- Or in this case… Allies?

  - Not sure yet, but surely… they can’t be that disruptive.

  - Anyways, Roll with the punches, use whatever you have. Don't delay or look for something you might not get.

  ---

  We left The Collective at noon.

  We didn’t head straight to Cincinnati. Not yet. First stop: Cleveland. The Fortress. Home sweet half-destroyed base.

  Resupply, freshen up, rest. Prep for the real journey. You don’t go into the lion’s den with just a protein bar and unresolved trauma.

  We were maybe three miles out when Harun spoke up.

  "Why don't we... steal a car?"

  I raised an eyebrow. "You know car alarms still exist, right?"

  "So?"

  "So, unless you’re looking to get flashbanged by a Hyundai Sonata, we don’t touch ‘wild cars.’ Better to steal from someone who already uses one."

  Reading on this site? This novel is published elsewhere. Support the author by seeking out the original.

  "Ah. Gremlins."

  "Exactly. You never know what kind you’ll get."

  "Worse or better than Alex?"

  I chuckled. "Nothing beats Alex’s gremliness."

  Harun laughed too. "Yeah. She’s a special kind of unhinged."

  "Weaponized chaos."

  ---

  We passed a few homes on the edge of a dead suburb by nightfall. Empty enough. We picked one that didn’t scream "trap" and set up camp.

  We left the front door slightly ajar. Deliberately. A little bait.

  Because yeah, we’d been followed.

  Shadows had been tailing us since we left the treeline. Subtle, but not invisible. Sloppy pacing. One stepped on a twig at one point. I named him Twiggy.

  When they finally slipped into the house after us, we weren’t inside. We were behind them.

  Harun moved fast. I moved faster.

  By the time they blinked, they were face down on the floor. Harun had a frying pan (don’t ask), and I had my sawed-off.

  "Why are you following us?!" Harun barked.

  The girl, maybe early twenties, jittery hands, heart pounding loud enough I could hear it, raised her hands.

  "We just needed a new place!" she said frantically.

  The guy with her helped her up. He was big, nervous, but didn’t seem like the threatening type.

  "I saw you talk to Mason," he said. "I thought you’d be..."

  "Handsome?" I offered.

  "You’re as handsome as a Wookiee," Harun said with a smile.

  I squinted at him. "Oh, thank you. Wait... rude."

  The guy shook his head quickly. "N-no. I just meant, you seemed like someone better to side with. Not like Mason."

  "Why would you think that?" Harun asked, keeping his frying pan level.

  The girl spoke up again. "Because we’re sick of living like them. That place is falling apart. My boyfriend and I thought if we followed you... maybe we had a shot. Maybe it would be better."

  "Well, you guessed wro-MMMPH."

  Harun slapped a hand over my mouth before I could finish the very satisfying rejection I had lined up.

  "Forgive my friend," he said. "He’s... a bit tense with the whole Mason situation."

  I mumbled something unflattering into his palm.

  "We’re glad to have you onboard," Harun continued, ignoring my muffled cursing. "What are your skills?"

  The two lovebirds looked at each other like we just asked them to solve cold fusion.

  "Uhhh..." the guy started.

  "I see-EW!" Harun jerked his hand back as I licked his palm.

  He wiped it off on my shirt. I grinned and put the sawed-off back into my bag.

  "Welcome aboard," I said. "Gail would love to train you."

  The girl blinked. "Who’s Gail?"

  "The scariest man you’ll ever meet," I said cheerfully. "And if you survive his bootcamp, we might actually keep you. He's like Batman's bigger gruff cousin."

  ---

  Not the worst way to start a trip.

  Not the smartest either.

  But hey, we play the cards we’re dealt.

  Even if they come with awkward couples.