-Seven Years Ago-
"Thomas! What is this I hear about Salah al-Din Mossad being unable to supply the package tonight?"
"Mossad says that his government locked his docks. Sorry, Sherry. Looks like we're going to have to take Quirino's lawyer's offer–"
"No, it's okay. Really. We can get by without that asshole and his monkey. We got a surplus of heroin hidden in the building that used to be my old headquarters."
"Old headquarters? I thought this was the only one you owned."
"Don't be silly, Thomas. I do own one headquarters. That building is just an outpost. It was my headquarters before, but…"
"...but?"
"...but not anymore! It's my OLD headquarters! I don't think I told you about it. Well, let's go outside."
Sherry grabbed the young man's left hand and pushed a door to exit the dock warehouse. She led the man towards a dock on the Hudson River, appearing as she has an intent to show something to the young man. The humid yet cool weather encouraged the people of Albany to walk through the park that was adjacent to the dock. After a ferry boat carrying many passengers left the docks, a small boat arrived, carrying only a woman and a large box. The woman had a piranha tattoo on the back of her neck and a pair of blue sweatpants to go along with her blue vest.
"The old headquarters is located in Hudson. The town of Hudson. I want you to come with me to help me carry the load to the Bronx. It's not an order. I'm just asking."
"Sure thing. When do we go?"
"We're going in an hour. Gina! You can unload the box inside my office!"
Suddenly, four Chevrolet pickup trucks arrive near the docks, facing towards the warehouse. A few FBI agents came out of each vehicle, and some jogged to the warehouse while others jogged to the docks. All the agents were wearing bulletproof vests and were holding small firearms, not necessarily pointing them at anyone. Sherry pulled out her pistol and aimed at the agents running at her. The agents quickly took cover behind a metal shipping container.
"Drop your weapon! Put your hands up in the air!" shouted an agent.
Sherry quickly whistled at Gina and at the man. Gina got out of the boat and allowed Sherry in. The boat was the size of a small room, so there was hardly any room left after Sherry entered it.
"Thomas! Get in!" yelled Sherry.
"Lady! Do not move or we will shoot!" shouted another agent.
Gina shot her UZI at the agents, hitting the metal containers, causing the bullets to ricochet. Sherry started the engine in the motorboat and slowly moved away from the shootout while trying to get the man to enter the boat.
"Thomas! Get in now!" shouted Sherry.
One of the agents, a fair-haired man with a scruffy beard, aimed at the boat and started shooting it. The boat was getting damaged, but most of the bullets hit the water in the river. Sherry took out her pistol and shot at the agent, hitting him in the chest.
"Shit! Henry! Get up!" whispered the man.
Gina turned around and glanced a very scornful look at the man.
"You know these guys?" asked Gina while she pointed her pistol at the man. "Tell me the truth!"
Suddenly, one of the agents shot Gina in the back, causing her to fall, but not before she pulled the trigger with her automatic flinching. The bullet missed the man and hit the water.
Gina gasped as she struggled to get up. The man grabbed her gun and ran towards the boat. He ran as fast as he could, despite the bullets that were flying at the boat. Sherry accelerated the boat, but not too fast that the man couldn't get in.
"Guys! Ceasefire! George! What the hell are you doing?" yelled the injured Henry.
"Move, Agent Cane!" yelled another agent.
Sherry rode the boat away from the scene and left George behind. George sighed in frustration and removed his cyan bandana, tossing it to the ground. Henry stood up and took out his vest.
"Why'd you yell my real name out?" shouted George.
"You were running to where we shooting, George!" yelled Henry.
"I was going to stop her!" yelled George. "Now she knows who I am, and… fuck, whatever! Just arrest this woman and get her some medical attention!"
Two agents ran towards Gina and picked her up, carrying her inside their car. One of the agents contacted an ambulance for Gina, now a former ally of George.
"Are you alright, Agent Burke?" asked one of the agents.
"Yeah, I'm fine. Look, George, I'm sorry. I shouldn't have yelled out your name."
"It's alright, Henry. Let's just go help out the others in the headquarters."
"No need to. We were here only to retrieve Sherry. We don't the authorization to storm into her headquarters."
"What authorization? It's her fucking headquarters!"
"Deputy Assistant Director. You don't want to piss off May, do you? Besides, there's too many of them inside their headquarters."
"Fine. Let's roll out, then."
A Piranha shot at an agent much like the other Piranhas. However, he was not able to hit the agent, since he was hiding behind cover. The agents shot at one of the Piranhas but missed purposely. The Piranhas ducked below the window for cover, but when they came up to shoot at the agents, they saw that the agents had already retreated to their vehicles.
"The ambulance is going to meet us outside the park," informed one of the agents.
The pickup trucks were driven towards the park where many people quickly dashed from the shootout. An ambulance was heard from the distance.
"So, do you have an idea of where Sherry's current whereabouts might be?" asked Henry.
"Yeah. Hudson."
"Well, no shit."
"Not the river. The town. She was going to head there in an hour to retrieve a large surplus of opioids and heroin but plans changed and she should be heading there now."
"Alright. Good job, partner."
The vehicles arrived next to an ambulance, where Gina was transported inside. George heard the sirens blare once again as he looked at the lights flashing red and white. He sighed as he knew that capturing Sherry was going to get harder.
-Present Day-
The ambulance appeared idle in the middle of the dim road. No sirens were heard and no flashing lights were seen. However, that did not make the current situation any less of an emergency. It provided all the aid that a person needed in a time of dire need for medical supplies.
"Carol, grab the towels in the rack over there!" demanded Lisa.
"Oh god, David, I don't know what I will do without her!" gasped Richard while trying to choke back his tears.
"You won't find out because we are going to make sure she survives this ordeal, alright? Understand? Come on, stay strong for her."
"Alright, I'm strong. I'm strong."
"Okay, D. You're going to be alright. Lisa and Carol are getting everything they need to treat you," said David.
"Alright. Please hurry. I'm feeling… very lightheaded," gasped D.
"Carol, I'm going to need your help over here! Becky! Close D's wound with the towels! I need to extract the projectile from Missy's collarbone at this moment!"
"Okay!" exclaimed Becky as Carol handed her the towels. "Alright, Derrick, just stay still."
Dana cringed upon seeing D's wound since the bullet was still lodged in his leg. Becky wiped the blood from D's leg and closed the wound with the towels. Wavehead wiped D's forehead with one of the towels.
"Okay, Carol, just point the flashlight at the wound and pay careful attention to what I will do," ordered Lisa.
"Okay, Lisa," replied Carol.
Lisa put on a pair of nonlatex gloves, a towel around her mouth, and grabbed a pair of extraction forceps. Missy was lying down on the grass adjacent to the sidewalk, unconscious. A part of the bullet was visible as it was outside of the skin and stuck in the collarbone. Lisa grabbed the bullet and pulled it out slowly and steadily. The bullet appeared to have broken into two parts. The tip was lodged deeper into the collarbone. Lisa knew the risks in extracting a bullet that deep into the collarbone, but she had to take the risk anyway if Missy wanted to move her neck and shoulder.
"Are you alright, Lisa?" asked Carol after noticing that Lisa did not move for a few seconds.
"Yes. I was just thinking. Let's proceed."
Lisa dug into the small wound with her forceps and took a hold of the dented bullet tip. She carefully pulled it closer out of the bone. The summer heat only added to the immense pressure that Lisa was experiencing at that moment. Lisa inched the bullet tip closer and closer out of the bone. Moments later, she sighed as she pulled the bullet out of the bone and quickly patched up the bullet wound. Carol turned off the flashlight and let out a deep sigh of relief. She smiled at Richard and nodded her head. Richard wiped a tear that fell from his eyes and took a deep breath. Now, Lisa had to deal with D's wound and Missy's fractured collarbone.
"Carol, follow me. Richard, stay by Missy and alert me if anything unusual occurs," said Lisa.
Lisa and Carol walked next to the RV where D was lying down. Becky released D's hand and Wavehead stood up with his sweaty towel. Lisa and Carol crouched down and rolled up D's pants to see the wound in D's right calf.
"So, how bad is it?" asked D.
"Bad. Very bad. It is necessary to remove this bullet out of you right now," replied Lisa.
"How bad is it going to hurt?"
"Very bad," replied Carol. "Becky? Can you come over here? I need you to keep him calm while we remove the bullet."
Becky nodded. She held D's hand and rubbed her hand on D's head. Carol turned on the flashlight and shone it on D's wound. Lisa grabbed another pair of forceps and looked at D.
"How nervous are you feeling, D?" asked Wavehead.
"Nervous? I feel scared. Very, very scared," replied D before looking at Becky. "At least someone is comforting me."
"Maybe this will help you feel better," whispered Becky.
She leaned in close to D's face and quickly kissed him. Her worried face turned happier as D slightly smiled.
"That did help me. Thanks, Becky."
"Are you ready, Derrick?" asked Lisa.
D nodded his head. Lisa inserted her forceps inside of D's wound and began to remove the bullet. D gasped and clenched his teeth as Lisa started pulling the bullet out. Becky flinched as D squeezed her hand tightly. Dana couldn't bear to watch the bullet being removed and she put her hands over her eyes. D let out a painful yell before gasping heavily and then softly. Becky turned to look at Lisa and saw the bullet being held by Lisa. Carol turned off the flashlight and took out a long, white cotton object with a string attached to it.
"Oh, hahaha. Are you serious? A tampon?" softly chuckled D.
Carol smiled. Dana squinted her eyes and was left speechless. Becky stifled her laugh with her hand.
"Yeah."
Carol inserted the tampon into D's bleeding wound and cleaned up the blood in D's leg with a damp towel.
"I have successfully removed the bullet from your leg without any complications. You should be stabilized in the next few minutes after I stitch you up. For now, leave the tampon to soak up the blood in your wound," said Lisa. "Now, let's go repair Missy's fractured clavicle, Carol."
Carol stood up and followed Lisa to the sidewalk. Richard backed away as Lisa removed the towel on Missy's collarbone. Carol frowned as she knew that Lisa had a lot of work to do to repair Missy's fractured collarbone. Plus, she also had to clean and stitch the wound after fixing the shattered bone to prevent any infections on the wound. Lisa put on a new pair of nonlatex gloves as she prepared to work on the wound.
"Hey, Clyde, what's wrong?" asked Lincoln as Clyde exited the RV.
Clyde sniffled as he took off his glasses and wiped the tear that stained one of his lens. Lincoln helped Clyde walk to Vanzilla by making sure he didn't fall with the crutches.
"Francisco… he… didn't make it."
"What? Oh my god. Lynn must be devastated. Did you talk to her?"
"Actually… Lynn didn't want to talk to me at all. It hurts her to see me. Lincoln, it hurts her! Me!"
Clyde started tearing up, as he walked towards Vanzilla. Benny and Luan were cleaning up the blood in the passenger seat, and they found a small bullet piece. Lincoln shook his head and grabbed Clyde's shoulder.
Clyde started tearing up, as he walked towards Vanzilla. Benny and Luan were cleaning up the blood in the passenger seat, and they found a small bullet piece. Lincoln shook his head and grabbed Clyde's shoulder.
"No. Don't take it so personally. Lynn just handles grief differently than the rest of us. She just needs some time alone to process her grief. Now, let me help you get inside."
"Thanks, Lincoln. You really are the best buddy in the world."
Lincoln smiled.
"Don't mention it, buddy."
"Lori!" called out Bobby.
"Lola!" called out Lana.
Tabby, Rusty, Zach, and Liam turned their heads at Bobby. Lori was standing close to the booth table, and Lola was sitting on Jason's lap, staring at her despaired sister. Lynn was looking out the back window and let her tears run down her cheeks. Lori took her eyes off of Lynn and looked at Bobby. She gasped as she walked outside with Bobby, Darcy, Jason, Lola, Lana, and Ronnie Anne. She cupped her mouth with her hands and started sniveling.
"Lola! What happened to your arm?" asked Lana.
"I got shot, Jason had to stitche my arm but I'm okay," said Lola.
"Don't scare me like that again, I was worried about you," said Lana hugging her twin.
"I'm sorry for worrying you," replied Lola.
"It's okay." said Lana.
"What's wrong, babe?"
"I… I… I'm responsible…" whimpered Lori.
"Responsible for what?" asked Ronnie Anne.
"Francisco. Francisco is dead because of me… I couldn't even save my sister's friend!"
"Lori… I'm sure it's not your fault…" reassured Bobby.
"YES, IT IS!"
Ronnie Anne walked back inside the RV. She quickly made her way to the booth table and went to tap Lynn's shoulder. However, she hesitated at the last moment and stood frozen with her hands in the air, a few inches away from Lynn's shoulder. She slid her hands back into her pockets and turned to leave the RV.
"What is it, Santiago?" whispered Lynn in a very broken voice.
Ronnie Anne was caught by surprise and was unable to respond. Lynn turned around to look at Ronnie Anne, after a few seconds of awkward silence.
"I… uh… heard that Lori… was responsible… for what happened to Francisco… is that true?"
Ronnie Anne stared at Lynn's reddish eyes and saw how broken she was. She thought to herself how she could ask such a stupid question. What would Lynn even say? Could she even muster the strength to go into detail about Francisco's death? Ronnie Anne sighed and prepared to apologize for not letting Lynn grieve, but Lynn responded.
"She… was supposed to protect Francisco. She could've distracted the Piranhas, but… she froze like the fucking idiot she is. And because she froze… Francisco was exposed to the Piranhas… and it's all her fault. No wonder she's not the leader anymore…"
"You know Lori feels very terrible about what happened?"
"Good. Now, fuck off and leave me alone."
Ronnie Anne was speechless. Lynn turned to look out the window again, looking at the far distance. Lincoln's friends stared at Ronnie Anne with their mouths wide open. Ronnie Anne stormed out of the RV, which left a tense atmosphere in the RV.
"Lori… you acted like any normal person would. You're not a trained fighter or a soldier," reassured Lincoln.
"This happens to a lot of people who have been in a shoot out. You can't blame yourself for what happened," added Jason.
"Exactly. I would've done the same thing, babe," added Bobby before looking at his younger sister. "Hey, did you go inside the RV? What did you do?"
"I… talked to Lynn. She told me what happened. After that, she basically told me to screw off and leave her alone."
"I think someone needs to be there for Lynn," stated Lincoln.
"Look, Lincoln. Your sister made it very clear that she didn't want to talk with me. She doesn't want to talk to Lori. It also looks like she doesn't want to talk to Clyde. Maybe she really wants to be left alone."
"Just let me try to talk to her. I'll see what she really wants."
Ronnie Anne sighed and walked next to her brother. Darcy offered her stuffed giraffe to Lori, telling her that he will make her feel better. Lori wiped her tear and grabbed the stuffed giraffe, still frowning. Lincoln slowly opened the door and walked to Lynn.
"Hey, Lynn."
"What do you want, bro?"
"I heard you were feeling down, so I brought you something."
Lynn turned around to see Lincoln standing with a baseball in his right hand. Lynn frowned and looked at Lincoln with growing anger.
"Are you trying to torment me or something?"
"I know that this reminds you of Francisco…"
"No shit, Lincoln! I never thought you would disrespect me like that!"
Lynn started shaking her fists and moved closer to Lincoln. Lincoln walked back a few inches and put his guard up.
"Oh no. I have never seen Lincoln make any of her sisters angry besides Lori," whispered Zach.
"Wait, Lynn," said Lincoln. "This baseball IS supposed to remind of Francisco. Clyde told me about how there might be nothing to remember him by, but then I remembered he showed me this a week ago. This baseball is his. Lynn, never forget Francisco, okay? With this baseball, please let it preserve the good memories you had with him."
"Oh, Lincoln… I'm not going to forget him. But…" sniffled Lynn while she hugged Lincoln, "...thank you. You're the best brother in the world anyone can ask for."
Lynn took the baseball from Lincoln and gazed at the ball, turning it slowly and studying every speck on the ball. Before her tear fell on the ball, she wiped it off her eye and looked at Lincoln. Suddenly, the door to the RV opened and Wavehead came inside.
"Guys, it looks like D is going to be alright. However, David wants to talk with all of y'all. Except you… Lynn. That's your name, right?"
Lynn nodded her head. Tabby, Rusty, Zach, Liam, and Vonda headed out of the RV. Lincoln prepared to leave the RV, but Lynn held his hand and kept a tight grip on it.
"Hey, Linc? Can you stay here with me? I need to be with somebody I love and trust."
"Sure thing, Lynn."
Wavehead closed the RV door as soon as all the kids were outside. They say D resting near them with a large bandage wrapped around his leg and watched over by Becky, Dana, and Tad. They turned their heads to Missy, who was still lying unconscious in the grass but with a white makeshift collar and cuff sling made by Lisa. Richard was crouching next to her, watching her eyes and her stomach, praying that her breathing would not stop at any second. David looked at the roads and looked over the canal. He then turned and faced his group.
"I have an important message to declare. Due to the injuries and tragedy that our group members faced, we are forced to halt our journey to Houlton. From what I just heard, Derrick and Missy will make a recovery, according to Lisa and Carol, but they are unable to travel at the moment. They say it might take a week until we can travel again. However, we have an apocalypse on our hands, so we have to pay mind to the current situation we are facing. Every roamer for miles heard us shooting shots back at the bridge, and they might wander here sooner or later. The further we are from the bridge, the better our chances of survival will be. However, since Missy and Derrick are unable to travel, how can we move them away safely? Lisa proposes that we use the ambulance stretchers to move them."
"But where would we go?" asked Benny.
"We will continue going east until we reach the highway. From there, we could set up a shelter until they can travel again."
"Why can't we just keep moving them with the stretchers?" asked Tabby.
"Transporting them with the stretcher will pose a great risk on Missy and Derrick as they don't have the proper treatment and will not receive any form of therapy," replied Lisa. "However, the roamers pose an even greater risk, so transporting them for a short distance is our best option."
"We better get there before it gets completely dark though," demanded Richard.
"Becky and Dana. You girls are going to transport D to the highway. Richard and Carol are going to transport Missy to the highway," ordered David. "Richard! You are going to lead them to the highway!"
"Alright!" replied Richard.
"Be careful. Refrain from moving the stretchers too quickly and too recklessly," warned Lisa.
"Benny! Jason! Go with them and protect them from the roamers!" ordered David.
"Okay," replied Benny, unsheathing his katana.
"Sure," replied Jason, pulling out his compound bow.
"The rest of us are going to drive ahead of them to the highway! Lori! Do you feel like driving Vanzilla?"
"Yeah, sure…" replied Lori with hesitation.
The group dashed to their respective vehicles as the dusk started to settle in the sky. Benny quickly ran to Luan before she entered the van. He held her hands and quickly kissed her.
"I'll see you soon," whispered Benny.
Benny released Luan's hands and ran to the stretchers to help Becky and Dana lift D. Luan smiled softly and went inside Vanzilla. Richard set a stretcher down and carefully lifted Missy onto it. The stretchers were now set higher for easier maneuvering and transportation. Benny jogged to a roamer closing in on the small group and sliced its head in half. Another roamer crawled towards Richard to which Benny responded by thrusting his katana through its skull. Jason shot an arrow at a roamer's skull that got too close to Benny.
Lori felt uneasy being back on the wheel again. However, she knew what she had to do, so she started the engine and followed David's RV. Meanwhile, in the RV, David told Lincoln and Lynn what they were going to do. They nodded their heads in agreement, though Lynn did so weakly.
"Derrick, you will be safe…" whispered Becky.
"Don't worry, my love, I will keep you safe," whispered Richard. "Just keep fighting for now."
The group moved the stretchers through cars and hills and corpses in the ground, slowly overcoming each obstacle. While the small group made their laborious trek through the roads infested by the dead, the large group found a small grocery store near the highway. While they awaited the return of the small group, they cleared out any roamer that wandered the looted store and its inanimate building neighbors.
"This way…" grunted Richard.
Benny moved quickly to dispatch the nearby roamers. He found a roamer wearing a shirt exactly like the one that his late father wore on the night of the Detroit Massacre. He turned around to see Becky, Dana, Richard, and Carol focused on moving the stretchers as cautiously as they could. Benny held back his tears and jogged towards the roamer to slay it.
"Hey Benny."
"Yeah Jason?"
"Black will pay for what he's done." reassured Jason pulling the string of his compound bow, and shot a roamer that walked towards Becky. "And I'm sorry about your father."
"Thanks man, that means a lot."
"It's fine. Let's keep going we have a lot ahead to deal with," replied Jason grabbing his arrows from the dead roamers.
Benny nodded his head and continued to slay the roamers.