“I’ll w-wait,” she whispers, sitting down and clutching her knees to her chest. She looked dazed, maybe she was about to have a panic attack, but I’d have to deal with her in a second. Putting my back pack down next to Gina, I climb the tree with my bow and arrow. When I find a steady spot, I stop and look. I see the men trying to kill the beast, but it was strong. When I see it strike one of the men down, I know they need my help. Aiming my arrow, I try and get a clear shot. I couldn’t risk hitting one of the men. So I wait.
When the beast retreats a little, it’s my moment. I take my shot. Holding my breath, I watch as my arrow flies… and hits it.
Right in its chest.
Its heart.
It goes down.
Shaking, I climb down the tree and pull Gina into my arms.
What had become of this world?
Chapter Fifteen
“You killed it from that distance?” Sam asks, eyes wide. “I knew you were good… but shit Olivia. I don’t know many that could have made that shot.”
“What was it Sam?” I ask for the second time. I’d asked him as soon as I saw him but he’d had his own set of questions. Which I’d answered. Now it was my turn.
Sam visibly cringes. “We don’t know what it is. But we do know it’s the reason for the decline in zombies. The zombies are fading out, and the beasts are taking over.”
“Great so the bear-rexes are soon going to be knocking on our castle gates?”
Were they eating the zombies? If so, that was fucking disgusting.
“Bear-rex?” Sam asks, eyebrows hitting his hairline. “I guess it kind of does look like a mix between a bear and a dinosaur. Except the size, of course. It’s more bear size than dinosaur but--”
“Sam. Concentrate,” I snap. “What did you find about the camp?”
“Ten men. No women. Which is why we don’t want them to see you or Gina. Who knows when the last time they saw a woman was. Men turn into animals when they haven’t had sex in so long.”
I make a face. “What are we going to do then? We need information. And I’m not sleeping with them to get it.”
Sam gives me a look. “This is no time to joke. Jase and I could go over there and try get some information, but it’s a gamble. They would outnumber us and the rest of you would have to sleep somewhere else. If more beasts appear, I don’t want to take that chance with you Olivia. Do you see why it would have been easier without you here?”
Okay, that stung.
“I did kill the bear-rex,” I mutter, looking away from him.
He cups my cheeks and turns my face back in his direction. “I’m sorry Olivia. I’m just worried. It’s a lot of pressure on me because I need to keep you safe. And not just for Dane, for the people in the castle.”
“I love you too Sam,” I tell him softly, kissing him on his cheek. The stubble there pricks my lips a little, but I don’t mind. “I’m going to be fine. Don’t worry about me. We have each other’s backs, always.”
He nods once, puffing out a breath. “Okay.”
“I say we all go to their camp,” Jase says. “We can take them if they try anything. Have Olivia play vulnerable. If they get too close, she can probably beat their asses anyway. I’ve seen her in hand-to-hand combat.”
I don’t know what it said about me that I felt excitement at the idea of a good fight, but I did.
“Fuck,” Sam curses. “Fine. Let’s do this. We’re wasting light.”
And so we walk on to what could possibly be an enemy camp.
The men’s eyes didn’t leave me or Gina. I could feel them, roaming over me, touching every inch. I wanted to cringe, but I held myself, composed. My back straight.
Show no weakness.
“We saw some men pass through here,” the leader says. He was a strong looking man, with red hair and light green eyes. “Dane and his men.”
“You know Dane?” I ask, speaking up for the first time.
The man laughs. “Everyone knows Dane. I know exactly where he was headed. I never saw him return this way. Perhaps the man does have a weakness after all and got caught? Rumour has it he’s invincible, but maybe that’s not true.”
My hands clench to fists.
“I can tell you exactly where he went. For a price, of course,” he continues, oblivious to the plans running through my head of me shooting him in the face with my arrow.
“What is it you want?” Sam asks.
His eyes go straight to me. “You know what I want. She’s very beautiful. They both are, but I find my eyes on this one.”
Fuck my life.
“No chance in hell,” Sam replies casually. “The women are ours, and we don’t share.”