Page 40 of Savagely Yours
After that day, we started sitting with smaller and smaller gaps between our bodies, another thing I didn’t realize until just then. We touched more, nudged often, and although it had been a harrowing time, my body had still reacted to the first kiss he ever gave me—the one he placed on the side of my thigh when I fell on the rubble.
Clearly, I’d missed a few signs, but I hadn’t exactly been wrong. I’d told myself that Dez didn’t “like” me. However, if what I saw on his face earlier was any indication, I was now starting to realize that his feelings for me were nowhere that close to the surface.
CHAPTER NINE
DEZ
It was my first time being this close to one ofthem.
I’d seen Chris.
I saw the videos.
But this was different.
One of the infected had entered the development through a section of the unfinished construction area.
They didn’t appear to be sentient enough to have done so willingly. Also, I’d conducted a perimeter check of this particular area the other day, and I couldn’t recall any spots where someone—a term I used loosely—could have incidentally wandered onto the grounds.
A Class Two named Simmons had managed to trap the infected “individual” to a fence post while waiting for me and Cerner to arrive. From the back, it appeared to be a woman, but it barely looked human. It sported gray-hued skin, and hair was missing from its head in torn-out-looking patches. An odor emanated in our direction that made me think of death and decay, and it wasn’t clear exactly what part of its body the odor was coming from.
“Ever seen one this close?” Cerner asked.
I folded my arms and cleared my throat, wishing I’d brought alcohol wipes or menthol rub to block the stench. “Not up close, no.”
“Simmons, is that thing secure?”
“Yes, General Cerner,” Simmons said. “It’s secure. Plus, we have Kowalski in the vicinity.”
Kowalski was a sniper, though I wasn’t sure how accurate he was. Still, I didn’t want to be down here with Cerner, waiting for an errant twitch from our dead-looking guest. I didn’t want to contend with debriefings, reports, checking in or out weapons—nothing that could lead to a delay in getting back to Larke.
Before I touched her, I’d felt the fever, and the idea that she could be infected with whatever the hell was going around made me sick to my stomach. It wasn’t until I saw her that I realized I’d resigned myself to thinking she was dead. The fear had silently lurked, waiting for confirmation that she was gone. That way, I could finally admit that I was only trying to hold on in this crumbling world because she was part of it.
Yet, knowing she’d gotten stuck with sanitation work while I slept on high thread count sheets and had meals and healthcare on demand felt worse than if I’d learned she was dead.
It felt intentional and punitive.
Sure, we weren’t married, but why did that automatically make it impossible to get married while we were here? Who, in their right minds, could ever believe that I wouldn’t marry Larketonightif it meant she wouldn’t have to keep suffering the way she was?
On the way from Larke’s place to the train, I’d felt like we were being watched. At the time, I’d attributed it to the general surveillance throughout the city. Now, I was starting to believe someone had placed her in Sanitation for more reasons than the lack of a ring on her fourth finger.
“Let’s go greet our guest, shall we?” Cerner suggested.
But he didn’t move.
Wanting to get this over with, I walked ahead.
I made an arc around the post where the “person” was strapped. They snarled and reached for Simmons as if their arms were long enough to cross the four-foot gap between them.
My initial guess was correct.
It was a woman.
A familiar one.
Only about half of the woman I remembered was recognizable, but enough of Solana’s bone structure remained. Then, Solana had distinct eyes—darker than onyx, focused, and intense.
Cerner, once again right next to me, rubbed a hand down over his mouth and chin. “Oh, wow. I’ve…I’ve never seen one up close like this before. When the stories first broke, I didn’t know what to believe, but this is…this is demonic, Harding.”
