As soon as Nicky climbed into the truck, she noticed the new additions. "Ohhh... What are these?"

"Something to help pass the time," I said as I sat down.

To my surprise, John wasted no time in grabbing a couple of the IQ puzzles as Daniel drove to the gate. Liz picked through the shoebox and eagerly examined all the new toys. As I expected, Nicky immediately became fascinated with the cup-and-ball toy.

The guards waved cheerfully at us as we drove through the gate. Several people had already gone to check on the woman, who was once again human, no longer sneezing, and very grateful to have survived her ordeal.

"Which Stronghold are we heading to?" Logan asked.

"Nikeewin Stronghold," Nina replied, turning to look out the back window. "They're actually to the north, which takes us closer to Ironwind and still lets us check a few more places."

"That would make our trip shorter and still allow us to help any who might be sneezing," Logan agreed, subtly complimenting the decision. "I assume you help with the cure and serum in Ironwind as well?"

Nina paused, then said, "We aren't telling the Strongholds, but I'm actually the primary scientist there. A couple of people in the lab are making more cure, serum, and controlex in my absence. Our trip to other Strongholds was originally to determine if the wave really was coming earlier, but since we had the cure with us, we kept going to try and help as many as we could."

"Trinity came along because her sense of smell is keen, and Daniel came for additional protection?" Logan guessed, tilting his head inquisitively.

"Exactly."

He nodded, and sensing the conversation was trailing off, he asked, "What other things are you researching in the lab?"

And that opened the floodgate.

All it took was his intrigued expression and a few questions and comments to keep the conversation going. After he made a few detailed remarks about native plants, Nina focused on his knowledge of the local greenery, which put him in the talking spotlight.

I leaned back against the cab and absently fiddled with one of the IQ toys, although parts of the conversation at hand were actually interesting. I even learned the names of a number of herbs that would interest Jess, although I'd have to get her to go through her textbooks to figure out what they looked like.

"We actually have a young lady at Ironwind who is trying to learn about the local herbs, plants, and their medicinal uses," Nina said.

"I'm not a professional," Logan replied, "but I know some. I'd be happy to share my knowledge with anyone at Ironwind."

I'm so glad Logan isn't close to Jess's age. If it weren't for me knowing about his crush on Nina, this could very well have my hackles rising. I knew Jess was old enough to pick her own love interest, but any stranger fresh to Ironwind would be getting the stink eye from me until he proved himself trustworthy and responsible enough for the privilege of dating my sister.

"That would be appreciated," Nina replied, completely unaware of the path my thoughts were going down. "I'll have my hands full once we get back. There's a ton of things I have to check. I'm very grateful a few of the infected people let me collect a blood sample. I want to see what differences there might be between this wave and the previous one. The strange zombie in the rifle cabinet will have to be locked in the barn as well."

"You're still going to continue to make more of the cure, right?"

"Yes, and the other drugs too. Other research centers are helping, and we're each going to send them to various Strongholds in our areas."

"There are other research centers with the cure?"

That question led to an entire background explanation both Logan and John found interesting, but it left me wondering just what can of worms I'd opened when I told Logan that Nina loved long conversations. Considering I was going to be stuck in this truck for days on end, this one could have backfired on me.

~

       "Well, we expected it," Nina said in a downcast voice as we left the Stronghold.

"Not that it makes it any easier," Logan said, trying to lift her spirits, although at a loss about how to do so.

"No, it doesn't," she agreed. She examined the map in her hands. "As long as this bridge is still standing and nothing unforeseen happens, we should be able to make it back to Ironwind in about three or four days."

"That quick?" Nicky cast a quizzical glance in her direction. "We've been driving for over a week."

"Our path zigzagged back and forth, and the last few days, we were starting to loop back instead of pushing farther out. We also don't have to stop for several hours at each Stronghold. So probably three and a half days. More if bad weather strikes and traps us inside." Her voice was dull, still dejected at being too late to help more people. Her unusual lack of energy stood out.

Daniel glanced in the rearview mirror as he told us, "Or I can drive all night instead of stopping, and we can probably get there in two days."

"That's a long time for you to drive," John said. "We can help. There's no sense in crashing when you get tired."

"It would take a lot more than simply driving for two or three days to tire me," Daniel replied, humor lacing his voice. "That isn't the question. The question is if you guys want to be stuck in the back of the truck for that length of time. We can always change our plans, and we have the rest of the day to decide."

Logan shrugged to indicate he had no preference.

John blinked, taken aback by Daniel's reply, then shrugged as well. "If you need a break from driving, just ask. Otherwise, I'm fine with either option."

"We'd still stop for meals and stretch breaks," Nina said. "I think I'd rather sleep in the truck and cut down on travel time, but I know it's more crowded back there. Nicky? What are your thoughts?"

"I think we need an airplane, but since that isn't an option, then I say we stop for a few more breaks and just ride it out for as long as Trinity can tolerate our presence."

Nina nodded and turned to me. "Trinity?"

It wouldn't be the first time I had ridden in a vehicle overnight, but I wasn't looking forward to it. It would get us back in half the time though. And after ten days in this truck, I was seriously tired of traveling. I wasn't able to sleep at night, and I doubted I'd manage a nap during the day, so I could be more than a bit irritable by the time we got back.

"Either option is fine with me," I grumbled, "although the sooner this truck permanently stops moving, the better."

"Careful now," Nicky snickered. "Talk like that might turn this trip into something like our first one. How many trucks did we go through? Four? Five?"

I growled faintly at her and flashed a tooth to back it up. "Don't you dare jinx us..."

She pretended to zip her lips and throw away the key. I huffed skeptically at her sincerity. Her words had probably already jinxed us.

To avoid my glare, Nicky asked Liz, "Hey, Liz, feel like having a slumber party in the truck?"

Liz looked up from the box of toys. "Yes, please!"

"Aha! An overnight truck snoring fest it is! Let's sing some road songs to celebrate!" Nicky proceeded to take the initiative, making everyone around her wince at the wildly off-key singsong tune. "Ninety-nine shots of tequila on the wall-"

"Nicky..." My voice was laden in warning. I should have taken her outside the fence when the Stronghold was trying to record me. If her voice didn't break the microphones, then it would have completely cured those guys of ever wanting to listen to them.

She held up her hands in a helpless gesture. "Sorry. I don't mean to be difficult. I just happen to be really, really good at it."

I regarded the redhead for a long moment. "Considering how much you hang around zombies, and how often you test the limits of their patience, I'm amazed you haven't gotten slashed yet. I pity your guardian angel. I hope he gets hazard pay with all the stunts you pull."

"Oh, I'm on my third one now. The first two are in therapy."

I could believe it.

"Just two?" Daniel scoffed.

"Hey, it's not my fault if you're still on your first one," Nicky retorted. "Nor can I help it if you guys are about as exciting as the peanuts in trail mix. No wonder our trips are so boring."

"Boring?" I growled.

"The parts where we stare at the trees for hours on end while driving," Nicky hastily clarified. "The rest of it was a gong show worthy of its own TV series."

I grumbled but let the matter slide since we still had a long trip ahead of us. We were going to be stuck in close proximity for the next two days, and I wasn't sure how three adults and a child were going to sleep in the back of a truck without crowding me. This pickup truck was one of the larger types, but it wasn't huge. Hmmm... Nicky could be right. My tolerance might be the limiting factor in this trip.

In an obvious attempt to change the topic, Nina resumed her previous conversation with Logan, discussing various plants and their uses. She jotted down the details in a notebook, which I was sure she'd be passing to Jess once we got back.

The clicking of toys came from Liz as she continued sifting through the box, trying to figure out what she wanted to play with. Nicky also took the hint and settled back against the cab, swinging the cup and ball toy as she tried to impale the tethered ball on the stick at the top.

My eyes turned to the trees as we began our trip back. It was going to be a long two days.

~

       "Trinity, would you mind moving that tree?" Daniel asked as he slowed down, his voice low to avoid waking our slumbering companions.

The tree spanned the entire road, and the ditch wasn't the kind you wanted to drive through. This wasn't the first time I'd had to move a tree off the road during the last two days of driving, and I doubted it'd be the last.

"Fine," I grumbled, "but turn those light bars off."

Even though I was in the back of the truck and the sun had set a long time ago, I hadn't taken my sunglasses off. On our last trip, the truck had been equipped with bright lights, but more had been added since. Someone in the garage must have been possessed by Nicky's tendency to go wildly overboard.

The light bars faced ahead, but there was enough light that Nina would have easily been able to read or write inside the cab. If a Stronghold had been in the area, they would have seen us coming from miles away. There was no way I was walking in front of the truck when those lights were on, even if I was wearing my sunglasses. Those things were bright.

I stood up and jumped out of the moving truck, taking care not to disturb the mattress too much. Even though he didn't move, I was certain Logan woke up, although I couldn't hear any difference in how the others were breathing.

The light ahead dimmed to a mere fraction of its former self as Daniel turned the light bars off, relying only on his far-too-bright headlights. He slowed down even more but didn't stop since that would likely wake his passengers. I jogged past the truck and proceeded to wrestle the tall, spindly spruce tree off the road. After a kick to break the tree in half, it became much more cooperative.

Daniel idled past, and once I hopped in the back, he flicked the switch to turn his light bars back on and gradually sped up. Light once more flooded the area, so bright my instincts protested against how visible I was.

After a quick check to make sure there weren't any large potholes ahead, I gingerly sat down without jostling the mattress. It didn't help that Nicky was stretched across the middle of the truck. The only reason she hadn't sprawled out to take up more room was because her sleeping bag restrained her. Like last night, the cool, swirling air was enough of an incentive for her to keep her arms and head inside. Not even a single hair poked out.

Liz was curled up in the corner beside her, her head also inside her sleeping bag. Thankfully, neither one was overly crowding me, although Nicky's insatiable desire to take up as much space as possible left the two men cramped on the other side of the truck.

Logan's breathing slowly leveled out as he fell back to sleep, leaving Daniel and me as sentries. I brooded in the back while Daniel drove through the night without any sign of tiring. My instincts stirred, wanting to hunt while the moon hung in the sky, although I wasn't particularly hungry since I had forced myself to hunt when the group stopped for dinner.

That dinner break had been particularly long. Not only had Nina wanted to bake two loaves of bread with our tiny bread pan, but everyone else had insisted on stretching their legs for several hours. In fact, for some mysterious reason, most of them had emphasized it was going to be a long break. Several times.

When Nicky had pointedly commented that she'd beep the truck's horn before they left, I took the not-very-subtle hint to wander far enough into the forest for a nap. The three hours of rest had done wonders for my temper, especially after so many days with only a few minutes of sleep here and there.

The scent of a deer distracted me from my thoughts, taunting me even as I watched the doe bound into the forest. I ignored how my instincts tried to make the hunt look more tempting than sitting back here. I took a deep breath as I checked the area and tried to determine exactly where we were.

We hadn't been on this road before, so the scents weren't particularly familiar, but I knew where I was. My instincts had an excellent sense of direction and could easily tell one river apart from another, even if we crossed at a different spot.

In a way, it was interesting and handy, but on the other hand, it was almost exasperating. Even if I tried to ignore the odors passing by, my instincts took note of them and shared bits of information they found interesting.

What my instincts considered important, and what I considered relevant, were occasionally two very different things. My instincts recalled I had hunted a rabbit to the east of our current location. With the amount of wildlife in the area, I found such information pointless. My instincts also no longer counted humans as noteworthy, so I had to keep track of those scents myself.

"How are you holding up?"

My eyes flickered in Daniel's direction. His voice had been very quiet, so there was only one person he could possibly be speaking to.

From the way he was peering into the rearview mirror, I could tell he wasn't able to see me clearly in my shadowy corner behind the truck cab, although he could probably see my silhouette. That detail irritated my instincts.

"Better than I expected. I'm so tired of this road trip that I'm ready to bury it like old roadkill."

He snorted faintly in amusement. "I've never heard it put quite that way before, but I agree. I'm looking forward to getting back. We've made good time, so we'll probably arrive around noon."

"That's good. I assume our first stop will be at the barn to drop off our guest in the gun cabinet?"

"Yes. I don't want that zombie in the Stronghold, and the reinforced cage in the corner should be strong enough to contain it when it wakes up."

"It's probably a good idea to stick it in there."

Silence fell between us as the truck continued to take us closer to Ironwind Stronghold.