Love in the Time of Zombies (12 page)

“Before
we fly, we need to figure out a place to go.”  Scotlyn continued.

“I
told you we’re going to head to Peru.”  Zeke arched a brow.  “You still have
that metal box I gave you?”

“Ummm….”

“Damn
it, Scottie, I told you not to lose that thing!”

“Well,
I’m sorry!  I dropped it when I was selfishly trying not to die.”

He
blew out a long breath.  “Alright.  Sorry.  Do you know
where
you
dropped it?”

“TGW.”

“Well,
we’ll have to go back and get it.”

“We’ll
do no such thing.”  She retorted.  “Whatever’s in it it’s gone.  Right now all
I care about it getting out of Vegas.  I’m thinking we should find an island. 
Someplace that’s easier to secure.”

Zeke
perked up, although she doubted he was giving up on his stupid idea so easily. 
He never did.  “An island’s a good Plan B.  You could wear a bikini all day.”

“I’m
not wearing a bikini all day, Ezekiel, I don’t care where we are.”

“Alright,
don’t
wear one.”  His eyebrows waggled.  “That will be even better.”

“Pervert.”

He
flashed her a typically perfect Zeke grin.  She should’ve known he wasn’t
exactly human.  No one could be that attractive without some kind of supernatural
powers.

Scotlyn
felt like she was doing really well at dealing with the madness of the past two
days.  She was postponing her freak out like a champ.  But that didn’t mean she
didn’t have a lot of questions.  “So… What does it mean to be a werewolf
exactly?
” 
She asked, crunching through broken glass from countless smashed windows. 
“You’re the professor.  Explain it to me.”

Zeke’s
smile dimmed.  “I’m a shape shifter, not werewolf.  And it means
nothing
really.  Basically, I’m the same as a human.”

“No,
he’s not.”  Caleb interjected.

“Yes,
I
am
.”  Zeke slanted his brother a venomous glare.  “During the full
moon there is the
thing
, but…”

“The
thing where you can magically turn into an animal.”  Caleb nodded over at
Scotlyn.  “He’s talking about
that
thing.”

“I
don’t hurt anyone.”  Zeke stipulated quickly.

Caleb
arched a brow at him.  “You don’t?”

“Not
anyone
human
.  Or cat.  That’s what she would care about.”  He looked
back at Scotlyn.  “And I would never hurt
you
.  Even after I Changed, I
wouldn’t
ever
harm you.”

“I
know.”

The
wolf had protected her.  It had
known
her.

And
she’d known Zeke.

Zeke
seemed encouraged by that response.  “You know, it’s almost like a disease. 
Like I have a –ya know-- strange and tragic illness.  I have some increased
senses and maybe a little more strength than the average guy, but it’s not like
I
asked
for that.  Would you blame me if I’d been born three eyes or
something?”

“Three
eyes?”  Caleb repeated.  “
I’d
blame you for that.  Fucking freak.”

Lord,
she never thought she’d see the day when Zeke was the likable one in a group.  “So
you have to be born a shape shifter?”

Zeke
hesitated.  “Mostly.”

That
sounded vague.  She looked over at Caleb for the newest installment of his DVD
commentary on their conversation.  “Mostly?”  She prompted, expecting a list of
caveats and snarky remarks.

Zeke
glanced over at Caleb and Scotlyn sensed some silent communication between the
brothers.  For two guys who’d spent the last hour bickering over everything
they saw, they seemed to do most of their actual talking without talking, at
all.

“Yeah.” 
Caleb cautiously agreed.  “Mostly.”

Scotlyn
didn’t believe him.  She didn’t want to push too hard or they might stop
telling her anything, though.  “So can you guys turn into
any
animal or
just wolves?”

“We
can become any animal, but, for the Macreadys, the wolf is usually dominant. 
It’s what we favor.”

“But
you’re not werewolves?”

“
No
.” 
Zeke sounded almost insulted.  “Werewolves are a whole different species. 
They’re sort of in between an animal and… I guess you’d say ‘human.’  They’re
big and mean and drool a lot.  It’s like they’re
always
partially
Changed.  And most of all, they
hate
shifters.”

“They’re
bad guys.”  Caleb put in, in case she still didn’t get it.  “Don’t go near any
werewolves.”

“That’s
what you said about the vampires.”

“Right. 
Don’t go near them either.”

Scotlyn
made a face at him and turned back to Zeke.  “What about the salt thing that
woke you up?  How did that work?”

“We’re
not supposed to Change outside the full moon.”  Caleb explained.  “When we do,
it saps a lot of power and we pass out for a long time.  The only way to snap us
out of it is salt.  It works like --I don’t know-- adrenalin.  It gets us on
our feet.”

“But
Zeke’s still weakened?”

Another
glance between the brothers.

It
was getting annoying.

“Zeke.” 
Scotlyn stopped walking and turned to confront him.  “Are you alright or not?”

“I’m
fine.”  He quickly backtracked, shifting his body to protect her against possible
attacks from behind.  “Just a little tired.  It’s not as big a deal as it
seems.”

Scotlyn
turned to look at Caleb.  “He’s lying.  What’s wrong with him?”

“Cale,
I swear to Christ…”

Caleb
disregarded Zeke’s warning.  “Changing outside the full moon depleted his
strength.  That’s why we don’t do.  There’s always a chance we won’t have the
energy to wake up and, if we do, we’re exhausted for days.  Zeke is barely
staying on his feet, right now.”

Scotlyn
whirled back around to Zeke who was leveling his brother a death glare.  “Not a
big deal, huh?”  She whacked him with her fuzzy pink backpack.  “Asshole.”

“Scottie,
baby, come on…”

“I’m
not speaking to you!”  She hit him again.  “All you’ll do is tell me more
lies.  Lying shape shifting, Ph.D. having liar!”

“I’m
not lying.”

“Just
saying
that is a lie!”  She shrieked.  “Did you even think about me,
huh?  You almost killed yourself and
I
would’ve been the one left
behind!”

“Well,
I didn’t plan it!  The zombie grabbed you and it just
happened
.”

“We
have to choose the Change.”  Caleb told Scotlyn.  He crossed his arms over his
chest and smirked like a fourth grade tattletale.  “It never just
happens,
even during the full moon.”

“You
son of a bitch.”  Zeke stabbed a finger at him.  “I’m telling you, it just
happened!  I didn’t think, didn’t raise the gun, didn’t do
anything
.  She
was threatened and I just
Changed
.”

Caleb
rolled his eyes.  “Tell yourself whatever you want, but you
know
that
you chose, Z.”

Zeke
started to respond to that, but Scotlyn didn’t feel like listening to more sniping
and insults.  “Is that the club?”  She pointed across the street.

Caleb
and Zeke both turned to look at a boarded-up building.  It looked exactly like
an abandoned building, down to a “Keep Out!” sign posted on the plywood door. 
But “Prowl” had been spray painted on the sidewalk in front of the entrance in
extraterrestrial green.  As they watched, a brown lizard skittered through a
crack in the club’s cinderblock wall.

Zeke
glanced over at his brother.  “You’re kidding, right?”

“It
looks better at night.”  Caleb muttered, stalking across the street.

Zeke
heaved a sigh.  “Trix, when we go in there, do not look at anyone, talk to
anyone, or touch anyone, okay?”

“I’ll
try and restrain myself from fondling the monsters.”  Scotlyn assured him
sarcastically.  God,
nobody
could be suppressing their freak out better
than she was.  She just kept telling herself that.  “You know, I never got to see
all those Harry Potter movies.”

Zeke
flashed her a baffled look.  “Huh?”

“I’m
making a list of all the things that I’m not going to be able to do now that
the world ended.”  She arched a brow at him.  “You think Netflix is gonna ship
out the next disc in my queue anytime soon?  I don’t.  So, the last movie I’ll
ever see was some subtitled thing with no dialogue and lots of close-ups of
trees.”

It
helped Scotlyn to focus on all the stupid little things that were suddenly
gone.  It was much easier than thinking zombies were real, and countless people
were dead, and she worked for Professor Shape Shifter.

“And
forget about ever having sushi, again.”  She continued.  “No way is anyone
going to be making that in the state of Nevada.  That’s on my list, too.”

“You’re
always such a pessimist.”  Zeke made a “tsk” sound.  “You should focus on the
bright
side
to the zombie apocalypse.”

“The
bright side?”

“Sure. 
Like no more waiting in line at the ATM.”  He nodded.  “That’s a real plus.  And,
you know, you don’t have to remember fifty different computer passwords anymore. 
Or waste an afternoon waiting for the cable guy to show up.  Tell me you aren’t
just a little pleased about
that
.”

Scotlyn
refused to be amused by his attempts to cheer her up.

“The
list of positives just goes on and on.”  Zeke continued undaunted.  “No more
saccharine-y Christmas commercials before it’s even Halloween.  No more phone
calls interrupting you in the shower.  No more asshole customers bothering us at
the golf course.”

“Victoria
Secret is suddenly having one hell of a sale.”  Scotlyn added despite herself.  “I
can have the whole spring collection for free.”

“
Exactly
. 
There are hundreds of…”  He stopped short.  “Wait what?”

“I’m
helping you make your stupid list of upsides to the total collapse of
civilization.  You know that I spent most of my money on lingerie.  Now, I can
have it all for free, so…”

Zeke
cut her off.  “No, I didn’t know that.”  He’d never looked more serious.  “Trust
me, I’d remember knowing that.”

“Well,
I went broke buying the stuff.  It was like an addiction.”

“You
spent all your money on a lingerie addiction?”  Zeke seemed fascinated by that
devastating financial news.  “Money from the paychecks
I
gave you?  Hang
on. 
I
paid for your secret collection of silky thongs and stockings?”

Scotlyn
wasn’t sure what to make of his tone.  “It was my money.”  She reminded him
defensively.  “Using your logic, you were also buying my toothpaste and
Cheerios.”

“I
know.  I like that logic.  You need and I provide.”  Zeke stepped closer to
her, his body brushing against hers.  He looked her up and down, like he was trying
to see beneath her modest sundress.  “Are you wearing something I bought you, right
now?”

Scotlyn
swallowed, her insides growing warm under his undivided attention.  “
I
bought the lingerie, Zeke.”

Hot
lavender eyes met hers and her brain turned to mush.  “With the money I gave
you.”

“Money
I
earned.
”  So why was it such a turn-on to think about him owning her
lingerie?  Her body grew damp and he probably knew it, thanks to his
super-senses.  “Alright…
Yes
, I bought this set with money that you
paid
me, but that doesn’t mean you bought it
for
me.”

He
dipped his head so he could whisper into her ear.  “I think it means everything
touching your skin right now is
mine
.”

She
let out a shuddering breath, trying to resist the insanely erotic miasma that
surrounded the man.  “Well that’s just ridiculous.  It completely invalidates
all the work I did at TGW to say…”  Scotlyn trailed off with a sigh of defeat
at his teeth nipped her ear.

“I
think I want my lingerie back.”  He decided.

“It’s
not yours.”  Although, when she’d been buying the stuff, she’d been thinking of
him.  Not that she was telling Zeke that.  “Whatever insane idea you’ve come up
with to justify stealing my underwear, it doesn’t matter.  I’m keeping it. 
What would you even do with lingerie?”

“Take
it off you.”  He nuzzled her temple.  “What color is it?”

Scotlyn
rallied herself.  “None of your business!”

“White?”

“No.”

“Black?”

“
No.
”

“Red?”

Scotlyn
hesitated.

Zeke’s
mouth slowly curved.

“I
don’t care what your diploma says, you have maturity level of a twelve year old.” 
She hissed.  “Concentrate on the apocalypse.”