Chapter 7 "You? Seriously?" The deputy scoffed, pointing at the dark circles under Esmeralda's eyes. "Don't make me laugh. You're nothing but dead weight; you only know how to scream for help when trouble shows up." The rest of the team burst out laughing. Noah's face turned chalk-white, yet he stubbornly stood his ground. "I know we've messed up... But please give us a chance to make it up to you. I promise we'll follow your every order this time!" However, everyone was well aware that they were only after the mission's lucrative rewards and wanted a share of the spoils. I lifted my hand to quiet the room. Then, I lowered my voice and said, "Let's bring them along. If we run into danger, we can leave them behind to buy us some time." After hearing that, the others stopped grumbling and reluctantly agreed to Noah's request. On the way there, Noah insisted on riding in the lead vehicle I was driving. He mostly kept to himself, but I could feel his eyes on me through the rearview mirror every now and then. "Do you want some water?" he abruptly asked halfway through the drive, offering me a military canteen. I shook my head and kept my eyes on the road. Noah, however, insisted on stuffing the canteen in my hand. "Your lips are chapped, Sky. Please, just take a sip. It hurts to see you like this..." The deputy sneered, "Oh, now you know how to look after someone. Funny how I never saw that side of you before." His hand froze in midair, his lips trembling. "Back then, I didn't know better. I caused a lot of trouble for everyone... and even put Sky in a tough spot. It was all my fault. "L... I just want to make things right!" As the convoy rattled down the desolate road, Noah's tears quietly rolled down his face. No one spared him a glance. The teammate riding shotgun even cranked up the music to drown him out. By dusk, we'd finally arrived at our destination. The gate of the abandoned research lab was half open, and the inside was pitch black After assigning tasks to the team, we cautiously stepped inside. Esmeralda and Noah took the lead. Should zombies show up, the two of them could serve as human shields. Fortunately, the area seemed safe. We didn't come across a single zombie. Things went better than we expected. In less than half an hour, we found the precious sample stored in a frosted cabinet. I sealed the sample in a special container and handed it to Esmeralda. "Don't drop it. This is worth more than your life," I said coldly. Esmeralda hurriedly nodded and took it, her fingers nervously tracing the container. Her eyes kept darting toward the alarm device in the corner of the lab. "Get ready to move out," I ordered, and the team immediately started packing up. However, the moment we turned around, a piercing alarm shattered the silence. A heavy metallic rumble filled the air as the gate groaned open, and frantic footsteps thundered from the end of the hallway. "Shit!" the deputy cursed, raising his gun. "Esmeralda, that traitor, opened the quarantine gate!" I turned around, but Esmeralda was already long gone. 1/2 +25 Bonus