Gabriel and his new corridor companion, Henry, waited. Since the disappearance of the other prisoners, everything had fallen silent under the shouts of the siren.
The two ignored each other. Henry spoke words that were incomprehensible to himself. He kept reciting "angel," "apocalypse" and "death." Gabriel sensed that this man had a mental problem. Avoiding him would at least guarantee a bit more safety. Who knew if he was hiding a weapon in his orange trousers?
But the more the seconds passed, the darker Gabriel's thoughts became. He turned to Henry.
"Do you know what's going on?"
"Angel… Apocalypse … death…
Gabriel's anguish was replaced by deep annoyance.
"Hey, crazy boy, do you know what's going on out there?"
Nothing could persuade the other to answer him.
Gabriel clenched his fists. Reason took over as he sighed. He headed to his cell and dipped his hand in the toilet water. Scotch tape held a finger-long glass blade captive. The base was made of metal surrounded by an adhesive to hold it all together, making it rough to the touch.
As he approached the door to leave the corridor, Henry grabbed his wrist.
"What are you doing? Do you want to die like them?"
Gabriel frowned. He looked at the hairy man straight in the eye.
"I'm not waiting to die of thirst here either."
With a sweep of his arm, he freed himself from Henry's grip.
"You've gone mad, too. Crazy people!"
Henry shook his head and fell on his back.
Gabriel gave him one last look and disappeared through the door. He thought he'd stay here until help arrived, but something made him uneasy. It was as if an entity watched him in the shadows. A slight more and he would have become like Henry.
Apart from the corridor, the entire building was immersed in obscurity. In some area, halos of red glass brightened the place.
"What the fuck?"
An acrid smell of iron permeated Gabriel's nose. His eyes fell on the walls lit by the little light there was. Bloody handprints ran along the length into the darkness. A slimy substance clung to the bottom of his shoes.
"It looked like rotting flesh.
Gabriel felt his stomach turn. A liquid rose from his guts into his throat. He put a hand to his mouth and swallowed.
His grip tightened on the glass knife.
The blood trail led to the guardhouse in Corridor A, the corridor from which Gabriel had come. As he had expected, the post office was deserted. A fierce battle had taken place in this small area.
Human body parts were strewn all on the floor. Blood in every direction and a few corpses here and there. The unbearable smell forced Gabriel to pull the cloth of his T-shirt over his nose.
The corpse of a guard lay on the control panel. His arm, torn from the rest of his body, pressed a red button.
"It must be the siren."
Gabriel withdrew the arm and the alarm stopped instantly.
"Silence."
A sigh left Gabriel's mouth. As he stepped back, his foot struck the guard's head. Suddenly, the guard's arm caught his leg.
Gabriel didn't want to know if the guard was still alive. He kicked him in the skull, freeing himself from the guard's grip.
At that moment, Gabriel heard them. The grunts in the darkness. That throat clearing, as if obstructed by an iron bar, was straight out of hell.
A piercing scream echoed through the small area. Gabriel saw the guard crawling towards him at full speed. He discerned soulless eyes. His face rotted and the blood on the corner of his mouth sent a shiver down Gabriel's spine.
"What the fuck!"
He dashed back down the corridor.
The guard slowly got to his feet. The next moment, he rushed at Gabriel.
Behind the guard, a dozen beings like him initiated to run after Gabriel. Gabriel felt his blood storm around his body. His heart was beating so fast that it replaced the howling of these beasts.
Traces of sweat appeared on his forehead. Exhaustion began to take over. But under adrenalin, he managed to reach the gate to corridor A.
He pushed it open, the creatures right behind him. He closed the gate inextricably on the head of one of those things.
It was the guard from earlier. Gabriel looked down and saw his badge dropped to the floor.
Brigade leader Brian.
Gabriel swore under the monstrous strength of the guy.
The gate was going to fall in a few seconds. He had to reach up with a plan fast, or he'd die.
"Henry!"
Gabriel called out as he forced the gate close. There was no answer.
"Henry, you bastard, come and help me!"
With no response, Gabriel felt his arms gave out. He left the gate and rushed into his cell. Before he could close the door, the guard dived on him.
Gabriel pushed him back with his feet and plunged the glass blade into his chest. But that didn't stop the guard, who tried to bite his arm.
"Fuck off!"
Gabriel sent a right hook into the guard's jaw. The guard's loss of balance allowed Gabriel to pull the knife from his chest and stabbed it into his skull. The human monster fell to the floor.
After removing the blood from his eyes, Gabriel fell to the ground breathless. Their intense moaning behind bars was bad company. They pushed at each other, jabbing their rotten arms through the metal, hoping for a chance to catch him.
Gabriel sighed. It was a good thing they didn't know how to slide doors.
The knife had broken after he pulled it from the guard. Miraculously, a small piece remained when he stuck it in the skull.
Unarmed and trapped inside a cell. Gabriel guessed it was the end. He would die of hunger within a month and of thirst in just seven days. He thought about drinking from the toilet to gain a few more times, but what was the point?
As Gabriel resigned himself, a soft voice whispered in his ear.
"Do you want to live?"