by Ann Christy
“Mom,” I say.
The fingers twitch a little, but that’s all. She can’t come after me. If she could, she would have already.
I pick my sledgehammer up from the floor and walk over to her locked cage.
“Mom, I’ll love you forever.”
Today - As Good As It Gets
“Yeah, this place looks safe.” I can’t tell if she’s being sarcastic or not. I don’t know her well enough and the way she says it, I could take it either way. But, what I can say is that it’s definitely not safe. Nowhere is truly safe. A place might be safe for an hour or a night, but safety is not a permanent state.
And this raggedy building looks like a horror movie set. Office chairs have been flung all over the messy strip of grass between the building and the small parking lot. The windows appear to have been busted out a long time ago, and for some reason there’s a big flap of rotting carpet hanging out of an upstairs window.
Veronica snuggles the sleeping toddler closer to her chest and eyes me, apparently waiting for me to agree with her. I can see she’s bone-tired. I might be carrying a pack and the weapons, but she’s carrying a small human and another pack. Her human burden is also one that needs to be soothed when he gets upset so that he stays quiet. One that needs more medical attention than my little first aid kit in the car could provide.
“It’ll have to do. Stay here,” I say and walk away. I know I should be more sympathetic, more friendly or something, but I just can’t bear it. As soon as I smile, she’ll get snatched and eaten or something. That’s just been the whole tenor of this day. Shitty.
It’s dirty inside, a little dark once I get away from the windows, and there isn’t a single intact pane of glass, but there are a few windowless rooms and enough debris to pile against the doorways. It might do after all.
I wave them in and it takes a good while of futzing about to get Jon settled after being held all day. The butterfly bandages seem to be keeping the cut on his head closed, but he’ll have a heck of a scar. It’s strange, but even now, he’s quiet and minds well. Sadly, I doubt kids who couldn’t adjust to this survived. For him, I fear it will be all he’ll ever know. But maybe not. The deaders will keep slowing, and maybe by the time he’s old enough to understand just how much he missed out on, he might have a chance of getting it back. I hope so.
While Veronica feeds Jon from the little stash I brought with me—my just-in-case satchel—I keep watch. A deader lumbers past, his mouth sucking on something that is painting his face bright red, but no in-betweeners. Just like everywhere else, there are birds all over the place here. Roosting in open windows and along roofs, their presence allows me to relax a little, grip my weapon just a little less tightly. They sent up an alarm when the deader went by. They’ll do it again if more come.
Night falls and I keep the watch. The temptation to quiz her, to simply talk to another human, went away as soon as I saw how tired she was. Yawning almost as soon as the light faded, she seemed to be fighting the urge to lie down next to the sleeping boy. I convinced her it was okay.
I want to let her sleep. She says she’s fifteen. Fifteen seems so young to me now, but I wasn’t much older than her when my mother left me on my own, and I was far less prepared and capable. Veronica is going to be busy with Jon, but I think she’s going to be okay. At least, I think she will if I can just get her to my place.
Three miles at most, then we’ll be there. Then I can show her how everything works, how to take care of the deaders at the fence, what to do if actual people show up. I can show her where all the emergency supplies are stashed and the best places to hide until she can escape, in the off-chance that humans overrun the complex.
When I’m sure she’s out, her breathing moving from the heavy breaths of new sleep to the lighter ones of true sleep, I roll up my pant leg under the light of the moon and look at the crescent-shaped wound that marks my calf. It’s deep. Anything carried in that in-betweener’s saliva is now inside my body, circulating in my blood.
Time, how much time?
Not much, I think. The headaches are back and now that there are other people to worry about, I can’t pretend they aren’t serious. I know what it means. This time, there are no medulloblastoma-eating nanites handy. It’s only a matter of time until I take my mother’s place in the cage. But that’s okay, too. I’ll have company to talk to me even after I’m gone. I like that idea. I’ll never be alone again.
And who knows what might happen before the worst comes to pass. I still have my mother’s hard drive. I might make it to the military base. But not just yet. For now, I’ve got two people who depend on me, and I couldn’t be happier about it.
Happiness. Yeah, that’s it exactly. You know what I mean?
Ready for Book Two?
There are three books in this series and book two, Forever Between, is already available for pre-order. Get it on Amazon.
From the Author
Thank you for reading!
I sure hope you liked what I did with my zombie apocalypse. As I was thinking about the whole concept, I realized that I wasn’t as enthralled with the idea of the actual apocalypse anymore, but rather, my imagination was fired up by what would happen afterward. What would it be like for those who are left after most of the biting and entrail-showing is done?
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Table of Contents
The In-Betweener
Dedication
Works by Ann Christy
One Month Ago - Recon
Today - Emily
Yesterday - The Walking Man
Today - Company at High Noon
Six Years Ago - My Medullo and Me
Today - The Speaker
Five Years Ago - Magic Beans for Everyone
Today - The Loneliness of Being Alive
Four Years Ago - A Life Saved Is a Future Saved
Today - In Between You and Me
Three Years Ago - Mix and Match
Today - Choices, Choices
Two Years Ago - Miscommunications
Today - Blue Slushies
Fifteen Months Ago – Programming Futility
Today – Date with the Dead
Thirteen Months Ago – Studying Death
Today - Driving Without a License
One Year Ago - You Can’t Plan for Everything
Today - Company
Eleven Months Ago - I’ll Stay With You
Today - Sam
Six Months Ago - Before I Lay Me Down to Sleep
Today - Bumpity-Bump
One Month Ago - Forever
Today - As Good As It Gets
Ready for Book Two?
From the Author