The Zombie Chronicles - Book 6 - Revelation (Apocalypse Infection Unleashed Series) (11 page)

“
Right,” she said, releasing a relieved breath. “Where’d they get you?” she asked.

“
Legs and arms.”

She examined my ripped sleeve. “There’s no sign of blood.”

I put my arm around her shoulder. “Let’s get outta here. The herd’s right over there, and I don’t want to press our luck.”

We started walking away from the swarming crowd as the haunting moans of death sliced through the air. I glanced over my shoulder and could see hundreds, if not thousands of them behind us. It was as if some invisible hand was holding them back.

“
Why did those idiots leave us?” Claire asked. “I’m gonna kill them!”

My blood boiled. “Not if I do first.”

The whirring sound of a vehicle engine echoed in the distance. I peered closer and noticed that it was the Land Rover, and I wondered if they were finally coming back for us. As it approached, I saw familiar faces. They pulled up next to us, and Steven motioned us in.

Anger flooded through me. I’d never been left out to dry like that, and I was none too happy about it. I never would have left them behind.

“
We begged Ralph to go back,” Rachel said, “but he wouldn’t.”

Ralph was a thin guy, and I knew I could easily take him on. I was ready, willing, and able to beat him into the next week for deserting us, leaving us to fend for ourselves.

“
Look, buddy, I know you’re pissed,” Ralph said, obviously knowing the scowl on my face, “but I’m not about to risk my life for somebody I don’t know. If we’d have gone back, the Land Rover would’ve been swarmed. I’ve got a wife and two kids to think about, you know.”

I couldn’t believe he had the nerve to make such a statement. I clenched my fist and inhaled deeply. “I barely know Charlie, and I don’t know a soul in that house, yet Claire and I risked our lives to help all of them.”

Ralph shrugged. “Well, what can I say? I’m not some big hero like you,” he retorted. “I only help my own.”

“
It’s a shame your friend died back there instead of you,” Claire said coldly.

John jumped out of the truck. “Listen, lady—”

Claire punched him in the gut, then rammed her knee into his groin, making it evident that Nick’s hand-to-hand combat lessons had most certainly paid off.

Moaning, her opponent crouched, then dropped to the ground like a sack of potatoes. “You’re a jerk!” she yelled. “If you ever do that to me again, I’ll put a bullet in your head.” She looked up at Steven and glared, daring him to say a word about it.

He swallowed hard. “There was nothing I could do. John agreed with Ralph, and when we demanded that they go back, they held us at gunpoint. It took a while, but Rachel and I finally convinced them to come back.”

“
You’re lucky I even came back for you!” Ralph yelled.

That was enough to fuel my temper as anger pumped through my veins. I pulled him out of the truck, and Rachel screamed when I violently slammed him to the ground.

“
Back off, you little punk!” he shouted.

“
Unlike you, I don’t run away. Now get up!” I ordered. “Get up and fight like a man, you piece of trash.” As he got back up, I assumed a fighting stance and clenched my teeth.

He threw his head back and laughed. “Kid, you need to calm down, before I remove your spine with my bare hands.” When he saw that I wasn’t going to flee from his challenge, he sprang up and lurched for me.

He threw a punch, and pain exploded across my lip as blood dripped. His ring had nailed me. My curled fingers were a punching tool, not to be messed with. I’d tapped into a primal rage I didn’t know I even possessed, and I planned to use that energy to knock Ralph out with one blow.

Without hesitation, I charged toward him. My first punch hit his chin, unleashing bare-knuckle fury. He staggered back, and I went straight for his gut. He doubled over and gasped, his eyes bulging with rage. Clearly, the man couldn’t care less that Claire and I had nearly been torn apart by zombies. He staggered back and tried to regain his footing, but I had knocked the wind out of him, and he was gasping for breath.

Ralph straightened, then took lurching steps toward me, shouting curses. I launched my fist, and he ducked, just in time to nail me harshly in the ribs. Pain shot across my stomach, and all the air rushed out of my lungs. He went for another shot, but I kicked him in the gut, slamming him into the door of the truck. He came at me again, and I threw four punches that connected with his jaw. He swung again, and I threw another solid shot at his jaw. When he backed up to try to catch his breath, I threw him an uppercut that knocked him out for the count. He crashed in the grass in a trembling heap.

Claire reached in Ralph’s pocket and grabbed the keys to the truck, then hopped in the driver seat and started the vehicle. “Get in, Dean! Let’s go.”

“
You can’t!” Rachel yelled.

“
Watch me!” Claire shouted.

I hopped into the other side, and the tires spun in the dirt as we took off.

“
You can’t leave them,” Rachel said.

“
Why not? They didn’t seem to have any problem leaving us,” she said, maneuvering onto the street.

It was a different side of Claire than I was used to seeing . My mind flashed back to when she’d begged for Tahoe’s life. She had refused to leave him, even after the stunts he’d pulled with us, but post-apocalyptic life was clearly wearing on her.

“
She has a point,” Steven said. “They deserve it.”

Claire gripped the steering wheel and pressed the gas to the floor, and we sped down the street. Steven gave us directions to the house where Bart had taken the survivors; thankfully, it was in the safe zone. Claire pulled into the driveway of a house with the armored car parked in front of it, and we hopped out.

A man came out and greeted us, with tears streaming down his cheek. “Thank you, Steven. You saved our lives and even gave us a place to live. I-I thought we were dead—my wife, my children, all of us. You risked your lives to save us, and I couldn’t be more thankful.”

“
I’d invite you to stay with us, but Rachel’s dad won’t allow anyone new into the apartment building.”

“
I know. That’s okay. You’ve done more than enough already.” He hugged each and every one of us, and his gratefulness made the whole mission worth it.

I nudged Steven’s arm. “Listen, I need to see the scientist.”

Steven nodded. “Where’s Charlie?”

“
I’ll send him out,” a woman said.

Steven and Rachel went inside, and Claire and I just waited on the porch. We didn’t know anyone anyway. A few minutes passed before Charlie came out. I hadn’t spoken to him much, but I recognized him immediately.

He was sucking in deep breaths as droplets of sweat dripped down his face. “Dean,” he managed to squeak out.

“
Are you okay?” Claire asked.

He shook his head.

A woman with short, brown, curly hair came out and wrapped her arm around him.

“
That’s his wife,” Claire whispered to me.

The woman looked at me. “How can I help you?”

“
I really need to know what happened to Jackie,” I said.

“
Please,” Claire begged. “We have to know.”

Charlie panted between breaths in a full-blown panic attack.

“
He can’t talk right now,” the woman said. “He can barely breathe.”

“
But we desperately need answers,” Claire said.

“
When he gets like this, he needs a minute to rest,” she said. “He’ll be able to talk to you soon, after he calms down.” She then led Charlie back into the house and locked the door.

“
Guess we’ll come back later,” Claire said.

“
Yeah. Charlie seems like a real basket-case,” I responded. “He’s not in any condition to tell us anything.”

“
We’ll give him some time to recover, but I’m not just going to give up on this.”

“
Me neither, Claire. We’ll get our answers, one way or another.”

Chapter 12

I washed off in a basin of water and stripped out of my shark suit. I ran my hands over my skin where the zombies had tried to bite me. No bites had broken through, but there were several purplish-green bruises on my arms and legs. I swallowed hard with the realization that without the suit, I would be zombified.
What if a bite had landed on my hand or neck or face?
I shuddered at the thought.

I changed into some clothes that Claire had found in one of the dressers. They were a size too big, but I didn’t care. I wasn’t fond of the tiger-striped shirt, but it felt good to be cleaned up a bit.

Sparkles followed Claire to her bed and cuddled up next to her. I said goodnight to Claire, sank into the warm covers, and dozed off for a long, well-deserved, much-needed nap.

* * *

When I woke up, I heard voices in the living room, and I went out to greet the others and to make sure my brother and sister were okay.

Val took off her coat and wrinkled her brow at the sight of my animal-print shirt. “Whoa, tiger. Shouldn’t you be out there hunting a gazelle?”

“
Ha-ha,” I said. “It’s not like I have much choice. It was this or some loud Hawaiian shirt.”

Nick kicked off his boots. “I hope you aren’t ticked off that we went without you.”

“
I’m not,” I said, turning so he wouldn’t see the cuts on my face.

“
Good,” Val said, flopping down on the couch. “I didn’t know what kind of fights might break once we got back to the homestead. I figured there’d be major mayhem.”

“
I’ve learned to accept the fact that you love to sneak out behind my back,” I said.

She sipped on a bottle of water. “Dean, we had absolutely no say in the matter. Max doesn’t want you and Claire on active duty yet.”

I glanced around. “Where’s Lucas?”

“
On patrol,” she said. After Nick went into the bathroom, she walked over to me. “Your lip is busted.” She then touched the bruise on my jaw. “You were in a fight! I noticed earlier, but I didn’t wanna get Nick all worked up. What happened?”

“
Nothing. Just a brawl with a knucklehead.”

“
Dean, you shouldn’t start fights here. We have to try to get along with these people,” she said. “And how are you gonna hide your face from Nick?”

“
I’ll tell him tomorrow. I’m tired, and I’m not in the mood for one of his lectures tonight. I’m going back to sleep. My body is beat, and I’m exhausted.”

“
So…what happened?”

“
I pulled the jerk out of his truck and demanded that he fight me, and he did. In the end, I whipped his butt.”

Val shook her head and clicked her tongue the same way my mother always did when I did something unbelievably stupid. “You’ve gotta watch that temper of yours.”

“
Yeah, yeah. Anger management. I get it…but it gets worse.”

She met my gaze. “How much worse?”

“
Claire stole the guy’s truck and left him and his buddy.”

“
What!?” she whispered so Nick wouldn’t hear.

“
We ditched some jerks,” I said nonchalantly and shrugged.

Val’s jaw dropped. “You involved Claire in this?” She shook her head. “I don’t believe this. Can’t we leave you alone for a second?”

“
Oh, but I’m not even to the really bad part yet.”

She let out a long breath. “What did you do?”

“
You don’t wanna know.”

A knock at the door stopped Val’s interrogation, and she hurried over to answer it. “Who is it?”