As the sun rose into the sky, Mackenzie and I dragged a couple duffel bags out to the barn and threw them in the trunk of the Monte Carlo.

   I closed the trunk lid. "That should be everything."

   Laila stepped out of the car. "Are we ready to go then?"

   I looked at her, then to the house I called home. "... Yeah, let's go."

   We hopped in the car and I started it up before pulling down the long, gravel driveway. I hit the button and the gate opened, a hoard of the undead making a beeline inside the fence line.

   I watched them in silence. Realizing there was no turning back now...

   The streets were relatively quiet this morning, just the sound of the car and the wind howling in the distance.

   "So, why did you decide to join the Marines?" Mackenzie asked.

   I gave her a quick look and sighed. "My father was a marine and his father before him. My father had connections and I needed a job."

   "With a setup like you had I would've pegged you for a gun toting, patriot." She replied.

   "That wasn't my house and they weren't my guns." I said.

   Mackenzie folded her arms over her chest. "This isn't your car either then?"

   "Nope." I replied.

   She scoffed a little. "Classy."

   I rolled my eyes. "In case you couldn't tell, the world ended. My guess is whoever owned this shit is laying out by the fence line with the rest of the bodies."

   She shook her head before looking out the window.

   It grew silent after that, until Laila spoke up from the back seat.

   "Have you ever killed anyone before? Real people I mean." She asked.

   Mackenzie quickly turned around. "Laila! You can't ask her that."

   Before I could reply, I noticed a lone woman sitting in the middle of the street, yelling out for help.

   "Hey, you two keep your eyes on the tree line." I said, slowing down a little.

   Mackenzie looked from me to the woman in the street. "What're you gonna do?"

   I shook my head. "Nothing. It's a trap. I've seen plenty of them before."

   "How can you be sure?" Mackenzie asked.

   "Trust me." I replied, my eyes darting from the woman to the tree line.

   "We should help her." Laila said.

   "Not gonna happen."

   "But, we have plenty of supplies to spare. She could be in real danger." Mackenzie said.

   "Tough shit."

   Before anyone else could speak, a few men stepped out in front of the car.

   I came to a stop, the woman knocking on my window. "Please, help me." She begged.

   I looked from her to the three men standing in front of the car. "Laila, lift up your seat and hand me that gun."

   She looked down at the seat before doing what I asked.

   The men drew closer and the woman's begging got louder and louder.

   I took the gun from Laila and switched the safety off. "Whatever happens, don't get out of the car."

   As the men got closer, I quickly threw the door open, striking the woman in the face.

   She fell back on the ground, clutching her nose as I stepped out.

   The men quickly drew their guns as I raised mine, squeezing the trigger.

   A loud, rain of bullets shot out, striking the first two men and sending them crashing to the pavement, dead. While the third took cover behind a burned out car.

   My gun clicked, signaling it was empty. I threw it back in the car and pulled a sawed off shotgun from the door.

   As I approached the burned out car, the woman grabbed my ankle.

   I kicked her in the face before pointing my shotgun at her and pulling the trigger. I flinched as blood sprayed me in the face.

   Then, a shot rang out, striking me in the side. "Fuck!"

   I fell back against the car before raising my shotgun, quickly pulling the trigger, hitting the third man center mass, sending him flying back onto the pavement.

   The air grew silent after that and I slowly got back to my feet, pain shooting through the whole side of my body.

   I stuck the shotgun back in the door before getting in and slamming it closed.

   I looked out the windshield, my breathing heavy. Mackenzie and Laila were silent. "Yeah, I've killed an awful lot of people..."

   I pulled a bandana from my pocket and pressed it against the wound before starting the car back up and taking off down the street before the undead caught up...

   As day turned to night, we made our way down a rural street. It seemed empty, but who can tell for sure these days. We're gonna have to stop at some point, that bullet in my side is really starting to piss me off.

   "We have to pull off for the night." I said.

   "What about the dead?" Mackenzie asked.

   I checked the blood soaked bandana. "I have to get this bullet out or I'm gonna be dead. Understand?"

   She just nodded and I pulled into the driveway of the most intact house on the street. I grabbed the shotgun and opened the door. "You two stay here, I'm gonna go clear the house."

   I stepped out of the car and almost collapsed from the pain. "Dammit."

   Mackenzie quickly jumped out of the car and helped me stabilize my footing. "You can't go in there alone." She said.

   I let out a sigh. Of course she's right, she's a fucking doctor.

   I pulled my pistol out and handed it to her. "Safety's off. Just point and shoot anything that moves."

   She looked down at the gun nervously. "Iris, I-"

   "Anything that moves, understand?"

   She quickly nodded before helping Laila out of the car. "Stay close to us, ok?"

   Laila nodded.

   I pumped the shotgun. "Let's move."

   We crept towards the front door and I pushed it open before sweeping the first room. "Clear." I whispered before moving to the next room, then the next.

   After a long, tense few minutes, I deemed the house clear.

   I sent Mackenzie out to lock the Monte Carlo before ushering them into the basement and barricading the door. "That should be good for the night."

   Mackenzie handed me my pistol back. "Alright, let's get you on your back and take a look at that wound."

   "I can handle it." I said, holstering my pistol.

   She rested a hand on my shoulder. "Iris, I'm a doctor. Just trust me."

   I looked her in the eyes. She seemed sincere. "Fine... Let's do this..."