Dead Chaos - Book 1 - Zombie Apocalypse

Dead Chaos - Chapter 7

CHAPTER SEVEN

It was after dark and Paulina had already gone off to bed, taking an unhappy Zeke with her. The kid didn’t like being told when to go to bed. He especially didn’t like sharing a room with an “old lady.” Zeke had been having the time of his life, eating more and dancing. Though, I’m not sure if it can really be called that. Zeke had a seizure-like dance method. With many threats, Viktor and Paulina got him upstairs and in bed.

My dad lasted longer, sitting with Viktor and drinking wine. Eventually, he too went in for the night. This may have had something to do with the more uptempo music we were now listening to. After his departure, Kyle and I started going around to the side of the house to take tequila shots. I suspected Alexi and Justin were up to something similar when they kept disappearing and showing up stupider than they were before. Viktor sat and slowly drank wine while Riley chatted up Melanie about her gifts and her aspirations for life. It was amazing how delusional she still was, thinking somehow everything would change back to the way it used to be. Not in our lifetime it wouldn’t.

After my fourth shot and Kyle’s fifth or sixth, he changed the CD to hip hop and we started dancing. My guy was still feeling some pain from the wound to his leg, but the alcohol had dulled it. At first it was just me and Kyle, with Melanie and Riley nearby doing their own thing. They looked funny dancing together because Riley had so little experience with dancing pre-apocalypse and she basically sucked post-apocalypse. After years of dance classes and being on my freshman dance team, I had moves. The tequila only made me feel freer.

I loved this. His strong arms encircled me and his brown eyes gazed down at me with a warmth that was solely mine. There were a lot of sad stories out there of love lost. My dad still suffered from it, only driven by the need to protect his children. Riley could call me a freak all she wanted, I didn’t care. Whether I was a freak or gifted, I would always thank whatever gave me this ability to protect the ones I loved. Because of it, our story, Kyle’s and mine would have a happy ending. I didn’t fear trying to have a normal life, a home and a family someday.

The song changed to one of my old favorites. I had to wonder how many of the rich and famous survived. With helicopters, private planes and yachts, wouldn’t many of them have a chance? Perhaps the artist currently playing on our little boombox was on an island somewhere in the Caribbean. “Keep it clean, honey, or Viktor is going to complain again,” I told him over the music, grinning.

Kyle’s tipsy self was almost to the point of beyond caring. “Like he isn’t going to be grinding against Melanie once he stops brooding over his wine.” True, Viktor was the brooding type. Alcohol just made him more introspective. Even though Levi was his dad in every way that mattered, I sometimes wondered if Viktor got the trait from his biological father. He definitely got his dark looks and height from him. Alexi would always be the little brother in every way, unless he managed to shoot past my dad’s six foot frame. Kyle was a little under six feet and I thought he was perfect size for my five foot six height.

“Let’s go take another shot,” I suggested, taking his hand and dragging him off our improvised dance floor. When he stumbled a little behind me, I slowed down. The alcohol may numb the pain in his leg, but it didn’t make him any more coordinated.

Retrieving our bottle of tequila and shot glasses from where it was stashed in a paper bag, Kyle poured us each a shot. Going down, it still burned but at least it no longer tasted so toxic. My dad and Paulina would be pissed to know we were drinking. We’d both had a glass of wine before in their presence, but no hard liquor. For Alexi and Justin even wine was prohibited and I bet they’d be struggling to hide hangovers tomorrow morning from whatever it was they were drinking.