Authors: Emily Goodwin
“
Totally fine by me,” I agreed.
We drove another few miles northeast. Since there was something questionable about, we slept in shifts. Hayden took first watch, staying in the driver’s seat in case we needed to make a fast getaway. Not wanting to squander away all of our fuel, we cuddled in our sleeping bags and cut the engine. We had about seven and half hours until the sun came up so we agreed upon four hours of sleep apiece. Six hours later, Hayden woke me up. I gave him crap for letting me sleep an extra two hours. He said he lost track of time and then changed his story to not being tired.
He climbed to the back and I slid into the driver’s seat. Quickly drifting to sleep, I knew Hayden’s excuse of not being tired was a lie. Once he was sound asleep, I felt a little lonely. I pulled on my braid as I scanned the darkness, not liking that I couldn’t see very far. I mentally kicked myself for not getting a pair of night vision goggles from the hunting section of the outdoor sporting goods store.
In the early light of morning, we took off, driving around until we found a promising looking town. It had been awhile since we crossed the Arkansas border. The parking lot of the movie theater wasn’t overly crowded. The big, glass doors were broken; dry, brown blood streaked the insides.
“
When this is over, no place of business is allowed to have glass doors,” I told Hayden. “You know, since we will be in charge and all.”
“
Of course. Anything else you want to add to Orissa’s Rules? What was the first one? Rude people will be fined?”
“
Yup. Ooh! This is a good one. If you abuse an animal, the same exact abuse will be inflicted on you. Same goes for neglect. Leave your dog chained up outside with no water or shelter on a hot day? Well, now you can see how it feels.”
“
Eye for an eye, eh? You scare me,” he joked.
“
What would you change?” I asked as we carefully stepped over broken glass.
“
Driving tests every ten years. Yeah, it’s a pain in the ass but people seriously forget how to drive. Everything about healthcare and insurance. Ban all smoking. Zero tolerance for drinking and driving. No nuclear weapons. Oh, and make prostitution legal.” He grinned. “I’m joking about the last one.”
“
You’ve thought about this.”
“
I haven’t been happy with this country since Samael came into office.” He stopped moving and put his finger to his lips. “Hear that?”
“
Yeah. Behind the counter,” I whispered. Weapons raised, we silently crossed the lobby and found rats in the popcorn. “Sick,” I said. “I was hoping we could make some but not after this. Don’t people get really sick from rat poop in food?”
“
I would think any poop in food would make you sick,” Hayden said so seriously it made me laugh. My eyes fixated on the nest of rats, I didn’t see the spilled stack of plastic lids until I slipped on them. He caught me with breakneck speed. Thankful the safety was on my pistol, I wrapped my arms around his neck and let him pull me close. “Orissa,” he began. “I might as well just spit it out now.”
“
Spit what out?” I asked. I never heard the answer. A crazy came running at us, diving ungracefully over the counter. With one hand, Hayden cradled my head to his chest. With the other, he drew his gun, shot, and killed the bastard.
“
Thanks,” I said, almost breathless. It wasn’t a close encounter by any means, but I wasn’t ready to let Hayden go. After a few seconds, I forced myself away. “We should get the sample while it’s fresh.”
“
Right. We should.” He let me go and removed a vial from his pocket. “I’ll do it,” he offered. “Since it doesn’t matter if I get blood on my hands.”
“
I have gloves,” I reminded him. He waved his hand, brushing me off and strode over to the body. He tipped his head, curiously examining the S1.
“
You know, she looks
healthy
,” he said.
“
She’s dead. How the hell is that healthy?”
“
Look,” he instructed. I walked over. The crazy was a young adult female with blonde and pink hair, gauged ears and a choker necklace. She was filthy and her clothes were worn and torn, but Hayden was right; her body was in good condition, well, aside from the hole in her head.
“
How long do you think she’s been infected?” I asked, nudging her leg with the crossbow.
“
Going by her clothing, awhile. Going by her firm skin and rosy cheeks, not long.”
“
Maybe she was on the run and recently got bitten,” I suggested.
“
She’s not wearing a coat,” Hayden observed. True, the girl had on a short, pleated black and red plaid skirt, ripped leggings, and a black, graphic T-shirt.
“
I lost my coat in South Carolina,” I reminded him.
“
Right. I suppose it doesn’t matter since she’s dead.”
“
Yeah. Let’s get the blood.” Neither of us wanted to say how bad a long sustaining crazy was. Based on Raeya’s notes—and our general observation—crazies had a short shelf life. Hayden gripped her arm and shoved the needle in.
“
You’re not in a vein,” I told him.
“
Can’t I pull the blood out from anywhere?”
“
Maybe. Stick it in that blue line in her elbow,” I suggested. During my drug-runner days, I saw my ‘boyfriend’ shoot up more than once. It was disgusting and terrifying and I still couldn’t wrap my head around the idea of why anyone would want to do something so stupid. “Success,” I said when Hayden capped the vial.
“
Is this enough?” he asked.
“
I’d say so. There will be more missions if it’s not.”
“
Good, let’s go.”
“
Do you want to see what’s in there?” I motioned to the theater rooms.
“
Not really.” He put the vial in his vest pocket. “Come on, let’s go.”
“
You’re eager to leave,” I commented.
“
Aren’t you?”
“
Yeah, I guess.” And I was. I liked the safety of the compound. I liked having a bed to sleep in, a shower to use, and my friends surrounding me. But I liked being alone with Hayden just as much. He winked at me and shot the glass front of the candy display.
“
Going around was too much effort,” he explained, reaching through the broken glass. “What’s your favorite?”
“
Sour Patch Kids.”
He tossed me three boxes. With our arms full of candy, we walked back to the truck. “Do you smell that?” Hayden asked, looking alarmed.
I sniffed the air. “Yeah. It smells like cigarettes.”
He dumped the candy in the bed of the truck and drew his gun. “Someone’s here.” I followed suit, spinning in a slow circle.
“
I don’t see anyone.”
He got into the bed and scanned the horizon. “Neither do I. HELLO!” he yelled. His voice echoed across the abandoned plaza.
“
We come in peace!” I added. I held my breath as I waited, positive someone would come running, white flag waving.
But no one did. No humans at least. A massive herd of zombies staggered out of the shadows.
-Chapter 19-
Hayden sprang to position. He fired up the machine gun and rained a storm of metal death on the zombies. I fired every clip I had. There had to be fifty or more. They just kept coming. When they were less than twenty yards away, we got in the truck. Hayden reached for the ignition.
The keys weren’t there.
“
If you lost the keys, I’ll kill you,” I threatened, watching with wide eyes as the herd was just feet away. Frantically, he felt his pockets. I let out a breath of relief when he fished them out. The horses revved to life. He stomped on the gas and we took off.
“
I can breathe now,” he only half joked when we were a safe distance away. “Actually, I’m getting used to those close calls.”
“
Me too, sadly.”
“
We should leave sooner next time,” he told me.
“
Yeah,” I agreed. “Though it’s hard to stop killing them.”
“
Eliminating the virus, one zombie at a time,” he said in a funny, deep voice. Only a few miles away from the compound, we decided to stop and have one last meal together in the openness before being forced to the confines of the quarantine room. Though, I had to admit, being stuck with Hayden for twenty-four hours in a small room wasn’t anything I’d complain about.
We stopped in the middle of a forgotten field, overgrown with weedy, dry grass. Hayden pulled the tailgate down. We hopped up, sitting on opposite sides of the mounted machine gun. The field reminded me somewhat of Kentucky. It wasn’t huge; it was only ten acres at the most and was surrounded by trees. The sun warmed the cold air and birds noisily chattered in the neighboring trees.
We polished off another freeze-dried cheesecake and sat in silence, enjoying each other’s company and the freedom the farmland offered. Hayden gathered up our dishes, debated on whether or not to toss them on the ground, and ended up shoving them to the side of the truck bed. Littering seemed so minor compared to everything that was happening, but it was something neither of us wanted to do. Someday, this would be someone’s field again, we hoped.
“
Orissa,” Hayden said, his hazel eyes locking with mine as he stood. That familiar feeling sent a chill down my spine. This time, I wasn’t anxious. I knew what he was going to say and I wanted to hear it. I involuntarily smiled when I suddenly realized what that feeling entailed.
Being with Hayden gave me hope and made me see that the world wasn’t a worthless piece of shit after all. With him, I had a reason to keep living. If anyone could make me feel that, it was him.
And only him.
He moved closer and my heart sped up. “Orissa, I shouldn’t have waited…” his voice trailed off and horror took over his face.
A red dot hovered over my chest. I froze, abhorrence radiating through my body, heart instantly pounding. My eyes flitted to Hayden, whose own eyes widened in fear. For a split second, he held my gaze, unmoving.
And then he jumped.
If anyone was to die that day, it should have been me. I was no hero, no warrior. I had no true importance to the compound, could never make a big difference. I would never have let him take a bullet for me.
But I was too late. The shot rang out, echoing throughout the barren field, splattering Hayden’s blood across my face.
The Contagium Trilogy:
Contagious
Deathly Contagious
The Truth is Contagious
Available now:
Deathly Contagious
Book two in The Contagium Trilogy
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