A L A

"It's official." My hand cupped my sister's chin. I turned her head to the side to get a better view of the darkening bruise on her cheek. "Rudy is dead."

Sancha's face was impassive. "He technically is, you know. Being a Carrier and all."

"Half-dead isn't quite dead enough for me. I'm going to kill him."

"Yes, do that." Mano yanked a chair from its place at the table, flipping it around and straddling it. He took a sip from a steel flask. "Seeing as your first attempt went very well indeed."

I shot a glare over my shoulder. "Can you just not make noises with your mouth for ten minutes?"

Mano's eyebrows climbed. He raised his hands in mock surrender.

I turned to my sister. I brushed back her hair, my thumb nail scraping over the metal plate on her forehead. "Sancha, I trust you more than anyone in the world. You've always been the better planner and the faster thinker. I'll always support you no matter what. Are you absolutely sure about this?"

Sancha grabbed my wrist, the blisters on her palm rasping against my skin. She glared at me, her mouth set in a firm line. "Yeah."

" 'Course you are," I sighed. "What's the plan?"

Mano raised a brow. "Can I talk now?"

"Has it been ten minutes?"

"Can we pretend it has?"

Sancha's grip on my wrist tightened. "Let him talk."

"Thank you." Mano stretched his leg out, rolling up his pant leg to expose a dull steel shell. He knocked twice against his calf, and a small compartment popped out. He unfurled a thin, use-softened map over the table. "Can we first take a moment to appreciate how really fucking far away we are? This is a twelve-hour road trip, and we can't all fit on my motorcycle."

Sancha dropped my wrist, heading over to the table. "How long would it be on foot?"

"From my experience? About a week and a half, give or take. And that's just reaching it."

I bent over the map. "What about on horseback?"

"I wouldn't know. Two, three days, maybe?"

"What route?"

His finger trailed over the yellow vein. "If we take this highway to Nuevo Leon, we can avoid Zeta territory."

Sancha growled. "If we take a highway, we'll run into Node checkpoints."

"And?"

I push away from the table, pacing restlessly. "And Heart Hunting is illegal under NODE. Not that we even have anything to confiscate, which is what we should really be focusing on. Before we plan our route to the Quarantine Zone, we should start looking for a nearby Cure. "

"Well, we already screwed up our last two prospects." Mano shrugged. "Third time's the charm?"

Sancha tapped a finger on San Luis Potosí. "Why avoid Zeta? They let people hunt down hearts. If we go this route, we can pick up a Cure on the way there."

Mano shook his head. "There are hardly any Carriers left in Zeta."

"We don't need a Carrier. All we need is a Heart Hunter's stash."

"Ah," Mano observed, leaning back appreciatively. "That is true. Does the highway branch off into San Luis?"

"Right here."

"If we stop by the reserve, we can pick up resources."

"Think we might run into wild Walkers?"

"Maybe, but if we're careful..."

The door squeaked, and everyone froze. Sancha's fingers twitched toward her cracked Iron Man mask.

Teddy swung the door open the rest of the way. He made as if to hook his thumbs in his pockets, but his thumbs slid over the smooth, pocketless fabric of his grey NODE uniform. He stared at his hands like he didn't quite know what to do with them.

Sancha's fingers curled into a fist. She bent over the map protectively. "How did you find us?"

Teddy raised an eyebrow. "How many times did Ala drill us about the backup of the backup meeting spot?"

"Good point." She turned around, her eyes narrowed. "Where's Rudy?"

"At the old church, playing a video game." He leaned against the doorway with a crooked, slashing smile. "I'm alone, if that's what you're asking."

"Why are you here?"

He turned to me, his fingers tapping against his sleeve. "Ala, can I talk to you in private?"

"What for?"

"It's a surprise."

Sancha snarled, "What makes you think she'll—?"

"Fine." I walked past him into the dark, urged by the whispers of the night insects. "Make it quick."

He strode behind me silently, staring at my face like he'd never seen it before. That's when I realized this was the first time he'd seen me without the headscarf. I stopped, turning my face towards the shadows.

He raised his hand and I flinched, my muscles tensing. I forced myself to calm down and tried to slow my breathing.

Teddy scratched his jaw. "Are you afraid of being alone?"

I turned to face him with a scowl. "Who says I am?"

"I smell fear."

"It's you I'm afraid of, genius."

"Oh." A monstrous grin spread over his mutilated face. "Smart."

My eyes narrowed deeper. "What's this about?"

"You couldn't beat me or Rudy." He turned away, rubbing the back of his neck. "So you'll — you're going after other Carriers, aren't you?"

"Are you going to talk me out of it?"

He rushed at me, and I raised my arms in defense. When dared to peek between the gap, he stood in front of me, blinking shining, watery eyes. His teeth dug into the corner of his bottom lip. "Please. I just want to understand why. I don't want to believe you're a bad person."

"Why the Hell does it matter?" I shoved him, but his body didn't even move. It was like trying to push a boulder in a bulletproof vest. I clenched my jaw, biting back a yell. "Of course you get to sit high and mighty on your goddamn Moral Mountain. You can knock my head off without even breaking a sweat. But not all of us can afford to be soft."

"I know you don't mean that."

"Oh? Can you smell it with that Carrier super-sense?" I storm past him, heading back to the cabin. "Because you're wrong."

"So what you're saying is you wouldn't mind exchanging Sancha's heart for mine."

I did a double-take, stumbling to a stop. "What?!"

"Ha!" He pointed at me, grinning. "So you won't! I knew it!"

"What the Hell are you talking about?!"

"Oh, nothing." He turned and skipped away. "I got the answer I wanted. Toodles."

"Hey! Get back here and explain yourself!"

"Oh, I can smell your fear fading away. We're back on the path of friendship!"

"What? Hey!" I catch the back of his shirt. "I'm not joking, dammit!"

He stopped and glanced down at me over his shoulder. "I had a sister once. About Sancha's age. If Holly needed me to kill a stranger and rip their heart out, I'd do it. Wouldn't even hesitate."

"Your sister." I blinked. "The one buried in the clearing by the Market Road."

"That's the one."

"But she wouldn't have become a Walker. She would've been a Carrier. If you'd Turned her, she'd—"

"Still be alive. Or half-alive. Yeah." He smiled brightly. "I know."

I pulled back, clasping my wrist. "Did you... think about it?"

"I was ready to do it before I even knew this was genetic. Before I knew why I was different from the rest of the Infected."

"Why didn't you?"

"She asked me not to." He turned his face toward the moon. "Sometimes I wish I hadn't. Sometimes I'm glad I didn't. I wouldn't want her to be hunted like I am. This isn't living. I wouldn't wish this on anyone."

I grit my teeth. "I need the Cure."

He shrugged, starting to walk away.

For a few seconds I let him go. Then I swing Honey into my hands and fire into the sky. "Teddy, you sonovagun! I'm sorry, okay!? For all of you!"

He stopped. He turned.

He flashed me a thumbs up and a small, sweet smile. "Okay."

I kept my face down as I walked back into the cabin, pushing the door shut.

Sancha glared. "What's wrong? Did that idiot do something to you?"

"Everything's wrong." I crossed my arm over my eyes, letting my shirt sleeves soak up my tears as I raised my head. "But it'll be okay."

"What's that supposed to mean?"

"Nothing." I let myself smile. "Forget about it. Let's hunt us some hearts."