Blackbird's Fall - Jenika Snow Page 0,11

was searing, burning, took control of his entire body, and had him groaning. There was something tight on his side, something that was pulling every time he took a breath. It was an uncomfortable feeling, and everything in his body ached.

Slowly opening his eyes, Marius had to blink at the dim lighting. It was just a glow from a candle beside him, but it seemed so bright, as if he looked directly into the sun. Scanning around the room, he was confused as to where he was.

It was a bedroom, one that had a few pictures of flower silhouettes hanging on the wall and a chair pushed in the corner with a blanket over it.

He was confused and so damn tired and didn’t know where the hell he was. The low growl that came from in front of him had Marius rising up just enough that he could see the floor in front of the bedroom door.

An older black lab sat in front of the partially open door, his teeth bared, his focus on Marius. The pain in his body was there, but he gritted his teeth and pushed it away.

Then the door opened all the way, and Marius instantly went on alert.

“Easy or you’ll tear the stitches,” the woman said in a soft voice.

She had long, dark hair, and he instantly remembered seeing her. She’d been leaving a greenhouse, and he’d been just a few feet from a large farmhouse. But then he’d been attacked. Closing his eyes and breathing out, he tried to think of what happened after he’d been stabbed.

He opened his eyes and looked at her as she neared. She held a tray with medical supplies on it, but she wouldn’t keep eye contact with him. He didn’t know if she had the supplies stockpiled or if she found them when scavenging, but he was thankful nonetheless.

“And just so you know, if you try anything, my dog will rip your throat out, right after I shoot you.” She lifted a handgun he hadn’t noticed she held.

He nodded. “I won’t hurt you,” he said, but she had no reason to believe him. Times were hard for everyone, but being a woman was even more so. Men were desperate, willing to do anything they wanted to a helpless female. But this woman didn’t seem so helpless at all. She screamed strength yet was still compassionate enough to help a stranger in this fucked-up world.

She nodded but kept the gun close. He was glad, because he didn’t want her to feel threatened by him. It had been so long since he’d seen anyone willing to help, and even longer since he’d seen a woman.

The last woman he’d seen had been the fellow scientist who had gotten infected, and that had been months ago he killed her.

They stayed silent, and he watched as she set the tray on the bedside table. The dog stayed close to her and kept his gaze trained on Marius. He was loyal, and Marius had no doubts he’d rip his throat out if he felt Marius was a threat to the woman.

When she faced him again and looked right in his eyes, his heart stopped for a second. Her eyes were this vibrant green color, and the longer he stared at her, took in the creaminess of her skin, the way her figure was visible through her clothing, had the male part of him, and the fact that he hadn’t seen a woman in far too long, rise up in him.

He felt heat move through him, that familiar twinge of arousal that had been lost for a long fucking time.

He should feel guilty he was so aroused by this woman who he didn’t even have a name to go with her face. But it was a natural, instant reaction, not one Marius particularly had gone for, and in all honesty, he was surprised he could even feel desire after getting stabbed.

Closing his eyes and breathing out, he remembered it all now with startling clarity. “The man who stabbed me ran off into the woods.” He opened his eyes and looked at her. “I wounded him, but he was insane enough that it looked like it didn’t affect him that much.”

She nodded. “So many people have gone off the deep end, and I only see it getting worse.”

She had a point. The end of the world, so to speak, changed people, and not always for the better.

“I’m glad to see you’re awake though,” she said as