If you missed the first chapter, it's here: #992773

The engine she had heard minutes before disappeared into the distance, and Valeria waited, holding her breath, her muscles tense. She couldn't afford to make a mistake. Over the past few months, she had learned to be patient, to study every sound, every movement. If something wasn't right, she had to act quickly. But after what seemed like an eternity, she slowly stood up and, looking around, verified there were no signs of an immediate threat. The sun hadn't peeked through the gray clouds, but Valeria still felt as if everything around her was changing. Every step she took took her further from the routine she had adopted in recent weeks, from the despair she had learned to endure. Now, it wasn't just about surviving; it was about finding her. Eva. The last family she had left. At the end of the street, the highway stretched out before her, an empty stretch of asphalt covered in debris and stains of dried blood. In the distance, the sound of ocean waves mingled with the distant echoes of zombies wandering aimlessly, like specters that no longer had a purpose. Valeria walked cautiously, her mind focused on the direction to follow. She knew the only way north was to take this road, but the risks increased with each advance. Sometimes, zombies weren't just lurking; bands of survivors, desperate and dangerous, were too. The first few hours were peaceful, but Valeria didn't trust herself. She couldn't. The shadows of broken buildings stalked her, and any noise could be the last she heard. Every creak beneath her feet, every squeal of the wind between the buildings, could be the harbinger of a deadly encounter. As she continued, the road became more inhospitable. The fallen traffic signs, abandoned vehicles, and looted stores told her the story of a collapse far greater than the one the television had portrayed. But Valeria wasn't thinking about that. She focused on moving forward, step by step, as fatigue began to take its toll on her body. Suddenly, a distant scream made her stop. The voice was unmistakable: a zombie. It wasn't uncommon to hear those sounds, but there was something different about this one. It wasn't the same one that walked aimlessly through the streets. This one seemed to be lurking, moving with purpose. Valeria quickly ducked behind an overturned car, her breathing ragged. Through the crack in a broken window, she saw the figure of a zombie slowly approaching. Its skin was rotten, its eyes glassy, ​​and its movements erratic, but something about its demeanor made her feel even more vulnerable. This didn't seem to be just any zombie. It didn't have the vacant stare of the others. It seemed… conscious. Valeria's heart pounded in her chest as she watched. She couldn't stay there much longer. There was no time for further doubts. She knew that if that zombie came any closer, her only course of action would be to confront it or run. And Valeria wasn't the type to run. The zombie took another step toward her, its decomposed body dragging itself along the asphalt with a disturbing determination. Valeria, without looking away, assessed her options. Her knife was sharp, but she didn't want to waste energy on a pointless fight. If she could help it, she'd prefer to remain unnoticed, and perhaps she could find a way to distract it. With a swift movement, she pulled a large rock from the rubble and threw it toward a nearby dumpster. The sound echoed in the distance, and the zombie turned toward the noise, its steps slow but purposeful. Valeria seized the opportunity. Without making a sound, she left her hiding place and moved quickly across the street from the zombie, seeking the cover of a nearby building. Her heart was pounding, but she managed to reach the building unnoticed. From there, she could watch as the zombie approached the source of the sound, its hunting instinct guiding it, as if it had never lost its desire to feed. Valeria didn't stay to check if her distraction had worked at all. She took advantage of the gap to move away, plunging into the gloom of an alley. She stopped to catch her breath, her mind racing. She couldn't allow these kinds of encounters to exhaust her. She didn't know how much longer she could keep going if she didn't quickly find safe haven. She needed answers. And somewhere to the north, perhaps there was an opportunity. As she moved through the deserted streets, the atmosphere became even more oppressive. The fog still covered everything, and the leaden sky seemed ready to crush her with its weight. But something told her the worst danger was yet to come. The city seemed empty, but Valeria knew that zombies didn't need a reason to go hunting. In her experience, the worst thing she could do was relax too much. Decided nor stray far from the center. In the city, there was always the chance of finding supplies she urgently needed: food, water, something to give her the strength to continue. Deep within the city, she found what she was looking for: a hardware store with smashed doors. She didn't dare enter immediately. Something wasn't right. The windows were broken, and a trail of blood formed an uneven path leading to the entrance. It wasn't a simple looting; someone had been here before. With the knife in her hand and her breathing controlled, Valeria moved forward cautiously. As she entered, the atmosphere was tense, and the air smelled of mold and rusty metal. She walked through the dark hallways, trying not to make a sound, until she reached a back room where she found shelves full of cans and supplies. There were no zombies in sight, but something kept her alert. Just as she reached out to grab a can of beans, a strange noise came from the shadows, followed by a barely audible whisper. Valeria froze. Her eyes shot wide open as reality dawned on her: she wasn't alone. Valeria didn't move, her knife in hand, her nerves on edge. Someone else's breathing filled the air, a high-pitched, barely audible sound, as if they were waiting, watching. Her mind began racing, calculating every possible scenario. It could be another survivor, but the eerie silence made her doubt. People in this world were no longer trustworthy. A creaking of wood echoed in the darkness to her right, and Valeria spun around quickly, her heart pounding in her ears. A man appeared from the shadows, his face covered by a makeshift mask made of dirty cloth and the torn skin of some dead animal. His clothes were torn, and the slight tilt of his body gave him a strange posture, as if injured, yet alert. There were no zombies in sight, but what truly terrified her was the man's blank stare. It wasn't fear in his eyes, but... a kind of emptiness. The same emptiness she felt when she thought of the people she'd lost. "What are you doing here?" Valeria couldn't help but ask, even though she knew she shouldn't speak. Words could be a sign of weakness. The man was silent for a long moment, staring at her. Then his lips moved in a whisper, barely audible, but clear enough for her to hear: "What if I told you there's something much worse than zombies?" Before she could react, the man took a step back, disappearing into the shadows, as silently as he'd arrived. Valeria stood there, motionless, her mind spinning. What had he meant by that? And why, at that moment, did it seem so terrifyingly true? The zombies weren't the worst of it anymore. There was something beyond them, something she could no longer escape. The sound of their footsteps disappearing into the distance woke her from her trance. Was there someone else? A group? Or... was this just another madman in this destroyed world? She shook her head, and with the knife still in hand, she moved toward the store's exit. The feeling that she was walking into something much darker enveloped her, and she knew she couldn't trust anyone.