Pain shot through Ayla's arm as the teeth sank in. She reacted without thinking. Her elbow drove back into the creature's face with all the force she could manage. There was a sickening crunch as its nose shattered. The grip on her arm loosened just enough for her to twist free.
Kade was there in an instant, his knife slashing across the creature's throat. It gurgled and fell, twitching at her feet.
"You good?" he asked, breathless.
Ayla didn't answer. Her shoulder burned where the teeth had broken skin, but she didn't care. Not now.
The girl was still screaming behind them. The remaining undead closed in, their hunger thick in the air.
Ayla grabbed the girl's arm and yanked her to her feet.
"Run. Now."
The girl stumbled, but she moved. Ayla and Kade fell in behind her, weapons ready, cutting down anything that got too close.
The street was a mess of bodies. The dead kept coming. There was no end to them.
"This way," Kade shouted, pointing toward a narrow alley.
They bolted down it, the sound of the dead echoing behind them. The alley twisted and turned, trash and broken crates cluttering their path.
Ayla's shoulder throbbed, but she pushed the pain aside. They had to move.
At the end of the alley, they burst out into an open courtyard surrounded by crumbling apartment buildings.
A figure stood there, waiting.
A man.
Tall, lean, dressed in black from head to toe. His face was hidden by a hood, but Ayla could feel his eyes on them.
He didn't move.
Kade slowed, his grip tightening on his knife.
"Who the hell is that?"
The girl clung to Ayla's side, trembling.
Ayla didn't trust him. Everything about the figure felt off. Too calm. Too still.
"We keep moving," she said quietly.
But as they tried to pass, the man lifted his hand.
"Stop."
His voice was smooth, low, dangerous.
Ayla froze.
So did Kade.
The man stepped forward. The dead weren't far behind. Their groans filled the night, growing louder by the second.
"You'll want to listen if you want to survive," the stranger said.
The girl whimpered.
Ayla narrowed her eyes.
"Who are you?"
The man didn't answer. He glanced behind them as the first of the undead spilled into the courtyard.
And then he smiled.
"I can help. Or I can leave you here. Your choice."
Kade looked at Ayla.
"We don't have time for this."
The stranger didn't wait. He turned and started toward one of the buildings, moving like he owned the night.
Ayla hesitated, then grabbed the girl's hand and followed.
Kade swore under his breath but stayed close.
The building was dark, the air thick with dust. They climbed stairs that felt like they might collapse at any second.
Finally, the stranger stopped at a door on the fourth floor. He pushed it open and stepped inside.
Ayla followed, heart pounding.
The room was empty except for a single mattress and a pile of supplies in the corner. Canned food. Water. Weapons.
The man pulled down his hood.
And Ayla stared.
He was young. Maybe a few years older than her. His face was all sharp angles and shadows, dark eyes that seemed to see too much.
"You're welcome," he said, smirking.
Ayla didn't trust that smirk.
"What do you want?"
The man leaned against the wall, crossing his arms.
"Nothing yet."
Kade stepped forward.
"If this is a trick, I'll gut you."
The man just laughed.
"You're fun."
The dead pounded at the building below. The sound of fists on wood and bone on stone.
Ayla's shoulder throbbed harder now. She looked down and saw the blood seeping through her shirt.
The man noticed.
"You're bitten."
Kade tensed.
Ayla didn't flinch.
"It's nothing. I'm fine."
The man's smirk faded.
"No one's fine after a bite."
The girl whimpered again, shrinking back against the wall.
Outside, the groans grew louder. The pounding shook the walls.
The stranger didn't take his eyes off Ayla.
"There's a way. But it's going to hurt."
Kade stepped between them.
"You so much as touch her wrong, I'll end you."
The stranger laughed again, low and dark.
"Oh, this is going to be fun."
And then the door behind them burst open.
The dead poured in.