"Daddy!"

Elliott nearly launched herself through the front window.

She had spent most of the day perched on the couch beneath it, watching the blinking dot crawl across the tablet screen until the battery had nearly given up. Every few minutes she'd ask if it had moved. Every few minutes James would tell her yes.

Now the dot wasn't a dot anymore.

An armored SUV crawled up the gravel driveway.

"He's here!" Elliott shouted.

James was already on his feet.

Across the room, Karen looked up from a stack of notes. By the time the vehicle rolled to a stop, all three of them were outside.

The SUV looked worse than the last time John had taken it out. Mud coated the doors. Scratches scarred the armor plating. Dried blood stained the wheel wells.

The engine died.

For a moment, nobody moved.

Then the rear doors opened.

Three children sat crammed into the back seat.

Dirty.

Exhausted.

Terrified.

One of the boys jerked awake first. The others followed a second later, blinking against the afternoon sunlight.

"Daddy!"

Elliott took off.

"Wait, El."

John's voice stopped her instantly.

She froze halfway across the driveway.

The look on her face made James' stomach tighten.

John climbed out of the driver's seat and scanned the area before his eyes landed on the dark stain in the gravel.

"What happened?"

James followed his gaze.

"We'll talk later."

Karen was already walking toward the vehicle.

"We need to get all five of you cleaned up first."

"Karen..."

"No arguments."

She pointed toward the house.

"You've been traveling for days. Those clothes are filthy."

James crossed the distance and scooped Elliott into his arms.

She wrapped her arms around his neck immediately.

"Don't worry, Baby Bear," he said quietly. "We just need to clean them off first."

She nodded against his shoulder.

Reluctantly.

Karen had already dragged the hose from the side of the house.

"Anderson."

Karen nodded toward the children.

"The kids are included."

The three newcomers exchanged uncertain looks.

The oldest girl climbed out first.

James recognized her immediately.

Margaret Anderson.

Maggie.

The last time he'd seen her, she'd been hiding beneath a table at a Christmas party with a book in her lap and absolutely no interest in talking to anyone.

Now she looked like she'd crossed half the country during the apocalypse.

Which, he supposed, she probably had.

"Kids, strip down," Anderson said.

"Dad."

The single word carried the exhausted weight of an argument they'd clearly had before.

"You can keep your underwear on," Karen said.

Maggie rolled her eyes but complied.

"James."

"Yeah?"

"Soap. Towels. Gloves. Trash bags."

He nodded.

"Come on, El."

Inside, Elliott helped gather supplies while James dug through storage bins. By the time they returned, Karen was hosing everyone down with the efficiency of someone cleaning mud off farm equipment.

James handed out bars of soap.

One by one, the Andersons held out their hands.

"When you're done, start a fire for the clothes," John said.

"Yes, sir."

James carried the growing pile toward the burn barrel.

Behind him, one of the boys spoke up.

"Do we always have to bathe like this?"

Karen shook her head.

"Only if you get creature blood on you."

"Creature?" Maggie asked.

"It's what we call them," James said.

Maggie nodded.

"The blood won't infect you through your skin."

James glanced up.

Karen did too.

"You know that?"

"We figured it out a few months ago."

Karen lowered the hose.

"How?"

Maggie shrugged.

"Trial and error."

The answer landed heavier than she seemed to intend.

Karen's expression tightened for a second.

"We've found the same thing. Intact skin protects you, but cuts are dangerous."

"A lot like bloodborne diseases."

Karen blinked.

"What kind?"

"AIDS, mostly."

For a moment Karen simply stared.

Then her eyes unfocused.

James recognized the look immediately.

Anderson did too.

"Oh no."

Karen blinked.

"What?"

"You've got the face."

"What face?"

"The scientist face."

Karen sighed.

"I do not have a face."

"You disappear into your own head every time you have an idea."

"I do not."

"You've been doing it for fifteen years."

Karen opened her mouth.

Paused.

Then pointed at him.

"That's not the point."

Anderson laughed.

Karen rolled her eyes, but she was smiling now.

The younger boys watched the exchange like they'd stumbled across an entirely different species.

A moment later Elliott emerged from the house carrying an enormous armful of clothes.

Nobody could see her face.

"I got them!"

"Good job, El."

John quickly rescued half the pile before she tipped over.

Karen gestured toward the newly cleaned arrivals.

"Check everyone."

John nodded.

"Spot inspection."

The collective groan from the children could probably be heard at the lake.

"Hands."

They complied.

"Arms."

More compliance.

"The bottoms of your feet," James added.

Everyone looked at him.

"What?"

"They always forget their feet."

Nobody argued.

A few minutes later John nodded in satisfaction.

"We're good."

Karen visibly relaxed.

"For the next month, everybody uses the decontamination showers downstairs."

"A month?" Jonas asked.

His expression suggested she'd just sentenced him to prison.

"Until you're fully healed."

Jonas looked horrified.

Maggie reached over and rubbed the top of his head.

"It'll be fine."

The boy immediately looked less concerned.

James noticed.

The way Jonas relaxed.

The way Maggie did it without thinking.

The way the others naturally looked toward her.

Interesting.

The tour started after everyone had eaten.

Karen gathered the family inside the security room.

Walls of monitors surrounded them. Camera feeds displayed the woods, the shoreline, the driveway, and every approach to the cabin.

The Anderson kids stared.

Maggie stared the hardest.

"Everyone listen carefully," Karen said.

Her voice had changed.

Rule mode.

"These rules keep people alive."

The boys straightened immediately.

Even Maggie looked attentive.

"Rule one. Nobody goes outside without a shooter."

"I'm pretty good with a gun."

Karen raised an eyebrow.

"Good enough to hit a moving target?"

Maggie met her gaze.

"Good enough to still be alive."

The room grew quiet.

For the first time all day, she looked directly at James.

Neither of them looked away.

Karen nodded slowly.

"We'll see what you can do."

Maggie nodded once.

Challenge accepted.

"Rule two. Nobody goes anywhere alone."

"What about the bathroom?" Jonas asked.

Anderson immediately elbowed him.

Karen smiled.

"The bathroom is exempt."

Relief swept through the room.

"Rule three. Conserve resources."

She pointed downstairs.

"The treadmill powers emergency batteries."

Silence.

"The what?"

"The treadmill."

James groaned from the doorway.

Karen's smile widened.

"The house runs on solar and wind power. When production drops, somebody runs."

"Seriously?" Maggie asked.

"Seriously."

"I can run."

"So can I," Anderson said.

Both boys volunteered immediately.

James groaned even louder.

The room erupted into laughter.

Even he couldn't help smiling.

A little.

By the time Karen finished explaining the rules, the tension that had arrived with the SUV had finally begun to fade.

Food appeared.

People relaxed.

Voices filled the cabin.

For the first time all day, it felt almost normal.

Almost.

Maggie sat at the table turning an old iPod over in her hands.

Karen noticed.

"What is it?"

"I was wondering if I could charge this."

"Of course."

Maggie looked genuinely surprised.

"Really?"

"You can charge whatever electronics you want."

Karen turned toward her son.

"James."

He already knew he wasn't going to like whatever came next.

"Yeah?"

"Show Maggie where we charge things."

There it was.

"Sure."

Maggie stood, still holding the iPod.

The noise of the room faded behind them as they headed down the hallway.

For the first time all day, neither of them had parents talking for them.

Neither seemed particularly eager to fill the silence.

James opened the door to his room.

"Welcome to paradise."

Maggie stepped inside and looked around.

The reinforced walls.

The shelves stacked with supplies.

The security monitors.

The carefully organized equipment.

Then she looked back at him.

"Your definition of paradise is weird."

James stared at her for a second.

Then, despite himself, he smiled.

Not much.

Just enough.

The first real smile he'd managed in days.