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“Come. I will take you to see your friend now.”

***

The Chief led them into a light blue house, one of the few two-story homes in the town. Inside, the house looked well-lived in and clean with shiny wooden floors and creamy leather furniture. They passed a white kitchen with stacks of canned food on every counter.

They followed the Chief up blue carpeted stairs with pictures of a happy family lining the wall.

When they reached the top of the stairs, they entered a warm room where two women wearing long white dresses leaned over a small bed. Khalani’s heart skipped a beat when she recognized the small figure beneath the sheets.

“Winnie!” She rushed forward, crouching by her side.

Winnie lay still under the covers, her pale cheeks almost blending with the white fabric. She wore a clean white shirt, with fresh bandages covering her shoulder. But her eyes were closed, and her hands rested motionless by her sides.

One of the women, middle-aged with dark skin and black hair, was attending to Winnie’s bandages. The other looked slightly younger, with blonde hair tied in a low ponytail. Contrary to most of the people she’d seen in the Desert Spring, her pale skin nearly matched Khalani’s.

The younger woman checked Winnie’s temperature as the Chief asked, “How is she, Ari?”

The blonde girl gave an exacerbated sigh. “You have a knack for bringing them in half-dead, don’t you, Penn?”

“Ari.”

“She’s stable…for now. We’ve managed to reduce the fever and used some antibiotics for the infection. We’ll see if they take.” Ari washed her hands in a basin.

“Antibiotics?” Derek straightened, lines etched in his forehead. “Where did you get them? All the ones from the Great Collapse would’ve expired by now.”

Ari shot a panicked glance to the Chief, who interjected. “We get them from raids. Some of the medicine from the Great Collapse remains effective. Now, you can see we’re caring for your friend, and she’s alive. It’s time for you to return to the house.”

Khalani immediately pulled back.

“No. I wanna stay with her.” Her chest felt like it was going to cave in at the thought of leaving Winnie again.

“What her body needs right now is rest,” Ari spoke fervently, placing a hand on her shoulder. “We won’t let any harm come to her.”

She gulped, a lump forming in her throat, but Serene clutched her hand and squeezed.

“Come, Khalani. There’s nothing more we can do right now.”

Her neck hung as she rested her other hand on Winnie’s. Tears formed in the corners of her eyes, but she refused to let them fall in front of their captors.

A few tense moments passed before she reluctantly stood, kissing Winnie’s cold cheek. “I won’t be far, Winnie. I’ll be right herewhenyou wake up.”

Khalani wiped her nose. What surprised her was when the others, even Brock and Takeshi, touched Winnie’s leg or arm, their stares gleaming with sadness, affection, and…love. It looked like love.

The Chief regarded them with an odd gaze as they held Winnie close and quietly left the house.

Night had fallen, and torches illuminated the path.

“Why do you have men patrolling the walls around the clock?” Brock asked.

The Chief’s gaze remained fixed ahead. “They’re on constant watch for Sinners.”

“What’s so dangerous about the Sinners?”

The Chief’s shoulders tensed, her posture as rigid as the walls that surrounded them.

“The Sinners aren’t merely a threat—they are predators intent on extinguishing the Desert Spring. They torment their young and cast them out into the desert. Had they found you as we did, they would’ve eaten you alive.”

“You mean in the metaphorical sense,” Serene pressed.