Act 1 Part 1: Beginning.
(A collaborative story with WorldOFantxsy and Mark from Telltale's The Walking Dead Amino)
Kara was on the way home from school, kicking her little feet on the bus as she waited to spot her house, hugging her stuffed bunny to her chest.
She had a few new bandaids on her, but she still seemed happy nonetheless, hopping down eagerly once the bus made its stop.
"Thank you mr bus driver!" The young girl exclaimed as she hopped down from the bus happily, quickly running towards her house and standing on her tiptoes, unlocking the door with a key her dad had given her before opening the door, waddling inside and shutting the door behind her, locking it.
"I'm home!" The young girl exclaimed happily as she plopped down onto the floor and removed her shoes.
Bill was at home looking at the TV, seeing two people who were convicted of murder, one of a senator and the other of a random person in Georgia.
As he heard the door open, shut, and lock, he turned and smiled.
"Hey baby girl, welcome home," he spoke, walking over to her.
She giggled happily as she stood up and hugged her father, giving a bright smile.
"Hi daddy! I got so much to tell you! And look! They had kitty bandaids this time!" She showed off her new bandaids as she pulled away from the hug, practically bouncing with joy.
"Is mommy home?" She questioned curiously as she smiled up at her father once more, putting her shoes away.
He smiled, seeing his baby girl everyday was one of the best feelings in the world some days "Really? Huh, never knew you were such a cat person" he spoke with a smile before hearing her ask if her mom was home.
"Not yet, but I'm sure she'll be here soon."
She nodded happily with a giggle, adjusting her backpack on her shoulders while she continued to hold her stuffed bunny.
"Okie dokie! I'll be upstairs doing homework if you need me daddy!" She ran up the stairs, tripping on the way, but she quickly got back onto her feet as she ran up to her room, pulling out her homework from her backpack then sitting at her desk, putting her bunny on it before beginning to do her homework.
"Alright, I'll be down here looking through mail."
Bill knew he raised a tough kid as he went over to his chair and grabbed some of the mail that he had gotten, relaxing.
A few hours passed and she came back downstairs after finishing her homework, grabbing a box of apple juice before plopping down onto the couch with her bunny, kicking her little feet happily as she sipped her apple juice, waiting for her mother to come home for dinner, meanwhile Bill had started to cook dinner and began wondering what was taking her so long to get home.
Her mother finally walked through the door, looking exhausted as she slouched against the door, but Kara didn't notice.
"Mommy!" The young girl exclaimed with a smile as she hugged her.
The woman smiled a bit, hugging their daughter as she bent down, replying with, "Hey sweetie. How was your day?"
After a few minutes of talking about school, Vanessa, the woman's mother, walked into the kitchen, sighing.
"Thanks for making dinner Bill, the people at the office are killing me," She spoke before kissing his cheek, watching him cook while taking off her heels.
"So, how was work for you?"
He smiled seeing his family all there as he relaxed, sighing at her question.
"My boss is getting on my nerves. We just started putting some new additions to the warehouse and suddenly he wants to change his mind," He said as he finished cooking and put food onto their plates.
She laughed a bit as she listened, putting her heels away in the shoe closet.
"Sounds like him. I guess we've both had crappy days," She replied as she walked over to the dining room, setting up the table.
"I can't wait till we finally have enough room in our schedule for a vacation, that trip to the Bahamas is going to be worth all the stress and overtime," She sighed, grabbing some juice for Kara before looking over to her husband curiously.
"What drink do you want for dinner? We've still got some beer, a bit of wine, and we got an army of Kara's apple juice," She laughed a bit as she turned fully to him, leaning against the fridge.
"I think we've both earned a bit of heaven for today, let's enjoy some wine," He said with a smile as he looked to his daughter and gently ruffled her hair.
She laughed, standing back up properly before grabbing the wine out along with the wine glasses as she replied, "I agree."
Kara giggles when he ruffles her hair, looking up happily at her father as she questions curiously, "Do you need any help daddy?"
Vanessa finished setting up the table, bringing the plates over for Bill as she spoke up, "Don't worry about it honey, we've got it, just go wash your hands before we start eating."
Kara nodded and quickly grabbed her step stool, climbing onto it so she could reach the sink, washing her hands before rushing over to the dinner table, sitting down.
"How did we get so lucky to have a beautiful daughter like her?" He asked her with a smile while grabbing silverware for them.
She laughed, kissing Bill's cheek before brushing her hair back and replying, "we'll never know."
After sitting down and beginning to eat, she noticed the bandages on Kara's face and became concerned.
"Kara, we talked about this. Why're there more bandages? What happened?"
"I, uh— fell down some stairs," Kara replied with a smile, but her mother clearly wasn't buying it.
"Kara, sweetie, tell us. We won't be upset, no matter what it is."
Vanessa noticed how Kara just started fumbling with her food, causing her to glance up to Bill for help convincing their daughter.
"Is one of those boys picking on you?" He asked, looking to her with interest.
He wasn't upset, just curious.
"Come on baby girl, we love you, and you should know that. We won't be mad."
Kara looked down for a few moments, looking like she didn't want to talk about it, until she finally gave in upon realizing her parents weren't going to drop the subject.
"The boys pushed me down the stairs and called me a baby for carrying Mr Snuffles everywhere," She replied as she hugged her stuffed bunny, causing her mother to grow more concerned.
"Did you tell your teacher sweetie?"
"I tried, but he said they were good kids and would never do that," She replied quietly, picking at her food.
Vanessa was practically fuming at the ears, taking a sip of wine before replying, "Tomorrow your father and I will pick you up from school and talk to your teacher about those boys' behavior."
"But mommy—"
"No buts. We'll be there at 3pm sharp, right Bill?" She spoke as she turned to look at her husband, hoping he'll back her up on the matter.
"Of course, no way my daughter is going to be hurt by some punk kids. Those little brats are going to learn," He said, looking to her as he took a sip of his wine.
While he seemed relatively calm, somehow the anger could be seen in his eyes.
Vanessa smiled a bit at her husband as she sipped her wine once more before taking another bite of her food.
Kara sighed, knowing she wouldn't be able to convince them now that they have made up their minds, just continuing to eat.
After they finished with dinner, Vanessa hugged Kara, kissing her forehead.
"Go brush your teeth, okay baby? One of us will be there to read to you in a minute. I love you."
"Love you too mommy," Kara replied, grabbing her stuffed bunny before hugging her dad, whispering loudly, "can we have Dino chicky nuggies tomorrow if I pass my test?"
"Absolutely," He said as he hugged back.
As they split he walked back to his wife and seemed completely pissed off.
He never wanted to be angry in front of his daughter.
"Those little bastards should be beat."
Vanessa waited to hear Kara's bathroom door shut before sighing, placing her hand to her forehead as she replied, "I'm just as angry as you are hun, but don't forget those boys are between the ages of 5 and 6. I'm sure once we speak to her teacher we can clear this up."
She took another sip of her wine before leaning against the wall, swishing the wine in her cup as she added, "I can't believe the school never even contacted us about this though. Imagine how many bandaids are the cause of those boys bullying her, it's not right..."
"No, it's not, and that teacher has just blown it off. I'm tired of hearing that those little bastards are saints" He replied, looking to her with a sigh, forcing himself to calm down so his daughter wouldn't hear him
She sighed, looking down at the glass of wine in her hand as she replied, "I am too, those boys shouldn't be getting away with all of that, but there's nothing we can do other than hope that teacher will listen to us."
She took another sip before looking up at him, appearing quite tired as she asked, "Do you mind reading to Kara tonight hun? My feet are killing me and I need to wash this makeup off before I fall asleep with it on, again."
"Yeah, that's no problem," He replied, looking to her as he made his way up the stairs to read to their daughter.
"Alright, so what do you want to hear?"
Kara smiled, quickly picking up a princess book relating to a princess and a frog then handing it to her father.
"This one!" She giggled, bouncing a bit in the bed as she curled up in her blankets.
He smiled, "Ok then."
He sat on the bed and began telling the story, relaxing as he read to her.
By the end of the story she was fast asleep, breathing softly as she mumbled in her sleep, hugging her stuffed bunny to her chest.
He kissed her forehead then spoke as he looked to her, "Good night baby girl."
He put the book back and walked to his bedroom, shutting the lights off behind him.
The next day after her final class, Kara had hoped her parents would've forgotten about the whole ordeal, but instead, when the classroom door had opened, the teacher was greeted by her parents, causing Kara to look down in defeat.
Vanessa smiled as she greeted the teacher, shaking the teachers hand before noticing their daughter, calling her over.
"Hey sweetie, daddy and I are gonna be here for a little bit, why don't you listen to some music on your mp3 player in the hallway?" She spoke with a smile, gently fixing their daughter's hair.
Kara looked up at her mother with a smile, nodding as she left, pulling out her mp3 player to distract herself from the situation.
After all the students had left, the teacher closed the door and sat at his desk, crossing his arms.
"Please, have a seat, tell me why you're here," The teacher gestured to some chairs, getting comfortable in his seat.
"We hear from our daughter that she is bullied by a couple boys in her class, but instead of doing anything, you decide to just go off the words of those boys and not listen to her," He said, looking to him.
"So, tell me, why is that?"
The teacher leaned forward, clasping his hands together as he replied, "Mr Carver I assure you I assessed both sides of the story before coming to that conclusion."
"And how did you come to your conclusion?" Vanessa questioned, crossing one leg over the other.
"Well," the teacher began, now gazing at the both of them as he continued, "those boys come from prestigious families that donate rather generously to the school and have never even caused a single problem in my class, however Kara on the other hand has been known to doze off or get distracted."
"Are you trying to call our daughter a liar just because we don't have enough money to donate to the school??" Vanessa sat up, trying to maintain a polite demeanor, but was very clearly struggling.
"No ma'am," he calmly began again, leaning forward on his desk as he gazed back at the both of them, continuing, "I'm simply stating that maybe she's just confused. She tends to get distracted a lot, maybe she simply fell while they were nearby, and well, boys will be boys and laugh, it doesn't necessarily mean they did it. I'm sorry Mr and Mrs Carver, but there's just not enough evidence to support Kara's claim, and with how clumsy she typically is mixed in with her overactive imagination, I wouldn't be surprised if she just imagined the whole ordeal while falling."
Vanessa was clearly fuming at the ears, but she was clenching the arm of the chair, trying to keep a calm and reasonable expression on her face as she listened to the teacher speak.
"Listen here you piece of shit, those boys decided to push my daughter down a flight of stairs and you decide not to do anything because those bastards donate money, so maybe you'll get a cut of the donation?!" Bill said, fuming as he hit his limit with both his boss and Kara's teacher.
This was the final straw.
"You want to let those little bastards walk off because you get a little bit of money," he spoke again, standing to his feet, looking over at him with fury in his eyes.
The man jumped a bit at how angry Bill had gotten, but he just straightened his posture as he replied, "I'm sorry, but without evidence there's nothing more I can do. Those boys are very well behaved and come from nice families, good backgrounds, and—"
"And she doesn't?" Vanessa cut him off with a cold gaze, trying to keep her cool.
"That's not what I'm trying to say. She's a wonderful girl with a great mother, but—"
"Only a great mother?" She questioned, looking offended for her husband.
"Look, ma'am, I'm sorry, but I just simply don't believe your daughter's claims are true. I think she was daydreaming while walking down the stairs and tripped," He replied.
"My daughter Is smart enough to keep herself from tripping and you decide to be both judge and jury, saying she doesn't have any evidence. Listen to the entire story and not be biased!" He said, not being offended, just pissed.
"I'm sorry sir, but there's nothing I can do. If you're really that concerned, talk to the parents of the boys," He replied nervously.
"You're not sorry, you'd rather keep donations flooding in than admit those boys are hurting our daughter," She replied plainly, standing up.
"Cmon Bill, let's go," She spoke calmly while keeping her gaze off the teacher, walking to the door while trying to calm down.
"If my daughter wasn't outside I would kick your ass from here to timbuktu, and if you think that's a threat, it's a hell of a lot worse, it's a promise," He said as he walked to the door with her.
The teacher blinked in fear, beginning to wonder if he'd come back, slowly sinking into his chair after they left his classroom.
Vanessa remained silent, not wanting their daughter to see or hear her get angry, walking up to her soon after.
"Hey hun, grab your things and hop in the car, it's unlocked."
"Okay mommy," Kara replied before getting in the back of the car, buckling up.
Vanessa waited until she got into the car to sigh heavily, kicking a locker.
"That teacher is insufferable! Maybe I should've just waved a stupid fake check in his face to make him change his mind," She grumbled, crossing her arms.
"No, that bastard wouldn't change his mind while those little fucks have parents to donate," He replied as he leaned against a locker as well.
She sighed heavily, leaning against the locker beside him in defeat, looking down at the floor of the school.
She hesitated for a moment, looking a bit unsure as she replied, "Maybe we should enroll her in another school. I know she likes it here, and it'll be tricky for her to figure out what she's missed out on by enrolling her in the middle of her school year, but I don't like knowing her teacher is like that. Plus, the fact he was so rude about you to our faces! Acting as if you were to blame for the whole situation is just— ugh!"
She kicked the locker again, sighing heavily in frustration as she tried to cool off.
"Either we find another school or sit through several meetings, and while I'm willing to try that option I'm not sure if that teacher will ever change his mind, or if he'll even get fired since he presented himself as a polite gentleman with backhanded compliments...dammit," She sighed, looking down at the ground once more as she wasn't liking their options.
"Oh what I wouldn't give to make sure that fuck never messes with another kid again," He spoke, looking to her as he sighed aloud, standing up straight.
"I'll happily sit through a meeting, I can't promise I'll bite my tongue though."
She laughed, smiling a little at his words, "That'd be bad, but I'd be lying if I said I didn't want to see that."
She sighed, leaning her head back against the locker, closing her eyes.
"Kara's going to be upset if we give up this early, so I guess we'll have to try and set up the meetings, but we'll definitely have to start looking into other schools..."
She looked up at Bill sadly, thinking for a moment before continuing, "I wish we could just convince him."
"Well, fear always does the trick," He replied, looking to her once more as he sighed again.
"But I don't know if that little shit would try to do something."
She looked a bit concerned at his suggestion as she replied, "Hun, don't do something that's gonna get you arrested. As much as I would love to see that teacher pee his pants for the way he talked about you and our daughter, I wouldn't want him to call the cops on you."
He sighed and nodded, "Yeah, I'd hate to see my little girl catching a glimpse of me behind bars."
Bill stretched for a moment before turning to her again, speaking once more, "Well, we should get back to the car."
As they got back into the car she smiled at Kara while sitting in the passenger seat, buckling up.
"So, how did your test go?" She questioned curiously.
"I got a 100! Mrs Becky said I was the only one there to get every question right!" She smiled brightly, showing off her grade happily.
"That's awesome sweetie!" She replied, gently ruffling their daughter's hair.
"So, do I get Dino chicky nuggies tonight then?"
"Dino chicken nuggets?" The mother questioned curiously.
"I promised her Dino nuggets if she got a hundred," He said, looking at her as he got into the driver's seat and buckled up, driving home with a smile.
Upon arriving home, they walked inside and he began to cook his daughters chicken nuggets
Kara bounded around happily in the kitchen, giggling excitedly while hugging her stuffed bunny.
"I'm so excited! They're gonna be the bestest Dino chicky nuggies ever now that I've earned them!" She giggled.
Vanessa couldn't help but laugh at how excited their daughter was to eat.
"Be careful, we don't want you to fall."
Kara stopped hopping and just ran up beside her father happily, hugging him.
"You're the bestest daddy ever in the wholest widest world!"
He smiled and hugged back.
"Just promise me one thing baby girl; The next time those boys hurt you, punch them in the nose," He said, looking to her as he gave her the bowl of her nuggies.
The young girl giggled while her mother looked concerned, not having picked up on her mothers concern yet as she took the bowl of nuggets into her hands happily.
"I will daddy! I promise!" She giggled before running over to the dining table, beginning to eat.
Vanessa gave him a look and quietly asked once making sure Kara was out of earshot, "Punch them in the nose? William, that's gonna make it worse, it'll make them look more innocent."
"I don't care, those little bastards learn that you reap what you sow," He replied, looking back at her.
"Think about it here dear, those bastards learn that if you mess with someone they are going to fight back, and I will protect my little girl no matter what," He added, continuing to keep his gaze on his wife.
She crossed her arms, replying quietly as she gave him a look, "She could get hurt even worse if we tell her to just start throwing punches. Do I think those boys have more than earned a punch? Hell yeah, and if it was just one then maybe, but she can't fight a group of boys alone. I don't want to see our daughter come home with more than just a few small bandaids."
"She's tough, I know what she's capable of, she's got more balls than any man," He replied as he smiled and scratched his beard.
She sighed heavily, about to speak again until she felt Kara tug on her pant leg.
"Oh, yes sweetie?"
"Mommy, can I have some apple juice to go with my Dino nuggies please?" She asked with a slight head tilt.
"Oh, of course sweetie," Vanessa replied, pouring her a glass of apple juice before setting it down on the table for her, walking back over to Bill with her arms crossed, quietly commenting, "you better hope you're right William, if our daughter comes home in anything other than bandaids tomorrow because she tried fighting a group of boys on her own, I'm going to be furious."
"She'll be ok, I know she will," He replied confidently.
The next day Bill sat at home, waiting for his little girl to get back from school.
Kara returned home right on time, covering her face with her stuffed bunny while her hair was covering an eye.
"Hi daddy! I'm home! I got lots of homework so I'm gonna go straight to my room!" She spoke brightly as she put her shoes in the shoe closet, quickly making her way up the stairs with her backpack.
"Hold it, come here" Bill commanded, looking to her as he still sat in his chair.
She stopped walking, hesitating for a moment before walking over, keeping the stuffed bunny over her face.
"Yes daddy?" She questioned curiously.
"What did they do?" He asked, looking to her as he got up and kneeled to her level.
"What did who do?" She questioned, further covering her face with the stuffed bunny.
"Those boys."
"U-Umm...nothing probably, I avoided them the whole time," She giggled nervously, clinging to the stuffed bunny a bit more now.
"Let me see your eye," He commanded once more.
"Wh-Which one? My right eye?" She tried to make the subject more lighthearted with her giggle, pointing to the eye that wasn't being covered.
"The eye you have covered," He replied as he went to uncover it.
She looked a bit sad, not wanting him to see it, but she let him move her hair, revealing a black eye while she continued to use her stuffed bunny to hide more than half of her face, not wanting her dad to be angry.
"I-I just slipped and hit the bathroom sink, the girls in there make messes with the water all the time."
"Tell me the truth baby girl," He spoke again, "You know I won't be angry at you."
She remained silent for a moment before hesitantly moving the stuffed bunny, revealing a big bandage covering her nose as well.
"...they were only gonna walk away, but then they started being mean and talking bad about you, so I punched one of them and they got mad so..." She trailed off, wincing in pain as she tried to touch her nose.
"I'm sorry daddy, I didn't want to give you and mommy another reason to worry and I just did it anyway. I tried telling my teacher again, but he told me to stop making up lies about the boys," She sniffled.
"That mother fu- ok, come on, we're going to the school," He said, continuing to look at her as he stood and grabbed his keys
As they rode in the car, she hugged her stuffed bunny, keeping her backpack at her side as she looked up at her father while he drove.
"...Daddy, are you okay?" She asked quietly, not used to seeing him so upset.
"I'm fine sweetheart, I'm going to talk to your teacher," He replied, looking to her as he parked the car, getting out soon after.
"Come on Kara," He ordered, walking to the entrance.
She got out of the car and began following her dad, walking at his side as she hugged her stuffed bunny to her chest, a bit worried for how her dad would handle it.
"Stay outside the room honey, listen to your music, I'll be right back," He said as he walked into the classroom.
"So, you want to tell my kid to stop making up lies when she's done nothing but tell the truth?"
The man looked up at him from his work, quickly backing up a bit.
"M-Mr Carver, I never said that, I-I simply said she could've slipped and fell on her face, and just imagined them doing it," He quickly replied, a bit scared at how he walked into the classroom.
"She slipped and fell? Did that bruise on her eye look like she fell and landed on her face?" He replied bitterly, grabbing a stapler off his desk.
The man began to back up more as Carver picked up the stapler, nearly falling over his chair.
"M-Mr Carver, pl-please calm down. I-I'm just doing my job, I'm not trying to spite your daughter."
"Not trying my ass, should've tried to at least be kind," He said as he began to beat him relentlessly with the stapler.
The man screamed in pain, causing Kara to jump a bit and turn up her music, placing her hands over her headphones and pressing them further onto her ears, shaking a bit at the sound of the teacher's cries of pain.
"I-I'm sorry!" The man cried out in agony as he tried to stop Carver, hitting the ground as he tried to cover himself with his arms.
"Too late you piece of shit!" He said as he kept beating him relentlessly without a care in the world.
Suddenly the science teacher walked in, about to give the other teacher some papers when she saw Bill beating him up, causing her to gasp in horror, grabbing his arm as she exclaimed, "Stop! That's enough! There are children in this building!"
He got off him as he realized what he had done; He had killed him
The woman gasped in shock when she found no pulse, covering her mouth.
"Wh—...What have you done?" She questioned, then began trying to do CPR, hoping to make his heart beat again, but it was no use.
Eventually Kara came up to the door, peeking in slightly when she didn't hear much noise anymore, questioning hesitantly, "D-Daddy? Is everything okay in there?"
"Just fine sweetheart," He said with blood on his hands, then quickly looking back as the dead man grabbed the poor girl, beginning to go at her face like a Sunday dinner.
"Jesus christ," He said as he grabbed her, pulling her away.
The woman screamed in pain, causing Kara to peek and gasp in horror as the dead man tried to grab Carver.
"D-Daddy!" She screamed in fear, not wanting whatever the thing on the ground was to eat her dads face too.
He quickly kicked the man to the ground before stomping his head in, soon after attempting to cover his daughters eyes.
She hugged her father in fear, sobbing as she tightly clung to him.
"Wh-Why did my teacher bite her face daddy??" She questioned through sobs.
"I don't know, I don't know," He replied, holding her tightly.
"Come on, we need to get home," He spoke again, looking to her as he carried her into the car.
She hugged her stuffed bunny and her backpack tightly in the car, shaking in fear as he began to drive.
"I-I'm scared daddy."
"It's ok baby, I'm here, and I won't let anything happen to you," He replied, looking to her before back at the road.
She sniffled, hugging her stuffed bunny tighter.
"C-Can we listen to the radio daddy? Pl-Please?"
"Of course," He replied again, turning it on only to hear warnings of the dead walking.
After a few moments she quickly turned it off herself, curling up in her seat.
"D-Do you think mommy's okay?" She questioned with tears in her eyes.
"She has to be ok, she is ok, we just need to make it to the house," He spoke again, looking at the road and nowhere else, focused on keeping her safe.
She nodded shakily, clinging to her dads arm gently as he drove, trying to stay calm.
Once their house came into view, she quickly unbuckled, putting her bag over her shoulders as she hugged her stuffed bunny to her chest tightly.
He grabbed something from under his seat, a revolver, gripping it as he spoke firmly, "Ok, stay close."
Once she left the car, she quickly ran to her fathers side, clinging to his jacket a bit as she stayed as close as possible, worried a monster might grab her if she let go for even a moment.
He opened the door and went inside cautiously, keeping his revolver ready.
"Honey, you home?" He called out, looking around carefully for his wife.
Vanessa ran down the stairs with a pistol, and as soon as she saw that there wasn't any undead coming in, she quickly hugged the both of them.
"I was worried sick! I sped home from the office as soon as I found out about the dead to make sure you two were safe!"
After a moment of this, she noticed the fresh blood on Carver, looking concerned.
"Are you hurt?" She questioned, her voice filling with concern.
"It's not daddy's blood," Kara spoke to reassure her mother, but it only made her mother more concerned.
She sighed, brushing her hair back as she spoke again, "Okay, doesn't matter, we've gotta start packing, it's not gonna be safe here for long."
"We need to head to Howes, they should have everything we need there. We need to grab our things and get the hell out of here,' He instructed, looking to her as he went to get some of the blood off his hands.
Vanessa nodded before looking to Kara, "Kara sweetie I'll help you pack. Bill, you'll pack our things and I'll come help you as soon as I'm done making sure she has what she needs."
She quickly picked up Kara and ran up the stairs, beginning to help her pack.
"Alright, I'll start packing," He replied, running up stairs to get everything packed and ready to go.
Vanessa quickly ran over to help Bill as soon as finished helping Kara pack, moving as fast as she could.
"The police aren't answering the phones now, which means we'll just have to hope that Howes isn't crawling with undead."
She sighed for a minute, checking to see if Kara was still in the bathroom before looking to Carver, continuing to pack as she questioned, "Where were you two when I got home?"
"The school," He replied plainly, not wanting to look at her as he packed.
"...Why?" She questioned, looking a bit more concerned now that he wasn't looking at her.
"I killed him," He replied with sadness in his voice.
Her eyes widened in surprise, a wave of sadness washing over her as she saw her husband's expression.
She wasn't sure what to do or say, so she just hugged him, replying softly, "I'm sorry."
"Don't be, he got what he deserved,' He said as he kept packing.
"Hey," she began, looking at him with concern as she gently pulled back, placing her hand to his arm as she continued, "Don't say that. He was a jerk, but as much of a jerk he was, he didn't deserve to die, and I think you know that too."
"Yeah," he said as he finished packing.
"Ok, let's get out of here."
She nodded, picking up one of the bags before checking on Kara.
"You ready to leave honey?" She questioned curiously.
Kara simply nodded, quickly grabbing her two bags and running up to her parents, staying between them to feel safer as they made their way back to the car.
Bill put everything in the car as they got ready to head to Howes before hopping in the driver's seat, waiting for the girls to buckle up before speeding away from the house.
While on the way to Howes, Vanessa did her best to not gaze out the window, not wanting to see the faces of people in need of help, knowing she could be putting their daughter at risk if they slow down, but Kara on the other hand was gazing out the window sadly, hearing the screams of the people they passed by.
She knew she shouldn't as it only scared her more, but as a curious child, it was practically instinct for her.
As they began to near Howes, Vanessa took a deep breath, gripping her pistol just in case.
"Do you think the undead have made it inside yet?" She whispered to her husband, not wanting to scare their daughter.
"It's a big place, unless someone just dropped dead, I don't think so," He replied, looking to her as he drove, passing past countless corpses.
"You two go and get in, I'll grab our stuff and make sure no dead follow," He said as he parked the car, looking to her as he made sure the pistol his wife had was loaded.
"Be careful," She replied before hopping out of the car, helping Kara hop down with the things she was carrying before quickly taking her inside, gripping the pistol so hard her knuckles were turning white.
"Mommy?" The young girl questioned as she gazed up at her mother who was trying to keep her cool around their daughter.
"I'm okay sweetie," the mother replied with a small smile, putting her arm around Kara to keep her safe while they walked around Howes.
Bill followed behind her with all of their things, ignoring any dead as he got inside and dropped his things, not minding where he set his things as the warehouse was practically empty.
Vanessa sighed in relief upon noticing there's nothing dangerous in the warehouse, pressing her back against the wall.
Once Kara noticed her mother relaxing she decided to look around the warehouse curiously, hugging her stuffed bunny.
Bill looked around and went up to the main office to grab keys, trying to lock the door and shut off the music
Kara eventually found a more open space to sit down, plopping down and playing with her stuffed bunny.
Vanessa tried to see if she could reach anyone with her phone, but soon after sighed heavily, not being able to get a call through to anyone anywhere.
"Phone lines are down now I guess," She sighed, brushing her hair back before taking off her heels, checking to make sure Kara's still doing okay before walking up towards the office, making sure she can still see Kara as she moved up the stairs.
"Kara, if anything happens or you see anything strange, call out to us okay honey? And don't leave that spot until I come back down unless you see something strange or weird and need one of us."
"Okay mommy," She replied, continuing to play with her stuffed bunny.
She smiled a bit seeing her daughter still being able to play despite the circumstances, then walked up to the door.
"Do you wanna talk about what happened? At the school?"
"I got angry, those boys punched her, giving her the bruise on her eye, and that teacher blew it off. When I went to the school, I just lost it," He replied, looking to her as he opened the office door.
She nodded, folding her arms before replying, "that explains why she's been covering her eye with her hair."
She took a moment before looking over at him, sighing a bit as she continued, "Well, it doesn't matter anymore, not until the dead stop walking. What should we do now?"
"We stay here until the national guard rolls through, and the government starts giving out shots," He said as he grabbed the keys and locked the door, hearing noises, footsteps.
She nodded, crossing her arms as she stared out the window, standing beside Bill.
"Sounds good. I think we packed enough food to at least last us a year, should be good enough," She shrugged, gazing back up at her husband.
"Yeah, and with the food here, as well as clothes, we should be ok," He said as he walked towards the footsteps after he locked the door.
"Tavia, Troy, you here?"
After a few minutes, Vanessa found Tavia and Troy in the back, smiling, "hey you two."
Tavia quickly grabbed her gun, but calmed down upon realizing it's just Bill's wife.
"What a relief, we were worried about you guys. Is Bill here?" She questioned as she put her gun back down.
"Yeah, he just locked up the warehouse so we should be fine now," She replied with a smile.
He walked over to where she had gone, wanting to make sure he didn't let his wife leave his sight.
"Hey, I knew you two would be here. Thank God, I have a plan for all of this. If we get enough people, we should be ok to stay here, but again, a fortress needs people to defend it. Can I count on you two?" He questioned with an authoritative gaze.
Tavia nodded, placing a hand to her hip as she looked over at him.
"Of course, we've got your back Bill," She replied with a smile, while Troy simply smirked.
"None of those bastards are gonna get inside while I'm on watch. All those days at the shooting range are about to come in handy," Troy replied in a cocky manner.
Kara was watching from behind a corner curiously, listening to them talk as she hugged her stuffed bunny, trying to stay out of sight.
"Alright Troy, you'll be on watch. Tavia, you'll be looking at all the supplies we have, take one of these with you" He spoke again, handing them walkies.
Troy nodded, taking the walkie talkie before grabbing his gun, checking to see if it's loaded.
"On it boss," Troy replied before quickly leaving to keep watch, not even spotting Kara on the way out.
Tavia nodded, taking the walkie and attaching it to her belt.
"You can count on me," She replied before walking away to look over the supplies, smiling at Kara as she walked past.
Vanessa looked up at Bill, smiling once more as she spoke, "You're a natural at this. Anything you need me to do?"
"No, I just need you to keep a watch of Kara for a moment," He replied, looking to her as he went to the office.
She nodded before spotting Kara behind the wall, laughing a bit as their daughter tried to hide from view.
"C'mon out Kara, you can help me set up the sleeping bags."
Kara eventually came out, walking up to her mother and helping set up the sleeping bags and whatever else they may need.