The survivors in the fort had been so terrified of the bandits. The precautions taken had been extraordinary. Every inch of the fort had been scrutinized. Extra spears had been made. They had tried to attach barbwire along the tops of the walls. Contingency plans were made for every possibility they could think of. Everyone had been gripped with paranoia. Even the children had been instructed in protecting themselves. One of the worst images in his mind was of Peggy's son wielding one of their makeshift spears. Peggy had to take it away from him before he stabbed someone through.
Taking a long swig of his beer, Bill sat back in the plastic chair and let the warm breeze flow over him.
The bandits had been routed and were not anything more than drug addled hoodlums. But that did not mean that more dangerous and clever people were not out there. That thought terrified him. Could they truly be that thorough? Truly make the fort as safe enough to withstand anything? Hell, they had actually bricked up all the windows on the second floor. The basements of all the buildings were secured.
The wall was being reinforced…
He looked over the street and sighed softly. There were no lights to be seen anywhere but the fort. The world was so black and empty, the stars shone with unequaled brilliance above.
How long the fort's lights would stay on was anyone's guess. So far it was good, but there were plenty of generators on standby. Hopefully things would remain as they were for the fall and winter.
He was glad that his deceased wife, Doreen, had not lived to see this day. She had fought the cancer so diligently as it slowly ate her away, but now he was glad she had lost that battle. It would have been sheer hell to see her endure this. He was very lonely, but it was better than seeing her suffer. Besides, if she had been in a clinic or hospital when it all went to hell, she could have very well ended up one of the undead.
Glancing over at Katarina, Bill sighed. When they let Clyde out the side door, he had been sobbing, begging to be allowed to stay. Curtis had handed him a spear and sent him on his way. Clyde had only made it a few steps before Katarina ended his life. Even though Bill had seen it coming, he had flinched.
He lifted the beer to his lips and took another long drink. He was thinner now, but his beer belly persisted. Rosie was working on brewing her own beer, so chances were it was not going away once the local supply was used up.
Katarina slowly walked up to him and stood over him, her sniper rifle cradled in her arms. “Shouldn't you go sleep? Or maybe go up to the party?”
“Ever think we missed something? Something important?”
She lifted an eyebrow, then shrugged. “No. ”
Bill frowned. “How can you be so sure?”
“Well,” Katarina said, kneeling down. “We have all worked pretty damn hard to do everything we can do. At this point, we have covered everything possible. But…” she shrugged again “Something impossible may happen. We just have to do what we can. So I don't worry about it. ”
With a slow sigh, Bill reached down to his side for another beer.
“The bandits sure weren't what we thought, eh?”
“Always go with the worse case scenario,” Katarina answered.
“Nerit's advice?”
Katarina nodded.
Bill popped open the can, then said, “Well, then, I guess we're doing okay considering what has gone down. ”
“We're alive,” she agreed. “That's saying a lot. ”
With a laugh, Bill nodded. “Yeah. Yeah, it is. ” He stood up, his knees creaking. “I'm going to take this and go to bed now. ”
“Good night, Bill. ” Katarina moved on, her gaze returning to the perimeter.
He trudged down the stairs, anxious all at once to sleep and not deal with reality. Maybe…maybe…if he was lucky…he would dream of Doreen and their wonderful day in Venice…
And maybe, just this once time, he wouldn't dream of everyone around him turning into zombies chasing him and Doreen into the ocean.
It would be nice, he thought. Very nice.
2. Together Time
Jenni sat in her bed, the covers pooling around her waist, her long hair falling over her bare breasts. Beside her, Juan was sleeping soundly, one arm thrown over his head. She had woken up after a particularly bad nightmare. She could feel its terrible tendrils still infecting her mind. Staring out the window at the stars, she tried to reclaim her mind and her life from the ghosts of her nightmares.
Rubbing her nose, she took a deep breath.
The bandits were beaten. The zombies were beyond the walls of the fort. Juan was her lover. Jason was alive and safe. Katie and Travis wer