❝HEARTBREAK IS ONE THING MY 𝗘𝗚𝗢'𝗦 ANOTHER❞
In which it no longer matters that Evangeline Waters was a hot shot lawyer with a nice apartment and the best daughter she could've asked for. Because if you don't know the right way to stab a dead...
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Screaming filled the air again as Daryl hurled the wine bottle against the metal doors with a frustrated roar. He and Shane swung their axes furiously at the door, but their blows barely made a dent. Lost in her turmoil and hopeless thoughts, Lily watched Sutton, who was sobbing into her shirt, her tiny body shaking with fear. Lily wished more than anything that she could change the situation, take her daughter somewhere safe, somewhere where none of this horror existed.
"You should've left well enough alone," Jenner said coldly, as if the matter were of no consequence to him.
"Easier for who?" Lori demanded, her voice filled with anger and disbelief.
"For all of you," Jenner replied dismissively. "You know what's out there—a short, brutal life followed by an agonizing death."
Ignoring the chaos around her, Lily sat with her despair. Motherhood had always come with tough decisions, but this was something beyond her comprehension. Jenner's words echoed in her mind, the grim choice laid bare: fight every day in a world filled with undead and danger, or stay here and face a swift end. What kind of choice was that?
Lily wanted desperately to believe that there was a future for them, a chance at a life beyond the immediate peril. But how could she? In just a few days since leaving their apartment, she had faced both the living dead and the perilous living. Was Jenner right? Was there really no hope left?
Her attention snapped back to Jenner's conversation with Rick. "You do want this," Lily said sharply. "Last night you said you knew it was just a matter of time before everyone you love was dead."
A heavy silence fell over the room. It dawned on everyone that Rick, the very person who had insisted they come here, had lost hope. Rick, who had assured Lily and Sutton they would be safe, had confessed to Jenner that he thought they were all doomed. The revelation was a crushing blow to Lily.
"This isn't right," Carol sobbed, her voice breaking. "You can't just keep us here."
"One tiny moment, a millisecond," Jenner said. "No pain."
"My daughter doesn't deserve to die like this," Carol's words broke through the haze of Lily's despair. The thought that Sutton's life could end in such a way spurred Lily into action. She wasn't ready to give up—not now, not ever. Gently pushing Sutton upright, Lily wiped the tears from her daughter's face.
"Hey," Lily said softly. "Do you trust me?"
Sutton looked up, her eyes red and filled with uncertainty, but she nodded. "Stay with Lori. I'm going to talk to Jenner, get us out of here."
"Promise?" Sutton asked, her voice trembling.
"I promise," Lily said firmly, pressing a kiss to the top of Sutton's head before walking over to Jenner. She took a seat across from him, her gaze steely and determined.
