Alex immediately reached for the gun holstered at his hip.
"Identify yourself!" a voice barked again, sharp and commanding, echoing off the tunnel walls.
Alex didn't move, his stance rigid, and for a moment, I thought he might try something stupid.
"We're not infected!" he called back, his voice steady despite the tension rolling off him. "Just two survivors trying to make it to the next station!"
The light wavered slightly, and I could hear footsteps approaching, steady and deliberate.
"Keep your hands where we can see them," the voice ordered.
Alex raised his hands slowly, the flashlight in one of them casting jagged shadows on the walls. I stayed behind him, trembling, my fever making the world spin around me. My leg throbbed in time with my heartbeat, a dull, relentless ache that I couldn't ignore.