Ryder’s eyes nearly popped out of her head.
“Just joking,” Massimo explained quickly.
Leandro covered his eyes with a hand. “Pops, that’s not something to joke about.”
His father shrugged. “You’re welcome to get cleaned up at our house and get some rest,” he told Ryder and Carter. “It’s safe there.”
Ryder and Carter looked at one another. They both wanted to get the blood off them, and the fight had worn them out.
Ryder hesitated. “If you’re sure?” She didn’t like the idea of sleeping at a stranger’s house, but with these weird Mad people running around, sleeping under the stars wasn’t an option.
“We are.” Massimo waited for Ryder to look away, and he winked at Leandro.
“Do you own the bar?” Ryder asked Massimo as they walked to his house. Carter was by her side, and Leandro was next to Massimo.
“I do,” Massimo told her proudly. “Well, more like we both do. Leandro did most of the work to build and furnish it.”
She nodded. “It was quite impressive. I’ve never seen anything quite like it.”
“It was, wasn’t it?” He sighed wistfully.
“Pops, don’t get like that. I’m the moody one here. I can’t have you stealing that from me, can I?” Leandro placed his arm around his dad.
They were a funny pair. Leandro was huge compared to Massimo. Ryder had seen Carter sizing him up. Leandro was bigger and better-looking than Carter, but he was wearing ridiculous, undersized clothing, which made it hard for Ryder to take him seriously.
Massimo nodded. “Yes, our home would be very depressing if there were two grumpy old men living in it.”
“I’m not old or grumpy,” Leandro complained good-naturedly.
Leandro caught Ryder looking at his pants, which ended halfway up his shins, and his bare feet.
“I don’t normally dress like this,” Leandro told her quickly. “I was in a rush.”
“What, a rush for puberty?” Carter laughed, and Leandro scowled at him, clearly not understanding the joke. “Easy, tiger. I’m just playing. It looks like you and Ryder have both got the same sense of humor. None.”
“Hey!” Ryder and Leandro snapped at the same time.
“See?” Carter snickered. “Too easy.”
Changing the subject, Massimo said, “The place could stand a bit of a re-do. Maybe I’ll go with a different theme. American sports bar?” He laughed. “We couldn’t really have sports playing on the telly, could we? I’ll have to think about this.”
Massimo nodded to himself, lost in thought. The others looked at one another as they tried to work out what Massimo was talking about. Then they realized he meant the bar. While they had been speaking about Leandro’s clothes, he’d been thinking about the Old Dog.
Leandro sighed. “Looks like I’ll be making a few mall runs.” He smiled at Ryder.
What the hell is a mall run? And what the hell is a mall? Ryder didn’t ask, since she was worn out from the night’s events and was trying to keep conversation to a minimum without being rude.
Massimo turned to face Leandro. “It looks like you could do with a mall run anyway. You look like you haven’t changed your clothes since public school.”
Carter interjected, “Hey, that’s what I said.”
“Did you really? I didn’t hear that.” Massimo smiled and winked at Ryder.
The man was listening. He was just winding his son up. Ryder thought this was quite funny and smiled back at Massimo.
“Pops, don’t BS. You hear everything.”
“You know my hearing isn’t as good as it used to be.”
Leandro shook his head at his dad’s response. Massimo’s hearing was just as good as his. One thing that Weres and vampires shared was their enhanced hearing.
Ryder looked disappointed. How rude! He should respect his dad, especially one who is as sweet as Massimo.
“What brings you to Pinewood?” Massimo asked Ryder and Carter.
Ryder paused for a moment. Part of the reason might sound stupid. “We came to see if anyone would help me free my friends from the bunker I was held in. And to see if a wolf was here.”
“A wolf?” Leandro asked.
“Yes, Fluffy,” Carter told them. “He was Ryder’s pet wolf.”
“A wolf? Named Fluffy?” Massimo repeated, then looked at Leandro and raised an eyebrow. What had his son been up to?
Leandro was quite pleased that she’d come after him, but not that Carter had told his dad he’d gone by the name Fluffy for a time.
“Yes, he protected me,” Ryder added. “Have you seen him? He’s white and, well, fluffy.”
Massimo’s eyes twinkled with humor. “Oh, I’m sure he’ll turn up soon enough. Aren’t you, Leandro?”
Leandro turned red. “I don’t know,” he spluttered, making everyone look at him. “What?”
Massimo shook his head. “Anyway, Ryder, you said you needed some help?”
“Yes.”
“I’d love to hear all about it once we get settled. We’re here.” Massimo gestured his hand at the house in front of them. It was built from the same stone as the shops in Pinewood, but bigger.
Ryder noticed the outbuildings which stood away from the house were made in the same way. It looked like something out of the glorious past.
“You are welcome to stay for as long as you want,” Massimo told her. “But be careful with the basement, as I accidentally blew it up this morning.”
Leandro’s eyes widened. “What?”
“Relax,” Massimo soothed. “Everything is fine, just a little scorched.”
“How many people live here?” Ryder asked.
“Just us, for now.” Massimo turned and winked at Leandro.
Yegor went back to the location where the vampire had attacked them. As he ran, he’d heard a gunshot, and he wanted to find out what happened. His curiosity was stronger than his common sense.
He peered around the trees, hoping the scary-as-fuck vampire wasn’t still there. The vampire wasn’t on the same shit-your-pants level as Afana, but the glowing red eyes and fangs caused a similar effect.
Sergei sat on the ground, looking pissed. Yegor thought about leaving him, but he didn’t know where to go. He’d never been this far away from the bunker, and he’d never been outside on his own. Yegor had been born in the bunker, and he wanted to go home, but Afana would have his head if he didn't return with Ryder’s.
“Who’s there?” Sergei demanded, scrambling to his feet. His eyes darted wildly as he grabbed his gun.
Yegor panicked. “Sergei, it’s me.”
“Me who?” Sergei spat, pointing the gun in the direction of the voice.
“Yegor.”
Sergei scowled. “I only know one person named Yegor, and he is a long-necked traitor who’s going to lose his motherfucking head when I get my hands on him.”
Yegor gulped. He’d seen what Sergei had done in the past, and he didn’t want to be on the receiving end of it. He didn’t know what to do. He edged back, then forward again.
“Don’t make me hunt you down,” Sergei told him. “If you do, I’ll take my time with you first.”
Yegor couldn’t think. He was basically screwed. If he came out of hiding and went toward Sergei, he would lose his head. If he ran away, Sergei would torture him and then cut off his head. He was fucked.
Maybe I can talk to him? Yegor thought, but Sergei wasn’t known for his willingness to listen. Here goes nothing.
Yegor stepped out from behind the tree. Sergei kept his gun pointed at Yegor. “Where’s Pavel?”
Yegor shrugged his shoulders. “I don't know.”
“That fucker must have run off as well. And you’ve done it two times on me. First at the bunker, and now here.”
“I’m sorry, did you see him?” Yegor asked. “That motherfucker was a vampire, just like Afana.”
“Did I see him? I fought with him! You’d have seen it if you hadn’t run off.” Sergei
was lying, but Yegor didn't know that. Only Pavel did, and Sergei planned to shut his mouth permanently. He’d expected Yegor to run off, but not Pavel.
“Now what am I going to do with you?” Sergei ruminated.
Yegor felt like he was going to shit himself again. “I know where Ryder is. He’s with the vampire.”
“You saw Ryder and the vampire together?”
Yegor smiled. “Yes. Why don’t you not chop off my head, and I’ll show you where they went?”
“Fine,” Sergei sneered. “I’ll let you live, but betray me again, and I will kill you.”
33
The inside of Massimo and Leandro’s home was even more impressive than the outside. It was filled with Massimo and Leandro’s possessions, and everything fascinated Ryder.
“Let’s get you cleaned up, and then we’ll give you a tour,” Leandro told Ryder and Carter. “Ryder, I’ll show you to the bathroom.”
“Can you show me as well?” Carter stepped quickly to Ryder’s side.
“Sure,” Leandro agreed, trying his hardest not to sound annoyed.
Leandro led them to the bathroom, and the space filled with “oohs” and “aahs” when they were shown the shower. Massimo had developed a hot water system for it, which never failed to impress Leandro, even though he used it on a regular basis.
“Carter, you can wait in the kitchen while Ryder showers,” Leandro told him.
Carter grinned devilishly. “Why would I do that? We’ll shower together.”
Leandro wondered if something had happened between them after he’d run back to town, but Ryder elbowed Carter in the ribs, which made it clear to him that nothing had happened.
“Did one of the Mad hit you over the head?” Ryder shook her head. “I’d rather lick the floor of the Old Dog than shower with you.”
Carter winked at Ryder as he left the bathroom.
“So, you two aren’t a couple?” Leandro asked, trying to make the question sound casual.
“Me and him?” Ryder snorted. Her hand flew to her face, and her cheeks flushed red. God! I sounded just like a pig.
Leandro smiled and stared at Ryder. There was an awkward silence between them.
Why the fuck is he staring at me with that goofy grin on his face? He’d better not think he can get in the shower with me!
“Anything else?” she asked.
Leandro shook his head. “Sorry, long day. Let me get some clothes for you. I’m not sure I have anything in your size, but we’ll make something work.”
Ryder followed Leandro through the house to a room off another bathroom. There was a bed in it with drawers, pictures on the walls, and books on shelves like in the front room.
“How many people sleep in this room?” Ryder could only see one bed, but the room was huge.
“Just me,” Leandro said as he looked through the drawers for some smaller clothes for Ryder. Luckily, he’d kept some from when he was a kid.
He held up a pair of khaki pants, a white tank top, and a shirt. “I think these will fit you. I may need to give them a wash first. They’re clean, but they’ve been in the drawers for years.”
Maybe these were really the clothes he wore every day. It would explain his current outfit.
Ryder took the clothes from Leandro. She’d never seen such a clean white shirt before. The only clothes she had were the ones she was wearing, plus one more set. That had been it for as long as she could remember.
Ryder could smell the old musty scent on them, but she didn’t care. Part of her felt that if Leandro took them away from her, she might not get them back.
“It’s fine. Thank you.”
“Just bring your dirty ones down with you when you’re done, it’s laundry night anyway.” Leandro hurried to the other side of the room and then held his hand out to Ryder. “A fresh bar of soap.”
Ryder eyed it warily. “What the fuck is soap?”
Leandro peeled back part of the wrapping and gave it to Ryder. “It’s to clean yourself with.”
She held the soap to her nose and inhaled the strong scent of lavender. It smelled like the outdoors. Leandro had been keeping that bar of soap for years. It was different than the ones he got for himself and his dad. Theirs had a manly, musky smell to them.
“Where did you get it?” she asked.
“The abandoned mall.”
Ryder looked at Leandro, confused again, but this time she wasn’t embarrassed. She wanted to get to this mall. Whatever it was, it sounded like it was filled with treasure.
“It’s a place where you can find everything you need, and lots of stuff you don’t need but think you do. Before the wars, there were loads of malls, and people would spend their free time there buying things. I hit the jackpot, you could say, one day. I found a completely abandoned mall. No one else had been there. It is like a treasure trove of things from the past.” Leandro spoke in a rush, partly because he was excited and partly because he’d never had a girl in his room before.
“It sounds like an interesting place. I wish I could see it one day.”
Leandro thought she sounded somber, like she thought she’d never get the chance. He wanted to cheer her up. “Why don’t you take a shower and get all that blood off you? You’ll feel like a new woman.” Leandro shook his head at his mistake. He wasn’t supposed to know she was a woman.
Part of Ryder had forgotten she was covered in blood, but that wasn’t what gave her pause. It was the fact that he called her a woman. How did he know? Maybe it was the comments Carter had been making? That had to be it. And she didn’t need to hide the fact that she was a woman anymore, anyway.
“Sounds like a good idea,” she said.
Leandro let out a breath.
Was he holding his breath, waiting for me to answer?
Ryder did feel like a new woman after the shower. She’d never felt anything quite like the hot water cascading onto her breasts, which were no longer tightly wrapped. It felt like tiny fingers were massaging her naked body, peeling away the layers of blood and filth that had accumulated during her escape from the bunker.
The soap smelled beautiful, and it lathered up into an almost cream-like texture with which she covered her body. She had stolen one of the razors from the cabinet. Normally, the men used them on their beards, but she had always wanted to get the hair off her legs like the other women in the bunker, and now she could.
It was a shame she was going to cover them in pants afterward.
Leandro had given Ryder a towel. It was soft, almost like Fluffy. I hope I’ll see Fluffy again. The towels in the bunker were more like stiff, dirty rags that scratched the skin of whoever used them—and she hated using them. Ryder would have tried to keep one, but in the bunker, everyone stole your shit, and you ended up in more fights when you had belongings. It was better to have nothing.
Ryder could hear the boys talking in the living room and music playing in the background. She was hungry and tired, but Leandro hadn’t told her where she was sleeping yet.
Ryder raised an eyebrow at herself as she looked into the bathroom mirror, then brushed her hand over her almost-bare head. She could grow her hair out now. Yes! I’m going to grow my hair! It would cover Afana’s cattle stamp. Or she could get that man in the bar to tattoo over it.
She shook her head in the mirror and reminded herself she wasn’t staying. She was only here to get help for Terrier and her friends. The shower had apparently washed away her memories, but they were back now and at the front of her mind. Ryder strapped on her knives and picked up her dirty clothes. Her bow and quiver were in the front room by the door. She was ready to get the help she needed.
Ryder walked into the living room, and the conversation stopped. The three men turned to look at her and just stared. She’d not had that reaction from them before removing her bandages, and now, she felt awkward.
“Yeah, I’ve got tits. Get over it.” She narrowed her eyes at the men as she walked over to them.
Leandro came forward,
holding his hands out for the bundle she was carrying. She handed it over to him without another word.
None of them spoke, but Ryder wouldn’t have cared if they had. There was a table of food with her name on it. She grabbed a plate, then glanced at Massimo. “May I have some?” Ryder’s mouth was watering at the smells. She was hungry.
No—she was fucking starving, and this looked delicious.
“You can have as much as you want,” he told her with a broad smile.
“It’s good,” Carter said through a full mouth.
She glared at him. “Carter, you chunky douche, didn’t you learn any manners in the mountains? Close your damn mouth when you’re chewing.”
“What, and Afana taught you manners?” Carter asked before he realized what he was saying.
Ryder recoiled and punched him in the arm. “As if, you jerk.”
Massimo and Leandro watched as the two bickered like an old married couple, which made Leandro feel a little uncomfortable. He wasn’t really sure what to say to her, so he got up from the table and started to clean up.
Carter had been right—the food was good. Ryder piled her plate nice and high with chicken, rabbit, and the creamiest potatoes ever.
“How long was I in the shower?” Ryder asked after she’d gulped down a few mouthfuls.
Massimo smiled. “Not long. The food was left over. Leandro cooked it. He’s quite the cook, isn’t he?”
Leandro blushed at his dad’s compliment. That was when Ryder noticed that he’d changed into some grown-up clothes. He did look better in clothes his own size. He was in tan shorts with pockets on the side, a shirt, and some strange shoes with a tick mark on the side of them.
“So, you found some clothes in your own size?” Ryder asked him.
Leandro smiled. “Yeah, I thought it was time to grow up.”
“Wait for it,” Carter said, and everyone looked at him.
“Wait for what?” Ryder asked, annoyed.
“You were going to give him a compliment, weren’t you?” Carter asked, grinning. There were bits of meat in his teeth and mashed potatoes in his beard, which grossed Ryder right out. “Ryder doesn’t give many compliments. Sorry for butting in before she could give you one.” Carter rubbed his stomach. “I’ll give you a compliment instead. Good cooking, mate. Do you mind if I have a shower now?”
Madness Unleashed: Age Of Madness - A Kurtherian Gambit Series (Live Free Or Die Book 1) Page 19