We're Still Alive(Book1)BEING REWRITTEN

Fifty-Eight

   Jared followed Paige's  gaze. She'd been staring at the ground, and the look on her face told him something was wrong. On the ground, leading up to the storage unit they stood in front of, was a set of
paw prints.
   "Probably a dog." Gavin said, also looking down.
   "The dirt's really packed here." Paige said. "A footprint's not gonna stay that long. Especially not a dog's."
   "Do you think..." Jared cut Gavin off.
   "If a dog got her, don't you think we'd see a body? Or maybe some blood? You can tell where this blood here came from, and it obviously wasn't her. She was alive when you left, and she's alive now."
   "Yeah." Paige added. "I mean, we've seen how animals react to these things. Gavin, do you remember when Cobalt killed one? Buddy latched onto it, and Cobalt kept rearing up and he landed on its head. Animals hate them; the dog probably saw a straggler and went after it." Jared nodded, and though Gavin agreed, he didn't seem to believe it.
    Paige was the first to leave. She spun on her heel and walked back to the jeep. Jared and Gavin followed.
   "Where to next?" She called over her shoulder.
   "At this point, we have nothing to follow her by. I think we'll just have to look around, find somewhere that looks like it's been barricaded." Gavin answered, looking to Jared as if asking his opinion.
   "Okay then." Paige answered as Jared nodded. They piled into the jeep and continued their search. Hours later, it brought them to a small neighborhood, with identical houses running parallel across the street from each other.
   "Think she could be here?" Jared asked.
   "Only one way to find out." Paige opened her door and hopped out of the jeep. Jared and Gavin exchanged a glance and followed her out.
   "So I'm assuming that you're leader." Jared joked.
   "I wouldn't say that, although I appreciate the thought." She replied, suddenly turning to him and letting an arrow fly. He flinched as the zombie behind him dropped to the ground. He hadn't even heard
it coming. "Watch your back." She added.
   It took them longer than he'd thought it would to clear the houses. One after the other, it was sneak in, get rid of zombies, search for needed supplies and people (mainl Cora) then move on to the next one.
Once they'd gathered enough supplies, Jared would run and get the jeep, then drive it closer to the house they'd cleared so they could lighten their loads. Jared could tell that it would be a long day.