Page 158 of My Undead Love Life

“Yes.”

“For the leopards?”

“For anything that tracks by scent. The zoo animals made it necessary even before they were all infected.”

My spoon trembled slightly in my hand. “That leopard knows where we are,” I whispered.

Keith’s hand found my knee under the table.

Sofia’s gaze flicked between us. “It knows where you were. There is a difference.”

“It could find the door,” Oxi said.

“It has tried before and failed.” Sofia took another bite from a bowl she had made for herself and continued as if she hadn’t just dropped a nightmare onto the table. “It cannot open it. The outer hatch is reinforced, sealed, and designed to withstand more pressure than an infected cat can generate, even a large one. The entrance is also heated just enough to prevent snow from locking the mechanism, but not enough to provide an obvious thermal signature from a distance.”

Luck slowly lowered his spoon. “That’s genius.”

Sofia smiled faintly. “I am one.”

Mad set the canister on the table. “Why are you helping us?”

Sofia shrugged. “You’re data. Survivors are useful. Your observations are useful. Your route is useful. The fact that you’ve encountered multiple advanced variants and lived is very useful.”

“That’s the only reason?” I asked.

She looked at me. “No.” She looked away, picking up a towel and wiping an already clean section of counter. “But it’s the easiest reason to explain without becoming sentimental, and I dislike becoming sentimental before we eat dessert.”

Luck’s eyes widened. “There’s dessert?”

“No.”

“That was cruel.”

“It was educational, apparently. Hope is dangerous.”

Keith watched her closely. “You said we could help.”

Sofia stilled before she turned back toward us. “You could,” she said. “Tomorrow, after you sleep and your brains are less cold, you could tell me everything you’ve seen. The leopards. The horde. Any changes in infected behavior. Anything unusual. I document every firsthand account I can.”

Mad’s mouth tightened. “And after that?”

Her gaze moved from him to me, then Keith, then Oxi and Luck. “You could stay,” she whispered.

For a second, I wanted to say yes. I wanted to crawl into this safe bunker and sleep for a week. I wanted to eat stew and take hot showers if those existed and not think about predators, cults, routes, maps, or who might die next. Then, I saw Tori’s face in my mind. My mom and dad. The Oasis. Our treehouse. Everyone waiting on us.

“We have family waiting for us,” I said.

Sofia nodded, like she had expected that. Most people probably had someone they were trying to reach. “Then you should go to them. You know where I am if you need anything,” she added.

I stared at her. “You’re not going to try to convince us?”

She arched a brow at me. “I’m a scientist, not a kidnapper.”

Luck coughed. “The decontamination chamber sent mixed signals.”

“That was to ensure contamination didn’t happen.” Sofia pointed toward our bowls. “For now, eat. Sleep. Tomorrow, you tell me everything you’ve seen. Then I’ll give you some supplies, route advice, and whatever else I can spare without jeopardizing my own survival.”

Mad’s gaze narrowed. “That’s a lot to give strangers.”