Red Hill

In one moment, it was as if they were endless, and in the next there were only a few left. I shot, Skeeter shot, and Nathan hurled the hatchet. Bodies lay all over the road and in the ditches. It looked like a scene out of a horror movie; a massacre. Nathan and Skeeter didn’t return to the house, instead they stood over the bodies of Miranda and Bryce. They were lying together, chewed and bloody. Skeeter pulled out a handgun, and shot Bryce in the head. He’d already made sure Miranda wouldn’t come back. Spending another bullet wasn’t necessary.

I climbed down the ladder, and stood in shock as I watched Je

Ashley stood over us for a moment, and then began ru

Night was falling, and Skeeter and Nathan guided Ashley back to the house. She was sobbing, fighting to stay with her sister. Skeeter had to force her the rest of the way into the house.

Nathan watched Ashley and Skeeter until they disappeared behind the door, and then looked down at my family, offering a small smile. “You have some incredible kids there.”

“Miranda?” I asked, already knowing the answer.

He sighed. “Bryce was attacked. She tried to save him. I couldn’t get to them in time.”

Halle’s face was buried under my arm, and her dirty fingernails dug into my skin. I kissed her head. “Come on, girls. I’ve got you. Let’s go inside.”

Nathan helped us up, and we walked inside together. The girls were filthy, and I couldn’t be sure, but I thought they were still wearing the same clothes they put on the last morning I saw them.

I couldn’t stop staring or smiling at them. It almost didn’t seem real.

“We saw your message,” Je

I shook my head. “Where’s your dad?”

“He was bit,” Halle said in her small voice.

“He made us leave him,” Je

“Ssh ssh,” I said, hugging them both. “How long have you been alone?” I didn’t know why I was asking. I wasn’t sure I wanted to know, or that it mattered.

“I don’t know,” Je

“Wow,” Skeeter said. “Tough like their mama.”

Je

I looked at Nathan, who was holding Zoe and Elleny close. It made me sick to think my sweet little girls had been alone that long, and I wasn’t sure I wanted to know what they had gone through during that time.

“If you hadn’t cleared the way for them, it would have been tough for them to make it past Shallot alone, if not impossible,” Nathan said. “You were right. It wasn’t for nothing.”

I nodded, and hugged my girls again. “Come on, babies. Let’s get you cleaned up.” Halle whined, but I kissed her hair. “You’re safe now.” I looked to Je

Her eyebrows pulled in. “It’s been a while.”

I pulled her into my chest. “Okay. Okay, that’s all over, now. Nathan?”

“I’m on it,” he said, going straight into the kitchen.

I helped the girls wash, and brushed their hair. It was so surreal, doing something so mundane while listening to their terrifying journey. I sat with them at the table and watched them shovel food into their mouths, and once their bellies were full, I walked them into Bryce and Miranda’s bedroom, and tucked them in.

In the other room, I could hear Nathan humming to Zoe and Elleny.

Halle gripped her fingers around my wrist, tight. “Don’t leave, Mommy.”

I shook my head, brought her hand to my mouth, and gave it a kiss. “We’ll never be apart again.”

“You promise?”

“I promise. You are so brave,” I said, kissing Halle’s forehead, and then looking into Je

The girls settled in, and within ten minutes they were both in a deep sleep. Nathan came in and watched them for a moment with a smile. “They’re beautiful.”

“Thank you,” I said, sucking in a sharp breath to hold back the sob in my throat.

“You’re sleeping in here?” he asked.

I nodded. “In the chair. So I can be here when they wake up. They’ll probably forget where they are.”

Nathan kneeled down beside me and kissed the tender skin just below my ear.

I leaned into him. “Where is Ashley?”

“Skeeter is with her. She’s feeling pretty alone.”

“I imagine.” I sighed.

“They’ve both lost the loves of their lives. They have that one awful thing in common, and they can help each other get through it.”

We hugged for a while, watching my babies sleep. Je

“I can’t stop staring at them,” I whispered. “A part of me is afraid that if I look away or fall asleep that they’ll disappear.”

“Trust me, they’re here. They’re safe, and we’ll keep them that way.”

I looked to him, touched his face, and pressed my lips against his. “I didn’t really understand when you said the end of the world was the best thing to have happened to you, and how it was so close to perfect. But now that everyone in our family is here . . . and safe . . . I get it.”

“Our family, huh?” he smiled.

“They’re finally here,” I said, shaking my head in disbelief. I smirked when a random thought popped into my head. “Four girls. You’re outnumbered.”

“I think I can handle it.”

I laughed once. “I love you.”

His eyebrows pulled in, and he smiled like those words made him so happy that it hurt. “Now it’s perfect.”

Epilogue

Scarlet

JENNA WAS FOCUSED, IGNORING THE sweat dripping into her big brown eyes. She rested the butt of the rifle against her shoulder. It was her fifteenth birthday, and Skeeter would call her at any moment to walk with him into the field. For whatever reason, he’d decided that on everyone’s birthday, he would challenge them to a shoot-off. The wi

“I’m going to beat him for real this year, Mom.”

“Oh, yeah?” I said, glancing around the perimeter. It was my turn on watch, even though it had been over a year since the outbreak and the few teds that stumbled by were so far decayed that we didn’t need to make much effort to put them down. Shoving them to the ground and stomping their heads usually did the trick. The act was a lot like crushing an empty soda can; their insides were mush. Even Elleny had put a few down that way.

We still took turns, though, on top of the roof of the farmhouse. A surprise attack was still dangerous, especially on a day like today when everyone would be ru

I glanced down at the crosses under the oak tree. The soil on the graves now had grass growing from the settled mounds.

Ashley stepped off the porch and looked up at Je

Je