"Talk to your wife..." Nat whispers when she passes by me.
"What?" I whisper in response, totally puzzled. But the Sergeant doesn't say any more and keeps walking towards the property gate, children run out of the house and follow her while Rick and Gabriel seem to be arguing with Sarah on the doorstep. Iselen is leaning her back on a column and she's lost in her thoughts not paying attention to her friend who's moving her hands more and more nervous. What's going on here?
It's been ten days since we arrived to the Great Zombie Palace (the kids chose the name) and everything is going fine so far, this place's safe and has all that we need: food, clothes, heating, running water, electricity... Nat has checked the infirmary and she thinks it's well stocked, the kids have explored and turned the attic into their hideout, we've been making a list of the supplies and calculated how much we can eat each day but we're not obsessed with rationing yet... we aren't that desperate. Besides Adrian has found a good south-facing piece of land in the back garden, protected from wind and frost, and he's already planning the layout of a new vegetable garden he wants to plant next spring. There're also several fruit trees and we'll have pears, apples, cherries and plums. Nights are cold but this autumn is being warm during the day and it didn't rain that much, it feels good being seated here on a bench drinking a cup of camomile wrapped up in my jacket enjoying the sunshine.
It might look like we're on holiday if it weren't for the fact that our soldiers have checked the house from top to bottom, the perimeter and the alarms too, they made an inventory of weapons and ammo and have established an observation post at the top of the tower. Besides, sometimes they go out in the forest and monitor the surroundings. Iselen brought me a backpack full of delicious hazelnuts she collected one evening for me and Adrian showed me how to toast them... I'd prefer her not leaving this property ever. I don't understand why they need to take those risks when we live surrounded by a high wall that protects us. My anxiety levels skyrocket when I know she's out there.
Adults keep arguing but Iselen seems to be back to reality and spots me sitting on the bench. She smiles and walks towards me, I can't help smiling back while I stare at her closely. She always looks so confident, so comfortable in her own skin, wearing army green cargo pants, her worn out boots and a dark blue sweater. Gabriel bought some beauty products, creams, hair colour... he wanted to give us a sense of normalcy despite being locked here but my wife doesn't pay attention to those things. Water, soap and a little bit of cream if her skin is too dry, that's all she needs. Her cheeks get red when the cold wind grazes them and freckles appear on her nose if her skin exposes to the sun, she gets wrinkles both sides of her eyes every time she laughs but she doesn't care. Everything involving Iselen is natural, uncontrived and very different from what I used to see in my daily life. She keeps training hard every day so her body is toned and flawless, her abs are still there causing butterflies fluttering in my stomach every time I see them. However, I've seen perfect bodies before, firm breasts thanks to cosmetic surgery, wrinkle-free faces thanks to Botox, soft skins pampered by the most expensive beauty treatments... but none of those beauties have affected me like the natural charm of my wife does. She's perfect... because she's Iselen.
"Do you know that your eyes get greener when you're sitting under a tree?" she asks while flopping down on the bench next to me.
"Kiss me," I answer with a firm tone of voice. Iselen blinks and leans over.
"At your service, madam." Her lips touch mines gently but I tangle my hand in her hair and hold her harshly while shoving my tongue deep in her mouth. My wife hesitates for a second, taken aback by my dominant outburst but she relaxes her muscles and lets me take control of the kiss. That feeling of safety and warmth that she makes me feel is as powerful as ever: nothing can go wrong if my warrior is with me.
