After Grace

w what he was thinking. It was the same thing all the adults in our community thought when they saw what was once a great city falling to nothing in the distance; he was wishing he could be bac

rs, I had a safe place to call home. Without it, I w

ns with you guys, " I said, breaking

en, only four years younger than me, we had almost never spo

e one, " I

ou ca

e I'm

l and she's a hu

hat had been on my mind for a long time, but only now did I speak it alou

ther and only spoke when something was bothering him. We pulled into camp and stopped with a jolt. I spill

le had very little expectations from these runs, it had been two full decades since the war, nearly every place carrying canned goods had been ransacked years prior. Joy isn't a strong enough wo

weary young woman as she wiped a tear from her

e me the kind of attention usually reserved for their children. Before she was even gone I already knew my night would con

she asked, looking

ere. I licked at the wound and tasted the sharp tang of iron, it w

e lay on the floor as if she'd gone to sleep, three empty cans surro

to death, " H

you mean?

without hesitation he knelt down over the dead girl and began putting his hands in the pockets of her dress.

ou doing!"

ack of his collar and pulling him away. He fell back to the floor, his shirt tearing at the neck.

ered my gaze. I could hear Damen

am. "Go back to the truck, wait for us there, " Joseph had told me. He was the only person who rea

right the

aid. "Grace...

nna h

be a hunter

S

the answer to a question he hadn't asked yet. "Go, please, " he said again. I went back to the truck and waited for them. Damen

k. I pretended not to notice them. "Want to get ready?" Joseph asked. "We only have our first act, I know the narrative

always do tha

ho

, the boys

yes and quickly walked off. "Maybe they're jea

ndsey like a h

supplies. Mike smiled and opened the gate when he saw us. The armory was wrapped in sharp spikes

ig, " Jos

when we saw each other. He smiled and closed the gate. "Don't worry about those girls, " Joseph b

like as soon as they turn old enough to have cliques they outgrow m

n soon." Joseph said, lead

of what to make o

robably the end of September, pretty soon the weather would turn frigid, dangerous. Over t

e knew that the coming months would be the hardest to survive, and some of us wou

t wasn't more than a few planks of wood laid neatly on the ground. I waited for my

ed as they booed. I hid most of my face under a black veil I had cut from old cloth. I danced and spun as I crossed to the other end of the stage. Once there, I quickly ripped off the ve

I turned to see the other teenagers of the camp filing out into the woods. Some of them snickered when they saw me, hair a mess, waiting to entertain child

one liners. But it wasn't his compliments that made me want

m I wouldn't do more than kiss he told me I couldn'

ed my foot. The children laughed even though it wasn't funny. I began to say my next line but there a commotion coming from the crowd. One by one, the parents b

ason to. "Tom came back, " someone said. "He had

e sentence. "Excuse me, step aside please, " Mrs. Whitmore said as she rushed past me. She was the nurse. Whenever someone got hurt, she and Doctor Hamilton

at me as far as I could remember. But then, we never really had a chance to meet. He was constantly coming in and out of camp and, when he stayed, it was only for a day or two. He usua

o their tents, whispering about what they saw, scared by what it could mean. Jo

so much blood b

time." I knew Joseph was talking about the attac

shook his head slightly but didn't

do you

way he had started picking at his nails

could mean we'll have to move soon, could mean we wa

e winter, " I said,

why I'm

ss camp and through the treeline toward the river. Doctor Hamilton stepped out behind him, his clothes ruined red.

ton?" I began

ers of the community. "We'll have a service for him in the morning. The

ide me. "Come on

abou

past him and crossed into the

ept going, my feet crunched dry leaves as I w

od off his jacket. He hadn't heard me coming. I opened my m

n't see my face in the dark, and then, as if the sky itself was waiting for this

asked. He re