Chapter 1

• Iris
• Silence.
• THE WORLD had turned into a deafening silence of danger and uncertainty. And in the darkness where sadness and horror lingered.
• The night fell. It was time for me to move.
• The desolated pet shop had been my shelter for the past few days and the safest place so far as no one would think of getting pets nowadays. A dog was probably a good idea, but the food was not easy to search for in this world full of chaos.
• After shoving my extra shirt and the only blanket into my backpack, I slipped my feet onto the old running shoes. I was ready to move out.
• After a few steady breaths, I walked out, determined to find a new place where I could stay for a few days or longer.
• I had been running from place to place for two weeks now, and I hadn’t seen or met any living human other than the littered dead bodies everywhere, burned or decomposed.
• I couldn’t remember the last time I talked—probably the day I escaped, and I missed my own voice. Talking to myself would make me crazier, and singing would make me cry and hungry, so I chose to keep my mouth shut.
• The cold breeze smelled like death. A ghost of pain rippled through my body. It had been like this since the unknown deadly virus wiped out the country.
• My labored breathing and my steps against the asphalt echoed through the darkness.
• I picked my way to the intersection, hoping to find an apothecary. The weak light from the silver moon was the only guide I had to follow.
• I knew for a fact that it had been raided, but by any luck, I could find a stash of painkillers or any medicine I could trade with food when I met survivors.
• Passing by rusting vehicles lined at the sides of the deserted road, the Bowl of Hygieia printed on the white wall came to view.
• I sighed in hope, but it quickly crumbled down when I noticed the open tail lights of the SUV parked in front.
• You’ve got to be kidding me.
• Hustling, I ducked down and hid behind the car. Everything I had been through taught me many things, and one thing was to trust no one other than my instinct.
• Silhouettes of a man and a woman hopped out of the SUV. The short, curvy woman walked toward the trunk, pushed up the hood, and took something, then left it unlocked.
• A click of a gun and murmurs were the only thing I could hear. They marched to the apothecary door in somewhat of a rush.
• Alerted, the man pulled out his handgun and aimed at the glass door, and the woman cautiously tailed behind him.
• A few minutes later, I slowly and carefully walked to the SUV, hoping to find something to fill my grumbling stomach.
• When I got into the trunk, it was empty, only a stinky blanket that smelled blood and nothing else my eyes could find. It must be their first stop, and I could not find any food.
• Shit.
• Hurried footsteps crouched against the broken glass made me stiffen. If they spotted me—a stranger—I would be dead. It was too late for me to run.
• My instinct kicked in. I got into the trunk and covered myself with the blanket. Then someone shut the door down.
• A moment later, the engine revved.
• “This isn’t enough,” said an angry male voice. It was almost a roar.
• “We don’t have time to search around, Frost. We need to go back right now.” A soft voice came from a woman.
• “I know,” the man hissed, angrier.
• “He’ll be okay. He’ll live.”
• Someone’s life was in danger, I thought.
• “Yeah, he needs to be.”
• I counted how long the drive was. Silence loomed over the two people for a few minutes.
• If my feeling was right, the car turned left in less than ten minutes. The gravelly road against the tires indicated that we were off the highway.
• “We can go and search the nearest pharmacy once he has this,” she suggested.
• “No. You’ll stay. I’ll go with Colt. It’s more dangerous out there than that area.”
• “I can take care of myself,” she answered defensively.
• “Do you think I don’t know that? But Darick needs you, Heloisa.”
• “Fine.”
• My temples pounded as the car jumped from the bumpy road a couple of times—the driver seemed to be in a hurry, and my stomach also ached.
• I closed my eyes when my headache worsened. I was beyond hungry and thirsty. And weak.
• Minutes passed, and I must have lost count of the time. My plan was to escape before they noticed someone was in their vehicle.
• Nowadays, people would not accept excuses. People killed each other when they found they were threats.
• For months, no one really knew if the government still existed. They killed to survive. They killed for food. They were paranoid, and trust didn’t come easily, even to someone like me that could barely harm a fly.
• I was in deep thought when the blanket was pulled away from me.
• “I’ll take— oh, my God!”
• Shock rocked me in my place.
• My arms flew to my face, not to protect myself from harm but to shield my eyes from the light pointed directly at me.
• My heart pounded.
• My lips went dry.
• “Who are you?” the angry man asked in a cold and deadly tone.
• “I-I’m... I-I’m unarmed.” I raised my hands to surrender.
• I closed my eyes when silence surrounded us. I could only hear my breathing until several clicks echoed in my ears.
• This is not good.
• This is the end—my end.
• I forced the strength in my voice. “I’m just a survivor who wants to live like you.”
• “Yeah, I get it, and shit like this and that,” the same angry guy said.
• “How did you get inside the car?” the soft voice asked—the same woman who talked earlier.
• “You forgot to close the trunk again, didn’t you? Now, I need to kill her because she already knows our place. How could you be so reckless, Heloisa?”
• I quickly moved to sit down. My world spun, but I managed to support my body with my hands to avoid falling. Squinting, I blinked until my eyes adjusted to the light.
• Another silhouette stepped forward. His shadow alone vibrated deadly and intimidating as his muscles shifted against the illuminating light from the post. His overwhelming size reminded me he was taller, bigger, and stronger than me—than any of the two.
• “You’re running out of time. Talk!” No hint of humanity in his deep voice. And that was not helping my situation.
• His lack of emotions twisted anxiety in my empty stomach. I’d been in this situation many times, but I was sure I knew they would not kill me, at least not yet, but these people didn’t know me. So, this is the end.
• My chin trembled.
• “Who the fuck are you?” Something more terrifying about his command that I’d never been encountered before. I became more frightened.
• I swallowed. My mouth ran dry. My throat clogged, and I barely had the strength left to answer the man.
• “Don’t!” the woman screamed, shocking me to my core.
• In a split second, the darkness claimed me.