Page 156 of Afflicted

There’s shrieks and wailing in the stairwell, and Juliet gazes up at me sadly.

“There’s too many of them.”

I shake my head. “No. This isn’t how this ends for you.”

I rush to the door, holding it shut. I’m not going down without a fight. Juliet stands 10 feet away, covering her mouth with her hands.

“Tell me about Paris!” I call, putting my full weight against the door as the first Afflicted slams into it.

“What?” Juliet regards me with shock. “Are you kidding me?”

“Tell me about it!” Another slam into the door, nails scratching at the metal. “I’ve never been!”

“You’re crazy!”

“Talk to me, angel!” Another thump, more frantic clawing.

She shakes her head, licking her lip and clenching her eyes shut. “There - there was this little cafe, and Kaden made himself sick on hot chocolate, and he threw up all over this cobblestone street.”

Even in the situation we find ourselves in, death very likely imminent, I can’t help but laugh as Afflicted shriek and groan on the other side of the door.

“Well, that sounds amazing!” I grit my teeth as the door shifts slightly, and I push my shoulder back against it. “What else, angel? Tell me-” The door gapes slightly, and I shove against the force of the Afflicted trying to get to us. “What was your favorite thing?”

“The music!” She’s crying now, her jaw trembling as she watches me try to hold this horde back. “There was an accordion player on the corner of the street where we were staying, and he played Edith Piaf as the sun went down. It was the most beautiful thing I’d ever heard!”

My eyes meet hers, and I smile. “That sounds beautiful, angel.” The door gapes again, broken, craggy fingertips curling around the edge of it. “You know, I remember the first day I saw you, I was in love with you then. You’re the most beautiful thing I’ve ever seen. You’re the best thing that ever happened to me, you know that?”

She sobs, her shoulders shaking.

“I’m so glad you’re my wife.”

She shakes her head. We’re saying goodbye. She knows it.

“Silas-” She takes two uncertain steps towards me.

“Go on, angel. Run for that roof over there, keep running. Stay safe, OK?”

She shakes her head even more emphatically. “No.”

“Run, now. And don’t look back.”

The door creaks again, and this time when it gapes open, I can’t get it back into the frame. I plead with Juliet with my eyes.Please go. Please live. Please don’t stay here.

Her face crumples as she backs away from me, squaring her shoulders as she breaks into a run. I watch as that golden hair flails out behind her, her long legs stretching beneath her as she launches into the air. She makes the landing, tucking into a roll on the other side and quickly getting to her feet.

“Silas!” She jumps up and down, waving her arms. “Silas,come on!”

“I told you not to look back!”

“Get the fuck up and run!”She screams at me desperately.

I take a deep breath, and shove away from the door. It flies open with such force I’m knocked onto my back. I scramble away from the Afflicted, who are screaming and screeching.They move to descend on me with outstretched hands, and all I can hear is Juliet’s cries.

The Afflicted stop in their tracks as a floodlight and the deafening whir of helicopter blades sound over us. The black hawk dips and turns over the building, and the Afflicted all stare up at it as it begins to snow.

I back away, getting to my feet. I look over at Juliet, who’s holding her hands over her ears as the helicopter continues its circles over us. It does two more passes, then moves on. The Afflicted aren’t screeching anymore. They’re gurgling, almost like they’re choking.

I look down onto the street, and the Afflicted down there begin to fall to their knees, some straight onto their backs as though they’ve been shocked into stasis. I turn back to look at the ones on the roof. They begin to fall, one by one.

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