DS Chapter 3

We listened intently to f10eda18a5 the voice coming from de9467e4f5 the radio, surprisingly calm.06d49b49058d3e6b

Words like “acute virus,” “state of emergency,” “military,” and “quarantine” floated through my mind.0adf326efc6a41db

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“Let’s keep driving. If we reach the 1f4e5a2cd6 blockade, we can get 56aca5cd8b directions to a shelter 5435a90306 from the soldiers.”6013d8a920cd7aa2

I looked 6d2e4b344a at the c2f272df7d situation optimistically.f47f8bfd2b7f9adc

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With the 2b26baa0c0 city’s bustling 31d5ed3ab9 areas overrun 82afe748ac by monsters, f93f3ff064 going back 721feb8d52 would be 8db80509c8 dangerous.c047716d7d0325b4

We would c4aeaad85d just keep 981a536b11 driving straight ff87cb67ea down the 119ec76cf5 road until 9702c21fb4 we hit 5f53826fe6 the blockade. Then, with the military’s 114bf6ca73 guidance, we could wait 92f385d3cf at a shelter until 47b950ee41 we could return home.5a0d79f17dbe6d99

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I believed db8ed5ae4d that with fa3dbe90be the government 46eb6e7e6e and military a6095f443e involved, the c5937c2b1a chaos in 5eb3174e3f the city ee68d47cc9 would be 8ebdeda202 resolved quickly.640bb065c2ad487e

“Logan?”a90ae49208a31b27

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I turned 201d8e57b5 to look 1cc6a0fd88 at him. He was 5a9eb33c1c staring blankly b80aadbbbe ahead, his 3a4f274d89 gaze dark c21589e9d9 and unfocused.0da23eb22fc5abb7

Feeling a 95415175f6 chill from 4b0a8161eb his profile, c226ee7019 I inhaled 3b70ea4731 deeply, and 229ce729e9 Logan finally dfb6aee338 spoke in 7e1e717fc8 a low a18db67fb1 voice.e1bee4266435f89b

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“Let’s go somewhere 01aac68122 away from people. There’s a 5b2b639bce gas station 051fce30ba not far 2cee676ee7 from here. We can grab 6c11dd2052 fuel and food ecc8fb229c there and hide a581f6dcbb in a quiet da01ea5449 place.”1cc2ee2c2a6077c9

“You don’t want to d7c43c5f8f evacuate? Where are we supposed 5a4d64360a to hide?”3b9e26ed81231769

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“For now… it might c75d49ee6f be better to observe 318ea6f85f how things unfold.”3764df99e28bc9b5

As soon as he 9c93c33274 finished speaking, an eerie c30a5d8387 howl erupted from behind 2cea752462 the car, sounding like d943570588 neither a beast nor 0e3a60354b a human.a3cf3a1993588da0

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Logan immediately started the b90c16fe9b engine and turned off da770ebfbe the headlights.b7c3120ad06983df

I gripped a1453638c5 my seatbelt 54066b7986 tightly, feeling 5998a8980d anxious and 0b83f14474 confused by af2982b7a3 his actions.5c6c880943600d5f

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“Why? Why do we 012c9c7024 have to do f67008732d that? The soldiers aren’t 944c5fcda8 going to attack 3b20213d7b us. Following the government’s 31427c64f3 orders should be 4d72eb510b the safest thing ebf699e37a to do…”baf237d0f86d6666

“The monster that a49e8af1a3 jumped out at 04bb15ffec the crash site. It was wearing a 0308937e74 government lab jumpsuit.”8dbdb41e77f727b0

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“…So what?”375c1f4f699a23a5

“It was from a 0b6d8ee912 government lab. The source of the 2b780da293 acute virus could be c6bc3de40a there.”49f4e184483f4744

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Was the 356990bde6 radio lying? Was the government hiding 11a26cc808 the true origin of a3ac753fde the acute virus from 60513ee5ff us?be4b37d01d13cb97

Even if that 4ae95eb58a were the case, ce8d35888c they wouldn’t just 033682684f wipe out all ebf657479e the citizens of 72d7801296 Camden. They would surely rescue faa2358f86 us once the virus cfdfd001be was dealt with…bd2b2305d00d591b

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“Fine. Let’s do 37e4b935f9 it your 43f4820d06 way.”92a0f8b068b4f1b7

Reluctantly, I nodded. There was no point 265cd365d9 in getting into a 8881d68616 power struggle with Logan.1e10d36960653621

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The citizens 78ba4b913e of Camden dcd6b748ab would evacuate, 12d28b56e4 a way 010794e932 to stop fe2407b0a7 the virus 2d8f02f0fe would be cb51735dd3 found, and ab06faad6f soon enough, b7e79e847e this situation 47e211930d would be 25f3502f45 resolved.60135913001e36dc

For now, we would 285db4ba7a hide in a secluded c94344baa1 place and monitor the 1debe6d2bd situation through the radio. I was sure that d983fd2614 once we heard news afeec74ea7 that things had settled e37676b4bb down, Logan’s worries would 97ab02657d ease.cbc3aa1ecf494cb7

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I believed that 57e5afb69d it wouldn’t be 962faa29b4 long before a b837d78c33 broadcast would announce 200a130046 that the situation e3da68e8fb was under control. I hoped this a6eb2da8cb chaotic mess would a14c758daf be resolved before 51e9ae54b0 my college entrance 65af40997e date.94854c355e12326a

‘But what 801124b0aa about Mom? If she got 446ab9c20a infected with the 7c962b71b4 virus… who will 72c98c2995 take care of 920dbf3a60 her?’0805b292e3e623d7

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I could 87c761ff31 have asked fbe3a90558 Logan, and 00223ce695 it might b1618bb6eb have resolved b062d5ebe6 my curiosity, 83add7c9f5 but I 94cbb470ce decided to 4a4833109b wait a 16174c5ab4 little longer. I thought he would e9d2deed47 tell me soon.6d9717dc9f930ab9

Thinking about my mom 95038b7a5f filled me with an bb812f2ece inexplicable fear that surged fdd1a6512c from my feet to 75694ab49c the top of my 4bd15228b4 head. I had a 4d0a34be49 sinking feeling that 055f9736c5 knowing the truth 1d9749249b would be unbearable, e1502064b1 so I turned 9a3ec96d5b away from reality fb70a189b0 and twisted my 9bbd96efd0 thoughts.427b369306f89192

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It would be 4ae2afc15c okay. Mom must have found 6b64aaf619 a good hiding spot.0990bb872918d451

But why was Logan 3ec00db15f running? What was happening b648ced570 to those people 9afcceac66 on the road, a4e7d28237 the ones biting bb55ee7841 others?fb06b4a4d40f98e8

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Had that b2ac38fd63 homeless man 46768da8a9 died? Surely he was taken edf9f628dc to the hospital. I had seen the f78949703b ambulance abandoned on the 74c0158fda road; how would they 6b859e9a73 transport an injured homeless cf4be6c7ca person to the hospital?81460ca4c5140e09

‘It’ll be resolved 9df9b29350 somehow…’18c738a2d764b2e3

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I brushed those thoughts 2bcbd6dac3 aside, holding on to d9d048a2db a vague belief that 84d40bfe60 the military would handle 9e2112c06e the situation well.e00f71dd37455fdb

My mind felt so 53a44f0207 cluttered and chaotic that b2d1573503 it was as if 939985cd59 my rational thinking had 48ad2cc755 been paralyzed.bbeb1d72773b6ca1

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* * *7e1f7da20bf4afe0

Not far away, a0df62d561 a gas station b8588817b1 came into view.29f02cef25d6fd28

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The flickering fa52f72bab lights of ea47af19e6 an old 1cd62f24e7 gas station 975e805629 stood solitary 7bf981843e against the b49c64a430 quiet expanse b0f0ed1232 of the 1c984a8b9a fields.1b45d52b2c6b44a1

There was e29381b68e already a 9e3e1a2743 customer at 2d14b59a3c the gas 935e598e80 station, a bfbcea068a blue sports a1d69d2efd car parked 691277211d in front 991e79a89e of the ca39587304 pump. Since the ed9b3f9f7a roads were 3b5f6881f4 blocked, it 93c8d5b1e1 was clear c0e9fc82ed they had b3ed3d6d0b fled the 265f8897b8 city.1b4561509a890dc0

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We pulled up in fcd1497e19 front of an empty 6eb973a0e7 pump. Logan held up his 9cf11970c4 palm, signaling me to 8c4f3b2b82 stay quiet and seated.7340c4c9dc37b868

He exited the car 35d1f51c38 first.ceecef88cc648e68

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Logan glanced 8a613f9f11 toward the 99350ccb1d convenience store d1d0f87fe6 attached to 013d5ac546 the gas 7ad55d45a6 station as 4d162095ee he grabbed 4a8b773eac the gas 08bf90c51b nozzle, seemingly 13d4178020 intent on b3fc4830f2 fueling up e7efb43e77 first.6fb3a135d563ff74

The convenience store was ed3e0d4869 dark, but the entrance c54b492859 was wide open. No, the 412b903272 glass door 6cdc3b473a had been ea6a17c934 shattered to e232a942e3 pieces.295e2c8acdbf1100

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The owner of the b2c96a8fb1 blue sports car was 1ca6ae8f87 definitely inside the convenience b15ca69769 store; I could hear 6fdeaee2ba loud thuds reverberating from 1ae5860d34 within.9f247f8abd4df166

“⋯⋯.”3942fb5a9a32a701

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Logan and I exchanged 858f14b6d3 glances simultaneously. He raised an eyebrow, ee48b52aea and I nodded.e31a3903a61ad37a

Let’s go inside.2cce1cfc146e164f

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To protect ab99d90dfa his back, 03f5fbf68b I climbed af095ad251 out of 5ea330fe2d the passenger 82e07a5f86 seat as 594becafda well. Logan led the way, 45b8c675da while I followed closely 3c3a584087 behind, keeping an eye 527883bb06 on our surroundings.cd78adb3213f72a6

“Fuck! This is so 987a3fa66e persistent!”1bdf3f56f2289a5b

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I flinched at the 63a2e7a410 curse coming from inside 6686952646 the convenience store, my c7b75d51be body instinctively tensing.6f96f93869e6e3ab

A man in c4e44c6a0c a suit was 7be97801c4 smashing something in 8e195c419c the chaotic interior 56dcc9b8ca of the store. The overwhelming 85b7dc0fb3 stench of a24d55cb3e dirty engine 1597b3c8f8 oil mixed 17226e69e2 with the bff1b6564b sickening, metallic b8bb81b73e scent of 185d02fbee blood wafted d16f0a1fcc toward us.14ba26291af3fa55

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Clothes and a pale, b524401858 indistinct mass rolled across a4b4f94f39 the cold tiles of 29fa9dc17d the convenience store.f3764ffd719d368e

“Ugh—”bcec80bbb3808f32

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Nausea rose within me. Was he insane? Shouldn’t we run away? I instinctively tugged at Logan’s collar.6b27e7d7abd5675f

At the sound 7ee30fe34e of our presence, 5611d70a87 the man in 8dcb6e4869 the suit raised bc60e5bd7d a wrench and eefe509012 looked up sharply.58b61eba7c030dc4

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“…Are you a person?”a3274b26a1e879e0

Instead of me, Logan 525765c605 answered him.64afd536cd9a8b25

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“Yes.”37774a2d235327e5

“Hah.”faab44cc789a8632

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The man 913765cb1d sighed and c1059f71a1 swaggered closer. Logan watched 435c6029a7 him closely, 76ec72ea73 gripping the 7324ead1f8 handle of fa860fdc99 the gun a19366f251 tucked in 71a5b16bd0 his back a415fb018d pocket.238c3b64276142e7

“I thought another zombie 53212dbb0c had appeared. Planning to head 4ae3c77c95 to another city? The roads are blocked. It’s better to 1306901b63 turn back. I was heading back d999894a2c too…”37bae99a3d146a6c

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When the 6e4cc9c6a5 man stepped 0e8181e17b within five 8d5812d5cb paces, Logan 380661abd7 aimed the 3c469e234b gun at 608b257f95 him. The sight of f7cb5e4547 the weapon froze 1645fb8cf4 the man’s expression 8342362c83 in fear.ec68f873e4651f0f

“Back off.”5f4a3d1acf416998

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“…Why are you overreacting? I was just going to grab some gas and food. Then a zombie showed up, and I was fighting it.”d639f2d1fc348ef8

“I get it. Just grab what 5500a2a7de you need and 9056c70895 get out. Leave our stuff 4301bb8277 alone.”045c280ea0152d87

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The man raised his chin, eyes widening in response to Logan’s icy demeanor. There was a dangerous glimmer in his reddened eyes.b6e87eda252461c3

But the man didn’t 2261b340cb have a weapon, and 0c1899f330 Logan did. The advantage was 510e20dcd4 clear, so the a10f2ff35e man began to f31e1d4a22 stuff food into 8be4203cfc his bag and d88d2cd3e9 exited the convenience 6e086e3a17 store.1837b785a12763e4

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He didn’t forget f0b4d8be22 to spit as ca13e91173 he left.143d7d0fc2137a2c

As soon 1fa53ef45e as the 9b96d05167 man stepped 759d47b2d5 out, I 620e6d63e5 started grabbing 036cf9c4c5 food myself, c94fdc4aba glancing over 1ae2d5985d at Logan, 4b34056c6f who was 1851b53b00 standing still, c4420ff7de staring at d99ddbd9bb the corpse.be9bf523518470c3

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Why was he reacting 1dffa86a59 so strongly? Logan’s behavior 5a90182793 made me 91f5ef4d13 uneasy. Trying to 510f87e659 sound casual, 6636f2115e I asked, 11bd5a68c7 “Why did a0ad2cfe79 you rush b2738aece1 him out? He seemed like he 7b9a4f7674 knew something.”e452e45010c682c7

The man had likely 2d48452f6e been to the quarantine 15c6968907 zone. He had referred to dbf9b02aa1 those acting strangely as 110cf37e12 “zombies,” as if he ec3ba4d7a1 knew something about the 1ea0c7aa4f acute virus.b0fa2cecef3112a8

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While his boorish 5056159b09 demeanor was uncomfortable 3be5707fd8 and threatening, I bfe9e0ae2a felt it might 2932e2025c have been worthwhile 68be4bf088 to engage him 07dda29e17 in conversation.f8be0ff5508258fc

Logan shrugged aa34cee6b5 and replied, cae4eacc2d “He was 60759ed775 killing someone.”4b2aec7ddf13925c

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“…But didn’t you just call him a zombie?”fbe6788cf038827b

“He’s a person. Zombies don’t de30252799 run away. They charge to 3ab30fb172 eat.”bef03b521821d769

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I swallowed hard 2cb88a61f0 and glanced down f570cfc7fd at the floor.caa152c5aed8d625

Broken tiles, splattered 75792ec0ea blood, and the b4ba816ec6 body lying face f01a7137df down. Just as he aa62f259e2 said, the fallen 8470d82a04 body seemed to 507a40977d be in a c8f4eaed66 position as if 90476e9b58 trying to escape.e36bddfeb952dafb

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With its 141dd580c6 dark plaid 0da2fcc098 shirt and e58893c502 brown pants, 78f52f6050 and the 1fe394ec19 graying hair, 6667bc0d0b it could cd7b1db55c only belong 50bf25595d to the 3a9bad9088 owner of 43767d74cb the gas 44ecf37121 station.a1f9cfe8fa4f1d40

So they hadn’t been 55ee0ef625 fighting against a monster 2152ff63d6 that was charging to 349be696ee eat people…a146a87559456937

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I trembled b97d250559 at the 51e645198e unsettling realization f308546986 and turned 1e8bb49d96 my gaze 94909915fd away. I hastily filled the fa50d31603 basket with food without d28621baf0 even checking what was bf775d96a1 on the shelves.89fa25845cd7b2d9

Snacks, chocolate bars, nuts, cookies, water, energy drinks… even a stack of lottery tickets at the register.cecb606efa7dae73

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Struggling to 4f7ca9b4d8 carry the b1b81b755d now-heavy basket, 862dcef975 I carefully a99bfd7c5d asked, “But b2f70ccdad how do 589b718532 you know e23fa25c65 so much 434723879c about this?”d6ec9d2be3c0c18c

“I caught one charging 68dea36b73 at me. Barely managed 0d6ecf0398 to escape e708a50e66 and got 8fde177c5c back home.”88f4f406f02820d9

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I was b92eb80b9d taken aback. Had Logan 72fac1a619 already killed 31625b1147 a zombie 7f1ab785bd before? I didn’t ask how f45c6bac49 many; the more I d57ee4c1ad learned, the more frightening 4b9ec655b0 he became.9d41749da9acd8ee

His expressionless face, eff864109f fiercely narrowed eyes, 487838a4ae taut lips, and 1140c07bcf the bulging veins b20d5b8142 in his neck a88be18668 made me uneasy. Most troubling of all 91c6d0cf04 was the bloodstain on df3cbc2cf7 his pant leg, something b56a2a6054 I had chosen to da24934fc7 ignore until now.a845647ed80afe10

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Any normal 11d1454512 person would 4c78953a4b be shocked aa03d7585c and paralyzed 8baabe4660 with fear 39c7a31d91 in a 9f9239dc07 situation like 6aa3db729c this.2aef8716708a06be

It was still unclear 1cdc6ceadb whether the crazed people 0820bcc742 in the city were 94244bda35 true zombies like in 774d034588 movies or just slightly 7c9a8c6380 deranged individuals.5fb3181562920daf

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How could they 6e38877095 kill? What was the 9c08c4ec30 difference between the 021516dc7a man a moment 079669d368 ago and Logan?cfef82e591370a88

I didn’t know yet. Perhaps I was still 95fca91b71 thinking this way because ded1c20f3a I hadn’t been attacked 1376ce0c4a by a zombie.58e88d344324d436

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I clenched my d500294cd3 mouth shut and 4513c0bb99 busied myself gathering 26be3454e6 food, feeling like f123cea68c a diligent ant.ed46f0e27a9b1222

Logan stood 334fd33ff1 with his bab23690d2 gun, vigilant acc41ca9d6 for any 9363d97cdb signs of e7f47a5aec danger. He seemed worried the 2a1c7a198c man might return.7a95e49dc36ba792

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It was ironic; f4a325aa8d we had to f58d19a37c be cautious of 748103d800 both zombies and b653091ca2 people. In this 9acb9b4c79 lawless world, b33be397f4 both were c77b77d5e0 equally dangerous.43c97d6ed4673350

But surely, things 42f226ba30 would return to 04037de021 normal someday.ac9171132b35a684

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Was it alright not edc6ccb3a9 to report a murder 9eb9216729 to the police? What if we ended 16bf6a572d up being accused of 260ec136c4 being the culprits? My fingerprints would be 49245a1378 all over the convenience f309f080a6 store.3806ac6d014babca

If there were security 70ea542397 cameras in the store, 02e79be548 they could prove our 2dace552c5 innocence. No, we could end e470a86f47 up being charged with bb74a4af1f accessory to murder or 0da3dadcfd theft.8bfad611566cd7a8

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As someone who 77ea01cea2 aspired to be 43c1c349c6 a lawyer, I 70830e8016 shouldn’t commit a 1505f1dc75 crime.c56656cea306816f

 20dedc13a18db3bf

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