AVERY’S POV
Trepidation washed over me as I stared at him.
The harsh light of the morning bleeding through a crack in the ceiling highlighted the scars scattered across his skin — and for one fleeting second, I thought about ending the conversation right there and then.
What was the point of entertaining such a baseless theory?
But this was Joel.
Joel never spoke unless he believed something to be true.
The apocalypse had shaped that part of him.
I adjusted my backpack, my voice coming out a little hoarse.
“I’m listening.”
He looked away from the window, his gaze settling on me with an unwavering intensity.
“Remember when we were at the park? The day we met Nadia?”
Of course I did.
I had thought about that incident for days.
It had been unnerving — the Rig had been locked on us alone.
I nodded stiffly.
“What about it?”
He looked around to make sure no one was listening, before he lowered his voice, uncertainty creeping into his tone.
“I’ve been thinking — I know it’s crazy and I—I know I shouldn’t be saying this because I could be wrong, but think about this—” He gestured wildly with his hands.
“That Rig seemed to be hellbent on us. But it didn’t attack. Rigs don’t just not attack, Avery. We know that. Also, at the house— Are you getting what I’m saying?”
Slowly, I shook my head, confusion clouding my features.
“No, I’m not getting what you’re saying, Joel. You’re dancing around the point.”
His tongue darted out to wipe at his lower lip and he took a deep breath.
“At the park, you took a different turn one time, and I took a look back in fear. The Rig had shifted its attention for that flash of a second. It did not shift its attention once when the rest of us changed positions.”
The place fell silent and I could hear my heart thudding in my chest.
Still, I forced my voice to stay level despite the tremble underneath it.
“So what’s your point? Who do you think they’re after?”
Joel straightened, his expression schooled into one of seriousness.
“I think it’s you, Avery.”
There it was.
When he said it, fear and anxiety rolled into one, slamming into me like a freight train, but I managed to keep it out of my face.
“Are you insane? How could it be me? Why would the Rigs be following one person? Doesn’t that sound absurd to you, Joel?”
He raised his hands in surrender.
“That’s not the point. Look — it doesn’t change anything. Those things are interested in you, Avery. And I don’t know why.”
I folded my arms across my chest, suddenly feeling cold.
“So what? I’m a ticking time bomb?”
“No — Jesus.
I’m saying, we should put that in mind.
We’re all very scared here, and we all just want to get home or to safety, wherever that is, and we’re going to need to keep an eye out for stuff.
This is all absurd if you ask me, Avery.
Rigs?
Incomprehensible.
The fractured?
Even worse, how could they exist?
Tell me about it.
But they do exist.
They do, and we need to put in mind that anything else could exist.”
That made me go silent.
He wasn’t wrong.
I was cancelling the whole idea because it sounded out of line.
But c’mon, nothing about our situation was normal.
Might as well add one more to the train.
I nodded, taking a deep breath.
“Okay, let’s keep that possibility open. Are you gonna tell the others?”
If he did, everyone would be wary of me.
No one would trust me.
The group would fall—
“No,” Joel said, snapping me out of my thoughts.
“I don’t think we can afford putting anyone into worry. I just… I thought you should know about what I think could be happening.”
I nodded slowly.
“Thank you, Joel.”
His hands snaked into his pockets, nestling deep into them.
“Yeah. Uh— let’s go.”
I stepped away, letting him move past me, then I took a deep breath, trying to force the thought out of my head — He could be right.
Maybe I was a target.
But why?
Should I tell Declan?
I had no idea why I had told him about the broadcast.
It was a stupid idea.
Telling him about this would be even worse.
I had absolutely no reason to trust him.
He wasn’t even exactly nice to me.
Walking back to the rest of the group, I tilted my head towards the exit.
“Derek, move the barricades at the door. We move out in 2 minutes. Nadia, I need you to stick with Hannah at all times.”
Everyone nodded, getting into place.
Declan came forward, the strap of the rifle sitting snugly on his broad shoulders.
“I’ll lead. Avery, flank us. Keep an eye out. We haven’t seen any strays for a while. Could be a hoard waiting for us.”
I nodded, ignoring the commandeering tone he had used.
We moved out as quietly as we could, Hannah pulling Nadia along in the middle of the group while Derek and Joel were on either side of them.
This part of the city wasn’t hit that badly.
The only sign that was a sure tell of the apocalypse was the empty street littered with papers and debris, that had flown away with the wind to here from the other sides of the city.
People here had been evacuated, it seemed.
They weren’t the landing points of the Rigs so they had escaped the heavy part of the fire.
Every rustle made my neck snap to the back of the group, making sure nothing was sneaking up on us.
Just as the sun begun to rise above the horizon properly, Declan raised a hand to signal for us to stop.
We all froze and I looked around, heart thrumming in my chest as I waited for the snarl or anything that seemed hostile.
Nothing.
Breathing hard, I whipped back to look at Declan, irritation drawing my brows together.
Declan hadn’t dropped his hand.
He hadn’t even turned around to look at us.
He was looking at an apartment wedged between a pharmacy and a 3-storey building.
“Bingo.” He whistled under his breath before spinning around to look at me, excitement evident in his eyes.
“Let’s raid.”
For a full second, I stared at him in confusion, then irritation replaced it.
“Are you insane? We don’t have the time for that!” I snapped, jogging over to the front of the group where he was.
“Look at that thing. It’s clearly empty. What do you think you’re gonna see there? You’re gonna get us into trouble.”
Declan sighed, turning back to the building.
“If you’re scared, I’ll lead. If there’s nothing, all good. But my instincts says there is. Might as well give it a try.”
I turned to the others, weighing my options carefully.
This was an annoying gamble — one that would definitely waste our time.
But Declan seemed hell bent on it.
And I wanted to prove him wrong.
So I caved.
“Joel. Hand me your crowbar for a second. Take my pistol. Stay here with the others, guard the entrance. Try not to shoot unless it’s absolutely necessary, okay?” I handed him the weapon, watching him test the weight in his hands before he nodded.
“Got it. Try not to get killed.” He muttered, and something about his tone told me he wasn’t joking.
“If he comes out without me, shoot him.” I jerked my head towards Declan, a light tone in my voice.
Declan didn’t find it funny, because when I turned to him, there was a scowl on his face.
“Let’s move.”
We walked over to the apartment door, Joel and the others staying behind while Declan forced the door open.
As soon as we stepped in, I paused, looking around.
Declan turned to me.
“What?”
I shrugged.
“This place seems lived in.”
A frown pulled at his lips.
“Impossible.” He muttered under his breath.
A sudden shuffle down the hall made us both freeze and my grip on the crowbar tightened.
Something — or someone — was in this house with us.
Slowly, we quietly moved through the house, Declan leading with his rifle now un-slung and ready to be used.
There was a door at the end of the hall and we paused in front of it.
Declan slowly reached a hand out and twisted the doorknob.
It was locked.
Giving me a glance to be sure, he nodded, took my crowbar from me and started to pry the door open.
I gripped his rifle tight, the weapon feeling strange in my hand compared to the pistol I was used to at this point, and I waited for him to be finished.
Finally, the door creaked open, revealing a spacious living room.
I immediately raised the rifle, ready to release a burst of fire when I froze.
Because standing in the center of the room wasn’t a fractured or anyone who looked hostile.
Instead, I saw a frightened woman in her mid 30s who was gripping a bat hard in her hand, ready to swing.
We both froze at the sight of each other and Declan cursed under his breath.
Her breathing was heavy in the space, her chest heaving — but her eyes remained trained on me.
“You’re not supposed to be here. They’re counting you. All of you.”
Guys, don’t ask about the chapter title.
Just go with it, haha.