Chapter 138: Before the Storm
The office curtains were half-drawn, allowing the afternoon sunlight to slip through the narrow gaps and paint a bright line across the floor.
Wu Fan leaned back in his chair, an unlit cigarette resting between his fingers, while listening to Amy's report on the progress of the Savannah Wall Project.
Amy sat on the edge of the desk with a cup of coffee in hand. She spoke seriously, but every now and then her gaze drifted toward Wu Fan before quickly turning away.
When Beth pushed open the door, Amy had just stepped down from the desk. The coffee in her hand wobbled slightly but did not spill.
Pretending not to notice anything unusual, Beth placed a folder on the desk.
"Boss, Merle and the others are back. They want to see you."
"Let them in."
Wu Fan set the cigarette beside the ashtray and straightened in his chair.
A moment later, Merle entered, followed by Daryl.
Merle looked relaxed, as if he had just returned from a pleasant trip rather than a dangerous mission. The corners of his mouth curled upward as he casually pulled out a chair and sat down without waiting to be invited.
Daryl remained standing beside him.
"Boss, mission accomplished. Any reward?"
Wu Fan opened a drawer, took out a pack of Blue Dragon cigarettes, and tossed it over.
Merle caught it effortlessly.
After examining the pack for a moment, he grinned and slipped it into his pocket.
"My boss really understands me."
Then he began recounting everything that had happened in Florida—the stolen Humvee, the Latin Kingdom gang, and their encounter near the border town.
He spoke quickly and skipped over many details, but Wu Fan understood the overall situation.
After listening quietly, Wu Fan nodded.
"Good work. Go get some rest."
Merle stood and left with Daryl.
Once the office door closed, silence settled over the room.
After several seconds, Wu Fan spoke.
"Red Queen, check for any vehicles that have been reported overdue and failed to return."
The computer monitor lit up.
A holographic image of a little girl appeared on the screen.
Her voice was calm and emotionless.
"At the Port of Savannah transit station, Humvee MV-0842 was assigned a route from Savannah to the Florida border. It failed to return on schedule. Its last known location was in northern Florida, approximately one hundred twenty miles north of Tampa."
Two photographs appeared on the screen.
Lee.
Clementine.
Wu Fan stared at the faces in silence.
The pair had collected fuel and vaccines from Savannah before departing for the Florida border in search of Clementine's parents.
So why were they near Tampa?
Tampa was hundreds of miles away from their intended destination.
"Red Queen, display the latest footage from Florida."
The screen switched immediately.
A map of Florida appeared, covered in dense red markers and gray-white currents resembling tidal waves.
The infestation stretched from Miami to Orlando and from Orlando to Tampa.
Wu Fan zoomed in on Tampa.
Columns of black smoke rose throughout the city.
Not one fire.
Not two.
Dozens.
It looked as though multiple industrial chimneys were spewing smoke simultaneously.
The image zoomed closer.
Every street was packed with Walkers.
Gray-white masses filled the roads like thick porridge spilling through the city.
In several districts, the Walkers had gathered into circular formations.
At the center of each circle lay something being devoured.
The image magnified further but became too blurry to identify the remains.
Wu Fan already knew what they were.
People.
"Was the city always like this?"
"No. This footage was recorded today."
Wu Fan switched the feed to Miami.
The port was burning.
A large section of the container yard had been consumed by fire, producing thick black smoke visible even from satellite imagery.
Several ships listed heavily in the harbor.
Some still burned.
Others were half-submerged, their charred bows protruding above the water.
Compared to Tampa, there were fewer Walkers in the streets.
However, their movement was obvious.
They were migrating north.
Wu Fan leaned back and lit his cigarette.
Two days earlier, Charles had reported that someone was using living people as bait along the highways north of Miami, deliberately drawing Walkers toward Georgia.
Wu Fan had planned to dispatch James to investigate and capture whoever was responsible.
Now it seemed those people had finally suffered the consequences of their own actions.
He flicked ash into the tray and stared at the endless gray tide on the screen.
"Red Queen, where were Lee and Clementine last detected?"
"Their signal disappeared twenty-four hours ago, approximately thirty miles north of Tampa."
Wu Fan extinguished the cigarette and picked up the phone.
"Send Merle back."
Amy paused briefly before leaving the office.
A few minutes later, Merle returned with half a cigarette hanging from his lips.
"Boss, something else?"
"We have people in Florida."
Wu Fan rotated the monitor toward him.
"A man named Lee and a little girl named Clementine. If you find them, bring them back."
Merle studied their faces.
"Florida, huh? That's Latin Kingdom territory. Not exactly friendly ground, especially after Daryl shot one of their guys."
Wu Fan remained calm.
"Don't worry. That place is already collapsing. The gangs are too busy saving themselves to worry about outsiders."
He pointed at the map.
"Take a team to the Florida border. Search for them. If you find them, bring them home. If not, return."
Merle nodded.
"Understood."
He crushed his cigarette into the ashtray and left.
Once again, the office became quiet.
Wu Fan sat alone, watching the burning cities on the screen.
Smoke rose into the sky.
The wind scattered it.
More smoke followed.
The Walkers continued marching north.
Slowly.
Relentlessly.
Their numbers had decreased compared to several days ago, but millions still remained.
Millions of Walkers.
Soon they would surge out of Florida and crash into Savannah's walls, Atlanta's construction zones, and the farmlands that Georgia had fought so hard to rebuild.
Wu Fan picked up a red pen and drew a line across the Florida border.
North of that line lay Georgia.
South of it lay a land consumed by fire, chaos, gangs, survivors, and endless Walkers.
He stared at the line for a long time.
Then he folded the map and placed it inside the drawer.
---
Atlanta Broadcasting Station.
HUNK looked up at the building before leading his team inside.