Straining his weakened muscles against the elevator shift doors Chris curses those prisoners who managed to get the jump on him four years ago. Being trapped in that metal cage has done nothing to improve his fitness and no matter how hard he tried he lost far more stamina and muscle than he wanted. He could have spent all day exercising but that would hurt him long term as the food here was limited and if he overused his muscles and didn't make for it in food, he would lose weight faster. So, he sacrificed a little of his strength and stamina for long term survival.

Still, even in his condition, he is fairly confident he could take most of the people in the prison with him if he needed to protect himself or Claire. Luthor is strong and physically fit but lacks training which he can exploit. Angel would be harder. The ex-marine would be on par with him if it came down to it in his current state. Crystal he could overpower, and she has no training so he could take her. Same with Kim. Bennett is a coward with no skills whatsoever so he could take him as well.

Which leaves the only person in the prison who could possibly pose a threat to him. The same person standing behind him analysing his every move.

Alice is the wild card in this group. He only had to take one look at her to understand she was dangerous. A walking armoury who acts like any soldier he has met but also very differently. The way she scans a room before entering taking note of everything that could be used to her advantage later. Definitely means training. Her skills with a plane were most impressive to hear and he would have guessed she was Air Force or something similar but when he introduced himself as Air Force as well, she didn't react. Nor is she chummy with Angel meaning not a marine either.

The only reason he trusts Alice with this job rather than anyone else is because of Claire.

Getting more guns is vital for when they get out of here, but he wouldn't trust Bennett with access to the armoury. Nor would he trust Luthor who probably wouldn't understand what guns he's picking or how to use them properly. Angel, he would trust but he follows Luthor and the group too much. Alice is the one Claire trusts most. So, he's trusting his sister on this.

He still can't believe Claire is here. The memory loss thing is causing some issues between them but that can fixed later. All that matters is the fact that his sister. His baby sister is still alive and here with him.

For the last four years, he has been drowning in his guilt at being unable to protect her. That he left her all alone in this. That she could have been killed or captured or God knows where. Unable to do anything to help because he got himself trapped in that fucking cage and no one here would let him out.

Which is another reason why he trusts Alice. She did what he failed to do. She was there for his sister when he couldn't be.

Finally, after a bit more pressure the doors creak open revealing the murky water that has been building up for the past four years. "What is this," Alice asks eyes growing wide shifting away from the edge, but eyes locked on the water.

Clearly caught off guard Chris grins towards the dark haired woman. "They had pumps to keep the water out of the foundations. When the electricity failed some of the lower levels started filling up. There's another two floors down there."

Alice closes her eyes before asking in an almost defeated tone. "And how far down is the armoury."

"All the way." His answer was something she already knew but seemed to be hoping to be wrong.

"Great." She scoffs out taking over her survival pack and unrolling on the ground.

Chris himself stares in disbelief at everything she has stored away. Knives torches flares various tools and weapons. Everything someone would need in a survival situation. "You have to be the most prepared woman I have ever met."

She sends him a small smirk in response. "Can't be too cautious these days." Truer words have never been spoken. He wonders if Claire has a kit like this with her and what she stored in it. Even without her memories, he can tell she has changed so much over the years.

One of the things that seems to have changed he has picked up in taste in romantic partners. Glancing towards Alice as she hands him a waterproof flashlight, he can see the appeal of dating someone like Alice. She is beautiful. There is no arguing about that. She's clearly smart and capable. And it's obvious how much she cares about Claire. So, he can understand being attracted to her.

But since when is Claire attracted to women. Is this a new thing that started after the end of the world. Did she know before but was too afraid to tell him. Or is Alice the exception. He wishes she would get his memories back so he can find out.

Alice also hands him a cross shaped blade. "Is this a bad time to mention I have a fear of water."

He pauses in taking the weapon staring at Alice who is unwavering in eye contact as he processes what she just said. She's afraid of water. Maybe he should have picked Angel if Alice can't do this. Panicking in water is by far the most dangerous thing someone can do. Especially when they wouldn't be able to just swim to the surface. If Alice freaks out there isn't much, he can do to help her other then try and drag her along but that could end up killing him as well.

Can he risk that. Can he risk Alice like that. Claire would be devested if she died. And that's not even considering what everyone will think if he comes back without Alice.

Sensing his thoughts Alice gives him a small smile. "Don't worry I'll be fine. I can handle it. Umbrella was very picky about it's operatives. Only the best of the best could be picked. It's why there were so few of us. We underwent extensive water related scenarios. Not fun and extremely dangerous to someone untrained."

As part of the Air Force Chris understood high difficulty training scenarios but some of the stories, he heard about what Umbrella did to their best soldiers are unmatchable. From what he gathered there were seven stages in becoming an operative. The final stage being direct training under an operative and helping them on their missions. Which sounds like the easiest part but given that it's Umbrella and the last trial makes him doubt that.

Given what he's seen and heard of Alice already he isn't surprised she was able to make it through all the seven stages. But a part of him does want to find out everything about the operatives. They were always made to sound like spies, assassins and just the best fighters on the planet. He had assumed that was all Umbrella propaganda but like he said having seen Alice and heard of her exploits he wonders how close to the truth that statement is.

Before he could interrogate her more on her extensive training, she moves the conversation on. "Just don't expect me to be jumping for joy about having to do this a few more times." The plan was to fill the four bags with guns and bring them back so everyone could use them then keep going back until the armoury was empty. It will take multiple trips to clean out the armoury. Which means multiple dives.

"Are you sure." He has grown to like Alice and he doesn't want to force her into a situation like this. Operative or not water is always dangerous.

Nodding she grabs a backup flashlight before rolling her pack back up. "Water and I don't have the greatest relationship is all." There is almost a nonchalant way she says that which completely contradicts how she is looking.

"How come." He asks intrigued at why she is afraid of water and why she would phrase it like that.

Alice shrugs eyes flickering to the water staring it down as if she could force it into submission if she tries hard enough. "I watched my aunt Rebecca drown when I was seven. My girlfriend also drowned. So yeah, water and I do not get along."

Fuck. Having two people you care about drowning is horrible. To watch someone and not being able to do anything is horrific. From the way she said I watched Chris can clearly hear the self-blame and guilt she holds for her aunt dying. But she was seven. What could she have done to help. No wonder she isn't keen on water. And her girlfriend also drowned. Fuck.

Any response he would have had was cut off when Crystal came running down behind them armed with a gun. She takes one look at the water and smiles. The opposite reaction to Alice.

"Where do you think you're going." He asks eyes narrowing at the young woman who has joined them on their underwater adventure.

"I'm no use to Claire and Angel so I thought I would be help with the guns instead." She tells them putting her hands on her hips. Still breathing heavily from her mad dash here. "I was a swimming champ back in high school." She says as if that makes everything better.

"Is that right." Naturally, he and Alice share a that said should we allow this. God knows what's down there and Crystal isn't trained in combat never mind underwater combat. If they get attacked down there they won't be able to quickly move to help her. She will be on her own.

In return, Alice shrugs passing Crystal a flashlight. "Here."

It seems like they are allowing this then. "Are you sure this is a good idea." Being a swim champion back in high school does not make someone ready for something like this.

Alice looks from him to a determined Crystal. "Sure. She can handle this." Crystal brightens up at this. He has noticed that Crystal has been following Alice around recently. At first, he has assumed that Crystal might just like being around other women again, but she doesn't act the same way around Claire.

Then he maybe thought Crystal had a crush on Alice. Which was quickly followed by wondering how many people were attracted to this woman. Because Claire, Luthor, Crystal and Wendell, all liking her is over half the group. An impressive feat really.

But then he realised that it wasn't a crush that had Crystal trailing after Alice like a lost puppy. Instead, Crystal was trying to learn from Alice. Being trapped in a prison with only men has kept her locked away her only real job is the cooking. If they are going to make it out of here, then learning from Alice seems to be the smartest plan to survive.

And Alice has taken to the mentor thing like she has done it before. Which raises more questions about Alice's past. Did Alice train operatives during her time at Umbrella. It would explain a lot.

"Ready," Alice asks the two of us before diving into the water. Chris following suit with Crystal right behind him.

The swim itself wasn't too bad. Long. But not difficult. And he was able to help guide Alice and Crystal to where they needed to go. Clambering out of the water all three of them let out choked breaths as their lungs desperately try to restock on oxygen.

Alice emerges first immediately drawing a sword and scanning the dark and empty hallway for threats. Crystal and Chris flash their torches down the hallway guns at the ready for any lingering infected. When nothing jumps out at them Chris lights a flare sliding it down the hall towards the door.

Seeing they are alone Chris lets out a sigh of relief. "Well alright let's go."

They had barely taken a step before a scream pierced his ears. Spinning around Chris can do nothing but watch as an infected with tentacles latched onto Crystal. She screams trying to bat the infected off of her and is dragged back into the water. Water splashes onto him as they sink deeper. Alice doesn't even hesitate to dive in after her leaving Chris all alone gun pointed at the water waiting for any sign that either Crystal or Alice are still alive.

Time ticks on and he tightens his grip on his gun.

Just when he is about to give up Alice and Crystal explode out of the water gasping for air. Alice all but drags Crystal up the steps. A second later infected start pouring out of the water behind them. Chris starts shooting allowing Alice and Crystal to make their way back to him before the three of them run towards the armoury door firing back at the hundreds of infected that have spawned behind them.

The door slams shut with a loud bang sealing them in and the infected out. Chris lights a flare basking the room in an ominous red glow. Crystal drops to the ground panting hard and trembling. Alice knees down next to her both of them dripping wet. "Are you ok."

Her reply is barely heard over the sound of infected banging on the door behind them. How did the infected even get in here. Unless some prisoners were caught door there but that doesn't make any sense. "No... Yes... I'm not bitten or anything... I just." Crystal shakily answers taking in deep breaths.

"It's ok I get it," Alice assures her rubbing her back. "Just take a moment. Your alright." She assures the woman before looking back at him. "Chris start loading as many guns as you can. I don't think we will be coming back down here." She tries not to sound too relieved at that prospect.

For someone who is scared of water, he has to give it to her. To dive into the water to save someone from the infected was both an act of incredible bravery and pure insanity. Then again this is the woman who landed a plane on the prisons roof, so bravery and insanity seem to go hand in hand with her.

He and Alice immediately get to work looting the best weapons and as much ammo as they can. After a few minutes, Crystal manages to pull herself to her feet and asks what she needs to grab. Alice points her in the direction of pistols and the ammo there.

When the four bags are full, he throws two over his shoulder as Alice and Crystal grab one each. The banging behind them has only grown in their time here. "There must be hundreds out there. How are we getting back."

Alice raises an eyebrow at him before looking up and smirking. Following her eye line he lands on the vent. Great.

"So... How did you and Alice get on when me and K-Mart left," Chris asks wearily as the two of them work on one of the traps Alice and Abigal designed.

"Fine." Comes her short reply. So, everything between them is certainly not fine. At his questioning gaze, Claire smacks down her wrench. Definitely not fine. "I take it K filled you in on everything."

"Yep. My favourite niece couldn't wait to tell me the whole story." When he was first told by Alice that Claire had a daughter it took a while to sink in. His baby sister had a kid. A kid with Alice. It wasn't what he was expecting to hear. Not to mention at the time Claire lacked most of her memories and barely remembered who K-Mart was.

Yet the moment he saw Alice, Claire and K-Mart together there could be no disputing the fact K-Mart was their kid. Killing cannibal Wesker and Bennett was a family effort after all. A fact he knows Wesker would have been outraged by never failing to bring a smile to his face.

For the past four years, all he knew was that his only family member was out there alone. And then suddenly Claire showed up bringing him a new sister and a niece he can spoil rotten. After all this time he and Claire weren't alone anymore.

And then Umbrella attacked and Alice along with K-Mart disappeared. Claire was nearly catatonic following believing she watched Alice being killed and her daughter never to be found again. But he didn't believe that. Not for a second. Claire gave up on them which is so unlike her, but he let her do what she needed to do in order to have his sister back. He never agreed with her relationship with Doc. Something the two of them argued about constantly.

Now with Alice and K-Mart returning he wonders if Claire regrets not listening to him about jumping into a relationship with the resident doctor so quickly.

"I should have been there," Claire mutters before picking up the wrench again and slamming it back down. "I should have been with them." She says loudly.

Thankfully they seem to be alone at the moment which is the only reason he is starting this conversation with her. Because Claire needs to talk about it. She needs to vent and process her emotions about everything that has happened so far today before she explodes on the wrong person. "Claire."

"They tortured them, Chris." She spits at him. Her glare pointed at him but not directed at him. All her anger towards the corporation that ended the world is coming out. "Umbrella tortured Alice and K-Mart and I wasn't there to help them. I wasn't even looking for them."

There was nothing she could have done to help them. According to Alice they were in Russia. He and Claire never would have found them if they did try to look for them. Never mind getting to them. "They escaped." He argues hoping to help soothe some of her guilt.

But Claire isn't someone to let something go so easily. "I know. I know they did. But that doesn't change the fact that I didn't do anything to help them when they needed me."

"You couldn't have known."

"I should have." She turns away from him staring off into the distance her arms wrapping around herself tightly. Her hand coming up to cover her eyes. "I should have had more faith in Alice. I shouldn't have given up on either of them so quickly. I should have tried to look for them instead of trying to move on with my life." Her tone is filled with regret and guilt. It cracks under the pressure she puts on herself. A sound he never wanted to hear from his sister, but he can't argue with her on that.

The underlining of her words is obvious to anyone listening. It's not her life she regrets moving on with. "With Doc you mean." He's never liked the man. Never approved of his relationship with his sister but Claire is a grown woman who can make her own decisions.

"They hate me." She cries out and only now does he see the tear tracks she is trying to hide.

"Claire." He wants to tell her that's not true. That Alice and K-Mart could never hate her. Be angry at her yes. But not hate her.

Yet she won't let him talk. Cutting him off before he could offer her any comforting words. "No don't Claire me Chris. I know Alice and K-Mart. What I've done is unforgivable in their books. Alice has been betrayed and hurt so many times that it took so long for her to open up to me like that. To trust me." Claire shakes her head refusing to look at him. "She doesn't trust me now. Not the way she used to. It's obvious in the way she looks at me. We used to always be in sync Chris. Everything was so easy between us. We understood each other. In leadership, combat, trauma, K and our relationship we were on the same wavelength all the time. And now... Now there is a brick wall between us. A wall I created by sleeping with Doc."

Back at the prison, there was no arguing that Alice and Claire worked perfectly together. Even without her memories, there was a synergy between them that had taken him by surprise at the time. Even he and Claire didn't complement each other like that.

At the time he chalked it up to them being in a long-term romantic relationship. That they learnt how to fall into such an easy rhythm with each other. Something they had worked on together as they began to understand each other more.

That effortless way they interacted and worked with each other disappeared the moment Alice found out about Doc. Not that he can blame Alice for that.

"Alice's last girlfriend cheated on her." To say Chris was shocked to hear this would be an understatement. He can barely wrap his head around it. Someone cheated on Alice. Bet that ended well for them. "Everything about that whole ordeal was wrong. Alice blames herself. And I hated that. Hated she gave excuses as to why Anna cheated on her." Chris doesn't need to be an expert to see that Claire's anger at what Anna did is only beaten by how she feels about herself. In her mind, she is no better than her and she hates that. Hates herself for starting this whole situation. Even when she had no idea Alice was still alive. "They broke up, but I don't think Alice ever recovered from it. Especially when a few weeks later Anna was killed in the Hive. Drowned in her lab with Mariano and Johnny-Wayne.

Is it wrong of him to want to hear more. To hear the whole story as to what happened. To hear the gossip on what went down between them because clearly there is more to what happened then the brief sketch Clare just gave him.

As he thinks that he vaguely remembers when Alice told him her girlfriend drowned. Girlfriend. Not ex. He didn't know she died in the Hive. How horrific that must have been for Alice to realise after she regained her memories.

What he thought earlier about how he bets it ended well for them. This isn't what he meant. He thought it be more of a devastating verbal lashing. Not murdered in a slow and painful way. Jesus Christ.

Claire continues unaware of his inner monologue. Which he is grateful for. "Alice said after it was revealed it was Spencer who released the virus they were in the lab. Anna's corpse was hidden in the water still. Alice, Spencer and Matt's wading in the water woke her up. Alice watched as the infected version of her ex bite into Spencer before he gunned her down. She always blamed herself for that. She always blamed herself for every death in the Hive. Her friends, Anna, and Lisa. It all drowned her. The guilt eating away at her. But even when dealing with all of that she trusted me. She opened herself up to me. Bared me to the horrors she had experienced because she loved me and wanted to me understand her better. She let me in and in return she finds out about me and Doc."

The situation is now suddenly a lot more complicated than it was before Claire revealed all this. And the situation before was pretty screwed up. However, with all this, there can be no denying that Alice and Claire love each other. And he truly does believe that the two of them can work this out.

He won't whittle it down by saying it's all a big misunderstanding. And if Claire wasn't his sister, he might have backed Alice up more. But he gets why Claire did what she did. And he knows Alice does too. As hurt and angry as she is. This isn't a case of Claire cheating on her. Surely, she knows Claire would never do that.

Right.

"And K-Mart." Claire continues sounding worse than before. "God my own daughter can't even bear to be around me at the moment. She said I was cheating on Alice. That's how she sees what happening. How she sees me. As a cheater." She throws her hands up at this.

He wasn't aware K-Mart had said that. What's worse is that he can see where K is coming from. It's not true. Not by a long shot. But K sees it that way and Claire heard it.

His sister turns angrier and more frustrated after saying that. "And to top all of that off apparently Alice's ex is back in the picture. Jill fricking Valentine has spent the last nine months with both of them. She and Alice managed to track down their daughter and rescue her. Jill is the one who has helped in raising Becky."

Ok. He also didn't know Jill was Alice's ex. That is new. He should really talk more with Alice. He was with her for only two weeks, but she has so many stories to tell and there is so much about her that he doesn't know. Like apparently, she, Claire and K all speak Ukrainian. He found that out today.

"Jill was there for them, and I wasn't. And I hate that. I'm grateful they had someone, but I hate it was Jill. All I can think about is Jill being with my girlfriend and helping to raise my daughter. That she and Alice have made their own family. And the idea of that fills me with rage and makes me want to be sick. And if that's what I'm feeling about the idea of them together again what is Alice feeling seeing me and Doc."

And it all comes back to Claire's decision to get with Doc. He knows Claire wouldn't feel this insecure about her relationship with Alice and K-Mart if it wasn't for her and Doc muddying the waters of their relationships.

Claire runs out of stream after her much needed rant. Only now it looks like the world was placed on her shoulders and crushed her. "I'm losing them Chris." Her voice breaks as holds back the rest of her tears and all he wants to do is pull her into a hug. Which is exactly what he does. Claire all but falls into his arms seeking comfort and reassurance as she breaks in front of him. "The woman I love and my daughter. I'm losing them all over again. I can't lose them Chris. Not again and not like this."

He grips her tightly holding her up. "You won't. Hey... Claire listen to me. K-Mart adores you more then anything. Yes, she's pissed now but she'll come around. As will Alice. It can't be easy to deal with everything in Washington and then coming here to find you with someone else. There is still a way to fix this Claire. But you need to make a choice."

Claire pulls back from him. Glossy eyes searching his for an explanation on how to clean up this mess. "What choice." She asks hope seeping into her words.

"Alice or Doc." It's as simple as that. She has to pick who she wants to be with. It won't be easy for her either way she goes but it's something only she can decide.

"That's not a choice Chris." She replies sounding confused at his words. Which causes his own face to scrunch up in confusion. Until it clicks what she means.

Claire didn't see this as a choice between her girlfriend or boyfriend. On whom she wants to be with. She already knows who she wants to be with. She just hasn't made that clear to anyone because she thought it was obvious. While everyone else is lingering in the unknown waiting for her to make a decision. "Not to you maybe but to Alice, K-Mart and Doc it is. You can't be wanting to fix things with Alice when you are still with Doc. You need to end this with him before you can work on fixing things with Alice." He tells her firmly needing her to understand what she is missing right now.

When she does it's like a light bulb going off. "I should have listened to you when you told me not to get involved with him."

On that, he can agree and disagree. "Yeah, maybe. But you needed to do what you needed to do to help yourself." She needed to do something to pick herself up. And Doc was that thing. He wishes it wasn't but it helped her to recover from the horror that was the Arcadia.

"How were you so sure Alice and K-mart were alive." That's an easy question.

"I watched as an infected latched it's tentacles onto Crystal and dragged her under water. Yet Alice, someone who is terrified of water didn't hesitate to jump in after her. Alice saved Crystal battling off a hundred infected. She never gave up on Crystal. Not for a second. Not when everyone else would have. And if she did that for a woman, she knew for a few days there is nothing Alice wouldn't have done in order to be reunited with you again. It was never a matter of if Alice would find us. But when."

If Alice wants something nothing will get in her way. That woman has overcome the odds so many times. She has died and come back to life. Cheated death hundreds of times. Was able to bond with the virus and got powers. If she wanted to find Claire again, she would.

Like she said she found Claire and K-Mart in the desert. Found Claire in the Alaskan wilderness and hunted K-Mart down in L.A. She found him and Claire again. There was never a doubt she would. Just when would she find them again.

"Which is why you hated the idea of me and Doc." Claire realises. Her voice trailing off. "Because Alice was going to show up at some point."

"Yes." He never doubted that. But that wasn't the only reason he didn't like Doc and her relationship. "Well, that. And something with Doc never sat right with me. It's just a weird feeling I get from him sometimes."

Worry tugs at Claire's feature hearing this. "You mean in the older brother not liking his little sister's boyfriend type of feeling."

At first, he had thought that too, but it was different from the protectiveness he felt before. Then he thought it was because of Alice. That he was preparing for her eventual return. But that didn't fit either. This was something different. Something that rubbed him the wrong way. Something he can't explain. "No. Just a weird feeling."

"You never said anything."

He raises an eyebrow at her asking her honestly, "Would you have believed me if I did." The silence is the only answer he needs. "Alice and K-Mart love you more then anything give them time. But they will come around. Eventually."

Claire nods picking up her wrench again and getting back to work. "I hope you're right."

So does he.

Rain batters on to the window as the storm only seems to be picking up in speed and power. It's fitting given the current situation. Eerily similar to everything that is happening but she tries to read too much into what the weather might be telling her.

Alicia stands facing out the window. The Queen in her castle looking down on her kingdom. A kingdom that seems to be crumbling without anyone noticing. "I don't know what's happening. Not anymore if I ever really did." Alicia states to the room. She shifts in place her body starting to strain from standing up so long. But she refuses to sit back down. Sooner rather than later her entire life with be condemned to that chair and she would stand on her free will for whatever time she has left.

She's dying. There's no hiding from this. Not anymore. She thought she had more time. But then again doesn't everyone. Before Umbrella she would have died before turning twenty. But here she is at twenty three still standing and her rapid ageing only beginning to show.

But that's it isn't it. It's only the start. Her best guess is she might make it twenty eight. Thirty is out of the question. Twenty eight is possible. But she expects it to be closer to late 26 pushing twenty seven when her body finally gives up on her. Soon her body will change and struggle to keep her alive. Her future is lots of pain, pills and sitting as she wastes away. It's not a happy ending. Not one she would wish upon anyone but there is no fighting this disease.

Issacs and his team have spent the best part of a decade looking at ways to extend her life. They have given her extra time. Time to spend with those she loves. Time to help build Umbrella to be the global superpower it is.

Time to stop whatever is happening behind the scenes from destroying everything their parents have spent their whole lives building.

"Issacs and Prospero are using company resources to fund their own interests. Interests that could result in harm done to a lot of innocent people. I need to find out what it is they are planning. I need to stop them before they destroy our parents worked so hard to build. What I have spent the past few years building." Alicia sags into herself having to lean back against the desk.

Thunder rumbles in the distance. Winds bashes against the window. The room is silent. The horrible weather outside being the only source of sound. The dark clouds blocking out the sunlight blanketing the room in darkness. One that leeches into what little light her lamp desk can fill.

Umbrella is all she has. It's been her whole life. Everything she has done has been to better the company and its standing. Because she believes in what Umbrella once stood for. The advancement of the human race. A way for science and technology to flourish. Umbrella was meant to lead the world into a new age.

And it is but at what cost.

Ever since the creation of the Notrich Strain Umbrella has come to be the world's protection against biological attacks. Umbrella produces cures and anti-viruses which save thousands of lives. They have a private army to send people into hot zones to protect civilians and eliminate anyone holding viral weaponry. There are a recognised authority group in almost every country in the world.

But what they never talk about. What they don't admit to the people who believe their lives have been saved by Umbrella is the fact they were the ones to develop most of those viral weapons.

After the Notrich Strain was released and killed seventeen thousand people in an attack in Mongolia Umbrella was the first and only group to develop something that could counteract the viral attack. A cure that almost every government was breaking down their doors to buy.

And just like that the doors were open to a gold mine. If a government is willing to spend millions on funding a way to stop a biological attack, there is money to be made. A new viral weapon is created and shown to one government. An outbreak is demonstrated in a New York setting and the Russia will pay hundreds of millions to get their hands on it.

Show America what an outbreak in Russia could look like and they will pay even more to have it. Triple that for access to the antivirus. Japan and China. England and France. Brazil and Columbia. Russia and Ukraine. Australia and New Zealand. Germany and Poland. It doesn't matter what country it is or how friendly they are to each other. If you show them a weapon that could be used to their advantage the greed in their governments will want it.

A precaution they call it. But it's power. It all comes down to power. Everyone has to have the newest and latest bioweapons only to make sure if it is used on them, they have the means to do the same. Mutual destruction. Assurance that no one country can get a leg up on the other.

A new arms race has been created only this time it's not nuclear but biological. As deadly as ever but the one who comes out on top is Umbrella. That is where all their money comes from. Why they have managed to have so many facilities all over the world. Control. Power and Greed.

This is what Umbrella has become. What was once meant to be a corporation meant to bring peace and advancement has brought about the potential deaths of millions if these weapons are released.

"I don't like what they are up to. Nor the Operatives. Everything has become so secretive and I can't go poking around with raising questions. Questions that will get me killed just like it did our parents." Alicia says turning to face forward dropping back down into her chair to face the one in front of her desk.

Alice drags her black boots off the desk and sits up straight in the chair. She's dressed in black jeggings a white shirt and a black leather jacket Alicia had bought her for her birthday two years ago. "So, what is it you want me to do."

"I need someone I can trust inside the company. On the board and in the operatives. Someone who can help stop Umbrella before they do something they can't come back from." Alicia tells her hating the fact it has come to this.

She was the one to push Alice to leave this life behind. Ethan got out as soon as he could, but Alice lingered. She wanted to leave but she didn't want to leave Alicia. But she pushed. Made Alice swear to live her life instead of wasting it spending it fighting a losing battle to save her. Alice did just that. She finished college after her master's when she was eighteen. Joined the Peace Corps for a bit and explored the world. Changed her name before joining the Secret Service. She was out.

Out of her father's shadow. Free of his manipulation and abuse. Free of Umbrella to live her life.

Now here she is asking Alice to come back. To give all that up and make a deal with the devil. To risk her life all in the name of protecting a corporation her mother had once had a foothold in building before Oswell Spencer killed her for going against the company.

Alice looks off to the side thinking over her words. Alicia expected Alice to take a few days to think about this. Think about everything she would be giving up and having to deal with should she take the job. Thinking about she shouldn't have been so surprised when Alice turned back to her smirking. In the end, she should have remembered there was nothing Alice wouldn't do for her. "When do I start."

Sometimes when she's looking out over the destruction of the planet, she can't help but wonder what would have happened had she said no that day. The day Alicia pleaded with her to come and work at Umbrella. To help her root out any corruption in an attempt to make the company a better place before she died.

Maybe she should have just said fuck it and kill Issacs and her father. Back then Life in prison or hiding out in a foreign country somewhere would be a whole lot better than this. Then again it wasn't until after the hive that Issacs showed her his true colours to her.

And you know what the worst part is about that. She thought he was innocent. That it was her father moving the pieces of corruption within the organisation not him. She was planning with Lisa to point everything at her father and get him thrown in prison but protect Issacs and Alicia. The three of them would start a new company before exposing what Umbrella was doing. They would have been protected.

Five years later she was proven wrong with the world a mess and on the verge of extinction. A mistake she made. One she will rectify even if it kills her.

You know what the truly sick thing is. She could forgive the experimenting on her. She was infected so in a way she could have rationalised why that decision was made. Especially given what happened in the Hive. She could forgive being injected with the T-virus. She was already infected from the licker to understand what the virus actually did it would make sense. It's horrible but she could get that.

No, what was the breaking point was when Issacs realised she had bonded with the virus. That it couldn't hurt her like it could others. Instead of releasing her or trying to understand why that is. He decided to kill her and restart her heart. His experiments turned from understanding the virus to seeing how my body would react to different situations. Different forms of torture and death.

She was strapped down to a table screaming at him to stop. Begging him to stop. And he did nothing. He barely looked at her. He just did trial after trial after trial. He did worse to her then her own father did all while she begged him to stop. He showed no emotions to her pleas. No remorse. And it was in that act that she realised he wasn't the man she thought she was. Realised why he and her father were still best friends even after anything he did to her and Ethan.

From the top of the tower, she can see the destruction her family has created. The destruction she failed to stop. So many people have told her it wasn't her fault. Sheva even screamed it at her once during an argument. But no matter what they say she can't stop the never ending feeling of guilt. They can say it all they want but in the end the T-Virus was created and adapted by her family.

James created it to save Alicia. Her father and Issacs brought it back. Anna experimented with it and she stood by this happening. Yes, she tried to expose it in the end. But she waited too long. She underestimated Spencer. She and Lisa should have taken the Virus that day and disappeared. But they waited to make sure her brother and his people got everything ready. That hesitation meant Spencer made his move first.

She should have been more secretive about letting Lisa in on the plan. She talked out in the open. She should have known by then that with Umbrella you are never alone. Mistake after mistake and this is what's left. Ruins.

"You know I never got your love for heights." Claire sneaks up next to her taking the spot next to her looking over the city. "Not until I came here. Being up here and looking over everything just fills something within me. I don't really know how to explain the feeling. Not a thrill like I would have expected. It's more comforting. Being able to see everything gives me some sense of security. And I wonder if this is why you liked it so much."

"My father thought it was about power. The ability to look down on people made him feel powerful and justified in his actions. For me, I'm not sure why I've always enjoyed it. I spent so many hours training on ropes, helicopters, osprey's, and planes. Being high up has always given me a sense of freedom I guess."

"Like a bird." Claire looks down at her covered arm. "That's why you Ethan and Alicia all got matching tattoos when you were nineteen. Your hawk was meant to show your newfound freedom from your father. As well as intuition and inner wisdom. But that's more what a hawk represents in mythology rather than your belief. You picked the hawk because you thought it looked the coolest and only researched its meaning after." A small laugh escapes Alice at that. What can she say hawks look cooler than eagles. "Ethan got a wolf because his favourite animal was a wolf. He also thought the three of you made your own little pack." Claire's eyebrows scrunch together as she tries to recall the last meaning. "Alicia picked a butterfly because they represent death and rebirth. She shed who she was in order to play her role as a CEO of Umbrella. While her life was on a countdown."

The choices in the tattoo were more on their favourite animals rather then it's ideology. But they liked that symbolism as well. The tattoo itself was a wolf head on one side a butterfly in the middle and a hawk head on the other side. Ethan has his on his chest over his heart. Alice got her sideways on her left inner arm taking up the whole thing while Alicia got hers on the area above her right hip. Naturally her own had to be the smallest version but she didn't want it large on her body.

After joining Umbrella, she Rain, Megan (Medic). and Sheva all got a matching tattoo as well following a mission where they all should have died but somehow managed to pull the mission off without losing a member of their team. They all got the Wawa Aba. An Adinkra symbol meaning toughness perseverance and resilience. Well, that's what Sheva told her it meant. She was a little drunk at the time and didn't really care. They got it small on their right wrist. JD, Warner Vance and Niki weren't impressed when they found out they were left. Stating they wanted one too. If it was a team thing. After they got one of their own everyone looked towards Shade who blankly stared them down bluntly saying no before walking away.

She has more of them. Seven in total. But those two were Claire's favourites.

"Yeah. You remember that." She doesn't even bother to hide the surprise in her voice. She knew Claire was aware of her tattoo. Before and after losing her memory. But Claire had never mentioned any memory of their discussion on it, so she just assumed Claire didn't remember the meaning behind it.

She wonders if Claire remembers the stories behind her other tattoos. How as they laid in the back of the hummer at night Claire would trace them which Alice found oddly soothing. How excited K-Mart got at the prospect of designing a future tattoo for the three of them. Alice would joke next time she went into a city for supplies she was on a raid to loot an old tattoo pallor.

"It was one of the first memories I had of you after arriving here. Chris had asked how we met, and I told him about the birds and how you saved us. It was talking about the birds that triggered it." And here she thought Claire seeing the tattoo would be the thing to trigger that memory.

"K-Mart couldn't remember until I told her," Alice admits turning her gaze from the horizon towards Claire. "Is it strange that all three of us have experienced memory loss."

"In the old world yes. Nowadays ... probably still yes." Both of them share an amused grin. The feeling of familiarity in the way they are talking and interacting reminds Alice of how different they have been all day. A reminder of why they are here now.

"Speaking of K-Mart." Claire trails off not sure how to ask the question that has been on her mind for a while.

"You're worried about her." K-Mart's reaction to Claire is both surprising and not surprising at all. Having gone through something similar a few months ago she gets. K-Mart is working through her own issues and Claire is taking the brunt of K's negative emotions as things have shifted once again.

"I'm always worried about her," Claire states leaning heavily on the railing staring down at her own feet. "But this is different."

"She needs time to adjust," Alice replies carefully watching Claire. A part of her wonders just how much the other woman remembers of K-Mart's own trauma with her parents. That was one of the first things K remembered during Russia. Something she wished she didn't have to relive. But if Claire doesn't remember it is it her place to reinform her or let her and K-Mart talk it out. "A lot has been thrown at her today and she's dealing as best as she can."

Claire shakes her head. A whisper that would have been lost to the wind had it not been for her advanced hearing reaches her ears. "She hates me."

"No. She's angry and scared." Alice assurances her hating the way Claire is holding herself. What was happening wasn't her fault. She will admit she wishes Claire hadn't done some things, but she doesn't hate or blame her for anything. And neither does K. "Trust me it will pass."

"How do you know that." The questioning look searching for more information roots her to the spot. During their little recap of everything that happened they never spoke about how K-Mart reacted. The things she said and did. The burden of the truth of what went down remains a secret to everyone but ten people.

A secret she will keep from Claire from now. The boat is already struggling in the water. Exposing this here might just be the thing that tips the boat and drowns everyone. So, for now, she will remain quiet. At least until everything is over.

Instead of talking about that day, Alice goes on to talk about the other part of K's story. "Because it was the same with me when Jill and Angie came back into our lives. She hated Jill and how close we were." Hate would be an understatement. And if Jill didn't find the whole thing so amusing, she would have been far more worried about losing both Jill and K-Mart. Two people she can't lose. Not now. Not ever. "She didn't like how close I was with her and Angie. She felt left out, and I was replacing her with them. That when we first met, I had replaced Jill and Angie with you and her. It was difficult but she eventually saw she wasn't a replacement for anyone. That I wasn't going to leave her. She came and apologised for how she was acting and how awful she felt that she compared me to her parents. Yes, she is angry at you for moving on with Doc. I am too." Alice admits slightly breaching that topic before moving back to the topic at hand. "But she's more scared at the prospect of losing you. Remind her that you aren't going to leave her. That no matter what happens between us you will still always be her priority. It will take some time, but she loves you more than anyone."

Claire looks on more then a little confused at her words. That confusion started when she mentioned K's parents. There was a vague understanding look but not what she was expecting to see. Which brings her back to the question. Does Claire remember everything K told them about her childhood.

From her reaction, Alice is going to guess no. Claire must have an inkling that something happened but can't remember all the details. Which is great. That's going to be a fun conversation for everyone when it comes about. God, does she wish things were easier.

Next to her, Claire ponders everything Alice said trying to figure out how best to move forward from here. "She seems different now. Grown up. And I missed it." The disappointment and yearning to have witnessed K grow and adept is a feeling Alice is all too familiar with.

When they found Angie again it had been so long and the child she knew and raised was a distant memory of the teen she was now. She missed so much and wasn't able to protect the English girl like she promised she would. She had failed her time and time again.

Claire seems to be blaming herself for everything that happened in Russia. For not being with them when everything happened. For events she couldn't control. As a parent, all you want is for your child to grow up safe and happy. in a world like this, it's hard to do that but they try anyways. Sometimes things happen that they have no power to stop. Like Russia. Claire couldn't stop everything that happened. Now with the odds they were facing.

Hell, she was there, and she still couldn't protect K-mart from Umbrella. If it wasn't for Ada and Wesker they would probably still be struck under the ice powerless to do anything. Blaming yourself through is natural doesn't change the fact there was nothing either of them could do in that situation. No matter how much they relive it trying to see a new possible outcome. "We've always tried to protect her from the world. We trained her the best way we knew how in order to protect herself. When she met Becky at Umbrella Prime she changed from the one we protect to the protector. She became the big sister Becky needed and K thrived in that. Now she has Angie to look after as well and takes her roles seriously."

"I guess she isn't a kid anymore," Claire mutters sadly but with a slight smile.

"Nah she'll always be our kid Claire. Even when it annoys her." Like when Alice told her there was no way in hell she was going down into the Hive. Something she and Angie argued very loudly against.

A comfortable silence settles between the two of them as they watch the sun start to set in the background. All around them work on the traps is being wrapped up and people are starting to gather to enjoy what very well could be their last meal.

"We haven't really had a chance to talk." Claire breaks the silence. Moving on from one emotional conversation to another.

Not sparing her a glance but her hands tighten on the railing. "I've been avoiding it."

"I know."

"I'm still going to ignore that conversation if you don't mind." She really doesn't want to have this conversation now.

"I know," Claire repeats nodding to herself. Understanding exactly why Alice refuses to talk about the subject at hand. "But I do want you to know that it's not a choice between you and Doc. It will always be you, Alice."

Alice can't lie and say that her heart doesn't sing at the redhead's words. Relief replacing some of the dread she's been feeling ever since Doc called Claire babe. She was so sure it was over between them to know now that there was still a small chance for them brought her some happiness and helped to settle the storm from raging inside of her. If she doesn't die in the Hive they might still have a future together after all. "Thank you. It's nice to hear but-"

"But your still not ready to talk I know." Claire finishes for her. Smiling knowingly towards her. Causing Alice to smirk in return.

"Thank you."

"Can we talk about the other things." Claire probes a bit further making Alice sigh internally.

She should have known Claire would want to talk about this at some point. Given everything that happened here, there's no mistaking the toll of being back. For so long she had tried to run from this. From facing everything that happened here. It was easier to push it to the back of her mind. Survival came first. The convoy, Claire, K-Mart, Russia, Becky, Jill, Ethan, Angie. They all came first. Being back here means there is nowhere left to run. She had to face everything. "Is there a topic you wish to talk about in practically." She tries to be vague maybe holding off this conversation as well.

Not that Claire will let her this time. "Are you alright. With being here I mean. I can't imagine what it's like being back."

Scoffing Alice turns back to face the city. "God no. I'm a fucking mess. But I have a job to do and that gives me something to focus on instead of the memories."

Memories that are now sneaking back into her head. She closes her eyes trying to hold back the cracking dam.

Memories of Lisa. The way she would only order Veal Parmigiano since it reminded her of the Bronx. The way she talked about New York and how much she missed it. How she hated all the rubbish food options in Raccoon City. How they laughed as they remembered their time in Boston together. How scared Lisa was of her when she confronted her over why she was really in the Hive. How that fear turned to relief hope and excitement at the prospect of the two of them teaming up together. How Lisa fully trusted her even when it looked like Alice was just out to get her and her group. How after everything went down with Anna there might have been a chance for the two of them again.

A chance that will never happen now because of the actions of Specner and the Red Queen.

Memories of Anna and her talking about science. The jokes they would make with each other which no one else got. How their relationship started to sour after the first few people died after being exposed to the T-Virus. Issacs had been there with Wesker and put a bullet in the head of the two dead employees before anyone could do anything. How Issacs told her if any animal or person died like that, she was to do the exact same. No hesitation. One clean shot to a dead corpse. How everything started to make less and less sense. How they started to argue whether the T-Virus really was worth all the risks. How the security camera caught the moment Anna cheated on her which she and Specner watched. How it was truly over between the two of them.

Anna's dead body floating in the lab on display for everyone to see.

Rain, JD, Kaplan, Shade, Medic, Vance, Warner, Niki. How they all died one by one and she was unable to help them. Matt and Nemesis. Terri and Peyton. How she failed to keep them alive. Jill's scream as Peyton was gunned down. Angie's devastated cries after Cain executed her father.

How Issac and Cain experimented on her. People she knew and worked with helping them. The feeling of dying over and over again. Nothing but pain filling her mind as she begged it to stop. As she begged for death's peaceful embrace.

The nuke going off and her own death. And being recaptured by Umbrella. What they did to her again. How her powers developed taking away a part of her humanity in exchange.

It's all too much for her to hold back. The memories finally break the dam collapsing into her. But Claire is there to catch her. Claire is always there when she needs her the most. With Claire, she doesn't have to be strong and unfeeling. She just holds her as everything she has trying to be washes over her. All the pain and heartbreak. Claire helps her to feel everything she lost and endured offering her a place of safety to just feel.

K-Mart is watching her pack up the rusted cans used on her crossbow training when she breaches the subject. "Can I ask you a question." There's a nervousness in her voice. Not the excited in awe one she is used to when speaking to K-Mart. But a scared and unsure nervousness

"Of course, you can."

"What did you mean... when you said you understand." Alice pauses in her actions. The remnants of her past slamming into her forcing her to close her eyes and focus on blocking out the memories. Thankfully her back is to K, so she doesn't see the struggle her question has caused.

She knew K would ask eventually. The moment Alice realised what K had endured from her parents and hinted at her own she knew K's curious nature would one day win out.

Alice turns to look K-Mart dead in the eyes face blank, but K can see the hint of pain hidden in her eyes. A pain she understands but doesn't realise that yet. "You know exactly what I mean K."

K looks away from her. She doesn't know. She can guess what Alice hinted at that night after her outburst with Markus. But she still wants to know more. To understand. No one in the convoy has come close to even guessing about her past but Alice didn't guess. She knew. From the moment they met each other, she knew. "Yeah. But how."

Alice is silent for a while. A long while. Long enough that K starts to question whether she has upset the woman and should just leave. Eventually, Alice sighs and looks back to K. "If you really want to have this conversation then I think Claire should be there as well." Then much more quietly. "She deserves to know too."

Panic begins to swell within K-Mart. She doesn't want Claire to know about her past. Doesn't want the woman who basically adopted her to understand why her own parents abandoned her. That if Claire knew the truth would look at her differently. She can't have that. Claire is all she really has in this world, and she can't lose.

"You don't have to talk," Alice states having watched the fear grow on the young teen's face. "But if you want to understand how I know then Claire deserves to know about my past just as much as you do."

"Because you know," K mutters again looking down at the sand.

Alice moves closer putting an oddly comforting hand on her shoulder making her look up. "People like us. People who are abused in any way. We know each other from a single look. Kindred spirits some would say. Trying to make it sound better than it actually is. The truth is we see the world differently and via that, there is an unspoken language we all hold. Something innate to us so that we can see it in others. Even when others can't."

"And you see that in me." Alice sees right through her.

"Just as you saw it in me." The older woman agrees.

They find Claire and the three of them settle down in the Hummer. The three of them settle in the back with Alice on one side Claire on the other and K leaning against the back of the seats.

"Co-workers used to joke that I must be an empath given how well I can read over people's emotions. I always seemed to understand how others were feeling or help them figure out for themselves what was wrong. But my ex hated those jokes. She would always hold my hand tighter when it was said, and I could tell she was annoyed at their comments about how good I was a reading people. I figured it was because of my job and didn't like the reminder of why I learnt to do all that. Then one day I decided to ask her about she never took it as a joke telling me 'Babe you're not an empath you have PTSD from an unstable household and are sensitive to emotional change as a defence mechanism. I don't care how they word it or the fact they don't know. But when they joke about your trauma all I want to do is scream at them to shut up.'"

"I mean she wasn't wrong, but I hated being called out like that. My father... He is not a good man. Not anymore anyways. After my mother was murdered something inside of him died. It was like all the love in him was sucked out leaving nothing but an angry bitter man who only cared for what his legacy would be. Sadly, for me and my brother, we were left alone with him. As his ambitions grew we suffered more and more. We were no longer kids to him but property to make him boast his legacy and newfound ideals. He ripped us apart and stitched us back up in his own image. He did this over and over again until there was hardly anything left of us. Me more than Ethan."

"Was it physical". K asks almost dreading the answer. Her parents were many things, but they never hit her or anything like that. And she hopes that it was the same with Alice.

However, the look Alice gives her answers her question. Nonetheless, Alice pushes on giving a verbal response. "Physical, emotional, mental... Sexual in a way but that's a whole different conversation."

Sexual…

"Things got bad very quickly. We were expected to be perfect. Anything less and we were punished. And when we fit into this idea of perfect, we were left alone. Which in all honestly, we preferred. But every instance left a mark on us. Damaged us in ways we didn't understand and probably still to this day don't fully get."

K-Mart can understand that. The not fully understanding how messed up she really is until other people point things out. Little things she thinks are normal that make other people squint at her in confusion. Over time she has learnt to rectify those lapses. It's not often enough for people to see a pattern in her behaviour unless someone gathers all the small instances together and lays them out in front of them. Only then would people start to connect the dots.

Which is the opposite of what she wants.

"We got out. Eventually. We moved states and cut contact with him. We tried to move on with our lives. Rebuild who we were without him. It was hard. But we did it. I'm not perfect. But you two are the most important people in my life and I think you deserve to know. There will be times I lash out over things or shut down or react differently then you will expect. Probably over small things that you don't see the same way as me. And will be confused. When that happens, I just ask you to give me time. I'm not good at feelings or dealing with them."

Throughout the whole talk, Claire hadn't said anything. Hasn't said anything since Alice told her the three of them need to have a personal conversation. Claire herself feels a rage inside of her. No one should ever have to endure anything like that. And especially not someone like Alice. All she wants to do is hunt down her father and make him feel the pain he inflicted on his own children over the years.

In truth, she suspected something like this. When Alice talked about her childhood she would talk about Ethan and Alicia. Never her father. Only comments that he wasn't good or pushed them away. Things like that. But it never sat right with her how Alice used to use the word escape from him. How she and her brother changed their names to cut links with him. So, she knew something like this had happened. But hearing Alice admit it. Hearing the pain leaking into her voice fills her with a fire wanting nothing more to burn everything that man had ever cared about to the ground and dance in the ashes.

Even feeling like that she didn't say anything. Letting Alice talk and get everything out. She is thankful that Alice trusts her enough to share this about her. To open up to her like this.

Yet she can't help but notice the looks Alice and K-Mart are sharing. The way how Alice is talking about her past without revealing too much but letting them know things happened. How it's not a pain needing to be let out talk but more aimed at K-mart.

Dread pulls in her stomach at that. At the thought that flashed across her mind. Alice told K she would listen when she was ready. That she understands better then anyone only a few nights ago. She hadn't understood what they were talking about that night. When she questioned Alice on it later, she just said K would talk when she was ready. Now after hearing Alice open up about the abuse she suffered, all Claire can think about other then revenge is did something similar happen to K. And if it did. How could she not have noticed.

K-Mart herself sits lost in thought taking on everything Alice said. To have suffered that much makes her feel stupid. How can her pain come close to Alices. Alice who suffered far more then she did and still turned out to be a hero. And here she is exposing the worst parts of her life in order for her to be more comfortable about sharing her own pain.

What her pains did to her doesn't come close to what Alice's father did to her and her brother. K-mart curls into herself. Doubts raging in her mind. If she speaks about her own experience will Alice and Claire look at her with pitiful stares. Will they see a weak child who can't handle anything.

As if sensing her thoughts Alice reaches out and takes her hand offering what comfort and encouragement she could. "We can bury our pain but that doesn't stop it from being there slowly rotting us from the inside. What breaks one person might not another. We are all different and suffer differently. One person's suffering doesn't diminish the feelings of another. It's not a competition but we all support one another. That is how we grow from the pain. By exposing it to the light instead of letting it fester in the dark."

"Do you know." K-mart asks.

Alice just shakes her head. "No. But like I said I'm here to talk when you're ready." She empathies the you're part making sure K knew she didn't have to talk about this if she didn't want to.

K-mart looks towards Claire who nods a mixture of emotions lining her face. But love and support are the strongest coming from her. K embraces that. Keeping hold of Alice's hand and shifting closer to Claire sinking into her for comfort and Claire wraps her in a side hug sheltering her from the world.

Alice is brave. She confronts the worst of the world without hesitation. Claire is brave with the survival of so many people resting on her shoulders. K-mart wants to be brave too. Alice told her once that we can only be brave by being afraid and pushing on anyways. And as terrifying as this is she's brave enough to push through. "My parents didn't want me," K admits purposely not looking at anyone but staring at the metal lines on the floor. It's easier to look at them then see the reactions of Alice and Claire. "I realised that as soon as I was old enough too. Before that, I tried everything I could to make them pay attention to me. But nothing I did worked. I was a mistake to them. A mistake they had to deal with for eighteen years before they could kick me out. They only paid attention to me when they had to or when over people were around to make them look better. To everyone, I was the quiet and shy kid because I had no one. Reading helped. It was my escape from reality."

It was the only thing she enjoyed about her parents being so absent in her life. She got to read whatever she wanted whenever she wanted. She could spend hours getting lost in books. Anything to stop the feeling of loneliness from hurting her.

"When the outbreak happened, everything was chaos. But for the first time, it seemed like my parents actually cared about me. They always stuck close to me and held onto me showering me with love and affection. I didn't understand what was happening at the time. I was so happy that it seemed they finally noticed to see what they were really doing. They didn't care about me but about themselves. When the outbreak began families with young children were offered more protection. They weren't loving me because they felt love for me. They did it to save themselves. I was their ticket to safety. When that stopped and the outbreak could no longer be controlled, and everything started to fall apart they left me. I just woke up one day and they had gone leaving me behind."

She didn't realise that at the time either. She just assumed they had gone out to get supplies. She had waited there for two days eating what little food and water she had left in her backpack from the nice army lady. After two days she was hungry and thirsty.

She had left a note on the table saying she was going to K-mart to get groceries just in case they came back when she was out. It wasn't the first time she had needed to nip to the store for food or drinks, so it didn't faze her.

How there were no infected nearby she doesn't know. All she knows is everything looked like a mess with blood and ruins everywhere. But K-Mart was surprisingly in good condition.

She made a few trips every few days. She did this for about three weeks before it hit her. Her parents were coming back. She was all alone. After that, she just moved to K-mart. It seemed easier to stay there rather than make the trip every few days.

Shifting to sit up right K faces Claire wanting her to understand more anything just how much she means to her. How she saved her life. "I lived in K-Mart because I could eat and drink what I wanted. I stayed for there nearly three months before you found me. You came and found me. You protected me and brought me along. In that one action you did more for me then my parents ever did. Your more of a mother to me than she ever was. Despite how much I slowed you down or used up your supplies you looked after me. You cared about me. And I can't thank you enough for that."

Claire pulls her into a crushing hug. "You don't have to thank me for that K." Claire choked the words out fighting back her own heartbreak for the young blonde. "You never have to thank me. What they did to you is monstrous and you deserved so much better."

Both of them are openly crying at this point soaking in the other love. "I did get better. I got you." K says honestly. "And we got Alice. I don't see how much better it could be."