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around the bend, the woods swallowing her whole. I wasn’t angry or hurt. If anything I was just a little bit amused. I urged Daisy forward, bringing myself alongside Jake. We rode together in silence for a mile before his impatience finally won out.
    “Hey, Kase?” His voice was full of uncertainty that hadn’t been there with Mia. He bumped one fist against his saddle horn and sighed.
    “Yes, Jake?”
    “You heard all that, right?”
    “Yes, Jake.”
    He made a noise that sounded like a growl and turned his face towards me. “Don’t ’Yes, Jake’ me. I know you got an opinion. Might as well say it as to think it.”
    “I think Mia is right.”
    “You what?” he asked.
    His voice had dropped completely into a whisper, which surprised me. His face wasn’t angry, it was afraid. I’d expected Jake to react as Jake usually did after a comment like that. His jaw would drop, his eyes would get big, all dramatic and funny-like. Then the customary string of cuss words would fly from his mouth, each growing in their sharpness and originality. This was new, and I didn’t like it. The intensity in his eyes finally made me turn away, which was something else I didn’t like.
    “You heard me,” I said, my voice losing its cool edge. We were nearing the club, and the horses had picked up the pace.
    “Yeah, I heard what ya said. I just don’t fuckin’ believe it. Look at me and tell me what Mia was sayin’ is true, that we can’t trust ya anymore.” The longer he talked, the more he sounded like Jake again, even if his voice was jagged and emotional. The country club was starting to come into view through the trees.
    “I don’t want to fight with you, Jake. Not right now, okay?”
    This deflated his temper. “I don’t wanna fight either. But what I said? I’m stickin’ to it. She can do whatever the hell she wants. I’m not goin' without you. That’s all I have to say about this bunch of bullshit.” He pursed his lips and nodded once, making me laugh in spite of myself.
    “Yes, Jake.”
     
    * * *
     
    Michael stomped down the middle of the barn towards me. “What happened out there?”
    I had already unsaddled Daisy and was in the middle of brushing her down, stalling for time long after Mia and Jake had already put their horses out to pasture. I should’ve known Michael would come looking for me if I pissed around too long.
    “What do you mean, what happened? I assume you’ve talked to Waters, right?”
    I regretted how sarcastic that sounded, but didn’t have the patience to deal with his shit at the moment. I brushed Daisy’s neck and could hear him taking a deep breath right behind me, no doubt gritting his teeth and standing with his hands on his hips.
    “You know I’ve already talked to Steve. That’s not what I’m asking,” he said. “Well, it is, but that’s only half of it. Jake already told me about the dead guy Waters’ men found after they got there. Yeah, Steve was crapping his pants about that when I talked to him.” He stepped over next to me and laid his hand on Daisy’s hip.
    I knew there would be hell to pay for killing Andy. Waters, or Steve to his friends, had given explicit instructions not to kill anyone unless absolutely necessary. It had only happened a few other times since we started working for him, and all those situations could be explained. He had been mad at first, coming around once he realized there had been no other choice. He knew as well as we did, zombies weren’t the only thing we had to worry about now. Living, breathing people could be just as bad. If not worse. Especially now that resources were getting harder and harder to come by. Not everyone had a Nancy in their group, or hunters for that matter. Too many people lived off of what they could scavenge, and when there was nothing left, they got desperate.
    “How bad is it?” I asked, my arm pausing mid-brush, eyes staying glued to Daisy’s mane.
    “Not as bad as it could’ve been. He