SARAH

Sarah couldn’t believe it had been six months since the outbreak. There was still no sign that the infected knew of their compound. For six months they built, scavenged, and rescued the few survivors they could find.

She sighed as she paced the inside perimeter of the fence surrounding their home. She was pleased with the progress they’d made in such a short time. The fence was eight feet tall with barbed wire encircling the entire top and outside surface. Below the fence line was another two feet of barbed wire, buried in the dirt. That hadn’t been easy to accomplish, but Sarah knew they’d be grateful for it should the day come when the infected discovered them here. On the side of the fence where Sarah was walking, they’d dug a ditch that was four feet wide and three feet deep, filled with electrified barbed wire. A thin strip of wire ran along the inside of the ditch, connected to the main house to alert them of any movement. Frank had also installed motion sensors outside the perimeter of the fence line that would detect movement of any creatures larger than Dog.

There was a chicken and rabbit coop placed between the house and the pond, keeping them protected as much as possible. There was already an established fence for horses, but they had escaped. During one of the first raids, Sarah and Matt had been able to liberate a couple cows and goats from one of the farms over the hill.

She was careful as she checked the lean-to, making sure no one or nothing was hiding within the three-walled structure. It was the closest thing to a barn she was comfortable having, and she knew the animals were used to the elements the Nevada weather could bring.

Everything worked on solar and hydroelectric power. It was an amazing feat, even more so with only two dozen people contributing to the efforts. The only way in or out of the compound was through an electrified gate that opened wide enough for one vehicle to pass in or out at a time. When the gate was opened, there were two people guarding the entrance with enough weaponry to obliterate a small army.

They were safe.

This was the last time someone would have to walk the perimeter. The fence line protection had been completed last week. Since the day they had moved into this house, they hadn’t seen a single zombie besides the one Matt had killed in the cottage. She sighed again, knowing there wasn’t anything else she could do to protect those they’d saved from those infected. Now that their safety was ensured, it was time to start living. Time to begin the life they were going to lead now that half the country—perhaps even the world—was littered with zombies.

Dog ran over to Sarah, wagging her tail. She reached down to scratch the dog’s ears. Someone else must be awake if Dog was out. Sarah smiled; this seemed so normal. It had been a long time since she’d felt this safe. Dog had been very therapeutic for the few children that were in the encampment. With Dog, they were able to play, laugh, and be reminded that life went on.

Sarah relaxed her guard, enjoying the peaceful night and the company of the chocolate lab, knowing Dog could sniff out one of the undead better than she. They were a quiet pair, continuing the slow stroll around the inside perimeter of the fence. Sarah had to make absolutely certain they’d be safe so she could finally sleep in peace. She had to know for herself that if anything tried to breach their walls, they would have enough notice.

She was tempted to trip the wires again to see how quickly the rest of the shooters would respond. Knowing what was in store for them in the morning though, she held her temptation in check. She knew the wires worked, knew the alarms alerted the rest of the camp, and knew they were as ready as they could ever be against an attack.

She and Dog were quiet as they silently patrolled. Sarah knew that whoever had let Dog out would be looking for her, and she silently hoped it was anyone but Kevin. In another life, he was a college football player, cocky and full of himself. He wrongly assumed that because he was attractive and athletic, all women should fawn over him and want to be with him. Sarah had never liked his type, never even spared him a second thought. She would always be with Matt. She needed his quiet presence and his strength. Kevin took her rebuffs as motivation to change her mind about him. To Kevin, Sarah was property, an item that he couldn’t have so he wanted her all the more.

She heard his footsteps long before she saw him. Dog waved her tail in casual acceptance; she wasn’t very judgmental when it came to the living.

“Hey, Sarah, it’s starting to get cold out here. We don’t have to patrol anymore, why don’t you come inside and get warm?” Kevin sauntered up to her and gave her a wink. His leer let her know exactly what he had in mind to warm her up. She forced herself not to shudder in revulsion, knowing he’d assume she was cold, and jump at the opportunity to touch her.

“I’m fine. This is the last night for patrols, and I’ll feel better knowing everything’s working. I can’t risk everyone’s lives just because it’s chilly. We need to know we’re safe here. Go back, and take Dog with you. We have a busy day tomorrow,” she replied, turning her back on him to end any further conversation. She hated turning her back on people; it made her feel vulnerable, but she didn’t know what else she could do to discourage his advances. She didn’t start to relax until she heard his steps fading.

If she was honest, she was tired, but she knew that she’d never be able to sleep with thoughts about the morning invading her mind. Every time they left the protection of the compound they put everyone at risk. The people who went out risked their lives, and the people who stayed back risked being discovered with fewer people to fight. She knew they had to leave, that it wouldn’t be safe once the snow fell, but she still didn’t like it. They had to gather supplies for the winter. They hadn’t been able to plant crops this year, and they were all still learning how to survive. No one knew the first thing about farming, and only she, Matt, and a handful of the others had ever been out in the wilds of Nevada.

She thought about the progress they’d made in the few short months since coming to this house. She and Matt had never expected there to be many survivors. When the disease hit, it spread like wildfire, consuming all in its path in a matter of days. She still didn’t know how she and Matt had escaped unscathed.

When Frank and Gillian found them, they were more than a little surprised. Frank’s electrical history was a blessing they were thankful for every day. Sarah knew that without him, they wouldn’t have power. It had been such a struggle to get the electricity up and running even with his knowledge. She, like everyone else in the camp, was grateful to have the refrigerators. Without those, and the large freezers, they wouldn’t have had any way to store enough food to last them through the winter.

The weather was precarious at best in the Sierra Mountains. One never knew what to expect on any given day. Winters could be cold, and brutal. Summers could be hot enough to melt tarmac. At other times, the seasons were late in coming, sometimes leaving the valleys void of precipitation for months on end. Without Frank, and Michael– the landscaper—they’d really be in trouble.

Sarah thought about the people at camp. They were truly an eclectic bunch. She couldn’t imagine any other circumstances in which this group would end up together. Michael, for example: he was useful in his own way, providing endless amounts of help with irrigation, and he knew how to work the land. He wasn’t a very pleasant person to be around on a daily basis, however. His main hobby seemed to be complaining, and he had next to no knowledge about guns, or fighting. He couldn’t shoot, couldn’t use a knife, didn’t have very good social skills, and was a general pain in her behind; yet he managed to make it four months without being bitten.

The sun rose a few hours later. Sarah was sitting in the middle of the large lawn that would eventually be filled with fruit trees, and their vegetable garden. She watched as the sun rose over the roofs of the three buildings they called home. The main house, with attached garage and stable, had been left as they’d found it, with limited modifications. The small mother-in-law’s cottage behind was also as they’d found it, at least to the eyes of those who had joined them later. The recent addition to their safe haven was a two-story square structure that sat behind the main house, and next to the cottage. So far, it was just a skeleton of what Sarah hoped it to be one day. They had built the frame, and the stairs, but they still needed to build the inside walls and create some illusion of privacy. Their main concern was just to provide space for people to sleep in relative comfort.

They built this structure to blend into the scenery. They painted everything the same brown and gray color as the surrounding mountains. They had transferred some fruit trees around the new building, and planted privacy hedges to further disguise the fact that there were roughly two dozen people living there. The new building was strictly for storage and sleeping. They all shared the two bathrooms in the main house, and ate together in the kitchen. If any more survivors were found, they were going to have to dig a cellar for storage to provide more space for sleeping.

Sarah and Matt were the unofficial leaders, and shared the small cottage alone. The others had looked to them for guidance and direction, regardless of the fact that they were two of the youngest adults in the sanctuary. Sarah and Matt didn’t know how they became the leaders of this small band of survivors, but they took their responsibilities seriously. They’d protect these people as Mary and John had protected them.

Sarah was secretly grateful that the others allowed them the privacy of the small cottage. She didn’t know if she’d be able to handle living in the main building with all the others. Being on the same property and sharing meals was almost too much for her.

The circuit of the property completed, Sarah made her way to the cottage, where she knew Matt would be waiting. She wasn’t looking forward to what today would bring. Winter was starting to creep into the valley and they had to gather supplies to make it through the next six months. She hated the raids in town, although she saw their necessity.

As she’d thought, Matt was already up, coffee brewing on the counter and a steaming mug sitting next to him as he perused over the maps one last time. He didn’t even look up from what he was doing, simply nodded to the coffee maker and grunted. From the bags under his eyes, Sarah was certain he’d gotten about as much sleep as she had.

She quietly walked over and poured herself a cup coffee, the one extravagant thing that she allowed herself to pick up on the raids. She didn’t think she could do without the delicious dark piece of heaven. Her lips curved into a smile as she inhaled the rich aroma. The blacker, the better. They sipped in a companionable silence for a few minutes while Matt reviewed the maps. She knew he was checking the routes one last time to make sure he knew where every street led in case of an emergency.

“How were patrols?” Matt asked as he folded the map and placed it in his back pocket.

“Uneventful. We should be safe here, but I still worry,” she replied, knowing he of all people would understand.

He smiled and pulled her into his arms, kissing her on the forehead. “It’s natural to worry. These are tough times. We’ll meet every challenge as we always have: together. Why don’t you go get ready so we can leave? We have a long day ahead of us.”

She smiled back, kissing him softly before breaking away and heading to the shower. She still wasn’t comfortable showing affection in public, but here, alone in their cottage, she shared her softer side. After drying off, she pulled her light brown hair back into a high, tight, ponytail. She dressed in her favorite jeans, a long-sleeved shirt, and her vest with holsters filled with ammo. It was stocked with extra magazines for her twin Walther PPQs that she had strapped against her hip and thigh, as well as the AR-15 that she slung across her back. The sawed-off shotgun was strapped to her right thigh, with a row of shells attached to her left thigh underneath the PPQ. She secured a mean-looking knife in her left boot along with a trio of throwing knives on each forearm.

Before things had gotten really bad, she would have only carried her Walther and maybe an extra mag. Now, she’d gotten used to—and was even comforted by—the extra weight provided by the weaponry and ammo. She could move around as easily as if she were in her pajamas. It helped that Matt had thought to pick up holsters, and vests that kept the guns and ammo close to her body without hindering her movement too much. Sarah sent up a prayer of thanks for the people paranoid enough to design clothes like this. She placed her ever-present penlight and multi-tool in her front pocket for easy access. She was death with a bouncy ponytail.

Matt was similarly dressed, although he had managed to carry a few more guns. He had an AR-15 and SOCOM cross-strapped to his back along with two guns in thigh holsters and one on his hip. Together they had enough weaponry to take out anything they came across. They still didn’t think they had enough; all it would take was one zombie getting by them to ruin everything.

Side-by-side they walked into the main house to gather the rest of the troops. As they entered the kitchen, all talking ceased. Sarah looked at all the anxious faces and prayed that today would be as successful as the previous raids had been. She wondered for a moment if she should give a pep talk, and then shook off the idea. They all knew the dangers, the risks they were taking. They had all agreed that it was worth it. There wasn’t anything else to say.

“Everyone ready?” Her whisper carried across the room. There were nods, and murmurs of assent throughout the group. “Let’s load up.”