take shelter ✵ nick clark ☑

[15] good people die first.

13; good people die first.
"She was brave."

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     The sun was bright in comparison to how it was a few hours ago. Everything was calm. There wasn't a fear in anyone's eyes. They were all bright, relieved. 

Ofelia was shot, being in a similar position as her mother when this whole thing started, as she was being transported in the back of Travis's truck with her father and Liza by her sides. It was a miracle that the shot didn't hit her heart and kill her as soon as she was shot. She was in pain, though. Whether that be from the pain from the bullet or the pain in her heart, the one she fell in love with was the very same one to shoot her. 

The car leading the way was Madison's, inside there were her two kids, the new man, and the nurse. 

An arm was threaded through Nick's, Octavia laid her head on his shoulder. Nick had a hand out of the window moving it through the wind like a kid would. Octavia was between him and the new man, Strand, in the back of the Clarks' car. Alicia was up in front with Madison driving. Her eyes were flittering closed as she feels her exhaustion catching up to her.

They were on the interstate heading towards Strand's home since he said that was the better place to be. The grown-ups had decided that was for the best, their homes were to be abandoned since they left them to get her, Nick, Liza, and Griselda. She winces inwardly at the mention of the older woman. She wasn't there when Exner and Liza saw her last, she wasn't there to see her in her last moments. It was heartbreaking, she had seen Ofelia's screaming and crying when they passed the 'dump' where the soldiers had displaced the dead, burning them to stop the infection from spreading. It was no mystery to anyone that Griselda was in the midst of one of those piles. 

"We can't travel through downtown. There'll be too many." Strand broke everyone out of the silence. His comment going to Madison who was driving them down the interstate towards the west. 

"The 110?"

"Nah, the freeway's a crapshoot on the best of days. I wouldn't risk it."

"Do you want to go back?"

Strand lets out a chuckle, "You're funny. We're gonna get along fine, Nick's mom." His comment was left alone as he notices the ramp on the side. "Take a left here. We can follow the river down to the sea." His instructions were dealt with accordingly, Madison taking them cautiously as she makes a left out of the interstate and down a small highway. Her boyfriend following behind them in the truck.

They drove in the open tunnel of the river for at least an hour until they found themselves nearing a place on the coast, a small 'island' or sorts that supposedly Strand lives. Octavia didn't open her eyes as she buried her head into Nick's shoulder, his arm she leant on had moved to wrap around her curling her more into him. She was content. 

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    The car strolls to a stop, Octavia opens her eyes slowly and lifts herself off of Nick to see that they had arrived at their destination. The doors on both sides of her open, Strand already a few feet from the car, waving his hands for the others to follow his lead. 

"Come."

Sliding out of the car, she was helped out by Nick who held her hand once again. Both following Strand who had walked to the fence. She took her little time to look at the building beside them, a home, a nice one at that. It was tan, box-like, but she didn't have high expectations on it. 

A beep went off somewhere, Octavia only seeing that Strand was next to the fence that was opened automatically by electricity, like a security system would.