A shrill voice cut through his heated thoughts, and Jay was brought back to the present with an unpleasant jolt. “Daydreaming, are we? I hope it’s not about a certain young brunette who might’ve caught your fancy.”
Jay eyed the woman in front of him with displeasure. Lena. The last thing he needed right then. He knew she was ready for battle by her stance, her arms folded across her chest and her eyebrows raised in that way he’d come to know so well.
“And if it is?” he answered in cold tones.
She gasped, her cheeks flushing with crimson blood until they resembled her hair. Copper red. “Don’t you dare speak to me like that.”
“Why shouldn’t I?” Jay asked, keeping his tone level. It would drive her nuts, he knew that. “You’re nothing to me.”
“I’m your wife,” she spat out, reacting just as he’d anticipated.
“Not by choice. My brother foisted you on me, and after tonight, I’ll be rid of you forever.” Jay allowed himself a brief moment of satisfaction as he drank in her hurt expression.
“That’s a lie. I fought for you in the Ring. You wanted me to. You asked your brother for me,” she cried, stamping one foot on the ground.
“That was before I realized what a harpy you were,” Jay answered. He was growing bored with the conversation and wanted to move on, shifting from one foot to the other.
She stared at him before reaching out a tentative hand. “You can’t feel that way. You loved me once. I know it. I felt it.”
Her fingers clung to his arm, and he shook them off. “Let it go, Lena, while you still have some dignity left.”
“Because of that hussy?” she cried. “That no good waste of space?”
“She’s no hussy,” Jay said, “and after she defeats you in the Ring, she’ll replace you as my wife. She’ll become my queen.”
Lena stepped back, her expression growing cold and remote. “We’ll see about that. The only victory in the Ring tonight will belong to me. I’ll bring you her head when I’m done, and I can promise you one thing. She won’t be so pretty anymore.”
“We’ll see,” Jay said with a shrug. It didn’t bother him much either way. If Cat won, he’d have his queen. If she lost, she was too weak to be of use, and he’d get rid of her along with Lena, and look for someone more worthy of the title.
As Jay walked away, Lena called after him. “You looked at me like that once. Take care that she doesn’t prove as disappointing as I did in a few months’ time.”
Jay shook his head, more eager than ever to be rid of the nagging Lena. Maybe he had loved her once, but that was a long time ago. “Times change, Lena. People change.”
It was the truth. Before the apocalypse, he could never have dreamed of holding the position he did now. Second-in-command to a brother who ruled hundreds and would soon oversee thousands. To have absolute power in his hands. That was a miracle. Yet, here he was. Commander of an army, beholden to no government, no rules, except those they made themselves. And soon…soon he’d have no brother to answer to either. It will be only me. Me and me alone. Sorry Paul, but you’ve become a liability. A stone around my neck. Without you, I can take the Ravagers to new heights. In time, we’ll rule the entire continent, if not the world.
With Lena out of the way, Jay went about the next few hours on autopilot. He reported the success of his mission to his brother and told him about Cat. Though mildly interested, Paul was more enamored of his latest conquest, a lithe twenty-year-old with a fondness for blood and knives. She’d carved her way out of the Ring and onto his brother’s lap where she ruled like a spoiled despot. A child with a thirst for vengeance.
Jay eyed her with distaste as she walked about with her haughty airs, looking down at him and everybody else like they were no better than the dirt beneath her feet. Patience. There was room for only one King and Queen in the Ravager Kingdom, and after tonight, he intended to have it all to himself.
He was on his way toward the Ring to check on a few last minute things when it happened. One of the guards collapsed, his symptoms reminiscent of an epileptic fit. He shivered and shook, and his eyes rolled back into his skull until only the whites showed. Saliva flecked his lips.
Jay approached with caution, watching the man’s fellow guards try to resuscitate him when he flat-lined, all signs of life leaving his limp body.
“What’s wrong with him?” Jay asked.
“I don’t know. He was fine until just now. He’s never been sick before,” his friend replied.
“Never?” Jay asked, knowing full well that illnesses weren’t tolerated in the Ravager community. If the man suffered from fits, he’d have been relegated to slave status long ago.
“No. Never.” The man shook his head, pumping away at the fallen guard’s chest. “He was healthy until a few moments ago.”
Jay frowned. “Did anything out of the ordinary happen to him today? Did he go out on a raid?”
“No, he stood watch with the rest of us, except…”
“Yes?” Jay prompted.
“There was this girl. She showed up out of the blue and kissed him. She said she was here to fight.”
“Where’s this girl now?” Jay asked.
“In the stockades. After kissing Len, she went berserk, and we tossed her in with the other loonies. She even bit Steve and two of the others. You should see them. She’s a real nutcase that one.”
“What does she look like?”
“A blonde with short hair, and the bluest eyes ever.”
A cold shiver ran down Jay’s spine. A feeling of foreboding. Something’s wrong.
“Well, keep an eye on him while I―”
The fallen guard’s eyes snapped open, focusing on his friend’s face. He reared up and bit into the man’s cheek, ripping out a chunk out of his flesh. Blood sprayed everywhere, and Jay danced back to avoid the crimson mist with a grimace of disgust.
“Holy shit!” he cried, staring at the spectacle as the once sick guard proceeded to eat his former colleague and friend who screamed like a girl from the horrid treatment. He was a zombie, no doubt about it, yet…how did he become one? He had no wounds…no bite marks.
Jay backed away with care, putting others between himself and the scene. Halfway through, the guard’s victim reanimated, attacking another guard who stood gawking at the two. Didn’t they understand? Didn’t they know? It was the virus, and it was acting faster than he’d ever seen it work before. He turned to run, his thoughts winging to a certain girl. His girl. Cat. I have to save her.
With the infection inside the camp, it was only a matter of time. Their base was doomed. All he could do was salvage the remnants before it was completely overrun. He didn’t once think about his brother, Paul, for hadn’t he planned to kill him anyway?
As he ran toward the stockades, Jay realized that the clue to the puzzle lay with the mystery girl that had kissed the guard. Who was she? More than that. What was she? He remembered Cat talking about her; a girl with the bluest eyes ever. She’s here for her friend. She’s here for Cat.
The thought galvanized him, and he ran faster. I can’t let Catherine escape. She’s mine.
As he sprinted through the camp, the alarm went off, its loud wailing note a warning to all that they were in danger. People ran back and forth, scrambling for their weapons. Women screamed, men died, and slaves cowered. It was chaos.
Jay paid no attention. His sole destination was the stockades until he spotted his brother’s personal guard milling about like a bunch of headless chickens. He grabbed the nearest by the arm and shook him. “What happened?”
The guard shot him a frightened look. “I don’t know, it just…Steve went down, and the next moment he was up and attacking Paul. I tried to save him, but…we tried to save him. We couldn’t, so we ran.”
“Steve?” Jay asked. “He was bitten by a girl earlier, right?”
“Yeah, some crazy chick who gave herself up at the gates. She must’ve been infected.”
“What abou
t Laura?” Jay asked, hoping that Paul’s concubine was dead too.
“She went down fighting. They ripped her to pieces.” The hapless guard shook his head. “What do we do now?”
Jay saw an opportunity and pulled himself up to his full height. In commanding tones, he bellowed, “If my brother’s gone, then I’m next in line. You follow me now.”
The men who used to protect his brother looked at him, their gazes calculating. In response, he roared, “Does anyone have a problem with that? If you do, say your piece, and we’ll settle it now, man to man.”
Silence reigned until the first guard slammed his fist to his chest. “The Beast. I follow the Beast.”
The other men echoed him, one by one, and Jay felt a flood of satisfaction flow through his veins at the words. He was their new King, and they acknowledged it.
“Follow me,” he cried, continuing on his route toward the stockades.
He arrived minutes later to find the cages overrun. He was in time to spot two fleeing figures, though. One blonde, and one dark. He pursued them, keeping Cat within his line of sight even as they battled their way through a horde of freshly turned undead. It was the zombie apocalypse all over again.
A massive explosion threw him to the ground, and he lay stunned, unable to hear anything through his bleeding eardrums. Around him, his men crawled on the ground, groaning in agony.
A trio of infected set upon him, their teeth gnashing the air to reach his flesh. He battled to keep them off, his every move a desperate fight for survival. In the distance, he heard Lena scream for him. Or so he thought. He couldn’t be sure.
Jay finally found his feet, a circle of dead zombies surrounding him. Half of his new guard was gone, but the other half looked to him for salvation. “Follow me!”
He ran in the direction Cat and her traitorous friend had taken, desperate to reach his girl before she was mown down by the undead like wheat before a scythe. He entered the edge of a clearing on unsteady feet and saw Lena collapse as Cat thrust a spear through her chest. She was strong, all right, just like he’d hoped.
Yet another infected appeared from the gloom, hurling itself at Jay with an unholy screech. He fought it off, unable to reach Cat before a dump truck plowed over everything in its path to pick her and her friend up.
Helpless to do anything but watch, Jay watched Cat and her friend make good their escape. A hand plucked at his sleeve. “Boss? What do we do now?”
Jay straightened up from his crouch, squaring his shoulders and setting his chin. “Now, we get the fuck out of here, and tomorrow, we get our revenge. That’s what.”
Chapter 1 - Cat
It was early morning. Around nine. The sun shone through the tinted windows, warming the inside of the cab with the balmy heat of autumn. Cat leaned back in her seat, enjoying the soothing heat. It relieved the ache in her ankle. Even after all these weeks, the injury still caused her pain. It was mild but constant. A nagging throb that grew to a raging fire whenever she spent too much time on her feet.
Cat smoothed her hands over the polished wooden surface of the walking stick she now carried everywhere with her. It was an antique, one she’d found hidden away in a junk store, and it immediately replaced her old stick. With loving care, she’d restored it to its former glory, and the red Cedar shone with a rich bronze patina.
It contained a secret, though, which was why it was so special. With a delicate twist of both hands, Cat turned the head and pulled it away to reveal smooth steel hidden within the length of the stick. It was a sword disguised as a walking stick and the ultimate ace up her sleeve.
With a soft click, she returned the blade to its sheath and turned her attention elsewhere. Her gaze wandered to the rearview mirror, and she studied Nadia who sat in the back seat.
Nadia’s platinum blonde locks spiked out in all directions due to the liberal amount of hair gel she’d applied. It complimented her eyeliner and tattoo giving her a punk rock look accentuated by her jeans, boots, and leather jacket. She still wore the cross around her neck, her version of an ace up the sleeve.
She fiddled with the phone on her lap, clicking through the songs that blasted into her ears through the tiny speakers tucked into each lobe. It was her newest toy, one she’d acquired from a house they’d raided earlier. The previous owner had the same taste in music it seemed, and she kept the battery going with a battery bank and solar power charger. For the first time in months, Nadia looked at peace, her expression serene.
Cat glanced from her to Lisa who drove the truck, her golden brown hair tucked into a soft bun at the nape of her neck. She exuded confidence with her glowing tan and fitted jeans, the grown-up among them. She was like a big sister to Cat and Nadia, the one they turned to for guidance. But, they’d all matured, the three of them, growing into their skins and becoming stronger. They were more than just friends now. They were a unit. A team.
Cat didn’t feel so brave today, however. In fact, she felt as nervous as hell as she called out directions to her old family home, now only a short distance away. A lump formed in her throat as she surveyed their familiar surroundings. It was all still there. A bit worn, maybe, run down, for sure, but still there.
The ice cream shop where she and her mom used to go once a month for a treat. The bicycle shop who’s owner let her repair her beat up old bike at no cost every time it broke down, aware that with a single parent in the house, money was tight. The second-hand shop where she used to get most of her clothes, giving her a slightly quirky sense of fashion. The bargain shop that sold groceries on account.
Her entire childhood rolled up into one neat package. One filled with happiness. Sure, they’d been poor, but her mother had loved her more than life itself, and for a kid, that was more than enough.
“Over there,” Cat said, pointing to her old house. It wasn’t much. A humble two-bedroom house with no luxuries such as air conditioning or a swimming pool. Still, it was neat and tidy, the garden well-groomed, and to Cat it represented home.
Lisa pulled their truck into the driveway, its muted roar fading to a soft rumble as she idled the engine.
Immediately, Cat spotted Chris. His desiccated corpse lay half in and half out of the gate, the meat cleaver she’d used to kill him still lodged in his skull. She pressed trembling fingers to her lips, remembering the day he’d attacked her, forcing her to kill him. He’d meant well, racing toward her house to warn her of the zombies. Instead, he’d joined their ranks and nearly eaten her.
Lisa shot her a sympathetic look. “Ready for this, Cat?”
“I guess so,” Cat replied, not at all sure that she was.
Nadia switched off her phone and leaned forward to squeeze Cat’s shoulder. “Don’t worry. We’re here for you.”
“Thanks, guys,” Cat replied, grateful they were there with her to lend their silent support.
The street was empty, and after a few seconds, Cat got out, followed by Lisa and Nadia. On silent feet, she slipped through the half-open gate and headed for the front porch while trying not to look at the long-dead Chris.
The stairs creaked when Cat stepped on them, and the wooden railing sagged in the middle. On the patio, dust and dead leaves pooled in the corners, rustling in the slight breeze. Her mom’s homemade wind chime swayed, the soft tinkling of bells filling the air.
Cat paused in front of the door, her hand hovering above the handle. “Ready?”
“We’ve got you,” Lisa said.
Cat twisted the knob, and the door swung open to reveal the dim interior. Faint light streamed in through the gaps in the window, and dust motes swirled in the yellow beams. She eased inside, coughing when dust assaulted her nose and lungs. Nobody had been there in a long time.
Out of habit, Cat reached for her pocket where she kept her inhaler then stopped. She’d outgrown her childhood asthma and no longer needed it. A small blessing in a time when medicine was scarce.
Her AK-47 hung heavy on her back, its weight comforting. If need be, she could
blast right through a crowd of zombies and make a quick escape. In her right hand, she carried her walking stick. The silence of a handheld weapon always trumped bullets in the end. In and out without the undead knowing. That was the way to do it.
Cat moved through the small entrance foyer and into the main living room with measured steps, her ears perked for any sounds. Inside the room, Nadia and Lisa fanned out on either side of her, their weapons held at the ready.
“Hello?” Cat said in a bid to draw out anything undead, though she doubted the house was occupied. When nothing answered, she called again, “Anybody there?”
Thick silence met her ears, and she turned toward Nadia and Lisa. “I think it’s deserted, but let’s make sure.”
Her friends nodded, and Cat turned her focus back to the house. With care, she moved from room to room, clearing each one of either the dead or the living. The entire time, she kept her emotions under a tight rein, but it was hard to keep control as the familiar walls of her childhood home closed in around her.
In the end, the house turned out to be empty, but that didn’t mean it had no story to tell. Almost everything was as she’d left it that fateful day of the outbreak.
Her half-eaten sandwich still lay on the kitchen counter. She hadn’t been able to finish it while worrying over her mom’s disappearance. It was ancient and mummified now, crusty with black mold, and her dirty glass still stood in the sink. In her bedroom, her cupboard doors stood open, the clothes flung about in disarray from hasty packing that distant afternoon.
What had changed was her mother’s room. Ordinarily neat and tidy, it looked like a whirlwind had passed through the interior. Cat rushed inside and looked into the half-open chest of drawers, one after the other. “Empty, empty, mostly empty…”
Children of the Apocalypse: Mega Boxed Set Page 131
