A Different Virus - Laura's Story

Chapter 34

I looked at the various treehouses as we left the gate. Trish was helping us pack our stuff out. I still refused to talk with her. Trish looked at the various raised structures, "Which one do you want?"

Diane nodded to the most distant treehouse, "That slightly larger one over there."

Trish gave her an odd look, "That one is a long ways away from the others and the gate."

Diane nodded, "Yes, it is a bit further away. Most of those who may wish me harm will think very hard before venturing so far out of the fence. For those used to being outside of the fence it is barely a hop, skip, and a jump with the fence in sight and several obstacles to either climb or use to hang up a zombie. It is the largest one here, it is in the best repair, and it has the most support holding it up."

She was correct. It was the largest one by a fair bit, possibly the size of a tiny cabin. The distance between the treehouse and the fence didn't bother me, although it was probably half a kilometer to the gate. It did make Trish nervous though. Then again, she never had to do as much with zombies as we did. She spent all of her days inside the fence.

I couldn't wait to get inside and explore it. We reached the base of the ladder and Diane passed me a large picture frame she had been carrying, "Please hold this for me, I will go open up the door."

I took it and she quickly climbed the ladder. I glanced at the picture, it had hung in our bedroom ever since we arrived. It showed Diane with another lady and a guy. Both looked around her age, but I hadn't seen either of them before. I wasn't sure who they were, but Trish had told me to never ask about them because it could make Diane sad.

Diane pushed a trapdoor open and glanced around before climbing into the darkness above. I glanced around us like I had been taught, but no zombies were in sight. That was really unusual, someone must have lured most of them away recently.

I heard the faint squeak of windows opening and the darkness above got lighter and lighter as Diane opened up more storm shutters to allow sunlight in. She appeared near the edge of the trapdoor and looked down at us.

She took a step forward and dropped out of the opening before she grabbed onto the smooth sides of the aluminum ladder to slide down to the ground. She turned to me with a grin, "By the way, if you ever come down like I just did, make sure I am below and ready to catch you in case you fall."

I knew she was teasing me. Both of us knew that I would never try anything like that from such a height. I grinned back at her, "Sure, what is it like up there?"

She shrugged, "Nothing fancy, go on up and take a look around. Here, let me take that picture and bag from you. You can put your pack in the bedroom for now."

I passed the items to her and quickly climbed up the ladder to stick my head through the trapdoor. It was the size of a small cabin. I stood up and looked around. The tiny kitchen was in one corner and most of the space was an open living room area. Only two doors were present, one for the bedroom and the other for the bathroom, both doors were open. I knew a water cistern fed the toilet and shower.

It was shockingly bare. There was literally nothing here. The wood plank floor and walls were bare. The roof trusses were exposed showing the plywood above with shingling nails poking through. There weren't even any plugins or light fixtures. I bet that Diane would swiftly find some LED solar lights.

Trish climbed up and looked around, "You weren't kidding when you said it wasn't anything special."

Diane was optimistic as she followed Trish up the ladder. "It could be worse. It is weather tight and we are not sleeping in a tent or cardboard box. It does need a few touches to make it nice and homey though."