"That's right—we found it at the gas station! So you were the good people who left it! You helped us a lot!" Rick said sincerely, his eyes lighting up.
Andrea, however, muttered under her breath, "We came out here and still haven't found any hope. I shouldn't have let a few words change my mind."
After her sister Amy's death and seeing the hopeless world outside, she had lost the will to live.
But Dale kept trying to talk her out of it. When everyone saw the message written on the cardboard, their hope reignited and they set out searching for a new way to survive.
Now they had found nothing—and even lost Sophia. The mood in the group was heavy.
Leah glanced at her expressionlessly, as if looking at an irrelevant piece of debris.
She had no interest in dealing with someone drowning in self-destructive despair and unable to face reality.
In the apocalypse, there were plenty of people like that.
And they died quickly.
But not everyone was like Andrea.
The tall, muscular Black man standing behind Rick—T-Dog—nodded firmly and spoke in a deep voice.
"It's true! Those cans, the water, and that note! We were almost completely hopeless back then… Thank you. Really, thank you!"
The gratitude in his eyes was unmistakable.
Glenn stepped forward too, speaking eagerly.
"And the medicine! In times like these, that stuff is priceless! Your sister… she's a really good person!"
Dale had been standing beside Andrea the whole time. He adjusted the fishing hat he never took off and looked at Leah with the gentle sincerity of an elder.
"Please pass along our deepest thanks to your sister. In a situation like that, even the smallest act of kindness can be the only thing keeping someone going."
As he spoke, he glanced meaningfully at Andrea beside him, who still looked dejected.
A Black woman stepped forward quietly.
Her eyes weren't as excited as the others', but they carried a deeper and more complicated emotion.
"Hello. My name is Jacqui. When I saw those supplies and the message at the gas station… I was in a very bad place. I had almost… almost given up."
Jacqui paused, as if remembering that moment of despair. She instinctively hugged her arms around herself.
"But those supplies, those words… they felt like someone throwing me a rope. They made me think maybe I could hold on a little longer."
"Please thank your sister for me. She's truly a good person."
Leah's gaze lingered on Jacqui for a moment. She gave a small nod.
"Don't worry. She'll know."
Then she added quietly,
"The world may be harsh now, but we still have to keep going."
...
During the brief exchange, Daryl—who had been leaning silently against a car, seemingly detached from everything—was quietly studying Leah and her group.
His eyes moved over their high-end gear and the professional modifications on the Humvee.
When he heard everyone thanking Leah's sister, he muttered something almost inaudibly to himself.
His voice was hoarse and low, like a sigh rolling in his throat.
"Risking your life to find a doctor for your sister… that's some damn good family."
The words were soft, almost carried away by the wind. But in the brief silence, they sounded strangely clear.
For an instant, something complicated flickered in Daryl's eyes.
Maybe envy.
Maybe the memory of his bastard brother Merle.
Maybe the unfamiliar feeling of what people called "family."
Daryl immediately seemed to realize he had revealed too much. He pressed his lips together, shifted his body, and adjusted the crossbow on his back.
The motion hid the emotion that had briefly slipped out, restoring the image of the prickly, solitary hunter.
Leah noticed the subtle change in his expression.
Her gaze flicked across him briefly—without stopping, without reacting—as if she hadn't heard anything at all.
Yet for a moment, something unspoken seemed to pass between them.
"We should go."
Leah glanced at the sky and withdrew her gaze, no longer looking at Rick's group. Her voice returned to its usual cold, distant tone.
"Hope you find the girl."
It sounded more like a formal closing than genuine concern.
Felipe had already realized Leah wasn't the warm type. He quickly waved toward Rick, Glenn, and T-Dog.
"Goodbye, everyone!"
"Good luck to you too—and thanks again!" Rick replied sincerely. He could tell they didn't want to continue the conversation.
There were no more introductions.
No exchange of names.
No questions about where they were going.
Both groups kept the cautious distance typical of survivor groups meeting in the apocalypse.
Their brief, accidental intersection ended there.
Mike started the engine.
The Humvee slowly rolled past Rick's group and headed toward the other end of the highway.
Glenn watched the large vehicle disappear into the distance. He nudged Daryl with his elbow, noticing he was still staring in that direction.
"Hey, man. What are you looking at?"
Daryl snapped back to reality and quickly looked away. He rolled his shoulders as if something felt uncomfortable.
The movement conveniently hid how closely he had been watching the female soldier and her team.
"Nothing," he said gruffly. "Just think that group looks pretty capable. And their gear's not bad."
He would never admit that he had been distracted for even a moment.
In the rearview mirror, Rick's group grew smaller and smaller, once again becoming a tiny cluster of survivors struggling among endless abandoned cars.
The unexpected meeting felt like it had never happened.
And yet… something subtle lingered.
...
By evening, the search team finally returned to the hardware factory base.
When Mike parked the vehicle and Dr. Jenner jumped out holding the blood analyzer, Calista and the others waiting nearby were momentarily stunned.
"That's it?" Carver blurted out, unable to hide his disappointment.
It looked nothing like the advanced medical equipment they had imagined.
"Don't underestimate it!" Dr. Jenner protested excitedly, like someone defending his own child.
"It works! Give me some time and we can continue the analysis!"
Calista looked at the crude device and sighed quietly to herself.
It wasn't ideal.
But it was better than returning empty-handed.
"Good work," she said, nodding to Leah and the others. "We leave for Rock Fortress tomorrow."
Then she looked at Dr. Jenner.
"It's yours now. I hope it gives you the answers you're looking for."