V-Day: (M-Day #4) (5 page)

“
You mean your weapons? We have them. But you
’
re not going anywhere. You were beaten
…
and ummm
…
other things. You need to rest, to
—”

“
There
’
s no time!
”
My head throbbed.
“
No time.
”
I grimaced against the pain my little outburst caused.
“
We were on a mission to find survivors. And I have to find my brothers before it
’
s too late.
”
Pity washed across the girl
’
s face as if she thought I was in denial or my head injury was affecting my judgment.
“
Look,
”
I growled.
“
You can wipe that expression off of your face. I know what that I-Man did to me. But I don
’
t have time to think about or deal with it. I need my shit so I can go.
”

“
What
’
s this about you going somewhere in your state?
”
Another girl stepped up beside the first, slinging her arm around the smaller one
’
s shoulders. She pressed her lips quickly to her forehead, her dark features pinched with annoyance directed at me.
“
You can
’
t go anywhere right now. Just not happening.
”

“
And who made you boss?
”

“
Someone get Tams!
”
the second girl bellowed.
“
This crazy bitch thinks she
’
s going somewhere when she can
’
t even get off the ground on her own steam.
”

I clenched my teeth, defiance swelling within me.
Who the fuck do these young ass bitches think they are to tell me what to do?
I scrambled to my feet, my vision wavering.
“
I can take care of myself.
”
I rushed forward to prove a point, but the only thing I ended up proving was that they were right and I was wrong.

The room spun, swirls of color mixed with black dancing in front my eyes before the carpet came up to meet my face, blotting out the world.

“
What the hell is wrong with him?
”
I cringed every time the huge soldier turned his ice blue eyes on me and fought his restraints, saliva trickling from the corners of his mouth.

“
He
’
s no longer sick, so nothing is wrong with him.
”
Doc Kit Kat grinned at me.
“
He
’
s absolutely perfect.
”

“
No. No, he
’
s not. He looks like he wants me for dessert or something.
”

“
Well, he is a man after all,
”
the Doc muttered absentmindedly, staring at some notes he
’
d taken.
“
Which is why he turned out that way. Men and women, the ultimate test of Darwinism. Hopefully it
’
ll save the planet and better the species.
”

I was so riveted by the crazed soldier in the lab that I jumped when the Doc jabbed me with a syringe.
“
I need some of your blood, Vi.
”

“
You could have asked.
”
I watched as the red liquid was pulled from my arm.
“
You should have tied it off and found a vein
—”

“
I just need a little. I didn
’
t want to be a bother.
”

“
As if I wouldn
’
t notice you turning me into a pincushion.
”

I groaned, the memory of passing out sweeping through my mind.
How fucking embarrassing.
I peeled my eyes open to take in the cheerful colored walls that definitely seemed to have taken on a mocking quality.

You need to stop being such a pessimist, Sis. Learn to look at the bright side of things
, Ty
’
s voice whispered. But how could I? I was the last chance at survival that my brothers had, and I was laid up in bed, my body definitely more sore than it
’
d been before.
At least the throbbing in my head has subsided a bit.
The rest of me felt like I
’
d gone a few rounds with a bear or what had actually happened
—
a huge infected man, or an I-Man as my new frienemies referred to them.

I looked up as the bedroom door creaked open, revealing one of the girls I
’
d seen before. Her dark eyes bore into mine.
“
Are you done acting all crazy?
”

“
You don
’
t understand what
’
s at stake. If you did then you wouldn
’
t think I was acting crazy.
”
Unfortunately I knew that I
’
d have to spend a bit of time recuperating. My little black out had forced me to face the truth. I wouldn
’
t be saving anyone if I couldn
’
t even stand on my own two feet. I prayed I wouldn
’
t need too much time though, because I didn
’
t have it. The ever-present clock seemed to tick louder in the back of my mind.
Tick-Tick-Tick-Tock
…
I ground my teeth together, my jaw aching.

She shuffled towards me, almost timidly, despite her stern expression.
“
I
’
m Tasha, by the way. I don
’
t think I got a chance to introduce myself before. And my girlfriend is Emily, in case she didn
’
t get around to that either.
”

“
I
’
m Vi.
”
I fidgeted, my fingers twisting the comforter.
“
Well, thanks for saving me. I don
’
t even want to think about what would have happened if you guys hadn
’
t shown up when you did.
”
I shuddered despite not letting my mind really go there.

Tasha reached out her hand, placing it over mine. I couldn
’
t help but notice that her skin was significantly darker than mine, and her fingers a lot meatier. It meant she must have access to regular food supplies. I
’
d dwindled down to almost nothing, and my normally caramel-toned skin looked sallow, having only been living off of the small amount of rations we had left.
“
Where
’
s Cujo, my dog?
”

“
Probably prowling the perimeter of the house again. She
’
s very protective of you.
”

“
Yeah,
”
I mumbled, pulling my hand back. And I was already quite attached to her since she was the only one I had left. My heart squeezed as I thought about Tony and Emilio, and clenched even tighter when I thought about Ty, Zee
…
and Riley.

“
You feeling up to eating, and maybe talking about what happened to you?
”

My stomach growled loudly at the mere mention of food. I quirked an eyebrow.
“
I think that
’
s a yes as far as the food goes. But if I talk, I
’
m going to want some questions answered myself.
”

Because I had a ton of them. Tasha and Emily were the first females that we
’
d
—
or
I
’
d
run into out in the wild since Men-V had swept the country, or rather, females that weren
’
t being held captive by I-Men. I hadn
’
t had to worry about the possibility of saving anyone besides my brothers up until this point. Meeting Tasha and Emily changed nothing and yet everything. Zee and Ty were still my top priority, but I couldn
’
t just let innocent women die. Although in this new world, being a hero wasn
’
t really an option. I
’
d do what I could, when I could, but saving me and mine would always come first. It had to.

Saving Tasha and Emily might not be in the cards. I
’
d have to wait and see.
They just might end up one more thing that feeds the guilt monster inside of me.
I silently prayed they wouldn
’
t be.

Tasha stood, smiling pleasantly.
“
Seems fair.
”

There were a half dozen women sitting around a rather large dining room table, or rather two tables pushed together. The women were of all shapes, sizes, and ages, most seemingly pleasant in mood. The delectable aroma of food smashed into me, capturing my attention and drawing my gaze to the feast spread out in front of me. I was a millisecond away from hurling myself at some freshly baked bread and ramming it all into my mouth, not caring if I choked on it. My fingers twitched and saliva pooled in my mouth. My senses were on overload, not having seen so much truly edible food in a long time
—
too long. My entire body trembled in the effort it took to hold myself back.

“
Help yourself,
”
Tasha said, the smile evident in her voice.

I didn
’
t respond or acknowledge anyone beyond a halfhearted nod as I grabbed a plate and heaped food onto it, pausing to rip off a piece of bread with my teeth.
So fucking good
. I flopped onto an open chair and went to town. I barely registered what I was shoving into my mouth, just that it was fresh, and not out of a wrapper. Unfortunately I reached my fill way before I was ready to stop eating.

“
How do you guys have all this? How
—”

I jumped to my feet, wincing even as I did, when a large I-Man lumbered into the room
…
completely naked. His muscles rippled with each movement, catching the light as if he
’
d been oiled. A rather substantial erection jutted against his belly, bobbing as he walked. No one else seemed to bat an eyelash.

“
Calm down, Vi. This one belongs to us,
”
Tasha said.

Despite her words, I backed up warily, eyeing the huge son-of-a-bitch. I reached for weapons that weren
’
t there, flashes of me being on the bathroom floor causing a cold sweat to break out across my skin. I wanted to pretend the rape never happened
—
needed to
—
but my body wouldn
’
t let me forget. I fought the urge to run, using up all of my willpower not to.

The I-Man placed another plate on the table and backed away slowly, his gaze darting to one of the women at the table, who laughed loudly.
“
He
’
s so eager to please. Come here, Fido, you want your reward now?
”

Fido? What kind of name is that, besides for a dog that is?
The I-Man nodded eagerly, hurriedly approaching the woman who
’
d addressed him. She was a tiny thing, short and thin, probably no more than ninety pounds soaking wet. She flicked her long blonde hair over her shoulders and laughed.
“
All right, Fido, get down on your knees.
”
He did, crawling towards her, a lecherous grin on his face.
“
Now don
’
t embarrass yourself. If you do a good job then I
’
ll let you fuck me later.
”
She spread her legs and shoved his head between them.