The Virus Within (Original rough draft)

Chapter 18

Walking had one big perk though, I was able to put more space between myself and Daniel which eased the tension somewhat. I once more put Liz on my shoulders, she squealed in excitement, "Giddy up horsie!" I growled lightly at her, I was way better than a horse... She kicked a bit with her heels, "Horsies don't growl, they go neigh!"

Nicky started snickering and I sent a glare her way. Hank ignored us and immediately headed for the nearby tree line to walk hidden from sight as we had before. Everyone else followed suit. Daniel took the lead while I followed as the rear guard.

The day was cooler so the humans weren't sweating or overheating as badly. I was ready to strangle Ben, he seemed to think that his gas was the equivalent of propulsion power. Nicky swatted his arm, "If we could bottle the stuff that keeps escaping your ass, we would be halfway to the moon by now. But we can't—so cut it out or walk on the road. You smell so bad any zombie would think you are already dead."

Her complaint didn't help cut down on the number of escapees. I made a mental note to subtly check all of the bags and hide any cans of beans that may be present. We paused for another break for them to rest while Ben and Hank went over the map with Nina and Daniel to determine if we could make it to the nearest town before nightfall.

I moved off to the side where the air was clearer of their scent. My head felt like I had been in a perfume shop all day, I simply wanted a breath of fresher air. I breathed deeply. There were some deer nearby, a couple of rabbits and some pheasants. I hadn't hunted last night so the smaller creatures were tempting. I might have to take a break of my own during their next breather.

My Nightstalker instincts shifted slightly as I caught a hint of a faint and vague scent. I raised my head to sniff the air, but was unable to detect it again. I tried to pick up the smell, but couldn't pick it up even with half a dozen deep breaths. Perhaps I imagined the faint scent or it may have been several weak scents overlapping into something unfamiliar. It wouldn't be the first time that such a thing happened.

We started walking again. But my instincts wouldn't settle, I kept glancing around as I peered into the surrounding trees and listened for anything out of place. Nicky decided to walk beside me after we had walked for some time. She gave me an odd look, "What has you looking around like that?"

The others glanced back at me as we kept walking. I frowned, more from faint unease than from irritation. I focused on Daniel, "Something is triggering my instincts slightly, but I am not sure what. Are you picking anything up?"

He stopped and tilted his head as he sniffed the air and listened while debating if anything was bugging him. Several seconds later he shook his head, "Nothing." We resumed walking.

The worst part was that I couldn't find anything out of place either. No odd scents, no weird noises, nothing. Great, now I am jumping at shadows. For all I know, I imagined that whiff of scent I thought I detected. I couldn't pick it up a second time and there is no wind for something to hide downwind. Besides, Daniel would hear anything that approached before it got to us.

I just couldn't put my finger on why that scent had seemed familiar, as if I should have known what it was. It bothered me like an itch I couldn't scratch as we continued walking. My instincts still wouldn't settle. Half an hour later our companions required another rest. I moved off to the side, intending to go out of hearing range to do a bit of hunting. Perhaps some pheasant blood would allow me to settle down. I could smell some of the birds not far from here.

I took a deeper breath to see how close they really were. I froze as I caught the faint scent again, only it was much stronger this time. I also knew why I felt like I had known what that scent belonged to. Of all of the rotten luck... I dropped into a slight crouch and gave a warning growl to the others. I backed up a few steps toward them while facing the direction that the danger was approaching from.