The roof kept caving inward, millimeter by millimeter, and she couldn’t imagine the pressure that would require. “Can you even move the car with all their weight on it?”
“I suppose we’ll find out.” His eyes, now black with emotion, met hers as he spoke loudly enough to drown out the cacophony surrounding them. “I’ll open the windows as soon as we’re up against the barrier rail. Jump as far out from the bridge as possible. The water’s going to be cold and dark, but the air in your lungs will float you toward the surface. Don’t panic.”
A loud cracking noise made her start, and she swung to look at the rear window.
His cool hands clasped her face, bringing her attention back to him. “Listen to me, Edie. Focus on your own survival. Don’t waste your breath looking for me. I’ll find you.”
She clicked her tongue. “Bossy, bossy.”
Before she could think twice, with a swarm of zombies watching and trying desperately to reach them and kill them both, she lurched forward the necessary distance to press a kiss to his cheek. It was stubbly and chilly, and she wanted to lick it for some reason, but she settled back into her seat instead.
He stared at her, unblinking.
“For luck,” she explained.And because I’m probably not going to live through this. I want something warm and bright to remember as I sink into darkness.
“Right.” After a moment, he gently drew her head forward again and nuzzled against her temple, brushing his lips over the thin, sensitive skin there. “For luck, sweet Edie.”
Everything around her disappeared. Everything but him.
His gaze was intent on hers, and she mustered a shaky smile for him. His thumb lightly swept away the lone tear she hadn’t managed to blink back before he let her go with a silent sigh and turned to face forward again.
Without another word, she unbuckled her seat belt, hunched over, and moved into the seat directly behind his. Kneeling on the leather, she swiftly considered her options. Her sneakers would hinder her swimming and weigh her down. If she and Max survived this desperate gambit, though, they’d probably need to run after they reached shore. She wouldn’t get far on bare feet, so her shoes were staying put. She did remove her cross-body purse, however, after tucking her smaller sheathed knife safely into the cup of her bra. She also resigned herself to leaving her duffel and its delicious contents behind. Between swimming for her life in freezing water while fully clothed and fighting off zombies, she’d have neither the energy nor a free hand to wrestle with a large, heavy bag.
Max, on the other hand, slid his arms through the straps of his enormous backpack and fastened several clips across his chest to hold it in place.
She shook her head. “Show-off.”
He snorted, craning his neck to see past the mass of moving bodies blocking his view of the bridge and its barrier rails. “Ready, dude?”
At the triumphant return of his Chad drawl, she had to laugh. “Ready.”
He sucked in a long, hard breath, and she followed suit.
“If you die, human, I will fucking throttle you,” he said to the windshield.
Then he slammed his fist on the car horn without warning. A good number of the zombies instinctively jumped back from the sudden, inexplicable, ear-splitting noise, and as soon as they did, he stomped on the gas and barreled through several creatures to reach the side of the bridge. When the SUV halted again, she was pretty sure more bodies lay crushed beneath its tires, but she couldn’t let herself think about it.
She and Max were as close to the water as they could get.
The windows rolled down, and grunts and shrieks of pain and rage and effort filled her ears as she lunged forward and began her escape.
“Get out!” he shouted, and Edie did.
9
Somewhere around the time she finally managed to wriggle through the window opening and launch herself into the moat below, Edie realized Max hadn’t jumped in the water too. No, that fucking dimwit was instead swinging his stupid fucking sword like a moron knight of fucking legend, keeping the thrice-damned zombies back while she made it out of the SUV.
Somewhere, a super-old French village is missing its idiot, she thought as she held her breath, leapt as far out as she could, and hit the freezing water with a painfulsmack.
It took all her will not to gasp at the chill and the shock of impact. Weighed down by her thick coveralls and shoes, she sank farther than she’d have preferred, unsure which way was up.The air in your lungs will float you toward the surface, he’d said, and she held on to that thought to stave off panic as she let her body drift and find its way.
With effort, she opened her eyes, and then she knew for certain which way was up—because that was where the zombies all around her came from. In twos and threes, they splashed downin the moat after her, still intent on enjoying her brain as a tasty holiday brunch offering.
Far too many creatures now surrounded her in the water. Although her lungs already felt tight, she took a moment to retrieve her knife from her bra before she began swimming for the surface. Which was good, since whenever she neared one of the zombies, it repeatedly lunged for her. Luckily, the water slowed them down, and they couldn’t seem to recalibrate their attacks accordingly. The ones who got too close, she slashed at with the knife in between strokes.
The creatures didn’t even try to swim. Their gaunt frames were also much less buoyant than hers, and she doubted they’d had enough forethought to take a deep breath before jumping. They sank away from her, still trying to reach her, still trying to rip out her throat, even as they slowly drowned.
Then she was swimming alone, desperately forcing herself to hold on and not take the convulsive breath hitching in her chest. Just as she was certain she couldn’t stand the agonizing pressure in her lungs any longer, the surface appeared before her, sunlit and beautiful, and she flailed frantically until she could plunge upward, through the barrier, into a world filled with oxygen and the sound of something—anything—other than her laboring heartbeat.
