Broken Dreams

by Rissa Blakeley

  In one quick motion, she launched at his throat and tore it open with her bare teeth. Nate screamed. She groaned as the blood started to pour from the gaping wound. She latched onto his neck and sucked in her fill with long, hard swallows.

  Sophie rested back on her heels. “Holy fuck.” Her head was buzzing. Her eyes rolled back and her inner core stirred. She thought about finding Nick and milking him dry, but decided that wouldn’t be a good idea.

  “Get a grip.” She wiped off her face, and noticed that Nate was officially true dead. “Oops.” She grabbed a vial out of her vest and milked out enough for Henry. After cramming it in her cleavage, she licked the rest of the blood off of her fingers and pulled out her Sig.

  For a brief moment, she felt bad, but she needed her fix or things would get real. He was an easy target, and he was a pain in the fucking ass. And her pain? It, too, was a pain in the fucking ass so she felt it was justified.

  “Hope the pearly gates are as pretty as they describe them. I will never know.” She aimed her Sig, and put a bullet in Nate’s head.

  Sophie wanted it to look like he committed suicide after he was bit. She ran out and grabbed his Sig and wrapped his hand around it. She checked her watch. “Shit.” Only a couple minutes left.

  She ran back into the blood bank and bolted down the hallway to the door at the back of the facility. She found the storage room, pulled a couple reusable shopping bags out of her pack, and quickly filled them with needles, vials, and bags. Once she filled the tote, she headed toward the back of the building.

  ***

  Nick stepped up to the door and tried to swing it open. It stopped about a quarter of the way. He slid through and aimed his gun to the left. He had to blink a few times in the dim lighting, and he realized there were four undeads about ten feet away, having a feast. Two of them were in scrubs and they were in a horrible state of decay. His first thought was Sophie.

  As he looked around, he discovered that was where the sharp odor was coming from. There were rotting bodies everywhere. He trained his Sig on the closest undead.

  “Don’t shoot yet,” Sophie whispered behind him. She startled him, and he almost came out of his skin. “They’re busy. Come.” She waved him to the right.

  “We should make them true dead!” Nick tried to whisper, but he wasn’t too successful.

  “Nick, I know what I’m doing.” She spoke through clenched teeth. Nick looked back at the undeads, undisturbed by their minor disagreement, and decided to do as Sophie instructed.

  They stepped over half-eaten rotten bodies. The sights and smells were atrocious. Nick almost vomited when he slipped in a pool of sticky blood. It looked like a war zone. There was blackened blood and bits of rotten flesh littered all over the floor. When Sophie turned around to give Nick some direction, he furrowed his brows and noticed droplets on her face.

  “Is that blood on your chin?” He reached up and wiped the thick red liquid off her chin with his thumb. She sucked in a sharp breath when he touched her. Her body was still on fire from her great ingestion.

  Her eyes pulled him in. They were bright in the dim light. His eyes wandered down to her overflowing cleavage. He watched it pump up and down for a moment. She begged silently for him to touch her. His fingers started to go for the drips on her chest, but he stepped back.

  “And on your chest?”

  Sophie stood there, stunned. She looked like a deer caught in headlights. Then she thought of a cover story. “Ahh, yeah. I stumbled, and bit the inside of my cheek. Darn shoes.” She nervously chuckled.

  He looked at her for a moment, not sure if he should believe her story. He looked down at her feet, and she was still rocking her spiked hooker heels. Then he looked back up at her and shook his head, thinking that those were probably the cause of her never seen before clumsiness.

  She looked nervous, and then she held up the bags she was clutching. “Look. I found a bunch of supplies.”

  “Great. Now what do we do?”

  “Let’s get out of here.”

  “We can’t leave them!” Without thinking or aiming, Sophie raised her Sig and took out all four undeads without even trying. They pushed through the door and ran back out front just as their watch alarms went off.

  Sophie and Nick ran out the front door in haste and stumbled over one another. He helped Sophie to her feet. Again, she inhaled sharply from his touch. Nick was oblivious to her reaction because he was too busy looking around for Nate.

  “Nate?” Nick yelled. “Nate? Show yourself!” No answer.

  Sophie looked at him, and shook her head. “Let’s just go,” she said as she straightened her clothing.

  “We can’t just leave him out here on his own!”

  “Yes, we can. Let’s go.”

  “No. He is a giant pain in the ass, but he’s part of our group. And we can’t just leave him. Henry said we have to stick together. He will be dinner for one of those freaks.” Sophie flinched at the word “freaks”.

  “He’s far from being a part of our group! Now get in the bloody truck!” she demanded.

  “No. We need to at least put forth an effort, Sophie.” She rolled her eyes and walked to the driver side of the truck and opened the door.

  “Get in, or I’m leaving you, as well.”

  “That’s just fucking great, Sophie! Would you do this to Elaina? Leave her for dead so you can get your claws back into Henry again?”

  “No! Absolutely not!” She was pissed that he would imply she would do such a thing, even though she had already thought of it.

  “What makes her any different? She’s a pain in your ass since she’s with your Henry.”

  Sophie didn’t get into the truck, but slammed the door closed and stormed right up to Nick. “Fuck you,” she growled as she jammed her finger into his chest. “You have no idea what I am going through! She has no clue about who Henry really is. I do! We were each other’s first. And if he wasn’t forced to leave, we would still be together!” She was burning hot.

  “Jealous?”

  “Just get in the fucking truck right now, or you’ll have to hitch a ride with one of your undead pals!” She pointed just over Nick’s right shoulder. Nick looked behind him. There were three coming right for them.

  “Shit!” Nick quickly headed to the passenger side. “Fuck!” He shouted when he saw Nate.

  “Get in!”

  “Nate is over here!”

  “What?” Sophie ran over to the passenger side. There sat Nate, slumped over with his neck torn out. “Shit! He’s going to change! It must have just happened!” Sophie raised her gun.

  “Wait!” Nick looked at him closer. The back of his head was in bits, decorating the side of the truck. “He’s true dead.”

  “What? How?” She hoped playing stupid would be effective.

  “Gunshot wound.” He pointed at the truck door. The moaning became louder. Sophie looked up, and shot each of the undeads right between the eyes. One by one, they dropped to the ground.

  “Get in the truck!” Sophie sprinted over to the driver’s side.

  Nick picked up Nate’s gun, which was held loosely in his hand. Then he pulled Nate’s lifeless body away from the truck, took off his pack, and dragged him over to the sidewalk. He stopped for a moment.

  “Nick! Come on!”

  “Give me a second!”

  “We have to move!”

  “I know!” Nick yelled. “God. You are such a tyrannical psychotic bitch,” he mumbled. He returned his attention to Nate’s body. “I’m sorry, Nate. You’re in a better place now. I’m sure you will have all the Armani you can handle.”

  He threw on Nate’s pack and sprinted to the truck. No sooner had he gotten in then Sophie floored it, throwing him back into his seat.

  “What the fuck is wrong with you?” Nick’s anger was boiling over.

  “He’s true dead. Nothing would have changed that.”

  “If it wasn’t for Nate...” He paused.

  “I know. But
, listen, he was a ticking time bomb.”

  “I don’t know about that.”

  “He was! He never followed orders!”

  “This is not a goddamned military camp! When will you get that everyone is human?”

  “Not everyone,” Sophie mumbled with burning anger.

  “Fine. Not everyone. The undeads are no longer alive, but they were at one time! We are all in the same boat here.”

  Sophie shook her head, feeling a little emotional. The tension was thick. They sat silent through the rest of the trip back to Henry’s apartment.

  ***

  Even though the tears continued to run down his face, Henry didn’t turn away. He put his head in his hands and rubbed his temples. He was shattering. He looked lost, unsure, defeated, and destroyed.

  “Henry, what is it?” I felt bad for what I had done. I had ended it with him, and I didn’t think I should have. I regretted my harsh words. While I was searching for some answers, interrogating him, all I had done was make him feel even more lost and even more depressed.

  “There is just so much…” he croaked out.

  “So much what?”

  “Bullshit. It’s too much. I can’t believe I’m cracking. I’m fucking weak!” He slammed his fist on the counter.

  “Henry, you aren’t a machine. How many times have I told you that? You are human. You are going to crack. Look at what’s going on around us. None of us have been able to keep it together. Every single one of us is all over the map with our emotions.”

  “I have never cracked once! Not even when I was beaten an inch from true death.” He pounded his fist down on the bar. “Damn it!” he yelled. “I looked them in the face, blindfolded or not, while they beat the piss out of me. I never once showed an ounce of fear.”

  He was so angry with himself. I grabbed him in hopes that I could comfort him. He turned into my shoulder. “Elaina…” he whispered. Good Lord, he was completely shitfaced. “Please take me back. I beg you. I can’t go on without you.” He rested his forehead on the center of my chest. A few sobs escaped him. “I can’t. I love you so much. I can’t…without you…”

  “Shhh…I’m here, lover.” I whispered the same words to him that he said to me on many occasions. I wrapped my arms around him. I loved him so much. I just wished he would be truthful with me.

  Henry looked up at me. He seemed to have pocketed his emotional state for the moment. “We have to get out of here.”

  “Out of here? The kitchen?” I hoped he wasn’t implying that we should leave the area.

  “No. As in out of this area. It’s killing me. I just need to go where I don’t know anyone. I have shot half the people in my building. Your family, my host family, strangers, children...” He paused.

  I could see that he was reeling from all the blood that he thought was on his hands. Convincing Henry to stay would pose a major challenge. I still wanted and needed to see if anyone I knew or loved was still alive out there, even though my hopes were dwindling.

  “Henry, this has to be happening everywhere. You said so yourself. You would run into the same situation. You know that!”

  The slamming of the front door made us all jump. Instinctively, Henry pulled out his Sig and aimed it toward the door. I turned around, and there stood Sophie and Nick. Henry put his gun in the back of his pants. Someone forgot to lock the door after Sophie, Nick, and Nate left.

  “Nick!” I ran to him, and we hugged each other. I was so glad to see my brother was back and safe.

  “I’m fine, sis.” Henry and Claire slowly walked up to us.

  “I think we should travel,” Sophie murmured as she touched Henry’s face. I glared at her, ignoring her statement.

  “Where’s Nate?” Claire asked with suspicion, then it dawned on me that he wasn’t there.

  Sophie cleared her throat. “True dead.” She was so cold about it. It was almost like it was as much of a big deal as misplacing an everyday item. Henry looked down at his feet and swallowed hard. “Are you alright, Henry?” She didn’t wait for a response. She dropped her pack, and pulled him into her.

  “I’m struggling.” Sophie hugged him. I hated to see her show affection for him. It lit my fuse, igniting a white hot blaze. I don’t know why, but my jealousy was still lingering, even though he confessed his undying love to me over and over again.

  “Wait!” Claire yelled. “Will one of you tell us what the hell happened to Nate?”

  Sophie sighed. Claire and I looked at Nick for an explanation. “Sophie and I went into the blood bank to check for medical supplies.”

  “So you were looting? Let’s just say what it really is, instead of beating around the bush,” Claire snipped. I was clueless as to why the idea of stealing still bothered her. It was necessary for survival. To be frank, I wasn’t a fan, either. It had been difficult to get used to.

  “Yes. Looting.” He looked annoyed. “Anyway, Nate stayed behind to stand guard.”

  “Why did you leave him? He wasn’t capable of taking care of himself!” I yelled.

  Nick looked down at his feet. “I know. I didn’t feel right about it,” he mumbled.

  “Then why did you do it?” I was growing angrier by the second. As shitty as Nate was acting, I still felt grateful to him. If it hadn’t been for him, I wouldn’t have my brother.

  “I don’t know, okay! When we came back out, he was missing. We saw a few undeads roaming about. We went back to the truck, and he was sitting on the ground, leaning up against the truck with his throat torn out. He must have blown his brains out after he got bitten.”

  “Wait… I’m confused,” chimed in Claire, with a solid platform of skepticism. “So he was bit, and then shot himself? How is that possible? Don’t they usually feast? And why wouldn’t he shoot the undeads before they got to him?”

  “I don’t know,” Nick said. He sounded ashamed of himself. We looked back to get answers from Henry and Sophie, and they were no longer there. We all looked at one another.

  “Where did they go?” I stormed down the hallway, yelling for Henry. Nick and Claire were hot on my heels.

  Chapter 13

  “S

  o you just left him to fend for himself?” Henry asked as he sat down on the edge of the vanity, crossing his arms.

  “Yeah. I guess it didn’t work out for him.” Sophie shrugged, then grinned.

  “UGH! Sophie! You have to be more careful. Someone could have seen you.”

  “Who? There was no one around but undeads.”

  Henry threw his arms up in the air. “Nick could have seen!”

  “I had already sent him down the hall.”

  “He didn’t see you go back out?”

  “No. Once I heard the door swing shut, I waited a minute and hauled arse back outside. Then I took care of him.” She smirked.

  “Good god, Sophie.”

  “What? I needed to get my fix! I was feeling it. Oh, and I brought you a teensy gift.” Sophie pulled out a vial of blood from her cleavage and winked at Henry. “Sorry, it’s a bit chilled now, but not too bad. Drink up. This will help you perk up some. Lord knows all that bloody alcohol isn’t doing anything for you.”

  Henry reached for the vial of blood. “Thanks. It’s not too cold. Refrigerated is the worst.” He popped open the vial and tipped it back like he was doing a shot of tequila. Then he recapped the vial and handed it back to her as he shuddered.

  His eyes rolled in the back of his head. He relaxed a little. Between the alcohol and the donation, he was drifting off into la-la land. He wished he and Elaina were on good terms. He really wanted to lay down with her. Not for sex. He just wanted to hold her like he used to.

  “You really need to be more careful.” Henry’s words were breathy. “We need to get out of here. There aren’t enough clean donors around here. We’re going to need more blood. Plus, we need to find Gunther so we can take him out.” His words ended in a growl.

  “I know.”

  “The trouble is going to be convinci
ng the others.”

  ***

  Once I realized they pulled their Houdini act again, I went looking for Henry and Sophie. I listened at the door and heard Henry say something about convincing the others. I whipped opened the door of the bathroom. Why everyone decided to have their private conversations in the bathroom was beyond me.

  “Convince us of what?” Henry and Sophie looked at each other. I was pretty sure I startled them again. Obviously, they were up to something. Henry took a slow deep breath.

  “To travel.” Sophie said. “We believe we should travel.”

  She grinned. It made me want to throat punch her again. I was getting sick of that feeling.

  In all honesty, I didn’t know what would be best for us as a group, but I wasn’t convinced that traveling would be the most excellent idea.

  “Why? I think we would find this amount of devastation anywhere we would go.” I folded my arms in front of my chest, showing my protest. I put on my best “fuck you” smile.

  “Not necessarily. Gunther may have secured a larger area than us. He probably has better help.”

  “Really?” I was pissed. I thought I was doing a good job, considering I was the one who originally shot Jacob so he would let “Her Mental Highness” go. I thought, for the most part, we were all doing a fine job since we had nothing to compare it to.

  “That’s not what she meant,” Henry snipped.

  I glared at him. “Then what exactly did she mean, Henry? Why is getting to Gunther so important?” I was confused.

  “He has the most experience…and some tools that are quite valuable,” Sophie purred. She was such a two-dollar-tramp at times.

  I rolled my eyes and looked over at Henry. “Henry, I thought you were the be-all, end-all of this entire situation.”

  “Henry is amazing, as you know.” And there it was again. I wish she would stop referring to my man in a sexual manner, or I was going to snap. She was doing it on purpose, and I was quite sick of it. “And he understands a lot of what’s going on, but Gunther just has that bit extra that Henry doesn’t.”