Two days of frantic preparation later, they were out. Leaving at midnight meant that they could steal through the woods in pitch darkness, much like how Grace and Hunter first arrived. They went in their smaller groups, the guides from Underground 109 leading the way. But since 109 was close to the eastern border, it didn't take long, and they didn't run into any trouble.

The mountain that formed the border didn't make things easier, but it wasn't really that large of a mountain, so while it took some huffing and puffing, the group made it up swiftly. And the entire area was wooded, so it gave them lots of cover. But Grace guessed that there wouldn't have been any patrols there, anyway. It was much too isolated.

Grace, Hunter, and Anna were part of the second group, and as soon as they crossed the border and reconnected with the first group, they stopped. The plan was to let everyone catch up, wait until the sun rose, and then start the journey south. Traveling in the dark through unknown territory was too dangerous to justify doing when they were, as far as they knew, out of harm's way. And besides, everyone would need the rest.

As the group traveled through the valley the next day, Grace felt more relaxed than she had since she left Seaside. They weren't out of danger yet, but now she wasn't completely in charge of the journey and getting people where they needed to go. It was nice to be able to take a step back and let someone else handle things.

Grace, Hunter, and Anna were joined in their group by a family of three: mom, dad, and a 16-year-old son. And to Grace's great relief, Danielle was the 109 member who guided them. She wouldn't have been able to stand it if Paul were with them.

Even though they could travel as a group now, the small groups stayed mostly clumped together. The family in Grace's group, the Tanakas, were quiet at first, but as the sun came up and a light breeze blew across the valley, Ren, the son, eventually got his parents talking. Apparently, they had lived in the northernmost part of California and had entered the central valley trying to get south where Ren's mom had relatives.

"I hope we make it." The teenager actually sounded excited. "I mean, if we could find them after all this time? It would be like a movie."

He walked ahead a bit with Hunter, who seemed to enjoy Ren's enthusiasm. "Don't you miss movies?" Grace heard Hunter reply, his voice faded with the distance. "My sister and I used to go all the time."

"I have to say," Anna said quietly, "I loved the movies, but it was horrible going to the theater with Hunter. He would talk through the entire thing."

Grace snorted. "He seems like the type to get emotionally invested in films."

"Not you?"

"I mean, honestly, if I watched a movie right now, I would probably start crying on the spot. I mean, CGI was getting so good."

"No, but before," Anna urged. "Did you cry at movies?"

It was probably one of the most ridiculous conversations Grace had ever had, given that they were on the run from fascists, but it almost made things feel normal. "I think if I watched one now, no, I wouldn't be a big crier. But before, well, maybe."

"So, that's a yes," Anna said with a small grin.

"Hey, okay, everyone cries at some," Grace protested. "Marley and Me?"

"Marley and Me is an exception," Anna said. "Everyone cried at that movie. It doesn't dictate if you're a crier or not."

"I wasn't until I saw that movie," Grace admitted. "And then I started crying at a lot of things."
Anna chuckled and looked at the two boys ahead of them, getting farther in the distance. "I try not to think about how things might have been if, well, if all of this didn't happen."

Grace nodded. "I think a lot of us do."

"But sometimes I think about what I have gained."

Grace gave Anna a side glance. She was sounding far too wise for her age.

"Hunter and I didn't used to get along."

"Really?" Grace glanced ahead of them at Hunter's back. "I never would have guessed."

"Well, it's not like he would have come up to you and said, 'Hey, help me find my sister who I used to fight with all the time but now is the only family I have.' But we haven't fought since the bombs went off."

"I used to fight with one of my brothers all the time," Grace told her. "My middle brother, not the eldest. But we would fight over the stupidest things." Grace looked out to the mountains to the east, imagining what was beyond them. "But now all of that just seems so stupid now."

"I'm glad Hunter found you." Grace was grateful that Anna didn't press on the subject of her brothers.

"He never would have gotten here without me," Grace agreed.

Anna laughed. "Okay, true, but that's not exactly what I meant."

"So, what did you mean?"

Anna pursed her lips for a moment. "Alright, if I'm being perfectly honest, he would kill me if he knew I was telling you this."

"Oh, well, now you have to tell me."

"When he was in high school, Hunter wasn't exactly, uh, a lady's man, so to speak."

Okay, now Grace was really curious as to where Anna was headed with this. "I mean, he seems awkward enough."

"Exactly," Anna said. "And it was even worse in high school. He spent years being awkward, then he went to college, and I wasn't around to see what was going on, and then the bombs happened so there was no one to be awkward around, and then he left. I've never seen him to easy around a girl."

"We haven't exactly been flirting, Anna," Grace said. But at the same time, she felt, what was it, butterflies? No, no time for that.

"Yeah, but I mean he was like, can't even do a school project with a girl, type of awkward," Anna said.

"We've all changed," Grace said simply. "I'm sure he has bigger things to worry about."

"Which is what I initially thought," Anna said. "But then I realized his lack of awkwardness was a bigger deal than I initially thought."

"How so?"

"Because he likes you."

Grace looked again at Hunter's back. He and Ren were laughing about something. "I mean, yeah, we're friends," she said. "We've been through a lot together."

"That's not what I mean and you know it," Anna said. "He likes you."

Grace wished she could squash down the joy that her words brought, but she couldn't do that anymore than she could have stopped the bombs from raining down on them.

"And look, this isn't some 'don't break his heart' bullshit," Anna continued. "This isn't some romance movie. I just thought you should know since you seem like the type to be completely oblivious to some things."

"Oblivious!" Grace exclaimed. "Do you know how perceptive I have to be when traveling? It's not exactly safe."

"And there's my point," Anna said with a hint of a smile. "You're very perceptive about a lot of things, I'll give you that. But have you even noticed the way my brother looks at you."

Grace suddenly couldn't meet her eyes.

"So that's a no. Not that I can blame him. You are pretty awesome. I mean, you got us here."

"I mean, technically, if we had never come this way, you probably would have found each other eventually," Grace countered. "This escape was probably going to happen eventually, I just sped things up."

"The escape would've happened, yes," Anna agreed. "But I doubt I would have gone on it."

"What? What do you mean?"

"Grace, I'm terrified." Anna's wide eyes confirmed her words. "After the Ocean Train attack, I never wanted to leave 109 again. I know we're out of the militia's territory, but I'm still terrified. There's no way I would have come on this if Hunter wasn't here. So, you have done a lot for me, and him. And with the story you have about getting here, I can't blame him for liking you."

Grace didn't know what to say to that. She didn't even know how she felt about Hunter, but thankfully Anna didn't ask her to put her confused thoughts into words.

"So," Anna said, "what are you more depressed about? Not being able to see Avengers: Endgame, or not being able to see the last season of Game of Thrones?"

***

It took them four days to travel through the valley. It would have been possible to do it in less time, but with the large group and everyone being so cautious, they took it slow. But no trouble ever arose, and with mountains on either side and tall, swaying grass to walk through, the third day everyone felt at peace.

Anna didn't bring up her brother's feelings again, and even though Grace hated it, things were slightly weird whenever they were together. Which was basically always. Hunter didn't do anything different, but whenever he spoke or looked at her, Anna's words were in the back of Grace's mind.

On the fourth night, Charlie called Grace over to the group of 109 members. "Based on our maps, we're about five miles away from the border," he told her. "Which means we'll be crossing it tomorrow."

Grace took a deep breath and nodded. The peaceful travel had been nice as it lasted, but it had never been far from her mind that they were still headed into dangerous territory. "The plan's still the same, yeah?" she asked. "Go in groups?"

"Once we're about two miles away, we'll stagger ourselves," Danielle said. "And then we're on our own, just our groups of six, until the other side."

"Twenty miles," Grace said. "In small groups that's a day, maybe two."

"We're going to have everyone come up with backstories, saying that they're families," Danielle said. "We figure it would be fairly believable for two families to be traveling together. So for your group, I would join the Tanakas as a family."

Grace looked at the Danielle. She could definitely pass as one of the Tanakas relatives.

"And then you'd be with Hunter and Anna," Danielle continued. "You can be Hunter's girlfriend, or something."

Grace gave a tight smile as she nodded. "Makes sense." There's no way she could pass off as a sibling, so there really was no other option. But still, Anna was going to have a field day.

"We're briefing one member of each group," Danielle finished. "So can you relay all the info to the rest of the group?"

"Of course," Grace said. "Thanks, Danielle." She gave Charlie a nod as she headed back to the group.

Everyone seemed on board with the plan. "Don't worry," Hunter joked. "I'll be the best fake-boyfriend you've ever had."

"Thanks," Grace grumbled. But she could see he was worried, and later that night when Anna went to talk with the Tanakas, Grace sat down next to him. "It'll be fine," she reassured him.

"I'd ask if you're nervous, but I know you are," Hunter said. "So I guess I'll just say that I admire you ability to mask that."

"It's a gift and an art form," Grace said. But after a moment of hesitation, she took his hand. "Hey, we can make this journey in a day," she said. "Just one more day, and we're free."

He squeezed her hand in his and ran a thumb across the back of her hand. "One more day."

"Don't tell me you 're about to break into song," Grace warned him.

He smiled. "No, I really don't think anyone needs any Les Miserables right now."

Grace dropped Hunter's hand as she saw Anna look over. "No, we really don't."