The Truth is Contagious (The Contagium Series Book 4) (3 page)

“Be careful,” he added, consternation
growing.

“You did good,” I told him. “See, you’re a
great leader already.”

He widened his eyes. “Thanks for lying.”

“I’m not,” I pressed.

“I do not have time for this,” he mumbled and
went back into the office. He picked up the letter, folded it in
half, and stuck it in the top drawer of Fuller’s desk. He added the
flash drive and slammed the drawer shut. Then he bent down and
reached under the desk, retrieving a small hidden key to lock the
drawer.

“Ready?” he asked me.

“If you are.” I put my hand on the doorknob.
“We can take a few minutes if you need them,” I reminded him. “Go
upstairs. Shower. Lay down for a bit.”

Hayden nodded. “Ok. A shower would be nice.”
He walked over to me and abruptly stopped. “I don’t want to talk to
anyone,” he blurted.

I smiled. “Welcome to my world. Just keep
your head down and walk fast. It seems to work for me.”

“You’re so social,” he teased and flipped the
lock on the inside of the door. I held my hand out for him. He
laced his fingers through mine and we sped through the hall,
reaching the stairs before anyone could stop and talk to us.

While Hayden showered, I plopped back onto
the bed with a bag of cheese puffs and a can of Sprite. I shoveled
a handful of puffs into my mouth and gazed at the window. A nice
breeze blew through our room and I dreaded going back into
quarantine. Even though it had plenty of entertainment, being
underground made me uneasy. I didn’t like feeling trapped.

A headache was starting to form. It was one
that brought a horrible stabbing pain right behind my eyes. I
straightened my back, closed my eyes, and took a deep breath. I
counted as I slowly let it out. I repeated the breathing technique
until Hayden came into the room wearing only a towel. He closed the
door behind himself and let the towel drop. I ran my eyes over him.
It had been a while since I could leisurely gaze upon his naked
body.

He was tall and muscular, since all the A1s
had to work out on a regular basis. We had to stay in shape, since
A1s went out on dangerous missions. Tattoos covered the right side
of Hayden’s upper body, going over his shoulder and down his arm.
There was scar tissue along the side of his abdomen on the opposite
side. I knew he had acquired the injury while overseas, but I
didn’t know exactly what had happened. Assuming he'd been burned in
the same explosion that killed his childhood best friend, Ben, I
never asked.

My eyes focused on the other large section of
scar tissue along his left shoulder. I still thought Hayden
shouldn’t have taken the bullet for me, that I would have been ok,
somehow. But his willingness to sacrifice himself on my behalf made
me finally admit that I was completely in love with him.

“I told Hannah she was coming to a safe
place.” He stepped into a pair of blue boxers.

“She is.” I uncrossed my legs and stood. I
stretched my arms above my head and slowly bent over, touching my
toes. Hannah was Hayden’s sister.

“Ok, it’s safe, but it’s not going to be well
run anymore.”

I popped up. “What’s with all the self doubt
all of the sudden?”

Hayden slammed the dresser drawer shut so
hard the TV that sat on top shook. Then he sighed. “I don’t know. I
just…I don’t want to do this, Riss. I don’t want to be the
leader.”

“Then don’t.”

He put his hands in the air. “How can I not
be? It was Fuller’s dying wish—his last order. I have to do this,
Riss.”

“No, you don’t. Yes, it was his dying wish,
but he’s dead!” I internally winced at how insensitive that
sounded. “What I mean,” I added quickly, “is that you can’t
disappoint him.” Damn. That wasn’t any better. “Fuller cared about
you like a son, Hayden. If he knew you didn’t want to take over, he
wouldn’t force you. We both know that’s true.”

“Maybe.” He ran his hand over his wet hair.
“Who will take over?”

I shrugged. “We vote?”

Hayden tipped his head to the side for a
second. “That could work. And it would be fair.”

I smiled, ignoring the churning ball of
anxiety in my stomach. “It would be very fair.” I walked over to
him and wrapped my arms around his shoulders. His skin was still
warm from the shower. “We’re both tired. Let’s go downstairs and
rest, ok?”

He slipped his hands around my waist and
kissed me. “Ok.” He quickly dressed. “Ready to go tell the guys
some really shitty news?”

* * *

“Can’t sleep?”

I rolled over and faced Hayden. “No. You
can’t either?”

He shook his head and pulled the blankets
over my shoulders. Ten hours had passed since Hayden repeated to
the guys what he had learned. It was a lot to take in: Fuller’s
death, Hayden’s new role, and—most of all—the truth about the
virus. The six of us had sat in silence, all too shocked to speak.
Now we were all lying down trying to get some sleep.

“Not at all.” He heavily sighed. “And I’m
tired.”

I draped my arm over Hayden’s waist and
scooted closer. He embraced me and pulled me in, hooking his leg
over me. I ran my fingers through his hair until I was so tired I
could barely move my hands anymore. Hayden’s breathing deepened and
slowed. I assumed he was asleep. My hands fell to the mattress and
I passed out.

When I woke up, Hayden wasn’t in bed with me
anymore. I pushed myself up and brushed my messy hair back. I was
thirsty and had to pee. I caught a glimpse of the clock as I made
my way to the bathroom and was surprised to see that I had slept
for a full eight hours. I put my arms over my head and stretched. I
needed that eight hours. I could have slept for another few hours
too.

I studied my refection in the bathroom mirror
as I washed my hands. My shoulders and cheeks were sunburned. And
despite all the sleep, there were still purple circles under my
eyes. I flicked the excess water from my hands and ran my fingers
through my brunette mane, smoothing the bumps caused by sleeping
with damp hair. I flicked off the light and left the bathroom.

Ivan, Brock, and Wade sat around the little
kitchen table playing cards. Jason was still asleep on the couch.
And Hayden…I looked around the quarantine room. He was nowhere to
be found.

“Where’s Hayden?” I asked and walked into the
kitchenette. I opened the fridge and inspected the small selection
of food. My stomach grumbled, but nothing looked appetizing.
Knowing I had to eat, I pulled out a plastic pitcher of juice and a
bowl of pasta.

“He left about an hour ago,” Ivan said.

I reached up into the cabinet above the sink
to get a plate. “Did he say where he was going?”

“No. I assumed it was to check on his
sister,” Ivan replied.

“Probably.” I stuck my food in the microwave
and turned around, leaning against the counter. Wade flicked his
eyes up at me.

“How are you dealing?” he asked.

“Fine,” I said right away. Though I wasn’t
fine, not at all. But he didn’t need to know that.

“Ok,” Wade said and raised an eyebrow. He
looked back at the cards in his hand but didn’t say anything. He
was becoming more perceptive to my lies and could see through them
to the truth. I wasn’t a fan of that. I turned around, watching the
plate slowly turn inside the microwave.

“So,” Ivan started. “Underwood told us he
asked you to marry him.”

I spun around, hating that my cheeks were
growing warm. “Yeah, he did.”

“That’s so sweet,” Brock teased.

I narrowed my eyes. “Shut up.”

Ivan set a card down and picked up another
from the stack in the middle of the table. He made a face when he
saw which one he got. “So when’s the big day? Do we need to throw
an emergency wedding planning mission together?”

“Seriously, shut up,” I said but was unable
to keep from smiling. Joking around was a good way to keep their
mind off what Hayden and I had shared with them as well as the loss
of Fuller. “It’s not gonna happen like that. Or ever.” I shook my
head. “I don’t know.” I whirled around, happy to see there was only
seven seconds left on my food.

“You know everyone here would go batshit
crazy over a wedding,” Brock said.

“Dude they would,” Wade agreed. “Just think
of all the handmade paper decorations you could have, Riss.”

I rolled my eyes. “Raeya wouldn’t allow it.
That girl’s been planning my wedding since we were kids. She has a
very clear picture in her mind of how it’s going to happen.” I
opened the microwave with one second remaining.

“Speaking of Raeya,” Ivan began. “Has she
moved on yet?”

He was talking about the death of her
long-term boyfriend, Seth. Raeya was with him at a Halloween party
when the virus struck. Seth got infected and was dead in a matter
of hours.

“I think so,” I said and pulled the hot plate
out. I set it on the table. “It’s been…uh, I don’t know what day it
is,” I admitted.

“The end of June.” Brock said. “The
twenty-eighth, maybe?”

“Shit.” I picked up my fork and stabbed at
the limp noodles on my plate. “Has it really been that long?”

“It doesn’t feel like it,” Wade said. “But
then sometimes it feels like it’s been longer. Ya know?”

I nodded and stuck a forkful of pasta in my
mouth and looked at Ivan. Once I was done chewing I said, “She
hasn’t brought him up in a while. And I haven’t mentioned it
either.”

“So I can swoop in and sweep her off her
feet?” he asked and wiggled his eyebrows.

“You can try.” I shrugged.

“You say that like you don’t think I can do
it.” Ivan put his hand over his heart. “That hurts, Penwell. Have a
little faith.”

I laughed and took another bite of pasta.

“Oh shit,” Ivan suddenly stated.

“What?”

“I just realized that if something
did
start between Raeya and me, I’d have you to answer to. You’d be
worse than the overprotective father who likes to clean the guns on
the first date.”

Brock and Wade laughed.

I glared at Ivan. “How am I worse?”

Ivan waved his hand in the air. “Nah, I’m
just kidding with you, Penwell. It’d be fun. You and Underwood can
double date with us. We could have wild Friday nights in the
theater room!”

I smiled at Ivan and twirled more noodles
around my fork. Everyone was acting normal: joking, talking, and
playing cards. But an unsaid tension hung in the air, the kind of
tension that made my stomach twist into knots. Too many times those
I cared about died, and I'd had no choice but to move on. But that
was the world we lived in, right? Always running, never stopping.
If I didn’t stop moving, I would die.

* * *

Hayden hadn’t returned when our time in the
quarantine room was up. I went upstairs and changed into a loose
fitting brown tank top, shorts, and boots. I brushed my hair and
pulled it over my left shoulder, braiding it as I hurried back
downstairs to find Raeya.

I punched in the passcode and pushed open the
doors to open the C level that housed residents’ rooms, the
cafeteria, and activity rooms. Anyone in the C category did
everyday jobs around the compound—cooking, cleaning, and
laundry.

“Hi, Orissa!” someone called as soon as I
stepped foot into the hall. I turned to see a group of girls coming
toward me. I recognized one of them but couldn’t recall her name.
We had saved her group from being eaten alive a while back. I
resisted the urge to pretend I didn’t hear her and hurry past.
Pressing a fake smile to my lips, I turned my head.

“Hi,” I replied.

“We heard that the mission was a success. We
wanted to thank you,” she told me and ran her hand over her blonde
hair, which fell in a braid over her left shoulder. She was wearing
a red plaid shirt with the sleeves rolled up. “All of you, really,
for going out there and keeping us safe.”

I had to admit it was nice to hear and even
better to know that the residents appreciated what we did. It was
dangerous every time we went out.

“Yeah,” one of the other girls agreed. “You
guys are so brave.”

I nodded. “Thanks. We do what we gotta do,
right?”

They agreed in unison.

“I have important mission business to attend
to. See ya later.” I didn’t wait for them to say bye. Like I had
told Hayden earlier, I usually looked at the floor to avoid eye
contact and speed walked down the halls of the compound.

I stopped outside Raeya’s door and knocked. A
few seconds later, Lisa opened it.

“Orissa!” she exclaimed and threw her arms
around me. I leaned over and hugged her back. It might be wrong,
but I definitely favored the small group of people who had been
with me from the start. Except Lauren. I hated that bitch.

“Hey, Lisa, how are you?” I ran my hand over
Lisa’s tight braids. “Oh you got your hair done. It looks
nice.”

“Thanks. Olivia did it.” She beamed.

I smiled back at her. Olivia fit into my
small group of favorites as well. “Is Ray in here?”

Lisa looked behind her and shook her head.
“She’s in the shower, I think. She should be back soon. Want to
wait with me?”

“Sure.” I went in and sat on Raeya’s bed. The
rooms down here looked like tiny windowless dorm rooms. I admired
the effort that Ray had put in to make this place look comfortably
and homey.

Lisa told me about the new crops that had
been planted in the garden, and that she heard someone say they
were pretty sure one of the cows was going to have her calf soon.
It was great news, but it felt wrong to share in her excitement
when I knew that there was a large number of people living in
safety and comfort on each side of the country.

“Rissy!” Raeya squealed as she rushed in. She
was dressed, but her hair was in a towel. She dropped her bag of
shower supplies and ran over.