by Z. Allora
Copyright
Warning: this book contains graphic depictions of male/male sex and is not intended for audiences under the age of eighteen.
This book is a work of fiction. All characters, companies, events, and locations are either products of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, places, or events is entirely coincidental and beyond the intent of the author and publisher.
Zombies Ahead (Club Zombie Book 1)
Copyright 2019 © Z. Allora
Zombies Suck (Club Zombie Book 2)
Copyright 2019 © Z. Allora
Zombies Coming (Club Zombie Book 3)
Copyright © Z. Allora 2019
Zombies Blow (Club Zombie Book 4)
Copyright © Z. Allora 2019
Cover art 2019 by Reese Dante
Interior layout and design by P.D. Singer
All rights reserved. No part of this book may be used, reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage or retrieval system, without the written permission of the publisher, except where permitted by law, or in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles and reviews.
Published by:
Rocky Ridge Books
PO Box 6922
Broomfield, CO 80021
Zombies Ahead
Club Zombie Book 1
For My Readers…
Acknowledgments
Thank you to Dez, Katie, P.D. Singer, and Andrea for helping me on polishing this story for the third and final rewrite.
My Pretties on Facebook, thank you for your love and support.
Big hugs and many thanks to my Z-bies in my Yaoified Love group on Facebook. (Private message me if you want to join.)
Thank you again to Ally Blue, who is at fault for the entire series. “You should write a zombie story,” she said innocently. Ally planted that seed a decade ago and I haven’t been able to leave my zombies alone since that time.
As always, I want to thank my love, for without you, I would not be. You are my heart, and the essence I need to survive.
1
The Pickup
“Kai! Kai! Get your ass up here!” Uncle Franz’s scream echoed through the vineyard.
Kai stopped pruning and retied the grapevine to the wooden stake.
Bellowing or hauling off and smacking him in the head were the only ways his uncle communicated. So, like usual, here he was, causing a commotion instead of working around their small family winery.
After his parents died ten years ago, Kai had been sent to live with his good-for-nothing uncle on the outskirts of Germany’s wine region. His parents had always avoided contact with the man, and he quickly came to understand why. However, someone needed to take care of his younger cousin, Ulrich.
The only bright spot in living here was that he got to spend time with his cousin. Ulrich was a couple of years younger than Kai, but the sixteen-year-old had turned into his best friend. They’d become inseparable.
What did his uncle want this time? Did they turn off the gas? Or electricity? Kai was certain he’d given the utility companies enough money to buy a three-week extension.
He yawned as he surveyed the fields—rows and rows of healthy plants. He checked the base of the plant he was working on and picked up the second pair of nippers. There was a lot to be done before the grapes were harvested, but his hard work should produce a good yield, even if his uncle didn’t seem to care that it was almost growing season.
“Kai!” Another angry bellow shattered his pondering.
“Yes, sir!” Kai shouted to the old stone house on the hill.
As he hiked the inclined path, he noticed the rear shutter had come loose again. A crumbling piece of the wall must have slammed into it. Sooner or later they’d need a stonemason. Stuffing a sock into the empty spot couldn’t hide the broken upstairs window, and Kai’s repeated attempts at patching were no substitute for the new roof the house required. Little things that would once have been easy repairs had grown with neglect.
Yet the home he shared with his uncle and cousin had never seemed as shabby as it did today. The fancy SUV parked in the gravel driveway highlighted the disrepair.
Oh crap! Who’s here?
Had the bank debt collectors sent reinforcements to ensure they were clear about the amount they owed? No matter how much money Kai gave to their creditors, his uncle would always drink them back into debt, racking up additional bills.
Kai washed his hands at the side of the house with the hose. What could he say in terms of damage control? Perhaps he would explain to the debtors his new strategy of enhancing their grapes, which he’d come up with while talking to some of their neighbors. Would it be enough?
Kai grimaced as he looked down at his grime-covered clothing, and he brushed himself off. His wet hands turned the dirt into mud on his shirt. Perhaps the creditors would see how hard he worked and give them another extension so they could keep the tiny vineyard and house.
“You’re a mess, boy.” His uncle tried to cuff him in the back of his head as he entered the house, but a hulking dark-skinned stranger stayed his uncle’s hand.
“Don’t lay another hand on this boy. He’s ours now,” the man claimed in a deep voice.
What? Kai was whose?
Uncle Franz pulled away, and balled his hands into fists. His eyes flashed with anger, but even he wasn’t stupid enough to go against a man that big.
Kai glanced at his furious uncle. There’d be hell to pay later. “Excuse me. I’m a mess. My uncle’s right. I should change.”
A fair-skinned, shorter man stepped forward, and shook Kai’s hand. The guy was movie-star pretty, and his stunning smile lit the room. “That won’t be necessary. I’m Beau Renou.”
The black guy held out his hand, but not before giving Uncle Franz another warning glower. “Lafayette. Nice to make your acquaintance, Kai Bauer.” The mountain of a man squeezed Kai’s hand tight in a handshake that almost hurt.
“You’re not from around here?” Kai asked in English. Their German was good, but he heard undertones of an accent.
“Definitely not.” Beau laughed and glanced over at Lafayette, who grinned before glaring at Kai’s uncle again. “We’re Americans.”
Great! A break. Americans were usually pushovers for a down-on-your-luck story. “The harvest isn’t for several months, but with the great weather predicted and the new strategy I developed, this’ll be a great year for our grapes. Please, just give us a chance.”
“A chance?” Lafayette asked in German. “A chance for what?” He squinted and glanced around the dimly lit stone house.
Kai answered in English to keep Uncle Franz from following the conversation. “To pay our debt.”
“No need to pay us. We’re here to pay you,” Lafayette announced.
“Huh?” They were here to pay him?
“Your uncle agreed for you to come to America with us,” Mr. Renou said, like Kai had just won the lottery.
“America?” Kai gasped. What had his uncle done?
“We have some… work for you to do.” The man glanced around the living room.
The hesitation on the word work set off warning bells for Kai. “What? What work?”
Lafayette checked his watch. “We can discuss that later… on the plane. All your debts have been paid, and money will be deposited into your family’s account each week.”
Kai yawned. Why was he so tired? He shook his head, he had to stay awake to figure out what was happening. “I can’t just leave.” How did he know they weren’t human traffickers? He’d seen stories on the news and how it was a worldwide problem.
“You’re going, bo
y.” His uncle sneered and pointed a finger in Kai’s face. “You ungrateful cur. I got you a good job.”
Doing what? But there was no point in asking; his uncle had no clue, nor did he care. Kai studied the two strangers. They seemed pleasant enough, but he couldn’t just pick up and leave Germany.
“My younger cousin, Ulrich…. I, um, can’t really leave him,” Kai said in English. He darted a look to his uncle and back to the men, hoping to convey his fear to them.
Lafayette folded his massive arms and glared at Kai’s uncle. “Ulrich will be fine. Your uncle promised he’d not be harmed in any manner.” His German words were bitten off and spit out. The tone ensured everyone understood the implications if things didn’t go as promised.
Kai needed time to think. In German, he said, “Um, I have to take a quick shower.”
“Such a damned sissy,” Uncle Franz snarled. “Been trying to make a man out of him since he came to live with me. Get a move on it, boy!”
Kai ignored the biting criticism and rushed to his room, where he found his cousin busy packing a bag with all of Kai’s stuff. “Ulrich, did you hear—”
“Of course, and you’re going!” Ulrich rolled up the remaining T-shirt from Kai’s drawer and pushed it into the duffel.
“But I can’t just leave. I don’t even know them, and—”
Ulrich grabbed him by the shoulders. His fingers bit into Kai’s skin, making him wince. “You’re supposed to go.”
Clueless as to what caused Ulrich’s urgency, Kai shook his head. “I can’t.”
“It’s okay.” Ulrich released him, wiped at his eyes, and went back to packing.
Kai held in a sob, but his words broke. “What about you?” He pulled his cousin into a hug and clutched him tight. Ulrich was the only thing that made sense in his world after he lost his parents. How could Kai leave him behind?
“Go, otherwise I’ll be stuck here with him forever.” His cousin’s voice held that faraway, detached quality to it.
“Did you see…?” Kai had learned to trust Uli’s predictions. His forecasts didn’t always make sense at the time he had them, but when Ulrich’s moments of clairvoyance unwound, the information would always be correct. The visions came to pass.
Ulrich gave him a curt nod. He never liked to discuss his premonitions, because the lack of clarity freaked him out. “Now take a shower, ’cause you’re riper than the grapes.”
Kai headed into the bathroom and showered off the grime from the fields. Why didn’t the shower wake him up? God, he’d been exhausted for days.
When he came out of the steam, Ulrich tossed him clean clothing. “Here. Hurry.”
Kai dressed and glanced around the room he shared with Ulrich. “I don’t wanna leave without you. I’m not even sure what they want me to do.”
“It’ll be okay. I promise.”
“I should just go?” Did he trust Ulrich’s visions that much?
“Yes. I’m positive. I got everything.” Ulrich searched their crowded room as if there were places to hide other than their broken dresser, under the bed, and three-foot closet.
This appeared to be a done deal for everyone. “You’re sure about this?” Kai asked.
Ulrich sniffed and whispered, “It’s the opportunity for us to get out of here. And you have to go now. I’ll follow in a while.”
Kai would follow the path in front of him, but he had some demands of his own. He stomped back into the living room to find Uncle Franz trying to make nice with the foreigners, and if the looks on their faces were any indication, he had failed. “I’ll go with you, but I want to make sure I can talk to Ulrich.”
The foreigners exchanged smiles. Lafayette typed into his phone.
Beau smiled at Ulrich and patted Kai on the shoulder. In German he said, “Tomorrow someone will be here to install a computer system and to show Ulrich how to use it. This way the two of you can stay in touch while Ulrich finishes school.”
“I always wanted a computer,” Kai’s uncle said, as if he would know what to do with one.
Lafayette stopped using his phone and stepped into the man’s space. He towered over him and spelled out the rules. “You will not touch it or Ulrich. You will spend the money on necessities and Ulrich only. If not….”
“Um, yes, sir.” Uncle Franz nodded and cowered.
Kai had never heard his uncle submissive. Even in town, he played the big man, although everyone knew he was just a piece of shit. What amount of currency had it taken for this kind of obedience? “I don’t understand.” The words slipped out in English.
“We paid off your uncle’s debts and will give him enough to live.” Beau answered the question probably on Kai’s face. He checked his phone. “But we have to go if we’re going to catch our plane.”
This was it. Kai was leaving. Other than his cousin, there was nothing left here but bad memories, hard work, and abuse. His uncle had been awful. Living away from the bus line meant he hadn’t been able to keep the few friends he’d made during high school. He couldn’t even afford to go to the local college. Perhaps with a job, he’d find a way to send Ulrich to Heidelberg University so the kid would have more opportunities in life than Kai’s limitations had allowed. Or perhaps Ulrich could come to the United States.
“See, with a computer, you’ll still be able to keep tabs on me,” Ulrich reassured him and set the old duffel bag at his feet.
Kai pulled him into a hug.
“Go. Please.” Ulrich spoke in English. “I can see you are supposed to go. It’s how it should be. It will make things right… somehow. You need to go now.”
“Verdammt ich will nicht weggehen!” Kai swore.
Ulrich patted him on the shoulder. “I know you don’t like it, but we’ll talk every day.”
Lafayette glanced up from where he was typing into his phone. “A cell phone will be delivered in a few hours.”
Beau batted his eyes at Lafayette and grinned. “And a few other surprises.” Turning his head, he glared at Kai’s uncle. Beau might be smaller than Lafayette, but he appeared to have the ability to kick Uncle Franz’s ass too. “We’ll be watching you.”
Lafayette pocketed his phone and gave Kai a tight smile. “Time to go.”
It was all happening so fast, Kai didn’t have time to take a deep breath. “Wait. I don’t have a passport!”
Beau pulled a booklet out of his brown bag and handed it to Kai. “You do now.”
Kai flipped open the burgundy-red cover. Sure enough, the information was correct. They even had his current picture. How did they do that?
“If you want, I’ll keep it with all your paperwork,” Beau offered.
Yawning, Kai handed the booklet back, and Beau slipped the passport into his leather bag.
“It’s time,” Lafayette reminded them again.
Kai grabbed Ulrich into a tight hug, not wanting to let the kid go.
When they broke apart, Beau spoke to both of them in English. “We’ll come back for Ulrich.” He narrowed his eyes as he stared at Ulrich. “But you’re not surprised…. You expected this, didn’t you?”
Ulrich nodded once and gave Kai another brave smile. Then he grinned at Beau and Lafayette. “You’ll be back for me sooner than you think.”
The old stone house Kai’s great-grandfather had built for generations of Bauers never felt less like home. Uncle Franz had long ago sold the family heirlooms—like the antique chair his mother had once read to him from. The silver frames that once held pictures of his family were now in a shop window in the village. The only thing of value remaining was Ulrich, and Kai pulled him into another hug.
Without a word to his uncle, Kai grabbed his bag and marched outside. His uncle wouldn’t see his tears.
Ulrich followed him out and stood on the porch, a forced smile on his face, though his eyes shimmered. If it weren’t for feeling like he was abandoning Ulrich, escaping here would have been cause for complete celebration.
“Oh, wait!” Ulrich dashed back into th
e house and returned a moment later with a badly wrapped package. “Since you won’t be here tomorrow, I’ll give this to you now. Happy birthday, cousin.”
Nineteen. Tomorrow he’d be nineteen.
“Ulrich,” Uncle Franz bellowed. “Get your ass back in here and stop sniveling.”
“Goodbye for now, cousin. We’ll meet again real soon.” Ulrich gave Kai a watery smile and darted back into the house.
Kai wiped his cheek with the back of his hand. Without a word, Beau wrapped an arm around his shoulders and led him to the car.
He turned to Beau and asked, “Where will I be working?”
Lafayette took Kai’s bag and put it in the back of the SUV. “It’s like a club.”
Kai restrained a yawn and asked, “So what will I be expected to do at this club?”
Beau shrugged. “It’ll become clearer once we arrive. The club is on my family’s estate.”
Kai climbed into the vehicle and watched out the back window as the vineyard and house grew smaller and smaller.
2
Zombie 101
Wow! So, this was what the inside of a plane looks like. Smaller than Kai had expected, but…. Lafayette pointed to their seats in the front of the plane. The front? He got to sit in the front? The seats in back were tiny in comparison. Yay for luxury!
Kai moved the headset, pillow, toiletry kit, and blanket so he could sit in the big leather seat. He stowed the rest of the items next to the window, then peeked into the toiletry kit. Hmmm, everything he’d want to freshen up.
He yawned, then asked Beau, “How long is the flight?”
“About eight hours,” Beau replied. “You look exhausted. Why don’t you try to get some rest?”
Kai nodded. Worry and excitement attempted to race through his body, but his energy had disappeared. Perhaps he was coming down with something. Not only had he been exhausted for a while now, he’d been getting progressively more so each day.
