Episode 12

Bella, Jordan, Mya, and Jimmy loaded the back of the red truck and climbed into the cab. Jimmy drove a few miles west, and they found an empty field. He pulled the vehicle a mile across the domain from the road and stopped. They pushed the mound of moldy food, dirt, broken wood, glass, and whatever else was in the pile out of the bed, and Jimmy headed back to camp.

Jordan and Bella rode in the back, and Mya sat up front with Jimmy. Dusk settled across the sky, and the stars began peeking here and there. Jordan looked at Bella with care and sighed.

"I saw Bonnie give you your necklace," he said, and Bella nodded, hanging her head.

"Yeah. It still has his blood on it. I'm sorry," she said, and Jordan lifted her chin with his fingers.

"I know you love him like I love my wife, and no one will ever take they place in our hearts, but, baby girl. They brought us together," he said, and Bella sighed, tears pooling in her eyes.

He touched her face and rubbed her cheek with his thumb. Suddenly, Bella felt something strange in the air and looked around.

"What is it, babe?" asked Jordan, and she looked around with glowing eyes.

She gasped, grabbed his arm, and sniffed back her tears.

"Use your other eyes. We're surrounded by heat signatures," she whispered, and Jordan looked around.

He saw groups of three standing in the woods and opened the back window.

"Don't go to camp. Just keep driving straight," he said, and Jimmy didn't take the turn off.

"Where we going, bro? What's going on?" he asked.

"We're surrounded by heat signatures," said Bella.

"What are we gonna do?" asked Mya frantically.

Bella closed her eyes and listened.

"Gas station."

She opened her eyes and looked at Jimmy.

"The gas station. Go there," she said, and he glanced at her wide-eyed.

"Are you crazy, man? We left thousands of them things back there!" he yelled.

She reached inside and touched his shoulder.

"Trust me," she said.

Jimmy scoffed, shook his head, and stepped on the gas.

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Jimmy pulled around the back of the gas station, and the large horde of decaying monsters turned toward the vehicle, snarling and growling. He and Mya looked at each other with wide eyes, and Mya turned to the window.

"Um, guys?" she yelled frantically, looking at Bella and Jordan.

"You and Jimmy get down and stay quiet," said Jordan, and they nodded.

Jimmy and Mya ducked into the front seat, and Bella and Jordan jumped out of the truck bed. Bella closed her eyes and slowly breathed.

"Danger in woods. Protect Bella. Protect pack."

She and Jordan heard the whispers as the decaying mutants staggered past the truck, and Jordan blew a breath.

"It's working, baby girl," he said softly, taking her hand, and Bella opened her glowing eyes.

She inhaled a deep breath and exhaled a mighty roar. Mya and Jimmy covered their ears and squeezed their eyes shut. The earth began to quake, and loud roars were heard in the distance. Bella looked at Jordan, and they held each other as they saw the tigers and jaguars running toward them.

Jimmy and Mya peered over the seat, and their eyes widened, seeing a mutant tiger bend its head to Bella and Jordan. Bella pet its head, and the beast began purring. Jimmy and Mya looked at each other and swallowed hard.

"Hey, buddy," said Jordan, looking around and seeing the heat signatures disappearing.

The other tigers and jaguars leaped through the forest, taking out the groups of Bandits, and he sighed.

"I think we can go home now," he said, and the beast groaned, nodding.

"Thank you," Bella said to the tiger, and the beast pressed its head against her hand.

One of the jaguars trotted behind Jordan and gently pressed its head against his back. Jordan chuckled, and Bella grinned.

"Are they pets?" asked Mya, and Bella shook her head.

"No, not pets. More like guardians. They come when we need them," she said, rubbing the monster's ears.

"Are they freaks?" asked Jimmy, and the jaguar snarled at him.

Jordan chuckled and rubbed the giant cat under its chin.

"They don't like that word," he said, and Jimmy looked at his brother oddly.

"They can be quite sensitive," Bella laughed.

Suddenly, they heard gunshots in the distance, and the beast turned and snarled.

"Back to camp, now!" cried Bella, and she and Jordan jumped in the back of the truck.

Jimmy slammed on the gas, taking off, and the tigers and jaguars chased them.

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A white pickup truck and a beige box truck parked in front of the gate, and a group of armed men stood in front of them. Jimmy stopped the vehicle, and Bella held her fist up, signaling the mutant pack of cats to stop. The tigers and jaguars stopped and held their position.

"Get out," whispered Bella, and Jimmy and Mya crawled out the back window.

Bella, Jordan, Jimmy, and Mya jumped out of the truck bed and snuck into the nearby woods. They hid behind a fallen tree and looked at the men.

"Who are they?" asked Jimmy, and Jordan shook his head.

"Not sure," he said and heard Bella growl.

"We know exactly who they are." she sneered, recognizing one of the men, and Jordan grabbed her arm.

"Don't do anything crazy, Bell," he warned, and she glared at him, pulling her arm away.

"My family is in there!"

Jordan grabbed her face and stared into her eyes.

"They're my family, too, baby girl!"

Bella searched his eyes and realized he meant every word, seeing the love in his eyes. He loved her as much as Dale did. Her heart surged as tears built in her eyes, and she kissed him passionately. Jordan kissed her back and ran his hands up her back.

She rested her forehead against his and blew a shaky breath.

"We can't do this right now," she sniffed, and Jordan sighed, letting her go.

He hated the apocalypse. It seems to come first before anything.

"Okay, Jimmy, Mya. Stay here. If any creatures attack you, use your knives. Me and baby girl are gonna do what we do best," he said, and Jimmy nodded, blowing a breath.

"Be careful," said Mya, and Bella nodded.

"Always," she said.

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Bella and Jordan made their stripes, claws, and fangs appear and walked toward the gate. The pack of mutant cats followed them, and Bella whistled when they reached the convoy. The men turned around, and a tall man with dark hair and a salt-and-pepper beard stepped before the group. He looked at Bella and Jordan oddly and chuckled.

"What the hell are you two supposed to be?" he asked, and Bella sneered, showing golden fangs.

"Question is, dog. Who the hell are you, and what are you doing in front of our camp?" snarled Jordan as two of the beasts slipped into the woods.

"Oh, this is your camp? Well, we found it first," said the man, and Bella scoffed.

"As you can see by the vehicles inside, the place is already occupied. You didn't find it first," snarled Bella, and another set of tigers disappeared into the woods.

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Jimmy and Mya watched from the woods, and Mya inhaled sharply as a jaguar walked up beside them. It groaned softly and turned its attention back to the men.

"What's it doing?" she whispered, and Jimmy looked at the beast.

"I think my brother sent it to protect us," he whispered, and she only nodded, unsure what to think.