Book One. In the Boston QZ, ten-year-old Isha Miller has only ever known two constants in her life-Joel and Tess. They raised her, protected her, and taught her how to survive in a world that had long since collapsed. But when a smuggling deal goes south and an unexpected job forces them beyond the quarantine zone, Isha finds herself going on the most dangerous journey of her life. All with the help of her grumpy father and a strange teenage girl. Tasked with escorting a girl named Ellie across the country, Joel struggles to keep both her and Isha safe. What Isha doesn't know-what she was never meant to know-is that Joel isn't really her father. Her real father is Tommy, Joel's estranged brother, who left years ago without realizing he had a daughter. And now, as they fight to survive, Isha must learn what it truly means to be family in a world where love is as dangerous as it is rare. She thinks she knows who she is. She thinks she knows who Joel is. But some secrets don't stay buried forever. Ranked #1 in thelastofus 10/9/25, 1/12/26, 1/24/26 Ranked #1 in belleramsey 1/5/26

just a random collection of one shots to help with my characters and my writing!! goes along with "The Cold Side Of The Sun", "From What You Left Behind" & "Reckoning Roads".

"Did you know?" Ellie approached Maeve at a fast pace. "Hey, Ellie!" The older sister paused her tomato tending and glanced at her. "Did you fucking know?" The hardened tone directed at her alerted her; she didn't know what Ellie was demanding. Luckily for them, they were the only ones in the greenhouse. "What's wrong -" "Did. You. Fucking. Know." Ellie hissed. Maeve straightened up with a pinched expression. "What are you talking about?" "Don't play fucking dumb with me, Maeve," Ellie glared. "Did. You. Know." The auburn-haired woman squared her shoulders. She made an expression, to which Ellie curled her lip and backed away in horror. "You knew." Though it's been a couple of years since the downfall of the Fireflies, their memory haunted Joel, TJ, Maeve, and Ellie. They traveled back to Jackson for a simple and comfortable life, but as complications are aroused, a group of strangers happen to stumble upon the town. Life as they knew it vanished.

"Oh, fuck-" A hand clamped over Maeve's mouth and her back was pressed against a chest, trapping her body against another. "Quiet!" The Clicker stumbled about, its head moved around all uncomfortably and broken-like, clicking its creepy click. It sniffed the musty air before it decided to move on. Once it was far enough away from them, the hand let her free. "Did you learn nothing from the upper floors, or did you want us to be Clicker food?" After her sister is bitten by an infected, Maeve and Ellie find themselves being precious "cargo" and having to be delivered to the Fireflies, who are across the country, by smugglers Joel, Tess, and TJ. (SEQUEL OUT!)