averts his eyes like he hates he had to put me through that. I believe he did.
“Put your clothes on,” he mutters, still looking away.
The other men in his group lower their guns as well, and I quickly get dressed. No one moves, and the tension surrounding us is so volatile that it’s likely to cause an explosion if I don’t do something fast.
Once my clothes are back on, I turn to the blond man and give him a smile, hoping to relax him. “Thank you.”
His eyebrows shoot up, and even in the dark store the color in his cheeks is visible. He swallows and reaches up to rub the back of his neck. “I’m sorry. It’s just—we’ve seen so many people turn.”
I nod and glance back toward the three men in my group. They’re still tense, and Axl hasn’t lowered his gun yet. “It’s okay,” I say, nodding to Axl before turning back to the men in front of me.
I glance behind him, trying to get an idea of who else is in his group. He motions for the others to step forward. There are four of them. A woman and three children. They’re filthy, and their eyes are wide and full of terror. The woman holds a gun that shakes so badly I doubt she’d be able to hit anything even at point-blank range.
“Are you here looking for supplies? Do you have a safe place to hide?”
The blond man shakes his head and sighs. The sound is worth a million words. “We’ve been moving around, hiding in stores and homes, trying to stay safe. We were out of food though, so we decided to come here and stock up. We just can’t keep running like this. We have to get out of the city.”
The men in my group step forward, and Axl places his hand in the middle of my back. It relaxes me. He’s still tense though, and he’s glaring at the blond man in a way that I know means he’d love to punch him in the face. I give Axl a tight smile and nod to let him know that I’m okay. He doesn’t relax.
“We have a safe place,” Winston says.
The blond man tilts his head to one side and looks us over like he doesn’t believe it can be true. “Where?”
“About an hour outside the city,” I say. “You’re welcome to come. We have room.”
“Can we trust them?” the older man next to him says, speaking for the first time. He pulls the hat off his head and scratches his scalp. He’s slight, and his hair is dark and thinning. The skin on his face sags. He looks weary and exhausted like he hasn’t slept in weeks.
The blond guy runs a filthy hand through his hair and sighs again. “Do we have a choice? We’re going to die if we stay here. Hell, most of us already have.”
He glances behind him at the woman, and she nods. Her eyes are huge, and there are tears on her cheeks. She looks just as exhausted as the man.
He turns back toward us and nods. “I’m Nathan, and this is Brad.” He points to the older man on his left before turning to the teen on his right. “And Jhett.” He turns around and pulls the woman and kids forward. “This is my wife, Moira, and our daughter Liz.”
A jolt goes through me. All three of them survived the virus? It seems impossible that they’d all be immune. “How did you all three make it?” I ask before I can stop myself.
He shakes his head and pulls his family in for a hug. “I have no idea, but I thank God every day that we did. Most of the people we know are dead, and the few people who are left have lost everything. How we got so lucky, I have no idea.”
He shakes his head and wipes a tear from his cheek before turning to the two other kids. “This here are Max and Dylan. We found them at the playground right before the dead started coming back. Lucky for them.”
I introduce our group since Axl still hasn’t calmed down, then turn to the kids and kneel in front of them. “We have a two other kids in our group, and I was just going to get some toys for them. Want to help me?”
Their eyes light up in the way that only a child’s can when you mention toys with a dead body on the
“Put your clothes on,” he mutters, still looking away.
The other men in his group lower their guns as well, and I quickly get dressed. No one moves, and the tension surrounding us is so volatile that it’s likely to cause an explosion if I don’t do something fast.
Once my clothes are back on, I turn to the blond man and give him a smile, hoping to relax him. “Thank you.”
His eyebrows shoot up, and even in the dark store the color in his cheeks is visible. He swallows and reaches up to rub the back of his neck. “I’m sorry. It’s just—we’ve seen so many people turn.”
I nod and glance back toward the three men in my group. They’re still tense, and Axl hasn’t lowered his gun yet. “It’s okay,” I say, nodding to Axl before turning back to the men in front of me.
I glance behind him, trying to get an idea of who else is in his group. He motions for the others to step forward. There are four of them. A woman and three children. They’re filthy, and their eyes are wide and full of terror. The woman holds a gun that shakes so badly I doubt she’d be able to hit anything even at point-blank range.
“Are you here looking for supplies? Do you have a safe place to hide?”
The blond man shakes his head and sighs. The sound is worth a million words. “We’ve been moving around, hiding in stores and homes, trying to stay safe. We were out of food though, so we decided to come here and stock up. We just can’t keep running like this. We have to get out of the city.”
The men in my group step forward, and Axl places his hand in the middle of my back. It relaxes me. He’s still tense though, and he’s glaring at the blond man in a way that I know means he’d love to punch him in the face. I give Axl a tight smile and nod to let him know that I’m okay. He doesn’t relax.
“We have a safe place,” Winston says.
The blond man tilts his head to one side and looks us over like he doesn’t believe it can be true. “Where?”
“About an hour outside the city,” I say. “You’re welcome to come. We have room.”
“Can we trust them?” the older man next to him says, speaking for the first time. He pulls the hat off his head and scratches his scalp. He’s slight, and his hair is dark and thinning. The skin on his face sags. He looks weary and exhausted like he hasn’t slept in weeks.
The blond guy runs a filthy hand through his hair and sighs again. “Do we have a choice? We’re going to die if we stay here. Hell, most of us already have.”
He glances behind him at the woman, and she nods. Her eyes are huge, and there are tears on her cheeks. She looks just as exhausted as the man.
He turns back toward us and nods. “I’m Nathan, and this is Brad.” He points to the older man on his left before turning to the teen on his right. “And Jhett.” He turns around and pulls the woman and kids forward. “This is my wife, Moira, and our daughter Liz.”
A jolt goes through me. All three of them survived the virus? It seems impossible that they’d all be immune. “How did you all three make it?” I ask before I can stop myself.
He shakes his head and pulls his family in for a hug. “I have no idea, but I thank God every day that we did. Most of the people we know are dead, and the few people who are left have lost everything. How we got so lucky, I have no idea.”
He shakes his head and wipes a tear from his cheek before turning to the two other kids. “This here are Max and Dylan. We found them at the playground right before the dead started coming back. Lucky for them.”
I introduce our group since Axl still hasn’t calmed down, then turn to the kids and kneel in front of them. “We have a two other kids in our group, and I was just going to get some toys for them. Want to help me?”
Their eyes light up in the way that only a child’s can when you mention toys with a dead body on the
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