The Z Word

by Bella Street

  “And,” Malone said, licking his lips, “what year would you say it is?”

  The men turned to him. “Huh?” said the weedy one.

  The kinky-haired girl started crying again. “I was supposed to have my birthday next week. Now I'm being chased by dead people!”

  Dirty Blond snorted.

  “The year?”

  “God, Malone,” Addison barked, “give it up!”

  Malone tucked his gun in the corner. “Hey, you kids wouldn't be hungry, would you? We have plenty of soup to go around. Ladies, the bathroom is right behind you. You'll feel better in no time.” He rubbed his hands together. “In no time at all.”

  Seffy wondered at Malone's odd behavior. She glanced at a Gareth and saw he was still asleep. She switched her attention to the darkest newcomer and caught her breath when he sat down next to her.

  Smiling, she said, “What's your name?”

  “Uh, Clay.”

  “Well, Clay,” she said, struggling not to slur her words, “do you always use words like 'perished'?”

  A pained smile lifted his lips. “I'm sure I was babbling. We're just so relieved to be away from those...those things out there.”

  Seffy leaned close. “I've seen them. Everyone here makes such a big deal about them, but they have feelings, too, right?”

  Clay grimaced. “They were trying to...bite us.”

  “Maybe they're like puppies who are teething.” Seffy snorted and began to laugh at the image of creepy people gnawing on a leg for comfort.

  Addison turned to them. “Don't mind her. She's drunk.”

  “Shut up.” Seffy swiveled back to Gareth, er, Clay. “How would you like a drink?”

  His dark eyes widened. “I would love one.”

  Seffy slowly got to her feet and tacked over to the kitchen area. “Need another drink for our guest.”

  Malone grabbed an empty cup, filled it to the brim and handed it over. “Take the whole bottle,” he said with an evil grin.

  By the time Seffy got the cup into Clay's hands, about half of it had spilled out. He didn't seem to mind. She watched as he tipped the contents down his throat.

  Gripping his cup, he coughed and looked at Seffy. “Thanks, I needed that. I'm still shaking from the attack.”

  Seffy refilled his cup, then hers, and replaced the bottle on the table.

  “You make me sick,” Addy said with contempt. “I'm gonna help Malone get everyone fed.”

  “Good riddance,” Seffy said in a low voice. She leaned near Clay. “She's the bitter type.”

  He stared into his cup, not seeming to hear. With trembling hands, he took another drink.

  Seffy leaned close. “Has anyone ever told you could be Gareth's younger brother?”

  ***

  Seffy opened her eyes and looked at the ceiling in the dim light, frowning from her dream. It had started out good—she and Gareth had had a serious macking session. Luscious lips and warm fuzzies in a hazy background of hot-blooded angst. But then Gareth had morphed into a blond who seemed vaguely familiar. Which was stupid because he was totally not her type.

  What had caused the strange shift in her relationship with Gareth in the first place? They used to be tight but something had happened. Somehow she had let him down despite her best intentions. The answer was floating around somewhere but her mind couldn't seem to grasp hold of it.

  Seffy squinted and tried to think why her ceiling was so filthy. She couldn't figure that out, either. Rolling over to get more comfortable, she noticed her pillow was soft and breathing. Had she and Gareth made up? Her heart leapt with a furious hope. Was it possible he'd forgiven her? Because on some level she knew she needed it. Peering up at the face just centimeters from her own, she whispered Gareth's name.

  Her voice made him move, putting more of his face in the light.

  Seffy's eyes grew wide, her heart pounding out a dire beat. Oh...snap.

  Not Gareth. Not blond guy. “Clay?” Seffy jerked into a sitting position, then clutched her head in agony. The movement triggered more than a searing migraine. The contents of her stomach decided to rebel too. She lurched to her feet. Stumbling over people sleeping on the floor, she ran into the bathroom. Seffy deposited what was left of Malone's grog into the porcelain bowl. More than once.

  She clutched the rim of the toilet and moaned, shocked by the sudden violence of her stomach. I swear to God I will never touch another drop of alcohol again. She vaguely remembered uttering the phrase the last time she'd puked after over-indulging. Seffy closed her eyes as another wave of nausea racked her body. One more time into the toilet.

  God, kill me now. She panted for several moments, then groaned. She glanced up at the ceiling. Seriously. Right now. Smite me. Please, with Splenda on top.

  The sound of shouting outside the door made her jump, but in an attempt to protect her reeling senses, she held as still as possible.

  “Zombies!” a woman yelled. “In the bathroom!”

  What? Where? Seffy twisted her head in terror, then swooned from the pain. She keeled over and stayed as motionless as possible. Pressing her cheek against the cold floor, she decided she didn't care if a confused soul bit her or not. Nothing could hurt worse than her fevered brain and rubbery guts.

  “I heard the moaning. Shoot, Malone!”

  A blast hit the door. Seffy screamed as a cloud of tile and sheet rock dust rained down on her head. The door was wrenched open and someone yanked her over onto her back.

  “Seffy?” Malone's voice pierced her brain. “Are you a zombie?”

  She squeezed her eyes shut, wishing she could do the same with her ears. “Hangover,” she rasped.

  “Oh.” She heard him stand up. “False alarm. Your friend has just been in here yodeling down the porcelain canyon.”

  Who had yelled at Malone to shoot? Anger boiled up inside Seffy, but she was impotent to act. Unable to muster even a glare, she clutched her middle and curled up into a ball.

  Addison appeared, towering above her. “Well, this is awkward.”

  “Erm,” was all Seffy could manage.

  Addison's foot came close to Seffy's nose. “Actually I meant the fact that everyone knows you were making out with that Clay dude last night. Gareth is not pleased.”

  Oh crap. Me and Clay. Oh, holy crap. Seffy squeezed her eyes shut. Gotta get a handle on distinguishing dreams from nightmares from reality. “Give me a few minutes here,” she said, her voice weak.

  Addy turned and stomped out, slamming the door behind her. Seffy grabbed her head and whimpered. When the noise stopped boomeranging through her skull, she eased herself up to a sitting, then a standing position, grabbing onto the sink for balance. She glanced in the toilet, half expecting to see her stomach there, before flushing and putting down the lid.

  Seffy looked in the mirror—a shard had been left intact after the shooting. Apocalypse was so not good for the complexion. She found a packaged toothbrush from the cabinet and scrubbed her teeth before washing her face. Seffy tried to pat most of the dust and glass from her tangled curls. While it didn't help her hellish appearance much, at least her breath was minty fresh.

  She exited the bathroom with measured steps to find everyone staring at her with varying looks of displeasure. Addison's face held something between a glower and a smirk. Seffy looked at where Gareth stood in one corner staring at the floor.

  Damn. She peeked in Clay's direction to find him sitting upright on the couch, his expression freaked.

  Lani sat on the floor next to Malone's chair, her eyes too big for her face “Are you okay, Sef?”

  Glad at least one person cared enough to be concerned over her plight—not to mention her near-death experience—she nodded. The others, besides Malone who was doing something in the kitchen area, stared at her with outright shock and disgust. Seffy ignored them and walked up to Clay, lowering her voice in an attempt at discretion. “Is it true?”

  He started wringing his hands. “Yes,” he said in a whiny voic
e she didn't remember from the night before. “You were, like, all over me until you passed out.”

  That had to be attractive. She hoped kissing was the extent of her error. Her hideous clothes appeared to be in order. Seffy sighed and mumbled an apology. Taking a deep breath, she went to Gareth's side, wishing she had a bit more privacy. Seffy was sure she should be more shocked by her own behavior, but her body was still trying not to collapse, so she had to make this quick. His posture stiffened at her proximity.

  Should her explanation start with her pathetic years-long crush? Or his rejection of her recent clumsy advances? Would it help if she told him any attraction to Clay was only because he resembled him? Blaming it on the booze probably wouldn't help, but there it was. “Gareth, what can I say? Grog. Bad.”

  His disappointed mien verified she'd used the wrong excuse.

  “That's it?” Addison said from across the room.

  Seffy turned too fast, and pressed her fingers to her temple. “What?”

  “You think you can get out of this by a lame attempt at humor?” Addison stalked over and stabbed a finger into her sternum. “You make me sick.”

  Seffy put her hands over her ears. “Quieter, please.”

  “I won't be quiet, Sef. In fact, I've been silent too long.” She mashed her hands on her hips. “You know what you are?”

  “Hungover?” she pleaded.

  “You're amoral, that's what. You don't even think through what you're doing to those around you, so you're not exactly evil. You're just an amoral, failed actress, shuffling through your pathetic made-up life, trying to make everyone be like you.”

  Seffy didn't try to defend herself. It would only make her head ache more. She closed her eyes and concentrated on not falling down.

  “I'm getting tired of it.”

  She squinted up at Addison's wavering image. “Oh, you're not done yet?”

  “We all are tired of it. Tired of you acting like the leader and telling us how we have to live our lives. Telling us what we can and can't talk about, what we can and can't watch or listen to. We don't want to be like you, Seffy, everything careful and pretend...and fake. We don't want to be soulless and brain dead like you. Let's face it, you might as well be a friggin' zombie!”

  Seffy swallowed against rising bile. She was sure that was profound somehow, but what she really needed was to sit down.

  Addison stepped forward and pushed her onto the couch. Gareth grabbed her arm. “Addy, let's calm down.”

  Seffy held her head in her hands, braced by her knees. The shove left her dizzy. She took cleansing breaths and tried not to notice the way Clay edged away from her on the couch.

  “We want to go home,” one of the other girls sniffled. “Let us out of here.”

  Malone looked up from where he was preparing oatmeal. Seffy's stomach turned at the thought of food.

  “You can't go out there. It's dangerous.”

  “Worse than in here? I doubt it.”

  Seffy recognized the brunette girl's voice.

  “There's zombies out there,” Malone said, bored.

  “You killed them last night.”

  “There's always more.”

  The voices hurt. All Seffy wanted was to stretch out on the couch and have a cool washcloth put on her head.

  “You all just have a seat. You'll feel better with some oatmeal on your insides.”

  Seffy groaned. She heard Addison snort. Someone touched her arm. She looked up to find Gareth standing next to her.

  “Are you all right?”

  She couldn't meet his gaze. “Getting what I deserve, I guess.”

  His beautiful lips lifted a notch but the smile didn't reach his eyes.

  “Sef...”

  She made her mouth move. She had to know. “Did I blow it for good?”

  Gareth's eyes flickered with something she didn't recognize. “Let's...talk about this later, when we're feeling more up to it.”

  Damn. She bit her lip hard to hold back the threat of tears. God, could this nightmare get any worse?

  The dirty blond spoke up, his voice throbbing with dislike. “So the master plan to defeat zombies is to eat oatmeal?”

  Seffy gratefully slid her attention from Gareth to the newcomer.

  “Take it or leave it,” Malone groused.

  The others acquiesced and Seffy heard them straggle into the kitchen. Gareth got up as well. She looked over at where Clay still sat. He scratched his leg, then looked up at her and turned red.

  “I'm not hungry,” he said.

  She noticed he looked as green around the gills as she felt. Seffy tried not to stare at him. While she was not pleased with her behavior, she wanted to know why Clay seemed so grossed out by her. She might not be the blonde bombshell Verity, but she usually didn't have a problem attracting men.

  He lurched to his feet and went into the bathroom.

  Whatever. Seffy leaned back against the couch and closed her eyes, unable to believe she was in this predicament. None of it made a damn bit of sense. Her head pounded out of time with her heart. After about twenty disgusting minutes of listening to everyone eat, Lani sat down next to her.

  “Are you okay?”

  Seffy sighed, knowing she'd blown it with her besties. Lani's soft heart made her the first to forgive. “I'm embarrassed.” She opened one eye and looked at her friend.

  Lani stared at her hands. “I passed out, too.”

  “On Malone's lap, no less.”

  Lani's gaze flew to hers. “What?”

  “Where did you wake up this morning?”

  She frowned. “In the chair, by myself.”

  Seffy closed her eyes again. “So you have nothing to worry about.”

  “I can't believe I drank so much. Or at least I think I did. Maybe there was something else in Malone's drink.”

  “I'll bet he slipped us a mickey, all right.” How else could she notice a guy like Clay with Gareth in the same room? Never...under normal circumstances.

  Lani leaned closer. “I think something else, too.”

  “What?”

  “Open your eyes and look at me.”

  Seffy groaned and did as she was bid. Lani's blue eyes were bigger than usual.

  “Have you noticed anything similar about us and the others?” she said in a low voice.

  Seffy eased her head up and studied the newcomers who sat together near the kitchen. She attempted a shrug, then regretted the action. “Besides the fact that the dark girl reminds me of that Lizzie McGuire chick? Didn't she date Aaron Carter?”

  “Uh yeah, I can see the McGuire thing. And the blonde looks like one of the Olsen twins. What's her name? Mary-Kate? Ashley?”

  “Maybe.”

  “Anyway, you said it yourself last night. Manolo Blahnik.”

  “I said that last night? I must've been drunker than I thought.”

  “You noticed that one of the girls wore designer shoes. All of them are wearing designer clothing.”

  “And?”

  Lani blew out a breath. “So are we, well at first. That's the connection.”

  “So we're all from L.A. and like to dress nice—”

  Lani clapped her hands together. “I'd forgotten about that! So we're from the same area and wear upscale clothing. Why haven't there been people like...hobos from Nebraska?”

  Seffy laughed, then clutched her head in agony. “Are you forgetting about those other people we saw in the hippy duds?”

  “Silly. They were zombies.”

  Seffy cleared her throat. “That hasn't been absolutely concluded yet.”

  “Well, I'm only including the for sure alive people.”

  “Okaay, I see your point, but we've only met the one group of people. There could be hordes of the thrift store clad populating the scrub out there.”

  Lani made a moue of disappointment. “When you put it like that...”

  “Sorry. My head's mush.” She narrowed her eyes at her friend. “How did you escape a hangover anyway?�
��

  “Must be all the supplements I take.”

  “Did you have some with you?”

  “No, but maybe they kinda built up in my system. I think they protected me from feeling as bad as you look.”

  Seffy made a face. “Thanks.”

  “Well, I better go help Malone clean up. Addison is sending mean looks my way.”

  Rubbing her face with her hand, Seffy peeked between her fingers and confirmed Lani's words. Addy almost had steam coming out of her ears. What else is new? Seffy looked at the newbies. They stood whispering and casting suspicious looks at Malone. She couldn't blame them.

  “Hey, where's Clay?” the blonde girl asked her.

  Seffy avoided her eyes. “Uh, I think he had to go to the bathroom.”

  The blonde chick looked toward the door, where light could be seen winking off of the shard of mirror through the hole from the shotgun. She went to the door, and averting her eyes, knocked. “Clay, are you okay?”

  Despite her disinterest, Seffy listened for a response. There was none.

  Peeking in the hole, the girl gasped. “He's on the floor!”

  The others rushed to the door and opened it. Through the sea of legs gathered at the opening, a lifeless hand appeared between them, clunking onto the floor. Seffy stared at it in dismay.

  Malone elbowed his way through the crowd and dragged Clay out into the main area as the others stumbled backward. “Was he bitten?” he demanded.

  “No! None of us were!” The dirty blond guy kneeled down next to his friend, his hands shaking. “Hey, Clay, wake up!” He patted the lifeless face.

  “Trent,” the other dark newcomer said, “it's possible. I did see one get close to him.”

  “They were close to all of us!”

  Malone ignored them both and began shoving up Clay's sleeves and examining his wrists and arms. Next, he pushed up the pant legs.

  “Dude, leave him alone!” The dirty blond's gray eyes flashed, making him look as scary as Malone. “He probably just passed out from that crap you were serving last night.”