by Dia Cole
Grady’s expression twisted for a second, and then went blank. “I’ll go in with you, sir.”
Dominic looked surprised. “Okay. We’ll be right back,” he said, opening the door.
Grady followed him inside. The robotic way he moved bothered me.
He’s probably just in shock about the pills.
They’d been inside for only seconds when I heard the sound of a gunshot.
Anxiety exploded inside me.
They’re in trouble.
I rushed for the door.
It swung open. Grady ran out.
“Where’s Dominic?” I screamed.
He babbled something unintelligible. His gun was in his hands.
“What did you do?” I shouted.
“He killed my daughter. I shot him.”
“You son of a bitch.”
I’ll deal with him later. Dominic needs me.
I pushed past him, flung open the door, and stepped into a nightmare.
9
The frenzied sound of flesh tearing and lips smacking made my heart pound against my sternum.
The dead were here and they were feeding.
Fear lodged in my throat.
Where are they and, more importantly, who are they eating?
I willed my eyes to adjust to the gloom of the tomblike hallway.
There.
By the bathroom door a dog pile of zombies writhed on the floor.
An uncontrollable wave of panic surged through me.
Who’s under them?
Dominic?
Reed?
“Get off him,” I screamed, barreling into the flesh-eaters. Using fists and feet, I threw the dead off layer by layer until the facedown body on the floor was revealed.
It was Dominic.
Oh, God.
His shirt was in tatters. His back and arms were missing huge chucks of skin. Blood poured out of what looked like a gunshot wound in the middle of his back.
It looks bad. Really bad.
A muffled cry escaped my lips. But I couldn’t afford to lose it. Not when the dead rose up around me, flailing to get at him.
I swallowed back my intense panic and pushed Dominic’s limp body behind me.
Please don’t let him be too far gone.
Whipping out my knife, my world tunneled to the putrefied faces of the flesh-eaters in front of me. I swung at as many as I could reach.
Thrust, crunch, and pull back. Thrust again.
Dominic’s body jerked wildly. I spun around and found the old lady with the dangly cat earrings gnawing on his arm. With a shriek, I brought the knife through the silver bun in the back of her head. At least we now knew where the insurance zombies had ended up.
Her office workers continued pouring in from the open fire door.
Panicked, I realized we were trapped.
Cursing Grady to hell, I scanned the hallway looking for a way out. Since I didn’t know what Grady would do if I brought Dominic outside, I’d have to try the break room. “Stay with me, Dom,” I pleaded as I picked him up. His weight, which would have been impossible to carry before my death, barely winded me.
The bathroom door opened behind me.
“Lee.”
I had a second to register Reed’s shocked expression before the crowd of dead surged around us.
I threw Dominic’s body at Reed. “Take him.”
Reed fell back under Dominic’s weight.
I darted into the bathroom and tried to close the door.
Grasping hands fought me.
Sweat ran down my face. I slammed my shoulder against the door.
The dead pushed back from the other side.
“Fuck this,” I said, kicking the door shut.
Bones snapped and cracked. Two severed hands fell to the tile twitching like bad Halloween decorations.
The door shook violently.
It won’t hold for long.
Reed lay on the floor gasping.
I pulled him up. The light from the flashlight on the floor highlighted the deep shadows under his eyes.
“You made it,” he said, reaching for my outstretched hand. “You got the cure.”
I pulled him to his feet. “Something like that.”
He swayed like he was going to topple over.
I put a hand on his uninjured shoulder to steady him. “Are you okay?”
He gave a jerky nod. “Is there more of the serum?”
I glanced down at Dominic. “Yeah, lots more.” Assuming Dominic survived this.
“Thank God,” he said, pulling me into his arms.
For a second I relaxed into his embrace allowing his earthy scent to wash over me and banish the horrors of the day. But all too quickly another scent rose up over the clove and patchouli. The rich sweet tang of it made my mouth water.
I pulled away, scanning him from head to feet. Fresh blood was seeping through his flannel shirt. He must’ve ripped his stitches. I licked my lips. “You’re bleeding.”
“That’s the least of our problems right now.” Oblivious to the danger he was in, Reed tried to hug me again.
Not trusting myself to be so close to him, I stepped away. “What happened?”
His forehead crinkled. “I don’t know. I must’ve passed out in the bathroom. The sound of a gunshot woke me up.”
“Grady shot Dominic. He must’ve opened the fire door and let the Biters in.”
“Jesus. I knew he didn’t like Dominic, but I didn’t think he’d take it that far. Did he hurt Darcy too?”
“No. Apparently, she found a car. She told Grady to leave you. Why would she do that?”
Reed fiddled with the top button of his shirt. “Don’t know.” He glanced down at Dominic. “Should he even be in here with us? He could turn any second.”
I knelt over Dominic, taking stock of his injuries. “That won’t happen. He’s going to be okay.”
He has to be.
Reed looked at me as if I was crazy. “How? He’s been a Biters’ chew toy.”
I couldn’t see anything with Dominic’s shirt in the way. The cotton shrieked as I ripped it in two.
The sight of his wounds knitting together made my hands shake in relief.
He’ll make it.
Unconsciously, I lifted one of the bloody scraps of his T-shirt to my face. The heady smell of Dominic’s blood made my stomach rumbled.
Reed’s shadow fell over me. “What the hell is going on?”
I dropped the shirt. Guilt and shame poured through me until I realized that Reed was staring at Dominic’s healing skin with a dumbfounded look on his face.
“He can heal fast and is immune to the virus.”
Reed blinked rapidly. Then nodded as if he’d worked something out in his head. “Makes sense. He’s probably been immunized with the cure.” His eyes narrowed. “Of course the selfish bastard didn’t bother sharing it with the rest of us.”
My hackles rose. Dominic was anything but selfish. “He repeatedly put his life on the line for us. For me.” I leaned down and kissed the top of Dominic’s close-shaven head.
Reed made a sound of disgust. “Don’t tell me that you actually care about him now?”
I met his stare with a steady gaze. “I love him.”
Reed flinched. “You don’t mean that.”
“I realized it earlier today. I’m sorry.” I spoke softly as if that would ease the sting.
Reed’s eyes shimmered. He took a deep breath and looked away. “I don’t understand. You said…you’d never be able to love anyone that way.”
“I didn’t think I was capable of it. He proved me wrong.”
I glanced up. The hurt in Reed’s face made me want to eat my confession. But as hard as it was, he needed to hear this. He couldn’t keep carrying around the insane hope that one day we’d be together. I needed him to move on. Especially if something happened to me.
The sound of cracking wood had me jumping to my feet.
“The door’s starting to give,�
� I cried, looking frantically around for something to barricade it with. The plastic shelves were too flimsy to offer any protection. There was only one way to keep them safe.
“Take this.” I handed my knife to Reed.
He stared at me blankly.
“Rule number four, always have a weapon.”
He made a sour face. “You’re actually quoting him now?”
“Just use the knife to protect yourself if any Biters get in.”
“What are you…you’re not going out there?” Reed stepped between me and the shaking door.
I gently pushed him aside. “Trust me. They can’t hurt me.”
“But—”
There was no time to explain. “Take care of him.” I cast one last look at Dominic’s unconscious body before flinging open the door and diving into the horde.
Rotting arms and hands beat at my face and body. I barely managed to wrench the door shut before the Biters surrounded me.
My stomach curdled at the overpowering stench of decaying flesh mingled with pine. There were so many Biters it was almost impossible to tell where once began and another ended. I shuddered when a female zombie’s dangling intestines brushed against my arms.
Trying to get away, I backed into a tall thin male whose face swarmed with maggots. He opened up his mouth and a mass of the tiny worms fell into my hair. I screamed and batted them away.
Several zombies turned in my direction.
Yay for noise. Noise is good.
I screamed again, hoping to be heard by the zombies pounding on the door. Maybe then they’d focus on me instead.
No dice.
My screams weren’t carrying over the noises of the dead. They continued clawing at the door with single-minded purpose. Every moment more Biters shambled in from the front office.
I need a new plan.
Holding my breath, I pushed my way through the putrid masses. I stopped at the fire door. I tried to close it, but the bottlenecking zombies made that impossible.
Gritting my teeth, I tried shoving the line of incoming zombies back like a demented Japanese train pusher.
They kept coming.
It was no use. Deciding a new tactic was in order, I let the current of zombies carry me back to the bathroom.
My heart stopped when I heard the sound of splintering wood. The Biters had punched a watermelon-sized hole through the door. If I didn’t do something soon Reed and Dominic would be lunch.
I pushed my way into the break room—the only zombie-free zone in the building—and dared a quick peek through the blinds. The courtyard was clear.
Thank God.
If we could just make it out of this mess, we could get to the van and get home as fast as possible. The lives of all the survivors back at the school were in jeopardy. And it was my fault. If I hadn’t trusted that stupid girl, none of this would have happened.
I have to make things right.
I marched past the overturned Christmas tree and grabbed the chair Grady should’ve stayed hog-tied to. Going with the tactic that hadn’t failed me yet, I swung it repeatedly against the side of the snack machine.
Clang. Clang.
The reverberations of metal on metal ran up my arm and rattled my teeth. I kept swinging.
Two Biters lumbered in.
It’s working.
The side of the snack machine was completely bashed in by the time the room was filled with Biters.
They gathered around me like confused children. Some reached their hands out to touch the chair or the side of the machine as if trying to figure out the origins of the sound.
As soon as I tossed the chair on the ground, they shambled back for the door.
“Not so fast.” I bolted ahead of them and slammed the break room door shut.
That’ll hold them for a few minutes.
The hallway crowd had thinned considerably. There were only half a dozen or so stubborn Biters clawing at the bathroom door.
Knowing we didn’t have much time, I shoved them to the ground and, one by one, stomped their heads in.
I shuddered at my barely recognizable sneakers. I’d be investing in some boots like Dominic’s at the earliest opportunity.
Stepping over the fallen corpses, I peered into the front room. It looked deserted, but I pulled the fire door closed anyway.
No need to take chances.
Behind me, the break room door splintered.
Damn it. We need to get out of here, pronto.
“Reed,” I shouted.
He wrenched open the bathroom door and stared down at the bashed-in heads on the floor. He blanched, his hand trembling around my knife.
“Don’t you dare puke.” I pushed passed him and rolled Dominic over. Other than the rapidly healing bullet exit wound in his solar plexus, his front looked much better than his back. “We have to move.”
Reed shook his head. “I don’t understand how you…” He motioned to the piles of bodies in every direction.
I slid my arms under Dominic’s torso and legs. “I’ll explain everything later. Just get outside to the courtyard.” I hefted Dominic into my arms and stood up. For a second, Dominic’s weight threw me off balance, but I quickly righted myself.
Reed stood staring at me stupidly in the doorway. “What are you? Superwoman?”
The cracking of the wood door down the hall meant we were out of time.
“I’m the person who’ll kick your ass if you don’t move,” I shouted.
That broke his stupor. He stepped over the fallen zombies and together we rushed to the exit.
The zombies in the break room had almost broken free. We dodged clawing hands and snapping teeth, pushed open the door, and rushed outside to the courtyard.
The door slammed shut behind us with the finality of a coffin lid closing.
“We made it,” I said, grinning despite being temporarily blinded by the hazy light filtering through the Palo Verde trees. The lingering smell of rain and rotting foliage never smelled so good.
Reed’s gaze snagged on something over my shoulder. His face went slack.
“Well, well, well. You’re looking mighty fine for a dead girl,” rasped a voice I’d hoped never to hear again.
10
A slow turn brought me face-to-face with Spider and his gang.
With a sick feeling of déjà vu, I found myself once again staring down the barrel of their guns. They’d upgraded to nicer weapons since our last meeting. Most likely the guns they’d stolen from us.
Bastards.
Tweety stood behind Spider. He pressed the barrel of his gun against the back of Darcy’s head.
She knelt on the cobblestone path with her hands bound in front of her. By the way her amber eyes flashed with rage, she’d be screaming obscenities if not for the gag in her mouth.
Grady knelt next to her, but his head was bowed as if he accepted his fate. The biker with a ponytail kept his rifle trained on the back of his head. I could only hope Mr. Ponytail had a slippery trigger finger. Grady deserved to die as much as these bikers did.
As if reading my mind, Viper, still wearing Dominic’s vest, threw me a yellow-toothed grin.
The little boy standing next to him mimicked his fierce pose. The handgun he held barely fit in his tiny fist.
I shook my head in disbelief. “You brought the kid out here?”
Spider put his hand on Aiden’s shoulder. “My son goes where I go. But I’ll be the one asking questions from now on, pussycat. Why don’t you explain how you and your man went from dying in our park to prancing around the city?”
Knowing I’d need my hands free, I gently set Dominic down, and stepped in front of him so he was partially hidden from view. “He’s still dying.” I cast a dark look at Aiden.
A wide grin split Spider’s weathered face. “I told you it’d be a slow and painful death. I can still offer him mercy if you want.” He pointed his handgun at Dominic’s head.
“No.” My mind raced as I tried to think of a way
out of this nightmare.
“There’s no need for you to do this,” Reed said from behind me.
Damn it. The last thing we need is Reed playing peace-keeper.
“Be quiet.”
Ignoring me, Reed shoved my knife into his waistband and held up his hands. “We aren’t any threat to you and your friends. You can have our supplies. We can also work out a trade agreement between your people and our people. There is no need to resort to violence.”
“But violence is what we do best, right, boys?”
The men around us cackled like a pack of hyenas.
Reed’s gaze bounced from one biker’s face to another as if he was searching for someone with an ounce of reason and compassion.
He won’t find it with this bunch.
Spider cleared his throat. “Let me break it down for you, Rasta man. See, what’s going to happen is that you and your friends are going to take us back to wherever you’ve been hiding out. Then we’re going to take all your stuff and fuck all your women. And maybe we’ll let you live.”
“Maybe,” chortled Viper aiming his gun at Reed’s head.
Reed lost what little color he had.
“Can we screw the infected one?” The giant’s deep voice echoed in the courtyard.
Spider’s gaze zeroed in on me. His head canted from side to side as if he was looking at me from every angle. “You know what I think, boys? I think she made a fool of us back in the park.”
He strode over and yanked the waistband of my pants down to mid hip. He let out a laugh. “Just what I thought. She was only pretending. It’s kind of genius when you think about it. Who’d want to touch an infected girl?” His hand dipped farther into my pants.
A cry escaped my lips as his fingers roughly fondled me. White-hot anger rushed through me, but I forced myself to endure his touch. I couldn’t endanger Dominic and Reed.
“Mmm. I’m going to love spending quality time with you, pussycat.”
“Can I have her too?” Viper asked, all but drooling.
“Of course. We share everything around here,” Spider said, nibbling on the bottom of my earlobe.
Tears of frustration burned behind my eyelids. Darcy’s gaze met mine, the pity there made me want to scream.
