It seemed as though Carlos had been driving for days, when in reality, it had only been a few hours. The sun was beginning to come up now, and a new day was beginning. In the passenger seat, where Jackson was supposed to be, a small bag of supplies sat. Carlos still couldn't get the man out of his head, and even though Jackson told him to go without him, Carlos still felt like he could have saved him. He could have done something to get him out of there. What would Alyssa think when Carlos returned without him? Would she be angry? Upset? Or both?

Carlos sighed, life wasn't getting any easier now. The silence in the car was driving him mad, so he turned on Sarah's kids bop CD for some background noise as he drove. The scenery still looked all the same, but he knew he was getting close to the house in the woods that they were all staying in. It wouldn't be long now until he arrived there with the supplies. Why did he feel so shitty then? Is it because he let Jackson give up his life so easily? Or was it just everything going on that was finally causing the hispanic man to break down? Whatever it was, he didn't like the feeling.

When Sarah awoke, the sun was fully up, and she was still in the same spot that she was in when her father left. She knew that today was the day. Today was the day of his return, and her anxiety was growing with each passing minute. What if he didn't come back at all? Stop that, she chided herself. He will come back. At least, that was what she was hoping for as she kept her eyes practically glued to that damn window. And hopefully he'd come back with lots of supplies so he wouldn't have to go away again for a long long time.

"Sarah, you're up?" Nikki asked as she came down the stairs, ready to start breakfast.

Sarah nodded, "My dad's coming back today." She informed, almost a matter of fact tone of voice.

"What do you want for breakfast?" Nikki questioned as she was about to head into the kitchen.

"I'm not that hungry." Sarah lied. She would just eat when he dad came back.

"Okay sweetie." Nikki replied and walked into the kitchen. That's when Trevor came bounding down the stairs after his mom, yelling about eating some noodles or something like that. Sarah assumed that Alyssa was still in bed. She'd be happy when Jackson got back, Sarah thought. Then they'd all be okay for a while again. So, she waited and waited and waited for her dad's return. It had to be at least midday, when her anxiety began to grow again. Sarah knew her dad should be here by now, but he wasn't.

"Why isn't he here?" She questioned to Alyssa who was sitting on the sofa in the living room, waiting for Jackson's return as well.

"They might have found more places to stop at..." Alyssa shrugged. Sarah sighed, that wasn't a good enough answer for her. And why was Alyssa being so nonchalant about everything? Shouldn't she be worried about Jackson too? What if he didn't come back either? Suddenly, Sarah heard tires crunching on the ground, and she knew that that could only mean one thing. Her dad was finally back, and her heart flooded with warmth.

"He's here!" She nearly yelled out.

Alyssa chuckled, "I see that." The two then heard only one car door open and close, and that's when they realized something was wrong. Those realizations were only confirmed when just Carlos walked in the door without Jackson. Dead silence filled the small house, as everyone took this in. The look on Carlos' face literally told all. Sarah wanted to run up and hug her dad, but she knew that something was wrong, and it wouldn't be appropriate. "Where's Jackson?" Alyssa asked, her voice sounding more worried than ever.

"Did they make it back?" Nikki asked, walking into the living room and stopping dead in her tracks. "What happened?" She automatically knew something was wrong.

"Where's Jackson?" Alyssa asked again.

For the first time since Carlos had been back, he made eye contact with his daughter and she smiled at him. "Why don't you go upstairs for a moment, Sarah?" He asked, giving her a hug. "Daddy has to talk with the grown ups." She looked confused, and she probably was, but she obliged nonetheless and listened to her dad and headed upstairs where Trevor was playing. After Carlos made sure she was out of hearing range, he spoke. "He didn't make it." He stated the obvious. "He sacrificed himself so that all of us could be safe. And he said that he loves you Alyssa." The words for hard for Carlos to get out, but he knew he had to do it.

"No..." Alyssa whispered, her eyes welling up with tears. "I told him not to do that shit!" She sounded angry, upset, pissed off, and depressed all in one voice tone. Carlos knew that this was the reaction he would get though. He felt guilty again, and he didn't know what to say.

"Alyssa..." Nikki trailed off. "I'm sorry."

"I need to be alone." She spoke with a lump in her throat, not wanting to cry in front of these people. She bounded up the stairs and into her room. Carlos felt ashamed for even coming back here with bad news. He should have saved Jackson. Why didn't he even try?

Sarah came back downstairs, "I missed you daddy." She said, hugging him.

"I missed you too sweetie." He replied, a weak smile on his lips.

"Did you get the supplies?" She asked, looking up at him.

"Yeah." He said. "Yeah, I did."

"Good." Sarah smiled. "Now you don't have to go away again for a while." Carlos was happy to be reunited with his daughter, but he still couldn't shake this uneasy feeling he had in his gut. What would happen to the remainder of the group?