The undead woman's arms had been drawn straight, folded down and crossed in front of her. The fabric of the torn sweater partially concealed the most uncomfortable aspect of her visage. Wrists had been firmly bound within the provided belts and were knotted tightly around horizontal metal bars amidst a sea of inky black. Shifting its shoulders and arms within the tiny space it still could, the restrained figure vocalized its disdain.
Eyes lacking all conscious awareness followed each motion as the three nearby conspirators spoke to one another within an aura of light. Behind the triplet, another paltry light spilled through glass and bounced down the brick walled and shrubbery lined corridor. A minimal glow radiated from a couple of windows above the ground floor.
"I don't know if this will hold." Jennifer skeptically examined the improvised bindings with an apprehensive sigh. Her voice accompanied a wispy fog that billowed into the air and dissipated around her. Although Evan didn't draw attention to it, he did notice the same thing was not happening with the dead woman's moans. The implication of that made his skin crawl, but he tried not to think too much about it.
"It should for a while at least." Evan asserted as he eyed Zack. "Maybe a few minutes after we leave you could see about doing something more permanent? To make sure it won't get loose and attack someone?"
Zack silently nodded his assent and tentatively approached the nearby gate. He cautiously examined the captive a couple feet to his left, then peered out into the nearby area. Helpfully, Jennifer came up at his side, shining the flashlight's beam into the empty road. No other figures were visible in the immediate vicinity. But something could be lingering in those dark places just outside of sight, Evan thought to himself. A thought that would no doubt linger in the minds of humanity fresher now than even in the most ancient eras of man's past.
The only evidence of activity Evan could discern was the sound of their own movements and those of their solitary imprisoned zombie. Regardless, Evan kept his senses sharp and focused, thinking about the couple zombies he had seen several hours ago from the rooftop of Blackwood dorm. He didn't know whether they had wandered off or not, but he thought that if they were around where he had seen them before, he probably would have been able to hear their distinctive wailing call.
Apparently satisfied, Zack retrieved the key and gingerly began to undo the lock binding the secure chains to the gate. Since one arm of the zombie had been threaded through the left side of the gate, Zack firmly held that part closed and carefully swung the right side open just a crack. Stepping back just enough to be out of the way, he whispered. "Good luck."
Evan unhesitantly took the lead, tensing his arms carefully as he kept his senses focused. With his physical training, he was sensitive to the hinderance the coat inflicted upon his motions, but it wasn't nearly restrictive enough to seriously bother him. At the same time, Evan figured the heavy material might keep him safe from any biting. So if he absolutely had to engage an attacker, the arm of the heavy coat he wore could probably be used to deflect an incoming lunge.
Quickly surveying the immediate surroundings, Evan motioned for Jennifer to follow or, alternatively, hand him the flashlight. To his surprise, she stepped through the gate and swung the light around towards their destination with only minimal hesitation. He wasn't happy about that, but there was no time to argue. They took off together, both uncomfortably aware of the sound of their own footfalls on the pavement in the silent city.
The returning journey, threading between buildings and traveling adjacent to the green space of the park blocks was much more nerve wracking for Evan than any earlier expedition. Not just the darkness or the worry for his companion, but Jennifer wasn't quite as fast a runner as he was. In fact, he knew from experience that she was slower than what could very well charge at them from the shadows. Still, he would not let his uneasiness show and indicated Jennifer to take the lead with their shared source of vision.
As they proceeded partway along the strip of greenery, while racing up the mild slope, unexpected sounds came from somewhere around them. Jennifer slowed and halted in response, shooting a nervous glance to Evan as he ran a few steps ahead before halting. She clearly wanted to retreat, but waited for the signal from Evan to do so. They stood there a moment as whatever sound it was halted. The beam of the flashlight searched ahead of them as Jennifer scanned the area ahead.
"What was that?" Jennifer asked, her voice tiny. From her tone, Evan could tell she badly wanted to retreat, but nevertheless did not even suggest it. "Is it an infected?"
There was silence for a moment, only the faint rustling of the wind clattering the bare branches overhead. Summoning up the confidence he could manage to instill in his voice, Evan whispered. "If it was, we would hear it running at us." Then he turned back towards their destination and continued advancing.
With trepidation, Evan motioned for Jennifer to follow as he moved on ahead. Deciding to resume at a slower pace, he thought it might help to not drown out any further sounds. A few moments later, they were at the corner of Blackwood dorm as the noise came again, this time more clear. It was a human voice, high, but tense with fear and calling out for their attention. Sweeping the beam of the light around, Jennifer settled the illuminating rays upon two nearby figures shortly afterwards. One raised a hand and waved in response.
Robert and Minoko stood alongside one another amidst the long wooden benches composing the quarter circle amphitheater, halfway between the safety of either adjacent building. In the minimal illumination available they had somehow made it halfway from the front doors of their former refuge to the doors of the building across the way.
Quickly, Evan moved ahead to join them, carefully avoiding the benches and stepping down the concrete steps as he progressed. As he neared and the light brought the two into sharper focus, he recognized Robert was uneven on his feet and reluctantly using the smaller woman as an aid to stand. They were speaking in hushed tones to one another. Jennifer lagged behind, eying the light coming from the glass doorway of the dormitory. Faces watched from the lobby.
"No." Robert gasped out with what force he could muster in relative quiet. "I'm too sick. They'll let you back in. Leave me."
"No." Minoko replied just as resolutely.
Evan quickly darted to Robert's other side and placed the sick man's arm around his shoulders in a supportive grip. "We're going to get you inside. Come on, this way." He felt the weight of the heavy man as he weakly tried to push Evan away. His condition was getting worse.
There was a moment of protest, but Robert finally relented at their refusal to leave him. Finally accepting their assistance, his balance was uneven and his weight made it hard to proceed at a rapid pace. But he tried his best.
The small group made their way in silence along the walkways and downhill, steadily pacing forwards with an agonizing, slow return to the Mansfield building. Jennifer led the way, scanning the flashlight about in an uneasy, nervous fashion more likely to attract attention than help the four. Her distress at their gradual progress was obvious on her face every time she glanced back.
Evan didn't have the freedom to worry. His every sense and thought was focused on the immediate environment as they proceeded towards their goal, alert for any unexpected disturbance. The soft sound of a metallic scraping or gentle clatter accompanied every other step Robert took. The effect of the restraint still attached to one ankle. The other cuff, unlatched, dangled from the man's wrist. Such distractions were distressing, but his sense of urgency told him there was no time to remedy that situation. He needed to be ready to react to anything that might happen.
As they neared the final leg of the return, the discomforting groan of an undead wail flitted towards them from the dark. Robert and Minoko siezed in terror for a moment, a faint vocalization caught in one of their throats. Evan whispered softly. "It's trapped. We're almost there. Hurry." With a gentle nudge and a motion, he coerced their continued march. They proceeded through the narrow street between two buildings.
They were just within sight of the heavy gate, out from behind the cover of the surrounding buildings when Evan heard a distant thumping of shoes clacking upon asphalt. Echoes made it impossible to tell from which direction it was coming but with no doubt it was growing louder.
"Get the gate open!" Evan called out aloud, hoping that Zack was still lingering outside.
