“How will that help us find a cure?” Tammy asked.
Broussard squared his shoulders. “Once we identify the how, we have a better chance of finding a way to undo it.”
Simon winced as he gently sat down outside in a folding chair. “Fuck me, my arm hurts.”
Lana handed him more pain pills. “I don’t doubt it.” She passed him a bottle of water and sat next to him. “She excised a lot of necrotic tissue.”
He gave her a sideways look. “I guess you were listening as she chopped half my arm away.”
Lana shrugged. “There was a lot of dead flesh.” She gave him a sad smile. “Sorry.”
He shook his head as he sighed and stared up at the tree canopy. “Not your fault. You didn’t shoot me.”
“Howdy neighbors.”
Both turned to see Trent standing at the edge of their campsite. “We’re having a get together at the upper campsite. We thought y’all might like to join us.” He handed Simon a beer. “You’re kind of the guests of honor.”
Simon waved off the bottle. “Thank you, no.” He looked to Lana who almost seemed afraid. “Want to go and mingle?”
She gave him a cautious look and slowly shook her head. “I’m not really feeling it.”
Trent popped a squat across from them and gave her a reassuring smile. “It’s just a chance to meet folks. Let them say hi and…hey. We all kind of look out for each other up here.”
Simon gave her an understanding look. “If you don’t want to, I could go solo.”
She slowly shook her head. “No. You just had surgery.” She stood from the folding chair and gave Trent a cautious look. “You sure it’s just a meet and greet?”
He nodded, a slow smile forming. “Nothing nefarious, I promise. Folks just want to meet the new neighbors.” He slowly stood, his knees creaking and popping as he came to his full height. “Anytime you feel weird or just get tired, nobody is keeping you there.”
Simon held a hand out and Trent pulled him to his feet. “Might as well.”
The large, shaggy man gave Lana a grin. “We even grilled some fresh meat. I made my secret sauce. You’ll love it.”
“Meat?” Simon asked, his curiosity piqued.
Trent nodded. “One of the guys got lucky and shot a deer a few days ago.” He stepped toward the edge of the campsite. “Best barbeque in three states, I guarantee it.”
Simon turned to Lana and shrugged. “Sounds like a party to me.”
She sighed as she fell into step and followed the men to the upper campground. “Nothing says ‘Welcome to the neighborhood’ like a slice of grilled Bambi.”
9
Hatcher dropped the box on the dining room table and peered through the sliding glass door at the setting sun.
“This house is too big for just you.” He turned slowly and caught Vic walking in from the garage. “I see you’re already moving in.”
“What’s wrong, sis? You think I need a roommate?” He raised a brow at her. “Coop is not moving in here with me.”
She chuckled as she stood beside him. “He’ll stay with me until he’s back on his feet.”
“What about after?”
She shrugged. “We’ll just have to see.”
“That’s gross.” He shook his head. “He’s almost as old as dad.”
She punched him in the arm. “He is not.”
“Nearly.”
“This was about you, not me.” She sighed and leaned into him. “You need to think about carrying on the family name.”
Hatcher scoffed. “Not hardly.” He turned and stared at the setting sun again. “I couldn’t bring a child into this world.”
She turned and gave him a surprised look. “The world is changing, Danny.”
“Maybe.” He sighed as the last rays of light stretched across the evening sky. “But I’m not willing to bet a child’s life on it.”
“What about Roger and Candy?”
“That’s different. They didn’t choose this. It was thrust upon them. They’re playing the cards that they were dealt.”
“You’re such a cynic.” She turned and pulled a chair out from the table. “We weren’t meant to spend our lives alone. The good lord made us in pairs for a reason.”
He gave her a droll look. “Now you do sound like mom.”
“Stop it.” She slid the lone candle across the table and lit it with a match. “You know what I mean.”
He sighed and turned toward her, pulling out his own chair. “There was somebody once. I cared about her.”
“You’re talking about Shelly, right?”
He nodded slowly. “I never told her.”
“Trust me, she knew.”
He looked up at her, his face a mask of confusion. “If she knew, she would have said something. She would have acted on it. She was a lot bolder than I ever was.”
Vic raised a brow at him. “Just because she didn’t say anything or act on it doesn’t mean she didn’t know.” She reached out and took his hand. “Maybe she thought the timing wasn’t right.”
“Or maybe she didn’t feel the same.”
“Possibly. But the fact of the matter is, she’s not with us anymore. You need to carry on.”
Hatcher slowly shook his head. “I’m not ready.” He looked up at Vic and gave her a sad smile. “Besides, there’s a cure now, right? Maybe…” He stopped himself before he said something that would open Pandora’s box.
“You think maybe she’s out there?”
He looked away and gave her a slight shrug. “I’d be lying if I said I hadn’t thought about it.”
Vic sat forward and squeezed his hand. “Danny, you can’t cling to something like that. It will get the better of you.”
He looked up at her, his mouth a tight line. “What if, though? What if she did somehow stay alive this whole time and now she’s…”
“Don’t.” Vic pulled him closer and patted his cheek. “You’ll tear yourself up thinking like that.” She leaned back and stared into his eyes. “You know as well as I do that the infected in that area most likely died in the blast. The ones who didn’t would have
