Jack grabbed my chin and pulled my face up until I was looking up into his eyes. “Tell me what they did to you.” The desperation to not hear what I knew he most feared was so apparent in his eyes I had to look away. I tried to turn my head to the right, away from him, but he just held my chin harder. “I need to know, Angie.”
I squinted up and just stared at his eyes for a long moment. “Think of the worst possible thing, and that’s what happened.” My heart broke watching the understanding dawn in his eyes. I wanted to burn the whole fucking world down when a tear broke free and trickled down his cheek, landing with a salty splash on his lip.
He stared at me for another moment before grabbing my shoulders and pulling me all the way into his lap, holding me so tight I was almost concerned for the safety of my ribs, but I let him. I had a feeling he needed to hold me more than I needed to be held and I wasn’t about to take that from him.
“Oh God, I’m so sorry Angie, I should’ve been with you, fuck me, I should’ve been there.” He wasn’t crying, but I wasn’t convinced hysterical sobs were out of the question as he added a brisk rocking to the embrace.
“You can’t be with us every second, Jack. Besides, if you’d been there they might’ve taken you too, and then who would take care of the kids?” I let my throat relax so my words came out as what I was hoping was soothing.
A deep growl resonated in his chest as he acknowledged the logic. “Did you kill him?”
I knew he was talking about the guard who’d raped me. “Not exactly, but I did stay to watch a couple of zombies tear him to pieces before I escaped.”
Grunting his approval, Jack’s breathing started to slow and he shifted so that he was more sprawled out against the wall, using his own pack as a pillow and keeping me flush against him. By the time he was done adjusting, he was flat on the floor with me still resting slightly on top of him.
“Thanks for telling me, Angie. I know that must’ve been hard but I needed to know before I did something stupid like make a move.”
Shock pulsed through me and I peeled myself off his chest to stare at him. “A move? What kind of move?” I knew what kind of move; I just wanted to hear him say it.
Jack’s mouth curled into that ridiculously sexy half smile that made him millions as he grabbed my chin again, only this time it was to bring my mouth to his. Our lips met and suddenly 20,000 volts of electricity was pulsing through me. There was something about kissing Jack that made me feel like my whole body was humming and glowing. Like a florescent light bulb.
It wasn’t a big intense kiss, just a slight brushing of our lips before he pulled away and laid his head back down, pulling his hat down over his eyes. No, it wasn’t a big kiss, it was just enough to pull the earth off its gravitational axis for a split second, leaving me floating through the atmosphere.
“Jack?”
He mumbled back.
“Thanks for rescuing me and not killing me after you saw the bite.”
Pushing his hat up enough so one eye was focused squarely on me, he grunted. “Remind me we need to investigate that tomorrow.” He winked at me and pulled his hat back down, settling in to fall asleep.
I lay my head on his chest with a smile, glad to have the chance to fall asleep in his arms, even just one more time. “How was he planning to investigate my bite mark?”
Chapter 3
Something wet was running down my arm. Groaning, I peeled an eyelid open long enough to see Chloe, Jack and Ty sitting in a circle around my arm with a bottle of peroxide and a Q-Tip.
“What the hell, guys?” I moaned as they poked and prodded my bite.
“It’s completely healed…” Ty’s astonishment forced both my eyes to open as I struggled to sit up.
“What do you mean it’s…?” My voice died out as I looked at where the bite had been on my arm. It really was healed. The skin surrounding it was still angry looking, but the bite itself had closed completely and new skin had already grown over it. There was bruising, but it no longer looked like a bite at all.
I looked up at the surprised faces around me, echoed back in my own expression. Pulling my knees under me, I stood up, using the wall as a crutch. My bones creaked in protest and my muscles were stiff from sleeping on concrete, but I didn’t feel like shit anymore. I felt hot and my heart was beating out a fast staccato in my chest, but I didn’t feel bad…just weird. Thoughts raced through my mind so fast I couldn’t snatch onto a single one before it flitted away, only to be replaced by a thousand more. I was so…aware. Not just the normal kind of awareness, but it was more somehow. Like I could feel the molecules in the air and the vibrations stirred by the subtle movement of breathing from the people still sitting on the floor.
Jack stood and came closer. He stared at every inch of my face like he was trying to memorize it and put his hand on my forehead.
“You’re warm. Hot, even. Do you feel ok?” There was so much concern in his eyes I wanted to smile, but behind the concern I could see the hesitation as well, and I heard his pulse quicken as he backed the tinniest fraction of a step from me. He was scared.
Why was he so scared? “I feel fine, a little warm, but ok for the most part. Why, do I look terrible or something?” My voice came out low and smooth and it threw me off. I sounded so calm it was starting to freak me out; it was my voice, but somehow it just…wasn’t.
The 3 of them just stood there, staring at me. I started to feel like an ant under a magnifying glass and it was creeping me out. “Seriously, what the fuck, guys?!”
Ty and Chloe had stood up and were huddled next to Jack, all 3 looking concerned and confused.
Chloe stepped forward and ran her hand down my cheek. “It’s amazing, you look like you, but different. Not bad, but not good.” The blood pulsing under her skin was singing to me to the point it was a loss when she pulled her hand back.
Wait, what the fuck?! How was it that I could hear her blood?! Starting to panic, I turned away quickly, rushing over to the door with the glass window. My reflection stopped me dead in my tracks. My hair was still a tangled red mess and my face still looked tired and drawn, but the circles under my eyes were sunken in and I was paler than I’d ever been in my life, which was saying a lot. I looked dead.
“I look dead! Why do I look fucking dead?!” The panic spilled out in earth-shaking waves from me and I thought I might faint. Did I die? Was I some sort of living zombie?!
Jack walked up behind me, grabbed my shoulders and turned me to face him. He didn’t say anything, just stared at my face a moment before putting his hand on my chest.
“Jack, now isn’t really the time to cop a feel-”
“Shhh,” Jack whispered, effectively cutting Chloe off. He just stood there; hand on my chest, staring into my eyes. “You’re not dead.” He finally said after what I was sure was eternity.
“Heartbeat?” I looked over at Ty as Jack nodded at him in answer.
Jack turned and looked back at me. He looked tired, but he didn’t look dead, no, that honor was reserved for me. Seeing the fear in my eyes, he smiled his crooked grin and winked at me. “You’re not dead yet, kitten.”
“Pssh. Says you,” I snarked back as I turned and stalked down the little hall to stretch my sore body. It hurt, but nothing that would keep me from running and killing, which was likely to be the bulk of my day.
“Ok, well we know she isn’t trying to eat us, even though she looks dead and she has a heartbeat, which also makes me lean towards “She won’t try to eat us.”” I heard Ty say as I stretched my hamstrings.
Pressing one hand against the wall, I pulled my foot up towards my butt and felt the stretch all the way in my abs. Looking down, it was hard to not notice how easy it was to see my foot compared to what I’d been used to. I was losing weight, which had to be a good thing.
“Here’s the deal,” I started turning to face the group as I stretched out my other leg. “I can hear your blood in your veins, hear your hearts beating and you all smell good. I may
or may not be a vampire at this point, but I will definitely not eat anyone, although I do need to eat something, and soon.”
I stood silent and evaluated the emotions playing out over the faces around me. The shock of hearing what I could hear was wearing off and curiosity took its place. I knew they all had questions and so did I, but we didn’t have any answers now and probably wouldn’t. At least not for a while.
Finishing up my stretches, I walked over to my pack and pulled out a can of pears, some jerky and the can opener. Peeking out of the corner of my eye, I breathed a sigh of relief as everyone dispersed to gather themselves to leave. I looked back down and paused for a moment before grabbing the pocketknife from my pants and jabbing the blade into the can and dragging it across the metal like it was pizza. The can split from the force and juice started to run down my hand as I quickly brought the can to my mouth and downed the whole thing in one gulp.
Reaching next for the jerky, I tossed back a few pieces and washed them down with an entire bottle of water. The growling in my gut had ceased to the point I could think again. We needed a plan. Leaving the Hummer had been a bad break but we might be able to get another vehicle running long enough to get us to the coast. I was so fucking tired of Texas I couldn’t wait to get out of here.
I pulled my toothbrush out and squirted some paste on before jamming it in my mouth and turned to watch the others. Ty was taking inventory of his ammo and Chloe was playing fetch with Roscoe. Looking to Jack, I could see him pouring over the maps, obviously thinking the same thing I had been.
He looked up when he felt me watching. “I think we should get back on the overpass. It’ll be tough with the cars, but it’s better than worrying about things coming at us from alleys and doorways as we get through the city.” He traced his finger along the road on the map a ways before continuing. “If we get to the city limits on foot, we can grab another car to get us through the less populated areas as we make our way south.” Jack’s eyes reached mine, causing the toothbrush in my mouth to pause.
We both knew that shit was about to get real real, considering we were in a huge city and on foot. I smiled through the paste before spitting in the corner and rinsing out my mouth. “We’ll be fine. Maybe me being dead will distract, ya know, the dead.”
“Angie, you’re not dead,” Jack countered while rolling his eyes and folding up the map. Looking up at the kids, “Give us a minute?”
Ty and Chloe shrugged their shoulders and headed into the shop while muttering about the audacity of us having sex when we needed to be leaving.
I was pretty sure Jack couldn’t hear what they said as he walked over to me. “Are you sure you’re ok?” He ran his hand along my jaw and leaned into me, eyes tight with worry.
I stared into the hazel depths for a brief moment before rising up on my toes and capturing his lips gently with mine. “Never better,” I whispered into his mouth while reaching up to run my nails lightly across the back of his neck.
Momentarily startled, he grunted then wrapped his arms around my waist, kissing me wholeheartedly. My mind got giddy and blank feeling his stubble rubbing against my chin and his fingers gently kneading my lower back. He pulled away and looked down at me with an impish grin. “Ok, I believe you.” With a final wink, he reached down and grabbed his bag and started towards the shop.
Standing still, I waited a second for my blood to cool. My skin was like memory foam, replaying the feel of his hands and lips over and over until I was sure I’d never forget. It was that moment, that tiny, insignificant moment of watching him walking away from me that I knew. I knew without a doubt, without a trace of uncertainty that I was completely in love with him. I wanted to enjoy that feeling. I wanted to wrap myself up in it and wear it like a jacket for the rest of my life. It was joy and light and I wanted so desperately to be happy about it. But I also knew with unwavering certainty that for as much as I was in love with Jack, I was going to lose him. And it would fucking shatter me.
I picked up my bag and followed the others into the shop. There was a tense moment when they all stopped talking and stared at me. I could still see the fear and uncertainty in their eyes echoing back at me, hell, I wasn’t even certain about myself anymore.
“So what’s the plan?” I asked casually as I started to check the guns on my holster and avoided their eyes.
I looked up when no one answered to see Chloe with her arms folded across her chest, obviously not agreeing with the current suggestions. She gave Jack another long look before swirling around in a huff and stalking away. I wanted to ask what her deal was as Ty walked off towards her.
“Uh, Angie…” Jack started hesitantly as he stroked his goatee. I waited for him to continue, but he just stood there, rubbing his chin. Finally he cleared his throat and stood a little straighter, letting out a huge sigh. “Chloe thinks we should scrap the coast and head to D.C. and we don’t disagree with her. At least, not exactly.” His eyes were pleading with me and it took all of me to not punch his beautiful face.
I could feel my pulse speeding up and hearing the trepidation of his didn’t help matters. They wanted to leave me? Fine, I would just leave them first. Hiking my bag higher on my shoulder, I started towards the window we had come in through.
“Fine,” My voice was sharp and cold sounding, even to me. “You guys do what you want, but I will get to an island and have some fucking peace.”
Jack started towards me and tried to put his hand on my shoulder but I just shrugged it off. “You’ve got it all wrong,” He started, eyes still pleading.
I spun and stalked closer, the betrayal of being left on my own stinging so deep I could hardly breathe. “Oh really? ‘Cuz it sounds an awful lot like you guys want to go your own way and who could blame you? Even I don’t know what I am anymore!”
“Damnit, Angie, shut up for five seconds and hear us out!” Chloe’s outburst got my attention and I started to focus my anger on her, but she started babbling before I had a chance. “If what Ian was doing was government sanctioned, then where else but the capital would they have answers for what’s happening to you? Fuck, for all we know that serum caused you to survive being bit, which means there could be a cure!”
Well, fuck. I stopped mid-huff and let her words sink in. Could I really be harboring the cure? If I was, I was pretty sure I was the only one who was experimented on who made it out alive which meant I might be the only shot the human race had at real survival. Ugh. I didn’t ask for this. I just wanted to go off by myself and learn to make rum out of coconuts and spend my days lounging on a beach. Preferably with a shirtless Jack Jones strumming a guitar next to me. I didn’t want to be our only hope; that was just too much to lay on a person.
I stared at the faces staring back at me. Ty and Chloe looked so hopeful I wanted to cry. I was a complete asshole for only thinking of myself while standing right in front of 2 amazing and brilliant kids who didn’t deserve this anymore than I did. Looking over at Jack pounded the final nail in my coffin. He was supposed to be the rich, self-serving jerk who only cared about fast cars and beautiful women which was so far off the truth it was laughable. My head ping-ponged between those faces a few more times before resting on Roscoe. The sight of his tongue hanging out of his mouth as he stared at me did it. Groaning, I let myself fall to the ground and to my back in an unceremonious heap; I did my best thinking laying down because then I didn’t have gravity to distract me. I focused on my breathing, the heart beats in the room and the feel of the cold concrete through my thin shirt.
“Wow. That was Oscar-worthy,” Jack started with a slow clap.
“Shut up and decide what we’re doing. I’ll get up when you guys have a solution least likely to get us all killed.”
Still chuckling, my eyes followed Jack as he came and lay down behind me, pausing to lift my head and rest it on his stomach before lying back down. Before I could ask what he was doing, Chloe came over and laid down next to me, putting her head on my stomach, with Ty bringing up the end
and his head on Chloe’s stomach. We just lay there quietly, like the game we used to play as kids where you all lay down with heads on bellies, laughing as our heads bounced with the other person’s laughter until someone threatened to pee and stood up.
Roscoe walked over, snuffed Ty’s shirt, then lay down with his head on Ty’s stomach and watched us all with his giant dog eyes. That did it; we all started to laugh so hard my healing ribs screamed in protest, which made Chloe’s head bounce harder, hence more laughing.
It felt so good to just laugh. We laughed so long I wasn’t even sure why we were laughing anymore, just that there was no turning back. I laughed so hard my voice wasn’t even coming out anymore, just a high-pitched wheeze as my head continued to bounce and tears rolled down my cheeks.
My laughter was cut off abruptly as I thought about how many miles it was between us and D.C. “How far is it?” I asked as the giggles quieted down in the others.
“About 16 hundred miles, give or take. We’d have to go through roughly 7 states, mostly back country, but there’s several heavily populated areas on the way.” Ty’s voice echoed quietly through the shop and I raised my head to look at him. His eyes met mine and he shrugged. “Chloe and I were up late talking about it.”
“How on earth would we get there? If you haven’t forgotten, cannibalism has become the world’s new favorite pastime and I really doubt the airport is still selling tickets.”
Our line was disrupted as Ty shot up excitedly. “That’s the plan, we’ll fly!” I was about to ask him if he’d eaten a big bowl of drugs for breakfast before he interrupted my skepticism. “I can fly, all we need is to find a little plane, gas it up and we’re off.”
“You can fly? Seriously? How many hours have you logged?” Jack asked as he lifted my head so he could sit up.
“Well…” Ty trailed off looking away.
“He’s logged over 50 hours which is plenty for a small plane,” Chloe finished for him defensively.
This is the End (Book 2): Not Dead Yet Page 4
