Dead Weight/Issue 32

This is the thirty-second issue of Dead Weight titled "The First Meeting". It was published August 19th, 2020.
==Previously on Dead Weight...==
They finally arrived. In front of them was a seemingly bustling group of small children and quickly maturing adolescents. Still children in their own right, but hardening to the hardships of the world and the people around them. Where they lived wasn’t perfect, it was still in dire need of work and even seemed destroyed itself. But they made it what they needed. A home.
==Story==
She’s blonde. The other, brunette. Or is it red? They’re running. Dense fields of yellows and golds. It’s the countryside and they’re happy. The taller lags behind as she fumbles through the grass. The younger turns, but doesn’t lose her bearings.
“Sabby! Slow down!” Grace breathlessly begs. Sabrina laughs childishly. She is a child. It’s a game to her. “You’re going to hurt yourself!”
“Catch me then!” and then she turned her head back and picked up her speed. Grace complained inwardly to herself before pounding her feet harder against the ground. Reaching out with her left arm while pushing back blades of grass from her face with her right. Just as Sabrina felt the ground crumble beneath her, Grace grabbed her arm and together they fell face-first into the mud together.
“Shit.” Grace whispered. The girls sat up by themselves and looked at each other. Holding their laughter in. It was only a little bit funny. But they burst into incredible laughter. Grace somewhat more than Sabrina. She had gotten herself into this mess, but at the same time, Grace didn’t have to chase after her. Although, Grace knew that Sabrina wouldn’t be laughing if she was alone right now. You need someone. Or else it’s just sad.
“What’s that smell?” Grace examined herself carefully as she pulled herself up. “Is that you or me?!” She laughed again, only this time at herself. Sabrina was silent, staring at her leg. When Grace looked down, she saw the blood. “Oh!” She exclaimed, tending to it immediately. Her leg throbbed violently, numbly against the top layer of her skin. 
“Is it broken?!” Sabrina was trying desperately not to cry, but she had a field trip tomorrow and she would be damned if she missed it.
“I don’t think so, but dad will have to look at it just to make sure!” Grace held out her hand and Sabrina took it, pulling her upwards she held the young girl tightly. “Can you walk?”
“No!!” And then she started crying.
“Don’t cry, Sabby! You’ll be alright!” Grace reassured as they stepped feverishly out of the mud patch and towards the pathway home.
Home was only twenty minutes away, but for Sabrina it felt like forever.
“When we get home dad will have you all stitched up and ready to go!”
“He will give us into trouble for being in the fields.”
“Then we tell him we were playing football.”
“But daddy knows I don’t play football.”
“Yeah,” Grace gestures vaguely to her sister’s wound. “Exactly.”
“Richard, please don’t--” The smashing from the porch was loud, but felt distant from where the girls walked. Approaching, Richard Berry backed out of the front door with an unreadable expression plastered across his face.
“Now look what you did, Judy!” 
“Please come inside, we can talk about this.”
“I ain’t got nothin’ to talk about, I’m leavin’ and I’m comin’ back for them kids.”
“You’re talking crazy talk! Come inside!”
Grace took Sabrina towards the side of the house, hiding themselves from view as the fight unfolded in front of their own eyes.
“I’m done with this, Judy. I ain’t want to be a part of it no more. I ain’t about to be married to no whore!”
“I am not a whore! You knew what you were getting yourself into!”
“Well I’m tired of always bein’ your second best anywho! You got your whole future planned out with him while the only thing we’ve did was make a damn mistake!”
“Do not call my daughter a mistake!”
“My daughter, too! She the best thing in my life so hell if I’m leavin’ her behind!”
“Don’t ruin what we have, Richard!”
“I will call you in the morning.” 
And then he left. In a trail of smoke.
----
Sabrina shook the bag of bottles and cans lightly. Grace watched, fingering the rim of her glass which was half empty with water. Sabrina watched her sister think, picking up another can and dumping it into the growing pile.
“How was your night?” She asked, Grace wasn’t listening and popped her head up curiously.
“Huh?”
“How was your night.” She repeats more forcefully, putting another can into the bag.
“It was good, it was fine,” She pauses awkwardly, “How about yours? Did you sleep okay?”
“I pretty much just did what you did.” 
Grace cleared her throat, taken aback by the innocent comment. She downs the last of her water and sits it on the table in front of her. Sabrina watched her as she shifted uneasily in her seat.
“Is there something you want to tell me?” Raising an eyebrow, she ties the bag into a knot and sits it by the door. “You didn’t come back until way after me last night, and you seem a little…”
“I’m fine,” Grace interrupts, smiling unconvincingly. “Really, I--”
“You don’t seem fine,” Sabrina tells her, her voice monotonous, without even knowing the truth she’d figured out what had happened. But, she wasn’t quite sure. She bit her tongue and fell into a silence waiting for Grace to simply tell her what had happened.
“I did something kinda stupid.” She admits, squeezing against her hand, pushing them between her thighs as she couldn’t bear to look her sister in the eye.
“You’re scaring me now, Grace, what did you do?!” She raised her voice, frightened of what was going to slip out. “You said you had something to do, and now you’re acting like you--”
“I kissed Robbie.” She said slowly, releasing her hands and flailing them in pure acceptance. “I went to his room and one thing led to another--”
“You had sex with him?” Sabrina crossed her arms, a frown crossing across her face. Her lips gradually opened in what seemed to be disgust, or disappointment. Grace wasn’t sure. “Didn’t you?!”
“Yes,” Grace stood and approached her sister. “But it doesn’t mean anything, Sabby, listen--” She put her hands on her sister’s arms to try and comfort her as the news sunk in, but Sabrina lurched away like she was made of hot fire. “Why are you so upset?!”
“Just, stop!” She urges, waving her hands to get her to stop coming closer. Grace stopped in her tracks and just looked on with confusion.
“What the hell?” 
“You’re disgusting! You both are! Yeah we’re safe now but for how long?! You know what’s happening around us--”
“This isn’t about--”
“No, it’s about you. How can you even think about having a baby right now!”
“A baby?!” Grace had to laugh at her, she put her hands to her chest. “Me?! A baby?! No, no-- That’s not-- No!?”
“You’re all sick! Why can’t you just keep it to yourselves?! Instead of flaunting it to everyone!”
“What is this about?”
“I need to go.” 
“Sabby--”
Sabrina turned on her heels, childishly raising her hands to her ears, pushing her index fingers inside to block out Grace’s words as she grabbed the bag on the way past and scurried out of the room like a scared kitten. Grace just watched, giving up on any hopes of getting through to her, shocked and confused at the conversation that just took place.
----
The road is quiet. The trees shiver in the wind. The last leaf from one falls to the concrete and is swept up by the wheels of a passing car, sending it flying into the air and floating to the side of the road watching the truck behind rev viciously.
The blue car, which swerved uneasily, was driven by a young woman. She was too young. Her tires were smeared with blood and battered, the underside of the car rusting and covered in guts. The truck was no different, although it seemed like it was actually being cared for. There was no blood but plenty of scratches. The two men in the truck were concentrated on the car in front, the driver gripping his nails into the steering wheel, indenting into it unintentionally. His jaw clenched, the truck came up to the side of the car.
The passenger, another man who seemed to be around the same age as the other man, took his gun and leaned himself towards the window. The woman gasped, catching the man’s eye contact for a brief moment before he shot two bullets into the side of the car. She swerved towards the men, hitting their truck and sending both vehicles off course before she crashed into the ditch at the side of the road and rolled into the forest before crashing gently against a tree. She turned, watching the men stop just up the road. She unclipped her seatbelt and stumbled out of the car, her hair sticking to her sweating face as she didn’t even stop to grab anything she had left behind. She rushed into the forest in a dazed panic.
“Fucking bitch!” The driver yelled out in anger, stopping the truck at her own and getting out of the car, followed by the passenger. 
“She can’t go very far. We’ll find her.”
“You better be right.” He spits, splattering it on the sidewalk. The two men take off into the forest after the girl.
----
Bri looked down at the patch of wilting flowers. There was still one that shone a dim yellow. The rest had life pulled from them and their green backs arched thinly. She crouched down, and Kaaitlyn stood watching only a few feet behind her, Bri pulled the flower from the bed and twirled it in her fingers.
“Didn’t think I’d see you again.” Kaaitlyn’s voice was monotonous, holding her wrist in her opposite hand to keep her cool. Her heart thumped under her thumb. Bri stood and turned, her stomach lurching at the sight of the girl in front of her. “But I’m guessing you could say the same for me.”
“What are you doing here?” Her question was innocent, but at the same time, she tensed at the sight of the young girl.
“I could ask you the same question, nothing’s ever black and white. What a small world we live in.” 
Bri dropped the flower. Her lips pushed together. Teeth clamping down on the flesh in her mouth. Trying anything to get herself to speak, but she couldn’t. So Kaaitlyn continued.
“I’ve had so many questions I wanted to ask you.” 
“I don’t have anything to say to you.”
“Oh, yes you do.” Kaaitlyn pulled her gun on Bri. She took a step backwards, raising her hands in defence. Bri had nothing. “Do the people here know that what they’re going to fight is the very thing that lives in their grounds?” 
Bri shook her head, her vision blurred, she blinked to hold back the tears. “I don’t want to do this with you. Please, put the gun down.”
“Why? Why should I?” 
Bri was speechless. No words. 
“I’m not going to shoot you,” Kaaitlyn lowered the gun but kept it firmly at her side. “I’m not an animal, or have you forgotten that, too?”
“Don’t you remember how you got out of there in the first place?” Bri reminds her.
“I scared you, didn’t I?”
“You were a part of it just like any of the others. You have no idea what happened that night.”
“And you would? You caused most of it.”
Bri bit her tongue. She had to. Sally came around the corner.
“Hey,” She smiled softly, but returned to normal when she saw Kaaitlyn. “I’ve been looking for you.”
Kaaitlyn nodded in greeting towards Sally before turning back to Bri. “Just don’t make the same mistakes.” She whispers. She leaves the two alone.
“Was she bothering you?”
“No, I’m fine.” Bri took Sally in her arms. “Are you?”
“I could be better.” She admitted. Bri hummed a ‘yes’ as she rested her chin on Sally’s head.
----
“So, we know what you want, now it’s time to discuss what we want.” Katie speaks. She sits at a dining table with Flake and Abreham by her side. Kaaitlyn and Andy sit opposite. Kaaitlyn shrugs casually, leaning back in her chair.
“Hit me with it.”
“Your complete allegiance, during and after conflict we endure. You move here after it’s done and you help us expand.”
“I already told your people we aren’t moving back within walls.”
“Kaait--” Andy tries to intervene.
“No, I’ve already thought it through. Confined to the nature of before is unreasonable. It’s never worked before.”
“We can start a new beginning. A new generation protected within the walls. Once everyone who knows where we are is gone we can live together in peace.”
“Patrick doesn’t know where you are,” Kaaitlyn says, leaning forward against the table. She rests her elbows on the table and looks to Katie. “Unless…?”
Katie hesitates. “Yes, he does know.”
“I didn’t know that.” Kaaitlyn exclaims in frustration, throwing her hands up into the air. 
“I don’t think we did, either.” Abreham looks to Flake for confirmation.
“How are we meant to do this if everywhere has already been compromised?!”
“He used to live here with his sister.” Katie adds.
“From the inside!” Kaaitlyn continues to protest. “We can’t do this.”
“Kaaitlyn, please.” Andy pipes up.
Flake holds out his hand, trying to get everyone to turn to his attention. “Hey, hey! Yes, Patrick may have been here for a brief time but that doesn’t mean he has the upper hand on us.”
“You’re wrong, you’re wrong.” Kaaitlyn argues, emphasising herself. She rises from the table. “I have to be excused. We will be returning to our camp now and consider your offers as a group.”
“Wait, Kaaitlyn,” Katie also stands, but Kaaitlyn interrupts her.
“No, I don’t want to discuss it any further.” Kaaitlyn walks out.
Andy rises from her seat, pushing her hair behind her ear. “I’ll talk to her on the way back, yeah?” She tells the trio, following Kaaitlyn out the room. 
Abreham and Flake look to each other, then simultaneously look to Katie. She holds up a finger: one minute, before following Kaaitlyn and Andy.
----
The woman sits behind a tree, clutching her knees to her chest as she shakes. The air is cold, the shallow snow nips at her like a blade. She has to stifle her coughs, as every sound makes her think that the end is approaching.
“CRAIG, HERE.” A man’s voice pierced through the air, she jolted back into action, whipping her head around one of the men ran towards her like a lion having found its prey. She pulls herself from the ground and starts running again, dipping in between the trees and bushes to try and distance herself between the two. She slipped down a slope and fell on her front with a loud thump, one of the dead turning towards her just a few feet in front of her. She scrambled upwards, using her hands to push herself from the cold ground but felt the warm hand of Craig wrap around her neck and cover her mouth with his other hand.
The other approaches now. He pulls out a knife to stab the dead in the head, killing it. The woman struggles against Craig, baring her teeth and sinking them into the palm of his hand. He jerks away for a minute, allowing her time to stumble forwards again but it doesn’t last very long. She screams as he grabs at her, she thrashes and thrusts and falls back on her back as the other man steps on her arm, trapping her to the floor.
“Well fucking done, bitch.” Craig says through gritted teeth, unraveling rope he had been keeping stored around his waist. She continues to scream, causing the other man to push down on her arm harder. “Nathan, let her breath. She can’t go anywhere, can she?” He taunts her, Nathan takes his foot from her arm and Craig grabs it, trapping her within the rope.
“Craig, please… You know me.”
He laughs. “I do know you, and that’s why we have to do this. You know Patrick wouldn’t want you running off telling lies around here.”
“Craig come on you know he’s fucking with your head,” She speaks fast now, tears streaming down her face. “You know he only cares about himself, he’s just going to take the loot and go. He doesn’t need you, he only needs himself.” She begins bubbling uncontrollably. Her face red with frustration and stained with dirt and tears.
“I didn’t want this to happen, we were good to you, You’re like a sister to me, too.” Craig admitted, holding her bound hands with one hand while running his other hand through her hair. She tries to lurch away, but can’t quite get a far enough distance.
Nathan looks around the area, noticing the dead approaching slowly. He squints towards a deer, missing a chunk out of it’s back, limping its way over towards the loud scene. “Craig, we have to go.”
Craig looks up, counting the dead he can see from his lower position on the ground next to her. “Look who’s come to play.” And she looks around, trying to clutch to his hand so he wouldn’t leave her, to show pity on her. Anything for him not to kill her on that forest floor. “You know he loved you, before it all happened.” Craig quietly tells her, leaning towards her ear as Nathan begs once more for them to get out of there. “Maybe if you hadn’t left with us in the first place.” He tells her lastly, reaching behind him and taking his knife, she shakes her head beggingly.
“No, no, no no no no. Please--” But it’s too little, he sinks the knife into her stomach. He pulls it out, the blood coating the metal and beginning to seep down to the crystal white snow below them. She hunches in pain, letting out a loud, animalistic scream.
Craig lets her go, letting her body fall over and lie in the fetal position on the snow. Nathan looks at him, peering down at the girl in shock.
“Let’s go, now,” Craig demands, putting his knife away and instead taking out his gun to escape the dead people and animals alike. Nathan stutters, looking away from the woman and running after Craig as the dead close in. She screams, weaker now as blood begins to surround her body. The dead surround her and her screams amplify once again.
Craig and Nathan make it back to the truck, Nathan pants loudly as he climbs in. Craig starts up the car and looks over to him.
“Are you alright?” He asks, looking over him as he tries to subtly clutch at his chest.
“Yes-- Yeah, I’m fine. I just need a minute.”
Craig looks over his suspiciously, reversing out of their spot in between the trees. “Fucking pussy.”
----
“Come on, Kaaitlyn! I think you should consider the option they’re giving you.” Andy begs as she follows Kaaitlyn outside.
“We’ll discuss more when we’re back as a collective group. I can’t make this decision on my own.” She tells Andy, stopping in her tracks to let her catch up and turning towards Katie, Abreham and Flake, who follow them out. “We’ll do what you want, we’ll track them to see if they enter the area but if anything goes wrong you’re on your own. We won’t be able to stop them.”
“That’s why we want you to come to us.” Flake reiterates.
“Not now, and maybe not ever. If we come now, we won’t have as much area covered. At least if we’re separated he can’t take us out all in one blow.”
“Who’s to even say he will?!” Flake asks.
“We know for a fact he’s coming for us, he knows he has unfinished business especially with our community.” Katie sighs, “I know he’ll find us again.”
“That’s why we have to leave. If he even knows we’re still intact and know what he did, he’ll come for us.” Kaaitlyn approaches Katie again and holds out her hand. “We’ll scout him for you, tell you anything we find. But you have to make sure he doesn’t know about us, and stay safe until we find their exact location. Then we can think of something.”
----
Sabrina makes her way up the creaky staircase. Barely days ago she was doing this exact same thing. An unfamiliar smell wafted from the room in front of her. Knocking on the door lightly, she awaited response from inside.
But none came. So she knocked again, but this time she put a lot more force into it.
“Just a minute!” Brendan squawked unhappily from inside. The sound of a plastic cup tumbling off of a desk. “Shit!”
“Can you open the door, please?” Sabrina tapped against the door with the tips of her fingers. 
“Is that Sabrina?!” 
“Yeah,” she hesitates, “How did you know?”
The door then opens. Brendan stands with fixed, but noticeably messy moments before, hair. “I almost always remember the ladies I meet.” A small smile slips across his face and he steps aside, “Would you like to enter my humble abode?”
“Thanks,” Sabrina walks in and Brendan closes the door behind him. She had forgotten his door was painted pink. She had to stifle a laugh as she wandered towards the middle of the room, looking towards the closed curtains blocking out the sunlight. She turned towards the desk and looked at the upside down cup, something appeared to be forming inside of it.
“Are you not gonna tell me why you’re here, or...?” He asks, climbing on the best and shuffling up until he sat against the wall, petting to his side for her to join him.
“I was just bored. Needed away for a bit, you know.” She approaches his desk, ignoring his invitation to sit on the bed. 
“Woah, woah, woah. Come sit, please?”
“What’s this?” She asks, taking hold of the bottom of the cup.
“No, Sabrina, please--” 
She lifts it. A light cloud of smoke rises and soon after disappears into the air. A joint hidden in the worst hiding place around. “Really?”
“Don’t touch it, it’s very valuable.”
“Yeah, no shit,” She responds, but doesn’t seem to hear his plea as she picks it up to closely inspect it.
“Sabrina!” He almost barks, bouncing up from his seat and snatching it from her hand.
“Hey!” She exclaims, almost laughing at his haste. “I was just taking a look. I’ve never seen one up close before.”
“Yeah, right! You don’t strike me as the type,” He takes a drag of the joint, letting the smoke blow wistfully between his lips. “And you’re not getting any, so don’t even try. I’ve got a limited supply here, baby, can’t get anymore for at least another six weeks.”
“I’m being serious, I’ve never touched one before. I know my sister has, but when the world went to shit I was a little too young and naive to be ‘lighting up’” She air quotes, watching him once again put the joint to his mouth without a word. He pulls it back and holds it to the light. Sabrina watches him closely.
“Well that changes everything,” He finally says, resting back on the bed until his head hit the wall.
“What the hell do you mean?”
He holds it it at arm's length. “Here,”
“What?!”
“Here.” He repeats more confidently. She hesitates, but quickly approaches and takes it from his hand, holding it daintily between her fingers. “It’ll be funny,” He admits, using his elbows to support himself. “To see you take your virgin steps into what it’s like to be me.”
“That’s gross,” She admitted, but couldn’t help but say it with a smile. She sat at the edge of his bed, shrugging to herself. “Thanks, fuck what everyone else has to say, huh?”
“I’ll drink to that tonight.” He smirks, and she takes the joint to her lips. He watches her closely, staring through lidded eyes. She let’s the drug fill her lungs. She coughs a little, passing it back to Brendan for a moment. Then, she humpfhs to herself. Brendan readjusts his position, sitting up cross legged and leaning in towards her, waiting for her response.
“It’s alright.” She faintly laughs.
“What? Just alright?! You’re trippin’ already.”
“Ew, don’t say it like that.” 
He takes another drag before passing it back to her. “What are you even doing here?” He asks her as she takes it back, resisting hesitation this time around.
“I needed to escape the same faces I’ve seen for months on end.”
He squints at her, taking a moment before reluctantly agreeing with her despite the fact he didn’t exactly understand what she was talking about. It was alright, though. He needed that, too.
----
Friday counts under her breath the amount of pill bottles strewn across the shelf. In the corner, Cassie writes in a journal and occasionally looks up at her helper.
“Make sure you get the bottom shelf, too, there’s some hidden back there.” Cassie tells her, standing up and sliding the journal in a drawer under the desk, the bell for the door ringing as she exits the back of her desk. “I’m just going to nip out for five minutes, watch the store would you?”
“Yeah, no problem.” Friday replies sweetly, kneeling down on the musty floor. She begins to pull the bottles on the bottom shelf forward, using her pointer finger to lightly tap each one as she mentally counts them. Unaware, Buck turns around the corner and shadows over her. She whips her head up, startled for just a moment.
“Oh, hey. You freaked me out just now.” She pulls herself up, wiping off her jeans and folds her arms over her chest.
“That’s embarrassing,” Buck replies, biting at his thumb finger in between sentences. “What are you doing?”
“I’m just helping out. Jamie and Jacob found some old cars down near the windmill so Alexander took a trip to help them out. I’m just covering until he gets back.”
“That’s good,” Buck tells her as she kneels down again to grab the rest of the bottles. “Do you need any help yourself?” He offers, bending down beside her, holding his knees for support as he initially sways.
“No. No, really. It’s fine. It’s good to get out of the house. Katie and Lexy are both on edge and I just don’t want to be there when they get home, y’know?”
“I get that. Women, am I right?” Buck tries to joke, Friday just chuckles inwardly to herself and focuses her attention back on the bottles. She picks one up, but ends up losing her grip and letting it bounce out of her hand and roll under the shelves behind them. 
“Aw, shit!” She groans, repeating a number over and over to herself as she gets on her front to reach under and grab the bottle. Buck sways forward, landing gently on one knee and takes one of the bottles from the shelf Friday was looking at moments earlier, slipping it silently into his pocket on the inside of his jacket. “Come on you stupid-- 56, 56, 56.” Friday’s fingers eventually grab around a bottle and she scurries back upwards. 
“You good?” Buck asks, swallowing nervously as he stands back up. She turns back to her original working station and nods, her hair almost falling over her face. The dirt from the floor almost visible in her blonde locks. 
“Yeah, yeah. I’m fine, thanks.”
He nods, bidding her farewell. He makes his way to the door, pushing it open and letting the bell ring against the wall once again. Stepping out onto the sidewalk, gunshot from down the street shudders him.
----
Katie dashes down the street, holding her gun sitting in her holster in one hand. Her breathing laboured, taunting yelling comes into her earshot as she gets closer to the wall separating them and the outside world. The gates rattle momentarily.
“Katie, what’s going--” Scarlette tries to ask, but she dashes past her too quickly for her to even hear the remainder of her question. Scarlette follows behind her as the two women head towards the guard post situated at the main gate. Katie climbs first, followed closely by Scarlette as the majority of the town begin to gather to see what is going on. 
Pulling herself up, Katie stumbles to the edge of the lookout post and grips at the railing. A group, almost ten men sitting in their cars, except one that sits casually atop the bonnet of one of the cars.
“Katie! My love.” He calls up, sarcastically. “Are you not coming down to say hello?”
“Patrick.” She simply greets, tensing at every word he speaks. Patrick looks back to the men in the car.
“Alright then,” He turns back, hopping off the car and wandering until he just barely has to crane his neck to see the women above him.
“Do I shoot him?” Scarlette questions. Katie frantically shakes her head, taking ahold of the gun in Scalette’s hand below the solid railing.
“Don’t you dare, you’ll bring the whole group down on top of us.”
“Not the reception I was expecting,” Patrick finally continued. “I’m guessing you don’t have all day and frankly, neither do I. So I’ll get right to it.”
Flake approaches Lexy, who stares up the ladder where Katie and Scarlette are. She bites at her fingertip, visibly shaking.
“When are you going to tell us what exactly is going on here.” He questions quietly. She shakes her head, unmoving but instead simply side eyeing him. 
“Katie will tell you everything when she’s ready,” She whispers. “But whispers on the street dont always lie.”
Flake tenses in frustration, letting it go for now and pushing past her to climb the ladder.
“You took down the school, we saw. Not a survivor in sight.” Katie mentions, leaning herself out towards him, her blonde hair dangling downwards. “What do you want?”
“I’m glad you saw that! Gives me less to explain. You know this area isn’t big enough for all of us, Katie. When others start expanding the risk of starvation gets more and more severe, and plus, we need the land for ourselves. One factory just isn’t enough.” He stops, looking up to see if Katie had anything to say, but he continues anyways. “So I have a proposition for you, love. You can either pack up and leave this land for the army, or, you can make the brave and, may I say, rather smart idea to live with us.”
“Why would we do that after everything you have done?” Katie clenches at her gun, teeth grinding together. She stared Patrick straight in the eyes and never backed down.
“Because that’s just how it works. We are so much bigger than you, it only makes sense,” He tells her. “Think about it, dear Katie, huh? We’ll be back in two days.” He turns to leave, brushing himself down, but turns back at the last second. “Oh, and leave us a nice gift outside. Maybe it’ll make everything go smoothly for you.”
He turns back, another car pulling up beside him. He clambers in, slamming the door shut behind him and giving a sly wave from the front window. Words run through Katie’s head. Do it. Do it. Do it. Kill him. 
But she can’t. She won’t. Not yet, anyways. She turns to Flake, who just stares at her for an explanation on what to do next. But there is none, she leaves the tower, shakily scrambling down.
Patrick turns to Craig, who reverses the car out of the area to find the way back to the main road. 
“Did you do it?” Patrick asks him, adjusting the cuff of his shirt.
“Of course I did.” He replies, tapping against the steering wheel.
“And?”
“She’s gone. We took care of it, nothing to worry about.”
“Did you get rid of the body?” 
“Couldn’t,” He tenses. “Dead were swarming in. Not much we could’ve done there.”
“Hmm,” Patrick huffs, adjusting back in his seat and pulling out a photograph of himself and the girl. He looks at the back, ‘’Patrick & Ellie, ‘75’’ it reads. He shakes it momentarily, pulling a lighter from his pocket.
“No traitor is a sister of mine.” He states, bringing the photograph to the flames and watching as their faces burn up into smoke.
----
==Cast==
===Main===
*Drew Van Acker as Robbie Starn
*Allie Lewis as Grace Berry
*Brooke Hyland as Sabrina Berry
*Imogen Poots as Sally Middleton
*Liam Hemsworth as Flake
*Josh Pudleiner as Carlos
*Melissa Kirk as Melissa
*Andrea Boehkle as Bri
*Jackson Rathbone as Abreham
*Eliza Taylor as Katie
===Supporting===
*Q'orianka Kilcher as Tanya
*Ariana Greenblatt as Molly
*Song Min-ho as Jacob
*Solána Imani Rowe as Jamie
===Recurring===
*Emily Browning as Lexy
*Harley Bird as Amanda
*Hannah Murray as Friday
*Jenna Louise Coleman as Cassie
*Brighton Sharbino as Kaaitlyn
===Guest===
*Unknown as Pig
*Katherine McNamara as Athena
*Jason Bateman as Patrick
*Kit Harrington as Nathan
*Will Arnett as Craig
*Kate McKinnon as Ellie
*Marin Ireland as Judy Berry
*Mark Wahlberg as Richard Berry
==Trivia==
Category:Issues
Category:Dead Weight Issues