93

Stay Alive

Chapter 93 – Margaret and Lilly

“Are you awake?” Margaret looked at Lilly, who had just woken up. As soon as Lilly tried to sit up, Margaret gave her some water.

“Who are you?”

“She saved your life, Lilly,” said Clementine, who had overheard her mother’s friend speak and came closer to see how she was doing.

When Lilly’s once-lost gaze focused on Clementine, she felt a jolt run down her spine—it was like electricity from her sword—upon seeing that the girl was still alive.

Many had seen someone who looked like Clementine and assumed she had died, but it seems they were wrong.

“How did you end up here?”

“When Lee left me in a safe place, an infected showed up out of nowhere and started staring at me. I ran as fast as I could, and before another walker could bite me, I was saved by the people who’ve been taking care of you,” said Clementine, her tone full of excitement. She was truly grateful that Alan and Riya had taken her in.

Lilly nodded, took a deep breath, and murmured, “I’m glad you’re okay. But I can’t say the same for your family. We all scattered when a horde of infected appeared out of nowhere on a farm.”

When that horde overran the place they had been staying, Lilly had to flee for her life. She fought as much as she could and used up all her resources to survive. It wasn’t until a day later that she finally collapsed from exhaustion—and that’s when Margaret found her and saved her life.

“You have no idea how much I appreciate it. Saving my life says a lot about you,” Lilly said, expressing her gratitude to Margaret, who nodded silently.

Just then, Riya entered the room carrying a bowl of hot soup made from venison that Alan had hunted earlier that afternoon. The smell of the warm meal awakened Lilly’s hunger, and she gratefully accepted the tray of food.

“You’ve probably been through a lot, so we won’t bother you for now,” Riya said, about to turn and leave when Lilly stopped her.

“Who are you?”

It was obvious she wasn’t with Margaret—her uniform, weapons, and well-kept skin were things few people had these days.

“She saved you too—by giving you medicine, a roof over your head, and hot food, without asking anything in return,” Margaret said. By now, she trusted Riya, who had proven to be an incredible woman.

“Sorry for being rude…”

“I understand. Distrusting people or knowing too much about where you are can increase your chances of survival,” Riya replied. She understood the survivor mindset after having spent time in advanced shelters.

At that moment, hurried footsteps could be heard in the distance, and Alan appeared carrying a large backpack.

“We need to move. I have to figure out how to fix our radio, and we certainly won’t get anything done by waiting around.”

“She’s not going to be able to move very well.”

“She’s not my priority. They can come with us, but they’ll have to keep up with our pace.” Alan had also seen a horde of infected not far from here, so moving was the best idea.

Riya knew Alan wouldn’t say anything unless he’d already assessed the situation, so she said, “We have a pickup truck that fits all of us. There’s enough fuel, and we can find more along the way.”

“Good, then we’ll be ready in an hour.”

Alan nodded and left the room. He prepped his weapons and loaded all the supplies into the truck. The Ford F-250 Super Duty was one of the best vehicles they could’ve found—it had both the power and the space. Moving seven people, three of whom were young children, was manageable.

“Did you find anything?” Riya asked as she saw Alan watching the distant treeline.

“A horde of infected is on its way. We need to hurry—and try to find Lilly’s friends along the way,” Alan said, climbing into the truck and starting it up once everyone had gotten in.