Siege (As the World Dies #3)(139)

“You are underestimating them.”

“I’m not. Nerit, they’re dead.” “You’re underestimating them,” she repeated.

“They don’t think,” Kevin persisted.

“Again, you are underestimating them. Three men died today. You almost lost three others.” Her gaze was so intense it was almost unbearable.



Kevin took a deep breath and looked at the old woman in her bed then to the woman seated next to him. He could see the similarity between them.

“Are you dead?” he finally asked.

“If I am and I am sitting here talking to you, then consider the capabilities of those who are dead and out there.”

“But they don’t think, Nerit,” he insisted. “They just kill and eat.”

“A force drives them,” Nerit answered. “A basic need to eat. That is instinct. It is overwhelming. And that instinct makes them cunning whether or not you wish to believe it.” “There is no way those things are smart, Nerit”

“Cunning. A small child is cunning when it wants a cookie in a jar. It just does what it has to to get to the jar on the counter. It moves on instinct, does what it must.”



Kevin stared at the young woman’s face all the while holding the old woman’s hand. “I see what you are saying.”

“Desperation can create the most deadly of foes,” Nerit said.

Letting go of the old woman’s hand he reached out and grasped that of the younger. He could feel the similarity between the hands even though the older woman’s knuckles were thicker. The young version of Nerit stared intently back at him. “We need you,” Kevin said. “You can’t just leave us.”



“I obey my God. I will do as He says,” Nerit answered. Kevin had not expected this answer for some reason. Nerit had never come across as especially religious in anyway.



“We’re all praying that you wake up,” Kevin whispered. “We’re lost without you.”

The young woman’s hands encircled his and she leaned toward him. “You are all stronger than you realize. I am just a soldier who has more experience than you. All of you are capable of great things. Today, Bill, Dale and Ken did great things whether they realized it or not.” “I need you back,” Kevin said, his voice breaking. Tears filled his eyes. “I need you back, Nerit. You make me feel less alone in this world. Less afraid. I stand next to you and I feel strong.”

Nerit’s young face smiled at him softly. “Have faith in yourself, Kevin. You did good things at the mall. You saved so many.”

“So many died...”



“So many lived. Trust yourself. Trust what you have learned. Trust Travis and the others. You are all strong.”

“Please wake up, Nerit. Wake up,” he insisted.

“Are you listening to me?” “Yes. Yes. I am.”



She reached out and her hand gripped his chin. Leaning very close to him, her eyes seemed to burn with light. “Then you must understand that you must go on and win this battle. The fort must survive and this world must go on. This is Eden and the snake attacks from without. Do not let it in.”

Kevin struggled to speak, then he nodded. “I won’t let it in. I will go on.”

Nerit smiled and dropped her hand. “Do not give into despair now, Kevin. It is not the time nor the place.” She slid to her feet and Kevin rose with her. “Nerit,” he said, taking her arm.



“Shh,” Nerit answered.

“I just want to say-”

“Shh,” she said again and laid a finger on his lips.

Kevin pulled her close and stared into those brilliant eyes. “Nerit, if only-”

He woke up with a start. The hand resting in his felt too cool to his touch and he panicked. Sleepily, he searched for Nerit’s pulse. Tears filled his eyes as he tried to find it, his fingers trembling.

“Nerit, please, don’t go,” he whispered fervently to the older woman resting on her bed. Then he found it. That steady, faint little pulse in her wrist.

“Oh, God,” he whispered and fell back in his chair.



Before him, Nerit slept on.





2. The Winds of War

“Bring it in! Keep moving,” Juan called out as the fort gates yawned open to let in more supplies.

For the last two days large trucks with heavily armed contingents had been raiding every supply store within a hundred miles in the opposite direction of the zombie horde. The fort seemed to be bursting at the seams with all the new stacks of wood, cement bags, razor wire and various other building materials. Outside the walls, small Bobcat construction vehicles were busy clearing away the last of the brush from around the fort. In the distance large bulldozers stacked the remains of houses and trees into high barriers.

Volunteer workers toiled endlessly outside the fort on a variety of traps. Large signs were posted all around the fort, directing people as to where not to go.



As one of the trucks rumbled past Juan, his cousin, Linda, leaped down off the back and walked over to him. She had been persistent about going out on the salvaging runs despite the protests of her family. “How’s it going out there?”