Snippet #2393148

Henderson only stopped running when the moans behind him had dulled to little more then noise on the wind and the sound of Gunners barking had faded to nothing. Now, in the pitch dark, he sank to his knees, pitching the girl from his shoulders and onto the ground beside him. He took deep welcome breaths of air and drank deeply from his canteen.

He waited for a few moments, kneeling in the dirt, hearing for the first time in a long time, the sound of crickets in the open field. The sound of the creek was faint and he heard nothing else moving. He watched as the tailights on the truck flickered as zombies passed in front of them, their fists banging on the side as they tried to reach the fresh dead, he hoped Gunner was alright.

He must have been there for five minutes before he finally knelt next to Jenifer and turning her onto her back. A pause and then he slapped her. She moaned slightly and he hit her again, a third strike finally bringing her back to conciouness. He saw her open her mouth to scream and clapped a hand over it, pressing his pistol into her right eye socket, not enough to hurt but enough to make his point.

"You scream and I promise you, I will kill you, do you understand me?" Terrified eyes stared back at him as she nodded and he slowly lifted his hand from her mouth, glancing about in the dark. "Get up."

He pulled her to her feet and then pointed towards the tracks made in the grass by the party ahead of them. "Follow them." He whispered and she nodded, hurrying ahead of him into the darkness.

For the next hour they moved in near silence. He couldn't see more then the girls shape and only once more did they stop when she tripped over the body of a zombie with its head blown off. He could see her eyes bug out and only him making a shotting motion silenced her.

They pressed on into the darkness.