The Endgame Chronicles (by Hugh White) novel Chapter 431

Chapter 431

Who exactly was Hayley?

A flicker of doubt and shock crossed Raymond’s mind.

Still, he didn’t have time to ask. After clearing out the zombies around them, he led the group in a fast charge downhill before the nearby horde could fully converge.

Raymond’s team moved in a rough, no-frills way, but their coordination was solid.

Matt sprinted at the front with a heavy iron rake. The others spread out on both sides, running full speed and hacking down zombies that got too close.

Before long, Hayley, running near the back, spotted an old, boxy apartment building at the foot of the hill.

The building was extremely run-down. Large sections of the sand-textured exterior coating had peeled away, exposing red brick underneath.

The roof looked like it had been through a fire. Black and gray smoke stains stretched from the west side of the fifth floor all the way to the second window on the east side.

The squat, rectangular apartment block looked eerily like a coffin.

Paired with the few households that still had sheets and clothes hanging outside, now shredded by the wind, the place looked straight out of a horror movie.

“Aileen’s medical kit is on the third floor,” Raymond said. “I’ll lead the way. Everyone, stick close behind me. Once we’re inside, stay sharp. We’ll get in and get out.”

“Okay!” everyone answered in unison.

They broke into a quick jog across the mining slope as the zombie crowd slowly closed in.

Hayley and the others followed at the rear. After a few minutes of running, they came down section by section from the hillside. The closer they got, the more sinister and unsettling the building looked.

The lower walls were covered in thick patches of dark green moss. Sharp clusters of weeds clung to the wall, growing alongside a massive banyan tree nearby.

Bones were scattered here and there on the ground.

It was impossible to tell whether they belonged to humans or animals.

The apocalypse had been going on for nearly two years now. Zombies didn’t infect animals, but they did eat them.

When they couldn’t find people and became desperate enough, animals became a source of food.

That was why there were almost no stray cats or dogs left in the city. Even the rats that dared poke their heads out of the sewers had been wiped out.

As zombie activity spread, wildlife on the outskirts had also steadily declined.

This area had clearly seen zombie activity, likely where they had fed on stray animals.

Click, click.

At the front, Raymond twisted a key into the rusted lock. Just as the pursuing zombies were about to catch up, the

door finally opened.

“Move, now!”

Everyone surged through the back entrance into the building.

Clang!

Raymond slammed the door shut and locked it. One elderly zombie with only a single tooth crashed into the ole metal security door.

That lone tooth popped out pitifully, smashing against the iron bars.

Even so, the zombie kept gnawing at the rusted metal, growling hoarsely. Its last few teeth snapped off with a sharp crack, leaving only shriveled gums grinding uselessly against rust.

Bang!

Bang!

Bang!

Another wave of zombies slammed into the door.

Seeing this, Raymond barked, “Luke, Rowan, you two stay here and guard the door!”

“Alright!”

Two slightly younger middle-aged men stayed behind while the rest quickly spread out through the building.

This was a mid-century apartment block. Each floor had a long corridor that ran the length of the building.

Staircases were on both ends. The bathrooms were shared, one on each side of every floor.

Back when people lived here, they washed clothes, brushed their teeth, and used the toilets in these shared

restrooms.

The layout was strange, but fortunately, most of these people had once lived here. They knew the place well and followed Raymond closely without falling behind.

Hayley trailed after them. The peeling walls and thick layers of dust made the building feel even darker and more oppressive.

When they reached the long corridor, light only came from the far ends and from the occasional open doorway. The floor was littered with scattered belongings. Books, mugs, children’s homework notebooks, pillows, plastic bags, all kinds of everyday items mixed with sudden splashes of dried blood.

It was obvious that when the outbreak happened, everyone had fled in a blind panic.

Hayley passed the first-floor restroom.

A powerful stench rolled out. She glanced inside and froze when she saw round shapes sitting in the long sink. The flesh had dissolved, leaving hollow, black eye sockets that stared straight at her as she passed.

“What the hell is that?” Griffin muttered when he saw it, glaring at the disgusting head in revulsion.

He casually picked up a pen from the floor and tossed it.

wyder 49

The moment the pen tip touched the bloated zombie head, it was like a needle popping a balloon.

Pop!

The zombie head exploded.

Hayley immediately yanked her group aside.

The wave of filth and stench splattered all over an unlucky kid barely in his early twenties. In an instant, he looked like he had just been hauled out of a septic tank.

Hayley, Griffin, and everyone else stared, saying nothing.

The young guy blinked, then gagged. The stench was a hundred times worse than that of tonsil stones!

“Look what you did! Why would you poke a dead zombie head?” Hayley snapped at Griffin.

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