A Road Paved in Fear
The sun was now high in the sky, its brightness scattering the lingering shadows. The trucks rumbled along the cracked and overgrown road, their drivers tense as the weight of their decision settled over them. The group was heading back—to the spot where Lara had been attacked and left behind.
Elias sat silently in the lead truck, his knuckles tight on the steering wheel, his gray eyes locked forward with a burning determination. Behind him, the rest of the group was quiet, the only sounds the occasional hum of the engine and the crunch of tires against gravel.
Lyn, seated beside Elias, broke the silence. "Let me come with you," she said, her voice barely above a whisper.
"No," Elias replied curtly, his tone brooking no argument.
"But—"
"I said no," he interrupted, his voice sharper. He glanced at her briefly, his eyes softening for a moment. "This isn't your fight, Lyn. Stay with the others."
Lyn's shoulders sagged, and she turned her gaze out the window. "She would have come for you," she murmured, but Elias didn't respond.
In the second truck, Margot leaned back in her seat, her jaw tight as she stared out at the passing ruins. Jack was driving, his hands gripping the wheel as he glanced at her.
"This is a bad idea," Margot muttered, breaking the silence.
Jack sighed. "You've already made that clear."
Margot sat up straighter, her frustration evident. "Turning back is stupid. We're putting everyone else at risk for one person—one person who's probably already dead."
"Then why did you agree to come?" Jack asked, his tone calm but pointed.
Margot didn't answer. She crossed her arms, her gaze hardening as she stared out at the forest.
In the back of the same truck, Roman sat hunched over, his face pale and glistening with sweat. His hands fidgeted with the straps of his backpack, his breathing uneven.
"You're awfully quiet back there," Margot remarked, glancing over her shoulder.
Roman looked up at her, his eyes wide and filled with something Margot recognized immediately—fear.
"When we find her," Margot continued, her voice steady, "maybe you can stop shaking like a leaf."
Roman didn't respond. Instead, he tightened his grip on his backpack and muttered under his breath, "You should've left me there."
Margot frowned. "What did you just say?"
Roman raised his voice slightly, his words trembling. "I said, you should've left me back there. On that road. Dying out here would've been better than this."
Margot turned fully in her seat, her expression sharp. "What the hell are you talking about?"
Roman swallowed hard, his voice breaking as he spoke. "You don't know what you're walking into, do you? Sujay Psychiatry Hospital…" His words trailed off as he shivered, his entire body trembling.
"Yes, that's where we're going," Margot said bluntly. "Why?"
Roman's eyes widened further, and he shook his head violently. "No. No, no, no… I can't go there. I won't. Let me out!"
Margot leaned over the seat, grabbing his arm to stop him from fumbling with the door handle. "Hey! Calm down. What's your problem?"
Roman's voice cracked as he began to sob, his hands shaking uncontrollably. "You don't understand. I've been there. I've seen what's inside. The people there—they're not dead. Not alive, either. They're something else. Something… wrong."
Margot's grip on his arm tightened. "What are you talking about? Start making sense, Roman."
Roman pulled away, his breath coming in short, shallow gasps. "They're still there," he whispered, his eyes darting toward the forest. "The patients. The ones they used in their experiments. They're still in that hospital, Margot. They never left."
Margot's face tightened, but she didn't interrupt.
"They were human once," Roman continued, his voice trembling. "Just like us. But the City… it took them. Twisted them. Turned them into something else."
Jack glanced in the rearview mirror, his brows furrowing. "What kind of 'something else' are we talking about?"
Roman's voice dropped to a whisper, his words choked with emotion. "Abominations. They look human, but they're not. They move like us, talk like us—but their eyes… their eyes are empty. Like dolls. And their skin…" He shuddered, his hands gripping his backpack tightly. "It's cold. So cold it burns to touch."
Margot's voice softened slightly, though her expression remained firm. "You've been there? To Sujay?"
Roman nodded, his tears falling freely now. "We thought we could find answers. My group—we were just like you. Searching for the truth, hoping to end this nightmare. But the hospital…" He trailed off, his voice breaking.
"What happened?" Jack pressed.
Roman inhaled sharply, his voice trembling. "The patients came for us. We thought they were survivors, like us, but they weren't. They spoke to us, lured us in… and then they attacked. They tore through my group like animals. I only got out because they didn't see me crawl into an air vent. I hid there for hours, listening to them scream."
The truck fell into silence, Roman's sobs the only sound.
Margot leaned back, her expression hardening once more. "Sacrifices are inevitable, Roman. You think we don't know the risks? If we're going to end this, we need to face what's inside that hospital. Whatever it is."
Roman looked at her, his eyes wide with desperation. "You don't get it. There's no 'facing' them, Margot. There's no beating them. The City didn't create monsters—it created something worse. And once you step inside that hospital, you don't come out."
Roman grabbed his backpack and moved toward the door again, his hands trembling. "Let me out. I'd rather die out here, on this road, than walk back into that place."
Margot reached for him, her grip firm. "You're not going anywhere. You want to die? Fine. But you're not leaving until you tell us everything you know about what's inside."
Roman froze, his breathing ragged as he stared at her. His lips quivered as he whispered, "You don't want to know."
Ahead of them, Elias stopped his truck abruptly, cutting the engine. The others followed suit, their vehicles grinding to a halt on the cracked road.
Margot turned back to Roman, her voice sharp. "We're here. Start talking, or you're going inside with us."
Roman slumped back into his seat, his face pale as death. "You're making a mistake," he whispered.
As the group prepared to continue, the shadows around them seemed to stir, a chilling reminder that the City was always watching.