"Okay, guys, if Kytan's information is right, you should be on top of the Riders pretty soon." Sam pauses, and the silence in the air is heavy. "Now, are you sure you want to go through with this, Nadia?"

"Not really," She replies, obviously uncomfortable. "But who better to infiltrate a biker gang, right? This was never going to be safe, but this is the safest time. The Riders are weaker than they've ever been with infighting and accusing each other of losing their ecstasy refinery. It's the perfect time to plant someone on the inside so we can take them down forever. So that when Veronica does come up with a solution for the V-Type situation, they won't get in our way."

"Now, Nadia," Amelia tsks over the headset, "I've told you about saying 'we'. Abel and Fort Canton are not one and the same."

"Once again, Amelia, not sure you're fully grasping the spirit of a joint operation."

I giggle at the exasperation in Sam's voice, and Nadia simply rolls her eyes.

"I'll be okay. Just as long as Kytan can get me into the gang safely."

The man in question smiles assuringly, happily. "Don't worry. Since the Ministry fell, I've been all over the country trying to help people with Moonchild Syndrome. It's mostly faded now, but for some people, it's worse than ever. A couple of Rider sufferers came to me for herbal medicine a few weeks ago. They owe me a favor."

Him saying that does little to put me at ease. I probably shouldn't feel this way, since I'm not the one putting my life out on the line. I knew this idea was up in the air, but yesterday when Janine came into the coms shack and told us this was what we were doing, I was shocked.

Milo was furious when he heard that Nadia was the one being sent off. He tried to argue, but Janine shut him down faster than I'd ever seen. He found it's a lot harder to argue with Janine that it is to argue with me, but I understand his fear. Nadia is his friend. It's pretty obvious she's not told him about the Rofflenet messages Veronica's sent her, probably to save his feelings and also because it's none of his business anyway. I still feel like it's mostly because of the former.

Milo's lost a lot of people he cared about-Caleb, Willis, Penelope, Veronica, me a few times, and he even looked up to Simon as runner before he betrayed us to Van Ark.

He's afraid of losing another friend.

"Yeah," Nadia, says, breaking me out of my thoughts. "We've heard rumors there is actually some kind of leader inside the Riders, even though they claim to be anarchists. We need someone to get close enough to find out what's going on in there. But yeah. I am scared."

"Just remember," Amelia butts in, "I'm only risking Nadia on this little escapade because I expect full disclosure on intelligence. If anything can help me win over other settlements, it's insight on the Riders."

I can hear the eyeroll in Sam's voice when he speaks. "Still treating the country like a giant game of Risk with your ex?"

"I keep telling you people, Brent's vulnerable. Now is the time to make alliances against him before everybody's on his side. Janine's blind if she can't see that."

"Maybe she thinks you're incredibly untrustworthy, because you are, in fact, incredibly untrustworthy."

"And what have I done recently that makes you so skeptical?"

"Besides the fact that like, two months ago you tried to convince my wife to move to Fort Canton and abandon Abel?"

Before Amelia can answer, the rumble of motorcycles reach my ears. I glance over to Nadia and Kytan, waiting for instruction.

"The engines revving from the quarry-that must be the Riders," Kytan says, as if it isn't obvious, as if tons of other people ride around on loud-ass motorcycles in the apocalypse.

I take a deep breath, biting back the sarcastic comment I'm dying to give. "Must be. We need to hurry before they move on for this plan to work. Let's pick up the pace."

Pumping my legs a bit harder, I go back to my silence. The little blobs in the distance become more pronounced the closer we get, turning more and more into the disgusting people we know as the Last Riders. They scream and holler like they always do, and I roll my eyes from the obnoxiousness. Do they not get tired of that? Do they not lose their voices from all that screaming?

I suppose using logic to try to explain anything they do will get me nowhere, but I still can't help but wonder what's going through their heads when they do this. How does riding around on their bikes doing nothing of value entertaining? At least Abel's version of fun isn't obnoxious...

Well, Demons and Darkness can be obnoxious at times, but even when Sam and the others get loud, they don't get this loud.

"Yep, that's definitely them," Kytan says as we slow to a stop, crouching down as we watch them ride down into a quarry.

"What tipped you off?" Nadia asks sarcastically. "The fact that they're riding around, swinging burning bras or the skull motifs on their jackets?"

"So wasteful," I murmur. "Do they know how hard it is to get a decent bra in an apocalypse?"

I huff. Although the ones they're burning would be too big for me, I can think of about ten women in Abel who would make great use of them, and here they are burning them because they think it's funny. There are women in the Last Riders! Even they could have used those bras!

"Uh, guys, I've got a couple cams up in the area. Looks like there are about... thirty Riders spread out across the quarry. I wouldn't get too close," Sam warns.

Kytan nods towards two the of Riders with matching red dreads. "See those two? That's Barb and Harley. They're the ones that owe me. They'll get us in, but then it's up to you, Nadia. The Riders will take anyone with flash motor skills."

"The graffiti on their bikes is rather sad, isn't it?" Amelia hums. "I can't help noticing they've misspelled the word 'Riders'. And the word 'Last'."

"'The Lost Ryders,'"I read with a chuckle, but it fades rather quickly. "Unfortunately, that comes with the fact that some of these people were probably still in school when the apocalypse happened. There's a reason I have Milo and Jody help me whenever I have a problem with anything related to math and why I ask Sam to proofread any letters I write."

"I feel kind of bad for them, to be honest," Kytan says, eyes full of sympathy. "Barb and Harley, they said they only joined the Riders because they didn't trust any settlement telling them things were going to get better."

Sam scoffs, and I picture his lips curling into a sneer. "Oh, what? So, they settled for looting, arson and pillaging instead?"

He frowns. "Look, the Riders are mostly just lost kids. Or... they were kids when they joined and grew up into this. They look around the world, and all they see is a wasteland full of backstabbing factions. A lot of them think this is a more honest way to live."

"Yeah, well, let's not forget these are the people who almost blew up Parliament. And fed zombie blood to ravers for a laugh. And tried to raid the Long Way Home convoy, which was actually full of lost children."

"Thanks for the reminder, Sam," Nadia says, and I notice how she's paled significantly. "Just in case I wasn't scared enough already. I guess there's no point putting off the inevitable."

"Hey." I place my hand on her shoulder and hope the look I give her is assuring. "I'll be here to get you out if things go south. I won't let you get hurt." I look around. "I'm going to go to those bushes overlooking the quarry. The view will be better. Kytan, go with Nadia. You need to be the one to introduce her."

Nadia still looks fearful, as I figured she would. Just because there's backup doesn't mean she's no longer worried, not that I would expect her to be. The atmosphere puts everyone at unease. It's cold, the sky is gray, and we're about a week away from Halloween, making this a terrifying time to join a group of anarchists who enjoy a spot of murder from time to time.

I turn and head off while Kytan and Nadia head down into the quarry to meet the Last Riders. Since Kytan is known by some of them, maybe things will go alright. I want to hope they will, but why does he think they'll do as he asks just because he helped them? It's pretty clear they don't follow any moral compass.

Kytan's fatal flaw is that he's always been too trusting. First it was with Ian, and now it is with the Riders.

His trust in Ian cost Penelope her life. I won't let his trust in the Riders do the same thing to Nadia.

That's why I race to get up to the bushes. It's a long way down, much to my dismay, but I think the slope isn't too steep for me to run down without tipping and falling if I have to head in and get Nadia and Kytan out.

Once I reach the bushes, I crouch down and ignore the feeling of the leaves and twigs brushing against my clothes. My gaze narrows in on some of the people that have stopped riding around like idiots and are now talking to Kytan, who gestures to Nadia. They don't seem to have any malice looks on their faces, and for the moment I find no bloodlust in their eyes.

Still, the looks they wear aren't exactly welcoming.

"You're in position, Five. Can you see everything okay?" Sam asks.

"Mhm. Got a pretty good view from here." My focus moves from Nadia and Kytan to one of the Riders. It's hard to see from here, even more so since the bits of his sleeve that aren't ripped keep covering it, but I think he has a tattoo of-

Oh. I swallow. That's disturbing.

"Good. I-God, did you see that?" Sam's words make me snap my focus back to Nadia and Kytan, although the vision of that tattoo is still burned into my mind, giving me a deep sense of unease.

"You mean the poor unfortunate in the leather bodysuit with a bucket on his head?" Amelia guesses. "Honestly, it's like Mad Max is the only film they've ever seen."

"No, no, I mean the wheelie stunt Nadia just pulled. She had the whole bike turning on a sixpence!"

"Oh, yes. She's good at that. I keep meaning to tell Janine that Nadia's flourishing far more under my command than she ever did at Abel."

"Right," He says, drawing out the word.

"I wonder if the same thing would happen with Five."

"Too bad we'll never find out," I spit. "No offense, Amy, but New Canton-"

"Fort Canton."

"Whatever. It's not really my thing. Thanks for the offer though."

"Well, as I told you before, it still stands, even though you annoy me as much as you intrigue me."

"Such a shame you just annoy me, otherwise there might be a chance my reply wouldn't be a constant no."

"Well, back to the mission at hand," Sam chimes in, "everything's looking pretty good."

I cringe. Why did he have to say that? Now there's a definite chance something will go wrong.

My eyes follow Nadia as she rides around. All the Riders have stopped now and made a ring around her. Some of them are even cheering as she does another wheelie on her bike.

"Five, Sam, do you read?" Kytan asks. "We're good down here. The Riders want to take Nadia on a rabbit hunt as an initiation. I'm heading back to base. You know, hunting animals clashes with my karmic vibe."

I flinch at the word 'karmic', reminding me a bit too much of Moonchild, who thankfully has been quiet these past few months. One less thing for me to worry about.

"Rabbit hunting?" Sam repeats. "That's a bit Elmer Fudd, but okay. Five, those bikes are moving out. Better keep an eye on them just in case. It could still turn nasty for Nadia. Run behind them at a steady pace and don't let them see you, okay?"

I nod, standing from my position and watching as the bikers start riding out, whooping and hollering and smiling, almost as if this is just a fun outing. "Roger that."

•

"Good going, Five. You're keeping pace, just out of sight."

"Yeah, but it's getting kind of hard since they're speeding so quickly down the road," I pant, cold sweat running down my face. "How fast do they think these rabbits are going to be?"

"Look at Nadia go!" Amelia exclaims. "Her bike keeps pulling well ahead of the rest. I helped her build it, you know."

"Sam! Sam!" Nadia calls, and there's panic in her voice. My eyes widen, heart stopping for just a second.

"Yeah, yeah, we read you, Nadia," He says. "Careful. The Riders can't see your concealed earpiece, but they might see your mouth moving."

"Had to risk it. They told me to keep driving north. Have you got a map of the area ahead of us?"

"Uh, uh, yeah. It's uh... hold on, it's on my desk." Papers rustle as he scrambles for the map. "Ah, yeah. Uh, looks like the road you're on leads straight to a settlement called... Minnowsdale."

"The way some of these Riders are talking, I don't think rabbit hunt means hunting a rabbit. I think it means hunting people." Her breathing is fast, her voice holding nothing but terror. "It sounds like they're going to raid that settlement and run down any survivors."

'They're just lost kids', Kytan says. 'They see this as a more honest way of living.' I grit my teeth. I knew it! I knew he was too trusting of these people!

"Oh, that's interesting," Amelia says casually, which leaves Sam choking on his words.

"No, Amelia, that's horrifying!"

"But it tells us something about their mindset, doesn't it? They see anyone outside the gang as a prey animal."

"You have to do something, Sam. I can't kill innocent people!" Nadia cries.

"No! No, of course not. Um... just let me think." Sam's voice shakes and he frantically mumbles under his breath as he tries to come up with a plan.

"Five, I'm sure by now you've noticed one of the tattoos that was on a certain Rider," Amelia pipes up, and my face scrunches up, my eyes closing in pain and disgust at the memory.

"Yeah, I saw it. It was my head on a spike, probably because of how many times I've foiled their plans."

She hums in agreement. "And because you're seen as a hero that could bring back the world from this hell we're in. They recognize how much people put you on a pedestal. They probably think killing you would crush more spirits than anything, meaning they probably want to kill you way more than some random villagers. You could pop up in front of them and lure them away from the poor, innocent town that's probably filled with puppies and orphans and whatnot."

Sam sighs heavily, painfully. "Callista, I hate to say it, but she's right."

"I know," I reply.

"I-I'm sorry! I-I just-I just don't see any other option." I think I hear him mutter something about how he didn't want his mistakes to put my life in danger, and I wonder if he's thinking about the comment I made about it yesterday. He did seem very effected by it. "Cut through the woods as fast as you can to get ahead of the bikers, then lead them away from the road. Don't worry. We'll come up with something to make sure they don't actually get you. I won't let them kill you. Just hurry."

I sharply turn and start racing for the woods, my legs already starting to burn as my feet leave the cracked asphalt of the road and hit dirt and grass. I reach the trees, taking in gasps of cool air that does nothing but sting my lungs. I can still hear the motorcycles rumbling, and this road should turn slightly, and that's where I'll be waiting for them to find me.

But I have to get there first. There's no set path here in the woods, and so I must watch out for rocks, for roots of the trees that stick out of the ground and wait there to trip me. This though is the easy part. The hard part will be trying outrun people on motorbikes.

I try not to think of what may happen if I'm caught and they find out I can't die. I know I'll be okay. I know Sam won't let anything bad happen to me, but like Nadia was earlier, I'm afraid.

Fear is such a tricky thing, I'm noticing. Fear keeps a person alive, but it can hinder them from doing what needs to be done. I won't be like that. I can't be like that.

So I head through the words, twisting and twirling around the trees until I've reached the bend in the road on the other side. I slow my pace a bit to catch my breath and to let the Riders catch up without leading them to believe I've been waiting for them. If I were to do that, they'd become suspicious of Nadia.

Step after step, my breathing harsh and heavy, my heartbeat pounding in my ears as I simply just wait to be caught.

I hear them coming just a minute later, and I make sure to look at them over my shoulder, allow them to see my face, the slight bit of the front of my shirt that says 'ABEL RUNNER 5' on it. My eyes go wide, the shock and fear on my face very much real before I turn off the road and sprint.

"It's Abel Runner Five! Get her!" Someone yells, as if it needed to be said, and then they're all coming after me. They scream and laugh, yelling out taunts that I don't really catch because they're all being so loud all at once. I don't really want to guess what they might be saying. They already threatened to eat my toes. I don't know how much more creative they can get than that.

"I'm really sorry about this, Five," Nadia says lowly through the headset, which admittedly makes me feel worse than better. "Keep going as fast as you can. The lead Rider's just given me a grenade launcher. I think they want me to blow you up."

"Of course they do," Sam and I both sigh in unison. We both know I'd survive it. I mean, Peter survived being blown up by something much stronger than a grenade, but I don't want to think of how I'd explain that, or how the process of me healing would go. I can only imagine the burning pain. It would be excruciating. I'd probably wish I had just died.

So I swallow down the burning in my legs and keep running.

"Well, at least going off-road has slowed them down a little." He pauses. "Any ideas, Amelia?"

"Off the top of my head, we could let them kill Five. You know, Nadia would have been happy to do it once upon a time."

"Not helping," He growls, and she sighs dramatically.

"Alright, if you're going to give me that sulky face. Five, there's an old abandoned brewery a few miles from your position. There should still be beer in the vats. I've been keeping an eye on it for a while."

"Hang on. You found the last full brewery in the United Kingdom and you didn't tell anyone about it?"

"It's not the last one. And actually, I told Nadia about it in case she needed a little extra treat to win the Riders over. But I do believe killing Runner Five ought to make them like her even more."

"Just to be clear, darling, nobody is going to kill you."

I frown. He says it with such force, such belief, but I can still feel that hint of fear there in his voice. Just the thought of me being hurt scares him, even though he knows I'll eventually be okay. God, he's such a good partner. He has no idea.

"Probably not, anyway," Amelia says, completely shattering all the lovely thoughts I was having. "When you get to the brewery, Five, head straight to one of the upper gantries. I have a plan. But you'd better hurry! Those bikers are almost on you. Run, rabbit, run!"

She laughs, but no one else does.

"Come on, Sam. Admit it, that was funny."

"It really wasn't."

"The fact that people keep referring me as prey animals is actually quite creepy, especially since I probably have a higher kill count than any of you," I say, but then cringe, because it almost sounds as if I'm proud that I'm technically a mass murderer, which I'm not. I'm anything but proud.

But it's still weird. Amelia says I'm a rabbit, the Warden from the prison called me 'Little Mouse'. It's disturbing and uncomfortable.

The Riders keep calling me 'Little Abel', which is less creepy but still very high on the creep meter. I hear some of them say something about making jewelry out of my entrails, and Sam shudders so violently he nearly falls from his chair, although he goes silent when Amelia starts mumbling about the plan. I don't really catch any of it because of the screaming behind me.

That's why I'm thankful when I reach the brewery, because it gives me one small moment of silence, the only sounds being my footsteps as I take the stairs to the upper gantry, heading towards the vats. I can hear them coming from outside as they get closer. Even steel walls can't keep out their screams, it seems.

The door opens again, and then the rumble of a single bike reaches my ears.

"Five, I'm the first one into the brewery. I can see you on one of the upper gantries over the big beer vats," Nadia says.

"Nadia, when we give you the signal, shoot the grenade launcher at Five," Sam instructs, and I choke.

"What?" She screeches.

"Don't worry. Amelia's told me the plan. We're going to fake Five's death."

I blink, take a moment to process his words, then burst into giggles.

"What's so funny?"

"This would be the second time my death has been faked, which isn't a lot, but it's kind of funny that this has happened twice. And it'll be the third time people will be lying that I'm dead."

"Oh. Yeah, I guess so," He chuckles.

"So, what is the plan, exactly?"

"Five, at the exact moment she fires, you jump into the open beer vat beneath you," Amelia instructs. "The gantry will collapse, and it'll look like you were killed in the explosion. Or you might actually be killed in the explosion. Exciting, isn't it?"

"Funny you think a grenade would be enough to kill me."

"Don't get cocky now. You're not as big and bad and indestructible as you think you are."

"You have no idea," I murmur before my attention is brought to the other Riders enter the brewery.

"Yeah, yeah. The runner's up on the top gantry," Nadia says, and I take a step back, looking afraid, trapped. "I have a clear shot."

"Fire... now!" Sam shouts, and she fires the grenade launcher. "Five, jump!"

I grab the railing and throw myself over it, the gantry exploding as I fall into the vat. The sound hides the splash, and I nearly choke when small gulps of beer get into my mouth and slide down my throat. I nearly gag. It tastes like what I imagine piss tastes like. Did people actually drink this before the apocalypse? I don't even think it has that much alcohol content. What the hell is the point?

"Wow. Okay, I managed to get a cam up in the brewery," Sam says, although his voice is muffled from being under... beer. "I-I saw you dive into that vat. Good job, sweetheart! The Riders are lifting Nadia into the air and cheering. God, that must be heavy with her bike. Yeah, she's definitely one of them now."

"And you owe me your life, Runner Five," Amelia hums. "Which is nice. Honestly, one of these days you people are going to realize that trusting me is the smartest ways to go."

He ignores her. "Keep yourself submerged in the beer for cover. I know you've been holding your breath for a minute, but just hold on a little bit longer. Okay... it looks like the Riders are trying to work out how to drain one of the other vats. They're distracted. Just slip over the side of your vat and sneak out of the brewery. Then you'd better run. It looks like Nadia's doing fine without us."

•

"Your teeth are chattering."

"N-N-No shit," I shiver, my hair sticking to my face. "I s-soaked and it's c-cold out here. And I s-s-smell like beer."

"Yeah. You're definitely going to need to shower when you get back. I'm sure you won't feel comfortable when that dries," Sam says. "But you're okay. You're safe. That's what matters."

I smile softly. "Yeah. I'll f-feel a whole l-lot better though once I-I'm with you and a b-blanket."

"So will I."

"You know," Amelia says, cutting into the moment as always, "you Abel people pretend to die a lot. And you call me the con artist."

"Zoey told me you tried to name three of the former Ministry babies after yourself in case you needed, quote unquote, 'future plausible deniability'," Sam deadpans.

"Oh, nonsense. I was trying to give them the best plausible start in life."

He scoffs, and I'm sure he's rolling his eyes like I am mine. "Yeah. And speaking of phony identities, Callista, you're going to have to lie low for a while now that the Riders think you're dead. But on the plus side, Janine is getting a lovely Runner Ninety-three shirt for you to wear."

"D-Does Abel even have ninety-three r-runners?" I ask, gritting my teeth as I try to stop this painful chattering.

"Not sure. I don't think the Riders would ask though."

"And Nadia?" Amelia asks. "I do want her back safe, you know. She's one of Fort Canton's best assets."

"Relax. We look after our people," He replies, his voice holding a slight jab. "Paula and Tom are going to take turns monitoring Nadia while she's undercover. But she could be there for a while. We need to know everything we can about the Riders if we're going to have a chance of beating them. Alright, Five, head back to base. And uh, yeah. Good job escaping certain death. Again."

I shrug, smiling slightly, as if it wasn't horrifying, as if the damage done wouldn't have been extensive if I hadn't been fast enough.

"Yeah. Again."

A/N: Here you go, guys! I have a little announcement. I'm changing some stuff in the timeline, meaning there might be a few (not many) more chapters than I originally though. Don't worry. It's still the same time and year and all that. Just some extra stuff might be added and it might be more than seven months total that take place in this book. Just thought I'd let you know. This book is sort of a work in progesterone since I have school to worry about and all that. Anyway, please be sure to vote and comment! Thank you and have a blessed day!