“Hey,” Carter protested. “Relax.”
Ryder released his hand and pushed him away. “Don’t touch me,” she spat. “How far is it to town?”
Carter shook his head. “You really need to work on your people skills. I’m not sure what Afana taught you, but you should be nice to people who are about to help you. You’ve got about fifteen minutes to make it up to me.”
Carter was right, and Ryder knew it. She had to play nice. Well, as nice as she could.
“Next time you touch me, I’ll set Fluffy on you.” Ryder smiled, and Leandro growled. He really didn’t like that name.
Carter winked at Fluffy. “Nice. You’re getting it! You’re lucky that I’m one of the best teachers in the settlement. We’ll be there in fifteen minutes.”
If he’s the best teacher in the settlement, is there any point in going, or are they all going to be overgrown kids? she wondered as she marched on.
Robert Moss left General Murray and Jerkins in the lab and went to wake Afana. Robert had never in all his years had to wake Afana, and he wasn’t looking forward to the task, but he knew he had no choice.
Afana had his own private wing within the bunker. Robert was the only advisor with the authorization to enter his quarters for situations like this. When Robert pressed his hand onto the reader, a red beam scanned it, and the heavy, silver metal doors opened.
His heart beat harder than it had in years, so hard that he thought he was having a heart attack. Even if he was having a heart attack, he still needed to wake Afana. It was his job to keep the bunker running, no matter what.
Afana’s quarters were like a high-end hotel suite—everything he needed was there. Afana’s TV filled a wall and had a deep sofa in front of it.
Robert didn’t have time to take in the details of the rooms. He walked to a door at the back and placed his hand on a second scanner. The door opened, and Afana was asleep inside a white pod with a front glass panel and deep pink lights.
Robert knew Afana’s schedule. He was only awake during the hours of darkness. He slept through the day.
Robert thought about stalling and not waking him up, but he knew that Afana would find out he’d delayed and kill him for it. Robert’s hand was shaking as he pressed the control panel to open the pod. The glass door opened with a gush as air rushed out of the pod, and he stepped back at the sight of Afana.
Even asleep, he was terrifying.
Afana’s fangs protruded, and his skin was tough like armor. His glowing red eyes flashed open, startling a little squeak out of Robert. If he hadn’t been close to having a heart attack before, the sound of Afana’s gravelly voice was enough to give him one now.
“Why did you wake me?”
Robert lowered his head. “My Immortal Leader, I received a man’s severed head that looked infected with some kind of disease. Like nothing I’ve seen before. Its eyes were red, and I was informed that the man was trying to bite people. The bunker has been placed on virus alert as a precautionary measure.”
Afana got to his feet. He towered over Robert, staring at him. Robert clenched his buttocks, not trusting his churning bowel not to betray him.
“Is the head inside the bunker?” The smell of death was on Afana’s breath from his last meal.
Robert nodded, trying not to let his disgust at the rancid odor show. “Yes.” His voice was quiet and weak, and he knew Afana didn’t tolerate weaknesses like that. “Yes,” he repeated, more firmly this time.
Afana’s chest expanded as he breathed in and out, and Robert thought Afana’s black shirt was going to rip off.
“Show me the head.”
Chapter Nineteen
General Murray had never felt like a small man before, but then, he had never met Afana. The ancient vampire made Murray feel like a child when he stood near him.
Robert was still beside Afana, but he didn’t look happy about it. His white face now had a sickly, greenish tint to it, and fat beads of sweat rolled down his bald head.
“Immortal Leader, this is General Murray.” Robert turned to address Murray. “General, I have informed Afana that you brought the head to Advisor Jerkins. Afana would like to know more about how you acquired the specimen.”
Murray’s clammy hands were behind his back. He stood at attention in front of the monster and told him everything he knew; that Tank and Knuckles had brought him the head, that he hadn’t asked if they were the ones who took it—since he hadn’t needed to know at the time—and that now, he regretted not asking since that information would have helped Afana.
Afana wasted no time in acting on the information that they did have. He pressed a button to open the door and headed for it. The men in the room didn’t know whether they should follow him. As if sensing their hesitation, Afana paused and turned to face them.
“Meet me on Level Six,” he told them. Then, he was gone.
The men followed Afana’s command and hurried through the lab. They saw how Afana had disappeared so quickly. A circle door in the glass floor had opened, and he’d jumped all the way down through the floor holes to the bottom level, where he was greeted by shrieks.
Afana laughed as his cattle ran away from him. He trailed his tongue along his fangs, savoring the instinct to hunt them all down one by one gave him. He hadn’t hunted properly for centuries, and he missed it desperately. But he didn’t have time to give chase now.
Maybe when this was all over with.
He marched toward Martin, general Murray’s son. “Where are—” he stopped. Afana felt ridiculous saying their names. Tank
