Bound Read online

  Table of Contents

  Epigraph

  1

  2

  3

  4

  5

  6

  7

  8

  9

  10

  11

  12

  13

  14

  15

  16

  17

  18

  19

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  Acknowledgments

  Dedication

  Copyright

  Bound

  A Zombie-ish Apocalypse Book II

  Shannon Mayer

  Bound

  A man is not where he lives, but where he loves.

  -Latin Proverb

  1

  There are moments in time that define you, make you who you are, force you to delve deep within your heart and grasp hold of the person you want to be. They are hard, gut wrenching, soul splitting seconds, that leave us spiritually drained, yet somehow in the end, stronger.

  The blade in my hand caught the sunlight as I brought it down, ready to bury it into Sebastian’s neck. As hard as it was to trust the monster he’d become, I could never kill him, not even to save myself, or our child. My fingers released the smooth wooden handle, and the blade fell to the dusty, hard packed ground.

  “I can’t Sebastian.” Calm flooded through me as I accepted that he would kill me. The pack he led would clean my bones, feeding their young and old alike with my flesh.

  He let out a groan and his body sagged onto mine, his face pressed against my neck. A low rumble started deep in his belly and his arms circled around me. I clung to him, holding back the sobs that were building in my chest. Before I could react, Sebastian stood, not letting go of me, but pulling me to my feet alongside him.

  He stepped back and lifted his hands to my face to wipe away the tears that streaked down and dripped off my chin.

  A screech from behind us, from the trail I’d just run out of, brought reality crashing back home. I had to get back on my side of the gate before the rest of the pack showed up.

  I started to turn, sliding my hands off Sebastian’s hard body. “I have to go,” I said. He nodded, lifted his eyes towards the gate and let out a growl, his lips rippling with the noise. I completed the turn as a loud click echoed down the road. A man in an army uniform had a very large gun pointed at us.

  “Ma'm, step away from the Nevermore, slowly, no quick movements, it draws their attention,” he said, his eyes hidden behind dark sunglasses, a baseball cap pulled down low over his eyebrows.

  I put my hand up, “No, you don’t understand, he’s not like the others.”

  Sebastian let out a snarl and leapt past me, seeing only a threat to me, a threat that had to be annihilated.

  “No!” I shouted, running after him but unable to keep up with his speed. A boom rattled the world around us and Sebastian’s body jerked backwards, a bloom of red spreading out behind him, his right shoulder suddenly soaked in blood. I let out a cry of pain as if the bullet had gone through me and not him. This couldn’t be happening, not now, not when we were so close to being safe.

  Another ungodly howl went up from down the road and I could hear the Nevermores running now, their feet beating a discordant tempo on the hard packed road.

  “Ma'm, I’m going to need you to get behind the gate, this is not safe,” Mr. Army said. I ignored him and dropped to the ground next to Sebastian, who was on his hands and knees, panting, blood dripping from the gunshot wounds as well as his mouth.

  “Shut the hell up and help me!” I snapped, trying with little success to lift Sebastian. Even with his diminished weight, his size made it nearly impossible to do so. I looked up at the hard line of Mr. Army’s mouth. “I mean it asshole; help me get him up and inside that gate now!”

  Sebastian started to growl, I shushed him. “Be quiet, he’s going to help.” Mr. Army drew closer, his eyebrows raised above his sunglasses.

  Sebastian subsided and Mr. Army and I hustled to the gate and pulled Sebastian through just as the pack came thundering up, hollering and screaming, beating their fists on the metal bars. Jessica was the worst of the bunch, yanking her own hair and hitting other pack members as they got too close to her.

  “We’ve got to get him inside the house; I have to get that wound clean,” I said.

  “You’re nuts lady; this big bugger’s going to tear us all apart,” a second voice said.

  I looked up and gasped, nearly dropping Sebastian. There was a large dusky green army vehicle in our driveway, guns welded to the front of it. Men surrounded it, all in army fatigues, all with guns levelled at us. Instinctively, I kept my body between the men and Sebastian. There was no way they would give him a chance if he so much as twitched.

  “What’s going on?” I asked, my grip tightening around Sebastian’s waist. His head lolled to my shoulder and he started to slump sideways. I shifted my arms and struggled to hold him upright.

  “Our last satellite photos, before we lost power, showed this region as being one of the least infected areas with the highest possible chance of survivors,” Mr. Army said, his voice even, his expression unreadable behind the dark glasses and cap.

  Two men rushed forward, guns still trained on us, and a third man in crisp, pressed army fatigues followed more slowly, guns at his waist and a large bobby stick in his right hand. A few more steps and he stood over us, a cruel twist to his thin lips.

  “You must be Mara, and I assume this is your Sebastian?” He asked, his voice cold.

  “How do you know who I am?” This was freaking me out and I began to shake from exertion, exhaustion and the loss of adrenaline pumping through me.

  “We’ve searched your house, confiscated the food and we found your information. Though Sebastian here looks fairly different from your wedding pictures, it is obviously still him. Amazing that there is somehow a connection between the two of you, despite the Nevermore drug.” He leaned down and Sebastian let out a low growl. I put my hand over his mouth. This man standing over us scared me.

  I swallowed hard. “Who are you and what do you want from us?”

  He answered my question, but then asked his own. “I’m Vincent; these are my men. How is it that he doesn’t try to eat you? What training methods did you use? Torture?” Something dark, an emotion I couldn’t put my finger on right away, flickered through his eyes as he spoke. He blinked once, twice and then shook himself out of wherever his thoughts had taken him.

  He looked at me, his brown eyes empty of emotion. “You’re coming with us Mara, you and your monster Sebastian.”

  That was it, no explanation, nothing. Hands latched on to my arms and dragged me towards the truck. I kicked and screamed, no longer caring if the Nevermores heard me. Sebastian, wounded and bleeding out, made no attempt to fight. That scared me more than anything.

  The men laughed, making rude gestures at me, pantomiming things I hoped I was misinterpreting. I fought harder, my breath coming in ragged gasps, the skin on my arms burning where the men’s fingers dug into my flesh.

  Finally they let me go, but it was only to watch me fall to my knees so they could laugh at me. Tears of anger burned at the back of my eyes, but I held them in.

  Feet came into view and I looked up. Mr. Army stood in front of me. “You’re only making this harder on yourself. And I would think the condition you’re in, that’s the last thing you’d want to do.” He made a small motion towards my baby bump.

  His eyes softened only a little, but I realized that he was, in his own way, trying to help me. How he knew I was pregnant I could only guess.

  I pulled in a deep breath and the scent of the hard packed earth and the dry air filled my nose, which made me sneeze.

  “Oh, isn’t that cu
te,” one of the men said in a high falsetto, sending the men into another bout of laughter. Mr. Army stepped forward and offered me his hand, well worn and calloused. I stared at it, took stock of the bruises and aches throughout my body and let go of my pride. I took the offered hand and the men around us immediately began to catcall and whistle. As soon as I had my feet under me, I snatched my hand back.

  With a single snap of his fingers, Mr. Army silenced the men, his eyes once more hard and in control.

  “Get the big bastard loaded up. It’s time to leave.”

  2

  Men rushed forward, securing Sebastian’s hands behind his back with a set of handcuffs and then they dragged him to the back of the large truck. He snarled once and one of the men slammed the butt of his gun into his head, silencing him.

  “Don’t hurt him!” I yelled, the pack howling behind me. Nero came running from around the back of the house with a young army guy, who looked barely able to shave, right behind him.

  I whistled and Nero ran straight to me, leaping into my arms. I caught him and held him tight. I wouldn’t cry in front of these men, they weren’t worth my tears or emotions.

  “You can’t bring the dog with you; we’ve got enough trouble feeding ourselves without adding a mutt to the mix,” Vincent said.

  “I’ll feed him off my own plate, but I’m not leaving him behind.”

  “I’m not giving you a choice,” Vincent snapped. He reached out and snatched Nero from my arms by the scruff of his neck.

  “Stop! Give him back you ass!” I yelled, lunging for him. Vincent smirked at my attempt, cocked his arm and threw the three-month-old puppy over the gate and into the writhing mass of the starving pack.

  I screamed; Nero yelped as he hit the ground and then a blur of yellow streaked out from under the pack’s feet and vanished into the bush, three quarters of the Nevermores right behind him. The crashing of underbrush reached our ears, then a high pitched cry, and finally, silence. I spun and punched Vincent as hard as I could, feeling my knuckles pop as my fist connected squarely with his jaw. He stumbled back, tripped on a piece of wood, and fell on his butt.

  Silence fell over us for a brief second, the men around us holding their breath in a collective gasp. Vincent stared up at me from the ground, his eyes full of hatred, and then slowly stood, his movements stilted with barely controlled anger.

  “Marks,” he motioned Mr. Army over. “Get everyone on the truck; we’ve got to head back with the supplies and the prisoners.”

  Marks nodded, saluted and started to shout orders.

  “You’ll pay for that bitch,” Vincent said, as he dusted his pants off.

  “Bring it,” I hissed at him. There was no way Nero would survive out there, not with the pack and Bob on the loose. The desire to hit him a second time reared its head and I tightened my hand into a fist.

  “Get her in the truck!” Marks snapped and the men jumped, hustling me to the back of the army vehicle. I pulled my arms free of the men escorting me, though I suppose they let me go. With a flurry of hands I was shoved up next to Sebastian behind the cab of the truck. The other men settled in a few feet away, leaving us to sit by ourselves, which was fine by me. I pulled his head into my lap and pressed my hand against the gunshot wound, applying pressure as best I could. He let out a low moan and I whispered soft nothings to him, the sound of my voice keeping him calm.

  Marks jumped into the back of the truck, the flap of material giving me the last glance at our farm. He stared at me and Sebastian, a look of derision evident on his face.

  “What’s it like having sex with a monster?” He asked, his lips curled with disdain.

  “I don’t know, why don’t you ask your father?” I snapped back.

  There was dead silence, then the laughter started as the other men guffawed at Marks’ expense, the noise quickly filling the back of the truck.

  “She got you there Marks.”

  “Damn that’s some sass for a woman this far out. You remember the last gal we brought in? Pulled most of her hair out . . .”

  “Not to mention she was a raving lunatic.”

  “What was it she said was stuck in her head?”

  “Bees, she was screaming about bees in her head she couldn’t get out.” Laughter rippled around the truck again and I ignored it, focusing on the fact that Sebastian was still breathing, slow and steady, the blood clotting on his chest wound.

  “Don’t worry about him,” a new voice said. I glanced over my shoulder; it was the young man who’d been chasing Nero.

  “I’m Burns by the way. Sergeant Burns. I was looking after your dog for you,” he said, his words sincere, his face open and very honest looking.

  “You didn’t do a very good job did you?” Burns had the decency to blush and duck his head.

  “As soon as he heard your voice he took off on me. I didn’t expect it, I’m sorry,” he said.

  I was surprised by his apology, “Thank you.”

  “Don’t apologize to the prisoners Burns,” Marks snapped. Burns retreated and I went back to crooning to Sebastian. I didn’t bother to ask where we were going, it didn’t really matter. We were captives, trapped and soon to be under lock and key. The only good thing was that Sebastian and I were still together; I wondered how long it would last.

  A half hour into our drive the truck began to slow and I thought we’d arrived at our destination. Maybe Comox and the air force bunkers there? That was a possibility. Then hands were reaching into the back of the moving truck, Nevermores running at top speed, howling at us as they tried to drag men from the back. I scrunched up tight against Sebastian; even though we were up against the cab, I still had visions of being pulled out. I didn’t think these men would stop to try and help me either.

  “Shoot them,” Marks said and the men pulled back the flap and open fired on the Nevermores.

  Something slammed into the side of the truck and I had no doubt what it was. A pack was trying to get into the truck and all the “food” it carried. A second slam rocked the vehicle and the driver picked up speed again.

  “Keep shooting boys,” Marks commanded, and they eagerly did as he said.

  A hand shot into the back of the truck, fast like lightning, and grasped the leg of the closest soldier, yanking him out with a scream.

  I bit the inside of my cheek to keep from screaming myself. The truck never slowed and the other men barely reacted. If they wouldn’t look out for their own, I had no doubt that I was going to be in some serious trouble.

  Silence surrounded the truck as quickly as the Nevermores had, the pack chasing us obviously given up their quest with the prize they’d managed to snag.

  I pressed my face against Sebastian’s and took slow even breaths. There was no way I could do this without him, even though so much of who he had been was lost. “Hang on love,” I whispered. “Just hang on.”

  3

  “We’re here,” Marks said as he stood up. We’d been driving for a little over an hour. He pushed the flap cover of the truck back, tying it to the side. The bright sunlight blinded me after the dim grey interior of the truck for so long. Hands grabbed me and pulled me out; Sebastian grunted and then snapped at someone, and the distinct thud of a rifle butt hitting a skull resounded in the truck.

  “Stop hitting him!” I said, twisting hard and trying to free myself from the hands that gripped my arms.

  “Those bastards heal faster than any human; he won’t even have the gunshot wound to worry about in a couple of hours,” Vincent said, as he watched us disembark, his gun in his hand.

  “Where are we?” I finally asked. I could see trees, a huge tall fence with razor wire around the top and some sort of wooden buildings that could be barracks. On three sides of the fence were packs of Nevermores, keeping their distance but still making sure to be within sight. It was no different than at the farm; they were waiting for their next meal to step outside the fence. I shivered; there had been moments on the ride here I’d convinced myself i
t would be better, safer, wherever it was the soldiers were taking me.

  I turned a full circle and found myself staring out across the water of the Georgia Straight and what was left of Nanaimo, one of the major cities on Vancouver Island. That is if you considered a population of eighty thousand people major.

  “The Diefenbaker bunker,” Marks said, putting his hand on my arm, his fingers digging into my skin. I didn’t understand why until I saw the other men dragging Sebastian away from me, towards a door seemingly in the mound of a hill.

  I cradled my belly with one hand and tried to pull myself free. “Don’t separate us. Please,” I said. “I’m pregnant; I don’t want to stress the baby.” I looked up into Marks’ face and saw the softening I’d hoped for. Maybe he didn’t like the fact that Sebastian was a Nevermore, but he didn’t seem to be a complete ass.

  Vincent frowned, then a slow smile made its way across his face and I had a feeling I was about to pay for humiliating him in front of his men. He motioned to Marks.

  “Take her to the upper barracks; we don’t have room in the bunker at the moment.” Vincent pointed to the wooden structures to the left. Marks let out a low sigh and started towards the buildings.

  Marks put me in the first barracks and shut the door, but not before he gave me some advice.

  “Don’t piss him off. Vincent is not the kind of man you want to take on Mara. He will destroy everything you love just to make a point.”

  “Thanks for the warning,” I said. The door clicked shut and I was alone.

  I frowned and rubbed my hands over my face. These men held not only my life in their hands, but Sebastian’s too. I would have to do my best to behave, to get close to Bastian again. I looked over the room. Sparse was an understatement. There was a small cot with a thin blanket. That was it. Cement floors, a barred window with no glass and solid wood panelling surrounded me. I walked to the window and stared out just in time to see Sebastian get dragged to the large grassy covered mound. A flurry of activity and then it opened up, the doorway leading into what I assumed was the bunker.