A man and woman stood on a hill in rural Virginia, in the early hours of a summer's eve. They had been together for close to six years through this apocalypse. The man's name was Javier Garcia, the woman his sister-in-law, Kate. As they stood and Javier looked through a pair of binoculars he sighed:

"I left my damn water bottle by the fire."

"We'll have to share til we find another. Tell me when it reaches the camp-fire" Kate said with concern.

"Man...I don't think I've seen this many. It's definitely growing. Herd just got there" Javi said as he lowered the binoculars.

Kate checked her watch and replied: "Just under 4 hours. Come on. We should keep moving while the kids are asleep."

"Yeah" Javi replied as the pair quickly got into the van they were driving in and drove off. As they motored along the Virginia backroads the pair spoke, Kate with concern as she checked off notes in a notepad she had:

"Looks like the herd is speeding up a little. I thought it was drifting southwest, but I'm not sure anymore. Every time I think we should just bed down somewhere and wait for it to pass, I can't shake the thought of us getting caught in the middle of it. It just keeps coming... It's slow, but that almost makes it worse. Makes it feel like we're in control."

"It'd definitely be nice to stop. We've been on the move a while now" Javi replied as he drove.

"I don't know. It feels risky."

"Not if we find somewhere secure."

Kate smiled as she closed her book and placed it in the glovebox, adding:

"We'll figure it out..."

"We always do" Javi smiled. The pair sat in a contented silence for a few minutes before Kate rolled down her window and said quietly:

"Hey. I'm gonna sneak a quick smoke."

"I can't believe you found weed" Javi chuckled.

"Are you kidding? People were probably growing this before they realized they needed food."

Kate took a joint out of a small tin in the glovebox and as she lit up and inhaled Javi said quietly not to wake the kids. Kate chuckled at the teens who were asleep behind the pair:

"Relax. Mariana's got headphones on and Gabe is drooling. I think we're in the clear."

Kate took another puff and held it out to Javi, asking if he wanted some. Javi happily accepted and took a puff, coughing as he added:

"We are setting an awesome example."

Kate took the joint back and had another couple of puffs, coughing and saying as she did:

"Don't judge me. When I found out David had kids, I told him I am not changing who I am around them. And when he proposed, I reminded him that I'm not exactly stepmother material. Case in point. He was reassuring, but, yeah, I could tell he was worried about it. I knew he'd try to get me to change. Or at least he'd hoped that being around the kids more would change me, you know? I suppose it did..."

Javier took the joint back and puffed: "If it helps, I think you're doing a fine job."

Kate couldn't help but laugh back: "Yeah, it'd really help your case if you weren't waving a joint around while you said that."

"What? How is this not a ringing endorsement?" Javier smirked.

Kate giggled and puffed:

"I used to talk shit about all those mothers who'd go on about raising their kids being the hardest thing in the world. Gabe's making me start to think they had a point. His mood swings are just... I don't know... some days I just wanna leave him by the side of the road. I'm joking. Jesus. Obviously" she added at the end in response to the shocked look on Javi's face.

Javier sighed and replied: "Gabe's been...emotional lately. I'm sure he's just, you know, going through a phase."

"Emotional? Right. That's cute. Look, I love these kids, but I could do without Gabe reminding me I'm not his mother whenever he's pissed."

Javi puffed and chuckled: "He's a teenager. Puberty. Hormones. The second you start getting boners, the whole world starts to get dark."

Kate looked at the man incredulously:

"What are you talking about? Sounds delightful compared to dealing with bloody underwear. Christ, I need to get laid."

Javi felt his cheeks warm as he registered what Kate had just said as she chuckled:

"I realize that was an awkward transition. Sorry about that."

There was an awkward silence before Javi said with a quiet confidence:

"Wanna pull over? Wouldn't take a minute"

Kate giggled and replied "wouldn't be worth it for just a minute"

The two shared a laugh and an awkward smile before their attention was quickly drawn behind them. Mariana had woken and loudly asked:

"Ugh. What's that smell? It's gross"

"I think we... uh... hit a skunk" Javi said in a panic. Mariana shot back:

"I already know you guys do drugs."

"That's a pretty severe way of phrasing it, Mariana" Kate said annoyed before rolling her eyes as Gabe woke and snapped:

"You're even smoking in the car now?"

Javi moved to play peacekeeper, as he was wont to do:

"Alright everyone, open your windows before you get a contact high."

--~--

It had been an annoying half an hours drive, mostly spent listening to Gabe's whining when they pulled up to an abandoned junkyard. Javi jumped out, checking out the area with a flashlight as Kate parked the van.

When he was convinced it was safe Javi returned to the van and opened its side sliding door. Gabe and Kate got out, Javi grabbing a wrench as Mariana clasped her hands together in prayer.

"Praying for our safety?" Javi asked with a smile.

"I'm praying for a candy bar" Mariana replied with a smile.

"Alright what do we actually need?" Kate asked with a laugh.

"Pretty much everything. If it looks useful, let's use it" Javier replied. Before anyone could reply a walker approached with a crowbar sticking out of its cheek. Javi pulled the crowbar and quickly despatched it, Gabe then walked passed without a word.

"Hey where you going?" Javi asked. Instead of an answer Gabe turned around, giving his family a filthy look, and walked off ignorantly without saying a word.

"Oh yeah, good talk!" Kate yelled out before walking off in the opposite direction muttering about not being able to take that kid.

"I hate when they fight like that. I really hate it. It's like... all Gabe wants to do is argue. Doesn't matter what it's about." Mariana vented angrily to her uncle.

"Hey, I know, that's what families do. They fight, they make up... then they fight all over again. At least you have your headphones" Javier replied with a reassuring smile.

"Yeah, but... the batteries have been dead for a couple of weeks. I mostly wear them to fool you guys. It's easier to stay out of it that way" Mariana said with a cheeky grin. Javier was shocked, and chuckled:

"You... you sneaky little... That's smart. That's pretty smart."

Mariana smiled with pride and walked off to look for anything useful. As she did Javi called out:

"Oh, and Mari, if there's any trouble, you find one of these cars.Lock yourself in and don't come out, not even once it's quiet. Wait as long as you can."

"Okay" she smiled, Javi replied "Good girl."

Javier walked off with a gas canister and fuel pump in his hand he got from the van and after searching several wrecks without luck he came upon an ambulance with a fair amount of fuel in it.

"Jackpot" Javi smiled as he began syphoning the gas. Once it began to flow he left it to finish draining and walked up to Kate with his charming smile.

"You find anything?"

Kate turned worriedly, and then chuckled at Javier's goofy smile.

"I can't stop thinking about that herd. We get caught in it and that's it. Peace, asshole. Can't charm your way out of that one. We'd be gone in seconds."

Javier instantly moved to reassure her.

"Hey, don't think about that. We're careful, we're smart. We'll stay ahead of them."

"Luck runs out just as easily as gas. There's gonna be a last one, you know? A last tank of gas. Last piece of food. What if this place is empty? And the next? And the next?

"We're not gonna let that happen. Okay?" Javier said resolutely. Kate closed her eyes and inhaled and exhaled deeply and slowly several times before opening her eyes and smiling.

"Okay. I let it have its five minutes. I'm good."

Javier nodded before noticing Gabe who was kicking the dead walker. He inhaled deeply as he approached and asked with a calm voice:

"What's going on in there, buddy?"

Gabe looked over at his uncle angrily:

"I'm in a bad mood, okay? I want it to go away, but it won't. I just wish we weren't always on the road. I like being with other people. It's just -- we're in that car for so damn long. The AC hasn't worked in ages, and then it ate my last damn tape."

"It's a sweet idea, but it's safer to keep moving" Javier smiled. He'd gone looking for supplies alone before. He'd seen what other people could do in this hellscape. He had to protect his family from that.

"I don't know, maybe just leave me alone" Gabe responded, still angry.

"Okay. But if you wanna talk lat-"

Javi cut himself off as a walker approached the pair from the right, from further inside the junkyard.

"Gabe keep back" Javi said forcefully as he reached back and swung with his wrench, smashing the walker's face in. Once it was dead he looked between the two wrecks that seemed like a haphazardly organised barricade that the walker had walked between,

"Hmm... Looks like it came from in there. Gabe, stay close" Javi said as he walked forward slowly. Kate yelled at the same time:

"Stay behind Javi, Gabe!"

The two walked forward and passed several wrecks before they stumbled upon the dilapidated office of the former junkyard. The two approached the door which was firmly locked from the inside, and then looked through a window, noticing a small hatch on the floor.

"Might be able to get in through there" Javi wondered out loud.

Gabe waited on the porch while Javi crouched down, disappearing under the building's raised foundations and reappearing a minute later, visible to Gabe through the window, climbing up from under the building. He looked around stunned before opening the door.

"Gabe, come look at this. Kate! Mari!" Javi yelled loudly. Gabe walked in passed him and couldn't believe his eyes, exclaiming:

"Wow, this place is decked out!"

He rushed to the back of the open plan building and yelled again:

"Are you kidding me?"

The walls were lined with shelves, and the shelves were lined with food. Four mattresses laid on the floor with pillows and blankets. Gabe rushed over and picked up a small cup shaped container, one of dozens. He made giddy noises and Javi laughed:

"Lucky for you, they put enough preservatives in this stuff to last for centuries. There's enough food in here to keep us going for a long time."

As Kate and Mariana entered the house. Gabe looked at them and happy yelled:

"Check it out. This is actual, honest-to-God pudding!"

"Seriously?" Mariana exclaimed with joy. Gabe continued:

"And it's not just food... There's mattresses, there's blankets-"

"Someone else's mattresses, someone else's blankets... We need to just... take our gas and get on the road" Kate interjected, once again being the voice of reason. There was no dust on any of the food or furniture. Someone had been here, recently. Javier nodded in agreement:

"This place does have a funny feeling about it. And if muertos were to somehow surround us..."

"Great. Now I'm officially creeped out" Kate muttered, shivering involuntarily. Gabe though, in his wisdom, argued the point:

"Come on, one night. We bunk down, eat a real meal."

"It would be nice not to sleep in the van for a change" Mariana reasoned.

"Please?" Gabe practically begged. Kate shook her head:

"The herd is coming, if it's not here already. We should go and get ahead of it. Before it's too late."

"The fence is reinforced, we'll be fine! We found this, why can't we just enjoy it?" Gabe whined. Mariana agreed asking:

"Javi? Can we? We could stretch out, sleep well for once?" and Gabe continued:

"Come on, you know it's not a big deal. We've got guns. We can protect ourselves! And we'll feel so much better after some real sleep."

The three looked at Javi with pleading eyes as he answered resolutely:

"We're gonna get what we came for and get outta here."

Mariana sighed and nodded but Gabe punched down on a table before shaking his hand at the pain and then yelled:

"Great. Another shitty, cramped night in our shitty, cramped van. Hooray!"

"Come on, let's at least grab the food" Mariana said as she tried to play peacekeeper. Kate left as Gabe began scoffing pudding cups, Javi following Kate out the door. She turned to him on the porch and smiled:

"Thanks for that. Backing me up and all. How does it feel to be the bad guy this time? It must be a new sensation for you."

"Oh, no, oh, boy, sleeping in the van again? All I'll say is you definitely owe me one" Javi laughed.

Kate smiled: "Yeah, well, you owe me, like, a dozen, so... I'll just shave it off your tab."

Their interaction was cut off by Mariana sticking her head out the door and asking:

"Hey, Kate, can you come help us with this?"

Kate nodded but before she left she quickly slid Javi a chocolate bar and whispered:

"This way you can make up for being the bad guy" and kissed him on the cheek before returning inside. Javi smiled and returned to the ambulance. His gas can was just about full so he stopped syphoning and closed the lid of the can. As he stood and turned he heard guns click and came face to face with four men.

One white man at the front had a beanie, there was a black man, next to him, another white guy with a covering over his face and finally a bald headed man that looked evil. The beanie wearer in the lead yelled:

"What the fuck do you think you're doing with our gas? Go on, speak up!"

Javi slowly lowered it to the ground with his other hand raised and replied

"Whoa, whoa, look, the... the gas is all there, just keep it. We didn't know it was anyone's."

"Yeah, I'm thinking it's a little too late for that. Where are your people?" The man replied with his finger on the trigger. Javi tried to think quickly and stammered back:

"It's just me. It's just me and I-"

"You said WE! WE asshole!" The man yelled again making Javi's blood run cold. He continued:

"Guys fan out and look for em. Lonnie you're with me"

"No problem, Max" the black man replied.

The three walked towards the office building as the man now identified as Max yelled out:

"Hey! You assholes in there! I got your boy! If you don't want him gettin' shot, you best come out there careful, with your hands up!"

When there was no response he shoved Javi forward and snapped again:

"Go on, you first. You get ambushed by your own people, that shit's gonna make my day. Open it real slowly."

Javi was panic ridden, his heart just about pumping out of his chest. He couldn't let these animals near his niece or his... Kate... he opened the door slowly and saw Kate closing the hatch and so blocked the view with his body. The moment it was closed he walked in and said:

"See, no one."

Max entered and found all the empty pudding cups, picking one up and squeezing it before he turned back and got in Javi's face.

"Looks like you and your friends had a real feast, huh?! You can't just take what you like. I don't roll over like that."

Javi looked at the gun Lonnie had pointed at his face and replied to Max fearfully:

"Look, we hardly took any. Really. Someone must've been here before us."

Max chuckled: "Look, I... I get it, alright? You're starving, who the fuck isn't? At the end of your rope, thought you'd hit paydirt. Honest mistake. But I got this sneaky fuckin' feeling..."

He punched Javi in the stomach, hard enough to make him double over and fall to the floor.

"...That you're full of shit. I ain't gonna let it be like the last time some assholes rolled on us. Keep an eye on this dickhead. I'm gonna grab some cuffs."

"You got it" Lonnie replied. Max left and Lonnie continued to point his gun at Javi's face. He spoke a bit more gently and said:

"Just chill, okay? No need to make this any harder."

Javier could see Lonnie wasn't a bad guy and pleaded with him:

"Look, just let me go, okay? Please"

Lonnie shook his head and replied "can't do it man. Not my call. Look, this doesn't have to go--"

At the worst possible time Gabe coughed loudly under the house. Lonnie was instantly back in fight mode, snarling:

"The fuck was that noise? What you got hiding under there, boy? If you know something, you better spill it. You don't want me finding out for myself."

"Hey, if you're so curious, open it and find out. No, really. Go ahead. Do it" Javi said as he noticed the crowbar to his left.

"Fuck it." Lonnie sighed. Keeping the gun on Javi, he pulled the hatch open and looked down in shock at the terrified woman and teens looking back up at him. Before he could say anything Javi had punched him across the jaw. The hatch slammed shut and Javi grabbed Lonnie's hands, the two struggling over the gun as Lonnie yelled out:

"Guys, get the fuck in here!"

The gun suddenly went off, Lonnie's body hitting the floor as Javi looked down in shock. Max and the bald man burst in through the door, Max looking at his dead friend and muttering "Holy shit."

Javi tossed the gun to the floor in a panic and stammered:

"It was an accident it was-"

The last thing he heard as the bald man's fist connected with his temple was Max sneering:

"You have to pay for what you done here."

--~--

Javi woke up groggily with an aching head and looked around, realising his hands were bound. He was in the front seat of a truck, next to the man who had previously had his face covered. As his head cleared he exploded:

"Hey, my family, where are they?! What did you do with my family?!"

The man ignored him and kept driving, Javi muttering:

"Fuckin' asshole."

The man snapped quickly:

"Just do us both a favor and pretend you're still asleep. I wouldn't start talking if I were you. You're lucky we do things a certain way. I'm already tempted to put a bullet in your brain for what you did to Lonnie back there. If we start talking, I'm gonna get angry."

"What happened to him was an accident--"

"Yeah. Right. Keep talkin', we might find ourselves in a similar accident. You get what I'm saying?"

"Please, you have to believe me. We were just--"

"Not another word, or God help me, I'll put you to sleep myself. We still got a haul ahead of us and I'm not about to listen to-- What the hell?"

A tree started to fall across the road. Javier yelled "Stop, stop!"

The man said to himself in a panic "Oh, shit! No, no, no!" as he swerved the truck around the tree, off the road and crashed straight into a deep ditch. The driver smashed his head into the steering wheel. Javier jerked forward but his seatbelt kept him mostly ok. He noticed a gun on the dashboard had slid over to him in the crash and with his hands still bound he undid his seatbelt, grabbed the gun, and opened his door, getting out of the truck.

The driver noticed Javi had the gun and began running away. Javi yelled: "Hey" and the man turned to face him with his hands up, but only for a moment as he turned and ran again, up a small embankment. Javier lifted the gun and aimed it at the man...

He sighed and lowered the gun. He couldn't bring himself to shoot an unarmed man in the back. Just as the man got over the ridge Javi felt the nozzle of a handgun pushed into the back of his neck.

"Fuck. Yeah... alright" he sighed, tossing the handgun to the ground.

"Good. Don't do anything stupid" a young woman said to him.

"Because unlike you I got no problem shooting a motherfucker in the back of the head!" spoke another voice, this time a man's, one that was deep and dark and had a lot of bad intentions behind it.