Chapter 61

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As the Stronghold came into view, the wooden palisade looked rather unfriendly compared to the chain-link fence I was used to seeing. This palisade was tall enough to keep Runners from climbing over, but it also prevented those within from seeing trouble coming, which probably accounted for the numerous sentries on duty, half of which were teenagers.

"Are they going to let these two in with how they're sneezing?" I asked. If Nina went inside with the cure, I knew Daniel would follow, which also meant I'd be staying with the truck to protect those left outside the fence. The zombies might not be able to see inside, but that didn't stop them from circling the Stronghold.

"I'm not sure," Nina eventually said.

"Animals won't let Kevin near them yet," I commented, "although a shower with lots of soap and some clean clothes will do wonders."

The man looked disappointed but nodded. "If they let me in, I'll ask if I can clean up and have some spare clothing."

I wasn't really concerned about what he did during our stop at this Stronghold. Nor would it hurt my feelings if he was too slow and got left behind. I had a more pressing concern right now, and it had nothing to do with him.

My eyes drifted to Liz and Nicky. So far, Nicky had been so well behaved in the various Strongholds it was making me uneasy, as if my luck was about to run out in a rather unfortunate way. Liz had been quiet, but I wasn't sure how long that might last.

Is it possible to kill two birds with one stone? In real life, I stood a good chance of making a rock do that particular trick, but this was a different type of ball game with some rather unorthodox players who probably weren't about to follow the rules.

"Nicky, you're in charge of looking after Liz if they let us in."

"Sure," she agreed easily.

I really hope I don't regret this... I wasn't just having second thoughts about my plan – those had already come and gone – I was onto fifth and sixth thoughts already. Perhaps I needed a backup plan or two...

I glanced at John and Logan. "And you two are in charge of keeping Nicky out of trouble."

Logan winced slightly at being assigned such an unfavorable task. He might not understand Nicky or her humor, but he knew he didn't want to be responsible for the unpredictable woman.

John scratched his head. "Can I watch Liz instead?"

Nicky grinned at the hapless men. "Nope. You two are screwed. And no, I'm the one who gets to look after Liz."

I growled a light reprimand. "Watch your word choice, Nicky. If Liz starts repeating such things, I'll be blaming you."

"Sorry."

Liz looked up from her seat beside me and attempted to mimic my growl. "Grrrr."

Nicky rolled over, howling in laughter. The sound of snickering and quiet laughter came from all directions as the rest of my traveling companions found Liz's sound effect hilarious.

The irony of who Liz chose to copy made me shake my head in faint amusement. "That wasn't quite what I expected."

Liz looked around with slight confusion, then grinned when she realized she had made them all laugh. So much for Nicky being the bad influence...

I shook my head again and studiously watched the palisade get closer. Nicky just grinned at me as she sat up.

When we reached the gate, I checked the air and murmured, "I don't think anyone inside is still infected. All the scents are fading."

"That's not the best news..." Nina trailed off, wondering if we were too late to help anyone.

"And to top that off," I added, "there must be a stomach bug going around or a nasty bout of food poisoning. I think I'm going to remain with the truck so I don't have to go into any of these buildings. Daniel, do me a favor and don't park near a bathroom or garbage can."

"I'll try not to," he replied dubiously. "I don't think that's going to help with the smell though."

Anything else he might have said was interrupted when the gate opened and several people came out.

"Oh, you must be the group with the cure," a man said when he noticed Daniel's red eyes.

"We are," Daniel replied. "Is anyone here sneezing?"

"A couple were but they left last night. It wasn't until this morning that a pigeon came in with a message saying you're able to tell if anyone is infected. Can we offer you lunch in exchange for checking?"

"We ate earlier," he lied, "but thanks for the offer. We can do a quick check before continuing down the road and seeing if we can catch up with them. One person in our group is still sneezing. If he wears his mask, can he come in?"

"Uh, I thought you had the cure?"

"He received it, but it can take up to six hours to completely remove the virus. He still has a few hours left."

Nina leaned forward and added, "We can leave several vials of the sanity serum and cure here."

The man hesitated, wavering between the old path of keeping all infection out and the lure of having the miracle drugs. "All right. But that mask stays on. And he has to stay ten feet away from others."

The welcoming committee guided the truck through the gate.

"While we check this place for anyone infected, would it be possible for him to use the showers and get some clothing, if you have any to spare in his size?" Daniel asked.

"We should have some spare clothing around. What sizes? You can park the truck right there." He waved at a grassy area beside a house.

Daniel came to a stop in the indicated spot while Kevin self-consciously said, "Medium shirt, size thirty pants."

The man nodded thoughtfully, then asked one of his companions, "Mind guiding him to the showers, then bringing him something to wear?"

"Sure. You can come with me."

Kevin got out of the truck and followed the man, keeping the specified distance between them.

I gazed around and commented, "I think I'll remain here." The sour smell of vomit and the reek of diarrhea were strong enough that I didn't want to walk around in case I stepped in something.

"Can you give me a quick tour?" Daniel asked as he opened the driver's door. "If anyone is infected, I'll be able to smell it."

That isn't all you're going to smell... Daniel had noticed the odor as we approached the gate, so if he had to go inside a building, that trip could be... interesting.

As Daniel closed the truck door, I caught a glimpse of red skin on his arm, right where the scab from the bullet wound should have been. How fast do Terrors heal? I know I heal faster than a Runner, but this is ridiculous...

I forced my envious gaze away from the almost completely healed wound as they continued talking, eventually leading Daniel and Nina on their tour. Logan and John remained in the truck with Nicky, Liz, and me.

Nicky wrinkled her nose. "Whew. I don't think it matters where you park around here. It smells like several people died. As much as I would have loved a warm meal, if this stink is caused by food poisoning, I can eat dry bread for a long time."

"We've never fed you dry bread," I told her. "And once they're out of sight, you can grab something to munch on. We won't be here very long."

"In that case, I'll wait until we leave. I'm not sure I could eat much with that smell in the air. What can we do to pass the time... Oh, I know. Hey, Liz, do you want to play on the grass? I have a ball, so we can play catch!"

"Yes, please!"

Nicky helped Liz down, and they began tossing a small ball back and forth beside the truck.

"You should play tag or something that involves a bit more running," I observed. Anything that burned more energy during this brief stop would help keep them mellow for the rest of our drive.

"That's a great idea!" Nicky exclaimed. "We can play a game! You three are really slow zombies who chase us! We have to stay on the grass, and yellow dandelions can trip us! Run, Liz!"

"Run where?"

"We're playing keep-away! Follow me!"

With more confusion than excitement, Liz ran after Nicky.

I raised an eyebrow at the two men. "If I'm being forced to join this game, you two are coming."

Logan furrowed his eyebrows, but he got up without a complaint. By contrast, John was already on the grass and exaggeratedly tiptoeing after the two who were running across the trampled grass and jumping over dandelions.

It was easy to see who the team player in our group was.

After a quick appraisal of the grass, which was clean of any nasty substances that tainted the outdoor air, I jumped down and began circling to the side at a leisurely walk. I jerked my chin in the other direction, and Logan, who'd been watching me, started circling the other way with remarkable intuitiveness.

"Here they come! Faster, Liz! Watch out for the dandelions!"

The grass between the dirt road and the fence was only so wide, but there was more than enough space for Liz and Nicky to maneuver around their slow pursuers. As we closed in, they darted between Logan and John and ran back the way they'd come. Liz quickly caught onto the game. A big smile was plastered across her face as she laughed and ran.

After about twenty minutes of running back and forth, both of them were breathing heavily. Which was an ironic reenactment of what happened far too often in real life when people tried to outrun zombies.

"Nicky! You stepped on a dandelion!" Liz exclaimed in a horrified voice.

"Ack! I've fallen, and I can't get up!" Nicky flopped down on the grass and spread out like a panting starfish.

Liz ran back and grabbed her hand, trying to pull her to safety. "Get up! They're coming!"

We slowly circled around the two and approached from all sides.

"We're surrounded!" Liz cried out.

Nicky promptly rolled onto her stomach. "Perfect! We can fire in every direction!"

"You don't have a bow or a gun," I informed the redhead, taking another step closer. I still had no idea what I was supposed to do if I caught either of these two, so they better get their asses moving.

"No, but I took a couple of crowbars out of the back of the truck! The clover flowers, Liz! They're our new weapons! Quick! Pick some!"

With a faint snort, I shook my head and turned around. "I'm going back to the truck." I refuse to be killed by a flower.

"Hey! Get back here," Nicky exclaimed. "Zombies are supposed to chase people, you know!"

"This zombie prefers peace and quiet."

The complete truth of that sentence was utterly lost on the handful of onlookers watching the game. I reached the truck and climbed into the back. It wasn't long before the clover-wielding duo chased Logan – who was now moving much faster than before – into the back with me.

John lay on his side in the grass – having already been killed – and watched the two lunatics throw flowers at each other now that they ran out of easy targets.

"Let's bury John in clover flowers!" Nicky suggested.

"Okay!"

The two scampered over the grass as they picked every clover bloom they could find and piled them on John's side, stacking them as high as they could.

"Kevin! Do you want to join our game?" Nicky asked as the man returned in clean clothes, with the freshly-washed rainbow shirt hanging over his arm.

"What game?"

"Zombie killer!"

After a nervous glance at me, and then at John, who had weeds draped all over him, he declined, "Ah, I think I'll pass."

"Where's the fun in that?"

Before he could answer, Liz pointed at something to the side. "Look at the kitty!"

I turned around and spotted the black and white cat sunning itself behind a nearby garage.

"If you want, we can go see it," Nicky told her, "but kitties don't like zombies or those who have been close to them. The kitty probably won't let you pet it."

After being in my lap earlier, and beside me most of the day, I could pretty much guarantee that. If the smell in this place wasn't so bad, the cat would have already realized I was here and made itself scarce.

"Why don't we let Kevin try first?" Nicky suggested.

"Okay." Liz looked at him expectantly.

The man bit his lip and left the colorful fabric hanging on the side of the truck before walking toward the cat. The cat didn't seem to notice anything amiss until he reached out to pet it. With a hiss, it scrambled backward and ran off.

Kevin sighed in disappointment. For that matter, so did I. Had the cat let him pet it, it would have meant one less person in the crowded truck. This place would probably let him stay if he asked, but I knew he wanted to travel with us until he was sure the cure worked.

When Nicky noticed Daniel and Nina returning, she said, "Oh, good. You're back. We were running out of clover."

"Clover?" Daniel asked. "Why is John lying in the grass?"

"He got clovered," Nicky replied seriously. Turning to Liz, she said, "John's no longer a zombie. You better go bring him back! We're leaving soon."

"Okay!" As obedient as ever, she scurried off to retrieve the man they had just tried to bury alive in weed blossoms.

Fortunately for us, John was easy to revive from the dead and pry away from his perfumed cocoon.

After waving goodbye to the guards, Nina unfolded her map. "We'll have to keep our eyes open, but there could be several people along this road who had to leave. They had no spare fuel, so they left on bicycles."

"No one in that place was infected?" I asked, although I already knew the answer to that question.

"No," Daniel replied grimly. "The last person started sneezing yesterday evening around seven o'clock. None after that."

"Which means everyone in this wave is likely sneezing by now," Nina said, "and they don't have much time left."

Unless my math skills were faulty, that also meant at least half of them had already turned. In a day and a half, the wave would be over.

"I'll keep tabs on the air in case they're hiding in the trees, but we need to get farther down the road first."

"Once we're away from septic-city," Nicky commented, "I wouldn't mind stopping for lunch. And neither of you two better have caught whatever plague infiltrated that place."

"Daniel's immune to such things," Nina informed her, "and I made sure not to touch anything. I also used some hand sanitizer on my way back to the truck just in case. Considering most people were suffering from the same thing at the same time, it was likely a severe case of food poisoning."

"Food poisoning like that isn't fun," John said. "The butchers and cooks will be hearing about it."

Kevin made a face. "From what I saw when walking by, the butchering area still hasn't taken that lesson to heart yet. The meat was just lying on the counters and flies were all over the place."

Daniel shook his head when he heard that. "I simply don't understand why they didn't learn from their last mistake. I really hope they decide to use their brains one day and actually think about what they're doing."

"You're assuming people actually use their brains to think," Nicky commented. "Even you zombies just want the blood, so there can't be anything that important up there."

I closed my eyes and wondered how hard it would be to convince her and Liz to take a five-hour nap until we reached our next destination.

"Unfortunately, common sense isn't that common," Logan eventually said into the awkward silence.

"Finally!" Nicky exclaimed. "Someone who agrees with me! Do you think that might be why the Hollywood zombies ate so many brains? Because they kept searching for that elusive thing called common sense?"

"I think they were after the brain because it's very rich in fat, certain omega acids, and other nutrients," John mused, his family background once more rising to the surface.

Nicky gave him a long look. "Rich in fat. Uh-huh. If I get fat, I'm called a lazy couch potato. But if the brain has a lot of fat, why is it called brainpower?"

In what was becoming a new habit for him, John belatedly realized Nicky's questions didn't really need an honest or accurate answer. "Ummm... I'm actually not sure where the term brainpower came from, other than its potential for creativity." His eyes landed on the colorful shirt beside him, and he quickly improvised. "Like this shirt you colored. Most people wouldn't have that sort of creativity."

Nicky peered at him as if questioning his honesty. "Is that supposed to be a distraction or flattery?"

John finally had the wisdom to just shrug.

"I'll take it as flattery then. But you have to wear that shirt tomorrow."

"I'd be honored."

He'll be easy to spot in the crowd, if nothing else...



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