Chapter 16 – Betrayed bonds

You killed a pregnant woman.

The thought raced through his head. His body felt numb. Everything except his thoughts stopped existing.

Nora's dead. Tortured.

There was hope before. Just a tiny flicker against the wind. I'm not a monster, he kept telling himself, destroyed by the guilt that had conquered him. He knew he'd done something horrible when he tried to justify himself at first. The deed was done. An unborn baby was killed. Nora was tortured for nothing, she never gave up the information about Abby. Now it squeezed at his brain, eating him up from inside. The image of her corpse flashed in his mind. Her face, disfigured. The guilt sat on the inside of his brain. What he had done he could not undo. He could make the amends in a subtle way, perhaps. But the deed was done. The deed that could never be undone.

Am I turning into a monster? How many have I killed? And for what?

The rain, which did not show any signs of weakening, washed the blood off Ben's sweatshirt. The sky grew darker as the hours wore on, and Ben and Ellie walked down the street by the shore. Neither spoke a word, and they walked at a distance from each other. On top of everything, she was angry at him, for the betrayal he had committed. Every now and then, Ben would feel a sting in his eyes. He'd fight to hold back the tears. I will not cry, not in front of her. I must not.

To get across the wide slit in the street that allowed the river to flow into the sea, they crossed a thin wooden bridge, which was too shaky and slippery to cross safely. Whoever made it, made it in the right place. Muffled raindrops shattered against the windows of the building through which they passed. Apart from the rain and the occasional thunder, there was no sound, no gunfire or whistle to warn them of the enemy. However, their eyes spotted the stain in the distance.

The sun, though invisible above the overcast sky, still provided enough light through all the clouds that his eyes couldn't miss the movement in the distance. A sea of small dots progressing towards the marina where the boats were anchored at one place. Hundreds of them. Yet they kept coming. More of them emerged behind the buildings. Things slowly came into the full circle in his head. Manny's platoon at the shore, preceding this army that appeared out of nowhere. Manny and his men were sent to secure the shore for the arrival of the army.

But for what?

"What's that?" Ellie spoke for the first time since they left the aquarium. "It's a fucking army."

"They attacking someone? Scars?" He stared at the incredible phenomenon down the shore. He had never seen so many people in one place before in his life. There must have been at least a thousand of them. How is this possible? Are you telling me we made enemies of THEM?

"Could be." Ellie replied, still looking through the window, never turning her head to look at him. He felt his insides twisting. Are we back at the beginning, Ellie?

Seattle slowly sank into the inky darkness that shrouded the world when two survivors from Jackson County disappeared between the buildings, avoiding the shore. It was followed by the attacks of lightening bursting on the streets, that steadily made its way through one end of the city to the other. Whichever alley they turned into, the ruins and the river would divert them back to shore, where the WLF's host gathered and boarded the boats. Across the sea in the distance, the silhouette of an island could be seen. Perhaps that's where the army was headed. Whatever was there, Ben didn't care much about that. The more Wolves there were in that army, the fewer there were in the city. That was certain. At least it would be easier to return to the theater. Yet, the two of them shouldn't take the road back lightly and make mistake of forgetting about the infected.

Half an hour later, they found themselves in a warehouse on the shore, watching the army board the boats from the windows. They could not go on until the army had fully boarded and left, reason being the small squads that were probably sent to scour the area of any inconveniences. Apart from watching, they did nothing else. They didn't talk. Whenever Ben started something, Ellie would just ignore it. He wasn't surprised, Ellie was pretty stubborn when angry. If she was mad at you, she would openly let you know. It was quite annoying. More than once, Ben wondered why he bothered himself with her. She was impulsive, rash, stubborn. But she's also smart, funny, and kind.. occasionally.

When he got tired of watching, Ben stepped away from the window and lied down on the couch of the office where they found shelter. It was pitch dark in the warehouse, the dim windows blocked the light, but it was different in the office. The open window let in enough light that they didn't have to turn on their flashlights. Ben took off his backpack and collapsed on his back, allowing himself to rest a bit. Maybe he should take a nap? He didn't dare do it, though, Ellie probably wouldn't wake him up. The thought sounded comical to him, he even smiled slightly.

The appearance of a figure on the doorway startled him as if he woke up from a nightmare. "Ellie!" he warned her and jumped off the couch, reaching for the belt where the gun was.

"Hold up!" said the figure and walked over the threshold into the light.

For a while he just stared at the person in front of him. His dirty blonde hair was messy, though it was still tied in a short ponytail. The beard, which was otherwise completely shaved, adorned his face, a slightly darker shade compared to his hair. The brown leather jacket was wet and tattered, just like the rest of the clothes.

"Holy shit!" Ellie gasped and approached Tommy, taking him into a hug.

Ben put the gun down, still staring at the man in front of him. In some other circumstances, he would probably be happy to see him. We killed a pregnant woman, he could not stop thinking about it. We tortured an innocent woman. Yes, WE did. I didn't stop her, that alone makes made me guilty. Still, it was a soothing fact. That Tommy was at the door, not one of the Wolves or Scars.

"I guess Maria couldn't hold y'all in one place." he said through a sad smile after Ellie let him go. Heavy Texas accent was quite hard to miss, just like it was with Joel.

"She wanted me to bring you back." Ellie replied under her voice. Relief disappeared off her face, now once again replaced by empty look in her eyes.

"Oh really?" he said, acting surprised, "Hell, didn't know she loved me so much."

Ben laughed at that, albeit a bit forcibly. Tommy was always a guy to lighten up the mood with his jokes and bright personality. He was like Ben in a way. Both of them were optimistic, believing they could make things better with cautious hard work. He was even a Firefly at one point. Joel's death left a mark on him, though. Ben noticed that his face was more wrinkled than before. Lack of sleep or grief? Probably both. He looked so worn out and tired.

"If someone told me that Ben Walker would sit idle while Ellie wanders Seattle.." Tommy grinned, "..I'd call that bastard a fool."

Ben blushed at the comment and smiled insecurely. Ellie looked uninterested, but he knew she heard it. Two men embraced each other in a friendly hug. "Good to see you too, Tommy."

"So it was you." Ellie said from the couch. Ben's eyes darted from her to Tommy, where he noticed a sniper hanging around his shoulder.

Tommy nodded, "I posted up in that tower behind the wheel. Picked them fuckers out one by one."

"The man that shot at the Wolves that captured me yesterday. Was it you?" Ben asked him, to which Tommy also nodded. Ben still remembered it too well. The blood that sprayed on his face when the bullet pierced through James' head.

"How'd you find us?" whenever Ellie said something, she'd keep it short, and her voice was cold.

Tommy sighed and walked around the small coffee table and took a seat next to Ellie. He sat down with a painful moan, his right hand was pressing something on his hip.

"I saw you through the scope, entering that aquarium thing. When I got there, you were already gone. But I saw what you did.." he explained, pausing for a moment as if thinking about what to say next. Both Ellie and Ben shifted in their places, "..I don't blame you, kids. Not at all. I would've done the same. Joel was my brother."

Would you kill a pregnant woman, Tommy?, Ben wanted to ask him, but refrained. Some questions are best left unsaid.

"Luckily, I could keep up with you outside. You weren't exactly fast." Tommy continued, "I lost the track of you several times, nothing out of the ordinary. For a seasoned hunter, you two were quite easy to find." Tommy didn't lie. Back in Jackson, he had a reputation of being one of the best trackers. Give Tommy a pair of tracks, and it would be just a matter of time till he found his prey.

"You're hurt." Ellie realized, pulling the right side of his jacket slowly to reveal a shirt soaked in dark blood. "How bad is it?"

Tommy got back on his feet unsteadily and took off the worn leather jacket. Ben leaned forward to see the wound better after Tommy rolled the white cotton shirt upwards. In the light that sneaked into the room through the window, Ben couldn't see much, but when Ellie turned on the flashlight, it revealed a nasty slit on the right hip. And to think he moved around fast enough to get to us.. hell, he shouldn't even be moving at all, Ben concluded, glaring at the wound, impressed at the man in front of him.

"I'll stitch you up." Ellie said and pulled over a chair from the other side of the room. She sat down on it after rummaging through her backpack, with a curved needle and strings in one, and bandages and a bottle of alcohol in the other hand. "First, to clean it up."

Tommy didn't even flinch when Ellie pressed the cloth soaked in alcohol on the wound and rubbed it in a circular motion. Though, he made a slightly painful grimace when she began stitching it up. She was completely concentrated on what she was doing, as if nothing else existed. Apart from the rain, there was silence in the room.

"What happened?" Ben asked after sitting down on the coffee table to be able to watch the medical procedure. Tommy's usually bright face turned dark, and his eyebrows furrowed.

"Abby."

Ellie's fingers stopped in place, as if being frozen. Her eyes were still locked on the wound on Tommy's hip. He found her? Did he kill her? Ben didn't allow himself to be hopeful. Yet, he couldn't resist it. Abby being dead meant they could go home at last.

"After the Scars joined the fray, I found her. I chased her down and cornered her.. and few others. Killed all of 'em.. except for her." he stopped talking, what was a painful grimace before now turned into an angry one, "Fuck. I almost got her, when that Scar bitch jumped me from behind and stabbed me."

"Scar?" Ben asked, raising an eyebrow. Guess we aren't going home anytime soon. "Isn't Abby a soldier of the WLF?"

Tommy shrugged, deprived of the answer just as Ben was. Ellie was quiet the whole time. When Tommy finished explaining, she continued the medical procedure, silent just as before. The minutes seemed as long as the hours of silence in the office. Ben felt rather uncomfortable looking around at the walls. He noticed several frames with the names and photos of the Employee of the Month. The transparent curtain that was hung on the rod above the window suddenly became a very interesting thing. Very interesting indeed.

"Where is she?" Ellie asked, picking up her backpack, ready to go out in the rain to chase after her nemesis.

Tommy didn't look surprised. "Hold on. You can't just go out like that, we don't know where she is. In case you haven't noticed, there's an army out there. As far as we know, Abby might be with 'em."

"She's close. I gotta try." she was persistent, making a first step towards the doors before Ben stood up and made his stand in front of her. "Ben. Move."

He didn't. Ben stood in front of her as the very embodiment of determination. He knew he would not move and let her consciously cross the threshold of death, obsessed with revenge. He was tired of being silent and standing aside.

"I'm not going to repeat mys-"

"Sit down." he said, surprised by the coldness of his voice. Ellie looked surprised just as him, her mouth hung open and her eyelids went up. I'm tired of these killings. I don't want to become a monster. "Sit down, Ellie. You're not leaving."

He read the dilemma in her eyes. Whether to try to walk past him or stay. Tommy struggled to get back to his feet, ready to help in case Ellie tried to get out. For a while, she stood there between them in complete silence, aware that neither Ben nor Tommy would let her go. In the end, she simply turned and took off her backpack. Ellie backed out. However, she did not hide her dissatisfaction. She may have realized how insane her idea of infiltrating the army was. Even if she succeeded getting into their ranks, how would she find Abby? There was the question of whether Abby was in that army at all. Too much uncertainty, too many risks.

He had plenty of time to think about everything as they returned to the theater. They first waited until the army had fully boarded and sailed for the island lost in the fog before moving on. The rain slowly subsided on the way back. Tommy questioned them in detail about how they got there, if they had a hideout, how well-defended it was and so on. He was surprised to hear that both Jesse and Dina were there as well, admitting that he thought only Ben and Ellie left Jackson County. After all, both of them had an agenda in seeking revenge. Ellie's was.. well it was obvious. Joel was like a father to her. Ben was close with Joel, he led the Walkers into the settlement and gave them home, taught Ben and Emily how to do patrols, helped them improve their aim with several different weapons and so on. Yet Ben never considered his time in Seattle a vengeance-seeking venture. He was never the revenge-seeking type.

Ben was quite shocked when Tommy told him everything he'd done to avenge Joel's death. He tortured and killed Nick, one of the men from Abby's group. Other endeavors included chasing down and killing whole squads of Wolves and Scars. Tommy was a master at his craft, a sniper at his absolute best. He rarely missed. Proof of that were the corpses that were probably still rotting on the shore. Dozens of Wolves fell then from Tommy's shots.

The theater that was normally illuminated from the inside was now sunk in darkness like the rest of the city. There was not a single ray of light on the windows that shone orange the night before. It was clear that Jesse had turned off all the lights so as not to attract unwanted attention, even though the chances of them being discovered were now considerably lower as many of the Wolves left the city. However, in a world like this, you could never be completely safe from danger. There could always be someone who would kill you just for the sake of a piece of bread, let alone ammunition and supplies that they kept in the theater.

The front door swung open, and Jesse stood on the other side. He smiled happily when he saw Tommy. And then the smile disappeared from his face, replaced by worry and insecurity. He revealed that Dina was feeling bad. She suffered from a fever and was glued to the couch on which she laid all day. Jesse admitted that he was afraid to leave her alone to look for medicine.

Ellie immediately rushed inside to see Dina, who was fast asleep when they arrived. Jesse and Tommy stayed in the front room, exchanging stories and going into detail about what they had all been through. Ben left them and headed for his furry friend. The white wolf was lying in the corner of the room where Ben slept the night before. In the half-light it could be a dog, but dogs don't move the way wolves do – in choreographed motions. Khan's ears dropped as Ben stepped inside, and the sky-blue piercing eyes opened abruptly. White wolf approached its master with a light step, head low and quiet as night. The wound on his front right leg was sutured, but the wolf was still visibly limping. The white wolf had seen the better days.

"Hey." Ben whispered, reaching with his left to stroke the white ball of fur below him. "Missed you, bud."

Khan tilted his head in a Khan-like manner, forcing Ben to grin. He never thought he'd be so happy to see his furry friend again. There was an intelligence in Khan's eyes, a shyness, and wariness of Ben's kind. Yet Khan was loyal to Ben as any other wolf would be loyal to its alpha.

"I've done some terrible things, bud." he sighed, grin disappearing as if it was never there. "Dad would be ashamed of me. We killed a pregnant woman." Wolf watched him as if it understood. Khan's blue piercing eyes looked straight into Ben's soul. He understood. The wolf understood it all.

Ben threw himself on the sofa to take off his sneakers, they were still good. Slightly worn and cracked here and there, but they could still be useful. He undressed in a hurry and piled everything over his sneakers. Naked to the waist, he sat leaning against the sofa, his eyes fixed on the ceiling, as if something interesting was up there. But his eyes seemed to penetrate the solid surface of the ceiling, staring into something unknown above it. His head ached from thoughts and remorse. He couldn't even cry, he was too tired, both physically and mentally. If he had known he would have to sacrifice his humanity for Ellie's sake, he probably wouldn't have rushed after her so quickly. Is it too late to repent? Ben convinced himself to brush the foul thoughts aside, there will be time for that when they get back home.

Ben replaced his wet hoodie with a black long-sleeved shirt that was slung over the armrest. The shirt tightened a little around his shoulders, but it was still nice to wear dry clothes. His gun was still in his holster behind his belt as he lied down, and the white wolf curled up under him on the floor. He would not sleep peacefully tonight, he knew that the moment he saw the Mel's swollen stomach. And he was right.

He dreamed he was in the hallway. The walls were not built of brick, but of gray stone. The hallway was long and narrow, just enough for only two people to pass by walking side by side. There were no windows, but the dim light of the torches illuminated the way forward. Unaware of how long he had been walking, a door appeared in front of him. He pulled the handle and it creaked open, clinging to the stone floor. The hallway widened into a room the size of an average living room. It looked like the room of his house in St. Louis, and maybe not, he wasn't entirely sure. Snow could be seen outside through two rectangular windows, which meant that he was somewhere in the north. On one side of the stone wall there was a shelf filled with books, and on the other side he didn't know what. For some reason, he couldn't turn his head in that direction. In the middle was a table without chairs, and on the opposite side of it was a fireplace. The fire crackled softly, and he could feel its heat even from a distance of ten feet, which made no sense at all because the fire was quite weak.

"Ben."

He turned around at the mention of his name. The voice calling to him was distant and almost inaudible, completely unrecognizable. When he turned, he noticed a mirror leaning against a stone wall, as high as he was and twice as wide. He approached the object in two silent steps and stared at his reflection. He was surprised to see what he was wearing. White T-shirt and black pants. The skin on his hands was smooth and clean, without a single scratch. He looked up, but was stunned when he saw something ... scary instead of his face. He couldn't understand what, his face was blurry. But for some reason, he felt his blood freeze in his veins.

"Is it raining?"

He jumped up and almost screamed when he heard the question at the other end of the room. At that moment, he turned around, feeling his neck veins tighten. A person in a blood-red cloak stood in front of the fireplace, his back to him. He felt as if that person had been standing there all along, but he couldn't remember if that was true. He squinted his eyes and stared at the dark figure. Blonde short hair adorned the head of the person in front of the fireplace.

"Who are you?" Ben asked, his voice shaky as he stood frozen in place and time.

The person smiled. The voice sounded familiar, as if he had heard it many years ago, and yet as if he had never heard it before. The person in front of the fireplace turned to him slowly, that turn seemed like an eternity, and maybe even longer. Ben gasped when he saw him. He wasn't sure if he was looking at himself or someone else. The man standing on the other side of the table approached him in light steps. He was as tall as Ben, and his blonde hair and eyes were identical to Ben's. Even the shade was almost the same. Almost.

"What is this? Who are you? Where am I?"

He looked into the eyes of the stranger in front of him, and those eyes he was looking at suddenly penetrated him, and visions appeared in his head. Bloody hands. The sound of rain. Blue eyes. Death.

"Could it be..?" he asked, not believing what he was seeing.

"You're a monster." stranger said, suddenly having a voice of a child. Not any child, though. Tom. "You're a monster."

Ben recoiled, and fear filled him completely. "No, I'm not!"

"You're a monster. A monster. Monster. Monster! MONSTER! MONSTER! MONSTER!"

Two hands grabbed him by the neck, and the grip was iron. He coughed, trying to catch his breath, but the hands that choked him wouldn't budge no matter how hard he tried to shake them off. He couldn't take his eyes off a face that was the same as his, and yet it wasn't. Those blue eyes that penetrated into his soul brought him back to the worst moments of his life. There was no way out. That was the end.

I'm sorry, Tom!

"MONSTER!"

Ben opened his eyes abruptly, struggling for breath. Sweat dripped down his face and his chest expanded and shrank unevenly. It was pitch dark in the room. The moon probably made a circle around the theater, which meant that dawn was coming soon.

What was that?, he asked himself, fighting for breath. He was relieved that it was a dream, but he couldn't stop thinking about it. In the nightmare, the person wearing his face choked him. But again, it wasn't Ben. Someone else, so familiar and yet a stranger. His heart skipped a beat when he remembered the question the stranger had asked him. Was that Tom? Grown up Tom that's not dead because of his stupid older brother? He decided not to think about it, but he knew he wouldn't be able to sleep anymore. He just hoped dawn would come soon. There was something in the dark. Something that wasn't a white wolf sleeping under the sofa. Fear crept into his bones again, and Ben turned his face to the backrest and closed his eyes so tightly that he believed that not even sunlight could penetrate inside. Please be over soon. I want to go home. I don't want to become a monster. I am not a monster! I am not!

He did not know how long he had been lying in that position. It was clear that the fear of dreams and hallucinations in the dark were driving him crazy. Gathering all the courage he could, he jumped to the floor and reached for the lamp. He felt Khan twitching under his feet, surprised by his owner's sudden jump. He put on his sneakers and headed for the door, determined to get out of the darkness he was in. The dream did not come to his eyes, and dawn was approaching. But he couldn't spend another moment in that damn darkness.

The lobby of the theater was bathed in a faint orange light. He descended the ground floor by a spiral staircase, a white wolf following in his footsteps. He saw no one in the entrance room, and wondered why the lights were on. Someone could see the lights and try to get inside. He entered the hall. As he made his way through the rows, he noticed Tommy and Jesse at the other end of the hall, near the performers' platform.

"We could cut through the lowlands here."

"Hmm. Maybe."

"What about this? Through here."

"Nah."

"Mm. That's not gonna work. That whole area is covered in snow."

"By the time we get there, that whole area could be thawed." Tommy concluded when Ben approached them.

"Look who's up." said Jesse when he spotted him. Tommy turned his head and nodded him in a greeting manner.

"What're you guys doing up?" Ben asked, shivering at the sudden cold that coursed through his body. After all, he wore a t-shirt with nothing over it.

"Couldn't sleep." Tommy replied. "Guess what happened."

"What?"

"That army we saw by the shore. They attacked the Scar base on that island. Apparently that's where they were." Tommy explained, stroking his beard gently.

Ben nodded and pouted his lips, considering what to say next. "How do you know?"

"Heard it on a radio." Jesse mentioned, "They won. Scars lost everything. Guess Wolves will be on their way back soon."

That was good and bad at the same time. It meant that Ben and the crew didn't have to deal with Scars anymore. On the other hand, Wolves had a complete control over the city, now. They'll spread their men like parasites all around the city. Red curtain on the opposite end of the platform suddenly parted, and Ellie passed through, in her full gear, gathering all the attention at herself. She knelt on the platform in front of them when Tommy opened his mouth to ask, "Where are you going?"

Ellie sighed, "To get some fresh air."

"Come look at this." Jesse said to both Ben and Ellie to approach with his point finger. Ben noticed a map spread on the platform. There were several states on the map, including Washington, Idaho, Wyoming and a few others. Jackson County was in Wyoming. "The thought is to head home via Ellensburg."

"If we're in Fall City by tomorrow, we're doing good." Tommy added, exchanging gazes with Ellie and Ben. Home? Ellie lowered her eyes, avoiding looking them in the eyes. What's happening?

"Hey." Tommy called out to her, and waited until she raised her head to look back at him. Those big green eyes narrowed, as sharp as a falcon's when it was angry. "They got what they deserved."

"But she gets to live." was all Ellie said.

Tommy sighed, "Yeah. Is that okay?"

Ellie hesitated to answer the question. Ben was confused. Was he missing something?

"Ellie." Jesse started, donning a determined mask on his face, "Dina's sick. God's sake, she's pregnant. She can't stay here."

Ben looked back at Ellie, waiting for her response. She seemed deeply conflicted, torn between the two decisions. To choose what's right or to choose vengeance.

"No." she said after what seemed like an eternity of silence, "I'll stay."

"Wha-? Ellie, listen.." Jesse tried, but Ellie interrupted him, "You can't make me, Jesse. Dina will be safe back home. I trust you can take her there, safe and sound."

Why are you so goddamn stubborn?

Jesse winced angrily, as if he was about to jump on Ellie at any moment. "We've killed all of her friends. She's got nothing left! Is that not enough for you?"

"Ellie, you can't do this alone." Tommy said calmly in contrast to Jesse.

Ben sighed, "She won't."

Everyone turned to look at him. Everyone was surprised, including Ellie. But Ben knew better. He knew she wouldn't give up on her revenge. And he came to Seattle to bring her back home. Until she's back home, his quest won't be finished. Jesse seemed disappointed.

"You two take Dina home. Meanwhile, Ellie and I will finish this. Abby's the only one left, right?" he managed to sound determined somehow while saying that. "Right?"

Ellie nodded. She's the only one left. Everyone else is dead, a voice spoke in his head.

"You sure you want this?" Ellie asked him. Ben simply nodded without saying anything.

Tommy sighed, face buried in his hands. For a while, none of them said anything, neither did they look at each other. Jesse would open his mouth to say something from time to time, but he would close it each time. Every single one of them was aware of how stubborn Ellie was. She was iron. She won't bend.

"Well, I'm not really looking forward to going through Idaho again." Tommy sighed.

Jesse raised an eyebrow, elbowing himself on the platform. "What you should be worried about is what Maria's gonna do to you when we get home."

Tommy smiled, yet still retained a sad face, all wrinkled up and tired, "We've been through worse. However, I was passing through some ritzy section of the town, came across this necklace."

Ellie walked around them and sat down, her feet hanging off the edge of the platform.

"It sparkles a lot." Tommy mentioned, "I think it's real gold."

Ben grinned at that. A necklace, huh? Think Maria'd forgive you if you gave her a necklace? Good luck, Tommy. Tommy was always a witty guy. Yet he should never be taken lightly. No matter how kind and peaceful he looked, Tommy was a ruthless fighter and a master sharpshooter. Body count only kept rising and rising since Tommy arrived in Seattle.

"You think it's real gold." Jesse said, looking at Tommy from below.

Tommy looked back at him sideways, seemingly offended, "It's real gold."

"Let's see it." Jesse was persistent.

Tommy backed off the platform and smiled sourly at the Asian, "I know what gold looks like."

He turned around to walk off, holding his hand by the wound on his hip. There was a blood stain in his jacket where the blade pierced through.

"If it's legit, can we say it's from all of us?" Jesse added, grinning at him.

"Ha! Find your own damn bribes."

As Ben looked into Tommy's back, weak smile still stuck on his face, he heard quiet footsteps behind him. Ben turned his head and saw the ruffled red curtain behind which Ellie had disappeared. Jesse and him silently watched the map spread on a solid surface for a while. The paths were handwritten on it, bolded so that they could be seen better. "Horde" was written above the names of some places or "Hunters" Tommy's road to Seattle was almost identical to the road used by Ben and Jesse. He sighed gratefully when he realized that the differences were in places where there were hostile survivors that would shoot you at sight.

"How you doing?" Ben winced at Jesse's question, completely lost in thought. He scratched the back of his head and looked at his friend. "Tired. Dina?"

"She's holding up."

Ben placed a hand on his friend's shoulder. "Dina's strong. She'll be fine, don't stress yourself too much about it."

Jesse and Dina were dating for several years. Ben remembered the shock when he learned that the two of them had split up. They used to be the couple among the younger folk in the settlement.

"Any progress?" Jesse asked him with a grin, tilting his head towards the curtain.

Ben rolled his eyes and shook his head. "I guess not. I don't know. She's kinda mad at me." The last sentence he said in a bit of a lower tone. Jesse gave him a look that demanded an answer. "I kinda, uh.. met Abby. Never told her."

The look on Jesse's face could be called a look of surprise. Also, it could be called horrified and disgusted at the same time.

"No way."

"I didn't know who she was at the time."

"Then why's she mad at you?"

Ben placed a finger on his lips. "Shhh! Keep it low."

"I'm not even gonna go into it." Jesse said through a sigh. "You're out of luck, man."

Ben shrugged, "Ellie isn't the only girl in the settlement."

"Yes, sir. Expanding the horizons, I see." Jesse added as a wide grin appeared on his face. He smacked Ben's shoulder and laughed.

Ben smiled back. After all, he was never a bad-looking man. He always presumed he had good chances with other girls. If he had tried, he'd probably even have a girlfriend or two in his relationship resume by now.

"Aliyah Jackson and Julia Choi were always eyeing you when we played basketball."

Ben raised an eyebrow, "Really?"

"Didn't notice them cheering every time you made a shot?"

He shook his head, trying to remember. "I don't think I have."

"Ugh. Blind ass dude. Anyway, you can test your chances when we get back home.. after you and Ellie come back, that is."

Ben nodded, going along with it. He actually managed to remember the two girls. Dark-skinned Julia who always styled braids and Julia whom Ben thought was Jesse's sister at first. Only because she is Asian. You stupid.. Yet, there was one problem with those two girls. They were not her.

"Julia's a real cutie, tho'. No wonder she likes you after you smacked the shit out of Noah Oliver."

Noah Oliver. Ben laughed remembering that guy. He was Julia's ex who was quite persistent even after they broke up, also somewhat aggressive.

"That guy." Ben said with a sigh.

Grin was still glued on Jesse's face as he reminisced on the past. "Twice your size, yet you had balls to stand up to him when he slapped her in one of his jealousy outbursts. A real hero."

"Shut up. I just did what anyone else would do. Guy was just an asshole." Ben remembered being quite surprised after he managed to beat the hell out of Noah Oliver, who was bigger and stronger. Ben was faster, though. It was not something he was proud of, but he couldn't take the injustice. It was just the way he was.

"At least you scored your points with Julia."

The double door leading to the front room on the other side of the hall swung open and Tommy ran inside.

"Tommy?" Jesse asked him, confused just as much as Ben whom he stood next to.

Ben's eyes dropped, and he noticed the gun in Tommy's hand. The heartbeats quickened sharply. Julia Choi, Aliyah Jackson, Noah Oliver and everything else suddenly became unimportant.

"Jesse, go grab Ellie." Tommy gave out orders, "Ben, grab your weapons and come with me."

"What's wrong?" Jesse asked.

Tommy checked the ammunition of his trusty .45 Automatic Colt and looked at the two of them, eyebrows furrowed as his eyes turned in two narrow slits. "Wolves, at least a dozen."

How did they find us? I knew we shouldn't have left the lights on!

Anger and concern were intertwined on Tommy's face. Jesse jumped on the platform to go after Ellie, but stopped abruptly.

"Abby." Tommy added, hissing through his teeth. "Abby's with 'em."