Barry looked down the sewer hole, and shook his head. "It's too dark to see anything," he said.

Claire walked over to a shelving unit, and came back with two flashlights. She handed one to Barry, and he grinned. "Why, thank you!" he said. He used the light to look down and sighed. "Well there's water, but I don't think it's too high. We should be able to walk through it," he said.

"And what do we do if we run into a horde of zombies?" asked Rebecca.

Barry looked up to Chris, who held up a gun. "We fight through, and get back out of the sewers through another manhole," he said.

"And what if they jump us right when we get down there?" she asked.

Chris paused. "I actually didn't think of that," he said.

Leon sighed. "Someone has to check it out," he said.

"That's stupid," Chris said.

Claire stepped forward. "Actually, it's the only way to know for sure," she said. She caught a glare from Chris, and shrugged. "Unless you have a better idea," she added.

"Leon's right," Jill said. She sat down on the side of the sewer hole and looked at Barry. "Flashlight?" she asked.

Barry shook his head. "I'll go, I'm older," he said.

Jill reached up and grabbed the light from his hand, and smiled. "That's why you're staying here, might need to climb up fast and wouldn't want you to hurt your back or anything," she said.

Barry laughed, having no idea how to respond. Jill looked at Chris, who looked like a sad puppy worried about its owner. "If there were zombies down there, we would be hearing some sort of noise and you know it," she said. She stepped onto the ladder and climbed down. They watched as she disappeared into the darkness.

Jill reached the bottom, cold water going up to her hip, and turned on the light. In one direction there was a gate, and the other seemed like an empty tunnel. She grinned and looked back up. "It's good!" she called out.

Barry was the first one to go down the ladder. He skipped the last step and landed next to Jill. "Whoa! That's cold!" he said.

Rebecca stopped halfway down the ladder. "How cold is it? We can't risk hypothermia," she said.

"It's not THAT cold, doctor. Come on!" Barry said, shining his light up the ladder.

Rebecca hopped down and looked around. "Sure smells, though," she said.

Leon climbed halfway and jumped down the rest. He walked down the tunnel a bit, looking around.

Claire was the next one down, followed by Chris who shut the sewer entrance behind him. "Well seems like we'll be fine," Chris said, "we would've heard them by whoa!" his foot slipped on the ladder and he dropped down, hitting Claire on the way. They both plunged in the water, splashing the others.

Barry grabbed Claire's arm and pulled her up, while Jill did the same for Chris. "Are you okay?" she asked.

Chris nodded and looked over to Claire. "Sorry, my foot slipped," he said.

She glared at him, and sighed. "Don't worry about it," she said. Her hair was dripping in her face, and she had to brush the bangs away from her eyes. "Well that's just gross."

Chris frowned, and turned to Jill. "So we have two guns and two flashlights, right?" he asked.

Jill nodded. "I think we should try getting to Barry's car, get his gun, then find a gun shop," she said.

"Should we split up?" Barry asked.

Jill looked at him. "Why would we do that? We only have two guns!" she said.

Barry shrugged. "One group could find my car, and the other finds the shop. We have cell phones, so we could meet up again after," he said.

"That's actually not a bad idea," Chris said. "Alright, Jill and I will go straight down the tunnel, and you guys take that turn up ahead," he said.

Rebecca handed the gun to Barry. "Here, you have a better shot," she said. He grinned and handed her the flashlight, and the group started down the tunnel.

Leon walked next to Claire, and nudged her. "Here we go again, huh?" he said.

Claire nodded. "I've had it with these damn sewers," she said.

Leon laughed. "When do you think the giant alligator will show up?" he asked.

"It was a crocodile, Leon," she said.

"No, I'm pretty sure it was an alligator," he replied, grinning.

Claire couldn't help but smile. Once they reached the turn, Chris stopped and turned around. "Alright, we'll call Barry's phone in ten minutes to check-in, and from there we'll see what we can do," he said.

Barry nodded and headed down the tunnel, followed by Rebecca. Leon and Claire followed, but Chris grabbed Claire's arm on the way. "You're coming with us," he said.

Claire sighed and nodded. "I figured as much," she said.

Leon waved and followed the other two. They disappeared into the darkness.

Jill pointed the flashlight to Chris. "We should get going too," she said.

Claire walked over to Jill and they started down the tunnel. Chris noticed she was a bit off-balanced, and made a note to ask Rebecca about it later.

"Do you even know where the shop is?" Jill asked."It feels like we've been walking forever!"

"Hey, he said it was on Main Street...it's not the shortest street around," Chris said.

They'd called Barry three times already, and he'd told them he found his gun and were holding up in a small coffee shop on Main Street. Jill had told them they'd meet there, and wouldn't take long. That had been half an hour ago.

"And what if we're going in the wrong direction?" Jill asked.

Chris shrugged. "That's what I mean...it's a long street and I have no idea where it is," he said.

Jill pulled out her phone. "I'll call Barry and ask what's nearby, it might help us find it," she said.

Chris spotted a zombie walking around in the distance, but it hadn't seen them. It was stumbling near a car. He heard a strange gurgling noise and turned to see Claire leaning over a railing, throwing up. He quickly ran over. "What's wrong!" he asked.

Claire looked up, shaking her head. "My stomach hurts, that's all," she said.

Chris put his hand on her back, and looked up as Jill walked over. "We're going in the right direction; the shop's only a few blocks down. What's going on?" she asked.

"Claire was sick," Chris said.

"I'm okay now, really. I think it's just nerves or something," she said.

"Well we should find you some water," Chris said.

Jill walked over to Claire and put her hand on her forehead. "I don't think it's just nerves, you're burning up," she said.

"I'm fine," Claire said.

Chris looked at her eye-to-eye, and frowned. "You feel feverish, don't you," he said accusingly. Claire sighed and nodded.

"It's not that bad," she said.

"You're throwing up from a fever! It IS that bad!" Chris said. "What happened?"

Claire blinked, leaned over the railing and was sick again. Chris shot a worried look to Jill, but she shook her head. "It can't be an infection unless she was bitten," she said.

He looked back down to his sister. "Were you?" he asked.

Claire shook her head, but kept her head over the railing.

"How's your arm?" Jill asked.

Chris took Claire's arm and looked at the gash. "Looks pretty bad, didn't Rebecca clean it?" he asked.

Claire looked up at him and shook her head. "Never got around to it," she said.

"Shit...We should go find them as soon as possible," he said.

"You know, something might've gotten in there when she fell in the sewage water," Jill told Chris.

Chris looked up. "Something like what?" he asked, not really wanting to know the answer.

Jill shrugged. "Bacteria, dirt, anything that could cause an infection really," she said.

Claire stepped away from the railing, slightly misbalanced. "Can we just go? It's probably nothing," she said. Everything was spinning, and she had a hard time focusing on their faces.

"Let's find the others, and see what Rebecca says about it," Jill said.

"What a great birthday you turned out to have," Chris said to Claire.

She sighed. "Yeah, zombies and barfing...best day of my life," she said.

Jill grinned. "Get ready; next year, you'll be old enough to drink," she said.

Claire shook her head and started down the sidewalk. "If I make it that far," she said.

Chris grabbed her arm. "Hey! Don't ever say that!" he said.

She looked at him, sighing. "Look around Chris, we're surrounded by outbreaks and zombies, and monsters that are just NOT supposed to be here! No matter how hard we fight, we keep getting fucked in the end!" she said. She took a deep breath, and fell to the pavement.

Chris was next to her in an instant. He shook her slightly, and felt for a pulse. "She's unconscious," he said, looking up.

Jill could see the panic on his face. "It's the fever," she said. "Let's find the others, now."

Chris picked her up on his back, her head leaning on his neck. He looked at Jill as they walked down the road. "What if the virus got in that water, Jill?" he asked.

"It didn't," she said reassuringly.

"But what if it did!"

Jill sighed. "You'd be feeling sick too if it had, since you both went under. I'm putting all of my money on bacterial infection," she said. She smiled, hoping it would make him feel a bit better.

"How much money?" he asked.

Jill grinned. "Do I have to pull a bank job?" she asked.

Chris finally smiled back. They walked down the road, hoping the coffee shop was as close as Jill thought.

"Where the hell are they?" asked Leon, pacing back and forth.

"Alright, no more espressos for you," Rebecca said, taking a cup out of his hand when he walked by her.

Barry looked out the window. "You know, for a huge city like New York, you'd think there'd be more zombies out there," he said.

Rebecca nodded. "Maybe it's not as bad as we think?" she said.

Leon looked at them both. "It's pretty bad either way...I think we're just lucky that there aren't a lot of them nearby," he said.

Barry walked over to the backdoor and pulled at the handle again. He wanted to make sure it was still locked, so nothing could sneak up on them. Rebecca reloaded the guns, and Leon continued to pace. "They should be here by now!" he said.

"Would you stop walking around? You're making me nervous!" Rebecca said.

Leon sighed and sat on a chair. "Sorry, I'm just worried," he said. He looked up to Barry. "You said they weren't far when Jill called, right?" he asked.

Barry nodded, hopping up on the counter and taking his magnum from Rebecca. "They might've stopped somewhere, though," he said.

"Where would they stop at a time like this?" Leon asked.

Just then, there was a noise at the backdoor. Barry hopped off the counter, gun aimed at the door. It was a solid door with bolt-locks, but he had to be cautious. The knob was jiggling, and then there was banging.

"Barry?" called a muffled voice.

Barry sighed with instant recognition. "It's Jill!" he said, lowering his gun.

There was another knock. "Barry, it's us! Let us in!" Jill called again. He rushed to the door, unlocked it and opened it up with a smile, which soon faded when they stepped in. Chris nearly ran in with Claire on his back, heading straight for a lounge sofa. Barry closed the door, locked it, and joined the others gathering together.

Chris put Claire down on the sofa, Rebecca already at their sides. "What happened?" she asked.

"She fell unconscious," he said. "Jill says she's got a fever, too."

Rebecca put her hand against Claire's forehead, and grabbed her wrist to check the pulse. Jill sat down on a lounge chair. "My theory is an infection from the sewage water," she said. Leon went to the mini-fridge behind the counter and pulled out a bottle of water. He then took a small bag, reached into the large cooler and filled it with ice.

Rebecca examined the gash on Claire's arm, and frowned. She looked up to Chris, and he could see she was worried, which terrified him. "Don't give me that look!" he said.

The young medic sighed. "It's infected alright," she said. "I'm sorry, I should've cleaned it before...but I was distracted by the zombies, and after that everything sort of rushed around, I didn't even think about it," she said.

Chris put his hand on her shoulder. "Nobody's blaming you, Rebecca," he reassured her. "She didn't say anything, either," he said.

Leon ran back and handed the ice-bag to Rebecca. She nodded and put it on Claire's head. "She never mentioned feeling any dizziness?" she asked. Chris shook his head. She looked back down. "Well, I'll need some disinfectant, gauzes, and most likely rubbing alcohol," she said.

Barry smiled. "I'll go check the back and see if this place has a first aid kit," he said. Chris gave him a thankful smile as he left.

"I'll go make sure he doesn't get lost," Jill said, following Barry. He laughed and nudged her arm as they went to the back.

"She'll be fine, right?" Leon asked. Chris could hear the worry, and suddenly felt bad for saying what he did earlier that day. He looked back to Rebecca, as anxious to hear her response.

Rebecca nodded. "All we can do is clean the wound and wait until she wakes up. And when she does, make sure she drinks a lot of water, and make sure she doesn't move too fast," she said. She looked at Chris. "If she feels nauseated, let me know right away," she added.

Chris bit his bottom lip. "She already threw up," he said.

Rebecca blinked. "She did? How many times?" she asked, her tone urgent.

"Um, about three or four times, why? What's wrong?" he asked.

She sighed and looked at the arm again. "It might be worst than I thought," she said.

Leon stood and returned to his pacing. Chris looked down, unsure of what to think. "So we'll hold out here as long as we need to. Leon, you're coming with me," he said.

Leon looked over, confused. "Where are we going?" he asked.

Chris stood up and looked at him. "To the gun-shop...we'll need more fire power," he said.

"Alright, let's go before it gets too late," Leon said.

Chris grabbed the gun off the counter and looked back to Rebecca. "Call me if anything happens, okay?" he asked.

Rebecca nodded. "Be careful," she said.

He nodded and headed out the front door, followed by Leon. They headed down the road, in search of the gun shop.