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afening crack of rifle fire as another wave of decaying monsters thr
g the trigger again and again until her arms burned like fire, wa
thing but crushed concrete, shattered glass, and endless dead bodies of zombies, leavin
o one even knew. Woke up one-day
settled over the camp, Scarlett leaned against the metal barricade and let out a
be resting inside instead of fighting on the front lines, but she forced herself to stand tall because the only
her father's corporate building a year ago whose face or name she could not even remember, but none of that matte
passing the fellow survivors leaning along the floor and heading straight toward the back corner where her parents sat. They were lvy rifle down against the wall while catching her breath. "T
, just taking another long drin
austed and numb from the stress of the apocalypse, because even though they had always treated her with a cold distance growing up, they were s
an? Is he sleeping
sband, her voice flat and unbothered
ett tried to chuckle, "
Her mother
r dirty palms against her pants. "What do you mean he is no
th something trivial. "Look, Scarlett, you have to understand how things work now, times are ha
epped closer to them, her eyes darting between their blank faces. "I don't know why you're
er stomach turn. "He was crying, Scarlett. He would not stop crying, and we knew the
in the gut. A strange, hollow silence filled her ears, and then, slowly, a breathless chuckle bu
e to make after I just spent two hours fighting off zombies at the gate to pr
g on her with a heavy, unblinking stillness tha
roat, her hands flying up to clutch at her hair. "It is a joke, right? You are joking! Tell me you are joking! He
crack echoing off the walls as the impact snapped Scarlett's head to the side, sending her stumbling over a wooden cr
rlett scrambled back onto her feet, her vision blurring wit
ut into the cold, muddy yard, her knees scraping against the rough ground as she fell, crawling frantical
roken debris, her heart hammering against her ribs like a trapped
of soft fabric peeking out from b
, pulling it into her lap with trembling arms, but as the fabric unrolled, all t
by. Just the bl
to her knees, pulling the bloody cloth against her chest and rocking back
God, no .. p
cold reality settling deep into her bones that the people who raised her had casually
ow, terrifying quiet as the warmth drained completely
s like a ghost, her muddy, blood-stained boots leaving dark tracks along the concrete
ing any trace of the daughter who had spent her whole li
sk again. "We already told you, we are trying to
white as she clenched her hands into tight fists. "If you do not g
speak to us
m off the ground, shaking him violently as a wild, broken cry escaped her throat, but before she could do anythin
s and knees to go after them again, when a deafeni
nding heat spread through her torso. Scarlett froze, her hands slowly moving down to touch her shirt, watching
g with the metallic taste of copper, and
condescending smile. Scarlett blinked through her failing vision, her mind spinning in total confusion as she recognized the girl,it was the quiet intern who us
Scarlett's bleeding body to stand beside the older couple. "But I real
ly as the floor soaked up her blood, her brain trying desper
thering to offer Scarlett a single glance as he
as wondering w
her name. Scarlett watc
birth so our real daughter could grow up in comfort while we used you as a usefu
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