The new recruits, Katie, and Alex, fit right in with the group. Katie was energetic, like Monica, and seemed to be a mood maker. Alex, the opposite of Katie, was very calm and quiet, like Desirae. Katie seemed to feel more comfortable around Sofia and Monica, while Alex was more comfortable with Sofia's mother and Desirae.
The drive was fun for the group, filled with laughter and questions. They approached Janesville, almost 100 miles from Alex and Katie's house. The streets were empty and there was no body, dead or alive, in site. The car pulled up to the Rock River, stopping in front of the bridge. Sofia looked at her mother, confused.
"What's the matter, Mother?" Sofia asked. She looked in front of the car to see that the roads were blocked off by a couple of roadblocks. Across the bridge were roaming zombies, moaning, and limping. Sofia's mother sighed at the site.
Jennifer sat up from her seat and tapped Sofia's arm. "How come we can't just go across?"
Alex squinted her eyes, watching a zombie limp its way across the bridge. "Hold on..." Everyone watched as the zombie looked up at the car, sensing the group of women. It growled and limped faster. It stepped on a barely noticeable land mine and-
BOOM! The bridge exploded, causing the group to flinch and cover their heads. The bridge divided and crumbled into the river, dividing the group from the other side of town. The group looked at each other, confused.
"Is everyone alright?" Sofia's mother asked everyone, earning nods. "Alright." She took a deep breathe and looked to her left. "There's another bridge over there. Maybe we can check it out." She put the car in reverse, made a U-turn, and headed for the other bridge a block away.
Katie looked at the collapsed bridge. "I wonder who did that." She grinned at the rest of the ladies in the back seat. "And I wonder why."
"Probably," Desirae chimed in as she munched on some chips, "the person wanted to separate the living from the dead in the town." Sofia nodded.
"Yeah." Alex mumbled. "Maybe." Her face was clouded with doubt.
The group arrived at the next bridge. It was narrower than the last, but it would be able to fit the car. Sofia's mother climbed out of the car and looked around. "Stay here." She instructed the group before walking towards the bridge. This bridge also had roadblocks, but barbed wire covered the spaces in between the roadblocks. Sofia's mother approached the roadblocks and poked it lightly. "What is going on here?" She looked at the bridge, seeing more land mines. "Who did all of this?" She looked around, frowning.
In the car, Monica played with Sofia's hair. "You know, Sofia, you shouldn't cut your hair anymore. I wanna see what it's like when it's long!" Monica smiled warmly at her friend, who smiled back in return.
Katie nudged Alex, noticing that her high school friend was quiet. "Something wrong?" Alex looked at Katie.
"I don't understand what's going on. Does this mean that someone is still alive in this town?"
Desirae looked at Alex, intrigued. "Please explain."
"Well," Alex started, "the mines. There's no way these were here before the apocalypse. How else did people go in between the town. So that means that it happened after the apocalypse." Alex sat up, everyone listening to her. "My questions are how long ago were these mines placed, why were they placed and..." She trailed off.
Sofia blinked. "And what?"
Alex looked at Sofia. "Are they still here, watching us?" Silence engulfed the car. Katie couldn't help but look outside her window, curious.
Sofia's mother walked back to the car, sighing. She opened the door and entered the car, frowning. "It's the same as the other bridge. We can't get across." She scratched her head. "Let me just think of another way."
YOU ARE READING
The One We Call Hope
Horor(HIATUS // BEING WORKED ON) Sofia lived an average high school life. She had two best friends, a mother, a father, an older brother, and her whole life ahead of her. When the world she was raised in plunges into a nightmare with the dead eating the...
