Cigarettes

The two middle-aged men were clearly seasoned veterans, the kind who could tell just from the tire pressure and the way the truck moved that it was carrying a heavy load—clearly packed with supplies.

"Well, well, looks like dinner just delivered itself," the skinny man said, a glint of greed flashing in his eyes.

The bearded man with a scruffy face licked his cracked lips, his gaze tinged with anticipation. "Let's hope there's some cigarettes in there."

As the truck drew closer, they got a better look—and what they saw made their eyes light up. Sitting in the driver's seat was a young, beautiful woman.

"Ha! Looks like today's our lucky day," the skinny man said with a sinister grin. Without hesitation, he started up their massive truck, slammed on the gas, and swerved into the middle of the road, completely blocking the smaller truck's path.

Screeeeech!

Nina's heart jumped as the truck suddenly barreled into her path. She slammed on the brakes, the screech of tires echoing down the empty street. The truck skidded to a halt, leaving a long black streak on the asphalt. When it finally stopped, it was less than two feet away from the massive truck blocking the road.

"That was close!" Nina exhaled, patting her chest as she tried to calm her racing heart.

But the sudden stop had consequences. The jolt sent Bulldozer, who was in the back of the truck, slamming into the wall of the cargo hold with a loud thud.

Bulldozer, who had been relatively satisfied with Nina's driving up until now, immediately changed his mind. In his head, her "five-star rating" just dropped to a solid "one star."

Ethan, on the other hand, remained unnervingly calm. Leaning back in his seat, he glanced out the window with a detached expression, as if he'd seen this coming from a mile away.

Sure enough, two men jumped down from the massive truck. Their arms were wrapped in duct tape and newspaper, and they were holding steel pipes stained with dried blood. Their faces were twisted into malicious grins.

"Get out of the truck, both of you!" the bearded man barked, his voice dripping with menace.

Nina's eyes darted between the two men, and in an instant, she understood their intentions.

In this post-apocalyptic world, cannibalism wasn't exactly unheard of. People would do anything to survive, no matter how depraved.

"What do we do, boss?" she asked, her voice trembling as she turned to Ethan.

Ethan didn't answer right away. His gaze swept over the two men, his brow furrowing slightly. Their makeshift armor and weapons reminded him of Tony, the guy who'd trashed his supermarket a while back. These two were probably part of the same gang.

He glanced toward a nearby construction site in the distance, and a faint smirk tugged at the corner of his lips.

"Let them handle it," he said casually, clearly unimpressed by the two men.

The two middle-aged men, oblivious to the danger they were walking into, were too busy eyeing the truck like it was a jackpot. Their smug grins grew wider as they approached.

"Hey there, sweetheart, don't be scared. I'll make sure to 'take good care' of you," the skinny man sneered, his tone dripping with malice as he leered at Nina.

But inside the truck's cargo hold, something stirred. A female zombie slowly lifted her head. Her stiff neck creaked as she turned toward the sound, her lifeless eyes suddenly gleaming with excitement.

"Sweetheart?" she muttered, her voice low and raspy, as if she were trying to remember something.

"Take care of me?" The words triggered a faint, fragmented memory in her decaying mind.

She longed for warmth. She longed to be "taken care of."

Without hesitation, she shoved the cargo door open and leapt out of the truck.

The skinny man, who had just raised his steel pipe to smash the truck's window, froze in surprise when the door swung open on its own.

For a moment, he was stunned. Then his grin grew even wider, his expression turning even more vile. "Well, aren't you eager? If you behave, maybe I'll let you live."

"Behave…?"

A strange, eerie laugh suddenly echoed in his ears.

The skinny man's grin froze. Slowly, he turned his head—and found himself face-to-face with a pale, twisted figure. Her face was gaunt, her skin stretched tight over her bones, and her lips were curled into a grotesque smile.

"Take… care…" the zombie rasped, her voice low and guttural, sending chills down his spine.

Before he could react, she moved. In a blur of motion, she lunged at him with inhuman speed, her figure almost a shadow as she closed the distance in an instant.

"Holy sh—!"

The skinny man barely had time to curse before she tackled him to the ground. The force of the impact sent him skidding across the pavement, his body dragging for nearly ten feet.

"Help me, damn it!" The skinny man screamed, thrashing wildly as he called out to the bearded man.

But the bearded man didn't even glance his way. His attention was entirely fixated on the back of the truck, his eyes gleaming with greed.

"Cigarettes… I need cigarettes. Let me find some first…" he muttered to himself, quickening his pace toward the truck's rear.

"You… ahhh—!" The skinny man's scream was abruptly cut off. The female zombie had sunk her teeth deep into his neck, blood spurting out in a gruesome arc. In that moment, he finally understood what it meant to be "taken care of."

The bearded man remained oblivious to his companion's fate. He eagerly yanked open the truck's rear doors, his mind filled with fantasies of cigarettes, booze, and food piled high inside.

What greeted him, however, were two undead faces.

Their eyes were hollow and cold, their mouths smeared with dried blood.

The PhD zombie stood inside the truck, tilting his head slightly as he studied the bearded man with an unsettling curiosity, like a scientist examining a new specimen. His empty gaze carried a strange, chilling sense of "interest" that sent shivers down the man's spine.

On the other hand, Bulldozer wasn't nearly as composed.

His face was twisted with irritation, his eyes blazing with frustration. He was still fuming over being slammed into the truck wall earlier.

In his mind, there was only one thought: This bastard is to blame!

The bearded man froze, his eyes wide with terror as his body locked up like a statue. It was as if he'd been nailed to the ground. His mind went blank, unable to process the horrifying reality in front of him.

Just moments ago, he'd been daydreaming about cigarettes, booze, and food. Now, that dream had been shattered—inside the truck were two terrifying zombies.

After a brief moment of stunned silence, he seemed to snap out of it. His trembling hands reached for the half-smoked cigarette tucked behind his ear. He lit it with shaky fingers, taking two deep drags as if the smoke could somehow calm his nerves.

The cigarette smoke swirled around him, and for a fleeting moment, a faint smile of satisfaction appeared on his lips.

But that satisfaction didn't last long.

A pale, massive hand suddenly shot out from the truck, clamping down on his shoulder like a steel vice. The bearded man's eyes flew open in shock. Before he could even exhale the smoke from his mouth, the hand yanked him into the truck with brutal force.

Bang! The truck's rear doors slammed shut.

Within seconds, the street fell eerily silent.

From the driver's seat, Nina glanced at the scene through the rearview mirror. She couldn't help but purse her lips and shake her head. "What a mess… just pathetic. Seriously, who's dumb enough to block my boss's truck?"

Her tone carried a hint of schadenfreude, but mostly it was laced with exasperation at the sheer stupidity of the two men.

At that moment, Ethan finally spoke. His voice was calm and commanding, carrying an air of quiet authority. "Let's go. Head to that construction site up ahead."

Nina blinked, momentarily surprised, but quickly nodded. "Oh… okay." She didn't ask any questions. As a loyal employee, she knew her role—go where the boss says, and don't pry into things that don't concern her.

She restarted the truck, carefully steering around the abandoned vehicle blocking the road, and drove toward the construction site.

...

The construction site was surrounded by blue corrugated metal fencing, though the main gate had long since collapsed, leaving the area looking desolate and abandoned.

 The ground was littered with mangled zombie corpses, their limbs twisted and broken, with bloodstains splattered across the dirt in a grotesque display.

The truck followed a set of tire tracks etched into the ground, leading deeper into the site. Nina gripped the steering wheel tightly, her brows furrowing as she surveyed the scene. "This place… doesn't feel right," she muttered under her breath.

Ethan didn't respond. 

His cold gaze swept across the area, his mind working quickly. 

It was clear that this construction site had once been a survivor stronghold, and a sizable one at that. The gang that had attacked his supermarket—Tony and the two men from earlier—were almost certainly from here.

"There won't be a third time. "Ethan's lips curled into a faint, icy smirk.

He had already made up his mind. This stronghold needed to be wiped out completely. He couldn't afford to let them keep harassing him.

As soon as the truck came to a stop, the three zombies in the back wasted no time. They leapt out with startling agility, their movements quick and precise. Their faces were alight with a strange, almost gleeful excitement, as if they could already sense the presence of prey nearby.

"Following the boss was the best decision I ever made," Bulldozer muttered, licking his lips as his eyes gleamed with bloodlust. He was practically salivating at the thought of fresh meat. "Every time, we find something good to eat."

The PhD zombie, in contrast, remained calm and composed. He stood still, his gaze sweeping over the surroundings as if he were analyzing the environment.

A faint, enigmatic smile tugged at the corners of his mouth.

...

The construction site was deathly silent, the air thick with the stench of decay.

The ground was strewn with the remains of zombies that had been beaten to death, their bodies crushed and broken. It was clear that the survivors here had been well-organized and capable, having cleared out the immediate threats in the area.

Ahead of the truck loomed an unfinished building, its gray concrete walls riddled with cracks. The skeletal structure of the building gave it a bleak, desolate appearance.

But in one corner of the site stood something unusual.

It was a three-story structure made entirely of reinforced concrete. The walls were thick and impenetrable, with no windows to speak of. Even the entrance was sealed with a heavy stainless steel door, devoid of any glass. The only openings were a few fist-sized ventilation holes, giving the building an ominously fortified look.

Nina stared at the structure, muttering under her breath, "This place… looks like a fortress."

Ethan nodded slightly, his eyes narrowing as a cold glint flashed across them.

Clearly, this building had been deliberately constructed as a defense against zombies.