The Raider Group Leader was driving while the Guard Group Leader sat in the seat across the aisle from me. The Guard barely waited until the tires started moving before he started talking.

"Okay, what were those two doing that you were able to get past them? Did you really walk?"

I shrugged, unsure of exactly how stern this Group Leader was. "At first they were just talking, but then they decided to sit where their view was partially blocked to continue chatting. I came out of the field and climbed up while I was completely out of their line of sight. It was a fast walk, and I was partially crouched over, but I wasn't going that much faster than the average zombie."

He frowned at this news; he was not impressed with the behavior of the trainees. Their actions had put everyone at risk. I had walked across a field and a strip of gravel, and they had neither seen nor heard me.

"Well, after that humiliation they won't be repeating that stunt again," he said, still frowning. "There will be some serious consequences for their reckless behavior. By the time I get done with them, they will be lucky if they can even stand."

His response and intolerance for their irresponsible actions didn't surprise me. Guards were there to protect people, and they usually took their profession very seriously. Those two trainees put two entire groups in jeopardy, and that didn't sit well with him at all. The two delinquents were in for a rude awakening when they figured out just how severe the consequences would be.

The Raider leaned back in his seat a bit so he could see me in the rear-view mirror. His eyes met mine and he spoke softly, not wanting to open emotional wounds, "Diane, are you okay? We were worried when you disappeared. We couldn't find any trace of you."

I took a deep breath as I was once more reminded of what had happened that night. I had known that going back would bring me face to face with the reality of my now-departed friends.

"Kailey, Evan... They were my friends ever since I could remember. My parents are on the other side of the world, if they are even still alive." I exhaled as I closed my eyes. Grief colored my quiet voice as I continued, "Seeing Kailey like that; hearing Evan was gone... It hurt. For a bit, I just couldn't take it. I needed space and time to cope with their loss. Being inside the fence... All of the memories were there. They never went outside of the fence, so there were no memories out there."

The Raider nodded in sympathy. "Will you be okay going back?"

"I should be, the pain is less now."

Silence followed for a few minutes. They also appeared lost in thought and likely had also lost people close to them that dreadful night. I decided to break the silence. There were questions that had been haunting me ever since I jumped the fence when leaving, and I hoped that these two may know the answers.

"What exactly did happen?"

There was a short silence as they gathered their thoughts and put them into words. The Guard went first. "One of the new people turned. At least three people were injured badly enough that they turned immediately. One turned into a Swift. Someone pulled the fire alarm to wake the others up. One of the other new people had hidden a handgun in his belongings. You can guess how things went from there.

"Chaos spread through most of the lower floor of the main building, into two of the other buildings, as well as outside. Someone eventually tackled the Swift into the pool once it was outside, knowing it would be unable to get out of the water easily. We started to get things under control at that point, but so many had turned by then. Those narrow hallways trapped people, making evasion and maneuvering impossible.

"Eventually, we got everything under control, as you know. A small fire had started in the kitchen, but we managed to put it out. Anyone who was bitten was put into isolation. In the morning, we did a thorough scouring of the main building and conducted a headcount of the living, dead, and missing."

He took a deep breath and went on, "Out of the 1304 we originally had, 841 survived, 461 had turned, and two were missing. You were counted among those two."

The Raider picked up the story, his voice still soft, "We knew you had survived to the end because several people had reported seeing you killing zombies. Charlie said you were in bad shape emotionally and likely going into shock after learning about Evan. The three people by the fence reported that you had run towards a Swift that had been chasing them. When we checked, we found the dead Swift and the axe that many had seen you carrying, but you were nowhere to be found. No one had seen you after that point, so we weren't sure what happened."

There was one other person I had to ask about before I started answering their questions. "When the trouble started, I was in the hallway heading towards the weapons room, and I fought off a zombie that had chased a child into one of the bedrooms. Do you know if she survived?"

The Raider surprised me with a sudden quiet laugh. "You were the one who locked that thing in the closet? A girl told us that a lady in Forager leathers used a broom to beat up a zombie. Yes, she was fine, just scared."

I breathed a sigh of relief. Another question popped into my mind. "How did you end up with almost entirely new trainees? No offense, but even at a distance, I could tell that this was one of their first runs."

The Guard answered, "After such heavy casualties, we had to reorganize the groups. It was decided that it would be best to put all of the experienced people into their own groups and allow some of the now-free Group Leaders to accept new trainees. A couple of weeks ago, we encountered another group of people who had picked up our radio broadcast. Over a hundred of them, if you count the infants."

That explained why I hadn't recognized most of the trainees. The Group Leaders must have been doing a training run with new trainees, and I just happened to stumble across them.

The Raider added some new information. "After that last outbreak, new rules were put in place. All new people have to be under supervision of some sort during the day, and at night they have to tie a rope around one of their ankles while ensuring that it is secured to their bed. If anyone turns, they won't be able to get far. It is a good thing we put that rule in place too because someone else from the new group turned, but she had tied her rope so short she had been unable to even get out of her bed once she turned."

He looked at me in the rear-view mirror again. "You realize that you'll have to go through the medical inspection that we give all newcomers since you've been gone for so long, right?"

I had expected this, and if it was anything like my first checkup with the Nurses, it wouldn't be much of an inspection anyway. I had made sure to add more concealer before leaving that field.

I nodded and then grinned at him. "I expected that; besides, I really missed having a shower with hot water."

He burst into laughter at my optimistic rally.

       The rest of the ride back was pretty uneventful. It felt odd to be riding in a vehicle instead of running. We idly talked about what had been going on at the Fort since I left. There wasn't much for me to catch up on since it was mostly normal day-to-day stuff. All of the damage from the fire and zombie outbreak had been repaired.

We discussed which Group Leaders now had trainees. The new Trader group had just left the other day for their first trading session with that group east of us. The Cooks and Nurses had allowed several Raider groups to hit big stores and bring back junk food for a wedding for two of the eldest Commanders. It had really boosted morale.

I made a face when I learned that the Swift was still caged up in the barn. With just the three of us on the bus, they were more forthcoming about recent problems than I had expected. Ammo was low. It wouldn't help with zombies, but there had been a rumor of a small group of bandits attempting to raid several of the settlements.

There were enough chickens to have eggs every day. The fields were coming along nicely and should produce twice as much as we would need, as long as the insects didn't do too much damage. Winter training sessions had been started despite the fact that winter was still months away.

Wainwright Fort was still sending out both Foragers and Raiders to raid empty farms. They were not finding much in the way of livestock anymore, but they were harvesting a fair bit of produce from gardens. Wainwright Fort was stockpiling as much as they could for winter and for trade. Foragers were starting to do much more actual foraging for wild edibles, as well as hunting.

I spoke about some of the things I had seen that would interest them. The huge patches of blackberries in a hidden field just to the east, a large pond stocked with trout, and similar things. There had been untouched stores with weapons in five small towns that I had passed through. Four other towns had huge cardlock stations with both gasoline and diesel that looked untouched as well.

I shared several tips I had learned on my travels, such as how RV rooftops made excellent campgrounds. The Raider found that one hilarious, and he planned to share that tip with others later on. They were reaching their maximum limit for distance unless they decided to sleep outside of the fence. So far, no one had been willing to even think about it.

The Raider was envious of my archery wrist guard and was disappointed to learn that I had only seen one in the store. I had to admit that it was the nicest one I had ever seen.

The Guard was really interested in my sword. I drew it from its sheath and handed it over for him to inspect. He whistled as he examined it. His eyes widened as the edge cut off a piece of a cardboard box like butter.

When I mentioned the label claimed that it was high carbon mono-steel, his eyebrows shot up. Apparently, the modern mono-steel blades were extremely reliable and strong. The Guard inspected the sheath and sword, stating that it wasn't a cheap reproduction just for display, but a very expensive sword.

They didn't even bother trying to see if I would trade for it. Smart guys.

The hour passed by surprisingly quickly, and we arrived at the Fort before I realized it. I gazed out the front window as we pulled up at the loading docks. Nostalgia and memories washed over me. I had really missed this place.

I helped unload the various buses and trailers. By the time I was done, a receptionist was waiting for me. She led me back to the main hall, and we worked out a new schedule. I ensured that I had my hour of running in the morning and evening.

Foraging would take up most of my day once again. I was only in two zombie training classes a week. Apparently, they didn't think that the classes would be of much help since I had been outside of the fence for a month, but the policy now said that two a week was the minimum for all people.

Alex was one of the Group Leaders who now had twelve new trainees, so I was assigned to a lady called Erica. I knew her if I saw her, but that was about it. My schedule started tomorrow, leaving me today to get settled in and cleaned up.

I was given a clean set of clothing and waved down the hall to the showers. The hot water felt luxurious. I made sure to scrub the dirt off my arms and legs, although I didn't use soap around my scar. As I dried off, I checked my scar, relieved that it was still as invisible as it had been three hours ago. It felt great to be clean; the hot water was vastly different from the refreshing, cold lakes.

I left the shower room and realized that a Nurse was patiently waiting for me. It was the same Nurse I had the first time. I grinned at her. "They still have you stuck down here?"

"Yep, it's great! I get to meet all of the new people right away! Welcome back, by the way." Her overly-perky personality immediately reminded me that she likely had some sort of high-test coffee hidden somewhere.

"Come on in," she said.

I was slightly nervous but hid it as I followed her. It wouldn't do to raise suspicion. I stripped down to the new undergarments I had been given. The stethoscope came out, and it was just as cold as before.

She stepped back to take a look at me. With a burst of inspiration, I raised my arms to the side, interlaced my fingers in front of my chest with thumbs facing outward, and spun slowly on one foot like a ballerina. Her attention would be on my body as it moved and it wouldn't give her much time to look for tiny or well-hidden things. Most of the scar was on the outside of my wrist and arm, and with my hands held so, the scar would be mostly out of her sight.

I did three slow rotations and came to a stop, lowering my arms to my sides. I was grinning at her as she smiled at me. She had been looking for recent wounds – cuts, blood, red inflammation, or scabs. After all, people turned within seven days of being bitten. She was interested in recent injuries, not scars that looked months old. And mine was well concealed.

"Looks great. Your heart and lungs are clear. Have you been in close contact with zombies or their blood lately?"

I could answer this one honestly. "No, once the fight ended, no zombies came any closer than we let them get during training."

I was a trained and graduated Forager, not a newcomer. It had also been a month since the attack. She relaxed, and I knew I had passed the biggest hurdle in my checkup.

"And how has your medical condition been holding up? Have you had any trouble keeping it under control?"

I had anticipated this question as well. There was no way to hide my new restlessness, so I would have to bite the bullet and let some of it out. I sighed and rubbed my neck as if in embarrassment. "It seems like the stress of the fight has made it a bit more temperamental. I have found that I need more physical exercise to keep it under control."

She grabbed a folder, and I saw that it had my name on it. The Nurses must have started using paper files for people in case the electricity went out. "Please describe the change and how much exercise is now needed."

"Previously, a half an hour on the running track every morning and evening kept it under control with no flare-ups." That was a big exaggeration; I had run that much to ensure I was in good shape in case I had to evade zombies. "Alex made sure to give me the jobs that involved the least amount of sitting, so that probably helped as well. Now, I need an hour in the morning and evening, as well as other physical activity during the day. I could handle a solid six-hour bus ride before, but now, I doubt I could sit for more than four hours without a ten-minute break to run."

I watched her closely as she noted my observations down. Nothing in her expression showed suspicion; she was just doing her job. She didn't seem surprised or concerned by the changes either.

"Have you had any serious flare-ups since you left?"

"I had a very bad flare-up the next day and minor ones for several days after that. I haven't had one for over two weeks now, ever since I increased my exercise."

"This could be a symptom of Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder," she said, tapping her pen against the paper. "We have seen several others with similar symptoms. They were unable to sit still for long and had to keep their body and mind occupied. We do have a couple of counselors if you want to speak with them. Other than that, if exercise is keeping it under control, please continue with that. If you have any symptoms of a flare-up, please come back and see me ASAP. Do you have your new schedule yet?"

I fished it out of my pocket and passed it over to her.

"Hmmm... You have Erica as a new Group Leader. I will let her know that if your group takes any extended trips that they have to stop every two hours to stretch for ten minutes. It is good for everyone else as well. Too much sitting is bad for one's bones, joints, and back. I see you have the morning and evening runs already in your schedule, so that is great. If you happen to get an afternoon free, I am pretty sure you will visit the workout room on your own accord."

I nodded since I had done that before. She looked satisfied and continued on, "A new rule has been implemented. All newcomers must tie a rope to their ankles and to their bunks for the first eight nights, just in case someone had unknown exposure to the zombie virus. Please adhere to this rule."

That was easy enough. "Sure, no problem."

"Have a great day, then. I hope to see you around!" At least she didn't want me to join her for coffee. I had no desire to learn what my already-increased restlessness would do with her potent coffee. I probably wouldn't be able to sleep for a week.

I thanked her and left. If I made it a week without turning, they would dismiss me from their minds as a potential threat. At this point, I doubted that I would turn.