Love Charms (39 page)

I
needed to, though.  Careful, stepping over the edge of the roof, latching onto
the ladder, I climbed down as best I could.  Evan had already lowered the
entire thing to the ground, bringing the emergency escape along with him as he
went, and all I needed to do was descend.  That's it.  That's all.

Easier
said than done, though.

I
did well, but not well enough.  Halfway down and struggling, I peeked to the
side.  Just then, the other man hobbling towards us noticed Evan.  Night
darkness dimmed his vision, but Evan's heat must have attracted him either
way.  The man picked up his pace and dragged his feet faster, trying to catch
Evan alone.

"Jump,"
Evan said.  "I'll catch you."

The
last time I jumped and Evan caught me, he almost died.  He'd never admit it,
but that's what happened.  And if I jumped again?  Well, I trusted Evan but had
little faith in myself.

I
kept climbing, ignoring him.  The other man approached, closer and closer.

Evan
dropped his duffel bag and held out his arms.  I pretended I didn't hear him,
but he kept saying my name, telling me it was alright, comforting me, and...

I
clenched my teeth and jumped.  The man like me was too close and I knew Evan
wouldn't leave.  He'd never leave me no matter what, because he just wouldn't. 
I didn't know why and I didn't understand it at all, but that was the kind of
person Evan was.  I kicked out with my feet and let my hands loose from the
rungs, soaring towards Evan's outstretched arms.

I
didn't have far to fall and Evan caught me easily.  No tumbling this time, no
injury.  A perfect landing, and that was that.  The man approaching us moved
slow, unsure.  Sometimes the night did that to us.  It was dark and if I didn't
still have some of Evan's heat keeping me warm, I knew I would've felt
disoriented.  Shadows and tricks and slivers of light from the moon turned everything
into a carnival funhouse in our typical, befuddled state of mind.

I
felt good, though.  Evan snatched up his bag and took me by the arm, leading
the way.

"Let's
go," he said.

The
other man plodded forward, snatching at the empty air where Evan and I had just
been, but we were gone now.  Hurrying through the back, we escaped into the
woods.  Alongside us, mere feet away, the others in the parking lot stumbled
and shuffled around.  The sounds of their steps scraped across the asphalt.

"I
don't know if we have time to get gas for your generator," Evan said. 
"Is it alright if I get some tomorrow instead?"

I
nodded.  "I don't mind," I said.  "Just, will you please stay
with me tonight, Evan?"

"Of
course," he said with a smile.  "I promise."

* * *

Evan
held Sadie's hand, keeping her close, while they walked back to her place. 
Overall, he felt like things were good.  Not the best, but good.  They'd
escaped from the theatre after enjoying a few hours there, and he'd go back and
get gas tomorrow morning.  It'd be easier on his own probably, or maybe Desiree
could come with him.

He
hated the idea of leaving Sadie alone, but he knew he couldn't baby her,
either.  They... they were moving so fast and sudden and he liked it--loved it,
even--but was it because of their circumstances, this messed up world, or
because he really liked her?  He knew the answer to that without asking it, but
something kept digging into his mind and telling him some part of this was
wrong.

What,
though?  Nothing, really.  Everything was great.  He squeezed Sadie's hand and
looked over at her, smiling.  In the dim glow of the moonlight both of them
were a blur of shadows, but it didn't matter.  He knew the way to her home in
the woods by now and they both walked along the back roads, happy to spend time
together.  Nothing more or less than that.  Evan liked it.

Soon,
very soon, he'd open the door to her home for her like a gentleman and escort
her inside.  After turning off the generator out back, they'd flee to her
bedroom.  He'd say good night to Desiree if she was still awake, or maybe find
a blanket for her otherwise, but then...

He
remembered the other night when he'd stayed here.  Cuddling close to Sadie all
night, feeling the coolness of her body become something a little less cold as
he held her tight.  What would happen, he wondered, if he kept her close for
days?  Warm, embracing her, and... was that it?  Was that enough?  Could he
cure her sickness that way, with love and tenderness?

He
didn't think so, but he was up for trying it if Sadie wanted.  Playing under
the covers together, kissing, reading books, sneaking out for a snack here and
there; for him, at least, if not for her.

They
reached her driveway.  One of the lights in the living room where they'd left
Desiree glimmered softly through the window, giving the house a warm, inviting
glow.  She shouldn't have turned the light on, but he couldn't begrudge her it,
either.  After months with little to no common amenities, he'd want to splurge
if he were in her situation, too.

If
everything went as Evan hoped, they'd all be able to splurge as much as they
liked.

If...

"Take
her," someone said.

Evan
blinked, confused.  "Alex?"

"Be
careful.  She's dangerous."

A
few of the men from camp rushed out of the shadows and pulled Sadie away from
Evan before he could even comprehend the situation.

Why
were they here?  What was going on?

"What
are you doing?" Evan asked.

"Good
job," Alex said, saluting Evan.  "Everything's under control now. 
Don't worry about a thing."

* * *

Two
men came and pulled me away from Evan.  I held tight to his hand, but they
loosened my fingers and dragged me away.  They pinned my arms behind my back
and pushed me forward.  I nearly fell on the sidewalk but they hefted me up and
shoved me along.

"What
are you doing?" I heard Evan asking behind me.

"Good
job," the other man said.  The rest sounded muffled and far off as the men
behind me continued pushing me away.  I stumbled through my borrowed home's
driveway, tripping on the pavement, but they picked me up and carried me along,
not letting me fall or escape.

Their
hands dug into my skin like thick, hot pokers.  It hurt; too hot and too hard
and nothing like Evan's soft warmth and touch.

We
went through a gate in the fence leading into the backyard, then scrambled towards
the middle of the lawn.  There, right in the center, was some kind of cage.

A
modified dog pen, I realized.  An outdoor one with eight sides.  They'd
attached three on top of each other, using heavy-duty cable ties to keep the
construction secured in place.  A chain with a lock sealed each of the pet cage
doors shut.  The entire thing stood taller than me but with barely enough room
in the middle to sit and stretch my legs.  Plenty of space for a decent sized
dog, but...

One
of the men took both my wrists in his hand and restrained them behind my back. 
It felt like I had handcuffs made of fire circling my wrists.  The other man
knelt low and unlocked one of the chains, then opened the door closest to the
ground.  The man clutching my wrists shoved me forwards and they shouted at me
to get in the cage.

I
didn't know what else to do.  What else could I do?  I crawled on hands and
knees, trying to fit myself into the cage.  The door was made for a dog, not a
person, so I struggled to squeeze inside it.  My arms went through easily
enough.  My breasts and my shirt caught on the bottom of the cage, though, and
I tried to move, to shimmy my way in, but apparently I wasn't fast enough.

The
men behind me pushed me in, cramming my body through the small door and tiny
cage.  I squirmed, confused, and I wanted to scream and ask them what they were
doing and why, but I didn't know how anymore.  It hit me so fast, so sudden, my
mind addled and disoriented.  With Evan away and these forceful, aggressive men
at my side instead, I'd lost all semblance of normalness I'd had only minutes
before.  I wanted to cry; lost, confused.

I
found myself kneeling on a dog cushion in the middle of the pen, trapped.  The
man who had unlocked the chain looped it through the door and then locked it
again.  The other man stood nearby, openly staring at me.

"I'll
take first watch," he said.  "Should be fine.  I'll holler if I need
help."

"What..."
I said, worried, forgetting how to speak and ask questions.  "What's going
on?"

"Quiet,"
the man guarding me said.  The other man turned around to look at me briefly,
but said nothing and started walking away again. 

"We're
not going to kill you and that should be enough," my guard said. 
"Evan's managed to convince our leader it's a good idea to examine the
zombie sickness, so we'll start experimenting and doing some tests tomorrow. 
You've gone along with it well so far, but don't start thinking you're special
or anything.  For all we know, you very well might die during the trial and
error part of this."

"It's
good, though," he added with a smile.  "We'll make sure no one else
becomes some monster like you.  Even as some fucked up zombie, I'm sure you can
see how good that is, right?"

"What?"
I asked.  "Evan?"

"Yeah,
why do you think he lured you away for a few hours?  We came after you left.  I
don't know the specifics, but Desiree told Alex when you were gone, then Alex
told us and we rushed here and set everything up before you and Evan got back. 
I wasn't in on the initial plans, but apparently this has been in the works for
awhile."

It...
it was planned?  The date?  Evan asking me out?  I...

No,
no, it couldn't be.  Evan wouldn't do that.  Why would he do that?  And...
Alex... I didn't understand any of this.  But Desiree told someone we'd left? 
Did she hate me?

Was
I delusional?  Why did I think anyone could love me in the first place?  Why
did I think Evan cared about me?  I didn't know, but I desperately wanted it,
even now.  I wanted to feel him close to me, feel him hugging me.  He'd promised
me that he'd stay the night with me, but here I was, trapped in some dog cage,
and there he was, in some other world entirely.

I
looked towards my house, towards the living room with a view of the backyard. 
The lamp that I'd never once turned on shone bright, giving the yard a faint,
shimmering luminescence.  Evan stood near the glass porch door, face pressed
against it, staring out at me, while some man, Alex, said things to him from
inside.

The
generator in the backyard droned, adding sound to their moving mouths.  I
couldn't hear anything they said anyways, but now I heard even less.  Slumping
onto the ground, curling my knees to my chest and wrapping my arms around them,
I sat there, still and silent.

I
had a little of Evan's warmth to keep me feeling pleasant, but I barely
recognized it.  It would fade.  Everything would go away.

* * *

"What
the hell is going on?" Evan asked.  This shouldn't have happened!  He and
Sadie should be cuddling in her bed right about now, turning down for the
night, and talking softly about nothing important.  He wanted this, desired it
so much, and yet...

"Whoa
there, lover boy," Alex said, feigning indignance.  "Don't get your
panties in a bunch, alright?  Your little girlfriend's perfectly fine.  We set
her up somewhere nice."

"What? 
Alex, why are you even here?  What happened?  I don't understand."

"Come
on, take a look.  I think it's a good idea myself, but I'm interested in your
opinion."

After
urging Evan inside, bringing him into Sadie's living room, Alex led him to the
glass door that opened onto the back porch.  Evan squinted and looked outside,
but saw nothing but blackness; the light inside and the dark outside obscuring
his view.  Pressing his face against the glass, staring, he saw two men.  One
of them started walking towards the house while the other stood guard around
something in the yard.  What was that?

"It's
as much to keep her safe as it is to keep us safe, so pardon my quick job of
it," Alex said.

Once
Evan grew accustomed to staring into the dark, he recognized the shape.  A dog
pen?  And then he saw her; Sadie.  In the middle of the pens, trapped by locks
and chains binding the cage openings, she sat there, looking towards the house
and him.

He
looked back at her, trying to find the courage to say something to her.  What
could he say, though?  He swallowed hard, his throat convulsing.  He'd gotten
her into this mess and now what?  Even if he had the nerve to try and say
anything, the buzz of the generator in the backyard would've muffled his voice
into an unrecognizable static.

Evan
turned towards Alex, rage in his eyes.  "Why are you doing this?" he
asked.  "She's not dangerous, Alex.  You can let her out.  You can let her
in here.  I swear.  I swear to God or on my grandmother's grave or whatever you
want.  I swear Sadie won't hurt anyone.  I promise you that."