They nodded and headed inside while Tanner headed towards Jerry, obviously wanting a word with him. Bunny turned back to the other woman, giving her a smile and a shrug, as if to say, you know how people are.
"Got a name?" she asked.
"Angela," she told her. "Everyone calls me Angel, though. You?"
"Bunny," she replied.
Angel made a face at her. "Bunny? Seriously? What, your parents hate you or something?"
"Something like that, I guess. Nice tats, by the way. South-side Hombres, right?"
"Used to be," Angel said.
Bunny nodded as she put the pump back. "Guess nobody is getting a free pass on shit these days."
Angel moved closer. "Sorry I threatened you," she said slowly. "I didn't expect you to offer me a ride."
"Who would?" Bunny told her. "Forget it. We're in the same boat now."
She nodded. "Still, I appreciate it. The ride, I mean. Thank you."
"My pleasure. Welcome to Happy Fun Town," Bunny replied with a smile.
"Yeah, is that what we're calling it?" Angel replied. "Seems more like the Horror Train of Death to me."
"All in how you process it," Bunny said.
She saw York and his wife come back out, holding up small bags of chips and soft drinks and smiled. "Oh, and look, you get a free in-flight meal, too. Good times."
Angel laughed a bit. "You're okay, for a girl named Bunny."
"I'll take that as a compliment," Bunny replied with a sarcastic smile.
"Bunny!" Tanner screamed.
It would only be a few more hours until it’d been four days since Bunny's alarm clock had gone off for the last time. Since then, she’d witnessed countless horrors, and grappled with impossible situations. In retrospect, she knew, she had simply dealt with what was in front of her.
Sometimes, though, doing that one simple thing, living in the moment, and doing what had to be done, could define a person. She knew now that the life she’d lived before, good and bad, had been nothing more than her living her personal vision of who she was.
Since then, she’d learned who she really was, and the lengths she would go to not only to live, but to protect others. In the aftermath of the end of the world, Bunny had discovered how to live as who she truly was.
She jerked towards Tanner's voice and saw him backing away from Jerry. Beside her, Angel had already jerked her machete free, while York and Lucy had dropped much of what they held, as he raised his rifle.
She walked towards the Marine, pulling her sidearm as she went, not sure what had him screaming, but assuming it wasn't anything good. As she drew near, she saw Jerry, his back turned, stagger and realized what it was she was hearing.
He was coughing. A deep, wet, ragged cough. Her heart felt like it stopped for a moment as a chill ran through her. She’d heard it before, and though it seemed like an eternity ago, it hadn't been so long that she had forgotten it.
"Step away from him, Tanner," she said, raising her weapon.
Tanner did as he was told, backing away slowly as Jerry turned to face Bunny, his hand over his mouth. The look in his eyes was pure terror as he stared at the gun in her hand. Behind her, she heard York mutter something, but couldn't make out what it was.
"I'm okay," Jerry cried. "I'm really okay. It's not what you think."
His voice was muffled behind his hand. Bunny stopped short of him, staring at him intently as another bout of coughing shook his body. She heard Angel tell Lucy to stay back, and silently thanked her.
"Lower your hand, Jerry," she said, the coldness in her own voice shocking her.
He stared at her for a long time before saying, "I've just got a cold, that's all."
"Lower your damn hand!" she snapped, the gun unwavering in her grip.
"Beckman, hold on a second," York said. "Let's not jump to conclusions."
"It's just a cold," Jerry said again. "It's not what you think."
Bunny stared at him down the gun. "Then lower your hand. Now."
"Beckman, stand down," York told her.
"Stay back, Sarge," Tanner warned him. "Just, stay back from him."
"Please," Jerry begged her. "I swear, it's just a cold."
"I won't ask again," Bunny warned him.
Behind her, she heard Angel telling Lucy not to look. To her left, Tanner had shouldered his rifle, but kept glancing her way. To her right, York was staring at her in disbelief. Bunny watched Jerry, ignoring everyone else.
Slowly, Jerry lowered his hand. Bunny grimaced as Tanner cursed and York just stared in horror at the bloodstains on the man's mouth and hands. Jerry began to weep, shaking his head, whispering over and over that it was just a cold.
"What do we do?" Tanner asked.
"Oh, my God. We need to help him," York said.
"Come over to the car," Angel said to Lucy as the woman gasped.
Bunny pulled the trigger. Jerry jerked backwards, the bullet piercing his head between his eyes, staggered once, and collapsed to the ground, dead before he hit it. In the aftermath, it was silent, the small group staring in shock.
Bunny holstered her weapon and turned, walking back to the car calmly. She heard Tanner mutter something, perhaps a prayer, while York raced to catch up, seizing her by the shoulder and jerking her around. The look in his eyes was disbelief mixed with outrage.
"He needed our help!" York yelled at her.
"And what would you have done?" Bunny asked him. "What help would you have given him? Some antibiotics? Antihistamine? Tell me, Sergeant York, how would you have helped him?"
York backed down slightly. "I... I don't know," he admitted. "But, to shoot him like that, like he
