Hunted

Leon Graves moved fast, keeping low as he led the group deeper into the woods. The sounds of movement behind them were growing louder. Whoever these people were, they weren't just passing through. They were tracking.

He could hear it in the way their footsteps slowed, the occasional stop as if they were listening.

Hunters.

Not the kind that stalked deer or elk. The kind that hunted people.

Eve Voss moved beside him, her rifle held close. "How many?" she whispered.

Leon motioned for her to keep quiet. He paused for half a second, tilting his head.

Six, maybe seven. Spread out.

Travis and Riley trailed behind them, moving too loudly. The two kids were worse, barely able to keep up. The girl still clutched her bleeding arm, her breathing labored.

This wasn't good.

They needed to disappear, fast.

Leon scanned the terrain ahead—steep incline, thick trees, a dried-up creek bed about thirty yards down. Good cover.

He turned to the others. "Drop into that gully. Keep moving west."

Travis hesitated. "What about you?"

Leon checked his pistol. "I'll buy you time."

Eve scoffed. "Bullshit. If you're staying, I'm staying."

Leon exhaled, knowing there was no point in arguing. He turned back to the others. "Keep moving. Don't stop."

Riley nodded and pulled the kids along. Travis hesitated but followed. Within seconds, they were gone.

Now it was just Leon and Eve.

Waiting.

Hunting the hunters.

The first man appeared ten feet ahead, stepping carefully between the trees.

Leon saw him before he saw them—a lean figure dressed in black, a hunting bow slung over his shoulder, machete in hand.

Leon pressed his back against the tree, his grip tightening around the pistol.

The man took another step.

Leon moved fast—grabbing him by the collar and slamming his face into the tree trunk.

The man grunted, dazed. Leon didn't give him time to recover. He drove his knife up under his ribs, twisting hard.

The hunter choked, gurgling, his body going limp.

Leon let him drop without a sound.

One down.

Eve raised an eyebrow. "Efficient."

Leon wiped his blade clean. "They would've done the same."

She didn't argue.

Another voice called out in the distance. "Jay? You there?"

Leon tensed. The others would know something was wrong soon.

Eve looked at him. "We keep picking them off?"

Leon shook his head. "No time. We keep moving."

They moved west, staying low and fast, weaving through the trees.

Then a gunshot cracked through the air.

Riley's scream followed.

Leon and Eve broke into a sprint.

They found Riley first. She was on her knees in the dirt, hands raised, her face twisted in fear.

Two hunters stood over her—one holding a sawn-off shotgun, the other gripping a bloody hunting knife.

Travis was on the ground beside her, barely moving. His shirt was soaked red.

The kids were nowhere in sight.

Leon stepped into the clearing, his gun already raised. "Drop it."

The man with the shotgun turned toward him, smirking. "You must be the one causing all the trouble."

Leon didn't answer.

Eve moved into position, her rifle aimed at the second man. "Last warning. Back off."

The knife-wielding hunter just grinned. "You don't get it, do you?"

Leon's grip tightened. "Get what?"

The man whistled sharply.

More movement. Three more hunters appeared from the trees, rifles aimed.

A trap.

Leon cursed under his breath. They were outnumbered.

Eve exhaled slowly. "This is bad."

The shotgun-wielding man smirked. "Drop your weapons."

Leon's mind raced. He wasn't about to be taken alive.

Then, before anyone could react, something moved in the distance.

Not human.

A deep, guttural growl echoed from the trees.

The hunters froze.

Then the screaming started.

Something burst from the woods, slamming into one of the hunters. The man barely had time to react before his head was ripped clean from his shoulders.

The others turned, firing wildly.

Leon caught a glimpse of it—massive, grotesque, half-human, half-monster. It wasn't just infected.

It was something worse.

The creature lunged at another hunter, tearing into him with inhuman speed. The forest erupted into chaos.

Leon didn't waste the opportunity. He fired twice, hitting the shotgun-wielding man in the throat.

Eve took down another with a clean shot to the head.

Riley grabbed Travis, dragging him toward cover.

The remaining hunters ran, but the thing was faster. It tore into them, ripping, shredding.

Leon grabbed Eve. "Go. Now!"

They didn't look back.

They ran.