One infected was insanely fast, closing the gap in seconds. Its fingers were reaching out, almost touching Burgors' back.
Thup!
Its head exploded before he reached him.
Burgors didn't even have time to feel relieved. He just kept running.
'Come on, Burgors. Run, Burgors, run!' Jaxon thought, firing again.
Thup. Thup. Thup.
More zombies dropped behind Burgors, but even more kept rushing in from the street.
"Here!" Natasha shouted from the doorway, waving at him in panic.
With Jaxon taking out the closest infected, Burgors finally made it to the house, stumbling inside.
"Close the door! Quick!" Haris yelled from behind Natasha, gripping a knife with his hands shaking.
One infected got way too close, practically diving toward the doorway.
Natasha raised the pistol, her arms trembling, and fired.
Bang!
The zombie's head snapped back, and it dropped just inches from the door.
She slammed the door shut, and Haris locked it right away. They both stepped back at the same time.
Bang!
The zombies reached the door, slamming their bodies against it over and over.
"Natasha, get back!" Jaxon's voice came sharply from behind.
Thup!
He shot an infected that was already halfway through the broken window.
Bam! Bam! Bam!
The doors and windows downstairs were getting hammered nonstop, each slam breaking a large piece.
"To the second floor, now!" Jaxon shouted.
Burgors and Haris snapped out of their shock and ran up the stairs.
Thup, Thup.
Jaxon fired again, dropping two more infected trying to crawl through the window frame.
Bang!
Natasha shot one that managed to squeeze an arm through. The zombie just fell limp outside.
"Go, Natasha! Wait for me in the next room!"
Crack… crack…
The downstairs windows and door finally broke. Wood, glass, and metal just shattered as the infected poured in.
Jaxon unsummoned his rifle for a second and saw a heavy cabinet in the hallway. He ran to it and shoved it down the stairs with all his strength.
Boom!
It crashed down, blocking the stairway and slowing the zombies down.
But one of them climbed its way up, pulling itself onto the broken cabinet.
Jaxon summoned his rifle again.
Thup, Thup.
The infected fell, but more bodies slammed against the cabinet, trying to climb over.
When three of them finally pushed through and scrambled up together, Jaxon turned and sprinted into the room where Natasha was waiting.
He slammed the door shut and locked it.
Natasha stood ready, pistol in both hands, her arms shaking but steady. Jaxon raised his rifle beside her, breathing hard.
"Don't shoot yet," he whispered. "Cover me when the door opens."
He turned a little and aimed at the door, firing through the wood as the zombies kept slamming into it from the other side.
Thup, thup. Reload. Thup, thup.
Even without seeing them, his shots landed. Each random burst hit something on the other side. Little by little, the slamming grew weak… then finally stopped.
Jaxon looked at Natasha. She looked back. They both nodded, holding their guns tight as they moved slowly toward the door full of holes.
Jaxon reached for the handle and pushed the door open.
Suddenly, a growl came from below. "Grahh!"
An infected shot its arm up from the floor, trying to grab him.
Bang. Natasha fired before it could reach him. The bullet tore into its neck, dropping it flat.
It twitched on the ground, shaking a little. Jaxon stepped forward and finished it off with one clean shot.
Silence followed. No more growls and pounding.
Jaxon and Natasha stepped out, careful not to touch the bodies all over the floor. They moved through the corridor with their guns raised, breathing hard.
"Haris, Hannah… you okay?" Natasha whispered, keeping her voice low.
They went into the next room and found the siblings and Burgors all huddled together. Their faces were pale and their eyes were wide, but they were holding their weapons steady.
"You guys alright?" Jaxon asked softly.
The three of them looked at each other before Burgors spoke. "What… what happened to the zombies?"
"They're all dead," Natasha answered.
Jaxon grabbed his bag of guns from beside the bed. "If you're all okay, we need to move now."
Jaxon and Natasha went first. Haris helped Hannah stand, holding her arm as they followed close behind. Burgors stayed at the back, breathing hard but trying to be quiet.
They peeked outside. The street was empty. No groans or movement. Jaxon thought more infected would come rushing after all the noise they made, but no one came. The silence felt weird, but he took it. He didn't get lucky breaks often.
They moved slowly, careful with every step as they crossed to another house. He led them inside a nearby house about fifty meters away and locked the door.
Everyone let out a long breath, their shoulders dropping as the tension eased a little. It wasn't completely safe, but it was safer than outside.
Natasha leaned against the wall, still trying to catch her breath. Jaxon looked over at her and gave her a small smile.
"Your aim was great back there. When did you learn to shoot like that?"
Natasha smiled back, tired but also proud. "I just copied you."
Before Jaxon could say anything else, Burgors spoke up from behind.
"Jaxon? Is that you?"
He turned to the fat young man. "Hey Burgors."
Burgors' eyes widened a little. "It really is you. I didn't even recognize you earlier. I thought you were some kind of trained soldier. Thanks for saving me back there, man."
"You're welcome. Glad you made it. But why were the zombies chasing you again?"
Burgors rubbed the back of his neck and shook his head. "I don't know. I was hiding in my room like I always do… and then out of nowhere, they started slamming into my door."
"I see…" Jaxon said softly. Then he turned to the siblings. "Haris, Hannah… I'm sorry, but your house might not be safe to live in anymore. But you can stay here from now on."
Natasha stepped forward and added, "We checked this place out earlier. It's cleaner, and the kitchen still has a lot of food."