CHAPTER ONE
ATHENA KEPT HER large brown eyes fixated on the world outside of her car window. Her car had been sitting in the exact same position for at least two hours amongst other vehicles that were also parked all around her. Athena thought there must have been at least a thousand cars on the highway, all lined up one after the other in an orderly fashion in attempt to flee the city. The people of Atlanta had been victims to a vicious outbreak and in order to survive, Athena got in her car and drove. But it seemed the rest of the city had the exact same idea.
The young brunette was slowly starting to lose her patience as she tapped her fingers against the wheel, waiting around and staying still was not her specialty. As she continued to look out the window to occupy her mind, Athena noticed the fear plastered across each persons face and felt the overwhelming worry that radiated from each individual. It was a sight she had never seen before. After all, psychotic monsters were running around eating people.
Athena was suddenly pulled out of her thoughts when the sound of helicopters boomed from the sky. The woman frowned and immediately pushed her car door open, stepping out into the cold as she looked up at the sky. As far as she could see, helicopters were headed towards the centre of the city — Athena thought it was a rescue team to retrieve the remaining people. The helicopters began disappear behind the trees and that's when Athena picked up her pace and started to jog between the parked vehicles, her curiosity getting the best of her.
Her eyes darted around as she wavered through the groups of people that was increasing by the minute, more people copying Athena's actions as they watched the helicopters fly through the sky. Everyone was scared, understandably, about what would happen to their homes in the city. For most, everything in the city was their life and having to flee from what they once knew was enough to put people on edge.
Athena on the other hand didn't feel the same way. The woman never had a place she could really call home, struggling to find a job and having no friends or family around was hard enough as it was. So, seeing the saddened faces of parents hugging their children with photo albums gripped in their arms was something Athena couldn't relate to. The only she had in common with the strangers surrounding her was the fear she felt for her safety and the constant question of when it'd be safe to return.
As her legs pumped quickly one after the other, Athena suddenly stopped when she collided with a large and broad frame. Athena grunted, spreading her arms out to steady herself as she put her hands on a car. As she stepped back, Athena noticed the screeching sound and looked to her left to see the scratch she had made on the car. Athena slowly turned her head to see a very tall man stood in front of her with a ever deepening scowl. The young woman raised her brows and held up her hands "Oh my god, I'm so sorry."
The man looked enraged, his face full of fury as he towered over her. "You're gonna be. You scratched my car, you know how much that costs to get fixed? It's more than you'll ever be worth, woman!"
Athena was taken aback, the fire in her belly beginning to burn. The young woman was never one to let herself be pushed around no matter who they were. "Excuse me? Incase you haven't noticed there's bigger problems to worry about about than your lame ass car."
The man sneered and raised his finger, pointing at her as he edged closer. "You better watch yourself, I can squish you like that." He snapped his fingers. "Your paying for the damages."
Athena was small in size and there was no way she could take on the oversized man even if she tried but she sure as hell wasn't going to let him get away with being a complete asshole. "Oh yeah? And who's gonna make me, you?" Athena hissed. They were face to face, the stranger and herself becoming more angry. If it were any regular day, Athena would have walked away by now. She didn't know whether it was the emotions and confusion that amplified their rage but if she didn't walk away soon, it was going to get ugly. "Now get out of my way."
Athena moved to barge past the brutish man but was inevitably stopped when he put his arm in front of her. At this point, the surrounding people were now stopping to watch the heated argument. "Oh no. You're not going anywhere." The man gripped onto her arm and held it tightly with a face full or fury. Athena slowly began to panic, looking at the strangers for help who now pretended they didn't see anything.
"Get off of me!" Athena wrangled out of his hold and punched him in the face. Instantly blood began to pour from his nose as the pain from the impact began to kick in to the woman's hand. Athena has never punched someone before and judging by the heavy breaths coming from his mouth she knew she was going to be on the receiving end. The man wiped his nose and lifted his arm in attempt to hit back, Athena braved herself for the pain but it never came.
Suddenly, a much slimmer man appeared in front of her. He had dark hair and was much taller than Athena but smaller than the angry man. The man stood between them with his arms raised. "Woah, woah. What's going on here? Are you alright ma'am?" He asked Athena. The woman nodded quickly, thankful that he stepped in when he did. "I'm a cop, it's okay."
"This bitch scratched my car and punched me in the face after refusing to pay for the car so she was going to pay for it physically." The man explained with a low tone.
The cop frowned, giving a look of disbelief that Athena has herself the whole time. "Sir, are you suggesting you were going to hit a woman because she scratched your car? Incase you haven't noticed we have just evacuated the city and I suggest you back away immediately before matters get worse and I take this into my hands." The cop put his hand on his belt where his gun was located. The man's face fell as he took notice. "Get outta here man!"
The man grumbled under his breath and he took off down the road far from sight. Athena released a breath she didn't know she was holding as she watched the man leave. She mentally scolded herself for getting herself into that situation. The cop turned and glanced to the surrounding people. "Shows over folks. Go back to your cars and stay safe." As the crowd dispersed, the dark haired man rubbed his head before speaking to her. "Are you sure you're alright?"
Athena nodded, sighing as a small smile appeared. "Yeah. Thank you. If you hadn't stepped in I would be half conscious on the floor right now."
"It's no problem, I'm just doing my job. And he's a total asshole anyway." The man said whole heartedly. They chuckled before a few seconds of silence followed after as they stared at one another. The more she studied him, the more she could see how handsome he was. He had a rugged look to him that drew her in and his physique was well toned. The cop cleared his throat, being the first to look away. "What you doing on the highway all alone? Got any family with you?"
"No, it's just me." Athena said sadly, glancing down to her feet. "I fled the city like everyone else with just my car and the clothes on my back. I was curious about the helicopters heading towards the city so I came out here to have a look."
"Same here." The pair began to walk to the side of the road where you could see the city as they watched on. "I'm out here with my best friends wife and son. He died a few days ago in the hospital and I know he would want me to take care of them so that's what I'm going to do."
"I'm sorry you lost your friend. Truly. Ever since the outbreak happened, everyone is feeling some type of loss, something they'll never get back: their homes, their families, their lives." Athena felt some type of envy towards those people as she had never experienced even half even of those things. "All I wanna do is get outta here before it's too late."
The man turned to face her "Speaking of, where you headed?"
"Honestly. No where specific." Athena sighed defeatedly. "I don't really have a plan to what I'm doing next. My only plan is to keep driving until I find somewhere safe to wait all of this out.
"Yeah, we've got the same idea. We're thinking of setting up just outside the city. Hopefully when the military comes we'll be the first to be saved." The man explained. Athena was beyond fearful to what laid ahead of her. She didn't know whether she'd survive that long all alone but she couldn't lose hope. The man gave her a concerned look as an idea came into his head. It wasn't like him to think of it but something about her told him that he could trust her. "You should come with us. A young woman like yourself shouldn't be out here all alone."
Athena was taken aback by his question. Being around people wasn't her usual style, preferring to be on her own and in charge of her own safety. But this it was different. This time the city had been raided by monstrous cannibals and being all alone wasn't really a good idea. Just in that moment, the pair were startled when a large bomb was dropped into the city. Multiple gasps were heard all around from the people who's attention was also drawn and that moment confirmed her answer. "Okay, yeah. Yes, I'll come with you. Anything to get away from this mess."
"Good. Let's get to the car. I'm sure after what's just happened it's only gonna get uglier." The man explained as they began to walk back. "I'm Shane by the way. Shane Walsh."
"Athena. Athena Daniels."