N87 Virus | Book 1 | After the Outbreak Kadin, Karri (booksvooks TXT) 📖

before she reached a small bedroom at the end. A small nightstand and fluffy queen bed occupied the entire space. She opened the tiny closet in the bedroom and found it full of clothes, towels, and blankets.

When Matt and Trevor returned with firewood. The friends warmed up their cans of food and ate happily, laughing and talking while filling their empty bellies. They sprawled out in front of the warm fire.

“So is this the place?” Matt asked. Allison nodded her head.

“How do you feel?” Morgan asked.

“Weird. It’s like I know this place, but I don’t know it at the same time. I feel like it’s important but I still don’t know why.”

“Give it time. This isn’t an exact science,” Trevor said.

“I’m going to look around some more.” Allison got up and headed to the bathroom. As she was digging through the vanity, praying she would find some tampons to add to her dwindling supply, she heard Morgan and Matt screaming at each other in the living room. She rushed out into the hall, almost running over Trevor in the process. They both quickly made their way to the living room. Morgan was clutching a large photo album to her chest, tears streaming down her face.

“You!” Morgan screamed at Allison with such an intense stare the hair on Allison’s neck stood on end.

“What? Morgan, what’s wrong?” Allison began taking a few tentative steps toward her friend.

Morgan stumbled back so fast she almost fell over the couch. She widened the distance between Allison and herself, keeping Allison locked in her frigid stare.

“You ruined my life!” Morgan tossed the photo album at Matt. “Look! It’s in there! This was Uncle Nick’s cabin!”

Matt picked up the photo album. He opened it and sat on the couch, allowing his body to hit it with a thud. He thumbed through a few pages before closing it and placing it on the couch next to him. Their uncle. I killed their uncle. Allison trembled.

“She’s right. This must have been his cabin. That book is full of pictures of him and our family.” Matt hung his head as he spoke. Allison’s lip quivered as tears rushed to her eyes. I destroyed their family.

Morgan lunged at Allison but Trevor intercepted her and held her tight as she fought against his body, trying to reach Allison. Matt stayed on the couch, staring at the floor.

“I hate you! I will kill you! You ruined everything!” Morgan whimpered as she spoke but never lost her intense stare.

“I’m so sorry, Morgan, Matt. I don’t know what to say. I’m so sorry.” Tears flowed down Allison’s cheeks. She collapsed to her knees and continued to cry.

“Let me go! Let me go!” Morgan screamed. Allison’s heart ached to comfort her friend.

“I will if you will calm down.” Trevor held eye contact with Morgan.

“Fine!” Morgan pulled away from Trevor, positioning herself near the door as she picked up her pack. “Let’s go, Matt.”

“What?” Matt looked up from the floor for the first time, his eyes glossy. Poor Matt.

“I said let’s go.” Morgan stared at her brother.

“You’ve got to be kidding,” Matt said. “It’s fucking dark outside, and who knows if there are Infected out there?”

“There’s an Infected in here!”

“You know that’s not true. Allison isn’t sick anymore.”

“She killed our family. I can’t be around her another minute.”

“It’s not a black-and-white situation, Morgan.”

“It is to me.” Morgan swung open the door, slamming it against the wall. Matt grabbed her shoulders and prevented her from exiting. Her open palm landed on Matt’s cheek as she flung around to face him. Matt stumbled back, a perfect pink handprint plastered on his face. Morgan pulled her pack onto her back and stormed into the darkness. Matt ran after her.

“Do not follow me, Matt!” Morgan’s voice echoed through the trees.

“Stop! You could die out here. Come back so we can talk about this.” Matt hurried to catch up with her.

Allison and Trevor followed the siblings out the door. Trevor pulled a flashlight from his pocket and shined it ahead, locking it onto the twins. Matt caught up with Morgan and grabbed her hand, pulling her to a stop. They faced each other, arguing, almost out of range of the flashlight.

Allison’s hair stood on end as every nerve ending stood at attention. A chill crept into her bones as all the heat in her body seemed to move to her core. A rustle of leaves and footsteps sounded off to the side. Her eyes began adjusting to the darkness just in time to catch the form of a person running toward her friends. Threat. Every sense in her body heightened as she dashed into action.

“Look out!” she screamed, but not in time. The figure slammed into Matt sending him to the ground. Morgan stumbled back and fell too.

Allison raced toward them, Trevor right on her heels. Her heart pounded in her ears. Matt pressed his hands to the person’s chest as the form snarled, jaws snapping at his face. Infected. Matt reached for the knife on his hip. The Infected pinned Matt’s hand to his side just as he grabbed the hilt of his blade. Allison let the rage within her boil over as she slammed into the Infected, hurling them both onto the dirt near Morgan.

Morgan scrambled to her feet as another Infected came up behind her, grabbing her backpack. She screamed and dropped the bag to the ground. Matt grabbed the feet of his sister’s attacker, bringing it to the ground as Morgan sprinted off into the woods.

Allison pinned her assailant, pressing all her weight into its neck as it clawed at her arms. She felt a little give as its hyoid bone snapped beneath her hands. It gargled breath as she cut off the airflow to its lungs. Adrenaline pushed the heat through her body, excitement pulsated under her skin sending a smile to her lips. She pushed the excitement back, pressing her lips together into a flat line. Morgan’s scream echoed through the woods.

Allison looked up as Matt