The snow's freeze stung Joel's toes.
It was the kind of snow that sunk under his boots and slowed his steps. Clumps of it pushed branches to the ground and broke through roofs rotted from an apocalypse of decay. He'd seen as much in the last town they passed through. The thundering sound of collapse had sent Ellie jolting to his side, eyes wide and face white.
He was quick to find the source and even quicker to point out the freshly destroyed shed about 20 feet behind them. She'd nodded, closed the switchblade she'd pulled out too fast, and kept walking.
Joel's sigh was too quiet to hear. Even if it weren't, he doubted she caught it.
He tried to start conversation a few times each hour. "That sunset is mighty pretty," or, "Tommy used to have a truck like this, though his was red." A quick hum or one-word response was the most he usually got.
Joel had even pulled out the few jokes he remembered from the books in her bag. "What do you call a broken can opener?" he'd tried yesterday. "A can't opener" made her lips turn up only a bit, but he took what he could get.
He really wished he remembered more of her jokes.
A small building came into view. He squinted to get a better look at it. "That house up there—let's stop there for the night," he decided.
Ellie's only reaction was to turn in the direction he pointed to. He switched between looking for fresh footprints in the snow and subtly glancing her way as they got closer to the house and it's peeling white clapboard. Her lips had turned into a thin blue line; her eyes, a foggy green without their spark.
They'd put eight days between them and the burning resort. One look at Ellie almost made him forget it.
They stopped on either side of the door as they'd done a thousand times over their trip. Ellie's fingers were already clenched around her knife. Joel wished she'd still had a gun, but hers was either charred on the floor of that restaurant or being cleaned by a cannibal.
He tried to knock both those pictures from his head.
Joel used the tip of his rifle to slowly open the front door once he'd turned its knob. He whipped the gun up, finger ready to pull the trigger if anything popped out of the living room. Or worse, if anyone was hiding.
He checked behind the furniture and in the closet by the fireplace — thank God for that, he was tired of having to use windows to let out the smoke and let in the cold — just before turning toward the kitchen. The cabinets were too small for hunters to hide in and, unfortunately, empty of any food.
A quick sweep of the home's sole bedroom and bathroom later, Joel set his backpack onto the lone chair by the fireplace and rested his gun against the wall.
"C'mon in, Ellie."
The girl shut the door and clicked its lock closed. She shrugged off her own bag and got out the flimsy blankets and two cans of beans they'd scavenged from a house three days ago as he worked setting up a fire. He'd managed to stuff a few pieces of wood from a broken chair in his bag yesterday, even if it meant leaving behind a few cans of peaches in return.
By the time their makeshift camp was set up and their food was cooking, faint shadows flickered against the living room's walls. Joel always hated how early it got dark in the winter, especially in Boston. It was freezing there from November to April, with spring a two-week illusion before the hot summer heat started sweltering in the city.
Leaf peepers be damned. Why anyone wanted to live there before the outbreak was beyond him.
"How you feeling?" Ellie interrupted the silence.
His wound become the only thing he could count on her voluntarily bringing up, either when they settled down for the night or if Joel showed any sign of pain. It didn't help that the damned thing would randomly flare up with a sharp pain while they were on the road, but he got good at hiding it quick. Ellie didn't need his whining.
"Fine. Swelling's gone down. I reckon I don't need any more antibiotics."
Ellie's raised brow suggested otherwise. He pulled up the corner of his jacket to show her the spot where the rebar had pierced through him. It still looked aggravated, but nowhere near the infected blue and purple she'd had to deal with.
"We're almost out anyway," she said. The worry wasn't loud in her voice, but it was there.
He shifted in the chair. "Let me check you out, kiddo."
Ellie gritted her features and shrugged off her jacket and sweatshirt. A shiver ran through her when the cold air rushed over. Her eyes glanced at the flames crackling in the fireplace, then shot to the ground in front of her. Joel sighed and walked over to the couch.
She lifted the hem of her shirt enough for him to get a look at her ribs. The splotches of bruises were mostly green and yellow now. Some had disappeared almost completely.
"I'm gonna feel your side, alright?" he gently extended a hand forward. He waited for her tight nod before he reached for the two broken ribs that were easy to make out in her too tiny frame.
He carefully ran his fingers over the spot that was bruised the worst. The lower rib that had cracked seem to be setting back into place well. He frowned when his finger snagged on the one just above. Ellie flinched hard. He quickly drew back his hand.
He'd expected that rib to still feel rough. It was the worst of the two, but it didn't seem much different from the day before. She hadn't reacted badly when he checked it then.
"Did that hurt?"
Ellie shook her head and drew her arms around her middle. "No... I just—I'm fine."
Joel's brows furrowed. "You sure you didn't sleep on it wrong? Or strain it when we were moving today?"
"It's fine," she insisted. "Are you done?"
Joel took a long look at her reservation. "Yeah," he finally sighed. "Get warmed up."
He watched her shove down her shirt and pull on her outer layers. He couldn't get a good look at her eyes, but the dip in her eyebrows nearly brought him back to the cabin they'd practically fallen into during the storm that day.
They had both been exhausted from fighting the snow drifts and steady winds as they fled into the woods near the resort. Joel had prayed to a god he'd long abandoned that they would find shelter. Ellie was practically deadweight at his side, the arm he'd wrapped around her possibly the only thing keeping her up.
Joel nearly cried out when they stumbled into the cabin. He didn't even check it for infected once he'd broken down the door and half dragged Ellie inside.
She had looked more like a bloody corpse than girl at that point. Ellie barely moved as he checked her for wounds, as hard as it was to pick out what was her blood and what wasn't. She didn't react when he helped her take off her red-stained coat or sweatshirt. He told her what he was doing each time he prodded her skin or shifted her clothes in his search to make sure she was okay. "Tell me where it hurts, baby girl," he'd said more times than he could remember. When she finally croaked out that it was her ribs, he took that as permission to check.
The way she'd flinched backwards when he barely touched her exposed side almost made him nauseous. He tried telling himself his guilt was misplaced, that he wasn't the one who made her have that reaction. Still, if any part of him made her relive a piece of what had happened, whatever that had been, he felt like the scum of the earth.
He wished that fucker was still alive so he could make him feel the same fear she had. The same pain. An outstretched hand holding a can of steaming beans came into his view.
"Thanks, kiddo."
The ate as quietly as they traveled, and he hit the bottom of his can quicker than he wished. Ellie was still working on hers when he looked back in her direction.
"I'm gonna check to see if there's anything worth saving in the bedroom," he got up from his side of the couch. Ellie's spoon paused just over her can. "I'll be quick," he assured. "I promise."
A nod later, he made his way down the hall and stepped into a blue-carpeted bedroom. The smell of mold hit his nose before he splashed his flashlight over the bed. Broken pipes stuck out from a crumbling hole in the ceiling above it. He wondered how long ago they had burst.
Joel searched through the draws to no avail (the most usable thing he found was woman's underwear way too big for Ellie) and opened the closet. His heart jumped when he spotted a dusty quilt folded neatly on the top shelf.
Ellie's can was empty when he came back. He spotted it on the ground, then glanced up at the back of her head. If it weren't for the window across from her, he wouldn't know where she was looking. Or how she looked.
Joel cleared his throat and made sure she saw him before he settled the quilt around he shoulders.
"Get some rest, alright?"
She looked between him and the dusty floorboards. Joel wondered if she was getting ready to fight him like she usually would when there was only one good couch or bed. "Your old bones need it more," she'd say. "I've slept on worse, I can handle the floor." The second argument tended to only make him insist more.
Instead, Ellie settled back into the cushions and picked up her legs. Joel should have been relieved that she was listening to her body for once. He really tried to be.
"G'Night, Ellie."
"Goodnight."
The fire's crackle and the windowpanes' groan echoed in Joel's ears as he settled onto the floor and pulled a thin brown blanket over his tired body. His backpack made a decent enough pillow; his gun an even better teddy bear. He didn't need to look over to know Ellie's knife acted as the same.
He doubted either of them would get much sleep.
The sun was high behind the grey clouds that dimmed its light. Joel dug his hands as deep as his pockets would allow but found little refuge from the stinging cold.
It was the worst chill they'd felt so far this winter, at least from what he could remember of it. He would offer his coat to the shivering girl beside him, but the threat of hypothermia rendering him useless again and her alone snapped that thought away. He was no good to them if he was shaking too hard to aim his gun.
Instead, he insisted that morning that she wear the smaller of their blankets. Its pattern was made up of that green dinosaur thing Joel recognized from the Super Mario games Tommy used to play. He made sure to wrap it tight around her ears, neck and shoulders, like he would for Sarah on cold nights.
That started out with the pink Cinderella blanket Sarah wouldn't sleep without during her very brief princess phase, then switched to one covered in characters from the car movie he didn't actually mind bringing her to see. The blanket with the creepy vampire boy a friend had given her for her last birthday almost ended up in the trash multiple times, but he didn't think he could take her wrath if it mysteriously did.
At least it wasn't the half-naked werewolf one she threatened to buy with her allowance. That threat shut his own ones up quick.
The crunching footsteps beside him stopped. Joel looked over his shoulder to find Ellie stiff in her tracks. Wide green eyes were trained on the tree line not far from them. Her words were a whisper on her lips.
"Someone's out there."
Joel brought up his gun, ready to shoot even if it wasn't aimed at any target in particular. He stretched his hearing as far as he could. The sleeve of a brown jacket almost blended into the tree trunk beside it. Almost.
"Come out or I shoot," he yelled in his gruffest voice.
He didn't need to shout again. A tall man with a haphazardly trimmed beard came out with a rifle like Joel's in his hand. Four more followed, each having been hidden by the scraggly, dense brush in this part of the forest.
Joel's tightened grip on his gun made his fingers sting. "Get behind me," he said almost too quiet to hear. Ellie was at his back in a second, her switchblade at the ready.
"You'll shoot?" the first man said. "Nah. That's not how this works."
"Enlighten me then."
The corner of the man's mouth twitched when his gaze drifted from Joel's eyes to around his shoulder. He knew where it had settled.
"Show us what cargo you've got. All of it."
Ellie clutched a hand on the hem of his jacket. Anger burned away any of Joel's mounting apprehension, but he dropped his backpack on the ground in front of him. It was the most they were getting from him, regardless of their five guns to his one.
"I said all of it."
"That is it. My extra ammo's in there. Food, too."
The man frowned. A neck twitch later and one of the others stomped forward. His bald head poked out from the sides of his beanie, but Joel didn't notice. His eyes were stuck on the hand reaching for Ellie.
The point of Joel's gun jabbed the man's cheek before he could get to her. "Step back or I swear to God the only thing you'll get is this bullet."
Guns surged forward and pointed at him from every way. Ellie was completely pressed against his back now. The brief glance he spared her way caught the end of her knife.
"You don't listen very well," the first man spat. He took a step closer; Joel pressed his rifle harder into the other man's face, and Ellie's grip on his jacket squeezed tighter.
None of them seemed to notice another man emerging from the forest.
"What's going on here, boys?" a deep voice called out.
"Found some unfriendly travelers," the first man replied.
The newcomer picked up the backpack by their feet. Joel still couldn't see him. Turning that way, even for a second, would leave him vulnerable to the other man at the end of his gun.
A zipper shrieked open and shut. "Not much to take," the deep voice said. He circled to Joel's front.
Both sets of brown eyes widened.
"Holy shit. Joel?"
"Malcom?"
A dark hand chapped from the winter sting nudged back the man who'd reached for Ellie. "Put those away. He's a friend." The man grinned and clapped Joel's shoulder. "Fuck. I didn't think I'd ever see you again."
"Likewise," Joel said. He waited for the other men's guns to sag to their sides before he did the same with his. "These your boys, I reckon?"
"Have been for years," Malcom said. His eyes flickered curiously to Ellie. "Who's this?"
Joel sent her his own glance. Her arm was by her side now. So was her knife still. He guided her to his side with a hand on her shoulder.
"Ellie," he volunteered when she didn't.
"Nice to meet you, sweetheart," Malcom said with a kind smile that fit snugly between the traces of wrinkles on his face. "Looks like you two could use someplace to warm up. We have a hideout not too far away, if you'd like to join us."
Joel glanced at Ellie. Her brows furrowed together in disapproval, but he needed to get her out of the cold. "So long as it's okay with them," he nodded to the other men. "I'd rather not stare down the shaft of a gun for the rest of the night."
The shortest man shrugged. The lanky one on his right didn't seem bothered one way or the other, neither did the man who had on a red plaid jacket that clashed with his orange beard. The first man and the bald one he'd been ready to shoot stared at them hard.
"They'll be fine. Right, Terrance?"
The first man snorted. That's when Joel noticed a long, freshly healed gash interrupting the brown beard on his chin. "Whatever you say, boss."
"That's right," Malcom said as they started walking. "Don't let him fool you. He's a good man to have on your side, even if he is a bit more rough around the edges than most of these guys. Nothing you ain't used to."
Ellie looked between them. "How do you two know each other?"
"We ran together in Baltimore for a few years," Joel offered before Malcom could.
"We had some wild times together. That QZ was nothing like any of the other's I've seen," Malcom said. His smile suddenly lost its shine, even if it stayed on his face. "Guess we helped make sure of that."
Joel changed course quick. "How'd you find yourself out in these parts?"
"I stayed until the military declared the city a lost cause. Roamed around awhile after that, then ran into some guys I thought could be good to stick with. It wasn't long until we got ambushed by another group. Only me and Shawn made it out," he pointed to the red head. "We found some of these fellas during a supply run near the Kansas border and stayed with them since. A few others joined us after. Somehow, they all decided I was the one to lead 'em."
"You hunters?" Ellie asked. Joel studied her curious stare. Two voluntary questions in a row, yet it didn't make him feel much relieved to hear her speaking up again.
Malcom shook his head. "Not anymore."
"Wouldn't know it by the way your boys greeted us," Joel snorted.
"Old habits die hard. The winter we're having doesn't help," Malcom's voice dropped. "I keep telling Terrance not to stir up trouble looking for food, but he was with a tough group before. I don't think he'll ever feel safe around strangers again," he sighed.
A snowflake drifted down in front of Joel.
"How far are we from your place?"
"It's just down the road now. Drake should have dinner cooking. It's not much, but better than nothing."
Joel couldn't disagree with that.
"Hey boss!" the short man waved him over. "There's fresh tracks here."
The group paused as Malcom jogged over to the man. Joel could make out small hoof prints dotting the snow. He took the chance to turn toward Ellie and tap her arm.
"How you holdin' up?"
"I'm fine," she said, arms folded against her chest.
"Okay."
Shawn and the short man started off into the forest with their guns hanging from their shoulders. Malcom joined their side again and began walking, the rest of them following suit.
"Maybe we'll finally get to use that hamburger helper I've been holding on to," he chuckled.
Joel didn't see Ellie stiffen beside him.
"Here we are. Home sweet home."
Joel and Ellie followed Malcom and the others through the wide barn door. Only a few patches of red paint remained on the outside, and it was clear that the right wall was leaning more than Joel would prefer. Still, it was a refuge from the freezing wind.
He counted six more men inside the barn. Two were cleaning rifles by a window that had been hastily boarded up. Another three were chatting around a fair-sized fire, the fourth cooking a pot of what smelled to be beans.
One by one, dirty cloths stopped rubbing, voices ceased talking, and a spoon paused from stirring. Ellie took a step closer to Joel's side. He gave her hand a squeeze.
"This is Joel and Ellie," Malcom announced. "They're stopping by to warm up and grab some grub."
"We don't have much to share," a tanned man with long black hair said. His words sounded more like a shrug than anything.
"But enough," Malcom said back. "Come here, sweetheart. You look like you need a good defrosting."
Ellie didn't move until Joel did. The fire's warmth pushed against his body as they passed by it to sit on a bench next to Malcom, who passed them two chipped bowls of beans and dented spoons. The flames tingled the cold out of Joel's fingers and warmed his cheeks.
"Much obliged," Joel said. Ellie scooted closer when more of the men came over to sit.
"So, what's brought you two out here?" Malcom asked.
Joel glanced at Ellie, who was staring into her bowl as she ate, then back at the man. He wiped away a trace of the beans from his lips.
"We're lookin' for the Fireflies. Heard they were in Salt Lake City."
A blonde man who looked just old enough to be considered one snorted from across the fire. "The Fireflies? Anyone looking to join them has officially lost it. The military's all but wiped them out."
"I didn't say nothin' about joinin'," Joel grunted back. His eyes flickered to Malcom again. "We're looking for a friend who might be with them."
Malcom straightened the cap covering his tightly coiled hair. "I'm not one to judge but heading this direction in the middle of winter's isn't the easiest way to get there."
Tell me about it. "I got hurt pretty bad a few weeks back and it held us up. Ended up not being safe to stay where we were."
Ellie clinked her spoon against the side of her bowl. Even with the fire going, her knuckles were still white.
"I get that. Where were you coming from anyway?"
"Wyoming. Tommy's got a place out there now. A wife, too."
Malcom barked out a laugh. "Married—that son of a bitch?"
"Shocked me too," Joel smiled.
"Lord, I'll never forget seeing him trying to flirt with the girls back in Baltimore. You'd think he had that stutter his whole life."
"Either his wife thought it was cute or he toughened up," Joel chuckled. "They seem happy."
"I'm glad to hear it. He was a good man. And good at keeping you in check."
The clinking next to him stopped. "What does that mean?" Ellie asked, her green eyes flickering between them curiously.
Malcom cleared his throat and glanced at her. "Joel could be rough when our crew got in a jam," was all he said before looking back to Joel. "Not gonna lie, I was pretty surprised to find a kid with you."
He could feel Ellie's eyes on him. "I promised to get her to our friend in one piece. She's done a good job keeping me together, too," he glanced down at her. She sent him a flicker of a smile.
The barn door squeaked open. Joel's head whipped up to find the two men who had separated from their group earlier walk in, a decent-sized buck slouched over their shoulders. Some of the men cheered out.
"Well, I'll be damned. Real food!" Malcom laughed. Good job boys!"
Ellie set her bowl on the floor by her feet. "Do you have a bathroom? Or somewhere to... go?"
Malcom pointed a thumb over his shoulder. "The outhouse is just outside the back door."
She left for it quick. Joel fought the urge to follow her. It's fine. She'll be fine.
The two men carrying the buck passed by the fire. Blood stained the short man's shoulder where the buck's own rested. Wide, unmoving eyes passed over Joel.
"That's a decent few meals there," he said, trying to distract himself from the sudden tightness in his chest.
"It's the first good catch we've gotten in weeks," Malcom replied, still smiling. "Man, have I missed meat that hasn't been in a can for 20 years. Deer's almost as good as beef, if you cook it right. Don't know why we didn't eat more of it back then."
"My bet's on Bambi," Joel scoffed.
"Yeah, well, must not have stuck with everyone. There were a few fawns around during late fall that we were leaving alone until they were grown. Haven't seen any of them since."
Shawn dropped into the seat next to Malcom. He stretched out the arm that had been carrying the deer. "It was probably those fuckers again."
"There's a group nearby we don't deal with if we can help it," Malcom added. "Everyone's just trying to survive, but they're not the kind you'd want to cross."
The food churned inside Joel's gut. "I can imagine. Anyone else this way we should avoid?"
"Nah, not this time of year at least. Two other groups we know head south for the winter. The only one left is a family with a few kids who live up on an old ranch. The mother grew up there—who the fuck knows how she's managed to stay there all these years."
"My brother lasted 12 years in our Grandpa's old cabin before he was bitten," Shawn said. "Even had a few chickens."
Joel wondered how many chickens were in Jackson. Or horses. He hoped he'd get to see their stables for himself soon, whenever soon would be.
A shout rang out in the back of the barn. Joel turned around to see Ellie flat against a wall with her knife pointed at Terrance, who was standing slack-jawed in front of her. His hand covered a spot on his forearm where blood seeped out
Joel jumped up so quick he didn't notice two bodies doing the same beside him. He watched the shock leave Terrance's face as he ran over. "You little shit!" the man lunged toward Ellie. Malcom and Shawn pushed him back as Joel put himself in front of Ellie, hand ready to form a fist - of reach for his revolver.
"Calm down! She's just a kid," Malcom shouted back.
"Fuck that, she attacked me!" Terrance seethed, pushing against the arms holding him back. More of the other men came over. Their eyes were heavy on Joel as he tried to shield them from Ellie.
"What happened?" Malcom said.
"She stabbed me with a knife! Like a fucking animal," Terrance shouted. Malcom pushed him back.
"Calm down," he demanded. Terrance shoved out of Shawn's hold but he didn't try lunging again. Malcom turned to Ellie. "I'll ask you the same thing."
The girl's eyes were as wide as the buck's.
"Ellie?" Joel tried softly.
She snapped her attention to him for only a second before running past him.
"Dammit," he muttered. "Ellie!"
She was sitting with her back against the barn and her knees pulled into her chest when Joel caught up to her. Shuddering breaths grated out of her throat.
He was quick to kneel down in front of her, not caring about the way the snow stung his knee.
"Breathe, honey. Like me."
He guided one of her shaking hands to his chest and held it there, waiting while her breaths fell in sync with his. He heard the barn door open at one point and saw Malcom step into view. The man paused when his eyes landed on them, then quietly went back inside. Ellie didn't notice. Or react, anyway.
Joel gently dropped her hand. It wasn't shaking anymore.
"What happened?"
He watched the girl bite down on the inside of her lip. "I ran into that Terrance guy when I was coming back from the bathroom. He said I was the first kid he'd seen in a while. And that I was... pretty."
Joel simmered his anger. It wasn't the worst he'd heard get directed a kid's way, but after the way the man looked over her in the woods, he wouldn't mind slicing him himself.
Ellie's arms wrapped tighter around her body. Joel didn't think she could look any smaller. He waited patiently for her to say something else, hoping she'd open up if he gave her time. Instead, she seemed stuck in it.
"Ellie, it's okay. You can talk to me, kiddo."
She shrugged. "Things happen, right?"
He didn't expect to hear that. What he did expect was anger or hurt. Not something he couldn't place. He gently grabbed her hand.
"What you've been through isn't something you can carry alone. I promise you that."
Ellie bit down hard on the inside of her lip. She looked like she had when he'd brought her inside during that first storm, covered in blood and huddled in pain. It was a long moment before she finally spoke.
"I know I said he didn't do anything... but he could have," water welled in her eyes. "He wanted to."
The breath was kicked out of Joel's chest.
He said I was... I was special.
She's David's newest pet.
He squeezed both of her hands. "He can't get to you anymore, baby girl. None of those hunters can."
"I know," she sniffled. Her glassy eyes shifted from him to the dark sky overhead. They didn't move once they had settled on the moon's glow.
"That's not all, is it?" Joel finally pieced together. A cold wind twisted through the trees.
"You were one of them."
It hit him like a tower of tumbling bricks and his lungs stung from the air turning sour inside them. He didn't know if he should pull away his hand or squeeze hers tighter.
"I never... it was never like that. Not with me."
"I know," she sighed. "But what about them?" she nodded to the barn. "Or Malcom?" she pulled away. "How many women or kids or—or anyone have hunters hurt like that?"
"Malcom's a decent man, Ellie."
"David seemed decent too," the girl's voice cracked. Her face didn't.
Joel wanted to wipe away her tears before they fell and hide her in his arms so that the world would forget she was even here. All he could do was sigh instead. "A lot of people do."
She was looking hard at spot near his leg. "Marlene said people changed after the outbreak" her eyes flickered up to his. "That you couldn't trust anyone you might have before."
That was true, Joel conceded. But not the whole of it.
"People were hurtin'," he rubbed a thumb over his watch. "When you lose everything... pain like that can turn into something real bad if you let it. But not everyone did," the words were thick in his throat now. He swallowed hard to get them up. "Those ones come still along every now and then. You just open up to them as much as you can."
She let out a half-hearted snort. "Easier said than done."
"Trust me, I know," he gave her a small smile. He folded into a seat on the ground next to her and slouched his arm over her shoulder. "But I'll deal with the ones not worth your time."
It was silent as they looked out over the snow-frosted forest. The storm still hadn't come yet, as much as the sky threatened to spill it out.
The barn door opened again. Malcom didn't shy away from them this time.
"Terrance won't be making any more trouble," he said to Ellie once he'd approached. "You alright, kid?"
She nodded. "Thanks for helping us."
"Anything for Joel and his friends," he smiled.
Joel glanced over the sky again. It still hadn't changed much, but that didn't mean it wouldn't. "We should get on our way."
"It'll be dark soon. We have plenty of room for you two to stay the night," Malcom said, then looked down at Ellie. "Wouldn't be near anyone else, either."
Joel shot the girl a glance. Her face had gotten some of it's color back, likely with help from the cold, and her features weren't as tense. He didn't want to ruin the sight.
"Appreciate it, but we'll be fine," Joel said and stood up. Ellie followed suit. "Thanks for the food."
"There's a house about 20 minutes up the road. You'll be safe there for the night."
"We'll hole up there then," Joel nudged Ellie's arm. "You good?"
She nodded. It wasn't a quick one like he was used to, where her bright eyes sparkled in the movement or a smile snuck onto her lips. But it was something, and that counted for a lot.
"Stay safe, Malcom."
"You too, Joel."
They turned and walked away into the shallow steps left behind by Malcom's men in the snow. A small hand slipped into his, swinging slightly from each of their steps. He held it tight so that some of his warmth would hopefully spread into Ellie's already chilled fingers.
Joel didn't know it would be the last time her hand would find its way into his on her own accord. Or that one day, Ellie would wish until it hurt that she'd held on to his rough palm a little while longer.
