The Death Series: A Dark Dystopian Fantasy Box Set: (Books 1-3) (52 page)

“Aagghhh!” he bellowed, fists flying into Clyde wildly.

Clyde's garbled speech reached my ears, “You will cease and desist this behavior, you troublesome dolt.”

Smear, crunch, whack, thunk.

I walked over to Jade, hauling her up, out of the way, and against me where she hiccuped back sobs. “I thought he was going to...going to... that it was going to be like before.”

I shushed her, hugging her tight against me, stroking her hair while Clyde worked his magic on her dad.

I noticed in a detached way that some globs of Clyde were falling on LeClerc, causing him to scream as the wet, slithering flesh plopped on his face.

I smiled.

I took stock of Mom who was starting to look more alert when Dad sailed in through the garage door. “Whose car is...” he began, then his hand came over his nose and he began to breathe through his mouth until he saw Mom, then he screamed, “Ali!” Dad rushed over and caught sight of what the smell had been about.

I was kinda used to it.

“Caleb, who is this? Stop him!”

Dad looked on with horror, then swooped in, picking Mom up.

“Caleb...” Dad turned with Mom in a cradle hold and slammed his thumb into the Fam pulse. Several seconds passed and he released his thumb.

“Dad, did you call the cops?”

Clyde was squeezing LeClerc's throat and his face was turning an alarming shade of purple.

“Clyde, give it a rest.”

Clyde didn't.

I left Jade next to Dad and walked over to where Clyde was strangling Jade's dad, hunkering down. “Clyde!”

His eyes swept to mine, his fingers lost in the meat of LeClerc's neck. “He will never stop, Master, he will continue to hunt you. I must...”

“You must stop, Clyde.”

Although I really appreciated his efforts, I had to say.

I threw some juice at Clyde, underscoring my command and he loosened his hold on LeClerc. Planting his knee in his chest, he used LeClerc's body for leverage and stood. He stared at me, only a couple of inches taller now, but oh, he was so much more.

He was in tough shape. My original, unconscious call had raised something with purpose, but not enough form. He was really decomposed. I felt a little guilty, Clyde deserved to look better
.

Huh, I'd do better next time.

My parents and Jade stared at Clyde, but he had eyes only for me.

“Ah, thanks, Clyde. But, ah... you better go now, 'cuz the cops will be here and I'm starting to get in trouble for zombies popping up like jack-in-the-boxes.”

“Akin to the toy which winds?” he asked.

“Yeah.”

Technically, it was zombie-in-the-box but I felt that might be what my parents called, “splitting hairs.”

Mom, was definitely more alert now. “Has he been the one making the separator bins smell?” she yelled, disentangling herself from Dad, who let her slide down the front of him, but kept her pinned to his body. None of us were too keen on getting close to LeClerc, who was writhing around on the floor moaning. He reminded me of a snake who'd been poked.

Staying out of range, thanks.

The Dog was relieved when the Dead One entered the cave. He smelled of the Boy in a way that the Dog did not understand but accepted... his nose never lied. The Dead One had subdued the feral and the Boy was Alpha to the Dead One. The Alpha Male had returned and the Dog would stand down. Protectors of the pack were in place now and the feral was in great pain. The Dog could smell  the Bad Male's agony and it brought a primitive and savage satisfaction. This was as it should be. The Dog sat, watching the Boy make the sounds with the Dead One.

My eyes narrowed on Clyde. “Have you been...hiding out here, Clyde?”

“Why, yes. You were incapacitated before, Master. There was nowhere to go but I am able to follow your signature, as it were. Therefore, I found myself here.” He inclined his head slightly in deference, another blob of flesh sliding off his skull and landing with a splat on the tile entryway. I watched Mom watch it fall with something between surrealism and disgust.

Brother.

Dad looked at me, like,
what the hell.
“Explain,” Dad said tersely.

Jade came away from the safety of my body, facing Dad. “My dad,” she looked down at the undulating heap on the floor, “came over here looking for me,” and even I could hear the dry swallow of her throat, “and he... hit,” she looked at Mom, who smiled and nodded back at her in encouragement.

Jade didn't go on.
Couldn't go on
.

Mom said, “Actually, he shoved me into the wall.”

Dad and I gave Mom A Look.

“One in the same, Ali,” Dad said.

There was no diffusing it, if you touched a woman in anger, basically, you were A Loser. Dad and I got it, most guys got it.

LeClerc needed more lessons from Clyde.

Maybe, like a final lesson.

Clyde was following my train of thought. “You tell me, 'do not kill him' but your heart says you wish his death. His
imminent
death.”

Thanks, Clyde:
didn't really want to share the whole tamale with The Parents.

I sighed, hearing the wailing sirens of the cops coming, again.

The cops parked outside the house and Garcia (of-effing-course) came at a sprint, gun drawn, Smith and Gale at his heels. They burst through the door. (
Let's have the whole world over
, I thought randomly 'cuz,
why not
?).

They trained their guns on Clyde, who stood stock-still. I heard Gale gag, you know the type: the pre-barf cough, she was gonna toss her guts on the floor to join the rot.

Nice.

“Mr. Hart, what is going on here?” Garcia said in a low, fierce voice, his gaze a steady menace on Clyde.

“I think, from what I can piece together, Jade's dad came here to get her, assaulted my wife, and Caleb's zombie who was never put to rest took command of the situation.” We all looked down at Jade's dad who had ground glass embedded in the flesh of his face and throat. “And I came in and ascertained a 911 call was in order,” Dad finished.

“Ya think?” I said to no one in particular.

Gale had holstered her gun, a hand over her nose, shallow breaths escaping between her fingers.

Clyde regarded her. “You. I know you.”

“She's like me,” I responded to Clyde.

“Not exactly. She is not a Master. But she feels... very good.”

Cripes,
zombie love for Gale.

She backed away a little, smart girl.

Clyde switched his gaze to Garcia. “The Master is under threat.”

He swung a palm to indicate Jade's dad. The skin on his knuckles was gone from the abuse of Jade's dad, sloughing off with every squeeze.

Clyde had everyone's attention, especially Garcia.

“Did we not
just
discuss your future, Caleb? A future where you stop raising everything and using it as a weapon?” Garcia said, his eyes on Clyde, along with his gun, but his words were all for me.

I was getting tired of Garcia.

“Why don't you get your gun off my zombie?” I said disrespectfully.

Clyde hissed at Garcia, his black mouth opening, decay wafting out in an errant rush.

Dammit
, I couldn't let emotion rule because Clyde was tuned into my frequency, wasn't he?

“Clyde, cool it, I got this.”

Clyde straightened, his dead gaze glittering on Garcia, taking his measure. Garcia didn't know it but Clyde was calculating range, not judgment.

Zombies weren't huge on ambivalence.

“Caleb...” Dad said, warning me about my behavior.

I gave him a look, and he looked back,
watch it, pal.

I sighed. “Listen, like my dad said, he came to our house. He shoved my mom.” My hands balled into fists and Clyde sidled closer to LeClerc. Garcia motioned with his gun at Clyde to move away from LeClerc. It wasn't until I gave the signal that Clyde moved to stand closer to me.

“This is the danger I was talking about, Caleb. You're dangerous.”

“Only if you threaten me,” I said, giving a look at Clyde.

Gale and Smith were looking at Garcia. Slowly, Bobbi Gale took verbal charge. “I don't sense,” she swallowed as Clyde gave her a zombie-smile (black mouth, a couple of teeth, partial tongue), “that the zombie will act unless you threaten Caleb, Raul.”

“I'm not threatening Caleb,” Garcia said.

“He feels like you're threatening his zombie,” she responded.

“What does the zombie matter?” Garcia asked.

“It matters,” Gale and I said at the same time. We looked at each other.
She got me
.

Of course, she
was
AFTD.

Smith said, “Garcia, we don't need this show of force. I'm a five-point Null, I think I got this.” He splayed his arms out away from his body like,
duh.

Garcia holstered his weapon, looking at Smith like bitch-slapping was an option. What the eff was happening with Garcia?

Everyone in the room let out the breath they'd been holding. Clyde stared at Garcia, his guard was still up and the smell was a cloud of rot. I was okay, but the rest of the group had their hands over their noses.

Mom said, “Caleb, would you have... ah, Clyde, step outside for a moment please?”

What was left of his eyebrow cocked and some of it fell on the floor. Huh, he was in tough shape.

“Clyde, can you go outside just for a sec?” I asked.

“Of course, if that is what you wish. But, there are those present who give me lingering doubts about your safety.”

Huh.

“Tell ya what, why don't I
call
you if things get stupid again?'

He nodded, leaving to stand outside the front door.

Everyone's hands dropped off their noses.

I looked at Garcia again. “Anyway...LeClerc needs to get the shaft because he touched my mom. He broke into our house, he was going to hurt us, it's jail time for him.”

“That's not for you to decide,” and Gale opened her mouth to rebut Garcia who continued before she could, “but he
has
violated the terms of the restraining order that Andrea LeClerc initiated, so you're in luck.”

Dad gave an apologetic look to Jade then said, “We're pressing charges. That man laid hands on my wife while she was here unprotected...”

Clyde cleared his throat discreetly from outside. Dad looked at him. “...
almost
unprotected.” and Clyde nodded. “There should be a clear consequence for this behavior. My son has just returned from the hospital and was in no shape to offer assistance; he shouldn't need to.”

Get at me.

Smith whipped out his pulse-pad and laid his thumb on it. Facing Dad he said, “Ready.”

Garcia and Gale hauled up a struggling LeClerc and Jade pressed herself against me. Garcia slapped cuffs on LeClerc as Dad detailed the events as they happened, pausing to let me fill in the blanks. He was almost finished when there was a voice from outside the door.

“Excuse me?”

This was unbelievable!
The Organic from the hospital was here. She was doing a polite, backward lean from Clyde, who hadn't budged from his sentry post at the front door, her hand covering her nose.

“Master?” Clyde asked.

“Nah, she's okay Clyde.”

A tension that had been running through Clyde eased.

He was on it.

My zombie bodyguard. Nice. The Js were gonna really appreciate this.

Speaking of which
there they were.
I could see John's red hair flopping as he walked, a half a head taller than everyone else.
Well, wasn't this turning out like usual.

A catastrophe followed by everyone on earth showing up.

“Hey Clyde, how's it goin'?” Jonesy asked, squeezing past Jezebel the Organic, with John on his heels.

I smiled, I couldn't help it.

“I have rights!” Jade's dad bellowed into Gale's ear.

“Not right now, when you decided to violate the terms of your parole, your rights were negated,” Garcia told him.

Jade trembled against me and I sucked her in tighter.

John came up to me. “What now?” he asked.

“What's this crap all over the floor?” Jonesy asked delicately and Mom slapped her forehead.

Brother.

Gale smiled while she struggled to subdue LeClerc, who was
so
into resisting arrest.

Again.

He was a slow learner,
the doofus
.

Smith had just shut his pulse-pad down and was turning to look at LeClerc when Jezebel asked, “Is this a bad time for Caleb's follow-up?” her eyes flitting from LeClerc, to mine, to my parents, the cops and finally settling on Clyde. He was straightening the shredded lapels of his suit jacket.