Hey, it's Mr. Potassium here! Sorry for the delay, once again! I was very busy the past weeks and was not able to get around the story as often as I wanted to. However, I was relieved whenever I did have time to write the story, since it meant that I would be a couple words closer to bringing this chapter to you guys. So if you're reading this by the time it updates (sorry, East Coast), then Happy Valentine's Day! This is the gift for everyone, single or not! Without further ado, here is the seventh chapter of the story! Enjoy!

Updated: 06/16/23

-Six Years Ago-

George smacked his hands as he swallowed the last bite of his peanut butter and jelly sandwich. He grabbed a napkin and wiped his mouth.

"Alright, baby, I gotta go now," said George.

"You sure you can't wait any bit longer? I can wake Emma up right now."

"Ah, let her sleep in. I won't be out too late today. Still time left to celebrate."

"Okay. Bye, George."

George leaned close to his wife and kissed her when his daughter walked to the kitchen. The small six-year-old girl had brunette hair in pigtails.

She yawned and walked closer to her father.

"Nevermind," smiled George. "Look who's finally up."

"Happy birthday, daddy! Wait, are you leaving?" asked his daughter.

"Sorry, they called me in today."

"B-But we were supposed to have breakfast together!"

"I know... I'm sorry. But duty calls. And I can't just ignore them and... I'm sorry. I really am. But we can still have dinner together."

"Okay..."

"I'll see you later, baby girl."

"Wait! Before you go..."

Emma ran up the stairs, leaving George standing by the front door. He sighed as he looked at his watch.

"What could she be getting?" he asked.

George's wife shrugged. She approached the stairs.

"Sweetie, what are you doing?" she called out.

Emma ran back down the stairs holding a small action figure of a police officer.

"Here you go!" Emma said gleefully. "You see it? That's you! Fighting bad guys and saving the world!"

"Oh! This is... wow! Thank you so much!"

"Happy 27th birthday, daddy."

George chuckled and knelt down to give his daughter a small kiss on her forehead.

"Thank you, Emma. No father can ask for a better daughter."

George then stood up.

"Bye, sweetie. Don't let Mommy allow you to make a big mess."

The girl giggled and waved goodbye. George waved goodbye, still holding the action figure. He then walked out of the house with a big smile.

Many hours passed.

George walked to the house holding a cake. He reached for his pockets and pulled out his keys. However, to his surprise, the door was already unlocked.

The door slowly opened as George stepped into the dark house. He felt his heart racing as he expected to be surprised by his family and friends. However, as soon as he flicked the light switch, the lights revealed an stairway and living room. He could hear the TV, though.

"Ever since May of last year, violence between law enforcement and the gang known as the Piranhas escalated into dangerous levels," reported an anchorwoman in the TV.

George looked down. He saw a tiny plastic stick and confetti all over the floor. He was confused.

"Hey, Mary, I'm home!" he called out. "I thought Emma wasn't going to make a big mess tonight?"

George wandered around the dark living room, which was only lit up by the light from the TV. He was creeped out by the lack of response. He turned on the lights for the living room. Nothing again.

"The first victims of the ensuing violence on the law enforcement side are Zachary Goldman, Vincent Hansen Kal, Clint Haywood, and Franklin Emery, in which all four were killed in an ambush in Hudson, a city 30 miles south of Albany..."

George placed the cake down on the dining table and stared at the TV, wondering why the news were reporting on the deaths of his fellow agents. he then walked over to the kitchen.

"The violence is causing distress throughout the Albany community and the entire state..."

The lights turned on.

"It appears the reports have now been confirmed by the Federal Bureau of Investigations. The string of murders that occurred are, in fact, family members of the agents involved in the violence between the FBI and the Piranhas..."

Bullet holes riddled the pictures on the refrigerator. One particular photo had Mary and Emma's face holed out with only George's face being the visible one.

Blood stained the birthday hats and confetti sticks. Bullet casings littered the floor.

George was on his knees with tears in his eyes.

"No, no, please... Emma! Mary!"

George grabbed his daughter's body. He looked at the dry blood on her mouth and her unmoving eyes. He saw the bullet holes on her shirt.

"No! NO!"

Blood marked the tiles on the kitchen floor as George placed his hand on his wife's neck. He then broke down sobbing.

Ambulance and police sirens could be heard in the background as George held his daughter's body tightly.

On the refrigerator was a piranha symbol painted with blood.

Chapter 7: Yet Another Obstacle

I - Dry Drowning

-Present Day-

An ambulance appeared idle in the middle of the dim road. No sirens were heard and no flashing lights were seen. However, that did not make the current situation any less of an emergency. It provided all the aid that a person needed in a time of dire need for medical supplies.

"Carol, grab the towels in the rack over there!" demanded Lisa.

Carol nodded and grabbed the towels. She handed them over to Lisa.

Sergei was grabbing ammo boxes and placing cartridges into empty magazines.

Vonda was staring at the chaotic scene around her.

"Watch closely. Expect more of this. You'll need to know how to do this soon."

Richard watched over Missy as her closed eyes worried his racing heart.

"Fuck, fuck, fuck..." muttered Richard to himself.

"Hey, she's going to be all right," said David.

"She was 'posed to be safe. Then... fuck. I told her the plan. She was 'posed to be in the black van. Not the blue one."

"She wanted to save the kids. She's got a good heart."

"And now she's going to die because of that! Fuck, man... she's always trying to save the world. Not like me. I'm the asshole who wanted to save my own skin."

"She's going to wake up and tell you that you did the right thing. You saved all those kids back there."

"Not all of them," said Lynn, looking away.

David turned towards Lynn. He swallowed hard, feeling responsible for what happened to Francisco. He wanted to walk over to her, but the other group members needed his attention more.

"Hey, David," groaned D, clutching his thigh. "Guess we shouldn't have trusted that asshole, huh?"

"I'm sorry, kid," said David.

"Nah, man. We had no choice. If it were up to me..."

D wheezed before groaning in pain as he looked at his hand. His palm was painted with blood.

"Oh my god..." whispered Becky, kneeling by D.

"How am I still bleeding?" panted D.

"Lisa! D needs attention over here!" shouted David.

"Here, hold this," said Lisa, handing over some tweezers to Carol.

Lisa jogged over to David. She then looked down at D.

"Oh, yikes," said Lisa.

"That doesn't sound good," panted D.

"The bullet seems to have struck an artery. If the bullet had penetrated fully through, you would have bled out seconds after getting shot."

D sighed. Lisa grabbed some towels. She handed them over to Becky.

"Just keep adding pressure," said Lisa. "And don't move him."

"Okay," said Becky, grabbing the towels. "Alright, Derrick, just stay still."

Dana and Tad cringed upon seeing D's wound. Becky wiped the blood from D's leg and closed the wound with the towels. Wavehead wiped D's forehead with one of the towels.

Bobby snuck a glance at D before looking back at Lori, attempting to talk to her. However, Lori simply cried into her hands.

Lisa grabbed the tweezers and handed a flashlight to Carol.

"Okay, Carol, just point the flashlight at the wound and pay careful attention to what I will do," ordered Lisa.

"Got it," replied Carol.

Carol pointed a flashlight at Missy's neck.

Lisa put on a pair of nonlatex gloves, a towel around her mouth, and began to move the tweezers closer to her neck.

Missy was lying down on the grass adjacent to the sidewalk, unconscious. A bullet fragment was in her neck and could also be seen from the surface.

Lisa grabbed the bullet fragment from her neck and pulled it out slowly and steadily. The wound then started leaking blood. She grabbed the towel from her mouth and wrapped it around Missy's neck.

"Press the towel against her neck gently," said Lisa. "Not a lot of pressure is needed."

Carol held the towel and followed Lisa's orders. Lisa then moved on to the other bullet fragment in Missy's collarbone.

The fragment was lodged deep into the collarbone. Lisa knew the risks in extracting a bullet that deep into the collarbone, but she had to take the risk anyway if Missy wanted to move her neck and shoulder.

"Are you alright, Lisa?" asked Carol after noticing that Lisa did not move for a few seconds.

"Yes. I was just thinking. Let's proceed."

Lisa dug into the small wound with her tweezers and took a hold of the dented bullet tip. She inched the bullet tip closer and closer out of the bone. She then tossed the fragment into the grass and grabbed bandages. She stood up and looked up at Richard.

"She's going to be in stable condition," said Lisa.

"Can't believe it," sighed Richard. "My wife got saved by a child."

"I believe the appropriate response is 'thank you.'"

Richard chuckled. He looked down and nodded.

"Thank you," he said.

"You're welcome. Now, hold the towel against her neck gently. And, Carol, come with me."

Richard knelt down.

"Here," whispered Carol.

Carol released her hands from the towel. She looked at Richard, who was on the brink of tears. He was looking straight at Carol.

"Thank you," whispered Richard.

Carol nodded and pulled her hair behind her ear. She stood up and followed Lisa.

Lisa and Carol walked onto the RV where D was lying down. They both crouched down.

"So, how bad is it gonna hurt?" asked D.

"It will not be painless," said Lisa.

"Great. Is there a way to make it hurt less?"

"Unfortunately we are lacking painkillers, but you can bite into this towel."

Carol handed a towel to D. He took a deep breath.

"How nervous are you feeling, D?" asked Wavehead.

"Nervous? I'm scared, bruh," replied D before looking at Becky. "At least someone is comforting me."

Becky smiled and blushed.

D smiled as well before taking a nervous breath to get ready for the operation. He then moved the towel close to his mouth.

"Wait, maybe this will help you feel better," whispered Becky.

She leaned in close to D's face and softly kissed him.

Wavehead and Dana both smiled.

Lisa sighed as she tapped her tweezer impatiently.

Tad's eyes widened as Carol looked over at him worriedly. He shook his head softly before walking away. He sat on a sofa next to Bobby and Lori.

D opened his eyes and smiled.

"That did help me. Thanks, Becky."

"No problem," whispered Becky with a blush.

"Are you ready, Derrick?" asked Lisa.

D nodded and placed the dry towel in his mouth. Lisa inserted her tweezers inside of D's wound and began to remove the bullet. D gasped and clenched his teeth as Lisa started pulling the bullet out. Becky flinched as D squeezed her hand tightly.

Dana couldn't bear to watch the bullet being removed and she put her hands over her eyes. D let out a pained grunt before gasping heavily and then softly.

Becky turned to look at Lisa and saw the bullet being held by Lisa.

"Nice!" exclaimed Wavehead, though he still had a worried expression.

Carol turned off the flashlight and took out a long, white cotton object with a string attached to it. She handed it over to Lisa.

"Oh, what's that?" asked D.

"This would be a tampon," said Lisa.

Dana squinted her eyes and was left speechless. Becky was shocked as well.

"We don't have the tools nor the setting to stitch up your arteries properly," said Lisa, inserting the tampon into D's bleeding wound. "This will do for now."

"And whose is that?" asked Becky.

Carol looked at Becky and blushed softly. Becky shook her head and sighed. She then let out a small laugh.

"You came well prepared, Carol," said Becky.

Lisa cleaned up the blood in D's leg with a damp towel.

"Indeed," said Lisa. "Had it not been for the tampon, I would have had to use one of the towels. And it would have hurt a lot."

She looked at D.

"I have successfully removed the bullet from your leg without any complications. You should be stabilized in the next few minutes after I stitch you up. For now, leave the tampon to soak up the blood in your wound. Now, let's go stitch up Missy's neck, Carol."

Carol stood up and followed Lisa to the sidewalk.

Becky let out a sigh of relief. Wavehead sat down next to D.

"You feeling a lot better now?" asked Wavehead.

"Hell yeah," said D. "Guess it ain't my time yet."

Tad sighed and closed his eyes. He felt his heart pounding with jealousy.

Lincoln entered the RV. He saw Clyde sitting in the booth table, looking out the window.

"Hey, Clyde," said Lincoln.

"Hey, buddy," sniffled Clyde.

"Is Francisco...?"

"Yeah."

Lincoln shook his head and took a seat as he let out a deep sigh.

"I have never seen Lynn so devastated before," said Lincoln.

"Me neither. First she loses Margo, then Lola, and now Francisco... I can't imagine how she must be feeling right now."

Lincoln let out tears. Becky and D looked over at him and Clyde, feeling sorry for them.

"It's all my fault," sniffled Lincoln. "I came up with the plan. But I didn't think to come up with a better plan. I thought we could trust Gus..."

"Lincoln... no," said Clyde. "David approved of it. And it's like D said, we didn't have a choice."

D nodded his head.

"Still... I could've come up with a better plan," said Lincoln. "I'm supposed to be the man with the plan. But if my plans lead to people getting killed, then what use am I?"

"You don't need to have a use. We don't need to have a use. We're just kids. The adults are supposed to be the ones keeping us safe."

"It feels like no one can."

Tad looked over at the children. Now his heart was pounding out of frustration towards himself. Lori stood up from the sofa and walked over to the booth table.

"Lincoln..." said Lori. "Don't beat yourself up. Your plan was good. It was I who failed. I should've listened to David and distracted the Piranhas. But I froze. And then..."

Lori huffed as she wiped her eyes. Bobby held her arms and gave her a soft hug from behind.

"I only moved because I saw that Lynn was in danger. I'm so... selfish."

Becky looked at Lori. She then looked at Tad, who had his eyes closed. However, she could tell he was listening.

"Your plans are good. We just need to execute them better. I need to execute them better."

Lincoln walked up to Lori and hugged her. Lori hugged him back.

"I'll go check on the others," whispered Lori.

Lori and Bobby walked out of the RV. Tad opened his eyes and followed them.

Ronnie Anne was biting her nails as Lori and Bobby walked over to Vanzilla.

"Hey, niní," said Bobby.

"Bobby! Thank goodness."

Ronnie Anne ran up to Bobby and hugged him.

"I didn't see you, I thought you got left behind."

"Sorry. I was just talking to Lori inside the RV."

"Bobby! Lori!" exclaimed Darcy, her eyes reddened from crying.

Bobby knelt down as Darcy leaped up to him. He grunted softly as he was pushed back slightly by her body weight before he stood up and allowed Lori to see her.

"Hi!" smiled Lori, wiping her tears.

"Are you okay?" asked Darcy.

"Of course we are? Are you?"

"I mean... I am now. But earlier, I was so scared. The guns were so loud. Even when I cover my ears, I could still hear the loud guns."

"Oh, Darcy. It's all over now."

"The bad guys are all gone?"

"For now. But... I'm sorry, Darcy. It's not really over. Not until we leave this state."

"And when are we leaving this state?"

"I don't know. We still have to check Albany out, but maybe... maybe we can convince Bobby to skip that place for now?"

Bobby nodded softly.

"No way, Lori," said Ronnie Anne. "These guys are dangerous. If my family are still in Albany, we have to get them out of there!"

"Your family isn't in Albany!"

Bobby looked at Lori and shook his head. Lori sighed as Ronnie Anne looked at the two of them with a confused expression.

"Think about it," said Lori. "The Piranhas probably forced all the survivors in Albany out of there."

"Then they would've headed for Detroit. We would have met them somewhere along the way, right? Maybe they left a letter or something about where they went. We really don't know until we check it out, right?"

"Ronnie, the Piranhas are literally swarming the place. We can't risk our group's lives."

"I thought you cared about my family. They treat you like family."

"I care about them. It's just... look how scared she is."

Ronnie Anne looked at Darcy. Darcy was shivering softly as she held on to Bobby. Ronnie Anne rolled her eyes and stormed away.

Bobby looked dejected.

"Don't worry," said Lori. "She'll come around."

Bobby nodded. Lori then walked into the van, checking on her sisters.

"Lori!" exclaimed Luan.

"Is everyone okay?" asked Lori.

"Everyone is," said Lucy. "Except maybe Leni over here."

"I'm... I'm okay," sobbed Leni. "But... Lily here... she can't stop crying..."

Lori looked at Lily, who was glum for sure, but nothing compared to Leni crying her eyes out.

"Should we... get her some milk?"

"I'll get you two a cup," said Lori.

"I... I don't need one..."

"Chocolate or strawberry?"

"Chocolate please..."

Lori nodded.

"I want some chocolate milk too," said Lana.

"Me too!" exclaimed Luan. "Even if it's that weird formula crap. What about you, Benny?"

"I'm okay," said Benny. "I have my water bottle here."

"I could go for some chocolate milk too," said Lucy.

"I'll get all of you a cup," said Lori.

Rusty sighed as he stepped outside of the van. He walked towards a car that was out of talking distance from the group.

Liam looked around the van and slipped out as well.

"Yo, Rusty," said Liam, catching up to Rusty.

"You don't have to follow me," said Rusty.

"Yer' right. I just got a quick inquiry to make."

"Go."

"How are you holding up?"

"Fine."

"You don't look too fine though."

"I said I'm fine. Leave me alone."

"I'm just worried 'bout you, that's all. You got that look of old dogs when they know they're 'bout to croak. Always wanderin' off, not wantin' their people to worry. So that when they die, ain't no one really gon' notice."

"Well, I'm fine. I didn't get bit. And I'm not infected."

"Roamers aren't the only way people die. Nor by other people. And I know that's a little inconsiderate to say, considerin' you know..."

Liam tilted his head towards Lynn. Rusty nodded.

"People are always in a battle with themselves. If it ain't roamers or other people, it's themselves. I ain't want you to lose that battle, Rusty. You got people and family that care about you."

Rusty looked at Liam with trusting eyes.

"You're a really good friend, Liam," said Rusty.

"Just bein' honest."

"Don't worry. I'm not thinking about dying. Just... Rocky really liked chocolate milk."

Liam sighed, shaking his head softly. He smiled shyly, almost embarrassed about making this into a bigger deal than it was.

"Did he now?" he whispered. "Sorry to hear that, Rusty. Must have been tough for yer' to hear all that."

"Yeah. And you know... as soon as Lucy spoke... and I know she feels terrible about the whole thing, but still... I can't stand being around her or Lori."

"I understand. It's okay. Ain't no one judgin' you. No matter what happens, I'm there for you."

Rusty showed a soft smile, one that he hasn't shown in ages. Liam smiled too.

Sam was trembling.

"I knew it... I knew it... every time a gunshot goes off..." she said.

Luna was rummaging through the crates in the back of Chunk's van. The crates had holes in them, worrying her. She then took a deep breath. Her guitar was safe.

She closed her guitar case.

"It's okay," whispered Luna, giving Sam a hug. "Remember what I said. I was going to pick a gun up and protect you."

Luna looked at her guitar and turned towards the HK45 pistol in the crate next to it. She grabbed it and pocketed it.

"That starts now."

Lincoln held Clyde's arm over his shoulder while they made their way out of the RV and towards Lynn, standing by the canal.

Lynn heard Clyde's shoe smacking against the pavement as Clyde hopped.

"Hey, Lynn..." said Lincoln.

Lynn ignored Lincoln.

"I'm sorry about Francisco. I know he meant a lot to you and..."

Lynn didn't even face Lincoln.

"I wanted to ask if you were doing okay."

Clyde sighed and shook his head. Lincoln, however, refused to walk Clyde back to the RV.

"Lori and Clyde both tried to talk to you. I would just like to ask you to let us know you're still here with us."

Lynn continued to ignore Lincoln.

"They both feel terrible about what happened. Especially since Clyde feels like he slowed you and Francisco down."

Clyde picked his head up, wondering if Lynn was going to say anything. But she didn't. Her silence made his heart sting.

"And Lori feels like she froze up and failed to protect Francisco."

Lynn turned towards Lincoln with rage filling her eyes.

"She feels like it?" growled Lynn. "She did freeze up. David told her to distract the Piranhas. He was calling out for her again and again... but she froze up like a coward. So, what, does Lori not know if she froze up or not? Or does she not want to take full responsibility?"

"I'm sorry. I paraphrased her words wrong. She completely blames herself."

"Don't cover for her. She can come here and tell me instead of hiding like a coward."

"She acted like any normal person would. She's not a trained fighter. She's not a soldier."

"But she isn't like any normal person. She's supposed to be special, right? Isn't that what you said when we tried to make her our leader?"

Lincoln swallowed hard.

"Besides... if any normal person would have done that, why didn't anyone else freeze? Why only her?"

Lincoln couldn't answer. Lynn scoffed.

"Just go away," said Lynn, her voice breaking. "Please."

Lincoln nodded. As he prepared to turn around, Clyde pulled on his shirt.

"Wait," said Clyde.

Lincoln stood still. Clyde reached into his satchel and took out a baseball. He then showed it to Lynn.

"Francisco gave this to me. He signed it of course. Heh, you know how he is."

Clyde cleared his throat.

"I'm sorry. Was."

Lynn simply stared at the ball, seeing Francisco's signature on it. She remembered Francisco once gave her a signed baseball. However, it was in one of her drawers back in Royal Woods.

"Please take it. It's a part of him. Since we can't go back for Francisco, you should at least have this."

Tears rolled down Lynn's face as she grabbed the baseball reluctantly. She then looked at Clyde.

"Thank you," she whispered.

Clyde nodded, tears rolling down his face too.

Lisa sighed as she placed the needle and suture back in the first-aid kit.

"She's done," said Lisa. "I have good news and bad news."

"The good news is that Missy and Derrick will both be able to recover just enough in a week."

"Just enough?" asked Richard. "What do you mean by that?"

"That's where the bad news comes in. They won't be able to travel for a week. They both need to be lying down until their wounds can heal just enough for them to move around again. Otherwise, they'll be under a lot of pain and their wounds may reopen."

"Can we move them at all?" asked David.

"I wouldn't recommend that."

"We can't stay here though. All that gunfire from earlier is gonna bring all the roamers over here."

"We can use the stretchers from the ambulance. It may be a bit of a rocky ride, but it's better than having to constantly pick them up and put them down."

"Alright."

Sergei and Chunk approached David.

"David, we lost a lot of cans," said Sergei.

"Cans? Like our food?" asked David.

"Yes. Bullet holes in a lot of them."

"Some of our jerrycans have been shot too," said Chunk.

David looked at the fuel containers that Chunk was holding. There were bullet holes on them.

"These aren't jerrycans," said David. "Jerrycans are the metallic ones. These were just the plastic ones."

"Ah."

David sighed.

"Shit. Looks like we got no choice but to hole up somewhere for a week. Food, water, fuel, medicine-"

"Roamer!" shouted Zach.

David pulled out his handgun and looked in the distance. He saw a silhouette jogging towards them.

"Since when can roamers run?" asked Tabby.

"They don't," said Lucy. "That's not a roamer. That's just George."

David lowered his handgun as soon as he could make it out who it was. Richard, however, walked ahead.

"Hey, that's not a roamer," said David.

"I know who it is," said Richard.

George panted as he slowed down.

"Dang," said Liam. "We were two miles away. Were yer' running the whole time?"

"Yeah," panted George, his face drenched with water and salt. "Glad I found you guys. How's everyone-?"

Richard struck George with his fist.

George grunted as he fell down.

"Oh, shit!" exclaimed Tad.

David and Sergei ran over to Richard. Lynn turned around and let everything play out.

Richard grabbed George's shirt and continued to punch him.

"You led us into a trap!"

Lori knelt down and turned Darcy away from the sight.

"You almost got my wife killed!"

David grabbed Richard from the back, though Richard pulled away.

Richard pulled out his revolver and aimed it at George.

David backed away as the group members all froze.

"I knew we should've never trusted this bastard," panted Richard.

"Put it down!" shouted David.

"He told 'em we had Vonda! He screamed it out loud and started the gunfight! And this asshole comes back alive? How do we know he ain't workin' for 'em?"

"The hell... you talking about?" groaned George.

"Shut up! You better explain yourself before I pull this trigger!"

"Put down the gun," said Vonda.

Richard looked over at Vonda, who drew her bow and aimed the arrow at him. He chuckled lightly.

"You're really gonna kill me to protect this asshole?" asked Richard.

"That all depends on you," said Vonda. "Put. The gun. Down."

Richard looked up and sighed. He placed the revolver back in his holster.

Vonda lowered her bow and removed the arrow from the string.

George wiped the blood from his lips as Sergei helped him up.

"Gus told her our backup plan," said George. "He heard us back at the attic. I swear to god I thought he was asleep. But he pulls off a really good snore."

"And that warranted screaming out Vonda's name and starting the gunfight?"

"They were gonna kill all of us, you stupid fuck," said Vonda. "By screaming out my name, he was able to prevent the Piranhas from shooting at us long enough for us to run to cover. Carol figured that out. David figured that out. I bet everyone else did. So how are you the only who didn't?"

"Bullshit."

"It's true," said David. "I thought it was obvious."

"It couldn't have been more obvious," said George, facing Richard. "Unless you're looking for a reason to distrust me. Then in that case, I think you're an asshole."

George stormed past Richard.

Richard sighed as he looked down.

"The hell is wrong with me?" asked Richard.

"It's the emotions and adrenaline," said David. "Your wife just got shot. But listen to me carefully. Don't pull that shit again. If something's off, you let me know. Understood?"

Richard nodded. David put his hand on his shoulder.

"Now come on. Dust yourself off. You got a mission."

"Mission?"

David walked over to the rest of the group. There was awkward tension but David ignored it.

"Becky and Wavehead!" called out David. "You two are going to transport D to the highway. Richard and Carol are going to transport Missy to the highway. The rest of us are going to be on vehicle. Understood?"

"Yes, sir," said Wavehead.

"Be careful," said Lisa. "Refrain from moving the stretchers too quickly and too recklessly."

"Benny! Go with them and protect them from the roamers!" ordered David.

"Okay," replied Benny, unsheathing his katana.

"Take a gun too. Just in case there are more Piranhas out there. You too, Dana."

Dana nodded and grabbed her pistol.

"You don't think we should send more?" asked Tad.

"Nah," said David. "I don't want to spread the group too thin. They can all shoot, so don't worry. Come on, guys. Let's go."

The dusk started to settle in the sky. The group members all began to return to their vehicles as Tad looked at Becky. However, Becky kept her eyes on D.

Benny quickly ran over to Luan before she entered the van.

"Luan!" he exclaimed.

Luan turned around. She then felt Benny grab her hands before he leaned in to kiss her. She then felt their lips touch.

"See you soon," whispered Benny.

Luan was blushing intensely as she nodded.

Benny released Luan's hands and ran to the stretchers to help Becky and Dana lift D. They then walked to the trees, taking the short way to the highway.

Luan giggled softly and went inside Vanzilla. She then came across a grim environment, every single one of the passengers quiet and traumatized. She gulped as she frowned, feeling guilty about feeling happy, even for a second.

George sat on the booth table as the RV started moving.

"Hey, Vonda," said George. "Thanks for backing me up there."

"It's nothing," said Vonda. "He was being an asshole. You did nothing but help. I couldn't let him do that to you."

"It's not like it was completely undeserved. I saw the boy's body. The one with the baseball cap."

Lynn looked at the booth table.

"Francisco," said Vonda.

"Yeah. I shouldn't have trusted Gus. I didn't think Sherry would've risked her people to kill you guys. But I was wrong."

"It's alright. Despite what some people might think..." said Vonda with emphasis as she glanced at Lynn, "...everything that happened wasn't anyone's fault except my mother's. She intended to kill us from the start... and I bet it's because of what we did to the Piranhas at the toll booths."

"That's what I was thinking," said David, his eyes remaining on the road. "Gus must've told Sherry our plan. But Sherry probably already knew that the people that killed Kevin and Madison were in an RV, blue van, black van, and gray car. That's what Kevin and Madison must've told her when they turned us away."

Vonda nodded.

"Shit..." said George.

"We should've told you," said Vonda. "We're sorry."

"It's okay. It's all over now."

"Vonda..." said David. "Back there... would you really have shot Richard?"

George looked at Vonda.

Vonda closed her eyes.