“Why
didn
’t
you
call
Quinn?”
Liet dismissively
waved
his
hand.
“He
wouldn
’t
return
my
summons.
I
think
he’s
afraid
I’ll
hurt
him.”
“Would
you?”
Liet
responded
with
a
smirk.
I
rolled
my
eyes.
“How
many
trucks?”
“We
only
have
one
we
can
spare
right
now.
Will
you
be
able
to
fill it
up?”
I
glanced
up
at
the
ceiling
and
thought
for
a
moment.
When
I
came
to
a
conclusion,
I
folded
my
arms across
my
chest
and
focused
my
sights
back
on
my
cousin.
“I
might
know
of
a
place
, but
it’s
been
a
while
since
I
’v
e
been
out.
How
soon
do
you
need
it?”
“As soon
as
you
can
get
it
here.
And
I
doubt
things
have
changed
that
much
in
ten
days.”
He
leaned
back
in
his
chair
and
fiddled
with
a
pencil
on
his
desk.
“Of
course,
I
wouldn
’t
expect
you
to
go
alone.
In
fact,
I
downright
forbid it.”
He
nodded
to
the
man
who
stood
behind
him.
“This is
Ben.
He
’ll
accompany
you
on
your
mission.”
I
looked
the
man
up
and
down.
His
faded
green
fatigues
hung
loosely
on his
small
frame,
his
cheeks
were
covered
with a
few
days’
worth
of
stubble,
and
his
dirty
brown
hair
stuck
out
in
multiple
directions.
His
dark
eyes
were
sunken
,
and
his
shoulders
slumped
forward.
“You
running
out
of
men
out
here?
This
one
looks a
little
green.”
“He
is a
bit
new,
but
he
can
handle
himself.”
“He
’d
better.
I
don
’t
want
another
Anderson
or Wilks
on
my
hands.”
Ben’s
face
paled.
“I
need
you
to
leave
as
soon
as
possible,”
Liet
said.
“I’l
l
need
my
weapons.”
“You
can
have
them as
soon
as
you
leave
the
city.”
Liet
motioned
toward
Ben,
and
he
came
from
behind
the
desk.
He joined
me,
and
we
turned
and
left
the
room.
As the
sun
set,
we
walked
to
the
other
side
of
town
where
the
vehicles
were
kept
behind
locked
gates.
I
climbed
into
the
passenger
seat
of
the
tanker
truck,
placing
my
foot
on
the
dash.
Ben
pulled
onto
the
highway.
Ten
days?
Was
that
all?
It
seemed
like so
much
longer.
It
made
me
feel
better,
though,
because
I
’d been
convinced
Quinn
forgot
about
me.
Written
me
off
as
a
lost
cause
, but
it
wasn
’t
true.
Not
enough
time
had
passed.
I
was
sure
he
still
planned
on
attacking,
and
he
would
have
saved
me,
I
know
it, but
this
situation
worked
too.
Either
way,
I
was
free.
Liet
must
really
have
a
screw
loose. I
mean,
he
had
to
know
I
wasn
’t
coming
back.
If
he
thought
Ben
was
going
to
stop
me,
he was
really
dumb.
Thank
goodness
for
his
stupidity.
Without
it,
I’d
still
be
chained
to
that
bed.
I
think
luck
played
a
big
role
too.
I
glanced
out
the
window
and up
at
the
stars.
Yep,
I
was
the luckiest
girl
I
knew.
We
were
about
an
hour
away
from
North
Platte
when
we
ran
into
our
first
zombie.
The
truck
was
cruising
at sixty-five
miles
per
hour
with
Ben
zoning
at
the
wheel
when
the
figure
emerged
in
the
headlights
like
a
ghost.
By
the
time
he
realized
what
was
going
on,
the
creature
splattered
all
over
the
front
of
the
truck.
Under
reflex,
he
slammed
on
the
brakes
and
pulled
over
to the
side
of
the
road.
I
stared
at
him.
His
eyes
were
wide
and
his
knuckles
were
white
as he
gripped
the
steering
wheel.
“Are
you
all
right?”
He
turned
slowly
to face me
and
nodded
mechanically.
“I think
so.” His
voice
was barely
over
a
whisper.
I
undid
my
seatbelt.
“Get
up.”
I
motioned
with
my
hand
for
him
to
move.
“I’l
l
take
it
the
rest
of
the
way.”
A moan
echoed
outside
and
I
glanced
over
my
shoulder.
I
grabbed
his
arm.
“C’
mon.
We
don
’t
have
much
time.”
Ben
undid
his
seatbelt
and
moved
to
the
other
seat.
I
put
the
truck into
gear
and
took
off
down
the
road as
two
more
zombies
crawled
on
the
cab.
I
watched
in
the
rearview
as their
bodies
thumped
onto
the
pavement
and
rolled
into
blackness. His
face
went
white.