Cynthia

By some miracle, I managed to survive the fall into the abyss, having escaped with only a broken forehead and a lot of bruises all over my body. It was pain that did not allow me to faint and reminded me that I was still alive. Trying to get out of the inverted car, I grabbed the doorknob, and tried to open the door, but she jammed. The fear of thinking that a jeep could fly into the air at any moment made me look for another way out. When I discovered that the second door was blocking the tree, I did not move to the back seat, but began to peel at the windshield. After the bombardment, the glass looked like a sieve, but I was able to knock it out only after the eighth stroke, having beaten both of my legs. In a good way, before getting out of the inverted jeep, I should have taken out as many supplies as possible from the car, but I didn’t have time for that. Grabbing the first available weapon, which turned out to be a gun, I began to get out of the car. While I was getting out of the jeep through the broken windshield, a lot of small fragments dug into my palms, like annoying wasps.

Trying not to pay attention to the pain in the jagged hands, I somehow got to my feet and wandered away from the car. Only after a considerable distance, I stopped next to a lonely tree, pressed my back to it, and began to pull out the fragments from my palms. As soon as I pulled out the first fragments, an explosion thundered behind me, turning an inverted jeep into a pile of burning scrap metal. Regretting the fact that I was so stupidly deprived of supplies, and almost lost my life, I slowly sank to the ground. The blood from the pierced shoulder continued to flow, and with this it was necessary to do something. Feeling the wound, and not finding the exit hole, I realized that the bullet was still in my shoulder. Having torn off an impressive piece of fabric from my blouse, I tied the wound as best I could, rose to my feet, and wandered away from the crash site. Slowly plodding forward like a clumsy zombie, I clearly understood that I could not survive another clash with motorcyclists, and no gun would help here. The fact that these bastards did not jump after me to the bottom of the canyon did not mean that they were behind me. Trying not to think about the fact that at the moment the pursuers are looking for a detour, I continued stubbornly plodding forward, clutching a gun in my hand. Despite the fact that the wound was bandaged, I managed to lose a lot of blood, from which each meter passed was difficult for me. Due to tinnitus, all my attempts to strain my ears, and finding out how far my pursuers are, did not lead to anything. Realizing that I was about to faint, I made a short stop. After massaging my temples, and rubbing my eyes together, I looked at the rugged bleeding palm. At that moment I felt like a revived corpse, and it looked, most likely, not much better.

As soon as I broke away from the contemplation of his palm, as I noticed a wolf rushing at me. Slowly raising the gun, I aimed at the predator. My hand trembled, and before my eyes everything swam. Pressing the trigger over and over again, I shot the entire clip, but none of the bullets fired from the pistol ever hit the hungry predator. Realizing that this was the end, I only managed to cover my face with my hands before the jumping wolf threw me to the ground. But before the predator had time to bite me, a shot sounded. The wolf probably did not even have time to understand that he was killed - the shot charge in an instant knocked him down half a head. The blood of the killed predator blurred my entire face and clothes.Rubbing my eyes, and turning my head to the side, I noticed a fair-haired guy with a gun, running fast towards me. Not having time to figure out what my savior was guided by, I wanted to send a pistol at him and demand that he go his own way, because I still have nothing of value, but I remembered that I had spent all the bullets on the wolf. Fortunately, the guy had nothing wrong with his mind. Posing as Steve, the guy extended his hand to me. Having accepted the proposed hand, I rose to my feet, and called my name. Seeing how miserable I am, Steve announced that he had a dwelling nearby and suggested that I follow him. Food and rest were now necessary for me as oxygen, and although I was still tormented by doubts about the motives of my savior, I still followed him. But before we could even walk a hundred meters, my rescuer abruptly stopped and looked back.

- What? - I asked wary.

- Do not you hear? - surprised my savior.

- I hear what? - I did not understand.

- The roar of engines. For us, someone rides.

- Heck! This is me! - I exclaimed in alarm, mentally cursing the annoying pursuers.

Steve quickly began to look around, probably trying to find shelter. Noticing a cave far ahead, the guy pointed his finger at it, and immediately rushed to it. Shaking off my fatigue and gathering up my strength, I ran after Steve. When I reached the cave, I immediately pressed my back to the wall, and squatted down.

- Did they notice you? - anxiously asked Steve.

“I don't know,” I replied, breathing heavily.

- I understand, you feel bad now, but better get away from the entrance, until ...

Before Steve could finish speaking, something grabbed his legs and dragged him into darkness. The guy who dropped the gun didn't even have time to cry out. Despite the fact that before my eyes everything was swimming, and my legs seemed to be filled with lead, I picked up a gun and went to save the guy. Moving away from the entrance, I noticed that Steve had dragged a ghoul into the dark. Judging by the fact that the clothes of the ghoul were in good condition, he turned into a monster quite recently. Lying on the back of Steve koloshmatil ghoul feet in the face until the monster did not let him go. However, the guy did not have time to rise to his feet, as a ghoul jumped on him, and tried to cut his throat. The guy barely managed to grab the monster with both hands by the neck, not allowing him to get to his throat. The ghoul also did not lose his head and began to strip the belly and sides of the victim with his claws. I don’t know how, but Steve, who continued to choke the monster, managed to hold back a cry of pain. Pointing the weapon at the monster, I did not dare to pull the trigger, fearing that the shot might be heard on the street.

Instead, I grabbed the barrel of the gun with both hands, and began to clobber a ghoul with it. Because of the wound and blood loss, my hand was practically numb, so my blows were like a ghoul just like an elephant. But after I kicked him in the face, the monster who had lost a pair of teeth finally paid attention to me, having stopped tormenting Steve. Taking advantage of the hitch, the guy snatched a hunting knife from his belt, and thrust his ghoul into his chin. When Steve threw off the body of the dead monster, I wanted to help him up without noticing that there was another carnivorous predator in the cave that crept up to my side. As soon as I turned to face him, I threw my gun up, as the monster jumped towards me, and bit my leg just above the knee. Screaming in pain, I slammed the ghoul with the butt of my rifle in the face, and Steve finished off with a knife. Using a gun instead of a crutch, I somehow reached the wall and sat on the ground.

- Do you have an antidote at home? I asked in a low voice.

The guy, in whose eyes I noticed sincere regret, shook his head. Holding his hand over the bleeding side, injured during a skirmish with a monster, Steve approached me and leaned over.

“Thank you for saving,” he thanked me.

- You are welcome. You can assume that we are now quits, ”I replied wearily, giving the guy his gun.

Taking the weapon, the guy wiped the blood from the knife, and put it in my hand. I understood that I would die soon, but I did not feel fear. His place was taken by frustration and resentment. I did my best to find my daughter, but this was not enough. And now I am lying in a dark cave, many kilometers from the cursed ship, and I cannot change anything. Or can I? Steve was still next to me, and was in no hurry to leave. Not because I wanted to take the knife from my dead ...