Every passing day has been hell. The rain slowly turned into sleet, and now the sleet has turned into snow. If that wasn't bad enough, we have been walking constantly, all of us too scared to stop for long. The beasts have been everywhere, the human and hybrid infected. The only thing keeping them away from us is their animosity towards each other.

According to Alex, the human infected tend to be more territorial, staying in one place their entire life. The hybrid infected, though, are wanderers. They travel into new territories in search of food. This usually ends in the infected hybrids and humans clashing, ripping each other apart until one of them is dead.

It is even worse when there is a baby involved, apparently. It makes me a little sick to the stomach to think about either of those creatures breeding. I did not even think it was possible, but since they are not technically dead, just changed, they still have the ability to produce offspring.

Luckily, we have not come across any of those yet.

Shivering, I pull my tattered coat tighter around me. The snow is starting to stick to the ground, making the ground crunch with every step I take.

A warm arm wraps around me, and looking up I see Braeden watching me with concern. I don't blame him. These past few weeks have been vicious. Alex almost got offed by a wandering infected hybrid, and we had to leave camp in the middle of the night when we heard a group of humans getting too close for comfort.

Suffice to say, my body is hating me right now. At thirty-four weeks, my stomach is getting heavier and it is becoming harder to continue walking. Exhaustion is ever present, but I refuse to let that put the others in danger. Braeden and Link both want us to rest longer, but after our incident with the infected human, it makes me anxious to stay still for long.

We have started a new routine, where we walk for four hours and rest for four hours. This has forced us to travel faster, and I am happy to do it, despite the cramps that have started up.

Usually, pregnancies last for forty weeks, give or take a week, but I have a feeling that I am not going to make it that far. Every night before bed and every morning after waiting, I feel to see if my scrotum has pulled back. For a while, feeling everything remain the same was a relief. But this morning it had been different. Baby is going to be here soon, very soon, and it is terrifying.

Braeden had tried to conceal his fear when I told him, but it was easy for me to see. I am just as scared. We are out here, completely exposed to the elements and to the beasts wandering through the woods. There is no way a child could survive out here.

The map says we are almost to the compound, about two weeks away, but at the rate we are walking, we should get there sooner. There is only one more check point between us and the final destination.

This time, I hope that it isn't completely trashed like the last two. We have gone over a hundred miles without a check point, and I know that the others are getting anxious. Our food ran out yesterday morning, and we are all feeling the pain of an empty stomach.

Something warm settles over my back, startling me out of my thoughts. Braeden is wrapping a blanket around me, creating a sort of hood to guard my head against the falling snow. Once satisfied, he pulls me closer to him, his hand rubbing along my side.

I don't bother to argue with him, despite how much I want to. Because this is the blanket he had been wearing over his coat, and I am already wearing one. But, I know that he is worried about me, and trying his best to take care of me, so I just pull the blanket tighter against me, the warmth quickly leaving as the snow starts to turn the material damp.

"I think that's the place," Link says from in front of us.

We all stop behind him, looking over at the little cabin he is pointing at. There is smoke curling from the chimney and a hummingbird wind chime still in the snow. As per usual, Link and Braeden walk ahead, leaving me and Quinn to huddle together while Alex keeps an eye on the forest behind us.

The snow is really starting to pile up, flurries floating down to the ground. There have to be at least four inches, and it does not look like it is going to be stopping anytime soon.

"I can't feel my toes," Quinn says, cuddling into my side. My body tenses as a contraction starts up, the usual fake ones that have become more frequent with every passing day. Quinn feels my tension and automatically starts to rub my back. "Baby needs to stay inside. Just a little while longer."

"Probably won't make it another week," I say, causing Quinn to blink up at me in confusion.

"You're not that far along. You still have a few more weeks."

Shaking my head, I try to breathe through the pain, only able to answer when the contraction passes. "No, she is coming any day now. My body is already changing."

"Oh God."

Nodding my head, I rest my head on top of his, a sigh of relief coming out of me when I see Braeden motion us over as Link talks to a man standing in the doorway. A little kid, not more than three is wrapped around his leg, while he holds an infant on his hip.

The man looks anxious, but when he turns to look over at us approaching, he lets out a long sigh. Stepping back, he holds the door open for us as we walk inside, the heat from the fire making my skin prickle.

The little boy attached to his leg peeks up at us with dark brown eyes, and my eyes widen when I notice his tiny cat ears hidden in his wild curls. Looking over at the baby, I see that she is a hybrid as well, her ears more prominent since her hair is so fine.

The man locks the door once we are all inside, leading us into the living room, where he sits down on the couch.

Confusion courses through me when I see that the man is unlike his children. He is human, lacking the cat ears and tail that his children possess. He must realize my confusion, because he lets out a long sigh, sitting back on the couch.

"My ex-husband was a bobcat hybrid. He left, though, after Elle was born, decided to leave with the last few who passed through."

"He just left his children?" I ask, confused as to how anyone could do that.

"He never really wanted to be a parent." With that, he closes the subject, and despite the questions bubbling up inside me, I don't pester him for answers.

The little one- Elle- starts to cry, and the man stands up again walking over to the tiny kitchen. My eyes widen when I feel a pinch in my chest, and I am ever grateful for the blanket covering me right now. My chest has been painful for the last few days, but I didn't think too much of it, knowing that it was normal. But, now that there is a crying baby around, my body is starting to respond.

Braeden gives me a confused looked when I tuck into his side but does not say anything, instead just wrapping his arm around me, his hand settling on the bottom of my stomach.

The man comes back, settling into the couch as Elle starts to drink from her bottle. The little boy climbs up next to his father, hiding his face against the man's arm, giving us curious peeks.

"You guys could not have chosen a worse time to come through," he says, looking up at us with sad eyes. "There is a hybrid colony not that far away from here, and the humans have been slowly approaching. The attack is going to be any minute now, and we are heading out in the morning."

"You're coming with us?" I ask.

"Yep, we have everything packed. Better to get the two of them out of here before the humans or the hybrids notice us." He pauses before looking up at us. "My name's Ranoe, by the way. And this here is Andy." The little boy peeks up when he hears his father say his name but ducks back down once he notices us watching him.

"How far away is the safe haven?" Quinn asks, desperation on his face. We have been walking for weeks, seeming to be getting nowhere. And the weather is getting worse, along with there being more beasts. Who knows how much longer we can survive out here.

"Brighton Park?" he asks, but when we just look at him in confusion, he cracks a small smile. "Yes, must be if you don't even know the name. It's about a two-week walk from here. But I have a car, know the back roads to get there. I do a lot of trade work with the town, very far away from any human villages or hybrid colonies."

The little girl is now fast asleep in her father's arm, face turned against his chest. She is probably seeking comfort in his scent, which is a big thing for hybrid babies. He stands up, pressing a kiss against her forehead before settling her into a blanket lined basket a few feet from the fire.

"I'll get dinner started, while you guys rest. We're leaving first thing tomorrow morning."

With that, he walks out of the room, Andy following behind his father as they head into the kitchen. None of us says anything else, too exhausted to question what is going on outside. The humans and hybrids really are going to war. My mind wanders to Dr. Greene, and how she might be doing. Hopefully, she was able to get out and is headed our way.

Dinner consists of a meat stew, fresh bread, and potatoes. I have never been this hungry before, and I have to force myself to slow down so that I won't choke. It has been over a day since we have last eaten. My stomach becomes overly full, but I don't mind the ache. All it does is make me even more tired, and before I know it, I am passed out against Braeden, the crackling of the fire a comforting sound.

The fire is dying out when I jolt awake, eyes scanning the room. Everyone is asleep, me leaning against Braeden's chest, Link with his arm tightly around his mate, Alex on the rug in front of the fire, and Ranoe and his children on the bed in the corner of the room.

It takes me a little bit to piece together what made me jolt awake. Walking over to the window, I crack open the curtain, eyes widening when I see that we are on the top of a hill, looking down into a well-lit valley below.

Squinting my eyes, I see that the light is coming from the flames climbing up the houses. Bodies are running all around before a loud explosion knocks many people off their feet. The cabin shakes from the intensity of the blast, even this far away. Gunshots ring through the air, and people below are fighting while some are trying to flee.

"Looks like we are getting out of here a little sooner," Ranoe says, already out of bed and grabbing his packs. "Everyone up, we need to be out of here in the next two minutes, before the roads become overrun with mutants. They are drawn to the noise, and we only have a small amount of time before a huge hoard is upon us."

Braeden rushes over to me, putting his jacket on me and zipping it up before I can protest. The others are all getting up as well, grabbing their packs as we follow Ranoe out of the house. He easily carries his children and his own packs, grabbing a set of keys before walking out of the door.

We stay quiet as we follow him through the forest. The sound of fighting becomes louder, the farther away from the house we get. Screams are filling the air as another explosion rocks the ground. Pretty soon, the snarls of the infected beasts start to become audible. They are coming closer, and we are out here exposed.

"Here we are," Ranoe murmurs, ripping off a tarp from a random lump in the forest. A car is beneath, a small van. "Alright, everyone in."

He slides open one of the doors, buckling in his children while we scramble inside, the packs thrown in the back.

The snarls are becoming louder, and Ranoe runs over to the driver's seat, quickly climbing inside. Only seconds later, infected run by us, not seeming to care about us sitting in the car. Their bodies are quick as they move through the forest, the human and hybrid infected not seeming to care about the others.

Ranoe waits for most of them to pass before starting the car. He easily maneuvers it through the trees, seeming to know where he is going, despite it still being dark.

"We should be safe for now. Got about a half a day's drive ahead of us, so get comfortable."

Another contraction makes me tense up, trying to breathe through the pain. That one felt different, though. Fear courses through me as I grit my teeth.

It seems as if I have finally gone into labor, baby deciding to come at the most inopportune time.

Well, looks like there is going to be a bigger drama queen than Quinn, joining us soon.