Fighting to Survive (40 page)

“
I
say we dump them over the wall,
”
Juan said firmly.

“
Let
our vigilante do it,
”
Peggy said with a sigh.
“
I
’
m
sure Shane is on his list now.
”

“
I
have round the clock guards on that holding cell,
”
Bill said.
“
They
are not going over the wall.
”

“
So
we vote,
”
Peggy said again.

Manny
nodded.
“
That
sounds fair to me.
”

“
Well,
I'm not certain we want all sorts of people voting on this, Manny,
”
Steven said sharply.

“
I
think everyone old enough to understand should vote,
”
Peggy retorted.
“
You
can't count people out because they are not your version of the right
sort of people.
”

Blanche rolled her
eyes.

“
You
know what? Do whatever. But you better be damn well sure you are
setting a precedent you can live with,
”
Travis said, and stormed out.

“
...may
be human after all as he exits the top secret meeting...
”

Juan followed Travis
down the hall and into the lobby. Travis tried hard not to let his
temper get the best of him.

“
Travis,
”
Eric called out from nearby, and rushed over to him.

Travis
took several deep breaths as he looked back and forth between Juan
and Eric. Both of the men looked concerned and maybe a little
fearful. Travis could feel the heat of his anger burning in his
eyes. He rubbed them with his fingertips.

“
What
’
s
going to happen?
”
Eric asked.

“
A
vote. The fort will vote on what to do,
”
Travis answered.

“
Okay.
That seems fair,
”
Eric said.
“
Are
you okay with that?
”

“
Just
scared,
”
Travis confessed.

“
Why?
”
Juan folded his arms over his chest.
“
This
is a good thing.
”

“
But
what if people vote to keep them?
”
Travis shook his head.
“
I
hate this feeling. Voting out a person into the deadlands. It
doesn
’
t
feel right.
”

“
We
don
’
t
want them here, that
’
s
for damn sure,
”
Eric reminded him.
“
I
know you want them gone.
”

“
Yeah,
but what if we start voting out people for the wrong reasons?
”
Travis shook his head. He felt compromised by his own beliefs in
this moment. He wanted Shane and Phillip gone, but the thought of
people voting out someone from the safety of the fort was terrifying.

“
It
’
s
the right thing to do, man. It
’
s
the right thing. You know it,
”
Juan assured him.

Travis
set his hands on his hips as he considered this, then sighed.
“
Nothing
feels right anymore. Nothing.
”
And with that, he walked to the elevator to go up to be with Katie.

When Travis finally
entered Katie's room, he found her fast asleep with Jenni holding her
close. He walked over and gently smoothed Katie's hair back from her
face, then sighed. Sitting in a chair next to the bed, he sat in
silence, deep in his thoughts

1. Justice

The next week was
sheer hell.

The
idea to vote on what to do with Shane and Philip had seemed like a
good idea at first. Nicely printed copies of the depositions of those
involved were handed out to anyone over the age of seventeen who were
willing to vote. It became the most popular reading material in the
fort. It also became the most talked about and scandalous.

Philip
and Shane were tucked away in one of the guardrooms where they could
be constantly monitored and put to work keeping an eye out for
marauders or zombies. They weren
’
t
allowed to touch weapons during their watches, but their duty did
allow them enough time to flap their jaws to spread rumors. Roger had
become so disgusted by their tales, he had asked Nerit not to assign
him to their guard duty anymore. Nerit had made sure Roger understood
that he needed to keep his spot to limit the damage they were doing.

Rumor
was rife throughout the fort and Katie
’
s
sexuality became the focus of a lot of discussions. Some people
staunchly refused to believe she was anything other than a good ol
’
straight girl. Others suspected that she was a lesbian in hiding.
That it was even considered part of the decision making process made
Katie angry and feel hurt all at the same time.

“
Yeah,
someone asked me if I was your mustache,
”
Travis said with a wry smile one night.

“
Huh?
Oh! My beard!
”
Katie rolled her eyes.
“
I
’
m
surprised they even knew the term.
”

“
Yeah,
I
’
m
the mustache for you and Jenni.
”
Travis shook his head and laughed.

“
Of
course. What else would you be,
”
she said with a laugh. The words hurt more than she cared to admit.

It
was painful reminder of all she and Lydia had gone through. The
furtive looks, the guarded questions, the gossip: all of it had been
hell. Somehow, it had been easier with Lydia because they had each
other to help them through the hard times. They understood what the
other woman was going through. Katie remembered one woman screaming
at her and Lydia at a gay pride parade that there was no way they
loved each other like a straight man and woman loved each other.
Lydia had just laughed and said,
“
Yeah,
true. Less beard burn!
”
Katie had nearly fallen over laughing and Lydia had waltzed her
around, then kissed her.

Travis
was trying so hard, but he didn
’
t
really know what it was like to know that a good portion of the old
world population hated you simply because you looked at your own sex
and saw no issue with loving them. As a bisexual woman, Katie had
struggled with both the gay and straight community at times, when
they had been trying to force her to decide. She let her heart decide
when it came to both Lydia and Travis. She was very aware, as was
Travis, that if not for the zombie holocaust, she would still be with
Lydia.

Loving
Travis was the same, yet different. How she could explain that to any
of the people giving her strange looks? So she didn
’
t
say anything except,
“
Travis
and I are together and I would never cheat on him with Shane or
anyone else.
”
She was torn between feeling like she was betraying her relationship
with Lydia and feeling that she was preserving its sanctity by not
going into details about her past.

But
the rumors continued and Blanche dragged her name through the dirt.
She heard the woman
’
s
mocking words ringing in her ears. She saw the condemning stares from
a few. The scary old Southern Baptist woman named Mary especially
took to saying nasty things around Katie. She just tried to ignore
it all.

Yet
at the same time, she had the sweet hugs of her supporters. Old Man
Watson went out of his way to stand up and hug her tight. Nerit, of
course, was unwavering. Jenni was almost psychotic in her defense.

Every
night, she went to bed with Travis
’
arms around her waist as his chest fit snuggly against her back. He
had surprised her with a cell phone charger he had found somewhere
and plugged in her cell phone when she wasn
’
t
looking. One night, she had slipped into bed and looked over to see
Lydia
’
s
picture smiling out at her. She had almost cried at the sight and
looked up to see Travis smiling sheepishly from the bathroom. Running
across the room, she had flung her arms around his neck and clung to
him while clasping the phone in her hand.

He
understood more than she gave him credit for, perhaps.

“
It
scares me sometimes,
”
he whispered in her ear one night,
“
to
realize that, if not for all this shit going down, I would never have
found you. And I know you would be happy without me, since you would
be with her, but I don
’
t
know what would have happened to me. Would I have found happiness
somewhere else?
”

Katie
had held him close and stroked his hair.
“
We
have to live with what is, not what could have been.
”

He
reached out and snagged the cell phone.
“
She
was really beautiful, Katie. I like her smile and her eyes. She looks
really kind.
”

“
She
was amazing. I loved her,
”
Katie said in a soft voice.
“
And
you are amazing and I love you.
”

Travis
smiled.
“
Oh,
I know. I
’
m
not afraid of Lydia
’
s
memory. I just want her to know I
’
m
going to take good care of you.
”

Katie
gave him a loving smile and kissed him.
“
She
knows. I know it.
”

A
day before the vote, the little pink stick said she wasn
’
t
pregnant. Katie was relieved, considering what an idiot she had been
drinking the night of the party. But at the same time, she had felt a
pang of disappointment. When she showed Travis, he had sighed. She
could see he shared the same feelings. They had stood in silence,
pondering it for a long moment, then he had kissed her lips lightly
and said,
“
Eh,
one day.
”

“
I
’
m
thirty-six,
”
Katie had said.

“
I
’
m
thirty-two,
”
Travis answered. Then he had mussed her hair.
“
No
fair looking younger than me.
”