Chapter 48: Can’t stop

Jack shouldered the heavy machine gun and followed obediently, still chewing half a biscuit.

"Mitch, be careful. That sound is creepy."

Theo rose from the shadows, adjusted the gold-rimmed glasses on his nose, and unhurriedly drew the surgical scalpel from his waist.

The group pushed open the side door of the hall and stepped into the pitch-black corridor outside.

At the far end of the safety-exit corner crouched a dark figure.

It was a woman with tangled hair, wearing a skirt that looked more like torn rags. Her back faced them as she buried her face in her knees, shoulders jerking with sobs.

"Holy shit... it really is a woman."

Mitch lowered his voice and raised the sniper rifle.

Theo narrowed his eyes and said coldly, "Don’t stare at her."

Too late. The moment several pairs of eyes fixed on the woman’s back, the crying cut off abruptly. She lifted her head. The skull rotated a full 180 degrees at an impossible angle and locked onto Mitch.

There were no features on her face—only a blood-red maw split open all the way to the ears.

"Fucking hell! Special infected!" Mitch roared and pulled the trigger.

Bang!

The deafening gunshot tore through the night.

The female ghost let out an ear-splitting shriek, dropped onto all fours like a giant spider, and launched itself along the wall straight at Mitch.

Outside the hall, everything descended into chaos—gunfire, curses, and the wet sound of flesh tearing mixed together.

Deep inside the storage room, however—separated by several load-bearing walls and sealed behind a heavy fire door—it was so quiet that every breath could be heard clearly.

The gunshots outside were filtered by layer after layer of concrete. Combined with the strong wind, only the faintest muffled thuds reached this far.

Ray heard nothing at all.

Every drop of blood in his body was rushing toward one place.

His entire mind was occupied by the completely drunk girl in his arms whose hands were still lighting fires all over him.

May had no idea what she was touching. She only felt the muscle under her palms was rock-hard and burning hot.

With hazy eyes, she mumbled, "Boss... your heart is beating so fast."

Ray gasped for air, chest rising and falling hard. "Stop touching. I can’t hold back anymore."

His voice was completely hoarse; every syllable was bitten off with force.

"Still...!"

She not only refused to stop—she kept going.

An opportunity this good—Boss, how could I possibly stop? Tomorrow I’ll just pretend I remember nothing. Top-tier male model material—waste not, want not!

He seized the restless small hand.

May refused to accept it. The system had woken her, but the usual soft, obedient act had been thrown to the nine heavens. She let out two dissatisfied little hums.

Her free arm locked around his neck.

Does it piss you off...?

She pushed her entire body deeper into his arms. The oversized black T-shirt had already ridden up past her waist during the earlier tumbling. The final string in Ray’s mind snapped with a clean crack.

Those hands that had spent years gripping knives and guns moved without hesitation...

"Feel it for yourself!"

He lowered his head, chin pressing into the crook of her neck, voice low and trembling.

May made a soft sound...

"Trying to run?" Ray’s voice dropped even lower, as if ground out of his chest. "Weren’t you so bold just now?"

May’s head was still a tangled mess of residual alcohol and the system’s sudden clarity warning. She opened her mouth to explain, but the sound that came out had completely changed pitch.

Damn, this was unexpected...

"Ray... I didn’t..."

"Didn’t? Let me tell you—too late!"

He gave a cold laugh and... slid his hand down to her buttocks, caressing and kneading them with almost aggressive impatience.

May’s head thumped lightly against the moisture-proof mat.

"Speak!"

He lowered his head until his lips almost brushed the shell of her ear; hot breath poured in without restraint. "Still able to keep doing that?"

"N-no more..."

Boss was never the type who could simply stop once he started. That wasn’t in his nature.

May’s entire face burned and her lips trembled.

"Boss..." Her voice cracked with tears; the corners of her eyes were red as if someone had pinched them hard. "Please... don’t anymore..."

The darkness in Ray’s eyes was terrifying. He ignored her plea. The free hand clamped onto her chin and forced her to look up at him.

"Look at yourself right now."

May opened her eyes. Her vision was blurred; the man above her was only a heavy black outline cut by the dim light.

Her lips quivered. Before she could form a word, Ray moved again; this time, however, he touched her breasts, gently brushing his fingertips over her hardened peaks.

"Ah—"

Her voice cracked mid-note.

Ray’s Adam’s apple rolled twice.

He watched the girl beneath him—face flaming, tears sliding down her cheeks, soft little sounds still hanging at the corner of her mouth. Those eyes that usually played the pitiful act to perfection were now genuinely wet.

His voice was completely hoarse, softer than before. "Wasn’t this what you asked for?"

"I... I was wrong... Boss, I really was wrong..."

Ray said nothing. Then, slowly, he withdrew his hands...

He suddenly flipped over and sat up, back to her, both hands braced on his knees. The muscles of his shoulders were drawn tight as iron. A patch of the combat uniform was soaked through with sweat and clung to his back, rising and falling with every heavy breath.

Inside the storage room, the only sounds left were their two sets of breathing.

Outside—

Bang bang bang—!

Several dull impacts came from far away, as if someone was slamming against walls. Then came the sharp clash of metal and Mitch’s furious roar, all filtered by layer after layer of load-bearing walls and the fire door until they were only a distant, muffled buzz.

Ray heard none of it.

His head was still full of the sight of May just moments ago...

"Boss..."

A weak voice came from behind him.

She was curled on the moisture-proof mat, traces of tears still at the corners of her eyes, nose tip red, lips bearing the marks of her own teeth.

"Are... are you still angry?"

She asked carefully, voice soft as cotton candy.

Ray closed his eyes for a second.

"Put your clothes on properly."

"Okay."