Page 17 of The Last of Love

Fleur placed a reassuring hand on Lena’s shoulder, grounding her. “We’ve come this far. We’ll keep moving, just like we always do,” she said, her voice steady. That’s when Lena noticed something.

It was a human, a woman. She seemed normal. But something about her made Lena feel uneasy.

“Hey. Is that a person over there?” Fleur squinted into the distance, her voice tinged with suspicion.

“I think so. We should try to avoid her,” Lena replied cautiously, scanning the treeline. “People can be just as harmful as the dead, if not worse.”

“What if she can point us towards the lab?” Fleur’s mind was already racing through possibilities.

“You want to trust a stranger? She might also be ready to ambush us and take us for all we have. Or kill us!” Lena shot her a skeptical glance.

“She’s alone. And she doesn’t seem to be turned.” Fleur was insistent, her gut telling her something different.

Lena sighed. “If you insist, but I’d say avoid her and keep moving.”

The woman was waving at them now, but something felt off. They walked toward her cautiously, only to hear the unmistakable sound of a gun loading behind them. They were surrounded.

“Fuck. I fucking knew it,” Lena muttered under her breath, eyes narrowing.

“Maybe they can be reasoned with,” Fleur offered, though her voice wavered.

“We better hope so.” Lena gritted her teeth, sizing up the situation.

There were two men flanking them, each wielding knives, while the one with the gun, clearly their leader, stood ahead. His presence was intimidating, but Lena’s trained eyes quickly assessed him. He hadn’t eaten well in a long time, and the same could be said for his companions. They looked like the type who’d been cast out of whatever community they once belonged to, but she couldn’t quite put her finger on what would have gotten them exiled.

The leader sneered. “We haven’t seen any people around here in quite a while. Especially not two ladies. What brings you out here? It’s not that safe around here. Not for folk who don’t belong.”

Lena’s breath quickened as she waited to see if they recognized Fleur. But it seemed they didn’t, and she let out a quiet sigh of relief.

“We’re looking for her brother who lives in Ohio. We’re heading that way on and won’t be any trouble,” Fleur lied smoothly, her voice filled with feigned confidence.

The leader wasn’t convinced. “So three years after the outbreak, now you’re looking for your brother? Some sister you are. Sounds like bullshit to me,” he spat, his eyes narrowing in disdain. His accent was slightly southern, with a twang that was unfamiliar.

Lena had no patience for games. “What do you want from us?” she asked, her tone firm and irritated.

The leader’s smirk widened as he sized them both up. “Well, we haven’t had meat in quite some time,” he said, his eyes dark and hungry. “Looks like we might just get lucky today. You look like you got a bit of meat on your bones,” he laughed, showing off a gummy smile with blackened roots.

Lena had heard rumors about cannibals, groups who, in their desperation, turned to the unthinkable. But she didn’t want to believe it was true. She tensed up, disgust coursing through her,but then felt Fleur’s hand gently grip hers. Fleur looked up at her, silently telling her not to do anything rash.

Fleur, ever the diplomat, tried to reason with them. “Look, meat’s been scarce for everyone. But we’ve got a couple of cans of tuna. That should be enough to let us go on our way, right?”

Lena was silently hoping they could avoid violence, but her thoughts kept circling back to the horror of it all. These people weren’t zombies. They were human, people who had chosen to descend into madness. And somehow, that made them worse. At least zombies had no choice.

The leader’s eyes flicked between them. “Tuna, huh? Doesn’t sound like enough. How about this: you let me keep this one,” he said, nodding toward Fleur, his smirk widening. “Then we’ll call it even.”

Lena’s blood boiled. “I don’t fucking thi—” she began, but Fleur cut her off with a quick, surprising retort.

“You want me? But she’s so much bigger!” Fleur said, her voice incredulous, trying to buy them time.

The leader came closer, edging his way into her personal space. Fleur gave Lena the side eye. A quiet message to take them on.

“Now,” Fleur whispered.

Lena’s training kicked in. She swung her leg up, connecting with the leader’s arm, sending the gun flying out of his grip. It hit the ground with a deafening bang, a stray bullet grazing Lena’s arm. Ignoring the pain, she tackled him to the ground as Fleur lunged for the gun.

“Shoot them!” Lena yelled as she wrestled the leader.

The two knife-wielding men charged at Fleur, but without hesitation, BANG BANG BANG BANG! Fleur squeezed the trigger and the bullets whooshed through the air.

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