There are some journeys in life that aren't measured in miles, but in lifetimes.
The drive from the Deadlands to the Blackwood Forest was geographically only a few hours, but to us, it felt like crossing the boundary between hell and the living world. We were coming back from the dead.
I sat in the passenger seat of the heavily armored SUV, watching the landscape shift through the reinforced glass. Beside me, a soldier from the Beta unit drove in reverent silence. In the backseat, Caleb was fast asleep. His breathing was heavy, and faint spots of blood were already seeping through the makeshift bandages wrapped tightly around his chest, but for the first time in months, his face was completely relaxed. Little Leo was curled up right against Caleb’s uninjured side, sleeping just as deep
