Claire was startled awake by a hand on her shoulder. She reached under her pillow for her knife; luckily, her sleep-addled mind caught up to her hand and she didn't end up stabbing Carl in the face.
"What d'you want?" Claire mumbled, voice thick with sleep.
Carl's expression was grim. "We've got company." He jerked his head at the window.
Muttering curses under her breath, Claire sluggishly rolled to her knees. She inched toward the window above her bed, peering through the lacy pink curtains into the street below. There was a car driving slowly down their street, its high beams turned on. As Claire watched, two men climbed out of the still-moving vehicle and began to prowl alongside it. Whoever they were, they were obviously looking for something.
Claire let out a low groan. "Fuck." It was so unfair, she thought. She'd been looking forward to spending the night in an actual bed, for once. "Maybe they just live around here?" Claire glanced behind her only to find Carl had already left the room. She sighed.
Dragging herself up, Claire shoved her feet into her boots, not bothering to lace them. She stepped on a broken barbie doll on her way out of the bedroom. The hallway was pitch black. It was a lovely house, but it had been abandoned for years, overtaken by dust and spiderwebs. Whoever the strangers were, their arrival couldn't have been a coincidence.
Claire had meant to follow Carl down the stairs, but changed her mind when she passed the master bedroom. She spotted Enid standing by the bedroom's window, peering through a slit in the curtains. The younger kids were present as well. Oliver was still lying in bed, rubbing his eyes and looking around sleepily. Judith sat beside him, chewing on a Twizzler and watching them curiously, a frown on her little brow.
Claire raised a finger to her lips, gesturing for the kids to stay quiet. She to the other side of the window, facing Enid. Standing flush against the wall, Claire pushed the curtains back the slightest bit, taking care not to be seen. The glass was filthy, dust and streaks of bird droppings obscuring their view. It was a tilted window that opened inwards. It didn't want to open, hinges stuck from lack of use. With some effort, Claire managed to pry it open. Slowly, so as to not draw any attention. A cool night's breeze drifted into the bedroom, raising goosebumps on her skin.
"Who are they?" Claire asked. She guessed they could be Saviors. From what the twins had said, they were not too far from the Saviors' compound. Or, she supposed, they could be Hunters. Enid had mentioned spotting more of them the other day.
Enid gave a helpless shrug in response. "No idea," she answered, keeping her voice low. "They just showed up."
Claire tilted her head to see farther down the street. She frowned. "There's another car coming."
The second car's headlights must have been broken because they flicked dimly as the vehicle rolled forward. As it drew closer, Claire noticed that it was actually a jeep. It stopped in the middle of the street for what seemed like forever before finally continuing its slow approach. Finally, it pulled into their driveway. Claire tensed up, her angel blade slipping into her hand. She didn't have a gun, but the other teenagers each had one for protection, and of course, there was always Castiel.
Speaking of which. "Where's Cas?" Claire whispered.
"I don't know," Enid mouthed back, concern lining her brow. "What do we do?"
Claire didn't know. She desperately wanted to go downstairs. On the other hand, she didn't want to leave Enid all alone with the kids. Glancing back at Judith and Oliver, Claire once again raised her finger to her lips, although the two had yet to make a peep.
She turned back to the window. The jeep looked like it was held together with spit and duct tape. The heavily armed men that pulled out of it seemed just as scruffy. Claire squinted, trying to see if the men had any occult-like tattoos, but they wore jackets, so it was impossible to tell.
One man was not like the others. He was on the shorter side, and he walked slowly, dragging his left leg with obvious effort. He held some kind of device in his hands. It looked like a ham radio, Claire thought. Well, technically she'd never seen a ham radio before, but whatever the stranger was carrying, that was the way she'd always pictured it. It didn't make any sounds, as far as she could pick up, but it had some kind of antenna, and the man seemed to be fidgeting with its various knobs and switches.
Another man sidled up beside him. "Sure ya readin' it right?" he drawled lazily, close enough that his voice carried through the open window.
The shorter man didn't look up from his instrument. "You would think so, wouldn't you?" the man replied, a touch of condescending amusement in his voice. His crisp English accent came as a sharp contrast to his companion's southern drawl. "I built it, Mr. Janklow."
Janklow chuckled. It was an unpleasant sound. "Then you won't mind explainin'."
"You wouldn't understand," the Englishman said, shaking his head. Glancing up at his companion, he sighed and offered reluctantly, "It's a modified spectrum analyzer. Do you know what that is? No, of course, you don't. Hunters, you're not the most educated lot, are you?"
Another man stepped forward, dark-skinned with a mean scowl. He didn't say a word, but he didn't have to. The Englishman took a step back.
"Reggie here's got himself a Ph.D. in Eastern Philosophy," Janklow stated proudly, thumping his friend on the shoulder. He turned his head slightly. "Now how about that? Pretty smart for a hunter, ain't it?"
Reggie crossed his arms over his chest. He didn't say a word.
"Really?" asked the Englishman, caught off guard. "Well, that's something, I suppose. Well done, erm… doctor." He cleared his throat. "If you must know, this - " he raised the device slightly- "allows me to detect signal distortions in background frequencies."
Janklow snapped his fingers. "Like echos."
"Precisely. They're subtle; but unmistakably celestial." He tinkered with his device some more until, finally, he let out a frustrated groan. "It was here recently. We've just missed it."
"Can't ya track it again?"
"What does it look like I'm doing? It's a delicate instrument, not a bloody compass."
The floor creaked inside the bedroom. The men downstairs instantly swerved their heads to the window. Claire ducked, pulling Enid down with her.
Mikey stood at the bedroom door, yawning and scratching his stomach. "What's goin- mmmph!"
"Shhh!" whispered Oliver. He'd sprung up to stand on the bed and slapped his little hand on top of Mikey's mouth.
Mikey stared back at the kid in wide-eyed confusion, then looked at Claire and Enid, bemused. He seemed to put two-and-two together quickly enough, realizing that something was happening outside.
Nobody had gotten Mikey, Claire realized guiltily. "I'm so sorry," she mouthed at him, then gestured at him to keep quiet.
No one moved or spoke. They didn't dare peek at the window again. A few moments passed in tense silence. Finally, they heard the Englishman speak up in disdain. "It's only the dead."
Claire let out a breath she didn't realize she was holding. Beside her, she felt Enid do the same. The Hunters didn't seem too interested in getting into the house, and for that she was grateful. Their last run-in with their kind had been bad enough. She rose to her feet and carefully readjusted the curtains, braving another peek at the strangers. The Englishman was obviously agitated, muttering under his breath while he fiddled with his device. The other two watched him impassively.
"We done here?" Janklow drawled lazily, studying the dirt under his fingernails. "It ain't here. We might wanna try again in the morning."
That only served to upset the Englishman. "And risk it flying away? Are you mad?"
Janklow let out a low chuckle. "It took Roy's truck, didn't it? The thing ain't flying nowhere."
The other man seemed to consider that. He nodded slowly. "You raise a fair point," he admitted. "Perhaps this one is… disfigured."
Claire's skin crawled. The Hunters were obviously looking for Castiel. She didn't like the way they kept calling him an it, or the thing, and she especially didn't like that they didn't seem to be the rank amateurs Castiel had suggested they were.
With a frustrated sigh, the Englishman began to limp back to the jeep. "All right, let's circle back to the others. I'll need to move somewhere with a higher altitude to recalibrate properly." He glanced back at the house with a heavy frown and added, "It's close, I can feel it."
They left. The jeep rumbled loudly then faded away as the strangers drove off into the night. The other car followed behind them. Claire didn't feel too relieved, all things considered. "What the fuck was that?" she asked, turning to her friends. "And where the fuck is Cas?"
"Castiel isn't here?" Mikey asked anxiously. He jumped, startled, when Carl suddenly appeared at the doorway, followed by Jake.
Jake leaned against the doorframe. "They're not Saviors."
"Honestly, I would've preferred it if they were," Enid said, exhaling sharply. "Did you hear what they were saying? They're hunting Cas."
Carl went to the window. He looked outside, then nodded to himself. He holstered his gun. "Cas went out about an hour ago," he said.
"Went where?" Claire demanded, feeling a headache coming on. She was too young to be babysitting a billion-year-old angel.
Carl sighed. He sat down next to Judith, pulling her to him in a one-armed hug. "He wanted to look for, uh, real food," Carl said, grimacing when Judith handed him her half-eaten Twizzler.
Claire rubbed her temple. "We shouldn't have given him any candy."
Claire turned to Jake, forgetting for a moment that she was angry with him. "Where's your brother? Did he leave with Cas?"
"Nah, he went up to the attic, said he's got a better view from up there." Jake imitated a gun going off, clicking his tongue for added effect.
Enid made a thoughtful hum. "You know, I think I know where Cas might've gone." She bent down to tie her shoelaces, adding, "it's not far."
Claire nodded. "That's a plan, then. Let's go get him. The rest of you, be ready to leave as soon as we get back."
Carl stood up. Claire shoved him back down. "You can stay here, you obviously haven't slept a wink."
"But-" Carl protested.
Claire raised a hand to stop him. "I'll go with Enid. We're the fastest."
"Says who?" Jake muttered as she shoved past him.
"Says me," she called over her shoulder, already out the door.
Claire and Enid hadn't left the others a chance to argue. Smaller groups were anyway less likely to draw attention, from the dead or the living. They took off in a light run, hoping to get to Castiel before the Hunters did.
They had a pretty good idea where he went: a supermarket they'd passed on their way into town. It was a Safeway chain store, not too far from the house. They hadn't bothered going in the first time, seeing as the place had been crawling with walkers. Regardless, it was a well-known fact that most supermarkets and department stores had been cleaned out a long time ago.
Claire would have told Castiel that, had he asked. "He's so impulsive," Claire complained to Enid, a little out of breath.
Enid's hair bounced with her every step. "Reminds you of anyone?"
Claire rolled her eyes. "Watch out," she said, spotting a walker in their path. It lay on its belly, legs cut off at its knees.
"Do you think they know he's an angel?" Enid wondered, sidestepping the walker's grasping hand.
"What do you mean?"
"Maybe they think he's something else. Hunters are supposed to hunt monsters, right?" she paused, breathing fast, "angels aren't monsters."
Claire grimaced. She wasn't sure about that. The Castiel she'd met all those years ago, the one who had a stick up his ass and didn't care about anything but his mission, that Castiel could've been a monster for all she cared. He'd mellowed out since, sure, but somehow she doubted the rest of the angels shared his perspective.
"Hunters are not supposed to shoot babies, either," Claire pointed out huffily.
The shopping center was coming into sight. They slowed their pace, catching their breath as they scanned the area. The parking lot was a minefield of dead bodies. Some of the bodies were displaying obvious stab wounds. Claire hoped it was a sign Castiel was nearby, but it was impossible to say how fresh the bodies really were.
Rounding up a corner, they came face to face with a particularly lively walker, dressed in a tattered paramedic uniform. It rushed at them with teeth gnashing and fingertips like claws. Working together, Claire and Enid forced it to the ground and shoved a knife through its eye.
"I think it crawled out of that ambulance, over there," Enid pointed out in between short, rapid breaths. The walker had been stronger than its skeletal frame suggested.
Claire went to look at the ambulance more closely. Something had caused it to crash against the side of the building. It was a common enough scene, she supposed. Emergency services had been one of the firsts to go. She noticed that there was a gurney hanging halfway out the ambulance's backdoors, its occupant's feet struggling feebly against restraints. Feeling sorry for the person it had been once, Claire climbed into the back of the ambulance and pierced the creature's skull, letting it out of its misery.
"Let's go," Claire sighed, shaking her knife clean.
The supermarket was just up ahead. They approached it warily, careful not to step on any of the bodies in their path. The building's windows were surprisingly not broken. Hooding her hands against the glass, Claire peered into the store, trying to make out anything in the dark. She gasped and jumped back when a decrepit face suddenly appeared right in front of her. The walkers trapped inside the supermarket emerged like ghosts from the darkness, pressing their horrifying faces to the glass, fingers clawing fruitlessly against its surface.
"Losing your life in the toilet paper aisle," Claire muttered darkly, "what a shitty way to go."
"Do you remember all the looting back then?" Enid asked, shaking her head. Then she sighed. "I guess I was wrong. I don't think he's in there." She watched the walkers crowding behind the store windows. "What do we do now?"
Claire bit her lip, thinking. Just then, a shadow appeared behind their reflections on the glass. Claire spun around, blade ready, when she realized it was Castiel.
"Jesus Christ, you scared me," Claire hissed, lowering her blade.
Enid breathed a sigh of relief at seeing Castiel, giving away how worried she'd actually been. "Cas, thank God."
"What are you doing here?" Castiel demanded, as angry as she'd ever seen him. "It's not safe."
Claire punched his shoulder. Annoyingly, he didn't even sway. "Looking for you, asshole," she said, rubbing her aching fist.
Enid was a little more composed. "Hunters showed up at the house. We came to warn you; they've been tracking you, Cas."
Castiel's eyes widened. "Who-?"
Claire shook her head. "Not your boyfriend, I'm sorry. It was some British creep and his lackeys."
"And they're definitely looking for you," Enid added, clearly agitated about the fact. She fidgeted, shifting her weight from foot to foot. "They were using some kind of, I dunno, homing device, I think? They were tracking you with it. We've heard them talking about it."
"Did they see you?" Castiel asked, brows furrowed. "Is everyone alright?"
Enid bobbed her head. "Yeah, yeah. They're waiting back at the house."
It occurred to Claire that the Hunters probably only knew about Castiel. She'd assumed they'd come after them because of what they did to their friends, but how could they? They must've just seen the bodies with the burnt-out eyes and just figured: angel.
She was about to point that out when they heard the jeep's rumbling in the distance. All three tensed, looking around for the approaching vehicle. It came barrelling into the parking lot, followed by several more vehicles that quickly had them surrounded. Claire lifted her arm to her face, blinded by the sudden onslaught of headlights. They were trapped there in front of the supermarket; walkers at their backs, hunters at their fronts.
Claire felt Castiel's hand on her shoulder, grounding her. It was time to consider their options. Even if Castiel was impervious to gunfire, Claire and Enid certainly weren't. Even so, could they even fight? Claire only had her angel blade with her. Enid had a gun and exactly two bullets. They were going to have to talk their way out of this one.
Talking… wasn't exactly Claire's strong suit. "What the fuck do you want?" Claire shouted. Her grip on her blade tightened.
The Hunters came out of their vehicles. They had an unpleasant air to them. The few women among them seemed especially unpredictable. Claire recognized the two she'd seen before, Janklow and his silent friend Reggie, among the crowd. They stood there, brandishing firearms and hawk-like expressions. It was a show meant for intimidation. But as her eyes adjusted to the light, Claire noticed many of them were holding their knives and guns in death grips, the white of their eyes betraying their nerves.
The Englishman with the big mouth appeared. He used his car's frame for support as he hobbled forward in obvious excitement. "Well, hello!"
"Again, what the fuck do you want?" Claire asked, gesturing at the man with her angel blade.
The Englishman eyed her angel blade curiously. "You're not what I was expecting." He raised his hands placatingly, stepping closer. As he moved, his jacket shifted, revealing a small handgun tucked into his waistband. "My name is Victor. I'd like to talk."
"Your business is with me." Castiel stepped forward, pulling Claire and Enid slightly behind him. "Talk quickly."
"Oh." Victor wetted his lips. He drew closer, his gaze passing over the three of them with keen interest. "Of course, my mistake."
Claire huffed a breath. "You're a hunter?" she asked, skeptically. The Englishman, or Victor, as it turned out, was a short, skinny man, with an entirely forgettable face. He didn't strike her as much of a hunter.
Victor pulled a face. "Oh heavens, no. I'm a researcher. I was sent here some years ago to study-" he made a vague gesture at Castiel- "that. For the betterment of mankind, you see. After that disaster of an apocalypse, oh, when was it? 2010?" He turned to Janklow, who nodded slowly. "That's ancient history now, I suppose."
"Sent by who? The queen of England?" Claire asked, unable to help her mocking tone. She was becoming increasingly annoyed by the encounter, and by the way Victor's friend, Janklow, kept staring at her. "Tell us what you want."
Victor chuckled softly. "What I want is to live a long, comfortable life." He lifted his pant leg, revealing a crude prosthetic. "And my leg back, of course."
Castiel's reply was terse. "I can't help you."
Victor tsked, dropping his pant leg. "See, I knew you would say that. Angels." He scoffed, shaking his head. "While I admit I'm very curious about this arrangement," he said, waving his hand at the three of them, "I'd rather just get on with it."
Victor drew the handgun from his waistband and fired at Castiel.
Claire cried out instinctively. She stood so close to Castiel that she felt the impact of the bullet hitting him. For a moment, nothing happened. Then Castiel swayed, surprise written on his face, and fell to his knees. Claire and Enid went down with him, doing their best to keep him upright. He clutched at his shoulder, blood seeping from between his fingers.
"Cas!" Enid cried out.
"What have you done?" Castiel gritted out through clenched teeth, still gripping his shoulder.
Victor grinned smugly. His jaw was crooked, giving him a lopsided, almost cartoonish grin. "Do you like it?" He lifted the gun slightly. "Angel-killing bullets, my creation. I am what you would call an expert in my field." He rolled his eyes when Castiel groaned in pain. "Oh don't fuss, it wasn't a kill shot."
Enid was breathing heavily. Still crouched at Castiel's side, she drew out her pistol. "Stay back!" she warned, her hands shaking.
It didn't seem to give Victor any pause. His eyes glazed somewhat as he stared at Enid, seemingly lost in thought. He pulled out a necklace from under his collar. It was some sort of talisman, an intricate design on a long chain. Victor rubbed it between his fingers, muttering, "We'll need a blood sacrifice for the binding spell."
That gave Janklow the cue to swagger forward. He smirked at Enid. "How 'bout you hand that over before ya hurt yourself?"
Victor tried to hold him back. "I didn't mean-"
It didn't matter; Enid took action. She pulled the trigger. Her hands were shaking so badly that she missed Janklow entirely. Pissed off, the hunter rushed at her. She fired again, and her second shot hit Janklow dead center in the chest. He stared at Enid in shock, and she stared right back at him, mouth open in horror. Claire knew she'd never killed anyone before.
Reggie, the hunter who'd so far stayed silent, made a terrible anguished sound. He caught Janklow as they both fell two the ground. He cradled Janklow in his arms, their hands joined at the gaping wound in his chest.
Taking advantage of the distraction, Claire got to her feet and called out, "Hey, goat fucker!"
Her fist collided with Victor's jaw in the most satisfying way. He stumbled, the angel-killing gun scattering to the ground. Claire scrambled after it. Victor did the same, but she was faster. She managed to grab it in time to pistol-whip him across the face, knocking him off his feet. He was stronger than he looked, but so was she.
"Angel-killing bullets, huh?" Claire panted out, chest heaving. "I bet they work on assholes like you, too."
Groaning, Victor rolled onto his back. Licking the blood from his lips, he stared up at Claire with wide eyes. "Now, wait a minute-"
"Shut up," Claire snapped.
It was a short-term victory, she knew. The other hunters were already drawing on her. Would they care if she killed Victor? Somehow, Claire doubted it. The only reason they hadn't fired on her already was the walkers at her back, behind the glass windows that could shatter with a stray bullet. Nevertheless, she knew it wasn't going to be a fight she could win.
The lights in the parking lot began to flicker.
"Claire!" Enid called out to her, alarmed.
"Listen to me," Victor said, holding a palm out defensively, "that thing, it's not what you think it is. It's evil-"
Claire fired another shot at his feet. His scream was high-pitched and distraught. She wondered if he cared more about losing his precious bullets than his life.
"Tell your friends to stay back," Claire warned, flickering her gaze to the hunters. It was then that she noticed they were backing back, alarm written on their faces.
A tremor was building beneath her feet. Breathing hard, emotion rising in her throat, Claire yelled without looking behind her, "Castiel, you need to snap out of it-"
A hand landed on her shoulder, hard. Castiel staggered forward, using her as a crutch. He was gritting his teeth with effort, and his eyes - they shone, pupils glowing with dazzling white light. He was still clutching at the bullet wound. With a pained cry, he let go of his shoulder and a flash of light pierced the air. Claire felt herself being flung away by the sheer power of it.
She came to a few seconds later, groaning. Claire lifted her head off the ground, scraping her chin on the asphalt. Miraculously, she was still gripping the angel-killing gun. Enid appeared beside her and pulled her up to her feet. There was a roaring in her ears. Claire wondered if she had a concussion. The ground shook beneath their feet, and Claire and Enid held each other to keep upright.
One of the hunters' cars had been converted into a smoldering, fiery mess, the ground around it scorched so hotly the asphalt had turned red. Distantly, Claire could hear screeching tires as the rest of the hunters fled in their vehicles. Victor was nowhere to be seen, but Claire couldn't care less about him right then.
"Cas!" Claire yelled over the noise gushing in her ears. She spotted him leaning over the hood of the hunters' jeep, head hanging low. The hunters had left it behind.
They ran to him, but before they could reach him, something grabbed Claire's foot. She fell, slipping out of Enid's grip. She instinctively brought up her arms to cushion her fall and her forearms slammed on the ground, painfully. She looked down to see Janklow had turned. The walker was snapping its teeth, snarling. It was hanging onto her ankle with an iron grip. Newly turned walkers were strong.
"Let go!" Claire yelled, kicking at its face. It didn't release her until Enid appeared and shoved her knife into its eye.
They reached Castiel. He was holding his shoulder, bowing low over the hunters' jeep. Light was shimmering beneath his hand. Claire was surprised he'd managed to hold it together for so long. It was a good sign, wasn't it? It had to be.
There was a buzzing in the air, almost like static electricity. Claire swallowed. "Come on, Cas. You did it before. Just keep it together for me, okay? Can you do that?"
"No," he grunted out, shaking his head minutely. "I can't."
"Yes, you can!" Claire insisted, having to shout above the rising shriek of the wind. "You have to!"
With great effort, Castiel lifted his head to look at her. Light shone from his mouth and eyes. His voice sounded all wrong. "Claire. You promised me."
Claire couldn't see his eyes behind the white glare. It shimmered under his skin in waves. It was like staring into the sun. She had to look away.
"We have to go!" Enid screamed, pulling Claire's arm. Her voice sounded far away, although she was right next to her. "Claire! We have to go!"
Castiel stumbled back from the jeep, face downturned. The hand not clutching his shoulder was held up, holding them at bay. Go, he said, but it wasn't his voice she'd heard, but a cracking bolt of lightning that flashed across the sky. Go, don't look back, it said again, and the ground shook. Castiel fell to his knees.
Choking back tears, Claire allowed Enid to pull her into the jeep. Enid drove them out of the parking lot like a woman possessed, determination written on every inch of her face. Claire didn't heed Castiel's warning and looked back. There was a column of light where Castiel stood, so bright it made her eyes water. For a moment, she wondered if she'd turn to salt. She averted her gaze, only to cry out a warning when a tree fell in their path.
Enid managed to swerve around it in time, cursing. For someone with barely any experience behind the wheel, Enid turned out to be an excellent driver under pressure. Claire didn't know how the jeep stayed in one piece. It thrummed under them, every light flickering, radio spewing deafening static. The chaos seemed to be following them, streetlights burst one after another as they passed, ramming into walkers without care. Then a chasm opened in the road before them. Claire screamed out a warning, but it was too late.
Claire had only a vague recollection of what followed. She couldn't remember crawling out from under the upturned car, or their desperate dash to the house, her hair blowing wildly around her head and the wind nearly lifting her off her feet. She could only vaguely remember Jake half-carrying her into the house and down into the basement, where they all huddled together, hands clasped over their ears as the house fell apart on top of them.
Somewhere far away, someone was screaming. Somehow, Claire knew that it was Castiel.