The truck slowed down, and I glared at the intersection as if demanding that it hand over a list of all those who had traversed through it and which way they'd gone. The three possible roads gave no clues and remained silent.

"I can't see if there are any tracks in the dust from here," Daniel said, frustration lacing his voice. "I'll have to get out for a better look."

As the truck came to a hard stop in the middle of the intersection, I jumped out and raced down one road, hoping for a whiff of Jess, Nicky, or one of the injured men. Finding mostly undamaged twigs, I went to the road that would have led straight.

Daniel scoured the pavement, although the wind had removed most of the dust that might have shown us the way. Both of us were now analyzing the twigs and other objects that might have been damaged by three vehicles recently passing through. This close to the Stronghold, a lot of the broken branches were likely due to the passage of our own people.

My nostrils flared, and I quickly backtracked, scanning the pavement twice as hard for something other than the sticks and dust I'd been examining. I followed my nose and crouched down to pick up a small tuft of red hair.

"They went this way!" I called out to Daniel as I ran back to the truck.

He made it to the truck and was already driving by the time I caught up. I vaulted into the back, almost moving too fast to land in the small area behind the cab without stepping on some of our supplies.

"What'd you find?" Daniel asked as he accelerated down the road.

I held the pinch of inch-long strands where he'd be able to see them in the rearview mirror. "Nicky's hair. She must have torn some tips off and dropped them." I lifted them to my nose for a quick sniff. "She was the only one who touched them, and that was about two hours ago."

"At least we know we're on the right track," Daniel said grimly. "Let's hope she does that at every intersection."

It was the strangest trail of breadcrumbs I'd ever imagined, but at least the birds wouldn't eat the strands of hair. And it would leave her scent behind in a tangible fashion.

~

       By the time we reached the fourth intersection, Daniel didn't even bother getting out of the truck since Nicky had been leaving clues just a bit farther down whichever road they took.

As he slowed down again, I jumped out of the still-moving vehicle and ran ahead to determine which way they had gone. I slowed, then turned back and followed my nose back to the middle of the intersection.

"Drive ahead a bit," I told Daniel, who obliged.

As the truck moved ahead, a few hairs fluttered in the gentle breeze. I held them up with a frown. This was the first time we'd found something right in the middle of an intersection. They were usually about a hundred feet away.

"That doesn't give me much to go on," Daniel observed from the driver's window. "Can you track where the wind rolled it across the ground? All of these roads have broken branches and signs of recent travel."

I inhaled deeply and growled a negative. "Maybe some of the hairs remained where they fell..."

I darted to the left since the gentle breeze was currently coming from that direction. Moments later, I leaned down to grab a couple of strands of hair off the ground. Daniel saw the movement and began driving toward me. As he went by, I jumped into the back, but continued to frown at the hairs as my instincts focused on one critical detail that stood out.

"Is something wrong?" Logan asked quietly.

"They're different lengths..." I murmured, staring at the long hairs I had picked up in the middle of the intersection and the short pieces I had just found. I sniffed them to make sure that Nicky had been the only one to handle them.

At the last three intersections, we'd only found about a dozen inch-long pieces, which matched the latest cluster I found. The four hairs from the middle of the intersection were long, and if they hadn't been twisted together, they would have looked like they'd fallen out naturally. The four longer hairs hadn't accidentally blown into the intersection – and their length didn't match the ones I'd found down this road.

If Nicky was trying to send us morse code messages, she'd clearly forgotten who she was trying to communicate with. I might be able to track four hairs within a ten-foot radius, but I wouldn't know morse code or any other kind of secret language even if it bit me on the ass.

I continued to stare at the hairs, trying to figure out why Nicky had left two clues this time. It just didn't make sense.

"The tracks turn around," Daniel suddenly said as he hit the brakes, making me look up.

At first, I saw nothing out of the ordinary, but then I remembered this was Daniel, and I looked much farther ahead. In the distance, the grass on the side of the road was flattened in a semi-circle – just like several vehicles had turned around.

Daniel quickly replicated the pattern and hightailed it back to the intersection. He slowed down as he turned into the road that would have gone straight ahead, taking a chance they had gone this way. I vaulted out and staggered due to the speed we were still going. Testing the air, I jogged along the road that matched their previous line of travel.

Sure enough, about the usual hundred feet away, there was another inch-long tuft of hairs twisted together. I grabbed our latest clue and jumped back in the truck as Daniel resumed his erratic driving.

I wasn't sure if they had tried to break their trail or had simply taken a wrong turn, but it would have cost them time. So even if it took us a few minutes to realize what had happened, we'd caught on quickly enough that we hadn't been delayed. Hopefully.

I rolled the red hairs between my fingers, wondering if Nicky was doing anything to sabotage those we were chasing, or if she was laying low to protect Jess and just leaving vital clues for us to follow.

There was no way to know until we caught up to them and asked Nicky. Come hell or high water, I'm not about to give up trying to find them.

And whenever I caught up to those kidnappers, they'd realize just what kind of hell they'd unleashed. Whoever came up with the saying "hell hath no fury like a woman scorned" had clearly never met a Nightstalker who was on the warpath and determined to save someone she cared about.

~

       The hours passed far too slowly.

The impatient waiting while Daniel dodged potholes, sticks, abandoned vehicles, and wreckage was punctuated by short, intense hunts at now-hated intersections. And the farther south we went, the more we were finding, and the more we were being delayed.

The idiots we were following were not going in a straight line. Their path zig-zagged down random roads in an attempt to shake any potential followers off their trail. Stopping at every large junction to figure out which way they went was making my blood boil every time I saw another one ahead of us.

"I'm afraid I'm going to need a bathroom break at the intersection ahead," Nina said apologetically. "I'll be as fast as possible."

"I need one as well," Logan said.

"Fine," I huffed.

I'd known it had to happen sooner or later. The group we were chasing had already stopped twice for the men to water the weeds at the side of the road, although Nicky's and Jess's scents were farther away, just inside the trees. I had carefully checked the air, but their scents returned to the road. The men wouldn't have been foolish enough to let both go at once and would have sent a small escort with them to ensure they didn't try to run.

I still hadn't sat down yet, so I had an excellent view of the intersection ahead.

"Pull over to the trees for them, Daniel. I'll run ahead and check the roads."

"Okay." He didn't bother slowing down yet.

He may have called Nicky a crazy driver, but his focus on speed while avoiding all the things that wanted to cripple our truck would have made Hank cringe. But it was – hopefully – helping us gain on those we were chasing after, so I wasn't about to complain.

The truck slowed down before Daniel drove into the grassy ditch. I jumped out as the truck bounced over a few hidden obstacles. I reached the middle of the intersection by the time they stopped. Nina and Logan scrambled out, heading in different directions for their much-needed break.

No hairs were in the middle of the intersection this time, so I ran down the road to the right, but came up empty-handed after a couple hundred feet. I raced over to the road that went straight. This time, the smell was stronger than on previous occasions.

It took me a few seconds to spot the small, blue wad of thread since I was looking for red hair. The twisted strands were dry, but Nicky must have put them in her mouth and drenched them in her saliva.

I wasn't sure what to make of this latest change, so leaving the thread where it was, I quickly darted over to the third road, but I didn't even need my nose to tell me they hadn't gone this way. The dead tree lying across the road in the distance had clearly been there for some time.

Perhaps Nicky had gotten tired of ripping off pieces of her hair. Or maybe she needed something less obvious and was relying on the excuse that many nervous people fiddled with their clothing.

Regardless of why she was using saliva-soaked thread instead of her hair, I knew they hadn't gone down this road, so I quickly returned to the one where Nicky had dropped the latest clue. Nina and Logan were already in the truck as Daniel drove back onto the road.

It was a good thing I had Nightstalker speed and reflexes, otherwise I wouldn't have been able to jump into the truck considering how fast he drove by. I sent another mental thank-you to whichever thoughtful person had bolted the sturdy handles onto the roof.

"She chewed on a section of thread this time and dropped it," I told the others, keeping them appraised in case this was another warning from Nicky about something strange.

"The road to the left was blocked by a tree," Daniel said, "and the other road didn't have many tire tracks on it, so I don't think they doubled back."

"Nicky might have been attracting too much attention when tearing bits of her hair loose," Nina commented, echoing my earlier thoughts.

"That's exactly what I'm thinking," I replied, "and if nothing else, it was easier to locate this than just a handful of hairs."

"I could smell it from in here as we drove past," Daniel said. "Were you able to tell if we're catching up?"

"My nose isn't exactly a clock," I retorted. "Even though it was sitting in the shade of the trees, it was dry. At best guess, it wasn't as faded as the first few tufts of hair were, but comparing hairs and skin oils to saliva-soaked thread is like comparing apples to oranges. I think we're beginning to catch up, although not as much as we might be hoping."

"They have to stop at some point or have some sort of destination," Daniel said. "They might not even think they're being followed anymore."

"My eyesight might not match yours, but even I can see they hit a couple of potholes they would have been able to avoid at a normal speed. They wouldn't be in such a hurry if they thought they had gotten away scot-free. And I highly doubt they're taking all these turns just to enjoy the scenery."

"We would be much farther from Ironwind if they had gone straight, so I'm not sure what they're doing. As for the potholes, I was hoping they were somewhat distracted or their eyesight wasn't able to judge the depth as well as I can, but yes, I saw that."

Nina looked between us before asking, "If they think they're being followed, what are the odds of them setting up some sort of ambush to catch us by surprise? Or simply hiding and letting us pass by unaware?"

"I'm actually watching in case they try something like that," Daniel replied grimly. "But waiting around to see if someone managed to follow them isn't a wise plan, and they'd forfeit their head start. Trying to hide is even worse if you're expecting two zombies to come after you."

My mind came to other conclusions. "If those Runners were dropped off just to lure Daniel and any other sane zombie away, then they knew we were around. And they would assume we're hot on their heels. Trying to ambush several sane zombies with anything less than a couple of sniper rifles or a rocket launcher is a suicide mission, and considering the pace they're setting, they know it."

Logan commented, "I honestly can't see them stopping for something like that. Not when we've taken so many turns and should have no way of tracking them. Waiting around is pointless when the people following you should have gotten lost, and it's an even worse decision if you think a Terror and other zombies are after you."

That pretty much summed it up.

~

       A growl from inside the cab had me scanning the road ahead even more keenly. "What?"

"There are spikes on the road ahead. It looks like they dumped them while driving. We'll have to move some out of the way so we can drive through."

I also growled, now spotting the shiny black glints in the distance that were the latest attempt to slow us down. And there were hundreds of them. We didn't have time for these games!

An idea occurred to me, and I grabbed my bow, telling Logan, "String your bow and wrap it in one of the blankets. Daniel and I can use them to sweep a path."

He nodded and quickly followed my instructions. Both of our bows were ready for their unanticipated task by the time we reached the spikes scattered across the entire width of the road.

I passed Logan's bow through the window so Nina could give it to Daniel once he stopped. Now that we were closer, I could see a few spikes in the ditch as well. And if I could see them from here, then there were undoubtedly others hiding between the plant stems and waiting in ambush for anyone foolish enough to try driving in the ditch to avoid this obstacle.

"We just need enough room for the tires," Daniel said. "We don't need to clear the entire path."

"Works for me," I replied shortly, still upset by this delay.

As soon as the truck slowed down, I jumped out and raced ahead. Much like a short broom that was trying to fall apart, the bow wasn't exactly the epitome of efficiency, but it was still faster than trying to move all the spikes by hand. Daniel quickly pulled ahead on his own path, and I made sure to keep an even distance between us to match the truck tires.

I quickly discovered a brisk side-to-side motion was the fastest, although it occasionally knocked a spike into the path Daniel had already cleared. He finished first and headed back to the truck while kicking the stray spikes off his path. I gritted my teeth and tried to move faster, although I knew I'd never match the Terror's speed.

The truck was already coming down the path by the time I finished. As it went by, I jumped in the back and unwrapped my bow.

"If nothing else, at least we know we're on the right track," Nina commented from inside the cab.

I really hoped this was our only delay, but when it came to road trips, luck was rarely on my side.

~

       The trees became sparser as we continued south, with dense conifers giving way to their leafy cousins. Through gaps between the tree belts alongside the road, I could frequently see overgrown fields or pastures behind them.

We occasionally passed houses or stores, all of which lay desolate and empty. I took a deep breath as we passed each one, but those we were following hadn't stopped, or at the very least, hadn't left enough of a trace for me to detect.

My mood went up and down like the hills the truck climbed and raced down, but there was no way in hell I was turning back.

My mind chased itself in ceaseless circles. Worrying about how Jess and Nicky were doing. Fretting over why someone had taken them and what they were up to. Numerous scenarios ran through my mind. How soon we could catch up to them, how their captors would react, and how we'd separate Jess and Nicky from their grasp without them coming to any harm. And then debating what kind of fate the kidnappers deserved...

Abandoned vehicles were much more common now and created something else for Daniel to drive around. Occasionally, Nicky's scent wafted on the air as we drove past something she'd dropped. At least we had proof we were on the right track.

I still refused to sit down, nor had anyone suggested I do so. My eyes continued to restlessly scan the road, ditches, trees, or anything else I could see. The moving air prevented me from determining direction, but that didn't stop me from detecting scents.

"Nicky left something nearby," I muttered. "Smells drooly."

"There's a small clump of something blue on the pavement – and we just passed it," Daniel replied. "Looks like more thread."

I glanced behind and thought I saw a speck of blue. The scent was already weakening, so that had likely been it.

"I'm glad Nicky is leaving those behind," Nina murmured. "It's nice to have confirmation we're on the right road."

Logan nodded. "I agree. We probably would have lost them by now if she wasn't dropping all these things."

Inside the cab, I could hear Nina rustling around in a paper bag. A faint pop sounded, followed by the smells of bread, ham, and tomato, so I guessed she was unwrapping a sandwich. Logan must have also thought food was a good idea; he dug through a box beside him and pulled out a sandwich container.

As he took it out, I saw a few slices of tomato and a bit of ham. My nose confirmed my guess and also told me Logan was a huge fan of pepper, the smell of which tickled my nose, although it would take a lot more than pepper to make a zombie sneeze.

The normalcy drove me crazy. We were on a rescue mission, so I was impatient and considered this too important for something like food. But we had been driving for quite some time, and they'd skipped lunch in their rush to leave. Nor could I complain since there wasn't anything else for them to do right now.

But it still drove me crazy.

With a faint snort, I shook my head. Nothing was going to make me happy until we caught up with those vehicles and I reclaimed my sisters. I was torn between shifting my weight restlessly or standing still like my Nightstalker instincts insisted was proper for an ambush since I wasn't chasing them on foot.

My thoughts refused to still or settle down, making each minute feel like an hour. I wanted to do something to get Nicky and Jess back! My muscles practically quivered in my desire to shred through anything standing in my way. And all I could do was stand in the back of a truck and sniff for spitballs.

I thought the previous trips were bad, but this was officially the worst road trip I'd ever been on.