Chapter Four: Old Traditions

Facing Gavin’s question, Madison took a deep breath, pursed his lips, and swallowed hard.

“Going all out?”

After feeling somewhat prepared, the towering man, standing two meters and seven centimeters tall, spoke with a fierce expression.

“That’s way too much, quarterback. Do you remember the game two years ago when I played after getting a steroid injection?”

“The moment I stepped onto the field, I never expected to walk off.”

“Back then, I was fighting with just one leg, one knee, but…”

“I’m damn your protector, the top left tackle in the major league!”

“My legs are my life! I’ve already gone all out!”

At this, Madison clenched the military knife in his hand tightly.

As for Gavin…

He lowered his head with a smirk, glancing at Madison’s slightly trembling calf.

You talk a big game about courage, yet your feet are moving—how could they not? I thought with your grandiose attitude, you’d be the first to scout ahead for me, buddy!

Seeing Madison all talk and no action, Gavin slowly opened the door.

He cracked it open just enough to listen to the hallway.

The corridor was quiet; aside from the car alarms blaring outside the villa, there was no other sound.

The helicopter crash and explosion had naturally set off the car alarms.

Besides, all the cars here tonight were luxury vehicles, and the alarm sounds were piercing.

After listening for three or four seconds, Gavin flung the door wide open.

He immediately stepped out, ready to leave the bedroom.

Who leads the way didn’t matter, at least not to Gavin.

Because he could run faster than old Madison.

Seeing Gavin leave without hesitation, Madison’s large lips trembled violently.

Slap!

He grabbed Gavin’s shoulder, lips trembling as he tried to speak.

Gavin turned back and saw that Madison seemed to want to say something, so he stepped back into the room, waiting briefly.

Meeting Gavin’s encouraging gaze, Madison took a deep breath, his eyes heavy as he spoke solemnly to Gavin, but even more so to himself.

“I will protect you, quarterback. I swear I will!”

“You too, buddy. I’m no quarterback who abandons his protector.”

Gavin patted Madison’s shoulder encouragingly.

“Follow me, watch the path.”

“I’m with you.”

Madison nodded in response, his calf finally settling down.

Gavin, sword in hand, stepped quietly on the carpet and headed left down the corridor.

Madison’s room was close to Gavin’s, separated by just one room.

The carpet muffled their footsteps perfectly, allowing them to easily reach Madison’s door.

Seeing the familiar furnishings of his room, Madison sighed with relief. These few steps had been harder than he expected, but once out of the bedroom, things felt simpler.

Gavin peeked inside to confirm no zombies were present, then went in decisively.

Madison followed, gently closing the door behind them.

Click.

The bolt slid into place, and Madison exhaled with relief.

“Damn it, this stretch of hallway was tougher than my leg training days.”

Madison muttered with a sigh, then handed the phone back to Gavin, casually reminding him.

“I’m going to look for my own phone. Oh, by the way, I put your phone on silent.”

“Thanks, good call. I totally forgot.”

Gavin nodded, pocketed his phone, and headed toward the fireplace.

In modern times, cold weapons have long been retired, but steel quality and forging technology have improved year by year.

Artistic swords like those hung in the villa are relatively expensive, with excellent steel and even patterned blades.

A little polishing and their quality is unbeatable—they must be kept as backups.

While Gavin removed his military knife, Madison approached the bed.

Picking up his phone, he nervously dialed his partner’s number as he muttered.

“Leonard always carries his Sony game console wherever he goes. After sending off those long-legged snacks last night, the two of them have been playing 2K basketball.”

“It was a bit noisy, but thankfully so, or I might have slept through it all.”

“It was almost three in the morning. I was dead tired, didn’t want to yell at them, and then I saw them cuddling—Kendrick even buried his head in Leonard’s stomach.”

“Fuck, it scared me. I thought they were gay, then everything turned bloody. Leonard only cried out twice before going silent.”

“Believe me, I’ll never forget that scene. Damn James was dribbling on TV, making a layup that tore Leonard apart.”

“I didn’t even have time to get dressed—I ran so fast I hit the doorframe.”

“They’re faster than when they chase me during team training. I literally pissed myself… Just forget about that, brother…”

At this, Madison collapsed onto the bed, burying his face in the covers in despair.

Nearby, by the fireplace, Gavin held three military knives, silently glancing at Madison.

“Ah…”

He sighed, then grabbed a cushion from the sofa, casually wiping blood and flesh from in front of the TV.

Then he picked up a backpack stained with just a little blood.

Inside, he found two game controllers, HDMI cables, two bottles of lubricant, a PSP console, and a bunch of condoms.

After dumping everything out, Gavin tossed the bag onto the sofa, tore open another cushion, and fashioned cloth strips to tie two knives together, slinging them on his back.

He adjusted the placement of the knives to ensure they wouldn’t hinder his movement.

Gavin then sat beside Madison on the bed.

Feeling Gavin’s presence, Madison raised his head, wiped away despairing tears, and said,

“I can’t get through to my partner’s phone or the house phone. With so many kids, not one of them can answer… Fuck, sob…”

After a brief choked pause, Madison shakily lifted his phone.

“This is my mom’s number. I can’t get through to her either. No one’s answering…”

As he spoke, Madison clenched the phone, brows twitching as he listened to the busy signal.

Seeing Madison breaking down, Gavin sighed and tried to comfort him.

“Don’t overthink it. Maybe they’re all busy, just like us. We weren’t exactly available to take calls earlier either.”

“Besides, you only called your wife and mom. You haven’t even tried your dad yet. Maybe…”

“My deadbeat dad ran off twenty years ago, damn it. We were teammates for four years—I thought you knew my family story!”

Despite the pain, Madison reflexively cursed at the mention of his father.

Hearing this, Gavin glanced at Madison’s dark skin and nodded in understanding.

“My bad, I should’ve guessed—that’s old-school.”

He patted Madison’s shoulder.

“Alright, buddy. At least you called home. I still haven’t dared to call yet.”

“Let’s focus on staying alive first, then worry about family.”

“What good does it do to get through? Even if I watch them get overrun by zombies through the phone, what help could I offer? Cheer them on?”

Gavin’s voice grew heavy with frustration.

He had lived twenty-five years in this world. Though his parents were white Texans, they treated him well—except for not giving him a little sister, everything was great.

But now?

All he could do was wish they passed peacefully.

Would it really be a blessing to wish them to continue living?

Living in a world crawling with zombies?

Beside the bed, Madison slowly stood and cursed.

“This damn party—I shouldn’t have come at all. But you’re right, I have to live!”

“Wait a moment, I’m going for my car keys. Hey, where are your car keys?”

As he spoke, Madison searched the bedside table, pulling his car keys from his original suit.

Gavin shrugged.

“Car keys? Probably with my assistant or agent. Not really sure.”

“Tsk tsk, that’s you, Gavin—the football god who brings four assistants to a party.”

“What about your Aston Martin? Can’t find it? Looks like you’re stuck with my pickup.”

Madison joked bitterly with a grimace, then approached Gavin.

“Don’t worry, my pickup’s been modified—worth at least three hundred thousand dollars. Not exactly beneath your status.”

“You know, I have too many kids to save money. Luckily, I bought this truck. It’s coming in handy now. It can carry a lot.”

“But what do we do next? I’ll follow your lead. Are we going to the boss’s place for guns?”

“Hopefully, we didn’t use up all his ammo at the shooting range.”

Madison’s sorrow came fast but seemed to fade quickly as well.

Hearing his question, Gavin nodded.

“Yeah, the boss’s room isn’t far. It’s probably not locked either.”

With that, Gavin grabbed the empty bag and stood up, tossing it to Madison.

Madison looked around the room but found nothing worth taking, so he tossed a few apples into the bag.