HIS EVE: The Aftermath Chronicles (Book Two)

6 † Branded

†"For you were bought with a price. So glorify God in your body." - Corinthians 6:20 †

The screech of the dead hit Dalton in the ear harder than his fall. On the back of his neck, he can feel the dripping saliva from the bite he's dodging, thrashing to avoid the teeth that meant certain death.

Something scrapes on his skin and in the terror that it's the virus making its way into his bloodstream, Dalton yells out for Nick when he can't throw the zombie off.

As he glimpses the swing of the shotgun just behind him, Dalton is quick to stand to try and shake away the feel of the rotting corpse. Looking down to the broken skull, Dalton attempts to catch his breath. Unseeing all the while, that another stands in their presence.

The viper herself—Ana Maria.

"What the fuck..." Dalton mutters out in gusts of air, his hand feverishly searching the back of his neck all the while for bites.

As Nick lingers above the corpse, his silent attentions bring Dalton to stare onto the zombie that very well, almost killed him.

When Dalton puts his hand around to inspect any damage, he feels the slobber from the recently turned infected. The green goo, the trademark of a zombie crossed over within a few weeks time. However, there's a trace of red along the green. Blood, that could be his own, or from the starving infected.

Kicking over the slain zombie, Nick shows them the reason for all his staring. Ana Maria, approaches, walking up to Nick as if they were buddies still from the beach camp all those months ago. Around Nick, was the only time Ana Maria calmed. She seemed less intimidating, more normal.

On the decomposing flesh of the zombie, Dalton too, sees what they stare at. Flicking off the gunk from his hands, the cross-branded onto the zombie's neck isn't as interesting to Dalton as the possibility of him being bitten. Taking his steps away, he furiously wipes at the back of his neck. Too terrified, to even feel if his skin has been ruptured by zombie's teeth.

Behind Dalton's turned back, the once allies turned enemies, then apparently, allied again in the brief two-point-five-seconds they've reunited, converse.

"Yeah, I've been seeing these fuckers all over these woods. All of them branded. Looks like most of 'em took quite a beating too. You see this..." Ana Maria's inner cop comes through, though she was no detective, her time on the streets of LA shine, "...this one's arm was bent in half the wrong way...right at the elbow. You can see that all that muscle and skin is a different color than the decomposing after it turned."

Nick gruffs, letting his eyes roam over the other injuries Ana Maria points out before she says, "You two come out here to hunt me down? Bring me back? Make me pay for what I did?"

"We both know ya didn't do it." Nick replies quickly before he adds, "Came ta get ya back 'cause we're gonna need yer help. Isaac's too."

Though Nick wasn't a readable man, even Dalton heard his accusation on Isaac in regard to the murder she tried to pin on herself; much like the rest of the colony did.

It's Ana Maria's turn to stay silent.

Though her body language reads tense as always, there's a softness in her face as she waits for Nick to answer the questions, the suspicions thick in the air around all of them. Dalton, outside of the conversation, takes note of the rabbits hanging from Ana Maria's clutched hand.

Rabbits, from Nick's traps.

Two birds, one stone.

Nick knew exactly what he was doing in setting those traps. Not just for the food—but for finding Ana Maria and anyone else who was trying to survive out here.