The infected woman staggered and turned.
“Get ready,” Owen said, his jaw tight. “Don’t take your eyes off it for a second.”
My stomach tensed, my eye flicking to Sadie. The breeze flipped her ponytail out behind her, and she hung back, nodding at Ellie.
“I’ve got it.” Without a moment's hesitation, Ellie swung her mace and took out the woman’s knee. I flinched at the sickening crunch, then her leg crumpled, and she hit the court hard enough for her head to bounce off the surface.
“Yes,“ Willow said beside me. “She got it.”
“Not yet,” I said.
A human wouldn’t survive a head knock that severe, but it wasn’t enough. The decaying woman tried rising to her elbow, her eyes set on Ellie. These fucking things were relentless.
Breathing hard, Sadie stood over the body and lifted the axe, grunting as she brought the weapon down on the woman’s skull.
The body collapsed on the ground and went still.
Owen was already rounding up the man in pyjamas when shuffling registered behind me. My fingers flexed on the sword handle, and I spun around, my eyes locking on four of the dead heading our way.
Shit.
We’d made too much noise.
“Theo!” The fear in Sadie’s voice spurred me into action.
A check on the others confirmed Owen had just ended pyjama guy.
With both infected down and a secure fence surrounding the tennis court, it was the safest place for Willow to be. “Run to the gate,” I said. “Get inside and lock it.”
Willow looked from me to her mother, then her gaze slid to the infected closing in on us. Her eyes widened. “Mum.”
“Now.” Laura gave her a gentle shove. “Go.”
Needing no further encouragement, Willow shot off down the front fence line, slipping on the gravel as she rounded the corner. Once she was safe inside the court, I faced the latest threat with Laura.
The sun had almost risen now, blanketing the street in burnt orange and red.
The frontrunner was a woman in head-to-toe activewear, with a young guy in motorbike gear minus the helmet bringing up the rear. In between were two male hospital patients, still dressed in gowns, bare feet drenched with blood.
My stomach twisted at the sight. “You’re sticking around,” I said to Laura, more statement than question.
“Yep.” She lifted her maul. “I don’t mind admitting I’m shit scared, but we all need the practice.”
“Wait for us!” Sadie yelled.
Footsteps thudded from behind me, but I kept my eyes directed straight ahead. A knot formed as I mentally prepped for the fight. We still had enough time to run before the dead reached us, but Laura was right. We needed the experience.
Ellie joined us first, with Sadie and Owen right behind her, their faces flushed from the cold and exertion.
“Five of us, four of them,” Owen said. “We can do this."
Laura positioned herself on the other side of Ellie, checking the tennis court again to make sure Willow had stayed put.
Sadie moved in beside me, her shoulder brushing mine.
“How did that feel?” I asked as we tracked their progress.
“Better than I thought it would.” She stared at the dead, her gaze jumping from one to the other. “I looked into that woman’s eyes before I took the head strike,” she said. “They’re gone—these people are really gone.” Damp hair had stuck to her temples, and her chest heaved. “As soon as I realised that, it was easier. It feels like mercy now, not murder.”
