On the way to Minneapolis we stop in a department store to pick up supplies and get new clothes. I go off with Addy so we can have some alone time and pick out new clothes. I've missed this we haven't had any good girl time in a while.
"So, how are you holding up?" I ask her as we pick through the clothes.
"There's good days and bad days, ya know?" She asked and I nod. "But I'm just trying to get through it one day at a time."
"Try these on." I say tossing her some jeans and a tee shirt. We're talking about Mack. I miss him a lot and I can't even imagine what she's going through. I don't know if I could be as strong as her if something happened to Tommy.
"So, how are things with you and 10k? You guys done the deed yet?" She asked, wiggling her eyebrows suggestively and I blush.
"No!" I exclaimed in embarrassment and she laughs at the deep red blush that becomes blatantly apparent across my face.
"Here, try these on." She says tossing me a pair of black leather pants and a white muscle tee that fits nicely under my army jacket.
"Really?" I ask and she winks at me.
I quickly change after finding a new bra and some underwear. I will say the clothes she picked out for me do make me look hot. Feeling this good about my appearance during the apocalypse isn't something that happens often. Seriously, I go months on end without showers and am constantly caked in dirt, blood, and grime. To say the least I don't feel very attractive the majority of the time but hey it's the apocalypse. Survival is my number one priority not something as trivial as how I look.
"Oh hon you look drool worthy." She says to me and I roll my eyes shoving her slightly.
"Oh my god, Addy, look." I say with wide eyes as I hold up an unopened box of super tampons. It may not seem like much but these things are like gold in the apocalypse. Yeah it's nice to have pads here and there but tampons, especially the super ones, are perfect for running from z's.
"Holy shit! Are those real?" She asked taking the box from me before calling over Warren.
"What's going on? Are you two ok?" Warren asked concern filling her eyes as she made her way over to us. I just grinned and held up the box of tampons for her to see.
"Dena, you must have come from the gods!" Warren exclaimed excitedly as she pulled me into a side hug and we all laugh before making our way back to the guys.
"Why are you three so chipper?" Tommy asked and I smirk at the look on his face when Addy says I found tampons. Even in the apocalypse periods still make guys uncomfortable.
Not long after we are back on the road again. We found a semi functional pick up truck along the side of the road and it should get us to the green houses. Warren is driving with Addy in shotgun as Vasquez and Doc take the back seat. That leaves Tommy and me in the bed of the truck alone. It's nice getting to relax back here in his arms as we watch the lush farm lands and rolling hills pass us by.
"You know we haven't really heard from Citizen Z since the nukes. I wonder if he's ok." I say absentmindedly as I fiddled with a radio. There haven't been as many broadcasts from him either. Mostly it's been radio silence. Suddenly garbled voices in Spanish come over the radio and my eyes widened.
"I'm sure he's ok. It's the apocalypse people lose touch." Tommy shrugged and I quickly shushed him as I held the radio closer to my ear. The signal is faint but I can barely make out the words before we move out of range.
"Damn, I don't know who was talking but they were saying someone was spotted in Minnesota. Hopefully they mean Murphy." I sighed as I put the radio back in my bag. "I'm sorry for shushing you. I didn't mean to sound mean."
"It's fine, seriously. I didn't know you spoke Spanish." He said and I nodded.
"Yeah, I know I look white but both my parents are actually hispanic. It's just that I probably come from colonizer blood. You know?" I attempted to explain and he nodded.
"Oh, I completely forgot, I have a present for you!" He exclaimed and I smiled softly at him. Gifts and presents are concepts that were left for the pre-apocalyptic world. It's not a common thing anymore.
"What? You didn't have to do that." I say surprised but touched by his sweet gesture.
"Well, I figured we are dating, so maybe I should try and do some boyfriend stuff even if this is the apocalypse. You know, because I love you." He says sweetly as he rummaged through his bag.
"You're so sweet. What did I do to deserve you?" I asked before placing a soft kiss on his dirt covered cheek. When he finally finds the thing he is looking for I almost laugh out loud because he put it in a sock. "A sock?"
"I couldn't find any wrapping paper so uh..." He trailed off awkwardly as I took the sock from him. I couldn't help but chuckle at the adorably awkward look on his face. "Don't laugh at me! I'm trying really hard here!"
"I know, I know, and I love you so much for it." I say before "unwrapping" the gift. My eyes widened when I pulled out a small box of polaroid film. It was the kind that fit in my battered old camera.
"That's the stuff that fits in your camera right?" He asked and I grinned as I nodded. "Good, I saw it in that department store and I knew it looked familiar but I couldn't remember if it was the right kind. So, obviously I was really nervous cause like how lame would it be if I got you a present you couldn't even use and..."
I cut off his nervous ramble by pressing my lips against his. He stiffened in surprise for a moment but quickly responded by pulling me closer. One of his hands go around my waist shifting me so I am pretty much sitting in his lap and his other hand cradles my cheek. My hands rest softly on his chest as I grinned into the kiss.
"It's perfect, seriously. It's the nicest gift I've received all apocalypse. Actually it's the only gift I've received all apocalypse. So, thank you." I tell him once we pulled away for air. My forehead rests against his own and a shy smile dances across his lips. "I just feel bad because I don't have anything for you."
"I don't need anything, love. I am perfectly content just being with you everyday and getting to hold you in my arms." He says and my heart soars with immense joy as he joined our lips once again.
I've never felt love like this before. I thought I found love pre-z but now I realize that that was nothing compared to what I feel for Tommy. Before it was a different kind of love. It was a safe love born out of a school girl crush. But this was different. This was all encompassing, this was everything for me. This was the sun that I revolved around. This was what it felt like to be in love.
"Damn, I'm so happy you're mine." I sigh happily when his lips migrate from my lips to my jaw to my neck.
He just hummed happily in response before harshly sucking on my neck causing a surprised moan to escape my lips. Quickly I slap my hand over my mouth in horror hoping no one in the truck actually heard that. Luckily it seemed no one noticed. Tommy on the other hand definitely heard it and that was evident by his soft chuckle and by the way he gripped my hips tighter.
"Hmmm, I love the sounds you make and I definitely love the way these pants look on you." He says in a low voice that is too damn sexy. Before I can respond the car comes to a sudden stop and I realized we had arrived at the green houses.
"To be continued." I whispered in his ear before pulling away and climbing out of the truck. He isn't subtle about the way his eyes stay glued on me as I made my way over to Warren. I can feel his gaze burning into my back and I can't help but chuckle.
"Kid, get your mind out of the gutter." I hear Doc tease Tommy which causes me to grin even more. Addy comes up besides me and slings her arm over my shoulders.
"I see Ten is admiring those leather pants of yours." She whispered causing my to blush at her statement.
"Are you guys harvesters here for the cure?" The guard at the gate asked.
"Yeah, that's right." Warren nodded.
"You armed?" He asked and we all responded with a chorus of nods. This seems to be the acceptable answer because the guard slid open the gate. "Good, Harvesters wait in the garage until you're called. The other's inside will give you the rundown."
"You think Murphy's here?" Addy inquired as we all walked towards the garage.
"Yeah, he's here. I can smell him." Warren said as she looked around assessing the place.
"Actually, Roberta. I think you're smelling the z-weed." Doc grinned excitedly.
"Somebody help me! Help me! Get it off!" A woman's muffled screams cut sharply through the air grabbing all of our attention.
She is trying to claw her way out of the side of a greenhouse but the vines literally seem to have a mind of their own as they viciously pull her back. We quickly run over to her aid. Warren and Doc move to grab the woman's arms as Vasquez shoots the zombie. Except it's not really a zombie it looks like it's been mutated with a plant.
"Bullets aren't going to work. It's a plant." I exclaim grabbing Vasquez's shoulder so he doesn't waste any more bullets.
"Got any better ideas?" He asked and I nodded as I pulled out my axes.
"Get it off me! Get it off me!" The woman screamed frantically as I quickly bring on of my axes down repeatedly over the plant zombies head. It seems to be working as yellow goo squirts from the wounds. Finally, with one last pull I sever the vine connecting the plant zombie to the woman meaning Doc and Warren are able to pull her to safety.
"Hey! I told you people to move into the garage where it's safe." The guard from the gate snapped as him and another guard jog over to us.
"Safety first, huh?" Doc asked sarcastically.
"You got a problem?" The guard asked and Doc looked like he was about to say something but thought better of it.
"No, no brother. Just here for the cure." Doc said before walking towards the garage. Tommy and I help the woman up but it looks like her ankle had been sprained. She can't really walk properly so we support her between the two of us.
The woman shows us where the garage is and has us set her down on the end of a cot with a little girl laying on it. Doc kneels down next to her and pulls a pad out of his bag. I see Warren give him a warning look. Even though we just stocked up on tampons between three of us they won't last the whole apocalypse. We need to conserve these products as much as possible. Doc just shrugged off her glare and used the pad to soak up the blood coming out of the woman's thigh.
"Mama?" The girl asked quietly and the woman is quick to comfort the small girl. I haven't seen a child this young and alive for such a long time. The last time was probably those girls back at the Sisters of Mercy camp. "Did you find it?"
"Not yet, sweetie, but we're getting close." The woman said as she helped the girl lay back down. "Don't worry, just lay down and get some more rest."
Seeing how gentle the woman is with the young girl reminds me of when I used to take care of my younger siblings when they got sick. That is before the apocalypse and before I had to mercy them. Like many others the zombie virus had snuffed out their lights too soon. I've always wanted kids of my own but now I'm not so sure. It seems almost cruel to bring new life into a world as fucked up as this.
"What's wrong with her?" Doc asked his eyes never leaving the little girl.
"Drug resistant bacteria of some kind. I don't think she has much longer." Mariah said, she had also introduced the young girl as Harper.
"Is that why you became a harvester?" Warren asked as her, Doc, and Addy all sat around the mother and daughter.
"I had to mercy her father in front of her after he turned z. She made me promise not to let that happen to her." Mariah said quietly as she gazed at the little girl.
"You're a good mom." Addy assured her and she chuckled quietly.
"That's the funny thing. I'm not her mom. Her mom's dead. Her whole family is dead. So is mine. All we have is each other and even not that for long." Mariah said and I feel my heart sink.
I need to leave this conversation before I get lost in my memories. Memories of my siblings and my mother. Before the whole world really went to shit. Quietly I move away from the cot area to go and scout the area. Vasquez and Tommy are already doing the same. Something out of the corner of my eye catches my attention. Cassandra is crouched on the other side of the road in front of a greenhouse wearing Wrecking Ball's red jacket.
"Hey, you ok?" Tommy asked while coming to stand behind me. His hand immediately finds it's protective place on my hip.
"Yeah, and I think I know where Murphy is." I say quietly while nodding towards Cassandra.
"He must be in the green house." Tommy agreed as he followed my line of sight.
"I have a plan." I said as the gears turned in my head.
When Murphy sees us here he will immediately run no doubt about it. But maybe I can get him to lower his guard down with a trick. I know out of all the group Murphy trusted me the most. If he thought I was completely stoned maybe he won't run away immediately.
"Del, what are you doing?" Tommy hissed as I started walking towards Cassandra. I quickly waved him off telling him to trust me. Reluctantly he let me go but I could feel him watching my every movement just incase.
"Hey, Cassandra." I said casually as I sat on the ground besides her and leaned against the green house. She looked suspicious at first but I just waved her off. "I'm not here to bring you back or anything I just couldn't help but notice you have some z-weed. Is it good?"
"G-good... stuff." Cassandra said slowly as she took another drag.
"Mind sharing?" I asked and she looked skeptical as I held out my hand. Eventually she gives me the blunt and I took a long drag. I let the feeling settle over me and soak it up before blowing out the smoke in rings. The rings seem to have her mesmerized as she attempts to poke them. "You like that?"
"Cool shapes." She said nodding and I laughed before doing it again. I try and make myself seem more stoned than I really am in order to get her to lower her guard.
"Man, this is good stuff." I sighed as a calm serene feeling fills my body.
"That's... I... said..." Cassandra said slowly as if it took an extreme amount of effort to formulate the half sentence. In response I just grinned and leaned back on my elbows as I let the blunt dangle from my lips.
"Why are you here?" A grumpy voice asked and I opened my eyes squinting against the sun to see Murphy looming over me. I just shrugged nonchalantly before a giggle escaped my lips.
"Z-weed." I shrugged and his eyes narrowed unbelieving.
"Are the others here? Did they send you to bring me back cause guess what kid, I ain't goin back. The cure is here no more Savior of Humanity stuff for me." Murphy scolded but I pretended like I was too high to even pay attention.
"Meh, I was getting sick of saving your dumb blue ass all the time anyways." I shrugged as I inhaled more of the smoke.
"Seriously where are the others? I'm sure Ten Cent wouldn't let you out of his sight." Murphy stated as he crossed his arms.
"You're probably right and the others are around here somewhere trying to play hero or whatever." I explained and my eyes carefully watched Murphy as he glanced around. I didn't miss the slightly nervous expression or the smallest of anxious twitches he made.
"Get up. I have a job for you anyways." Murphy snapped after masking his face of any anxiety he may have been feeling. I made a small sound of protest when he yanked me up by my arm causing me to drop the mostly burned blunt on the ground. Cassandra was quick to stomp it out.
"Hey! Murphy, let go of her!" A voice exclaimed. Immediately I felt a sort of calm wash over me and Murphy's grip leaves my arm. Without hesitation I step away from Murphy and Cassandra and move closer to Tommy.
"Good, you're here. Maybe today you can actually be useful." Murphy said as he eyed Tommy up and down. My boyfriend sent me a confused look and I just replied with a shrug. Even I didn't know what Murphy was up to right now.
"We could take the guards hostage then search the compound for them." Vasquez says to Warren and Doc as the rest of us enter the warehouse.
"I like that idea." Warren agreed since her and the others haven't noticed us yet.
"Or you could just walk up and say hello like civilized people." Murphy suggested causing Warren to scoff as she noticed all of our presences.
"Hello my ass." Warren shook her head with a chuckle.
"You know these folks?" A chubby guy in a white lab coat asked Murphy.
"Oh, we've covered a bit of ground together." Murphy says vaguely.
"Yes, we have, and dude seriously I'm getting tired of chasing your bony ass all over the damn apocalypse." Doc chastised Murphy while crossing his arms.
"What are we waiting for? This man is our prisoner..." Vasquez started forward but Warren stepped in and began whispering quietly to him. I'm not sure what she said but whatever she did say convinced him to stand down.
"Chill out Rambo that ain't gonna happen." Murphy laughed causing Vasquez to narrow his eyes suspiciously at Murphy.
"Why not?" Vasquez questioned.
"Because the whole trip to California won't be necessary. There's a cure for the zombie virus right here in that greenhouse. All we have to do is go in there and get it." Murphy said pointing towards the building next to us.
"Batch 47 is real." The guy in the lab coat assured us. "We just tested it. A bonafide zombie miracle."
"No more relying on me to save the human race. It's a win-win. Right?" Murphy asked and Warren glared at him.
"No, that's not our fight. Plus we promised to get Pasadena home." Warren said sternly.
"Please, if there's any hope for my daughter it's here and now." Mariah pleaded suddenly emploring Warren to help out Harper. Warren sighed and her undeciding eyes met mine.
"It's your call, Chief." I shrugged and Warren nodded more to convince herself than the rest of us.
"Fine, what do you need us to do?" Warren asked the guy in the lab coat.
"Follow me." The guy said before leading us all out of the garage. "Your job is to return to Batch 47 and harvest the rest of the seedpods."
"And not get killed, right? Is that...that's part of the plan?" Doc asked.
"Yeah, not dying is kinda on my agenda and I don't think I'm gonna part with it anytime soon." I added agreeing with Doc.
"Well, it's a secondary consideration but sure." The guy says not easing any of our minds before he grabs an old hockey helmet. "I have protection for you."
"That's ok, I would rather be able to move to fight." I tell him and Doc nods.
"Yeah, I prefer to be able to run from danger." Doc says and we all head towards the greenhouse.
The guy in the lab coat stops us from entering the greenhouse while explaining that the bullets won't kill the plants. Instead he offers us an array of garden tools. I decide to stick with my ice axes as the others trade their guns for various garden tools like a hoe and a garden weasel.
"I don't trust him." I whisper to Tommy as we follow the rest of the group into the greenhouse.
"Who? The dude in the lab coat?" Tommy questioned as his hand finds my own almost reflexively before giving it a reassuring squeeze.
"Well, yes but I was talking about Vasquez. Allergies my ass he just wants to take Murphy for himself the first chance he gets." I scolded while glaring back to where I can see Vasquez standing outside of the greenhouse door.
"Let's just put up with him for now." Tommy says and I give him an uneasy look. "Warren seems to trust him enough."
"This place is giving me the creeps." I mumbled before suddenly Tommy pulls me behind him.
For a second I am confused before I peer around him to see a phyto zombie coming towards us. I watch as quickly Tommy uses his slingshot to shoot a gear at the phyto zombie. The gear harmlessly bounces off the phyto zombies head and the impact caused Murphy to wince. Although I don't think anyone else noticed.
"3,216." Tommy counts smuggly but I just tap his shoulder and point to the phyto zombie that's still standing. His brow furrowed creating his cute confused face that I absolutely adore. "Hey, you should be dead."
"That won't work here!" Murphy snapped pushing Tommy's hand away when my boyfriend raised his slingshot ready for another attempt. "They're all interconnected by the vines. You can't kill one without killing all of them."
No one says anything as Murphy moves forward and uses his mind control powers or whatever to get the phyto zombie to back off. Silently we continue to follow Murphy deeper into the greenhouse until we finally make it to Batch 47. Warren instructed Doc and Tommy to collect the leaves while her and Murphy get the seed pods. My job is to stand guard.
Doc pulls on a leaf and the eyes of the phyto zombie above him snap open. They are cloudy and opaque like normal zombies but this time they have a weird green and purple tint to them. Murphy hurried forward as Tommy crept closer to me protectively. We all watch as Murphy attempted to control the phyto zombie. Murphy lets out a strained scream causing Warren to sever the vine connecting him to the phyto zombie.
"Murphy!" Warren screams as the blue man sprinted out the back door. She moved to follow him but a phyto zombie blocked her way.
"Warren, now would be a great time to make our exit!" I called as the other phyto zombies break free. Tommy doesn't even wait for a response from Warren because he already has my hand in an ironclad grip as he pushes his way forward dragging me with him.
We all managed to escape the greenhouse unscathed but upon arrival Murphy and Vasquez are nowhere to be found. Warren begins to question Addy but the red head nodded towards the surprise visitors across the lawn. My eyes widened when I recognize the familiar leather biker outfits decorated with skulls. The leader introduces himself as Hector Alvarez or Escorpion and I remember him as the guy who shot a rocket at me and Tommy when we were in Wyoming.
The two leaders begin to exchange tense conversation concerning Bat 47. Throughout the whole ordeal I can feel someone watching me intently. One of the Zeros has been staring at me ever since we joined the circle. Tommy seems to notice too when I step closer to him and he wraps a protective arm around my waist. Something about that particular Zero's eyes seems so familiar.
Unbeknownst to our group I have a history with the Zeros that stretch out to before the apocalypse. It's a part of my life I have been trying to forget and right now I honestly don't want to revisit. My eyes snap away from the familiar Zero when a gunshot rings out. One of the Zeros had shot a harvester and now Escorpion was scolding him.
While everyone is distracted by Escorpion and the lab guy and the appearance of Dr.Kurian I slowly try to inch myself away from the crowd. Tommy tries to give me a concerned look but he also doesn't want to draw attention to either of us so he lets me go no questions asked. As all hell breaks loose, Escorpion the leader of the Zeros leaves. Other Zeros go to burn down the greenhouses and the others in my group go to save Murphy.
Meanwhile I make my way to the main lab searching for items that could maybe help us when the cold barrel of a gun gets pressed against the side of my head. Dread fills my body with tense tension and I slowly turn on my heel to face my attacker.
"I should kill you right where you stand." A voice says and my blood goes ice cold in my veins. I look up and the guy takes off his mask. My eyes widen when I come face to face with my father.
"How are you here?" I ask in a tight voice as fear seized my body.
"You really think you could escape me forever, mija?" He asked and I gulped. After my father went to prison all those years ago it was revealed to my family that he was part of a drug smuggling circle called the Zeros. I thought they ended after the apocalypse but I was wrong.
"Why don't you just kill me?" I ask and he gives me a wicked smirk.
"Nothing would give me more pleasure than that but La Reina would have my head if you were killed." He says with distaste and I don't have time to process this information because I lean my arms back. I use the table to support myself and kick up with all my might at his hand that is holding the gun. A gunshot rings through the air as I make my escape.
"Guys it's time to go!" I yell as I run back to the group. I hear gun shots behind me and I duck covering my head as I run.
"D, what's going on?" Tommy asked, concerned as he grabs my arm and pulls me into the back of the van. Warren immediately steps on it and I close the door of the trunk. But it's not before a bullet grazes my shoulder.
"Mother fucker!" I groan at the pain burning through my arm and fall backwards into Tommy's familiar embrace.
"You good back there?" Warren asked as we get out of range for the gun shots.
"Just peachy." I groan as Tommy helps me take off my jacket. He grabs the gauze from my backpack and wraps it around my bicep after pouring some water on it causing me to flinch and his through the pain.
"Who was that guy?" Addy asked as I leaned my head back onto Tommy's lap.
"Just somebody I pissed off once upon a time." I say and I think back to all the awful things that guy has done to me.
None of them press me for details when they hear my silence and I'm grateful. I know I can run from him now but eventually I am going to have to face my father again and when I do I know only one of us will be coming out of it alive. I just hope that person will be me.
"What the hell is some woman doing out here all by herself?" Warren asked as we drive down the road. This causes me to sit up and look out the window like everyone else.
"It can't be. It's Serena!" Addy exclaims in shock.
"No way! Murphy, is that your pie girl?" Doc asked with a laugh.
"Pie Girl?" Vasquez asked, confused since he wasn't with us when we were in Utah.
"Pie Girl!" Tommy exclaims in delight and I roll my eyes before shoving his shoulder.
"How the hell did, Pie Girl, get here?" I ask as Warren rolls up beside her.
"Boy is she pregnant." Warren says and my eyes widen when I see her ginormous belly.
"Pregnant?" Murphy asked and I chuckled.
"Yeah, like ten months pregnant." Doc says with a life.
"You're not stopping are you?" Murphy asked in a panic as Addy hops out of the car and hugs Serena.
"Do the crime and pay the time." I say to Murphy while patting his shoulder and he glares at me.
"Daddy?" We hear Serena's voice say as she runs up to the window. "Is that you?"
Warren rolls down the back window as Serena runs over. Murphy tries to shrink down in his seat.
"He's here Baba." Serena says in a creepy voice before taking a step back. We all look down as she lifts her shirt and see little hands pressing against her stomach before a face presses out causing us all to jump.
"Oh god I'm going to need some weed to get through this." Doc says in a startled tone.
"Here." I say handing him a dab pen I stole from the lab before my father had caught me.
"Little lady you're a lifesaver." He says while taking a hit. I grab the pen from him and take a hit of my own. Surprisingly Tommy grabs it from me and takes a hit which causes me to raise an eyebrow. He gives me a shy smile before putting it back in his bag.
"It's about to be one of those weeks ain't it?" I ask and everyone nods.