I ran through the woods, never minding the snap of undergrowth and twigs beneath my feet. They had heard the gunshots and perhaps the scuffle too, and Payne would be on high alert back in the camp. I needed to take him out—kill him if I had to.

I jumped over a boulder, could smell the smoke from the campfire wafting through the breeze, and recognized the trail I had once followed. It took me a minute to find where I left my gear, turning back twice, and found it beneath the bushes. I quickly put them back on.

I left some of the weapons scattered around the perimeter. If I had to fall back, I knew where they were if I got cornered by the other three soldiers. I had to take precautions, and it was better to be well prepared.

Payne had Aria, Margot, Felipe, and Alfie tied up and kneeling by the fire. He faced the woods, checking on his radio for Peter and Haskell to respond. It looked like he had been trying for a long time with no success. I snuck closer to the camp, taking position behind the bus. I looked over the corner when Payne turned his back and realized that the prone body near the bus was Gabe; He was still unconscious, lying on his back, eyes shut.

Shit.

It was Gabe who brought the soldiers into camp. What else did he babble? Peter was surprised to find me here, so I reckoned he didn't tell them much aside from a bountiful of food and supplies, and maybe...ah. Steve wasn't allowed inside the walls. Either Tessa or Gabe made a deal in exchange for their grandfather to be let in, showing them how useful they could be. Was that why Steve never returned to the humvee?

I looked over the corner again.

Gabe's chest slowly rose and fell. At least he was still alive, and I had so many questions for him later. For now, I had to deal with Payne.

Between him and me were the bus and a large open ground at the campsite. I had no cover once he saw me, and there was no room for a surprise attack. I could try hiding behind the tents, but they're not exactly solid. The humvee was on the opposite side of the campground. I could step off to the outer perimeter and circle around from there, but I would end up with the same situation: Exposed terrain and nowhere to hide. He only needed two seconds to raise his rifle and pull the trigger.

I couldn't get a clean shot from where I was hiding. Payne stood in the middle of open space, but if I popped out and aimed now, he would see me right away. What if I missed and hit the others? I couldn't accept one as collateral damage, and I am not a monster to sacrifice any of them either. Of course, Payne would return fire, suppressing me behind cover, forcing me to fall back, which would leave me open for his other team to sweep in and finished me off.

Then, I thought, if I allowed him to believe I was retreating, maybe I could lead him into the woods. There in the thicket, I could knock him out, let him live to see another day, but I doubted he'd fall for the bait.

I crouched and peered below the bus. I could crawl underneath, but I realized that the campground was on an incline, the bus sitting so low I could only see up to his ankles and not enough space to move around if I got trapped. I could try shooting his ankle, bring him down enough to get a clean shot for his head or chest, which meant I would have to use my rifle. But at thirty yards on a low vantage point and limited peripheral vision, never mind shooting him in poor light with a moving target, I have to be a god to get a clean shot.

The only way was up.

I climbed up the bus slowly, and even with all the gear I had with me, I got lucky I made it up without making a lot of noise. Payne was too busy trying to hail his team over the radio in a fit of panic. I thought to myself: Good. Let him freak out, his mind wandering off, his guard brought down. It'll make things a lot easier.

I crawled toward the edge, flinching from the strain of steel buckling under my weight, so I had to be careful where I was going. I made the right choice. Above the bus, I had the perfect vantage point. I wasn't so sure about the distance, but I had to work with what I got.

I laid on my stomach, pulled my rifle out, and placed the scope's crosshairs right above his chest. My hand was shaking. I tried to control my breathing, the crosshairs swaying from side to side, goosebumps snaking up my spine. The reticle steadied, the target suddenly stood still, yet he continued prattling on the radio. This was my chance, I thought. I rest my finger on the trigger.

I saw Logan crouched behind a tree across the campground.

He didn't see me.

"What the hell are you doing?" I muttered. I was going to hail him over the radio to stop him on whatever stupid idea he had cooked up his sleeve, but I realized he didn't have earphones. If I called him, I would give away his location.

He was going to do something stupid. He was going to get himself killed.

Payne whipped around and looked over Logan's direction. Over the scope, I could see Logan stopped on his tracks. I realized he stepped onto something, and Payne heard it.

Payne quickly grabbed Aria by the hair. She screamed as he pulled her up, propping her as his shield. Aria tried to fight back, clawing over his arms, but Payne was stronger than her.

"Show yourself, motherfucker!" Payne shouted. He placed the pistol's barrel underneath Aria's chin, and Aria let out a soft whimper, frozen with fear. She stopped fighting.

"Fuck. Fuck. Fuck. Fuck," I spat under my breath. This was going south fast.

Payne had his back to me as he faced Logan's direction. I could take him out, but I could also bring down Aria with him. I didn't know how long I waited for the pieces to move, with Margot and Felipe both begging for the soldier to stop and let Aria go, with Alfie almost brought to tears and shaking, and Logan probably smacking himself on the head for being reckless.

"I swear, I'll shoot her right here!" Payne said.

"Alright!" Logan shouted, raising his arms. He stepped out of the tree line.

"Drop the gun."

"No, Logan! Don't do it!" Aria pleaded.

"Shut up, bitch!" Payne pulled Aria's hair harder. "Drop the fucking gun!"

"Let her go!" Logan screamed.

It only galvanized Payne more. His grip tightened around Aria's hair, and she let out a yelp, which quickly turned into a fitful sob. "Last chance, man!"

"Alright!" He stepped out of the dark. "Alright. Here I am."

"Drop the gun."

Logan looked at Aria, then to his rifle. He heaved a sigh as he threw the gun away.

Big mistake, I thought. Logan shouldn't have done that.

I saw it right away. Logan had his hand close to his hip, and I realized he had a hidden pistol behind his belt. But Logan had a piss-poor draw, and against a trained soldier, he didn't stand a chance. Payne surmised the same thing.

Payne swiftly wrapped his arm around Aria's throat. The girl yelped as he swung his pistol out, aiming it at Logan. Logan reached back for his weapon, but by the time he would aim and pull the trigger, he'd have a bullet right through him. I quickly steadied the crosshairs at Payne, but he suddenly cried out. Aria had her teeth latched on his sleeves, biting hard as she could. Payne spun her around, slapping her across the cheek, and she stumbled back over the blazing campfire. Her pants caught on fire, but she rolled over down the hill, kicking and screaming.

Logan drew his weapon, but my finger was already on the trigger.

Two shots rang out. The first bullet missed, the second did not. Margot, kneeling right in front of Payne, had blood all over her. Alfie ducked and ran up toward the humvee, taking cover behind the hood. Felipe stayed by Margot's side as they dropped onto their stomachs, head down to the ground.

Payne dropped his pistol as he crumpled over, thrashing from a gaping wound on his shoulder where I shot him. Logan rushed forward, kicking Payne's rifle off of him before he could point it in his direction. Logan swung his gun, hitting Payne square on the temple, and the soldier slumped out cold. Large amounts of blood still seeped from his gunshot wound.

"Is that you, Bren?" Logan called out.

I climbed off the bus's roof. "Keep an eye out on the tree line," I said.

Logan nodded and did as I ordered. I grabbed a butcher knife lying on top of a cooler and proceeded to break the others free from their binds. Logan checked Payne's pulse and then told me that he was still alive.

"I never shot a person before," I whispered, realizing too late that I had said it aloud.

"You did what you have to."

"That was pretty stupid what you did. I told you to hang back," I told Logan.

"Hey, I thought you were in trouble. Two of the soldiers went into the woods after you, and I thought I could take the last one out."

"You almost got Aria killed."

"I'm fine," Aria said behind him, checking her pants. "I gave him something to work for, at least. It can't be that easy."

Logan shrugged, sharing a smile. "Whatever works."

"But what if I wasn't here? You'd be dead. Both of you."

Logan gritted his teeth. I could tell he was trying to formulate excuses for his actions, but he heaved a sigh and lowered his head. "I'm sorry. I thought I could do something instead of sitting around on my ass."

"Well, you served as a distraction, anyway," I said. I must admit that if it weren't for Logan, I wouldn't be able to make the shot in the first place. I didn't tell him that.

Aria kicked Payne on the leg. "Shit for brains," she cursed. "He tried to touch my boob twice, and not just a light grope, but a fucking yank, and then the creep told me we were going to be good friends." She spat on his eyes and his wound. "Bastard deserves it. I'd have done worse."

I walked over to where Margot and Felipe were crouched over Gabe. He was groaning as Margot pressed a clean cloth over his wounds and bruises.

"They kicked him real bad," said Felipe.

"Why?" I asked.

"He was sent in first before the soldiers. He said that if we cooperate, no one will get hurt. They took most of our stuff, and we were supposed to get left behind with only a small share. That was what the big dude said. And that he'll allow one of us to get inside the walls."

I nodded. Felipe was talking about Peter.

"But then, one of the soldiers took an...interest...at the girls, said for safety, the women have to be inside the walls, and that they can make room for one more."

"Good thing we took care of one of them," Aria nodded to the unconscious Payne.

Felipe continued, "Some of the soldiers said no, said that it should be Henry since he's a little kid, that the others have to go through the lottery to be fair, but he was insistent."

"The big dude?" I asked.

Felipe shook his head. "A different one. They call him Captain. That was when Gabe argued with him, and then Luke and Yousef took the chance to escape. Henry, too."

"Where's this captain now?"

"He and another soldier went after Luke and Yousef."

I looked over to Logan. "Peter Gauthier's with them."

"Pete is here? Big Dick Pete?"

I ignored the latter. "I knocked him out. He told me he was going to take us all in."

"So...Pete is here," Logan muttered.

Aria gasped. "Now I understand why he suddenly called me...not nice names earlier."

"Guys! We got trouble!" Alfie shouted from where Payne was. He had his right ear pressed against Payne's earphones. "The other two soldiers, they're on their way. They didn't mention catching Yousef or Luke yet. Shit. They just went silent. I think they know we're listening."

"We have to find them!" Aria exclaimed.

I wanted to find Luke, too. But I had no idea where they were hiding, and the gunshots would have given us away. With Payne not responding, the other soldiers would shoot us on sight. We took them out one by one, and I didn't think they would hold back if they found us. We killed one of them after all, and I doubted they'd take that news lightly.

I told the others everything, where Henry and Miguel were hiding, but I didn't go into great detail on how the other soldier died. Margot quickly patched up Gabe and brought him inside the bus.

I had to think. The soldiers brought two humvees with them, though I had no intention of them following us. I ordered Aria and Felipe to slash their tires; they wouldn't come near us for at least a day. I could only imagine the hike they had to do to reach Albany, and I reckoned Peter and his squad would only escalate their hatred against us, perhaps hunt us down inside the city. Though, we would be long gone by then (hopefully). We were forced into a corner, and we were quickly digging ourselves into a hole.

I had to find a way out of this.

I grabbed anything I could find inside the humvees, including a regional map, down to the marked signs and codes that the soldiers had been using to navigate the area. A city map was also littered with various symbols, including a circled star in the middle of downtown, which I presumed would be their home base.

On the regional map, some towns had a few exes and asterisks. Others had several question marks, which would be useful for later once I had time to study them. I took the hatchet we had for chopping down wood for the campfire and used it to smash their two long-range radios inside the humvees.

"They can still use their CB radios to call for backup," Logan said.

I shook my head. "Those can only go as far as five miles without any obstruction. We are in a heavily wooded area with many hills. The city is about thirteen, maybe fourteen miles away, and I just destroyed their long-range radios. They won't be calling HQ anytime soon."

"Do you have a plan? Lord knows we need one right now."

I paced back and forth. I had one in my head, but the chances I could pull it off without a hitch would be a million to one. I had to get us into the walls.

I nodded to Logan. "Help me bring Payne inside the bus. You grab the head, and I'll grab the legs. I have a plan."

——

Miguel and Henry still hid where I told them. I saw the outline of the two humvees hidden next to a narrow dirt road, saw their lanky silhouettes climbing out of the passenger door. I didn't expect two other figures to climb down after them.

I stepped on the brakes.

"Get your gun ready," I told the others.

As I turned around, Miguel and Henry stepped out onto the headlights, walking calmly toward the bus's sliding doors with the two strangers tailing right behind. It wasn't until they walked into the headlights' view that I recognized Luke and Yousef.

I jumped off of my seat, quickly opening the door, and hopped off the bus. I could hear Aria fumbling through the aisle, seeing the same thing I did. I reached Luke, wrapping my arms around him, and suddenly, this ache within the pit of my stomach dissipated, and I was afraid to let go, fearing that I would fall, and I couldn't find my way back up. Both of Luke and Yousef's clothes were soaking wet. Luke rested his chin on my shoulder as he snaked his arms around my body, never mind that my clothes were also getting wet.

"I can't believe it. You're here," I whispered to his ear. "Why are you wet?"

"We jumped and swam across the lake," Luke said.

I felt his lips brushed on mine, his hand moving up my spine until they rested at the nape of my neck to bring me closer to his own lips. I didn't care now if everyone could see that I was sleeping with him. I didn't even know why I tried to hide it from everyone, even when it was apparent. I am not used to being intimate with another man in public. But this was Luke, and I couldn't possibly hold myself back at how happy I was to see him.

"How did you get away?" I asked.

"What do you think? I ran as fast as I could." Luke smiled against my neck and brought me into his embrace again.

I glanced beside me and saw Aria and Yousef in a tight embrace as well. The others hopped off the bus, both expressing their disbelief at seeing them again and some wiping off their tears.

"I'm glad you found Miguel and Henry," I said.

"Well, it was Miguel who found us. He heard us sneaking around and tried to ambush us, but he quickly realized it was just us."

"I almost shot his eyes out," Miguel said, grinning. "I don't think you'd forgive me, Bren, if I shot him."

"Thanks for not shooting him," I said.

"W—we can't stay here around the area. They'll turn back again!" Yousef exclaimed.

"We don't have to worry about that anymore," said Aria, pressing her lips onto Yousef's. "We slashed their tires, so they aren't going anywhere, and Bren gave the others a well-deserved beating."

"But we're still close to camp," I added. "There's an abandoned farmhouse north of here. Luke and I checked it out two days ago, and it's clear. They have a barn where we can hide the vehicles temporarily."

"What about the other soldiers?" Luke asked.

"We got one alive back in the bus," Alfie said, pointing his thumb to the bus.

"Taking him up as our hostage? Is that your plan?" Luke asked, raising his eyebrows at me.

"Not quite, but if it works, we're getting inside the walls tonight."

I could feel everyone stood still, their stares burning right through me. Many questions were buzzing all at once, and I caught the stunned look of Margot and Miguel and a few skeptical looks from Felipe, Luke, and Aria, but I had to make this work.

"They're going to call for backup," Luke warned.

"I already took care of that," I said. "But yes, we have a narrow window to pull this off, and that soldier will be our key inside."

"Bren, this is crazy! We can't stay here."

"Just trust me on this!" I said. "Miguel, how far is the nearest infested town?"

"Vectors?" Miguel asked curiously.

"Yes."

"That would be Greenville. A few of the survivors came from there when I scouted the South 87 Gate. A large horde was passing through there. Not a lot of folks made it out."

I nodded. "I heard the same in West 85."

"But that town's gone...oh." Miguel's eyes widened. "You gotta be kidding me."

I walked toward the rear window of the bus and peered inside. Payne was still unconscious in one of the seats where Margot was tending to his wounds. The bullet went through cleanly, and it didn't seem like any vital parts were damaged. He would live long enough for him to carry out my plan.

Payne would give me what I wanted. They had talked in code with the others before, one where I mistook Peter's ignorance in the woods, leaving me vulnerable. Their maps were littered with symbols marking everything they had in the city and around the area. Reading from half of it alone, I knew where to avoid certain buildings and maybe where I could find Major Clemons. Payne will give me all of their codes and signs.

The soldiers hadn't seen what we had seen yet. They hadn't even met a vector up close.

I would give him a good education.