The Immune

9. What could have been

The night passed slowly, with the storm quietly dissipating in the early hours. Will and I managed to catch a few hours of sleep each, readying ourselves for the new day.
Brooke' condition only worsened. Her temperature remained high, her skin slick to the touch. She shivered despite the warmth of her skin. She slipped into a place beyond sleep, refusing to be awakened.
Will watched on, feeling guilty and unable to help. The medicine seemed to have no effect.
We shared a tin of soup for breakfast, solemnly watching over the young woman.
"What are we to do? We have at least another day and night before we reach the safe house."
He rested his head in his hands, rubbing his eyes in frustration. He pulled a map out from his back pack, his eyes searching.
" Here we are" he indicated to a set of dense, web like streets. Suburbia.
" the cleared highway is here", he indicated to a stretch of road a distance away on the map.
The cleared highway was a post outbreak initiative whereby a single thoroughfare in every city was cleared away. They would be the fastest way to travel safely. The project took a few years to complete, costing lives, but it united factions across the country and promoted trade and safe travel.
" If we're lucky we'll make it to the highway, maybe even find a vehicle"
" What are we going to do about Brooke?"
" I'll take care of that. There was a wheel barrow in the house next door - Could work."
" That sounds great. Beats carrying her."

--
By mid morning we had left the safety of the terrace house and were on our way. Our route to the highway took us through streets upon streets of decaying inner city suburbia. We passed an overgrown baseball field, passed a empty train station.
It was midday when we came across the evidence of a great explosion. An entire block was covered in a layer of black, a sign of a great fire. The skeletal structures stood still, half eaten houses left behind by the fire. The houses conditions only got worse towards the epicentre whereby twisted metal and melted rubber were the only signs of entire houses. Whatever exploded here had created a fire so hot it melted whole structures. Cars were crispy shells of their former selves, telephone poles had twisted and lay were they had given up. Weeds were the only sign of new life in the area.
" I wonder what happened here"
" Would've been a story to tell"
Every step was on remains of ash, it made the wheelbarrow leave a trail as it trundled along
" It must've happened recently"
" The spring has been dry and hot. I'd say maybe a month."
Other footsteps had made marks in the congealed ash, paths that often consisted of a group of footprints.

We swapped shifts pushing the wheelbarrow, the other on guard and leading the way. We stayed quiet and kept ourselves hidden when possible, avoiding open spaces as well as main roads. The few zombies we saw, we were able to avoid, making our getaway, or hideaway, easily.
By late afternoon we were both exhausted. We hadn't managed to get a response from Brooke since this morning. Her condition remained worryingly the same.
But, by sunset we made it. I could see the highway from our vantage point at the top of a incline only two streets away.
" We'll stay here tonight, so we can get going early tomorrow." said Will. We hadn't spoken in a while, the situation demanding silence. His voice made me jump, his statement seemingly too loud for the quiet.
He picked a house that was mildly raised off the ground, a site easily defensible and a useful vantage point.
The rooms were small and cosy, decorated in warm colours and contained windows that really let the light into the room. After a quick adjustment we organised to have their windows blacked out.
I took the first watch whilst Will checked in on Brooke. I sat in front of one of the windows near the entrance. The angle of the glass gave me the perfect view of the street beyond, but not allowing anyone to see me.
It wasn't long before Will joined me, his face a familiar mask of worry.
" I think," he started, " and I'm not really sure. But I think she has septic shock".
"What's that?" I asked, it sounded bad.
" An infection of the blood. I think something got into or like created that wound right and it literally has just been contaminating her blood. I disinfected it. I tried. But like, I don't have the skills or the medicine to help her. If we don't help her soon, her organs will start shutting down."
" Tomorrow. We can get to the safe house... tomorrow. We can get her help then."
He ran an agitated hand through his hair.
" Don't beat yourself up. We are doing pretty much all we can. Just focus on getting some sleep, and we'll move on tomorrow. One step at a time"
he nodded his head again, 
" Thanks. We'll be at the compound this time tomorrow, and Brooke will be okay." he nodded again as though to convince himself.
Silence descended as we both contemplated our future. Tomorrow I will willingly be going to the place I've been running from for years.
" Things will be different at the compound. " he said breaking the quiet.
" So far your team hasn't persuaded me" I said thinking back to the loved ones I recently lost. The dull ache that had been resting in my chest flared up, the agony and grief renewed.
" My team weren't related to your mother's or Lily's, or even intentionally, your father's deaths. Also,I remember not long after you left, there was a change of control within the compounds hierarchy. Heathburn, the woman you claim was responsible for the incident, she was the one who set the fire, and reportedly was the one to murder your mother. Ashyln, they said she died in the fire that also killed your mother."
" That doesn't make much sense" I pondered quietly, quietly thinking. If this was all about power and control, Heathburn had nothing to gain? Who else had anything to gain? was she really dead?

"- one thing is for sure" Will was saying, as I tuned back in, " I myself can't deny the truth of your words. I didn't want to see the wrongness, the evil. I denied every doubt, every thought for so long." he said
" There were rumours that relates to what you're saying. Heathburn supposedly kept zombies within the compounds main structure. Tests were taken. Organ amputation and blood testing."
"I have, " he looked at me, " I want, to believe I'm not taking you to your death." his eyes troubled.
" Maybe they have changed" I whispered.
" You don't believe that for a second do you?" he said
" No. But I am a natural born pessimist. I'm always thinking the worst so when something good happens I can be pleasantly surprised".
he let out a laugh
" You are taking me to my family" I said, "that's all I want or need at the moment."
" I can protect you"
" You're one person Will. Even if I had a whole army it wouldn't matter. A cure has to be found. I'm just hoping I'll get to live to see it."
" As do I"
We sat in silence for a while, just enjoying each others presence.
" If things had been different Ash" he hesitated, " I would've liked to have known you better, without this hanging over us" he said, seemingly a bit nervous admitting this.
My heart skipped a beat. I did like Will. But there was just, just so much going on, nothing could ever work out. I had smothered what like I had had with distrust and suspicion.
Boys weren't exactly my number one priority in a zombie apocalypse. So I was rather unprepared for his forwardness.
I reached over slowly, taking his warm hand in mine. He gripped my hand tightly, and we sat shoulder to shoulder and watched out over an impossible world.