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“Get your hands off him!” I yell, moving forward. I didn’t care what happened to me, as long as they didn’t touch Noah.

Something hits me in the back of the leg; my knee buckles, hitting the ground hard.

“Hey!” Noah cries.

I glance up, opening my mouth to tell Noah it’s okay when one of the guys hits him in the back of the head. Noah falls to the ground with a thud, unmoving.

“You piece of shit!” I bellow, blind rage filling my veins. I push off the ground only to have something heavy hit the side of my head, then everything turns black.

CHAPTER46

Noah

My head hasn’t hurt this bad since before I had my first hangover. It’s not even a dull throb like I’m used to—this is a relentless pounding, a drum pounding in my ear. I can hear my heartbeat in my skull. I blink my eyes open, the sun shining down in an unforgiving glare. My entire body aches as I try to gather what happened.

“Let me go!”

“Get your hands off him!” Reed?—

I jolt up; nausea washes over me as the content in my stomach threatened to come up my throat. Panic grips around me like a vise, setting in like a lightning strike. I try to catch my breath, but the pressure tightens around my chest. Where is he? What happened to him?

Searching around the hill, I find nothing but footprints and a single drag mark.They dragged him.

Everything tilts; my stomach twists violently, a cold sweat breaking out over my skin. My breath catches in my throat as my eyes lock onto the mark. Terror grips me, raw and unrelenting. This can’t be happening; I can’t—I just got him back.

I just?—

This isn’t helping. I need to calm down, but nothing stops the shakes. My body won’t listen to reason. I’m drowning in air, the world closing in, pressing against me with an unbearable amount of weight. Chaos and fear spiral out of control. Nothing feels real, the ground beneath me, not the wind brushing against me. Everything tilts on its side, and I’m slowly slipping away from reality.

God, why won’t it just stop?The fear feeds itself, leaving me desperate and losing control. And the worst part of it all, I know who took him.

My father’s men.

I just don’t understand why. They said he was infected, but there’s no way. We’ve barely come across any zombies since the barn.

I shake my head, tears slipping down my cheeks. My mind is a chaotic stone, clawing at the edges. But I can’t afford to fall apart—even if I already am.I need a plan. I need to get him back.

I force myself to inhale slowly, steadying the tremor in my hands. Pushing the lingering panic away, I clench my jaw and climb to my feet. Peering out into the open, I zero in on the island, sitting there perfectly on the water.

I never thought I’d come back, even while it was in my plans to. But it’s different to think about it than to actually be here. This wasn’t my idea of coming home, but they hold the person I love. And I’m going to get him back.

Without hesitation, I bolt down the hill, my heart pounding in my head with each footstep. Each second feels like a million, exhaustion threatening to pull me down. Adrenaline spikes as the main road to the boat dock comes into view.

I’m not sure what my plan is; I just know?—

Out the corner of my eye, I barely notice an RV heading straight towards me. My eyes widen as I try to stop my feet from moving. Only I’ve never been a very good athlete; I trip over my foot, falling flat on my face. I feel the dirt and rocks against my chin, the skin splitting open.

“Oh fuck,” I cry out, tears springing to my eyes. Tires squealing reach my ears as I blink up, trying to see where that stupid RV is. “OH SHIT!” I scream, my life flashing before my eyes. Slamming them closed, I bury my head in the ground, waiting for the ending of my life. Of course I wouldn’t die at the hands of zombies or even good dick; it had to be a fucking RV to take me out.

I’ll never get to see Reed’s face again, especially not him witnessing me being murdered by this stupid fucking thing.

“Are you out of your fucking mind, you dumb ass?” A man's voice growls at me.

Blinking up, a set of intense brown eyes meets mine. His lips form in a straight line, hands on his hips. In a way he reminds me of my father, angry with me for doing something stupid.

“Are you deaf? Get the fuck out of the road, or don’t. I’ll just run you over.” He snarls at me like I’m some kind of bug. He turns on his heels, truly making me feel like some kind of insect.

“Well, fuck you too, buddy,” I grumble under my breath. Climbing to my feet, I brush my hands over my jeans, trying to dust the dirt off.