Hunting Party (Still Alive; A Lesbian Love Story in an Undead World Book 3)

by Leigh Ann Scott

  “You…you don’t mind that I…?”

  “Not at all, especially after getting to know you.” Mira traced her fingers down Jaimee’s breasts and ribs. “I will start, yes?”

  Soon Mira’s hands and mouth was everywhere sending tingling sensations throughout her body. Jaimee followed suit, eager to possess Mira and please her as well. They explored each other, Jaimee a little awkwardly at first, but smoother as she gained confidence. She knocked her head on the footboard once, the headboard at least twice and managed to avoid injuring Mira with her elbow while flinging her arms around. Eventually they settled in to a rhythm, pulsing their bodies together. She slithered down Jaimee’s breasts and ribs, down to her spreading thighs. All Jaimee could think about was Mira’s exotic rolling of her tongue when speaking and the calisthenics she was performing on her clit.

  Small muscles under her skin began twitching as Jaimee became closer and closer to cumming. This time…this time fulfilled. After hoping, wishing and trying to find a willing partner, it was finally happening. She came in a rush and cried out, rolling waves of electricity jolting from where Mira touched her.

  Both rested afterward, speaking soft secrets into one another’s ear and smiling.

  Jaimee fought content sleepiness that the release brought. I haven’t been this relaxed since…who knows when. Can’t fall asleep. Just can’t – I want her now and have to make sure I get this right. I think I’m going to do the exact same things she did to me…or at least hope I can.

  Taking her time and following Mira’s guiding touch, Jaimee claimed every inch of her body, softly at first and then more boldly when the other woman’s body responded. She was surprised as she felt herself become aroused again as Mira climaxed under the deft experimentations of her tongue.

  *****

  I wonder what ever happened to Mira. Jaimee thought as she drifted in and out of a doze in the back of the bus.

  Outside the air still had a bite to it, but inside the bus was warm enough to allow for a relaxing drowse while waiting for Diane, Blanca and Tori to return. Tom’s snores floated from the front of the bus, not enough to wake her, but they kept her from completely falling asleep.

  One of the most memorable times Mira and Jaimee spent together was late in the evening one Friday after all the art classes had dismissed. Jaimee managed to gain permission for a private painting session with Mira modeling. After ten minutes, Mira became restless and stood up, letting a gauzy shawl fall around her waist while she walked seductively toward Jaimee. Normally posing in the nude, she used the wrap as an accessory to turn the younger woman on. Dipping the brush in water, and swirling it in the paint, Jaimee touched the tip onto Mira’s breasts and began another artful creation. She remembered starting with the nipple and radiating outward, down and along creamy thighs. It was quite the affair, but nothing a hot shower together could not clean off later that night.

  Last I heard, she was living in South America somewhere. Modeling in…I think Brazil? Not sure. They had remained friends and continued to explore one another’s passions over time and although they had feelings for each other, they were not in love with one another. I was sad when she left, but got over it pretty quickly, moving on from date to date. God, I hope she’s still alive and not having to deal with the same bullshit we are. I didn’t hear anything about Brazil before TV and radio stopped broadcasting.

  Everything changed after she moved away – women started chasing me! I just had to walk into a bar and bam! There they were.

  Jaimee smiled. Eventually I realized how empty that was and what I really wanted was a real relationship. That’s hard to do with people just interested in partying, but there ARE lesbians out there who want the same thing. Just gotta search for them among all the hypocrites and ‘players’. Although, all that doesn’t matter much anymore does it?

  She yawned and rubbed her eyes. Her ribs were aching and she knew it was time to sit up for a time and relieve the pressure from lying down. Groaning, Jaimee scooted up and braced her back against the back wall. Life is upside down now and I’m lucky to even find another who swings the same way I do. I’m SO glad I found Diane! Now, we just have to stay alive.

  The main lobby of the shoe warehouse factory was clear of undead after the small party of three slashed and cut their way through a half dozen zombies. Diane, Tori and Blanca rested sitting along an oval information desk in the middle of the entrance. Behind them were two sets of double doors leading to the factory retail store and the other set to the warehouse. A spiral flight of stairs led upstairs to office space.

  Blanca traced a finger along the engraved map riveted into the wall near the information booth. “We won’t find food here, but may as well grab shoes. We’ll always need those.”

  She still was shaking, feeling the aftermath of clearing the undead. There were a few narrow escapes, but Diane or Tori always managed to be close enough to kill an attacker off before it overcame Blanca.

  “This side of the freeway is a bust.” Tori gestured back towards the front glass doors. “Let’s just get out of here and go back to the others.”

  Diane shook her head. “We may as well see if we can bring something back. Going back empty handed is never a good thing. Which side do you think will have less rotting corpses?”

  Tori shrugged and shook her head, while Blanca walked toward one of the double doors.

  “We can peek and see, and choose the one with less.” she reached for the handle.

  “Woaw! Wait!” Diane scrambled from behind the desk and snapped. “Listen through the door first! We’d have a rough time closing it if several rotters tried to push through to get to us.”

  Blanca flinched and stepped back. Diane felt bad for barking at her, but knew that Blanca’s lack of experience raiding could very likely get everyone killed unless she learned safer ways of searching and clearing areas of the undead.

  They paused and listened. Faint hissing and feet shuffling sounded on the other side of the door. They deduced that although the zombies were not right up against the door, they were nearby. Together, they both gently cracked the door open an inch to see what was inside.

  A chill ran up their spines. The large factory store had hundreds of different shoes and boots displayed, but also had as many undead shuffling along the waist level aisles, behind the registers and bumping against the large windows in the front of the building. A small army of rotting corpses, waiting to be released.

  Shutting the door quickly, Diane exclaimed. “Jesus. If those things got out…”

  “No one can fight that many.” Blanca looked around for something to bar the door. “We need to make sure they can’t get out.”

  “There’s nothing here. Well maybe one of these chairs, but that won’t hold them if they really try to come outside. More than a couple I mean. You’ve seen what they can do in groups.” Tori carried over a small chair and wedged it under the door handle.

  Diane nodded and walked briskly to the other set of doors, listened intently, and opened one side enough to see the room beyond. The others came up behind and looked as well into a large factory and shipping floor full of boxes, different styles of shoes, and boots. Undead paced mindlessly in the distance, bumping into stacks of containers and parked fork lifts. A small group stood close enough to make the women back away and quickly shut the door.

  “There’s not that many. We could take out that group between the three of us and grab a few boxes.”

  Diane shook her head no. “A few boxes of shoes isn’t worth getting the attention of that hoard in there.”

  “We don’t want to go back empty handed.” Blanca echoed.

  Sighing in resignation, Tori nodded her head at Diane. “No. No, she’s right. Maybe we can grab a few useful things from the cars around here and on the way back to the others.”

  After barricading the second set of doors, they left the building and began searching surrounding vehicles for anything worthwhile.

  Chapter Three

/>   The bus wobbled as Henry entered with the rest of the small group of survivors. Tom woke and pulled himself into a sitting position, making room for others on the long bench seat. Jaimee, already sitting upright on the bed, motioned Diane to have a seat next to her. Bobby clambered in after finishing a ‘sitrep’ of the immediate area and brought some bottled water from the group’s stash in the vehicles.

  “We’re clear for now.” He plopped down onto the driver’s seat. “What’s up?”

  “As far as the bus here,” Henry began, “I can get it running, but it’ll probably take a couple days to rip parts out of other non-op engines and cobble it together. Worth it in my opinion. Nice place to stretch out in here.”

  After guzzling half the bottle water in her hand, Diane said, “There was nothing of any use on that side of the freeway. Just a few items we found in cars, that’s about it.”

  “We totally struck out.” Tori frowned.

  Jaimee watched the three women glance at each other and knew there was more information. Diane looks stressed, while Tori looks irritated. And Blanca…she looks pale.

  “We could potentially have a problem, but only if any of them get out of that large factory store.” Diane folded her arms to feel more secure. “There are hundreds…hundreds of undead in there. Right now, they’re trapped behind doors and unbroken windows, but if they bust out…This is not the safest place to be.”

  “We couldn’t fight off that many. No way.” Bobby held up his hands.

  “Do you think it’s safe enough for the days Henry needs to fix this thing?” Tom asked.

  “Who can say for sure?” Diane shrugged. “We’d have to make sure everything was ready for a quick get-away and have someone on watch at all times. If we see movement from over there, we have to get the hell out of here fast.”

  “We’re two people short for watching.” Blanca reminded them.

  “I can do a short shift.” Tom offered. “Maybe longer, depending if I have to stand or can sit.”

  Jaimee felt frustrated, but knew she could not be of much assistance until she had the chance to recuperate further. Still, she wanted to help. “Look, I can’t do much, but I can be a good pair of eyes for an hour or so to give you guys a break.”

  Tori looked at her closely then shook her head. “No. Not yet. You may feel better Jaimee, but you’re still very messed up. This two-day break may work in your favor. You can rest a lot and do some basic rehab exercises, but that’s it. Give your body a chance to heal.”

  “But…”

  “No buts!”

  To Jaimee’s chagrin, everyone else nodded and agreed with Tori. They normally deferred to her in medical cases as she had the most experience in the field, even though it was merely office work, before the dead started to walk the earth.

  “Ok. So two days, then we keep going east.”

  *****

  It took an extra day, but by noon on the third day, they caravanned away from the lot with the repaired bus bringing up the rear. Bobby and Tom took the lead in the truck; Tori still drove the SUV, while Blanca drove a sedan. Diane would alternate driving for Tori or Blanca with resting in the bus making sure Jaimee was riding easy. Henry decided he was the best to drive the large bus.

  I’m beginning to feel human again. Jaimee reclined on the side bench of the bus as they exited the freeway where the blockage began. I hate to admit it, but those extra days of rest helped. My ribs still kill me when I make a wrong move, but my head isn’t nearly as fuzzy as it was, plus aside from some bruising still showing, my cuts are nearly healed. Except for the one above my eye. That’s gonna leave a permanent mark.

  “Hey Henry. What town is this?” she asked as they began to enter a small town from the west.

  “Sign said Beaumont.”

  The caravan ground to a halt in the middle of a large intersection, and Bobby hopped out of the lead vehicle to call a meeting. Killing the engines, they came together to decide what direction to take.

  Tori paced around the car after exiting to eliminate a zombie wandering towards them. It made slow progress, dragging one of its legs behind, clothing rotted and hanging limp across its carcass. She did not want to use her gun for fear of attracting attention, so unlatched her belt sheath and pulled out a large knife, readying herself as the creature ambled forward. Snapping its jaw, it threw its arms toward her abruptly, almost lunging and falling in the need to taste living flesh. One eye dangled from the left socket, hanging there by thin tendrils of nerves.

  Swallowing bile, Tori slid to the side of the creature while it flailed and punched her knife into the side of its head. Immediately, the soulless animation stopped, and the body slipped to the ground. She cleaned her knife and walked back to join the others.

  Diane nodded at her and turned her attention back to Blanca who was speaking.

  “We need to find a grocery store to find food. We’re low on everything.” Blanca frowned. “And can we find a place to live too? I’m getting tired of all this driving and camping.”

  Most stayed silent in response, but Tom shook his head. “Not yet. I think we should at least go another town east before scouting for places. This seems too close to Riverside and that other group.”

  “True that.” Bobby agreed.

  Jaimee wondered if any town was safe. There may always be ‘another’ group, and more than likely they would not appreciate another collection of people using resources in their area. Maybe, just maybe they could find a like-minded bunch looking to grow and protect one another from the undead and living.

  “There’s bound to be a few stores we can hit up in town here. Then, let’s push to the next town and reassess.” Jaimee knew Tom was right, but also realized how tired some of them were. She wanted to push for Palm Springs. That may happen further down the line. For now, we have to prioritize – get food and shelter later. “Do any of you know this town? Where things are, I mean?”

  Everyone shook their heads negatively.

  “Other than driving past on the freeway and seeing what was directly off of it, not so much.”

  “Then I guess any direction is good.” Henry grumbled. He looked older than usual and unkempt. Everyone looked a little rough around the edges, but he and Blanca both seemed stretched beyond their stamina.

  Diane pointed, “Let’s try going further into the heart of town and then away from the freeway. There has to be a store for the locals that way. If we get to a place that’s all houses, we could either turn around and try a different street, or just search the homes for food and supplies.”

  Agreeing, they piled back into the vehicles and weaved up the road, rounding obstacles and grinding the dead underneath.

  Jaimee winced. The sound of decomposed bodies being flattened under the car is something I don’t think I’ll ever get used to. Even if it does put a stop to some of them for good.

  Their first stop was a gas station with a food mart inside. Jaimee, Tom and Henry stood watch after clearing the immediate area of undead, while the rest entered the building to raid for food, hygiene or other useful items. No one in the group, except for Henry, smoked, but they always grabbed anything of value, including tobacco products that could be used for trade down the line if they met other people willing to bargain for items. They had the hope that there were communities out there that had not succumbed to madness and gang behavior, trying to keep life as normal as possible under the circumstances.

  Bobby led the charge into the gas station store with Diane and Tori close behind. Blanca lagged behind reluctant to follow along. At least two zombies spun and hissed as the group flung the doors open brandishing weapons. Bobby flung himself at the first, slashing down with a large machete, while trying to contain his excitement. Diane and Tori grimly pushed back the second creature until one of them found the right angle and stabbed a large knife into its temple. Blanca joined them afterward and found a body of the cashier behind the counter, killed with what looked like a self-inflicted bullet wound to the head and a smal
l revolver on the floor next to chewed hand.

  “Are we clear?” Diane asked, glancing down the aisles of the small food mart.

  “I think so, but let me check the back room.” Bobby left quickly and forced open a door leading to a small storage area with an office and restroom attached. Tori trailed behind to watch for trouble.

  The other two women began systematically grabbing food and anything useful, shoving them into backpacks and large bags. Besides drinks and snacks, they filled the sacks with lip balm; travel sized toiletries, feminine products, bandages, batteries, various pain-killing tablets, sunglasses, a few sun hats, lighters, small flashlights, and a paper map of the local area. All the tobacco products went into a pack as well. There was no way Henry would ever smoke, or chew his way through all of it any time in the near future. Bobby and Tori rejoined them and began to toss more things into their bags.

  They used this method at a couple more mini marts, filling all the bags. Late in the afternoon, they pulled the caravan of vehicles into the edge of a grocery store parking lot crawling with undead. Deciding that trying to kill off the large amount of zombies between the seven of them was not a good idea, they pushed eastward, eventually leaving the small town behind them after Blanca declared they had enough food to last them at least three days.

  Skipping the freeway, they drove down a major avenue toward the next city to the east named Banning. During one of their breaks from driving, Jaimee spread out a map over the hood of the car and pointed out a few options where they could drive to and possibly rest for a while. One such street lead up into the foothills of the mountain and promised to be secluded from most of the zombie hoards and hopefully a good place to hide from still-living enemies.