We did not see the child again after the soldiers arrived, and I doubted she'd be under the pile of dead bodies considering that the other vectors were smart enough to flee. No. She's still controlling them, so I kept an eye out.

The convoy headed down Madison Avenue, and I could already see the skyscrapers ahead. We're getting closer to the others, but something caught my ear from upfront.

"We're evacuating the entire city," Faraday, the soldier, said. There was something familiar about his face.

"But I thought we're retreating to Arbor Hill and regroup," Peter pressed on.

"Too many good men died to those freaks. General Donahue thinks we cannot take it back. The cost outweighs the benefits, er, that sort of thing. The city is lost, kid."

"How about the rest of our men trapped and needed rescue?"

At this, Faraday paused. He and the driver shared a look of pity, probably had heard this question before. "If they can't contact us before nightfall, then they're on their own."

"But the civilians—"

"We work with what we get. Our mission is to scour the nearby districts for survivors who managed to make contact with us and bring them in before nightfall. That counts for something. You all are lucky we found you when we did. Then, we're taking everyone west. We'll do a last-ditch effort to reduce their numbers later tonight."

"How?"

"We'll release sarin gas in the heavily affected areas."

"Holy shit." I blurted out. They're going to use nerve gas.

"Relax. It won't be the entire city, and we're careful it won't reach downtown. We're strategically releasing them around our exit routes. Before you know it, we'll be heading for Pittsburgh once the gas clears in a few days without resistance. Perhaps we'll go south and head down to Baltimore or to DC. I heard the president is still alive and has surrounded himself and his cabinet with two regiment-worth of soldiers. Greedy bastards."

"If we're releasing gas, we can clean house easily," Haskell said confidently. "Why can't we hunker down and wait for them to die? Then rebuild the zone?"

I shook my head, and Faraday caught it. "You know what will happen, kid?" Faraday asked me.

Peter, Luke, and Haskell all turned to me. I sighed. "Nerve gas is twenty-six times more potent than cyanide. It can enter your system by breathing it in or by touching your skin. You'll have thousands of bodies out on the streets by the end of the day. It'll be hard to clean them up, which means those bodies will rot and decompose, attracting flies, rats, and insects, which breed all kinds of diseases. And you didn't mention anything about the infected outside the walls."

"Nope. I did not."

"Then, they can still fill the bucket the second you emptied it out."

"Bingo. Hear that, Haskell? This city's fucked already."

Haskell did not bother to respond.

I also learned from Faraday that the VIPs—government officials, research scientists, engineers, and the top brass—were not evacuated to the university. They were transported to the walled-in Albany International Airport, around three miles north of the central safe zone (at this time, I did not know that the university was being sieged by a massive horde).

Clemons was probably still waiting for me, perhaps wondering if I was still alive. He's the type of man to leave last on a sinking ship, so I reckoned he must still be at the university, organizing the evacuation.

I gave Peter a stern look that I would not give up on searching for my friends. He wanted to complete his mission, maybe cooking up some scheme to get into one of those helicopters and throw me into one. Peter took being a soldier a little too seriously, which in other circumstances, was admirable, given that I came from a military family. His tenacity to toe the brass line became a liability.

Peter sighed, knowing the fight was already lost between us. I wouldn't budge even if he tried.

"There must be thousands of people there. How are we going to find them?" Luke asked me.

"Look for the loudest one."

"Um, you mean Logan?"

"Yep. He'll make a big fuss since we've been gone too long. We'll scour over their detention centers or police station, see if he got himself arrested."

Luke grinned. "I can't believe Logan's temper will save us some time."

We arrived at the downtown gates. Barbed wires over traffic barricades were laid out along the street, some with dead vectors ensnared. Bodies lay in the open. The convoy did not hesitate to run over them, jolting the ride. A full firing team stood on the ramparts, and more in the watchtowers. Barricades made of plywood, traffic barriers, sandbags, furniture, a couple of cars, and many others blocked the turnstile entryways.

The gates opened, and a heavily armed squad (dressed in full hazmat suits) ran out and took positions, shooting a couple of vectors who tried to get into the gates. The convoy passed through, and the squad followed.

We drove across what used to be the Empire State Plaza, but the infinity pool along the middle had been covered up to give way for dozens of military tents, pavilions, and triage centers on top. State buildings became temporary shelters for survivors, the parks, major highways, the overpass, parking garages, and memorial sites had been turned into refugee camps.

I realized they couldn't fit everyone inside the Times Union Center, which meant that our search area had expanded throughout the downtown district. If Logan and the others couldn't get into TUC, they probably went back to the apartment. It's the next safest place I could think of.

A caravan of survivors to Pittsburgh? Well, that's utter bullshit. They couldn't transport this many people west and not get any attention from a massive horde unless they splintered into groups. But each group would still number by the thousands. Don't get me started on the supplies and the amount of food to feed this many people for days of walking.

They'd all die before they could get a hundred miles down the open road.

I needed to make contact with Clemons before nightfall before things get desperate.

The convoy stopped in front of The Egg, a theatre building shaped like a massive white egg. They had revamped it into their headquarters as I saw more soldiers and staff surrounding it. I climbed out of the car, and Faraday pulled out the wheelchair from the back hatch.

'Triage center is that way," Faraday said, and then pointed at my leg. The blood had seeped onto my sweatpants, creating a ring around my thigh. "Don't dupe someone into giving you more oxycontin like how you duped me, Kilo Thirty-Four." Faraday laughed.

It was then I recognized who he was. Faraday was the soldier guarding Gate Eighty-Five the night we snuck in. My cheeks turned a dark shade of red.

"Don't be so shy, kid. Aside from giving me extra clean-up duty, it ain't so bad. If you hadn't done that, I'd be stuck on the walls when that horde arrives. So, I guess I got you to thank for saving my men and me."

"Er, you're welcome?"

"Get out of here before you bleed all over me."

Luke pushed me toward a tent with a giant white cross symbol outside. A doctor attended to me, cleaned my wound, and placed some fresh bandages. I told him about the medication that I had already taken, so he gave some painkillers to take in six hours. I put it in Luke's backpack. The doctor told me to rest on the cot for an hour or two, giving Luke and me a glass of water. I had no plan of staying put, and as soon as the bandages were done, I got ready to search for Logan and the others.

"You stay," Haskell said firmly.

I glared at him. "I'm going to look for my friends. It's almost noon, and we're running out of time."

"Peter said to keep you here until he returns."

"Where is he?"

"He's getting something you'll need."

"Like what?"

Haskell crossed his arms. "I don't know. He went up and left. He'll come back. Peter's true to his word."

"Not the Peter I know," I mumbled, clenching my jaw. Yeah, I was being a brat, but I did not want to stay on this cot and wait until we had less time to search for the others. I was surprised that Haskell agreed to guard us. I thought he would have left already. "Where are the detention centers?"

Haskell blinked at me. He'd decided not to answer my questions.

Fine. If we're playing that game... "Luke. Do you think Margot is around here?"

"Yeah, I think so. She's a nurse, after all."

"See if you can find her."

Haskell stepped forward. "No one's leaving..."

"Peter said I'm the only one staying put, right? Not him?" Haskell looked left and right. I turned to Luke again. "Plus, Luke is technically within your vicinity, so he's not really going far."

"But that's—"

I rolled my eyes. "Fine. Luke. Find me a bucket so I can take a piss." I whirled around and glared hard at Haskell. "That a good enough excuse? Or would you rather do it?"

"Uh, no?"

"Then, Luke will find me a bucket or a commode."

"I'll...er...do that, then." Luke dropped his backpack next to my cot and leaned in to kiss me on the forehead. "I'll go find her," he whispered. He shot Haskell a bemused look, but when the soldier didn't make a move, Luke walked around him, lightly bumping Haskell's shoulder.

——

I waited for an hour for Luke to come back. Peter was still gone. Haskell sat on a stool close by, reading off a three-week-old Men's Health magazine he found. I caught him sifting through an article about appropriately dressing up for first and second dates, and what workouts to do to define his abs and back. I rolled my eyes, thinking if anyone in this city had time for that.

By noon, I kept glancing at the clock, hoping it would slow down. I kept fidgeting on my bandages, even when I told myself not to touch them. I drank three glasses of water already, which was a mistake because I literally had to pee now, hoping that Luke actually would bring a bucket with him.

The longer I waited (and the more bored I became), Haskell's magazine became enticing. Though he was interested in reading the articles, the men they had in the pictures were the biggest celebrities and models in the country. I wouldn't mind appreciating their...poses. I thought about snatching the magazine away since I wondered why was he having fun reading when he's supposed to be guarding me? He's supposed to be miserable. But I realized I had to lean far over and snatch it away from him. Falling over my bed was a little embarrassing in front of a guy I disliked.

Then, the partition opened, and Luke stepped in with a massive grin on his face. He wasn't alone. Behind him stood Margot and Felipe. Margot first strode toward me, checking my wound, but I told her a doctor had already changed it. Margot wore a red armband around her right arm with a white cross on it. I noticed that the nurses also wore those things.

"Do you have the phone?" Margot asked. I knew she was still worried about her family back in France.

"No. I didn't get to Clemons when everything went sideways."

"Oh. That's... that's alright," she said, fiddling with her armband.

"We thought you two are still trapped in the hospital," Felipe said.

"He thought that. I never doubt," Margot said, and she raised her hand for a high-five. Laughing, I gave one to her. "I tell him you will get out even with a bullet on the leg. Bren, the Captain America."

"Oh? Not Superman?" Felipe asked, hiding a smile.

Margot shook her head seriously. "Superman is an alien. Captain America is American. Bren is American."

"Real, uh, analysis there, love."

Margot hit him on the shoulder, and then tenderly placed her hand under his chin. "Aw, ma petit couille," she said sweetly.

I snickered as Felipe turned a beat shade of red, eyes darting around the room if anyone understood, then they landed on me, and he turned redder. I couldn't unheard Margot telling him he's her little testicle. Luke kept on grinning. Haskell continued reading his magazine, probably now realizing we knew each other. I still wanted that magazine.

"Where are the others?" I asked.

"Apartment," Felipe said.

So, I was right. "Is everyone alright?"

Felipe and Margot went silent. "Logan, Miguel, and Yousef were arrested."

And I was right again. "Let me guess? They tried to sneak out of the walls?"

Felipe shook his head. "No. For trying to steal weapons."

Well, almost right. I swung my legs to the side of the bed and sat up. "Okay. Where's the detention center they're held in?"

"Hey, nobody answer that!" Haskell finally looked up from his magazine.

But I got the answer I needed from Margot at the same time. "City Hall."

"Good. City Hall, then."

"No, you're not." Haskell marched toward me, placing his hand on my shoulder. He forced me down on the bed. He turned his head toward the others. "No one's going anywhere until Peter—"

I seized his wrist. Haskell tried to yank his hand out of my grip, a mistake I counted on. I twisted his wrist, quickly bringing him to his knees as he leaned back on the arm. Another mistake. He should have struck me then, but he was taken by surprise, eyes wide in shock, and so I took the opportunity to slap his ear hard, disorienting him. Haskell yelped as I pushed upward, circling around so that I now stood behind him, and slammed his head on the mattress.

With him lying on his stomach, I put my knee on his spine, preventing him from moving. I put his arm behind his back.

"Ow, ow, ow! Let go of my arm! What the fuck?"

I looked at the ear I slapped on. There was no blood—a good thing. I didn't rupture his eardrums, which meant that he wouldn't be a whiny crybaby later once I get what I want.

"Bren..." Luke started, but I gave the others a warning look not to interfere.

"I have been waiting for over two hours, and I have just about had it! You and I are going to City Hall," I said to Haskell. "I may be a cripple now, but I can still fuck you up."

"No, fuck you."

"Do you know how easy it is for me to break your arm from this position?" Haskell reached down for his gun on his hip, but I twisted his wrist more and swatted his reaching hand. "Nuh-uh. Don't do that."

"Okay! Jesus!"

"What do you say? City Hall?"

"I can still scream and alert the soldiers outside to kick your ass. How about that, huh? Bet your punk ass never thought of that."

"Hm. You'd still have a broken arm, a broken wrist, and broken fingers."

"You wouldn't dare."

"A fair warning in the future: I don't take too kindly to people who make threats to me. How are you going to fight with those things after you? A useless limb against a horde when you can't even shoot proper...not a good outcome, I tell you."

"We can wait for Gauthier."

"That dumbass seems to be taking his sweet holy time."

"Bah! You can go then. Just let go of my arm. I'll let you deal with Gauthier when you get back."

"I highly doubt it would be anything noteworthy. I beat him before. I can do it again. But I still need you."

"What for?"

"I need that army pass of yours, but I'm not a soldier. You are. So, you're coming with me." I caught sight of his phone, peeking out of his pocket. I fished it out, switching the lock screen on, and saw a photo of him, and what I surmised must be his parents and his younger sister. I showed it to him. "You want to go home, don't you?"

Haskell paused, staring at the photo on the phone. I could feel his muscles tightening beneath me. "I do."

I leaned close to his ear and whispered, "Then, we'll be out of here faster if you cooperate. You can then lead me to a radio, and I can hail my uncle to send a helicopter to pick us up. Sounds good?" Haskell paused, but eventually, he nodded. "Good boy."

I let go of his arm. He slowly stood up, massaging his wrist, and gave me a deathly scowl. He glared at the others, gauging them. He regarded me once again, but he didn't dare make a move, probably realizing that if he did, I came prepared and I'll hit him harder.

"And if Peter gets here and we're gone?" Haskell asked.

I turned around to the patient on the next cot, drawing out the curtains. A man in a gray suit flinched and hid on the other side of the bed. "What do you want?" He squeaked from behind an end table.

"I want you to do something for me."

"I don't know who you are!"

"Just do what he says, man." Luke hissed, annoyed.

The gray-suit man did not say another word. Taking it as a sign of agreement, I continued. "If a guy that almost looks like He-Man—blonde hair, crazy eyes, big and looked like he took too many steroids—comes looking for me, tell him I went to City Hall."

"That's... that's it?"

"Yeah." And I left it at that. I ruffled through Luke's backpack, found a can of fruit salad chunks, and tossed it to the gray-suit man. "My treat."

I handed the backpack to Luke, turned around, and walked (limped) out. The others followed.

The doctor who treated me earlier was standing at the corner, taking a step back. He held a pair of scissors, ready to strike in case I was going to attack him. I walked past him. Two nurses in scrubs parted out of my way while the four other patients stared at me in disbelief. I deduced they heard most of that.

I paused by the entryway and turned to the nearest nurse. I let out my softest smile, though I might have looked unhinged because the nurse shrunk back. I asked, anyway. "May I have a walking cane, please?"

——

Albany City Hall was situated across the East Capitol Park, which was just across the building I broke into and got shot at days ago. Seeing the New York State Capitol building gave me the shivers. It was of Romanesque light-brown that looked more like a cathedral, with its monstrous 200-foot bell tower, arched windows and entrances, and double-peaked roofs.

City Hall was a maze of hallways, chambers, and people. It didn't look like some ordinary jailhouse, more aligned with the crooks' plastered snobs and the unscrupulous vermin of the city's elite. It turned out the police station was outside the wall, right at the border between the downtown district and the South Historic District. No one wanted to risk going there. City Hall became a makeshift jailhouse due to having a detention center under the basement, large enough to house multiple people.

Haskell used his credentials to get all of us through the door. I was surprised to find police officers still wandering about. I didn't think they'd still be working even when the military had moved in. I hardly saw them around, but I guessed they needed all hands on deck. They still made me nervous.

I made the right call on bringing Haskell along. I doubted I could pull off another break-in after what happened in the State Capitol. I didn't want to have a surprise like Captain Ramos waiting for me to shoot my other leg.