“Easy, boy,” he said. “She’s dead.”
Suddenly remembering the reason her was here, Henry looked around. At first he didn’t see the kitten. It sat huddled beneath a dry-looking fern. The cat was mostly grey with a little white on its paws and face. Its eyes were huge and yellow, bright like spring daffodils.
“Hey there,” Henry spoke, squatting down and extending his hand. He whispered his fingers together, and made soft cooing noises.
The kitty tilted its head and meowed softly. It rose into a half crouch and took a tentative step in Henry’s direction. Rocky moved closer and the cat froze; looking over its shoulder, ready to bolt.
“Be still, Rocky,” Henry commanded. Then to the kitty, “It’s okay, we won’t hurt you. Come here.”
The cat regarded him for a moment then walked forward. It meowed loudly and Henry scooped it up. The kitty rubbed its face on Henry’s chin.
“You’re just a baby, aren’t you?” he asked, holding the cat a little away so as to see it better.
It looked to be about six months old. The kitty was purring and hadn’t stopped rubbing its face against anything it could touch. Henry turned it over to see if it was male or female.
“So you’re a girl then,” Henry responded, holding the kitty to his chest. The kitten purred happily.
Rocky danced at Henry’s feet, stepping on the zombie and crushing its head into the ground.
“What should we call you?” Henry asked the kitten.
It stared back at him inscrutably.
Henry heard the unmistakable roar of his truck engine.
“Oh, fuck,” he spoke. “Sis got impatient. Come on Rocky, hurry.”
They raced through the trees. Henry clutched the kitten to his chest and ran. Rocky followed. They had gone farther into the forest than he realized and by the time they arrived breathless at the clearing his truck was gone.
“Well, shit,” Henry spat, peering around for any sign of zombies or the two men. The only thing out of place was the man’s body on the ground.
The kitten squirmed to be let down and Henry obliged, thinking that there was no way he could carry it the whole way. It would either follow them or not. The kitty landed lithely on the ground and licked the fur along its spine. It meowed loudly and stumbled, making Henry laugh. Rocky walked up and sniffed its nose. He licked the kitten on the head, displacing its fur.
“You sure don’t seem like you’re going to run away,” Henry spoke, leaning down to pet the kitty. It began to purr loudly and rub against Henry’s palm. “You do need a name,” he spoke, hunkering down and scratching the kitten under its chin.
There was a crack of underbrush behind him and Henry stood, unsheathing his knife. Rocky let out a low growl, hackles rising. A flash of brown moved within the trees and Henry tensed. He didn’t want to fight again this soon; especially with all the jogging they would be doing to get to the Mom and Pop. He knew she would wait, but Henry didn’t want to worry her overmuch.
A deer stepped out from the tree trunks, fawn colored with myriad white spots along its back. It regarded them silently and took a mouthful of grass. Henry held very still and stopped Rocky when he showed signs of straying toward the animal. The deer chewed thoughtfully then its head snapped toward the forest. It tensed its hindquarters and bolted back the way it came. Henry could hear its bounding footfalls then silence fell in the clearing.
The kitty meowed and stretched up henry’s leg, digging its little claws into his jeans.
“All right,” Henry said, picking it up. He held the kitten at arm’s-length and looked into its face. “What should we call you then? How about Thumper?” he asked, thinking of the deer.
The kitten sneezed and shook its head.
“Not that then?” Henry laughed. “How about Neptune?” That had been the name of a grey cat he and Raven had when they were little.
The kitten closed its eyes and purred loudly, looking mighty content.
“Neptune it is,” Henry declared. He set the kitty on the ground and regarded her. “Are you going to keep up with us?” he asked, feeling a little silly. What cat had ever understood that much or even cared?
“Come on, Rocky,” Henry spoke, patting his thigh. “Let’s go and see what happens. Worst case, I’ll make a sling out of my coat and Neptune can ride in there.” Henry wasn’t worried about carrying the kitten now. He’d named her and he would not leave her behind.
They set off, walking through the clearing and away from the cabin; their safe refuge. Henry supposed they could be safe there again but he felt it was time to move on. The sun would be rising in a few hours and Henry thought they’d be at the Mom and Pop well before then. He turned onto the road; the gravel crunched beneath his feet. Glancing back, he saw that Neptune followed him. Rocky nosed the kitten every time she started to stray. Henry laughed quietly and zipped up his coat. It was starting to rain again.
Chapter Seven
Barbara Jean and Louise
Barbara Jean and Louise
“Louise!” Barbara Jean spat, shaking her friends shoulder. “Don’t do this right now, honey.” She pleaded.
Louise’s head fell forward, dark hair streaked with white swung in front of her face. Her eyes were wide and unresponsive, lips parted. Her skin was normally a nice ruddy brown; eyes a gold-flecked hazel. Now her complexion had paled, looking sallow and wane but her eyes remained the same. They sparkled with life when she was having a good day and fell flat when she had a bad one. This was not a good day.
Barbara Jean, Bee to her friends and that included Louise though sometimes she
