The next morning.
Brian and Sarah shouldered their backpacks and left the lakeside house they’d called home for the past week.
Behind the fence, Angela and Barton waved goodbye, shouting their farewells with childish enthusiasm.
Kenneth walked beside them, his eyes darting toward the assault rifle slung over Brian’s shoulder.
Greed flickered in his gaze.
There had been a gun shop in town once, but it had exploded on the first day of the outbreak.
Everything inside had been destroyed.
Otherwise, Kenneth wouldn’t have been so fixated on the kid’s rifle.
Yeah, I see right through you.
Brian caught the greedy look and smiled inwardly.
Kenneth was obviously planning to take the rifle the first chance he got.
Brian didn’t call him out.
Let him try.
He’d make sure the man learned a painful lesson about greed.
They walked for a while and passed the bridge, now a mountain of rotting corpses.
The entire structure had become a breeding ground for fungus.
Spores had taken root in the dead flesh, sprouting thick, blocky growths that spread across the concrete like a diseased carpet.
From a distance, it was revolting.
They reached the outskirts of town.
Brian pulled a hand-drawn map from his pocket.
Small squares marked different locations.
Most of the grocery stores and restaurants were crossed out in red ink.
Either they’d been picked clean by survivors or destroyed in the chaos.
His finger traced across the paper.
“This town never had many stores to begin with.
And with other survivors scavenging, most places are already empty.” He paused, his finger landing on an area in the northern outskirts.
He studied it for a moment.
“There’s an old warehouse up here.
Used to store construction materials.
There’s a small section where they kept food for the workers.
We can find supplies there.
And it’s close to the road leading to Dallas.” Kenneth stared at Brian like he’d lost his mind.
They were on the southern edge of town.
To get to the north, they’d have to cross the entire town.
“Are you insane?
Do you have any idea how dangerous that is?
And why would a construction warehouse have food?
Listen to me, kid.
The convenience store we hit last time still has some stuff left.
It’ll be enough for you two.
You can head to Dallas from here.” Brian shook his head.
“No.
We need to go there.” “You—!” Kenneth’s face flushed with anger.
He wanted that rifle, but he wasn’t about to die for it.
Fine.
He was done pretending.
He’d planned to use the kids as pack mules, have them gather supplies, then take everything from them.
But there was no point now.
He raised his pistol and aimed it at Brian’s head.
“You’re either really stupid or really brave, kid.
But I know you’re smart enough to see where this is going.
That’s why you picked the warehouse.
You were trying to lose me.” “Took you long enough.” Brian wasn’t afraid.
A slow smile spread across his face as he raised his hands.
“I thought you’d at least wait until we gathered the supplies before making your move.” “Shut up!” Kenneth’s unease grew.
The kid wasn’t scared.
Something was wrong.
But he had the gun.
That was all that mattered.
His grin turned ugly.
“Hand over the rifle.
Don’t try anything stupid.
You helped me once, so I’ll let you both walk away.” The moment he said “both,” Kenneth realized his mistake.
There was supposed to be another person here.
Sarah.
The quiet, harmless girl who barely registered as a threat.
He spun around.
She was gone.
Too late.
A blur of motion from behind.
A loud THWACK.
Pain exploded at the back of his head, and the world went dark.
Kenneth collapsed with a heavy thud.
Brian looked up, giving Sarah a thumbs up.
She was standing over the unconscious man, holding a wooden club, breathing hard.
Sarah grinned nervously, then kicked the body.
“You were right.
He was so focused on your gun he forgot about me completely.” Then her expression turned serious.
“But what if I’d missed?
He could’ve shot us both.” Brian bent down and picked up Kenneth’s pistol.
He popped the magazine out and showed it to her with a smirk.
“His gun was empty.
I took the bullets out last night.” He loaded a single round, racked the slide, and handed the gun to Sarah.
“This was just training.
Build up your nerve.
You can’t freeze up around infected.” “I don’t freeze up!” She glared at him.
Brian’s amusement faded.
He glanced down at Kenneth’s body, then back at Sarah.
His voice grew quiet.
“I think you should be the one to kill him.” Sarah’s eyes widened.
“Listen.” Brian held her gaze.
“This won’t be the last time we face something like this.
You need to get used to it.
This is as safe as it gets.
He’s unconscious.
He can’t fight back.
But…” He turned his head, looking back toward the lakeside house.
“He’s Angela’s father.
If she loses him, she might not survive out here.
I know you’re close with her.
So I’m not going to force you.
It’s your call.” He pulled a bullet from his pocket, loaded it into the magazine, and handed the pistol to Sarah.
Then he turned and walked toward town without looking back.
“I’ll wait for you at the broken wall by the bar.” Sarah stood there, the weight of the gun in her hand, watching Brian disappear.
She looked down at Kenneth’s unconscious face.
Then she raised the pistol.
BANG.
Inside the town.
The sun blazed down on the ruined streets.
In just over a week, this once-lively town had become a ghost town.
Infected wandered in small groups.
Most stood still, hunched over, hands covering their heads.
They looked like they were fighting something invisible, their bodies wracked with pain.
Two figures entered from the south, skirting the edges where infected were sparse.
They moved until their path was blocked by collapsed buildings.
Brian sighed.
“Let’s rest in that house for a bit.
We’ll see if we can go around.” They climbed through a fence.
The door was unlocked.
Inside, a lone infected stood frozen in place, still twitching.
Brian slipped behind it and drove his knife into its skull.
After clearing the house, they sat on the living room sofa to rest.
Sarah couldn’t hold back her curiosity anymore.
“I still don’t get it.
Why are we risking so much for food?
There are plenty of houses around here.
Surely we can find enough.” Brian smirked.
“Here.
See for yourself.” He reached into his backpack and pulled out a crumpled note.
“I found this in town a few days ago.
You’ll understand when you read it.” Sarah took it and scanned the handwriting: Damn it, Morris.
Where the hell are you?
Everything’s gone to hell out here.
If you get this message, get to the place we hid last time.
The old steel mill on the north side.
I won’t wait forever.
If you show up and I’m gone, you’re on your own.
I’ll leave some supplies and a car for you.
Locked it up, so no one steals it.
Code is 7736.
Keys and supplies are in the hidden compartment under the desk.
Don’t die.
Good luck, Ford.
Sarah’s mouth fell open.
She looked up, eyes wide.
Brian grinned and tucked the note away.
“That’s why I wanted to go north.” “That’s insane,” she breathed.
“You had this planned all along.” “Obviously.” Brian leaned closer, his expression turning sly.
“By the way…
I’m curious.
What did you do with Kenneth?”