Page 11 of Cora

“I swear to God, a girl was standing in the window. She was pale, blonde, and small,” I explained. They all looked at the house and then back at me.

“Do you see her now?” Trent snickered.

“No, asshole, I don’t. But she was there. I know what I fucking saw,” I growled.

“If a girl was wandering around the house, I feel like we would have noticed her,” Isaac stated. “Maybe you should take a break. You’ve been digging holes in the hot sun all day. Get a drink and cool off.”

“I didn’t fucking imagine it,” I argued.

“Maybe it was a ghost,” Remi suggested. “Maybe the house is haunted!”

“Be serious,” I replied, rolling my eyes.

“I was,” he replied indignantly. “At least my theory makes more sense than you seeing a living, breathing girl.”

I ignored him, and we all went back to our tasks. As I worked, I kept one eye on the house’s windows.

I knew what I saw.

Chapter five

Cora

Iwas frightened awake by the sound of banging on the emergency hatch. For a second, I thought for sure they were coming through the door, but eventually, the sound stopped. I went upstairs to see what my guests were up to, and when I determined no one was inside, I crept out from behind the walls and started peeking through the windows until I found them standing around Daddy’s truck. The hood was up like they had been looking under it.

Movement from the other window caught my attention, and I saw zombies headed straight for them. Their appearance had undoubtedly changed since the last time I had seen them. The walking corpses were now far more decayed and disgusting looking. Derrick said something to the others and then headed toward the zombies. I opened my mouth to warn him, but nothing came out. My heart was in my throat as he appeared on the other side of the house and ran straight into the closest zombie. They impressed me as they worked together to kill the zombies. I wish I could do that. I didn’t know the first thing about combat or fighting off zombies.

I moved window to window, keeping them in my sight as I tried to piece together what they were doing. When Isaac started a chainsaw for the first time, I nearly came out of my skin with fright. After spending so much time in silence, the amount of noise these four men made was jarring and incredibly unsettling. Didn’t they know they would attract the zombies with all that racket?

As the day wore on, they began to remove their shirts one by one. I wasn’t sure what they planned to do with all the wood they were chopping, but watching them get sweaty did things to my body. It wasn’t until Derrick and Remi began putting posts in the holes Derrick had dug and assembling the pieces that I realized they were making a fence. That was smart. Daddy always said we didn’t need a fence, but I could see how it would be necessary in this new world in which we found ourselves.

I was so focused on what they were doing that I didn’t immediately recognize the tingles of awareness running down my back for what they were—time stood still as I raised my eyes to meet Derrick’s. He was staring straight at me, and it was like neither of us knew what to do for a second. I certainly didn’t. This was the first human connection I have made in three years. Why did it feel like he was staring into my soul?

Suddenly, he blinked and shouted something at Remi. As soon as he looked away, I ran from the window and back to the bunker. Part of me hated to stop watching them, but Derrick saw me. Hesawme. If I didn’t want to be found, I had to return to hiding before they stampeded inside to look for me. When I didn’t hear the thundering footsteps above my head, I almost returned to make sure they were ok.

Almost.

Maybe he didn’t trust what he saw, or maybe he just didn’t care.

He wouldn’t be the first.

Ten Years Old

“Chloe, let’s talk about this!” Daddy yelled in a hushed voice.

I was supposed to be sleeping, but like every other night this week, Mommy and Daddy’s arguing had woken me up again. I crept to the top of the stairs to peek through the railing and see what was happening below. Mommy was piling things up by the door while Daddy followed behind her.

“There isn’t anything to talk about, Johnny,” Mommy replied. “I’m not happy here. Herman makes me happy. He can give me the kind of life that I’ve always wanted.”

“When did you stop wanting the life we’ve built?” Daddy asked sadly.

Mommy sighed. “I don’t know. One day, I woke up and didn’t want this anymore. I want more. I want excitement and to see the world.”

“And what about Cora, Chloe? What about your fucking daughter? Where does she fit in this shiny new life you’re leaving me for?” Daddy demanded.

“I won’t fight you for custody. She’s better off with you. I don’t have time to care for her right now,” Mommy said. Her phone beeped, and she looked at it and then opened the front door. “All of this can go to the car,” she ordered when a man in a suit and a funny hat appeared in the doorway.

“Yes, ma’am,” the man replied.

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