by Opal Carew
As they left the lights of Manhattan behind, Simone gazed out the window, not quite sure if what was happening was real. Zombies. Voodoo. Fleeing the city to hide out at a cabin in the mountains. It sounded more like a plot from one of her books. Only it wasn’t a book and those creatures that had tried to attack them in her apartment had been all too real.
She glanced at Drake. His eyes were fixed on the road, one hand tightly gripping the wheel. In the dark, his expression was unreadable. Maybe one of the reasons the whole scene back at her apartment seemed like something out of a book was because Drake had played the part of the hero so perfectly. When those things had lumbered toward her, all she could do was stand there and stare, completely frozen with fear. But Drake had put himself between her and the two zombies, unconcerned for his own safety. Not only was he gorgeous, fun to hang out with and great in bed, but now it turned out he was a real-life action hero, too. And the way he had promised to keep her safe? She couldn’t imagine writing that line better herself.
Though that did answer the question as to why a guy as wonderful as Drake wasn’t married already. She supposed being on the run from a Voodoo priestess and her zombies would put a serious crimp in anyone’s social life.
Simone wanted to ask Drake what he did to make the priestess angry enough to send zombies after him, but the adrenaline surge and lack of sleep the night before had finally caught up with her. Before she knew it, her eyelids were drooping and she was falling asleep against Drake’s shoulder. The next thing she knew, she was being chased through Central Park by two huge zombies like the ones in her apartment. She jerked awake just as one of the ugly things grabbed her and sank its teeth into her shoulder.
A strong arm pulled her close. “You’re okay, sweetheart.” Drake’s voice was soft and comforting in the darkness. “It was just a bad dream.”
Simone blinked at him, wondering how he knew she had a bad dream, but then realized suddenly jerking awake and gasping for breath had probably given it away. Realizing they were no longer moving, she pushed her hair back from her face and looked around curiously. They were in the parking lot of a grocery store. She gave Drake a questioning look.
“Beck said the cabin isn’t stocked with food and since I don’t think we’ll have much luck getting take-out up here in the sticks, I figured we’d better stop to get some stuff,” he said.
The store was bigger than the ones in Manhattan, so they had a lot more to choose from, but since she and Drake didn’t know how well equipped the cabin was when it came to modern conveniences, they kept it simple, buying stuff that didn’t take much preparation. According to the directions Beck had texted Drake, the cabin was a little over thirty minutes outside the small town where they stopped, so they could come back and get more provisions if they needed to.
An hour later, they were carrying the groceries into the cabin. Simone looked around as she set the bag down on the kitchen counter. She’d never been in a log cabin before, but this one was nice. The living room looked like something out of one of Emily Hayden’s Field & Stream magazines, complete with a few mounted fish on the walls and a pair of crossed oars hanging above the fireplace. She imagined her elderly neighbor would absolutely love the look.
The kitchen wasn’t what Simone would have expected, though. With its six-burner stove, a stainless steel refrigerator and expensive granite countertops, it would have looked right at home in any high-priced New York loft.
As she put the groceries away, Simone decided the cabin would have been a nice, romantic getaway for her and Drake. If they weren’t being chased by zombies. Thinking of zombies reminded Simone of the questions she had wanted to ask him earlier.
She glanced at him as they unpacked the groceries. “That wasn’t the first time you’ve seen a zombie, was it?”
He shook his head. “No.”
She chewed on her lower lip. “You don’t think they’ll be able to follow us up here, do you?”
“Here? No.”
“You’re sure?”
He pulled her into his arms. “Of course, I’m sure. Besides, even if they did try to follow us, it’d take them a week to get here as slow as they move.”
Despite her fear, Simone couldn’t help but laugh as she remembered the way they had walked. “They did move kind of slow, didn’t they? Like the zombies in the horror movies.”
He chuckled, the sound a deep rumble against her ear. “Exactly like that.”
“Even so, they still freaked me out.” She covered her mouth with her hand to stifle a yawn as she looked up at him. “What did you do to get on that woman’s bad side anyway?”
Drake sobered, all trace of amusement gone from his face. “It’s a really long story and we’re both exhausted.” He reached up to gently cup her cheek. “Why don’t we go to bed and get some sleep? I’ll tell you all about it tomorrow.”
Simone would rather hear the story right then, but when she opened her mouth to tell him as much, all that came out was another yawn. She reached up to cover her mouth with her hand again. “I guess we should go to bed. But you have to promise you’ll tell me the whole story tomorrow.”
He bent his head to kiss her tenderly on the mouth. “I promise.”
The bedroom had a pair of French doors that led out to the deck, as well as a fireplace along one wall and a huge king-size bed. If she and Drake were up there on a romantic getaway, Simone would have said the hell with getting some sleep and suggested making love in front of a roaring fire instead. But she was too exhausted and freaked out to do anything but take off her clothes, brush her teeth and fall into bed. Drake put an arm around her, pulling her close, and as she lay there with her head pillowed on his shoulder, she couldn’t help but feel safe.
Chapter Eleven
Waking up beside Simone the next morning seemed like the most natural thing in the world to Drake. God, he could definitely get used to this.
He turned his head to look at her. She was curled up on her side, her back to him, her hair spilling over the pillow, her beautiful ass pressing up against his hip beneath the blanket.
His mouth curving into a smile, he rolled on his side and put his arm around her waist. He was just about to get a little closer, maybe nudge her cute ass with his rapidly hardening cock, when he noticed the skin on his arm was completely black.
Shit. Shit. Shit.
Resisting the urge to immediately jump up and run into the bathroom, Drake forced himself to slowly and carefully slide out of bed so he wouldn’t wake up Simone. The last thing he wanted was for her to see him looking like a zombie. She snuggled into her pillow, but didn’t stir. Thank God.
Grabbing his jeans and T-shirt from atop the chest at the bottom of the bed, he went into the bathroom and quietly closed the door, then locked it. He held his breath as he switched on the light.
Drake had hoped the discoloration would be limited to his arm, but as he looked at himself in the mirror, he saw that the ugly decayed skin was covering his shoulder and half of his chest as well.
Fuck.
He ran his hand through his hair and paced back and forth across the tiny room. After a moment, he stopped in front of the mirror and stared at his reflection again. What the hell was he going to do?
His gut told him to get the hell out of there before Simone woke up and saw him. He could leave her a note saying he’d run to the grocery store to pick up something, then go somewhere to hide until he was back to normal. And what if he didn’t go back to normal for days? Abruptly, he remembered the thought that had occurred to him before Beck had gone down to Louisiana to find the Voodoo priestess. What if Beck had pissed her off so much she made the zombie curse permanent? What if he never turned back to normal again?
Drake suddenly found it hard to breathe and he gasped for air. Calm down, he told himself. Just calm down. There was absolutely no reason to think he wasn’t going to turn back into a normal human being just like he always did.
He just had to find someplace to hide until he did
. But as he reached for his clothes, he realized he couldn’t go anywhere. Not only would Simone be horribly worried, she’d be stranded at the cabin, too. He couldn’t do that to her.
He was just going to have to stay there and pray this was the shortest zombie episode he’d ever had in eight years.
Turning away from the mirror so he wouldn’t have to look at himself, Drake pulled on his jeans. On the off chance Simone did see him, he didn’t want her seeing all of him. She’d never able to look at him in a sexual way ever again after that.
As he pulled his T-shirt over his head, it occurred to him he should have worn long sleeves. If he had, he might not have to hide out in the bathroom. Providing he didn’t go zombie all over, of course.
But when he turned around to look in the mirror again, he saw his face already beginning to turn that pukey shade of gray.
Sonofabitch.
He was definitely going zombie all over. Maybe waiting it out wouldn’t be such a good idea, after all.
But he couldn’t leave. He’d already decided that. Drake sat down on the edge of the tub. There was no need to panic yet. By the time Simone woke up, maybe his skin would be back to normal.
Two and a half hours later, however, he was still in zombie mode and looking even more unpleasant than usual. He was just wondering how late Simone would sleep when there came a soft knock on the door.
“Drake, are you in there?”
Ah hell.
“Um, yeah,” he called. “I’ll be out in a couple of minutes.”
Right. A couple of hours was more like it. He couldn’t go out there looking like this. What the hell was he going to do?
* * * * *
Deciding to put her time to good use while she waited for Drake to finish up in the bathroom, Simone got dressed and went into the kitchen to make coffee. Even though she and Drake didn’t know if the cabin had a coffee pot when they’d gone grocery shopping the night before, they decided to pick up some anyway. Now, as the aroma of freshly brewing coffee filled the kitchen, she was glad they did. It wasn’t Starbucks, but it was pretty damn close.
Taking two mugs out of the cabinet, she set them on the counter, then went around opening the drapes. She caught her breath at the landscape that met her eyes. Trees and hills seemed to go on for miles and to one side of the cabin, she could just make out part of a lake. She’d lived in the city for so long she nearly forgot how nice nature could look, but the view from the windows was breathtaking. It was almost enough to make her think what had happened at her apartment last night had been a dream.
Letting out a little shiver at the memory, Simone turned away from the window and went back in the bedroom to see if Drake had come out of the bathroom yet. To her surprise, the door was still closed. Her brow furrowing, she walked over to knock on it again.
“Drake,” she called. “Are you okay?”
There was a moment’s hesitation before he answered. “Um, yeah. I’m just…um…going to take a shower.”
Smiling, Simone opened her mouth to suggest she join him when she heard the water turn on. Her smile faded. Okay, so maybe she wouldn’t suggest it.
Thinking Drake would probably be at least another ten minutes, Simone figured she might as well have some coffee while she waited. When her stomach growled in protest as she walked into the kitchen, she decided some cereal might be called for, too. Just a little, though. She didn’t want to ruin her appetite for breakfast.
Thirty minutes later, she was standing in the kitchen gazing out the window and absently munching cereal out of the box when it occurred to her that Drake still hadn’t come out of the bathroom. She glanced at her watch and frowned. He’d been in the bathroom for over an hour. What man stayed in the bathroom for so long?
Closing the box of cereal, she put it in the cabinet, then went into the bedroom to find the door to the bathroom still closed. The shower was no longer running, though.
Crossing the room, she knocked on the door. “Drake, are you okay in there?”
Silence. Then, “Um, yeah, I’m fine. I’ll just be a few more minutes.”
Now she was starting to get a little worried. Maybe he wasn’t feeling well and didn’t want to tell her. She folded her arms and fixed the door was a frown. “You said that an hour ago. Are you sure you’re okay?”
“Yeah, I’m fine. I’ll be right out.”
Simone was tempted to demand he open the door and let her in, but decided against it. She’d give him ten more minutes. If he wasn’t out by then, she was going in, even if she had to pick the lock.
Turning on her heel, she walked over to the chest at the foot of the bed and sat down on it, her gaze fixed on the bathroom door. What the heck could he possibly be doing in there? Admittedly, she’d dated a few guys who spent more time in the bathroom than she did—which was saying a lot considering she was a complete girly girl—but this was ridiculous.
Simone checked her watch. Eight minutes. Close enough.
Getting to her feet, she marched over to the door. “Drake, it’s been a few more minutes. Are you coming out or not?”
“I…um…I’ll be right out.”
“You’ve already been in there over an hour. You’re starting to freak me out.”
“You don’t have to freak out.” His voice sounded closer than it had before, as if he was right on the other side of the door now. “I’m fine. I just can’t come out right now, that’s all.”
Okay, she had passed worried, zoomed right by freaked out, and was now a few inches from a total meltdown. If Drake could stand right on the other side of the door and talk to her, why couldn’t he come out?
“What do you mean, you can’t come out?” she asked. “Is something wrong with you? Are you sick?”
“No, it’s nothing like that.”
“Then what is it?”
Silence met her words.
That did it. She put her hands on her hips and glared at the door. “If you don’t open this door right now, I’m going to call the cops and have them come break it down.”
“Don’t do that, Simone!”
What the hell? He sounded positively panic stricken at the idea.
Her eyes narrowed. “It’s exactly what I’m going to do if you don’t come out right now.”
Drake was silent for so long Simone thought she actually might have to make good on her threat. She was just about to go out to the car to grab her cell phone when he spoke.
“Okay. I’ll come out. But first you have to promise you won’t run out of the cabin screaming.”
She frowned at that. “Drake, now you’re really scaring me. Please, just come out.”
“Promise me, Simone.”
This was just too weird. But she was afraid he might spend the rest of the day in the bathroom if she didn’t do as he asked. “Okay, I promise. Now, open the door.”
When Drake didn’t answer, she thought he’d changed his mind about coming out, but after a moment, she heard him unlock the door. As it slowly opened, she took an involuntary step back.
Then froze when she saw him.
His skin was a mottled color, white in some places, gray in others, and almost completely black in the rest. He looked exactly like the zombies in her apartment. All she could do was stare in astonishment.
“Oh God,” she breathed when she finally found her voice. “You’re one of those…those…things.”
“No, I’m not.” He took a step toward her. “I mean, I know I look like—”
Simone held up her hand, backpedaling away from him. “Stay back!”
He took another step. “Simone, please just listen—”
She backpedaled some more until she was almost touching the bed. She looked around for a weapon, her eyes locking on the poker beside the fireplace. She reached out and grabbed it, holding it like a baseball bat. “I mean it! Stay back!”
Drake stopped where he was and held up his hands. “Okay, okay. Just calm down”
“Calm down? Right. Like you’d be calm
if I walked out of the bathroom looking like you.” Her hands tightened on the poker. “You got bitten back at my apartment, didn’t you?”
He frowned, confusion clear on his face. “Bitten? What are you talking about?”
“Like in the movies. A zombie bites a person, then they turn into a zombie.”
“Oh,” he said. “No, I didn’t get bitten. I was like this before the zombies showed up at your apartment.”
Her brow furrowed. “Before? I don’t understand.”
“I can explain everything. Let’s just go into the living room and sit down.”
Simone chewed on her lower lip. He might sound exactly like Drake, but he sure as hell didn’t look like him. Then again, maybe he did. He still had the same facial features, chiseled jaw and soulful dark eyes. His skin was just a funny color. And he didn’t act like the zombies that had attacked them in her apartment. She supposed she could at least listen to him and hear what he had to say. As long as he kept his distance.
“Okay.” She gestured with the poker. “You first.”
Drake’s mouth tightened as he eyed the poker, but he didn’t say anything. Instead, he turned and walked into the living room. As Simone followed, it occurred to her that he didn’t move slowly and awkwardly like the zombies in her apartment. Maybe that meant Drake hadn’t completely turned yet.
Drake frowned at the poker in her hand as he sat down on the couch. “You can put that down, you know. I’m not going to hurt you.”
Simone sat down in one of the overstuffed chairs, resting the poker on her thighs. “I think I’ll hang on to it, thanks.”
He didn’t look pleased at that, but he didn’t protest.
“You said you could explain why you look like a zombie,” she reminded him. “So, explain.”
“Remember the Voodoo priestess I told you about?” When she nodded, he continued. “Well, eight years ago, she cursed me and turned me into this.”