Mostly Dead (Barely Alive #3) (23 page)
Read Mostly Dead (Barely Alive #3) Online
Authors: Bonnie R. Paulson
I nodded as carefully as possible. Thunder roiled in my head and down to my groin. Major pain covered almost every inch of my body. “Of course.”
They ran out. Heather brushed her fingers on my forearm as she passed. Dang, even with a bleeding head wound, I still got turned on by her.
Something… I couldn’t focus. I waited another moment to gather my strength. The stairs might kick my ass, if I tried running up them. And I waited a moment too long.
Connie dug her nails in my shoulder. “Going somewhere, Paully?” Oh, I hated that nickname. She licked the blood from my neck. A fantasy of mine but I didn’t dig old chicks that tried killing my girl.
She hissed. “I want my vial.”
I braced myself on the door and turned to her. “No way. In hell.”
If I could keep her in the house, she’d crave the flames. There was no way around it. And she hadn’t tried the cure yet. No way was she going to get it from me.
Heather and James had made it safely outside. I clung to the door like a life preserver. The smoke swirled around my head. I struggled to keep my eyes open. I must have gotten a concussion.
Flames licked through the opening around the vent. It wouldn’t be long now. I had to hold on. I could keep her there. My escape would be fast.
Fast. Just the word made my headache swell.
Connie leaned in to me. She raked her nails down my chest. “I could eat you, you know? No big deal. I’m not like you. I don’t give a rat’s ass if I kill or not. This whole thing is so messed up. I might not even change back for a while.” She pressed her lips to mine. I jerked my head to the side, stars shooting behind my eyelids. She laughed. “Admit it. You miss the cravings and the feelings you got when they were satisfied.”
She spun from me, arms in the air, stirring the smoke with her hands. “I love that simple things make me happy, now. So happy.” Suddenly, she was in front
of me, grinding her hips against mine. “And even happier when those simple things are so fun.”
I shoved her, falling to the side, away from the door. Blood dripped steadily to my shoulder.
More flames poured through the vent, the edges black and crisp. Flames latched onto a shelving unit against the wall. A table and chair cracked under the heat.
Sweat broke out between my shoulder blades and in a deep vee on my chest. Hell, I dripped all over.
Blood, sweat, and gagging if she kissed me again.
The moment seemed to roll in slow motion. I couldn’t get the gauze feeling from my mouth to tell her to turn toward the fire.
I didn’t have to. In mid-spin, she stopped. And stared at the flames.
She hadn’t eaten in a while. The gray on her hands gave her away.
A step, then another. She fixated on the colors. And seemed to forget about me.
Rolling to the side, I collapsed in front of the open door, face in the dirt.
My hand fell an inch in the cool air.
“Come on, Paul. Let’s go.” James hefted me up under my arm pits and pulled me from the burning basement. He dropped me to the grass beside Heather and disappeared down the stairs.
“Stop him.” I gasped. He’d never make it out. The call of the fire was too strong. He’d die. I’d never see him again. My brother…
But there he was. He plopped down between Rachel and me, sweat on his forehead. “Man, that’s hot. I closed the door. I didn’t see Connie when I went back.” He looked at me. “Do you think she went into the fire?”
I nodded. I couldn’t say more. My brother’s skin didn’t have a shade of gray. Even on his fingers that he pushed through his hair. Everything had their full color. His eyes were bright… and his skin was flushed.
My words slurred because of the pain, but I had to say it. “What the hell, James? Did you kiss Heather?”
He wiggled his eyebrows at me and leered. “What if I did?”
Jealousy filled me. Before I could
at least attempt to punch him, Heather spoke up. “He did not. Gross as it sounds, I spit in his hand and he,” she shuddered, “swallowed it. So disgusting.”
“Jeesh, Paul. You looked like you were about to die.” He laughed and rocked Rachel in his arms.
C.J. approached us. His eyes tired. “The house is gone, guys. We need to get out of here pretty quick. There’s still a break in the woods over there where there isn’t fire yet.” He sighed. Mom and Grandma Jean came up behind him. Grandma Jean’s eyes sparkled with tears and she hugged herself. Mom wrapped an arm around Grandma Jean’s shoulders.
I dug the vial out of my pocket. “Give this to the zombies down in the hole. We’ll get down there and I’ll make them do what you need. But I can’t do
give it to them. I think I have a concussion.”
He took the vial. About a teaspoon’
s worth of saliva. I didn’t know how much was needed to cure the disease, but we could have Heather spitting all night.
A glance in her direction, picturing her spitting into a cup for others to drink, made me laugh out loud which made my head throb more.
Tears glistened in her eyes.
“What’s wrong?” I hadn’t meant to hurt her feelings, I just…
“This is my childhood. My grandma’s house. It’s gone. Everything is gone.” Her eyelashes fanned her cheeks. “I have nothing to remember any of it by.”
Sorrow for her loss filled me. She’d been through a lot. If only I could… I dug into my other pocket, hitting her with my elbow. “Oh, sorry.” I pulled out the small toy soldier I’d pocketed earlier. “This isn’t much,
but I took this before I left.”
She fingered the small man, a sob escaping her.
“I can’t believe you took this.” She sighed and hugged my arm. “He’s my favorite. I used to pretend he and I would ride off into the sunset after the pretend wars with my grandpa and grandma.” She looked at me. Her smile warmed the night. “He was my hero.”
And I’d delivered him to her.
Maybe I was the real hero.
Who’d have thought the zombie could get the girl
?
End of Book #3
Dominic is the villain to hate – read
Viral Intent
(
Barely Alive
series short story prequel, 2012) and discover just how dark the virus can be.
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Other titles by Bonnie R. Paulson
Into the End Series:
Barely Alive Series:
Standalones:
Dictating Desire (releasing early summer 2013)
About the Author
Bonnie R. Paulson mixes her science and medical background with reality and possibilities to make even myths seem likely and give every romance the genetic strength to survive. Bonnie has discovered a dark and twisty turn in her writing that she hopes you enjoy as much as she has enjoyed uncovering it. Dirt biking with her family in the Northwest keeps her sane.
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