The next few days passed with little change. Every morning I would emerge from our temporary accommodation in the wooden cabin and station myself at the end of the stony pier that formed a finger like extension a short distance into the ocean, where I would wait expectantly for the Abigail to appear on the horizon. Despite the previous day's lack of success, I returned to the same position over the following days without exception. Refusing to allow any doubt to invade my mind, I was well aware of Elyza's opinion as she scoured the beach perimeter routinely to drive back any walkers. She never tried to sway me from the task but it I could tell that she thought it was pointless.

Only four days after our arrival at the beach did she finally voice her concerns, waiting until I had returned back to the cabin for the evening to confront me.

'Anything?'

I shook my head in response, sinking down onto the wooden chair with a sigh. She knew full well from my expression that there had been no sighting. Silence filled the room and I could imagine the gears turning in Elyza's head as she carefully formed her next words.

'How much longer are you willing to wait for them?' she inquired gently, a tone I rarely heard from the outspoken girl.

'Why? Have you got other places be?' I muttered, instantly feeling guilty for speaking to her in such a way when all she had done was help me.

'Supplies won't last forever Alicia, this can't go on much longer.'

I pretended not to hear the truth in her words, fixing my eyes forwards on the dark wooden panels in front of me. It was far easier to believe that they would return soon than face any other possibility.

'Have you considered that your family might not be returning here?' she said hesitantly, ankles crossed in front of her as she rested back against the far wall, not risking a glance over to see what my expression had just morphed into.

'Don't say that.'

Pushing herself up from the floor she stretched her stiff muscles before turning to face me, her patience wearing thin at my insistence that we would soon be seeing my family again.

'More walkers are converging on this beach every day, we can't wait here forever on some false hope. You have to start thinking like a survivor.'

I snapped my eyes up to hers, for once they were not concealed by aviators and I was not about to let her rip away any hope I had of being reunited with my family.

'There is no way my family would leave me here! They will come back for me and I'm not about to go traipsing aimlessly across the country with some stranger who gets some weird kick out of taking down walkers. Don't tell me what I have to do!'

The words spilt from my lips in an angry torrent, rising slowly from my chair as I stood face to face with the blonde. My hands were clenched in anger and I saw a similar emotion lighting the icy depths of Elyza's blue eyes but rather than retaliate she stepped away from me, the tension still leaping between us as she stooped to pick up her blades from the floor.

'Where are you going?' I asked as she shrugged on her leather jacket, my voice still dark with annoyance as she kept her back to me, nothing to betray her emotions.

'Checking for walkers, you're lucky this stranger actually gives a damn about the two of us seeing it through until morning,' she replied, her voice strained as she fought to hold back all the comments that could be flung in response.

Weapons strapped firmly across her back, she shoved a handgun into its holder and strode out of the cabin without another word, leaving me staring at the empty space in which she had just been. The anger seeped away the moment I was alone, leaving me feeling dismayed at how I had just behaved. I had no right to speak to her in such a way and I wanted nothing more than to take my words back. Without her help, I would never have made it back here and this was how I repaid her kindness.

Lowering myself down onto the chair I squeezed my eyes shut, guilt trickling trough me as I recalled the emotions burning in her gaze, not just anger as I had first noticed but a spark of hurt that had lingered even as she had gone out into the night.

Elyza's POV

My boots thudded against the wooden ramp before my steps were muffled by the large expanse of sand. The brunette's words swirled through my head in a constant loop as I set out at a furious pace along the shore line, the ocean considerably more rough tonight than it had been previously, the spray from the waves settling as a fine layer over my clothes.

Did she really think so little of me that in her mind I was still just some stranger she hardly knew? I had risked so much to return her to her family, at the risk of losing the only human contact I had experienced in a long time. My words about the pointless waiting had not been cruel, merely intended to bring the girl back to reality and be honest with herself.

I changed direction back up to the parking lot where I had found some walkers roaming earlier, it seemed to be a popular area for them to approach the beach. Maybe taking some irritation out on the undead would stop me from saying anything that I would regret to Alicia, I could understand her outburst due to her current situation but it had still hurt none the less.

It was hard to admit that her words had hurt me, it would usually take something far more insulting to bring about such a reaction but this was different. Alicia still held the death of the women against me, the one who been unable to escape the desperate pursuit of the walkers. It had been our only option to leave but it seemed that Alicia had her own ideas about how things should be done, which usually involved more danger. That was the source of some of her anger, she hadn't been her usual self ever since the event earlier that week and now the potential loss of her family on top of it had hit her hard.

My foot slipped as the sand shifted underneath me and I shot out a hand to steady myself, jogging the rest of the way up the slight rise onto the more stable tarmac of the parking lot. I darted in between the motionless vehicles, senses on high alert for anything out of the ordinary as I pushed all other thoughts aside to focus on the task at hand.

A glimmer of movement caught my attention through a faded window of a nearby pickup truck and I sank down behind the closest car, remaining perfectly still as I waited to see if anything emerged. It was now early evening and normally I would not venture out at such a time, but I had needed to distance myself from Alicia before things got out of hand.

It was only now that I regretted my decision, unable to see a clear figure without any light to highlight their form. Even without the added bonus of increased visibility I could now hear the shuffling steps growing closer and thankfully it seemed to be moving through the cars further left of my position.

Taking a chance, I slowly stepped out from behind the car and saw the walker lurching unsteadily towards the beach I had just came from. It wasn't aware of my presence which gave me the advantage and without wasting any more time I moved silently up behind the creature, whipping back my sword to drive straight down into its skull with a sickening crunch. It dropped to the ground with a sputtering groan and I pulled my blade free, careful to avoid any back splash.

The number of walkers that I had taken out in the recent days had become an increasing worry, it seemed that more were flocking to this area all the time and it only reminded me of how little time we had before needing to move on. The last thing we wanted was to be overrun by a horde of the bastards.

I wrenched open the nearest car door, gently wiping my blade across the head rest of the driver's seat to clean off the worst of the red liquid. Sheathing the weapon once more I was about to turn away when I saw what vehicle I had stumbled across, barely having noticed it when the walker had appeared. Police cars where a gold mine for survivors, they could contain anything from weapons and ammo to radio's or supplies. I was getting tired of eating cereal bars every day and rested one knee on the seat as I cast my gaze around the interior in search of any goodies.

There didn't seem to be anything lying in plain view so I lent forwards and managed to pull the glove box open with some effort, revealing nothing but a faded manual and some discarded wrappers from long before the apocalypse hit. I screwed my face up in disappointment and threw them onto the backseat, ready to retreat back to the cabin when a glitter of foil caught my eye and under one of the half-destroyed wrappers I found a packet of chewing gum, finding only one piece missing after a quick inspection. I backed out of the car and slipped it into my back pocket for later use, at lease I wouldn't be returning empty handed.

Deciding that it was about time I headed back to the lifeguard hut I turned away from the car, my eyes widening in surprise to see a walker shambling towards me with outstretched arms, jaw hanging slack at an unnatural angle that would make a more sensitive person shudder. The elderly lady dragged herself forward, her steps muffled by the light grey slippers that enclosed her feet, intent on grasping her next victim.

I ducked away from her reach just in time, cursing my loss of focus as I had searched the car, no longer paying attention to my surroundings as I should have been. My situation was made worse when I saw that she was not the only walker descending upon my position, at least three others almost within striking distance already. I pulled my blades free with a grimace, not wanting to fire off any shots that would attract even more of the undead.

Not forgetting about the elderly lady at my back, I twisted my torso to swipe a blade towards her head, the metal tearing a deep path across her already deformed face before the next blade followed not a moment later and struck its target straight through her skull. Ripping the sword free as she toppled over, I struck out with my right hand and felled the closest walker, sending a powerful kick at its chest to send it falling back against the other two.

They stumbled as the corpse fell into their path, granting me a brief moment to catch my breath before they manoeuvred around the obstacle and resumed their jerking movements towards me. I slammed the hilt of my sword against the temple of the fastest creature, barely avoiding the grasping hand that was flung forwards at my face, pulling back just in time as it crumpled to the ground. The final walker didn't last long when it was stupid enough to trip over the body, falling helpfully to its knees before me with a guttural screech, the sound dying away when I finished it off with a well-aimed strike of my blade.

It soon became apparent that I had not hit one of the previous walkers with enough force as it rose unsteadily to its feet, swaying for a moment as it recovered from the hefty blow to the temple before careening towards me in the closest thing to a charge that the walker could achieve. I brought up my sword to block its advance, the sheer weight of the creature overcoming my resistance to push me back into the closest car, the air ripped from my lungs as my back thudded into the metal body of the vehicle. My right arm caught on the broken glass from a smashed back window, feeling a raised fragment of glass pierce the leather material of my sleeve.

Ignoring the sensation in my lower arm entirely, I grimaced at the frenzied hunger in the walker's eyes, an animalistic groan ripping from its lips as it came so close to claiming a fresh meal.

'You messed with the wrong blonde today sucker,' I growled right back at the walker, using a burst of energy to heave the flat of my blade against its chest to send it stumbling back a few steps, not as far as I would have liked but more than enough to give me the room needed to drive my sword through its head with enough force to ensure that it stayed dead this time. It soon joined the others on the ground, not about to get up again any time soon.

The bodies of the dead lay scattered before me, the element of surprise not having earnt them an easy meal. I was in the process of catching my breath when movement sounded from behind me. It startled me into action, the steps far faster than any walker I had heard before but I refused to be caught unaware yet again. I twirled with practised grace, raising my sword to the throat of the infected walker that had somehow managed to circle around me during the fight. I froze in place to find a startled pair of green eyes staring back at me, not the milky white that the walkers possessed but full of life and, right at that moment, fear.

A few seconds passed as I processed this information, still caught up in the adrenaline rush from the battle and seeing enemies around every corner. Alicia's eyes darted down to the dripping blade that was hovering barely an inch away from her throat, holding completely still in the knowledge that she had almost joined the collection of bodies on the floor. I dropped my arm hurriedly at the realization, relief passing across the girl's features to no longer have the weapon pointed at her in such a manner.

'I thought for a minute there you were going to run me through,' she joked lightly, the slight tremor in her voice betraying the confident tone.

'I very nearly did,' I admitted, still buzzing from adrenaline after the unexpected fight. 'What are you doing out here?'

'You were gone for a while, I came to check that you were okay,' she explained, even though I had told her specifically not to leave the cabin alone. It could've easily been her that had stumbled across the walkers and I daren't think how that would've ended.

'I can look after myself perfectly well, it would take more than that to get the better if me,' I assured her, gesturing to the gruesome scene behind me, putting away the sword now that the immediate danger had passed.

'You're injured,' Alicia noted, eyeing the ripped material of my sleeve that had been pronounced by the movement. I glanced down at it briefly, not bothered by the minor injury.

'I've had worse. We should get back to the cabin, we don't want any more encounters tonight,' I said dismissively, almost surprised to see the concern that the girl held after the way she had spoken to me earlier. I could never quite understand where I stood with her, recent events making it increasingly difficult to work out.

I took the lead, retracing my steps along the stretch of beach to arrive safely at the cabin, pushing the chest firmly against the door once we were inside. After unstrapping my collection of weapons and laying them on the small table in the corner, I sat in the chair that Alicia would usually claim. She hovered uncertainly by the door as I rolled up my sleeve to inspect the jagged gash inflicted by the glass that marked a path along my forearm just below the elbow.

The wound did not bother me, I had seen far worse and what little medical supplies I had recovered from the car would be sufficient enough to clean it up. Alicia on the other hand was looking at it with wide eyes, jumping into action to retrieve the supplies before I could even move. She rifled through the rucksack to pull free the bandages and a bottle of water, crouching at my side in silence intending to treat the wound herself.

'Alicia, I know enough about medicine to do this myself,' I told her, breaking the silence that had fallen between us ever since the walk back across the beach. Alicia didn't meet my gaze as she uncapped the bottle and tipped some of the water onto a cloth and gently went about cleaning my injury.

'I know,' she said softly, not elaborating further as she pulled the wet cloth gently across my skin, focusing on the task rather than dwell on the unsaid words between us. I clenched my teeth to smother a hiss of pain when the cloth came into contact with the torn flesh, willing a conversation to take place which would distract me from the burning sensation.

'I'm sorry I said those things earlier, I didn't mean any of it,' Alicia said, not exactly the uplifting conversation I had been hoping for but conversation all the same.

'You have a lot to deal with right now, I understand.'

The repetitive wiping of the cloth paused for a moment before continuing a second later, my words having surprised the girl. To some extent she was still in denial about the chances of her family returning, before long we would have to move on and she had to realise that soon.

Once done cleaning the wound Alicia began to bandage it, her technique was not half bad so I didn't stop her. I left my jacket off once she was finished, it would only make it hurt more during the night, and we both took up respective positions in the small cabin, Alicia propped up against the wall whilst I tried to get comfy on the wooden chair.

After a long period of silence, I had assumed the brunette was asleep until I tilted my head and saw that I wasn't the only one wide awake. Her eyes flicked up to me at the movement.

'Stop looking at me like that,' I told her, a hint of confusion creeping into Alicia's expression.

'Like what?'

'With those big, guilt-ridden eyes. You're going to start making me feel bad. This is nothing, you should see the other guy.'

The brunette rolled her eyes and looked away, not appearing fully convinced by my humour.

'Seriously, stop beating yourself up over it. You're forgiven, I'm forgiven, we're all good. Okay?'

Alicia considered my words for a moment, meeting my gaze once more with a hint of a smile.

'Okay.'

'Great, now get some sleep.'

Alicia POV

Morning light found me perched in my usual position on the end of the peer, legs dangling over the perilous drop as I rested my weight back on my hands and gazed out over the open water. It was not with expectance that I waited, but merely as a way to gather my thoughts. The only sound to reach my ears was the gentle lapping of waves on the shore, it was easy to forget about the nightmare that we were now living.

After my outburst yesterday I'd realised just how blinded I had been. Elyza had not been wrong about the chances of my family returning. When Nick and I had been split up that fateful day there had been a horde of walkers on our trail. I had been lucky to lose those that had focused on me but who was to say that Nick had been so fortunate? If the walkers had followed him down to shore than it may not have been safe for them to return to the beach.

There were endless possibilities and I may never know what had happened that day. I felt a pang of longing to see my family again, it was an entirely different situation that I now found myself in without them. No longer at sea, isolated from the danger, but on land with a new companion.

I tilted my head back to enjoy what warmth the weak sunlight provided and continued to think on what our options were. It was with reluctance that I dismissed the idea of waiting here any longer. We would run low on supplies shortly and from what Elyza had said, more walkers were appearing every day.

Soft footfalls sounded from behind me, loose pebbles skidding over the concrete before Elyza lowered herself down into a cross legged position on my left. I tilted my head and flashed her a quick smile, her lips curving in response before I returned my gaze back to the ocean.

'More trouble?' I inquired, noting the fresh blood stain that decorated the right shoulder of her jacket. Despite the injury she had received the previous day, it wasn't enough to deter her from going out on patrol of the beach. I had of course offered to go in her place, but to that she had only laughed and holstered her gun before striding out of the cabin without hesitation.

'A few more of them exploring the area,' she began, glancing down at the stain when I gestured to it silently. A curse fell from her lips as she tried to scrub it out the best she could, muttering under her breath about the inconvenience. It seemed we would need to go shopping sooner rather than later.

'I've been thinking and I have an idea,' I said a few moments later, her rapid cleaning coming to a swift halt as she glanced up at me suspiciously through narrowed eyes.

'If you want us to build an SOS sign I am throwing myself off the pier.'

I ignored the remark, not wanting to distract myself from what had now become clear to me.

'It's time we moved on, we should leave today.'

Elyza dropped the humour instantly, frowning slightly as she searched for the right words to say.

'Are you certain?'

I nodded my head, our time here had come to an end. She had made me see sense and I was sticking to my decision.

'We should leave now,' I insisted, rising to my feet and turning my back on the ocean tides as Elyza jumped up at my side. She didn't want to force the decision on me but her words yesterday had been true.

'Not that I think it's a bad idea, but is this really what you want?' she inquired one last time, jogging a few steps to catch up with my strides.

'It is the right decision,' I told her, the certainty in my voice assuring her that this wasn't a temporary belief. We were leaving for good.

'Alrighty then,' she said cheerily, not wanting me to dwell overly on thoughts of my family. 'Where to now? We can return to the house for some supplies but after that we've got all of America to explore.'

There were countless destinations to choose from and I considered each one until I remembered what Elyza had said after saving me from the walkers. I chewed thoughtfully on my lip as we ascended the ramp to the life guard hut, pitching my suggestion to Elyza when we entered.

'New Mexico.'

Elyza nodded absentmindedly as she grabbed her rucksack and took an inventory of her weapons. I handed her back the knife she had given to me and waited for her to understand.

'As good as any other state, why New Mexico?' she asked, pulling up the zipper after shoving a hand gun inside, throwing the bag over her right shoulder.

'Santa Fe.'

She arched an eyebrow at me in surprise, that was where she had been headed to rendezvous with her friends before she had stumbled across me. After bringing me all this way to find my family it was only fair to return the favour. Maybe one of us would have some luck with the reunion.

'That sounds like a very good idea,' she said with a grin, latching onto my meaning. 'But first things first, we need to take a dip in there.'

I frowned as she gestured in the general direction of the ocean, she couldn't be serious?

Apparently she was and within the hour we had both braved the freezing waters for an abrupt wash, leaving us both huddling in our clothes for warmth even if Elyza wouldn't admit that she was affected. After a quick search she had located some towels earlier from a nearby house and I reluctantly found that they improved my body temperature considerable.

Finally clean and dry, we gathered up the few supplies that remained in the hut from our stay before leaving the beach behind us. The car was not a far distance away, though we had to shelter for a few moments behind a van whilst we waited for a walker to stumble by.

Elyza chucked the rucksack into the back seat before we both climbed into the car. She didn't start the engine straight away and I glanced over to see what the holdup was. Leaning a fraction to the left she pulled free a tinfoil package from her back pocket which I soon recognised as chewing gum.

'I found it in a police car yesterday, nothing else of any use but it's better than nothing.'

She reached out and handed me the packet before she twisted the keys in the ignition and the old car rumbled to life. I gave Elyza one of the pieces and pocketed the remainder when she refused to take them back, switching her concentration to the road as we pulled away from the buildings. The mint flavour was a blessed relief from the dull taste of cereal bars that we had recently been eating and I would make the pack last as long as possible.

'Can we make a stop on the way?'

Elyza asked what my reasoning was, everything we needed was at the house she had taken me to a few days earlier in Arizona.

'I still owe you a new pair of boots,' I recalled, drawing a smile from Elyza who was surprised that I had even remembered the passing comment. She nodded her head in approval and adjusted our speed, easing her foot off the gas before I had chance to complain.

After collecting the rest of our supplies from the house we would be well on our way to New Mexico, only a few days away from our current position. It would be nice for Elyza to find her friends, and not only did I owe her a new pair of boots but indeed my life after all she had done for me. It looked like we were stuck with each other, though I could think of far worse company.

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