"First floor cleared!" Carver's voice called out from the kitchen.
"Second floor secure!" Danny's voice came from the top of the stairs.
"The barn's clear, but there's a lot of rat droppings!" Wells shouted from outside.
Calista sheathed her dagger. "Good. Set up defenses. Jenson, take the roof for high ground. Bossie, set up listening devices in the attic. Danny, assist Bossie. Everyone else, rotate rest shifts, two hours each. Mike, reinforce the doors and windows. Leah, plan emergency evacuation routes."
The farmhouse was quickly reinforced. Key entrances were blocked with furniture, sentries were posted at the windows, and everyone received simple rations and water.
Merle dropped into a battered armchair in the entryway with a loud creak.
He chewed on a compressed biscuit, watching Lorenzo carefully wipe down a relatively clean corner with a handkerchief before sitting.
"Hey, Spaghetti," Merle said with his mouth full, "the way you killed that thing was nothing like you. Not bad though. At least you didn't piss yourself."
Lorenzo didn't look up. "Efficiency first, Mr. Dixon."
He paused, then added, "And they smell terrible. I prefer using a gun from a distance."
Merle curled his lip. "So delicate."
On the other side, Calista found a relatively clean storage room and signaled for Leah to come over.
As soon as the door closed, the "leader" presence around her faded.
Calista leaned against the wall and slid down slightly.
"God, Leah," she muttered, "I only remember part of what you taught me. I keep repeating the same instructions. It feels like I'm not even thinking."
Leah leaned against the doorframe, keeping watch outside, though her face turned toward Calista, softer than usual.
"You'll get used to it. Everyone starts like this. I wasn't leading teams from the beginning either."
She pulled out a small individually wrapped mint candy from her tactical vest and tossed it over without looking. "Here. It'll help you relax."
Calista caught it, her eyes lighting up. "Whoa, you were hiding this? Thanks, sister."
She unwrapped it and popped it into her mouth, her cheek puffing slightly.
"Make it last. That's the only one," Leah said, a hint of amusement flickering in her eyes as she watched Calista perk up.
Still just a girl under eighteen.
"Got it," Calista mumbled around the candy.
She sat quietly for a while, listening to the faint wind outside and Merle's rough voice in the distance.
"By the way, Calista," Leah said suddenly, her voice lower than usual, "you're not an adult yet, right?"
Calista had been focused on the sounds outside. She paused, then replied instinctively, "Hm?"
"Your birthday," Leah turned to look at her. "When is it? I don't think you've ever mentioned it."
Birthday.
The word felt like a rusty needle, pricking lightly.
She opened her mouth, and the first thing that surfaced was a familiar string of numbers. Her own birthday, from another world, belonging to another Cali.
Cake, candles, red envelopes from her parents, friends laughing, carefully wrapped gifts. The memories were vivid, so clear they almost stung.
But what about the birthday of this body?
A rich young lady, with a mother who was a well-known socialite in Knoxville. Her birthdays must have been lavish.
But she had not inherited those memories. None of those warm details existed for her.
Calista froze, unsure how to answer.
A heavy, delayed sense of confusion and loss washed over her.
Three months.
It had been over three months since she arrived in this world of the walking dead.
She had been busy holding onto Leah and the others, busy surviving, building a base, acting as a calm and capable leader. She had almost forgotten who she used to be.
It was only because of Leah's simple question that she suddenly realized.
Everything she once had was ordinary, but happy.
And that ordinary girl could never go back.
There would be no more birthday wishes, no more ties to the past.
Calista's eyes dimmed. She lowered her head slightly, fingers twisting the edge of her clothes, her voice barely audible.
"…I don't remember."
Leah immediately sensed the shift in her mood.
Seeing her usually decisive and sharp sister now looking like a lost child who could not find her way home, something in Leah softened.
She was not good with words, but she acted quickly.
She reached out and gave Calista's shoulder a firm squeeze.
"Then forget it," Leah said, her voice carrying a steady, grounding force. "In this messed up world, every day we stay alive is a damn birthday."
She paused and rummaged through another pocket.
Who knew how many little things she had hidden.
Leah pulled out another mint candy and pressed it into Calista's hand.
"Take this as an early birthday gift. When the real day comes, I'll find you something nice."
She made a silent decision. It would be a gift worthy of her sister's status as a rich young lady, and of her role as the leader of Rock Fortress.
Calista held the cool candy tightly, nodded, and said softly, "May 20."
Her twenty-fourth birthday. May 20.
She stayed quiet for a moment.
"Wait."
Leah frowned slightly. "What?"
Calista puffed out her cheeks. "You just said that was the last one."
Leah rubbed her nose awkwardly and turned her head away. "I didn't feel this one earlier."
Calista stood up, a mischievous smile spreading across her face. "I don't believe you. Let me check if you're hiding more."
She lunged forward, hands reaching out as she started tickling Leah.
Leah burst out laughing as she struggled. "Alright, alright, stop, I'm not ticklish."
The two of them messed around for a while before finally calming down.
"Leah?" Calista spoke again after a moment, her voice soft.
"Yeah?"
"Do you think we can really find the Sentinel Station? Can we fix what's wrong with me?" There was a faint trace of vulnerability and dependence in her voice.
Only in front of Leah would she show that uncertainty.
Leah did not answer immediately. She listened carefully to the sounds outside before speaking.
"I don't know. But we'll try. Just like we always have."
She turned to look at Calista.
"You've kept us alive. You built a big base. You brought us this far, Cali. You can keep leading us forward. Eat your candy."
Calista looked at Leah's calm profile, and the unease in her chest slowly settled.
She nodded and said nothing more, quietly savoring the cool sweetness of the mint in her mouth.