“But-but—”
“No buts! I told you my intentions from the get-go. You’re the one that decided to get carried away.”
“I could be more than the girl that sucks your cock. I could cook!”
”No—you can’t. And quite frankly, even if you could, I wouldn’t want you to.” I gather my things in haste, hoping to put this mess behind me. Angry as hell for what I just lost.
Sue might not be ideal, or even pretty, but she offered a brief reprieve from the storm outside. One I desperately need.
I’m sure there are other women holed up in the city, ones that would make fine candidates for the Keep.
And if I see one, I'll make sure to stay far away, because unlike most of the men I roll with, I'm not keen on this repopulation agenda. I like freedom and no baggage. Kids complicate things.
And they're obnoxious.
I cannot overstate that.
“Take care,” I shout over my shoulder.
A hand grabs my arm. I twist, shoving Sue onto the couch, baring my teeth so she knows I mean business.
I hold her there, letting her see how serious I am. Letting her grow afraid of me.
Her face is a mess of tears. I shouldn't have let her get this attached, but I was so fucking desperate for an escape from the madness.
“This is a warning,” I finally say, my voice deadpan. “I promise you won’t like what comes next.”
”You bastard!” She spits at me.
I wipe the moisture away. “I wear that title proudly.”
I rush from the tiny apartment and finish my daily pest control quota, annoyed that I just lost the last good thing I had.
SLASH
Maybe I'm just not cut out for the Keep.
SLASH
Maybe lawlessness is the way to go. Lowtown, the seedy underbelly of the city, is growing. Maybe I should go there.
SLASH
Why bring a baby into a decaying world?
SLASH
What the hell were Blake and Gage thinking? The dead are many, and mankind so few.
An unexpected shroud of despair envelops me.
We lost.
Plain and simple.
A stream of unintelligible syllables pours from an alley up ahead. Sounds that only the living would make.
I drop three more ragers, then turn a corner and scan the area.