . "
" Don't think that just because you'll get all down that I won't shoot . " Liam said with narrowed eyes but Darwin just stood there waiting for him .
Slowly , Liam started to put pressure on the trigger .
" Stop . It's not worth it . We have other important things to do . " Ross said and Liam stopped , " We have to find the captain , Martin and Les . "
" But he's - " Darwin started speaking but Ross gave him a dead on glare . He may have comforted the guy but he was far from liking him .
" I heard what you said but you're from a team of killers . Believing you is not going to happen anytime soon . " Ross said and Liam put his Skillet down .
" Now what ? " He asked Ross , who was technically his senior .
" We'll go down , kill any zombies we encounter and try to reach the captain and Martin , then find Les ." Ross said to him .
" But what if , " Liam rubbed his neck , " they're not ... "
" Let's just go . We'll figure it out as soon as we reach downstairs . " Ross said with a frown . He didn't want to think about the captain or Martin being gone . Or worse , Lesley butchered by a zombie .
It couldn't happen , he thought and turned to Darwin .
" You're leading the way . " He said and Darwin looked at him as if he was insane .
" Back there ? " Darwin said with wide eyes , " You're asking me to go down there . No way , I - "
Ross grabbed him by the scruff of his collar and knocked him against the wall just like Liam had done to him . Except that Darwin was taller than him , but Ross's rage filled up for his height .
" Listen you little piece horse shit ! " Ross said , " I was not asking . I was telling . You think that after what you just said we'd trust you ? What if it's all a lie just to trap us ? You're leading us , now move ! "
Darwin shoved back into the hall and Ross frowned waiting for him to move . The brown haired guy just looked at the hallway in fear . He still remembered the chill of Death , the cruel eyes of fire of the zombie child and the zombies ... no , he'd die ... he'd die ... he'd die !
Darwin grabbed his forgotten Skillet from his shoulders and Liam moved his own gun ready to shoot him . But he didn't have to , because Darwin put the gun under his own chin and turned to them with eyes ,filled with the terror of what they'd seen .
" She'll kill us all . " He said and pulled the trigger .
" No ! " Ross shouted as Darwin's head burst like a smashed watermelon and his neck squirted like a fountain , splashing them in red . Then his body collapsed and blood streaked the dirty floor . Brain and look painted the roof and a few meters away , a piece of Darwin's tongue .
" Shit , shit , shit ! " Liam said looking down at the corpse . Why did he do that ? Although Liam had pointed the gun at him , he had no intention to shoot .
" He couldn't escape . " Ross said and Liam gave him a questioning look .
" He said that the woman ghost or Death , said that all three of them were fated to die . " Ross said looking at the body .
" But he escaped . He ran away . " Liam said and Ross looked at him meaningfuly .
" No . He didn't . " Ross said turning to the body , " He ran way from the zombies . But he couldn't run from death . "
Above their heads a small green light shined , dimmed and flickered , before fading away and disappearing .