In the back seat, the two girls had finally fallen asleep. Mika's head rested against her sister's shoulder, while Lizzie clung to her father's sleeve even in her dreams.
Itachi had just finished explaining what had happened at the gas station, the ambush, the n, and the rescue, while Ryan just nodded slowly. His gaze softened when he looked at his daughters. "Thank you for saving them." His voice cracked a little. "They're all I've got left."
Itachi just nodded, waiting a mont before asking, "If I may ask… what was that you gave to Lizzie earlier?"
Ryan reached into his jacket and pulled out an orange bottle. "These are her ds."
Itachi glanced at the rearview mirror. "dication for what?"
Ryan hesitated, then sighed. "She's suffering from schizophrenia." He spoke the word slowly, like it physically hurt to say it. "At first, the symptoms only showed up when she was under heavy stress. Even then, it was rare, she'd get distant or talk to herself, see things that weren't there. But after…" His voice trailed off. "After the incident with her mother, it got worse."
Itachi stayed quiet, waiting.
Ryan looked down at the bottle, his hand shaking. "We were at our house when it all started. We tried to leave the city right away, but…" He paused, as tears started to form in his eyes. "While we were running to the car, she got grabbed out of nowhere… with Lizzie still in her arms."
He swallowed hard, wiping at his eyes before the tears could fall. "After that, she stopped talking for days. Wouldn't eat, wouldn't sleep. Then out of nowhere, she started asking when her mom was coming back. I tried telling her the truth, that she was gone... but she wouldn't listen. She just kept saying her mom was still alive… and that she'd co back, just like them."
Itachi murmured, "And then she started hearing them talk."
Ryan's eyes widened as he nodded. "Yeah… her symptoms got worse. The next ti she saw walkers, she started talking to them, telling and Mika they were just being friendly." He paused. "Only when she takes the ds do the voices stop."
Itachi let out a quiet sigh. "I can give you two choices."
Ryan looked over, confused. "Choices?"
"I can leave you sowhere safe with so food," Itachi said evenly, "or you can co with us." His eyes drifted toward Lizzie. "But there will have to be rules for her."
Ryan thought it through before asking, "What kind of rules?"
"She'll need to be monitored," Itachi replied. "I know it might not seem fair for a ten-year-old, but she could put the others in danger, and we can't take that risk. Still, you'll have a safe place to sleep and plenty of food."
Ryan didn't answer right away. He looked down, torn. It didn't sit right with him, his little girl being treated like so kind of danger, but deep down he knew their luck wouldn't last much longer out here alone.
Finally, he looked back at Itachi. "When you say monitored… You an just keeping an eye on her, right?"
Itachi gave a short nod. "More or less. She'll have a few restrictions, but nothing she'll notice."
Ryan nodded slowly. "If that's all, I can agree to it."
"It is," Itachi said. "We'll arrange sleeping quarters for you when we arrive. But I do have to ask, what did you do before the outbreak?"
Ryan leaned back. "I used to work as a solar technician back in Florida—installing panels, wiring small systems for hos and businesses."
A faint smile started creeping across Itachi's face. "Do you happen to know any sites nearby that might have panels? And what would you need to set them up?"
Ryan nodded slightly. "You'll want to look for an electrical distributor or a solar supply company. They're typically located on the edge of industrial zones, near highways and If I'm not mistaken, there should be one about an hour's drive from here."
Itachi leaned in a little. "And what would you need to make it work?"
"Panels, obviously," Ryan said with a faint smile. "But I'd also need batteries, deep-cycle ones, plus a charge controller, an inverter, and clean copper wiring. If we can find even half of that, I could rig sothing small."
Itachi nodded, then eased the car to a stop on the side of the road. The tires crunched against gravel before the engine went quiet.
Daryl's truck pulled up right behind them, the rumble dying down as he climbed out.
He looked towards Itachi. "Sothing wrong?"
Itachi shook his head. "Quite the opposite. We're making a short detour on the way back."
Daryl lifted one brow. "Where to?"
Itachi t his eyes. "To a solar panel site."
Daryl shrugged. "Sounds good to , but we gotta move fast before it starts getting dark."
Itachi gave a small nod and turned back towards the car. Daryl followed, climbing into his truck, and the two vehicles rolled out, heading towards where the site should be.
The drive wasn't short. Every few miles, they passed abandoned cars or the occasional walker shuffling down the road.
After a while, sothing caught Itachi's eye, a faint shimr off to the right. As they drove a little farther, the view opened up, revealing rows of solar panels glinting in the fading sunlight.
He drove off the road and followed the dirt driveway leading towards them the car ca to a stop right next to a building resembling a small warehouse.
The sudden stillness made the girls stir awake in the back seat.
Lizzie rubbed her eyes. "Where are we?" she asked, glancing out the window.
Ryan glanced back at her with a small, reassuring smile. "We're going sowhere safe, sweetheart. Sowhere with plenty of food. But first, we just need to make a quick stop here."
Lizzie nodded, half-awake, and leaned back against her seat while Mika just smiled at the ntion of food.
Itachi glanced towards them before stepping out of the car. "Stay inside while we check it out."
Ryan just nodded, while the girls blinked, still half-asleep.
Itachi walked over to Daryl, who was already climbing out of his truck and scanning the area.
"So, what's the plan?" Daryl asked.
"I'll check the warehouse for walkers," Itachi said. "You stay out here and keep watch. Once it's clear, Ryan will take a look around and see if he can find what he needs."
Daryl gave a short nod. "Got it."
Itachi moved towards the warehouse. The tal door creaked as he opened it. Inside, the dim light spilled through broken windows, cutting across rows of crates and scattered tools.
A faint shuffling ca from deeper inside. Two walkers wandered between the shelves.
He barely glanced their way, just kept looking around as his hands moved on instinct. Two kunai flew out almost at the sa ti, piercing both walkers through the head before either could take another step.
He continued looking around, scanning each corner to make sure the place was clear. Then he stepped back outside.
Daryl turned when he saw him. "All clear?"
Itachi nodded. "It's clear."
He motioned to Ryan, who climbed out of the car and followed him inside.
Ryan's eyes lit up the mont he stepped in. "Damn… this place is a gold mine."
He moved quickly, checking shelves and boxes, pulling open dusty containers until he found what he needed: wiring, a few battery units still sealed in their boxes, tools, and so cables.
"These'll do," Ryan said, placing the last item near the exit.
Itachi glanced at the pile of equipnt. "Now all we need are the panels."
"There are plenty of tools here," Ryan replied. "I can take the one outside apart."
"For now, just grab two," Itachi said, looking towards him. "One for each car. There should be so rope or straps around to secure them to the roof."
Ryan nodded, grabbing a few tools before heading outside. He didn't fully disassemble the panels, just removed the stands and fras to make them easier to carry.
Itachi found a set of straps near the corner and, with Daryl's help, they carefully lifted the panels onto the roofs. Once the windows were open, they looped the straps through and tightened them down until everything was secure.
Ryan wiped his hands on his jeans, stepping back to look over their work. "That should do it."
Itachi gave a short nod. "Then let's go back for now. We'll return tomorrow for more."
The engines started up again, as they pulled back onto the road, heading back to the prison.
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🧪 Author's Note:
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