The Town of Last Haven: A Zombie Novel

Part 36

Julia waited until dusk to talk to Jake about Natalie. Julia let it happen once to herself--the whole first love affair screwing herself up--but she wasn't about to let a first love screw up her sister's life.

Jake needed to go take up a guard shift in the watchtower at the town limits, so he left Natalie and Clarise gardening in the backyard while Austin and Trent went off to do their own thing; Julia wasn't sure what her brothers were doing, but she was relatively alright with the things they did... per they didn't leave the town and enter the wilds of the zombies beyond the city limits.

Julia made the Wallace burn in the firepit outside, then wrapped a few vegetables in tin foil to cook them up. It wasn't much--Natalie was a better cook than she was--but it was something. They'd run out of jerky and the hunting parties hadn't returned yet, so veggies were the only rations to eat.

Julia made sure Natalie and Clarise were busy eating inside, then she told them she'd be back later, that she was going for a walk. Clarise nodded an alright with her mouth stuffed with a hot salad, and Natalie reminded her to use a napkin. That brought a smile to Julia's face before she left, then bolted for the guesthouse. She had a key even though no one used keys after the outbreak, so Julia invited herself in. She went into the living room and looked at the stacks of books that Natalie had brought over along with books that Jake brought from scavenger parties from days past.

There was a small stack of books that caught Julia's eye, a stack of vintage Stephen King books--she used to love his work, but when things went to real horror she stopped enjoying them. "How can you still read horror, Natalie?" Julia asked the silence, picking up one of the books. "This is a bad dream, isn't it?" Julia asked herself with a sigh.

There came the sound of approaching footsteps and a shadow came before the door, the solar-powered front porch lights flickering on. The door opened, and Julia went tense. She knew it was Jake, but she half-expected it to be Luke. She rubbed her hands over her arms, then straightened as she saw Jake appear. He looked surprised to see her, and he added a minor stammer.

"Julia, what are you doing here? Shouldn't you be with Natalie?" he asked.

"I was waiting for you," Julia said in a slightly cold voice. "I need to talk to you."

"Is this about Natalie? What's wrong?" Jake was about to bolt for the Brown House, but Julia grabbed him by the arm and pulled him into the guesthouse again.

"Nothing's wrong with Natalie; don't freak out, okay? I need to talk to you about her."

"What's wrong?" Jake asked, turning back to face Julia.

"I see the way you look at her. It's more real love than the looks Luke used to give me." Julia's eyes went cold as she thought of Luke. "Don't deny it--you love my sister, don't you?"

Jake looked valiantly at Julia, nodding once. "Yes," he answered. "I do love your sister, and I wouldn't dream of hurting her."

"I want you to know, Jake Hayden," Julia moved towards the front door, the steely-silver color of her gun shining from its place tucked into the hem of her jeans, "that if you hurt my sister, you'll be the one getting hurt further."

"Words don't matter," Jake said quietly. "It's actions that prove my love for your sister, and it has nothing to do with sex to begin with. I'm willing to wait forever--if I have to--if it means I can win her love in return for one day."

Julia raised an eyebrow, looking suspiciously at Jake.

"As long as Natalie is safe and happy, as long as your sisters and brothers are safe and happy, that's all that matters to me. I would lay down my life for Natalie--for any of you. Natalie is lucky to have a protective sister like you. I know you want to protect her above all else, but I want you to know that I will assist in protecting her--all of you."

"That's what I needed to know," said Julia as she left, closing the door behind her.