The soft light of the day prompted the boy awake. Peeling his eyes open, he let himself gradually come to be.

"You're up?" Winter asked.

Forest jumped at the voice. Sitting upright, he found the twins to be on the floor playing a board game. They laughed briefly and shook their heads.

"You scared me," he said, taking an uneasy breath. "How long have you been awake?"

"An hour, maybe," Autumn answered, focusing on the game. "Wanna play Sorry?"

Hesitant, Forest crawled out of bed and stood over them. "Where'd you find it?"

"Jett gave it to us. We went downstairs, and he was already up," Winter said. "Apparently they have a few board games."

"Oh."

"Hey, I think you can throw that away now. It's done what it can do. The trash is over there," Autumn said, giving a nod at the bin next to the ladder.

Nodding, her brother examined his arm and sighed. He tentatively undid the bandage before shaking his head. Crusted with dry blood, the time had come to dispose of it. "Say, have you seen any of the others?"

"Ryan, Kimberly, and Lane haven't come back yet, and we didn't see the other two either."

"Huh," he said, crossing his arms. "Hope they show up today."

"Which reminds me, we're leaving soon. If it weren't for these people, we'd still be in the woods. It's really the least we can do," she told him, offering a smile. "Cheer up. I'm sure it'll just be a few hours."

"I know, Bambi. Now that we're someplace safe, I guess I wanted to stay a bit longer before being among the dead again," he mumbled, returning her smile with a weak one.

"Oh, don't be so dramatic." Winter narrowed her eyes at him, frowning. "At least we made it. One of us didn't."

Forest was no longer tired. "Don't act like I forgot. I'll remember Dad until the day I die, Winter," he snapped.

"Hey, hey, hey, keep it down. We're guests," Autumn tried, putting a finger to her lips.

"Kids?" Jett asked, peeking at them from the ladder. "Everything okay?"

How long has he been there? Forest shifted, his face turning red. "Yeah, we're fine."

He studied the siblings for a moment. "Well, breakfast is ready." When they only stared, he laughed. "Whenever you're ready. It's a surprise."

Forest, with one last look around the attic, climbed down the ladder. Immediately, he caught the eyes of Holly, Skylar, and someone he hadn't seen before. The person was standing in front of the dining table, smiling.

She was a brown woman with wavy, shoulder-length hair. It was taking on a hint of grey and her face was carrying slight wrinkles. When she saw the boy, her eyes lit up. "Who have we here?"

Forest gave a small wave. "Hey," he greeted, managing a smile, "I'm Forest."

"Ah, Forest. What a beautiful name. And what might I call your sisters?"

"I'm Autumn and this is Winter," Autumn said, glancing at her uncle. "We're twins."

"It's a pleasure," the woman said, gesturing for them to come forward. "I'm Jade Robin."

When the boy only stared, Jett gave him a gentle nudge and chuckled. "She's friendly. Dare I say, even more so than Holly."

Forest watched the woman with wary eyes, and frowned when she laughed. "What's so funny?"

"You haven't the slightest idea how long I've wanted to see another person. There may be my group, but I wanted someone new. A stranger. And now here you are!" Jade exclaimed as she looked over the kids. "Anyhow, breakfast!" She stepped aside and the food on the table was revealed.

In front of them were four bowls, each containing different food. One was filled with brown rice, one with dried beans, another with blue berries, and the last had earthworms. Mouth dropped, the boy turned to his sisters.

"Now, you don't have to, but I'd love to see who would eat the worms," Jade said, handing the siblings a plate. "Keep in mind, you don't have to by-"

"What is this?" Winter questioned, stepping forward. She frowned at the woman. "You are daring us to eat worms? What about your people, huh? Why are you smiling like nothing happened?"

"Winter, calm down," Autumn demanded, pulling her back with a struggle.

She ignored her twin as she stared at Jade with hard eyes. "What's wrong with you?"

Her smile was gone without a trace. Running a hand through her hair, she turned away and sighed. "I don't know what I was expecting."

"Yeah, I don't know either," Skylar chimed in from the other side to the room. She was leaned forward in a chair, her head in her hands. "We're in here, but we need to be out there."

The kids exchanged glances when the pause dragged on.

"Don't worry," Holly said, confronting Jade, and pulled her into a short hug. "We'll have breakfast, then we'll find them. Everything will be okay."

Forest looked at his uncle, and it was returned with sad eyes. Without warning, the man put a reassuring hand on his shoulder.

"It's gonna be okay," he said.

Frowning, the boy shrugged his hand away and faced him. "Stop saying that, Fox. Nothing is okay. You and whoever else that say that are only lying. You of all people should know that. Your brother - he's dead, and no matter how many times you say it's okay, it isn't. Don't try comforting me," he said, his eyes wet with tears. And he looked at Jade. "What's wrong with you people?"

There was a stunned silence. Tension high, no one said a word for a long moment.

Jade stepped out the front door, sniffling. When she left, the boy whipped at his own face.

"What was that?" It was Jett. Lifting his head, Forest locked eyes with the man. "We do something nice, and this is what you do?"

"And what about your group? You dared us to eat worms like it's not something we do all the time," Winter said, crossing her arms. "Do you have any idea how many times we didn't have a choice? How much we've sacrificed?"

"Yeah, and now we have actual food for you. Now that's it's offered, and without a price I'd like to add, you cause a scene," Jett said and took an uneasy breath. "Jade hasn't always been this way."

"Fox, stop," Holly pleaded from the opposite side of the room.

"No, shut it. Listen to me. Jade's depressed and even attempted suicide a couple of times. That woman lost everything. The only thing that kept her going was the Bible. I've a lot like you, kids, though. I don't believe in any of it, but if reading that book gives her meaning, than I'm all for it," the man said, angry. "She's sensitive, that woman. I know this little fight here hit her hard, so go out now. All three of you, and apologize."

In a daze, Forest only stared.

"Now!"

Glancing at the twins, the three left the farmhouse in a heavy silence.

A soft breeze blew past the boy and his sisters. If he weren't overcome by guilt, he would enjoy the wind and smile, but he couldn't. Head down, he frowned at the earth ahead.

"Where did she go?" Winter asked sheepishly.

"I haven't the slightest," her brother mumbled.

There was a pause.

"Do you hear that?" Autumn asked, looking past the building. "Holly said they have a farm in back. That must be her." When no objections were made, she went alongside the house. Forest and Winter lingered behind with reluctant steps.

Heart heavy, Forest directed his sight ahead and stopped. What had to be about 200 acres of land lay before them. There were rows of crops only beginning to rise from the ground, and in the middle of them was the woman.

Crouched over shy plants, Jade was roughly pressing against the soil as she cried softly.

"Jade?" Autumn asked gently.

Startled, the woman jumped at the sudden voice and looked up. "Oh, it's you."

"Yeah... I'm sorry about what happened back there."

Forest offered a small smile when her eyes landed on him. "Everything's just been so confusing lately," he said, "but I know that's not an excuse."

Taking a breath, she stood and brushed off her clothes. "Don't mind me, dear. I really don't know what I was expecting." Her tone sounded collected, but her eyes said more than her words ever could.

The boy flashed a glance at Winter. "We won't do that again. We appreciate the breakfast, really."

Jade averted her gaze as she whipped at her eyes. "It was Jett, wasn't it? Ever the peace maker. Kids, you go on. Have breakfast. Tell him you apologized."

"I'm sorry." It was Winter.

Shocked, a shiver ran down the boy's spine. Even she is showing remorse.

"Go on. I just have some things to attend to."

"But-"

"Go on."

"I know what it's like," Forest said before he could stop himself. "I know what it's like to lose someone. As the days go by, you begin to wonder if you'll ever really get over it, but here's the thing: you need to get back up. Someone once told me that if you don't, you're just as dead as the walkers."

"That sounds like Holly."

The boy nodded. "Yeah, it was. You know, if that little book is what you need, I respect that."

"Thanks," the woman said, giving a faint laugh. "It was Jett again, wasn't it?"

"Yeah, he may have told us a bit about you," Winter answered.

Jade shifted. "I'll go back in a minute." But when they turned to leave, she spoke up. "You know about Kimberly and Lane, don't you?"

"Yeah," Autumn said.

"Are you going to look for them?"

"Of course we will," the boy confirmed. "You're one of us now."