This Would Be Paradise (Book 2)-A Zombie Novel

Chapter 21

Once we were as settled in as you could get in this situation, Zoe practically dragged me out of the condo to see if we could find John or Darren. The good thing about the neighborhood is that they had their own integrated septic and water systems for the whole cul-de-sac, so the toilets and sinks worked. Their system ran off of the nearby lake and streams and drained onto swamp land a few miles away. The majority of it was powered by the various solar-lights strategically placed on various front lawns.

Roy was excited to see how it worked exactly, since he was the one who had rigged the downstairs bathroom to work in the apartment. I had asked what exactly he did before the infection took over and Roy just said, "A bit of everything." I had assumed he was an engineer or something.

Chloe had introduced Ethan to Amanda and was currently telling her all about our life at the cabin.

"There are a few other kids here too. Some of the older ladies organized classes for 'em," Ethan mentioned and Chloe's face scrunched up.

"I am not goin' to school."

Ethan looked at her, "That's what you think."

She crossed her arms, "That's dumb. School is the last thing we need." She looked up at me expectantly. "Bailey?"

I floundered for a second and fought the urge to say 'Listen to your brother', "You want to stay smart? Then you should definitely take those classes otherwise I'm going to have to dye your hair blonde."

"You're blonde," Chloe retorted.

"Yes, but I'm the exception to the rule," I said like I was the Queen of England.

Laughs echoed around me.

"Hey! I'm smart; I just don't make smart choices. There's a difference you know."

"Well, I can testify to you not making smart choices," Zoe added. The pot calling the kettle black right there.

They were still laughing when we reached their condo. Zoe opened to door and did a quick patrol of the space. Chloe put down her pack and scrutinized her new house.

"I think I like the cat one better."

No one else was in there so Zoe and Ethan offered to give us a tour of the premises. I had made sure that I put my fully loaded Beretta in my waistband, just in case. I didn't know how secure this place was.

"You won't need to carry that around in here," Zoe said when she spotted my gun.

I shrugged, "Kind of a habit now. How exactly do they handle the weapon situation here?"

"If you need a weapon, they assign you one. They keep track of 'em at the club house and monitor who has what," Ethan answered. "You have to hand over your weapons, but you can take them out when needed if you pass their trainin' course. Basically they just want to make sure you can handle a weapon without casualties. Most people feel better with less guns floatin' around."

"And I assume that's where John is?"

"Yep, they have him and a Sergeant running the course."

I guess I would be subjected to this training course soon, but I sure as hell wasn't forfeiting my Beretta.

We passed by one of the make-shift guard towers. A Filipino woman nodded at us briefly from her perch at the top of the ladder platform, then turned back to outside the walls. She was decked out in all camo and wielded a massive sniper rifle; she looked like she took her job very seriously.

We were introduced to many wandering faces and I instantly forgot their names. It turns out there were four other guard towers spread out around the block. Two were along the wall with the gate up front and one for each other wall; all manned with a body and a fancy sniper rifle. Ethan explained that the guards took shifts during the day and at night they only had one on as more of a lookout to sound the alarm if something happened. Any artificial light at night would mean more power usage and would draw in the infected like a beacon.