Joe paused just outside the operations room, hearing voices echo through the sterile corridor.
"…It'll all be okay," Jenner said.
Joe stepped inside, Glock gripped tight in his hand. "What exactly is going to be 'okay'?"
Rick and Jenner both startled, eyes snapping toward him.
Jenner opened his mouth, "I meant—"
Joe cut him off, voice sharp and rising. "You already said there's no cure. So how exactly is everything going to be okay?!"
Jenner shrank back into his chair, the fight bleeding out of him. Rick stepped forward, hands raised in a calming gesture.
"Let's just take a breath here—"
"No." Joe's voice was cold now. Controlled. "No more distractions. No more half-answers. We need to know what that countdown means."
Rick followed Joe's gaze and finally noticed the screen for the first time.
14:29:46
His eyes widened. "What is that?"
Joe took a step forward. "Tell us. Now."
Jenner's jaw clenched, shoulders sagging like the weight of the entire building was pressing down on him.
"When the countdown hits zero," he said quietly, "this facility runs out of power. Fully depleted."
Joe said nothing. Just stared.
Jenner looked up at the timer, then back at them. "When that happens… the CDC will self-destruct."
Silence. Thick and still.
"To prevent anything… biological… from getting out," he continued. "It's a safeguard. Pathogens, viruses... there's too much danger stored in here. Fire purges everything."
Rick's eyes went wide. "You're telling me… you brought us in here… knowing this place is going to explode?"
Jenner didn't answer.
Rick lunged forward, grabbing the collar of Jenner's lab coat, rage boiling over. "You told me it was safe! You told me it would be okay!"
Joe moved fast. He grabbed Rick and yanked him back. "That won't help."
Rick staggered, breathing hard. Joe stepped between them.
"We still have time. But we need a way out. And you're going to help us find it," Joe said, staring down at Jenner.
Jenner looked defeated. Hollow.
"The doors are sealed. From here in, there's no override."
Joe's eyes didn't blink. "Then we break them open."
The screen above them ticked down.
14:21:02
No more illusions. No more comfort.
They had time. But not much.
Joe glanced up at the countdown once more.
He turned back to Rick. "We keep this quiet. For now."
Rick blinked. "Why?"
Joe's expression didn't change. "Let them soak in this hope a little longer. Let them feel normal."
Rick's jaw tightened. "You want me to sleep knowing that in fourteen hours this place goes up in flames?"
"Yep," Joe said flatly. "But first..." He turned to Jenner. "He's going to tell us everything. Like why the blood tests were so important."
Jenner froze.
Then sighed. A long, soul-tired breath.
"We're all infected."
Rick took a step back. "What?"
"We're all infected," Jenner repeated. "It's not just bites. Doesn't matter how you die… you come back."
Rick's eyes went wide, jaw slack. "Fuck."
Joe didn't flinch. He just watched Jenner, calm as ever.
"I figured as much," he said. "Back in Atlanta... after the gang fight. Both sides had people come back, even ones with no bites. Something didn't add up."
Rick sat heavily on a nearby console, head in his hands. "This changes everything."
Joe crouched in front of him, voice low and steady. "No, it doesn't. We still survive. We still fight. Until the last breath."
Rick looked up. Met his eyes. And nodded.
He stood, sent one last glare at Jenner, and walked out without a word.
Joe stayed a second longer, locking eyes with the doctor.
"Don't lie to us again," he said simply. Then turned and left.
---
Back in the sleeping area, the lights were dim and the others were already dozing. Joe stepped inside quietly.
Amy was curled up, one arm flopped over a blanket. Andrea was half-awake, eyes fluttering.
Joe dropped beside them, exhaling slow. He lay down, resting his head on Andrea's chest, her heartbeat steady in his ear.
Half awake Andrea caressed his head with her soft hand.
No words. Just warmth.
And above it all, the silent truth ticking down in another room.
14:06:11
But for now, Joe closed his eyes.
...
Morning came slow and heavy.
Joe stirred awake, his head pounding, stomach churning. The wine had not gone easy on him.
He blinked against the low light, groaning as he rolled off Andrea's sleeping form. She mumbled something in her sleep and shifted, pulling the blanket tighter.
But Amy was gone.
Joe frowned.
He leaned in and kissed Andrea's cheek. "Hey," he whispered.
Andrea stirred, eyes blinking open. She stretched with a yawn, her body rising and shifting beneath the thin sheet.
Joe, despite the headache, took a long moment to appreciate the view.
Andrea opened her mouth to speak... but then paused, hand flying to her mouth.
She bolted upright and rushed out of the room.
Joe was up in an instant, concern overriding everything. He followed her down the hallway until she turned sharply into one of the bathrooms.
He heard it before he saw it. Retching, raw and violent.
He found her kneeling at the toilet, hands gripping the rim.
Joe dropped beside her without hesitation, pulling her hair back gently, fingers brushing her back as he steadied her.
After a few harsh expulsions, Andrea finally stopped, breathing hard.
Joe tore some tissue from the roll and wiped her mouth.
"You okay?"
Andrea nodded weakly. "Yeah… better now. I don't know what that was."
Joe didn't press. He helped her to her feet, kept an arm around her shoulder as they walked. Neither connected the dots.
They stopped by the showers to rinse off the sweat and wine. The hot water helped... cleansing, quiet.
They took their time, lathering up, washing each other with slow, calming movements.
No words. Just the soft hush of water and the faint sound of distant conversation echoing through the halls.
After a dozen minutes, they stepped out, wrapped in towels. They found the spare uniforms where they'd left them and changed quickly.
When they arrived in the cafeteria, most of the group was already there, gathered around tables with trays in front of them.
Joe spotted Amy first. She was hunched over a plate of powdered eggs, poking at them with visible distaste.
He sat beside her. "Morning. What's wrong?"
Amy scrunched her nose. "The eggs taste weird."
She pushed the plate toward Andrea. Andrea tried a bite and immediately made a face. "Yeah, that's off."
Joe took a forkful. Chewed. Swallowed. "They taste fine to me."
Others chimed in. Rick, T-dog, Daryl... nods of agreement all around. "Yeah, eggs taste normal," Rick said.
Lori spoke up quietly from across the table, gesturing at Andrea and Amy. "It's not the food."
Joe raised an eyebrow.
Amy and Andrea looked at each other, confused. Then shrugged it off.
Joe softened his tone. "Alright, why don't you have something else?"
The sisters agreed, setting the eggs aside and trading them for oatmeal instead.
They chatted quietly with Sophia and Carl, trying to settle into some kind of rhythm.
Joe leaned back in his seat, sipping from a cup of bland coffee, watching the group move through their makeshift morning.
Across from him, Glenn sat slumped over his tray like a man in mourning. His eyes were bloodshot, his hair sticking up in every direction.
He poked at his oatmeal with a plastic spoon, head barely upright.
"Don't let me drink ever again," he groaned.
T-Dog chuckled, handing him a bottle of water. "You were singing karaoke to nothing but static."
Carol smirked. "You tried to dance with the coffee machine."
Even Daryl cracked a rare grin. "Honestly? It was the best entertainment we've had in weeks."
Glenn let his head drop to the table with a quiet thud.
"Please," he mumbled. "Just kill me now."
Mary leaned over with a teasing smile. "You said I looked like a 'post-apocalyptic Disney princess.'"
A chorus of laughter went up. Glenn raised one hand without lifting his head.
"I regret nothing… and everything."
Joe smirked over the rim of his coffee cup, the moment of levity cutting through the heaviness still lingering in his chest.
Andrea chuckled beside him, and Amy finally smiled, the tension of the morning starting to slip.
For a moment, the room felt like having breakfast at home.
The sun was rising up in the sky.
And the clock was still ticking.
7:26:47
...
After breakfast, Amy and Andrea told Joe they were feeling a little off.
Tired and sluggish, maybe a light cold. He kissed them both on the cheek and watched as they headed back toward the sleeping quarters.
Joe turned and nudged Rick's shoulder. "Let's grab the guys. It's time." Elize looked over at them.
Rick nodded grimly. Together, they rounded up Daryl, T-Dog, and Dale, brushing off questions from the others with vague excuses about inventory and planning.
They slipped into a quiet room down the hall. Joe closed the door behind them.
Rick took a breath, then said, "This place is rigged to blow. When that countdown ends, the whole CDC goes up in flames."
The reactions were immediate.
T-Dog swore. Dale paled. Daryl went stone-faced. Only Glenn's overreaction was missing. He'd stayed behind with Mary, probably sleeping off the rest of his hangover.
Rick held up his hands. "We have a plan. We're going to break the reinforced glass upstairs and get out."
Moments later, the group was swinging axes, chairs, even metal trays at the thick glass in the upstairs atrium. Nothing worked. Not even a crack.
Joe stepped back with a sigh, reached into his pocket, and pulled out a small metal object.
A grenade.
The group groaned.
"You had that the whole time?" T-Dog asked.
"I didn't want to waste it if we didn't have to," Joe replied simply.
With their exit plan secured, the tension lifted just enough. They moved fast, discreetly hauling the bags of weapons, medicine, and food upstairs.
Stashing them near the exit point. No one spoke much, they all knew what the clock meant now.
When they returned downstairs, the rest of the group was gathered in the large control room, eyes fixed on the massive screen.
Dr. Jenner was standing near the console, guiding them through an old recording.
A human brain flickered with light, a web of pulses and activity.
Carl asked quietly, "Is that a brain?"
Jenner nodded. "An extraordinary one."
Daryl crossed his arms. "What're those lights supposed to be?"
"Everything," Jenner said. "Memories, decisions, instinct. That's the person... everything they are. Or were."
Rick leaned forward, voice hushed. "Is this a vigil?"
Jenner nodded, "In a way. A playback of one."
The screen showed the brain slowly dimming. Dying.
Glenn squinted. "What's happening now?"
"The infection attacks the brain like meningitis," Jenner explained. "The body shuts down... first the adrenal glands, then the organs. And then… death."
A heavy silence fell. Faces darkened. Memories stirred... of loved ones lost, of choices made in blood and fire.
Jenner turned back to the console. "Vi, skip ahead."
The screen flickered. The brain stem lit up.
"The resurrection times vary," Jenner said. "Reports range from three minutes to eight hours."
T-Dog frowned. "Wait, so they're still alive?"
Jenner tilted his head. "You tell me."
Rick pointed. "That brain doesn't look anything like before. No emotion. No memory. Just impulses."
Jenner nodded. "Exactly. The human part is gone. What's left is… something else."
Joe watched silently, understanding settling in like a familiar weight. He'd already made peace with this truth back in Atlanta.
The screen showed a flash. Something shot through the brain.
Carol asked, "What was that?"
Daryl answered before Jenner could. "A bullet. Doc put it down."
Jenner didn't deny it. His face was drawn, his voice low. "It was mercy."
He turned and walked toward the door.
"Vi. Shut down screen and workstations."
As the monitors dimmed, Carol and Jacqui called after him, voices laced with questions and fear. He didn't respond.
Joe stepped forward, raising his voice over the murmurs.
"I know some of you noticed the timer." He glanced at Dale. "When it hits zero, this whole facility self-destructs."
Gasps broke out. Panic flickered. The kids clung to their parents. Several of the women burst into tears. Lori turned on Joe immediately.
"How could you not tell us?!"
Joe held up a hand. Calm, unflinching.
"Relax, lady. You didn't even notice the timer until I said something."
Her mouth opened, then shut. The others looked away, shame mixing with their fear.
Rick stepped in, voice steady. "Everyone... listen up. We have a way out. We found it. There's time."
The panic began to recede, replaced by a grim determination.
Joe nodded. "Enjoy the time we've got left here. Take what you want. Pack up. Be ready."
The room slowly began to move again. The women headed off to gather their things.
The kids made their way to the rec center, grabbing books and anything comforting.
Above it all, the countdown ticked on.
5:52:44
And the race against time had truly begun.