Zone Zero (Book 1 of 3)

Chapter 41

The boat halts and Logan jumps out and ties the boat to a nearby post as Alex turns to me removing his leather jacket and placing it on my shoulders.

It's getting pretty cold. I smile as he thinks of my warmth and comfort over his own.

Noise from the end of the dock sounds and we turn to face it and see two men carrying large rifles come toward us and stop only meters away with a sense of confusion about them.

"You should get back in your boat and turn around. You are not welcome." One of the men says with a heavy ethnic accent.

"We are here to see Samson." Alex stands forward and asserts his dominance as the two men look at each other warily. They say something in another language I have never heard before one of them speaks into a walkie talkie.

We stand around with guns aimed at us for a few seconds waiting for a response to come through the device. I take this time to get a good look at the two gun wielding guards and begin sizing them up.

One is a tall slender man with jet black hair and he stands at least a foot over the other man with tanned skin clinging to his subtle muscles. He doesn't look like much at all. The other holds the walkie talkie and is barely taller than me but double my width. His shoulders are broad in a way I have never seen and he stands with a look of worry about him.

Suddenly noise from the walkie talkie can be heard as the men eye us off intently.

"This way," is all that is said before they both turn and walk down the dock and toward a small office. We follow them closely, unsure of what we may find.

We are lead into a small office at the end of the dock and are told to sit down and wait. Photos of boats and fishermen with their catch of the day litter the walls while an old couch sits, full of dust, against the left hand wall. There are two chairs directly in front of a desk plagued with newspapers and letters that I choose to take advantage of as Logan takes the one beside me. This place hasn't seemed to have changed since the fall of the zones.

The door creeks open behind us and in steps a large grey haired man with dark olive skin, being followed closely by a younger man with the same strong facial features, but with a head of thick black hair. It is quite obvious that these two are related somehow.

"My men say that you asked me by name. How did you know this?" The grey haired man, presumably Samson, asks of us. He has a thick accent that I cannot place and it's clear that English was not his native tongue.

Logan and I both turn to Alex and await his response as he stands tall behind me.

"I make it my business to know if there is a secret hub for humans outside of their designated Zone." Alex stares the man down and I watch as a hint of suspicion fills Samson's eyes.

"How you know me by name?" He interrogates further.

"I came across a captive who told me where he came from. He said that you ran this island and took care of anyone who wishes to live outside of the Zone. Is this true?"

Samson looks to his dark haired relative who in turn sets his eyes on me.

"This is true but tell me, why you want help humans, vampiro?"

"I was wondering if you would figure it out. Your guards sure as hell didn't. These two need refuge and I believe that this is the safest place for them. Am I right?"

These two? What does he mean by that?

"Yes, I can offer this. But how I know that you not kill us all?" Samson's eyes watch Alex intently searching for a sign of distrust.