Ephraim instinctively rolled to the side, narrowly avoiding the attack. His quick reflexes saved his life! Nora and Jim, horrified, rushed to help, but the lightning-fast tendrils kept sliding towards them, making it impossible to get close!
Bang! A heavy thud echoed as the mutated David collapsed to the ground, struck by a fire extinguisher that fell with a loud crash.
Ephraim, face filled with residual fear, rushed forward and grabbed the fire extinguisher, smashing it repeatedly on David's head. The sound of violent impacts mixed with beast-like roars.
Under the terrified gazes of Nora and Jim, David's head cracked open, and he lost all signs of life.
Ephraim, pale and breathing heavily, stared at his fallen friend, his expression dark with disbelief.
Meanwhile, in a sunny courtyard...
"Dad!"
A young black boy's cheerful voice echoed as he ran towards a haggard-looking man.
The man's movements were stiff as he slowly embraced the boy.
His wife quickly joined in, hugging him from behind, creating a scene of joyful reunion.
But unseen by the boy and woman, a thin, pale membrane blinked rapidly over the man's eyes, adding an eerie touch to his appearance.
Gurgle!
A low, beast-like swallowing sound echoed. The boy looked curiously at his father.
"Dad, was that you swallowing?"
Pulling away from his father's embrace, the boy's gaze filled with fear as he looked at his haggard, vacant-eyed father.
The blonde woman, sensing something was wrong, quickly pulled her son to her side.
"Highland, what's wrong?"
She asked worriedly, noticing her husband's intense stare.
After a moment's hesitation, the man spoke in a hoarse voice, struggling to look away from his wife and son.
"I... don't feel well."
Hearing his words, the woman sighed in relief. She had almost not recognized her husband.
She quickly led him inside, her hands holding his unusually cold ones.
"Your hands are so cold!"
She rushed to the kitchen to boil water, hoping to warm his hands.
As the kettle hummed, a sound of something falling came from the living room. Frowning, she turned to look.
"Highland, what's wrong?"
Through the kitchen's glass door, she saw a scene that made her freeze.
Her son's legs were visible outside the coffee table, shaking uncontrollably, while her husband crouched over him, doing something unknown.
"Highland?"
The puzzled woman rushed out of the kitchen, and the sight before her made her collapse in fear.
A thick, arm-sized tendril extended from her husband's mouth, embedded in her son's neck. The tendril pulsed as it sucked blood from the boy into her husband's mouth.
He was drinking their son's blood!
"Ah!"
A scream filled the house as the woman desperately pushed her husband away. But the next moment, the tendril retracted into his mouth and shot out again, biting her neck.
"Ugh... cough, cough!"
Paralyzed by the tendril's unknown properties, the woman trembled but couldn't resist.
The sunny courtyard fell silent once more.
At New York Central Hospital, Ephraim placed David's body on the autopsy table, his face pale as he looked at his old friend.
"Fuck! Fuck!"
Jim cursed repeatedly, looking almost mad with frustration.
Nora, meanwhile, stood by, tears streaming down her face, unsure of what to do.
Taking a deep breath, Ephraim picked up a scalpel. He needed to perform an autopsy on David immediately. The tendril that emerged had shattered his understanding of medicine. David was no longer human! As he dissected the body, white blood flowed out, and everyone present looked horrified. Ephraim, his expression grim, donned gloves and began examining the non-human organs.
"Fuck..."
The scene before him defied over twenty years of medical knowledge. All the organs had undergone some unknown transformation, especially the still-beating heart, writhing with worms under the bright autopsy light.
"What... what have I done!"
Behind him, Jim collapsed to the floor in anguish, his face filled with regret.
"Jim?" Nora asked, puzzled.
"I'm sorry, it's my fault. I didn't know what was in that coffin. I didn't understand why Stoneheart Group wanted to release those mutated people!"
Jim, almost incoherent, explained everything about Stoneheart Group's orders to transport the coffin and release the revived individuals, under Ephraim's furious gaze.
Bang! With a furious punch, Ephraim knocked Jim to the ground.
"I'm sorry, Ephraim!" Jim's face was full of remorse.
"You bastard!"
Ephraim grabbed Jim by the collar, ready to punch him again, but Nora quickly intervened, pulling him back.
"Now is not the time for blame. We need to deal with the immediate issue and stop the spread of the disease!"
Nora shouted urgently.
"Fuck!"
Ephraim's face contorted with frustration.
At that moment, the isolation room door burst open, and several SWAT officers in black stormed in.
The lead officer glanced at David's body on the table, then glared at Ephraim.
"Mr. Goodweather, why did you kill Dr. David?"
Without waiting for an explanation, the officers pinned Ephraim down, ignoring his protests.
As Nora and Jim watched in disbelief, Ephraim was taken away.
"It's Stoneheart Group. They've taken control of the police!"
Jim, deeply familiar with Stoneheart Group, looked devastated, filled with regret.
"Damn those heartless businessmen and politicians!"
Nora's face was pale, overwhelmed by the series of sudden events. Her mind was a whirlwind of confusion until a memory surfaced—the old man they met outside the mine.
His warnings echoed in her mind, seemingly predicting the current situation.
Determined, Nora grabbed Jim's hand. They needed to find that old man and understand what was happening.
(End of Chapter)