The streets weren't quiet anymore.
Even before dawn had fully crested the rooftops of City H, the sounds had changed. There were fewer screams now, fewer sirens. Just the scuffle of shoes against pavement, the occasional gunshot echoing somewhere distant, and the ever-present weight of breath that didn't belong to the living.
Everything around seemed to be heavier than it was this time yesterday, like a clock had counted down and now it was at zero.
Sera walked at the front of the group, her hands tucked in the pockets of her black leggings as she played with the silent cellphone she had stuffed in it. Her expression was unreadable as they approached the grocery store near the west side of the city. It was one of the smaller ones—family-owned, tucked between a vape shop and a massage parlor—but it hadn't been fully looted yet. That made it a target worth checking.
