Where was he in all this though? Travis wasn't sure. He had a job to do.
He planned to get it done.
He had slid out of bed in the middle of the night to work on some modifications to the new gate system and felt satisfied he had worked out the problems. That work had made him feel solid and good inside, but one look at Katie and that feeling slipped away. He was mad for her and he knew it.
Never had he been in love with any woman as he was in love with her. But at the same time, he wanted just to make sure she was okay. He did not want to cause her anymore pain than she was in, but she had given him hope. Given him more hope than he had dared to dream of.
But now, seeing Nerit's expression as she slid out of her truck, clutching her sniper rifle in one hand and the collar of her dog in the other, Travis could see just how devastating love could be.
Nerit looked pale, her eyes red and swollen. She let go of the dog and held out her arms to the young women who rushed immediately to her.
Holding onto both of them, she let out a soft whimper and Travis' heart broke.
Nerit didn't have to say a word for all of them to know Ralph was gone.
"This isn't good, is it," Juan said from behind Travis.
Travis glanced back at him and shook his head. "No, it’s not."
Thirty minutes later Nerit sat in the council room, a hot cup of coffee in one hand and a fresh cigarette lit and smoldering in the other. Juan had gone to get her cigarettes at her request and he had taken a pack from his sacred stash.
Travis sat down across from her while Jenni and Katie flanked her. Both of the women looked stricken. Nerit looked calm, yet her hands were shaking.
"It happened two days ago," she started then took a long drag on her smoke. "I was bored. I read a lot and had read all the books in our house. So I went across the street to the store. I knew that they carried some paperbacks and magazines so I thought I'd grab some." She rubbed her weary eyes and sighed. "So I went into the grocery store and started collecting reading material. Ralph was on the roof working on our new garden. It felt safe, but I still had my rifle, you know?"
Katie nodded. "I know. We can't take chances."
"No, no, we can't. There are worse things than zombies out there." Nerit sighed. She lowered her head for a moment, then tilted her head, concentrating on some point in the past. "So, I'm looking through the paperback rack and I hear a noise outside. I look and I see a van with four men getting out of it in front of the store. Ralph stands up, calls out, and one of the men tells him to open the door. Ralph says not until he knows that none of them has been bitten. So one of these men…" Nerit faltered, her eyes lowering as she took a deep breath, "One of them shot Ralph."
"Shit," Juan said softly.
Jenni lowered her head and Katie reached out to take Nerit's hand gently.
Nerit gripped Katie's hand so tightly Travis could see that her knuckles were white. "So they shot him and started trying to break in. They broke out the windows and tried to figure out how to pull the bars out of the windows.
But that building is old and strong. They couldn't figure it out. I went to the roof of the grocery store while they did their best to get in." Nerit fell silent as she gathered her strength, then looked up once more. "I made it to the roof and took up position. They did not even look up."
Travis shifted in his chair, picturing the scene oh too clearly in his mind.
Nerit, the former Israeli sniper calmly getting into position: the men below oblivious.
"I could see Ralph slumped over and there was so much blood. I…was going to start to shoot…make the bastards pay…when another man came out of the back of the van. He was dragging a woman by her hair. She was bound and gagged. I could see she was struggling and the man was laughing this horrible laugh. Horrible." Taking a long drag on her cigarette, Nerit paused, clearly trying to keep control of her emotions.
Travis stood up and slowly walked over to the window. He had a feeling the story was only going to get worse and the pain emanating out of Nerit reminded him far too much of the pain he felt flowing out of Katie at times.
Juan sat next to Jenni and put an arm around her shoulders and she leaned into him. Her fingers still rested lightly on Nerit's arm, but she seemed overwhelmed by grief.
"He kept kicking the girl and I was about to put him out of his misery when I saw the girl's face. It was…wild…dead…hungry. Then he said, 'I told you she was bit' and kept kicking her. She was in a horrible state. Her thighs were raw and covered in blood. Her breasts bruised and cut. To me it looked like they raped her until she was dead. But she was alive again or alive as those things are."
Katie looked toward Travis and he sighed. The world was dangerous enough without human predators to add to the mix.
"So," Nerit exhaled slowly. "So they start talking about finding a replacement for her. And how she was the last of the good fucks they had.
That they needed more girls for the rest of the guys back at their camp. So I knew then what to do." Nerit took a long slow drag off her cigarette and her eyes became cool, calm and dangerous. "I had my sniper rifle, so I merely shot off her bonds. I didn't worry about hurting her; she's dead. But with the silencer and those idiots making so much noise, they never heard. I watched her get up and charge them. I watched her get her revenge on the one who had been kicking her. The other men began to panic and some shot at her."
Nerit paused and smiled, "I shot the weapons out of their hands and let her have them. All of them. And when they rose, I put them down, one by one.
And at the end, I gave her, that poor girl, her peace."
They were all speechless. What could they say? Travis was at an utter loss. What Nerit had seen and experienced was beyond anything he had encountered. He felt sick to his stomach and afraid.
"I went across the street, back home. Ralph was alive, just barely. I got him downstairs and laid him on the bed. It was a gut wound and fatal. So I gave him morphine and sat with him, held his hand, until the end." Tears streamed down her face, but her expression was stoic. "I sat with my revolver against his temple and waited. But after his last breath, he didn't stir again. I covered his body with a blanket and closed the door."
"Why didn't you call us?" Katie asked.
"And risk those other men knowing where I was? I didn't dare. I just packed up as much as I could, grabbed the old dog and started out late last night." Nerit stubbed out the cigarette and sighed. "I was afraid to be on the road knowing those bandits are out there."
"We need to make sure we double the guards," Travis said softly.
"I need to finish the gates," Juan said standing up. "We can't take any risks if we have more to worry about than just zombies."
Jenni looked up, tears streaming down her face. "If they'll just shoot an old man without a thought what would they do to us?"
Katie had her arms around Nerit, comforting her. "We need to just make sure we are ready for them if they do show up."
Travis nodded and walked over to Nerit and laid a gentle hand on her shoulder. "I'm sorry, Nerit. I liked Ralph."
Nerit smiled at him slightly. "And he liked you. But he did teach us one final important lesson."
"What's that?"
"It's the bite that brings them back. We have nothing to fear from the ones who die naturally." Nerit sighed and rubbed the bridge of her nose with her fingers. "And for that, I am grateful."
Epilogue
The reality of the new world, in all its brutal and violent glory, had enveloped the Fort. Not only was the threat from without, but also from within. A murder had been committed by one of their own and despite the rigorous investigation instigated by Bill, the murderer was not found.
There was some relief that normal death did not bring about a zombie birth due to the aged population in the Fort. Ralph dying a peaceful death was a comfort to those who knew him in life or over the CB.
Nerit found a place for herself in the Fort relatively quickly. She had one true desire: to keep going. No one stopped her when she immediately found work to do.
Juan and Travis worked tirelessly on the gate system, only taking a few breaks to sleep or eat. The construction crews not only fixed the first gate following Travis' plans, but erected the second gate as well. Incorporating the old newspaper building into the Fort, they soon had a working garage. The only problem with the old offices was the years of filth and grime inside of them. For a long time, the building had sat derelict and to clean it out completely would take weeks or maybe months. It was inhospitable. They needed the hotel.
Meanwhile, Katie, Nerit, Jenni and other volunteers worked hard on construction of a gated entrance that would open to the hotel. Nerit seemed energized by the work and her dog, Tucker, and Jack sat nearby watching it all with great interest. Katie and Jenni threw themselves into the task, working so hard they could barely stand the pain of their aching muscles when they laid down to sleep.
Jason gave up his bed to Nerit and moved into a room with another teenage boy survivor. Jack reluctantly went with him and gave up his spot to Ralph's old hunting dog.