Chapter 473: Eternity 34.

between the delivery van and a compact car, its fingers scratching along

the paint. She crossed the distance in two quick steps and struck it

down before it could get around the vehicle. The first three had been

little more than a distraction. There were more behind them, drawn out

by the noise and the smell of living people.

Two zombies climbed over the pile of cars. Another had been trapped in

the back seat of a vehicle and was now forcing itself through the broken

window. Bai let the first one come down to road level, then took its

head with a short, clean stroke. Yan shifted to keep the second within

her line of sight and fired another bolt into its leg when it tried to

leap toward Bai’s back. The creature dropped awkwardly, giving Bai time

to finish it.

"That’s the last one I can see," Yan said. "But we should check the

other side before moving the cars."

Bai wiped the edge of Whisperfang on a clean patch of the creature’s

clothing. "Agreed."

They advanced together through the narrow gap between the cars. Yan kept

her crossbow raised while Bai examined the spaces beneath the vehicles

and the open doors. The sounds from inside the first office building had

become louder. Something dragged itself over the floor on the other side

of the shattered windows. Bai counted at least four silhouettes moving

behind the glass. One of them was taller than the rest, with a broad

back and a head that hung at an unnatural angle.

They did not need to clear every room in the nearby buildings. They

needed a safe route through the roadblock and a clear enough view beyond

the bend to decide whether to keep going. Still, leaving a group of

zombies directly beside the road could mean finding them behind the

caravan later, especially if they were strong enough to follow the noise

of the engine.

Bai looked toward Yan. "I’ll clear the ground floor. Can you cover the

street and watch for anything coming from the far side?"

Yan studied the broken windows. "I can cover the street. Don’t let them

pull you into the building."

"I won’t."

"You said that the last time you went into a building."

"And I came out."

"You came out through a wall."

"It was a weak wall."

Yan gave her a look that promised the argument was not over, but she

moved to the edge of the road and took up a position where she could see

both the entrance and the open street. Bai went through the building’s

broken doorway. The air inside was cooler and carried a smell of damp

paper, spoiled food, and old smoke. Desks lay overturned across the

lobby. A reception counter had been split in two, and a security gate

was twisted inward as if someone had tried to force it down while

something else had pushed from the opposite side.

The first zombie crawled out from behind a desk. Bai stepped over a

fallen chair and killed it without slowing. Two more emerged from a

corridor near the elevators, one moving on all fours and the other

dragging a leg that had been broken badly enough to bend backward. They

rushed her in a clumsy line. Bai moved between them, used the lobby’s

narrow furniture to stop the first from turning, and dispatched both

before the second could reach her.

The tall one came from the stairwell.

It had been a large man before the infection, and its body had swollen

in the wrong places. Thick, dark tissue covered its shoulders and upper

arms, while the skin around its chest had hardened into rough plates.

One hand was so large that it scraped the wall as it turned sideways

through the stairwell door. Its movements were quicker than its size

suggested. It saw Bai, lowered its head, and charged.

Bai did not retreat toward the lobby entrance. She stepped diagonally,

allowing the creature to crash through a row of desks. It swung a thick

arm toward her, breaking a desk in half. She ducked beneath the strike

and cut across the back of its knee. The blade bit deep but did not

sever the limb. The mutant stumbled, caught itself with one hand, and

twisted with surprising speed to swipe at her again.

Bai could have killed it with a stronger strike, but the lobby was full

of unstable furniture and brittle glass. A careless blow might bring

down part of the ceiling or send debris through the windows toward the

road. She drew the creature away from the worst of the wreckage, waited

for it to commit to another broad swing, and moved inside its reach.

Whisperfang slid between two of the hardened plates at its neck. Bai

turned her wrist, withdrew the blade, and stepped away as the creature

collapsed heavily onto the floor.

Its body struck the tiles with a deep thud. Bai stood still for a moment

to listen for more movement, then looked toward the entrance. Yan was

visible through the shattered glass, her crossbow held low but ready.

Their eyes met. Bai lifted two fingers to show she was fine, and Yan’s

shoulders eased just enough for Bai to notice.

Bai searched the lobby quickly for anything that might be useful. The

office had been looted, and the remaining cabinets held little more than

paper and broken stationery. She checked the stairwell before leaving,

then returned to the road. She did not go upstairs. If the ground floor

had contained this many zombies, the upper floors might hold more, but

clearing the entire building would cost time they could not afford

without a reason to believe it affected their route. Their purpose was

not to remove every threat from the district. They were travelling, and

the caravan had to remain their first priority.

Yan met her halfway. "You’re not hurt?"

"No."

"Not even a scratch?"

Bai held out her hands. "Would you like to inspect them?"

TO BE CONTINUED,