Chapter 12,

"Do you think they're alive?" TJ asked. "I don't know," I replied. "Do you hope they're dead?" She asked. I sighed. "I don't know. I've known Grace for years and she is- was, like a sister to me." I answered, correcting myself. 

"I'm never going to forget what I did. I'm always going to hope that, somehow, she's alive and whatever made her do what she did is gone." I said. After thinking it over, I then said, "As for Mike, I didn't know him well but he seemed like a nice enough guy, at least, up until a few days ago. I'm not sure if I hope he's alive or not." I replied. 

She nodded. I shifted on the bed. The mattress was soft and the sheets were clean but the room was small. We arrived at Tower City early in the morning and were exhausted from staying up all night driving. The hotel we had arrived at was the only one in the city that wasn't full. 

Even then, this one only had one room available and it only had one queen-sized bed. Fortunately, we had a bathroom, a mini fridge, a desk in the corner, a closet, a nightstand on either side of the bed, and a tv. 

The receptionist was hesitant to give us a room considering we were new to the city and had yet to earn any points. There was good news and bad news. The good news, this hotel room was ours for the next four months. 

The bad news, I no longer owned a motorcycle. "Again, sorry about your motorcycle Farah," TJ said with a sheepish look on her face. "I already told you, it's fine. Besides, it would have been stolen anyway so at least we got something out of it." I replied. 

I looked at the digital clock on the nightstand. "It's twelve. We should start looking around the city, see if we can find out anything about my sister." I said. "Alright. We should also look into getting jobs. 

We passed the citizenship exam when we came in and we have our new IDs so getting some points would be nice. Maybe we can go to a restaurant." She suggested. I thought about it. "You're right. We can no longer rely on our parents for stable housing and food. This hotel room is only ours for four months and we don't have a ton of food." I replied in agreement. 

"Let's go down to the receptionist and see if we can figure out where you're supposed to sign up for the tower excursion," I said. I pulled my shoes on and hid our backpacks in the closet in case someone broke into our room. 

I grabbed my knife, clipped it to my pants, and covered it with my shirt so no one would see. We headed out into the hallway and got into the elevator. I pressed the button for the first floor and the elevator began moving downwards slowly. 

"Do you plan on signing up for the Tower excursion?" TJ asked. I nodded. "Yeah. At first, I wasn't sure. I've thought about it a lot and, frankly, as scary as it is, I have to know the reason the tower is here. Besides, I have my guns and I know how to use them. 

The infected terrify me, but not as much as before." I replied. "Besides, I don't think I'll be able to stop Eliza from entering the tower so I might as well go in with her and protect her. I'm not going to leave her behind again." I said, my face serious. 

TJ nodded as the elevator dinged and the doors slid open to the lobby. "Count me in as well. I may not know you very well, but I trust you. If you go into the tower then I'll be left all alone in an unfamiliar city surrounded by unfamiliar people. I might as well come along." She said. 

I looked at her, dumbfounded. "But it's probably dangerous-" I began but she stopped me. "Following you into that strange tower is a risk I'm willing to take." She said. I sighed and we stepped out of the elevator. 

She had a determined look, and I got the feeling she wouldn't budge on her decision, no matter what I said. We walked up to the receptionist and he gave us a smile. "How can I help you?" He asked. 

"Could you tell us where we go to sign up for the tower expedition?" TJ asked. He smiled. "Of course. The signup sheet is located in the mayor's office, which is right down the street." He replied. "Thank you," I said, giving him a nod. 

We walked outside of the hotel and the sun hit our faces. TJ shivered. "What month is it? It's so cold." She said. I shivered as well. "It's July 27th," I replied. I didn't even have to look at my phone. 

I had been keeping track of the days, which is why every time I passed out, I would wake up and ask how long I was out. "How did you know? Also, it shouldn't be this cold if it's July." She replied. I looked to my left and gazed up at the tower. It seemed to surpass even the clouds. 

"Maybe it's got something to do with the tower," I muttered. "What did you say?" She asked. I glanced at her and smiled, despite feeling unsettled by the tower. "Nothing. I've never been to New York before so maybe it's always this cold during July." I replied. 

We walked down the empty sidewalk and looked around. "It's kind of unnerving how few people there are." She said. "They're all probably held up in their hotel rooms and houses. Who would want to go outside during the apocalypse." I answered. 

"But the walls-" She began but I cut her off. "The walls barely do shit. It hasn't even been a month since all of this began. Do you really think these people could construct a big, strong, safe wall around this city that quickly? The wall is huge but there's no way it's that secure. It's why there are people working on the walls as we speak." I said, pointing at the people working on the wall. 

"I didn't even notice them." She replied, glancing over at them. "That's because they're trying to remain unnoticed. The more people who see the wall being worked on, the more paranoid people will get. Paranoia leads to chaos and chaos leads to an uprising. It's the same thing Mike said in the gym and the same thing applies to now." I said. 

She got a curious look on her face. "Speaking of the gym, how did you escape? I didn't see you, Grace, or Mike until you let me in the teacher's lounge." She asked. My face turned red with embarrassment. "We're the idiots who went into the storage closet," I muttered. 

She laughed. "Wait, how the hell did you all get out of there?" She asked. "We got lucky. There was an old ventilation shaft in the ceiling that had been covered with paint. We found a screwdriver and crawled through the vents to health class." I said. 

"Then how did you get to the teacher's lounge?" She asked, curious. "I'm not too sure. After the rumbling started, the windows in the classroom shattered and I couldn't stand still. I stumbled out the window and barely managed to grab the window sill with one hand. A giant glass shard went through my hand and almost cut it in half." I said. 

I held up my hand and showed her my scar. "Then, once the rumbling stopped, Mike and Grace pulled me back in. My stomach got scraped by a bunch of glass so I now have scars there too." I said, lifting my shirt up slightly so she could see the scars. 

"After that, I passed out from blood loss. I can faintly recall Mike running down the hallway with me in his arms and then being tossed onto a couch. After that, I woke up with a crappy patch job. I ate, rested, and then you knocked on the door. After that, I think you know the rest." I said. 

She nodded and was about to say something when I stopped walking and spoke first, "We're here." I said, pointing to the building in front of us. "Are you sure?" She asked. I looked at the two men in suits standing at the entrance and nodded. 

"Positive," I replied. We walked up but the guards stopped us. "What business do you have here?" One asked. "We're here to sign up for the expedition into the tower," I replied. "Go in." He replied. I nodded at him and TJ and I entered the building. 

We walked up to the desk in the middle of the room where a lady was waiting with a clipboard in front of her. "Is this where we sign up for the expedition?" I asked. "Yes, please sign your full names here and put your fingerprint here." She said, gesturing towards the clipboard. 

I wrote my name on the number thirty-four spot and pressed my thumb into the ink then down into a square box beside my name. My eyes flitted across the clipboard until they landed on Eliza's name. I moved aside and allowed TJ to write her name. 

"Excuse me?" I asked the lady. "Yes, can I help you?" She asked sweetly. "Yes, I'm looking for my sister. She signed up for the expedition." I said, pointing toward my sister's name. "Eliza Daine. Yes, I remember her. In fact, she told me that should her sister come looking for her, to give her this." She said, opening the desk drawer and handing me an envelope. 

"Thank you!" I said excitedly. I tucked the envelope into my pocket. "One more thing, when is the expedition?" I asked. "The expedition was moved up recently so you'll be leaving tomorrow." She replied. My eyes widened. "Uh, okay then. Thank you!" I said and TJ and I began walking back to the hotel. 

"I thought we had six days to prepare!" TJ said, angry that we had less time than we thought. "It's fine. We'll be fine." I said, trying to calm her and myself down. We walked back to the hotel in silence. 

When we got back to our room, I immediately tore the envelope open and grabbed the two items inside. One was a letter and the other was an odd-looking card. "What does it say?" TJ asked, referring to the letter. "I'll read it aloud," I said.

"Dear Farah,

I'm hoping beyond hope that this letter has reached you. Something is wrong but I don't know what it is. Some of the people here are acting odd, as if it's not really them. Then, yesterday, they began to get violent and started attacking other people. 

They were subdued by other civilians here but I don't think this is the end of it. I've been staying at a hotel down the street from where the mayor is living. The receptionist is a nice guy but something is off about him. I can't put my thumb on it, but something about him feels wrong, like he isn't supposed to be here. 

Not to mention I feel like I bring watched. You need to go to the hotel I was staying at. It's called Valley Inn. My room number is 717 and it's on the seventh floor. I'll be waiting for you there. Also, in this envelope is a card. It has thirty-seven points on it and is yours to spend. For now, heed my warning. Don't trust anyone you didn't enter the city with.

P.S. Never go anywhere without a weapon on you and never go anywhere alone, no matter what!"

My eyes widened. "Wait, isn't this the Valley Inn?" She said. My eyes shot open and I ran out into the hallway with TJ following right behind me. Instead of taking the elevator, I went straight up the stairs to the next floor, the seventh floor. 

I ran down the hallway and skidded to a stop upon the sight of room 717. I reached my hand forward. "Wait," TJ whispered. "What?" I whispered back. "The door is opened," TJ replied. I looked at the door and noticed she was right. 

I quietly opened the door and slipped inside with TJ right behind me. I scanned the room in shock. The tv was smashed, and there was a hole in the closet wall that went all the way through. The bed was torn to pieces with fluff everywhere and the nightstands were barely standing. 

The digital alarm clock was shattered on the other side of the room. "Farah!" TJ whispered frantically. She was standing at the entrance to the bathroom and I ran over to her. I looked in the bathroom and covered my mouth with my hand. "Oh God," I muttered, my voice shaky. 

The sink was smashed to pieces with water all over the floor and the bathtub wasn't doing any better, missing half a wall. The worst part was the smell of blood and rot. Blood was everywhere but there was no sign of a body except for the rotten smell. "I think we should leave," TJ muttered, her voice as shaky as mine. 

I walked back into the mine room and ran over to one of the nightstands. I ripped the drawer out and dug my knife into the bottom but it didn't budge. I ran over to the other one, faintly aware of the tears streaming down my cheeks. 

I ripped the drawer out and nearly dropped my knife when the bottom of the drawer lifted up, revealing a secret bottom. Inside I found a letter with bloodstains on it. I took the letter out and stuffed it into my pocket. 

"I don't think it's safe here. Not in this hotel. Not in this room. Since we leave for the expedition tomorrow, we'll stay one more night and take turns keeping watch." I said, drying my tears. "Let's head back to the room and I'll read this letter," I said. "Okay," TJ said, gulping. 

We took the elevator down to the sixth floor and walked to our room. TJ closed and locked the door behind us and we sat on the bed. I carefully opened the letter and found that it contained three items. The first of which was a letter which I grabbed first and read aloud.

"There is no time for pleasantries. I don't know what just attacked me, but it's gone now. I killed it. However unbelievable it may sound, it was a real monster. When I injured it, blood came out. However, when I shot it in the head, it disintegrated into nothing, dropping a purple crystal and a marble. 

I believe that, whatever attacked me, came from the tower. I've decided to go into hiding until the expedition tomorrow. This will also give me time to patch up the wounds this monster has inflicted upon me. I don't know where I will go so I don't have a location to give you. However, I need to leave this hotel quickly. I'll see you soon Farah."

"Thank god!" TJ said, breathing a sigh of relief. I nodded. I placed my hand over my heart and tried to quiet the loud booming in my ears. "Are you okay?" TJ asked, placing a worried hand on my back. "Ya, I just- I thought- the blood..." I said, feeling tears welling up in my eyes again.

TJ wrapped me in a hug. "She's safe. It's okay! You'll see her tomorrow, okay?" She said. I nodded into her shoulder as she continued to hug me. "Thank you," I mumbled into her shoulder, feeling slightly embarrassed.

"It's okay." She replied, rubbing my back gently. I sighed as the information that my sister was safe and sound finally hit me. I smiled. "Alright, it's two p.m. so we have four hours until dinner. Want to see if there's anything to do in this city?" I asked, glancing over at the digital clock on the nightstand.

"Sure." She replied, giving me a bright smile that made my chest tighten. I gave her a smile back. "I think I saw a cafe as we were walking to the mayor's office. Want to see if we can get some coffee?" I asked.

She groaned. "That damn cafe better be open. I haven't had coffee in so long." I gave her a sheepish smile and rubbed the back of my head when she gave me an accusing look. "Sorry. I forgot I had run out of coffee at my house and I wouldn't have pegged my cousin's family as coffee-free." I said.

She crossed her arms. I gulped. "We'll see if we can find somewhere we can buy groceries after we hit up the cafe. We can grab some coffee pods and a coffee maker." I offered. She nodded her head. "Good." She said. I laughed and after a moment, so did she.

After a moment, she cleared her throat. "I am deadly serious about my coffee though." She said. I nodded, a smile still on my face. "I know," I replied. I grabbed the card with the points on it and tucked it into my back pocket.

She grabbed her leather jacket and I grabbed mine and we left the hotel. We saw more people on the sidewalks than earlier, but there were still so few. We walked up to the cafe and when we walked in, the cashier jumped and gave us a nervous smile. I noticed there was only one other person in the store.

"Do you serve coffee?" I asked. She nodded. "Yup, we have everything you see on the menu." She replied. I nodded. I felt compelled to ask considering it's not like there are a ton of factories still out there producing products so I don't imagine it would be easy to get stock.

"I'll take a coffee, black," I said. She nodded and looked at TJ. "What can I get for you?" She asked. "Can I get a mocha frappe with no whip cream?" TJ asked. She nodded and rang it up on the register. "That'll be one point per coffee. Would you like to pay separately or together?" She asked.

"Together," I replied. I swiped the card and she nodded. "Would you like that to go would you like to have that here?" She asked. I looked at TJ. It was up to her. "We'll have it here!" TJ replied excitedly. We walked over to a table in the corner of the cafe and sat down.

"This place feels so..." I said, feeling at a loss for words. "Normal?" TJ offered. I nodded. "I've gotten so used to seeing the destruction and the infected at every corner that it feels almost illegal for things to seem this normal," I said. This time, it was her turn to nod. 

"I know what you mean. It's almost hard to believe this is real. The apocalypse, the tower, even this city." She replied. The silence between us was interrupted by the clack of a tray as the cashier brought us our coffee and I realized she was the only one working here.

"Thank you," I told her. She nodded, her cheeks red as she walked away. When she got back behind the counter, she wouldn't stop staring at me. "The cashier lady is creepy," I said quietly. TJ nearly choked on her frappe as she laughed.

I looked at her, confused. When she saw I was serious, she started laughing again. "I'm serious. She won't stop staring at me." I said. After a few moments, TJ finally calmed down. "Farah, she's staring at you because she thinks your hot." She said, laughing again.

My cheeks started burning and I realized she was right. I buried my face into my hands in embarrassment. "Oh, no!" She laughed. "Come on! I promise I won't make fun of you!" She said, still laughing. "Stop laughing," I grumbled, still thoroughly embarrassed.

After a few more moments, she stopped laughing. "I stopped laughing, okay?" She said, her voice sweet. I grumbled something unintelligible and unburied my face, crossing my arms as I looked away from TJ.

I took a sip from my cup of coffee and savored the hot, bitter taste. "The coffee's good," I muttered. She started giggling again and I turned to glare at her but I was stopped in my tracks at the sight of her.

Her mouth was open in a wide smile and she was laughing, her forest green eyes staring directly into my blue ones. Her long brown hair was wild and her cheeks were red from laughing and from the cold. Freckless flitted across her cheeks and over the ridge of her nose. 

She had dimples on either side of her mouth that only made the sight of her laughing that much more beautiful. She looked like an angel. She stopped laughing but didn't stop staring me in the eyes. "Is something wrong?" She softly.

"No." I breathed, my chest tightening and my heart feeling like it was about to burst. "Then what's with that look on your face?" She breathed back, leaning forward slightly. "What look?" I mumbled, finding it hard to think straight. Literally.

The spell was broken by the sound of the front door bursting open and someone screaming. TJ and I both shot out of our seats and looked at the woman. The cashier seemed to recognize her and ran to her. "What's wrong Fanny?" She asked. 

Fanny looked terrified. "There's an infected inside the walls!" She screeched. TJ and I looked at each other, having a silent conversation. After coming to a silent conclusion, I downed the rest of my coffee, and her doing the same. "Where did you see the infected ma'am?" TJ asked.

"They're by the gate!" She screeched again. We nodded. We ran out of the store and towards the gate. We both took out our knives. We approached the gate and saw multiple infected chasing after civilians.

"Let's split up. We'll get more that way. If you need help, shout." I said. She nodded and we split off. I buried my knife into the brain of the infected trying to eat a guy. Another infected came up behind me and I kicked it away. I ripped my knife out and stabbed the other infected in the head.

The infected dropped dead and I noticed three infected approaching TJ from behind while she struggled with the one in front of her. "TJ, behind you!" I shouted, but she didn't seem to hear me. Behind me, I saw a woman about to get eaten alive by an infected.

My eyes flitted back and forth between the two. The woman didn't have a weapon and she was too scared to move. If I saved her first, it wouldn't matter how fast I ran, I wouldn't reach TJ in time. "Shit. Shit. Shit!" I shouted and began running.




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