V-Day: (M-Day #4) (8 page)

Images of me and Ty, me and Zee, me and Riley
…
all flitted across my mind.
What if they
’
re still out there? What will happen to them if I give up?
I can
’
t abandon them. I won
’
t.
Ty and Zee were my blood, my family. And Riley
…
Riley was my heart. My very broken heart, but my heart all the same.

I couldn
’
t let myself fold under the pressure and let them all down.
I
’
m stronger than that.
I had to let go of my feelings of hopelessness. There was no place for them within me. I would keep on fighting and keep on hoping until I took my final breath.
What do you know?
Maybe some of Ty
’
s optimism finally wore off on me. After all, I did share a womb with him for nine months.
Despite everything, I laughed. Ty was so goddamned optimistic that he could find the good in anything. Seriously
…
anything.

I pushed myself into a sitting position, channeling my twin
’
s positive outlook on life.
Okay. Sure, things look bleak now, but I
’
m still in the game. I won
’
t give up.

Three distinct cracks rent the air, registering immediately as gunshots. Adrenaline pumped through my veins, giving me the needed energy to propel myself to the bedroom window. About twenty to thirty feet away, close to the forest I
’
d tried to escape into, stood Tasha and another woman I didn
’
t recognize. The two of them were brandishing guns while standing over the bodies of three men. I whirled around, and hurried from the room.

I didn
’
t come across anyone on my way outside, not even Cujo, but I wasn
’
t too worried about her, she definitely had proved she could take care of herself.
“
What the hell is going on?
”
Not caring that I had no shoes on, I stalked towards the two women, my gaze locked on Tasha.

“
These three
—”
Tasha poked one of the bodies with her foot.
“—
were getting a bit too aggressive. They reached their expiration date.
”

“
What does that mean
…
exactly?
”
Please, no. Please don
’
t let it be worse than I
’
d originally thought.

“
After a while, no matter how well we train them, they start to get unmanageable and too aggressive, so we put them down,
”
the tall brunette said, as if she was telling me the weather forecast.
“
But more can always be made.
”

Monsters. They
’
re well and truly monsters.
I tried to hide my revulsion, my body shaking violently as I pictured Riley and my brother
’
s faces as the three dead on the ground. I raised my hand to cover my mouth, biting the fleshy part of my palm to keep from crying out. The Doc had thought women were better than men in some way, like we didn
’
t have it in us to be as brutal and twisted as our male counterparts. He
’
d been wrong. Men and women alike, when broken, have the power to destroy.
Maybe the human race really doesn
’
t deserve to exist on this planet anymore.

Ignoring my reaction, Tasha smiled at me.
“
Don
’
t worry, we just found a few new ones to add to our kennel. It
’
ll only take us a few days to change and get them suitably trained like the rest. They fall into line quickly with sex as the motivation.
”

I waved my hand at the bodies.
“
And this doesn
’
t cause them to revolt? Knowing that they
’
re all going to end up dead eventually?
”

“
They
’
re not that smart,
”
the brunette said, laughing.
“
I
’
m Tams by the way, the resident doctor. Which is why I
’
m going to insist that you head back in to rest.
”

I nodded slowly, swinging my gaze back and forth between the two women.
Insane. They
’
ve all gone completely insane because of what happened to them.
“
It
’
s kind of difficult to rest when I hear gunshots coming from just outside my window.
”

“
I know you
’
ve been barely getting by out there, Vi, but things are different here. You
’
re safe. You don
’
t need to worry,
”
Tams offered, her expression reassuring.

I nodded again, pretending to agree. What she said couldn
’
t have been further from the truth. I wasn
’
t safe, and they weren
’
t either. The clock was still ticking and they seemed to think that time was at a standstill now that they had a bit of power. Thankfully I was already feeling improved, not exactly better yet, but I knew it wouldn
’
t be long before I
’
d be healthy enough to make a break for it.

I glanced down at the three bodies once more, my gaze lingering on the one closest to me. His skin was a bit too pasty, his head bald. I sucked in a sharp breath as a chill ran up my spine. It was something I
’
d seen before, the reason why the clock was ticking. Always ticking. This particular strain of the virus changed the men into something else
—
something even more terrifying than the brutal sex-crazed monsters that were now commonplace. It made them hungry for more
—
hungry for flesh. Like fictional zombies
…
but much worse because they still seemed capable of reasoning. They weren
’
t dead, not by a long shot.
But at least this one is.
It was only a temporary reprieve though. If the more dangerous strain of Men-V had infected more than one of the local I-Men, Tasha and the rest of them wouldn
’
t survive.

I shuffled back into the house, my thoughts already swirling to form plans. I had to find the uninfected men that Tasha and Tams had just mentioned. I had to find them and free them before it was too late, if it wasn
’
t already. And then I had to convince a house full of insane women to put down their pets before said pets decided tearing them to shreds with their teeth was more pleasurable than sex.

Maybe it was my head injury, or maybe because it was the first time I
’
d come so close to death, but recently, the events from my past were playing through my mind like they never had. It was as if my life was slowly passing before my eyes, which made me wonder if I was dying just as slowly
…
piece-by-piece.

“
Riley,
”
I called out, my voice wavering with uncertainty. What I was seeing had to be wrong. There was no way he
’
d be heading into the restaurant with another girl. Someone who wasn
’
t me.

He stiffened, leaning down to whisper in the tiny blonde
’
s ear before turning to face me. The blonde glanced over her shoulder with disdain before disappearing into the restaurant. I suddenly felt like old gum on Riley
’
s shoe that needed scraping off.
“
What do you want, Vivienne?
”

Vivienne?
His use of my full name caused my stomach to somersault. He
’
d always called me Viv, or Vivvy, since we were kids because of the bright colored clothes I
’
d favored. It was a joke at first, but it had quickly morphed into a pet name that always made me feel special to Riley. 
“
I just
—
are you on a date?
”
I snapped, my fingers curling to dig into my palms.

Riley
’
s eyes darkened with anger, his expression stark.
“
Yeah, so what if I am? What business is it of yours?
”
It stung even worse to know that the girl he was with looked so completely different from me. She was the stereotypical image of beauty, all blonde hair and blue eyes. I
’
d never felt insecure about my appearance before that moment.

I opened and closed my mouth a few times before the words would come.
“
What about us?
”

He stalked towards me, stopping about a foot away. Despite everything, my eyes devoured him hungrily. It
’
d been a month since our blowout fight. Just a month, but I missed him desperately
—
pathetically.
“
There is no us anymore, Vivienne. You made that crystal clear with your actions. So if there
’
s nothing else?
”

My heart shriveled in my chest, leaving me empty and cold.
“
No. I guess not.
”
I turned from him, and walked away slowly. I
’
d broken us. It was my fault. Had I really expected him not to move on when I
’
d treated him like complete shit? Riley was a catch
—
one that I
’
d thrown back, and there were a bevy of girls waiting to reel him in. It was probably better off anyhow with him and Ty planning on going into the military when we all graduated. They
’
d been dazzled by Zee when he
’
d come home on leave. Soon Riley would be long gone, and hopefully just a memory.

“
I need to focus on the present,
”
I muttered under my breath. I crept into the small bathroom attached to my temporary room, almost afraid to make any noise, not wanting to have to deal with anyone else in the house, insane woman, or sex-crazed I-Man.

I stared myself down in the mirror above the sink, gripping the cold yellow ceramic edges until my fingers ached. I removed my pink hair wrap, something that both Emilio and Tony had mocked me for wearing. I
’
d had to remind them more than once with my fists, especially Tony, that just because I liked pink didn
’
t make me any less tough. It was possible to look good while kicking ass, although me looking good, along with the rest of the world, had ceased being possible with the release of Men-V. No more salon visits for me.

I turned my attention fully to my reflection, pushing away thoughts of my dead compadres. My long hair extensions were still in place, although desperately in need of changing. I usually had them redone at least every six weeks, but hair care, like a lot of things, had gone out the window with the advent of the apocalypse. My hair was my biggest vanity, one that I
’
d never let go of, even when I
’
d been recruited for S-Ops. No one cared as long as I kept my locks braided and off of my face. Now, once I took out my extensions, I was going to be stuck with my natural hair, something that shouldn
’
t matter in this new world, but somehow it still did.

I could almost hear Ty mocking me for my unrelenting hair fixation.
God
…
Ty
…
please be okay.
Sometimes it felt like I was forgetting him
—
his laugh
—
his weird sense of never wavering optimism
—
the way he rolled his eyes at me. And other times it was as if he was standing right beside me. Ty had always been one of my best friends, after all, we had shared a womb for nine months. I needed his advice about so many things...and his strength. I just needed him.
And Riley. I need Riley too.
I wasn
’
t sure how I
’
d gone on for so long without them.
What will I do if they
’
re dead or infected?

I pushed off the sink, pausing before shifting my fingers though the long braid at my back, unraveling it. My dark hair cascaded over my breasts, desperately in need of a wash. I was pretty sure there was dried blood in it. In fact, I sniffed myself and crinkled my nose before glancing over my shoulder at the large tub.
Who knows the next time I
’
ll get another chance. It
’
s not like I enjoy the lax bathing rituals that the post-apocalyptic world has forced me into.