Chapter 17Hell

Chapter 17

Hell

The rusted metal of the bridge groaned beneath our feet as we approached, weapons drawn and senses on high alert. The stench of rotting flesh mixed with the undulating seawater hung thick in the air, but at least this time we didn't have a fucking pack of mutant wolves snapping at our heels.

Alex and Wyatt flanked me on either side, their faces grim. Dante brought up the rear, keeping an eye on our six. They were all on edge, like me, probably thinking about the last time we crossed this bridge.

We crept forward, stepping over crumbling concrete and abandoned vehicles. The eerie stillness set my teeth on edge. Too damn quiet. My finger hovered over the trigger of my crossbow, ready to blast the head off any undead fucker stupid enough to mess with us.

I motioned for Ethan and Caleb to take point, right behind Wyatt. They nodded, moving ahead with cautious steps, their scared, wide eyes sweeping the bridge. Missy and I brought up the rear, watching each other's backs like always.

A guttural moan echoed through the air, freezing us in our tracks. My heart pounded against my ribcage as I scanned the area, trying to pinpoint the source of the sound. Another moan, louder this time, came from behind an overturned bus about twenty yards ahead.

"Shit," Alex hissed, raising his shotgun. "We've got company."

I held up a fist, signaling for everyone to hold their positions. "Dante and Scottie, take Ethan and Caleb and circle around to the left. Missy, Niko and I will go right. Alex, Wyatt, Nina, you guys keep them distracted from the front."

They nodded, their faces set with determination. We split up, moving silently along the bridge's edges. As we crept closer to the bus, the stench of decay grew stronger, making my stomach churn.

Missy tapped my shoulder, pointing to a group of shambling figures emerging from behind the vehicle. Their skin was a sickly gray, hanging off their bones in rotting chunks. Their eyes, lifeless and hungry, locked onto us.

I raised my crossbow, taking aim at the closest one's head. "On my mark," I whispered into the comm. "Three, two, one..."

A chorus of groans filled the air as the undead charged towards us, their arms outstretched and jaws snapping. I let my bolt fly, watching it sink into the lead zombie's eye socket.

For a moment, everything went quiet. For just a moment, we were in the clear.

A soft click cut through the silence. Cold steel pressed against the back of my skull. My blood turned to ice. I came to an abrupt stop.

"Don't move," a familiar voice hissed.

Jessa.

The others froze at the sound of her voice, exchanging tense glances. Missy's eyes flashed with rage. The boys whirled around, training their guns on Jessa. But she had me dead to rights.

So that's where Alex's gun went.

"Drop your weapons," Jessa demanded, jabbing the barrel harder against my head. "All of you. Now!"

"You crazy cunt," Missy snarled. "I'll fucking end you for this."

"Shut up!" Jessa snapped. I could hear the desperation in her voice, the unhinged edge. "I said drop them!"

Dante looked at me, questioning, his eyes blazing with rage. I gave a slight nod. I could tell he wanted to reach for his gun. We couldn't risk it. Slowly, reluctantly, they set down their weapons. Missy tossed her machete aside with a muttered curse.

My eyes shot right to Alex, who was glaring at Jessa with the wrath of a fallen god in his icy eyes.

My mind raced, adrenaline pumping through my veins. I'd known Jessa was unstable, but this? This was a new low even for her.I knew she hated me, but trying to kill me because I stole her men was something else. She lost their love fair and square.

I swallowed hard, my mind racing to find a way out of this. But Jessa had the upper hand and she knew it.

"Jessa, what the hell are you doing?" I asked, trying to keep my voice steady. "We're on the same side here."

She let out a humorless laugh. "Are we? Because from where I'm standing, it looks like you've turned everyone against me. Stolen everything that mattered to me."

Her words dripped with venom, and I could feel the barely contained rage radiating off her.

"I didn't steal anything," I said carefully. "You lost their trust all on your own. It has nothing to do with me."

"Shut up!" she screamed, pressing the gun harder against my head. I winced at the sharp pain. "You took them from me! Turned them against me! This is all your fault!"

I saw movement out of the corner of my eye. Alex shifting subtly, his hand inching towards the knife at his belt. My heart pounded. One wrong move and this could all go to hell real fast.

"Jessa, listen to me," I said, fighting to keep my voice calm. "This isn't the answer. Put the gun down and we can talk about this."

"The time for talking is over," she spat. "I'm done playing nice. It's time I take back what's mine."

My mind raced, trying to find a way to defuse this fucked up situation before Jessa splattered my brains all over the crumbling asphalt. She was unraveling fast, teetering on the knife's edge of insanity. One wrong move and it'd be game over.

"Jessa, think about what you're doing," I said, keeping my voice low and even despite the fear clawing at my insides. "You pull that trigger, there's no coming back from it. The boys will never forgive you."

"They already hate me thanks to you, you man-stealing whore!" she shrieked, her voice cracking. The gun trembled against my skull. "I've got nothing left to lose."

Fuck. I was running out of options. My eyes darted to Alex, still inching his hand towards his knife. Dante and Wyatt were coiled tight, ready to spring into action. But they didn't have a clear shot. Not without risking me catching a bullet.

"It doesn't have to be this way," I tried again, desperation creeping into my voice. "We can still fix this. Work things out. Just put the gun down. You're not a killer. You're just scared and confused, but you're not a killer."

Jessa let out a wild, unhinged laugh that sent chills skittering down my spine. "You'd like that, wouldn't you? So you can keep fucking my men, rubbing it in my face. No, this ends now!"

The click of the hammer cocking back was deafening, echoing across the rusted metal bridge. My heart seized in my chest. This was it. Jessa had finally snapped.

"I'm sorry," she whispered, her voice cracking. "But I can't let you take them from me."

I squeezed my eyes shut, bracing for the inevitable. A single gunshot rang out, brutally loud in the heavy stillness. But no searing pain ripped through my skull. No oblivion crashed down.

My eyes flew open to see Jessa staggering back, a crimson stain blossoming across her shoulder. The gun clattered from her hand. She looked down at the spreading red, then up at me, her icy eyes wide with shock.

"Alex..." she croaked, blood bubbling on her lips. "Why...?"

It was chaos then. Jessa wrapped her arm around my throat in the blink of an eye. He'd shot her in the shoulder, so I had no idea where this bitch found all her strength. I reared black, using my weight to cause her to stumble. The two of us careened sideways until we hit the railing of the bridge.

In a burst of adrenaline-fueled strength, I twisted in Jessa's grip, slamming my elbow into her wounded shoulder. She cried out in pain, her hold loosening just enough for me to break free. I whirled around, grabbing her by the front of her blood-soaked shirt and using the momentum to flip her over me like a rag doll.

Jessa hit the rusted railing hard, the metal creaking ominously under the impact. Before she could regain her balance, I was on her, pushing her over the railing and grabbing hold of her shirt collar. Her feet scrabbled for purchase, finding only empty air as she dangled precariously over the edge.

Below us, the sea of undead writhed and moaned, their rotting hands reaching up as if they could sense the impending meal. The stench of decay was overwhelming, mixing with the coppery scent of Jessa's blood.

She clawed at my arms, fingernails leaving bloody furrows in my skin as she struggled desperately to hold on. "Helana, please," Jessa choked out, her eyes wide with terror as she stared down at the hungry horde below. "Don't do this. I'm sorry, I'm so sorry. Please, have mercy!"

I leaned in close, my lips curling into a wicked smile that held no kindness. "Do you want to know something about me, Jessa? I never claimed to be kind, or good. When you stab me in the back, and hurt the ones I love, then you become nothing but fair game."

"Then you'll be just like me! They'll hate you for this!" she shouted with a snarl. "If you drop me, you'll be a murderer!"

My smile stretched even wider, even though I knew she couldn't see it behind my mask. I knew my eyes had to be crazed. "That's just it, though." I leaned over further, and Jessa screamed, becoming more and more desperate. "I never wanted to be the hero of this story, but I don't mind being the villain in yours, bitch."

I released my grip and Jessa plummeted, her scream cut short as she hit the writhing mass of undead below with a sickening crunch. The horde swarmed over her thrashing form in a frenzied wave, ripping and tearing. Her shrieks of agony rose above the hungry moans, then abruptly fell silent.

I watched dispassionately as the dead feasted, feeling nothing but grim satisfaction. It was over. The threat to my group, to my men, was gone.

Distantly, I heard the pounding of feet on asphalt, my name being shouted. Strong hands gripped my arms, pulling me back from the edge. I turned to see Alex, his icy eyes blazing into mine, searching.

"Did she hurt you?" he demanded, his deep voice tight with strain. His large hands roamed over me, checking for injury.

I nodded curtly, adrenaline causing my body to shake. "I'm fine. It's done. The bitch got what she deserved."

Alex pulled me into a crushing embrace, his strong arms enveloping me. I buried my face against his broad chest, breathing in his scent of leather and smoke through the filter of my mask. I couldn't wait to get indoors. The tremors slowly subsided as his warmth seeped into me, grounding me.

"That was…" he rasped, his voice raw with emotion. "I thought I was going to lose you."

"Takes more than that crazy cunt to take me out," I muttered, but I clung to him just as tightly.

Dante and Wyatt crowded in, their hands reaching to touch me, reassuring themselves that I was alive and whole. I leaned into their touch, drawing strength from my men. When we broke apart, Ret was there too, taking me into her arms and squeezing me as tight as she could.

Niko and Scottie did the same, and I could see raw, stark fear in their eyes. My heart sank for my brothers. How many times did they have to stand my and watch their sister almost die?

Missy stood a few feet away, her fierce gaze locked on the ravenous horde below, still tearing into Jessa's corpse. Blood filled the water, along with chunks of her flesh. "Good fucking riddance," she spat. "Bitch had it coming."

I bent down as Anubis rushed at me, taking him into my arms and squeezing tightly as he whined. Poor baby. When we got back, he and I would need to take more than several peaceful naps together, just us, like old times.

After gathering myself, and taking a deep, steadying breath. "We need to move. That gunshot is going to draw every zombie bastard for miles."

Scottie nodded, glancing up ahead, down the length of the foggy bridge. "Agreed. Let's get the fuck off this death trap."

I retrieved my crossbow from the ground, the others collecting their discarded weapons. We set off across the bridge at a quick clip, picking our way through the obstacles while keeping a wary eye out for any stragglers.

We reached the end of the bridge without further incident, the stragglers easily dispatched with silent efficiency. The vehicles came into view through the swirling mist.

I slid into the driver's seat of the lead car, Wyatt claiming shotgun while Dante, Alex, and Rebel piled into the back. Anubis hopped up into Alex's lap. Ret swung into the rear, groaning as she settled into her seat and relaxed.

In the other car, Missy took the wheel with Scottie riding shotgun. Niko, Nina and the boys climbed in the back. Scottie's voice came over the radio, telling us they were ready.

The engines roared to life, and we peeled out, putting that nightmarish bridge and Jessa's grisly demise in our rearview. I kept my foot heavy on the gas, wanting to put as much distance as possible between us and the horde her death was sure to attract.

Rebel's soft gurgles filled the car as Dante cradled her, his battle-hardened features softening as he gazed down at her. She needed to eat again. Babies always needed to eat, shit, and sleep and scream and cry.

Alex leaned forward, his hand coming to rest on my shoulder, steadying me as I navigated the debris-strewn road. Wyatt rode in silence beside me, his jaw clenched tight, eyes scanning the barren landscape for any signs of danger.

I drove us out through the ruined outskirts of the city, passing hollowed out shells of buildings and rusted hulks of cars. The road wound through the desolation, leading us away from the coast and into the withered countryside.

We drove for hours, only stopping for the occasional piss break and to siphon more gas. At one point, Rebel's cries grew too insistent to ignore. I pulled over so Dante could pass her to Ret to feed her.

Alex took over driving then, his strong hands steady on the wheel. I slumped down in the passenger seat, exhaustion hitting me like a freight train now that the adrenaline had faded. Every inch of me ached, the bruises and cuts from my fight with Jessa throbbing dully.

But more than that, I felt hollowed out inside. Killing Jessa, watching her get torn apart... It felt good to see justice served, I couldn't lie. But I also realized that I just ended the life of somebody's mother. Jessa's baby back at the ranch was waiting for her. She had her father, of course, but I'd taken away her one chance of having her family.

The guilt gnawed at me as the miles flew by, the barren landscape blurring outside the windows. I tried to push it down, bury it deep. In this fucked up world, it was kill or be killed. Jessa had made her choice. She'd forced my hand. But still, the image of her baby's face haunted me.

I felt a large, calloused hand cover mine where it rested on my thigh. I glanced over to see Alex watching me, his icy eyes softening with understanding. He knew the weight of taking a life, even one as twisted as Jessa's. He squeezed my hand, offering silent comfort and absolution.

In the backseat, Ret cradled a now sleeping Rebel against her chest, humming softly to her. Wyatt met my gaze in the rearview mirror, giving me a solemn nod. They didn't judge me for what I'd done. They knew it had been necessary.

I leaned my head back against the headrest, my eyes slipping closed as exhaustion pulled at me. I let the steady rumble of the engine and the warm pressure of Alex's hand in mine lull me into a fitful doze.