Then there had been Lydia.
She was jarred out of her thoughts by Travis suddenly jolting to one side as someone passed them. He looked shaken and took a breath.
"Waking nightmare?"
Travis noticed. "Yeah. I wish they would go away. I'm afraid one day I'm going to shoot someone thinking they are one of those things or not shoot one of those things thinking I'm imagining it."
Katie rested her hand on his shoulder. "We're both pretty screwed up, huh?"
Travis laughed bitterly. "Who isn't?"
Entering the building, they made their way up to the floor where Katie and Jenni roomed with Jason. The door was closed and Katie tapped lightly on it.
"Uh…"
"Jenni, it’s me."
"Okay, come in."
Katie opened the door to find Jenni sitting on her cot in a red tank top and shorts. Juan was in his jeans, lying down with his hands behind his neck.
Jenni was eating a small fruit cup and looked flushed and rather happy.
"Um, hi," Jenni said with a giggle.
Juan noticed Travis expression and sat up quickly. "What's wrong?"
"Someone bound and gagged Ritchie and tossed him over the wall."
"Who?"
"No one knows, but you're a suspect. So is Curtis."
"I was with Jenni," Juan said.
"Obviously," Katie said with a slight smile.
Jenni frowned as she chewed her fruit. "He was. All night. We barely slept."
Travis looked down and blushed slightly. "Okay, so he has an alibi, but Bill will want to talk to you both about it."
Jenni stood up and waved her plastic spoon at Travis. "How could anyone think that Juan would do something like that?"
"Because he sort of tried his best to take Ritchie out last night," Travis answered.
Jenni sighed. "Yeah, true."
Juan pulled on his boots and reached for his shirt. "Fine, I'll go defend myself. But this is bullshit. What is Bill going to do to whoever got rid of that piece of shit?"
Travis ran his hands over his hair. "I have no clue. Hell, how do we handle a murder? Or any crime?"
Juan tugged on his shirt as Jenni scrambled to slide into her jeans, pulling them on over her shorts. "Travis, you know me. I would not do this."
"I know that. I know. I know you were here with Jenni. I don't think anything will come of it."
"Yeah, well you try to be a Hispanic male in a white society and see if you feel comfortable with that answer," Juan answered. He pushed past Travis and Katie, his face set, his eyes blazing, and headed into the hall.
"Where is Bill?"
"On the roof," Travis answered.
Jenni grabbed Katie's hand as they moved up the stairs and leaned toward her. "Are you okay?"
Katie smiled at her slightly. "Nightmares."
"Lydia?"
Katie nodded.
Jenni sighed and rubbed Katie's back with one hand as they walked. "I really didn't sleep."
"Yeah, I figured that out," Katie said with a smile.
Jenni giggled then her expression grew serious as Curtis' voice sounded from above.
"…I said to put him out of his misery then chuck him over," Curtis was shouting at Bill.
Bill nodded. "I understand, but you were heard saying very clearly you wanted Ritchie dead."
"Because he's a threat, Bill. Or he was." Curtis looked fiercely upset.
Nearby, Fred, one of the construction workers, was keeping watch on the street below. He said, "I was gone for maybe ten minutes. I got the kids down into the council room and grabbed a poncho and headed back up here.
Whoever it was moved fast."
"The door to Ritchie's cell is easily unlocked from outside. It's just a deadbolt. Anyone could have done it," Juan said as he joined Bill and Curtis.
"He was sleeping with me last night," Jenni said quickly, her hand grabbing Juan's. "All night. And not really sleeping."
Bill blinked and looked back and forth between them.
"I have an alibi," Juan said, his dark green eyes stormy.
"Okay, but I need to question you, too."
Katie walked over to look down at the lone figure standing in the street below. It was just staring up at the roof of the building. The duct tape had survived the feeding as had part of the boy's T-shirt. He was almost stripped to the bone, but most of his long ponytail with the skull and crossbones clasp remained. His arms hung at his side, free of their bonds. But one of his ankles trailed a long bit of duck tape with a good chunk of flesh attached to the end.
It moaned when it saw Katie and reached its hand out to her, staggering forward slightly.
The questions continued behind her as she watched what was left of Ritchie. She wondered why he stood there, alone, while the others banged away on the gate. But there he stood, staring, reaching out, and moaning.
With a squeal of tires, the big red Ram 1500 4x4 that Katie had driven to rescue Jason came roaring around the corner and slammed into Ritchie. His head splattered against the grill and his body flew across the street as the truck came to a screeching stop. There was a moment of hesitation, then the truck charged forward.
"Ralph and Nerit are here!" Katie turned toward Travis who ran forward to see.
They both watched as the truck sped down the street slammed into another wandering, slow zombie. The truck swerved around and came to a stop as the driver seemed to try to figure out where to go next.
Fred lifted his binoculars and peered through them. "I only see a woman and she looks pissed."
"Nerit," Katie whispered.
The truck lurched forward again and made a run toward the gate.
2. Death by Red Truck
The truck vanished as it raced around the block toward the street that led to the gate. It swung back into view and headed toward where the zombies still stood beating against the closed metal gates.
Katie ran along the top of the roof, her eyes watching the truck and its fierce run toward the entrance to the fort. She got into a better position to watch, and held a hand to her brow to shield her eyes.
The red truck slammed into the outer fringe of zombies, wiping out a slew of them in one fell swoop. The brakes were slammed down on and the truck came to a hard stop right before the gate. Nerit reversed and backed up drawing the surviving zombies away from the gate. She drove slowly backward allowing the zombies to nearly catch up before she hit the accelerator and the truck lurched out of their grasp. The truck reversed up the road quite some distance and Katie had a good idea what came next. The red vehicle charged forward straight toward the dead and slammed into crowd. Zombies flew in every direction, bodies bursting apart, pieces of bodies flying across the street as the impact split them apart.
"Shit," was all Travis could manage.
The truck backed up slowly again, the few still staggering zombies trying to follow. The truck sat idling, seeming to wait and when they were within a few feet of its front grill, it leaped forward and knocked them flat. Then the truck reversed hard and ran over the bodies. Then forward again. The zombies were crushed beneath the tires.
The truck backed up, the door opened, and Nerit appeared, standing up on the edge of the cab, leaning one elbow on the door. Her rifle came into view and the last four zombies, stuck in the gate, waved their free limbs at her, growling hungrily. One by one, their heads popped and they collapsed.
Nerit slid back into the truck and slammed the door shut.
Travis drew his walkie-talkie. "Open the gate. It's clear now. We have a visitor."
The red truck drove slowly up the carnage covered road and idled outside the gate as some of the workers hurried to get it open.
Juan stared out at the dead bodies and the gore splattered truck. "Wow."
Katie and Jenni headed toward the stairs. They both knew something was horribly wrong.
Juan looked over at Travis. "Wow."
Travis smiled slightly. "Tough women are sexy, huh?"
Juan looked back. "Shit. I think I want to marry her."
Nerit had arrived.
3. Nerit’s Story
Travis ran behind Jenni and Katie. Both of them were hurrying at top speed. Down the stairs, out the back door, across the site, up onto the platform, across the bridge and down the ladder into the new entry: it was a mad dash the whole way.
The red truck slowly slipped through the gates. Armed guards made sure no zombies managed to get in with it, but Nerit had done a good job clearing the street. The truck's deer guard was slathered in blood and gore and the tires left grimy reddish/black tracks behind it.
Travis watched Katie's expression. It was desperate, sad, fearful, and wary. Katie felt fragile to him now and it terrified him. Though he could see her outward strength, he feared her internal strength was failing her. What was happening or not happening between them seemed minor compared to the haunted look in her eyes.
Jenni clung to Katie's hand, looking scared. Her long black hair caught the morning breeze and streamed behind her. She really was lovely and he was glad Juan had found comfort with her. Belinda was just bad news for him. She was his eternal crush all the way back in kindergarten and Travis had watched Juan be lured in only to be spurned.