Hidden (Book 3 of the Immune Series)

Surrounded

Sakir

A chilling scream cuts through the tightrope stretched between the infected and I
me. The female seems to be snapped out of her trance, and she lunges at me.

I jab at her with my stick, and luckily, it sinks into the soft skin of her shoulder. I twist the weapon, and she screeches in pain. The sound rivals the scream behind me with ferocious volume and glass-splintering pitch.

While I push forwards, away from the screams behind me, I dig through my memory for everything I know about the infected. They weren't a common sight inside Compound 2, and I never worked near the wall. I remember the shrill sound of the alarm and the stupid drills where we would run and hide in the bunkers. Yet, I've never seen one in real life. Just pictures.

I could recognize one anywhere, though, from the pale skin littered with purple veins to the decomposing eyes and festering open wounds. No living thing looks so horrific.

The infected are basically invincible. You can't kill something that's already dead. Stabbing her won't put her down; it will just tick her off. I either need to burn her alive or shoot her through the head. Neither of those are a valid option at this moment.

"Sakir!"

I jump at the sound of Mya screaming for me.

The infected wraps her hands around my stick and jerks it out of my hands while I'm distracted. She then rips it out of her shoulder and throws it back at me. I jump back, and it lands at my feet with a splash in a pile of blood.

What is Mya screaming about?

Does she know I'm down here? Is she trying to distract the infected? Because it's not helping. I can see the anger flashing through the woman's eyes. If anything, it's just making her madder.

Then, I remember something that drives me back towards Mya and her screaming.

The infected travel in pairs.

She's fighting one off, too. Judging by the desperation in her voice, she's losing bad.

The woman lunges at me again, and I dodge to the left. My shoes slip in a pile of blood, and I fall onto my side. She descends upon me, going right for the throat. I plant my hands into her face, but my fingers sink into the open wounds of her face.

Pushing her away proves pointless, because the skin just gives in more and more until I feel the cold of her cheekbone against my fingertips.

Her worn down teeth press into my neck and send my mind into overdrive. They can't break through my skin, but they can bruise me up pretty badly.

I feel with one hand for something to fight her off with and push at her face with the other. My feet thrash under us, slipping on the wet ground. I come in contact with a rock and wrap my hand around it. The smooth surface is harder to grip than I hope, but I clench it tight in my palm.

I slam the rock into her skull over and over until she backs away from me. Her blood washes over me and blends with the motley assortment of fluids of the ground. She roars in pain, clutching her head as I rise to my feet.

I have to get back to Mya.

She needs me.

I glance back at the tunnel I came through and begin to edge backwards towards it. Turning my back on the woman wouldn't be smart. I reach down and pick up my stick as I walk, listening to the woman wheeze from where she has slinked into the shadows.

Did I really just scare an infected into hiding?

A flutter of pride crosses through my chest. I knew I was big, but scary? The thought never crossed my mind. I turn on my heel and begin to plan how to climb out of the tunnel. The drop that deposited me in this hole isn't deep, but it requires me to pull myself out.