“Nice,” Rosemarie smiled at Lt. Higgins. “but can I have a gun, though?”

“Well, if we follow the standard procedures, I’d have enough to put you in confinement.” Lt. Higgins grinned back. His eyes bounced from the worried civilians and those tending to the ones that died. He held onto his words, but he gave the gun strapped to his side to Rosemarie. “You did ask me nicely, so I guess it’ll be okay. Take care of the gun and we’ll be cheering for you,” he looked around again. “keep us safe, please.”

“Sweet.” Rosemarie checked the gun if it had bullets and smiled. “This would do,” she patted Lt. Higgins’ shoulder and chuckled. “This would do nicely, old man.”

“Don’t worry about it.” Lt. Higgins laughed back, looked at Verdell, and stopped at Tom. “We’ll have to do what we could on our side, too, right?”

“Yep,” Tom sighed. “I should get going. I have to check on the barricades and coordinate with the people that are securing the perimeter. Thanks for the coffee, too, really. It almost makes me getting my ribs crushed worth it.” He sipped his coffee, gave Verdell a radio, and bowed to Hermano and Rosemarie before disappearing into the crowd.

Lt. Higgins followed Tom’s back, giving him a thoughtful nod before facing Rosemarie. “Anyways,” he looked at his gun strapped to Rosemarie’s side. “don’t be afraid to shoot that bastard down if you need to.” He winked. “You can count on me to deal with the bosses.”

“Yippe,” Rosemarie joked. She pulled ten sticks of wood from her duffel bag and shoved them into her back pocket. Her surrounding was full of people, but they all blurred to obscurity when she narrowed her gaze. It was a job that needed to be done and it could get messy, but she heard a child’s laugh that made her think twice and settle for a jar of green butterflies instead of hornets or cockroaches. “So,” she turned to Hermano. “are you gonna be a lamb and go first?”

“How mean.” Hermano snickered, stretching his shoulders as he took out a finger suspended in a small bottle of formalin from the pocket of his jacket. He bowed to Rosemarie like a gentleman, then whispering into his catalyst and turning it to ash. It called upon the dead, who answered with a stiff and slow groan as they pulled themselves from the ground before marching to surround him.

Rosemarie scoffed. “Now, you’re just showing off.” She cracked her knuckles, turned the jar into ash along with three other wooden sticks, multiplying her butterflies and commanding them to surround her body like a breathing cloak. Her confidence grew even more when she caught a moment of adoration in the distance.

“Nope,” Hermano replied on a whimsical note and walked forward. He tapped one zombie on the shoulder, causing it to rot faster until its bones were left.

It crumbled to the ground at the next second and pulled the other dead bodies that surrounded it like a magnet, melding their flesh together until it turned into a cold dead ball of flesh. It pulsed, shivered as though it felt the coldness of everyone’s anxiety, and spasmed until it bore its limbs.

Hermano lowered his chin, glanced at Rosemarie with a smug but humble smile, and turned to the house in the distance. “Not at all… Not one bit.”

“Sorry, but I’ll have you sit this one out.” Rosemarie smiled at Verdell before following Hermano’s lead. Without looking back and even before Verdell could reply, she waved her hand and added, “Keep this old man company and protect him if everything went south, okay?”

Verdell crossed her arms. “Miss Rosemarie...”

Rosemarie spread her arms and her cloak of butterflies dispersed, landing onto the awkward patches of grass, bushes, pots, and trees around them. Verdell glanced at Lt. Higgins and let her eyes settle on Rosemarie’s back. She tried to calm herself down by shortening her breaths, but it didn’t do much when her nervousness swelled and strangled her neck; she was left breathless when Lt. Higgins raised his hand and ordered his men to ready their guns.

Wide-eyed and her mouth open, Verdell turned to Lt. Higgins.

“I’m sorry, but it’s the standard procedure, little lady.” Lt. Higgins gave her a kind smile. “I’m pretty sure they’re about to fight, and by some chance, if Rosemarie and that man lost, we’re going to blast what’s left of them down; don’t worry, she knows this too.”

“Y-you do realize that breaking something could trigger—” Verdell folded her arms again and gritted her teeth. “What are you going to do about the civilians?”

“We’re going to protect them, of course, and if it summons something that we can’t fight,” Lt. Higgins tilted his head. “I trust that you’ll know how to take care of that.”

The butterflies began to burn, taking the things that it landed on with them. Verdell’s face crumpled. She had to stop herself from flinching. Her only choice, at this moment, was to wait and pray for their safety. The crowd began to murmur. Their eyes were called upon a grand stage that held a battle between mages. Both parties had already made their move and presented their cards, but it was not enough. Thus, they waited; they watched as Hermano and Rosemarie moved forth, facing a horde of wraiths that still seemed not to notice them, making the atmosphere laced with this heaviness and silence that made their bodies itch.

“What’s happening?” Verdell tilted her head and squinted. She readied herself with the possibility of jumping over the barricade to run to their rescue at any moment.

“I’m hoping we won’t get to drag anyone in this anymore… but this needs to be done, you know. Your—our only choice is to trust them.” Lt. Higgins sighed and placed his palms together. “I hate making sacrifices too. They’re all good people, but sometimes, the world just fucks you right over by forcing you to believe in others and suffer its consequences.”

Verdell scoffed and shook her head. “Do you need something to drink, Lt. Higgins?”

“Nope, that coffee was good.” Lt. Higgins smiled at her again and handed her a ticket. It was a ticket for a trip for two. “Now, face forward, keep your head straight, and say nothing. Otherwise, I’d scream help, and you’d be dead in a second.”