by Crist, J. D.
"Yes," she answered to whoever was on the other side. The door slowly opened, and Shawn stepped through.
"Sorry to bother you, but this poor guy has been pacing outside the door since we came in. Is it okay if I let him in here with you?"
"Oh my, yes, please," Emily had utterly forgotten about Marley in trying to sort out her thoughts. Shawn opened the door a little further, and Marley came bounding into the room. He sniffed Hope first and then Emily. Once he seemed convinced that they were both okay, he curled up on the floor next to the desk.
"They have breakfast ready if you are hungry." Shawn spoke from the doorway. Emily felt her stomach knot at the thought of going to the dining room. She feared being surrounded by all of them right now. "I know they can be a lot to handle all at once," Shawn spoke as if he could read her mind. "If you want, I could just fix you a plate and bring it in here?"
"That would be great," Emily replied, breathing a sigh of relief.
Shawn nodded and shut the door behind him. Emily did not know why he was so kind to her or seemed always to know what she needed, but she was thankful for him. A few minutes passed, and Shawn came back through the door with a plate. He sat it on the desk in front of her without a word. He then smiled and walked back out of the room. Emily looked down at the plate and realized just how hungry she was. Holding Hope in one arm, she ate the breakfast in silence while Hope began to fall asleep. Even when she finished, she sat with the empty plate before her for a long time. No one came knocking, and she heard nothing from the rest of the house. Emily realized that she could not sit here forever, her arm was falling asleep from holding Hope, and it smelled as if Hope needed a diaper change.
Emily stood and walked to the door, turning back only once to ensure that Marley was behind her. She didn't want to scare him again, and Marley was not about to let her out of his sight. She opened the door to see that the living room was empty. In the kitchen, there was no one, and everything from breakfast had been cleaned up and put away. Emily began to fear that maybe she was going crazy. Was anyone here, or did her mind make it up to help her through labor? She turned and headed for the dining room, where she found everyone sitting quietly, talking. As she entered the room, the talking stopped, and everyone turned to look at her.
"Please, don't stop on my account," Emily said as she turned to leave.
"Wait!" Sam called after her as he rushed over to her. "We just wanted to make sure we were all on the same page before talking to you. I think we are ready if you are up to it?"
Emily nodded and allowed Sam to lead her to the empty chair at the table. As she sat, she remembered that her arm was asleep, and now it was beginning to hurt.
"Not to be a pain, but this little one needs a change and an actual bed to lay in. I have a feeling this talk may take more than a minute, so if you don't mind." Emily stopped as Doc stood up.
"We didn't want you to have to keep doing the stairs all day," he said as he walked towards her. He pulled forward a bassinet that Emily had not noticed was in the corner, but it was not the same one she had been using. "We hope you don't mind, but we went into the shop and found you another one to keep down here to make things easier. We also brought some of her clothes and diapers down here just in case you needed them."
Emily felt the tears in her eyes as she looked at the simple gesture. She could not help but feel guilty about her thoughts of wanting to be alone. Julia spotted it immediately and came over to Emily.
"If it's okay with you, I'll take Hope into the other room real fast and change her. I know Doc said you are good to walk, but it couldn't hurt for you to rest as much as possible."
Emily trusted Julia. She had since she met her. Emily nodded and handed Hope to Julia. Julia was only gone for a few minutes and returned with Hope. She laid Hope in the bassinet next to Emily and returned to sit next to Sam and Bobby. Emily looked around at each of their faces and waited for someone to speak.
"We all know that you have been alone for a long time, and you told us about part of what happened to you the last time you were around people," Sam spoke. Emily saw Shawn clench his fist as Sam talked about what happened to her. Emily tried to remain focused on Sam. "It makes sense that when you found this place, you would have wanted to keep everyone out to keep Hope safe. I think any of us would have done the same thing." Sam finished and he looked around at everyone, almost all of them nodding in agreement.
"Life is hard out there, not only because of the dead, but the living can be even more dangerous. And you don't know us very well, but we were hoping that maybe you would allow us to stay?" Sam looked down at the table as he finished. Emily felt confused at his question, there were more of them than her, and she was in no condition to force them out if she wanted to. Yet, they were asking her permission to stay, and she did not know how to begin to comprehend that.
"We don't want to take over what is yours," Julia spoke. "Living in here would be the miracle that most of us never expected to happen, but it's not something we can just take because we want it."
"You know things about this place that it would take us forever to learn and some of it we may never learn," Howard spoke. "I have done some reading in the library, and it looks like you have reset all of the default codes, which I must say was a stroke of brilliance." Emily felt herself blush a little. "Robert may have built the town, but you are the lifeblood of it now. No one can make it work here without you."
Emily looked around at everyone and finally heard herself speak, "You all want to stay, but you want me to be in charge?"
"Well, we want to stay, but we don't all agree that you should be in charge," Derick replied. He hadn't said much since she met the group, and it caught Emily off guard.
"We've already been over this, Derick," Sam spoke up. "This is her place, and if we want to make it work here, we have to do it by her rules."
"And what are those rules?" Derick sneered back. "Having a woman in charge is already asking for trouble but asking us all to follow her rules when we don't even know what they are is suicide."
Emily realized that she had no idea what those rules would be. She had never planned to let anyone in and didn't think she ever needed them. The biggest thing she had thought about in terms of rules was how much television time Hope would be allowed. She realized that Derick was now staring a hole through her. He expected an answer now.
"Shut the hell up, Derick!" Shawn yelled next to her. Emily looked at him as he spoke, "She doesn't have it all lined out how things should be done, and we are putting her on the spot. Give her a moment to breathe, dammit."
"Oh, just because Mr. Tough-Guy has a thing for the girl, we all have to be nice! Don't think I haven't noticed how you are around her, and I guess finding her pregnant just let you know she puts out!"
"You can shut the fuck up, or I will throw you off that fucking wall myself!" Shawn roared as he rose from his chair, slamming his hands on the table. Emily glanced to the bassinet and was surprised to see that Hope was not stirring despite the commotion. She quickly looked towards the children and saw that they were not handling the situation nearly as well. Bobby had his hands over his ears and looked like he wanted to hide under the table. Tessa's eyes were wide with fear, and she looked as if she might take off running at any moment. Emily realized that this was her moment to prove it if she was supposed to be in charge. If she let Derick bully her and Shawn come to her rescue, she would never have control. She thought back to Chad and how he always made her feel powerless in her own home, and this was her home now.
"Enough!" she yelled over both Shawn and Derick. They both stopped and sat down in silence. Emily could tell that Shawn still wanted to throw Derick off the wall, and Derick was not nearly out of colorful insults. "I don't have a clue how this is supposed to work, but I do know that screaming at each other is not going to help!" Emily took a few deep breaths and forced herself to calm down. "This is my home; I want this to be a safe place for my daughter to grow up without having to worry abo
ut what she is going to eat, the dead eating her, or about rapist trying to make her a sex slave. I never planned on letting anyone in here. I vowed that I wouldn't. But now I see that I can't do this all alone, that to keep her safe, I need help."
Emily paused and looked around at all of them. Everyone seemed to be understanding and compassionate about her words, except for Derick that appeared to have his face permanently stuck like he smelled something terrible. "Derick is right, though. You should know the rules before committing to stay." Derick let out a snort and smiled at Shawn.
"I am going to take today and think on this. Nothing this important should be undertaken without thought. I will have at least some answers for you all tonight." Emily knew that she had given herself a short timeline, but she knew she would have to have some decisions soon.
"That's more than we could have hoped for," Sam spoke. "Thank you."
Emily could tell that his words were sincere and simply nodded back. The room was silent for several minutes, and Emily knew that she could not think here. She stood slowly from her chair and reached for the bassinet.
"Here, I'll help you," Shawn stood and gently picked up the bassinet with Hope sleeping inside. Emily turned and headed back to the study. Shawn followed with Hope and Marley right behind. Shawn gently set down the bassinet and stood quietly while Emily took the desk chair.
"I just wanted to say I'm sorry about all that stuff Derick said and how I reacted," he spoke softly. Emily looked at him and realized that she would have been afraid of him just by how he looked before the flash. But now, she saw nothing but a gentle giant. He had been protective of her since before he knew anything about her. He had been the only one to notice her trying to talk, and he had done more than she could have asked to help her since Hope had been born.
"I've already forgotten it. It seems like Derick never has anything nice to say."
"You've got that right," Shawn laughed. "And just as a suggestion, you may want to include rules about how much alcohol one person can take in, or he just gets worse."
"I will keep that in mind." Emily smiled. She watched as Shawn turned and walked towards the door. "Shawn," Emily heard herself say. Shawn stopped and turned back to her. Emily knew that she had to talk now, "I just wanted to say thank you for, well, for everything. Without you, I wouldn't be here, and I don't know how to ever repay you for that."
"There's nothing to repay," Shawn replied, and then he turned and left.
Emily sat in the room with Hope and Marley and began to think. They expected her to have rules or some idea of how this place will work with more people, and she had no idea where to start. She wasn't a mayor of anything before this, just a glorified receptionist of a landscaping company. She knew how to keep work schedules organized and the payroll on time but other than that, she was useless. Robert built this place; he was the one who knew how to make it work. The thought of Robert reminded Emily of some of his books. She had said they were useless months ago when she found them because she was alone, but now, they were exactly what she needed.
Emily headed over to the bookcase and began to carry the books to the desk. Once she had all of the ones she thought would help, she sat back down and began to look through them one at a time, taking notes as she went. Robert had written out how work would be divided between the residents, based on their skills and ability. The only job that everyone shared was a guard shift on the wall. Since it protected everyone, it was everyone's job to protect it. Robert had even written out the currency form he planned to use inside to ensure that hard work paid off and those who were lazy were taught its consequences. Emily worked for a few hours, taking notes as she went through the pages one at a time. She only stopped when Hope woke and began to fuss for another bottle and a fresh diaper.
As Emily lifted Hope to the desk to change her, she noticed the pain in her lower abdomen for the first time. She then remembered the pills that Doc had given her and had yet to take one of them. Emily swallowed the pain, made it through the diaper change, and placed Hope back into the bassinet. She did not trust herself to carry her to get the bottle right now, so Hope would have to wait here.
"You're in charge until I get back," Emily said to Marley as she headed for the door. Marley stood and went to lay down next to the bassinet. There was no way anything was going to happen to Hope while she was gone. Emily opened the study door and saw that several group members were spread out in the living room, some watching television and others in small groups talking. The talking once again stopped as Emily entered, but she paid it no mind this time. She spotted Doc and walked towards him as quickly as she could.
"I have a question, Doc," she asked as she walked towards him. "With everything going on, I have forgotten to take my medication. I'm going to take it now, but I just want to make sure that everything is going to be okay."
"Oh yes, there's no sign of infection, so the antibiotic is more of a just in case, and the pain killer is just to make you comfortable so if you're not feeling any pain…." Doc stared at her for a moment, "But I get the feeling that the pain is what reminded you of them in the first place." Emily nodded as she placed her hand over the bandage. "They are probably still up on your nightstand. I'll run up and get them for you."
"Thank you," Emily breathed as she had been dreading trying to walk up the stairs. Doc took off up the stairs, and Emily made her way to the kitchen. Sam and Julia were sitting at the kitchen table talking as she entered, and again she ended another conversation.
"Sorry to interrupt, I just need to get some water, and Hope is already hungry again." Emily mused as she made her way to the sink.
"I have a bottle prepped for her. I can heat it and bring it in a few minutes if you like." Julia smiled. Emily wanted to insist that she do it herself, but the pain got worse the longer she was on her feet.
"I'd greatly appreciate it," Emily replied as she tried to reach for a glass in the cabinet. However, the stretch only made the pain worse, and she abandoned the attempt and winced in pain.
Sam rushed to her side and asked, "Are you okay?"
"I'll be fine," Emily replied. "I forgot to take my pain meds." She could tell he was getting ready to rush off and get them for her. "Doc's grabbing them now. I was trying to get some water to take them with."
"I'll get it," Julia stated as she walked towards the sink. "You go sit down now."
Emily knew that she needed to be strong and look like a leader, but even the most remarkable leaders know when to ask for help. Instead of protesting, she allowed Sam to help her back to the study and into the chair. He stayed with her until Julia and Doc had arrived, and they all made sure she took the pills.
"See, I will be just fine. There is no need for you all to worry anymore."
"If you need anything, just yell," Sam replied.
'I will, I promise." Emily smiled at them. She could see their hesitation, but they all left, making sure to leave the door open just a crack so they could hear her if she yelled. Emily fed Hope her bottle in the basinet this time, but Hope didn't seem to mind. Once the bottle was finished, the pain had subsided enough that Emily felt confident burping Hope and then placing her back down. Hope did not fall straight asleep this time, and Emily was treated with the sounds of Hope cooing and playing while she continued her work.
As she worked her way through the pages, she found a law that Robert had written about alcohol consumption that she made sure to write down. She continued to work, and it seemed to have only been minutes before Julia was coming back through the door with a plate of food.
"It's been hours since breakfast, and you have to be hungry. Doc said you shouldn't need your pills again until supper. I wasn't sure if the little one was hungry, but I brought a fresh bottle just in case." Julia set everything down on the desk, and Emily smiled. She may have known her less than a day, but Julia already felt like family to Emily. She watched as Julia walked over to the bassinet and talked to Hope for a moment. Hope had been lying there all day while Emi
ly worked, and the poor baby was getting almost no attention.
"Julia," Emily spoke, "If it's not too much trouble would you like to take Hope this afternoon? I'm sure she would like the attention, and laying there while I work all day can't be fun for her." Emily knew by the smile on her face that Julia loved the idea.
"Of course, I wanted to ask but didn't want you to feel like I was trying to steal her away from you."
"It would help me out a lot, and she seems to like you."
"We will just be in the next room," Julia said as she picked up Hope and walked towards the door.
"Thank you," Emily replied as they left. Part of her hated having to hand Hope over to a babysitter so soon, but Emily had to figure this stuff out for Hope's future. She quickly ate the sandwich that Julia had brought her and went back to the books. She continued to write herself quick notes and was amazed by some of the stuff that Robert had thought to write down. She found a list of all the possible jobs that Robert had felt was needed in the town. Emily agreed with everything on it but also added a few of her own to the list. She felt confident in everything she had and even planned to tell everyone that she was basing it all on what Robert had written out. She then grabbed the census journal and drew a single line through all of the names listed. On the first blank line, she added herself, and on the second, Hope. She had just finished when there was a light knock on the door, and Bobby walked in.