The Zombie Zovels (Book 1): Zombie Suburbia (11 page)

We walked into a large dull grey corridor, tall cabinets lined the walls on either side and at the end I
could see a reception desk, where another man was chatting to a young woman, they glanced in our
direction, but soon went back to their conversation. Then I realized the place was lit up.
Lights.
I looked up at the fluorescent lights.
“You have electricity?” Lane asked, looking at the same thing I was.
“Generators.” Dominic said, not wanting to go into detail.
He stood in front of us and folded his arms. I stood awkwardly beside Lane.
I knew what they were waiting for. I didn't think Lane had a clue as he kept looking back and forth
between Dom and me.
“Sorry, it's protocol. We don't want any contamination getting in. If you could just remove your
outer garments.”
I looked up at Lane and nodded. What else was I supposed to do, make a mad dash for the exit?
This was supposed to be the
safe house
, of course, there would be a certain protocol. I wouldn't
want anyone infected getting in either.
I shrugged off my denim jacket and Lane pulled his hoodie over his head.
I pulled off my own hoodie, tugged at my laces, and kicked off my boots. Then I casually glanced
up at Dominic who was watching me like a hawk. I pulled the gun out from the back of my belt.
Dominic nodded his head at Scottie who came over to me and tried to take it from me. I was
reluctant to let it go.
“Alex, it's okay, you won't need it here,” Scottie said reassuringly.
“And we don't allow minors to have guns.” Dominic added.
Minor? Really? Even during a zombie invasion, they were putting age restrictions on things. Lane
and I were both eighteen, but I wasn't about to kick up a fuss right now.
Scottie smiled at me, still trying to pry it from my hand, I finally let go, and Scottie tucked it into
the back of his belt.
Dominic was still waiting for me to undress. Lane was already standing in his boxers.
I reluctantly removed my jeans and T-shirt. I stood in my panties and vest. Dominic held up his
hand and wiggled his finger, motioning to me to take off my vest.
I felt Lane tense next to me. I lifted my vest over my head, glad I was actually wearing my bra
today. So was Lane by the looks of it.
“Both of you lift your arms,” Dominic ordered.
We did as we were told. Not one of the guys even turned around or looked away. The three men
behind Dominic stood there getting an eyeful and I could practically feel Dominic's eyes roaming
the length of my body. I caught him goggling my breasts, not that there was much to look at.
“I think everything looks in order.” Dominic said, and signaled for the other guys to leave.
They walked off down the corridor and I quickly pulled my vest back on.
“It's nice to meet you both, oh, I forgot to ask how you two know each other?”
Why does it matter?
I thought, fumbling with my T-shirt.
I noticed Carmen looking between Lane and me trying to work out what we were to each other.
“We're married.” I blurted.
Lane grunted, and it sounded part laugh, part cough.
“Married?” Dominic said skeptically.
Carmen raised an eyebrow and looked amused by something.
“Yes, our parents let us get married right before the world fell to pieces.” I said.
Dominic looked between us, trying to figure out if I was telling the truth.
“You don't have any rings,” Scottie said.
“I lost mine in the river. We've lost weight since then.”
“Me too.” Lane said, backing my story up.
Dominic nodded. “Well, you're the first married couple we've had here, what's your surname?”
“Walker.” I replied.
“Okay, well, welcome Alex and Lane Walker. I'll leave you guys to finish dressing, then Carmen
can give you the grand tour.”
Carmen crossed her arms and gave us a tight-lipped smile.
“Scottie,” Dominic called him away. He was still standing a few feet away, staring at me.
He smiled and walked around us, taking my gun with him. Dominic gave me a wink and tapped
Carmen on the bum before leaving. She didn't look too pleased about it but didn't make a big deal
out of it either.
“I'll be waiting by the reception desk.” Carmen said.
I quickly pulled on my jeans and Lane shuffled closer to me, zipping his jeans up.
“That was...”
“Protocol.” I said.
“Pervy protocol.” Lane said. “Did you see the way those men were looking at you?”
“I was pretending not to notice. They took my gun! Who cares whether I'm a minor. Those guys
don't even look like real military. They didn't even have tags.”
“I'm just glad you didn't put those lace panties on this morning, you know, those see-through ones
you have in your bag.”
Trust Lane to make a joke right now.
“Good job they didn't ask us to take off our socks and lift up our feet.”
I sat on the floor and pulled my boots back on.
“Has it gotten any worse?” he asked.
“I don't know. I won't know until I get a proper look at it later.”
“Do you think you're infected?”
“Shh...” I looked around Lane's legs to see Carmen watching us.
“Do you feel any different?”
“No, not really. It's a little sore and I feel hungry, but that's no different to normal. A little light
headed, probably because I haven't eaten anything, I've only had a few mouthfuls of water for
breakfast and lunch.”
“You wanna tell me what that was all about?” he asked, holding his hand out to me.
“Which part?” I let him pull me up to my feet.
“The part where you told a bunch of strangers we're married.”
“I didn't feel comfortable with the way Dominic and his so called friends were looking at me.
Something seems a little off.”
“Okay, but why did you tell them we were married?”
“Isn't it obvious,”
Lane frowned, still unsure.
“I don't know them, which means I don't trust them. I'd prefer it if they thought we were married, so
they don't get any ideas about getting too friendly with me, okay?”
He nodded, I think he understood what I was getting at.
“C'mon, Carmen's waiting for us,” I said, picking up my bag.
As soon as I had my bag strap over my shoulder Lane reached over to me and entwined his fingers
with mine. I tried to pull my hand away, but he wouldn't let me.
“Nuh-uh! You're the one that wanted to be married, now you have to act like it.”
I looked down at our hands interlocked, then back at Lane's face.
He smiled and pulled me close to his side.
“I think I'm going to like it here.” he said.
We met Carmen by the reception desk. The man at the desk was now sitting in a swivel chair on the
other side. There was a rifle lying across the desk, next to a bottle of water and a packet of cookies.
The man briefly glanced at me before pulling the other girl, (who didn't look much older than us),
onto his lap. He nuzzled his face into the back of her hair, and I looked away, feeling a little
awkward at having witnessed it.
“Ignore them. You get used to it.” Carmen said.
We followed Carmen to the end of the corridor, and down another corridor. We turned corners and
walked past countless doors, the place was like a maze. We finally came to a stop at what looked
like the cafeteria.
There were three other people sitting at a table, two men and another woman all looking at a
magazine.
“This is where we eat breakfast, 8.30am sharp, then again at noon and 5 pm. Lights out at 8 pm. We
have a generator going at the moment, which powers the kitchen facility and the showers, but they
usually shut them off for a few hours during the day, so you might want to get showered within the
next hour.”
“You have showers?” I asked.
“Yes, but it's cold water.”
“We're used to washing in the river.” Lane said.
“The girls prepare the meals, you're probably be asked to help out.” she said, looking at me.
She beckoned us along the corridor and pointed at two doors.
“Entertainment rooms, there's not much in them, but it's all we have at the moment.”
I popped my head around the door. The room had seven people inside, sitting on the couch and
chatting in the small kitchen area, it looked like a staff room. A few lifted their heads in our
direction and an older woman waved at us.
“How many of you are here?” I asked.
“At the minute, there are twenty-three of us. Sixteen male, seven female, well, seventeen male and
eight female now including you two.”
“Not that many girls,” I said.
“You have to be a real tough cookie to survive outside, girls don't usually last that long.” Carmen
said.
I felt Lane's hand tighten on mine, and I ignored the look he was giving me. The,
you mean
everything to me,
look, yeah he did that, and I recognized it.
“Where does everyone sleep?” I asked.
“This way,”
Carmen led us along the corridor and further down I could hear men laughing.
“That's off limits, only Dom and certain ones in charge are allowed down there.”
She brushed it off, smiled at us and led us away. She walked into a large room, which was once a
laboratory of some sort, but had since had all the equipment stacked at the back and the desks had
been moved to the other side of the room.
“This is the girls' room and sleeping area.”
“Girls?” Lane said.
“We usually sleep separately, girls in here and boys down there,” she pointed. “I know you guys are
married...
” She looked at me before continuing. “But you're going to have to sleep separately, it's
what everyone else does, and I don't think Dom will make any exceptions.”
Lane edged closer to me and angled himself toward me.
“It's okay, we're not attached at the hip or anything,” I said, scooting away from him, but our
interlocked hands stopped me, and he yanked me back to him when Carmen wasn't looking.
“Good,” Carmen sighed. “You'll do fine in here if you follow the rules.”
We walked back into the corridor, and two girls walked around the corner... their pretty faces wasn't
what caught my attention first... it was their swollen stomachs.
They smiled at us as they passed, then another girl walked around the corner carrying a box of
clothes.
“Laundry?” Carmen asked the girl.
“Yes, it never ends.” the girl replied.
“This is Tammy,” Carmen introduced us.
Tammy was taller than me, dark skinned, with warm brown eyes, a cute button nose, and lips that
looked like they should be on TV advertising lipstick, full and perfectly heart shaped, her frame was
thin with hardly any curves to it, and she had braided her black hair close to her scalp like mine.
“I'll just show you where you're sleeping, and then I'll find you each a sleeping bag.”
Lane followed Carmen down the corridor and I watched Tammy as she picked up a pile of dirty
clothes that had been left on the floor.
“Do you like it here?” I asked.
“Who cares what I think? I'm just a cleaner.” Tammy said, walking away with the box of laundry.
I watched the back of her disappear around the corner, and Lane appeared beside me.
“Carmen's just gone to find us some sleeping bags. Oh, and the girls' showers are on the upstairs
floor and the boys' showers are down the corridor that way. I'm not sure if I like the sleeping
arrangements, though.”
“You're worried about the sleeping arrangements?”
“Yeah, I'm used to sleeping near you.”
“I think you'll be fine. Once you fall asleep and the snoring takes over you're usually out of it until
morning.”
“It's still going to be weird, sharing a room with a load of other guys. I'm used to you and your
delicate features.” He gave me a cheeky smile.
“I don't think the sleeping arrangements is what you should be worried about.”
“Huh?” He looked at me confused.
“Do you not get what's going on here?”
He shook his head.
“Lane, there are pregnant girls not much older than me here.”
“And?”
“And who willingly gets pregnant in a zombie apocalypse? No one! You keep your legs shut no
matter what.”
“Maybe they couldn't help it,” He smirked at me.
“Lane, be serious. I don't like that Dominic guy.”
“Stop,” he said, taking my shoulders and turning me to face him. “We're going to be just fine. We
have a roof over our heads, food, and a safe place to sleep. We're finally safe from the zombies.”
“Maybe the zombies aren't the monsters in this place.” Lane frowned at me. “I'm sorry. No, you're
right, I'm being silly, it's nothing, I'm just imagining it.”
I hope.
He smiled at me and pulled me into a hug. I buried my face into his hoodie, it smelled of cigarette
smoke, but I didn't care, it was one of the few things that felt familiar to me nowadays, and at this
present point in time Lane was the only one I trusted.
“Here we go, I found two sleeping bags, we've got plenty spare.” Carmen said.
I took my sleeping bag and walked back into the room, looking for a space to roll out my sleeping
bag, somewhere I felt comfortable. Not that it made a difference, it would all feel the same, cold
hard floor. I carried my messenger bag back into the corridor and found Lane waiting for me.
“I'm going to take a shower, wash my hair. You should take one too.” He nodded. “Meet you back
here afterward?”
He nodded again, and I saw Carmen down the corridor chatting to an older man, they were both
looking in our direction. Lane was about to leave, but I called him back and dropped my bag on the
floor.
“Lane,”
“Yeah,”
I quickly closed the distance between us and reached my arms up around his neck, he didn't
question me or pull away, and instead, he leaned down to me and I pressed my lips to his. It felt like
the most natural thing to do. His hand slipped around to the back of my head, holding me close, and
his other hand looped around my waist pulling me against him.
It was meant to be a quick peck on the lips, all for show, to pretend we were really married and
in
love
, but when Lane's tongue pushed its way into my mouth I momentarily lost all thought. I
wouldn't have been able to tell you my name. That's how amazing kissing Lane Walker was. My
tongue dipped into his mouth and I was sure I heard a little moan escape from his lips. I couldn't
believe it had taken me this long to do this again, after a very heated tongue twisting kiss, I pulled
away gasping for air. Lane grinned at me and kissed me once more, softly on the tip of my nose,
keeping his eyes locked on mine the whole time.
“That's just like I remember from last time,” he said, grazing the back of his hand down my cheek.
“It's for show, Lane, we have an audience down the corridor.”
“Maybe for you, but not for me, you know you mean more to me.”