Moving through what remained of the crowd, Katie smiled at all the weary, stressed faces. She walked back into the construction site through the now cleaned up janitor’s room. Making her way up to the small room in the city hall, she ran into Nerit carrying her suitcase.
She had her rifle over one arm and her dog leash in the other hand.
“Nerit,” Katie said softly. “You were so amazing. ”
“I’m so tired,” Nerit answered truthfully. “I did my job. Now I want a bath and a nice bit of reading before bed. ”
Katie smiled. “You deserve a nice rest. ”
Nerit gave her a little hug and a kiss on the cheek. “I will see you in the morning. ”
“Night, Nerit,” Katie answered.
Moving up the stairs and toward the small room she had once shared with Jenni, Katie found Juan picking up Jenni’s bag that she kept in Katie’s room, even though she slept in Juan's tent.
“We just decided today,” he explained. “Life is so short. We just don’t’ want to waste time. We’ve been sleeping together in my tent.
Might as well make it official and be a family. ”
Nodding, Katie smiled. “I get it. I understand and I think its great. I knew she would never move back in with me. Our time to be roomies is long gone. ”
Juan heaved the bag over his shoulder and picked up a smaller bag of items. “I really love her, Katie. She’s loca, but she’s my loca. I know her life was shitty before, I want to take care of her. ”
“I know, Juan. You don’t have to tell me this. ”
“Yeah, but I do. You’re her best friend, her sister. Other than Jason, you are her family. I just wanted you to know how I feel,” Juan said.
“That I really love her. ”
Katie gave him a gentle hug. “And that makes me so very happy. ”
Juan looked almost embarrassed. “I’m glad. I know you like the chicas, but Travis?“
Katie rolled her eyes and pointed at the door. “Out!”
Juan hesitated. “Seriously, maybe with a little lipstick-”
“Out!” Katie pushed him out the door.
Juan turned and tried one last time. “Maybe a wig-”
Katie rolled her eyes, then shut the door.
After packing up her meager belongings, she carried her bag to the hotel and entered the brightly-lit interior. The lobby was now pretty much empty except for a few men propping sheets of metal up against the newly walled in windows and doors for added security.
Taking the elevator that still reeked of bleach, she was relieved to not have to climb the stairs again today. Her legs were aching horribly.
Her new room was nice, spacious, and welcoming. The four poster bed and heavy Victorian furniture were not her cup of tea, but there was something very homey about it all. She pushed back the heavy dark pink curtains covering the tall, narrow windows and looked down into the street. A few figures staggered out there. They were zombies too mutilated to run and pose much of a threat. Closing the curtains, she set about putting away her things.
It was sad how quickly everything was tucked away into its proper place. In this new world, she barely owned anything. Maybe that was good, less to be attached to.
She turned down the bed and flipped on the TV. It was on a close
d circuit. Someone had put in a bunch of movies to run through the night. Terminator 2 was on and she briefly compared her arms to Linda Hamilton’s. All this hard work had her looking pretty buff.
With a sigh, she headed into the bathroom for a long bath. She undressed, her body protesting every movement. Looking into the mirror, she saw why. There were bruises all over her body.
As she sat in the tub in the hot clear water, she studied each one with disgust. The ones on her arm were the most terrifying, but they were a lesson learned. A zombie could not bite through thick cloth; that was something to keep in mind.