The Zombie Chronicles - Book 4 - Poisonous Serum (Apocalypse Infection Unleashed Series) (10 page)

A knock on the door broke me out of my thoughts.

“
It’s me,” Claire said.

“
Come in.”

“
Wow! You clean up pretty nice, don’t ya? You look like a million bucks!”

I laughed. “It’s amazing what a bar of soap can do.”

She led me to another room not too far down the hall. I walked in and smiled at Val and Jackie. Candles were aglow everywhere, and soft jazz music played in the background. A blanket was spread out in the middle of the room, filled with a vast array of canned delicacies. Val and Jackie had dressed up for the occasion. Val was wearing jeans and a white, long-sleeved blouse. Her hair was clean and silky, glimmering in the candlelight. I’d never seen her in makeup, but it made her look radiant. Jackie was stunning, as always, and took my breath away in a blue swirled shirt with a plunging neckline and blue jeans. She had her face painted as well, and her fire engine-red lips definitely caught my attention. I couldn’t help but picture my lips locked against hers in a deep, passionate kiss.

“
You all look amazing,” I said.

They smiled and thanked me.

Jackie hugged me, and she smelled wonderful. She ran a hand through my hair. “Wow. Who’da thunk you’d have a full head of gorgeous, luscious, soft hair under all that grease and grime and zombie slime?”

“
So…where’d you get the music?” I asked, grinning.

Claire swung her flashlight around. “This is the activity room. We found a tape recorder, and can you believe the batteries are still working?”

“
You, Nick, and Lucas were supposed to be the guests of honor,” Val announced proudly. She looked at me, cocking a brow. “So why are the other two AWOL?”

“
They couldn’t make it,” Claire said. “Duty calls and all that jazz.”

“
Duty? Why? Are we being attacked?” Val asked.

“
No.”

Val frowned. “Then why couldn’t they spare a few minutes for dinner? We went to a lot of trouble here, and I don’t usually walk around looking like some freaking Barbie doll!”

Claire shrugged. “You know men.”

Jackie shot me a brilliant smile and wrapped her arms around me. “Welcome.” She motioned around, and I couldn’t stop smiling. She always made me feel special, this time especially so, and I thanked her with a kiss right on the lips.

“
This is wonderful,” I said, sitting down on the floor. “You ladies never cease to amaze me.”

“
We just wanted to personally thank you for saving our lives,” Val said. “We each have a bit of a speech prepared. We’ll start with Claire.”

Claire looked up at me, her pretty blue eyes sparkling in the candlelight. I had to admit, she was quite the hottie, even if her personality rubbed me the wrong way. She brushed her long red hair behind her shoulders and began, “Dean, you rescued me at one of the lowest points of my life. My entire group had been killed, and Jackie and I were forced to fend for ourselves in a new world we were ill-equipped to handle. When I met you, I was a little brat. I refused to use a gun and thought I could make a life for us in that beautiful glass house. Had you left us behind like I wanted, we’d have been long dead by now.” She took a deep, trembling breath. “But you refused to take no for an answer when we told you we weren’t leaving with you.”

“
I wouldn’t have left without you,” I said.

“
You taught me how to fight, how to survive, and you never gave up on me. Then, when the unthinkable happened, you risked your life to give mine back to me. You gave me a second chance at life. I’m only here because of you.” She wiped her eyes. “I’m sorry. I’m a bit of a crybaby sometimes.”

I touched her hand and smiled at her, silently urging her to continue.

“
I’ve said I wasn’t meant for this, for fighting, but in the world we’re in now, it’s not a matter of choice. I must fight to survive whether I like it or not, and I promise you that I will, to the best of my ability. I’ll shoot a gun, and I’ll be as brave as I can. No matter what, I’ll have your back. I’m not the wimpy girl you met back in the forest. I am stronger now, and that’s all because of you, Lucas, and Nick.” She rushed over and hugged me.

I held her tight as she squeezed me.

“
Thank you, Dean, for coming into my life.” Her voice wavered. “There aren’t enough words to say how much you and your brother and Lucas mean to me.”

Her words touched my heart, and I was speechless, so I just nodded as she stepped away.

“
Okay, I’m up next,” Val said. “I was living a perfect life, something of a fairytale, I suppose. Then, in the blink of an eye, my world crashed down around me. I lost my home, my family, my fiancé, my job, my dogs, and my life. Just before the world turned into a zombie hell, I found out the shocking news that I’d been adopted. My biological grandma begged me to come to the island, so I did. On my way, I was bitten, but I really couldn’t have cared less. As far as I was concerned, my life was already over anyway, but I did still want to meet my family before I took my last breath.” She paused and sighed heavily, then continued. “I was scheduled for execution, but you—a brother I hadn’t even known—stepped in and selflessly risked everything to save my life. You did everything you could, from taking the antidote from the lab to breaking me out of jail. You risked life, limb, and reputation—your whole future for a sister who hadn’t even been part of your past. When we crashed, I again put your life in danger. I’m so sorry about that, but you loved me, and you quickly proved that you’d do anything to help me. The wonderful thing about it is that you did that without even really knowing me. But we had this connection, this bond. Dean, you’re my brother, and I love you for that. But even more so, I love you because you’ve stuck with me through all of this. You even put up with me when I fought with you, like that little battle we had in the grocery store. We may not always see things the same way, but I know we both have one another’s best interest in mind, and that means everything.”

I couldn’t help laughing at the memory, even as her eyes welled up with tears.

“
You’ve never given up on me and even continued to fight for me when I became a zombie. Nothing could stop you. You were determined to find me and risked your life again to go into that deranged city. You almost died in their makeshift arena, and nothing hurts more than knowing it was all because of me.”

“
Val,” I softly said, “you’re my sister, my blood. There’s nothing I wouldn’t do for you.”

“
I know that. I just wanna tell you that I thank you from the bottom of my heart. Finding you has been the most wonderful thing. I couldn’t ask for a more fantastic brother, and I love you from the bottom of my heart.”

I embraced her in a long hug and tried to contain my emotions.

Jackie gripped my hands next. “My turn,” she said with a smile.

I smiled right back at her; that grin of hers was irresistible.

“
You and I have such similar backgrounds, Dean.”

I stroked her face. “Yeah, we really do.”

“
We were both naïve to this world because we’d both been sheltered. You lived on the island, and I lived in a house. The group I met protected me at all costs. The men fought and guarded the perimeter and kept me safe. I was too caught up in my own little world and had no idea how rough it really is out here. I know you thought the same thing. We didn’t know until we were both thrown into this mess, forced to survive—to kill or be killed.”

“
But we’re still here,” I said. “We’re fighters, Jackie.”

“
We’ve made plenty of mistakes, like kissing in a gazebo when we should have been on guard. And how about when Claire and I cowered in the glass house while you, Nick, and Val fought off all those zombies? I should’ve shot Earl when I had the chance. If I’d have been brave enough to do it, Val wouldn’t have been thrown into that pack of raging monsters. But we’ve all learned from our mistakes, and I’m confident we’ll never make them again.”

“
After everything we’ve been through, nobody can accuse us of being newbies anymore,” I said. “We’ve both learned so much.”

“
And we’ll keep learning. We’ll keep growing stronger and smarter. We’ll fight to the very end…together,” she said, nodding. “Without you and Nick, I’d be dead. I know that without a doubt. Like Claire said, you didn’t take no for an answer and never gave up on us, even when I was stabbed and died. You were my savior then, Dean. You gave me back my life, and if it weren’t for you, I wouldn’t be standing here. No words can ever express how thankful I am for that.”

I wrapped my arms around her and pulled her into another hug.

She hugged me tighter as she sobbed into my shoulder. “Don’t let the tears fool you. Yes, I’m emotional, but I’m also a kick-butt broad. I’ll never let you down, Dean—not ever again.”

Val touched my back. “This banquet is in your honor. We love you, we appreciate you, and we can’t thank you enough. It isn’t exactly caviar and champagne, but it’s the thought that counts, right?”

Claire handed me a plate of food. “Dig in and enjoy.”

“
I’d like to say a word,” I said before I picked up my fork.

“
Sure,” Jackie said.

“
This is the most wonderful thing anyone has ever done for me. I’m touched by your words.” I then turned to Val. “I couldn’t ask for a better sister. I know we didn’t grow up together, but that doesn’t matter. I’ve only known you for a short time, but I love you so much, and I’ll fight for you until the very end. The second I met you at Mom’s house and learned about the zombie bite, I knew there wasn’t anything I wouldn’t do to save you. When I found out they were going to kill you, I had to stop the execution at all costs.” Next, I turned to Claire. “I couldn’t ask for a better friend than you. You’re so loyal! You could have left us in that deadly city, but you didn’t. You chose to stick by us, to fight with us. You’ve come a long way in such a short time. In time, I know you’ll be a force to be reckoned with.” Then, finally, my gaze drifted to my beautiful Jackie. “I couldn’t ask for a better…” I didn’t know if I should call her a friend, because she was far more than that. Then again, I didn’t want to offend her or scare her off by putting some unexpected label on our relationship.

“
Girlfriend?” she questioned, smiling and flashing those beautiful eyes at me.

My heart quickened at the thought. “In that case, let me start over. Jackie. I couldn’t ask for a better girlfriend. You’re my sunshine in this darkness all around us. I’d go through this all over again in a heartbeat to meet you.”

She touched my cheek and smiled at me.

Somehow, I managed to spit out a few more words. “You’ve touched my life, Jackie, and I’ll never forget you.”

“
I’m not leaving,” she said. “I know that in the very beginning, I told you I’d only stay with you till we reached a safe city, but things have changed. I’m falling for you, Dean Walters.”

I kissed her lips until Val cleared her throat.

“
Um, guys, can we nibble on something other than each other now?” she said. “I’m starving.”

We all laughed and enjoyed the most wonderful dinner we’d had in such a long time. The food was delicious, but even better were the friends I had to share it with. I only wished Lucas and Nick had been there to hear those speeches of gratitude, as they’d been just as instrumental as I had in keeping the girls safe.

We were almost done with dinner when Lucas and Nick finally showed up. They told the girls how beautiful they looked and thanked them for what was left of the food. Of course they cracked on me for being so clean while they still stunk like the devil’s armpit. I gave them a hard time about being late to dinner, and they fed me a million excuses, all of which I thought were lame. I reasoned that it would have been far too emotional for Nick anyway, for it took everything in me not to let myself turn into a blubbering idiot. As much as I hated sentimental mush, the girls’ tender words had touched my heart. Most touching of all was Jackie admitting that she was my girlfriend. Never had any of my girlfriends been so beautiful, so absolutely gorgeous. It made perfect sense that she and Claire were models before the world fell apart.

Val and Lucas cleaned up, and I couldn’t help but notice how much they flirted with one another in the process. They didn’t insist on public displays of affection like Nick and Claire so shamelessly did, but it was clear that they had the hots for one another. I thought maybe Lucas was toning it down for my benefit, as I didn’t want to see my sister with her tongue down anybody’s throat. Lucas was a great guy, though, and I trusted him. For that reason, I was fine with him being with my sister. The only thing that worried me was that, much like my big brother, he loved the action way too much. Fighting for the Army was in his blood, and I knew he wouldn’t settle down any quicker than Nick would—not even for love. I was worried that in the end, Lucas would break Val’s heart just like Nick was destined to break poor Claire’s.