Chapter 18 – Tom
"Rifle, pistol, ammunition. Check." Ben uttered under his breath and checked the said items off the imaginary list. "Machete, water, sandwiches. Also check."
When finished with the essentials, he put them into his red backpack – except the hunting rifle and the machete – and slung the thing over his right shoulder while machete found its place tucked under the belt. Camera was laid on the shelf above the desk in the corner of his bedroom, resting between two thick books that surrounded it. Should I bring it? Maybe take a snap of Tom during his first hunting trip. With a nod to himself, he took the thing off the shelf and shoved it into the backpack.
"Yo, Tom!" he summoned the younger brother as he walked downstairs. "We're leaving, let's go."
The kid appeared from the kitchen. Corners of his mouth were smeared with raspberry jam he liked so much. He did not skimp on the delicacy at all. After all, Miss Grimrose was a master at making it. Only downside to it was that it was scarce, available only in late summer.
"Hey, don't eat everything yourself, fatso." Ben frowned at his younger brother. "You packed everything?"
Tom nodded happily. "I did. There's my favorite pocket knife, a pistol – " Ben gave him a strict look and folded his arms " – I won't tell Emily about it. I promise, big brother. Also.. there's my water bottle, and Khan."
"Khan?" Ben asked him and smirked, "You packed your plushie wolf in the backpack?"
"I wanted to take him to our first hunting trip together."
"All right, all right. Don't forget your sweater, it might get cold today."
Even though Ben told Tom to bring his sweater, it would be a mild day, considering the lack of clouds and clear sky, the sort when kids were so happy to run outside without jackets. Still, morning hours were pretty chilly, forcing Walker brothers to don double layers. The streets were mostly empty at dawn, though. There was an old man on their street called Ron, who gave all the kids candy that tasted of soap. He was nice, he taught Ben how to roller-skate better when Walkers moved to Jackson some two years ago. It all came to pointing toes at "10" and "2" as he went up the hill. But Ben and the others loved him for a different reason. He had a tame crow that would perch on his shoulders and squawk on command. Or maybe it wasn't a crow, none of them really knew anymore. They'd just stand there admiring the inky feathers.
"What are you two early birds up to, huh?" asked the old man, gray bushy mustache hanging above his mouth. Longer hair, tied into a ponytail, was hidden beneath a flat cap. Old man Ron eyed the rifle hanging off Ben's shoulder suspiciously.
"Good morning." Ben greeted and Tom repeated, "We're um.. going outside a bit to look for some stray rabbits around the perimeter. Tom is old enough to learn the basics of hunting."
Ron nodded, "Good. It's about time, I say. But don't stray off too far. Little Tom is still young."
Ben didn't really listen to the older man. He was captivated by the inky creature resting on his shoulder. The crow was mostly quiet, not doing anything impressive or whatsoever. But it was unusually tame.
"I'm not." Tom squeaked, "I'm almost eight years old."
Ron laughed at that, and the crow spread its wings with a loud caw as if laughing along with him. Bidding farewell to the old man, brothers continued down the street. A few people appeared on the streets, well-wrapped to protect themselves from the morning cold, their heads down, still dreaming of their beds. Mostly they didn't pay attention to anything around themselves. Only a few looked at the two of them and nodded in greeting or muttered indistinctly, "Good morning."
Soon the streets would be crowded with people rushing to do their duties and Tom's peers running around in the game - very soon. Ben hoped he wouldn't run into his sister. He waited until Emily went on patrol before he started getting ready for the hunt. She annoyed him because was too protective, it suffocated him.
Ben noticed a girl rushing in their direction from across the street. She stared at the sidewalk below, huddled in her black jacket. The sky in the east was getting brighter. Her auburn hair was shorter than he remembered.
"Ellie." he whispered a bit louder at her. Ellie snapped out of her thoughts and raised her head to look at him, still looking sleepy.
"Hey." she said after crossing the street. "What's up, little bud?"
She high-fived Tom and grinned. Ben's face was expressionless.
"What are you doing this early in the morning?" he asked her.
In the wash of the new light, her face took on the appearance of an old photograph, one of nostalgia. She was beautiful.
"I'm going out hunting with Cat."
She's going out hunting too? And with Cat. Why doesn't she go with Joel or Tommy or Jesse or.., Ben thought with spite, trying to keep his face expressionless. Cat wasn't exactly a bad girl, but he couldn't stand her for some reason. Why is Cat bothering me? Ugh, I'm going mad.
"Cool, cool." He murmured, "She finished that tattoo of yours?"
Ellie grinned and pulled up the sleeve of her right arm, "Yeah. Look."
She revealed a dark fern that swirled along the length of her forearm, with a moth on top. It was a good-looking tattoo. That's a great tattoo, he had to admit to himself.
"So? What do you say?"
He looked up from the tattoo into her bright, green eyes. Whenever he was mad at her, just one glance at her eyes would make the anger fade away in a second.
"You don't like it?"
Only then he realized he'd been gawking at her for no reason at all, "Oh, no. It's great. For sure. Awesome… Yeah."
"Thanks. What are you two up to?"
"We're going hunting!" Tom exclaimed and Ben facepalmed himself. You aren't supposed to say that, you schmuck!
"Oh?" Ellie raised her eyebrow, one with a scar that slashed right through the middle of it. Her eyes moved upwards from Tom to Ben, giving him a strict look. "Emily allowed you to take Tom out?"
She sounded like she couldn't believe it herself. Ben shifted in his place, "Well, yeah.. kinda." He was never a good liar overall. Whenever something similar happened, he'd do something awkward or out of the order.
"She didn't, right?"
"Nope."
"You know she'll.."
"Hey, you three!"
That was the voice that froze Ben in his place, making him feel as if he was sent twenty feet under the ground. His heart skipped a beat when a girl, as tall as him, appeared by his side. Her long blonde hair was let loose, and she smiled at the three of them, yet her strict blue eyes didn't seem as bright as her smile.
"You're up early." Emily concluded, eyeing the rifle and the backpacks suspiciously. She was wearing her patrol uniform, the one used in colder weather consisting of a jacket and cargo pants. A rifle of her own was slung over her shoulder.
"Emily." Ben said with an awkward smile, feeling like it's the end of the world. Aren't you supposed to be out on patrol? "You're still here."
"Obviously." she scoffed, "William is late as usual."
William was the most recent of her patrol partners. He quickly became one she'd go out with on patrols most often, though. Ben always thought they were pretty chummy with each other. Maybe too much. Chummy? Is that even a word? Geez.
"That wimp? He's your patrol partner?"
Emily stared daggers at him, "Don't be mean. He's nice."
"He's a wimp."
"He's not."
"Yes, he is."
"Shut up, Ben."
"Okay."
"You didn't answer my question."
Ben scratched his head, "What question?"
"I asked you what you were doing this early?"
"No, you didn't."
"Yes, I did. Literally thirty seconds ago!"
"No, you said You're up early. That's not a question, Emily."
She growled at him and raised her clenched fists as if she was about to punch him. He backed away, just in his words, she was crazy sometimes. One could never know.
"All right, you two." Ellie said and placed herself between the two of them, turning towards Emily to calm her down. "Don't listen to him, Emily. He's an idiot."
Ben ignored that remark and looked down, using his right food to play with the stones beneath him. Something about those stones was quite fascinating. The way they rolled under his shoes. Very fascinating.
"So?"
He twitched at Emily's question, looking upwards to Ellie for help. She shrugged, but Emily didn't notice that.
"We're um.. going out."
"Excuse me?"
"Oh, don't worry about it, Em. We'll just walk around the perimeter to see if there are any stray rabbits. Tom's been bugging me for days. We won't go far, I promise." They, of course, wouldn't go out hunting for stray rabbits. Ben had a bigger game on his day plan.
A heavy silence settled over them, thicker than the uneasy tension in the atmosphere. Emily's unsettled eyes glanced around Ben and Tom. Brothers shifted uncomfortably in their place, avoiding eye contact. Ellie gasped and shook her head as if she was saying Oh boy, they're screwed.
"Okay." Emily said in the end. Ben, Ellie and Tom all raised their heads at the same time and looked at her, visibly shocked.
"Really?" Ben asked, filled with hope. "We can go?"
She nodded, "Yes, Ben. You can go. But if I find a single scratch on him, I'll rip your head off."
Walker brothers high-fived each other and wide grins adorned their faces. "Thanks, Em." How is this even possible?
"You call me Em only when you need something from me." older sister sighed, but let out a smirk that proved all of it had amused her. "Okay, I gotta go now. Have fun. And remember, be smart. Bye, everyone."
"Bye."
"See ya."
"Later."
Ellie smiled after Emily walked away, "She's in a mood, that's for sure."
"Must be Will." Ben concluded, relieved that he got rid of her at last.
"Emily kissed him yesterday." Tom said out of the blue. Ben and Ellie exchanged wide-eyed glances then fixated them on the shorter boy, jaw dropped.
"What?" they asked at the same time. "In the mouth?"
Tom stuck out his tongue, as if that was something so gross as to even mention, "No! In the cheek. You guys are weird."
Ben and Ellie exchanged nervous glances. Emily kissed Will. Do Cat and Ellie kiss often? Oh my god, what the hell am I even thinking about?, he shuddered at the very thought, angry at himself for even thinking about it.
"If you catch something other than a rabbit, how are you going to explain it to Emily?"
Ben took his time to think of a response. That was a legit question. Aaaand something I haven't thought about earlier. "I'll figure something out."
"You better. I don't want you locked up for days. You should come over, for a game or two on Playstation."
He suddenly felt filled with hope, "Sure, yeah. You free tonight?"
"Yeah."
"A'ight."
"Anyway, I'm off too. We might bump into each other out there." Ellie smiled, motioning to Cat at the other end of the street that she was coming. "Good luck."
"Thanks, bye. You too. " he said in a monotone voice, staring sideways at the black-haired tattooed girl that Ellie ran off to.
"Bye, Ellie." Tom said and waved at her.
She's spending way too much time with Cat, he thought as they walked towards the exit of the settlement. I don't remember last time we played Playstation or listened to music. I don't even know why she asked me about it? And I even agreed. Ugh, I don't care. Nope. I don't. Am I worried? Absolutely not.
When Walker brothers found themselves in the forest, they were glad they brought their jackets despite the earlier assumption that it would be a warm day. The air was so cold, yet the trees were on fire. Ben smiled at the inferno above his head. Scarlet and gold licked at the blue sky, no rain clouds today. The chill in the post-dawn air was the first hint that winter wasn't far behind. Then the trees would stand naked, bereft of their color. He was torn between keeping his eyes high to watch for the falling leaves dancing their way to the ground, or looking down to spy the crunchy ones. Tom loved to step on them, Ben too. I guess I'm still a kid at heart. Given half a chance, he still jumped in puddles too, just not when his friends were looking.
"Remember what I taught you?" older Walker asked the younger one when the latter pulled the pistol out of his pocket. It was Ellie's old pistol, the one she used when she was younger. She gifted it to Tom for his birthday. Little Tom was playing a lot with it until Emily hid it from him, to protect him from shooting himself or someone else by accident. She was right, though. Even Ben agreed with her, just this once. The gun was not a toy.
"Mm-hmm."
"It's not hard. Aim and shoot. Simple."
Tom grinned, "Let's look for the tracks."
"All right, I'll show you how to track an animal."
To find the tracks of any kind, they had to venture deeper into the woods, already straying far off the settlement. The terrain shifted to a more sloped grounds, and they had to walk up and down all the time. Ben remembered which route Emily took for her patrol and avoided even coming near it. If she found them this far from the settlement, she'd close them in the pantry for seven days.
Tom grinned widely when Ben pointed towards a track in the ground. It was a deer, no doubt. Those were easy to follow, for they were deep and visible. Animal was zig-zagging from tree to tree, probably looking for something to eat. Ben hadn't been in that part of the woods for months. The track sneaked around the trees and then disappeared from sight.
"I can't see them anymore." Tom complained.
"Shh."
Ben was about to break into a jog when he noticed a recently fallen tree just behind a cave where a bear was dwelling once. Above it stood a deer, its head lowered as it enjoyed the feast of herbs. Using his right, Ben pulled Tom down to a crouch, to avoid alerting the animal. He looked at his younger brother and placed his finger at his lips.
"Not a word." he whispered, barely able to hear his own words. "Aim for the head."
Animal was not too far away, fifty feet away at most. It was a surprise on its own that the animal didn't hear them approaching. Perhaps the leaves muffled their approach? It didn't matter. Deer was right there, and Tom was about to get his first kill. On the way through the woods, Ben reminded him to always aim for the head or neck. Animal shouldn't suffer. Another reason to avoid shooting the body was the damage to the pelt and the meat. Little Tom outstretched his gun, clutching it with both hands, one eye closed. His aim was unsteady, his posture tight. After all, he's just an eight year old.
Gunshot exploded, echoing in the woods and the deer ran away. It seemed as if the shot was far off the target, but Ben wasn't angry. Tom was still just a kid, and this was his first hunt.
"I'm sorry, Ben." Tom said in a sad tone, his eyebrows furrowing in a sad manner.
Ben stroked brother's head and smirked. "Don't worry. We'll get him next time. Let's go, we can still catch up to it."
That part of the forest was unusually dense, thus providing Walkers with crucial covers that hid them from the sight of the fleeing animal. They followed its tracks, moving from a tree to a tree with their weapons at the ready.
"Remember." Ben whispered to Tom who followed right behind, "Don't damage the meat with too many shots."
Tom was still too young to shoot with a rifle. Of course, chances were much better with a rifle at hand, but the recoil was too much for him. It could easily dislocate his shoulder. Chase led them to a clearing in the middle of the mountain road. Ben pointed at the animal, right in the middle of the clearing.
"Can I try now?" Tom asked, but Ben shook his head.
"Too far. We have to close in."
The road that went down and up the hill, and the clearing through which the road led higher up in the mountains, consisted of two shacks and a barn. As they walked past the last tree on their way to the clearing, Ben stepped on a stray branch that was hidden by the fiery leaves of the fall. The crack alerted the animal, and it ran off into the distance, disappearing in the shadows of the forest.
"Damn it." Ben cursed under his breath, angry at himself. He motioned to Tom to follow and brothers moved into the clearing, walking on the tips of their toes. The old barn had stables at the front with those half-doors to allow the horses to see the view of the yard. It blossomed on the hill amid the mountains, red paint merging with the fiery exterior of the fall. Two small shacks were built on both sides of a road, too small to be anything else than tool storages.
Older brother concentrated his senses, straining to hear any sounds that would give away the location of the deer or warn them of a potential danger. The sun was nearing the middle of the sky. It was almost noon. Time went on fast, both Walkers were concentrated on the hunt and the prey.
"Why are we so slow? We're losing it, big brother."
Ben scoffed, "Better lose the deer than our heads. We have to be careful. Might be some runners around here."
A bang from the inside of one of the shacks shook both of them. Ben rapidly spun in that direction, outstretching his rifle forward. Muffled moan came from the inside, and then a wooden shack door cracked. Bloody hand reached out through the crack, scratching the wood with the sharp nails.
"Get behind me, Tom."
A scream broke out down the road. Two screams. Deformed voices of the infected echoed on the slope, and that's when Ben noticed them. Two runners, dashing towards them.
"I can shoot." Tom suggested.
"No!" Ben growled, "I'll handle this."
Infected ran for them, approximately a hundred feet away, appearing taller they ascended up the sloped road. Ben got to one knee, aiming with one eye closed. First step was to take a deep breath. Aim. Then shoot.
Bang. One collapsed in the run.
Repeat the rifle. One bullet left inside. Aim. Then shoot.
Bang. The second one fell, face buried in the dirt some twenty feet ahead from the first one.
"That was awesome!" Tom exclaimed, but his grin faded away when the shack door broke down, and a third runner came at them. The infected ran like a madman, his clothes ragged and dirty, torn and bloody. Face was swollen and eyes were red. The rifle in Ben's hand only had two rounds, and both were spent. He threw the weapon away and unsheathed the machete from his belt, swinging high from above. The blade cut deep into the runner's head just before it crashed into Ben. But their trouble was far from over. Lifeless body of what was once a normal human collapsed like a sack of grain. Ben pressed his right foot against the head and pulled out the blade from the skull.
"I guess this is the last of them." he concluded and glanced at Tom next to him. "You okay? Scared?"
"I'm not scared." Tom was as pale as a full moon. He was scared indeed, but too proud to admit it.
"Shame, though."
"What?"
"Deer probably ran off far away from all this shooting." Ben concluded with a frown. "A bummer."
"Can we find another one?"
"We can try-"
Screams suddenly erupted all around them. First one. Then two and three, accompanied by several more. The door of the second shack broke down and two emerged from the darkness. Another two were on the way up the road. Even more were approaching from the road higher in the mountains, storming down the road at them.
"Ben?" Tom stood stiffly beside his older brother, his shaky hands gripping the pistol tightly. "What are we gonna do?"
Damn it! What now? He looked around himself, searching for an escape. Ben laid his eyes onto the red barn with open double doors. "Go inside! Run, Tom! Run!"
While Tom ran off into the barn, Ben tucked the machete under his belt and put a round in the rifle. He dropped the second one while trying to tuck it into the rifle. When he looked up, the infected were close. Too close.
"Screw it." he uttered and raised the rifle, firing it almost instantly. The bullet pierced the shoulder of a runner, slowing it down. Realizing he'd be surrounded in the open, Ben turned and ran for the safety of a red barn. It was the smell that hit first when Ben ran in. A puff of the sweet, musty odor of last summer's straw pressed from his first, slow breath. Then he detected the undertones; the stuffy mask of animal fur and stank of old, dried-out dung and droppings, and maybe the sharp smell of old, oily metal and machinery. Someone had been living here a while ago.
Deciding not to waste the advantage of time, Ben closed the barn door, barring it with a board that he placed horizontally on the hinges to block the door from opening. By the time he was done, his eyes compensated for the dim pallor of light, and he began to make out the shapes of dusty frames of wooden stalls and poles, and the heavy bosom of the loft that hung from the ceiling.
"Ben!" he heard his brother scream, a voice of pure terror that sounded wrong in his childish voice. Ben spun, spotting a stalker atop Tom, trying to claw his way through the young boy's body. He made his way to him as fast as he could, as Tom's screams turned into ragged sobs. The machete flashed in Ben's left like a lightening when he swung it, screaming with fury at the monster. Dark blood sprayed the floor after the slice across the stalker's face, and the infected was on his back, dead.
Ben's chest rose and sank unevenly as he stared at the corpse of the infected. Not my brother!
"Hey man, you okay?" he asked, voice full of concern as he knelt next to his brother, taking him into the hug. "It's okay. The monster can't hurt you anymore."
Flashbacks of time before Jackson clouded his mind, reminding Ben of how they fought to survive traveling through the country to find a safe haven. Tom was always afraid of the infected, perhaps too much. But he was Ben's brother, it was his responsibility to protect him. That stalker must had been stalking the shadows, waiting for an unfortunate soul to walk in.
"Ben.." Tom's voice was trembling. Blue glanced upon blue. A single tear rolled down Tom's cheek. "It hurts."
"What?" Ben asked, eyes darting down, stopping at Tom's collarbone. His jacket was unbuttoned and undamaged, but the shirt was torn right atop the area.
"Did it.." Tom was losing his voice, "Did it bite me?"
Tom's torn shirt revealed bloody skin, and bite marks that sent shivers down Ben's spine. The smells that filled his nostrils suddenly made him vomit. He had to swallow the contents of his stomach to prevent them from coming out. Breathing became hard.
"Did it?" younger Walker repeated his question, eyes fixated on his older brother, as if begging for salvation. Ben felt a sting in his eyes.
"You're gonna be alright, Tom. You're gonna be alright."
"It did, right?"
All the gathered courage disappeared when he nodded. His tears spiraled out of control and he took Tom in his arms, hugging him tightly. "I'm sorry, Tom! I'm sorry!"
When he heard slams against the doors, Ben knew the infected had come. How many there were, he couldn't possibly know. He never gave them a count. Those slams, the heralds of death, didn't bother him for a single moment. As if the infected that tried to force their way in to devour both of them didn't exist. Nothing else existed. Nothing. Except for Tom and himself. The slams were just a muffled sound, as if a flashback to a distant memory.
"Can you return Khan safely to my room?" Tom asked him, and Ben raised his head, eyes glassy from tears.
"I can."
"Thanks. I don't want the runners to tear him apart."
"They won't. I promise, little bro."
"Ben."
"Yeah?"
"I don't want to die."
Ben's mouth opened and closed, but only silence followed. He was out of words. What could he say to Tom to console him? To make it easier for him. Tom cried in his arms and Ben wiped his own tears, trying to regain his composure. I have to be strong for him. He wanted to say, "No, you won't die." but he knew he couldn't just give him an empty hope. It was hard to be strong, too hard. He doesn't deserve this. Why? Why is this happening? This can't be true!
Tom was sweating in his arms, becoming paler with each passing moment. Infected on the other side of the door were relentless, but the door held. For now. For a few moments, it seemed as if Tom fell asleep. From what Ben remembered, it takes a day or two to turn. But Tom is just a child, maybe he'll turn faster?
Ben must have spent two hours in that position, with Tom in his arms. Boy was exhausted, and long asleep. The infected gave up after a while and fell silent. Ben's back stiffened and hurt, but he didn't seem to notice.
Tom will turn. He will die. It's your fault. It's all your fault. YOUR FAULT.
Tom reacted to his older brother's touch, opening his eyes and looking into the face above him. His eyes remained empty and Ben feelt tears well up in his eyes again. Younger Walker sighed deeply and his chest expanded like a cage. The bite mark above the collarbone was hot, and the skin around it was completely red. Ben leaned over him and took his hand. His skin was sickly hot and dry, but he didn't let it go. He saw his lips move and lowered his head to hear.
"I'm not going anywhere." Ben told him, straining to hear. Tom's grip around his arm tightened enough to hurt. He was always strong for his age. Ben grabbed his brother's fist with both hands and for a moment their eyes met. Ben stated with relief that his brother recognized him.
"I don't want to.." Tom tried to explain, but kept losing his voice. "..become one of them."
With that, it was as if Tom's throat tightened, and the boy closed his eyes painfully, frowning at the pain and fever that was destroying his body. In desperation, Ben squeezed his brother's hand even harder, begging him to talk to him again, to get up, to laugh with him, to say some of his stupid jokes, to live! What did Tom just tell him? Ben couldn't remember his last words, overwhelmed by the sudden fear that his brother was actually dying. He looked up at the ceiling, not daring to look at Tom again. At his brother whom he betrayed and killed. Fingers suddenly encircled around his collar, forcing him to look down.
Tom's eyes were as still as blue as ever, and were fixed on Ben's face. But Tom wasn't looking at his big brother. It was more as if he was looking through him. His face was pale and expressionless. Lips were moving, but only barely audible whispers came out.
"Is it raining, Ben?" he managed to catch the words. Raining? Ben strained his ears, trying to pick up the sound of rain. No rain. Tom twitched in his arms. He's turning!
Ben's eyes widened when he realized he held a gun in his hand, a pistol that was Tom's, a gift he received from Ellie. He was shaking, almost dropping the gun.
You can't kill your own brother, a voice in his head told him. You already did, said another.
Pistol was still trembling in his hand when he placed the tip of the barrel against Tom's temple. Ben was crying uncontrollably in an attempt to fulfill Tom's last wish. Then, Tom twitched again in his arm, like a runner.
"I'm sorry." he whispered and pulled the trigger. Thomas Walker was lying motionless in the arms of his older brother following the explosion of a gunshot. A moment after, Ben felt the coldness of the metal pressed against his head. He hesitated to pull the trigger and end it.
It's your fault. You killed him. You're a monster. A monster! Kill yourself and end it!
He screamed from the depth of his lungs and threw the pistol at the barn door. Then he kept screaming until he lost his voice. The noise of slams against the barn door continued when the runners rediscovered his position. Machete was already in his left when he removed the board that barricaded the door and opened one wing. What followed was a blur. Scream. Swing. Kill. Blood. Avenge. Scream. Pierce. Impale. Kill. Kill. Kill. Kill. Kill.
Seven runners were lying dead around him when Ben finished the dance of death. Smell of blood filled his nostrils, filling him with nausea. Death. All around him. Death. Following him his whole life. Death. He looked at his hands. Completely red. Clothes. Completely red. Face was wet from blood. None of it got into his eyes or mouth. No bite marks. How was he not bitten? He walked into seven of them and still came out on top. All it took was one stupid stalker to..
Ben felt the shadow fall upon his face as the sun slowly set in the west, disappearing behind the mountains. It was evening already? How long had he been there? The machete dropped from his limp fingers. Ben stared into the setting sun, even though his eyes hurt. He stared, face blank and his lips dry.
Someone approached him. Two girls, he couldn't recognize them. They knew his name, he could hear them calling out for him. All of it was a blur, both his vision and his hearing. One of the girls screamed behind him in the barn, and another gripped his shoulders, shaking him as if to wake him up. It was Ellie. She was crying, but Ben wasn't waking up, not from the nightmare that was his life.
END OF BOOK 1
A/N: Here we have it, folks! Book 1 - Vengeance is officially finished. I deemed it worthy enough to end with a flashback that's none other than Tom's death, a major plot point concerning Ben's overall character and character development. Also, I had a lot of fun writing this, and have received the best feedback in my whole life! Thank you all for taking your time to read this work of mine. I'll forever appreciate it.
As for the Book 2, it will be called a New Light and I'll start writing it in a few days. It will introduce Ellie's POV as she becomes one of the protagonists in this story. We'll see her heading off to Santa Barbara in a whole new fashion that will introduce us to a new characters and factions. As for Ben, his fate is still a mystery, but I have something nasty in store for him. Book 2 will be published as a part of Unbound - the Last of Us story, I won't create a separate story for it. Stay tuned, there's so much in store for you!
