Dead of Winter

Crisis 1: Rats in the Kitchen

A week has passed since that altercation with Pennsatucky, nobody's really talked about what happened that night, I still don't understand what happened to me then but I feel something inside changed. Alex, she'd said I always had a temper but it had never felt like that before, it was everything all at once. Anger, power, satisfaction. Then pity, for me or for Tucky I couldn't tell anymore. It was the same when I saw that thing jump for Alex's neck, sometimes I wonder if it's a blessing or a curse but more than these thoughts I'm just grateful she's alive.

My hand has healed but Tucky's face is still a few shades far from healthy. Because of that incident, people now look at me with with a mixture of fear and respect, due partly from that incident but mostly for killing a zombie, or complete scorn. Other than that nothing much had changed, we all still did our regular activities, until today.

… … …

The news we heard from the radio has had us believe that the epidemic that caused all this started as a little more than just a small lab experiment at a local hospital in Delaware that wasn't monitored and spread like forest fire, and the government had now isolated the infected in a few states, and a cure was visible in a week. Although sometimes it felt like being exiled, like a leper back in the day.

We had locked and bolted our doors to whatever materials we could spare, which was of no concern to many, after all these walls had been home to some of us for years. Waiting for when the government would arrive with the cure had given us some hope but with little news from the outside, everyone was becoming more on edge. Provisions wouldn't last forever and everyone was a little hungrier by the day.

Internal affairs had worsen as of late, the four separate dorms had divided the population, the whites, the blacks, the latinas, and the golden girls. Although the relationship amongst these four groups were good, everyone was ready to defend their own and everyone was becoming a little greedy. Arguments within divisions were also frequenting from the sub groups. Pennsatucky's religious group loathed me for what happened to their leader, which was becoming a balancing act to keep the peace.

It became an unspoken precaution to always be with a group, deters the crazies from doing anything that could cause more distrust with the inmates. Strangely, Alex had down right refused to leave my side, even moving my things to her bunk since her old bunky, Leanne, was talking care of Pennsatucky, fearing that I would become a target again, alone or at night. She had always been a little protective and possessive over me but that was before she said I may never come to her, yet these days she had readily come to me. Maybe she had felt indebt for what happened with the zombies. But that didn't mean her forgiveness. Neither of us really wanted to have that conversation, not yet, not with everything going on and it's always good to have another friendly face in these circumstances.

… … …

I was with Alex in the library, reading to pass the time, when the PA system had come alive. Thankfully the prison had batteries and a generator that ran on gas, although that was running low too but it did give us some leeway for food storage and radio news, incase the power ever went out.

"Please gather at the cafeteria, this is not a drill."

Our heads turn to face each other, our eyes meet for a second and I feel my face flush. Somehow she's always been able to do that, and she smirks but as she does her hand extends to mine and she says, "Come on Pipes, I wanna find Nicky and Lorna before we have to deal with whatever's going on."

I smile at her gesture, it's been happening a lot lately, and take her hand. Maybe there was news of a cure already in effect, I thought while walking the halls with Alex. It was a little hopeful but it was better than thinking of the many other alternatives.

We find Nicky and Lorna in the hall outside the rec room, an unfinished game of scrabble visible from the outside. The course of this epidemic had, deadly as it might be, gotten us closer. Apparently, it's threat that makes the heart grow fonder.

We walked towards the gathering area, being the few who arrived first, we found Red immediately, standing by the serving stations. Red continued to take charge of the kitchen and provisions when we were left to fend for ourselves with all the COs gone. She had enough years behind her and a good system to make provisions last for as long as it could.

"Nicky, go to bunk and get my cup of noodles. Mommy's hungry," said Red as we came over.

"Ma, we had lunch an hour ago."

Red starts to stare Nicky down, they look at each other for awhile before Nicky throws up her arms in silent surrender. She turns in understanding and does what she's told.

"Now, Chapman, Vause, Morello," she calls out. We snap to attention, realization shown in mine and Alex's face, the exchange was just to send Nicky away, "follow me."

The four of us gathered in the kitchen, which was quite clean considering this was prison.

"So, what's going on?" asks Lorna.

"There's been a some spoilage," says Red, motioning towards the refrigerator.

"What's that got to do with Nichols?" questions Alex, fidgeting beside me. "That's why she had to 'get noodles' right?" her hands gesturing to air quotations.

"You always were perceptive Vause."

"I like to think so."

"Vause you use to import drugs, you know anything about freons in that department? Because there's a strange lack from where it's suppose to be in my refrigerator."

"You can use it like a drug to mimic...a high," in a quick sudden movement her arms fly out to open the refrigerator. The lack of cool air from the machine is hardly noticeable compared the abysmal stench reeking from rotting meat. "You think Nichols did it?"

The idea of Nicky doing something to jeopardize our survival was unimaginable. Nicky had done some very questionable things when it concerned drugs but she wasn't stupid.

"No," we three let go a collective sigh of relief, "But the others might not think the same."

"So why aren't we telling Nicky?" I ask.

"Because I want to throw suspicion away from her," a pause, then a sigh, "Nicky, would only act more suspicious if she knew."

We all nod in agreement, but that doesn't really solve anything. "Do you know who did it?" it's Lorna who asks this time.

"No, but rats, junkies, there all the same once everyone finds out their guilty."

I cringe a little at the thought of what they might do. It might not even need a verdict, just the threat of it, for the inmates to start making rash decisions. "So you just want us to keep her out of trouble, stir some hate out of her way?" I suggest.

"That's right blondie, long enough for us to figure out who did it," Red starts walking and signals for us to follow, "Now come on, we have bigger problems to deal with."

… … …

Quiet murmurs could be heard as we exited the kitchen to the dining hall. A nervous air could be felt throughout the room.

Mendoza came forward, approaching Red, "So, what's the problem?"

"You three wait for Nicky," and points to an open table, "Mendoza, we'll talk inside, wait for everyone to gather."

We walk to the first empty table nearest the doors and sit down, Alex beside me and Lorna across us, while Red and Mendoza disappear into the kitchen. I can feel my hands begin to sweat as I think about how we're going to survive without the spoiled food. I jolt a little and then relax as Alex slides her hand from my thigh to my knee under the table, feeling my anxiety from my tapping foot and probably etched on my face.

Nicky arrives not long after with a group of women walking behind her, a cup of noodle in hand approaching our table. Lorna motions for her to sit with a small smile.

"Where's ma?" asks Nicky sitting down.

The kitchen doors swing open and out comes Red and Mendoza. Heads turn to their direction, faces inquisitive as to why everyone was summoned here.

"Gather round," Mendoza calls out with a loud voice, a frown on her lips, "we have a problem."

Mendoza and Red proceed to explain about the food spoilage but were vague about how it had spoiled. We needed to figure out how to get more food if we wanted to survive, the first dilemma was that there was no way out of the prison. The COs had taken out more than half the undead the night of the attack they had explained but a horde was still out there and all we had were a few cleaning tools and my screwdriver. We needed to know more about the undead, without a plan we were stuck.

… … …

In order to form a plausible plan that was executable without too much consequence we needed some facts.

Everyone was to form groups and make observations on certain aspects for one day and night cycle. Our table was assigned to figuring out how fast the average zombie could move, see if there were any variations. Other groups had to identify types of zombies if there were any different kinds, activity at night and during the day, and vulnerabilities and weaknesses. I personally had to report in how hard it was to penetrate the zombie's skull with a screwdriver. We were all suppose to exchange notes early tomorrow and devise a plan.

As much one could hate prison, it made a pretty decent fort. The metal railing on the windows were small enough that we could see the outside without having to worry about getting bitten.

Alex and I sat at one end of the windowed rec room, Nicky and Lorna on the other far end.

"It's pretty crazy everything that's happening, huh kid?" she says reaching out to my hand, her fingers tracing circles on my knuckles.

"Yeah, who would have thought. Zombies."

"I thought I would have died from a gunshot from the cartel."

"Who said anything about you dying now?" I look her in the eye then, "You know it's not happening on my watch, Al."

She flashes that signature smirk of her and I think how wonderful it goes with the setting sun's red tint, "Can't go without my fine ass?"

"I've already saved it once," now it's my turn to smirk, "it is however, indeed a fine piece of ass."

She laughs, it's cute and she's trying to hold it in, failing miserably. When she's able to restrain her giggling, you can still see the laughter in her eyes and that makes me smile with her. It hasn't been like this for awhile I realize, as much as we've been together the last week, we haven't talked that much or at least not like this.

"I'm glad we have each other with all this going on kid."

"Me too, Al," she leans in closer, "Me too."

The sun continues to go down and everything fades into a black but our hands and lips find each other naturally, like pieces of a puzzle.

"Really, right now not-lesbians?" Nicky says with a chuckle as she walks behind and proceeds to turn on the lights.

A sudden loud crunch sound resonates the room and a hand reaches out from the rails. I nearly fall from my seat but Alex steadies me, we all stare in horror and relief. We had stayed far enough so no hands could reach us, thank god, I don't want to think about stabbing another zombie skull with my screwdriver.

… … …

We gathered in the morning for breakfast, the only meal we'd be eating for the day. We all gathered our notes and piled together all the information we could make out from yesterday's study and observation.

Facts we know of the Undead:

Zombies moved in a relatively slow walking pace with little individual differences.

There are currently two known types - the walkers and the crawlers. Crawlers being slightly faster, trading its arms for mobility.

Zombies are generally less active at night

Zombies are sensitive to sound and light but generally cannot identify humans by sight.

"So anyone come up with something?" says Nicky crossing her arms looking at the whiteboard the facts were written on.

"Can't we just like lure the zombies outside and close the gates? We can't kill them without weapons," suggests Flaca.

"But you'd be one crazy bitch to volunteer for the job." says Taystee, and the crowd nods in agreement. Concerned that they may be made to be the sacrifice.

"Someone could probably outrun the zombies if they had enough speed and stamina."

"Watson, you a runner right?"

"I sprint, I don't run fucking marathons and I don't wanna have to fight those things. Chapman can run too, less speed but more stamina and she's already killed one of 'em."

Heads turn towards me and Alex steps in, pushing me slightly behind her.

A/N: Bit of a cliffhanger I know, sorry but hey, shoutout to the reviewers, deathlyhallow0 and the guest. Opinions are always welcome, would love to hear more of what you guys think.