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The motes of dust swirling in the beam danced like little fairies and she smiled to herself. For some reason, Jenni felt very close in that moment.

The door opened and she rolled over to see Travis slip into the room. For a brief moment she saw Juan outside the door.

“What’s wrong?” she asked.

Travis hesitated, then slid onto the bed. “Recon came back with photos. ”

“It’s not good, is it?”

“No. It’s not. ”

Katie rolled over and lay on his lap, her arms around him.

“You don’t seem surprised. ”

“Lydia warned me. ”

“Oh,” Travis answered, his fingers lightly brushing her shoulder. He seemed uncertain of what to say.

“I never dream of Jenni,” Katie said finally. “Just Lydia. ” Pulling herself up, she kissed his lips lightly.

Travis stroked her hair and said, “I’m sure you will dream of Jenni. ”

“She’s come to Juan and Jason and now Rune. Why not me?” Katie couldn’t help the hurt from leaking into her voice.

Travis rubbed her cheek and looked thoughtful. “Maybe it’s just not time yet. ”

Katie pouted then let out a heavy sigh. “Lydia told me that, too. You two conspiring behind my back?” Sliding off the bed, she tried not to feel put out.

With a laugh, her husband stood up and laid his hands on her shoulders and turned her around. “Katie, your spouses got to stick together. You’re kinda tough to handle at times. ”

Katie made a face at him, then laughed a little. “Fine, okay. ” She shook free of her hurt feelings and forced herself to concentrate on the moment at hand. “So the recon wasn’t good. ”

“Nope. It’s not. We’re meeting in about five minutes. We need you there. ”

“Does everyone in the fort know yet?”

“Not yet. We’re getting the core group together to come up with strategies on how to handle telling the fort populace. ” A shadow of fear flickered over Travis’ features and he looked haunted. His hand rested lightly on her belly and he kissed her forehead.

“Oh, shit. That bad, huh?” Katie felt her throat tighten and her pulse quicken.

“Yeah,” Travis answered. “Yeah. ”

Katie rubbed her suddenly wet palms against her jeans and headed to the door. Travis opened the door for her and she looked out to see Juan gazing back at her. His forehead was covered in a light sheen of sweat and he looked pale under his tan.

“Shit. ”

“Yeah,” Juan answered.

Travis shut the door behind them leaving the room empty save for the stream of sunlight glowing brightly in the darkened room. Then the curtain shifted and the light was gone, leaving the room empty and cold.

4. Facing the Truth

“What we are looking at is at least fifteen thousand zombies heading straight our way,” Nerit said as the photos were slid across the table one by one.

“Possibly up to twenty thousand,” Kevin added.

Travis frowned as he studied one, then passed it on to his wife. “Where did they come from?”