While We Fall (The Eva Series #2)

Chapter Six

“Are you sure you want to do this?” Asked Wyatt as he slammed the boot of the Hummer shut. We had stopped on a dirt road just off the highway, outside of a small truck-stop.
Tom had decided to take Max to Darwin, where some of his family lived, so we helped him find a car and gave him some of our supplies to help them on their journey.
“Yeah. If we beat the virus, we should get there in time to find my family, jump on a boat and get away from here.” He replied, buckling Max into a baby seat we found in an abandoned car.
We all knew the chances of them beating the virus were slim, but we had to hope that they could do it.
“Well, if you change your mind, you know where we’ll be.” Wyatt said as he shook Tom’s hand.
“Thanks,” Tom smiled wearily, and looked at Ben, Jo and I. “Thanks all of you, for everything.”
We nodded and said our goodbyes, waving to little Max as the Hummer pulled away.

“At least they’ll be safe in that thing. It’s practically zombie-proof.” Ben grinned, and it felt good to see him smiling like his old self again.
“Where’s Martin?” Asked Jo, holding her hand over her eyes to block the sun while she looked around the parking lot.
“I think he’s in the RV. Sulking.” Grumbled Ben as he started walking back towards the RV.
“Nah, I saw him go into the cafe,” Said Wyatt. “I’m driving this time.”
Ben threw the keys to Wyatt and they both climbed into either side of the driver’s cabin. None of us wanted Martin to tag along, especially after he abandoned Tom and Jill, but he begged us to let him come with us to Elliot’s.
As I stepped into the RV behind Jo, I heard a loud crash come from inside the truck-stop cafe, followed by a scream.

I jumped back out of the RV with my axe at the ready as Martin flew through the cafe door and skidded along the dirt.
“Run!” He yelled as he scrambled to his feet and started racing towards me.
I climbed back into the RV and waited for Martin to get in before closing the door and turning the lock.
Wyatt turned the engine on and started driving back onto the Highway while Martin struggled to catch his breath.
“What happened?” Asked Jo, startled.
I looked out the window to see the zombies emerge from the cafe and start shuffling after us.
“That was too close.” Martin replied, wiping sweat off of his forehead.

“Why the hell did you go in there, anyway?” Asked Ben as he turned in his seat to face Martin.
“I was looking for a weapon,” he answered, holding his palms up defensively. “I didn’t think anyone would be in there. It looked empty.”
Ben rolled his eyes and turned to face the front again, clearly irritated.

I put the kettle on and started preparing a few of the dehydrated pasta meals for our lunch. None of us had eaten much over the past few days, the stress of this new world had taken it’s toll on our appetite, but we weren’t safe yet and we had to keep out energy levels up.

After handing a bowl of pasta to Jo and Ben, I offered one to Martin, who had been sitting silently at the dining table.
“Not hungry.” He muttered, shaking his head.
As I sat across from him to eat my pasta, I noticed he still had sweat beading on his forehead from his scare back in the cafe.
“How long until we get to Daintree?” He called to Wyatt, so suddenly that I dropped my fork on the table in surprise.
“Still got about fourteen hours.” Wyatt called back, and Martin groaned in frustration.
I turned to look at Jo, who sat cross-legged on the couch with Dixon by her side, and she had the same worried expression as me.
“What?” Asked Martin suspiciously, and I knew he was talking to me. “What are you looking at her like that for?”
“No reason.” I answered, turning back to my bowl of pasta to avoid making eye contact with him.
“You got a problem?” He asked, this time louder.
My discomfort grew as he leaned forward in his seat. I could feel his eyes burning into me, but I didn’t take my eyes off of the meal in front of me.
“Nope.” I lied.
“Good.” He grumbled as he crossed his arms and leaned back in his seat again.

Dread filled me as I thought about having to spend the next fourteen hours trapped in the RV with him. I had a bad feeling about this guy, my instincts started sounding the alarm about him the moment he stepped into the RV, but he had nowhere else to go. If we kicked him out now, he would surely die.
As I argued back and forth with my conscience about what to do, I could feel Martin’s eyes burning into me again.
Trying to be inconspicuous, I quickly glanced up at him, only to realise he wasn’t staring at me, he was staring at my food.
“Do you want some?” I asked, pointing to the extra bowl of pasta on the kitchenette bench that I had offered him just ten minutes earlier.
“Yes.” He answered, but I noticed something different about his voice.
I stood up to get the extra bowl, but by the time I had turned around to give it to him he had started shovelling mine into his mouth.
“Sure, go ahead.” I muttered sarcastically as I sat across from him at the dining table again.
He snapped his head up from the bowl to glare at me, and the look in his eyes made my heart skip a beat.
I could hear Dixon growling from the back of the RV, and I slowly turned to see he had his eyes locked on Martin.
Suddenly, a horrible realisation occurred in my mind.