A Plague on All Houses (14 page)

Lily looked at me expectantly, but I was drawing a big old blank. Problem was that she
is
just so darn cute and the only names popping into my head were as bad, if not worse, than Kai's and Tony's suggestions. “Stay Puft” came to mind, for instance. You know, for the Stay Puft marshmallow man in
Ghostbusters
. Lethal, but
so
darn cute.

Mack held up his hand. “I got it! Diamond Lil,” he said proudly. “Lil for short.”

“I like it,” Lily said a bit hesitantly. “But what does it mean?”

“Diamond Lil was a nickname for Lillian Russell, an actress and singer from the turn of the century. The turn of
last
century, I guess I should say. Beautiful and tough.”

Lily nodded, still a bit uncertain.

“Even cooler,” said Tony, “she's a Marvel superhero!”

“Oh, well, then.” Mack looked amused.

“Although sometimes she's a supervillain, depending on the story arc.” Tony continued, as animated as I've ever seen him. “She's, like, also a mutant. She can strangle people with a strand of her hair and, like, when she kicks or punches, all the impact energy is directed into whatever she's hitting instead of, like, being absorbed back into her body. So she hits twice as hard as a normal person. She's totally kick ass at street fighting.”

Lily positively beamed.

Gabriel cleared his throat. “If you children are done now, can we move on?”

“What about Gabriel?” said Captain Gentry, grinning with the pleasure of something who enjoys stirring the pot. “He needs a nickname too.”

Gabriel's look was deadly. “I so do
not
need a nickname.”

“That's an easy one,” I said. “Tofu.”

Captain Gentry leaned back in his chair and grinned. “My work here is done.”

Tofu shot me a look stating I would pay for this later. I smiled sweetly at him.

“Your turn now, Cap'n!”

Tony turned his attention to Captain Gentry.

“Yeah,
Willard
,” said Gabriel. “Your turn.”

“Ooh, cold, Tofu. Very cold.” Captain Gentry didn't seem particularly upset that his secret was out.

“Willard?” Kai grinned hugely. “Like the rat?”

“That was Ben,” corrected Tony. “The rat was Ben. Willard was the dude who controlled the rats.”

“Well, seeing as he's in charge of
your
team…”

Mack cleared his throat and pointed to himself and Kaitlyn. “Ahem?”

Kai flushed. “Sorry.”

Mack grinned. “You wanted a nickname for the team, how about Rat Patrol?”

As everyone laughed, a sudden wave of heat suffused my face, neck and chest and I felt nauseous. I wasn't old enough for hot flashes yet and wondered if I'd gotten a bad piece of steak. Like I really needed another case of food poisoning about now. My stomach gave a little roil and I decided it was time for a trip to the bathroom. I stood up, slightly unsteady on my feet. I'd only had two glasses of wine. Or maybe three.

“You okay, Ashley?” Lily smiled up at me with a slightly unfocused gaze.

“I'm fine. I'll be back in a few.”

I carefully walked across the cafeteria into the hallway to the nearest ladies’ room, where I spent a few minutes deciding whether or not I was going to throw up. I didn't.

After taking care of other business, I splashed cold water on my face and on the back of my neck cooling off what must have been an alcohol-induced hot flash. I hoped my fabulous new Wild Card powers included dodging a hangover, but thought I'd take some ibuprofen with a big glass of water just in case they didn't.

I pushed the bathroom door open and smacked right into Gabriel, who had to have been waiting on the other side. I gave a surprised yelp, the kind of sound small dogs make when stepped on, and stumbled back from the impact of slamming into a hundred and eighty or so pounds of solid muscle. Gabriel rocked on his feet a little, reached out and caught me before I hit the wall or worse, fell back through the bathroom door like some sort of Three Stooges routine.

“Jeez friggin’ Louise,” I said (okay, I yelled). “Were you trying to scare the crap out of me?”

“Sorry about that.” He looked embarrassed.

“I mean, it's not like we didn't already have enough spook-house surprises for one twenty-four hour period.”

I'd have said more, but I was hit by another hot flash, spiking my temperature a couple of degrees and leaving me flushed and dizzy. I shut my eyes and swayed on my feet.

“Are you okay?” Gabriel's hands stayed on my arms, steadying me.

“Yeah. Just … I think I should have stopped after one glass of wine.” I opened my eyes to find him studying me with concern. “Seriously, I'm okay. Other than whatever years were taken off my lifespan from shock.” There was no anger or even irritation in my last sentence. The hot flash seemed to have burned all of it away and now I just enjoyed Gabriel's proximity.

“Were you … were you looking for me?” I had to ask.

“You didn't look too good when you left the table,” he said. “I wanted to make sure you were okay. The scaring you to death bit wasn't part of it.”

“Just a little bonus, huh?”

“Something like that.”

An awkward but not entirely uncomfortable silence fell between us. We looked at each other, that same awareness that had hit us out by the barricade making a return visit.

“Is this about the whole tofu thing?” I said, going for lighthearted normalcy.

“You'll be paying for that one for years.” The husky tone of his voice made the threat the sexiest thing I'd ever heard.

“Says you…”

I became hyper aware of the warmth and strength of his hands on my arms, each finger pressing firmly yet gently against the waffle weave of my thermal shirt. The space between our bodies seemed charged with thick electricity, the air warm, almost viscous between us. Gabriel's eyes darkened from their usual denim blue to indigo as his pupils dilated with unmistakable lust. I knew my eyes reflected the same desire. I unconsciously moistened my lips with the tip of my tongue, giving a sharp inhalation as Gabriel growled deep in his throat. I felt a slow, lazy roll inside me that had nothing to do with nausea, heat coiling in my belly and spreading its tendrils between my thighs.

Gabriel took a step forward, then another, pushing me back against the wall, his hands shifting from my upper arms up to my face, fingers twining through my hair as his thumbs gently massaged my temples. My breathing quickened, but I stood stock still, afraid to break the spell as he lowered his mouth to mine in the most sensual kiss I'd ever experienced. His breath mingled with mine as he kissed me; gently at first, no tongues involved, just his lips against mine, his fingers massaging my scalp ever so softly. He slowly increased the intensity of the kiss, his tongue entering into play as he tilted my head back and slid it into my mouth.

I felt like I was following along in a dance, being led by someone who knew the steps much better than I did—and I was content to follow, matching the pressure of his lips with mine, letting my tongue play with his as he pressed his body into mine, letting me feel his arousal.

Wow. Gabriel was definitely packing heat, and this time it wasn't his firearm.

I gasped and arched against him, arms going around his body to pull him closer. He made a sound that was half low laugh, half growl, took a quick step back out of the circle of my arms only to seize my wrists and pin them against the wall above my head with one hand. He insinuated a knee between my thighs to press against me. Then he kissed me again, gentleness out the window, tongue exploring my mouth as his knee rubbed back and forth against my most sensitive areas. His free hand crept up beneath my shirt and he rubbed his palm over the peak of one nipple.

I nearly came on the spot when he did that. My breath came short and fast as I rocked my hips against his knee, my tongue doing some exploring of its own, teeth nipping his lower lip. He nipped me back, moving his mouth from mine down my jaw to my arched neck. He bit it, teeth on either side of the pulse that throbbed there, hard enough to hurt in the most pleasurable way possible.

Our minds had left the building at this point, but pure pheromone-charged animal instinct was still in residence. Maybe it was the near-death experiences, but I wanted Gabriel like I'd never wanted anything before. I wanted him even more than I'd wanted that steak dinner. And that was saying something.

I think we were both close to the point of tugging off each other's pants and doing the nasty right there against the wall when a door slammed somewhere down the hallway.

The effect on Gabriel was instantaneous, as if someone threw his switch from on to off. One hand slid away from my breast and the other let go of my wrists as he stepped away from me so suddenly I would have fallen over if I hadn't been leaning against the wall. My breathing ragged with desire, I stared at him, bewildered.

Gabriel's breathing was a little choppy too as he said, “I'm sorry, Ashley.”

Wow. Way to kill the mood.

“Why?” Frustrated lust made me blunt. “I'm not.”

“This shouldn't have happened. I lost control. It's not … it's not right.”

And way to make me feel like a mega slut. Hurt wrestled with anger for my attention, joining forces when I couldn't make up my mind who to let win. “Thanks, Gabriel. Why didn't you just call me a slut and get it over with?” Okay, yes, I knew I was overreacting, but it was either that or start crying. No way I was crying in front of Gabriel.

He looked as though I'd slapped him. “That's not what I meant.”

“Then what do you mean, this is wrong? What, are they gonna fire you for making out with a student?”

“No, but—”

“You not allowed to kiss anyone below your rank?”

“That's not it at—”

“Then was this all just some kind of sick joke?”

“No, it's not—”

“Did you make a bet with the rest of the guys?”

“No!” Gabriel was getting angry too; I could feel it. And I knew I was pushing him, but I didn't care. Hell hath no fury like a woman brought to the brink of orgasm and then dropped like a hot potato.

“Gee, let's see how fast can I get Ashley all hot and bothered and then dump her ass and—”

Gabriel grabbed my shoulders and shook me once, then twice before slamming me up against the wall. “Stop it.”

I shut up. Something in his tone cut through my rage. Well, that and I had the breath knocked out of me when I hit the wall.

Another door slammed shut, someone coming or going. I prayed whoever it was didn't come to our neck of the woods. I'd used up my quota of personal humiliation for the night.

“Ashley…” Gabriel took a deep breath. “I'm sorry. This isn't … this isn't about you at all.”

I shut my eyes and took a few deep breaths, fighting the urge to punch him. When I thought I had myself under control, I opened my eyes again and said, “You're saying this is all about you?”

“Yes.” He looked relieved that I finally got it. “It has nothing to do with you at all.”

Another deep breath. Then I knocked his hands off my shoulders and punched him hard right in the solar plexus, catching him by surprise. He doubled over with a grunt and I shoved past him to a safe distance down the hall. I stopped, turned back to him and said, “You know what's funny, Gabriel?” He slowly straightened up, hands on his knees as he regained his wind. “For a little bit there, I could have sworn it was about both of us. I won't make that mistake again.”

With that, I turned and walked away quickly, willing myself not to cry until I reached the safety of my room.

I wasn't hung over the next day unless you count an emotional hangover, in which case I had a doozy. But I didn't have time to nurse it, either physically or emotionally. We had work to do.

The next two days were spent clearing the buildings on Big Red campus, one by one. After each building was cleared, Hazmat-suited teams would come in and take away the corpses for disposal and any survivors to DBP Hall.

Let me tell you, the only thing less fun than luring zombies out of buildings, killing them, then going into the buildings and taking each room one at a time to search for the ghouls too clueless to answer the dinner bell we were ringing outside, not to mention survivors too terrified to answer our calls—well, it's doing all of the above under the orders of the guy who humiliated you. And worse, not being able to confide in anyone and having to swallow one's pride, anger, and hurt and just follow orders.

I'm here to tell you, it sucked.

But I did it. I can't say I had a smile on my face, but I did my job, albeit with as little contact with Gabriel as I could manage considering he was my team leader.

“Yo, Tofu!” hollered Kai from the front door of the Poli-Sci building mid-afternoon on the second day. “Incoming! Or maybe I should say ‘outcoming’ since they're on their way out the front door here.”

“Roger that, Lando.”

Gabriel seemed to be getting right into the whole nickname game. Except—

“Ashley, you'll be on the front door after we dispatch all the zoms coming out of the building.” He couldn't even call me Ash. No, he was all formal with the “Ashley”. “Lando, Lil, and I will clear the inside while you cover any strays that wander out.”

Whatever.

I hated the fact that Gabriel made me feel like a high school student with a hopeless crush. It was some small consolation that he seemed as uncomfortable around me as I was around him. A very
small
consolation. I still wanted him. I could feel his body pressed up against me, the memory of phantom kisses making me weak in the knees. Not a good thing when fighting zombies.

And speaking of which—

Faint moans grew louder as hungry zombies hit the front door of the Poli-Sci building and staggered outside, arms outstretched in anticipation of food. Kai dashed out right ahead of them, taking the stairs leading up to the doors in one leap before whirling around and opening fire with the rest of us.

When I say “open fire,” please don't picture a glut of bullets spraying willy-nilly all over the place, a seemingly endless supply of ammo without the need to reload. Every shot was carefully aimed at a specific target, i.e. a zombie brainpan. We didn't waste time or ammo on body shots, although taking out their limbs so they couldn't walk and giving them the final headshot was another viable strategy. Not every one of our shots hit its target (well, Gabriel's did, but he'd had years of training to our couple of days), but overall Kai, Lil, and I did pretty damned well. I couldn't help but be proud that out of the three of us, I was the best shot.

There were at least thirty zoms pouring out the door and down the stairs, most of them looking to be former students with maybe a couple of teachers thrown in for good measure. I didn't recognize any of them, for which I was thankful. Anonymity made it easier to put the bullet in their heads without regret. Not that I thought I'd hesitate if I did see a former teacher or classmate. Something in those flat, freaky pale irises and bloody corneas made it easy to forget these things had once been human. But still, I'd rather not be able to put names to the undead faces I was blowing away.

After taking care of the crowd that had followed Kai outside, Kai, Gabriel, and Lil went inside to finish the job while I kept an eye out for stragglers attracted by the commotion.

As I waited I thought about Lily—Lil, that is. She insisted on being called Lil now. Thankfully she wasn't so adamant about having “Diamond” added to the front; that was just too much of a mouthful. I suspected the nickname was more than an affectation to her, more than Tony's geeky need for movie-type labels. For Lil the new name was a way to differentiate between the girl she'd been before experiencing the attack that turned her into a Wild Card, and who she was now. She'd seen more horror in the last few days than most people see in a lifetime, at least in this country, and had gone from an ordinary student to a member of a killing team. Sure, all of the Wild Cards could say much the same thing, but from what little that Lil had told us about herself, it was obvious she'd led a fairly sheltered life before the attack. I knew she was worried about her mom, who may or may not have returned from her trip to San Francisco, but I knew from experience it was easier to focus on the training and killing than think about the possible fate of loved ones, or the fact those outside the quarantine zone must be worried sick about all of us inside. She'd thrown herself into zombie killing with gusto on the surface, but what must this be doing to her on a deeper, emotional level?

Moaning from the left pulled me from my thoughts and I turned to find a male zombie in chef's whites almost within arm's reach. His arms, to be precise, stretched out by way of standard zombie greeting.

I took a few steps back and unsheathed my longer blade. I suddenly felt the need for a more visceral activity than just putting a bullet in its brain.

As the zombie chef lurched towards me, I slipped to its left and sliced through the back of its knees. The razor sharp blade cut the rotting flesh and tendons as if going through butter. Zombie chef collapsed to its knees. I pulled back the blade to my right and used the momentum of body and hips to put all my strength into a parallel cut that took its head right off the neck. A final vicious thrust through one eye finished the job.

And (true confession here) while I didn't exactly pretend the zombie was Gabriel, I admit the anger and hurt I carried around inside might have fueled my blows just a little.

I paid more attention after that, keeping my thoughts to the task at hand. A couple more zombies stumbled around the far corner of the Poli-Sci building. I dispatched them each with a bullet to the brain, having satisfied my need for up close and personal with the last one. I needed the target practice anyway.

The rest of Team A emerged from the building about twenty minutes later, a trio of trembling co-eds and an equally shaken male teacher's assistant in tow. All four hung on Gabriel's heels like a paddle of ducklings following their mommy.

“Any trouble, Ashley?” Gabriel's gaze flickered somewhere between my left ear and the middle of my forehead. Wuss.

“Nope. Six stragglers, all down.” I remembered the one I'd sliced and diced. “Oops, seven. Not too bad.” Gabriel nodded. “We're definitely making headway. That's half again what we had at the drama building.”

“And nothing compared to what we had at the dorms yesterday.” Kai shuddered at the memory even as he spoke.

The dorms had been slaughterhouses, walls and floors slick with blood, both congealed and fresh. There were very few bodies lying on the ground; most of the corpses had gotten up and joined in the feeding frenzy. Plenty of pieces of bodies though, some recognizable and others reduced to unidentifiable lumps of raw, bloody meat were scattered all over the place. What few students had survived the massacre were nearly catatonic; they'd been taken back to DBP Hall and given over to Dr. Albert and the medical team.

Gabriel radioed our status to the PTB (Powers That Be) and we waited for the Hazmat team to arrive so they could clear the corpses for incineration and take the survivors back to either safety—or the med ward.

“When are we going to start on the town?” asked Lil, taking a sip of water from her canteen as we waited. Kai sat with the huddle of survivors, softly sweet-talking the girls to set them at ease—and probably trying to line up a date for after the zombocalypse.

“Hopefully in the next couple of days.” Gabriel took of his helmet and wiped sweat from his forehead. Lil offered him her canteen, and he took it with a nod of thanks, drinking some water. I tried to ignore the sharp pang of jealousy that shot through me. It was stupid, right?

“We have that much more to do here?”

“It's going to be far more dangerous out there than it's been in here, you know. We're talking multiple businesses and hundreds of personal residences, including several apartment buildings. And we're not going to be able to secure the town the way we can the campus. Even though the military has established a perimeter around the infected area, we're talking a hundred square miles of fairly mountainous woods, rocky terrain, and a lot of houses and homesteads tucked away off the beaten path. A lot of places for zoms to hide.”

“Oh.” Lil's voice was very small. I glanced sharply at her. Something was going on that she wasn't saying.

Gabriel handed Lil back her canteen.

She offered it to me. I shook my head no. Call me immature, but I didn't want to take a drink after Gabriel had touched it with his lips. Jerk cooties or something like that. Okay, call me immature.

The Hazmat team showed up and began piling bodies in the back of their big old garbage truck. Another Jeep with a Hazmat-suited driver pulled up right behind them. We loaded the three students and teacher's aide onto the Jeep for their trip back to DBP. All four looked back at Gabriel as the Jeep drove off, looking for all the world as if he was their mom and they were kids being carted off to their first day at school.

Was no one immune to his air of manly authority and ruggedly handsome features? Feh.

We met up with Team B on our way back to DP Hall. Gentry and Tony were supporting a heavily limping and embarrassed-looking Mack. Kaitlyn lagged a few feet behind, apparently uninjured but still sullen as ever.

“Mack, you okay?” I hurried over to them.

“You weren't bitten or anything?” Lil joined me, green eyes wide with concern. She was fond of Mack, as we all were, but I think Lil looked at him as a sort of favorite uncle, the type who told stories and bought you ice cream when you were upset.

“Nah, no bites,” said Mack, definitely embarrassed. “I just took a bad step and torqued my ankle a little.”

“Tripped on a dead zombie,” said Tony helpfully.

“It's true,” said Mack. He shook his head in self-disgust.

I patted Mack on the shoulder. “At least you didn't step in it. That would have been gross.”

Mack laughed. “Thanks for the silver lining, Ash.”

“Bad news is he sprained it,” said Gentry. “Good news is it'll heal up pretty quick if he elevates it and ices it for a day. Wild Card perk number twelve.”

“What are the first eleven?” asked Lil.

Gentry grinned and shrugged. “Heck if I know. Maybe we should start a list.”