I scowled at the Stronghold in the distance.

Nina glanced through the truck's back window. "How are you holding up?"

In the rearview mirror, Daniel's eyes flickered to me, then back to the road as he continued driving to our first stop. With the way I detested crowds, it wasn't exactly a secret I wasn't looking forward to entering these strange Strongholds. I understood the necessity of this trip, but I'd never be someone who loved meeting strangers. Especially nowadays when strangers rarely liked meeting zombies.

"I seriously hope this doesn't turn out to be a mistake," I said. This was going to be the third Stronghold I'd ever entered. My mind kept revolving around the first time I had gone inside a fence, only to be double-crossed, ambushed, and shot. The memories weren't sitting well with me.

Nicky gazed at the sky and idly commented, "I never make the same mistake twice. I make it at least five or six times just to be sure it's actually a mistake." She turned her head to look at me, and in a more serious tone, added, "If any of these places try to kill you, I'll help you burn them to the ground."

I blinked slowly. "Thank you, I think..."

"Our first two stops don't mind sane zombies," Nina reassured me. "Daniel and I have stopped here a couple of times."

"Do any of these places know you're a scientist?" I asked.

"No, but the closest ones know Ironwind is doing some sort of research for a potential cure or vaccine."

"Then let's hope the crowd waiting for us doesn't panic when they hear the third wave might be coming early."

In a meditative voice, Nicky said, "I wonder how many anti-vaccinators might still be around. I heard they made up a decent portion of the surviving population after the initial outbreak."

"I'm not sure," Nina replied, making a face. "All we can do is offer the cure or sanity serum. If they choose to wait until they start sneezing, then that's their choice. Anyone who's exposed will know Ironwind has more vials of the cure."

Nicky sat up. "So, let me get this straight. You don't want them to know you're a scientist. Trinity prefers to keep her zombie status a secret. They have no idea about the lab, and we're allowed to tell them Ironwind and a few other places are now making a cure?"

"That's correct," Nina replied.

"So that leaves me and Daniel as the honest ones?" Nicky shook her head. "Wow. No wonder Trinity is expecting something to happen."

Daniel looked at me in the mirror again. "If I have trouble tracking someone down, can I ask for your help? Or are you completely against them finding out you're a zombie? They know I'm a Terror, so a second zombie shouldn't rattle them too much."

I sighed heavily in annoyance. "If it's necessary, I guess I can help. But you had better give it your best shot first."

He nodded. "I will. Thanks."

Why did I have a feeling I'd be regretting that offer? There wasn't time to mull over the possible consequences since we were rapidly approaching the small crowd waiting for us by the gate. From the number of weapons present, they weren't expecting company. Lovely. Nothing says "Welcoming Committee" like the possibility of being attacked as soon as we're within range.

I had a feeling this trip was going to bring out my sarcasm in a rather unfortunate way.

Fortunately, at least one person recognized Daniel or Nina as we got closer. The bows and guns were lowered, and most of the people left once they realized a potential attack wasn't imminent.

Daniel brought the pickup truck to a stop by the gate, and a man walked up to the open window. "Daniel, Nina, nice to see you. What brings you this way?"

Nina leaned forward to see around Daniel. "Hello, Harold. We're bringing some good news and some bad news."

"Bad news first. Best to get that stuff over with."

"Ironwind has reason to believe the third wave might only be a few days away." The man's eyes widened, but before he could reply, Nina continued, "The good news is that a cure and a sanity serum were just discovered, and we have some with us."

Daniel said, "We decided to drive down here and see how you guys were doing. We're close enough to the wave that I should be able to smell if someone is infected, and I can tell from here that several are."

"This is very troubling news," Harold finally replied. "Thank you for your offer. Please come in. You can park your truck over there." He pointed to a grassy section just inside the fence.

As Daniel drove to the indicated spot, I sniffed the air and murmured, "This place is lucky we came."

"I'm smelling at least five," Daniel replied just loud enough for our group to hear. "The smell doesn't seem to travel far."

"Seven," I corrected him. "Possibly eight. I can't tell from back here if one trail is really aged or if we have two infected sisters."

Nina put a handful of vials and some needles in a small carry bag as Daniel parked the truck. We got out and waited for Harold to catch up. I noticed Daniel's eyes were red, although he was relaxed, so he simply wasn't camouflaging them. It made sense since that was the easiest way for this place to confirm he was a zombie, although it was strange to see him with red eyes.

Harold reached us. "We can offer you a late lunch if you want to talk about this cure and have a bite to eat."

"That would be excellent," Nina replied. "Thank you."

"This way, please."

The dining area was fairly empty, although everyone who was here stared at us and whispered among themselves. It aggravated me more than I expected. I had forgotten how quickly the people at Ironwind had gotten accustomed to my presence and knew I didn't like people watching me.

Nina, Nicky, and our guide took some stewed venison and bread before sitting down. I refilled my water bottle and subtly scanned the room from behind my glasses. My instincts were on edge and analyzed everything in this strange Stronghold in suspicion, although nothing seemed amiss so far.

Harold mainly spoke to Nina, who was definitely the talkative one in our group. "We took care during the last wave, so we're hoping this wave will pass by without any losses."

I wonder how many places are thinking the same thing? I hope they were more successful, otherwise some people are in for a rude awakening.

Daniel said, "Unfortunately, I can smell at least five who are infected. Possibly eight."

The man ran his hand through his hair. "There's a cure, you said?"

"Yes," Nina replied, "and a sanity serum in case they want to try life as a sane zombie. We can help you locate each of the infected people when we finish eating and see which option they want."

Harold and Nina talked about the cure, serum, and upcoming wave while they ate. By the time they finished their meal, Harold was calmer, but definitely wanted to locate the infected people. We left the dining area and went in search of the people who didn't realize they needed help.

"This could take a bit," Daniel said, sniffing the air. "There are so many people here that it makes it hard to follow a scent trail."

I carefully kept a straight face as we followed Daniel down the road. The infected scent tended to fade fairly quickly, so the older trails were muted enough for me to easily tell the difference. When we walked past a fresher trail while following an older one, I realized we were going to walk many more miles today than necessary.

Another man walked past us, and Daniel stopped and turned. "Wait. Can you come here for a second?"

The man paused in confusion but then came over.

Daniel glanced at Nina. "He's infected."

"I haven't even been outside the fence this last week, and I certainly wasn't bitten," the man replied somewhat crossly, thinking Daniel was trying to play a very bad joke on him.

"This is the airborne strain from the last wave," Nina clarified kindly. "Were you around anyone who was sneezing?"

Worry dawned in the man's eyes. "Possibly."

"Well, I can smell it," Daniel said, "but we brought some stuff with us that can help."

Nina took that as her cue to start what I suspected was a rehearsed explanation I'd probably hear many times over the next week. "We have the cure as well as a sanity serum that will allow you to become a sane zombie if you prefer that." Without pausing, she went into detail about the cure, sanity serum, and controlex.

"I'll take the cure, please," the man replied once Nina finished. "It works in six hours, right? Will it also protect me if someone sneezes?"

"It'll remove the virus in six hours, but it'll leave your system within a day or two, so it won't provide protection beyond that point," Nina said. "Trinity, can you hold this bag while I get the needle ready?"

This was apparently my excuse to come close enough to figure out how soon he'd start sneezing. Without replying, I came over and took the bag from her. A slow, deep breath went unnoticed by the locals, but it provided me with the answer neither Nina nor I wanted.

It didn't take Nina long to administer the drug. "There you go." She held out her hand for the bag, which I passed to her.

"Thank you," the man said gratefully.

"No problem. We're happy we got here in time," Nina replied. She looked at Daniel. "Can you find the next person?"

He nodded and began walking again.

To call it tedious was an understatement. With Daniel's skills, it took us almost twenty minutes to locate two others and give them the cure. It wasn't that he couldn't smell them – he could – but the people we were tracking, as well as every other resident in this place, had walked all over the Stronghold for weeks on end. It was like a mudpit of scent trails.

Finding the most recent scent trail was like finding a needle in a haystack for a sight-oriented Terror. We practically had to stumble across the person before Daniel could locate them. Nightstalkers were the only rank that relied so heavily on scent, and I suspected it was only a matter of time until Daniel decided to rely on my keen sense of smell.

After ten minutes of fruitless searching, we ended up by the door to the mess hall again. Daniel sniffed the air before shaking his head in frustration. "There's at least four more, but they've been all over. I can't seem to find a recent trail." He glanced at me. "Can you track them?"

It was almost a relief he had finally reached this inevitable point. I wasn't sure how much longer I could have followed him when there were slightly fresher trails present.

Harold shot me a startled glance. He had clearly fallen for my human charade and was taken aback to learn there were actually two zombies present.

Ignoring our surprised host, I took a deep breath before heading to the left. I tracked the most recent scent on the air itself, ignoring where the person had walked. My sense of smell was going to be a huge timesaver in a Stronghold where several hundred people were all crowded in a rather small area.

My path weaved between buildings before finally approaching three women grinding grain into flour. I slowed down as I approached the group, which fell silent when they noticed us.

Nina walked up beside me, and I quietly said, "It's one of them."

The women looked at each other in confusion, not understanding what I was talking about.

With a gentle expression, Nina told them, "One of you is infected with the airborne zombie virus. Could you please come up one at a time so we can determine who it is? I have a cure as well as a drug that would allow you to remain sane if you wish to become a zombie. The choice is up to you."

One of the women got to her feet shakily. "I don't like suspense."

She didn't even make it halfway to Nina before I shook my head. "It isn't you."

She sighed in relief before turning to her friends in worry. The two looked at one another, then the brunette got to her feet. The smell grew stronger as she approached.

I glanced at Nina and jerked my head toward the woman approaching. The woman knew what the silent gesture meant, and tears began forming in her eyes.

"I'm sorry you had to find out this way," Nina said sympathetically as she walked over, "but at least we caught it in time."

"There's a cure?" the woman asked tentatively, daring to hope she might have a chance. In the past, such an infection was basically an unavoidable death sentence.

"Yes," Nina replied. "I also have something that will allow you to remain in control if you want to become a zombie."

She shook her head rapidly. "I don't want to be a zombie. I'd rather have the cure if possible. Is there a cost?"

"There's no cost." Nina reached into her bag to pull out a syringe and load it with liquid from a vial. "If you're ready, please hold out your arm. This will completely cure you within six hours."

The woman wordlessly held out both arms to let Nina take her pick. Nina injected the cure with the ease of practice that came from years of handling needles.

"There you go."

"Thank you." She glanced at her friend. "I think I'm going to go lie down for a bit."

Her friend nodded sympathetically. It would take her some time to come to terms with what had just occurred and the fate she had just avoided.

Nina turned toward me. "Next one?"

I checked the air and led the way once more. We found the man in the garden, and Nina gave him the same options. He also picked the cure without sparing a thought for the other drugs. His instantaneous decision didn't surprise me in the least.

Many survivors were scared of zombies, so the thought of becoming one wasn't something they'd even consider. Even if someone paused long enough to think about it, the downsides outweighed the possible advantages.

Not only would they have to catch, kill, and drink the blood of an animal several times a week, but the bloodlust would make them long to kill their friends and family. They'd also be unable to kiss loved ones without the risk of infecting them. Another fear was that they'd possibly become an outcast or no longer fit in.

On top of all that, for almost an entire year, they'd been worried about getting infected and turning into a zombie. At this point, to deliberately become a zombie was like being told it was safe to grab the blade of a running chainsaw. They just couldn't fathom attempting it.

I sniffed the air again. "The other two scents are hours old, so I think they're outside the fence. It might be easier to locate their bedrooms. If you show me the entrances to each building, I can pinpoint which ones they use."

"Of course," Harold easily agreed. "Although we were trying to spread out to avoid infection during the wave, so there are rooms in most buildings. The closest one is this way."

I reined in my impatience and trudged behind our guide. At least I'd only have to check the main entrances until we found the correct building.

At our third stop, I said, "One of them uses this door a lot." I glanced at Daniel. "I have no desire to go inside. Do you feel like checking which bedroom is theirs?"

He nodded. "Of course."

"I'll wait out here for you guys," I said. If that building was anything like the main building in Ironwind, I had zero desire to wander through its hallways.

"I'll keep you company," Nicky volunteered.

As they went inside, Nina told Harold, "Once we know who's infected, I'll leave two vials of the cure and a few of the sanity serum in case we somehow missed someone or someone gets bitten."

Nicky plopped down on a nearby bench and stretched her legs in front of her. "Seven infections isn't too bad. I was worried we'd find fifty or something."

"I'm not sure how many vials Nina packed. If we find fifty, we might be heading back early," I replied idly as I scanned the area around us.

"If the size of the box in the cab is anything to go by, I doubt we'll run out. Nina's been through two waves, and she probably knows better than most just how easily one sneeze can infect dozens of people in a busy area."

That had me glancing at the redhead. "How bad were the first and second waves?"

Nicky frowned. "Terrible. Especially the first wave. Our first clue was the sneezing. Of course, it took people several hours to realize it wasn't just allergies or from someone dumping too much pepper into the soup. After that, anyone who sneezed was isolated or had to go outside the fence." She shook her head. "Not that it helped much. At least a fifth of the Strongholds were overrun."

"And the second wave?"

"Even though we half expected it to come, it didn't help those who had been exposed in the first wave. I was in Fairway Stronghold at the time, and out of four hundred and thirty-six people, at least half began sneezing and were forced out. It... wasn't good."

I remained silent. "Wasn't good" was probably a massive understatement. Perhaps having only seven infected people in a place this size was a reflection of just how careful they had been. I recalled the size of the box on the seat between Nina and Daniel and hastily reassessed just how many people we were trying to save on this trip.

No wonder over a dozen groups back at Ironwind were hastily ferrying the cure and sanity serum to the other Strongholds. Nina was right. Thousands of lives were at risk.

In fact, it was astonishing any of these places were even still standing after the last two waves. And just like the previous times, there was no way to tell how many places would survive the upcoming wave.

In silence, we waited for the others to return.

~

       As the rest of our group came outside, Nina was speaking. "-and you know which two need the cure, so one of the doctors or nurses can give it to them."

"Thank you so much," Harold said. "We really appreciate it. Can we offer you a room for the night?"

Nina shook her head. "Sorry, if we keep driving, we can reach the next Stronghold close to sunset."

"In that case, I wish you safe travels. And always feel free to stop here for a meal or a guestroom for the night. Our gates are always open for you and your friends."

"Thank you."

We got into our truck and drove toward the gate, where the sentries were already opening the doors for us.

One place down, and who knew how many to go.

The Stronghold wasn't even out of sight before Nina turned sideways in her seat to ask, "How long did they have?"

"As best I can tell, they had between two to four days before they would have started sneezing."

"All of them?" She sounded like she was hoping for a different answer. Not that I could blame her. She furrowed her eyebrows as a thought hit her. "Are you sure? I was expecting the range to cover at least nine days due to how people sneeze for three days, and this is the third wave..." She trailed off in confusion.

"I only got close enough to five to smell that sort of thing. It might be different in other places, but that was all the time those people had."

"Harold was very careful last time," Nina murmured to herself. "If they isolated or removed anyone at the first sneeze, then it might be possible for such a short timespan." She sighed. "I was hoping our fears were wrong and that we had more time."

"Ironwind was sending out other groups with the cure and sanity serum as soon as the vials were ready, right?" Nicky asked.

"Yes. As soon as a batch is ready, one of the teams will take it. They're fanning out in different directions to try and get it to as many places as quickly as possible. We have at least two days