Learning To Live (Zombie Overload Series) (27 page)

We
make our way out of town and head to the bigger city of St. Thomas.
Dustin leads us to the hospital where my youngest was born. All the
memories of that day flood back as I see the front of the hospital.
I'm so grateful that the amnesia didn't last, I would have lost all
the important memories like this one.

We
drive around to the ER doors, and all but the passengers on the bus
get out. Jake tells us he and Luke-the man from the roof-are going to
help us get the area we need secure and then are going to come back
and stay with the others. Dad goes over to the bus with a couple hand
guns until they can get back. I tell the dog to stay in the truck
when she gets up to go with us. She whines but lays back down, and I
stare at her in shock.
I can't frikken believe she obeyed me!

Dustin
leads the way, and with Will on one side and Jake on the other
helping me, we find a wheelchair near the ER check-in desk. I drop
into the chair and start rubbing my good leg as it aches from having
to be the only thing holding me up. We kill what zombies we find
inside while Will pushes me around, and then we follow Dustin down a
short hall to a room that has an x-ray machine. Dustin turns it on
and explains it will be a few minutes until he's got everything set
up.

Luke
and Jake leave us to go block off and clear this area of the
hospital. Will pulls up a chair next to me and grabs my hand, asking
me how I'm doing.

"I'm
alright. Ready to be back at Rose's and sleep for a few days. You?"

"I'm
ok. Ready to do the same."

Dustin
finally comes back in and I notice right away he's gotten himself a
shower and has changed clothes. He doesn't look so bad when he's not
wearing zombie bits and pieces. And he smells
so
much
better!

He
gets me positioned the way he wants me and gets his damn x-rays.
After awhile, he confirms it's a non-displaced lateral malleolus
fracture.
Whatever the
hell that means. For everyone who isn't a doctor...it's broke.

Fortunately,
he says it doesn't require any surgery, but will still need to be in
a cast up to just above my knee. He says this as if it's a good
thing. I stare hard at him until his encouraging smile fades. The
realization of the world we now live in, where being able to run is a
requirement for survival, finally hits him.

"Well,
it will only be for about two weeks. Then I can take it off and you
can use a removable plastic cast walker for about ten more weeks. You
will also need some physical therapy. I really should take more
x-rays after a few weeks, but with things the way they are, we're
just going to have to do what we can and hope for the best."

"Alright.
Then let's get this done so I can go home, " I tell him,
irritably.

First,
Dustin cleans the scraped skin on my hands and my right cheek that I
got from the road then he leads us to another room and starts casting
my foot and leg. It hurts like hell but I just want it done. Finally,
it is.

Dustin
leads and Will pushes me through the ER and back to the door. Dustin
stops at the little pharmacy and tells us he'll be right back. A few
minutes later, he comes out with a large bag and leads us to the
truck.

Will
helps me inside the back and I lean against the far door, putting my
feet up on the seat. No easy task when one of them feel as if it
weighs at least five hundred pounds. Will grabs a pillow and a rolled
up sleeping bag and places them under my foot. Right now, I'm tired
and pissed off from the pain.

Dustin
leans in through the door at my feet with his hand out toward me and
I take the pill he has sitting on his palm. Thank God he had taken a
shower, because if he hadn't, I damn sure wouldn't have put anything
in my mouth he was touching. Then he tells us he'll be just a minute
and disappears back inside the hospital. His head reappears and he
calls out for some help. Jake, Will, and Luke all go inside.

After
several minutes pass, they finally reemerge, and each of them are
pushing a gurney, which are
loaded
with supplies! Every single
bit of it is medical supplies and medication, and I smile as I relax
against the door. Those are going to come in so handy.
Good
thinking, Dustin.

They
load some of the stuff in the back of our truck and I hear Dustin
telling the other guys that two of them should each take a mobile
medical unit because they have a lot of equipment we can use at
Rose's. Dustin says he'll drive one of them and Jake volunteers to
drive the other. Dad is going to drive Luke's truck and Luke will
drive the bus while Will drives our truck.

I
let out a big frustrated sigh, lean forward, and look back at them
through the open cargo door.

"Great!
I am so freakin' son-of-a-bitching deliriously delighted that we got
that settled. Now...can we get the
hell
out of here, already?"
I told ya, I'm tired and in pain which translates to I. AM. A.
BITCH!

Dustin
runs over to where the mobile units are, and apparently already has
the keys because it doesn't take him long to get his started, and
Jake's does the same soon after. They drive up next to us and finish
loading the rest of the supplies inside the units.

Finally,
finally
, we can go. The units go first, and everyone else
follows behind. Will and I are the last in line. I am so relieved to
be going home, I give another sigh, but this one is soft and happy.

"How
you doing, Precious?" Will calls back to me.

"Relieved.
Happy. Mostly in freakin' pain, but I think the pain pill may be
starting to work. It's not as bad as it was."

"Well,
why don't you just relax and try to get some sleep," he
suggests.

"Sounds
like a good idea to me," I tell him, already starting to drift.

I
don't know how long I've been out, but I struggle to open my eyes
when I feel the truck stop and hear loud voices. I can't open them,
so I just give up and go back to sleep.

Sometime
later, I do get one eye slightly open and see two men in the front
seat with Will, both with beautiful matching red hair.

I
close my eyes and giggle.

"Honey?
You alright?" I hear Will ask.

Giggling
even harder, I manage to answer, "ju know wha?"
I can
hear that my own voice is slurred. None of you need to tell me.

"What,
Baby?" he asks, amusement in his voice.

"Ah
think Duzzin give me zum good sheet!"

"What
do you mean?"

"Ahm
high az hell. I zee two lep-ra-conz sitt'n up front witchu. Don't let
dem take all da gold!" I giggle, and as I'm falling back into
unconsciousness again, I hear three different men laugh.

I'm
being shook awake, but I don't wanna wake up! I'm dreaming about
leprechauns, and rainbows, and gold, and...
good
things.

But
it's all gone as I hear Will calling my name and shaking me a little
harder. I open my eyes to barely-there slits, and see that the sky
isn't as dark as it had been when I went to sleep. Focusing on Will
above me, I ask him where we are.

"We're
at your sister's."

"Really?
Oh that's lovely! I want out. Now!"

Will
helps me sit up then get my cement leg out. He hands me the crutches
Dustin took from the hospital and I stand and sit, stand and sit as
he measures and adjusts them. Eventually, we are ready to go.

But
before I can even get past the truck, I'm confronted with two people
I never thought I'd see again. And then my face burns as red as their
hair.
Oh lord!

I
glance at Will and he's grinning big-time back at me. I look back at
the other two and they are grinning just as big.

"Don't
worry, all your gold is safe," Joel, my oldest nephew, and the
CDC doctor, says.

"We
put our leprechaun outfits away but we can wear them if you like,"
from Gage, my nephew who likes to blow things up.

I
glare at all three of them, trying to cover the embarrassment and my
very red face. My glare fades fast as they throw their arms around
me.

"I'm
so freakin' happy to see you two. I love you guys and missed you so
much. Has your mom and dad seen you yet?"

Joel
laughs as he takes a step back. "We love you, too, Aunt Canada.
No. Grandma said they had gone out to walk the fence. So we thought
we would go and surprise them."

"They're
going to be so excited to see you guys. Hurry! Go find them."

Laughing,
they run off to do just that. As I'm just about to try getting up the
front steps, Will and I hear a very loud scream. Not a bad scream. A
good one. A very good one.

A
few tears leak out, but I don't care. Happiness is one emotion that
we will all cherish every time we're fortunate enough to get it. Not
so sure we'll have a whole lot of it, but we're damn sure going to
try.

My
boys come flying out the door and the happiness is replaced by terror
as I'm expecting the momentum of their bodies crashing into mine to
throw me down the two stairs I've managed to get up. But Will stops
them just in time and they finally focus on the crutches and then my
cast. We all exchange hugs, although my return hugs are rather
awkward, to say the least.

"Oh
wow, Mom! That's so cool!" Bo exclaims.

Cool? HA!
Not really.

"Can
I sign it?" Ash asks me.

"Let's
let your mom get inside so she can sit down, and
then
you can
sign it," Will tells them.

I
give Will a grateful smile and we go inside. It's so wonderful to be
in this house, with all the people I love, and to hear all the noise.
The boys sign my cast and then all the other kids come over to sign
and draw pictures on it. I laugh as they explain their pictures and
tell me their pictures will make my foot feel better. I can't tell
you how many times my foot got banged around, but I'm so happy to be
back, I don't mind. I watch them for a few minutes as they play with
the dog. Even though my head can hardly stand it, I smile at their
laughter and squeals of happiness.

Rose
comes over and offers me and Will her bed to get some sleep in, since
it's downstairs, and we gratefully accept.

As
we are on our way to the bedroom, Sara-the bitch herself-comes up to
us.

"Look,
I just wanted to tell you how sorry I am for everything. I'm begging
you to blame it on my state of mind at the time. I mean, I had just
been raped and beaten, my husband had been killed then come back as a
zombie, and I have no idea if any of my other family are still
living. I'm really so very, very sorry. Will you forgive me?"

I
look at Will and he shrugs. He nods at her and says he forgives her.
But not me. Something's not right. I had just talked to Rose a few
hours ago and Sara was still being her typical self. But maybe I
should let her think that I think everything's ok. So I nod as well,
promising myself to keep an eye on her.

"Great!
I hope we can be friends now. All of us," Sara says, oozing
sweetness from every pore.

I
give a slight smile at her and take a few more hops forward on my
crutches, when she asks Will if he could help her with something
really fast, it won't take long. Will and I look at each other. I
shrug and nod. So he reluctantly walks outside with Sara and, like an
idiot, I only have my eye on one thing, the bed inside this doorway.
I get inside and manage to get my heavy leg up on the bed.

Getting
comfortable, I'm just about to drift off to sleep when I hear Will
come in and shut the door.

"What
the hell did she want?' I ask him, my eyes closed.

No
answer.

"Will?"

No
answer.

I
open my eyes and raise my head. Will's standing at the foot of the
bed, just staring at me. His eyes are red. His entire body is
shaking.

"Will?
What the hell? What's wrong? What did that bitch do?"

I'm
trying to get to the bottom of the bed but my damn cast is twisted in
the sheet. But the closer I do get, the further back he moves.

I
finally just stop and look back at him.

"What
the hell is going on, Will? You're scaring me!"

He
never says a word. He just throws something on the bed right in front
of me. I reach down, pick it up...and stare in horror at the image on
the slick photo paper.

Before
I can say anything, Will turns and storms out. I struggle to get
untangled and then fumble with the crutches. Getting them under my
arms, I leave the room as fast as I can. I look around the living
room and the dining room and can't find him.

Rose
walks in the front door, looking confused, and when she sees me,
hurries over.

"Canada,
where's Will going?"

"What
did he say?" I ask her, my voice shaky as hell.