Fighting to Survive (30 page)

“
Did
anyone see Travis?
”
she asked as she began the process of storing the leftovers in
Tupperware containers.

“
No,
can
’
t
say I did,
”
Rosie answered.

Stacey
glopped some mashed potatoes into a plastic container and shook her
head.
“
Eric
said Travis was busy working on something in his office and he said
he
’
d
eat later.
”

Katie
frowned a little.
“
Any
idea what he is working on?
”

Stacey
thought for a second then nodded.
“
Eric
said when he went by with Pepe, Travis was studying some stuff Jason
had left off for him to look at. Plans for weapons or something like
that.
”

“
Well,
since we
’
re
pretty much done here, I
’
m
going to take some leftovers to him then,
”
Katie decided.

With
a nod of her head, Rosie handed her a clean plate.
“
Go
take care of that boy. If it wasn
’
t
for him, none of us would be here right now.
”

Smiling slightly at
this, Katie took the plate and quickly served what she hoped was
man-size portions for Travis.

Stacey
was eating some cobbler now. She was gaining weight and looking
better than she had when she had first arrived at the fort. For
being so small, she ate more than someone would expect.
“
What
do you mean, Rosie?
”

“
Travis
is the one that had the trucks made into a wall to protect us. That
is why the zombies never got in,
”
Rosie answered.

“
Thank
God for that or we wouldn
’
t
have had anywhere to go,
”
Stacey said thoughtfully.
“
Weird
how things work out.
”

“
Plus,
he is very good looking. If only I were younger,
”
Rosie said with a wink.

A
secretive smile broke out on Katie
’
s
face as she covered the plate with foil.

“
Oh,
yes!
”
Gretchen
’
s
voice affirmed.
“
Isn
’
t
he handsome? I remember when he moved to town and all the girls would
just stare at him. I always thought he had a thing for Brenda.
”
Gretchen
’
s
voice got soft, then she said,
“
Poor
Brenda. Did they ever figure out how to get her body down?
”

“
I
think they
’
re
gonna use a hook on the end of a broom to drag her off the
anti-suicide net,
”
Roger answered.
“
No
one is going to want to see her up there during the party.
”

“
She
was always so sweet,
”
Gretchen sighed.
“
Always
checking out romance novels from the library and waiting for Prince
Charming to come.
”

“
That
’
s
really sad,
”
Stacey said softly.

“
Yeah,
when Travis came to town, she thought he was the one. She told me
all about him when she was checking out her books. It
’
s
sad how he found her body.
”
Gretchen shook her head.
“
It
’
s
a sad world.
”

Stacey
picked up another biscuit and slowly pulled it apart.
“
At
least some of us are still alive.
”

“
Thank
God for that!
”
Rosie exclaimed, and yanked open the huge refrigerator to store the
leftovers away.

Listening
to the conversation, Katie could only feel sad for the young woman
who had been so enamored with Travis. It was yet another painful
reminder of all the dreams and hopes that had died with so many on
the first days.

Katie
slipped out of the kitchen and headed out into the construction site.
It seemed so empty without all the people milling around. It looked
more like a construction site now and less like a refugee camp. She
shrugged her shoulders under the thin straps of her tank top and
hurried toward the portable building that housed Travis
’
office. Moving up to the door, she knocked and waited for an answer.

Her
smile broadened on her face as she realized how much she was
anticipating seeing Travis. Now that she had actually allowed herself
to embrace her feelings for him, she was actually getting butterflies
in her stomach. She felt girlie and silly, but was enjoying it all
the same. She hadn
’
t
felt this way since she had first met Lydia. That memory was
bittersweet, but too sweet to be denied. After her initial meeting
with Lydia, she had been so hyper she had danced around her apartment
for an hour. And when Lydia had called to ask her out, she had jumped
on her bed with excitement.

Now
she felt that way all over again about Travis. It was shocking, yet
very good at the same time. He was as much an amazing a man as Lydia
had been an amazing woman.

Travis
opened the door, looking very serious, but as soon as he rested eyes
on her, a smile spread on his lips.

“
Lunch?
”
She lifted the plate for him to see.

“
Yeah,
sure. Bring it in,
”
he said, stepping back to let her enter.
“
I
was just working on some plans to make the new entry more secure.
”

Slipping
past him, Katie moved toward his office.
“
How
’
s
it going?
”

“
Okay.
I just get real paranoid that those things are going to get in and I
start second guessing what we are doing,
”
Travis said following her down the hall.

Laying
the plate on a desk, she turned to look at him.
“
I
think we
’
re
all a little paranoid about those things.
”

“
Yeah,
but after yesterday I admit my paranoia is a little worse,
”
Travis said with a grimace.
“
I
just…” He sighed and sat on the edge of the desk, his
hands in his jean pockets.
“
I
just feel like I need to work harder on coming up with good ideas to
keep us all safe.
”
He looked toward her.
“
Keeping
you safe.
”

Katie
gave him a soft smile as she moved into his arms and laid her hands
on the sides of his neck. His hands were warm against her skin as he
slid them under her top to rest on her waist.
“
Well,
you
’
re
doing a great job so far keeping us all safe. I know a lot of us are
very, very grateful to you.
”

Travis
looked almost sheepish as he looked up at her.
“
Yeah,
well, just trying…”

“
And
doing a good job,
”
she answered. She stroked the curls on the nape of his neck. She
could see the stress lines around his eyes and brow fade as he smiled
up at her.

“
I
look at you and I want to save the world. I can
’
t
help it,
”
he answered.

“
Are
you sweet talking me again?
”
she lightly kidded.

He
laughed and shook his head.
“
No,
no. I mean it. But I always had grandiose dreams.
”
His gaze grew more intense as he looked up at her.
“
Sometimes
I get lucky and they come true.
”

Katie
smiled softly at him and kissed him. He immediately responded and the
kiss deepened as the passion rose quickly between them. Katie
relished the feel of his lips and tongue against hers. As his hands
slid up to unfasten her bra, she drew back long enough to whisper,
“
What
about lunch?
”

“
Later,
”
Travis whispered huskily, and kissed her again.

It
was hard to resist his touch and harder to resist her own desire for
him. She felt absolutely intoxicated with him. As their kisses grew
more fevered, they struggled to free each other from their clothes.
The hunger for each other was so intense, they never made it close to
Travis
’
sofa bed or fully managed to undress.

1. Past, Present,
Future

Jenni
was annoyed. Up three stories from street level on the fire escape of
the hotel, she was on sentry duty overlooking where Main St.
intersected Morris Avenue. It was way too hot and windy and the chair
she had dragged out to sit on wasn
’
t
very comfortable. This, on top of the insinuation that Juan was
behind Jimmy joining the ranks of the undead, was really annoying.

Slouching down in
her chair, holding her rifle across her lap, and hooking her foot up
on railing, she looked over the street as the wind blew her dark hair
around her face. She wished a fucking zombie would show up so she
could blow its head off. It would make her feel so much better.

When
the window opened and Katie slipped out, Jenni was surprised, but
relieved.

“
Hey
girlfriend!
”

“
Hey,
”
Katie answered. She kissed Jenni
’
s
forehead, then sat down on the windowsill and looked over the street.
“
Quiet,
huh?
”

“
I
find myself craving zombies. Isn
’
t
that twisted?
”

“
It
’
s
been a weird day,
”
Katie decided.

“
But
lunch was good.
”

“
Yeah,
it was, wasn
’
t
it?
”
Katie grinned, but her expression was odd.

Jenni
reached out and tapped her knee.
“
What
’
s
up?
”