“It’s none of your business what I have!” Hannah raced over and covered Edward.
“It’s okay.” Diana leaned to her right, then took a step. “Hannah? Is that your name? I’ll stay away from you. Okay? I know you’re scared. I know kids. I have… I have two sons. One is about your age.”
“Well, go to them then,” Hannah snapped.
Diana lowered her head.
I closed my eyes for a second. “Wow. I’ve never seen her like this.”
“It’s alright. I have some food. I’d be happy to share if…”
“No, we have plenty,” I said.
“Calvin!” Hannah shouted with almost a whine. “Don’t be telling her what we got.”
Diana chuckled. “Smart kid. Can I travel with you?”
“Sure.”
‘No!” Hannah yelled. “No.”
“Hold on,” I told Diana then walked into the dugout. I lowered my voice. “Hannah, what’s going on?”
“Nothin’. I don’t want her coming. I don’t trust her.”
“Do you know her?” I asked. “You can tell me.”
“No, I don’t know her. I’d tell you if I did. We don’t know her.”
“We didn’t know Mavis either. You were nice to her.”
“Well, that’s because she looked like my grandma. She doesn’t.” Hannah pointed at Diana. “Just because she’s a woman don’t mean she’s not dangerous. I mean, where’d she come from, Calvin? We ain’t in plain view. Like she was wandering around looking for a ball field and said, ‘Oh I’ll stop there. Look people.’ No. Don’t trust her. She’ll take our stuff. She’ll try to kill Edward.”
“She will not.”
“The moment he makes a noise and attracts them things she will. Everyone wants to.”
“Hannah, please. We’ll watch her. Okay. I’ll be diligent. If she is harmless, then we should let her join us. You and I both know there are some dangerous people out there.”
“Fine.” Hannah huffed, then whispered, “You remember the moment she does anything bad, she’s gonna be a number one value meal.”
“What are you talking about?” I asked.
Hannah raised her eyebrows. “You said we were a McDonald’s menu. Remember?”
“My God, did you just suggest that?”
Hannah ignored me and went over to Edward. “I’m gonna get Edward ready. You get the horse and stuff.”
I went back to Diana and put the backpack in the wagon. I explained we’d let Hannah adjust. Diana was fine with giving her space. I also explained that the horse still wasn’t a hundred percent, and I was walking along side.
“Maybe for the last leg, we’ll ride him in,” I said.
“I don’t mind walking,” Diana replied.
“Hey, Hannah, I’m going to take the cart and wagon and head toward the road. “We’ll eat in a few, okay?”
“Okay. Fine. I’m mixing his bottle. I’ll be right there.”
I grabbed the handle of the wagon and the horse’s rein and started walking.
“She yours?” Diana asked.
“She is now. If that makes sense?”
“She’s very protective.”
“That’s not a bad thing.”
“Thank you for letting me join you. I’ve been on foot for weeks.”
“No car?”
“Not since I ran out of gas outside of Cleveland,” Diana said. “I promise to pull my weight. I am pretty…” she paused.
“What?”
“I’m pretty good with a gun. Stay back. I’ll take care of this one.” She pulled a revolver from the back of her pants, stepped ahead of me and lifted her arm.
It took a second to register what she was doing. Then it did. I let go of the rein and wagon and took a few steps forward.
Diana was aiming her gun… at Leah.
“No!” I shouted. “Stop. No!”
“What?” Diana was surprised. “She’s one of the infected.”
“Don’t shoot that one. Not her. She’s harmless. She won’t bite. Please.”
Diana lowered her weapon.
Just as she did, Hannah brushed by me.
“Yep. Don’t listen to me,” Hannah said as she walked ahead. “Been with us all about three minutes and already she’s trying to shoot your wife.”
“Your wife?” Diana asked, confused.
“I’ll… I’ll explain as we move. It’s complicated.” I walked back and grabbed the rein and wagon, and started walking.
21
PIPER
September 8
Crossing the main interstate was our targeted milestone for the day. Once we reached there we’d be in a position to stop for the night and the next day we’d be close to, if not at, Sanctuary Sixteen.
Leah slipped in distance, she would catch up when we paused, then slip back again. Diana walked side by side with me as I led the cart with Hannah and Edward and some of the supplies. She kept her back to Leah. I didn’t blame her, I had a hard time not looking at her. Leah had begun to swell. Her stomach was huge, her arms and legs were bloated as well.
“Honestly, I don’t think she’ll bite us,” I said.
“People say that all the time about pit bulls.”
“I guess they do.”
Diana looked over her shoulder. “You know what the progression of her body will be right?”
I shook my head.
“Right now, her body is bloating, filling with gasses. Her skin will break down and seep. Most of the Vee go through all the decomposition stages, then sort of slow down. The skin kind of tightens around what remains. The insects give up at that point. Very odd process, unnatural. Some say it has to do with a portion of the brain working. If the body is moving, then the circulatory system is working, even a little.”
“What did you do before all this?” I asked.
“I’ve ran into several people, they don’t believe me. You probably won’t either.”
“Try me.”
“I was a professor of mortuary science.”
“You’re right,” Hannah said. “We don’t believe you.”
“Hannah,” I scolded. “So you taught people to be funeral directors.”
“Yep. I did. I was a coroner first in Buffalo. Then I went into teaching. Because of my degrees in psychology and biology… I never could decide what I wanted to be…”
Hannah made a scoffing noise.
Dianna shook her head with a smile. “Anyhow, I got pulled in to work with the outbreak when it hit Cleveland. Actually, I didn’t have a choice.”
“They made you work on the outbreak?”
“I worked with the Viral Enhanced. Or Vee as everyone calls them. I studied their anatomical breakdown, how some differed from others. They thought they had a way to bring them back. About six months ago, early in the outbreak, they had what they thought was a cure, or antidote.”
“Did they?”
She shook her head. “No. It was hopeful. My job was to observe, examine, and report. The medical examiner and pathologist were needed medically elsewhere. This thing got big. Your wife… she was bit.”
“No kidding,” Hannah said sarcastically.
Diana continued. “If I were to guess, somewhere that wasn’t a deadly bite. Like arm or leg. She lived for a couple days. Most docile Vee were bit in nonlethal areas and took days to die. Because of the time it took the infection to kill them, most like that seemed to retain some mental capacities. Our study was never complete, but I know the Vee.”
“If you know the Vee,’ Hannah said. “Then does she know him?”
“There is no scientific evidence to support that,” Diana answered. “However, from observation it seems something is retained. We just don’t know what. She may not know him, but there’s an instinct to follow him. Eventually though…” Diana stopped walking. “You will have to take care of your situation. It isn’t mentally healthy for you to keep it going.”