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Danny walks with Casey and Alex, his face set on scowl and she wonders why he feels the need to put on this tough-guy act. “Where’re we going?”
    “Somewhere safe.”
    “I thought we were past all this now.”
    There’s a rustling in the grass nearby but Danny is annoyed and doesn’t notice. “What do you want me to say? Does it matter? We’re going somewhere where there’s food and shelter and lots of other people. Do you want me to draw you a map?”
    “Will you at least tell me why you’re out here?”
    “No.”
    Casey stops walking.
    “What are you doing now?” Danny steps toward her. Casey lifts her bat, knuckles growing lighter with her tight grip and biceps flexing, preparing to strike. Danny throws up his hands, his hot temper getting the best of him.
    “Fine, suit yourself,” he turns away nonchalantly.
    “Watch out!” Casey yells as a grotesque, nearly skeletal hand reaches up from the weeds at Danny’s feet. It wraps around his ankle and he tumbles to the ground, landing mere inches from a horrifically rotted face. He squawks in surprise as teeth snap shut like a gator that’s been lying in wait and flinches back, avoiding them.
    A face and arm are almost all that’s left of the creature, but that doesn’t stop it from being deadly, it would only take one bite. It digs its fingers at Danny’s ribs while weeds slip down in front of his eyes. He rips a handful away from his face and scrambles back, the thing’s teeth just missing his face a second time. It drags itself up using his clothes, scaling him.
    Casey’s foot streaks through the air and catches under the creature’s chin. The sheer power of her kick rips the thing’s head right off and catapults it into the sky, sending it sailing overhead. It lands far away. Danny struggles comically to shove off what remains of the creature. He stumbles to his feet and kicks the corpse for good measure. Casey raises an eyebrow.
    “Uh… Thanks,” Danny brushes himself clean.
    “Yeah, no problem, are you okay?”
    “Yeah.”
    “Should I strip you to see if you’re bitten?” Casey knows it’s a cheeky remark, but she can’t help herself.
    A half-pleased look washes over Danny’s face. “If you like.”
    Casey smiles slyly. “Maybe another time, soldier.”
    “Another time then,” Danny turns back toward his men. They nod, he nods. Nods all around.
    “They seem concerned.” Casey says.
    “Yeah, they’re real sweethearts.”
    She snorts amusement and Danny motions for her and Alex to follow him. “You coming?”
    Casey nods, it seems the thing to do.

4
    Hours pass. Insects bite and sting. Brambles and bushes pluck at exposed skin, leaving it tender and itchy and the infrequent stops take their toll as fatigue becomes the new norm. Night descends rapidly while the brigade chats in hushed whispers, gossip mostly. So-and-so did this or that, water cooler chatter that would almost make this world feel bearable if not for the occasional reference to “The Risen”.
    Casey gabs eagerly with the other adults. She doesn’t care if she barely knows these men. It’s been months since she’s had the opportunity to converse with anyone, and despite their circumstances it feels good, almost normal. Besides, she’s learning quite a bit.
    They’re headed to a fortified hotel, which sounds like paradise. Security, food, and community. The kids go to “classes” and the leader of the place is a woman named Lot—a great person by all accounts. The brigade men have warmed up quite a bit to their visitors, and they’re more talkative than Danny, who hasn’t said a word in hours. He’ll get along with Alex just fine, Casey thinks.
    The group falls into another quiet lull, everyone is tired. Casey’s feet ache terribly, but the thought of getting a hot meal pushes her forward. Her mind wanders in the silence and she thinks about the first few weeks of The Plague, when she still thought there was hope.
    She and Anton had holed up, boarded