It seemed like no one had much else to say. Allison had tried to shield the kids from the sight, but it was too late-they had seen it.

They stayed silent. It wasn't the worst thing they had witnessed in the past few days-not the goriest, not the most gruesome.

But that was supposed to be their new home.

And now, it was nothing but ruins. Blown to shreds. Covered in the dead.

Just a few days ago, they had been looking forward to a fresh start. A new life.

Well... they were definitely getting one now.

Just not in the way they had hoped.

Richard exhaled, gripping the wheel a little tighter. "This is a stop mark... Good place to eat... It's about noon..." His voice was calm, steady-too steady.

He led the group at the front, his eyes flicking down to the map he had taken from a store earlier. He and Jackson were supposed to work together to find the place near Pilot Mountain.

But a thought gnawed at the back of his mind.

What if there was no home to find?

"What's going on?" Andrew called from his car, poking his head out the window, squinting at Richard.

Richard gave a short nod. "We're stopping to eat."

Andrew hesitated before sighing and pulling into the parking lot, rolling his shoulders to ease the tension creeping up his spine.

"Are you sure that's a good idea?" Timothy spoke up, his voice tight. His eyes darted around the area, scanning the open lot.

There was one other car sitting in the distance, abandoned. It was a rest area off the interstate, empty and still. For the most part, it seemed clean-too clean.

"Yeah..." Richard nodded toward him. "You don't have to leave the car if you don't want to."

Timothy exhaled, shoulders sagging slightly, though the tension in his jaw remained.

"Just leave the car unlocked... just in case," Allison added. She, too, glanced around, fingers gripping the door handle a little too tight.

At that, a shiver seemed to pass through the entire group.

Richard gave a small nod. "Of course."

He turned off the engine, pulling the key from the ignition, his thoughts briefly flickering to the solar panels. He had taken a few hard hits, and every time he turned the car back on, there was a lingering fear in the back of his mind-what if it doesn't start again?

If that happened, his journey was over.

"Come on, Ben," Angela said, gently tugging her brother's hand as she stepped out of the car.

Allison followed, keeping close to them. One by one, the families slowly made their way out, cautious, listening for anything off.

Once they were all outside, they began rummaging through their supplies, gathering what little food they had left.

"I've got some bread," Julie announced, setting down two loaves for everyone to share.

Jordan looked at them and grimaced. Sandwiches. He hated them.

But besides potato chips, it didn't seem like he had much of a choice.

They sat down in what felt like the safest area, keeping their backs against something solid, their eyes constantly flicking to the lot around them.

Jackson sat stiffly, his body rigid, his eyes darting from car to car. The tension in his face was unmistakable.

Then he spoke. "Let's hurry this up... This place isn't safe... and we need to get to Pilot Mountain as soon as possible."

His voice was shaky.

Something was wrong with him.

Richard barely glanced at him, casually biting into his sandwich. "Relax, Jackson... I drive better when I'm not on an empty stomach. We'll get there."

Jackson clenched his jaw. He wasn't convinced.

"Alright..." He muttered, mostly to himself. "I just need to make sure Tyler is fine..."

His gaze drifted to his son.

But Tyler wasn't paying him any mind at all. He was grinning, talking animatedly to Angela.

"This is the best place to end the world... The mountains!" Tyler spread his arms, twisting them like an airplane, mimicking the way he imagined Pilot Mountain would look.

Not that he really knew. None of them did.

They were going in blind.

Richard had been to the town a few times in his life, but even he knew next to nothing about it.

Angela gave a small, hollow chuckle. "Yeah... I guess we were lucky..."

She took a bite of her sandwich, but there was no conviction in her words. She didn't believe it.

And neither did anyone else.

"I need to use the bathroom!" Jordan blurted out suddenly, shifting uncomfortably. He had been holding it in all day-trying not to drink too much so he wouldn't have to stop-but now? It felt like his bladder was about to explode.

Richard barely looked up from his food. "Alright... go to that tree over there and piss on it," he muttered, shoving another bite into his mouth, clearly not interested.

Andrew and Julie both shot him a look. Julie squinted at Richard, then turned to Jordan.

"I'll come with you," she said, standing up.

Jordan let out an exaggerated sigh of relief. "Thanks, Mom... Just-please don't look!" He shot her a small grin.

Julie rolled her eyes. "Of course not," she chuckled.

The two of them headed toward the tree, disappearing behind the brush.

Ben glanced at the others before speaking. "I think this will work for us all... I mean, we already seem to work together pretty well, right?"

He knew they didn't always get along, but that was probably just temporary. Once they found a safe place, he felt like life might actually come back together.

And the best part?

No more school.

A smirk tugged at his lips at the thought.

"Let's hope so, Ben..." Timothy sighed, rubbing the back of his head. "But we still don't know enough about these... zombies. We have a lot to learn."

His mind was spinning with different thoughts, too many at once. He wasn't even sure which one to focus on.

At the end of the day, only one thing mattered.

Keeping his family safe.

"We'll figure them out," Allison reassured him. "Ben's right. We'll work better as a team."

Timothy nodded, letting out a slow breath. He wanted to believe that.

Richard, however, didn't like what he was hearing.

He had never been a team player. He had always survived by himself. Depending on others? That wasn't how he worked.

"We'll see how this goes," Richard muttered under his breath, barely paying attention as Julie and Jordan returned.

Julie clapped her hands together. "Alright! Looks like we're about done here. Time to get back on the road?"

She glanced around, uneasy.

Something didn't feel right.

The dead weren't just mindless creatures. They were smarter than they had thought. And lately? It felt like they were learning-waiting-playing with their prey.

"Yep... we're done. Let's get back to it, then," Richard said, wiping the crumbs off his shirt and standing up.

One by one, the group followed suit, ready to leave. The shift in leadership-Jackson stepping back, Richard stepping up-seemed to be working smoothly.

"Come on, Tyler," Jackson said, his voice much calmer than before as he held his hand out.

Tyler hesitated for a moment. He felt too old for that kind of treatment. His father hadn't been around much when he was younger-hadn't gotten to see him grow up.

But still... Tyler felt safer by his side.

"I'm coming," he mumbled, watching his father carefully.

Jackson had been off since last night.

Ever since he disappeared for those few hours.

Tyler had no idea where he had gone, or what he had seen.

But something had changed in him.

Before he could think too hard about it, everyone started moving. The families returned to their vehicles, slipping inside one by one.

Richard started his car-not without some trouble. The first turn of the key-nothing. The second-still nothing.

The third?

The engine finally roared to life.

Richard let out a breath. "Three's the lucky number," he muttered.

As he glanced outside, he noticed Allison and her kids were still not in their car.

"Come on, Angela, we're leaving," Allison called, snapping her daughter out of her daze.

Angela blinked, lost in thought, before finally getting up and following her mother.

Richard relaxed a little once he saw that everyone was inside and accounted for.

"Alright... Let's do this," he said, adjusting the rearview mirror.

Once the doors were locked, and once everyone was ready-

He hit the gas.

The truck and SUV followed close behind as they pulled back onto the highway.

The road stretched out ahead, leading them straight into downtown Greensboro.

None of them knew what was waiting for them there.

---

"This is the second-to-last big city we'll be passing... before the small journey to Pilot Mountain," Richard said, nodding toward the adults.

Allison sat in the middle seat, holding onto both of her kids' hands. She felt calm for the moment, but her mind was still running.

She hated this car. It was electric, not gas-powered. It didn't have the same strength or reliability as a normal vehicle.

She had already witnessed that firsthand back at the beach house, when they had struggled to leave. The battery hadn't held up the way a real engine would have.

She just had to hope they wouldn't run into the same issue again on their way to the mountains.

"Small journey?" Timothy asked suddenly, narrowing his eyes at Richard. "Are you saying we'll be close to a big city?"

Richard blinked, as if caught off guard by the question. Then, he shook his head.

"No, Timothy... We won't be within thirty miles of any major cities," he assured him. "But you'll get to see them from the top of those mountains."

He smirked slightly, remembering the times he had gone to Hanging Rock.

Not for fun. Not for hiking.

For scouting.

A woman from corporate had caught his eye. She had wanted him, and if he was being honest, he had considered it too.

But money had always been more important than romance.

And sleeping with a colleague? That could've jeopardized his entire career.

Not to mention, relationships made moving up the ladder a lot harder.

Richard clenched his jaw, shaking the thought away. Why the hell was he even thinking about that right now?

Allison spoke up, pulling him back to reality.

"Alright... as long as it's safe, let's go," she said, glancing toward the cars behind them.

They were waiting for him to push forward.

Richard snapped himself awake, pressing back onto the gas as the cityscape unfolded in front of them.

It was small for a city with nearly half a million people in it.

Overcrowded? Maybe.

But right now? It didn't matter.

He focused on the road ahead, keeping his mind clear.

"I guess that's it..." Timothy muttered, watching the city pass by as they continued driving.

With every mile they put behind them, he relaxed a little more.

Cities made him uneasy.

Every time he thought of them, his mind would flashback to when he was younger-when his father had taken him to see the New York City lights at night.

This city was nothing compared to New York.

And unlike that place...

This city wasn't a threat to them.

Not yet.

As the family continued down the highway, the rhythmic hum of the tires on the road was the only sound filling the car.

Then-Ben saw something.

His small body jerked upright, his hands pressing against the window as his eyes went wide.

"Holy... Holy shit!"

The words shot out of his mouth before he could stop them.

Allison's head snapped toward him, her expression a mix of shock and disapproval.

"Ben! Watch your tongue!" she hissed.

But instead of backing down, Ben whipped his head toward her, his face dead serious.

"No, Mom! You need to watch what's around us!"

He jabbed his finger toward the window.

Everyone turned to look.

And then-they saw it.

A massive fenced-in area. The rusted sign bolted to the metal read:

EVACUATION & SAFE ZONE

But there was nothing safe about it.

Thousands of rotting, clawing, moaning corpses filled the enclosed space. Packed so tightly together that they could barely move, their soulless eyes turned toward the world outside the fence.

An entire prison of the dead.

"Holy shit, indeed..." Timothy muttered, his breath unsteady as he sat up straighter.

Angela swallowed hard, gripping the door handle like it was her lifeline. "Uh... I really hope that fence holds... forever..."

No one disagreed.

The weight of the sight pressed down on them, filling the car with an eerie silence.

Richard realized he had been driving slower, almost subconsciously. His grip tightened on the wheel as he forced himself to focus back on the road.

Allison broke the silence first.

"Let's keep going," she said, her voice firm as she looked at Richard.

Richard met her gaze in the rearview mirror.

For a moment, he didn't respond.

Then, he gave a slow nod. "Yeah... let's keep going."

He swallowed hard, gripping the wheel tighter as a shiver ran down his spine.

If they had stayed in Wilmington any longer...

That could have been them.

The thought made his stomach churn. His mind flickered back to Raleigh, to the charred ruins, the collapsed towers, the ashen streets littered with the dead.

And now, this.

As soon as they passed out of eyesight from the fenced-in nightmare, the tension in the car eased-slightly.

But the weight of what they had seen lingered.

And they all knew-

That wasn't the worst thing they would see today.

---

Andrew's fingers clenched around the steering wheel, his knuckles aching from the pressure. His hands were sore-they had been since they left the beach house.

But it wasn't just the physical strain.

It was everything.

The constant fear. The sleepless nights. The overwhelming weight of keeping his family alive.

And now, here they were-just thirty minutes away from what was supposed to be safety.

And yet, Andrew had never felt more in danger than he did right now.

He let out a rough sigh, forcing himself to keep calm. His jaw clenched as he looked back at Julie and Jordan, his voice low but firm.

"If this doesn't work... we need to find a new place to stay."

Julie tightened her grip on Jordan's arm, her fingers digging in slightly. She swallowed, nodding.

"Of course," she said, her voice quiet but steady. "We put each other first. No matter what."

Jordan shifted uncomfortably, staring down at his lap for a moment before speaking.

"If this doesn't work..." His voice was barely above a whisper at first, but then he looked up, his eyes dark, unreadable.

"I don't think we'll be alive."

Silence.

A heavy, suffocating silence filled the car.

Julie's grip on his arm tightened.

Andrew exhaled through his nose, gripping the wheel so hard his hands shook. He wanted to disagree, to tell Jordan he was wrong, to say that they would always find a way.

But the words wouldn't come.

Because deep down-

He wasn't so sure anymore.

The car remained silent as Andrew kept driving, matching pace with Jackson beside them and Richard leading up front.

No one spoke.

Because there was nothing left to say.

---

Jackson's eyes burned, his vision slightly blurred from exhaustion. He needed sleep-badly.

But right now? That was the last thing on his mind.

"I can sleep once I'm in a safely guarded room with my son..." he muttered under his breath.

He glanced toward Tyler, who sat quietly beside him.

Tyler had heard him. That much was clear.

But the boy didn't respond. Instead, he kept his focus outside the window, his fingers drumming lightly against the door. His gaze flickered to the bridges they passed.

"That's number forty-seven..." Tyler murmured to himself, watching as yet another bridge disappeared behind them.

The gaps between them were getting shorter and shorter, making his little game faster, more exciting.

Jackson barely noticed, too wrapped up in his own thoughts.

Richard, however, shook his head. Boredom was better than fear.

And right now? Fear was exactly what Richard felt deep inside.

The sign appeared before Jackson even realized they were getting close.

"Welcome to Winston-Salem..." he muttered, pointing toward the faded green highway sign standing tall on the roadside.

A familiar unease settled in his gut. He knew this city was significant-he had heard more about it than Greensboro, even though Greensboro was larger.

He exhaled sharply.

"Let's just hope it's safe..." he said to himself.

This time, Tyler heard him clearly.

"Don't worry, Dad... we'll be okay," Tyler said, turning toward him.

Before Jackson could react, his son leaned over and wrapped his arms around him in a sudden hug.

Jackson blinked, caught off guard.

His son's words didn't convince him.

But the hug?

It eased him. Even if just for a moment.

A faint smile ghosted across Jackson's face. "Damn right... I'll make sure of that..."

His hands steadied on the wheel, his vision clearing slightly.

For the first time in a long time, there was silence.

A rare, peaceful silence.

But the further they drove, the heavier that silence became.

Something felt... wrong.

Jackson's grip on the wheel tightened.

And then-

The sky darkened, casting heavy shadows over the highway.

Tyler, still watching out the window, froze.

"Dad...?"

Jackson's pulse quickened.

"I see it."

But he didn't know what it was.

Not yet.

---

"What the hell is going on?" Timothy muttered, his brow furrowing as he stared up at the sky. The world around them had dimmed, shadows stretching unnaturally across the highway.

Richard immediately knew what it was. He eased himself up, his grip tightening on the wheel.

"I think that's an eclipse..." he said, his voice low.

Allison let out a sharp gasp, shaking her head in disbelief.

"That's impossible!" Angela blurted, eyes wide. "That's not supposed to happen until 2024!"

Richard didn't respond right away, but he could feel the weight of the silence in the car.

Timothy exhaled, rubbing a hand over his face. His expression was serious-too serious.

"At this point, I think nothing is impossible," Timothy muttered. His voice carried a bitter edge. "I mean, hell... the world is overrun by zombies."

For all he knew, their group could be the last people alive.

He doubted it, but the fact that they hadn't seen another living soul on this journey was unsettling.

"God is powerful..." Angela murmured, echoing the words she had heard her mother say so many times before.

Allison turned to her daughter, surprised. But after a moment, she nodded.

"That He is... And I think it's about time humanity comes to an end." Her voice was quiet, almost distant. "There's so much darkness in this world... things that stay hidden."

Her mind drifted-Mexico, her childhood, the things she had seen.

She forced herself to push those thoughts aside.

"God is cruel," Richard muttered, his jaw clenching.

The words left a bitter taste in his mouth. He had blamed God before, cursed Him for things that had gone wrong in his life.

And now?

Maybe this was His punishment.

Maybe God wanted him to pay for all the times he had turned his back on Him.

For all the cutthroat deals, for all the underpaid employees, for all the small companies he had bought out and gutted for profit.

He knew what he had done.

And now, the world was burning.

"God will keep us safe!" Ben suddenly spoke up, his small voice breaking through the tension.

He nodded firmly to his parents and sister, though his grip on his seatbelt tightened.

He didn't know if what he said was true.

But for now? It was what he needed to believe.

The car went silent again.

Richard kept his focus on the road, his hands tense on the wheel.

Angela's mind drifted to Evan.

Why was she thinking about him? He was gone, forever. She knew that.

But he still lingered in her thoughts.

Allison's thoughts went to her mother and brother. She wished she had gotten the chance to see them one last time.

Ben was thinking about his family-about how he never wanted to lose any of them. He was just a kid, but he knew that when he grew up, he would do whatever it took to keep them safe.

Timothy was thinking about Ben-how close his son had come to being ripped apart in front of him.

And the Indian man-the one Timothy barely knew-had given his life to save Ben.

He would be grateful until the day he was in his grave.

And when his own time came?

When he finally reached heaven-

He would find that man and thank him himself.

Richard, on the other hand, was thinking about survival.

Pilot Mountain.

What would be waiting for them there?

Were there people? Were they friendly? Did they have food?

Surely there were farms in the area. He had been there before-he remembered cows and horses.

That had to mean something, right?

Richard exhaled and let himself relax-just a little.

That was when he spotted it.

Downtown Winston-Salem.

His brows furrowed as he scanned the area.

Something was... off.

"What the hell?" Richard muttered, his eyes narrowing.

This doesn't make any sense...

Timothy caught the look on his face.

"What? What's wrong?" he asked, expecting to see a massive horde of the dead up ahead.

But that wasn't the case.

In fact... there were no dead at all.

There were cars, yes-blocking some areas, as if intentionally placed-but the streets?

Completely empty.

Richard's stomach tightened.

"You'd think this city would be covered in them..." Richard muttered, a shiver running down his spine.

Everyone in the car looked out their windows, scanning the roads and sidewalks.

Nothing.

Angela exhaled sharply. "Isn't that a good thing? That there's a safe city? This might work out for us!"

Her voice was hopeful, but Richard wasn't convinced.

Ben and Angela pressed their faces to the glass, excitement growing at the idea of safety.

Richard, however, wasn't buying it.

"It probably isn't sa-" he started, but Timothy cut him off.

"If it's safe? Hell, sign us up!" Timothy said, his voice filled with desperation. He needed this place to be safe. He needed to believe it.

Richard gritted his teeth, irritated by how quickly they were changing the plan.

He shook his head, trying to focus.

"Well... there goes the archway..." he muttered, glancing at the small metal arch downtown, one of the only things that made the city visually interesting.

And just as they passed it-

"Richard! STOP THE CAR!"

Timothy's voice exploded through the silence.

Richard's stomach dropped.

His eyes snapped forward.

Up ahead-

A massive roadblock.

Cars piled together, cutting off the entire street.

This wasn't random.

This was intentional.

"Shit!" Richard hissed, slamming his hands against the dashboard as he hit the brakes.

The tires screeched. The car jerked.

The SUV behind them followed suit, its tires skidding to a sharp stop.

The silence that followed was thick.

Something wasn't right.

And they weren't alone.

"What the hell is going on?" Jackson muttered, slamming on the brakes as he pulled his truck to a stop alongside the others.

Andrew leaned forward, squinting as he stared at the road ahead. His stomach twisted at what he saw.

"Someone blocked us off! What the fuck?!" he growled, his grip tightening on the door.

They had made it this far.

Through the cities. Through the ruins. Through the hordes of the dead.

And now?

Now they were being cut off.

Richard leaned out of his car window, scanning the roadblock with narrowed eyes.

"Relax... I've got a map." His voice was calm-too calm. "We'll just take a side road-it won't add much time."

He reached for the map tucked in the dashboard, flipping it open as Timothy shifted back to give him room.

For a brief moment, it seemed like they would figure it out.

Like this was just another obstacle to maneuver around.

But then-

"Dad! There's some-"

Jordan's voice shot through the air, but he barely got the words out before he was cut off.

Another voice.

Unfamiliar.

Cold. Commanding. Dangerous.

"Stop your vehicles immediately! This is for your own safety!"

The voice of a man rang out from further down the road.

Every single head snapped toward the source.

And then-

They saw him.

A man stood in the center of the road, his stance firm, his eyes locked onto them.

But he wasn't alone.

A dozen others flanked him, their weapons drawn.

And in the man's hands?

A rifle.

Its barrel was aimed directly at Richard's head.

For the first time in a long time, Richard felt something he never allowed himself to feel.

Helpless.

The tense silence hung over the road, thick and suffocating.

And then, the man's finger shifted on the trigger.