Chapter 131: Coincidence

Chapter 131: Coincidence

James didn't even blink.

Too close to swing his weapon, he grabbed the end of the steel pipe and jammed it into the woman's mouth, pinning her against the window. Her hands flailed, clawing at him. Blood mixed with her mascara, turning her face into a smeared mess. She looked like a freakin' ghost, even scarier.

Emily rushed up from behind, swinging a machete.

She aimed for the side of the zombie's head and struck. The woman went limp instantly. When James yanked the pipe out, she was already done for.

Another zombie dude shuffled past the door marked "Broadcast Room," stumbling their way. The hallway was wide. James straightened up, gripped the pipe with both hands, and smashed it into the zombie's head.

Emily spotted a fire axe on the wall.

She wanted to grab it, but a zombie with chewed-off legs fell out from a nearby storage room. His striped clothes screamed "patient." Using his hands, he lunged at Emily, howling. He bit her ankle, but she jumped back just in time. It was just a scratch, not too deep.

But it was enough to piss her off.

Emily's face twisted with rage.

She growled, gripping the knife with both hands, and stabbed it into the zombie's head.

She was young and not super strong. Her military training was short, so her stab was awkward and missed the sweet spot. The blade went through the zombie's neck, pinning it to the ground.

If it were a regular person, that would’ve been game over.

The legless zombie's head strained forward, arms flailing, body convulsing like crazy. Emily quickly turned, stomped on the zombie's back, yanked out the knife, and stabbed it again, this time hitting the brain.

The heavy, chaotic footsteps above got louder.

A bunch of zombies had heard the ruckus and were heading their way.

James grabbed the steel pipe and bolted towards the broadcast room. Panting, he reached the door and pulled the handle, but it was locked tight.

Two zombies were already in the hallway, moving slow but closing in.

They had to bust down the door!

James took a couple of steps back, ready to charge. But then he saw Emily, who had smashed the display case glass and grabbed the fire axe, running over, panting. She pulled out a set of keys, picked one, and unlocked the door.

A zombie in a white coat rushed out.

Without thinking, James snatched the machete from Emily. With a swift move, the blade flashed, and the zombie's head flew off, rolling into the room.

The headless body took a few steps, crashed into the glass, and fell.

The three of them quickly got into the broadcast room and shut the door.

James leaned against the door, catching his breath.

Outside, the chaotic footsteps of a horde of zombies and the sound of countless arms scratching and pounding on the door filled the air.

Emily dragged a table to block the door, glanced at the all-metal security door, and said confidently, "This door's solid. They ain't getting in."

James stared at her, curious, "How'd you get the key to this place?"

Without missing a beat, Emily replied, "Mr. Turner gave it to me last week. Said the hospital was starting an entertainment broadcast during lunch breaks and thought my voice was good. Wanted me and a few others to try it out. The new recording gear's coming next week, so I didn't mention it. Was gonna tell you then."

James frowned.

Aaron again.

It wasn't that he thought Aaron was after Emily, but it seemed too convenient.

They planned to hide in the broadcast room, and Emily just happened to have the key. Maybe it wasn't a coincidence; maybe she just remembered it then.

Isabella, clutching the fire axe, her chest heaving, asked, "What do we do now?"

Emily didn't mess around. She headed straight to the workstation, eyeing the tangled mess of wires and equipment. "Give me a hand here," she said.

James jumped in, "What do you need us to do?"

"Help me unplug these circuits so I can hook up the intercom," Emily replied, already working. "But heads up, this thing's got limited juice. The distress signal's only gonna reach around the hospital. So, we gotta hope for some luck."

Isabella, feeling like her legs were about to give out, plopped down on the floor, watching James and Emily hustle. She asked, a bit bitterly, "So, are we stuck here forever?"

Emily got it. She knew how Isabella felt. "For now, we're lucky. At least we still have power. But who knows how long that'll last."

Isabella's eyes widened, and she looked like she was about to lose it. Trembling, she asked, "What do we do if the power goes out?"

James helped Emily remove the protective panel from the equipment. With nothing else to do, he wandered over to the zombie head that had rolled into the corner. He raised the machete and split it open. Sure enough, there was a small, bright red spot on the back of the brain.

As he put the spot into a medicine bottle he carried, James noticed the delicate crucifix around Isabella's neck. He couldn't help but ask, "So, you believe in God? Are you religious?"

Isabella glanced at the crucifix and shook her head. "Nah, I've just been to church a few times and got one to wear for fun."

James looked at her and said calmly, "Pray for us. Pray that the power stays on and someone picks up our signal and comes to rescue us."

Isabella clutched the crucifix to her chest, half-believing, half-doubting, and asked, "Are you sure that will work?"

James took a deep breath. "I don't know. But it's better than sitting here waiting to die."

That seemed to hit home for Isabella. Though she looked a bit lost, she found a spot to sit, took the crucifix from her neck, held it in her hand, and started praying intently.

In times like these, you need something to hold onto.

Otherwise, she might lose it completely.

James knew this well.

The whole prayer thing was just a way to keep her calm.

His eyes followed Emily's movements.

When the zombie bit her ankle, James had seen it clearly.

Emily showed no signs of changing.

She moved quickly, her complexion was normal, and her heart rate and breathing were steady. Everything pointed to her not turning.

But one thing was clear: she was infected. The virus was in her, but it hadn't turned her into a zombie.

The immunity serum Aaron had left behind was working.

James's tense lips curled into a smile.

He made up his mind that if no one responded to the distress signal, he would fight through hordes of zombies to get Emily out of the hospital alive.

After all, she was his girl, his future wife.

The sun was dipping below the skyscrapers, casting long shadows.

It was getting close to dusk.

A riot police vehicle slowly pulled over to the side of the road. The side door opened, and a fully armed Matthew and two officers jumped out. They formed an attack team, covering three directions, and quickly approached a police car that had been flipped over.

The whole day had been a nightmare.

The virus had spread all over the city.

The car radio had been buzzing non-stop since dawn. It had only gone silent about an hour ago.

Christopher had tried to contact the police command center, but there was no response. The radio just spat out static, filling the air with a sense of dread.

Cell phones were useless. The network signal had cut out even earlier.

In the morning, after getting a distress call, Christopher led a team to Pinecrest Meadows, only to find things had gone to hell.

The whole neighborhood had at least a hundred infected residents, with screams echoing from the buildings. The police team that had arrived earlier was trapped inside, surrounded by dozens of zombies. Christopher drove the police car like a madman, using all their firepower to break through and rescue two officers. But they lost three team members.

Alarms were blaring everywhere, and the city seemed under siege. The scale of the horror was beyond anyone's wildest nightmares.

They had been at peace for too long. They had forgotten, or never knew, how to respond. In the face of panic and fear, more people were bitten and turned into part of the zombie horde, spreading the chaos across the city like wildfire.