My Only Friend, the End

Surviving was easy. The hard part-living alone-starts now.

For Owen Bale, life in Great Falls, Montana, is good. He has a loving wife and son, a career as a writer, and plenty of reasons to get up in the morning.

The charmed existence ends one sun-kissed day when everyone in town-maybe everyone everywhere-drops dead. Owen is left alone in a city on fire.

The options now: sit tight and wait for help or seek out survivors. One thing's certain: if Owen doesn't move-and move fast-the stresses of t...