A few minutes after saying goodbye to Bruno and João, Alicia, holding a bottle of Coke in her hand, walked toward Samira. A heavy sadness weighed on her heart as she replayed in her mind how everything had happened so fast—and how lucky she was to have escaped from the school. She remembered how she'd been caught off guard, secretly kissing a boy in the bathroom. In less than eight minutes, chaos had erupted—children running, screaming, and crying everywhere.
Samira looked at Alicia with downcast eyes, her face swollen and red from so much crying. She noticed Alicia's lips trembling, her eyes still moist. It was clear she was doing everything she could to hold back her tears. Trying to start a conversation, Samira spoke, her gaze fixed on the floor, thoughtful:
— Hey… I can see you're feeling just as bad as I am. Sit here… let's talk until my brother comes back?
Alicia, trying to be supportive despite being just as shaken, looked at her and then sat down across from her. The two of them remained silent for a few minutes, glancing around the place but avoiding each other's eyes. Every now and then, Alicia would check the time on her phone or stare at the wallpaper—a shirtless male model.
The silence became heavy, so Samira decided to break it:
— Tell me… how do you feel?
Alicia locked her phone screen and replied in a low, almost gentle voice:
— Scared… and really worried about my mom. But what about you? Are you worried about your family?
Samira was counting the minutes until Bruno returned with their mother and sisters safe and sound. It took her a while to answer, because just thinking about it made her heart race. Even so, she decided to hide her feelings. After all, her brother often did the same when he didn't want to admit something that bothered him. Not wanting to seem fragile, she downplayed what she truly felt:
— Not much… Now that I'm calmer, I'm almost sure everyone's fine, and soon they'll all be here.
Alicia quickly realized Samira wasn't being entirely honest. To nudge her a little and get her to open up, she asked:
— And you're not worried about the cut on your brother's face?
Samira let out a deep sigh and leaned her head against the wall. At that moment, she realized just how different she was from her brother. She knew she could never hide her emotions as well as he did; in truth, all she wanted right then was for someone to hug her and let her cry…
She looked at Alicia, who, unlike her, at least knew her brother was safe and doing everything he could to protect her. Samira felt pity, realizing that Alicia didn't have anyone there to look after her, and that made her understand it wasn't worth trying to hide what she felt.
— Honestly… yeah, I am worried. But I want to believe that he—and all of us who've made it this far—are immune… Or that at least it's just a cut. What really scares me is that I don't want to lose my brother…
Camille, who had been walking down the aisle where the sweets and chocolates were, overheard their conversation and came closer, sitting down beside them.
Samira turned to Camille and asked gently:
— And you? Are you feeling any better?
Camille's eyes were still full of tears as she answered, her voice breaking:
— I don't think I'll ever see my brothers again… I don't even know if I have the courage to find out if they're still alive…
Tears streamed down Camille's cheeks. She wiped them away quickly, trying to stop them from falling, and with a trembling voice she added:
— I feel like I'll never see my mom or my brothers again either. You're lucky, Samira.
Samira didn't see much comfort in what Camille had just said. After all, ever since her brother had left, she no longer had any certainty that he would return. So, with little hope in her tone, she replied:
— I can only agree with you… but only when he's back here, safe, with my mom and sisters.
Samira had barely finished speaking when someone tried to force the market's entrance. The sound startled the girls, who at that moment were completely alone.
Samira rushed to the butcher's counter and grabbed one of the knives lying next to a cut of meat, where Bruno had tested the blades' sharpness earlier. Alicia darted into the storage room, looking for a place to hide, while Camille grabbed a broom leaning near the storeroom's door. All three, already bracing themselves for a fight, froze as they heard a familiar voice:
— Hey Alonso, I think Las Vegas was right, man. This really does look like a good place to hide!
Samira recognized the voice instantly—it was one of her brother's closest friends, who lived just a few houses away from where they used to live. To be sure, she stepped closer to the gate they were trying to force open and called out:
— Reidner, is that you?
— Samira! It's us, and everyone's here!
Samira quickly opened the small side door, the one on the far right of the market that led to the second parking lot. She motioned for them to come through. To her surprise, a good part of her brother's and her own childhood friends were there.
Among the newcomers, she spotted Alonso, Daniel, Edvaldo, Gabriel, and Reidner—people she had grown up around her entire life.
Reidner glanced around curiously and asked:
— Where's Las Vegas?
Everyone came inside, and Samira, her face still heavy with worry, locked the door again before answering:
— My brother went to get my mom and sisters… and he hasn't come back yet.
Alonso immediately sensed the weight in the room, noticing how Samira was visibly anxious and drained. He looked over at Camille, who seemed just as exhausted, and tried to lighten the mood with a comment:
— Didn't I tell you, Reidner? I knew he'd head straight here…
Hearing the familiar and more relaxed voices, Alicia began to ease up. Believing things were calmer now, she stepped out from her hiding spot and joined the group. As she arrived, she noticed several unfamiliar faces, but among them she recognized Alonso and Reidner, classmates from her school. Still, she barely knew them beyond a nod or the occasional word exchanged in passing.
Gabriel settled into a chair and asked Samira:
— Samira… answer me this. How did you guys manage to get here? And how did you find the market empty, all to yourselves?
— I can answer that, but first I want to hear from you! You seem so calm, considering you just got here…
Gabriel, looking downcast, replied:
— Samira, it's not that we're calm about what's happening… The thing is, no one here wants to break down. We've all lost so many people we care about, and chances are we'll lose even more… Today, I didn't even go to class. I spent most of the morning taking care of my mom, who woke up feeling really sick. I was making soup for her, but out of nowhere, she appeared in the kitchen with her mouth wide open and her neck twisted to one side. I had to fight to get away from her. When I finally got out, I ran up the street in our block and met Reidner and Alonso coming from school…
Alonso continued explaining what happened:
— Then, when we saw PILL coming up the street, we asked him to stay with us… We went back and stopped by my house and Reidner's. I didn't find my parents or my brother, who, of course, had gone to work. When we got to Reidner's house, we ran into Bruno and Edvaldo, who were also escaping. We managed to get away and then decided it would be best to come here.
After hearing all that, Samira decided to share her own story of how she got there:
— Well, I was in the schoolyard with a friend, who ended up getting caught while we were running… but before that, when the screaming and panic started, we saw the aunts from the kitchen coming out, chasing the boys. When they left, I ran too. I went to close the door, and Alicia showed up asking to get in. We stayed there until almost the entire school was overrun. I saw you two escaping, Alonso, I tried to call out to you, but with all that screaming, the only thing I could do was get their attention. When I realized it, they had surrounded the cafeteria, and we had to stay there until my brother and João Paulo managed to get us out… After they did, we came here, and of course, the ones who took out those outside were my brother.
When it was Edvaldo's turn to speak, he got straight to the point about what happened with him and Bruno:
— For me, before finding the guys, everyone was messing with some bikes, then suddenly everyone got sick and freaked out. So, we just got the hell out of there, right? We ran with everything we had!
As they talked, the sound of cars approaching and stopping in front of the market gate caught their attention.
At the same door the others had entered, Bruno banged hard:
— Samira, open this damn door!
Hearing her brother's voice, Samira ran to the door and opened it, her eyes anxiously searching for her mother and sisters. Upon entering, Bruno was surprised to see most of his friends there, but he didn't say anything. He didn't think to greet them. He just grabbed Samira by the arm and led her to the office, located at the back of the market near the door.
Bruno's friends were confused by his behavior, but seeing the dark and serious expression on his face, they chose not to ask questions.
In the office, Bruno pulled a chair from the computer desk and placed it near Samira, signaling that he wanted her to sit. She sat down, nervous, and asked what was going on.
— Your brother will explain, but I want you to stay calm and listen, okay? — he said.
Samira nodded, already holding back tears, sensing that bad news was coming. Bruno looked into her eyes, saw the tears beginning to form, and thought to himself: Damn, I know I have to make her strong, but she's only 11… there's no way I can tell her I killed our mom and sisters. I doubt she could handle this. He took a deep breath, trying to control the tightness in his chest, and pulled another chair, sitting across from Samira.
— Samy… I did everything I could to get there before anything happened… But I imagine you already know that all the adults got infected, right?
Samira clenched her hands tightly, already feeling the weight of the answer, and said:
— Stop beating around the bush, Bruno. I've thought about that possibility. So tell me, where are they? Where are Hanne and Haissa?
Bruno looked away, his voice shaky as he replied:
— I… I don't know, Sam. When I got there, they were gone.
Even though she already suspected his answer, Samira pressed on:
— And Mom? How did she die? Or… did you kill her? Listen, I can handle it, you don't have to hesitate!
Bruno fell silent for a moment, the images of the scene spinning through his mind like a whirlwind. He relived everything in his head, feeling the weight of their skulls under his hands. His gaze went cold and empty, and with a rigid voice, he responded:
— She wasn't there either. I don't want you worrying about it, because I'll find them, okay?
Samira saw through Bruno's lie, and anger started to take over her. Feeling treated like a naive child, she abruptly stood up, furious at him for hiding the truth, and stormed out of the office without looking back.