Cora (Love in the Apocalypse #2)

28. Derrick

Chapter twenty-eight

Derrick

T he utter surprise on Cora’s face was comical. She was talking! Granted, it was all coming out in a hoarse whisper at the moment, but considering that she couldn’t make a single sound when we met her, this was huge.

“I’m talking!” Cora exclaimed, tears brimming in her eyes. Not being able to talk had been an increasingly frustrating issue for her. I can’t imagine how I would feel if I couldn’t speak.

“Yeah, you are, Ghost Girl,” I said, pulling her into my arms for a big hug. “I’m so proud of you.” I kissed her and then let Remi pull her from my arms and into a Remi/Trent sandwich. When they were done sharing this beautiful moment with her, Isaac reached for her, but she slapped his hands away.

“I’m still angry with you for saying I’m going to be a bad mom,” she rasped, hurt and anger swirling in her ocean eyes.

“You did what?” Remi asked angrily.

Isaac sighed. “Princess, I hadn’t meant to imply that I thought you would be a bad mother. That couldn’t be further from the truth. There isn’t a doubt in my mind that you’re going to be an amazing mom. You’re incredibly nurturing, and your heart is so big that I don’t know how it fits inside your body. I was mad, more at myself than anyone, and scared about what could have happened to you and that I wasn’t there to protect you. I know you can care for yourself, but that doesn’t mean I will stop worrying about you. I’ve already failed at protecting my family once; I can’t handle the thought of failing you, too.”

“That’s what this is about?” Trent asked. “Isaac, what happened to Mom and Melly wasn’t your fault. You can’t keep hauling that around on your shoulders. There wasn’t anything you could have done to prevent their deaths.” Trent shifted Cora to stand between me and Remi and went to his brother. He grabbed the back of his neck and pressed their foreheads together. “It wasn’t your fault,” Trent said, his voice cracking.

“If we had left earlier, Melly wouldn’t have gotten sick,” Isaac choked out.

Cora clung to Remi and me, and I felt her lean forward, fighting the urge to go to them. Remi and I held her steady. Isaac and Trent needed this moment together.

“Bullshit,” Trent said. “Look around us. You know how this world works now. While I’d like to think that we would have been able to keep them safe this long, you and I both know that the chances of that are slim. How many close calls have we had? Could you imagine going through half the things we’ve gone through with Mom and Melly at our sides? Maybe their fate was as it should have been. Whatever the reason, none of it was your fault!”

They hugged and cried together, mourning the loss of their family.

The next time Cora tried to join them, she held my and Remi’s hands tightly and pulled us with her. We folded them into our embrace, sharing the burden of their grief. “This world is harsh,” Cora said.

I don’t know if I’ll ever get used to hearing her, but I know I’ll never take it for granted.

“Our family’s safety isn’t only on your shoulders, Isaac,” Cora continued. “We’re in this together. We’re a team and share the burdens of survival equally.”

“Damn straight we do,” I agreed. “We need you around for a long time, bro, not in an early grave because you worried yourself to death.”

“Does anyone else feel like bursting into song?” Remi asked. “Specifically, High School Musical? We’re allll in thiss together...“ he started to sing.

“NO!” all of us, including Cora, yelled.

“No need to be rude,” Remi huffed.

I shook my head. This was my family. One minute, we were crying, and the next, we sang old-ass Disney movie songs. The group hug lasted a little longer, then it began to break up. Remi and Trent dragged Cora off to bed. The day’s excitement had caught up to her, and she looked like a feather could knock her over. Isaac settled into the chair in the living room. We were back to taking turns standing guard every night, and it was his turn, but after the evening’s events, he belonged in the bed with Cora.

“I’ll stand guard tonight, go to bed,” I ordered.

“What? No, I’m fine. That isn’t fair to you,” Isaac replied.

“Isaac, I’m telling you to go to bed. This is my idea, and I’m the one who determines whether it is fair. I’m not the one who just pissed our mute girl off so much she started talking. Go cuddle with her and make up for your asshattery. I’ve got the watch tonight.”

“You’re sure?”

“If I have to tell you a third time, I’m going to punch you,” I threatened.

“Ok, ok,” Isaac laughed. He stood, and as he passed me, he paused. “Thank you,” he said solemnly.

“Don’t mention it,” I said, clapping him on the back. I waited until I heard the bedroom door close, then turned off all the lights in the house and sat in front of the window, watching the night. I thought back to Isaac talking about feeling responsible for his mom and sister’s deaths. I had no family to be responsible for until now unless you count my kids.

Three Years Ago

“Times up!” I yelled after blowing my whistle. “Put all the balls in the basket and stack the scooters by the wall.”

“Awe, man. Come on, Coach,” Kenny complained. “Why can’t we spend all day in gym class?”

“Because there is more to life than scooter ball, Kenny,” I chuckled.

The disappointed kid followed his classmates out of the gym to his next class. I had been nervous after graduating college to start working, but teaching phys ed at the elementary school was a breeze and always entertaining. I enjoyed the kids and their zest for life. They reminded me that no matter how bad things seemed, those times were fleeting, and there was far more joy in the world if you were willing to see it.

“You’re so good with them.” Speaking of seeing the joy the world has to offer. I turn to see Alice leaning against the folded bleachers.

“Aren’t you on first lunch duty this week?” I asked the raven-haired beauty as she pushed off the bleachers and sauntered toward me, her swinging hips effortlessly hypnotizing me.

“I swapped with Karen so that I could come see you. I’ve missed you, baby.” She trailed a finger down my chest and hooked it into the waistband of my basketball shorts. “How come you haven’t called me?”

I shook my head to clear it of the spell she always seemed to put me under. “We’ve talked bout this, Ali,” I said, putting some distance between us. “We can’t see each other anymore.”

“But, why—“ she started to whine when screams reached us.

What the hell? We exchanged worried looks as we rushed to the double doors. The hallways were in complete chaos, as students and faculty ran screaming.

“What’s happening?” Alice asked.

“I have no idea!” I replied. I pulled the fire alarm, adding to the chaos but hoping to spur everyone into their fire drill training and evacuate the school. Once people were out of the confined halls, we could take stock of what we faced. When the principal ran by screaming for her life, followed by a bloody fourth grader, I knew things were beyond help. “Help me clear the classrooms,” I yelled.

Alice looked at me and then at the chaos around us. She shook her head. “No way. I’m out of here. They don’t pay me enough for whatever this is.” She turned and ran down the hallway toward her classroom.

I shook my head. “And that would be why we can’t see each other anymore,” I said. The hallways emptied as people ran from the building, so I started checking classrooms on my own to ensure there weren’t any scared kids hiding. The first classroom was empty, but I found Kenny huddled in the corner of the second classroom.

“Kenny?”

He stirred and made what sounded like a whimper. The poor boy was terrified.

“Kenny, it’s Coach Derrick. Come on, buddy, let’s get out of here and find your Mommy and Daddy.”

“Don’t touch him!” the janitor shouted as he burst into the room, making me jump. “He’ll kill you.”

“What are you talking about?” I asked, facing him. “He’s a child. It’s our job to look out for them.”

The janitor’s eyes widened, and he nodded at Kenny behind me. “Are you sure about that?”

I turned back to Kenny and gasped. He had turned to face me and did not look like he did when he left my class a short time ago. There was a chunk of flesh missing from his cheek, leaving a hole in the side of his face. His skin had a gray pallor, and his eyes were foggy and unclear. He snarled and lunged for me, teeth snapping.

“Oh, fuck!” I yelled, dodging the feral child.

“I tried to tell you,” the janitor said. “It’s spreading, and we need to get out of here before it’s too late.” I always carried my keys and wallet, so I had everything I needed to make a break for it. “Come on,” I said as I dodged Kenny again. “Faculty parking isn’t far from here.”

We ran out of the classroom and down the hall. I heard an angry growl and looked behind me to see Kenny following us into the hall and giving chase. But what was genuinely terrifying were the children, behaving the same way, that joined him as he ran after us. It was surreal and horrifying. We burst into the parking lot. “This way,” I shouted, leading him to my Jeep. As we ran, we passed the school secretary with her face buried in Alice’s torso. She didn’t make it very far.

The janitor and I made it to my Jeep and escaped the school . A tiny army of flesh-eating kids followed us until they faded from the rearview mirror.

A flash of light in the woods pulled me back to the present. I watched as two more appeared and then a few more after that. I couldn’t figure out what I was seeing. Were aliens real? I finally identified the lights as fire but was still confused because fire didn’t usually move like that. It wasn’t until the fire drew closer that my brain finally realized what it was looking at: torches. We had company, and I didn’t think they were here to roast marshmallows at the neighborhood bonfire.

I ran to the bedroom to wake everyone up. “Hey, get up and hurry. We have company!” They all sprung from the bed and dressed quickly as I returned to the living room to see what they were doing now. It looked like the torches had stopped and might have been staked into the ground. They were far too steady to still be held by a person. I also didn’t see as many as I had initially.

“What’s going on?” Isaac asked as they rushed into the room.

“Torches in the woods,” I replied, moving to the other living room window and peering out. “Bingo,” I said. “They’re surrounding the house.” I ran to the back bedroom and looked out that window for the same view.

“I can see them out of the kitchen window, too,” Remi called.

“Ok, we know what to do. We’ve gone over all of this already,” Isaac said. “Let’s get the guns and ammo upstairs and drop the shudders. No one reaches the house. Shoot to kill. They have no idea what they’re up against.”

“Where do you want me?” Cora asked as we sprung into action.

“The bunker,” Isaac replied.

“I thought we were past this,” Cora growled, stomping her foot.

“We are, but we’ve run simulations of this, and they didn’t account for you, so it’s best if you stayed tucked away safely. Please, Cora?” Isaac begged.

Cora looked like she was about to argue when her expression smoothed out, and she nodded. “Fine. I’ll go to the bunker.”

“Thank you,” he replied, kissing her.

We watched her go, closing the panel behind her. Something felt off about that. I looked at Isaac. “I don’t think that was the win you think it was.”

“What do you mean?” he asked.

“I don’t know,” I replied, “but I don’t think we’ll have long to find out.”

We all took our places with our guns poking out of the bottom of the window shutters. We waited for Queen and her men to attack, but nothing happened. Just as I was thinking that perhaps they were here to fuck with us, I heard gunfire from the side of the house in short bursts. I join Derrick at the window and watch as the muzzle flash picks its way through the trees.

Cora.

“I might actually fucking kill her this time,” Isaac growled.

I adjusted the night vision on my scope and tracked her progress through the forest. “I’m going to sneak out and push from the left,” I announced. The sooner this is over, the sooner we can accept that she doesn’t always need our protection. Sometimes, we might need hers.