Prologue

36 days after

Their journey back was quiet. Trees streaked past the window in a blur of monotone greens.  The dashes marking the lanes in the road flew by so fast they formed one never-ending line. They sat in a silence that clawed at their skins and clung to their eyes. Their muscles groaned and their bones creaked, the car shuddered as it thundered down the motorway. Every noise, every cough and clearing of throats, was amplified and digested by their ears. Slowly, they pulled into a service station. They emerged fed and watered, and still mute. The car continued along the long straight road towards home. Tears streaked their teenage faces.

Their journey back was quiet.