Page 10 of Surviving Her

“She was just here! River…an old friend of mine. She was right here, I swear!”

Eliza looked through the double-glazed glass and saw immediately that the scene outside was nothing short of apocalyptic. Townspeople, patients, and even hospital staff in white coats had begun attacking each other with a feral intensity. Their faces, twisted into grotesque masks of rage, made Eliza’s stomach churn.

“Holy God. Let’s hope your friend isn’t out there,” Eliza breathed, taking in the horrifying scene. She watched as a man and a younger woman snarled and roared at each other. Their guttural screams echoed through her entire body.

“We can’t go outside!” Eliza shouted. “They’re consumed with…infection. These people are getting ill too quickly! This isn’t a coronavirus. It’s not possible. Jesus! We have to find some way out of here! What the fuck is this?”

Sheila, her face pale, stood there looking through the glass doors, tears running down her face.

“She was right here,” she repeated.

Eliza’s mind raced, trying to make sense of what she was seeing.

The bites, the aggression—everything’s pointing to a rabies outbreak…

As the small group made their way back inside the hospital, hoping to find safety, Eliza saw that the familiar corridors hadtotally transformed within mere minutes. Her heart pounded as she forced herself to focus.

As they rounded a corner, the scene grew even more harrowing. The infected were spilling into the hallway, their movements erratic and uncontrolled. The air was thick with the stench of blood, feces, and vomit, a nauseating mix that made Eliza’s stomach twist. Her mind flashed back to her training.

Rabies is transmitted through bites. It leads to severe aggression and death. This is a nightmare scenario. We don’t have what it takes to handle it.

“Eliza! Bobby!” Sheila’s voice cut through the chaos, filled with a desperation that matched Eliza’s own fear. “Let’s get to the staff dorm. We can lock ourselves in!”

But before Eliza could respond, a horrifying shriek pierced the air. Eliza turned just in time to see an infected patient—her face a mask of swollen flesh and primal rage—lunge at Sheila. The woman’s movements seemed unnaturally quick and violent as her teeth sank into Sheila’s neck. Eliza stood there, her mouth ajar, as a spray of blood spewed from Sheila’s mouth.

“No! No! No!” The wails of the infected swallowed Eliza’s cries. Sheila’s body crumpled to the ground, the light in her eyes fading fast as the infected figure continued its gruesome work.

She’s eating her! She’s eating Sheila!

Eliza’s heart thumped wildly with the sudden shock of losing a woman who’d been such an incredible friend and colleague, but there was no time to grieve. The world had gone insane, and there was no room for anything other than survival.

“Don’t look, Bobby! Leave her! We need to get moving!” Eliza shouted in anguish.

Bobby’s face was ashen, his eyes wide with fear as he started to retch. “Sheila’s gone. She’s dead! How can this be happening? What do we do? What the fuck is happening!?”

Eliza could only offer a strained nod through her tears. “We keep moving, Bobby. We have to get to the dorms before?—”

As they made their way down a service staircase and onto the basement level, a loud crash startled them as an infected patient burst through a nearby door. The creature twisted his mouth into a grotesque snarl. Eliza noted that his—or its—eyes were filled with a mindless fury. Eliza and Bobby scrambled down the hallway to avoid the creature, but there was nowhere to go.

The infected were everywhere now, in front of every door, their movements a nightmarish blur of rage and violence. The floor beneath their feet was littered with debris—shattered glass, broken medical equipment, and the bodies of those who’d fallen victim to the infection…or the infected. Eliza stumbled over a discarded stretcher, her breath coming in ragged gasps.

“Hey! You two! Over here!” a voice called out from somewhere behind her. But when she turned, she saw nothing but a wall of infected figures closing in.

“Dr. Carter!” Bobby’s voice seemed distant, his cry swallowed by the moaning of the infected. Eliza glanced back to see him struggling against a group of snarling…she didn’t know what the word was for them.

They’re zombies. Fuck me…I’m going out of my mind here. But they’re fucking zombies…

Bobby’s efforts to fend them off proved futile. In a matter of moments, he was totally overwhelmed, his screams lost amidst a host of snarls and roars.

Jesus, no. He’s gone. I’ve lost him. No, no, no, no, no…

“Bobby!” Eliza screeched, her voice breaking. She watched in horror as Bobby was dragged down, the infected swarming over him with brutal efficiency. This second loss within just a few minutes was overwhelming. Eliza felt like she was losing the will to live.

What’s the point in trying? They’re going to kill me no matter what I do.

The infected closed in on her now, their groans and hisses growing louder and more desperate. Eliza’s mind raced with terror…and then resignation. The infection was spreading too quickly. There would be no escape, no way to contain the outbreak. No hospital in the country had the resources to deal with this.

Eliza’s thoughts turned inward, filling her with a storm of regrets. She thought of her family, the faces of her parents and brother flashing through her mind. Memories of family dinners, laughter, and warmth filled her thoughts.

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