by Diane Butler
Roxanne shook her head, “He never asked me what happened back in that town when I disappeared and he never told you that he had been traveling with a wife. He has seen that I have changed but I wouldn’t want to air our dirty laundry in front of the council”.
“Roxanne everyone is beginning a new life in this unknown world. Why start out with lies and deceptions?” Lucky questioned.
She smiled, “That’s the point Lucky. People can be whoever they want to be, whatever they want to be. And I choose not to be Roxanne Carter, wife of Eddie Carter and right now they don’t know that we are married.”
Lucky’s face lit up in a big grin, “OK, I can understand that. And I know that they will find it curious that you are not sharing quarters with him or that I am spending a lot of time on your front porch at night.” He reached out for her hand and she was surprised at how comfortable she felt in putting her hand in his. “If the subject of a back exit comes up we tell them of the service road and our car. To hell with Ed. I would say that you gave yourself a ZA divorce a long time ago.”
They turned and walked back toward the compound. When they were out of sight the bushes along the path trembled and KC stepped out onto the path. She stared after them with a smile and an evil gleam in her eye. “Lucky”, she repeated over and over again.
There never was a problem at the meeting that night since neither Ed nor KC appeared. Attendance at the meetings was not mandatory and since the group consisted of only ten people communication was not a problem. But it was an opportunity to gather and exchange ideas and to be among other people as a pretense that the world was normal.
When Gene asked about a back entrance Roxanne openly admitted that she had it locked and that the key was with her. She offered to show him the proper path to access it the next day and volunteered the information that she had a car parked at a distance outside. On that statement Brandon wrinkled his brow and asked, “Outside? Wouldn’t it have been better to keep the car inside in case of being overrun by zombies? How do you know that the distance between the gate and the car wouldn’t also be filled with Ze’s?”
“I had it inside the gate at one time” Roxanne answered. “It wasn’t the Ze’s I was concerned about. It was other…other humans. If I thought of this place as a possible shelter, so could others. And humans want what other humans have. If my biggest fear came from that direction then hopefully I could escape to a car that they were unaware of, but if the car was on the grounds they could easily find it.”
Brandon nodded, “I see” but he was not satisfied with her answer.
They spoke of sightings of Ze’s, that they were still manageable but they had noticed an increase and all agreed that it was probably the Ferris wheel that Ed had started which had attracted those in the near vicinity. Hopefully the Ze’s would start to thin out again. They spoke of taking the Ferris wheel apart and stacking the steel seats as part of the barrier. They could use the steel frame on the fence as stakes if Ed could take it apart.
Although Lucky had a room in the Admin Building he always walked Roxanne back to her cabin after a meeting, which left the group alone to talk about them. “Did anyone notice that Roxanne always uses the word humans instead of people?” Brandon asked.
“Yeah, I caught that,” Morgan answered. “Not just this time, but in the past too.”
“So what’s the problem?” Cami asked.
“The problem” Brandon replied, “is that she doesn’t see us as people, she sees us as a species. If the ZA has drained her of all emotion toward mankind then she could see any one of us as expendable.” He looked at Sally and Cami, “Have either one of you had a personal talk with Roxanne to get some insight into her inner depth?” They both shook their head.
“I’m not the girl talk kind,” Cami said. “I’m not the one to try to get inside Roxanne’s head. I think she doesn’t trust us yet, probably doesn’t trust anyone. She got here alone, began building the place alone, has survived alone and we don’t know what she experienced along the way. Hell, we’ve all been that route, have our own stories. Personally, I don’t care to hear any more of them and perhaps Roxanne is the same way. ‘Get over it and get on with your life’ type of attitude.”
Sally got up and sighed, “I’ll see if I can approach her, but I’m not picking up any hostility from her. Withdrawn yes, but depending on how long she’s been alone it may just be that she’s trying to adapt to having people around again. By the way, anyone know where KC is?”
KC had been watching Ed through the only window of the Maintenance Shop. Twice in the past he had caught her watching and ran her off. She slipped away from the others as often as she could, feeling uncomfortable in a group of people. She knew she needed them for protection, but sometimes the chattering of so many people started to swirl around in her head. She couldn’t isolate one conversation from another and the meetings after dinner were the worst. Sometimes she would go into the darkest corner and just slump down to get away from it all.
She heard the bay doors open and quickly moved away from the light. “KC, I know you’re out there,” Ed said. “You been watching for a couple of days and I know you’re curious. OK, then. Come on in. I know you want to see what’s under the tarp.” She debated since no one liked or trusted Ed, but she had noticed that Ed liked to be alone just as much as she did, although he never ventured far from his digs. She came around the corner of the building so Ed could see her.
“I trust you kid. You and me, we’re alike so this will be our little secret”, Ed pointed inside as if he were about to show her something important. When KC didn’t move he went inside and waited next to the car. He knew she would be curious and he was right as he saw her slide into the light. “This is what you have been wondering about, right?” and he pulled the tarp from the car. He began to slowly walk around the car, caressing it as he went, talking the whole time.
“It’s a beauty, ain’t it? Got it running, got it fully stocked with supplies, I plan ahead you know? Those others they have plans too, but I don’t trust my life in the hands of others. I look out for myself and if their plan falls through I have my own backup plan.”
KC had been walking into the garage as Ed spoke, not taking her eyes off the car. “You see, I found a dirt road probably used by loggers or the electric company for the transformers outside the park. I can take you with me.” At that KC looked up from the car and at Ed for the first time.
“Yeah, that’s it, just you and me, Babe. But you gotta help me too because I need to clear out some brush to reach that road. That’s where you come in,” Ed had been edging toward her. “You help me with the brush and I’ll take you along,” he reached out and attempted to put his arm around KC’s shoulder.
KC immediately jumped back to pull her knife in a threatening motion and began to hiss. Ed put his hands up, “Ok, ok I get the message. Don’t need to tell me twice. Just being friendly that’s all. You think it over, KC. The offer still stands.”
KC stopped hissing and still holding her knife she slowly backed out of the shop, never taking her eyes off Ed. Finally she disappeared into the darkness while Ed did some hissing of his own, “Damn!”
Roxanne and Lucky sat on her porch in silence. There had not been any physical contact between them since Roxanne let Lucky take her hand on the path. She was a complete mystery to him but since he saw the viciousness in which she killed those zombies by the car he knew there was more to Roxanne than she was showing. She never talked about her life before the ZA or her life with Ed on the road. Ed had told him that Roxanne did not come out of the bar that night and that he left because he was sure that she was dead. Since Roxanne was still alive Lucky assumed that she chose that moment to go on her own. Unless she had become boxed in by zombies and had to wait it out and Ed was already gone by then. She was a beautiful woman and didn’t know it, didn’t know how her angelic features could draw a man into those eyes. Eyes that could change in an instant. Eyes that could freeze you out with a cold stare b
ut would soften again if you pushed past the fight that she was having within herself.
“Things went well tonight,” he said to break the silence. “Are you going to tell Ed that we stashed a car outside the fences before word gets back to him?”
“No”, the moonlight caught her face as she turned to him. “I don’t owe him an explanation as I felt I owed you one. Ed knows… “she looked away……..” Ed knows that the woman he met on the hill pointing a rifle at him is not the woman he left at the Bar. Perhaps he’s afraid of me now,” she chuckled.
“He’s still wearing his ring; you aren’t. Don’t you think that counts for something?” Lucky asked.
“It means he will try to use it against me” she turned to him again. “If the information is useful to someone or if he needs a protector he will try to put claim on me. He thinks he can play me but he’s becoming even hesitant on that thought. However, Ed doesn’t throw away possibilities if it can be used to his advantage.”
“What happened between you two Roxanne?”
“It’s just another ZA story Lucky that I don’t care to go into,” she sighed. “You’ve been with him on the road. He put me in danger too many times and left me defenseless on many occasions. You see this pistol” she patted her holster. “And the rifle I had? I had none of that when Ed sent me into places to scavenge for supplies. He sat in the car with the gun and you already know that he would lock the doors and put the windows up. The simple truth is that unknown to Ed, I learned from other groups how to fight and to use a gun in preparation for leaving him and going out on my own.” She got up and walked to the door of her cabin. He thought she was retiring for the day rather abruptly but then she paused and leaned down to say in a soft voice, “It was either that or kill him which I came close to several times.”
Lucky continued to sit in the chair after Roxanne went into her cabin. He couldn’t move. The hairs on the back of his neck were still prickly from the venom in her voice……….
Roxanne had guard duty on the wall from 1 – 3 am but she had the advantage of having Mutt with her. They sent two people out together on each shift and although it wasn’t a failsafe procedure they didn’t want to become complacent behind the fences. One would stay on the mound over the tunnel and the other would walk the fence line. They knew it was dangerous for anyone to be in the park alone, so no one was to investigate any noise or suspicious sighting on their own. They were to come back to the Admin bldg. and gather everyone to investigate in a group. Roxanne would stay on the mound for an hour then exchange places with Lucky who was walking the fence. No one was to fire a shot unless the danger was inside the fence and other methods of defending yourself were out of the question.
She arrived at the ladder to the mound and softly called out to Morgan that she was coming up. Mutt used the haphazard staircase that Morgan had built just for him. It wouldn’t hold a human and probably wouldn’t be standing for very long, but Mutt was able to manage jumping from one structure to another to get to the top. “Everything OK?” Roxanne asked when she met Morgan in the darkness.
“Yeah, fog coming in at the tree-line making visibility difficult and it also echoes sounds. Damn spooky if you ask me,” Morgan said as he wiped the damp dew from his face. “You should have brought a poncho. This mist goes right through your clothes and makes them stick to your skin. Strange night,” he said as he was descending the ladder. “I don’t feel good about it at all.” Then he disappeared into the darkness.
Roxanne usually sat cross-legged on the mound but her clothes were already sticking to her and she knew the ground would be wet so she stood while Mutt sat at her feet. She kept an eye on him in case he showed signs of detecting something in the fog. He sat like a King on his throne, jaws shut and ever so slowly turning his head from side to side as if he wanted to remember every twig and rock before him. She smiled at him and resisted the urge to reach down and pet him, afraid that she would disturb his concentration.
She had been walking the mound for perhaps half an hour when she thought she saw a light moving in the woods. She froze, waiting to see if it was dappled moonlight breaking through the fog and then went down on her belly in a swift motion. Mutt also flatted beside her and snorted looking in the same direction. She used the scope on the rifle but it only brought the fog in closer and did not help her visibility. She finally looked over the scope and could tell that it was definitely someone with a flashlight moving among the trees.
Mutt nudged her arm with his snout but did not make a sound. “Shhh, they don’t know that we’re here. Let’s keep it that way,” whereupon Mutt flattened further putting his chin on the ground. The flashlight went out at the edge of the forest where it gave way to bushes lining the circle of the turn-around parking lot. Roxanne knew the person was standing or crouching there watching for any movement on the mound. Her clothes were soaked through, her socks were wet in her shoes but the biggest annoyance was the dew running down her forehead and dripping into her eyes. She was afraid to move to wipe it away to get a better view.
Finally the boy stepped into a patch of moonlight that had briefly broken through the fog, and headed for the bus. “What the hell?” Roxanne thought as she recognized Caleb with a rabbit dangling in one hand and his crossbow in the other. He opened the back door to the bus which squeaked like hell, and quickly got in. Roxanne got up to sprint to the other side of the mound and saw him exit the tunnel. He waited and listened, then put the flashlight back on and followed the path to the Admin Bldg.
Roxanne sat down putting her arms around Mutt and said, “What was that all about Mutt?” His answer was to lick her face, glad that she hadn’t shot the boy. She began to chuckle, “Did he bribe you with the promise of bringing you back a rabbit? I thought you knew where everyone was at all times you traitor.” She looked away to see the lamp of Lucky approaching from the fence-line. “I’ll have a talk with that young boy in the morning.”
The next morning Sally was bitching that the person who had so kindly supplied the rabbit could at least have given her some warning rather than the fright she received when she found it in the sink. No one would own up to it but Roxanne caught Caleb’s eye before he turned away. As they were walking out to dispose of any zombies that had gathered against the fence during the night Gene remarked on how much he missed not having eggs in the morning.
“I noticed that ducks and geese have settled around the ponds,” Cami said. “It takes about thirty days for eggs to hatch so we could have eggs up to that time.”
“Wish we could find some chickens or wild turkeys,” Gene said. “I’d keep them alive just for the eggs.”
“I found some vegetable seeds in the landscaping dept.,” Roxanne volunteered. “Anyone know anything about planting? Now would be the time to start doing it.” Morgan said that he would take a try at it and then they all became busy killing the ten0 or so Ze’s at the fence.
“When I first arrived here there weren’t any Ze’s” Roxanne said when they finished. “After Ed started the Ferris wheel a few started drifting in but that was weeks ago. Yesterday we had twenty, the day before fifteen. I think it is the noise we’re making by fortifying this place and they all seem to be coming from this section that Ed was clearing. I wonder where this dirt road leads.”
Gene asked Roxanne if she had checked her car parked outside the grounds since Ed started the Ferris wheel. She had only checked it that once and decided to show them the location. If Ze’s were still accumulating there she would have the advantage of their help to clear them out. Morgan decided to check on those seeds that Roxanne had mentioned and Lucky had taken a double shift last night so he was sleeping in. Gene, Brandon, Cami and Roxanne followed the overgrown path to that section of the park, going over a small bridge that managed to survive neglect and through a small tunnel that appeared to be a bike trail at one time.
As they exited the tunnel Gene stopped and said, “Jesus, I didn’t know this was back here.”
“It appears to
have been a petting zoo at one time,” Roxanne said. “From what I can tell the mountain side is divided up into sections. I’m sure there are parts that I haven’t discovered yet with the paths being so overgrown and the collapsed rides could be blocking our view of other storage areas. It’s amazing how fast the mountain is taking back its land. Sorry Gene, no chickens in the coop” she smiled as she saw him checking some of the animal sheds. It was the first time they had seen a smile from her and it gave Brandon some hope that Roxanne was still able to relate to other people.
They continued through the brush until they came to the broken concrete road that Roxanne had used to bring the car around. The road followed the fence at this point which was free of Zombies. Mutt started to growl but they were already alerted by the moans up ahead and were taking up their steel poles in both hands in preparation.
The Ze’s became agitated and aggressive when they spotted the group. Most were in bad condition and looked as if they hadn’t eaten in a long time but there were approximately twenty Ze’s and hard work for the four of them to kill the small herd. They were able to kill most of them through the fence but had the same problem that Roxanne had earlier with the bushes. They tried several times to lure those to the gate where they would be able to pick the Zombies off through the fence but a few were stubborn and didn’t move. “Maybe they’re stuck on something,” Cami said. “We will need to go outside the fence for those last six.”
