The van groaned in protest as Morgana pressed her foot to the accelerator, speeding down the highway that led out of the town and towards the closest city.

They'd spent the past couple of weeks scavenging supplies from empty homes, without too much luck. Most of the homes had been impossible to enter; vines had grown over doorways despite the mere months that had passed since the mass disruption on civilisation.

Jaxx had made the decision to leave the houses untouched and focus on large stores and complexes instead. He'd become sick of tearing at the vines with his bare hands, often finding himself without a knife at the worst possible moment. If that wasn't bad enough, he was disgusted by the stench of the leaves that didn't seem to disappear, despite the many times that Jaxx had scrubbed his hands underneath a flowing stream of water.

Morgana shared the same sentiment. She, along with Lyria, had spent most of their spare time scavenging for supplies with Jaxx. It was tough work without the help of Gwynth and Katherin, who'd been ordered to tend to their injuries instead of exerting themselves. Not that they'd been listening to the advice, of course.

Gwynth had tried to drive with her broken leg. It hadn't worked. She'd been unable to press her foot down on the accelerator, much less the brake.

Katherin often disappeared from the safety of the van, only to reappear with a backpack of supplies. She liked going out alone, despite the dangers it posed her. The empty streets helped clear her head. She didn't like to be cooped up with the others, no matter how much she liked spending time with them. It made her restless.

When they weren't scavenging supplies, they'd been discussing their long-term plans for survival. The town wasn't the safest place for them to be, nor did it have the most supplies. There was no reason for them to stay.

But, where would they go? They'd tried connecting to different radio frequencies, tried reaching out to other survivors across the countries, but they'd heard nothing. It was a wasteland. As far as they knew, there was no civilisation left.

Morgana didn't want to leave the town. She'd held on to the hope that Ttod would return, often returning to the docks to gaze out across the water. Ttod's boat hadn't returned, though. Morgana didn't think it ever would.

No one thought it would.

Ttod had left them, truly left them, and he wasn't going to return. Not even for the people he'd held so close to his heart.

They had retrieved a map from the local tourist shop, pouring over the places that they could find refuge in. Jaxx wanted to stay along the coast, or possibly find a large field of land that they could occupy. It would be sustainable, that way. They wouldn't need to worry about scavenging food from abandoned grocery stores or keeping themselves safe from other survivors looking for their next kill. If they found some seeds, they could farm. It wasn't much, but it would be better than struggling to survive each day.

The others were reluctant to follow through with Jaxx's plan, though.

Katherin couldn't afford to leave the suburbs. She needed access to sugar-dense foods, to medical supplies, in the event that her blood sugar dropped drastically. A diet of vegetables simply couldn't sustain her. She'd die.

The suburbs had more supplies, anyway. It would be worth the danger. Especially if they could find a place close to the city. They'd have access to more medical supplies, to a military base, if they chose right.

They'd found a city that was close to the shoreline, where they'd be able to fish for their own food. Jaxx had been hesitant to admit it, but it was as good a place as any. At least they'd be able to stay together, to survive without having to disperse throughout the country.

Morgana knew that there was a dock near the shoreline. She'd gone on holiday there with Ttod, once. Morgana had been showcasing her artwork in the city's art gallery, selling her artwork for hundreds of dollars. Ttod had come along. He'd even bought a painting. It had been hung in his boat, above the bed.

Morgana wondered whether Ttod still looked at the painting. She hoped he felt guilty for abandoning her.

The city loomed over the mountains in the distance. They sped along the highway, crossing over the bridge that connected to the town they'd been sheltering in.

It wasn't too late to turn back. They could abandon the plan, return to the life they'd been living.

"I still don't think this is a good idea," Jaxx grumbled.

He sat in the back of the van, his legs stretched out in front of him. The leather jacket he'd scavenging had been left open, the zipper broken when Jaxx pulled it off a dead man's body, exposing his leather necklace spilling out from underneath a blood-stained shirt.

Raven had bought him the necklace right before the lockdown. It had been her anniversary present to him. They'd been together for three years. Jaxx had taken her bowling. Raven was terrible at bowling.

"We'll be fine," Raven mumbled, her voice muffled as she buried her head into Jaxx's neck. "You worry too much."

"There's a lot of people living in the city. That means there'll be more zombies," Jaxx replied sourly.

Jaxx twirled his pocked knife between his fingers, trying to distract himself from the danger they were about to thrust themselves into. He didn't want to risk losing another friend.

He didn't want to risk losing Raven.

"You can always leave me in the city, you know. I have a radio. I can take care of myself."

Katherin propped herself onto her elbows, crossing her legs beneath her as she pushed herself up from the mattress.

Esther groaned, rubbing her eyes. She curled her fingers into Katherin's belt loop, trying to pull Katherin back down onto their bed.

Katherin ran her fingers through Esther's hair, trying to soothe her back to sleep. It didn't work. Esther pushed herself into a sitting position, wrapping her arms around Katherin's waist.

"Stop talking about leaving us," Esther murmured, voice thick from sleep.

"I don't want to. It's just safer, that way," Katherin muttered.

"It's safer if we stick together," Esther replied adamantly.

Jaxx nodded.

"Esther's right."

Katherin sighed, nodding in defeat. She didn't want to be left alone in the city, not at all, but she didn't want to risk the lives of her friends. Jaxx had been right. It was much safer for them to move to the coastline, or to a remote area, but that wasn't an option for Katherin.

The others were putting themselves in danger to keep Katherin alive. She didn't deserve that.

Katherin laid back down, staring up at the ceiling of the van. Her arm was healing slowly, a grotesque scar forming where Katherin had been stabbed through the forearm.

Katherin didn't mind the scar. She thought it was cool. The others didn't like to linger on it, though.

Esther would rub circles into Katherin's arm at night. She'd freeze when she hit the scar, hoving her fingers over the thick, rubbery skin.

Katherin would turn away from Esther's embrace, hugging her arm to her chest. She didn't see why the scar was such an issue, why the others treaded around her so carefully when it came to her injury.

Katherin had found a self-inking kit while scavenging by herself. She'd tried to convince Jaxx to give her a tattoo, something to replace the tattoo she'd lost, but Jaxx had refused. It wasn't appropriate, he'd said.

Katherin had shoved the kit to the bottom of her backpack. She didn't feel herself anymore. The dark roots of her hair had grown completely out, hanging in jagged strands at her shoulders. Katherin had tried to cut it, but she'd had to use her non-dominant hand. Esther had offered to fix it up, feeling sorry for her girlfriend, but Katherin refused. She wanted to shave it off. They just needed to find a razor.

Morgana braked suddenly. Katherin hit her head on the wall of the van, huffing as the air was sucked from her lungs.

"What was that for?" Katherin hissed.

She rubbed the back of her head. The skin was already beginning to swell, growing hot underneath Katherin's freezing fingers.

"There's a car. Look!" Morgana responded.

Katherin peered out the window. Morgana was right. There was a car in the distance, growing closer with each passing second.

"Get down!" Jaxx grabbed the back of Morgana's shirt, pulling her backwards into the cabin of the van.

The car hurtled past. Then, it stopped.

They sat in silence.

Esther held her breath, reaching out to intertwine her fingers with Katherin's.

"What do we do?" Lyria mouthed.

Her fingers gripped the gun tightly. They only had one bullet left.

Gwynth clenched her jaw, her eyes flickering to Jaxx, then to Morgana, then to Katherin. No one responded to her silent plea of help. They didn't know what to do, how to respond when they encountered another survivor.

The only other survivors they'd encountered were Katherin's attackers.

Katherin ran her fingers over her scar, biting down on her lip until she tasted blood.

There was the murmur of voices.

Rosabelle wrapped her arms around her legs, curling into a ball. It was scary enough to be stalked by a zombie, but a human? That was terrifying. Human beings acted unpredictably, with malice. It wasn't simply a matter of finding food.

People found sick delight in torture.

Katherin knew that most of all.

Fingers grazed over the side of the van, the sound of metal on flesh.

Katherin shuffled silently, her body moving in front of Esther's. She reached out to grab the axe she'd been using as a weapon, wrapping her hands tightly around the wood. A splinter worked its way into Katherin's palm. She grimaced.

Another murmur.

Then, the gleaming metal of a crowbar thrust through the gap in the doors.

The doors flung open.

A hand grabbed Katherin's ankle.

Katherin swung her axe, the metal connecting with the thigh of her attacker, cutting deep into the flesh.

The attacker ceased their assault, howling in pain.

Katherin slid out of the vehicle. She raised her axe a second time, planning to sever the leg of the attacker, an older man, but hesistated as she caught a glimpse of metal in the corner of her eye.

Jaxx rammed his shoulder into the second attacker. The attacker's knife clattered to the ground.

"Get in the car!" Jaxx hissed. "We've got to go. Now!"

Katherin's eyes flickered to the older man. His bone was visible, fatty blood seeping out onto the bitchamen. He couldn't walk, not with such an injury. The zombies would find him eventually.

Katherin reached down, grabbing a fistful of the man's shirt. She hauled him up to his feet.

Jaxx watched in horror. His hand hovered over Katherin's shoulder, his fear preventing him from hauling Katherin back into the car.

There was something wrong with the situation. Katherin hadn't reacted with such malice before.

The older man shook his head. His mouth opened and closed, small gasps of breath escaping as he tried to form words. A dark patch blossomed in the crotch of the man's jeans. The stench of urine filled the air.

"It's you," he gasped, his eyes searching Katherin's.

Katherin didn't respond. She looked as if she was going to cry.

Jaxx didn't remember the last time he saw Katherin so vulnerable. He glanced back at Esther, who was already halfway out of the van, despite her terror at the situation.

She recognised the man, from when Katherin was younger.

"You disappeared from the system," the man continued.

He gasped for air, clutching at his throat. Katherin was squeezing too tightly, her pain overruling her composure.

"I was fifteen," she murmured. "I was fifteen and you tried to frame me for murder? They were my parents! My fucking parents!"

"Stop it, Katherin! You're going to kill me!" He gasped again, his legs kicking out, trying to free himself from Katherin's strong grip.

Esther dug her fingers into Katherin's hip, trying to pull her away from the scene.

Katherin's eyes flickered. She dropped the man, stepping back as if she was in a trance. The back of her thighs hit the edge of the van. She staggered.

Jaxx caught Katherin, his biceps flexing as he tried to steady her, hauling her into the van.

Esther looked down on the man. He was trying to wiggle away, clawing his way across the ground.

The other attacker had already left, abandoning their partner.

Esther pressed her foot down on the man's ankle. He grunted, twisting his body to meet Esther's eyes.

"I'm sorry, okay?"

His voice was barely a whisper.

Esther scoffed. That was a lie. She'd heard all about this man, met him at the courthouse when Katherin pleaded her innocence.

That man wasn't sorry. He'd never tried to find the killer, instead seeking the easy route in blaming the underage daughter. Katherin's DNA had been all over the crime scene because the murders had taken place in their family home. That was all there was to it.

Katherin hadn't been the murderer. She'd been on a date with Esther.

The jury hadn't wanted to accept that, though. No one had permitted Esther to go to trial as a witness.

It had almost cost Katherin her freedom. The trial had only been thrown out after Katherin was deemed too mentally unfit to stand trial. She would have lost the case otherwise.

Jaxx grabbed Esther's shoulder.

Esther shrugged him off.

"You ruined her life," she spat. "No one wanted to adopt her after the trial. I called every school in the city and no one would let me enrol her. Whenever she applied for a job, they'd find some stupid excuse to decline her application. Did you want that?"

The man shook his head, his eyes widening in fear.

"She had no alibi. We found blood on her shirt!"

"You and I both know that's a lie."

Jaxx's fingertips dug into Esther's collarbone. This time, Esther allowed herself to be marched back to the van. She had nothing further to say to the man, not when he was lying to save his own skin.

They locked the door to the van, ignoring the gap in the metal from the crowbar as if the last attack hadn't happened.

Esther wrapped her arms around Katherin, murmuring softly as Katherin's body shook in silent sobs.

The others pretended not to see.

The city loomed in the distance.