I ran with Maribel through the streets of the Boardwalk, trying not to think about how wrong everything looked.
It was past midnight.
The streets should have been quiet.
Instead, the whole settlement had erupted into noise.
Gunfire cracked in the distance. People shouted from behind barricades and windows. The Screamer's mechanical buzz rolled over the rooftops, so loud that it seemed to crawl straight through my skull. Infected snarls answered it from every direction, some close enough that I could hear their feet slapping against the wet pavement as they rushed through the dark.
The only thing missing was fire.
If flames started rising from the buildings, it would look exactly like Jackson Township.
No.
I refused to let that happen again.
"Where are we going, Ryan?" Maribel asked as she hurried beside me.
