Apokalypsis | Book 6 | Apokalypsis 6 Morris, Kate (cheapest way to read ebooks TXT) 📖

Aris came out of his bedroom to greet them. He did look sick, but not infected with the virus. Roman tossed him a snack bag of chips and winked. The kid’s eyes lit up, and his face split with a big grin. For being twelve, he seemed small for his age, which probably wouldn’t last given the size of his father.

When they pulled away a short time later, Roman felt better about leaving than when he’d first arrived. He even pulled the gate at the end of their lane closed. Wren and Elijah had painted a sign in Mr. Rankin’s barn while he and Jane helped tidy up, and Jane cooked them a quick boxed meal of hot rice and tuna. It looked gross, but they both ate it readily. It came from a hospital pantry, so Roman doubted it was all that palatable. Hospital food was notoriously not known for being tasty or appealing food.

Elijah helped him hang the freshly-painted, plywood sign with rope, also from Mr. Rankin’s barn, over their gate, which read:

Infected Here – Stay Away

Roman hoped it would deter any trespassers and ne’er-do-wells. It seemed ominous, and the fact that Wren had found red paint made it somehow a little more foreshadowing of danger.

They drove back to the hospital as the sun was getting low to find Stephanie and Alex still working. He must’ve gotten the delivery truck running because it was backed up next to the car and trailer.

“What’s up, losers?” Steph asked in her usual snide way.

“Nothing,” he answered. “It went well. Need a hand?”

He took the heavy box from her and placed it in the back of the truck, then slid it forward.

“Alex said we should go in soon,” she commented. “It’s getting dark.”

“Agreed,” he said and followed her in. Roman held the door for Wren and Elijah and locked it once they were through. Jane slid past him, careful not to make contact. It both annoyed him but also made him want to touch her at the same time.

They found Alex packing food items into boxes. Roman had some ideas of where they’d be safe to sleep for the night, not that it mattered since the place was abandoned. Then he and Alex went out to their vehicles to grab everyone’s backpacks for the overnight while Jane, Wren, and Elijah whipped up food for dinner using the items from the hospital kitchen.

By the time they were seated in the adjacent cafeteria and ready to eat, the sun had set, and they were eating by tiny tea lights, only two. It wasn’t as if they could turn on lights in a building that was not boarded up. Anyone going by would see the light, or anything going by would see it.

“This is good,” Alex remarked of the spaghetti with meat sauce marinara.

They even had garlic bread, which Elijah explained he found in the walk-in freezer.

“Thanks,” Wren said. “Elijah said the freezers are full.”

“Awesome,” Alex said. “We’ll empty them out tomorrow. It’s nice to have some food that tastes like food used to.”

“Yeah, full of preservatives and garbage,” Roman joked and got laughs.

“Exactly!” Alex said on a laugh, unusual for him.

Wren added, “I think the amount of food in those freezers is going to take up the whole space of the box truck.”

“Yeah, maybe,” Elijah agreed.

They all had two helpings, except for Jane, who didn’t eat that much on most days. Despite the light mood of the table, she seemed to be on edge and kept looking over her shoulder.

After the meal was complete, everyone traveled up to the post-maternity recovery ward. Roman figured they never treated the infected in this part of the hospital since they would’ve had women and newborns there. It seemed smart, likely the most germ-free, and being on the fourth floor, they could look down on the hospital grounds and around the neighborhoods near it to make sure they weren’t being invaded.

They split off into rooms, each taking a room with two beds, and it left him with Jane since Alex said it made more sense to sleep one guy and one girl to a room for safety concerns. Roman wasn’t sure if that made sense or not, but he didn’t argue. As irritated as he was with Jane, he’d still rather keep her close to ensure her personal safety than letting someone else take care of her.

Alex took the room at the end of the hall nearest the nurse’s station and the elevators beyond. Wren and Elijah took a room about halfway down, and he and Jane set up in the last room in the ward. Their room was closest to the hallway that led them earlier to the maternity surgical suites. Spreading out made sense in case one of them heard something, which was doubtful.

Jane immediately pulled the draperies closed, and then the curtain closed that was used to separate patients who had to share a room. He heard her shuffling around and figured she was changing or arranging her gear.

Roman slung his bag onto the other empty bed and said, “I’m going out to walk the area, make sure we’re alone.”

“Okay,” she returned very quietly, sounding almost morose. She added a soft, “Be safe.”

Roman didn’t answer but managed a grunt before leaving. He just didn’t want to be around her. He felt betrayed and stupid. What he thought was the real deal with Jane, a real and genuine true love was clearly not on her end, or she wouldn’t have been kissing Noah. No wonder she’d never said she loved him. Maybe she was experimenting. Maybe she was bored with him and wanted to see what Noah was like. Maybe she’d always like Noah and hadn’t known if he’d returned those feelings. Of course, she’d have to be pretty blind not to notice. Anyone who watched the weasel for more than a minute in Jane’s presence should’ve picked up on it. Why he lied in his farewell letter about him and Bianca, Roman wasn’t sure. A