Chapter Sixteen
W e woke up early enough that I’m out of bed and dressed by ten. Mason stays in my orbit as I wash up and tug my clothes back on, constant, possessive touches sending goosebumps skittering over my skin.
Still, I slip upstairs without him, citing a need to talk to Dane alone. I already know I’m going to have to deal with his attitude after going with Mason last night. That’s not going to be helped if Mason is standing right next to me the entire time.
Rae is the only one inside the church when I get up there, chewing on a protein bar as she sits on her sleeping bag. She raises a hand in greeting, then gives me a dispassionate once-over.
“You might want to change before you go and talk to him.”
I sigh. She doesn’t really care about what I am, same as Otto. It’s why I gravitate to them the most. I know that. And speaking of him…
“Where’s Otto?” I ask.
“They said he’s coming up soon.” Rae jerks her chin in the direction of the church doors. I see Callum’s outline over there, with Autumn. She tilts her head and looks up at him, saying something that, at this distance, I can’t hear.
“How’s she doing?”
“It’s a weird job for her first. Even she knows that.”
I nod as I cross to my pack, then switch my T-shirt for one that’s wrinkled but clean. “And Dane? Blake?”
“Haven’t seen Dane since I woke up,” Rae replies. She crumples the empty wrapper of her protein bar. “But Blake was on watch. He’s on edge. I don’t think it’s just you.”
“I haven’t helped.”
“Not your fault,” Rae says with a snort. “Dane’s fucking unhinged. I’m not taking a job with him again.”
I jerk my head up, looking at her. We work where we’re assigned, for the most part, though the better the hunter, the more leeway we have to ask for particular jobs.
Requesting to never be assigned with a specific person is rare. It happens, of course, but it can be a death knell for this job—we’re not supposed to make waves.
“Yeah,” I say slowly. “I don’t think I will, either.”
Otto won’t. If we manage to get him back at all, of course, because there’s risk involved in that, too. It’s what I need to talk to Dane about, though I’d prefer to see Otto first and check he really is okay.
I press my fingers to my cheek. My face is healed. I should have a bruise, should still feel a dull ache when I press a little harder.
I shake my head and get to my feet, bat in hand. “Right. I’m gonna find Dane. Sort this out.”
“The zombies?”
“Yeah, that too.”
She snorts again and I wave absently as I make my way down the centre aisle of the church. Autumn ducks out of my way, but Callum only nods as I walk past, and my eyes linger for a moment on the mark on his skin.
He has magic too, right? That’s what Mason said this morning. It’s not something I want to ask with Autumn so close.
Otto must know, though. I make a mental note to talk to him about it when he finally comes up into the church. We’ll have enough opportunity to speak alone while we’re searching the town today.
Well, we’ll have enough opportunity to speak with Mason hovering around. I’ve no doubt he won’t let me out of his sight.
The thought warms something in my chest and I bite back a smile as I meander through the scattered gravestones. I come across Blake first, standing up against the graveyard wall. It’s only shoulder height, and he’s looking out across the town that squats below and the landscape beyond.
“Blake,” I call.
He stiffens, squaring his shoulders, but I’ve no time for his bullshit today. Speaking to Dane is more important—we only have a few days left here, and we all need to be on the same page regarding this job.
“The fuck do you want?”
I sigh. “I just need to speak to Dane. Have you seen him?”
I’m surprised I haven’t come across him already. I doubt Nia’s let him below the church after the way he kicked off last night, so either he’s hiding somewhere behind the building or he’s gone down into the town himself. But even that seems strange. Blake would go with him.
Blake crosses his arms over his chest. “What do you need to speak to him for? Didn’t you do enough talking last night?”
He was awake, then. I fight the urge to roll my eyes. Awake enough to hear Dane proposition me, but not smart enough to understand I don’t want it. I don’t want him.
“We need to talk about this job. All of us.”
“There’s nothing to talk about.”
Blake pushes away from the wall and checks me with his shoulder as he passes. I tighten my grip on my bat but do my best not to react. I only turn when Blake scoffs and his footsteps pause.
When I glance back, Mason is standing over by the church, watching us. It’s a fair distance, but his expression is clear—he’s angry, and Blake needs to watch his step.
“Have you seen him?” I ask again.
Blake’s lip curls. He glances between me and Mason, and I know he wants to be short again, but he decides against it.
“No. When I woke up again, he was gone, so I took up the watch. I thought he’d gone to get fresh air.”
“When was that?”
Blake shrugs. “Seven?”
I glance at my watch. It’s eleven already, and at seven, it still would have been dark. “He’s been gone that long?” Longer, even. I don’t know exactly what time Mason and I went downstairs…
Callum was up there, though. I whirl around, ignoring Blake’s affronted sound from behind me. Mason frowns as I rush past him as well, and I find Callum at the front of the church with Autumn.
“Have you seen Dane?” I ask.
Autumn shakes her head.
Callum shrugs. “He tore out of here just before five. I asked him where he was going, and he told me to fuck off.”
“You didn’t think to stop him?”
He raises his eyebrows as though to ask why he should have. I would think that fair, but it’s been six hours, and this town isn’t that big.
“Fuck,” I mutter. “We need to find him.”
“Why?” Mason asks from behind me. His expression is dark, and I shake my head.
“Because he’s part of the team. We’re supposed to take him back with us.”
“Will you be taking Otto back, too?” Callum asks. He has a stubborn set to his jaw, one I don’t much like.
“Yes. All of us. Considering being bitten doesn’t seem to matter as much here, it really shouldn’t be that difficult.”
Callum glares past me at Mason, who doesn’t move at all.
I sigh. “I’ll get Rae.”
To my surprise, Autumn follows me into the church. Mason stays behind, and when I glance back, his head is ducked towards Callum’s. I can’t hear anything they’re saying.
“Something feels wrong here,” Autumn whispers when we’re halfway to the altar.
I don’t stop walking. “How so?”
“It feels like we’re being lied to.”
Maybe we are. I look back at her and nod once. No. I know that we are, don’t I? I know that Mason has magic, and some of the others do too, that it’s real at all—
And they have to have started figuring that out. The rest of the team, I mean. No one is foolish, not when it comes to our own survival.
“Dane’s missing,” I say once we’re close, and Rae leaps to her feet.
“Fucking—” She bites back whatever she intends to say and picks up her axe. “Do we know where he went?”
“Blake says Dane was gone when he woke up. Callum said he left around five.”
“Six hours.” Rae shakes her head. “The town isn’t huge. We should be able to find him before nightfall.”
The sound of footsteps draws our attention to the stairs. Otto appears in the doorway, freezing in place the moment his eyes land on us.
He doesn’t seem to know what to say. Neither does Rae nor Autumn, by the look of them. I sigh.
“Dane’s missing. Come on. We need to find him.”
Otto swallows and nods, giving me a grateful look. Autumn takes a step back as he approaches, and Rae quickly guides her up the aisle and out of the church.
“How are you feeling?” I ask. I’m itching to go, but I should ask. I can’t imagine what he went through, but I’m not trying to.
“Good. Good, I—” Otto ducks his head. “I feel fine . Just like before. Better, even.”
“And you’re really not—”
“No sign of it.” He lets out a faint laugh. “Can you believe it?”
“Hardly.”
Otto flinches, and I sigh.
“I believe you. That they healed you. How…”
His eyes meet mine, and I understand in that moment that he knows just what I do. There’s magic here, impossible as that might seem. There’s a town out here that can keep themselves safe from the zombies, and we’re here all the same.
“Do you think that’s why they sent us here?” Otto whispers.
I don’t answer him at first, instead glancing up at the stained glass window. Clouds are rolling in outside, but the coloured panels still glow. I remember all that Mason said to me and feel the prickle of eyes on the back of my neck.
When I turn my head, Mason is standing in the entrance to the church. He doesn’t make a move to approach us; he’s watching and waiting, and I know he can be impatient, that he wants to be in charge, but I feel that he’ll let this moment last as long as I need it to.
“I don’t know,” I reply, “but I don’t think the Citadel sent us here to get rid of zombies.”
“Yeah, neither do I.”
“You think we’ll get to the bottom of it?”
“In the next three days?” Otto sighs. “I can’t go back, can I?”
“We’re taking you back.”
Otto takes a step closer, lowering his voice further. “You know as well as I do that Dane and Blake won’t keep their mouths shut about what happened. Like it or not, my fate was sealed the moment that zombie dug its teeth in.”
“Otto…”
“I don’t know what’ll happen if I stay here, either. The Citadel will send more teams. Whatever they’re looking for, I don’t think we’ve found it.”
“You don’t?” It has to be magic, doesn’t it? The ability to heal—they’ll want that for themselves. Another way to keep us in line, to ensure that everyone at the top is safe and secure, even as we throw our lives away trying to keep the rest alive.
Otto studies my face. “Maybe not. It’s more than what we know. It has to be.”
“Why?”