Chapter 182: The Dead are Calling
The metallic taste of fear flooded Arthur’s mouth as the binoculars slipped from his trembling fingers, clattering against the roof of the armored vehicle with a sharp, echoing clang that seemed to pierce through the oppressive silence of the night. His breath came in short, ragged gasps as the desperate cries continued to assault his ears, each plea more heart-wrenching than the last.
"HELP! PLEASE, SOMEONE HELP US!"
The voices carried on the still night air, raw with terror and desperation that made Arthur’s chest tighten with an overwhelming sense of urgency. He could feel his pulse hammering against his temples, each heartbeat thundering in his ears as adrenaline surged through his veins like liquid fire. Without a moment’s hesitation, he spun on his heel and lunged toward the hatch, his boots scraping against the cold metal surface of the vehicle’s roof.
The night around them was thick with an unnatural darkness that seemed to swallow sound and light alike, making the distant cries all the more haunting. Arthur’s hands shook as he gripped the edge of the hatch, his knuckles white with the force of his grip. Time felt like it was moving through molasses, each second stretching into an eternity while those unknown people continued to scream for salvation.
"I need help out here! There are people in trouble!" Arthur’s voice cracked with urgency as he thrust his head through the hatch opening, his words echoing through the cramped interior of the armored car like a thunderclap in the stillness.
The sudden intrusion of his panicked voice shattered the peaceful quiet that had settled over his sleeping companions. Below him, the interior of the vehicle erupted into chaos as three figures jolted awake from their slumber, their bodies moving with the disoriented confusion of people torn from deep sleep.
Cara was the first to react, her lean form launching upward with the fluid grace of a trained fighter. Her golden hair whipped around her face as she moved, and despite having been asleep moments before, her eyes immediately focused on Arthur with an unshaken and determined intensity. There was something almost preternatural about the way she could shift from peaceful sleep to full alertness in the span of a heartbeat.
"What’s going on?" she demanded, her voice steady despite the chaos, though Arthur could detect the underlying current of tension that ran through her words like a live wire.
But Arthur was already pulling his head back through the hatch, his entire body coiled with nervous energy. The cries for help seemed to be growing more desperate by the second, and he could feel precious time slipping away like sand through his fingers. "No time to explain!" he shouted back, his voice already growing distant as he prepared to leap from the vehicle.