Chapter 67 — Hour 3

Prince of Hell.

The door slammed shut.

For a moment, it was over.

He leaned back against the wall—shaking, breath wheezing, heart sprinting like hell was two steps behind. Sixty infected clawing at steel just outside. He laughed. Hysterical. Grateful. Half-mad.

Outside, the other guy didn’t laugh.

He screamed. Slammed fists on the door. Begged. Bled.

Then—click.

The lights turned red.

The man inside froze. Confused. Took a single step—

The door opened.

Zombies flooded in.

Two screams. One ending.

Silence.

Five minutes later, a soft pshhht whispered through the hallway. Gas misted under the door.

Then the infected collapsed—silent, twitchless, lifeless.

—

Grim crouched behind a cracked pillar, eyes narrowed. “Okay. That’s not ominous.”

Stellan chewed a half-melted protein bar. “Guess the room didn’t like having roommates.”

Grim muttered, “Safe Room. Singular.”

Stellan nodded. “Means if you bring a plus-one, it turns into a buffet.”

Grim stood, adjusted his grip on a dented crowbar. “New rule. No sentimentality.”

Stellan shrugged. “Wasn’t planning on it.”

They moved. Quiet, deliberate steps. The kind where even breathing too loud felt like betrayal.

The infected weren’t blind.

They just needed a reason.

So Grim and Stellan became whispers.

No words. No mistakes.

—

Then the corner turned.

There was a wall. Then the wall ended.

And on the other side—Zoya.

Or someone dressed like Zoya.

Full suit. Helmet faintly glowing. Knives on her hips. Pipes strapped to her back like she was carrying a portable apocalypse.

Grim blinked.

Stellan squinted.

Zoya stared.

Everyone screamed.

Grim screamed like a child seeing a ghost in the bathroom mirror.

Stellan flinched so hard his crowbar clanged to the ground.

Zoya screamed back, furious and deeply offended.

The infected turned.

Grim: “Nice. Now we have their attention.”

Zoya: “Stop screaming like a kettle on fire—”

Grim: “Stop dressing like a cyberpunk vacuum cleaner—”

Stellan: “We’re gonna die arguing.”

They ran.

End of Chapter.