The car drove out of town and entered onto a national road.
With Valerie in the backseat, she looked at Griffin who drove the jeep. Beside him, on the passenger seat, his friend - whatever he was, had his head laid on the window of the door.
No words were spoken, not even the radio played. Just the sound of the engine running was what filled the car.
From time to time, Griffin would glance up and at the rear, seeing the reflection of Valerie.
Minutes later, Valerie found herself resting her head, just like the man in front of her, against the door. She fell asleep.
Her mind replayed fragments of the moments she witnessed back in Artull. She felt as though she was back in the police station. Back with Lisa and Monica.
But before she could delve any further into what her mind portrayed, she got woken up by the sudden breaking of the jeep.
She gasped, looking at Griffin. Hearing her, he looked back, their gazes meeting. "We stopped..." she commented, before averting her eyes elsewhere. Her brows furrowed ever so slightly. "W-where are we?...".
"Petrol station. I need to refuel the jeep so it can get us to the capital," Griffin responded. "It might take a few, so feel free to get out... stretch your legs or whatever.".
Valerie didn't need to be told twice. Opening the door, she stepped out.
The rain had stopped and the clouds gave way to the slightest hue of orange across the scattered sky. Sunrise... it was nearly time for the sun to peek over the horizon.
A weak gust of wind sent a wake of shivers through Valerie, reminding her of the dampness that remained from the rain back in Artull.
To her right, a streak of white caught her attention. Turning her gaze there, she saw a small house. The front door was ajar.
Furrowing her brows, she decided to make her way toward it. But she didn't make much progress when a voice stopped her. "Hey... Where are you going?". Turning around, she saw Griffin's buddy emerge from his seat and approach her.
"There's a house there... I think I saw someone go inside it," Valerie responded. "I want to see if everything is okay.". Her gaze moved to Griffin as she noticed him looking away from the slight commotion both she and his bud caused. "Besides... while he is refuelling, I might as well make use of my time.".
"We're in the middle of nowhere..." he started. "I doubt there is any living soul out here.".
"I'd say otherwise..." Valerie responded, pointing toward the house nearby. "I just saw someone go in there...".
"It looks run down... abandoned," he began. "Who knows what's in there...".
"Well..." she started. "There's only one way to find out.".
However, behind her, he followed. She was aware of this until a few seconds in, she stopped and turned around again. "I am more than capable of doing this on my own...".
"Never said you weren't," he replied. "However, I might as well make your company, otherwise I'd be standing around the car, doing nothing.".
Valerie eyed him for a second more before she allowed her face to relax ever so slightly. "If that's the case... Alright then.".
And with that, Valerie continued walking. "I don't think I got your name...".
"Devon... Devon Chalestier," he responded.
"Chalestier?..." Valerie repeated. "I don't think I've heard of that surname. Ever. Where are you from?".
"It's an old surname from Iarterre. However, I was born in Failin and then raised in Armull, Lailin," Devon replied.
Valerie was quiet for a moment. "Do you know Griffin for long then?".
"Ever since he and I were children. We go back ever since primary school. We parted ways in Secondary before meeting again in the academy and ever since we're inseparable.".
Valerie nodded her head as the silence once again descended between them.
"Those women..." Devon began. "Do you know those women for long?". He rubbed salt into the wound with that question.
A lump began forming in Valerie's throat. "Lisa and Monica?".
"Yeah...".
At first, Valerie was quiet before releasing a "Meh.". Clearing her throat, she continued, "I don't know them for long... However, I was the closest with Lisa...".
"I'm sorry we couldn't save them..." Devon replied after a few seconds. "But you must understand, we couldn't risk getting infected...".
"I know..." Valerie answered back. It was a hard pill to swallow.
"Once you're bitten, it's game over for you..." Devon continued.
Valerie furrowed her brows slightly. "How do you know so much?".
Devon let a small, sheepish smile grow on his lips. "I watch a lot of movies... play games of the sort...".
"Basing your knowledge off of movies and games??" Valerie questioned his logic.
"I've also read a few things online too... things that seemed legit to me," he added.
"Don't believe everything they write," Valerie replied.
Devon nodded his head. "There's a lot of mystery in this world. You don't know who to believe and who not.".
Again, as they further approached the house, muteness filled the gap between Valerie and Devon. It wasn't long before Valerie broke it. "I feel like shit will only go south from here on out...".
"You're not wrong there," Devon responded.
Valerie looked up at the building, the darkened, worn-out exterior. It had a window to mark that the house also had a second floor.
However, seconds later, an older woman walked up to the window, opening it and pointing out a shotgun.
Valerie gasped, lifting her hands into the air. "We mean no harm..." she began.
"What are you two looking for here?". The woman still had both Valerie and Devon at gunpoint.
"Ma'am, I'd advise you to put the gun down as it's pointed at a police officer and a detective...". He saw how the woman's face softened ever so slightly. "Regardless of it being the end of the world...". Devon slightly exaggerated. "You could still face prosecutions for shooting at law enforcement.".
Slowly, the woman put her gun down by her side.
"We're here to see if anything is okay..." Valerie spoke up next, keeping her voice calm.
"Everything is fine... we're fine...".
"You're not alone... are you?" Valerie inquired next.
The woman hesitated for a moment. "I'm with my son, his wife and their child...".
Valerie felt her heart drop ever so slightly. "Well... Ma'am, we're on our way to Liß, is there any way we can help you?... Either drop yous off there or anything like that?".
Devon furrowed his brows at Valerie.
"No, no... there's no need for that," the woman responded.
"But the risk of more of the dead barging through is inevitable..." Valerie spoke back. "How... how will you survive?...".
"We don't have anywhere else to go... not like we want to go anywhere else anyway. My grandparents fought for this land... and I am not going to give it up just like that," the woman replied. "It's horrid enough that those fuckers...". She referred to the fuelling station. "Came in and settled here without any permission... This is our land...".
Valerie nodded her head before turning as Devon tapped her shoulder, indicating her to desist.
"We'll manage... we'll weather through the storm," the woman replied. Looking at Valerie for a second more, she backed away before closing the window.
Turning around, Valerie found Griffin in the jeep, starting it up and driving toward them. Stopping, they both hopped on, however, Devon was not in the backseat as Valerie propped herself in the front passenger seat. "You got up front, I wanna have a nap in the back" was Devon's reasoning.
"Who was that?" Griffin asked as Valerie buckled herself up.
"She has a family in there..." Valerie responded. "I saw a child rush into the house and I decided to see if everything was okay...". She glimpsed at the home one last time before Griffin turned onto the main road.
"And?...".
"They said they're fine.".
"Alright.".
A moment of silence filled the car once more as Devon propped his head against the door.
"Will we have enough fuel?... Enough to reach Liß?" Valerie broke the since once more, looking at the fuel gauge on the display.
"We should..." Griffin responded as he too glanced at the display between the gap on the steering wheel.
Letting a mere sigh through her lips, Valerie let her head rest against the headrest of the seat.
"Sleep..." Griffin voiced gently. "I woke you up when we stopped at the station.".
"I don't feel tired...".
"If you say so...".
And once again, silence. What lay ahead was a straight road of nothing but asphalt.
"Thank you..." Valerie spoke up, about a minute later.
"... For what?".
"You could have left me behind... but you didn't..." Valerie responded. "Still unsure if it would have been for the better or the worse...".
"You weren't infected..." Griffin started. "I doubt they would have let your friends fly out...". He allowed for a second of silence to collect between his words. "I'm sorry... I am, but there was nothing we could have done to save them...".
"I know... Devon told me," Valerie responded.
"I see you got into first name basis with my colleague too then..." Griffin commented as he glanced at his rear-view mirror.
"Am... am I not supposed to?".
"Relax..." He began. "I was messing a little...".
"I'm not really up for a joke right now..." Valerie started, her tone matching how she felt. Sombre. "I don't know whether I should be laughing or crying right now.".
"Sorry...".
Valerie didn't reply, instead, she looked to her left, out the window.
She zoned out for a few minutes before her phone kicked her out of her trance as it began ringing. Pulling it out of her pocket, the caller ID was of a person she expected the least to call her. Nelly.
A lump began forming in her throat as she answered the call. "Hello?". She tried her best to not let her voice quiver.
"Val?...".
"Nelly...". She missed her friend.
"How are you? Are you okay??... I heard some shit on the news and they mentioned Artull...".
"I- I'm fine... How are you?".
"We're still driving. Near the border between Veursau and Arittoria..." Nelly replied. "I tried to get a hold of you, but I suppose the service was down...".
Valerie nodded to her words as if Nelly could see her.
"Listen..." Nelly spoke up again. "I'm sorry, Valerie... For... How I reacted...".
"I'm sorry too..." Valerie responded. "You're pregnant now, so I get it... I was just... all over the place. And you reacting how you did, it was the final straw.".
"I understand also," Nelly responded before pausing for a mere minute. "I just wanted to tell you that... And to see how you are too.".
"Thank you..." Valerie replied through the tears that accumulated in her eyes. "Thank you for that, Nelly... I'm on my way to the airport now... Hopefully I'll get there soon...". However, a wave of sadness furthermore hit Valerie as she broke down into tears.
"Hey... Hey, Val..." Nelly called out, hearing her friend's sobs through the telephone line. "You'll be fine... We'll be fine. You'll know where to find me.".
"It's just..." Valerie tried to speak up. "I've just now come to realise that I no longer have a home, Nelly... Where will I fucking go after I fly out of this hellhole?...".
"I'm sure they'll have something figured out for you when you arrive there... They must," Nelly responded. She spoke up seconds later. "Do you know where you'll be flown to?".
"No..." Valerie replied. "My guess would be as good as yours..." she added, managing to calm down ever so slightly.
"Alright... Listen, I have to hang up now... but call me later. Please," Nelly spoke back up. "Take care, Valerie. I wish you a safe trip.".
"Thank you, Nel... You too.".
"I will, like always.". Nelly broke into a gentle chuckle, causing Valerie to laugh along ever so slightly, through her tears. "Bye, Val.".
"Bye...". And with that, the call ended.
As if remembering where she was, she quickly rubbed away the tears that were on her cheeks. "I'm sorry you had to hear all of that..." Valerie said to Griffin.
"Don't be ridiculous..." he responded. "Was that a friend?".
Valerie nodded her head. "A really good friend of mine... We lived together back in Artull.".
"And where is she now? She's not back there still, is she??".
"No, no... She took off yesterday afternoon..." she responded.
"Just in time..." he commented.
"I should've left town when I had the chance to, with them...".
"Would've certainly made for a better ride..." Griffin started. "Leaving the town with people that you know, not with someone you've known for only 5 minutes.". He tried to sympathise with Valerie, even if it was just a little bit.
Valerie let out another sigh before answering with, "Well... what's done is done now..."
Griffin wanted to say something in response, however, he decided against it. He didn't know what else to say. So, he kept his mouth shut as he looked out the window before him.
They were soon to enter the motorway, with a board on the side of the road stating that they needed another 104 km until they reached their destination, Liß.