Days of Love and Blood

something?”
    “Go ahead, Carson,” said Brigham. “We’re all ears.”
    “These guys are pricks. But they didn’t do anything. They didn’t even really try. And they’re human, they’re not homicidals. You can’t hunt them down. You just can’t.” Cooper gasped from behind me and I turned to look at his stunned face. He gripped the butt of his rifle until his knuckles whitened and shook his head at me defiantly. “If we start killing humans, regular uninfected people, what’s the difference between us and the homicidals? We can’t do this. We can’t. No matter how much we hate them.”
    “Thank you for that Carson,” said Solomon. “Does anyone have anything else to say? ” The silence penetrated my ears. “Are we ready to vote?”
    “Just like that?” I screamed.
    “Carson, we’ve already been talking about this for an hour.”
    “Cooper, why didn’t you tell me? Why didn’t you wake me?”
    “I don’ t need to tell you every fuckin’ thing I do!” he screamed. I jumped at his voice and his insinuation.
    I shook my head. “I don’t understand,” I gasped. Cooper looked away from me and I turned to face the group, too shocked to be embarrassed.
    “Here it goes, everyone,” said Solo mon. “Raise your hands if you’re in favor of Cooper’s plan.” Cooper, Johnson, Jayde and Tasha raised their hands. “And against?” The clear majority, including myself, lifted their arms. I sighed in relief.
    “Aw, fuck this shit!” Cooper screamed. He stepped next to me and raised his finger, pointing at random people as he spoke. “You people are fuckin’ idiots. All of you.” His last point landed on me, two inches from my face. “Fuck all of you.” He left the room and slammed the front door behind him.
    “ What?” I whispered to myself. I felt someone’s hand on my back. “No!” I yelled. I ran out the front door and leapt down the stairs.
    “Cooper! Cooper! Please! Stop, Cooper!” I heard the screen door creak open and footsteps on the porch. We had an audience. Cooper stopped in his tracks. Others were in the front yard and I felt their eyes upon us.
    “Wha t, Carson? What the fuck do ya want?” He turned around to face me. His lips were turned down at the sides and his fists clenched into balls by his side.
    “Cooper, I don’t understand. Don’t be pissed at me because I disagree.”
    “I don’t fuckin’ get you, Carson. You have no problem killing the fuckin’ homicidals.”
    “They’re not human.”
    “They are fuckin’ human! They’re human with a disease and they’re dying but they’re still fuckin’ human!”
    “Can you please keep it down?” I begged.
    “Why? So you can manipulate me s’more, Carson?” He paced back and forth in front of me.
    “What are you talking about?”
    “There are men out there who don’t have the disease and have all the fuckin’ mental capacity to come down here and take us out one by one if they wanted to. But you think these guys deserve to live over the homicidals? Are ya fuckin’ crazy? The homicidals are the ones who can’t help themselves. They’re the ones with a disease or virus or whatever it is you wanna fucking’ call it. The guys we came across last night? Those are the real monsters. Those are the ones we should worry ‘bout. Those men are the real threat.”
    “Cooper, I just don’t agree with it. I think they’ve just been isolated for too long or something. Maybe they were drunk.”
    “Are ya listening to yourself, Carson? Do ya actually believe what you’re sayin’ or are ya that fuckin’ stupid? You heard them last night, Carson, with your own ears!”
    “Cooper,” I pleaded. “Please, don’t.” The tears began to flow but I didn’t hold them back. I already let Cooper into my heart and now he was one of the few who could break me.
    “Oh, now you’re gonna cry?” he shouted. “What’s next, are a gunna try to bring me into your bed?”
    “What?”
    “That’s what you do, Carson. That’s how you fuckin’ manipulate people. You kept me from the night watch last night with sex. Isn’t that right, woman? You’re all the same! Why don’t you fuckin’ tell them!” He pointed at the people I already knew had lined the porch behind me.
    My tears stopped. I stood rigid with betrayed eyes focused on him. The pain melted away into oblivion and was replaced by rage. I looked him in disbelief and closed my mouth. Cooper stopped pacing and stood still, evidently aware of my