Wake the Dead 2 (Wake The Dead Series) (13 page)

“That’ll kill the mood,” he commented. Alex, still naked, climbed into the front seat and shoved the door open halfway. The zombie stumbled backward enough to where he could safely roll down the window to fit the muzzle of the gun outside. He fired, the slug penetrating its skull and exiting the opposite side, dropping the zombie to the ground where it disappeared into the bushes.

“What’s the matter, you didn’t want a threesome?” Selina said jokingly, pulling on her underpants and then her shorts.” I thought she was kinda pretty.”

Alex furrowed his brow and felt the bile in his stomach coming up at that ridiculous announcement.

She was thoroughly relishing his reaction and laughing, trying to get it under control.

“I threw up in my mouth a little. That’s fuckin’ disgusting!”

Again, Selina laughed, slapping him on the shoulder as she climbed into the front seat and refitted her bra. He stared back at her while she dressed, helplessly admiring the tone of her body, drinking it in and appreciating her in the moment.

“Let’s get this stuff back to the boat. They’re probably waiting on us by now,” Alex said, practicality once again ruling his thoughts. He looked back to Selina who regarded him with a sidelong stare and then turned to gaze out the window.

“You don’t get women, do you, Lancelot?” she said absently, buttoning her shirt back up and kicking her feet up, then crossing them over one another on the dashboard.

Alex had no idea what she was talking about this time, as he pulled the rig onto the road, and headed back to the rendezvous point.

The drive back was undertaken in relative silence. Alex knew that she was a bit irritated that he dismissed the intimacy of the moment. Or at least he thought so. As they got very close to their destination, he offered a stab at the mood.

“Look, I’m sorry for minimizing what we shared, all right? But, I can tend toward the practical…to a fault.” But we need to get back to the boat. They’re probably waiting for us.”

”Well, I didn’t want to snuggle, Alex. But maybe not worrying about the others and what they’re doing so much…? Especially after.”

“Well, I’ll work on that,” he said, pacifistically agreeing with her as not to start an argument, knowing it was something he would need to address—and soon. The fact that she didn’t seem to care about anyone but herself in this very moment was a red flag, and something he would need to discuss with her at length. “Look, I get what you’re sayin’. But, it’s just that, if were leaving these people behind and venturing out on our own, we need to be on the same page. Not just ideally, but emotionally, too.”

Selina stared at him thoughtfully, but did not speak.

Alex said nothing more, but extended a hand to her. The distance between them was great, both figuratively and literally. Alex reached further, eventually finding her hand at her side and grasping it tightly.

She stared back at him and smiled.

“I know you can’t stay mad at me.”

He hoped that she understood his offering for what it was. She returned the grip, squeezing his hand hard and then slid closer to him.

As they got close enough to see Phil standing on the road, waiting for them, she rubbed her hand along his face roughly. “And the beard is comin’ off!”

Alex watched Phil waving them around, and he pulled the ambulance behind the very same cropping of trees as he had before. The vehicle came to a stop and they hopped out, grabbing their gear and following Phil back to the boat.

The remains of a zombie, freshly slain, was lying on the side of the road. Phil kicked it as he went past, waving them to follow.

“Son of a bitch almost got the drop on me,” he said. I was startin’ to nod off waiting for you when this thing came at me. Luckily I heard it first.”

“Sorry ‘bout that,” Selina said, seeming unapologetic to Alex.

“Yeah, well, it’s fine. I'm still alive,” he said, nodding. Then he suddenly walked right over to Selina and whispered in her ear. He stepped back, Selina blushing, while Phil wandered back down to the boat, disappearing over the crest of the hill.

Selina began unbuttoning her shirt and shrugged.

“Nice. You misbuttoned it, huh?” Alex said, laughing a bit hard. “Busted!”

He walked down the hill after Phil seeing two fuel cans already inside the boat.

“These are the last two,” Phil said, tapping the cans.

“How did Jim make out?”

“Nick seemed to calm him down, when they came back, they were laughing and having a good ‘ol time.”

“Sounds about right. We ran into some trouble, too, at the Home Depot. Narrowly escaped.” Phil stared at him curiously. “I'm serious. We ran into at least a dozen or more inside the store. Just be careful if you head over there.”

“Will do,” Phil said as they collectively saw Selina coming toward them, her shirt buttoned properly now. “You done with the ambulance? Or you guys taking it with you?”

“Nah. I'm thinking we leave this with you guys. There’s medical supplies in there that might come in handy, and besides, it’s a gas guzzler,” Alex said, sliding over and helping Selina into the boat as Phil tugged the cord to start the motor.

“We’re goin’ car shopping tomorrow!” Selina said loudly over the revving noise.

Phil shoved it into the river and jumped in, guiding the boat back to the castle, the ride passing in relative silence.

As soon as they arrived, Selina leaped out of the boat and disappeared inside the castle walls.

“She’s goin’ to check on Hannah,” Phil said in response to Alex’s inquisitive expression.

“Shit, right. Jeez. So wrapped up in everything else, I almost forgot.”

“Yeah. But she didn’t.,” Phil said, tying the rope from the boat around the post in the ground to anchor it. He climbed up onto the drawbridge next and disappeared next inside the castle.

“Shit,” Alex muttered. He sat in quiet contemplation alone in the boat for a long while, intent on doing some soul searching of his own.

Chapter 10

The next morning, Alex got up early, pulled on a pair of jeans and a pocketed black tee shirt, laced up his boots, and went outside to spend some time with Shadow.

After his chat with Selina last evening about Hannah, and that she seemed to be doing better, was quite a relief. He felt much better about things and where his relationship with her was headed. But, he did want to explore their pasts a bit more, and maybe even tell her about Sara. He just felt like being open about that would maybe help them both get closer to one another.

He watched the wolf go about his business for the most part, and then wrestled with him briefly, rubbing his face against Shadow’s head and snout as they had in the past. The wolf seemed even bigger today than ever before, admiring his musculature as he took a seat beside the wolf, rubbing his head. They had hardly spent any time together these past few days and Alex was not satisfied with that realization. They needed to leave, not for Selina’s sake, but for Alex and Shadow’s sake, too. He also considered the very real possibility that, despite the food they’d just acquired, that they still might not have enough to go around.

Alex glanced up to see the undead flesh amassed against the doorway, bringing his thoughts to the here and now.

The droves of zombies continued to persist at the gates, reaching for them, but Shadow hardly paid them heed. He guessed that he had gotten used to them being there by now, and no longer considered them a threat.

There were a few partially eaten zombie arms lying around the outskirts of the large courtyard, and perhaps Shadow had lost his taste for their flesh. He heard something behind him and instinctively reached for the knife strapped to his hip. He relaxed upon hearing her voice.

“You escaped my bed without a sound, did you?”

“I did. Don’t hold it against me. Just wanted to spend some time with my buddy here.”

Selina sat beside Alex and looked sympathetically to him and then the wolf.

“You wanna bring him with us today?”

“I dunno. I'm not sure how he’d fare on a boat. But I do really miss being with him.”

“Well, he’s gonna have to ride in the boat eventually, once we find a car.”

Alex looked at her with interest. He really hadn’t thought that far ahead, but she was accurate in her statement.

“You wanna come with me today, bud?” he asked, rubbing the top of Shadow’s head. The wolf rubbed his snout against Alex’s face and licked his a few times before wandering off. “Guess that’s a yes. Wanna get ready and we’ll go?”

“Yeah, all I gotta do is get dressed. And I'm going to use that toothbrush I just found. You might wanna do the same!”

“Yep. Good idea. Bucket of water still inside?

“I’ll bring it out here along with a bottle of water for you,” Selina said, striding back into the chapel.

Alex looked around and decided to climb up and onto the wall-walk. The inside of the fairgrounds, along with the parking lot, were still covered by the undead. It was like something out of a movie to Alex when he took it all in.

As he climbed back down the steps and into the courtyard, he believed that leaving was the right choice, even though this castle s safe a place. It had solid walls and a steel gate, a moat and a drawbridge, which was not terribly designed. It seemed strong enough.

Although, what if that gate gave out?

There was a lingering thought in the back of Alex’s mind however, again reinforcing the desire to go south, namely thoughts of his family. He hadn’t really given them much thought since the first few weeks in the cabin last winter, and he wondered if they were even alive.

He also considered that the home where he’d been raised, was a beachfront home, and might be as safe a place as this one, considering that they would only have to guard to the north, as the south was oceanfront.

Heading south was certainly not going to be a picnic, but all signs were pointing to that end. Besides, if they weren’t going to let Shadow into the castle, because they were understandably concerned about Ben’s cat—or even the others’ safety—then he really didn’t have much choice at all. The wolf was an important part of his life, and they needed to respect that.

Alex considered this long and hard. He tried to see that point from Nick’s perspective, not wanting to take a chance with a wild animal inside the castle, even though Shadow had saved lives on more than one occasion. He understood why Nick did it, but it still stung every time he had to go inside and leave Shadow out here. They did feed him well, which was a nice thing, but it still wasn’t right to leave him confined like this.

The more Alex thought about it, the more irritated he became.

“You okay?” Selina asked while brushing her teeth, still in her slinky robe.

“Yeah. Let’s just get this moving along,” he said, taking the toothbrush that she handed him and squirting some toothpaste onto the bristles. She also handed him the razor, a small travel-sized can of shaving cream, and a tiny mirror.

He nodded his consent and brushed in silence.

He spat blood out of his mouth, unconsciously, until Selina stopped him by grabbing his arm.

“I think you got it. Need to go easy at first. Your gums aren’t used to it.”

“Oh shit. Wasn’t even paying attention.”

“All right, Lancelot, get that beard gone, and then we’ll get dressed and get going. We’ve got a car to find and a new life to start.” Selina smiled, all too excited by the visions of their future.

“Not sure I mentioned this before, but I have family down south,” he stated.

“No, you hadn’t. I suppose you wanna see if they’re alive? Right?”

“Would be nice, yeah,” he said as she sat on the ground and watched the shaving process, Alex using the clippers to get everything as close as possible first. Then, he spread the shaving cream on his face and carefully shaved all around his face, leaving a goatee.

“I like it, Lancelot. And you’ll have to tell me about that family of yours.”

Alex watched her get to her feet and slowly walk away. She glanced over her shoulder, smiling as usual, and catching him looking after her. Alex could not help but take note as her shapely figure was made even more evident from beneath a sheer robe by the sunlight encroaching on them from the east. It aroused him abruptly, taking him by surprise as an urge washed over him.

Alex followed her into the chapel to gather his belongings, but was further overwhelmed by lust upon seeing in her sheer robe, partially open and revealing her centerline to him. He raced over to her and grabbed her from behind as she turned around, pulling her close to him and grinding up against her. He kissed her neck many times over and she moaned, the robe dropping to the floor.

She leaned against the wall with her hands and spread herself as Alex dropped his pants, an animalistic instinct guiding him, taking her from behind.

She had to have been a bit surprised based on her initial expression, but quickly fell in step with him. it was over in a few minutes, neither of them saying a word. When it was over, Alex spun her around and kissed her deeply, which again seemed to take her by surprise, but she returned the kiss, deepening it in kind.

“Wow,” Selina said with wide eyes when Alex finally relinquished his grasp on her. The left side of his face turned up in a smile.

“Yeah, I dunno. You looked…well, I just wanted you.”

“I'm more than fine with it, lover-boy,” she said, retrieving her robe from the ground, dusting it off, and tossing it over her shoulder.

“Lover boy?! I think I liked Lancelot better.”

“All right, I’ll think of something else then.”

Selina tossed her robe into her pack on the floor, mentioning something about washing them before they left. She quickly dressed into a pair of short boots, khaki shorts, and a slightly soiled, off-white tank top with an olive green button down shirt overtop that. Then she strapped on her sword and tucked the .45 caliber—or at least she tried, as it was a huge weapon—into the loose rung of her belt.

“Hey, why don’t we swap that thing out for something smaller?” Alex asked her, moving right over to Bryan’s pack, unzipping it.

He reached inside and retrieved the gun in there, inspecting it thoroughly. It was a 9 mm Beretta M9. The M9 was a common or more popular choice, of the 9 mm family if Alex recalled, along with several others, including the Glock 17, 19, Beretta 92, and the CZ 75. He had been familiar with all of these a few years back, having fired them all at one time or another. Alex held the pistol in his hand and rifled through the pack to retrieve a few extra clips. He offered it to her, along with the extra clips.

“Gimme that cannon and try this on for size. Much less kick.”

She took the weapon and easily found a place for the smaller weapon in her belt. Selina handed him the M&P45, which he carefully handled, ensuring the safety was on, and then tossed it into the pack, placing the backpack onto the floor beside where they slept.

“We’ll probably need to round up some more ammo before we head out,” Alex mentioned as Selina waited from him at the door. As he approached, she stared into his eyes, kissed him again, and then pulled back.

“Ready, tiger?”

“
Tiger
, huh?” she nodded and slapped him on his backside as he exited. “I can live with that. C’mon, Shadow!” Alex called after the wolf that trotted right up to him and sat.

The trio wandered right over to the boat where it was tied to the post in the courtyard, and unhooked the loop.

“Need any help?” asked a gruff voice from above. It was Nick standing on the parapet, looking down at them, his shirt was off and his pants appeared to be loose, too.

“We’re all good,” Alex said, trying to recover from being startled, and unsure of what he was doing up there.

“Well, there’s that, there ya go. Safe travels then,” he said, dropping out of sight once more.

“Yeah, safe travels!” called the familiar voice of Liz, also from above.

“Looks like I wasn’t the only one gettin’ lucky this morning,” Selina said, holding a smile that captivated him again. He nodded, returning her perceptive grin.

Alex waited for Selina to get into the boat and then called Shadow to him. The two of them spent the next ten minutes or more coaxing the wolf into the boat. He eventually decided to stay this last time, and sat beside Selina who rubbed his head and sat silently as Shadow licked her face. Alex climbed in after and started the motor. Shadow snarled at the engine at first and then became silent.

“Let’s only take it as far as we have to, then walk the rest of the way!” Alex shouted to Selina over the sound of the motor. She nodded and then rubbed Shadow’s ears, which seemed to calm him down. Since the boat was small, there wasn’t much place for the big wolf to maneuver around, so Alex wanted to hit land as soon as possible.

As they pulled away, he noted once again that zombies remained, lingering around the outskirts of the Renaissance Faire parking lot, which provoked a sigh from Alex. He shrugged away the melancholy and steered the boat upstream for a mile or two and saw a place to stash the boat, but as he neared, zombies stirred along the road, heading toward the riverbank and striding right into the current. It was becoming an oddly familiar sight.

He continued along until, a few minutes later, they were at their usual landing area. Alex steered the boat up to the riverbank again, docked it, and allowed Selina and Shadow to exit. The wolf, finally free of his containment, meandered about, sniffing the area and relieving himself. Selina took all of their gear except Alex’s pack, which was on his back still, and followed Shadow.

Alex got out and pulled the boat out of the water entirely, lifted the motor off the back, and dragged the boat behind a thicket of bushes.

Selina, watching after Shadow, could not help him. He lifted the motor and began the trek back up to the ambulance, slowly making headway as the motor was heavy. Once he arrived at the top of the hill, Selina made her way to him, seeing that he was struggling.

“Gotta be an easier way,” Alex said, bent over, trying to catch his breath. He had her wait there with the motor while he retrieved the ambulance. He made it around to the back of the tree line and saw a lone zombie feasting on what had to be human remains. He stopped moving immediately and felt for his bow, which Selina had. He instead removed the gun from his belt, quietly chambered a round, and stepped out into the open.