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Chapter 26: The Sacrifice
The radio continued to crackle with military orders, the final death sentence for Palatka echoing through the small control room. The survivors inside the tunnel barely spoke. They had been waiting for this moment—the inevitable conclusion to the nightmare they had lived through.
Wallace turned to Rhodes. "You have explosives?"
Rhodes nodded. "Enough to collapse the tunnel and cut off access to the river. But that won’t stop the ones already out there."
Vanessa took a deep breath. "Then we need a distraction. Something to lure the infected and those bastards in hazmat suits into one place before the strike."
Rhodes glanced at his people. "We’ve got old train cars, fuel reserves. We can rig something big."
Wallace clenched his fists. "Then we do it. We gather every last survivor, every last piece of fuel and explosives we have. We make them think we’re trying to escape through the tunnel, let them swarm us—then we blow them all to hell."
Silence followed.
Then Rhodes nodded. "If we do this, there’s no turning back."
Vanessa looked at Wallace. "There was never any turning back."
The group set to work, moving with the quiet desperation of those who knew time was running out. Survivors dragged barrels of fuel onto an old railcar, wiring explosives to its frame. The plan was simple—send the train down the line toward the infected gathering near the edge of town, wait for the soldiers to converge, and detonate everything at once.
As they worked, Wallace caught Vanessa watching him.
"What?" he asked.
She hesitated, then whispered, "Do you think we’ll make it out of this?"
Wallace didn’t answer.
Because he wasn’t sure.
Chapter 27: The Final Ride
The final hour arrived.
Rhodes stood on top of the railcar, checking the wiring one last time. The explosives were set. The fuel would ignite on impact.
Wallace climbed onto the front of the train, gripping the lever that would send it careening down the tracks.
The plan was insane.
But it was their only chance.
"Everyone ready?" Rhodes called out.
The survivors took position at the tunnel entrance, rifles at the ready. The infected had already begun to gather in the distance, drawn to the noise.
Vanessa stepped beside Wallace. "No second chances."
Wallace pulled the lever.
The train shuddered, then lurched forward, gaining speed as it barreled down the tracks. The infected turned toward it, their twisted, elongated forms twitching in anticipation. The ones who had once been human stared with hollow, black eyes as they stepped onto the rails.
Then, from the other side of town, headlights appeared.
The black trucks.
The military was here.
Wallace felt his pulse quicken. "It’s working."
Rhodes grabbed the detonator. "Wait for it..."
The train surged forward, plowing through the first wave of infected, their bodies splitting apart like wet paper. More came, their numbers swelling as the train neared its final destination.
The trucks skidded to a stop, men in hazmat suits pouring out, weapons raised.
Rhodes exhaled. "Now."
He pressed the detonator.
The world turned white.
Then, fire.
The explosion ripped through the train yard, a shockwave of heat and force tearing through the infected and the soldiers alike. The fuel reserves ignited, sending a wall of flames into the sky.
Wallace and Vanessa ducked as the blast sent debris flying. The tunnel shook violently, rocks and steel crumbling from the ceiling.
As the dust settled, all that remained was silence.
The infected were gone. The military was gone.
Palatka was burning.
But the nightmare wasn't over yet.
Wallace looked at Vanessa. "Now we find out if it was enough."
She nodded. "And if it wasn’t?"
Wallace’s jaw tightened.
"Then we finish what we started."
To be continued...