Fighting to Survive (44 page)

Nerit
smacked him upside the head.
“
Liar.
”

Bill laughed. He
was obviously trying to break the somber mood.

Jenni
lowered her head into her hands. Concentrating on the rocking of the
bus, she slowly regained her composure.
“
I'm
so embarrassed,
”
she said at last.

“
It's
all right. We're all fine. That is what teamwork is for. We take
care of each other.
”
Nerit touched Jenni's cheek lightly.
“
Besides,
how many times have you saved our lives? We just returned the
favor.
”

“
And
no need to tell anyone about this,
”
Ed said. His tone implied something the others had not even
considered.

“
The
Vigilante?
”
Jenni queried.

“
Shit,
”
Felix swore.
“
He
killed Jimmy for freaking out.
”

“
She
didn't get anyone killed or even nearly killed,
”
Bill pointed out.

“
But
whoever the Vigilante is has a distorted perception of reality and
who deserves to live or die,
”
Nerit reminded him.

“
We
keep it quiet,
”
Ed said firmly as he drove on.

“
Agreed,
”
Bill said.

Felix
nodded.
“
Gotta
put up with zombies and crazies.
”

Jenni sighed
heavily. She hated feeling weak.

“
It
will be okay,
”
Nerit assured her.

Jenni
wasn't too sure she agreed.

“
What
did you find out anyway?
”
Felix asked.

Nerit
looked at Bill. He shrugged.

“
We
learned that the Vigilante is still at work,
”
she answered.

Felix
stared at her for a few seconds, then shook his head.
“
Great.
Just great.
”

Jenni rested her
head against the cool window and gazed out at the dead town. The
world still didn't feel right to her. It wasn't just the Vigilante.
It was Lloyd. She felt him, somewhere, nearby, watching her.

She
was afraid.

1. When Plans Go
   Awry
   

It was quickly
apparent that something grim had been discovered by the expressions
on the team returning to the fort. Travis was with Katie at her
sentry post when they returned.

“
I
better go find out what is going on,
”
he said.

“
You
better tell me everything later.
”
It was obvious that she was annoyed at having to stay at her post
while the fate of Shane and Phillip was discussed.

“
Do
I have a choice?
”

“
Absolutely
not.
”
Katie grinned.

Travis kissed her
and left her to her duty. He made his way across the old
construction site to city hall. Juan was also on his way. They met
up at the back entry.

“
It's
not going to be good, is it?
”
Juan pushed his cowboy hat back on his dark curls.

“
Nerit
had her poker face, but Jenni's expression said it all.
”

“
That's
my girl. Always destined to lose every game of strip poker we ever
play.
”
Juan smirked and wagged an eyebrow.

Travis just laughed
and headed inside. Peggy and Manny were already in their old office
with the team and Curtis. Juan and Travis were the last two to join
the group. Jenni looked pale and a little spacey. Juan quickly
moved to her side and asked her something in Spanish. She shook her
head and looked away. Juan looked a little surprised and stood
awkwardly at her side.

“
So
what happened out there?
”
Travis sat down in an ancient wooden office chair.

“
Other
than lots of zombies?
”
Felix asked.
“
Because
there were lots of those.
”

Nerit sighed and
looked at Bill, obviously deferring to him as the person of authority
on the issue.

“
To
put it simply, the Vigilante.
”

“
What?
”
Juan's expression of disbelief was mirrored in Travis'.

“
The
boxes of ammunition we gave them were full of gravel. Once Shane and
Philip spent the ammunition in their guns, they were done. To make
it worse for them, the fuel line of the car was cut and rigged with
cheap tape that would give way pretty quickly. They were dead in the
water very quickly. I actually don't think the Vigilante meant for
them to break down so close to the Fort.
”
Bill shrugged.
“
The
Vigilante couldn't get them in here, so he or she got them out
there.
”

“
Damn,
”
Travis said in a stunned voice.

Manny
calmly folded his hands on his desk.
“
We
need to find this person and stop them. This is not acceptable
behavior.
”

“
Manny,
don't you think Curtis and Bill are doing everything they can?
”
Peggy arched her brows.

Curtis
sighed and sat on the edge of the desk.
“
The
Vigilante is not stupid.
”

Bill
laid a reassuring hand on the younger man's shoulder.
“
We'll
find him, son.
”

“
Does
anyone really disagree with the ones he has punished? It's not like
he's killing innocent people.
”
Juan's temper was getting the best of him again, Travis gave him a
warning look.

“
Maybe
not, but how he or she is going about this isn't right. No one
should hold so much power of the lives of others,
”
Nerit answered.

Curtis
looked very tired and overwhelmed.
“
He's
doing what the rest of us don't want to do.
”

“
We're
all in this together,
”
Peggy pointed out.
“
One
person can't decide who lives and who dies. Or who stays and who
leaves.
”

“
Was
there any sign of Shane?
”
Travis asked.

“
From
the foot prints around the car and in the nearby field, we think they
broke down, encountered zombies, used up their ammunition, tried to
reload, realized what was happening, and that they both ran for it.
It looks like Shane ran across the field. Phillip ran in the
opposite direction. He eventually made it back to the fort,
”
Bill explained.

“
We
looked around for Shane, but didn't find him,
”
Ed added.

“
He
is probably already dead and wandering around,
”
Jenni decided.
“
And
I can't say I feel sorry about that.
”

It was the first
thing she had said since the meeting had started. Travis noted the
rawness in her voice. Jenni seemed unsettled. That bothered him.
Juan placed a hand on Jenni's shoulder to comfort her, but she didn't
seem to notice.

“
We
need to keep this quiet,
”
Manny decided.

“
We
can't keep this quiet,
”
Travis protested.

“
C'mon,
Manny. People need to know what is going on,
”
Peggy caste an exasperate look toward the Mayor.

“
People
are already figuring it out.
”
Felix shook his head.
“
They
ain't stupid. Phillip showed up eaten up something fierce.
”

“
In
pieces,
”
Jenni pointed out.

“
We
can't have people panicking,
”
Manny stated firmly.
“
They
are scared enough as it is.
”

“
People
need to know so they will be on the alert and report anything
suspicious.
”
Bill shifted in his chair and studied his notebook.
“
The
Vigilante isn't going to stop.
”

“
How
do you know that?
”
Curtis wore an expression of curiosity.

“
Because
people like the Vigilante don't stop.
”
Nerit answered.
“
They
believe they are right and they alone can deal with what is wrong.
”

Travis
rubbed his chin, deep in thought.
“
I
think we should have full disclosure and let everyone know what the
real dangers of this world are. This hotel already has us in a
different mindset from when we were roughing it. Rose told me people
aren't showing up for duty like they were when we were in the
construction site. Yeah, we're safer when it comes to the zombies,
but we still have food, water, energy, and sanitation concerns. We
don't even have a doctor on hand. People need to understand we are
still at risk.
”

“
Don't
forget the bandits,
”
Nerit added. Her voice was tinged with pain.

“
Or
winter approaching.
”
Peggy sighed.

“
We
just don't need them riled up. You know how people get when they
feel the city officials or the authorities can't do their job.
”
Manny rubbed his broad forehead to wipe away beads of sweat.

“
Don't
matter,
”
Ed said.
“
They're
gonna be unhappy anyway if you don't tell them. Sorry, Mr. Mayor,
but the old ways are bullshit now. This ain't about reelections no
more, but 'bout keeping alive.
”

“
Everyone
who voted to eject those two men deserve to know what happened to
them.
”
Travis' tone was firm.

“
Why?
They shouldn't feel guilty for doing the right thing,
”
Juan said sharply.