Once Upon a Twist (11 page)

She staggered back a step, and another, until she heard a grating moan behind her. Spinning, her heart almost burst out of her chest as her blurry vision took in three men, although
men
was pushing it. They didn’t have lips. Their skin was a dark grey, blackened where the flesh had been removed and their eyes glowed yellow, the same color as the creature’s. They reminded her of those who’d had the disease, but that wasn’t possible. Everyone had been cured. It said so on the news.

But, impossible or not, she was surrounded. She backed up to the door, but the thing inside hit it again, jolting her a step forward and the wood splintered this time. The men hulked closer, their limbs awkward as they moved but they weren’t slow.

“You’re supposed to be dead.” Her whisper was lost in the sound of a gunshot.

One of the men’s heads exploded. Bits of blood and brain and skull flew through the air in every direction. She covered her face with her hands as the cold, wet flesh rained on her.

“Red, get over here!”

Ruby barely registered her old nickname, nor could she move. Her chest had constricted so tightly it was an effort to breathe. The husky demand jolted through her skin, sinking into her pounding heart and breaking it all over again. Tears stung her eyes and she wondered if her mind really was that cruel. Playing tricks on her so soon after her witnessing all this.

A shot sounded just as the door behind her groaned in protest at the force of the creature’s attack. She could give in. Best case scenario, the thing would kill her, but she knew if the man-like creatures got anywhere near her she’d become one of them.

Another shot echoed in her ears. The men were close and the bullet took them both out. She closed her eyes against the sight of brain and blood and yuck. Once had been enough.

“Now!” he demanded.

Without thinking, she took off down Grandma’s garden path, ignoring the bodies on the floor. The sound of the wood splitting made her push her legs faster as she headed for the forest.

A muffled curse sounded to her left. She turned in time to see
him
running toward her, a shot gun aimed directly at her head. Her heart missed a few beats. She stopped immediately.

“I’m not…I’ve not been bitten. I—”

“Behind you!”

She spun around. Another few of the infected were at the edge of the forest. He let off another shot and her ears rang with the sound. It didn’t muffle the crack of more wood splintering, or the snarl that came from the creature which had managed to make a hole in the door big enough for its head to get through. Snapping jaws gnawed at the gap, trying to create a way out.

He
caught her around the waist and picked her off the ground with one arm, pressing her close to every hard, unrelenting muscle of his body. His scent engulfed her, and his rough skin comforted her.

Anger and gratitude rippled through her, as well as something she didn’t want to think about. She bit her tongue to distract herself, but the tears streaming down her face reminded her that Grandma was gone. Her breath choked out on a sob. His
arms squeezed tighter around her.

Ruby pushed at his chest. “Don’t touch me, put me down!”

He lowered her to the ground, his jaw tense, his sharp features so severe she probably imagined the flash of hurt in his black eyes. Eyes she’d once happily fallen into. Eyes that had once made her forget everything else in the world. Eyes she’d wanted to gouge out for betraying her in the worst way possible.

“We need to get out of here.” His voice tore her back to the present. She heard the creature tear another chunk of wood from the door. “Now.”

She reached for his outstretched hand, but hesitated. “Grandma.” Her voice broke around the word.

They had to go back, what if there was still a… Ruby stopped the thought dead. Even she knew hoping was ridiculous. Still if they could get her to a hospital… She snatched her hand away and turned back to the house.

His strong, constricting arms banded around her waist and he picked her up again. She kicked and screamed, unwilling to go easy, her mind a haze of grief. The bastard didn’t even flinch, didn’t loosen his hold. And then they were moving. She tried another kick, aiming for his knees.

“Red, quit it.”

Her limbs froze, but her chest ripped out sobs with every breath. “Stop… calling… me… that.” Her hair was more blonde than red, especially now she’d had it highlighted, and the nickname took her back to a time she wanted to forget.

The ground met her feet and suddenly he was in front of her, wiping her eyes, her cheeks. The severe expression on his face had been replaced with wide eyes and a frown. 

“She’s…” He cleared his throat. “We can’t save her. It’s too late.”

Rage boiled through her veins, wiping away rational thought. After all, what was the point? She had nothing left. No family. Not even him. “No.”

His teeth snapped together and he grabbed her hand. She tried to pull it away but he was too strong; his grip almost crushed her bones. He turned and tugged her hard. It was either fall or follow, though she was sure if she fell he’d drag her along anyway. Any man who could lug around trees didn’t worry about the weight of a hundred and thirty pound woman. The bastard broke into a sprint, leading them into the thick of the forest in the opposite direction of his home. She tried to push the grief down, concentrate on following him through the darkness.

“Where are we going?” she asked, pushing her legs faster to keep up with him.

She couldn’t see a foot in front of her. Darker shadows than the night around them gave no indication of where they were. The moon hid beneath clouds above, somewhere through the trees. If he crashed into something she was going down with him.

“We need to mask your scent.”

If stranger words had come out of his mouth, she hadn’t heard them. But then it clicked. “The thing can smell me.”

And it did get a good whiff at the house. She swallowed against the tears in her throat. It wasn’t the time to grieve. Now she could think rationally and, although she grudged it, she was grateful he’d come when he did or she’d either be an infected monster by now or the thing would have eaten her. 

He didn’t answer, just ran faster. She kept up, but her calf muscles burned and her lungs heaved with the effort. Over her ragged panting, she heard the sound of the river, but she knew they were too high up. He must be taking her to…

Ruby slowed, tried to yank her hand free. “You’ve lost your mind!”

His grip didn’t ease up as he dragged her closer to the ledge. “There’s no other way.”

“It’s at least a ten foot drop. You know I can’t swim!”

He stopped at the ledge and launched the gun into the darkness. She thought for a second he’d thrown it into the river, but it landed in the distance with a thud. The moonlight broke through the clouds, illuminating the scary jump and rushing water below. Her heart sped.

“You’ll be fine. I won’t let you drown.” His lips quirked, like he found her terror entertaining.

All the pent up anger, grief, and fear fought for supremacy inside. She couldn’t control what came out of her mouth. “And I’m supposed to trust you? Are you kidding me?”

His arms banded around her, holding her arms down by her sides in a steely grip. “You could always trust me, Red. I told you everything I was allowed to.”

Before she could argue, or before she could wonder what he meant by
allowed
, he picked her up and jumped off the ledge.

Chapter Two

Red’s scream pierced Jeremy’s eardrums as gravity pulled them down. Wind rushed up around them, making her hair and cloak fly up. Before he could suck in a proper breath, they were completely submerged in water. The icy river swallowed them whole and he almost gasped in a lungful as they plunged deeper. Shock jolted through him like an electric current, but he didn’t have time to let it paralyze him. Kicking his legs, he fought against gravity and pushed them to the surface.

Their heads’ broke through at the same time and she sputtered, coughing up water all over his face. He grinned as he rubbed and patted her back. A year of hollow misery and she was back in his arms. Back in his life. Even if she didn’t want to be there, even if her grandma was gone, he couldn’t strip the joy from the moment if he tried. Not even remorse at what he’d done could overpower it.

“I hate you.” Red coughed again, but it was only air that escaped her rose tinted lips.

He ground his teeth. Memories of the last time he’d seen her, the accusations she’d thrown at him came flooding back. He should have denied the allegations, shouldn’t have let her believe he’d hurt her like that. But he’d had to let her go. She deserved better than scum like him.

“I know.” And so she should hate him, just not for the reason she did.

The ache in his chest at the look in her eyes only made his arms tighten. If it wasn’t for what he and his father did, she’d have been his. They would be married by now, the world would be a safer place, and her grandma would still be alive.

A sob shook her body. “Red, don’t cry.” He wished he could do more to help her through this. Wished he could… “I’ll get us out of here. I promise.”

She jerked her head back. Her trembling body froze in his arms. “Don’t promise me anything.”

He deserved that, but it didn’t lessen the blow. Her words hit him between the shoulder blades like an axe being wielded by a woodcutter, which ironically, he had been since he moved to the cottage in the forest.

“And I told you. Stop. Calling. Me. That.”

Red—he’d always called her that. Felt weird not to. “We have to move.” As if backing up his words, he heard a howl in the distance. “The wolf will be here soon.” Keeping an arm around her waist, he pulled them both through the water to the other side of the river.

“The wolf?” she asked, her voice shaking.

He didn’t know whether it was cold, anguish, or fear.

When they reached the waters’ edge, he placed her hands on the bank. “That’s what it used to be. Hold onto a clump of grass and don’t move.”

Darkness hid her expression, but he could sense her glare. Jeremy fought back a smile. Hell, he’d missed her so much.

Planting his arms on the muddy ground, he pushed himself up and out of the river. Though the water had been icy, the cool night air only enhanced the chill, raising goosebumps on his skin. Shit, how did it all get so fucked up? One minute he’d been hunting the wolf, the next he’d heard the commotion in the woods. He didn’t know Red would be there, but when she left he’d sworn to himself he’d take care of her grandma—another promise he’d broken, but not for lack of trying.

But the biggest bitch-slap of all was that if he wasn’t who he was, she’d still be living there. Still be with him. Then again, there was no way their paths would have crossed if he hadn’t done what he had. He wished with all his heart she hadn’t known him. He was as much of a monster as the damn wolf.

“Where are you going?” she asked.

“To get the gun. Stay there,” he added when he heard the water splashing around her.

The splashing stopped, and she didn’t speak. He pulled a small torch from his pocket, clicked the button. Nothing happened. Shaking his head, he considered waiting for the clouds to pass the moon so he could see properly. That could take minutes they didn’t have.

Dropping to his knees, he felt blindly around the ground, but it was like looking for a natural blonde at Hugh Hefner’s. Then again, he’d be able to find Red there—or anywhere—even without the gift of sight. She may still be in the water, but he could remember her lavender scent, remember her silky smooth skin. Remember how his body fired up like it had been injected with a semi-lethal dose of hormones when she was in a ten foot radius.

“How…d-do you kn-know it will f-f-follow us.” Her teeth rattled together as she spoke.

Without the heat of his body, she must be freezing. He increased the speed of his search, thought about leaving the damn thing. After all he had plenty more at home, what was one shotgun when he had one in every closet? But keeping her alive for the journey back was more important than keeping her warm.

“J-J-Jer…?”

He considered how much to tell her, after all, he’d signed away the right to be honest with anyone, even the rest of the world when the half-dead creatures started attacking in the night. When he realized what had started it all, he had sworn he would put an end to what he helped create, even though opening his mouth meant he risked jail. Or worse, the other person’s death.

He’d been responsible for enough deaths already.

But Red deserved the truth from him. Always had
.
He’d let her know as much as was safe. “It’s a tracker by nature. Once it catches a scent, it won’t stop until…” he couldn’t finish the sentence. Bile rose in his throat at the thought of the wolf finding her.

His hand touched cold metal and he grabbed the gun. Turning, his gaze snagged on a dark figure with glowing yellow eyes at the top of the ledge. His blood turned cold. It was too soon to be her grandma. From his research, he knew the infection took twenty-four hours to fully complete the transformation when it came directly from the wolf’s saliva. It must have infected more people than he realized. Then again, it had been a good eight weeks since the creature had been sighted.

Still, those with the disease weren’t particularly bright and seemed to share the wolf’s fear of the water. He walked to the ledge, lowered himself into the icy river, and turned his back to Red, keeping his gaze fixed on the creature above them. He wouldn’t take chances with her again.

“Hold onto my back,” he instructed.

Red didn’t hesitate to slide her arms around his neck and bracket his lower back with her thighs. Arousal pulsed through his arctic veins, and straight down to his groin. Impossible, but he was hard and throbbing even though the water should have had his dick sucking up into his body in fear of contracting frostbite.

“Can it follow us?” she asked.

“I don’t think so,” he managed to say. “But we better get going. Just in case.”