Walter sagged back in the chair inside the booth. He pulled open the drawer of the small desk and took out a worn newspaper. He had read this one more times than he could count. Not only this one. The whole pile stuffed into that drawer had been read until the edges curled and yellowed. Since the disasters began, he had nothing else to pass the time. His phone was useless. Hardly anyone ever came to the villas. Boredom pressed down on him day and night. The papers were the only thing that gave him something to hold onto. When he had other guards on shift with him, it was better. They could talk and laugh to kill the hours. But once the fog descended, everything changed. His coworkers grew unstable, their moods snapping like dry twigs. One word too sharp and they were swinging fists. One step further and they were swinging knives. Several men had died right in front of him. Only four guards remained alive. Two on each shift. The boy who was supposed to be with him on the day watch had caught a fever. He was holed up in the property building to rest. That left Walter alone. He stared at the paper. He lifted the page to turn it. His eyes lifted at the same time. The woman was still outside. She hadn't moved an inch. She stood at the booth window, staring straight at him, her eyes cold and steady. Walter jumped in his seat. They're still here? He pressed his hand to his chest to calm the jolt in his heart. His gaze drifted to the child standing beside her. The boy was young, but he was too quiet. He had stood there this whole time without a sound. He hadn't shifted. He hadn't even blinked. His eyes drilled into Walter.The sight made Walter's skin crawl. His stomach twisted. He dragged his gaze back down to the paper and forced himself to look away. Then the woman moved. She lifted her hand and tapped on the glass window of the booth. "Hello? Hello?" Walter lifted the paper higher. His lips moved in silence. Can't hear you, can't hear you, just leave, just leave. He stared at the print. The words swam and vanished. A thought cut in like a blade. What if my shift ends—and they're still out there? What do I do then? Would he have to shove them away? He could take on a woman and a child. That wasn't the problem. But they kept trying to trick him into opening the window. That meant they wanted something else. Time ticked by. Their eyes still burned into him. They did not blink. They did not move. Walter snapped. He shoved back his chair, the legs scraping across the floor. His roar broke the silence. "What the hell are you—" He stopped short. The woman slid one hand through her hair. Her other hand touched her ear. "Hello. I can't hear you." Walter froze. His eyes widened in shock. She wore a hearing aid. The truth hit him hard. He thought he was a bastard for misunderstanding the woman. He had imagined an entire horror story. He had painted her as a liar and a cheat. He had convinced himself of evil. And all the while, he had left a woman and child outside in the fog. Shame burned through his chest. I'm a damn fool. His voice cracked—thick with guilt and panic. "I'm sorry, miss! I'm so sorry!" He flung the booth door open and waved his arm in apology. "Forgive me. Really. What did you need—" Her eyes, which had been soft before, hardened like stone. Her left hand shot forward. She gripped his hair and yanked his head back with brutal force. Her right arm moved fast. A flash of steel slid free from her sleeve. The blade gleamed as it fell. The cut was swift. Blood sprayed across the booth door. His voice broke in a wet gasp. "You ... you ... " The woman bent her head, her lips curving into a cruel smile. "Not bad. You had some caution. But not nearly enough." She pulled the hearing aid from her ear and tossed it onto his chest. "Picked it off the ground. You want it? It's yours." She took the boy's hand and stepped into the booth. With steady fingers, she opened the gate to the villas. "Come on, son. We're going in." Walter collapsed. His hands pressed against the wound, but blood poured through his fingers like water. His vision blurred. In the haze, he saw the boy look back. The child's eyes curved like a silver crescent. He was smiling. Walter's chest heaved. His lungs dragged for air. In the fog of his mind, the truth broke free.Two years of brutal heat had burned scavengers dark as coal. Yet this boy's skin was pale and spotless. He was untouched. He had never known hunger. He had never known hardship. Walter's eyes stretched wide with horror. His body shook once, then went still. The woman led the boy along the main road. The fog swallowed them whole. Soon, faint shapes of villas rose in the fog. One lay collapsed in rubble. The other stood intact, its gate shut tight. Someone lived inside. The woman paused, her eyes sharp. She spoke low to the boy. "Stay here and wait until I get back." She let go of his hand. She stepped toward the villa. From her sleeve shot a silver wire. It hooked the top of the wall. With one pull, she rose and crouched on the ledge. She scanned the yard. No sound. No movement. She dropped down smooth and silent. The boy sat calm on the curb. He unwrapped a piece of candy and slipped it into his mouth, his expression serene. The woman crept to the windows. But before she could lean close, the villa's door swung open with a creak. The thick fog cloaked her shape. She rolled fast across the ground and pressed herself against the wall, her body melting into the shadows.