by Kylie Scott
“H-hey.” Ali frowned, concentrating till things swam into focus.
It took some time.
The stranger frowned too, which was fair enough. She didn’t sound so great to her own ears, probably looked awful. Stupid thing to worry about, but the man watching her, he was pretty. Take a picture pretty. A few years younger than her thirty-two, blonde hair on the longish side, with pale green eyes staring back at her. Still frowning.
Her focus wavered as the pounding in her skull kicked in anew. Curling up into a ball in the corner would be for the best, but she couldn’t. If she fell apart now they were fucked. Those people were still out there, ready to murder and God knows what else.
“Put your head between your knees.” The stranger used that voice again, smooth and authoritative. He controlled the situation. Exactly what was required. She did as told and hung her head. “That’s it.”
She nodded. Or tried to.
“Hey you,” he said, referring to Daniel. “There’s water in my pack there…” Fingers rubbed at the back of her neck. The stranger’s fingers. Nice of him.
“Thank you,” she mumbled.
There came the sound of footsteps and ruffling, then more footsteps headed straight for her. Daniel. Daniel was close. Good.
Everything was better already.
“Babe?”
“I’m okay,” she whispered. Willing it to be true. Hoping she didn’t pass out.
“Course you are. Here, drink some water.” Daniel coaxed her head back and held the water to her lips.
God, he was so good to her.
She tightened her grip on the pistol and gave pulling her shit together another shot. They really didn’t have time for this. Water trickled into her mouth, and the world slid slowly back into focus.
“You’re going to have quite a bump there,” the stranger said, pulling at her scattered senses.
He no longer frowned, but still looked pretty.
Her head spun, and she put it back between her knees. Preferable to puking on the pretty man or her shiny brand new boyfriend.
“I’ll second the thank you for saving our asses. Who are you by the way?” asked Daniel.
He moved closer to her other side, and she ever so slowly reverted her head to the upright position. Seeing him was a medicine all of its own.
Daniel leant in to brush her bruised cheek with a quick kiss. “God, I’m sorry, baby. You alright? Keeping it together?”
No. Not really. “Yep.”
“Atta girl.” Daniel winked and sat back on his haunches, dealing the stranger an assessing look. He raised his chin and gazed at the guy frankly. “You saved our asses, all power to you. And yet…”
“Finn Edwards. I was an officer, a cop, before…”
“A cop,” Ali echoed in surprise.
“Yeah. For what it’s worth.” The stranger took a hefty gulp of water. She tried not to notice the blood stains on his arm and the sleeve of his blue t-shirt. No uniform, just jeans and a t-shirt. What use would a police uniform be? The blood and gore would have been from those two bastards on the floor with their throats missing. Two people he had dispatched to protect her. It was surreal.
Her hands started shaking. About time the rabbit hopped back onto the scene. “You’re really a cop?”
“Hang on. I’ve got my badge in my pack.” Finn hopped up and made for a pack waiting by the half-torn away shed door. He returned with a black leather wallet and flipped it open with practiced ease, displaying the shiny silver shield within and a picture ID. “If it helps any.”
His jeans were hitched up on one side; a knife in its sheath jutted out from one of his big brown hiking boots. What a weapon. Probably the one he had used to slit those throats.
“You haven’t told me your name.” Finn bent down, putting himself back into her line of vision. He cocked his head, smiled briefly.
More choirboy than killer.
“I’m Ali. This is Daniel.” She tried to smile back, but the expression wouldn’t quite work. “Why were you following us?”
Finn rubbed his chin with the palm of his hand, his forehead furrowed. “I spotted you two on the highway heading west yesterday, heard the gunshot the day before. I figured I’d follow. A man and a woman alone … perhaps you don’t want company. Making new friends is difficult these days; there are a lot of dangers to consider. You weren’t likely to just accept whoever came along.”
He hesitated, seeming much older for a moment, and very serious. “Humans are social creatures. I didn’t realize how much until nearly everyone was gone. Then there’s security, safety in numbers…”
Daniel made a noise. She couldn’t tell what the noise meant, but apparently, it made sense to Finn. He nodded solemnly in reply.
“They got the drop on you. No offense intended. They were halfwits, but they were trained halfwits. They came prepared and they outnumbered you.” Finn gave the badge in his hand a long look, eyes going blank. “I can help you protect her,” he said to Daniel.
Daniel cocked his head. “And what do you want in return for this help?”
“Good question.” Ali pulled herself up, let her hand drop down to rest atop the gun beside her. Hopefully, a valiant show of strength.
Finn tracked the movement. “No, Ali. Guys … I’m not asking for that. Shit.” He kept his hands low and out front. “Eventually you two are going to run across more people and not all of them are going to be assholes. Eventually, you’re going to want to find someplace safe, settle down, rebuild. That’s what I want. I want to know there’s something after all this. Us banding together, that’s a beginning.”
And what was Daniel’s take on this?
Her boyfriend shrugged, gave her a small nod. She had to make the final decision. Odd, Dan had pushed at every turn up until now.
Finn’s elegant face was all seriousness. Pale green eyes honed in on her. It felt like his hopes were on a tight leash, but his heart was on his sleeve. He had seemed so contained, controlled, but not so much now. She knew what it was to be alone and without hope.
“You want to be friends,” she said, feeling her way tentatively. She’d lucked out with trusting Daniel. Twice in one week might be pushing it. But Finn had saved them from certain horrible deaths. There was a familiar edge of desperation in his eyes, a craving. She’d seen it in Daniel and she’d also seen it in the mirror a time or two. Everyone was scared of something these days. Her rabbit heart sped and her skin felt too small. She couldn’t leave him on his own without hating herself a little. They’d just have to take the risk.
“I want to be friends,” he said.
“I appreciate what you did for us in there. Stepping in when you didn’t even know us.”
His eyes searched her face. “I’ll have your back, Ali. I promise.”
“Okay.” She stopped, sniffed the air. “I smell fire. It’s close.”
CHAPTER FOURTEEN
The supermarket was burning but it wasn’t alone. Thick plumes of black smoke rose into the air, much too reminiscent of the bombings down south for Finn’s peace of mind. He had enough to contend with without lobbing flashbacks into the mix.
Every now and then a car would go, exploding as the spark hit the gas tank and “whoosh”. He had to empty his mind, de-escalate the tension and get on with the job. Depend upon his training. Things were getting more dangerous by the second as infected stumbled out of nearby buildings, lured by the noise and drama.
It could work for or against them.
The gunmen were having fun for the moment, setting the whole world on fire, but still making their gradual, inexorable way toward them. The drugs and liquor and whatever they were on were slowing them down, but not stopping them.
As a fear tactic, the extra fires worked a treat.
“They’re helping the blaze along.” The big guy, the civilian, Daniel, scowled in the direction of the bonfire.
It was far too fucking close for comfort in Finn’s professional opinion. “Let’s get moving.�
��
Daniel helped Al to her feet, tucked a strand of hair carefully behind her ear. It was a tender moment that spoke volumes. The way the big guy could step into her personal space without her blinking. The way he could touch her.
Finn watched while Daniel melded his hands to the curves of her hips. Al fit the length of her body against him. It hadn’t even occurred to Finn that he wanted that, not until right then.
A thorn caught in his throat.
Okay, it had occurred to him. Of course it had. The usual hot, sweaty thoughts passed through his mind. But this was specific, wanting to fit her against him.
Just. Like. That.
“Baby, good to go?” Daniel asked. “We need some distance from these dickheads.”
Al didn’t look good. She was dazed, the bruise on the side of her face bloomed in dark gray and blue. The gun was still in her hand and at the ready. What were the odds of her shooting straight with a concussion to guide her? Shit.
“What about a car?” she whispered.
Finn cleared his throat, and her eyes darted to him nervously. “Ali, there’s still four of them that we know of. Going further into the center of town would be a bad idea. Probably we’d be flanked with more infected around to manage. Plus, they came from that direction; they’ll know the area. There’s only one road heading back to the highway from here, and it’s a mess. We’d be slowed down and exposed. If we made it to the highway there’s too much open space. They would run us to ground.”
Al’s arms tightened around Daniel. She opened her mouth and nodded slowly, her gaze at her feet.
Finn didn’t blame her in the least. While he might not like the report, he would give it fully.
“I didn’t think of that,” she said.
Finn settled his pack over his shoulders. He picked up a pistol, double-checking the clip, from habit more than necessity. It was full. “To sum up, a car or a bike would be bad. Stealth is more important right now.”
“What’s your plan, then?” Daniel asked. He deferred without antagonism. This time at least. They didn’t have time to butt heads and clash antlers.
The man ran a hand down Al’s back. Part territorial, part reassuring himself maybe. It had to be killing him what had gone down in the supermarket. Her getting hurt because of him, no matter the circumstances.
Finn knew he’d been right. All round nice guy or not, Daniel could not keep her safe. Not like Finn could.
Not like Finn would if it came down to it, when it came down to it. Daniel could fend for himself.
“There’s a river about a kilometer west. I say we make for—” An almighty explosion shook him, the ground trembling beneath his feet. It was soon followed by a second. No time for talk. “They’re getting closer. Let’s go.”
They ran, keeping careful and low. They dashed from shed to shed, then along a line of dumpsters.
Ali did well to keep up, sequestered between them. Daniel led. Finn found it easier on his concentration if he could keep her in sight. She was less of a distraction right in front of him than she would have been behind.
Plus, the assholes were back there.
Flames roared in the distance, but they could still hear the pack of gunmen over the fiery cacophony. They yelled and fired their guns into the air. The assholes were doing their best to round them up and hunt them down.
Suburbia surrounded the shopping precinct, older-style wooden buildings mixed in with newer brick and tile.
They moved as fast as they could. Daniel helped Al scale a chest-high wire fence while Finn stood guard. A few feet from the ground, she lost her footing and tumbled down, landing hard. The big guy hurried down there in a flurry of action. He landed deftly beside her while she stood and rubbed at her fine ass.
“Umm, I’m okay.”
Daniel cupped her chin and gave her a good long look. “Hurt anything?”
“My butt, my pride, otherwise, no.”
The big man gave a tight nod, walked her back from the fence so there was room for Finn amongst the shrubbery. “Come on over. We’d better keep moving.”
Finn got up and over while the big guy watched their back trail, gun in one hand, Ali in the other.
Moaning drifted up from within some of the houses where the infected had been sheltering from the daylight. The situation grew worse.
“This is going to get ugly fast,” Finn reported.
The big man grunted, keeping his eyes on his woman. She barely stood her ground, swaying like a wind buffeted her.
Daniel didn’t wait for her to throw a leg over the next fence. The man grabbed her about the waist and lifted her over the hip-high wooden palings. Setting her down, he kept a hand on her while following her over.
Doing his best by her. But, had she been in Finn’s care from the start, she wouldn’t have been hurt. He hoped she didn’t have a bad concussion, internal bleeding or bruising.
They moved through a long line of suburban backyards, slowly, steadily gaining ground. The scenery altered little. Children’s swing sets, a soccer ball and line after line of washing. Colors had paled from days and days of exposure.
A motorbike tore up the street in front of them. They changed direction, running alongside the river, as opposed to toward it.
Swimming pools were swamps, with the water turned algae green. They clambered over fences and pushed through bushes and gardens running wild.
They had to cross another street.
“Wait.” Finn stepped up from behind them, leaving Daniel to watch their backs and her.
Up the street an infected stumbled onto the asphalt in the remains of a suit and tie. Its bald head swayed from side to side, coated in dirt and old blood, and blinded by daylight. Gunfire drew it back toward the shops, away for now. Another infected lurched along beside it, a child in the tattered remains of pajamas, joining the chase.
What he wouldn’t give for a silencer. The first time they were forced to shoot would give up their position. “Go.”
Ali jerked to life, crossing the street with Daniel hot on her tail. He wasn’t more than a step away from her, one hand wrapped tight around her arm.
Another bike drew close. It hummed and growled like a hungry animal. A street over, no more.
“We’re being herded,” he said.
“Yeah. We gotta head west,” Daniel said.
“Agreed.” Finn motioned them on, staying at their backs as promised.
They cut through some open-air car parks beneath a block of apartments, climbing the hood of a vehicle when it blocked their way. Another chorus of moaning came from close by, thankfully behind them. The fire and noise was drawing the infected away.
The ground fell between one line of houses and the next, a sharp decline of more than a story from the top of the fence to the grassy yard below.
“Pass her down to me.” The big guy made the drop then held his hands up for Al.
She gripped the hip-high fence as if a hurricane was causing her havoc, her knuckles white with pressure.
“Al?” Finn stood beside her at the fence and turned her to face him. He pried her hands from the railing and set them on his shoulders instead.
His reaction to the contact was instantaneous. And damn ill timed. His dick stirred, and his heart rate sharpened.
She clutched at his shoulders. In theory, good, neutral territory. He didn’t dare dwell on the scent of her. Getting hard would not earn her trust, and he wanted it. Wanted her to know he would follow through. That she was protected.
“Al? Are you with me?”
She blinked furiously as if she was straining to see him, but her pupils didn’t appear too bad. It was a good sign. “I’m okay.”
“Headache?”
She nodded; a bad idea with a concussion. Her fingernails pricked at his skin through his t-shirt as she reasserted her grip. “I did have some painkillers. We, umm … we lost the packs.”
“I’ve got mine. Once we get out of here I’ll get it sorted, alright?”
&
nbsp; “Thanks, Finn.”
One hand remained on his shoulder as she stuffed the handgun down the back of her belt.
“Tell me the safety is on, Al.”
“It’s on.” She licked her lips, visibly straightened her shoulders, pulling herself together. His trail of thought ended at her mouth. Her lips. Christ. He had a job to do.
“Ready?” Finn gripped her hips, steering his mind clear of the fact that several of his fingers wrapped around soft, warm skin. But he could deal with that. The warm, female scent of her got him where it hurt. Burying his nose in her neck was right out of the question. Concentrating was fucking impossible.
His stomach drew tight, his cock swelled in his pants. Not the time to go there.
“Take it slow.” He held her steady as she inched one leg over, then the other. She balanced on the narrow strip of concrete by the toes of her shoes, fingers digging into his shoulders for dear life. “Give me both hands, Al. I’ll lower you down.”
“Okay.” She hesitated. He waited, long minutes that they couldn’t afford.
“I need you to trust me, Al,” he confessed. “Just like you trust him. It’s the only way we’re gonna get through this.”
“Don’t ask for much, do you?”
“Only what’s necessary.”
Her hands slid down from his shoulders, down his arms. It was the trip of a lifetime, charged with meaning despite his best efforts to keep it simple. He wanted her trust for a myriad of reasons, but he needed it to get the job done.
Her fingers, slick with sweat, met his palms. Gripping was a bitch, but he held on tight, easing her down. She hovered above Daniel’s grasp.
The noise came from his six. A footfall heard too late.
Finn released Ali’s fingers, trusting the man.
The bullet lit bloody fire across his shoulder. He swore, dropped and drew his gun from the holster at his side. A second bullet cut through the air his head had just vacated. Too late. The asshole had had his chance.
No time to worry about noise or positions. Training and instincts took over. Finn aimed for the chest, going for the kill shot.
