Free A New World [7] Takedown by John O'Brien

doorway has a heaped pile of dirt that extends inside. The open door itself is a warning sign to her as she remembers having to enter another house like this one – Gonzalez’. She is about to enter into yet another darkened structure with the possibility of night runners inside.
    Fuck I hate this , she thinks, feeling her heart rate increase.
    The last time they did this, she had to shoot Gonzalez’ dad. She doesn’t want to have to do anything even remotely like that again. That had to be the single most horrible thing she has ever had to do. The only positive thing she sees looking at the front door is that there aren’t any visible tracks in the sand.
    At least there’s that. This still sucks though.
    Henderson peeks in the side of the front window quickly and then, when nothing erupts, takes a longer look. He turns to them, stacked and ready to enter, and gives an indication that he can’t see inside.
    Gonzalez hefts her M-4 and looks McCafferty in the eyes, “You ready for this?”
    “Hell no, but let’s do it.”
    With a nod from Gonzalez, she throws the door open the rest of the way. Gonzalez lowers her NVGs and rushes in. McCafferty lowers hers and follows.
    Gonzalez darts to the right along the front wall while McCafferty goes in along the left one. Robert follows, taking station by the front door while Bri tracks along behind Gonzalez. They enter like a fast moving mist – quickly and quietly. The thin beams of light from their IR lasers sweep inside looking for movement – either targets or survivors. There is nothing but the dark, cool interior cast in a greenish glow. She hears Henderson and Denton enter behind her and take up positions.
    They find themselves in a great room with an open kitchen and dining room near the back of the house. A hallway opens to the left extending to three back bedrooms and a bathroom. It’s much the same setup as in Gonzalez’ house. The continued similarity sends a chill up McCafferty’s spine. Large amounts of dust covers the furniture. The dining room table has plates, silverware scattered across the top with a couple of overturned glasses. Pieces of a broken plate and more silverware lie on the gritty floor beside the table. Two of the four dining chairs are scooted away from the table and a third lies on its side. A single pot sits on the stove. The whole scene gives the impression that something happened quickly while those living here were sitting down at a meal.
    “Robert, McCafferty, cover the hallway,” McCafferty hears Gonzalez say over the radio.
    Robert slides up beside her and they peek down the hall. She feels the thudding of her heart in her chest from both being inside another shadowy interior and from the remembrance of another hallway. What she sees increases it even more. Four bodies, stretching down the length of the hall, lie motionless – prone or slumped in various positions. One of the doors at the end of the hall is open. She listens for any sound, but it remains eerily quiet except for hers and Robert’s breathing.
    Not wanting to broadcast the find over the radio because of the soldier waiting for news outside, she waves Gonzalez over and points to the bodies and the open door. One other door lies halfway open down the hall with another closed across from it. A third door is closed adjacent to the open one at the end of the corridor.
    “Check out the rooms and make sure those bodies are indeed visiting the afterlife. Bri and I will be behind you to provide backup if needed,” Gonzalez whispers with a hand on her shoulder.
    McCafferty nods and rises. With Robert beside her, she edges into the hall. She’s hyper-alert and half expects a night runner to charge from the opening to the side and just in front of her. With Robert covering the hall, she pushes the partially open door. Ready for anything, she quickly peers inside. An empty bathroom.
    “Empty,” she calls softly.
    “Move to the back rooms. Bri and I have the side door,”