Fractured Hearts (Shattered Lives, Book Three) (53 page)

Grey whimpered on Gunther’s chest, making him groan as he wiggled around. He wasn’t ready to wake up yet, but all of Grey’s movements were causing him pain.

Finally, Gunther cracked open an eye, only to see his little bear smiling at him.

Cora jumped up when she realized he was awake.

Glancing up at her in surprise, he murmured, “Sorry. I must have nodded off. Hey, little bear.” With the backs of his fingers, Gunther stroked Grey’s chubby cheek. “How’s my main mate doing?” he murmured.

“That’s fine. You needed the rest.” Gunther tried sitting, but he hissed in pain. “Here, let me help you.” Cora picked Grey up, then wrapped her arm under Gunther’s to keep him stable as he maneuvered into a sitting position. He tipped his head back on the couch, breathing heavy, sweat rolling off of him.

“You okay?” she worried.

Tears clung to the corner of his lashes. “I just need a minute,” he strained.

“Is it the pain?” she asked with concern.

Trying to hold himself together, his jaw trembled, fighting the pain. “Yes,” he choked out.

“Are you in need?”

“Yeah. It might help.”

“Okay. How much do I need to give you?”

“No, I’m not asking. You already are going above and beyond for us.”

“Gunther, if you are in need, you are in need. I don’t mind helping you.” He shook his head. “Please… Allow me to help you if it’ll help make you feel better.” She bounced Grey as he fussed. “Just sit tight. I’m going to feed him, then I will help you.”

Gunther didn’t say a single word. He stayed quiet, trying to keep himself from falling apart as he saw Grey snuggled into Cora’s chest.

Silas jumped down from the table and stood in front of Gunther with a card he had made. “Not now, Si Si. Mr. Gunther is in a lot of pain.”

Silas’ head tilted down to the floor, looking crushed.

“It’s okay, Cora,” Gunther said, fighting his pain. “What can I do for you, Silas?” he smiled.

“I made a card for you.” Proud of himself, Silas held it out.

Surprised, Gunther smiled slightly. “Why, thank you, little monkey.”

Gunther took the card and stared at it for several seconds, his smile fading. He wiped his face with the back of his hand as the tears trickled down.

“Silas! What did you do?” Cora exclaimed.

“It’s fine. It’s the best card I’ve ever received, Silas. Thank you.” In truth, it was the
only
card he had ever received.

“Can I show momma?”

“Yes, of course.” Gunther handed it back.

He jumped up on the couch and explained the pictures to Cora. “Look. That’s Mr. Gunther holding my hand. Then that is Callie and Kate. There you are, holding Grey. And here in the clouds is Ms. Quinn. See, look. She’s smiling at us. Kate helped me write that.” He pointed. Across the top of the card, the words “My Family” were scribbled in crayon. Cora glanced over at Gunther. He looked away while the tears poured down his face.

“I’m sorry. I need a minute.” Gunther slowly got up and left the room.

Once the door had closed, he leaned against the wall next to Cora’s door, trying to stop himself from being so emotional. Unsuccessful, he slid down the wall and pulled his knees into his chest.

Elaina was still snoozing, and I wanted to do rounds and make sure all was looking tight before going on guard duty. After gearing up, I opened the door to my room, pausing when I saw Gunther in shambles on the floor.

“Are you all right, mate?” No matter how much he worked his mouth, no words would come out. “Come on. Let’s get you back to your room.” I held out my hand, hoisted him to his feet, and ushered him to his room. “You look like you’re in need and should have another bag. You lost a lot of blood.”

“I don’t know who to ask. Cora said she would, but she’s already doing so much with Grey and caring for me medically.”

“Well, Josie gave you a bag yesterday. Elaina just gave me three vials so she’s out, as well. Thomas is going on guard duty with me in a few.” I thought about it. “Accept Cora’s help. She wants to help you, yes?” I helped him sit on the bed and realized this agony wasn’t about needing a fix. “What’s going on? Besides the obvious.”

Gunther wiped his face again and took a couple deep breaths. “Silas. He made a card for me. It just overwhelmed me emotionally, that’s all.”

I patted Gunther on the shoulder. “I’m sorry you’re going through this, mate. I wish I could help you, but nothing I say or do will make you feel better. My only advice is time. Take your time grieving. You two were mad for each other, and the circumstances are just fucking awful. I wish you well, my friend.”

“Thank you,” Gunther mumbled as he lay back.

“I’m going to talk to Cora for you before I go out.”

Gunther didn’t respond as I left the room and headed straight to Cora’s door.

“Coming,” she said when I knocked. When she opened the door, she had a blanket draped over her shoulder and chest, feeding Grey.

“Hey… Sorry to interrupt,” I murmured.

“That’s fine. What can I do for you?”

“He’s really in need, but he can’t bear to ask you. I can’t allow him to use Elaina. She just gave me some about an hour or so ago. Josie gave him a bag yesterday, and Thomas is about to go on guard duty with me. Is there any way–”

Cora interrupted me, “Absolutely. I’ve already told him I would. He’s so stubborn. What do I need to do?”

There wasn’t any hesitation in her voice at all, earning her much respect from me for stepping up and filling in where need be.

“I appreciate this. Thank you. He has all the supplies in his room. He can hook you up. Maybe Elaina can watch Grey until the process is done.”

“Okay. Well, give me a second. This little oinker should about finished.”

“Great. Thanks.” I smiled. “I’m going to go talk to Elaina. Meet me there first.”

Minutes later, Cora dropped Grey off with Elaina, then headed into Gunther’s room. She brought the card Silas made, but was concerned it would upset him again. She felt it should be in his possession, though.

She knocked and cracked open the door to the pitch black room, regretting not bringing a flashlight. “Gunther?”

“Yeah… Sorry. Looking for my matches.” He struck the match and the amber glow highlighted the vapid expression on his face as he lit a candle. She was immediately taken by how beautiful he was, even with his injuries.

“I, uhh… I brought Silas’ card. I just wanted to make sure you had it.” Cora looked down at it, feeling self-conscious. “I’m so sorry he drew this.”

Gunther walked up to her. “No, it’s fine. I love it. It’s beautiful.”

“I asked him to make you a card. I should have instructed him to make you a ‘Get Well’ card. I’m sorry it upset you.”

“It’s fine. Really. Have a seat.” He directed her toward the bed. “Sorry. It’s still a mess in here.”

“That’s fine. You will get yourself squared away soon enough. If you need help, all you have to do is ask. I would be more than happy to tidy up in here for you.”

She sat and rested her back against the wall. Gunther knelt next to her with the supplies for the draw.

“Henry is making me do this.”

Cora’s nerves were surfacing. Her hands trembled, making her pull at the blankets beneath her. “I know. But I said I wanted to help you.” She looked at the supplies in Gunther’s hands. “I’ve never done this before.”

“Just relax. I’ll try to make it as painless as I can.” He gave her a slight smile, and she reciprocated. He strapped a belt around her arm. “Pull this around tightly.” He pulled out a fresh needle and swiped her arm with an alcohol pad. She shivered from the chill of the wipe and the gentle touch from Gunther’s cool hand when he tapped on her vein. “Lovely pronounced vein. Ready?”

“Yeah.” He slowly pushed the needle into her vein and hooked up the bag, then sat next to her on the bed. “I didn’t feel a thing.”

“I’ve become quite skilled over the years.” He smirked. Her mind went to places it shouldn’t have, then she nervously smiled back at him. “So… This is kind of awkward, isn’t it?” Gunther mumbled.

“Yeah, I guess,” Cora said.

Even though he didn’t want to, Gunther tried to make small talk. “How old are you?” Then he cringed. “Is that one of those questions you should never ask a woman?”

Cora chuckled at him. “Yeah. Age, weight, and whether or not she is pregnant. Never ask a woman if she is pregnant, unless you see her pushing a baby out.”

Gunther laughed a little. “Well, I apologize for my rudeness. I was never taught social skills.”

“I’m thirty-two. Of course, I don’t know what the date is, so I may be thirty-three by now.”

“Well, you don’t look a day over twenty-five.” He caught himself and hung his head with a prolonged exhale.

Flirting? Why am I flirting? I just lost the love of my life.

“That’s very kind, Gunther. Thank you.”

“I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have said that. Not that I don’t think you look nice… Shit, I just have a hard time having a female friend. I don’t know how to be a friend to a woman. I only know how to be a lover. Elaina is probably the only female friend I have, but that’s only because she gets me since she has been dealing with Henry.”

She was taken aback by his admission, and was a little hurt that he didn’t consider her a friend. Clearing her throat, she murmured, “It’s fine. Water under the bridge.”

“I probably should warn you in advance. After I have a bag, I get exceptionally… Hmm, how should I put it?”

“I know already. Quinn and I talked about it a few times. She said you are…well-versed and she had zero complaints in that department with you.” She wasn’t sure why she freely shared that information.

“She said that to you?”

“Yeah.”

“That’s funny. She was always so shy talking about sex. She would pink up.”

“She
was
quite red. A tomato had nothing on her.”

Gunther softly smiled. “That’s my love. She was amazing, Cora. Simply amazing in every aspect.” The sadness in his voice gripped her. “She taught me everything I know about dealing with things outside of the program. I wasn’t always a good student, though.”

“She loved you so much. Even when she was angry with you, she would light up when she talked about you. She always said you were a dream come true.”

Those words hit him hard. He refused to break down in front of Cora again. He had to be strong. There was no other option.

“Thank you for telling me that. I needed to hear it. We were fighting before she…
they
passed.”

“I’m sorry. It’s going to be rough for a while, but you will get through this. You’re a strong man and I’m here for you.”

Silence fell, blanketing the room for quite some time before he unhooked Cora, then sat back and drained the bag. With a shudder, he closed his eye and let the high engulf him. His lips parted.

“Is it helping with your pain?” Cora’s voice echoed in his head.

He popped his eye open and the brilliance stunned her. Absorbing her beauty, he licked his lips. When she glanced around his body for any signs of distress, she noticed his arousal.

“Uhh… I…I think I should go. Get some rest.” She touched his cool stubbly cheek, then he reached out and grabbed her hand. She pulled away from him and headed for the door.

“Thank you,” he whispered as she ran out.

As soon as the door shut, Gunther lay down again. He breathed deep for a few minutes, but the urge wasn’t passing.

“Fuck me,” he grumbled.

He pulled up his shirt, then opened his pants and slid them down just past his hips so he could palm himself. As he stroked his entire length, pictures of Quinn filled his mind. His breathing increased rapidly.

After massaging the tip with his thumb, a deep groan escaped his throat, and several jets of his seed pulsed out over his abdomen. He continued a slow stroke until he was satiated…for the moment.

He would never be fully satisfied. Without Quinn, his hunger would never cease.

Every night of the week, Thomas and I stood guard for several hours at a time, watching and waiting for more recruits from the program to try and attack us.

While we were out there, Elaina worried endlessly and couldn’t sleep. She was confident in my abilities, but she was still scared because of what Drew, Dex, Malcolm, and Bas did to Gunther and Quinn. She figured if they could take Gunther down, they could take me down in the blink of an eye.

I didn’t blame her for feeling that way.

I was hanging out below the cafeteria window, kneeling in the dirt, silently breathing, my ears wide open for any sound. Thomas was positioned at the store across the way, hiding behind the back corner. We decided on a single click of the tongue as a signal for approaching enemies.

It was intense and bloody scary at the same time. The entire time my heart thundered in my chest. Nighttime noises were few and far between, which was far more creepy than the darkness. Only hearing sounds every once in a while was just so bizarre.

The sound of gravel crunching came through the night air. I listened carefully to make sure of what I was hearing. It sounded like one pair, but we were trained to walk in unison, matching strides for the appearance of one. Realizing what it was, I alerted Thomas.

I readied myself and got up, stepping around the building, waiting at the front corner closest to the road. I eased the safety off my rifle, not wanting to shoot until I knew for sure these were recruits.

A scuffle, then someone cursed.

“Shut the fuck up, you arse. You know they have to be guarding.”

“Sorry. I tripped on a rock or something.”

“Can it, both of you. Christ,” Roger said.

My jaw dropped, knowing I may finally have my one-on-one with Roger. Then I smiled because I was more than ready.

Thomas came up behind me, startling me. He was great at stealth stalking. I nodded to the right for him to take position. Working my way around the back, I knew they wouldn’t try to enter from the front.

I wanted first crack at these fuckheads because I was ready to take them down.

Elaina walked into the cafeteria and went straight to the window. Henry wanted minimum lighting in the areas that didn’t have the windows covered in paper, so she squinted into the inky blackness. She could barely see him, but when he rose to his full height and walked away from the window, he took her breath away. She was glad to see him back to his confident self.

The whisper of shoes tapping on the tiled floor came from behind her. Elaina turned around and saw Cora walking toward her. “Can we talk? I need to talk to someone.” She looked upset. With her new matriarch status, Elaina was the one who had to deal with all the internal issues.

“Of course. Have a seat.” They sat at a table by the window so Elaina could still keep an eye out for Henry. “What’s going on?”

The nervous energy coming off of Cora was significant. She sniffled a few times. It was so unlike her to be bouncing her knees and exhaling shuddering breaths.

“I’m having conflicting feelings.”

“Over?”

There was a pause. Cora looked around the room as if she was paranoid someone was listening to their conversation. Leaning across the table, she whispered, “Gunther.”

“What’s the issue?” Elaina felt like she was pulling teeth—slow and painful.

Cora inhaled with a sharp, jagged breath, but when she exhaled, she let out a little whimper. “I don’t mind caring for Grey, but I think I need to stay away from Gunther.”

“Has he done something he shouldn’t have? If so, Henry or I can talk with him.”

“Well…ugh. I don’t know.” The tears poured from Cora’s eyes.

Elaina waited for a few seconds, hoping she would fill her in on what was going on, but she didn’t. “Cora, I can’t help you if you aren’t going to fill me in on what the issue is.”

“I know. I’m sorry.”

“It is so unlike you to be this upset.”

“I know. I’m sorry,” she repeated. “I don’t have anyone else to talk to about this.” She cleared her throat and blew out a breath, making her hair flutter in the air. “I think I’m falling for him.” Elaina’s jaw fell open. She was speechless and that was a rare occurrence. Sensing Elaina was feeling uncomfortable, Cora said, “I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have said anything. I should go check on the kids.”

Elaina reached out and grabbed her arm when she tried to get up. “It’s fine. Stay here. It just took me by surprise. Talk to me.”

“I
adored
Quinn,” Cora said. Then she rambled, “We had many days of chatting and laughing together. That is why I’m so confused. I always thought he was a looker and thought he was amazing to her and, quite frankly, I was jealous of his doting. I don’t know if I’m just having some weird feelings because I have been helping him so much or because I’ve been feeding Grey. I don’t know. I do know that I can’t betray her like this.” Cora was truly confused and lost because of her feelings.

This wasn’t a crush kind of thing that she was dealing with here. These were true, raw feelings.

“Well…let’s start slowly. First, take a deep breath. Has he done anything to make you think he was pursuing you?”

“No… Well…maybe.” She threw her head back. “I don’t know.”

“Can you elaborate?” Elaina thought,
This is going to be rough if the conversation continues on like this.

“Well, I gave him a bag a few days ago and I can’t stop thinking about what happened after. He just had this air about him. And when he opened his eye, it took my breath away. I was trying to care for him, but I made myself leave.”

Elaina smiled. “When they get the blood, they go into a euphoric-like state. It’s like a high. And when they have sexual encounters during this state, it amps up the feeling of the encounter for them. Like it is the best sex they could possibly have. Now, they are completely gone when they have a bag. Sometimes they even hallucinate. The only thing on their mind is finding their release. At least, that’s how I look at it. Henry hasn’t directly said that, but speaking from experience, he really rocks my world during those times.”

“So he wasn’t necessarily after me. He was after the encounter?”

“It’s possible.”

“Well, that makes me feel a whole bunch better,” Cora muttered.

Sarcasm noted.
“Look, it’s complicated. He’s fresh out of a major loss. Plus, being injured has him in a snit. They live for the workouts. It’s one of the only ways they can get out the aggression the virus causes. They want to always be the best. They need to be the one who controls the situation. I’m sure you have noticed the slightly inflated egos around here.”

“Yeah. Maybe I should just take care of Grey and not interact with him all that much.”

“You could do that, but you could also talk to him about how you feel.”

“I’m just worried. If it was several months down the road, maybe I would try to pursue it with him. But it’s too early. I’m afraid I would just be there in his time of need and when he was done with me… Did you see the card Silas made him?”

“No.”

“He drew a picture of me holding Grey, standing next to Gunther and my kids, with Quinn in the clouds. Then he wrote ‘My Family’ on it. Silas asked me if I was going to be Grey’s momma now. Remember when he asked Gunther to be his daddy if we never found Peter? Oh god… This is so much worse than I thought.” She put her head in her hands and sobbed.

Elaina reached out and took her hands. “Cora, I don’t have much advice to offer you except to say that now is not a good time. Give it time. If you still have some of these feelings for him and he finds that he does, too, then act on it. I think time is the only answer. I’m sorry I can’t offer you more.”

She nodded.

Chris and Jake arrived in the cafeteria. They were supposed to relieve Henry and Thomas. “Hey, Elaina. Are they still out there?”

“Yeah,” she said unenthusiastically.

With quick strides, Chris was at the window, then tapped on it three times—their code to let whoever was on duty know that the next pair was ready to relieve. He pressed up to the window and cupped his hands around his eyes.

“Chris?” Elaina asked in worry.

“I don’t see him.” He tapped again. “Come on, Henry…,” he murmured.

Elaina leapt from the chair and raced to the window.

Two gunshots rang out.

Elaina belted out a scream, then yelled, “Chris, Jake, come on! Let’s go gear up. Cora, follow behind us to chain the door!”

As they ran to the room, Chris was trying to talk Elaina out of heading outside. Fat chance that was happening. She grabbed an axe and a handgun. Chris and Jake both grabbed a knife. They ran back out and Gunther was in the hall with Grey, taking him to Cora’s for a feeding.

“What’s going on?” he asked.

“I heard gunshots, so we’re heading out.”

“Elaina, you can’t go. He’ll freak out,” Gunther said.

“No one is stopping me.” Elaina ran past Gunther, hearing him bark out a string of obscenities.

They blew through the side door and stopped to listen. Yelling came from behind the school, so they crept along the back. Elaina’s arms shook. It was Henry, but they couldn’t make out what he was saying.

Then she heard him bellow, “Come on! Fight me! Come on!” Her heart leapt into her throat. Henry growled, then they heard the distinct sound of punches.

And, seconds later, the sound of a neck snapping filled the air.

Elaina gasped.

“Thomas! Thomas! Give me a position! Thomas!” Henry screamed. Chris, Jake, and Elaina ran to where his voice seemed to be coming from.

Blood ran down my face from a cut just under my eye. I set my rifle on the ground to kill the motherfucker with my bare hands. I was seeking revenge, and was going to get my need fulfilled no matter the cost. The snap of his neck invigorated me, flooding my body with adrenaline.

On to Roger. That motherfucker was mine. He was going to die by my hands and my hands only. I wanted to choke the bastard out and watch him strain for his last breath, my hands clasped around his neck. Just the thought of it was sending me right into an even further adrenaline-filled euphoric state.

But first, I needed to find Thomas.

“Henry!”

I froze. Elaina. “Elaina, get back inside!” I screamed, turning toward the direction of her voice.

“What’s going on?” She practically knocked me ass over tits when we ran into one another.

“I said get back inside!” I snarled.

“No!” I growled at her resistance. In the moonlight, she saw my face was bloodied. “You’re bleeding.” She reached and swiped the trickle off my face.

“I’m fine! I can’t find Thomas. I just made a recruit true dead, but there are more out here. I can’t see or find them. It’s too dangerous. You need to go back inside.” I was panicked that I couldn’t hear Thomas. “Thomas!” I screamed. “Fuck! You get your ass back inside and keep the doors locked and guarded.” I took off running into the darkness. I didn’t want to tell her Roger was out there because he was mine.

Waiting in position where Henry directed, Thomas knelt, his back against the school. He listened for any sounds which would indicate more people heading their way. His nerves took over. A tremor in his trigger hand came through, and beads of sweat trickled down the back of his neck. Licking his lips, he swallowed.