Brian had always carried a lingering guilt about his current body’s parents.
He’d taken their son’s place, and part of him wanted to reach Washington not just for shelter, but to let them know their boy was still alive.
He knew the window was closing.
If he didn’t push toward Washington now, before the infection fully consumed the country, he’d never make it.
The roads would be gone.
The cities would fall.
Everything would be lost.
His thoughts were interrupted by the clerk’s voice behind him.
“Huh.
Actually, there might be one more place.” Brian turned and walked back to the counter.
“What do you mean?” The clerk scrolled through her screen.
“A new destination just came through.
Atlanta.” But as she read further, her expression shifted.
She hesitated, then looked up at the boy.
“I wouldn’t recommend it, though.” Brian’s instincts flared.
This was important.
He leaned against the counter, forcing a desperate look onto his face.
“Please, miss.
I really want to find my parents.
Can you tell me why?” The clerk’s heart softened.
She glanced around to make sure no one was watching, then leaned forward and lowered her voice to barely a whisper.
“Atlanta is a hotspot.
The new government is forcing some quarantine zones to send civilians there to boost population and military presence.
It’s dangerous.
I shouldn’t be telling you this.
Please don’t repeat it.” Brian’s expression turned serious.
He understood the weight of what she’d just shared.
“Thank you.
I won’t say a word.” He told her he needed to think it over, gave her a genuine thank you, and walked out of the office.
As he descended the steps, the crowd that had been hovering outside surged toward him.
“Hey, kid!
What did they say in there?” “They didn’t lie to you, did they?” Brian’s patience frayed.
“There’s nothing to worry about.
Just go inside and ask for yourselves.” He tried to push through the crowd, but a hand grabbed the back of his collar and yanked him backward.
He stumbled and hit the ground hard.
A young man, maybe twenty, stood over him with a sneer.
He’d been waiting outside for nearly an hour, simmering with frustration.
Too afraid to confront the soldiers, he’d taken his anger out on the first easy target he saw.
Brian lay on the ground, stunned.
The crowd backed away.
The two soldiers at the entrance frowned, disgust flickering across their faces.
One of them opened his mouth to intervene.
But Brian was already getting back up.
He brushed the dust off his clothes and locked eyes with the young man.
His voice was cold.
“Apologize.
Now.
Or you’ll regret it.” The young man laughed.
A kid, threatening him?
He’d been looking for someone to take his anger out on.
This was perfect.
“Sure, kid.
Let me apologize.” He strode forward, raising his hand to slap the boy across the face.
The crowd gasped.
Some turned away, unable to watch.
But Brian didn’t flinch.
He wasn’t the scared kid he’d been a month ago.
He’d killed infected.
He’d faced soldiers with guns.
A bully with a temper was nothing.
He stepped back, letting the man’s swing miss.
The momentum carried the young man forward, off balance.
Brian moved.
Fast.
He circled to the man’s side and kicked the back of his knee—not the front, like he did with infected.
The side.
He’d adapted.
CRACK!
The man screamed and collapsed, clutching his leg.
“You little—I’ll kill—” Brian’s fist slammed into his face, cutting him off.
The man’s head snapped back.
He was dazed, seeing double.
Then he saw a foot.
Getting closer.
And closer.
Darkness.
The young man collapsed, unconscious.
Silence.
The crowd stared in disbelief.
They’d expected the kid to get beaten.
Instead, he’d put the man down in seconds.
The two soldiers on the steps exchanged a look.
They’d seen the whole thing.
That kick—aimed at the side of the knee, not the front—wasn’t something you used on people.
It was something you used on infected.
The kid had clearly learned the hard way.
Brian nudged the unconscious man with his toe, then muttered under his breath, “All that attitude for nothing.” Read ahead with 70+ chapters now with daily updates!