The Virus Within: The Unranked (Book 4)

Ch. 19: What's For Dinner- Oh.

I snarled at a Runner trying to climb through the open passenger window, which made the surrounding regular zombies back away. Unfortunately, there were many more zombies out of earshot surging toward the truck, some of whom I had dissuaded earlier but were returning since they thought the others had found something new.

The Runner focused on my face and sunglasses, then continued pulling herself in. Leaning to the side, I shoved the top of her head back, sending her tumbling backward into the crowd. It was a toss-up if she'd return or accept this as an unusual type of First Strike match.

I turned the steering wheel to avoid side-swiping a car I'd veered too close to in my distraction. In the side mirror, I saw the Runner catching up with the persistence they were renowned for. Daniel continued clearing a path ahead, trusting me to handle the zombies who huddled around the truck like fans around a concert stage.

Four zombies had crawled into the back of the truck, one of which was another Runner. A quick jerk of the wheel knocked them off their feet, two of which fell off the truck and collided with a satisfying number of zombies that had been standing there, coincidentally delaying the pursuing Runner.

I frowned at the hundreds of zombies within sight. Another Runner was heading our way, but I still didn't see one acting strange.

"I can smell it," I told Daniel. "It came this way twice, but the most recent trail is at least a day old."

With an annoyed growl, I leaned over to swipe at the Runner who was trying to pull herself through the window again. She was just out of my reach, but this time, she took heed of my scent and how my nails whistled through the air and finally gave up.

The regular zombies pressed against her, shoving her against the door, which prompted a snarl and a few swats from her. Much like dense puppies being whacked by a peeved cat, they blinked at her and kept pushing past her.

Daniel waited until I wasn't distracted before he said, "The sun is about to set. Do you want to keep searching or come back tomorrow?"

"Considering your love of the darkness and my opinion of those light bars, why don't you take the truck back and come find me in the morning? I'll be able to search a much larger area if I don't have to keep an eye on the truck."

If my constant growls at the zombies were annoying me, they were almost certainly stirring up Daniel's instincts despite how familiarized and tolerant we had become around each other. There was no way we could do this all night without our instincts clashing.

He flipped a car on top of its neighbors and turned to face me. "Are you sure? You don't have to stay out here all night if you don't want to."

"The truck is going to need more wood before dawn, and I don't feel like chopping up an old fence while surrounded by zombies. There's no point in me returning, so I might as well stay out here. Besides, we left Logan in charge of Nicky, and I have no desire to see how that turned out."

It had also been a long time since I'd been in a town even half this large, and I wanted to explore it at night without any companions or responsibilities. I stopped the truck, and after growling at the zombies so I could open my door, I got out.

They remained clustered around the truck and the lingering human scent as I walked toward Daniel, who shoved a few more vehicles out of the way. The zombies parted to let us pass with no resistance, aware of our higher rank. They didn't give true deference like in a pack of wolves, but they angled their path to get out of our way in their unhurried ambling fashion.

"I should have enough room to turn the truck around," Daniel said, stopping in front of me. "Do you want me to come back here tomorrow to pick you up? Or do you want to meet elsewhere?"