19

Your hands shake as you close the door and cross to the center of your home. You run to a side cabinet and take out a six-pack of beer. One can later and the room is spinning, but the rapid firing of neurons dulls enough for you to think straight. You're out of cigarettes and rummage through the living room cabinet until you find a half-filled pack.

The things you've already seen—the infected, their victims, the chaos—all rattle your nerves and have you asking too many questions with no immediate answers. How do I stay safe? What do I do now? When will this end? You feel like you're sitting next to a time bomb, and at any moment—

Sounds outside: hurried footsteps, a gunshot, a growl. You creep along the wall and lean to the side, peeking through the edge of a window. An older man runs across the street near the front of your house, chased by a woman, long hair covering her head like a flowing hood. She hobbles diagonally, torso twisted off-center from her legs, and her arms rise and fall with each gallop. The old man turns and fires a revolver, misses, then races around the corner of a nearby house. The woman follows, unfazed by the gunshot.

You wonder if Parker, your neighbor, is home. He's smart and works for the city, though it's just a job at the museum. Maybe he knows what's going on. Or maybe Vince is home. He lives across the street and has been quite friendly in passing conversation. He keeps to himself, so you know little about the man other than that he teaches at a high school outside Nightfall. He has that distinct air of being capable, and you have a gut feeling he'd know what to do in this situation.

You wonder if your neighbors, the Taylors, are home. Bud and Mansi Taylor run a produce farm along with their daughter, Billie. They sent over a bushel of beets two weeks ago and always look after your house when you're away, so you wonder how they're faring in the first day of the outbreak.

It's quiet outside—too quiet. You know the infected are out there, roaming, hunting. How do I ensure my safety? What is the government doing to stop the spread of infection? So many questions and nowhere to turn for straight answers. Your mind races as you try to figure out what to do next.