Zeke cut her off. “No, I didn’t know that.” He’d never looked more serious. “Trust me, I’d remember knowing that.”
“Well, I went broke buying the stuff. It was like an addiction.”
“You spent all your money on a lingerie addiction?” Zeke seemed fascinated by that devastating financial news. “Money from the paychecks I gave you? Hang on. I paid for your secret collection of silky thongs and stockings?”
Scotlyn wasn’t sure what to make of his tone. “It was my money.” She reminded him defensively. “Using your logic, you were also buying my toothpaste and Cheerios.”
“I know. I like that logic. You need and I provide.” Zeke stepped closer to her, his body brushing against hers. He looked her up and down, like he was trying to see beneath her modest sundress. “Are you wearing something I bought you, right now?”
Scotlyn swallowed, her insides growing warm under his undivided attention. “I bought the lingerie, Zeke.”
Hot lavender eyes met hers and her brain turned to mush. “With the money I gave you.”
“Money I earned.” So why was it such a turn-on to think about him owning her lingerie? Her body grew damp and he probably knew it, thanks to his super-senses. “Alright… Yes, I bought this set with money that you paid me, but that doesn’t mean you bought it for me.”
He dipped his head so he could whisper into her ear. “I think it means everything touching your skin right now is mine.”
She let out a shuddering breath, trying to resist the insanely erotic miasma that surrounded the man. “Well that’s just ridiculous. It completely invalidates all the work I did at TGW to say…” Scotlyn trailed off with a sigh of defeat at his teeth nipped her ear.
“I think I want my lingerie back.” He decided.
“It’s not yours.” Although, when she’d been buying the stuff, she’d been thinking of him. Not that she was telling Zeke that. “Whatever insane idea you’ve come up with to justify stealing my underwear, it doesn’t matter. I’m keeping it. What would you even do with lingerie?”
“Take it off you.” He nuzzled her temple. “What color is it?”
Scotlyn rallied herself. “None of your business!”
“White?”
“No.”
“Black?”
“No.”
“Red?”
Scotlyn hesitated.
Zeke’s mouth slowly curved.
“I don’t care what your diploma says, you have maturity level of a twelve year old.” She hissed. “Concentrate on the apocalypse.”
“Are you two coming or what?” Caleb demanded. He wrenched the door open and stalked inside Prowl. “I swear to Christ, it’s like I’m fucking babysitting.”
“We’d have a lot more fun if we left him behind.” Zeke grumbled, but he stepped back and led Scotlyn into the club. “Remember not to touch anyone, alright?”
“What are the odds of me forgetting that?” She whispered back. “Is everyone in here… like you?”
“Baby, there’s nobody like me.”
“Don’t start.”
The inside of Prowl was dark and dingy and packed with people. Or shape shifters. Or whatever. A lot of them must’ve had the same idea Caleb did, about using this as a rendezvous point. It seemed like it had become some kind of gathering place for the survivors of the zombie attacks. There was a generator going, providing them with electricity to spin the disco ball on the ceiling and keep the neon lights on. Someone had even hung a banner over the bar that read: “Welcome to the End of the World: Two Drink Minimum.”
Freak out later.
“This club caters to the supernatural. It’s not just shifters. It’s all kinds.” Zeke didn’t look thrilled to be there. “You’re probably one of the only humans who’s ever been through the door. It’s technically against the rules. Try not to mention your species.”
“Are there any werewolves in here?” She was morbidly curious to see one.
“God no. No one would let those assholes through the door. They’re even worse than the humans.”
“Yeah, it seems like a discriminating place.” Scotlyn eyed a tall guy who appeared to have horns and who was drinking from four glasses at once. “I always hated that Star Wars bar scene, just to let you know. Except for Han. Han was hot. But the aliens were all fake looking and the music sucked.”
“Trixie, don’t criticize my religion. Nothing in Star Wars sucked. Not in New Hope Star Wars, anyway. This place is nothing like the cantina.”
Someone stared playing It’s the End of the World as We Know It over the jukebox.
She arched a brow at him.
“REM wasn’t in Star Wars.” He insisted. “Go sit at the bar and behave. I have to go help Caleb look for someone even more annoying than he is.”
“Is that even possible?”
“When it comes to the pack, it’s ever descending levels of annoying.”
Scotlyn grabbed Zeke’s arm as he turned away. “You won’t leave without me, right?” She nursed the low grade fear that he’d vanish if she let him out of her sight.
“You’re wearing red lingerie that I paid for, baby. What do you think?” He winked at her and then pushed his way into the crowd.
Scotlyn sighed and headed over to claim a barstool. On her left, a guy with purple hair had his head down on the counter sobbing. On her right, a girl in Nirvana era flannel and torn jeans was finishing a Sudoku puzzle from the last edition of newspaper that would ever be printed.
Jesus, that was depressing.
The normal looking woman behind the bar leaned watched Scotlyn warily. “What’ll ya have?” Apparently she’d shown up for her shift, zombies be damned.
“Something with alcohol and caffeine.”
“Irish coffee?”
“Perfect.”
“You want blood in it? ‘Cause it’ll be extra”
“No, thanks. I’m dieting.” She set Pucci’s carrier down on the floor next to her. “Do you have cat food, by any chance?”
“We have barbequed Siamese as an appetizer, but only on the dinner menu.”
Scotlyn stared at her.
The bartender stared back.
“Just the drink, then.” Scotlyn finally said.
The woman nodded and shuffled off.
Scotlyn ran a hand through her hair. Maybe she should go wait outside with the zombies. On the counter in front of her, she saw a white plastic salt shaker and she pocketed it. She still wasn’t real clear on the rules of shape shifters, but it seemed like that would be a good thing to have on hand just in case Zeke passed out on her, again. The patrons would just have to eat their kitten burgers without seasoning.
“Do you know what’s going on out there?” The crying guy said suddenly. He turned to look at her, his eyes red and not just from the tears. They were just… red. How many supernatural beings were in this town, just passing themselves off as punks or goths or nonconformist humans? Why had she never noticed before? “Is the Strip still infested with zombies?”
“I don’t know. I’m sorry. I’ve been hiding in a bathroom since it all started.”
“Oh.” He sniffed, looking more interested. Clearly, he was of the mindset that spreading gossip was even more rewarding that receiving it. “Well, see, the sirens –You know, the chicks with the voices?-- they somehow got the sound system at the Bellagio going and they set up a recording of their songs. It lured most of the zombies in town over there.”
Scotlyn tried not to stare at his multiple rows of shark-like teeth. “Well, that was clever.” It also explained the surprising lack of zombies on this side of town.
“Lured a lot of the humans over there, too. Then, the zombies ate them. That kept ‘em busy all day yesterday.”
“Uh-huh.” Scotlyn couldn’t manage another response to that.
“Vamps are fucking pissed about that part, though. They have Fremont Street, now, and they’re offering bounties on any live humans we can round-up. They’re desperate for blood. Not that I
’m thinking about making any quick cash at a time like this.” He swiped at his damp cheek. “Power on the Strip conked out this morning. Without the lure of the siren songs, the zombies will be coming after all of us, ya know? Scattering.”
“Maybe they just attack humans.” Scotlyn suggested, although she had no idea why she was trying to comfort this guy.
Red eyes overflowed in another bout of weeping. “That’s just what Jasper said before they ate him!” He dropped his face into his palms, his whole body shaking with the force of his sobs. “I never ever thought I’d see the day when humans were a threat to us, but there’s just too many of them. We’re all on the run from dead humans! We don’t even turn when we get bit like they do. They just chow down on our flesh and we die.”
Scotlyn gave his shoulder a comforting pat. “Well, honestly, would you want to turn into a zombie?”
“Rather than let humans be top of the food chain? Yes. It’s a total disgrace to go out this way. With humans killing us? With them in charge? We might as well turn the world over to slugs!”
Scotlyn made a face. “Slugs?” Human prejudice clearly ran high. “I don’t think…”
The guy cut her off, pounding his forehead up and down on the bar top in an explosion of grief. “Why. is. this. hap.pen.ing?” Each syllable was punctuated with a thud of his skull against the counter.
“Karl,” the girl in the flannel shirt interjected in a completely neutral voice, “we talked about the wailing, didn’t we?” She sounded downright bored with the End of Days.
“I can’t help it!” He wailed. “Everything is gone, Darcy. Gone to the humans!”
Scotlyn swiveled on her barstool to stare at the girl. “You’re Darcy?”
The deceptively human looking woman let out a long sigh and finally took her eyes off her puzzle. She looked over at Karl. “Go away.”
Karl swallowed, his tears instantly drying. “Really?”
“Really.”
Karl hurried away far faster than any guy with hundreds of teeth should ever need to hurry away from a girl who looked like a fashion model.
Darcy refocused on her puzzle, but her attention shifted to Scotlyn. “You here with the shifters?” It wasn’t a question.
Scotlyn frowned at her, wondering what the hell kind of creature Darcy was that she terrified Karl. She didn’t seem particularly scary. Darcy was stunningly, stunningly beautiful, with thick dark hair and amber colored eyes. She looked exactly like the showgirls at the casino who danced at center stage and scoffed with derision when they saw Scotlyn performing in the kids’ show. None of that made Scotlyn eager to talk to her.
“Zeke and Caleb are looking for you.” She said warily. “I’m Zeke’s assistant. Scotlyn Summerline.”
Darcy filled in another Sudoku square. She was using a pen, which showed an annoying amount of confidence in her ability to get the puzzle right the first time. “Zeke needs an assistant to schedule his smoking breaks and womanizing, now?”
Scotlyn’s eyes narrowed. It was one thing for her to complain about Zeke’s squandered life, but everyone else needed to shut up about it. “Zeke’s a business owner.” She snapped. “We own a golf course.”
Darcy nodded. “Yeah, I saw the protests on the news. Nice place.”
The bartender returned with the Irish coffee and Scotlyn flashed her a quick look. “Thanks.” She turned back to Darcy. “How do you even know Zeke?” She demanded.
And why was every woman he met so damn gorgeous?
“I know a lot of people.” Darcy reached into her pocket and came up with a hundred. “I’ll take another one, Jacqueline.”
The bartender snatched up the money and quickly set a glass of thick, dark liquid in front of her.
Scotlyn’s eyes widened. It didn’t take a medical doctor to know it was blood.
Freak out later.
Freak out later.
Freak out later.
Darcy set her pen aside and reached for a straw. Her fingernails were painted brilliant crimson. “The price went up ten times since yesterday. But it doesn’t much matter. I’m apparently the only one who’s noticed that money is now pretty much just toilet paper.” She tapped the end of the straw on the bar top to free it from its paper wrapper and popped it into her glass. “We’ve gone back to a barter economy.” She took a sip of her blood, the straw going opaque red.
Scotlyn barely suppressed a shudder. “I’m guessing you’re a vampire.”
“On my mother’s side.” Darcy leaned back to look Scotlyn up and down. “I’m guessing you’re… not.”
“I never met my mother, so who’s to say?” Scotlyn picked up her coffee and belted it back. Her eyes went wide as she realized just how much Irish Jacqueline had added to the drink. She doubled over coughing.
Darcy gave a slow smile.
“Scotlyn!” Zeke stalked over to the bar. “Didn’t I tell you not to talk to…?” His eyes fixed on Darcy. “Shit! There you are.”
“Here I am.” Darcy scanned his stolen Wal-Mart couture. “What the hell are you wearing, Z?”`
Caleb came up behind her. “Hooray. Darcy wasn’t eaten by zombies. Even they have standards, huh, darlin’?”
“Cale.” She didn’t bother to turn and look at him. “Remember when I said, ‘Maybe if you were the last man on Earth?’” Amber eyes glinted. “Well, we’re getting close and it turns out… Nope. Not even then.”
Caleb and Zeke both grinned at that.
Whoever Darcy was to the brothers, it was clear they liked her in the “annoying kid sister” sense of the word. They were thrilled to see her safe and sound and snarking at them. Zeke reached over to ruffle her hair.
Caleb leaned against the counter, giving her a kiss on the side of her head. “We need some information. How much you charging today, Darce?”
“It turns out that money’s just toilet paper.” Scotlyn told him, her eyes still watering from the whiskey. “We were just discussing that we’re now living in a barter economy.”
Caleb glanced at her. “Didn’t you swear you weren’t going to hang out with vampires, cutie-pie?”
“Yes.” Zeke intoned.
“It wasn’t my fault! I was just ordering coffee.”
Caleb snorted and looked back at Darcy. “How much?” He repeated.
“The human told you, money is a thing of the past.” Darcy lifted her glass in a mock toast. “Darcy-Mart’s closed, boys.”
“Then we’ll barter.” Caleb persisted. “Come on, we have to find the pack.”
“I already found them. I can tell you where they are for free, in fact. Joseff’s got them locked up.”
Caleb’s smirk faded. “Son-of-a-bitch.”
“They’re safer with him than anywhere else.” Darcy retorted. “He won’t hurt them.”
“You sure about that?”
“Yes. Look, I’ll get them free, alright? You leave town while you can. Electricity’s gone. Shock is wearing off. Zombies are spreading out. Even you guys should sense that it’s time to let what happened in Vegas stay in Vegas and hit the road.”
“You’re still here.” Zeke pointed out.
“Yeah, well, I’m not as smart as I look.”
“She was waiting for you two to show up.” Scotlyn translated for Zeke. “Just like Caleb said.” The three of them seemed incapable to admitting they cared about each other.
Darcy made a face. “Well, I knew they’d be around sooner or later. Besides, the sun’s a little hot for me to start trekking across the Mohave. I don’t think SPF numbers go that high. I’ll meet up with you later.”
Neither brother seemed willing to go with that option.
“Why would Joseff kidnap the pack?” Zeke asked. “Especially today?”
Darcy sighed. “He’s pissed. He thinks the shifters released that pink shit to kill the humans as a way to get to us. You take out the main vampire food source, you take out the vampires.”
Caleb glared at her. “The pack had nothing to do with…”
“You’re the only one he will listen to.” Caleb retorted.
Darcy lifted a shoulder, not bothering to deny that.
“She and this Joseff guy are dating?” Scotlyn guessed.
“Joseff certainly thinks so.” Zeke arched a brow at Darcy. “You need to talk to your stalker.”
“I’ve been a little busy. I was trapped in a damn Ferrari for thirty-some hours in front of the Hard Rock, waiting for a two second window of no zombies and no daylight to make a run for it.” She made a face. “Side note: As much as I like taking apart a nice Italian engine, their cars leave a lot to be desired when it comes to roomy interiors. I swear, my legs are still asleep.”
“The sirens were luring all the zombies to the Strip.” Scotlyn interjected. “They’ve stopped now.”
“I noticed, but –like I said—it’s a little bit sunny out.” Darcy shook her head. “I barely made it here. I have to wait until dark to reach Joseff.”
“And then you’ll make him release the pack?” Caleb persisted.
“I can’t make him do anything.”
“Yes, you can. Because, he’s obsessed with you. Because you like him being obsessed with you. Because you’re a cock tease.”
Her mouth twitched. “Well, every girl needs a hobby. Still, you know he can be a pain-in-the-ass. It’ll take some time for me to convince him to let them go.”
Zeke sighed. “Leave it to the vampires to somehow make the zombageddon even worse.”
“Zombageddon?” Darcy mulled that over. “I’ve been calling it ‘zompocalypse.’”
“That was our second choice.” Caleb assured her.
“The vampires have taken over Fremont Street.” Scotlyn volunteered. That was a sentence she’d never imagined herself saying. “If Joseff has your pack, they must be there.”
Darcy glanced at her. “Yeah, Joseff’s at Liberty Hall.”
Zeke rolled his eyes. “Jesus, that’s the lamest casino in town! Everybody dresses like its 1776 and ‘ale’ is just Miller Light and water. And don’t get me started on the tavern wenches…”
Scotlyn slanted him a glare.
Love in the Time of Zombies Page 9
