Until he saw them, he'd felt a sense of detachment from the other tragic and gruesome scenarios that he had witnessed. He had enough self-awareness to recognise that this was probably some sort of psychological protective mechanism that had kicked in, in response to the shock and trauma of it all. It was almost as though he'd been watching a TV show that he was not really part of.
But this time it was different. Maybe it was simply timing, or maybe it was something about them in particular? These women were interesting, they seemed to have a purpose, they looked strong and tough. He wanted to know more about them. He wanted to know where they were going - what they were doing and why.
What really did it for him was when Anita ran right past his door! He'd watched as Lisa had dropped her off and she'd sprinted for the cover of the bandstand. When she'd headed in his direction, he'd rushed downstairs to try and catch her attention but only caught a glimpse of her as she flashed, catlike, past the barricaded entrance to the pub. By the time he'd moved the furniture and loosened the planks that blocked the doorway, she was gone: a flicker of pink and dark hair bobbing across the bridge.
It had been enough though. Enough to get him engaged. Enough to make him want to help. To get involved. Enough to make him follow her.
He'd barely seen her, but what he had seen was the face of an intelligent and determined woman, and he wanted to be with her. It was that simple. He was sure that she and her friend were true survivors; they had what it took. They were not going to join the horde of mindless victims wandering forever on the waterfront. They were going to make it, and he was going with them. It was time for him to make his move. He grabbed the baseball bat that was constantly by his side and, without even a glance back into the safe interior of the pub, he was gone, jogging silently after her.
He had watched from the relative safety of the bridge for a few minutes, as she'd deftly hopped down to the lock, inserted the crank and started winding it to open the sluice gates. Then, not wanting to startle her, as much for his own safety as hers - the crank would make a pretty hefty weapon - he quietly made his way down to her position. But she was constantly looking around, and quickly spotted him. She fixed him in her gaze and watched him warily, as she continued to wind.
As he approached, he put the bat on the ground and raised his empty hands, as if to show he was no threat.
"Hi! I'm James".
"Hi, James! Why don't you make yourself useful instead of sneaking around like that?" she panted.
He made a move to help her with the crank.
"Not this! Them!" she snapped, pointing behind him.
He turned to see a small gathering of infected moving towards them.
"Can you distract them until I've got this?"
"Sure!"
He sprinted towards the group yelling and clapping his hands. They immediately turned their attention away from Anita and onto him, and he led them away from the lock back towards the town. He ducked out of sight when they were a safe distance away, reappearing at the lock a few moments later only to find another group closing in on her from another direction. This time he didn't wait to be asked, distracting the second group, then another and another, until the job was done, and Anita was waving at her friend from the footbridge, giving her the signal to bring the boat in.
But now, there were too many to distract. They were coming from all directions and the main horde was moving steadily closer. The pair crouched behind a hedge out of sight until the boat was in the lock and then Anita darted back down to open the gates into the basin. This time, James tried to protect her by dealing with any that got too close to her with his baseball bat. But there were just too many. They were separated and he lost sight of her. Eventually, he was overwhelmed and forced to retreat back to the bridge.
He was devastated, convinced that she was gone, one way or another. The basin was now surrounded on all sides. Either she'd made it onto the boat or she hadn't, but either way, he'd missed his chance. He was hit by an unexpected wave of sorrow and lonely desperation. His brief encounter with her had been intense, but it had been real and had felt good. He had felt hope for the first time in days and now it was gone - dashed away in an instant. He sighed deeply and sank to his knees.
Then he heard her! Screaming with rage, roaring with fury and physical effort. He heard the thud of solid metal on bone as she thrashed and struck out with her axe, followed by the gurgles of the dying dead.
Who was this woman! She was superhuman! He jumped to his feet and rushed to her aid, swinging his bat with renewed vigour, launching himself at her assailants.
When they were clear, they'd sprinted back across the bridge to the pub, and she'd helped him board the door up again before they both dropped to the floor, rolling onto their backs, gasping for breath, sucking air deep into their lungs.
When she could talk, Anita pushed herself up on one elbow and looked across at him.
"Nice to meet you, James!"
