Orthodontics in the Zombie Apocalypse

16. The Cure is Safe With Us...Definitely (1/2)

How the hell do I get everyone else to back off and leave Greg and me alone?

I am appalled by the current situation. Shaniya doesn't even like me! Why did she have to tag along? She must really enjoy third-wheeling because, as far as I'm concerned, this matter is between Greg and myself.

"I wish we would just get to the safe house," Mikah mutters, ducking his head close so that his breath tickles my ear.

"You know, that's not a bad idea. You three--er--" Oh right, the street rat is still here. "You four should get to the safe house. I'll make sure Greg gets the cure to Bad Idea Labs."

Mikah frowns. "I meant... I'm sure Shaniya and Sean can handle it."

"You don't know where the safe house is, smart one. Shaniya and Sean do, though." The new plan hatches so brilliantly. It floods my stomach with warmth. "It's cruel to keep a small, innocent child like Angel away from safety in these conditions, don't you think?" I ask Mikah, though I project loud enough for Shaniya to hear.

Her head cocks toward our direction. Dirty eavesdropper. "It's cruel to deprive humanity of a cure to such an unforgiving disease."

"Look at Greg—poor guy. You're hurting his feelings!"

"If he's that sensitive to words, I have some concerns about how he'll handle zombies."

I look pointedly at my feet so nobody sees the look on my face—the type of crinkle-nosed disappointment and disgust that follows after a particularly brutal vomiting experience when bile coats the most sensitive tastebuds.

"You good?" Mikah asks.

I work out my jaw before looking up again. I'm not sure if it would have been unhinged or tense as a rock. Either way, it needed some attention. "Peachy as a pear."

What if I just steal the cure? Take it from Greg while he sleeps and run off with it when nobody else is awake...That could work.

Shaniya will be a problem. She's too invested in the situation. I bet she'll have watch shifts while we sleep, and it would be just like her to make sure she's on the same shift as me. I'll need a diversion...

Ah, but I'm thinking ahead too far. I don't even know if that will happen. Hell, I still don't know what or where the cure is!

***

After a few hours' trek through the city, the sun sinks behind the impervious buildings, plunging the streets in a gray darkness.

"We should stop to rest. I say we take watch shifts, two at a time," Shaniya says. "Mikah and Sean can take the first watch. Then Angel and Piper. Which leaves myself and Greg for the last leg."

Angel? This is going to be easier than I thought. A two year-old isn't going to stand in my way from the one thing I've wanted for the past eight years!