V-Day: (M-Day #4) (24 page)

There was no need to share any of that with Zee, Max, Evo, X, Ty and Nyx though. It was a burden of knowledge they didn
’
t need to know. I wanted them to enjoy the time they had with each other now, in case it turned out to be their last.
Stop. It
’
ll work. The bombs will work and a cure will be found. Stop being a pessimist. Think like Ty.

I smiled at Zee, who had been studying me silently.
“
Everything is going to be fine as long as we get to one of the rendezvous points on time.
”
And I let myself believe it too, because if I didn
’
t have hope then I may as well have given up on the spot.

“
What about Tasha, and Emily and the rest of them?
”
Max asked, while she stared out the window in the front seat.

“
What about them?
”
Zee rumbled from the driver side of the spacious van. We
’
d lucked out and found an old school van big enough to fit us all, with a full tank of gas to boot. Hopefully it would get us to where we needed to go before the tank hit empty. The only downside was that there were no seats in the back of the van, so everyone besides Zee and Max were stuck sitting on uncomfortable bare metal.

“
Shouldn
’
t we go back and try to find them? I mean, I
’
m not their biggest fan but they don
’
t deserve to die in some cleansing. Maybe we need to
—”

“
You want to try and save a bunch of bitches that wouldn
’
t do the same for you?
”
Evo replied, not bothering to look up from cleaning one of her larger guns.

“
It
’
s called compassion, Evo.
”

“
It
’
s called stupidity, Max.
”

“
All right, you two have been fighting more than normal lately,
”
Nyx spoke over them.
“
What
’
s going on with you two?
”

“
Max is a dumbass, that
’
s what.
”
Evo pushed the gun at X who rolled his eyes but picked up where she left off with the cleaning.

“
Shut up, Evo. It
’
s none of your damn business.
”

“
It
’
s not? Since when did the health of one of my best friends suddenly
not
become my business?
”

Max turned around in her seat, her face flushed.
“
It
’
s my choice!
”

“
Whoa-whoa-whoa!
”
Nyx waved her hands around.
“
What the hell is she talking about, Max?
”

I glanced at the three guys in the van, all of them studiously minding their own business. I almost wanted to laugh. I caught Ty
’
s eye, and he shrugged at me, leaning his head back and tipping his hat down over his face.

“
She
’
s pregnant
—
again!
”
Evo bellowed.
“
I mean, what kind of stupid does it take to be that careless more than once in this type of world? You got lucky the first time with the miscarriage, but what are you and Zee going to do with a baby out here?
”

That got Ty and Zee
’
s attention. Ty sat up ramrod straight, his mouth hanging open. Zee slammed on the brakes, the wheels screeching as we came to a halt. He threw the driver
’
s side door open and stalked around to Max
’
s side of the van.

“
Thanks a lot, Evo!
”
Max hissed just before Zee yanked her out of the car.

I threw my hands up in the air.
“
We don
’
t have time for this!
”

“
She didn
’
t tell him yet?
”
Nyx asked in utter shock.
“
Well, guess I don
’
t feel so bad about her not telling me yet either. How the hell did you find out?
”

“
I found the test,
”
Evo muttered.

“
You shouldn
’
t have done that,
”
X said, scowling at Evo.
“
How would you feel if she did that to you?
”

“
I wouldn
’
t be that much of an idiot.
”

X laughed, and Evo punched him. Instead of getting mad he pulled her into his side, whispering in her ear. A small smile tipped up her lips.
“
You
’
re an idiot too.
”

“
Your idiot.
”

“
I don
’
t think any of you are taking the imminent threat of your deaths seriously. I don
’
t think you realize
…”

Nyx pinned me with a hard glare.
“
Every moment, every second
—
every goddamn day could be our last. All of us know that. And that
’
s why we have to take the time to be with the ones we love, to act as close to normal as we can, because we might not be able to later.
”

I sat stunned, blinking rapidly at her words as I processed them. I
’
d wondered earlier how they coped, how they seemed so happy despite the desolate conditions surrounding them, and I
’
d just found out how. It also became crystal clear why I hadn
’
t been able to find the same peace yet. I glanced back at Riley, tears pooling in the corners of my eyes. I
’
d allowed myself to steal some time in the woods with him, but that had ended too quickly.
I need you Riley. You have to come back to me. I
’
ll find a way. I promise.

“
You
’
re right. I
’
m sorry. It
’
s just
—
with
—
I don
’
t
—”
I clenched my teeth together and turned away. I didn
’
t want to think about what would happen if a cure wasn
’
t found for Riley. I couldn
’
t.

“
It
’
s okay.
”
Nyx patted my arm.
“
It
’
s harder for you. I remember what it was like
…”
Her voice trailed off as she met Ty
’
s gaze. He smiled sadly at her and pulled her into his arms.

“
Shit! Shit! Shit!
”
Max dove back into the van seconds before Zee was in the driver seat and burning rubber to get going again.
“
I-Monsters coming our way.
”

“
Which direction?
”
Evo snapped, checking over her guns with quick efficiency.

“
Thankfully from south so we can keep on this road. I don
’
t think they
’
re tracking us specifically
…
yet,
”
Zee said, his knuckles whitening on the steering wheel.

“
I
’
m really starting to get sick of those bastards,
”
X muttered.
“
Who would have thought I
’
d start missing regular old I-Men. They seem almost harmless now.
”

“
Yeah,
”
Max agreed.
“
I
’
d rather face a truckload of I-Men over one or two I-Monsters.
”

“
Where are they all coming from?
”
Ty addressed me.
“
Do you have a clue?
”

“
The strain that causes them might be spreading more quickly than before, but I don
’
t really know.
”
I shrugged, fidgeting with my own small gun.

“
We went months without seeing any after M-Day. The I-Men have changed since then too,
”
Ty added.
“
But I
’
ve never come across anyone else like any of us.
”

“
That is very interesting.
”
And gave me an idea. Their uniqueness could be the key to getting the lot of them a safe passage out of danger. The scientists looking for the cure would be very interested in studying them. I just hoped it wouldn
’
t involve putting them all in cages. I shuddered at the memory of some of the soldiers Dr. Greensley kept in his lab after he
’
d infected them. Of course they
’
d volunteered and knew what they
’
d be facing
…
but still.

The headlights illuminated something large and pale directly in front of us, and Zee swerved to avoid it.
“
Was that one of them?
”
Max squeaked, her nails digging into the dashboard.

“
I don
’
t know what else it could have been.
”
Evo popped a magazine into her gun.

“
Maybe just a regular run of the mill I-Man,
”
Nyx offered.

Ty hit the back of the seat behind Zee.
“
Let
’
s not stick around to find out.
”

“
Agreed,
”
Zee rasped, hitting the gas hard. We lurched forward, speeding down the road. I couldn
’
t see anything behind us in the dark.

“
Viv!
”
Riley roared before tackling me to the floor of the van.

“
He
’
s like a dog with a bone, isn
’
t he? It
’
s the first thing he says every time he wakes up. And who forgot to check on his bullet in the brain situation?
”
Evo snapped.
“
Do I have to do everything?
”

It all faded into the background as Riley looked down at me with his ice eyes. He had me completely at his mercy, but I wasn
’
t afraid. My reaction seemed to calm him somehow, as if he sensed something different in me.
“
You
’
re mine, Viv,
”
he growled, dipping his face to press into my neck. He inhaled deeply, his tongue snaking out to taste my skin.
“
Mine.
”
His teeth pierced my flesh, causing me to cry out in pain. I hit at his back as someone yanked him off of me. Riley roared when Evo pressed her gun to the side of his head.

The van lurched to the side, tires squealing and rubber burning. I instinctively curled into a ball to protect myself since I didn
’
t have a seatbelt on. Something hard banged into my back causing me to yelp in pain.

“
Zee!
”
Max screamed.

Gunshots exploded in quick succession.
“
Viv,
”
Riley
’
s voice was harsh in my ear. I felt his body curl around mine as if he was protecting me from something. The sound of glass shattering had me curling more tightly into a ball, and Riley responded by doing the same around me.

“
We have to move!
”
someone yelled, but I couldn
’
t tell who.

Suddenly I was airborne, slamming into something hard and yet pliant. I blinked in the dim light, realizing Riley had yanked me up to cradle me in his arms. He scrambled out of the van, his chest heaving with exertion. I couldn
’
t make out much of what was happening over his shoulder. The van was on its side, everyone except Riley and me seemed to be locked in some kind of epic battle.

“
We need to help!
”
I dug my nails into Riley
’
s shoulders.
“
We can
’
t just leave them back there.
”

“
Get out of here!
”
Zee bellowed at us, as if he
’
d read my thoughts, or maybe he
’
d heard me?
“
We
’
ll be right behind you!
”

I saw several I-Monsters converge on the group from the darkness. Evo screamed her fury, flames lighting up the starry night.
Is that
…
Is that a flamethrower?
I stared in wonder as the I-Monsters burned, their pale skin blackening before my eyes.