with keeping an eye on the trio while they awaited their turn with Sunshine and Dr. Zahn.
I heard a scream come from the kitchen at the same time that Brad crashed through the doorway holding a man at arm’s length. Jon was closest and pulled a knife from his belt in a flash. It felt like everything slowed down in that instant as I watched the blade catch enough of the light from the fireplace to cast a single beam of bright orange that danced down the wall. He drove the blade into the back of the man’s skull and the three figures vanished from sight behind the table.
DeAngelo made for the kitchen, and I quickly corralled the girls to the ladder that led up to the lookout tower. “Go up with Fiona until this is over,” I said, turning my attention back to the room, and specifically the woman slumped in the corner.
A low moan rolled through the room from the kitchen and I heard a loud sound that could only be a pan of some sort connecting with a skull. Everybody was trying to rush into the back, including the newcomers, and completely ignoring the woman.
I stopped a few feet away, my field machete in hand, and drew my arm back to deliver the killing blow. Just then, the woman’s head popped up. I could see the black tracers in her eyes, but not the white film that indicated she’d died.
“Do it,” she breathed. “It hurts…everything hurts. My body feels like it is on fire.” Her accent was thick with what I imagined to be the same dialect Enuma spoke, but she was speaking English!
I wanted to bring the blade down, but looking directly into her eyes, even though I knew what was about to be her ultimate fate, I still hesitated. Yes, I’ve had to kill a few folks who were still alive, but only once was I looking the person in the eyes. In my defense, I’d been in a state of rage. I wasn’t feeling anything like that at the moment. All I felt was…pity. Her eyes locked onto mine and I saw understanding. She closed them, knelt, and bowed her head. I took a deep breath and swung down hard. I felt the stinging reverberation all the way up both arms.
The chaos was dying down almost as soon as it had started. The variety of expressions ranged from fear—most of the new arrivals had huddled together and I bet they were wondering how we would respond to some of theirs turning in our home—to confusion. We hadn’t ever had to deal with zombies in our new home. They’d come close to overrunning us once, but we held them off outside.
“Where’s Billy?” I called out.
“Here,” he replied as he came out of the kitchen.
“What the hell happened?” I bit back the anger. He wasn’t the type to flake off things. I was sure he had a reason.
“I heard Jamie crying,” Billy said sheepishly.
“You what?”
“You need to come in back,” he whispered. For some reason, he couldn’t look me in the eyes. “I’ll get the doctor, and Jon looks like he has a handle in here, but you need to go in back…now.”
I didn’t like any of this. Something dark settled in my heart in that moment; a feeling of dread and doom unlike anything I’d felt since this whole thing started all those months ago. That is saying a lot.
I glanced around the room before I left. The girls were in the corner with Melissa. They looked a bit rattled, but far better than a child should be considering everything that went on around them. Jon, Jake, and Jesus were with DeAngelo and the newcomers. In this world, I guess that is about as under control as I could hope for.
I went back to where Jamie and Teresa slept. I could hear the sobbing already. It was Jamie. I thought I could make out the words “I’m sorry” but it was too difficult to tell.
When I walked in and saw Teresa sitting up in bed, I knew.
Jamie had his head down in her lap, and she was stroking his head. That was not going to be enough to comfort him, of that I had no doubt.
When had I dropped to my knees?
I realized where I was and climbed to my feet. It
I heard a scream come from the kitchen at the same time that Brad crashed through the doorway holding a man at arm’s length. Jon was closest and pulled a knife from his belt in a flash. It felt like everything slowed down in that instant as I watched the blade catch enough of the light from the fireplace to cast a single beam of bright orange that danced down the wall. He drove the blade into the back of the man’s skull and the three figures vanished from sight behind the table.
DeAngelo made for the kitchen, and I quickly corralled the girls to the ladder that led up to the lookout tower. “Go up with Fiona until this is over,” I said, turning my attention back to the room, and specifically the woman slumped in the corner.
A low moan rolled through the room from the kitchen and I heard a loud sound that could only be a pan of some sort connecting with a skull. Everybody was trying to rush into the back, including the newcomers, and completely ignoring the woman.
I stopped a few feet away, my field machete in hand, and drew my arm back to deliver the killing blow. Just then, the woman’s head popped up. I could see the black tracers in her eyes, but not the white film that indicated she’d died.
“Do it,” she breathed. “It hurts…everything hurts. My body feels like it is on fire.” Her accent was thick with what I imagined to be the same dialect Enuma spoke, but she was speaking English!
I wanted to bring the blade down, but looking directly into her eyes, even though I knew what was about to be her ultimate fate, I still hesitated. Yes, I’ve had to kill a few folks who were still alive, but only once was I looking the person in the eyes. In my defense, I’d been in a state of rage. I wasn’t feeling anything like that at the moment. All I felt was…pity. Her eyes locked onto mine and I saw understanding. She closed them, knelt, and bowed her head. I took a deep breath and swung down hard. I felt the stinging reverberation all the way up both arms.
The chaos was dying down almost as soon as it had started. The variety of expressions ranged from fear—most of the new arrivals had huddled together and I bet they were wondering how we would respond to some of theirs turning in our home—to confusion. We hadn’t ever had to deal with zombies in our new home. They’d come close to overrunning us once, but we held them off outside.
“Where’s Billy?” I called out.
“Here,” he replied as he came out of the kitchen.
“What the hell happened?” I bit back the anger. He wasn’t the type to flake off things. I was sure he had a reason.
“I heard Jamie crying,” Billy said sheepishly.
“You what?”
“You need to come in back,” he whispered. For some reason, he couldn’t look me in the eyes. “I’ll get the doctor, and Jon looks like he has a handle in here, but you need to go in back…now.”
I didn’t like any of this. Something dark settled in my heart in that moment; a feeling of dread and doom unlike anything I’d felt since this whole thing started all those months ago. That is saying a lot.
I glanced around the room before I left. The girls were in the corner with Melissa. They looked a bit rattled, but far better than a child should be considering everything that went on around them. Jon, Jake, and Jesus were with DeAngelo and the newcomers. In this world, I guess that is about as under control as I could hope for.
I went back to where Jamie and Teresa slept. I could hear the sobbing already. It was Jamie. I thought I could make out the words “I’m sorry” but it was too difficult to tell.
When I walked in and saw Teresa sitting up in bed, I knew.
Jamie had his head down in her lap, and she was stroking his head. That was not going to be enough to comfort him, of that I had no doubt.
When had I dropped to my knees?
I realized where I was and climbed to my feet. It
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