Chapter 20 - Zombie
ZOMBIE
Ispent the rest of the day trying to track down Martin.
The club voted in favor of my plan to eliminate him and Baker, but it’s proving more difficult than I anticipated.
Baker left town and hasn’t returned to any of the locations we know about.
Martin’s phone is registering as inactive.
Scrubs was able to determine that he cloned his cell at some point, which explains how his phone is off but he was still texting Lucy, but the burner he’s using is untraceable.
It’s almost six-thirty when I pull up to the gate of the employee lot at the zoo. The security guard doesn’t want to let me in, but I bribe him with fifty bucks, and the next thing I know, the gates are sliding open.
“Thanks,” I mutter as I rev my engine and weave through the parked cars.
Lucy’s truck is nowhere to be seen. As soon as I park, I pull my cell out of my cut to see if Lucy responded to my text letting her know I was running late. There’s no response so I hit the speed dial for her contact.
“You’ve reached Lucy, I can’t—”
I disconnect the call and shoot of a quick text.
Me: I’m here. Where are you?
My message registers as delivered. I watch my screen for a few minutes, and with each second that passes with it going unread, my alarm grows.
I throw my leg over my Harley and stride toward the back entrance.
I punch in the code that Dr. Binks gave me a few years ago and breathe a sigh of relief when it still works.
I head straight for Lucy’s office only to find it empty. I prowl around the building, never finding her. I go out the front entrance which leads me to a public space. Every step I take without finding her feels like agony.
Where the fuck is she?
I check the enclosures of the animals I know she loves, and still, nothing. It takes longer than I like to search the grounds, but when I don’t find her, I head to the security building.
“Can I help you?” the man at the front desk asks.
“I’m looking for Dr. Thomas,” I say. “I’m supposed to pick her up, but she’s nowhere to be found, and her truck isn’t in the lot.”
“Ah, you must be the boyfriend.”
Surprise flickers at the title. I’ve claimed Lucy, yes, but I didn’t realize she’s been publicly claiming me, too.
“I am,” I confirm.
He thrusts his hand out to shake mine. “I’m Evan. Her truck was towed to a body shop, with her permission.”
“That explains that. Now, where is she?”
“Last I saw her on the cameras, she was heading toward the arctic exhibits.” He shifts his eyes to the computer in front of him and taps a few buttons on his keyboard. “Yep, she’s still there. She’s in with the polar bears.”
“Are you sure? I looked everywhere and didn’t see her.”
“I’m sure. You probably missed her because she’s huddled close to the far corner.
When she goes there, she likes to give Frosty as much distance as possible without actually leaving the enclosure.
Polar bears are notoriously unpredictable.
She’s bonded with Frosty, but she still only trusts him so much. ”
Jesus, a polar bear? Does my woman have a death wish?
“Thanks.”
“No problem.”
I make my way toward the arctic portion of the zoo and try to forget the fact that Evan talked about Lucy like he was intimately familiar with her. We all have a past, after all.
When I reach the polar bear enclosure, two of the large animals are playing in the water. I scan the area until I spot Lucy right where Evan said she was. My heart lurches at the sight of her huddled up like a scared child.
“Lucy,” I call as I slowly make my way around the outside of the barrier, careful not to shout so I don’t piss off the thousand pound beasts.
She lifts her head off her knees, and frowns when she sees me. “What time is it?”
“Almost seven,” I say.
“You’re late.” There’s no heat in her words, just a simple statement of fact.
“I text you to let you know I would be,” I tell her. “I’ve been looking all over for you.”
“I’ve been here.”
“You okay?”
Lucy bursts into tears, and I frantically search for a way to get to her. I come up empty, so I ask, “Can you come out here, babydoll? Please?”
She silently stands and bends to step through a door. Less than a minute later, she’s standing in front of me, sobbing. I pull her into my arms and press a kiss to the top of her head.
“Shhh,” I encourage. “It’s going to be okay. Your truck’s gonna get fixed, and I’m dealing with Michael.”
“I-It’s not t-t-that,” she stutters through her tears.
“Then what is it? Did one of the animals get sick?” I ask, convinced that the only thing that could cause this reaction.
She shakes her head. “N-not the a-animals.”
I ease her back so I can see her face. “Then what?”
Several seconds go by as she tries to compose herself. As soon as she can speak without stumbling over her words, she says, “Someone wants me dead.”
My entire body goes rigid. “What?”
“The zoo got a disturbing letter in the mail,” Lucy explains. “We filed a police report. But then I checked my email while I was waiting for you, and…”
“And what?” I demand.
Lucy sighs. “It’ll be better if I just show you.”
She leads me to her office, both of us silent as we walk. Her office is dark when we arrive, and she flips on the light.
“Have a seat,” she instructs, nodding to the chair behind her desk. “The email should still be up.”
“Where’s the letter?” I ask, wanting to see that first.
“In that folder,” she says, pointing to the one on top of the pile on her desk.
I open the folder and my blood boils. This had to be terrifying for her to see, and I hate that I wasn’t here when she did. Shifting my attention from the paper to the computer screen, I ball my hands into fists to keep from smashing something.
The email is short, and just as horrible as the crude letter.
We’re made for each other. Why can’t you see that? You better come to your senses because I can’t be held responsible for my actions if you don’t. Death comes for us all, and your actions are only ensuring that yours will come sooner rather than later.
“Take a look at the attachments,” she says, her tone wooden.
I move the mouse to hover the pointer over the paperclip icon at the top of the email and click it.
Three pictures pop up. The first is a photo of Lucy standing on her porch with Michael.
It was taken the night of the gala, and it appears that Michael is moving forward to kiss her.
I close that image and stare at the next.
The photo shows Lucy sitting on her kitchen counter with me standing between her legs. It doesn’t show anything explicit, but it’s clear that the picture was taken from outside a window looking into her condo. Fury washes over me as I close that attachment and look at the third.
The final picture is another of Lucy and me, only this one is explicit.
Lucy lies on her bed, naked and open for me, and I’m kneeling between her legs.
I don’t have to see it to know exactly what I’m doing.
It’s the night I feasted on her pussy and fucked her senseless.
The point of view is from above us, and my stomach knots at the implication.
“There’s a camera in your room,” I say.
“That’s what I’m thinking,” she admits. “I, um… I can’t go back there.”
“Damn right, you can’t,” I bark. “I’ll take you home to grab whatever you need to stay with me for the foreseeable future. I’ll have Scrubs meet us there so he can scan the entire condo for any other devices.”
She nods absently.
“It’s going to be okay, Lucy,” I say. “I promise.”