“Elai-na-na…” he garbled. “Sh-sh-oot m-me.”
“No! No, no! Nick, it’s going to be okay. I’ll help you.” I looked around for Henry, but I didn’t see him. “Henry! Henry! Help me! Someone, please…” I sobbed as I yelled for help. I heard the front door open with haste.
“Elaina!” Claire yelled. “Where are you?!”
“Toward the back! Oh, Nick, don’t you dare die on me. Do you hear me? You stay with me!” I held my hand over the gaping bite mark on his arm, applying pressure, trying to slow down the bleeding. I heard Claire running down the main aisle.
“Nick!” Claire slid down next to us in the ever growing pool of blood. She took his hand, and he weakly smiled at her. His eyes closed, and his breathing was staggered.
“My Claire…s-s-so…beau…tiful,” he whispered. Claire cried on his chest.
“Damn it! Where’s Henry? He can help!”
“No, Hen-ry…,” Nick managed to stutter out, then the life faded from his face.
“It’s too late. It’s too late, Elaina!” Claire said, while she sobbed on his chest.
“No! Henry can help. Where is he?”
“It’s too late!” she screamed at me.
“Hold on. Nick, please! I am going to find Henry.”
Claire grabbed my arm just as I tried standing up. She pulled me back down to meet her face. “Listen to me! It’s. Too. Late.”
“No! No, it’s not!”
“He’s dead! He’s fucking dead! Look at him!” She was screaming at me through her tears, trying to reach me.
I couldn’t look at him. In my heart, I knew that he was gone, but I didn’t want to accept it. I couldn’t accept it. I refused to accept it. Claire looked around the store.
“What happened in here?”
“I don’t know.” I started to cry again, and I rested my head on Nick’s chest.
“You didn’t see what happened?”
“No, not really. We went down the aisles separately. I didn’t even have my Sig out. I was in that aisle.” I pointed at the shelving unit that was in a twisted pile on the floor. I continued to sob. “This is entirely my fault!”
“Elaina…no, it’s not your fault.” Claire was trying to reassure me through her tears. “We have to…you know, since he was bit.”
“No! Leave him be!”
“He’s going to turn! We have to! I’d rather it be us than someone else!” What was left of my heart felt like it was ripped out and trampled by a herd of elephants.
I was angry that she would even suggest shooting Nick. I closed my eyes, picturing Nick and I as kids. He was my only family member left, that I knew of, and he was gone. My stomach churned when I opened my eyes. The pool of blood was growing around Nick’s lifeless body.
“Elaina, please leave, and I’ll give him a true death.” She pulled me up.
“No. Let me say goodbye.” Claire let go of my arm, and I knelt back down. I took his limp cold hand. “I love you, Nick. I promise I will find Mom. I promise you. I’m so sorry I wasn’t there for you. I’m so sorry.” I kissed him on the forehead, as my sobs choked out from my throat.
Claire put her hand on my shoulder. I stood up, my clothes wet with Nick’s blood. She looked directly into my eyes. She had tears running down her face. I nodded at her, and headed toward the front entrance.
Just as I reached for the handle, I heard a muffled yell. I stopped in my tracks. “Claire, did you hear that?”
“Yes. Shh…” We heard it again. The muffled yell was coming from the back of the store. I ran toward the sound. “Elaina, I have to take care of Nick before it’s too late. Leave, and then we can send Sophie in to check it out.”
“I have to find out who or what that is. It might be Henry!”
“It’s probably undeads in the back room somewhere. Get out of here!” I crept closer to the back door, completely disregarding Claire, who was still yelling at me to leave.
There was a restroom and an employee breakroom door. I listened at both, barely breathing.
Nick’s death was looming over me like a heavy weight. I was trying to put him out of my mind when I heard the muffled yell again. I thought it sounded like Henry, but I wasn’t one hundred percent certain.
Without a doubt, the noises were coming from the breakroom. I looked back at Claire, and waved her to the door. She shook her head. I waved at her again with a little more aggression. She let out a reluctant sigh, and came to me after she kissed Nick on the forehead.
I held up my hand, showing her three fingers, then two, and then one. I pulled open the door and was met with the end of a shotgun to my forehead. Claire screamed.