Eaten Alive

Looking through binoculars over at the hotel, he gritted his teeth. Elliot was walking around on the top floor holding a baby in his arms and no one was around.

Lowering the binoculars, he looked around underneath then rushed down the steps and stopped in front of the hotel. Looking up as he sniffed it out, he couldn’t tell if Michael was around.

Entering the building, he made his way upstairs to the room.

Eliot shuddered as he smelled the unfamiliar scent enter his nose that just stepped onto the floor. Michael came out of the bathroom with towels and some of the baby’s clothes but had a crazy look in his eyes.

He walked up to Elliot and kissed him on his temple and looked down at their daughter, “Take her and go hide in the bathroom.”

“But Michael, why would he be here?” Elliot asked him as he was pushed into the bathroom.

The door was broken in and they both looked at the leader. “You lied to me,” he said.

Michael turned to Elliot and said, “Hide now and don’t come out until I call you.”

Elliot did as he said and locked the door behind him.

Michael turned to him and said, “I do not understand what you mean?”

“Who is that? I also sent your brother here and all he brought back was an arm, did he not see him and the child? Whose child is that? Why do they smell like you?” He asked.

Michael stared at him as he walked over cautiously and said, “He is my mate and that is our child.”

“Your child?” He was confused then realised this generation was far more dangerous than he thought.

“We need to kill them,” the leader stated and the wire keeping Michael sane snapped. He rushed at the leader who did not hold back and rushed Michael against the window which broke.

They both fell through the air and Michael knew that they wouldn’t make it. He looked at the leader who was falling beside him then grabbed him by the head and punched him a few times.

“How can you betray me?” He yelled at Michael. The plague nearby rushed over when they heard him and looked around aimlessly.

Michael’s brows furrowed and let him go. He crouched his body in the air, he landed feet first on a couple of the first generation smashing them into nothing.

Their leader did the same and when he saw Michael he rushed at him with the intention to kill him.

Elliot came running out of the bathroom when he heard the window breaking. He placed his daughter on the bed and walked over to see where they were. He crouched down frightened as he looked down.

He saw the plague underneath. His eyes were attracted by the exchange coming from below but he couldn’t be sure that it was Michael.

The leader let out another yell and the whole hotel started vibrating. He saw below that the plague was hoarding into the hotel scaring the shit out of him.

Rushing to the bed, he grabbed the diaper bag and shoved all the essentials in it including a bag of human fingers. He picked his daughter up and strapped her to his chest and dashed out of the room making his way to the rooftop.

He shut the door and looked around for a hiding spot but then his daughter started crying. “Shh,” he tried to calm her down but she could feel that they were in trouble.

“For fucks sake!” Elliot said as his panic grew. Running to the edge he looked at the rooftop below them and shuddered. He held onto her head and said, “I would have died long ago, it’s now or never.”

Rushing back, he put distance between them and the edge of the building. Looking down at her, he kissed on the head, held her tightly and ran off.

When he reached the edge, he stepped on the wall and jumped into the air. Kicking his legs as if it would help him reach the other side, he made sure not to close his eyes although he desperately wanted to.

The pebbles across the ground would hurt if they landed on it. He pulled himself into a ball making sure to cover her and landed on his feet injuring his left foot. Hissing from the pain, he rubbed his ankle and looked back over from where they came.

His eyes widened frightened when he saw the plague horde onto the rooftop searching for them and even went as far as jumping over trying to get to them. He sighed relieved but then he heard a grumble and looked over.

On the rooftop with them were three zombies heading to him. He quickly stood up and took out his knife. He unstrapped his daughter and placed her on the floor by her bag and rushed to them. Stabbing all three in the head, he went towards the door and opened it.

He groaned inwardly when he saw the zombie’s at the bottom of the steps and shut the door. He pulled a chair to the door, shutting it and went to his daughter. He picked her up and went to see what was happening in the street but didn’t see anything, it was completely empty.

Limping back to the door, he sat down on the side with her in his arms and the knife in the other hand. Unwrapping her he looked at her and couldn’t hold back his tears, “It hasn’t even been a few days and already I think we are in trouble, why couldn’t he just wait until you were a little bigger, Millie?”

He opened the diaper bag and pulled out a finger, handing it to her to suck on. He said, “Now I have to go hunting by myself.”

Millie sucked on it as she looked up at her father and chuckled. Elliot looked around and saw a greenhouse on the roof and raised a brow. He took off his jersey and placed it on the ground then placed Millie on it and took his knife with him.

Limping over cautiously, he walked around it to make sure there wasn’t anything there then opened the door quietly and looked around. There were plants growing inside untainted by the plague but it was flowers and not food.

He walked in and made his way around the greenhouse and back to the door. He walked back out back to Millie and picked her up, “I found a place for you to sleep in for the next few days.”

After putting Millie to sleep, he bandaged his foot and walked to the door. Opening it gently after removing the chair, he made his way down the steps to the confused zombies who didn’t know if they should touch him and stabbed them one by one in the head.

He cleared the first floor then the second and third. Walking to one of the windows in a room, he opened it then fetched most of the bodies and threw them out of the window.

Looking out of it, he stared at the hotel they lived in previously and wanted to cry, everything was there, warm water, comfortable beds and now, looking back at the room, the bed was covered in blood, the floor too because of him and it wasn’t safe here.

He cleaned up everything then went to fetch Millie and placed her in the bed. Lying down beside her, he let his tears flow in grief. He couldn’t smell Michael and who knows how long they will live without him?

A few years later…

Elliot was far across from the place he was before, walking around with a toddler who scared all those in the first generation away.

With a knife on his left hip and a gun in his right hand, he tugged at the backpack he was carrying and looked down beside him. Millie was chewing on a human hand.

A zombie was led to them by the smell making Millie roll her eyes. Elliot sighed and handed her the bag then rushed towards it. Jumping into the air, he kicked it with his foot, sending it down to the floor and stabbed it with his knife.

As he pulled out his knife he heard a scream from behind him. His body turned so fast when he heard it and shuddered when he saw Millie over the shoulder of a man dressed in all black from head to toe.

Most of his face was covered except his mouth that had a menacing smirk on it. The man turned around and took off with Millie so fast that Elliot could barely see him.

“MILLIE!!” He screamed as he took off after them.

The man turned right into a street while Elliot chased after them. Running with the gun in his hand, he turned around the corner and immediately stopped when he saw that the man was waiting there for him.

Pointing the gun at his chest, his eyes automatically set on his daughter whose butt was sticking out.

“Who the fuck are you?! And why did you take my child?” Elliot yelled at him. He was angry beyond belief and wanted to cry. This person just snatched the only thing worth living for and he’d be damned if he goes down without trying his best.

He raised his hand and slowly slid down the hood and looked over at Elliot.

Elliot stared at him dumbfounded and dropped to his knees. He let his tears fall and said, “You motherfucker!”

Placing his hand over his heart, he closed his eyes and started crying. Michael placed Millie down who quickly kicked him on the knee and rushed off to her daddy. She hid behind Elliot as she glared at the man and said, “Daddy lets go.”

Elliot opened his eyes and wiped his tears away, he looked at Millie as he got up and said, “Millie baby, remember your other dad that I told you about?”

She nodded her head as she looked up at him confused. Elliot looked at the man before them and said, “That’s him.”

Michael walked towards them and took Elliot’s hand in his. Looking at him Michael asked, “Who told you to run away?”

Elliot stepped forward and rested his head against his chest. Michael hugged him and looked down at Millie, smiling he said, “Hi Millie.”

“I don’t trust you mister,” she said with a glare on her face.

Michael and Elliot chuckled. “You were still an infant when I first saw you. I see you’ve got Elliot’s bad manners,” Michael teased her.

Elliot slapped him across the face and asked, “Where the hell have you been? I waited for you but you never showed up!”

Michael frowned saying, “I did go back for you but I had to fight everyone off first.”

“What do you mean?” Elliot asked.

“Only a few of my brothers went through with mating. Once I killed our leader, they thought I was going to take over and attacked me. Three and Five are off with their mates and children but the rest… let’s just say I’ve been looking for you for a long time and I am glad you didn’t stay behind or else they would have used you to get to me,” he explained.

Elliot rolled his eyes and shook his head, “No one told you to do what you want or show them in the first place.”

Michael pulled him in for a hug saying, “I am proud of you Elliot.”

“What for?” He asked, confused.

“For making it this far alive and raising our child,” he said and tried to grab at Millie who quickly moved back.

Elliot climbed onto his back and said, “Don’t worry about her, the minute she learned how to walk, she refused to be picked up by me. Let alone you who is a stranger.”

Michael glared at his daughter and said, “Come here or I’ll kill you.”

“Kill me?” She asked on guard and got ready to fight him. Elliot hit him across the head and said, “Boy if you don’t shut up!”

Michael pulled him off from his back to the front and kissed him on the lips. Smiling down at him he said, “I missed you so much.”

“Who wouldn’t?” Elliot rolled his eyes while he hugged him.

Walking down the street hand in hand, Michael looked at him and asked, “Where are you off to?”

“To find food,” he answered and Millie started jumping up and down excitedly.

Michael looked at her and smiled, she was rather cute. He leaned over and whispered in Elliot’s ear, “So tonight, when she’s asleep, want to make another.”

“Fuck yes!” He answered, growing excited.

The End.