23

Stella

I told Max and Jovie the moment I was alone with them both. Jovie had brought me to the clinic on the back of something she called a "rickshaw," where a person pedaling a bike pulled us on a wagon through town.

The clinic had obviously been an ordinary home before. The living room was set up like a waiting room, and Jovie led me into a dining room that had been partitioned with wood and converted into a few small patient rooms.

I had only just laid down on the wooden bench in the patient room while Jovie laid a blanket over me, when Max came running into the house, breathless and frantic.

"Stella!" he said as he raced over to join me at the bench. "Are you okay?"

I nodded, and when I opened my mouth to say that I was, I instead heard myself blurting out, "I was bitten by a zombie."

Max and Jovie both froze in place for a moment, too stunned to do or say anything. I pulled up my shirt and moved my belly, so they could see the bitemark for themselves. I had been hoping that I was wrong about it, but when Max flinched at the sight, my worst fears were confirmed.

"I'm sorry I didn't tell you sooner," I said, and Jovie finally pulled her gaze to meet mine. "I didn't want to risk hurting anyone, but I need to make sure that you save my baby."

By then, Max was crying softly, and he squeezed my hand. I looked at Jovie, because the only thing that really mattered in that moment was ensuring that she would take care of our baby.

"When were you bitten?" she asked.

"Earlier today. Maybe a couple hours ago," I answered as best I could.

"Okay," Jovie said. "I need to… I need to check some things." She turned and walked away.

After she'd gone, I finally looked at Max, and the devastation in his face was enough to make me start crying. I tried to stay calm and collected, because I didn't really have time to waste on emotions. Not that I wanted to feel them anyway. Underneath so much sadness and uncertainty, there was only fear. Cold, palpable, and ready to devour me if I gave it a chance.

"Maybe you're immune, like me and Remy," he said hopefully.

"Maybe," I allowed, but I had never seen anyone bitten and survive. The memory of Polly's face contorting with ravenous rage was all too fresh.

"Listen to me, Max," I said, my voice calm but thick with tears. "We need to prepare for the worst. You have to make sure our baby is safe, no matter what else happens."

He took a deep breath and wiped roughly at his eyes. "Okay. What do I need to do?"

Jovie returned then, carrying a logging chain in her hands. "I know this isn't pleasant, but I have to think about the safety of the whole community."

"So you're gonna chain her up?" Max was appalled. "She's not even showing any signs! She might not even be sick! It's too soon!"

"I am supposed to banish her or execute her," Jovie replied coolly. "This seems much kinder and more prudent."

"It's fine," I said before Max could argue further. "I don't want to hurt anyone. You all need to be safe, too."

He nodded, but he wouldn't look at me for a little while. Not even when Jovie suggested we move to a room at the back of the house, with a door that could lock. He helped me up and took one arm, while Jovie took the other, and we shuffled through the house.

My new room was small, with whitewashed wood paneling on the walls and floorboards that creaked underneath my feet. Pressed flowers were framed and hung on the walls, and a quilt made of patches of various red fabrics lay across the twin bed.

Max helped me into it, and Jovie made sure I was comfortable with the pillows and blankets.

And then she wrapped the chain around the wrought iron bed frame, securely locking it. When she finished with that, she took the other end of the chain and wrapped it around my ankle before locking it on. Max flinched every time it rattled, but I didn't.

"This is just a precaution," Jovie repeated. "I am still going to treat you until… I'll treat you as long as I safely can. So let's start with that wound and trying to get your blood pressure down."

She went into another room and returned with a kit to clean and sterilize my bite wound. It hurt some, but I didn't mind that much. I just stared up at the ceiling while Max held my hand.

Jovie had almost finished bandaging it when I heard an irritated lion's growl followed by a thud at the door.

"What was that?" Jovie asked, clearly alarmed.

"That's Ripley," I said and looked to Max. "Let her in before she destroys the door."

"Let who in?" Jovie asked.

"We have a lioness, but she's very friendly," I explained as Max went to open the front door.

" What ?" Jovie straightened up in surprise, but I already heard the cat's big paws on the floor.

Jovie screamed as Ripley came running into the room, her leash dragging on the floor behind her. The midwife pressed back against the wall, but the lion ignored her and instead put her paws up on the bed so she could nuzzle me.

"Sorry about that," Boden said, and I looked up from petting Ripley to see him standing in the doorway of my room. "It's hard to keep the cat away from the girl."

"Are you… Stella's family?" Jovie asked uncertainly, and he nodded. "Why don't we step out and talk for a moment, while we let Stella and… and her cat reconnect."

I didn't mind because Ripley was so focused on nuzzling me. All I wanted to do was bury my face in her fur and cry and hug her as tightly as I could, because I knew she could take it.

When I looked up from her, I could see Jovie, Boden, and Max standing just outside the doorway, and the three of them talked in hushed voices. They weren't speaking for long, but I saw Boden's whole body sag, and I knew that they'd told him.

When they finished, he slowly walked over to my bed, and tears were swimming in his eyes. "Hey, Stella. How are you doing?"

"I don't feel too bad," I said with a weak smile. "Where is everyone else?"

"They're all out getting situated in their new places," Boden said. "But I just wanted to see how…" He paused, seeming to choke on the words, but he finally managed to get out, "I wanted to make sure you were okay."

"I am okay for now," I said.

"Good. Good." He cleared his throat. "Remy will be here real soon, and Serg won't be far behind. He's just getting the keys to our new place. The mayor says we'll be right down the road from where Samara and Castor are staying."

"That will be nice to be so close to friends," I said, and I meant it. "Max will need all the support he can get."

Boden's mouth pressed into a thin line. "I will always do everything I can for you, for Max, and for the baby. And Ripley and Remy will destroy anyone who even tries to hurt them. No child will ever be more loved than yours or safer in this world. I can promise you that."

"I know, and thank you," I said. "But I'm not gone yet, so don't go getting all weepy."

He blinked back tears and shook his head. "I know. I'm sorry. I should go out and wait for the others. Make sure they can find the place okay."

He came over and kissed me on the forehead. "I love you, kiddo." Then he hurried out of the room.