37 days after fall of the farm house…

Slamming the door behind her, Anna took the moment to pull her inhaler out of her pocket. She brought it to her lips to soothe the aching in her lungs made worse by the frigid air, but no medicine came out. She cursed, shaking it before trying again – still nothing. Anna looked on the back to find that her puff amount was now at zero.
"Shit." She hissed, tossing the inhaler to the side.
Raising her arms, she clasped her hands behind her head and began to pace, taking long deep breaths. Anna muttered to herself, trying to calm down and come up with a plan of escape, but nothing came to mind. She could feel panic building up in the pit of her stomach, clenching her throat. But now was not the time to lose her head.
Squaring her shoulders, she stood straight – her arms hanging firm at her sides. She stared hard at the opposite wall, fighting the tears that were building up behind her bottom lids.
"I. Am. Fine." She seethed. Anna clenched her fists, focusing on her nails pushing into her palms. She felt like her head was underwater, and she could feel a few tears escape down her cheek.
Escape. I need to escape. A window shattered behind her and Anna's eyes snapped to a door that seemed tucked away from where she stood. Forcing her feet forward, she ripped the door open, and dashed out of the house and into the backyard. Without a second thought, Anna ran across the crunching dead grass and jumped onto the fence. The top of the wood panels scratched her palms as she used her momentum to swing her legs over to the other side. She let go too soon, however, and rolled her right ankle on the hard landing.
Biting back a scream of pain, she inhaled sharply through her nose. Anna rose and began jogging around a pool to a metal door that was placed in the ground. Pain seared up her leg, and her hand stung as air hit her palm. She didn't bother glancing down – she didn't have time to care if her palm had been sliced open on the fence. For the first time in what seemed like forever, she felt a bit of hope. Storm shelters provided safety from more than just dangerous weather.

A growl came to her attention, and she turned her head in time to be tackled by a corpse.
She gasped as cold, muggy water hit her in the back. Her burning lungs filled with thick liquid. Anna struggled against her attacker blindly, eyes squeezed shut to prevent green and brown water from infecting them.
Is this it? Anna thought to herself, feeling the hard floor of the pool press against her back, her ears popping from the water pressure. Is this how I'm going to die?
She stopped struggling. Let this be the end. She begged.
The next moment was a blur. She felt her back hit the hard ground as air forced its way into her lungs. She gasped, coughing up the ice-cold water. She stared at the overcast sky, not moving except for the heavy inhales and exhales, her breath coming out in plums of steam.
"You alive?"
Her dark eyes lazily turned to the man hovering over her, his clothes soaked. He'd jumped in to save her. Why?
"Does it matter?" She croaked.
"Anna?"
Her brow furrowed, and she tilted her head so that she could see who had called her name. The voice had sounded like a distant memory.
"Anna?" The woman asked, crouching beside her. She placed her gloved hands against Anna's left cheek. "Is that really you?"
Anna's vision flooded as she stared back at the woman, confusion and heart ache filling her chest. She couldn't believe what she was seeing. She refused. This was all a cruel dream.
As she fell unconscious against the cold ground a name slipped past her lips.

"Marley…."

When Anna opened her eyes again, she was staring at a tiled ceiling, fluorescent light shining in her face. She squinted past the light and cast her eyes about the room, wincing at the pain radiating through her body.

Where am I? She thought groggily. From what she could tell she was in some sort of infirmary with an IV sticking out of her arm and a hand-cuff around her wrist.

The sound of a hushed argument drew her attention to the open door which led out into a dark hallway. There, she could see two figures standing with their heads bent close together.

"She can't stay here. She's useless. Look at her." The male figure said, gesturing into the room.

"You owe me." Hissed the shorter female figure.

The male figure groaned, seeming to run his hand down his face. After a long pause he finally spoke.

"Fine. But, after this, Herring, we're done. No more favors." The man jabbed his finger into the woman's chest and stalked off. The woman watched after him before turning her head into the room.

Anna didn't bother to pretend she was asleep or hadn't heard their poorly whispered fight.

"You're awake." The woman said, striding into the room as if she owned the place. Anna watched with abject astonishment as Marley Herring settled herself in the chair beside the bed and at her. "I'm so happy you're okay."

Anna scoffed. "Not how I would describe it." She said, her voice scratchy.

They stared at each other, assessing, waiting for the other to break first. In the end, it was Marley.

"I went to South Carolina first." Anna said nothing and made no outward reaction. Just waited. "I couldn't find your family. The house, it was…." She trailed off, averting her eyes.

Anna clenched her jaw, turning her gaze back to the ceiling. She could feel the tears pricking at her eyelids. But what was the use in crying? She'd known they were dead from the moment that automated voice told her they were unavailable.

"I thought you died with them." Anna glanced back at Marley who had begun to silently cry. "I thought you were dead. I'm so sorry," she whispered.

Anna reached out for Marley's hand, paused, and pulled away.

"I wish I was."