— Chloe —

Benji and I had been walking for what seemed like hours. We were headed roughly East, scouring the terrain for any sign of Mary and the kids, but also any infected or soldiers. We'd travelled a fair distance since our escape from that awful hospital, but there was no guarantee that they wouldn't come out looking. Better to be on the lookout ourselves, anyway. Benji sighed, squinting up at the sun.

"Looks to b-be about 1 o'clock, by the sun." He said softly. I stopped, exhaling too in frustration. Beca's instructions had been to walk in as straight a line as possible til roughly midday, then head back the same way. Benji and I had been so intently focused on our search that we'd forgotten to pay attention to the position of the sun, and had overshot by a whole hour. Dammit.

"Shit. We should head back." I said, hating that I felt relief with those words. I had been praying to see just a glimpse of our quarry this whole time, and yet, nothing. It broke my heart to think of that poor old woman and those kids out here fending for themselves, but maybe they'd been lucky and found somewhere else safe to stay. Or maybe another group had found them. I allowed myself to imagine Beca and Cynthia-Rose running across a field to meet them, Mary's face glowing with relief, the kids gleeful and surprised. It was a nice image, so I kept it in my mind's eye as we turned back the way we had come and began our trek home. It was going to be a long one.

— Jesse —

I knew that once Amy fell silent it was time to start thinking about heading back. It wasn't in her nature to be quiet or focused, so I could tell she was tired. The sun had just hit the middle of the sky, and I reckoned we'd gone as far as we could anyway. I was starting to think that we had probably crossed the border into Tennessee at some point, or maybe North Carolina. Out here in the sticks it all looked the same. I stopped and took one last sweeping look around me, trying my hardest to peer through gaps in the trees and bushes. Nothing.

"We done?" Amy asked, sounding hopeful. I nodded.

"There's nothing more we can do, except hope that someone else was more successful. Come on, let's get back." We exchanged a hopeful look, and turned back. Had anyone else been any luckier than we had?

— Aubrey —

It was no good. By the time we noticed the position of the sun, Donald and I had already given up hope, so it came as a welcome relief. We both looked up and then nodded firmly to one another, exchanging no words. I wasn't always one for talking, and ever since we'd had to banish Bumper, Donald had barely said a thing. It wasn't surprising. I knew they had been close back in college, so it's no wonder doing such a thing had taken its toll on him. He was a sweet guy. I tried to think of something to say, but the words escaped me. So, we marched back in silence, straining our ears for any unusual sounds in the undergrowth. My mind bounced back and forth between our safety out in the open and that of Stacie back at the warehouse. The sooner we were all back in one place, the better I knew we would all feel.

— Beca —

It was just approaching midday when Cynthia-Rose and I spotted them. There, leaning against a large, beat-up van with tinted windows stood a sad array of kid-soldiers, all dressed like those back at the hospital. I grabbed Cynthia-Rose's arm, pulling her down into a crouch behind a fallen tree. Luckily, we had spotted them from inside the cover of the forest, and from the road it would've been difficult for them to see us. Steadying my breathing, I peeked around the edge of the tree trunk, quickly sizing them up. There were four younger soldiers, all looking to be around 16 or so and dressed in a shabby assortment of tactical gear. Standing just out of sight by the rear of the van was their leader, talking loudly to another man who responded in short bursts, but gave enough for me to ascertain that he was indeed an adult. The leader, I recognised instantly from his booming voice alone. It was the bastard who'd tied me up and tortured me. He'd never actually given me his name, but it was clear he was someone high ranking. I listened carefully, trying my hardest to suppress the rising terror his voice was invoking in me.

"I know they came somewhere out this way, it's only a matter of time before we stumble across their camp. Or their corpses. Either way, I want this done. I want to find her and make sure it's finished." My blood ran cold, and Cynthia-Rose turned to look at me, horrified.

"Do you think…." she whispered, shrinking further into the shadow of the tree trunk nervously. I swallowed hard, and nodded.

"He's coming for me." I shuddered involuntarily. I hated that this arrogant man could elicit any kind of response from me at all. I'd resisted so hard during the actual torture, so why couldn't I stop the breath from catching in my throat at the sound of his voice? I tried to breathe evenly, signalling to Cynthia-Rose to follow me deeper into the trees. We darted carefully through the woodland until we could no longer hear his voice ricocheting off the trees, and then began to jog back in the vague direction of the warehouse. We'd not been walking for more than an hour, and the time it would take for him to reach our base in a van would be far less. Thankfully, he had no idea where he was headed or what he was looking for, so I felt that the threat wasn't quite so immediate. Still, I was panicked. I hadn't really expected him to come looking for me. Was that so foolish? I hadn't imagined the whole group of them wanting to expend valuable resources and time on searching for just one escaped recruit. I supposed that they'd also lost their three other captives, but clearly I'd done something to piss off this man personally. On top of that, it was evident that he was higher ranking than I had realised. Was he in charge of it all somehow? I hoped not. With any luck, he just had enough sway to bring a couple people out for the next few days of searching the general area, and nothing more beyond that. If he was in charge, with that whole unit at his disposal, then we were really screwed. My mind raced as we closed in on the warehouse, trying to figure out what to do. It was clear we couldn't stay here. If he did come across the warehouse in his search, he'd see our vehicles and know someone was inside. Maybe they'd just burn it to the ground straight away, or throw a couple grenades in the door. My real fear was that he was going to find me and take me back with him to the hospital. I was absolutely terrified at the thought of waking up to find myself back in that chair. I knew if he got me back there, I'd never leave again. My arms itched and burned as I thought of the cuts and burns running across them. Whatever happened, I couldn't face the thought of him getting his hands on me again. Finally, I spotted the roof of the warehouse in the distance, and increased my pace. I had to start thinking about where to go next. And then an even worse sound reached my ears. I heard Cynthia-Rose curse beside me.

"That definitely came from the warehouse." She panted, and I grit my teeth as we broke into a sprint. But was it human or infected? I hadn't been able to tell which of my nightmares was coming true. Then it echoed out again, and suddenly I heard a yell, quickly followed by a shot. That was Jesse, and the other voice had been Stacie. I glanced at Cynthia-Rose, who had clearly deduced the same thing. Sweating profusely in the midday southern heat, we rounded the corner to find them at the front of the warehouse, Jesse and Amy each with an arm around Stacie, pulling her to her feet. In front of them lay three infected, all of them already beginning to twitch and creak as their severed limbs and shot-spattered forms began to heal. Pausing to catch my breath, I drew my handgun, already scanning the treeline ahead.

"Beca!" The voice was Aubrey's this time, and I spun around to the left just in time to see her and Donald barreling out of the undergrowth, followed by another two infected. I quickly took them both down, giving the pair enough time to reach us, breathing hard.

"Where's… Chloe.. and Benji?" Donald panted, as Aubrey stumbled over to wrap her arms around Stacie, who looked distraught.

"I don't know, I haven't seen them yet!" She sobbed, flinching as Amy methodically crushed the heads of the infected lying closest to us.

"They haven't got back yet?" I frowned, instantly feeling new shards of fear worm their way into my system.

"Jesse and Amy got here first. I'd just come outside to meet them when the infected attacked, and then you and Cynthia-Rose showed up. Then obviously Bree and Donald just got here, but that's it!" Stacie explained. I quickly walked round to the side of the barn I knew to face East, scanning the horizon. Where were they? Fear gripped my chest, and drained the energy from my limbs. Had they also encountered infected? I'd known it was a possibility, but maybe I was just growing complacent in the face of stronger threats. In fact, was it possible that another patrol from the hospital had found them? What if I was wrong, and they had multiple units out searching? Or maybe they'd found Mary and the kids, and were coming back more slowly. I couldn't think clearly. Suddenly Jesse was beside me.

"They'll be back soon, Becs, I'm sure of it. You've seen how Chloe fights now." I nodded, trying to let his words calm me, but the panic was stronger. I forced myself to walk back over to the others, who were taking it in turns to deal with the few infected gathered around us that kept reanimating.

"There's something else." I began, willing my hands to stop shaking as they turned to me.

"What is it?" Jesse asked from behind me.

"Cynthia-Rose and I came across a patrol, from the hospital. I… the guy who… He's looking for me. He and a few others are out in a van searching, and there may be more." The others looked horrified, unable to stop themselves from eyeing up my bandages. I felt hollow.

"But we're safe here, right?" Stacie said, in a tone that betrayed her own disbelief even as the words left her mouth.

"I wish we were. But that was only an hour's walk from here, and they can cover ground a lot faster in a van. I don't know what way they're headed and they don't know what to look for, but if they spot us…. I don't think we can stay here." I said quietly. Amy swore, swinging the wrench she'd been using since the town at the nearest infected in frustration.

"Where are we going to go?" Jesse's voice sounded small, shocked. I could see he was tired. No, actually, exhausted. I felt the same.

"I… I don't know." I hated this. Maybe if I'd cooperated when that man was torturing me he wouldn't be so hellbent on finding me now, and the others would be safe. Or maybe even if I'd just let him kill me- but no, It was crazy to think that way. I wanted to do my best for these people but it wasn't my fault that I had been captured and tortured by that sadistic asshole, nor that he was intent on trying to hunt me down now. Still, it hurt to see the effect of this information on the others. Just when things seemed to be improving, even just a little, everything came crashing back down again. When would we ever get peace?

Just then, I heard it. We turned in unison to the east. There, in the distance, the screech of an infected. One, no, maybe two or three… It was hard to gauge from this distance. I heard a shout, and that was enough to start me running headlong towards it. That had to be Chloe and Benji. I registered a couple of the others following me as I tumbled into the undergrowth, crashing through bushes and tree branches towards the source of the sound. Another shout echoed out, and then suddenly two figures burst out of the trees beside me, and carried on past. I recognised the familiar flash of red, and turned on my heel to chase after her.

"Chloe! Benji!" I yelled, Jesse and Cynthia-Rose right behind me. Chloe, now just ahead of me, turned to look over her shoulder, and her eyes widened in surprise.

"Beca!" She didn't stop running, her eyes darting over my shoulder. "God, we're being chased by a group of infected, keep running!" Her breathing was heavy, but she didn't slow. Benji at her side was similarly keeping pace, his face pale. I tried to glance behind me, but couldn't see anything as the glaring sunlight hit my face. How many could feasibly be behind us right now? It had only sounded like a couple from a distance, but would that really cause Chloe and Benji to run like this? We all broke out of the trees, the warehouse suddenly looming just up ahead. I began to hear shrieks and growls from behind us now that we were making less noise running across open grass. They were getting louder and more numerous. Fuck. We all sped up, and I began waving my arms at the others who were stood waiting at the warehouse.

"Get… the… CARS!" I shouted, almost catching my foot on a rock as we sped towards them. They stared back, stunned. Exasperated, I turned to look behind me at what could possibly be holding their attention. And then I saw it. Out of the forest behind us, a heaving mass of infected were pouring out from between the trees. There were maybe a hundred, if not more, already sprinting towards us. The noise must have been lost amongst the dense woodland, because now it was deafening.

"Christ on a bike, GO GO GO!" Amy bellowed, the first of the group by the warehouse to break from her state of shock. The others quickly followed suit, with Aubrey and Stacie clambering into the cab of the truck and starting the engine, and Amy hopping into the car to do the same. Donald darted back into the warehouse, presumably to grab whatever he could. Thankfully I knew we'd kept almost everything stowed in the packs Jesse and I had been using since we left our cabin, and sure enough he emerged mere moments later with both packs, one on either shoulder. He quickly lobbed them into the back of the truck and leapt in after them, ready for the getaway. We were almost upon them now, the last few hundred metres stretching up a small hill. My chest was burning, and I could tell that we were all exhausted. Still, the mere sounds of the hoarde behind us was enough to keep me moving. Just a little bit further. I could hear Amy screaming at us from the car, but couldn't make out her words now that the infected were so close. I could barely hear my own ragged breathing any more.

Aubrey had backed the truck up as close to the edge of the slope as she could, and was revving the engine. Amy had opened the passenger doors of the car and was leaning out of the driver's window, honking the horn madly. If that lot from the hospital hadn't figured out where we were yet, they'd surely know now. Still, with any luck the sheer volume of infected at our backs would be deterrent enough. Cynthia-Rose made it to the car first, and clambered in. Jesse and Chloe quickly leapt into the back of the truck, which was now beginning to pull away. Benji was falling behind, and once I had noticed this I had begun dragging him with me, which in turn slowed me down. Aubrey caught my eye in her side mirror, and I gave her a nod. She had to get the truck moving. It was slower, louder, and all-around more vulnerable to attack. There was still room for us in the back of the car.

"SHIFT YOURSELVES! COME ONNN!" Amy roared, and I made one last huge effort to pull Benji alongside me and shove him towards the car. It was enough, and he dived in as I made it to the other side, and we both slammed our doors shut. I barely had all my limbs in the car before Amy's foot hit the floor, and we went careering away from the warehouse and the mass of infected behind us at breakneck speed. Panting heavily, we all sank back into our seats and watched in horror as the infected tore through the warehouse that was rapidly shrinking into the distance behind us. I hoped that Mary and the children were safe somewhere. There's was no way we'd find out now. The truck was a little way ahead of us, clattering noisily down the dirt road. Suddenly, a shot rang out, and I heard metal strike metal right by my head. Someone had just shot at the side of the car, and then out of nowhere, the van with tinted windows crashed into view, pulling up alongside the car and swerving dangerously close.

"Shit, it's them!" I cursed, pulling my gun out from my belt, and frantically winding the window down.

"Hold on!" Amy shouted, pulling off the track to narrowly avoid the van as it made another swerve towards us. They fired again, and Benji and I ducked down in the back. I could see the truck ahead of us, and willed them to carry on. I was glad that Aubrey was behind the wheel, because I knew that if it had been Jesse or Chloe, they'd be doing a U turn right now, and the last thing I needed was more of us in danger. Amy's wild driving was also suddenly very useful as she took us off-road, veering madly from side to side as shots rained down on us from behind. I breathed a sigh of relief as the truck disappeared from view. At least I knew they were safe. The van was pulling up alongside us now, and I fired off a few shots, breaking the rear passenger window closest to me. Behind it, one of the young soldiers stared out at me, brandishing a huge machine gun. It was clear he wasn't using it. I was sure that the only people I needed to fear right then would be up front. Sure enough, I saw a hand come over the top of the van and start firing at me from the front passenger side. I set my jaw, and fired again, this time aiming for the front of the vehicle. I was running low on ammo, and realised with a jolt that the majority of my remaining supply was in one of the packs, both of which were in the back of the van. I was an excellent shot, but I didn't have a set target right now, or the bullets to spare finding one. Amy swung the car around yet again, and we sped across the intersection of another track. Suddenly, I knew what to do. I leant out of my window, and shot their front tire closest to me. Immediately the van skidded, and I fired again at the other front tire, managing to hit in in three shots. By now they were quickly vanishing behind us, and I collapsed back into my seat, sweat dripping from my forehead.

"Nice shot, short-stuff!" Amy cheered, bringing us back onto the track with a final wrench of the steering wheel.

"We're not safe yet." I replied, willing myself to relax and enjoy the small victory, but not able to shake my fear. She shrugged.

"Well, they're not gonna catch up with us now. Maybe the infected will get em." Cynthia-Rose offered, and I gave a small laugh.

"You know, that's true, I'd forgotten about them already."

"Do you think you can find the truck again Amy?" Benji now spoke quietly, and I felt my momentary elation fade.

"I don't think we're even on the same road now. I wasn't really paying attention to where I was going, just on stopping us from getting blown to bits." Amy replied, and I knew she was right. We'd cut across open land during the impromptu chase, and although we were on a track road now, it was very likely not the same one we had left behind moments earlier. We continued on in silence for a minute.

"What do you want to do, Beca?" Cynthia-Rose finally asked, always a level-headed presence. In truth, I had absolutely no idea. A sign for the highway flashed past us.

"Let's get on the highway. Maybe they'll have done the same." It was the only straw I had to grasp in that moment. I could only hope that Aubrey had spotted similar signs along her track and decided to follow them. There wasn't anything more I could do.