Claiming Her Beasts #2 by Dia Cole
Lee
Iexchanged a startled look with Zara as Dominic strode into the room.
“Maybe the chopper is finally here to evacuate us,” Zara said over the sudden piercing wail of a toddler. “Or maybe zombies invaded the school.”
I gasped, my internal temperature dropping ten degrees.
“Line up by the whiteboard,” Dominic ordered, the beam of his flashlight bouncing off the backs of waking people. With his dark close-cropped hair, clean-shaven face, and military fatigues he looked every inch the Special Forces sergeant he was.
I didn’t know why but seeing the six-and-a-half-foot tall soldier always took my breath away. It was as if some part of me came alive whenever he was near. Of course, it didn’t hurt that his bronze skin, chiseled jaw, and full lips made him one of the most beautiful guys I’d ever seen.
“Look alive, people.”
He certainly wasn’t the friendliest though. In the three days since we’d been here, I’d only ever seen him bark orders at his soldiers and the other civilians.
“Move it!”
Outside, thunder rumbled as if to underscore the urgency of the order.
Spurred into action, I hurried back to my sister.
Of course, the brat was still sleeping. I roughly shook her awake.
Eden’s eyes, the same shade of brown as mine, snapped open. “Wh-what’s happening, sissy?”
“Dominic wants us by the white board.” Momentarily forgetting about her companion, I yanked my sister’s hand to pull her up.
The little girl rolled out of Eden’s arms and hit the floor with a panicked shriek.
“Shh, Rosie. It’s okay,” Eden said, shaking off my hand so she could give the girl a comforting hug. The look she gave me over the girl’s shoulder wasn’t so comforting.
“Sorry,” I mouthed, feeling like an ass. Eden mentioned the girl had witnessed her mother’s brutal death. I looked down at the girl’s blond curls feeling a stab of sympathy. I too knew the horror of watching my mother die.
“We’re just having an early breakfast, right Lee?” My sister gave me a meaningful look.
“Right,” I said, playing along. “Maybe we’ll have pancakes today.” I rubbed my stomach. “Mmm.” My acting wouldn’t win any awards, but at least it got Rosie to close her mouth and allow Eden to pick her up.
I steered the two of them toward the middle of the line where Zara was holding a spot for us.
“Leave your things here,” Dominic shouted at Karen who’d grabbed the oversized wheeled bag she’d brought with her.
The annoying woman gave him a mutinous look and continued rolling her luggage over.
That spurred several other women to run and grab their bags and boxes of personal items.
Must be nice.Other than the clothes on my back and the shoes on my feet, I’d come to the school with nothing. That’s not true, I corrected. I had Reed and my sister. They’re the only things that matter.
I tightened my grip around my sister’s elbow. A moment later, we followed a frustrated-looking Dominic out of the classroom.
The battery-operated lanterns strategically placed every four feet on the floor threw eerie shadows on the large handprint tree mural covering the wall.
“Where are we going?” Eden asked in a hushed voice.
“I don’t know,” I whispered.
“I’d wager the gym,” Zara said, chiming in. “It’s the most defensible location in the school.”
“Wh-what?” Eden stuttered.
“Well see, you have the hallway that acts as a natural chokepoint and the bleachers that can be climbed for safety. Zombies can’t climb, you know?”
Eden and I blinked at her.
Oh, hell. My heart began to pound. “I need to get Reed.”
“Relax,” Zara said with a dismissive wave. “If zombies were inside the school do you think the soldiers would take their sweet ass time moving us down the hall?”
As if to prove her point, Dominic stopped short and our line bunched together like a compressed accordion.
Ignoring the women stumbling into each other, Dominic motioned at one of his soldiers down the hall. Three days ago, there had been twelve soldiers reporting to him. Now there were only nine.
What happened to the others?
“It’s Mike,” Eden said in a voice much higher than usual. She wet her lips, her gaze fixed on the blue-eyed soldier with the blond crew cut.
“Don’t tell me you have the hots for Mike,” Zara teased.
Eden flushed.
My jaw fell open in surprise. This is a first. Up to this point, Eden had rarely shown interest in a guy. I don’t know that I entirely approved of her crushing on a soldier, but it wasn’t as if he’d return her interest. Dominic had made it clear his squad would not be fraternizing with any of us civilians.
Seeming unaware of Eden’s interest, Mike yanked open another classroom door and shouted, “Everyone out.”
Slowly, the male members of our group poured into the hallway and fell in step with us. Reunions between family members occurred with hushed whispers and uneasy glances at the soldiers.
“Rosie,” a thunderous voice called out.
The little girl twisted around in Eden’s arms as a muscular, tattoo-covered man, with a horseshoe mustache, approached them both. “Daddy!”
“We took good care of her, Grady,” Eden said as the biker-looking guy yanked Rosie away.
“My daughter should stay with me,” he grunted, holding the child against the front of his sleeveless denim jacket. “They’re assholes for separating parents from their children.” He sneered at the soldiers and carried Rosie to the back of the line.
Eden sighed. “He does have a point.”
“His point reeks of alcohol.” I fanned the air to dissipate the smell of vodka. The little girl was probably better off with my sister than that drunk.
Zara tapped her chin thoughtfully. “We need to find out where Grady is keeping his stash.”
“What stash?” asked a handsome, dusky-skinned man who’d appeared behind her. “Are you holding out on me, sis?”
“No, Sai.”
“Are you sure?” He rubbed his knuckles against the top of Zara’s rainbow hair. With his mop of curls, hazel eyes, and rakish goatee, I could see how this brother would be the lady killer.
Zara elbowed him in the stomach. “Don’t embarrass me in front of my new friends.”
Sai’s hazel eyes skipped over my sister and crashed into me. He gasped audibly and put one ring-covered hand over his heart. “Have I died?”
Zara rolled her eyes. “No, but right now I wish you would.”
Sai stepped around her. “Then how do you explain this angel?” As he approached, I got an eyeful of the gold chains hanging around his neck. They were impossible to miss with his black silk shirt unbuttoned clear to his rock-hard abs. Out of habit, I glanced down at his shoes. Cami always said you could tell a lot about a guy from his shoes.
Sai’s leather Gucci loafers put him in the big spender category. If we were in the club, I’d be bleeding his wallet dry with lap dances and trips to the VIP room. Based on the gleam in his eye, he’d have taken the bait hook, line and sinker.
“I’m Sai Sighn,” he said, taking my hand. “And I’d sing for you, darling.” He smiled, flashing me a pair of dimples that made me swoon a little.
He looked somewhat familiar. Maybe I’d seen him at the club.
Zara shoved him hard in the back. “Her name is Lee and she already has a boyfriend.”
Sai didn’t budge and his smile never wavered. “Maybe she could use another.” As he kissed the top of my knuckles, I caught a whiff of his bay rum cologne.
It brought back the memory of my last night at the club. Javier, also a flamboyant dresser and a wearer of expensive cologne, had summoned me to his table to proposition me. Then he’d sent his men to my house where they’d attacked Reed and killed my uncle. Feeling suddenly sick to my stomach, I snatched my hand from Sai’s.
Sai’s eyes widened in surprise.
“Looks as if your charm has run out, brother,” called out a taller, more muscular version of Sai. The new guy, who was rocking the shaved head look, had to be Avi.
I studied Zara’s eldest brother as he prowled over in a black T-shirt, jeans, and combat boots. His rough-hewn features included a heavy brow, a stubbled jaw, and a nose that looked as if it had been broken more than once. He was definitely more rugged looking than handsome. Even so, there was something wild and predatory in his gold-green eyes that heated my blood.
“Sai’s going down in flames,” chortled an acne covered teenage guy in glasses who sidled up next to Zara.
Zara high-fived him. “Nice one, Dev.” Her smile faded as she caught Avi’s censured gaze. “Hey, Avi.”
Avi frowned and raked his gaze over me in a way that made me feel lacking. “Who is this? And why are you wasting time talking to her?”
What an asshole.
“These are Zara’s new friends.” Sai motioned at me. “Avi and Dev meet Lee and…” He turned to Eden and seemed to draw a blank.
Eden pursed her lips. “I’m Eden, Lee’s less attractive younger sister.”
I winced. “That’s not true.” Eden was pretty in the same girl-next-door kind of way my mother had been. I on the other hand, had more exotic features like my father. They and my huge breasts seemed to attract more male attention.
“I agree,” Dev said, giving Eden a shy smile.
Avi made an impatient sound. “Enough pleasantries, where is your go-bag, Zara? You know better than to be without it.”
Zara rolled her eyes. “Whatever. Sai doesn’t have his.”
“That’s because all he packed were boxes of condoms,” Dev said with a snort.
Sai winked at me. “It’s all about priorities.”
Avi’s narrowed gaze bounced between Sai and Zara. “Mom would be so disappointed in you two.”
I didn’t like the stricken expression on my new friend’s face. Wanting to help her out, I said, “The sergeant instructed us to leave our things in the classroom.”
“Really?” Avi stared down the hallway where Dominic and Mike were speaking in low voices. “We’re not evacuating then?”
“Or they don’t want to overload the helicopter,” Eden said, her gaze locking on Mike again.
Up ahead, Mike nodded at whatever Dominic had told him. “Yes, sir,” he said audibly, before approaching the people at the front of our line. “Everyone, please follow me into the gym. Once inside, find a seat on the bleachers.”
His announcement was met with loud murmurs. A few people shouted out questions.
“Are we being evacuated?”
“Are the helicopters here?”
I tensed, wondering if I should find Reed. The nurse’s office was clear on the other side of the school near the chapel.
“Silence,” Dominic shouted, his deep voice reverberating in the narrow hallway.
Everyone went quiet and still. Even the wailing toddler stopped crying.
“Follow Mike,” Dominic snarled.
Immediately people moved toward the gym.
I sucked in a breath as I passed the imposing sergeant. For a fleeting moment, Dominic’s black gaze tangled with mine and my heart skipped a beat. Once again, I felt that strange magnetism between us. It filled me with the ridiculous urge to throw myself into his arms. Thankfully, I was able to force my gaze to the back of Zara’s rainbow-hued curls.
Eden leaned over and whispered, “If this is an evacuation, they better bring the animals too.” She motioned in the direction of the library where the survivors’ pets were being kept. My sister had been helping take care of the animals, mainly cats, the other survivors had refused to leave behind.
I rolled my eyes. For some inane reason, my sister equated the lives of animals with human lives. Her veganism was understandable, but her previous arrests for protesting the canine euthanization laws were not. Trying to keep my sarcastic remarks to myself, I focused on following the line into the gym.
Someone had turned on a portable floodlight by the stage in the back. The light was so garishly bright I had to look down at the shiny wood floor so my eyes could adjust. Even though our group had spent a good deal of time in this space over the past few days, it still smelled faintly of floor wax and buttered popcorn.
“Look, Reed is here,” Eden said, tugging my arm.
My heart jumped. I quickly scanned the bleachers until I found him seated in the third row from the top. He was turned away from us and most of his face was obscured by the sweatshirt hood he’d drawn over his head, but I’d know his lanky build anywhere.
“Reed!” I called out, frustrated when he didn’t look in our direction. Damn. There were too many people in my way. I chewed my bottom lip, as the line crawled along at a snail’s pace. It seemed to take forever for us to climb the mostly filled bleachers.
Zara went up two rows and sat. “Lee, over here.”
I shook my head and motioned at the top of the bleachers. “I’m sitting up there.”
Zara’s brothers had followed their sister into the second row, but she shoved past them to step back into the aisle.
Several people behind us grumbled.
“Zara, sit down,” exclaimed Avi.
“You stay. I don’t want to sit with you anyway.” Turning her back on her brothers, Zara followed Eden and me up the bleachers.
As we climbed higher, I dropped my sister’s arm and took the steps two at a time. When I reached Reed’s nearly empty row, I ran over to him. “Reed!” I sat down and threw my arms around his neck. Never had I been happier to inhale his earthy clove scent.
When he didn’t return my embrace, I slowly pulled away. “Reed?”
He didn’t look at me.
What’s going on? Is he mad at me?Confused, I gently turned his bearded face toward mine.
He stared at me with no recognition.
My stomach dropped. What happened to him?
Eden, who’d sat on the bench next to me, gasped. I didn’t know if she was shocked by the bruised massacre of his normally model-gorgeous face or the dullness in his unblinking electric blue eyes.
“Is Fruitcake okay?” Zara asked in a loud voice.
Kiara, a heavily pregnant woman, sitting a few rows down, spun around. “The nurse gave him and Vincent enough meds to tranq elephants.”
Her boyfriend, Mario, a dark-haired man whose arms and neck were covered in gang tattoos, laughed. “Cabron is flying high. I want some of that shit.”
Kiara smacked the back of her boyfriend’s head.
My anxiety grew as I studied Reed’s expressionless face.
Vincent, a reed-thin man with a weather-beaten face and wild eyes, muttered nonsense on the same bench several feet away. The sour smell coming off the formerly homeless guy made my eyes water and his strange chanting made the hair on the back of my neck rise.
“Why did you choose the looney tunes section?” Sai groused as he sat down next to Zara. It seemed he and his brothers had followed us up after all.
“Lee wanted to sit next to Fruitcake.” Zara lowered her voice slightly. “You know, the crazy guy.”
Dev, who was sliding into the same row, glanced between Reed and Vincent. “Which crazy guy?”
“Reed isn’t crazy,” Eden snapped.
Dev flushed and stammered an apology.
Avi found a seat in the top row and made a sound of annoyance. “Sit down and be quiet.”
Zara spun around to glare at him. “Stop treating us like children.”
“I will when you stop acting like children,” he shot back.
“Go fuck your—” Zara broke off at the sound of the gym door being kicked open.