Nicky regarded the new items that were in the back of the truck, "Ohhh... What are these?"

I shrugged, "Something to help pass the time."

To my surprise John wasted no time in grabbing a couple of the IQ puzzles. Daniel started the truck and the locals opened up the gate for us. Liz slowly picked through a shoebox filled with toys that I hoped were more suited to her age. It contained numerous objects such as tiny toy horses, a few small containers of playdough, some little binocular color kaleidoscope thing, wax crayons and paper, and more such odds and ends.

Nicky became fascinated with the hammer shaped ball and cup game as I had hoped. Nina opened up the back window and once more started discussing plants with Logan. It looked like Logan had hit the jackpot with his knowledge of plants from his days of living off the land at his father's remote cabin.

I snagged one of the IQ puzzles and idly tormented it. It was hard to believe that I was actually looking forward to getting to Ironwind just so I didn't have to sit in the truck anymore. We weren't going to get there today though. We were still too far out.

Closer to noon Daniel spoke, "We can either stop for the night and get there tomorrow evening, or I can drive all night and we can get there by noon. We have all day to decide."

John looked over at Daniel, "That is a long time for you to drive. We can help. No sense crashing because you get tired."

Daniel chuckled, "It would take a lot more than simply driving for two or three days to tire me. That isn't the question. The question is if you guys want to be stuck in the back of the truck overnight."

Logan shrugged to indicate that he had no preference. John was still trying to absorb what Daniel had said. Nina looked back at us through the window, "I think I would rather sleep in the truck, but it will be more crowded back there for you. Nicky, what do you think?"

"I think we need an airplane, but since that option is likely not possible, then I say we stop for a longer supper and just ride it out."

Nina nodded before looking at me, "Trinity?"

I had done it once before when we had captured that feral Nightstalker. It wouldn't be pleasant, but after eleven days in this truck I was seriously tired of traveling. I couldn't sleep at night anyway. I shrugged, "Either is fine by me, although the sooner this truck permanently stops moving the better."

Nicky snickered, "Careful now, talk like that might turn this trip into something like our first one. How many trucks did we go through? Four? Five? I forget..."

I growled faintly at her, "Don't you dare jinx us..."

She pretended to zip her lips and throw away the key. I huffed in skepticism at her. She had probably jinxed us already... Nicky grinned at Liz, "Hey Liz, feel like having a slumber party in the truck tonight?"

Liz perked up, "Sure!"

Nina grinned, "Well, it looks like we have a long night ahead of us then."

Oh goodie. Neither option sounded like fun and I really just wanted this trip to be over already. I was being a grouch and I knew it. Almost two weeks of not getting enough sleep will do that to you. I could go a day or two without sleep, but only catching fifteen minutes or so in the morning was slowly affecting my mood.

I turned my head to watch the scenery passing in boredom once more.

~

There was no way I was taking off my sunglasses even though the sun had set long ago. Someone had upgraded the lights on this truck before this trip and also added a lightbar to the bumper. There was enough light that I was pretty sure Nina could read inside the cab easily enough if she had been awake.

It was also bright enough that my instincts detested how visible I was in the back of the truck. Nicky was sprawled out across the middle of the truck bed with Liz curled up beside her. Thankfully neither one was in contact with me. The two men were making the best of the room left over on their half of the truck.

All were asleep other than Daniel and myself. He was watching the road and I was sulking in the back. The night was almost over at this point. My instincts wanted to hunt, but it wasn't anything unmanageable. I was having more issues with the amount of light that somehow managed to light up the back of the truck despite all of the lights pointing forward.

I could see perfectly fine even where the light didn't reach, but I didn't need to see to know where I was. My instincts had an excellent sense of direction and the scents on the air told me exactly where we were. We were not following our original spiraling path, but heading straight back.

I knew each time we crossed an area we had previously passed. By scent. In a way it was interesting and handy, but on the other hand it was almost exasperating. Even if I tried to ignore the smells on the air, my instincts would take note of them and share bits of information that they found interesting.

What my instincts found relevant and what I considered important were occasionally two very different things. My instincts recalled that I had hunted a rabbit just to the east of our current location. With the amount of wildlife in the area, I didn't consider that a relevant piece of information.

I was more interested in the scent of the Stronghold. My instincts now considered humans irrelevant and didn't really pay attention to those distant scents since the humans had no way of spotting me from so far away.

"How are you holding up?"

My eyes flickered in Daniel's direction. His voice had been very quiet, but there was only one person he could possibly be speaking to at the moment. I could also tell from the way he was peering into the rearview mirror that he couldn't really see me back here. He probably saw my silhouette though. That detail irritated my instincts.

"Better than I expected. I am so tired of this road trip that I am ready to bury it like old roadkill."

He snorted faintly in amusement, "I have never heard it put quite that way before, but I think I agree. I am looking forward to getting back."

A silence fell once more as the truck continued to take us closer to Ironwind Stronghold.

~

"Finally! We made it!" Nicky was relieved to see the fence in the distance. Liz tried to peer in that direction from her current seat on my lap. I took a slow deep breath as I checked the scents. Luke was still here and I didn't smell anything out of place.

I looked over at the men who were also trying to look at our destination, "John."

He looked back at me in surprise, "Yes?"

I gave him a level look, "Keep in mind that even though he is your brother, the virus now runs through his blood and that will change his reactions slightly. Especially toward direct contact. Watch his body language. If he is open for a reunion hug, then go for it. If he avoids such things, then it is only because he is worried about possibly harming you."

John nodded slowly, "Thank you. I will keep that in mind."

I turned my head toward the Stronghold that we were rapidly approaching. Part of me was curious to see what their reunion would look like, but I also knew that Luke could still feel the bloodlust much more strongly than I currently could. The controlex had reduced it, but it hadn't removed it.

If nothing else, Luke has spent all this time creating more vials of the cure, serum, and the controlex. If an accident occurs, we have something to help with any collateral damage. I didn't mention that thought aloud. It could possibly make the two men riding in the back quite nervous.

The truck slowed as we approached the now open gate. The guards had clearly recognized the truck and its occupants. Well, I guess if a familiar man and woman were in the front while a redhead and a grouchy looking lady wearing sunglasses rode in the back, it should be quite obvious. The truck isn't exactly unknown to them either.

A small welcoming crowd had gathered by the time we slowly drove through the open gates. All of the attention was annoying the hell out of my instincts. All of the faces had smiles or grins though. They were happy to see us. The feeling was not quite mutual. I had not magically become a people person during this trip. No surprise there.

A certain red-eyed man came into view as we drove around a corner. John spotted him in the same instant that Luke spotted the brother he had spent so long searching for. John waved enthusiastically as Luke broke into a sprint to meet the approaching truck with a grin on his face.

I sighed and passed Liz over to Nicky, "Hold her just in case this meeting has unforeseen results."

"John! You're alive!"

"Can't get rid of me that easily!"

The truck came to a stop and John jumped over the side to jog toward Luke. I vaulted lightly over the truck tailgate as well. John was hesitating slightly, but Luke had no qualms about opening his arms up for a hug. John took that as a good sign and wasted no time in mirroring his brother's actions.

I should have figured that this family would be the huggy type. I kept a close eye on Luke. His jaws were held tightly shut against the bloodlust that still somewhat plagued him and I could tell that his instincts did not appreciate the contact. Luke was in control though, and happy to see the brother that he had searched so long and hard for.

A few seconds later Luke twisted his arm to rub his knuckles over John's head in a quick noogie.

"Ack!" John twisted away from Luke while sending a light playful punch into Luke's ribs.

Luke stepped back out of reach with a wide grin on his face. I shook my head at the two of them before grabbing my backpack. I had no worries about the brotherly reunion at this point. If Luke could hug his brother without losing control, then I had no worries unless John cut himself badly in close proximity.

Some other people were watching them in surprise. I knew it wouldn't be more than a couple of hours before almost everyone in this place knew who the newcomer was. Luke seemed to recall his manners as he looked over to the rest of us, "Thank you for finding John. Lunch is almost ready if you want to relax with a warm meal."

Nina smiled, "I think it would be nice to catch up over lunch. Then you can give John a tour if you like."

Luke grinned, "Sounds good to me."

I trailed along as Luke led the way to the dining area while he pointed out buildings for his brother. I wasn't hungry, of course, but catching up meant gossip and my instincts always wanted to know what was going on. We had been gone for almost two weeks after all.

I also knew that Nina was itching to get to the lab, so she would probably disappear in short order. Daniel would probably go run the perimeter and do a bit of hunting. Luke would be showing John around while Logan was given a tour either by Luke or another person. I wasn't sure what Nicky or Liz would be doing, but someone would likely take Liz off for a proper bath and Nicky would do whatever it was Nicky did when I wasn't around.

I planned to take a nap and catch up on some seriously needed sleep. I may be a Nightstalker, but we still needed sleep.

Luke pushed another table and bench toward the one that still sat isolated in the corner so we could all sit together. As a Runner, he was stronger than a human so it didn't give him too much difficulty. Besides, the humans all had plates in their hands.

Once we sat down Luke wasted no time in bringing Nina up to speed, "That back storage room is full of vials containing the cure, the turning serum, and the controlex. I did a bit of experimenting with the vaccine as well. My notes aren't as thorough as yours but I did try to follow your original plans and I did manage to get the effectiveness rate up to 85%."

Nina's eyes lit up, "Really? That is amazing!"

Luke shrugged nonchalantly, "I didn't really have anything else to do. Unfortunately, some of the more uncommon blood types just refuse to work with the vaccine."

John commented, "85% is still a huge deal considering that at the moment almost any bite or blood exposure practically guarantees that the person is infected."

Luke nodded, "That is true. I just wish we could make a vaccine that was 100% effective."

John had more medical and science knowledge than I did since I quickly became lost as the two brothers and Nina swiftly went into a deeper discussion of genes, catalysts, inhibitors, and more weird terms. I had a feeling that Nina had just gained another lab assistant.

Daniel turned his attention toward Nicky and I, "After lunch, can you go locate Cynthia? She will know who would be the best candidates to adopt Liz."

At least he didn't think that I should be in charge of a human child. This task shouldn't take long so I shrugged, "Sure."

I listened as Luke went back to updating us to any changes that occurred while we were gone, but it sounded like nothing had really changed. Luke was fitting in much better than he had anticipated. The locals were making it as easy for him as they could and made sure to never crowd him.

Luke had helped hold a feral Runner at bay outside the fence until someone lured it into an empty shed. Daniel was assigned the lovely task of getting it out and properly contained in the barn. John seemed surprised as Luke said this, perhaps he kept seeing his brother first and kept forgetting that he actually was a zombie.

Luke's rabbits had come in and everything in the rabbit shed was working smoothly. That large group of cured people had made it here safe and sound. They were fitting in very well and more than willing to work. They had found a handful of other infected people on their way back and Luke had given them the cure as well.

There were plans to expand the fence and build more housing. Since there were now three resident zombies as well as cures and other drugs, they were planning a huge fence expansion. Normally the more fencing you had to guard, the more chances there were for unwelcome company to get over it.

The biggest problem was at night if a feral Nightstalker showed up or if a feral Runner got over the fence unseen. They were going to put solar led string lights all along the top of the fence. Those lights were bright enough to keep Nightstalkers at bay and allow the sentries to see if anything was climbing the fence. Most places didn't use that many lights since it could attract zombies. The light would also lure in zombies that were upwind and hadn't caught the scent of those taking refuge here.

Luke turned to look at me, "They are also going to build some small cabins along the fence as well as just outside of it in case other sane zombies want to stay, but can't handle being inside apartment complexes like the main building or the secondary building."

I nodded slowly as I thought, "That makes a lot of sense. It would definitely be easier on them if they were not used to crowds."

"That is what I pointed out. Several will be reserved just for zombies. They will air out those ones so the human smell fades. I have been driving a quad along that border Daniel made several times a day and I actually met another sane Runner. We had quite a long talk. He wasn't comfortable going anywhere near the Stronghold, but he was interested in the controlex. I gave him a handful of vials with the controlex as well as some with the cure in exchange for him mentioning Ironwind and the various drugs to any other sane zombies he comes across."

That was surprising, "I will have to keep an eye out for sane zombies then. Such rumors are very likely to bring others in closer just out of curiosity."

Luke nodded, "He was intrigued by a place that welcomes zombies and somehow convinced a Nightstalker and a Terror to remain."

I responded in a dry tone, "That fact still confuses me."

Luke bared his teeth in a grin before turning his attention once more to his brother.