The survivors followed Lex and her group through the winding corridors, their footsteps echoing faintly in the oppressive quiet. The teenage boy, barely older than fifteen, clung to the arm of the woman—his mother, Lex guessed. The man, likely the father, held a bent piece of rebar as his only weapon, his knuckles white from gripping it too tightly. They looked like they hadn’t slept in days, their faces hollow and pale from fear and hunger.

Lex scanned their surroundings as they walked, her crossbow at the ready. The air felt heavy, the shadows too long, but for the moment, it was silent. After everything they’d faced—the Ex-Marine, the traps, the Wraith, this silence was unnerving, a fragile calm that could shatter at any moment.

“How much further?” the man asked nervously, his voice hoarse.

“There’s an old electronics store up ahead,” Sophie said without looking up from her tablet. “We passed it on the way in. Should be defensible enough for us to stop and regroup.”

“And if it’s not?” Damien muttered, his machete resting against his shoulder.

“Then we find somewhere else,” Lex replied curtly, her tone leaving no room for argument. “We’ll make it work.”

The electronics store came into view a few minutes later, its sign hanging crookedly above the shattered glass entrance. Inside, the aisles were cluttered with broken monitors, tangled cords, and scattered packaging, but it was quiet. Safe, for now.

Lex motioned for the others to fan out and secure the area. Brandon checked the back room, while Damien and Maya blocked off the entrances with whatever debris they could find. Sophie set up in a corner, her eyes glued to her tablet as she continued combing through the Hive Mind’s files.

The family huddled together near the center of the store, their eyes darting nervously around the space. The teenage boy clutched a frayed backpack to his chest, his gaze flicking between Lex and the others.

“What’s your name?” Lex asked him gently, kneeling down to his level.

“E-Elliot,” he stammered, his voice barely above a whisper.

“Alright, Elliot,” Lex said, offering a small smile. “You and your family are safe with us. Just stick close and do what we say, okay?”

He nodded quickly, his grip on the backpack tightening.

“Do you have any supplies?” Maya asked the parents, her voice cautious but not unkind.

The father shook his head. “Just… just this,” he said, holding up the rebar. “We lost everything else trying to get away from those… things.”

Maya glanced at Lex, who gave a small nod. “We’ll share what we can,” Lex said. “But we need to be smart about it. Everyone eats, but we ration carefully.”

As the group settled in, Damien began unpacking the Ex-Marine’s gear. The tactical pack contained more than they’d hoped: grenades, ammunition, a first-aid kit, and a small but functional radio. There was even a flashlight with a working battery, it was something they hadn’t seen in weeks.

“This guy was loaded,” Damien muttered, holding up a bundle of spare magazines. “Guess military types like to be prepared.”

Support the creativity of authors by visiting the original site for this novel and more.

“Too bad all that prep didn’t save him,” Brandon said, tossing a roll of duct tape onto the counter. “Still, I’m not complaining. This stuff could keep us alive for a while.”

Lex crouched next to Damien, inspecting the gear. She picked up the radio, turning it over in her hands. “If this works, we might be able to pick up broadcasts from other survivors,” she said. “Maybe even find out what’s happening outside the mall.”

“Or we could just hear more of the same,” Damien said with a shrug. “Static and screams.”

Lex didn’t respond, but her jaw tightened. The Wraith’s appearance had shaken them all, but she couldn’t let it break their resolve. They had survived this long, and they weren’t about to give up now.

----------------------------------------

After securing the store, the group gathered near the center to eat. Their supplies were limited—canned food scavenged from the Ex-Marine’s pack and a few granola bars Sophie had found earlier—but it was enough to keep them going.

The atmosphere was tense, but the presence of the family seemed to ground them, reminding them of what they were fighting for. Elliot sat quietly beside his parents, nibbling on a granola bar as he watched the others with wide eyes.

“Where were you when it started?” Maya asked the father, breaking the silence.

“Home,” he said, his voice soft. “We thought we’d be safe if we just stayed inside. But the zombies came through the neighborhood like a storm. We barely made it out.”

The mother nodded, her eyes red from exhaustion. “We’ve been running ever since. We thought we’d find safety in the mall, but it’s… worse here. So much worse.”

“It’s not just the zombies,” Elliot said suddenly, his voice small but firm. “There are other things. Things like the Wraith.”

The group fell silent, the mention of the Wraith casting a shadow over the room. Lex exchanged a glance with Sophie, who looked just as unsettled.

“You’ve seen it before?” Lex asked, her tone careful.

Elliot nodded. “Not up close, but… we saw it. It was… killing something. A person. We didn’t stay to watch.”

“That’s probably smart,” Brandon said grimly. “Staying out of its way is the only reason you’re still alive.”

“We don’t know that,” Sophie interjected, her gaze fixed on her tablet. “The Wraith isn’t acting like the others. It’s not hunting survivors—at least, not yet.”

Damien snorted. “Doesn’t mean it won’t start.”

“Enough,” Lex said firmly, cutting off the argument. “We don’t have all the answers right now, and fighting about it won’t help. We focus on what we can control.”

“And what’s that, exactly?” Maya asked, her voice tinged with frustration.

Lex took a deep breath, steadying herself. “We keep moving. We keep surviving. And we keep fighting, no matter what.”

----------------------------------------

Later that night, as the others rested, Sophie sat cross-legged on the floor, her tablet glowing faintly in the darkness. Lex sat nearby, cleaning her crossbow in silence. The tension between them was unspoken but palpable.

“What are you thinking?” Lex asked finally, breaking the quiet.

Sophie hesitated, her fingers pausing on the screen. “I’m thinking… we’re in over our heads,” she admitted. “Every time we think we have a handle on this, something worse comes along. The Hive Mind is adapting, Lex. And I don’t know if we can keep up.”

“We don’t have a choice,” Lex said, her voice firm. “We’ve made it this far because we’ve stayed together. That’s not changing.”

Sophie looked up, her expression conflicted. “I found more files,” she said softly. “About the bosses. The ones we haven’t seen yet.”

Lex tensed, her hands stilling. “What did you find?”

“There’s the Titan,” Sophie began. “Huge, heavily armored, slow but almost impossible to bring down. The Banshee—its screams disorient and weaken anyone nearby. And the Siren Queen… she can control the other zombies, make them faster, more aggressive.”

Lex’s stomach sank. “And the Wraith?”

Sophie shook her head. “Still nothing. It’s like it doesn’t belong to the same system. The Hive Mind might be using it, but… it’s different. I don’t know how, but it is.”

Lex leaned back against the wall, her thoughts racing. The challenges ahead were daunting, but she couldn’t let herself falter. They had faced the impossible before, and they would do it again.

“We’ll figure it out,” she said, her voice steady. “One step at a time.”

Sophie nodded, though the worry in her eyes remained. As the store fell silent once more, Lex let her gaze drift to the shadows outside, her hand resting on her crossbow.

The Ex-Marine had been a formidable enemy, but he was just one piece of a larger puzzle. The Hive Mind was still out there, watching, adapting. And the Wraith… whatever it was, whatever it wanted, was far from finished.

They weren’t safe. Not yet.