by Bella Street
“Man is in the forest.”
Seffy stared at the deer, wondering how it could talk. She followed its gaze to the edge of the forest and saw a figure emerge from the trees holding a gun.
A twig snapped behind her, causing her to spin around. Trent was walking toward her wearing a Little Red Riding Hood outfit, but the look in his eyes was far from innocent. Instead his eyes gleamed with malice, silvery and cold, just like the moon.
The sound of a blast made her jump.
“Seffy!”
She gasped at the sudden sound.
“What are you doing?”
Disoriented, Seffy saw Olga standing in the doorway, her eyes wide behind her glasses. It took her a moment to remember she was next to Trent.
“Don't move.”
“Huh?”
“I said stay still,” Olga hissed.
Seffy realized the nurse was staring at Trent. She twisted her head to and found him awake, regarding her with a strange expression. His name escaped her lips in a whispered rush. She reached up to touch his face and heard Olga's sharp intake of breath.
“Don't take your eyes off him,” she said in a low voice.
Seffy frowned, but decided to ignore her. She returned her attention to Trent. His eyes glittered in the low light. “How are you feeling?” she asked quietly.
He didn't answer, but remained still and fixated. Then suddenly, he jerked against the leather straps.
“I'm sorry about the restraints,” she said. “They won't listen to me.” Seffy saw Olga edging around the other side of the bed in her periphery.
The monitor began to beep faster. Seffy stared at Trent, trying to figure out why he was so out of it. She sat up and leaned over to press a kiss against his lips. In the next instant, hands were under her arms, hauling her from the bed. Seffy yelled in outrage as she was yanked over the rails and dumped onto the floor.
She scrambled to her feet, sending a seething glare to the guard who'd been responsible. “What the hell is going on?”
“Seffy,” Olga said in a shaky voice. “He probably just saved your life.”
Seffy didn't hide her mockery. “How?”
The nurse turned to the guard. “Hubert, thank you for your quick action. Why don't you go on break?”
He stared at Seffy, disgust curling his lip. “Gotta go take a bleach shower now.”
The second guard, now alert, stood up, his hand on his gun, his eyes watchful.
Seffy glanced from Trent to Olga. “Do you want to tell me what's going on?”
“Why were you in the bed?”
“Are you serious?”
“Seffy, when I walked in the room, you were asleep next to Trent, your head flopped back and he was licking at your neck.”
Frowning, she touched her throat and felt moisture there. Then she glanced at Trent, who was apparently now asleep. “So?”
Olga walked over and examined her neck. “If he'd bitten you, he would've transmitted the virus.”
She snorted and stepped away from the nurse. “Isn't it the vamps who bite necks? Anyway, my magical blood would've undoubtedly saved me.”
Olga grimaced. “What if he didn't stop at a bite, what if he didn't stop until you were dead? He's on some powerful compounds. For all you know, you could've crawled in bed with a killer.”
“A killer?” she said, dumbfounded. Seffy looked at Trent's fitful expression as he dozed. “I don't know, he doesn't look all that cannibalistic to me at the moment. Anyway, he's been the one to save me around here, not make attempts on my life.”
“I just gave him another dose of sedative. You're lucky I came in when I did.”
“Oh, so 'Hubert' didn't save the day after all?”
She sighed. “I doubt the guard would've acted in your interest if I hadn't come in the room.”
Seffy crossed her arms over her chest. “Great. You know, it's the love that just makes this place so darn special.”
Olga lifted her chin. “Stay out of the bed. Until we get through the full moon, you must consider him deadly.”
Seffy pushed her hand through her hair. “God, I can't do this.”
“Why don't you go back to your room and get some rest?”
She shook her head. “No way. Someone will try to off him if I leave.”
The nurse shook her head then checked Trent over. “His temperature is going up, which is an indication of fever, and I don't know how long the sedative will last. He should have been out longer than he was with the first dose.”
“Which means?” Seffy demanded.
“He could wake up at any time—he could try to get loose...he could try to hurt you.”
“He's had several chances to actually sink his teeth and he hasn't.”
“Yet,” Olga said grimly. “Perhaps he's been able to resist since he still retains his humanity—”
“God, do you hear yourself?”
The nurse sent her a hard look, then flicked her gaze toward the guards. “Don't get in the bed with him again.”
Seffy slumped into the chair, working a muscle in her jaw. So part of this whole wolf thing was to fool the guards to allow Olga to work behind the scenes undisturbed. But the situation was beyond belief. What if she untied Trent and they simply left the compound?
She glared at the guard who was listening to their conversation. “Why haven't you just killed him? Or me for that matter? You're all armed and obviously don't want us here.”
“Fenn has ordered us to not to...unless certain lines are crossed.”
She turned away, not caring to hear what the so-called lines were.
“Seffy, I'm going back to the lab. I'll be back to check his vitals in two hours. Call me if there are any changes.”
Nodding stiffly, she took Trent's hand, pressing it between her own.
Chapter Eighteen
The next morning, Gareth planned on heading to the computer lab—although he doubted they'd really let him help—but decided to stop by Seffy's instead. He met Lani in the hall on the way and when he told her of his intentions, she stopped him.
“She's not in her room.”
“Where is she?”
Lani licked her lips, looking decidedly guilty. “Trent's not well, so she's sitting with him...in an exam room down the hall.”
“That's because he's a werewolf.”
Gareth twisted around and saw Eva, Cynthia, and Jared. They'd kept to their rooms for the past few weeks. Lucky for him they decided to reappear. “What?”
“Haven't you heard?” Eva asked archly. “Trent got bitten or something by that beast that tore up all those people on the outside.”
He mashed his lips together. He'd heard, but how had they? “Whatever.” Gareth turned back to Lani and when he saw her huge eyes and pale face, he crossed his arms over his chest. “What's going on?”
“Eva just gave you valuable information,” Jared sneered. “But you guys are too good to believe us, so your loss.”
“Are you, like, in third grade?” Lani snapped. She glared at them until they headed back the opposite way they'd come.
“What was that all about?”
Lani sighed. “They're so stupid. But yeah, that's what I heard.”
He was silent for a long moment, deciding to play dumb. “Werewolves.”
She scrunched up her face. “Um, yeah.”
He blew out a breath. “So this is Seffy's excuse for Trent's abusive behavior?”
“No, it's really true. Or at least they'll know for sure tomorrow when there's a full moon.”
“Lani, listen to yourself. There's no such thing as werewolves.”
Her face flushed. “There was also no such thing as zombies!”
He put up his hands. “Okay, so tomorrow when the moon is full and Trent starts howling, what then?”
Her lips trembled. “Well, what do you think they're going to do?”
Gareth frowned. “Shoot him with a silver bullet?”
Lani's face cleared. “Hey, maybe whe
n they shoot him it won't work because I'm pretty sure they don't have silver bulle—”
“What's the matter?”
Her shoulders slumped. “They just used a rifle to kill the last one, so I guess they don't need anything special.”
“The last one?”
“Gareth, there was another one—just like Eva said—that killed those people we found!”
“So when was Trent supposed to have been bitten? Seems like we would've heard about that.”
Her brows knit together. “Well, I don't know. Seffy's not saying much because she's so worried.”
Gareth put his hands on her shoulders. “Listen, Lani, I know you care about Seffy—I do too, though you probably don't believe that—but come on. She hooked up with a wife beater and is using the crap that goes on around here in an attempt at denial.”
Lani shrugged his hands away. “Even if you're right, Seffy is in pain and we should support her.”
“She was warned about this. Maybe she should stew in her own juices for a while.”
Her blue eyes flashed. “No, you don't care about her. You care more about your stupid pride. I think you should stay away from her if you can't be helpful.”
Gareth watched her spin around and stomp away.
He could be helpful. If there was any chance what Lani said was true, he wouldn't mind being the one to pull the trigger.
A silver bullet or just plain old lead. Made no difference to him.
***
“Seffy.”
Seffy slowly opened her eyes and looked around. Her attention turned to Trent. All sleepiness fled when she saw he was awake.
She smiled tremulously and squeezed the hand she was still holding. “How are you feeling?”
“I feel fine,” he said in a low voice. “Why am I strapped to this bed?”
Seffy rubbed her face, trying to think of an excuse. “Um, Olga says you have an infection that...can make you violent.”
His eyes glittered beneath heavy lids. “Violent? What would I do? Hug you too hard?”
She laughed nervously, then peeked behind her. The guard was asleep.
“Well, I'm obviously better. Get me out of these straps. They're cutting off my circulation.”
She eased from the chair to avoid waking the guard and touched the leather strap around Trent's wrist. Olga's words made her hesitate. “Sweetheart, I'm not supposed to...”
He smiled. “I understand your concern. But look at it from my point of view. Here you are so close to me and I can't take you in my arms. I can't kiss you.” His gaze locked with hers. “I miss your touch, Sef.”
His words wrenched her heart. “Trent,” she whispered, leaning forward to kiss his cheek as her hand reached for the strap.
Damn Olga, damn the compound, she wanted her husband back.
“I wouldn't do that if I were you.”
Her head jerked up, her hand froze. The guard had the gun pointed at her heart. Suddenly Trent lurched against his restraints. Seffy recoiled instinctively, hearing the distinct snap of teeth. She stared down at Trent in horror, realizing he'd tried to bite her.
His response was a malicious smile. “I should've tasted you when I had the chance.”
With her hand over her mouth, she backed away, stumbling into the bed tray and knocking its contents to the floor.
Olga entered the room with a small metal box under her arm. She came to an abrupt stop at the sight of the guard with his gun drawn and Seffy sliding down the cabinet onto the floor. “What happened?”
Seffy looked up at Olga, hoping her desperate gaze said what words could not.
***
The hot water did nothing to stop the shakes. A shower was a stupid idea anyway. Seffy shouldn't have left Trent, no matter how persuasive Olga had been. Was she such a pushover that between Trent and the nurse and the polka-dot girl that she could be so easily manipulated?
All that nonsense about her being strong because she survived a zombie infection was crap. She was a weak-willed fool with no spine to speak of.
Seffy turned off the water and dried off, then put on a pair of jeans and clean blouse. She went into her bedroom and glanced at the clock. Seven o'clock. How would she ever get through the next few hours? Had she mistaken Trent's actions?
But the look in his eyes did not belong to the man she married. A craven part of her wanted to hide out in her room all day. But if she did, someone could hurt him when she wasn't looking.
After drying her hair and putting on a touch of make-up—a pointless exercise because she looked like a hag these days—she mixed up one of the powdered protein shakes leftover from her last bout of illness. It tasted like chalk but it settled her ravenous stomach. She figured it had been at least twenty-four hours since she'd last eaten.
After pacing the confines of her room for about fifteen minutes, Seffy went next door to Trent's room and looked around. His bed was a tangled mess. Apparently housekeeping had heard about the new cooties in town.
She stripped the bed and replaced the linens, then straightened the room. The task took too little time and expended too little energy. Rubbing her face hard, she looked up and saw the ceiling tile.
Before she could examine her motives, Seffy headed up to the Light Room.
She plugged in the lights and surveyed the space. It too was a mess, but the soft multi-hued glow made it seem just as magical as the first time she'd seen it. Swallowing back a new surge of tears, Seffy spiffed the blankets and pillows, then glanced up at the skylight. An unearthly incandescence wafted softly down.
She opened the latch.
Frigid air blew in, stealing her breath for a moment. Attempting to ignore it, she struggled out onto the roof and stared at the sullen, low-hanging moon, rising over the horizon which was still cotton-candy pink from the sunset.
A full moon. A full purple haze of a moon that looked creepier than the last orange one. Holy crap, this sucked.
Hugging herself for warmth, Seffy grappled with the notion that this moon could have any effect on Trent, aside from the fact of just being butt ugly and the wrong damn color. She closed her eyes, vaguely remembering the last time she'd found herself on the roof.
The moon had been full that night, too. And Trent had been upset with her...why? She remembered her teeth chattering—or maybe that was simply because they were trying to shimmy their way out of her mouth this very moment. She remembered Trent's expression—tense, frantic, pinched. He'd asked her why she was on the roof.
Seffy scrunched her eyes and clapped her hands over her ears to block out the shrill roar of the wind.
Why had she gone onto the roof that night, alone? Trent had been worried, had come looking. He’d been hurt. Why did the little girl hold her in such thrall?
The wind lifted, keening against the eaves, sounding eerily like an animal's howl. Her respiration jumped. Lowering her hands from her ears, a wave of dread washed over her. Her heart thudded so loudly, the moon seemed to throb in time with it. Slowly, she pivoted and looked toward the ladder.
A movement caught her attention and she craned her neck to the left, wondering if a bird could be flying around in the dark, praying it was a bird.
Instead of a bird, she saw a distinct polka dot pattern.
Seffy spun around and scrambled for the hatch. Fear made her clumsy. In her haste to wiggle through the skylight, she scraped her hands and hips hard. Once she was through, she fell onto the blankets, then quickly latched the window.
As if the hounds of hell were on her tail, she unplugged the lights and hurried back to Trent's room.
She didn't breath easier until she was in her own room. Even then, her heart slammed violently against her sternum, making her feel faint with the exertion.
Seffy put her hands on her knees and drew in lungfuls of air. She'd gotten away from the creepy kid. That was something. Maybe she wasn't as powerless as she thought. Maybe she could affect outcomes.
Maybe Trent was going to be okay.
Re
gardless, she couldn't be apart from him—even if he was evil-Trent. If he ever needed her, it would be when he was at his worst—and by the look of the sky, a bad moon was on the rise.
She headed out the door into the hallway and nearly ran into Gareth.
Seffy took several graceless steps backwards, mumbling an apology. Gareth reached out and grasped her elbow to steady her.
“How are you holding up?” he asked gruffly.
She glanced warily up at him, noting his brown eyes were warmer than usual. It had been a long time since he'd looked at her like that. Seffy edged her arm out of his hand. “What have you heard?”
“Uh, well, Lani's been bearing some tall tales.” He began walking down the hall.
She shoved her hands deep into the front pockets of her jeans and walked alongside him, hating the awkwardness between them, but knowing there would probably be no reconciliation. She turned her attention to his words. Better to keep with the party line until she knew something for sure. “Olga has a wild theory. I'm not sure what to think.”
“Are you sure this isn't some psychological effort to excuse Trent's behavior?”
She stopped, her eyes wide. “Are you serious?”
“Sef,” he said with maddening calm, “you haven't been the most rational person in the compound.”
Seffy pulled in a breath between her teeth, refusing to rise to the bait. How many seconds did it take for him to be hateful? Where was the real Gareth? Maybe aliens had abducted him back when she thought she was the loony on the Mothership. She turned and continued toward Trent's room.
“So that's how you deal? You just walk away?”
“It's how you deal,” she said, turning.
Suddenly he grabbed her arm and hauled her around to face him. “Where are you going?”
“You don't get to touch me,” she hissed, wrenching her arm away.
He smirked. “Oh, I guess only your 'husband' gets to rough you up.”