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“How long..” Maddie paused, like she was searching for the right words. “How long should it take? I mean, at what point should I..”
She trailed off, and Saff realized what she was trying to ask. At what point should she consider her dead and leave on her own.
Saff paused for a moment, turning her head to the side. “An hour.”
Then she pulled the door open and slipped out into the dark lobby. She heard the faint click of the lock turning into place as she carefully scanned the large area. A soft grayish blue lightstreamed in through the glass door, which meant it must have been in the early hours of the morning.
She continued through, shining her flashlight on the floor to avoid any scattered objects. When she got close enough to the front glass windows, she paused, craning her neck to peer outside.
Right away, she spotted one zombie ambling down the sidewalk across the street. She watched him slowly move farther away, rounding a corner down the alley. Her eyes skipped back up the street, hunting for any sign of movement. She watched for about a minute until she was confident they’d mostly cleared out.
Then she moved to the front door and gently pulled it open, trying to avoid making any noise. A rush of crisp morning air blew against her face. The fresh, cold air gave soothing relief to the headache, and she inhaled a deep breath. Even here in the city, the morning air smelled sweet and damp. It smelled—calm.
She took one more deep breath and let her muscles relax a fraction. Then, a slight movement in the distance caught her eye, and the calm was gone just as quickly as it had come. Her brain instantly refocused.
She strode down the street, taking quick but light steps, scanning the surrounding area. To her surprise, there didn't appear to be any other zombies making their way through. Maybe they’d waited in the bathroom long enough to let them all pass. Or maybe, she thought morbidly, they heard some other commotion in the city and went to eat them instead.
Either way, it was a win.
She reached the end of the block and spotted the front of the hotel. She always hated this part of the city: huge skyscrapers aligning the streets. It made her feel trapped, like a snake in a tall glass tank.
Down the street in front of her, items littered the street.
Her eyes drifted between them before they finally landed on the target. She glanced around one last time before darting out into the street to the backpack.
The top main zipper was fully open, and some of her supplies had toppled out beside it. She quickly scooped them up, pushing them inside the top of the bag.
Farther ahead, still sitting where they’d laid them all out, were the weapons she had on her when she was ambushed. She jogged toward them and instantly regretted it when her head pounded with each step.
She slowed and crouched down, grabbing the array of guns, knives, and the single grenade.
Then she went back and stuffed them messily into her bag. She picked up and swung the bag onto her shoulder, cringing as pain shot through her torso.
A rifle rested on the ground a few feet away, but hers was nowhere to be found.
Perhaps one of the others in the group had taken it. She glanced much farther down the street to where she’d seen them go to fight off the approaching horde. For a split second, she considered going down there to check, but then thought better of it. The risk wasn't worth it. Spending even one extra second out in the open could be costly.
She walked over and picked up the other rifle sitting on the ground, quickly checking to make sure it had ammunition. It wasn't as good as hers, but it would do the job.
Saff put the strap over her shoulder, and a trickle of wetness slid down her hip as she stretched.
So much for not re-opening the wound.
The walk back was slower with the added weight, but she still made it there quicker than expected. If the day continued that way, she might even make it to the location of the bunker by nightfall. Hopefully, that would be the case.
When she finally re-entered the building and reached the bathroom door, she gave a small knock. And before she could knock a second time, the lock clicked open, followed by the door.
Maddie stood there, waiting, and even in the dim light, Saff could see relief wash over her face.
"That was quick," she whispered as Saff strode past her into the bathroom. "Did you get everything?"
Saff hummed in response, setting the backpack down on the floor.
"How was it out there? Were there any infected people?"
"Some," Saff replied, carefully pulling her shirt fabric up over the wound on her side. A slow stream of fresh blood dripped down over her tan skin.
She reached over and opened one of the side pockets of her backpack, pulling out a large gauze bandage along with some rubbing alcohol and tape. It wasn't perfect, but it would have to do.