Doomsday city

Esther lived a quiet life that even she could not imagine.

Although Gavin said that she would be quarantined for ten days, in fact, Esses had the right to go to the yard to get some fresh air. She would receive some drinking water and a few fruits from Gavin's cart every morning, and relied on these things to fill her stomach. With a full stomach, Esther felt that her life was very stable. She didn't have to worry about what to do, and she didn't have to worry about Frieda being shot at any time.

After a few days of observation, Esses found that a kind of settlement was formed nearby. Perhaps most of the houses were empty, but except for Gavin and Trish, she knew that there were many people wandering around, especially when there would be calls every few days. There was a ringing of a bell, the crisp sound of a traditional hand bell, which reminded Esses of the school bells in old movies, used to signal the beginning and end of classes.

"Listen, Frieda, there seem to be some children's laughter outside." Esses sat on the sofa mending worn-out trousers, she raised her face and looked out of the window, the tall fence blocked most of her sight, "I think there are many people living here, It must be, they may be hiding on the second floor of the tall farmhouse, or they may be in the cellar."

Frieda sat quietly by the sofa, even if she did not eat or drink, she would not become haggard or thin, as if frozen in time without any effect.

The commotion outside the window gradually subsided, and the surroundings returned to the unique tranquility of the countryside.

Essers put the mended trousers on the back of the chair, stood up and closed all the heavy curtains, and the room was suddenly plunged into darkness.She sat back to her original position with her head down, picked up an apple and put it into her mouth, chewed and swallowed numbly, until she finished gnawing an apple cleanly, then raised her eyes and looked around.

Alone, she thought to herself.

A strong sense of loneliness continued to swell in her heart, and even Frieda could not relieve this feeling.

Every time the bell rang, the sky would gradually darken. Before the sun went down, Essus would close the curtains tightly. She was afraid of seeing out of the window where she couldn't see her fingers. There were many dangers outside, maybe zombies or humans, she It is no longer possible to tell which is a harmless existence.

Compared with Gavin's tight ring, Tracy seemed approachable. After the tenth day of the observation period, Tracy unlocked the chain for Esther herself.She stood in the yard and smiled at Esther, her brown eyes were very warm and soft, "I can't wait to introduce you to everything here, you will like it!" She said happily.

As Esses guessed, a natural settlement has formed nearby, and there are survivors within a radius of [-] feet from the old church. They use hand bells as a summoning sound, and they gather every few days to share the collected food and care for each other.

"This is Pastor Carlodo and Sister Manny," Trish introduced each member to Esses kindly, "and Mother Mulo, who is the nanny in charge of taking care of the children, and this is Kane And Bella," she greeted the grizzled old woman, "Bella is a nurse and we all respect her."

Esses was surprised to find that most of the settlements were women and children. According to Tracy, the children of the Holy Angel Orphanage were safely protected when the monster attacked. They escaped by hiding in the church cellar, relying on canned food and juice They survived for more than half a month. Fortunately, there were not many infected people in the suburbs. After being 'purified' by the pastor and a few strong men, they have been supporting each other until now.

"Don't worry, kid, we won't turn away people who need help," said Pastor Carlodo, an elderly man with gray hair like Bella, who looked very energetic, "You can stay here in peace, although It cannot be said that it is absolutely safe, but everyone selflessly guards this homeland with all their heart, and I hope you will too."

"We have helped many refugees, even though most of them choose to continue traveling," Tracy shrugged and said with a smile: "But we will not be stingy to share food, especially in such a difficult time, we need more care and love, right? ’ she said with a bright smile.

Esses found that she dared not look directly at Tracy's dazzling smile. She turned her eyes away and looked at the floor, when suddenly a pair of clear eyes came into view, and a young boy stood at her feet and stared curiously.

"He is a child from the Holy Angel Orphanage, McQueen," Tracy touched the boy's head, "These children are very brave, they know how to respond to crises better than any child from a healthy family, the first time I saw a monster More panicked than them."

McQueen stepped forward to give Tracy a hug and then hurried into the church. From the glass window, you could see a few small heads poking out from time to time, as if they were curious about their new partner.Gavin and another woman walked towards each other. If Gavin hadn't known that Gavin was single, Esther would have believed that the woman who was pregnant with him must be his wife.

"Medline, are you feeling better?" Trish asked worriedly, looking at the pregnant woman with her big belly.

"It's not bad, Tracy, but I always have to go out and walk around," Madeline said, panting with her hands behind her waist, "Oh, my God, my feet are swollen like yeast dough, and my shoes are almost useless." Wear it." She swung her legs helplessly, her expression looked a little painful.

"Poor Madeline, I'll give you a massage later, maybe it will be better." Tracy said sympathetically.

Esther pursed her lips and stared at Madeline's round belly. She couldn't imagine that there would be pregnant women in the end of the world, and she felt mixed emotions.But her melancholy didn't affect anyone, whether it was Tracy, Pastor Carlodo or Bella. Everyone happily listened to Madeline's expressions and feelings about fetal movement, and no one was worried about the scarce supplies and insufficient medical care.

"I think you need a little time to get used to it." After the meeting, Trish sent Esses back to the residence, she stood in front of the iron gate and smiled softly, "Many people have experienced some cruel things after leaving the group, of course , I have also met refugees who are completely disappointed in humanity and guys who are almost crazy," she shrugged helplessly," but don't worry, living with us will let you find the peace you deserve, and each of us cherishes this very much point."

The simple country town has the magic power to slow down time. She can feel the energy of the residents here. It is a different from the tense and oppressive atmosphere in the past. The unstable factors and various senses of crisis suffered during the escape, After coming here, it is like the ebbing sea water, which is gradually taken away by the waves slowly and without trace.

After saying goodbye to Cui silently, Esses slowly closed the door.

In the spacious living room, with her back against the cold and hard wooden boards, and in the moonlight that faintly penetrated through the gaps in the curtains, Esther saw Frieda sitting motionless on the sofa, talking with her before going out, last night, or even the day before yesterday. Same.This is a secret, Esses remembered Trish and Gavin's warning, she left Frieda as a big secret, and must not be revealed to the fourth person, otherwise Frieda will be "purified" and she will was expelled.

This is one of the reasons why she has never been able to integrate.

"This is a wonderful place..." Esses sat on the sofa decadently, whispering softly, "Good people, farming food, children, priests, beliefs... I can't pick any faults, in the end of the world full of zombies This is simply a paradise, a paradise..." But she couldn't feel this joy, as if she was surrounded by a layer of glass, she could hear laughter and see smiles, but she couldn't touch the warmth.

"It's not that I don't trust them, it's just..." Esses looked at Frieda distressedly, her pale face didn't respond at all, "It's just that I don't fit in, you know... I'm a criminal, and they are all kind and ordinary people People, I am not qualified to live with them at all, maybe the bad luck I bring will harm them?"

Thinking of all the encounters so far, Esther's face became even more ashen.

"I should leave...that's right...I have to leave, so as not to hurt them..." She quickly got up and packed her bags as if obsessed, hurriedly stuffed a few clothes into the cloth bag, and stood by the window in a panic, looking back and forth, " We should go now, Frieda, while everyone is asleep!"

In a panic, she took Frieda, who was acting stiffly, and quietly opened the door and took a step.

The cold evening wind caressed Esses's face, and at that moment she seemed to hear the wailing mixed in the wind, whether it was the wailing of zombies or vagrants, it made Esses stop her movements.She looked at the blue and black country road outside the fence and the moon covered by clouds, and her anxiety rose rapidly.

"What the hell am I doing..." She covered her face and knelt down by the door, slipping out some clothes without tightening her bag, while Frieda stood dead silent behind her, "I can't do it , I can't protect you at all... I'm so stupid! Damn it! I can't protect anyone at all..."

When Esther raised her head, she happened to see Frieda's numb expression, and there was nothing left in those eyes that had lost the sparkle of sea water. If Frieda was still alive, she would definitely ridicule Esther for being a real coward , scolded her with that innocent smile, but still regarded her as a friend.

Too bad there's nothing left now.

She blew the cold wind outside the door in the middle of the night, and did not pull Frieda back into the house until she was emotionally stable. Esther hid Frieda in the bedroom restlessly, and she sealed all the curtains to ensure that there would be no naughty ones. The child peeked at everything in the house, and finally shrank into the quilt tremblingly as if nothing had happened, shrinking his body into a ball.

That night, Esther had a dream.

She clearly knew that she was dreaming, and her soul was floating in mid-air overlooking the city at night.Occasionally, a few lights can be seen in the vast darkness, which symbolizes that there are very few signs of human survival. She couldn't take a closer look at the appearance of those survivors, and they were blown to the distance with the direction of the wind. Then she heard Tracy's voice, whispering to Cries of eagerness, and finally screams of terror.

Esther stared wide-eyed and realized that she was standing right above the old church. Pastor Carlodo was holding a gun in his hand and was anxiously instructing the children to hide in the church. Tracy was holding Meddy covered in blood. Lynn ran to the shelter, while Bella lay dying in the front yard, her arm was broken in a pool of blood as if torn by a wild animal.

"Get in! It's coming!" Gavin's warning came, and he held a pistol in his hand, covered in blood all over his body.

Esther looked behind Gavin with a tense expression, and a blurred and fast black shadow approached the man in a blink of an eye, only to hear Gavin's scream, and his whole body struggled like being thrown down by a ferocious beast, with blood gushing out like a fountain. After splashing, it didn't take long for the man to lose signs of life.

"Don't come here! Devil!" Priest Kaluodo fired two shots forward excitedly.

The black shadow slowly moved away from Gavin's body, and it wasn't until Esther stood under the moonlight that she could clearly see the monster's appearance.

That was Frieda.

"Go back to hell!" Priest Carlodo yelled with a distorted face. When he pulled the trigger, Frieda rushed forward and bit off the old man's neck. Scarlet blood spilled on the stained glass window. The children hiding in the church were wailing in fear. Frieda raised her head and tore off the flesh from the priest's neck, staring hungrily at the innocent children behind the blood-stained glass window.

"...Frida..." Essus covered her mouth in pain, she collapsed and screamed as she watched Frieda break open the church door and bite the child, "──No!"