didn’t wake up until I heard the light footstep in the hallway.
A dark figure paused in our doorway, gun in hand. I tensed. Jenny stirred as I reached for my pistol. The figure walked to my side of the bed and sat down on the edge of the mattress.
“ I’m cold,” Pepper said.
I relaxed as she laid her gun on the nightstand. I reached out from under the covers and rubbed her back. Jenny shifted beside me. I looked at her in the moonlight. She was so beautiful. Her dark hair spilled across her shoulders. Her big, brown eyes smiled up into mine. She moved a little to make room.
“ Come to bed, Pepper,” Jenny said.
Pepper smiled. She gave me a little kiss on the lips and rubbed her forehead against mine. Then she took Jenny’s face in her hands and gave her a kiss, too. An intimate little handshake.
I flipped the covers open and let Pepper slide in with us. With a few giggles from the girls, we adjusted to fit. Sleep took us with me in the middle, one arm around Pepper and one of Jenny's arms around me.
I woke up as the sun warmed the room. Jenny had her chin on my shoulder, watching Pepper sleep.
“ Morning, baby,” she whispered.
I kissed her. “Good mornin’ yourself. You okay with this?”
She smiled. “I’m fine. Pepper’s a pretty girl. She needs someone right now.”
“ You two set me up.”
“ Yes. Forgive us?” Jenny said and smiled.
I kissed her again. “Forgiven.”
A voice screamed from the radio on the nightstand.
“ Boss, this’s Catfish!”
Pepper jumped awake. Cori was down on the north canal with Tony. I snatched up the radio as Pepper quickly swapped spots with me next to Jenny.
“ Go ahead, Cat.”
“ Boss, we got Zeds along the canal! A lot of ‘em!”
I heard shotgun blasts in the background.
“ How many?”
“ A lot!”
“ Ballpark?”
More shotgun blasts.
“ Tony says half of Princeton! Fred’s leadin’ ‘em!”
Fuck.
Tony was a deputy. I trusted his judgment.
“ How many times have I told you to kill that damned Zed?” I shouted.
“ I know! Yell at us later!”
Her pistol started to pop.
“ Get in right now. Get to the creek bridge.”
“ Yessir!”
Jenny was already on the move, rolling out of bed and starting to dress. Pepper followed suit. I turned the radio dial to the next channel to alert the crews on both bridge barricades. The crew at the canal had a mile to the creek, and there were two bridges over the canal at their position. They couldn’t hold against a big swarm there.
I dialed in the channel for the fire department and told them to get the trucks on the move north.
"Go to the creek bridge, sirens full blast." I turned another channel to call Kenny. "We've got a swarm."
Kenny, in turn, rolled two platoons on his side of town. I dialed the last channel on the radio and passed the word to Dale. By procedure, everyone dropped their radios to channel one. We'd go from there.
I yanked my pants up as I stepped across the hall and stiff-armed the bedroom door open. Shouts of protest greeted me.
“ Get off him, Heather! Everyone roll out! We got a major swarm coming.”
Outside, the sirens screamed into the morning air.
“ How many?” Bill blurted.
“ A lot. Full turnout from all the platoons.”
Bill cussed as I slapped John’s door open. He and Cathy were already on the move. They’d heard the sirens.
“ Cathy, I want you, Jen, and the other girls in your condition on the roofs downtown with all the kids fifteen and under.”
I expected argument, but I got none.
In our room, Jenny was pulling on some sweatpants while Pepper yanked on a pair of coveralls.
“ What do you two think you're doing?” I demanded as Pepper slid her left arm into a sleeve.
“ They won’t fit over your son anymore," Jenny said. "Pepper’s going to the line with you.”
“ Like hell. Pepper, stay with Jen on the roofs.”
“ No.” Pepper buckled into her gun harness.
“ I don’t have time to argue this,” I
A dark figure paused in our doorway, gun in hand. I tensed. Jenny stirred as I reached for my pistol. The figure walked to my side of the bed and sat down on the edge of the mattress.
“ I’m cold,” Pepper said.
I relaxed as she laid her gun on the nightstand. I reached out from under the covers and rubbed her back. Jenny shifted beside me. I looked at her in the moonlight. She was so beautiful. Her dark hair spilled across her shoulders. Her big, brown eyes smiled up into mine. She moved a little to make room.
“ Come to bed, Pepper,” Jenny said.
Pepper smiled. She gave me a little kiss on the lips and rubbed her forehead against mine. Then she took Jenny’s face in her hands and gave her a kiss, too. An intimate little handshake.
I flipped the covers open and let Pepper slide in with us. With a few giggles from the girls, we adjusted to fit. Sleep took us with me in the middle, one arm around Pepper and one of Jenny's arms around me.
I woke up as the sun warmed the room. Jenny had her chin on my shoulder, watching Pepper sleep.
“ Morning, baby,” she whispered.
I kissed her. “Good mornin’ yourself. You okay with this?”
She smiled. “I’m fine. Pepper’s a pretty girl. She needs someone right now.”
“ You two set me up.”
“ Yes. Forgive us?” Jenny said and smiled.
I kissed her again. “Forgiven.”
A voice screamed from the radio on the nightstand.
“ Boss, this’s Catfish!”
Pepper jumped awake. Cori was down on the north canal with Tony. I snatched up the radio as Pepper quickly swapped spots with me next to Jenny.
“ Go ahead, Cat.”
“ Boss, we got Zeds along the canal! A lot of ‘em!”
I heard shotgun blasts in the background.
“ How many?”
“ A lot!”
“ Ballpark?”
More shotgun blasts.
“ Tony says half of Princeton! Fred’s leadin’ ‘em!”
Fuck.
Tony was a deputy. I trusted his judgment.
“ How many times have I told you to kill that damned Zed?” I shouted.
“ I know! Yell at us later!”
Her pistol started to pop.
“ Get in right now. Get to the creek bridge.”
“ Yessir!”
Jenny was already on the move, rolling out of bed and starting to dress. Pepper followed suit. I turned the radio dial to the next channel to alert the crews on both bridge barricades. The crew at the canal had a mile to the creek, and there were two bridges over the canal at their position. They couldn’t hold against a big swarm there.
I dialed in the channel for the fire department and told them to get the trucks on the move north.
"Go to the creek bridge, sirens full blast." I turned another channel to call Kenny. "We've got a swarm."
Kenny, in turn, rolled two platoons on his side of town. I dialed the last channel on the radio and passed the word to Dale. By procedure, everyone dropped their radios to channel one. We'd go from there.
I yanked my pants up as I stepped across the hall and stiff-armed the bedroom door open. Shouts of protest greeted me.
“ Get off him, Heather! Everyone roll out! We got a major swarm coming.”
Outside, the sirens screamed into the morning air.
“ How many?” Bill blurted.
“ A lot. Full turnout from all the platoons.”
Bill cussed as I slapped John’s door open. He and Cathy were already on the move. They’d heard the sirens.
“ Cathy, I want you, Jen, and the other girls in your condition on the roofs downtown with all the kids fifteen and under.”
I expected argument, but I got none.
In our room, Jenny was pulling on some sweatpants while Pepper yanked on a pair of coveralls.
“ What do you two think you're doing?” I demanded as Pepper slid her left arm into a sleeve.
“ They won’t fit over your son anymore," Jenny said. "Pepper’s going to the line with you.”
“ Like hell. Pepper, stay with Jen on the roofs.”
“ No.” Pepper buckled into her gun harness.
“ I don’t have time to argue this,” I
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