After Death

Chapter 3 (Sign of the Times)

Chapter 3: Sign of the Times

Ethan Warren

Estimated, February 2025

About 33 months after outbreak

California, The Circus

Season 4

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Keeping track of the days was almost impossible now. The temperature here barley changed so it was hard to tell what season it was. I tried to let myself completely lose track but it bothered me too much. The days weren't important so I don't even know why I care.

I knew Aiden's death came at an very unwanted time, obviously we didn't want him to die at all but it seemed to draw terrible luck to us all. First it was the dead than it was us getting our noses into the wrong places. Leah and Allan left The Circus without my permission, they went to San Diego and met the devil himself. They escaped before they were killed but they brought them straight to our front door. I'm still angry at Leah but I'm not really sure if I'm even allowed to be, I wanted to do the same thing, I probably would have under different circumstances.

Word is that Leah shot the first shot when they got to their place, that's why they were so angry. I didn't blame them, I would have been the same if it happened to us. Their people climbed the walls and stood menacingly in the streets. No one shot, no one said anything. I stood facing them all, I was terrified but I tried not to let it show.

"Where's the bitch?" A man asked.

"Who the hell are you talking about?" I asked in response, gripping the handle of my gun inside my pocket tighter.

"Silly me, my apologies that's a bit rude but who am I to talk about rudeness, you're people broke into my home. Anyways, my name is Timothy, it's a pleasure to meet you. I remember this place, where's The Ringmaster?"

I never broke eye contact with him now, I wanted to kill him so badly I almost did but he had too many people and they all seemed very loyal. He wanted Thomas, he wanted Leah but he didn't want me, not yet at least.

Before I could tell him to basically fuck off, Thomas came out into the streets, Timothy smiled his malicious smile and I began to think of all the ways this day was about to go wrong. I never expected it would go as wrong as it did though.

"Ethan go home, this isn't between you," Thomas said as he stepped in front of me.

"Yeah Ethan, go home," Timothy's eyes held more anger than his voice. I knew he would have killed Thomas if I had just left. I didn't worship the guy but I didn't wish for his death.

I wish I had known that Thomas and I weren't the only one's on that street that afternoon, I would have been more careful if I had known. I blame myself for everything that happened because it was my fault, it was always my fault.

Timothy walked towards Thomas, I could see the knife he carried in his hand and I knew where it would end up. I held my gun tighter in my sweatshirt, think about what I should do next. I had good intentions it just didn't work out for the better.

He put his hand on Thomas' shoulder and I could tell that Thomas was preparing to die. Maybe I should have let him go but that just wasn't who I was apparently.

As soon as the blade entered his lower abdomen I fired the gun. The bullet hit Timothy in the side. He yelled in pain and shot his own gun somewhere to the left of me. I thought we had won or at least made a dent in the problem but it only got worse.

"Airi!" I heard Rudi yell and I looked over my shoulder in horror. Airianna had been shot in the head and it was all because of me. Steve picked her up and rushed her to Evelyn's office. Everyone seemed to have the same reaction as me, even Timothy who held his arm in pain. I didn't follow I was still in too much shock to even more. It should have been me not an innocent child.

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Rudolph Alinsky

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I couldn't sleep for days after what happened. I paced outside of the infirmary with a blank head. My child had been shot and I didn't know what kind of feeling of grief this was. How does someone possibly know how to feel when they lose their child?

"Rudi?" Evelyn asked as she came out to meet me on the porch, her hands drenched in blood, my daughter's blood. I knew what she was going to say and I didn't want to hear it. I wanted this all to be over, I wanted to die too.

"She's alive."

I thought I had dreamt those words, I refused to believe her, she wasn't right. She couldn't possibly be right.

But she was, Airianna had survived. The bullet didn't hit the right places, she was breathing, she was alive.

"I don't know how long she'll be out for, I also have no idea what the side effects will be but they'll defiantly be really bad. I was a neurosurgeon before or at least studying to be one, I promise I did the best I could. I'm so sorry about what happened, you can go see her if you want." Evelyn seemed almost as broken about this as me. I nodded and followed her inside. I don't think I'll ever be able to get the image of her out of my mind, he practically lifeless body on the surgical table, her head wrapped in white bandages, and her hand full of an IV. I felt like I failed her somehow, I promised to take care of her, to never let harm come to her and look where that got me. She didn't blame me but I still felt guilty. Now I just had to wait impatiently for her to wake up and I didn't even know if that would happen.