privacy curtain between Willy and the front door then told him to strip. The boy protested weakly as his hands started unbuttoning his shirt. Dora could still keep an eye on both of them while she scooped the eggs out into a big bowl, she took a few bites to calm her stomach and made a face at the taste, the eggs were just how Paige preferred them; with no seasoning at all.
Getting into the cupboard Dora took down three cans of bacon and opened them up, she dumped the congealed mass of fatty strips into the still warm pan. Dora started the process of spreading the thin strips around the pan to get them fully cooked. The canned bacon was not as good as fresh, but they would not be taking it with them, so she might as well use it this morning. While that was cooking she got into the cupboard for some spices and liberally dosed a bowl of eggs with onion powder and salt. She brought the bowl over to stand by Mary who was scrubbing the dirt off of Willy while inspecting him for bite marks.
Mary had already checked his pubic region and gotten him into a clean pair of boxers, the boy had goose pimples all over his body and without his clothing on the extent of his wounds was fully revealed. One of his legs was bruised black and blue from just above his ankle to almost mid-thigh. On the right side of his back from just below his rib cage was a long cut that stopped at the belt line, it was scabbed over, but not fully healed yet either. Dora whistled and spooned up a bite of eggs which she held out to Willy, he ate it without thinking.
'You got yourself into a fight or two didn't you?'
'Yeah, I was looking for Jack.'
'I heard. Did you find him?'
'Yeah. He didn't make it.'
'Did you finish him off?'
Willy shook his head, 'Uh-uh. He did. I couldn't find him for a long time, then I went back to where we hid at and started going around in circles, like Jeff taught us and I found another hole, it was just…' Willy held up his hands about two feet apart, 'that big and didn't really want to go down it, you know, if there were zombies in there or something. I came back with a light and didn't see anything, but it ended in a basement that was mostly covered over. I found him there, he done himself. I didn't have to. He knew he was turning.' Tears came to the boy's eyes, eroding clean white streaks over his dirt clad face.
'Aw Willy, I'm sorry!' said Dora reaching out to embrace him, which caused Mary to squawk in protest, 'Sorry Mary.'
Willy let Dora hug him for a moment, he even returned it half-heartedly, then he shoved her away and tried to regain his dignity, continuing his story, 'Anyway he was done for, but I didn't want to come back in. It was like before when I was alone out there. I didn't mind being on my own and now I know better on how to live, thanks to Jeff and what other people taught me how to do.'
'Didn't you miss us?' Dora asked spooning more egg into his mouth.
He swallowed and shook his head. 'I felt bad for Beth when I heard the other zombies talking, I mean, I felt bad for everybody, but I didn't know how to get all of you out.' He shrugged his shoulders.
'Dora, go get him a bowl of his own, he can feed himself, and if you aren't burning that bacon my nose is lying.' said Mary.
Dora went over and stirred the bacon around, then brought Willy his own bowl of eggs, he just wanted salt and pepper on them, no onion powder. By the time Dora got back Mary had sponged almost all of the dirt off of the kid's upper body and was dressing the wound on his head.
'Gimme a second before you give him that.' said Mary, she finished cleaning up hole in his skin above his ear and then had him roll over on his belly so she could clean up the cut on his back. 'Dora, toss another couple logs on the fire and get a blanket for his legs, would you?'
Dora nodded, handing the bowl of eggs to Willy by the time she had a blanket to drape over his legs the food had disappeared. 'Hungry huh? So maybe you miss the regular meals here?'
'No, not really, but the food is better, candy bars get old after a while.'
Dora was back with the last of the bacon when Paige came in, she moved over and spooned up some eggs for herself, taking a handful of bacon too. 'No one is missing. Everyone is okay. Alex has them loading the buses now and watching the fence. He went to the front gate to try and flag down Jake.'
Making up a large plate of food, Dora handed it to Paige who said, 'Thanks, I already have a bowl.'
'Good for you! This is for our prisoner; you may remember him, next door in Nina's back yard? I wouldn't want him saying we violated the Geneva conventions by not feeding him or something.'
'Shit.' Paige said, a piece of burnt bacon halfway to her mouth.
Dora looked at her for a second and said, 'You didn't check on Tim did you?'
'No.' Paige took the plate, grabbed the keys to the handcuffs and headed into Dora's back yard. Dora turned the remaining bacon off and grabbed up a shotgun to follow the other woman out. Paige went up to the break they had created in the wall between the houses and cautiously looked into the other yard.
'Tim?' she called cautiously.
The sleeping back moved.
'Breakfast time Tim, you hungry?'
Tim's head emerged from the sleeping bag. Dora walked up to the opening in the wall, while Paige got closer to the form on the ground.
Tim didn't look good, his hair was matted to his head, his eyes were barely focused and as his head emerged from the sleeping bag Paige recoiled. She set the plate of food down on the floor of the great hall and said, 'What the hell happened to you?'
Tim pulled the sleeping bag to his waist and pulled on a jacket that he had been using as a pillow. 'I was finally brave, for once.' He said this more to Dora than Paige. 'I made my own deal with the devil.'
'Oh shit.' Dora said softly to herself, Tim didn't appear to hear her, he looked at both of them and then grabbed for the plate of food.
'Tim, what happened? We know someone told one of the super zombie about our plans, was it you?'
Tim's hand paused halfway to his mouth, he swallowed slowly and then said, 'You left me out here with no protection. They walked right in here and got to me. What was I supposed to do?'
'I don't know.' said Dora, 'Something brave?'
'She was going to kill me.'
'I'm going to…' started Dora only to be cut off as Paige said again, 'Tim what did you tell them? Who was here? Tell us what happened.'
'You have to promise not to let Dora kill me.' Tim said to Paige.
'Why would she listen to me?'
'You're lovers, you have sway with her.'
Dora let out a harsh laugh that turned into a full-fledged fit, Paige just put her hand to her mouth and blushed red, before saying, 'Tim, we're not lovers. I am not interested in Dora that way.'
'You lying whore! Everyone knows you share a bed with her! And she sleeps with Mike too.'
Somehow being disparaged by Tim didn't bother Dora in the slightest, in fact it made her laugh more and she was laughing so hard she couldn't speak. Paige turned around and looked at her, scowling, 'You're not helping! Go back in the house if you can't control yourself Dora!'
Dora wheezed for a moment, before she pulled herself together enough to say, 'I am sorry. I am sorry you lying whore!' Then she started laughing again, she managed to get through the hole in the wall between the back yards before she had to sit down again. Mary came out of the house and found her there laughing so hard she was crying.
'Dora?' Mary asked with concern, 'Is everything okay?'
Behind Mary, Willy appeared, wrapped in the thin blanket he looked like a little lost waif from a British remake of 'Oliver Twist'. 'I…I'm fine, Tim, he just cracks me up sometimes.'
'I couldn't tell if you were laughing or crying. What's happened?' asked Mary, in one hand she still had the wet rag she had been cleaning Willy with, in the other she was carrying an ugly looking revolver.
'It was Tim. He's the one who sold us out to the zombies. They came here last night, got through our watchers and he told them everything, isn't that right, Tim?' this last was called over her shoulder through the wall where Tim was greedily shoving the last of the eggs into his mouth.
Mary went into the yard, followed closely by Willy, who Dora saw was also carrying a pistol; instincts ran deep with the humans who were still alive. The two of them stepped over to stand next to Paige, where Dora
