Chapter 26: The World Behind High Walls
The walk to the base was tense, the group’s chatter filled with a mixture of wariness and dark humour. One woman, her hair tied back in a severe braid, kept glancing at Zara and muttering under her breath about "bringing kids into this hellhole."
Another man, stocky and heavily armed, cracked jokes about how long Winter and Zara’s "marriage" would last.
Zara focused on putting one foot in front of the other, her thoughts swirling. They don’t know about Leo. They can’t find out. She adjusted her coat, her grip tightening around her son’s tiny form.
Winter, ever observant, took in the group’s dynamics—the way Scar-Cheek barked orders but deferred to the older man, the subtle deference others gave to the woman with the braid. The two of them must be ability holders, then.
His sharp eyes swept the terrain, cataloguing exits and potential threats.
When they reached the base, Zara’s breath caught. It was a repurposed shopping mall fortified with makeshift barricades of steel and scrap.
Watchtowers fashioned from scaffolding loomed above, their sentries scanning the horizon with weapons ready. Survivors moved about the perimeter, their faces hard and worn.
Inside, the mall was a stark contrast to its pre-apocalypse glory. The once-bustling shops were now storage spaces and sleeping quarters. The air was thick with the scent of sweat and decay. Hushed conversations floated past them as they walked, snippets of worry and resentment.
"...took down a whole pack of hunters last night..."
"...heard they’re running out of food..."
"...don’t trust him. He’s hiding something..."