Zoey and the Zombies (A Mondamin Court Adventure)

Chapter Thirteen #2

Des Moines, Iowa

Jessica woke to the sounds of a car on the street below. It shocked her. She hadn't realized how many days it had been since a car had been driven on her street. Someone left, every couple of days or so, to try to buy food. Sometimes they got through the checkpoints and sometimes they didn't. Sometimes the stores had food, though often, they had very little.

Nobody came onto the street. They had heard traffic on the nearest through streets, but even that was rare.

She rose and looked out the upper story window. She had taken to sleeping up here with Jacob. If felt safer somehow.

She didn't recognize the vehicle stopped in front of her house, but she recognized the figure climbing out the passenger side. She turned and ran down the stairs.

She met him halfway up the front porch. For once, he didn't protest when she threw herself into his arms.

"You're safe," she sobbed.

"It's okay," Michael said. "It's okay. I'm safe now."

She ushered him inside.

"I hope there's food," he said. "Three days with nothing but hospital food. Yuck."

Jessica snorted. "I hate to burst the bubble, but I would love some hospital food right now. We lost power a couple days ago, lost everything in the freezer. Stores are rationed to the hilt. Breakfast options are cold cereal sans milk, SpaghettiOs from a can, or oatmeal with dried milk and brown sugar. It's actually not bad. Lydia gave me the recipe."

"Lydia?"

"Lydia Scott, down on the corner. The hippy woman," she explained as she went into the kitchen to prepare his food. "She's a wonder with stretching this crap we get, she and her daughter."

"Daughter? I thought she had a son," Michael commented, accepting the bowl of oatmeal Jessica handed him.

Jessica laughed. "You've been so busy with work and everything else going on. Devon transitioned. It's Zoey now."

"Dad! Dad's home!" Jacob cried, running into the room in his pajamas. He flung himself into Michael's waiting arms.

They talked for a while. Jacob accepted his own bowl of oatmeal. Michael showed Jacob his hand. The bite wound was small and rapidly healing now. Three days with no sign of infection, and the resident let him go. They assumed the homeless man hadn't converted in the camp where he was sent, but the resident had admitted in a worried whispered that they weren't getting reports back like they were supposed to.

After Jacob had finished eating, Michael sent him to get dressed for the day.

"So when do you work again?" Jessica asked.

"I don't."

"You don't? Should I?" Jessica had been forced to call in the last three days. Her work kept calling, whenever the phone lines were up, reminding her they were short-handed and nurses could get through the checkpoints, but she had no childcare.

"No," Michael said. "Neither of us will be working, not until this over, if ever."

"But—"

"No, listen. Every day, Unified Command is getting more powers."

"They conscripted Justin Smith, the cop who lives around the corner. I heard about it at the potluck."

Michael stared at her. "Potluck? Zombies are taking over the world, and you're having potlucks?"

"It's not like that," Jessica said. "Dontaye—"

"Dontaye?"

"The guy who lives on the next corner down. African American, mid-fifties. You know him. Anyway, his fridge is out, and the food was going bad. Lots of people up and down the block have the same problem. So it made sense."

"Sense?"

"Yeah, to cook up what was left. We all brought some stuff. It was actually fun, and we got to know each other. We need each other, now more than ever."

"Umm, okay," Michael said. "Anyway, you ain't going back to work. Susan, the nursing supervisor, pulled me aside. This isn't supposed to be public knowledge, but I know what the next emergency order will be." He paused and fixed her with a look. "It's us. Medical personnel. If you are at work when it comes, you don't leave, ever."

"Well, they need the help."

"I don't care. Jacob needs his parents. We need to stick together."

"Is it that bad out there?"

"Yes," Michael said, "it is."