Hope had cheered up everyone immensely. She was a loving grey cat with long soft fur. Charles had played with her all day long and now she was sleeping in Ana's lap in the car.

Harry had barely spoken to us after we had rescued her. He was in a really bad mood, and he kept yelling at everyone around him. He also kept glaring at Axel for some reason. 

Axel, who was driving, suddenly stopped the car.

"What's wrong?" I asked from the backseat. Behind us, Harry honked. Axel nodded towards the road. I leaned over and froze.

The road was covered with mottled skin men. There were so many of them, we wouldn't have been able to drive over them or around them. There was no option but to get out and fight.

Charles had seen the zombies and had started crying. Ana gave him to Bria and went to inform Harry about the zombies. I grabbed the guns and the knife Maya had given me and stuck them in my belt. I didn't want to use them unless there was an emergency. Then I picked up my trusty iron rod lying at my feet.

Axel had also grabbed a long knife and an old hammer. We climbed out of the car, leaving Charles with Bria who didn't want to fight. People from the truck also came forward.

The mottled men must have noticed us because they began to growl. They slowly advanced towards us. I raced towards them and bashed the rod on the top of one zombie's head. He must have turned months ago because his head was so rotten, it burst open and his brains spilt all over the ground. I gagged and moved away from him.

I began fighting two zombies at once. All around me, the battle raged on. I kicked one zombie in the gut and spun around to hit the other one. His mouth was wide open, displaying rotten teeth. He lunged forward to bite me and I stepped back. I was not fast enough.

His teeth had just caught the edge of my shirt when something heavy hit his head. He slumped down. I stared and saw Axel standing there with his hammer.

"Thanks." I stammered.

He grinned at me and moved forward to fight another zombie. Suddenly, a scream rang out, which I recognized as Harry's. Fear gripped me. I spotted him lying over the other side of the road. A zombie was towering above him. I ran as quickly as I could and slammed my rod on the top of the zombie's head. He fell down.

I sat down beside Harry, feeling terribly afraid. His face was pale and his shirt was covered in blood.

"Oh no," I said, my voice trembling. "Did you...?"

My voice trailed off as I touched his face gently.

"No." He said. "It isn't my blood."

I got up, feeling relieved. I hauled Harry to his feet and started walking back to the car. The battle was almost over.

Then I saw them. Zombies. They were drinking someone's blood. I moved forward to see who it was, my heart beating really fast. I groaned and sank to my knees, vomiting all over the ground when I saw who it was.

It was Maya.