The sound of the train rattling along the old tracks had become a background noise, like the beat of a heart you forgot was there—until it skipped.
Car 8 had never felt this suffocating. The tension between the passengers hung like a fog. They were trapped—zombies on both ends, survivors inside, and the air filled with the scent of fear.
Asher stood at the edge of the car, leaning against the window, eyes fixed on the darkened stretch ahead. His bat, stained and nicked, rested loosely in his grip.
Behind him, the child's laugh—a bright, innocent giggle—rang out. He turned.
The little girl, no older than five, was drawing smiley faces in the condensation of the window with her finger. Her cheeks were flushed with the simple joy of being a child.
Her mother—tired eyes, tangled hair, one hand resting on her swollen stomach—sat close, watching her with a gentle smile. It was a soft moment, a rare flicker of normal.
Ethan slid up beside Asher and nodded toward the girl.
"Still smiling. Must be nice."
"Yeah," Asher whispered, eyes still on them. "That kind of innocence... it shouldn't die here."
Then—
A loud BANG.
The entire car jumped.
The sound didn't come from outside—it came from the rear.
Asher and Ethan spun around at the same time. "Wasn't that...?"
Another bang. And then, the unmistakable shriek. The sound of flesh being torn, the gurgled cry of something once human.
"No!" someone yelled. A man—a father, husband—leapt from his seat.
But it was too late.
The emergency window on the side of Car 8 burst open, glass spraying like a cloud of diamonds. One of the infected crawled through, its teeth red, its face peeled back in a grotesque grin.
Screams erupted.
The mother screamed.
The little girl stood frozen in fear, eyes wide as the zombie lunged—straight at them.
"Asher!" Ethan shouted, but he was already moving.
Adrenaline erased hesitation. Asher bolted forward, pushing through panicking passengers. The mother tried to shield her child with her body, but she was slow—pregnancy dragging her limbs like chains.
The zombie was fast.
But Asher was faster.
With a full swing, his bat collided with the side of its skull. The crack echoed through the car. The creature staggered, a growl bubbling from its throat.
"Run!" Asher yelled at the mother.
She didn't move.
She was clutching her stomach, in pain.
"Take the kid!" she cried out.
Ethan reached them at the same moment Asher swung again. This time, he didn't miss. The zombie dropped, twitching, blood oozing onto the floor.
"I got her!" Ethan said, scooping the trembling girl into his arms.
But another shriek cut through the air. A second infected was crawling through the same shattered window.
"No—no!" the woman gasped, trying to get up, trying to reach her daughter.
She didn't make it.
The zombie lunged and bit into her shoulder. She screamed in agony, blood spraying. Asher dragged her back, but she was already crumpling. Eyes wide. Face pale.
Jason, her husband, appeared just seconds later. "NO! JANELLE!"
He charged, taking the zombie with him, stabbing it repeatedly with a broken pipe he must've ripped from the emergency wall panel. But the damage was done.
Janelle lay slumped on the floor, breathing hard, blood pouring from her shoulder.
"She's bitten," someone whispered.
"No... no... no..." Jason dropped beside her, cradling her head. "Stay with me. Stay with me, Janelle. Please."
Her lips trembled. "The baby..."
Jason sobbed.
The little girl, clinging to Ethan's chest, stared at her mother with teary eyes.
"Mommy?" she whispered.
Asher bent down beside Janelle. His hands trembled, and not just from fear.
Her eyes found his.
"You saved her," she whispered. "Thank you..."
"You're going to be okay," Asher lied. "We'll find help. We'll—"
"Don't lie, sweetheart." She smiled faintly. "You know the rules now."
Asher's throat tightened.
"She's yours now," Janelle breathed. "Promise me. Keep her safe. Don't let her see this world alone."
He couldn't speak. He just nodded, holding her hand.
Her breathing slowed. Her grip loosened.
Jason kissed her forehead, one last time.
Then she was gone.
The only sound was the crying of her daughter.
Asher stood and walked back toward Ethan, who still held the girl tightly. Their eyes met.
"Her name's Mia," Ethan said softly. "She told me when I picked her up."
Asher looked at the child, her small arms wrapped around Ethan's neck, sobbing quietly into his shoulder.
Asher exhaled.
"Promise me," he said.
Ethan blinked. "What?"
"Promise me we'll protect her. No matter what. She's innocent. She shouldn't be here. We're not letting her die."
Ethan looked at Mia, then at Asher.
"I promise."
They stood in the blood-soaked aisle of a train heading nowhere, surrounded by the scent of death and the weight of responsibility.
But in that moment, something unshakable passed between them.
It wasn't just a promise.
It was a bond.
Time passed in uneven, shuddering breaths.
The bodies were removed to the rear of the car. Jason sat silently beside his wife's covered body. He refused to cry anymore. His face had gone hard, his eyes steel.
The other passengers avoided looking at the child.
Mia sat beside Asher now, her hand in his. She didn't speak, didn't look up. But she hadn't let go of his hand since he'd sat beside her.
Ethan crouched in front of her and pulled a chocolate bar from his bag. "Hey. Look what I found."
Mia blinked, hesitated, then took it.
She didn't smile.
But she ate.
Jason approached them not long after.
"You two," he said.
Asher stood. "Yeah?"
"I don't know how to say thank you. And I don't know if it means anything... but if you hadn't been there—if you hadn't stepped in—she'd be gone too."
He knelt beside Mia. "I'm going to fight to make sure you all live through this. But I can't be a dad right now. Not like this."
Asher frowned. "Jason, you don't have to—"
"Yes, I do," Jason said. "I have to focus on keeping this train alive. On getting us out of here. I'm trusting you two with the most important thing in my life. I know you'll keep her safe."
Ethan placed a hand on Jason's shoulder. "We will. No matter what."
Jason nodded.
Then turned back, walking away to guard the door.
That night, the train continued moving—slowly, silently.
And inside Car 8, Asher sat on the floor with Mia curled up beside him, her head on his lap. Ethan sat close, watching out the window, one hand resting on the handle of his bat.
The storm outside was building. Thunder rolled in the distance. Rain began to splatter on the glass.
Asher looked over at Ethan.
"Think we'll make it?"
Ethan shrugged. "No idea."
Asher nodded, looking back at Mia.
"But she has to."
Ethan met his eyes.
And agreed.