Alive Like Us Read online

  The girl huddled closer but didn’t answer. The ice groaned and cracked beneath their added weight. Black water rushed over them, flooding Kai’s nose and mouth. Panic seared his brain, numbing him to the cold as they sank beneath the surface. Darkness swallowed them.

  Kai’s foot landed on the shifting, pebbled lakebed. He gripped the girl tight and pushed off, shooting upward. Jagged ice sliced his face as they broke through the surface. The girl coughed and sputtered, still clinging to her friend.

  Sheets of pale ice bobbed around them as he kicked towards the shore, where Frankie waited, prancing and bowing. Kai’s arms and legs felt leaden, but he knew better than to stop. Once he could stand, he pried the dark-haired girl from Sanna’s grasp and carried her.

  “Haven!” Trevor splashed through the water to meet him. “Is she breathing?”

  “I’m not sure.” Kai passed Haven to his waiting arms.

  “Get that fire hot, Jace,” Trevor shouted to his wounded brother as he raced back to shore.

  Must get warm. Kai’s teeth chattered as he waded through the water. Frankie nuzzled his hand and Sanna—the blond girl—walked alongside him, quiet as a ghost.

  His bones ached as a sharp wind cut across the lake, creating a whirlwind of snow and ice. Kai shivered, shielding his eyes. Trevor laid Haven on the ground and Jace had started doing CPR.

  Simon blocked Kai’s path. “Looks like your plan worked, Outsider.” His voice was colder than the waters that lapped around Kai’s bare ankles. “Almost.”

  Sanna walked around him without a second glance. She sank next to the blaze, so close Kai feared she might catch fire herself.

  “Haven’s alive!” Trevor crowed as the girl coughed and sputtered, curling into fetal position.

  Simon turned to see for himself and Kai took his chance, rushing past him. He grabbed his knife from his pile of stuff and jabbed it at the Catfish. “Back off.”

  Simon smirked. “You can’t even hold that knife straight.”

  He was right. Kai’s whole body was shivering, and if he didn’t get warm soon, it’d all be over. “What do you want?”

  “You’ve got a lot of nice things,” Trevor appeared at Simon’s side, Kai’s bow clutched in his hand. He nocked an arrow and drew back, aiming at him. “For an unclean.”

  “C’mon, guys,” Jace struggled to stand. “It’s getting late. Let’s just take the girls home.”

  “S-so you’re r-robbing me now?” Kai said through his chattering teeth. It’d be a death sentence if he lost his supplies. He’d never get back to Esme. He shifted his stance so he could see both Simon and the twins. “I thought we had a d-deal.”

  Simon slipped the dagger from his belt. “Consider it renegotiated.”

  Branches snapped in the forest. Frankie growled at the brush near Simon and Trevor; his ears pressed to his skull.

  “What’s that?” Trevor shifted his aim to the trees. “Bone Boys?”

  A chorus of clicks answered. Infected.

  Jace shrieked, bumping into Sanna as he hobbled towards his brother. Her gaze never wavered from the roaring flames.

  Kai lurched into action, yanking on his boots and throwing his coat over Sanna’s shoulders. He shrugged into his pack. They had to get out of here before they were surrounded. He didn’t know how far Erling was, but the cabin he'd slept in last night was close. A silver handle gleamed in the snow. He picked it up, surprised to find a sizable battle axe.

  He touched Sanna's shoulder. “We need to go.”

  “Shoot him,” Simon ordered. “He’ll be a distraction.”

  Kai ducked as an arrow whizzed over his head. The raging fire splashed a demonic light on the other guys’ faces. He hooked his arm under Sanna’s and hauled her up, pulling her behind him. She stumbled at first, but quickly found her footing. They dashed up the bank just as three Infected burst into view on all fours, their teeth bared in bloodthirsty grins.

  Another arrow whizzed by Kai's ear.

  “Idiot!” Simon shouted.

  “I’m sorry—” Trevor's words sharpened into a shrill scream. Kai glanced over his shoulder and saw a stage one tackle him. Simon scooped up the dark-haired girl and ran for the trees.

  “Trevor!” Jace limped towards his brother. “No!”

  His cries ended in a gurgle as more Infected poured out from the forest.

  Kai gritted his teeth and sprinted onward, pulling Sanna behind him as the wet, smacking sounds of feeding filled the air.

  A small cabin appeared up ahead. Frankie beat him to it, whining as he waited on the porch. Kai flew up the steps and flung open the door. They poured inside and he slammed it behind him, fitting the heavy wooden plank into place.

  He stepped into the darkened room, panting. It seemed like he’d left it a lifetime ago, but it had probably been no more than an hour.

  The girl had already stretched out on the cot near the fireplace, her eyes closed. He didn’t believe in curses, but there was something very different about Sanna Larson.

  And he was afraid he was about to find out what it was.

  CHAPTER EIGHT

  Sanna’s eyelids shot open. Her blood roared in her ears. Instinct warned she was in a new place. Likely captured.

  Her first thought was to fling off the covers and charge, but whoever kidnapped her had been foolish enough to cover her face. She had the element of surprise—her greatest advantage.

  She slowed her breathing and tried to identify her location. The air was musty. Warm. A fire crackled and popped beside her, its orange light shining through the worn quilt like a stained-glass window. She must be indoors. Probably in a building that hadn’t been used in a while. She shifted her hands and feet. They were unbound. It was almost like...she had been rescued.

  Or underestimated.

  Her thoughts flew to the lake. She remembered pulling Haven to the surface but nothing else. The Bone Boy she’d wounded—Zane, was it?—could’ve followed her. He’d want revenge for his leg, even if she'd saved the rest of those common thieves from certain death.

  And then there was the Inferno—the terrorist group that wanted nothing more than to destroy New Hope and its colonies. They prided themselves on being unpredictable—it was how they had survived for so long. Uncleans could’ve taken her as well. She heard young, healthy women fetched a fortune on the flesh market, especially since so few survived past childbirth.

  Sanna pinched the blanket above her stomach and pulled it down from her face. The room was dark, the only light coming from the fire. She was in a small, sparse cabin with a heavy wooden plank over the door. She recognized the curtains covering the window beside it. The cabin was one of Erling’s primitive safehouses scattered across the territory.

  “You’re alive.”

  Sanna jumped at the sound of the young man’s voice. He was leaning against the wall by the window, so still and quiet she hadn’t noticed him. His accent was faintly elegant. Urbane. He must be from New Hope. Her wariness doubled.

  She leapt off the cot, searching for a weapon. Where was her axe? Her dagger? Cool, damp air kissed her skin...everywhere.

  She looked down and gasped. She was undressed down to her bra and underwear.

  She glared at the man as a sick feeling curdled in her stomach. What else had he done while she was unconscious? Whatever it was, she’d kill him for it. She’d rip his throat out with her bare hands...

  “Hey, relax. It’s okay.” The man walked over; his hands raised. He was still cloaked in the shadows of the room. He was taller than she’d thought and painfully thin. His voice was deep, raspy. She couldn’t guess his age as long as he lingered in the dark. Not that it mattered. She could take him down. Easy. If he’d only come a little closer...

  “I saved you, you know,” he continued. “Those guys from Erling would have let you drown.”

  “And taking off my clothes? Was that part of it?”

  He paused. “I don’t like what you’re implying.”

  “Well, I don’t l
ike waking up naked with a stranger. Where’s Haven?”

  “When the Infected attacked we got separated. Simon took Haven, and I brought you here. You had a bad fever and your clothes were soaked. They’re drying over there.” He pointed to a chair by the fire, where he'd draped her tunic, pants, and wool socks. “I won’t look.”

  The guy turned around. Odd choice for a kidnapper. Sanna glanced at her clothes, then back to him. She’d take him down if he moved while she got dressed. “You said the Infected attacked?”

  “It all happened pretty quick. The twins—" he hesitated. “I’m sorry. They didn’t make it.”

  Jace and Trevor. Sanna’s heart squeezed. Two more deaths to add to an already gruesome year. She pulled on her pants. “And Haven?”

  “I don’t know. I wish I could’ve told them about this place. But everything happened so fast..."

  “Simon knew—knows—about it.” She pulled on her old sweater. “These cabins are used by Erling’s hunters and scouts all the time. He must have thought he could make it to the Kill Zone.” This man had to have a motive. No one risked their life for a stranger. “I don’t know what you’re plans are, but if you so much as touch me—"

  “I won’t! So...you’re decent?”

  Sanna snorted. Decent? The guy sounded like a granny.

  He stepped into the pool of light. His boots were scuffed and mismatched, his legs long and lean. Ragged, dark clothing hung off his gaunt frame. His shoulders were far too broad for the rest of him, thanks to the hunger that had carved his face into sharp angles and deep hollows. Rich black hair fell past his shoulders, and his ebony eyes glittered with a deep intelligence that intrigued her far more than it should.

  “Kai Merrick.” He shoved his hand between them, his tanned fingers long and elegant. He was no colony farmer or soldier. An air of refinement clung to him like tattered silk. He reminded her of the fancy merchants who rolled into her village a few times a year, telling tales of faraway places where trees sagged with heavy citrus and powdery beaches hugged vast, shimmering oceans.

  She squeezed her hands into fists. Her own palms were rough with callouses from years of training. “You’re wasting your time—I have nothing worth stealing. My parents aren’t rich either.”

  He stared at her for a moment. “Is this how you treat everyone who rescues you?”

  “I guess I don’t know.” Her initial rage melted into healthy apprehension. She straightened her shoulders and gave him a leveling look. “I’m usually not the one being rescued.”

  The corner of his mouth quirked. “Imagine that.”

  Sanna felt the slightest twinge of a smile. She sat down on her cot, wrapping the dusty quilt around her. “So, do you just spend your days roaming the Deadlands, looking for strangers to rescue?”

  “Strangers?” He scoffed. “No. I recognized your name being called. You have quite the reputation.”

  “I never knew I was so interesting.” Her eyes narrowed. “You dodged the question. “What are you doing in Erling territory?”

  “What do I have to do for you to trust me?” His expression was serious, but humor glimmered in his eyes. “I know—how about breakfast? I’m starving.”

  Sanna smothered a laugh with her hand, then froze. Oh, God. She was flirting. She never flirted. She didn’t know how.

  Walking past her cot, he grabbed a backpack. The fresh scent of his skin lingered in the air as he headed back to his chair and started rifling through it.

  He’s a snake. Kill him.

  The voice. It was back.

  A sharp pain shot through her forehead. She doubled over, pressing her fingers to her temples.

  Kai rushed to her side. “What’s wrong?”

  “Nothing.” She jerked away, not wanting him to know the truth. She was going crazy. That she heard a voice no one else did—one that now demanded she kill.

  Something deep and awful began to shift within her, unfurling like the wings of a newly hatched insect. A strange, foreign power uncoiled in her abdomen and slithered through her limbs. She looked down, terrified, and saw the skin of her forearms quiver as if a hideous worm was slithering beneath the surface.

  A niggling twinge in her brain now became a full-fledged hammer.

  Waves of nausea crashed over her. She crumpled, falling off the cot and onto the cool, hard floor. The cabin spun.

  Snap his neck. Do it. You’re strong enough now. The wormy feeling shifted into her chest, right below her heart. A sour taste flooded her mouth as her stomach rolled and crashed. Her whole body tensed as she waited for the terrible moment to pass.

  Kill him.

  Kai held out a hand. His lips were moving, but she couldn’t hear his words. She wanted to warn him to stay away. To not get too close, but her tongue was frozen to the base of her mouth. Her body was the voice’s puppet, and she was locked inside, screaming. Her arms raised a few inches, as if pulled by an invisible string. Her fingers reached for his throat.

  No! She gritted her teeth, fighting the movement. The string snapped and her arms dropped to her sides. The break was sudden and absolute, a stone hurled through glass. She exhaled slowly, exhausted.

  “Are you okay?” Kai asked, his dark brows like slashes of ink across his forehead.

  “I’m fine.” She clambered back onto the cot. Her whole body felt used and dirty and she wished she could take it off like filthy clothes. She wrapped her arms around her stomach, longing to disappear. “Really. Just...a little dizzy.”

  Kai opened his mouth to say something, then closed it, studying her. Firelight flickered across his face, accentuating its sharp masculine angles. He wasn’t handsome, not quite, but there was something about him that fascinated her. A plain box hiding secret, glimmering treasure.

  Their gazes locked and the air between them shimmered with promise.

  He sat down beside her, their legs brushing. She inhaled sharply. It had never been like this with Nico, a longing so urgent that she’d burst into a thousand pieces if she didn’t touch him. Taste him. The world around them dimmed as he traced the curve of her cheek.

  She leaned into his touch, his eyes dark, beckoning pools. His crisp, masculine scent grew stronger, along with something else. Something forbidden.

  Since when did he smell so...delicious?

  “Can I kiss you?” He whispered, his breath warm on her lips.

  “Yes,” she answered, her voice hitching. “Please.”

  She’d wilt—she’d die—if he didn’t. He seemed to expand around her, engulfing her in his scent, his warmth, his heartbeat. She became so lost in his presence that she didn't notice the beast in the room awaken.

  Or that it was coming straight for her.

  CHAPTER NINE

  Kai was going to kill that dog.

  One minute, he was about to kiss a girl for the first time in months and the next, Frankie had bounded into her lap and was doing the honors for him.

  Sanna tilted her head, her pale hair cascading behind her, and laughed as the dog laved her chin. “Wh—where did you come from?”

  The charged moment between them evaporated, leaving him bewildered and oddly...relieved? He’d wanted to kiss her, sure, but it had almost felt like an invisible force was pushing him. Like he didn’t have a choice.

  Weird. Maybe he was out of practice—he’d spent the past six months in places where the Infected outnumbered the living. Not exactly prime dating territory.

  Frankie’s paws raked the front of Sanna’s sweater. Kai took that as his cue.

  “All right, buddy, that’s enough,” he muttered, pulling the dog off.

  Sanna grinned. “He’s yours then?”

  “Unfortunately.”

  Frankie’s bulbous eyes stared at her in pure adoration. His fluffy tail swished along the floor.

  “He’s so...” Sanna’s voice trailed off. “Different.”

  That was an understatement. “His name is Frankie. My sister and I found him on the outskirts of a fallout zone. I think the
radiation may have gotten to him.”

  She peered at Frankie, fascinated. “I guess that would explain why he looks so stunted. I mean, his spine’s half as long as it should be, right? And his eyes—are they...even?” She shook her head, as if to free herself from the dog’s bizarre spell.

  “Hey now, he has a great personality,” Kai said, scratching the crown of Frankie’s wide head. Frankie tilted into it and gave Kai a toothy, walleyed grin, his long tongue spilling out the side of his mouth.

  Sanna smothered a laugh. She looked different. Before, when Kai was about to kiss her, he’d seen her through a shimmering curtain. She was pretty, in a wholesome meet-my-mother sort of way. But she wasn’t the sort of girl that made his head turn to mush, which was what happened before Frankie ruined everything. All the more reason to keep his distance. He had enough to worry about between his sister and Iris.

  She glanced out the busted window and gasped. “It’s dark, isn’t it? How long was I out?”

  “All day.” He walked back to his pack and pulled out the makings of dinner. Frankie stretched out by the hearth with a groan, while Sanna studied the floor, running her finger along the edges of the boards.

  “Did you lose something?” Kai asked.

  “We hide a few weapons in the cabins, just in case.” She tried to pry up a board with her fingernails.

  “I brought your axe from the lake. Or maybe it was Simon’s. It’s by the fire.”

  “I know, I saw it. But you’ll need something too, won’t you? All I see is that knife on your belt. Ouch!” She shook her hand, frowning, then looked over to him. “It’s stuck. Let me see your knife.”

  Kai passed it to her, and she jammed the tip into the plank and wrenched it in a few places. The board popped up and she set it aside. Her lips curved into a small smile as she lifted out a quiver of arrows. “You know how to use these, right?”

  He nodded.

  “Good. The bow has to be around here somewhere.” Her feet padded across the wooden floor as she felt along the cabin’s walls. “Aha!” She lifted off a sheet of paneling that Kai never would have seen. A bow was tucked into the space. “Perfect.”