Monster?
A twisted smiled spread across Eve's face as she watched Qin Wei continue to squirm frantically, but he could not break out of her grip.
Yes… she was a monster…
Eve's pitch- black eyes stared at the young teenager whose face was already beginning to turn red.
He struggled to breathe as Eve's grip only got tighter around his neck.
The urge to kill was getting stronger and saliva began to drip down from the sides of Eve's open mouth.
"Did you really think that you could threaten her?" Eve growled in rage as her body responded to her dark urges.
Should she kill him?
Eve was conflicted because she knew that this boy was important to her favourite human and yet… he was a threat.
The zombie empress furrowed her brows and remained frozen in place as she could not decide what to do next.
She gradually loosened her grip and Qin Wei was finally able to take in a few deep breaths before yelling out at the top of his lungs.
"Help! Help me!" Qin Wei screamed loudly.
Eve hurriedly moved to pinch his throat but now it was too late.
Qin Wei's shout echoed through the night and was heard by his sister who was coming around the corner with the girls.
Qin Lan's heart dropped as she heard her brother's cry for help. She needed to protect him since he was the subject of the original Qin Lan's wish.
Damn it! What had happened?
"Girls… I'm going to need you to run back to the van now and lock the door," Qin Lan ordered calmly as she took out the pistol from her holster.
Gong Li nodded and hurriedly dragged away Liu Yifei by the hand while Liu Tao followed closely behind.
Fortunately, the van was only a few hundred meters away, so the girls were able to reach the vehicle quite quickly.
Qin Lan let out a heavy sigh of relief and immediately ran towards the direction of the sound.
Follow on NovᴇlEnglish.nᴇtShe felt the cold hard metal of the handgun in her palm and her thoughts gradually calmed down.
It would be fine…
Eve was there… nothing would happen.
Eve had proven herself to be one of the strongest ability users that Qin Lan had seen so far and should have no trouble dealing with any threats in the early stages of the apocalypse.
Qin Lan turned around the corner and saw what could only be described as the scene of a nightmare.
Her brother was being held up by the throat at the hands of an abomination.
The creature was vaguely humanoid with a slender skeletal-like frame.
Its skin was a pale and sickly colour, and its pitch-black eyes were sunk into its sockets.
Its fingernails were long black claws that dug into the sides of Qin Wei's neck and left blood marks that looked incredibly painful.
Was that mutant zombie?
They weren't supposed to appear already!
The clothes that the zombie wore were vaguely familiar but the only thought on Qin Lan's mind was her brother's safety.
Qin Lan raised up her pistol and fired two shots at the zombie's back in order to distract it.
Bang! Bang!
One of the bullets accurately hit the monster's right shoulder while the other penetrated its stomach.
The zombie staggered and Qin Lan seized the opportunity by dashing forward towards the injured creature.
She crouched down to lower her center of gravity and kicked at the zombie's legs in order to knock it off balance.
The creature let go of her brother and jumped away so that Qin Lan's attack passed a mere few inches away from where it had just been standing.
It growled in pain and clutched its stomach.
Black blood dripped to the ground and Qin Lan's hand that was raised to fire off another round of bullets… suddenly trembled.
Why did her heart hurt when she saw the creature's injuries?
Qin Wei was nearly unconscious, but he opened his mouth and was barely able to say a few words before his vision faded away to darkness.
"Sister… save me… that's… that's… Eve..." Qin Wei hoarsely muttered before he closed his eyes and his body slumped to the ground.
"Eve?" Qin Lan asked in disbelief.
The zombie raised its head and now its facial features could clearly be seen under the moonlight.
It was impossible not to notice the vague similarity between that sunken face and Eve's usually beautiful appearance.
"What? What is going on?" Qin Lan stuttered as she hurriedly ran over.
Her body moved faster than her mind could react, and she quickly reached Eve's side.
She pulled out a handkerchief out of her pocket and began to press it against the wound on Eve's stomach that had now stopped bleeding.
"Eve? Is that you?" Qin Lan hesitantly asked as she reached out with one hand to stroke the side of Eve's cheek.
The zombie empress flinched as she saw the concerned and questioning look in Qin Lan's eyes.
She never wanted to reveal her true form…
How could she show her favourite human just how ugly she really was?
Self- hatred surfaced in Eve's heart as she looked down at her hands and saw their twisted and deformed appearance.
No… that young human and the other scientists were right…
She was a monster.
Her favourite human belonged with her own kind who would look after her better than a monster like her.
"Talk to me… tell me…" Qin Lan continued to beg helplessly but her words had now become background noise in Eve's mind.
Eve gently shoved Qin Lan away with enough force that she was sent stumbling back a few feet.
"He wanted… wanted to kill you…" Eve explained but her voice was hoarse and guttural.
She opened her mouth to say more but the confused expression on Qin Lan's face made the words die down in her throat.
No… Why would she believe a monster?
Follow on Novᴇl-Onlinᴇ.cᴏmAll she could do now… was to remove the threat and leave…
For the first time, Eve used her enhanced speed in front of Qin Lan and her figure blurred and vanished from the spot.
There was no more hesitation in her mind as she reappeared next to Qin Wei's unconscious body and stabbed down using her claws.
Eve punched a hole in Qin Wei's chest and ignored the horrified cry that left Qin Lan's mouth.
How did she feel as she watched her only brother die at the hands of the woman who claimed to love her?
Eve did not even dare to think about it.
The zombie empress didn't turn around… she couldn't bear to see Qin Lan's reaction or the expression of hatred that must be on her face.
Eve's figure blurred and then vanished from the spot as she ran away using all of the strength that she could muster.
"Eve! Why?!" Qin Lan shouted in confusion but received no reply.
She rushed over to her brother's body and placed two fingers against his neck.
Nothing.
He was dead.
She had failed her task.
Qin Lan bent over and vomited as she felt sick to her core.
She didn't understand what had just happened and her mind kept replaying over and over the moment when Eve had killed her brother.
Eve was a mutant zombie…
Eve had murdered her brother… Eve had killed him… he was dead…
"Eve…Why? Why? Why?" Qin Lan muttered quietly like a broken record as her thoughts were in a mess.
She could vaguely recall wiping the sides of her mouth and walking towards the van in a semi-dazed state.
Qin Lan was unable to deal with her brother's lifeless corpse and just left him there. She took one final look at his body and the urge to vomit resurfaced.
She headed towards the red van parked in the front of the gas station with tears threatening to fall out of her eyes.
Qin Lan saw herself open the van door and sit down in the driver's seat. She leaned back against the seat with numerous thoughts running through her mind.
Liu Yifei tried to ask her something, but Qin Lan's continued to stare aimlessly out of the window.
She was a broken woman.