Chapter 14

Nathon woke up in a frenzy, flinging himself into a sitting position as a result of a dream that ended in him falling from some great height. He took a deep breath and focused on tuning down his blood pressure while he rubbed his eyes in an effort to adjust them to the eerie light from the full moon outside his bedroom window. Listening carefully, Nathon could tell that the few moans outside the open window were coming from beyond the wall, which meant that the barricade hadn't been broken. Scooting his feet out from beneath the slumbering dog at the end of the bed, Nathon steadied himself before standing up, careful to nurse his injured hand.

More for a reason not to go back to sleep than for something to eat, Nathon decided to wander into the kitchen and maybe just take stock of the food they had gathered before he had rushed Elliot home. Nathon paused at the thought. Who would have thought the first place he'd call home in years was surrounded by hordes of zombies and was shared with a psychopath and someone who had only become slightly less of a mystery in the month that they had known each other? Shaking his head to be rid of the notion and to clear his mind, Nathon stepped out into the hallway.

Turning the corner from the railing to avoid catching a glimpse of the mess below, Nathon was startled by the light coming from the dining room. Quietly, he stepped down the hallway and peeked around the opening. Sniffling quietly, Elliot was sitting at the table, resting her head on her folded arms. There was a mirror in front of her and a pair of scissors in her hand. Small clumps of red hair were scattered about on the floor and table top.

Nathon stepped into the room and sat next to her, placing his uninjured hand on her shoulder, which she flinched at before snapping her head up and clenching her hand around the scissors. Nathon pulled his hand back quickly, but Elliot's expression of anxiety and fear crumpled into such a sincerely pitiful face when she saw him that Nathon replaced it immediately.

She released the scissors which clattered to the table and covered her mouth to stifle a sob before she spoke.

"I was just, uhm," Nathon could hear in her voice that she had only just stopped what must have been a heavy cry. "Just taking inventory." She finished the statement with difficulty. "What are you doing up?" She tried unsuccessfully to wipe away some of the tears that seemed to replenish themselves as soon as they were brushed away or dried.

"I couldn't sleep." Nathon replied. He took in Elliot's matted hair that had once fallen smmothly a few inches below her shoulders and now was only barely chin length, ragged, and unevenly cut. "So. Uhm."

"I just couldn't really sleep either, so I decided I might as well cut my hair, because it's getting kind of long and that's obviously not very safe-" her voice broke at the last word and she had to pause a few minutes before continuing. "You saved my life twice today, and all I've done is get you bitten again."

"You're kidding, right? If you hadn't let us in at the beginning of this mess I'd be dead several times over. Besides, it's not that big of a deal, I can handle it. It's why I'm here- it's the only thing I'm all that useful for. It wasn't that bad of a bite anyway. That zombie's jaw was coming loose."

"That's not the point. I should be able to take care of myself, but I'm not doing so well. I don't know what I'm doing. I have a journal full of instructions that I don't remember writing. When I blacked out today I had this dream, but it wasn't a dream. I know that it actually happened, but I have no idea what it means. Someone took my memories and I need to get them back."

"You're basing this off of a dream?"

"I know it sounds insane but this wasn't a dream. This was real, this was a memory. I woke up on a hospital bed and heard these voices talking about me and someone named Jarmont-".

"Wait, that's Sarah's last name. What else did you hear?"

"Not much else, something about a janitor."

Nathon's face went pale. "What about a janitor?"

Elliot's brow scrunched as she made an effort to remember. "Something about an immunity, I guess you're not the only one. They took him in after an outbreak and wiped his memory and gave him a job so they could do tests on him."

Nathon's voice went lower. "Shit. That would explain some things."

Elliot looked up quickly. "What the hell are you talking about?"

"Uh. I worked at a place that shut down pretty recently, and apparently Sarah worked there too. There was an incident, and she got me out, and I've been 'employed' by her ever since." Nathon couldn't help but insert sarcasm at the word describing his and Sarah's relationship. "Employment" implied some sort of compensation.

"Where?" Elliot's eyes still hadn't quite dried but they were bright now and lost the piteous look from before. Her voice was still rough from crying but had an edge to it that startled Nathon.

"It's a building in town, but it's below ground and you need a card to get in. Sarah and I got out by an exit to the subway. She would know how to get in." Nathon found himself already making plans on how to get there. "If you think it would help, we can go back when she gets up. We're less than safe here anyway, I don't think that barricade is going to last. We can take your car and get there pretty quickly as long as there aren't any traffic blockades or anything. Sarah and I ran into one or two on the way here but they were pretty haphazard and might have been taken down already."

"You want to wake her up or should I?"

Nathon thought about what Sarah would be like this early in the morning. "Let's let her sleep in.