Zac's grip tightens around me as soon as the blade presses into Anna's neck. The hairs on my arms are on end, nausea swimming in my stomach as I watch, unsure what I can even do.

Jen and Myles warned us that this was what the South was like but we foolishly ignored their warnings and acted like idiots. We completely forgot the conversation that we had only three hours earlier. The one where we decided that someone should always be alert. Idiots.

As soon as Zac stepped back into our lives, our guard dropped completely, all of us instead relishing in the mere fact that he's alive. Apparently we don't have the luxury of doing that anymore...

And now Anna is going to die, none of us able to do a single damn thing without risking her life. Kieran's hands shake as he grips onto his gun, eyes staring directly at his sister who's facing death with nothing but a quivering lip, her arms hanging limply at her sides.

How much death can any of us take in one fucking life? I don't think I can deal with much...

We needn't have worried.

Anna's foot suddenly slams down on top of her captor's before she reaches up, yanking his hand away from her neck. She twists his arm behind him before any of us can realise what's happening.

Within seconds, the knife is in her own hand as she reaches up behind him, sliding the blade across the thin skin of his throat. I guess the training she's done over the last few years really has prepared her for war.

Gargling on his own blood, the man quickly falls to the floor, Myles springing into action and firing a bullet into one of the men beside him, Jen's spear landing swiftly in the other's chest.

"Fuck!" Kieran exclaims as soon as he falls. Jen walks over, wrenching the spear from the man's chest as Anna stares wordlessly down at the bloody mess in front of her. Rivulets of dark red splatters cover her face.

"I... I-"

"You had no choice!" Heidi inputs, running over towards Anna and wrapping her arm around the shell-shocked looking girl.

"She's right." Jen shrugs. "They would have killed all of us."

"Did you call them Slayers?" Zac asks, wrapping his arm around me once more, pulling me back against his chest.

"Yeah," Jen replies. "That's basically what they are."

"What?"

"The South isn't what we thought it might be," I tell him softly, looking up and placing my hand on his cheek. "There's no government or State here."

"Shit..." Zac breathes out.

"Anna?" Kieran says, walking over and wrapping his arm around his sister as Heidi lets go. "Are you okay?" he asks. No words leave her mouth as she nods against his shoulder.

"I highly recommend that you all get the hell out of here now," Jen pipes up, all of our attention turning to see her and Myles, loading their bags onto their backs. "We've stayed in one place for too long. We need to go."

"Where are you going?" Jordan asks and Myles shrugs.

"Anywhere."

"They tend to travel in packs," Jen elaborates. "I highly doubt those three were on their own."

"You two are on your own?" Zac asks and I grimace at his words, the rest of us already knowing why.

"The rest of our group were killed," Myles snaps.

"Oh."

"Where are we going to go?" Sam asks, glancing over at Jordan, Zac and I.

"Surely the only place we can go?" I retort, pulling out of Zac's arms to look at both him and his best friend. "London."

"Do you think... that's the best idea?" Heidi says. "What if everyone is the same there?"

"Jen said there were rumours that parts of London may be different. What other choice do we have?"

"London is different?" Zac asks, raising an eyebrow as his hand reaches out to find mine.

"It might be." Jen shrugs. "But rumours are rumours. They mean nothing."

"We know that," Anna suddenly pipes up, smirking at Jen's words. "Rumours are the only fucking reason we came South."

"There's nothing we can do about it now," Jordan mutters. "We're here. Emilia's right. London may be our best chance."

"So, you're telling me... that the South is just filled with people who kill everyone?" Zac scoffs, crossing his arms, his face a tell-tale sign that he's angry with the entire situation.

Jen nods. "They don't just kill though... they want your stuff. They steal from you, then they kill you." She pauses. "But there are people like us out there too, constantly on the run."

Zac curses under his breath before reaching past me, grabbing onto my bag and hooking it over his shoulder. "You're not leaving my fucking sight," he says against my ear before he pulls away, his eyes boring into mine with such ferocity that I know he's deadly serious.

"I'm leaving your sight when I need the fucking toilet," I retort and he smirks, shaking his head and pulling a spare gun from my bag.

"No, you aren't."

"You need to learn the power of privacy," I argue and he scoffs.

"It would appear we lost privacy as soon as we decided to come to the South."

I bite my lip at his words, knowing that he's right. It's too dangerous for any of us to be on our own from now on, no matter the amount of training we've done. It all means nothing if you're up against five Slayers, all of them ripping us to shreds without a second thought.

I say nothing, instead wrapping my arms around Zac's waist and placing my head on his chest, shutting my eyes as I breathe in his scent. He smells musky, not the most pleasant, but it's still comforting to have him here with me. We've gone from one shit situation to another, yet we still have each other. That has to count for something, right?

"This was fun," Jen says suddenly, all of us turning to see her and Myles completely packed up, ready to go. "I wish all of you luck in whatever you're trying to do." She shrugs. "I hope London gives you the answers we all crave."

"Why don't you come with us?" Heidi suggests, glancing around at all of us. I feel Zac tense beside me and grip onto his hand reassuringly, stopping him from having an outburst. I know he struggles to trust new people, but can we really blame him, given how many betrayals we've all lived through by now?

It's hard, but right now, in this unfamiliar South, we may benefit from two locals joining our ranks.

"What?"

"To London." Heidi shrugs. "You want out of this too, right?"

"Well, yeah but-"

"But what?" Anna scoffs. "You think anything is going to change whilst you stay here?"

"She has a point," Jen mutters, looking up at the silent Myles.

"No," he replies gruffly. "We can't leave our hometown."

"It seems to me that your hometown doesn't exist anymore," Zac retorts and I shoot him a glare. Nothing like a bit of fucking compassion.

"Maybe not," Myles bites back. "But someone we know might come looking for us."

"If they haven't done it now, chances are they won't," Jordan says in a slightly softer tone.

"They're right, Myles," Jen agrees. "We can't keep living this way. London could offer us help."

Myles glares at his sister before glancing around at all of us, lowering his head and whispering in her ear. They're silent for the longest time, Zac's hand lightly caressing my arm, before eventually Jen nods.

"We'll come with you," she agrees with a sigh. "But we should get moving now."

Zac sighs, letting go of me and turning back towards the wall. The others all continue picking up their stuff, Heidi and Sam attempting to stomp out the fire as I reach for Zac's shoulder.

"What's wrong?" I say softly.

"I'm fine," he replies, not looking at me.

"I know when you're lying," I remind him.

"You know shit."

"Fuck off, Zac!" I exclaim, rolling my eyes. "We're not doing this."

"I'm sorry," he answers, his voice softer than usual. It's a complete surprise, the brash, straight to the point, rude man never usually giving in so quickly.

I reach up, grabbing his face with my hands. "Tell me what's wrong."

"I'll be okay, Emi," he mutters, smiling at me. "I just... We need to move."

"You just what?" I pester and he sighs, grabbing onto my hands and pulling them from his face.

"I've barely slept, eaten, and I haven't washed in days," Zac admits. "I'm worried I'll hold the group back."

"You're an idiot," I mutter, reaching up to his hair. "I doubt we'll be going far tonight. You know Jordan will put up a fight because of what you've been through, and I will too. Plus, Anna needs to rest and have her wound cleaned."

"We shouldn't stop just on account of me-"

"Shut up." I roll my eyes. "We will fucking stop for you because you would stop for any of us! We're a team. Only two hours ago we all thought the team didn't include you anymore," I remind him. "And that... I couldn't... It..."

"Em," Zac cuts me off, shaking his head and wiping the stray tear from my cheek. "I promise you, I'm not going anywhere."

"You can't promise that," I reply and he grimaces.

"I'm going to make it my life's mission to keep you safe. I can hardly do that when I'm dead, can I?" Zac grins and I chuckle softly.

"Sounds like you're putting yourself in danger a lot."

"If you don't get into dangerous situations then I won't." He shrugs.

"Liar." I scoff. "You'd throw yourself into danger if any of us were at risk."

"Maybe so," he admits, resting his arm over my shoulder. "Listen... about our argument-"

"Is everyone ready?" Jordan interrupts, his voice loud. Zac sighs, his hand finding mine, our attention on Jordan. Everyone gathers around him as Heidi attempts to wrap some fabric around Anna's bleeding neck.

"Kieran has a route mapped out."

"A map?" Jen exclaims, eyes wide as she walks over to look at the paper in Kieran's hand. "Where did you get this?"

"Our State had details of everything," Kieran replies with a grin. "We stole it."

"I'm liking all of you more and more every minute," Jen exclaims, pouring over the map and pointing to an area. "Thrapston has been completely looted. We should be relatively safe if we head that way first."

"Is there a house or some form of shelter for us near there?" Jordan questions. "I think we're going to need to stop when we can. Zac and Anna need rest."

Jen nods as I look up at Zac with a smile. "Right on the edge of the town there are a couple of houses that weren't completely blown to pieces. They have a few rooms inside them, still intact," she replies.

"Then let's get the fuck going," Anna says, Heidi still attempting to clean her wound before the bitchy brunette bats her away with her hands.

Jen and Kieran begin to walk towards the left, a clear indication that we should follow them. Anna storms off behind them, Heidi in tow, quietly complaining about how she's still bleeding and needs to apply pressure to the wound.

Zac reaches his hand out and I smile, curling my hand around his and relishing in the feel of his skin against mine as we begin to trail after our friends.

"How far is it?" Jordan asks from behind us. "In total?"

"To London?" Kieran mutters, glancing back with a disgruntled look on his face. "Around seventy miles."

Well...

Isn't that just great?

••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••

Anna's alive! For now...

So many of you didn't want her to die and I'm honestly so surprised! I'm glad you have such a love-hate relationship with her though.

Time to start the journey south...