Jason's POV

That night, we all eat dinner around the campfire, celebrating the massive buck hunted this morning.

Everyone sings and laughs. I don't sing, but I enjoy every bit of the campfire. Kat sits politely with everyone else, but doesn't talk much. I don't blame her, many are still skeptical of her.

But I listen to her sing along softly under her breath and smile. She has the most beautiful voice out of all of them.

I plop down next to her. "Have you ever sung before?"

"No. It's strange, to see and hear so many things for the first time when it's just the norm around here," she replies.

"They're things that were passed down from our ancestors. Things that were the norm even before all the bombs started."

Kat shyly slides her hand into mine, a sheepish grin forming along her face. I roll my eyes and peck a small kiss on her lips. Just as I'm about to pull away, she leans into it.

I could get used to this.

"JASON!" I hear Naomi shout. She was on night patrol today.

I groan. I break the kiss and stand up. "Is there something wrong?"

"Dumbass! Of course there is something wrong!" Naomi growls. I'm guessing it's not just because of what they found in the forest.

Carter and a skinny boy named Patrick materialize out of the shadows, dragging a girl with them. She has the same stature as Kat, wearing similar clothing that she did when we found her. I glance at Kat, who's already running towards them.

She embraces the girl, laughing and grinning at the same time. "Lucy?"

"K- Katerina," the girl stammers.

Kat tugs Lucy towards me excitedly. "Jason, this was my friend inside The Walls!"

I clear my throat awkwardly. "That's great, but did you ask her what she's doing here?"

"Oh yeah, good point."

Lucy speaks up, a nervous tremor in her voice. "Your our hair. It's too long."

I wrinkle my nose. That's what she's worried about!?

Kat rolls her eyes. "There's no rules around here. I can grow it as long as I would like. Is that why you're here? To make sure my hair is all cut nice and put up into a bun?"

"Not exactly. I came looking for you," she replies.

Kat offers a warm smile. "I'm so glad you decided to come. This place is great, you'll love it."

Lucy's eyes become frantic as she shakes her head at a rapid place. "You have to come back home! Things are getting bad. Really, really bad. They might go easy on you if you come now! Just come with me and..."

My eyes narrow, I place a hand on Kat's shoulder. "She isn't going anywhere with you."

"Kat, please just listen--"

"Did you come here by yourself? Or did they send you here?" Kat cuts her off.

Everyone is staring now. Some stand up, glaring Lucy like they would an enemy. Of course they are.

Suddenly, Lucy's nervous and terrified look darkens. She pulls a locket out from her shirt on her neck. She opens it and pushes a button. It begins to glow red.

I rip the necklace away, but it's too late. Everyone is shouting in alarm. Chaos breaks loose.

BANG!

Everything goes silent. A gaping hole is shot through Lucy's head. Blood splatters on to Kat and I. The girl collapses immediately, lying in her growing pool of blood.

"There!" Naomi shouts, holding up her gun proudly. Nobody objects. It was the right thing to do. If you're putting us in danger, we kill you. It's as simple as that.

I feel the stares go to me. In situations like this, I'm the leader. I never wanted to be, but after all the elders died, everyone seemed to look towards me.

"Get your weapons. Be prepared to fight!" I order. "I'll get Kat out of here. They may leave you alone if she's not here."

I stuff a handgun in my pocket and find Kat exactly where she was before. She's staring at Lucy's motionless body. The pool of blood soaks her shoes.

"C'mon, we have to hurry," I murmur a bit more softly.

No answer.

"Kat. We need to leave. Now."

Zilch.

I tug on her hand. "KATARINA! We need to GO!"

She seems to snap out of some sort of trance. Her eyes are still wide from shock. She's unable to process the sight of her dead friend, or even death itself.

Welcome to the real world, I think, a flash of envy pulsing through me.

Her eyes spark with understanding, but still have a dumbfounded look glued to them. She follows me quickly as I sprint to the stables, pulling out a black horse from one. Blue is at our heels, happily trotting after us as if all our lives weren't in danger at this very moment.

"You'll ride behind me. We'll move faster that way," I order, recalling Kat's last incident with horses.

She nods, not bothering to argue. I glance at her hands, and see them trembling violently.