Debbie nodded. Over the past few months, everyone had come to understand that some luxuries must be sacrificed. Honestly, she did not expect to still receive any type of fruit so far along. She stopped worrying about the logistical problems of having food supplies brought in and just concentrated on her child.
Her stomach had swollen to a taut round ball. The baby’s kicking interrupted her sleep. It had been months since her escape. The people that found her had been military. The CDC operations had top priority since everyone now agreed that the origin of the zombies was definitely viral. Apparently the disease was airborne, but dormant in oxygenated blood. Upon death though, the virus became active. The scientists theorized that some people had been carrying it around with them for months, possibly years. How would you know unless you were dead?
The doctor excused himself after telling her that a nurse would be in to check on her in thirty minutes. She rolled onto her side, feeling uncomfortable but needing to change position. Robert had been carrying it but she did not know that when she had made love to the wounded boy. When the blood-loss from missing fingers finally claimed him, he had come back too. Debbie had finished him off. She refused to think about what she had had to do to survive. Then she had collapsed on the slick floor of a fast food chain’s cooler and cried for hours. Her only company had left her. Her companion in that short amount of time had come to mean so much to her, that she wondered how she could have worked with him for so long and never noticed how wonderful he was.
Debbie eased herself to the edge of the bed, wistfully recalling the last moments with the father of her child. Robert never had the chance to prove himself as a parent, but that was okay. It sounded really warped, but the doctors had explained that her lover had possibly contributed more than he could ever have guessed.
One of the lead researchers reasoned it out for her. The baby in her womb would be born with the virus as part of its normal makeup. If the pregnancy proceeded normally, they could possibly develop a vaccine. He stressed that the medicine made from that research would not yield a cure for those already reanimated, but more likely a shot that if administered, would at least make anyone who passed not come back. She remembered the doctor’s sad smile as he patted her hand. “It may not sound like much, but it’s a start.” She had agreed.
Her precious baby with its light caramel skin would help save lives by doing nothing more than simply being born. With these thoughts, Deb waddled to her mirror and examined her full, healthy belly. “New life,” she spoke aloud. “Even in the worst of situations, we can always find something beautiful.”
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
James was born in Fayette, Alabama. After graduating from the University of Alabama, he moved to Lowell, Arkansas where he lives with his wife and children.
Table of Contents
PROLOGUE
DAWN
DUSK
NIGHT
EPILOGUE
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Darkest Days: A Southern Zombie Tale Page 29