ZOMB-POCALYPSE BOOK 2

Chapter Eleven

"You going up to bed?" Silas asks, and I nod.

"I'm gonna go check on Ryan and Sunny, see how he made out putting her to bed," I tell him, a smile tugging at my lips as I remember the way Sunny insisted that it had to be Ryan who read her a story. "Besides, it's creepy down here in the dark," I admit my ulterior motive, and Silas chuckles.

"It is a little grim, being in someone else's house in the middle of all of this," Silas admits, and I'm surprised that he'd admit such a thing to me. The living room would have been an ideal place to crash, but with the dog attacks—it's too gruesome. That's another reason this place is creeping me out!

We've had to hang out in the kitchen all night, and in addition to the chairs being hard and uncomfortable, the entire wall facing out to the back deck is made of glass. It lets in enough moonlight to see, but it's also creepy and far too big to cover up with garbage bags. So candles and lanterns are out. Glass walls don't exactly leave me feeling safe from the thousands of zombies wandering the countryside. When I raised the alarm, both Silas and Ryan assured me that the six-foot-tall wooden fence surrounding the backyard would keep the zombies away. I try not to think about the town where I met Silas and how the zombies had managed to push up against the back gate and break it open...

"I might come up with you," Silas says, pulling my attention away from my dark thoughts. "It's getting a little cold down here, a smaller room will hold the heat better," he says, getting up off his chair and stretching his long body until I hear his back pop and crack. I wince, and he smirks at me, having seen my face in the moonlight. I give one last look out at the yard. Tonight is one of those cold, clear nights where the stars look extra bright, and the grass is covered in a thin layer of white frost. Winter is coming, and I am not ready to spend it without electricity and heat.

"Come on," Silas says gently, touching my arm, and I jerk my gaze away from the window. "It will be alright," he says, thinking my worry is only for the glass wall. I nod, and he keeps a warm hand on my arm to guide me through the dark house as we make our way upstairs. A crack of light escapes out from underneath the girly bedroom that Sunny has claimed for her own.

Silas and I creep in, not wanting to wake Sunny. Well—I creep—Silas is just naturally stealthy. We both stop and stare at Ryan and Sunny, a smile tugging my lips upward. Ryan is lying on his back with Sunny snuggled up against his shoulder, both of them sound asleep, tucked underneath the pink blanket. Though Ryan has also unzipped his sleeping bag and stretched it overtop the two of them for added heat. I walk over and gently remove the princess book from Ryan's chest.

Silas grabs his own sleeping bag from our pile of stuff by the Barbie dream house and climbs the ladder to the top bunk. I hesitate, not sure what to do. The beds are only twin sized, and Ryan and Sunny are both sprawled out, leaving me no room to join them.

"I don't bite," Silas says with a chuckle from the top bunk, and I pause. It's no big deal, I tell myself as I walk stiffly over to grab my own pink and red sleeping bag, courtesy of the camping store.

"Will you bring my backpack too?" Silas asks, and I nod as I snag the strap around my wrist and pass both things up to him before kicking off my shoes and climbing the ladder.

I roll my sleeping bag out beside Silas while he's busy digging in his bag. "I've been meaning to get my hands on you," he says suddenly, and I freeze, my heart accelerating to beat wildly in my chest.

"What?" I squeak, sure I am overreacting.

"Yes," Silas confirms, grabbing my hand, and I look up at him sharply.

"What are you doing?" I ask in confusion, finally noticing the first aid kit in his lap.

"I want to take a look at those stitches I gave you, it's probably time for them to come out," he says, rolling up my sleeve, and I let out a big sigh of relief. I was overreacting, thank God. Silas isn't interested in me like that. I'm so glad I didn't freak out at him and make myself look like a fool!