Chapter 7
After a few hours of walking, Nick decided a break was in order. They approached a row of apartments, and Nick led them inside to rest and gather any supplies they might find.
Choosing an apartment at random, the pair checked each room and found it clear of danger.
Nick sat on the dusty couch that faced a broad bay window.
He dropped his head into his hands, rubbing at eyes that stung with exhaustion.
Kate sat beside him, her body rigid as timidity prevented a confident consolation.
Nick swept her hand into his and kissed the back of it.
“I’m okay,” Nick said. Yet, there was defeat in his voice. Even with the change of location, the pounding of the boots still resonated in the back of his mind. Kate eyed him, studying his features to find that the self-assured, determined man she knew was questioning everything about himself.
“Can we talk about what happened?” Kate asked, her voice small. She braced herself for an aggressive response. Nick only shrugged, his vacant eyes fixed on a TV displaying a screen of dust.
“That town, it made me feel crazy. I know it probably wasn’t the town. Something just felt broken inside my head when we were there. I think I was… hearing things.” The last of Nick’s words fell off into a whisper.
This was it. This was the moment where Kate was supposed to say something profound, something that would encourage and assure him that everything would be okay. She was at a loss. Kate nestled her head into his chest, enveloping herself in his warmth.
“I’m here,” Kate said. It was all she could manage.
Nick wrapped his arms around her, and they laid out on the couch. Several moments went by until Kate was breathing deeply, her chest rising and falling in Nick’s embrace. Though his eyes longed to close and find rest, his mind was churning. He felt as though he was falling apart.
Nick did not have time to lose himself. His duty was to be a shield, a provider, a protector. If he let himself slip, Kate would be left to sift through the wreckage. And so he pushed the disorder of his mind into a box, buried it deep inside, and fell asleep.
They woke several hours later, intent on finding supplies before they carried on to their next destination.
Kate walked about the living room with measured steps, eyes sweeping the contents for useful items. A worn, chipped dining room table held nothing of importance.
Kitchen appliances with blank screens stood purposeless.
Nick rummaged through drawers in the kitchen while coming to the same conclusion as Kate. There was nothing here worth taking.
Papers covered a desk in a thin layer, and Kate touched a curious finger to each one, though they appeared to be only junk mail.
Nick walked up behind her, pressing his chest to her back, and peering over her shoulder at the papers.
As he lightly ran his fingers up and down the side of her arm, goosebumps formed on her skin.
Kate turned to face him, a sultry smirk spread across her lips.
Her hands slid up his firm chest and around the back of his neck.
Pulling Nick’s face to hers, Kate kissed him, pushing her tongue between his teeth.
Nick leaned into her, placing his hands on either side of the desk and pinning her body to his.
The shuddering breaths of his arousal created a feral warmth in Kate, and she slid her body back into a sitting position on the desk.
Kate pulled Nick between her knees, her tongue still dancing with his.
The stiffness of his jeans pressed against Kate’s center, sending an explosion of heat across her body.
When she slid her hand across Nick’s erection, his breath hitched.
He opened his eyes for a moment, as though he could see Kate’s thoughts.
Nick ached to know what she had in mind—where she intended this to go.
Instead, her eyes were closed, lost in their kiss.
Kate took Nick’s belt in her hands, fumbling the leather through the loops. He grabbed her wrists gently and pulled away from their caress.
“You wanna’ do this here?” Hesitation crept into Nick’s voice as he looked around at the dingy household. Kate’s teeth tugged at her lower lip, and she nodded. She clutched Nick’s shirt and pulled him back into her, their lips meeting once more.
As Kate reached for Nick’s belt again, movement in her peripheral pulled her attention away. She drew in a quick breath, and her eyes widened as she stared at the front door.
“What is it?” Nick asked, following her gaze.
“I thought I saw something, a shadow on the window,” Kate whispered.
Nick whipped away the belt that hung from his waist and tossed it onto the desk.
He drew the pistol from his waistband and aimed it in the direction Kate was fixed on.
Stepping carefully, he approached the door and pulled it open.
Nick rounded the corner behind the barrel of his handgun to find a person with their hands over their face backed against the wall.
“Woah, hey big guy! It’s me! Phoenix!” the man shouted. Nick released some of the pressure he had on the trigger, maintaining a cautious stance.
“Phoenix? What the hell are you doing here?” Nick asked.
Kate crept up behind Nick and peeked out from behind his arm.
“I wasn’t spying! I swear! I wasn’t tryna creep on you guys,” Phoenix declared, his voice cracking. Nick glared at him, one eyebrow raised.
“What are you doing here?” Nick repeated, his tone darkening.
“That night when everything went down, I know I sound like a pussy but I just took off. I ran. Decided I’d take my chances with the nearest big city.
It took a while to get here. You’d think the Laughers would be dying off, but lately, they seem to be everywhere.
Anyway, a few days ago, I seen you two traveling, looting, so I followed.
I meant to catch up with you right away.
But I chickened out. So, I just kept following, watching.
My point is, I got no one. I didn’t exactly fit in with those lunatics at the junkyard, but they kept me fed, looked out for me.
So, I was hoping I could stick with you guys.
” Phoenix eyed Nick with the saddest puppy dog eyes he could manage.
Moments passed while Nick scrutinized Phoenix’s words, mulling them over to weed out any untruths.
“It’s not a good idea. I didn’t know you then, I still don’t know you. I won’t risk Kate—”
“I swear to God, bro. I will not touch your girl!” Phoenix threw his hands in the air in surrender.
“Please. I’m out here on my own. I’ll go looting with you.
We can hunt for food. I’m pretty good at fishing.
I know my way around locks. I know how to hot-wire a car!
I will protect Kate with my fucking life! ”
“Nick,” Kate said, touching his arm.
Nick’s gaze remained on Phoenix for a moment longer, then turned to her. The usual dark, divine storm in her eyes had softened. She was buying Phoenix’s pleas. Nick sighed and ran his fingers through his hair.
The kid could be dangerous.
The thought of being responsible for another person did not bode well with Nick. But mostly, Nick’s alone time with Kate would take a hit.
Shame washed over Nick for letting his base desires dictate his decision-making. Truthfully, Nick could not come up with a sound reason for sending Phoenix away. If Kate wanted to give him a chance, that is what they would do.
“Fine,” Nick sighed.
“Hell yeah!” Phoenix shouted and drew his arms back as though he were going to grab Nick in a hug. Before Phoenix could move in, Nick recoiled with a harsh glare. “Sorry, bro. I appreciate this more than you know.”
Kate smiled at him, and he returned it, knowing she was the only reason he was not sent packing.
“You know, I don’t hold nothin’ against you guys about what happened at the camp. David and Julia, they were bad news. In fact, you guys wanna know about the kind of person David was before he came to the junkyard? I mean, I can’t say for certain, but I’m pretty sure he was a serial killer.”
“A serial killer?” Nick asked in disbelief.
Phoenix nodded, his eyes widening. “Yeah, right before I joined the group, I remember seeing all this stuff on the news about these murders. The police had a suspect, but I moved onto the property before hearing the outcome. Then one day, David shows up all sweaty and covered in blood. I don’t think he meant to find us, but when he did, he realized he found a place he could hide out.
So, the next day, I went into town, found a newsstand, and the front page had this article about a police chase.
They were chasing down the guy who they suspected killed all them people, but he got away.
There was a police sketch and the dude looked exactly like David.
They linked nine bodies to the murderer.
” Phoenix’s tone was solemn and coated in ice.
“Nine kills?” Kate gasped. Nick narrowed his eyes at Phoenix, unsure if he believed his words. Phoenix shrunk back when he noticed Nick’s disbelieving stare.
“Bro, I don’t know for sure it was him, but you saw for yourself. Dude was fucked in the head.”
Nick nodded, able to agree with him on at least that point.
That dark night, a chaotic medley of screams and violence, replayed in their minds.
The revolver shoved against David’s stomach made Kate’s palms twitch as if she were still against that vehicle, watching her attacker fall lifeless to the ground.
Those memories traced a perfect line to Julia’s death.
A shudder ran up Kate’s spine as she recalled bits of teeth flying through the air after the bullet shredded Julia’s mouth.
Noticing Kate’s eyes glazed over in memory, Nick pulled her into him, cupping her head against his chest.
“So, you went back after the attack?” Nick asked as Kate wrapped her arms around his middle. Phoenix’s eyes dropped to the floor, and his lips twisted into a wistful expression.
“Yeah, I went to grab my stuff. Jeff and Layla were gone but I saw the bodies. David. Julia. Emily. Sam. A shit ton of Laughers,” Phoenix said.
“Hmm,” Nick replied. Though he was curious about Jeff and Layla’s absence, he knew Phoenix did not have the answers.
Emily’s name cultivated sorrow within Kate as she thought back to their time together.
Braiding hair, expeditions through the woods for valuable plant life, and Emily’s caring nature.
They had started to form a friendship, and Kate’s outburst had shattered it.
Another thing torn to pieces by the past.
Each day, Kate chewed on rotten bits of her past, only to regurgitate them as dreadful thoughts or paranoid reflexes, just to swallow them once more.
Nick kissed Kate’s temple and pulled away, ready to continue their looting journey with the plus one they had acquired.