Simon pressed his hand down harder, and Kate’s fingers started to tingle. “Well?”
“Of course,” Kate said, and Simon released her hand.
“Wonderful! For now, you can stay at the hotel, and someone will come for you, but I’ll need to move you closer to my office so that you can accompany me to every event. A strong, united front,” Simon said turning them back toward the guards. Kate saw that they hadn’t even been watching. It would have been easier than she thought to have gotten away with killing Simon.
Simon stopped ten feet away from his guards and turned to Kate. He brought his hand up to her face and lightly brushed his thumb against her cheek.
“I knew I could count on you my beautiful, Kate.”
She smiled and nodded. “I should probably get back to work.”
“If you weren’t so amazing, I’d pull you off duty so that you could work closer to me. But our people need you to keep them safe.”
“I’m happy doing it,” Kate said feeling bubbles rising up her esophagus. She’d never been happier that she was actually good at stabbing The Unholy in the face.
“All right then, I’ll see you at mass,” Simon said, letting his hand fall to his side. He turned halfway but then shifted his eyes to meet hers. “There’s really nothing going on between you and Ethan, right?”
“Just coworkers,” Kate said with a small shrug. That had been an easy question to answer. There hadn’t been anything going on in the way he was asking, but it was bizarre that he was asking.
Simon exhaled, and his eyes moved down to her chest. “Good. See you later then.”
It wasn’t until he was out of sight that Kate drew in a deep breath to fill her tight lungs. The air was a mix of his cologne and the stale stench of The Unholy.
Kate had tried to fight it off, but her stomach moved too fast. She turned, bracing herself on a tree and emptied the contents of her stomach onto the ground.
23
After patrolling the roads, Kate and Ethan went back to his hotel room. Kate didn’t have the energy to find another room for herself, and Ethan was more than happy to let her stay another night.
Once they were locked inside the room, everything Simon had said to her flooded out of her mouth. Ethan paced back and forth, stomping loudly as he moved across the hotel room floor listening to every word.
“You have to do what?” Ethan asked.
Kate was lying on her side hugging her knees to her chest. She didn’t want to tell him the story again because if she did, she might throw up again.
“I couldn’t say no,” she moaned. “What am I going to do?”
“We have to leave.” Ethan stopped and ran his hands through his hair. “Tonight.”
“What about Tommy and Wayne?”
“I’ll tell them. They’ll be ready.”
Kate squeezed her eyes together. “We’ll never get away.”
“It shouldn’t be hard. The only problem is that we won’t be able to take the truck. It’ll be too noisy.” Ethan said stroking his chin. “Unless… maybe it would be easier to get away even if they knew someone was leaving. No one would know who left until maybe they saw which truck was missing. By then we’d be out of sight. Maybe we’d be able to outrun them.”
Kate tried to hold in a moan, but part of it seeped out. Her stomach was so empty it felt as though it was devouring itself, but she was unsure that if she ate anything that she’d be able to keep it down.
“I’m worried about you, Kate,” Ethan said sitting down on the bed next to her. “Are you sure you’re up to this?”
“All we have to do is wait until morning. We’ll be out eradicating. We should stick to the original plan.”
“And what if he rings the bell tonight?”
Kate hugged herself tighter. “Then I stand at his side. It’ll help him believe that I’m on his side.”
“What if it’s a trap?”
“A trap?”
Ethan swallowed hard. “What if he suspects you and this is his way to get you right where he wants you?”
“He could send his guards for me anytime.”
“Except he knows you’d fight them. And probably take several of them out in the process.”
Kate pressed her lips together and swallowed. “I don’t think it’s a trap.”
“OK, fine. If you’re sure, we’ll wait.”
“I’m not sure at all, but I do think our chances are better to leave when we’re already out there.”
“And what if he never lets us out again?” Ethan asked standing so he could continue his pacing. “Or if he has us patrol again tomorrow?”
Kate drew in a slow breath. “Then we’ll have to switch to plan B.”
“And what is plan B?”
“Leaving at night… like you just said we should do. Only when we do it, Tommy and Wayne will be ready. We’ll have a solid plan that’s less likely to fail.”
“Okay,” Ethan said shaking his hands. “Okay. Original plan. Fine. It’ll be fine.”
Ethan sounded like he was trying to convince himself more than he was trying to ease Kate’s mind.
“Was there anything else he said? Something you’re not telling me?” Ethan asked stopping at the window to look down at the church.
“No, I’ve told you everything.” Kate’s stomach tightened. “Oh, actually there was one other really unimportant thing.”
“What’s that?”
“He asked if there was anything going on between us again.”
Ethan shifted his weight. “Unimportant?”
“Well, mostly unimportant.”
“What did you say?”
Kate’s eyes narrowed. “The truth of course.”
“Jesus Christ. He has an obsession with you. Hell, I wonder what he would have done if you would have told him there was something going on. I’d probably be dead by now.”
“I just hope his team in the east returns tomorrow.”
“Me too.”
Ethan walked across the room and checked the lock for the fifth time. The locked door didn’t ease Kate’s mind, and it probably hadn’t helped ease Ethan’s either. The only thing that would help was getting far, far away from Simon and The Way, but then there would be other things to worry about. Things Kate didn’t care about at that moment.
Ethan paced for several minutes before stopping at the window. Kate watched his eyes as they scanned the area.
She should have trusted Ethan sooner. Why hadn’t she seen that he was one of the good guys? Even with how much time she’d spent with him, and what she knew about him, trust was still hard to give. But if she would have realized it sooner, they’d have been long gone.
They wouldn’t be sitting in a hotel room worrying about escaping from The Way. Kate wouldn’t be worried about what Simon was going to do to her when he decided he felt like making an example out of her.
“You should try to get some sleep,” Ethan said.
“You should too.”
Ethan chuckled. “Hell, if I’m going to be able to sleep.”
“What makes you think I’ll be able to?”
Ethan hesitated. “I don’t know how many times I have to say it before you actually believe it. I’m not going to let anything happen to you.”
Kate’s heart fluttered. She held herself tighter.
“If only that was something you could actually control. You can’t stop him.”
“I would die trying.”
Heat pulsed through her veins. She felt like she shouldn’t be in the room with him. She would do anything for him too, but when he said it for some reason, it warmed every inch of her body.
Kate couldn’t handle anything more than what was already on her plate. In all the time she’d known him, she hadn’t thought about him in any other way than as a coworker. Now, she considered him a friend, but the things he said caused her insides to swirl.
She peeked at him under her eyelids. He was tall, muscular, and extremely gorgeous, but she hadn’t given
it more than a passing thought. In fact, she wanted to scold herself at that moment for even thinking that he thought of her as anything more than just a friend. He would have done anything for Tommy and Wayne too, and if they were here, he would have said so.
The way he looked at her, and the things he said, weren’t any different from that. They’d worked together for so long, of course, he didn’t want her stuck for any amount of time with Simon. No one in their right mind would.
Ethan leaned back against the wall and crossed his arms. Kate could feel his eyes on her. She looked up, and he smiled.
“Seriously, get some sleep,” Ethan said. “I’m just going to stay up a bit longer.”
“Is something happening out there?” Kate asked.
“No, I just… wait.” Ethan’s arms dropped to his sides as he peered out the window. “There is something.”
“What is it?” Kate asked raising herself up slightly. She wanted to run to the window, but her body had been taken over by exhaustion.
Ethan smiled as he squinted. “Headlights.”
“Headlights?”
“I don’t want to get my hopes up but, I think they’re back,” Ethan said grinning. “Jesus Christ we might actually be able to get out of this shit hole after all.”
Silence filled the air as Ethan stared out the window. Kate stared at the wall imagining what it would be like tomorrow when they just kept driving. Her body was finally starting to relax when she heard the gunshots in the distance.
“Shit,” Ethan said slamming his closed fist into the side of his leg.
“What’s going on?” Kate said pushing herself up.
“I’m not sure, but The Unholy are going to hear those shots and come running.” Ethan touched his hips feeling for his blade and his gun. “Lock the door behind me.”
“Wait… what?” Kate swung her legs over the side of the bed. The room started to spin but stopped when she pressed her palms down on the mattress.
Ethan walked over to help her stand up. “Do not let anyone but me back into the room.”
“What are you doing?”
“I’m going to help.”
Kate shook her head. “They can handle it.”
“Maybe. But I’m going to make sure they don’t bring in a pack of The Unholy with them.”
Kate tried not to let the worry show, but when Ethan flashed her a slightly cocky half-grin, she was sure he’d noticed.
“Aw, I’m growing on you a little, aren’t I?”
“Please, I just want to leave tomorrow, instead of attending a funeral.”
“Funeral? Shit.” Ethan looked down at his feet and then into Kate’s eyes. “He’ll burn me in that pit. You won’t have to worry about any funeral, but I’m happy to know you’d come.”
Kate touched her gun. “I should go with you.”
“You’re staying right here,” Ethan ordered. “I need you to guard the room.”
Kate wanted to argue, but she didn’t even have the energy. At the door, Ethan looked out of the peephole before opening the door.
“Remember, don’t let anyone inside the room,” Ethan said.
Kate looked up into his dark eyes that sparkled when they caught a glint of light. For a split second, she worried she might never see him again, and the thought sliced into her soul.
“You know I won’t,” she said softly.
Ethan nodded and stepped out into the hall. He stood there waiting. The second Kate flipped the lock into place, she could hear him running noisily down the hall.
She made her way to the window, wishing she would have done more to stop him. Kate knew that he wasn’t going out there to please Simon, he was going out there to make sure everyone in the town stayed safe.
Ethan ran down the street toward the headlights that were aimed toward the fence. Kate was too far away that she couldn’t see anything, and it didn’t take long for Ethan to disappear into the darkness.
24
Kate stood at the window for what felt like hours waiting for Ethan to return. Every so often she thought she could hear yelling in the distance, but it was so far away that perhaps it was only the wind.
The truck lights turned off, and Kate’s breath caught in her throat. Either it was over, or something bad had happened.
She stared at the road below, hoping for signs of life. Several minutes ticked by and eventually, she could hear several people congratulating themselves. When the lights near the church finally illuminated them, she scanned the men one by one looking for Ethan.
As the men dispersed, some into the hotel, others into the surrounding buildings, she was left staring at the empty road. Ethan wasn’t among the men.
Panic moved through her body like a hot iron pressing against every muscle causing it to contract. Her hard pounded against her chest as her stomach swirled mercilessly. It felt as though the building was crumbling away underneath her feet.
Kate pressed her hands to the wall holding herself up. She couldn’t even understand why she was having such a strong reaction. Sure, he was her friend, but it felt as though her heart was being torn in two. Maybe she was worried if something happened to Ethan, she’d truly be stuck inside the fence for the rest of her life.
Kate forced herself back to the window. Ethan couldn’t be gone. For some reason, he just wasn’t back yet. They should have been burning the bodies? Perhaps they had to wait until morning when they had more light.
She shook her head and noisily pulled out the chair at the small table. Her knees had become so weak she could barely hold herself up.
Kate sat down in the chair and bit her fingernails. She looked around the room as if she was seeing it for the first time.
The walls were dirty, and the paintings that still hung were covered in a thick layer of dust. A faint odor of wet socks filled the air and seemed to get stronger the more she focused on it.
“Where the hell are you, Ethan,” she whispered. Kate folded her arms on the table and sighed as she lowered her head down.
Without Ethan, Kate would be back on her own. There was something about having him on her side that made her feel like maybe she actually had a chance of escaping The Way.
It was hard for her to open up to him, but he was the only one she’d been able to talk to at all since the day the disease spread. There was still a small part of her that was afraid that he was secretly some kind of spy for Simon, but after everything, it didn’t make sense.
Except he wasn’t back. What if he was off with Simon at that very moment?
Kate’s head popped up at the sounds of footsteps making their way down the hall. Her muscles tightened, and her stomach clenched, but she found herself on her feet making her way over to the door.
The footsteps stopped outside the door, and she slowly moved her eye toward the peephole. She pressed her palms against the door and looked out.
Ethan lightly tapped against the door startling Kate. She took a step back, and before bothering to catch her breath, she opened the door.
He stepped into the room, closing the door quickly. The lock flipping into place almost sounded as though it echoed inside the room.
“You feeling worse?” Ethan asked looking at her.
“Where were you,” Kate said, ignoring his question.
Ethan looked at her sideways. “You know where I was.”
“They all came back long ago, where were you just now,” Kate asked crossing her arms.
“Worried about me then, are you?” A grin that was a mix of madness and elation spread across his face.
Kate swallowed. Her eyebrows were pressed together wrinkling her forehead. “I was. Now tell me where you were.”
“I took a walk along the fence,” Ethan said with a shrug as he kicked his boots off and sat down on the bed.
“What for?” Her forehead relaxed, but she didn’t look away from him.
“Just in case we need a backup plan,” Ethan said as he pulled off his shirt and tossed it onto the bottom edge of the bed.
Kate stubbornly refused to look at anything other than his eyes. The second she felt tempted she turned away.
“And you’ll be happy to know, I found something,” Ethan said as he stretched out on the bed with his arms behind his head.
Kate turned, and her eyes stopped for a split second on his tight abdominal muscles. His skin looked soft and silky, but she was still mad enough that she could ignore it.
“What did you find?”
“Not far down the fence behind the hotel, the guys who worked on it did a terrible job. There’s a section that pulls open.”
Kate cocked her head to the side. “But Simon checked it.”
“Guess he missed it, or maybe someone cut it open, after his inspection. Maybe we aren’t the only ones thinking about hightailing it out of here.” Ethan twisted his body slightly and propped his head up with his hand. “It’s quite small, but I’m fairly certain we can fit out. I mean, I’m positive you can, but me, Tommy and Wayne might have a touch more trouble.”
“Hopefully we won’t need it,” Kate said sitting down on the other bed. There was a long quiet pause before Kate spoke again. “What was going on out there?”
Ethan shifted his weight around to get comfortable and then closed his eyes. “Just as we thought, they dragged a big pile of Unholy back with them.”
Kate’s eyes moved down his body settling on where his pants rested low on his hips. She chewed her fingernail, annoyed at where her thoughts started to drift. Kate quickly stopped them from wandering too far.
It had been a long time since she’d thought about anyone the way she was thinking about Ethan. She was mad at herself for being so weak that she couldn’t stop herself.
It wasn’t like anything like that could ever happen. Ethan was her partner in crime, nothing more.
She was only thinking about him like that because she’d let her guard down with him, and of course because he was an extremely good-looking man. It didn’t mean anything. It was purely physical.
Kate laid down, turning her back to Ethan. She’d be able to control her thoughts easier if she wasn’t staring at his rock-hard muscles.
Falling Darkness Series - A Post-Apocalyptic Thriller - Books 1-3 Page 15
