Cora (Love in the Apocalypse #2)

21. Cora

Chapter twenty-one

Cora

T he guys were ignoring me as I glared at them over my breakfast. I didn’t want to go back outside, but they weren’t giving me a choice. Worse, they planned to purposefully set zombies loose in the yard for me to practice killing. This seemed like a wildly reckless plan. If I failed, I was dead.

No matter how many times I’ve pointed this out to them this week while they were capturing and storing zombies in one of Daddy’s sheds, they brushed me off. Told me it was just as risky to have me leave the house without the ability to fight off a zombie attack.

This was a classic case of agreeing to disagree. Unfortunately, it didn’t matter if I agreed or not; it was happening. Remi gave me a sympathetic smile and set his knife on the table beside my bowl.

“You can use my knife, Little Mouse.”

I rolled my eyes and scoffed at him as I reached into my boot, pulled out the hunting knife I had left there, and plunked it on the table beside his. If I was doing this, you can bet your ass I was going to do it with my weapon.

Derrick started chuckling. “Hers is bigger than yours, Rem.”

“Or not,” Remi said, taking his knife back.

I took another slow bite of oatmeal. I was dragging breakfast out so long that it had cooled off and wasn’t as yummy as it had been when Trent put the bowl in front of me.

“Princess, you can take as long as you want to eat breakfast. You’ll still be going outside and killing zombies today,” Isaac said without looking up from the book he was reading. Now that he had access to Daddy’s how-to manuals, he was slowly working his way through them.

I sighed loudly, making Isaac’s lips twitch, and pushed the bowl away. I stood and grabbed my hunting knife. May as well get this shit over with. I walked outside and stood in the middle of the yard with my arms crossed.

Derrick and Isaac went to the shed where they had stuffed the handful of zombies they had caught. It started to shake as Isaac unlocked it. They swung the doors open and quickly ran out of view, leaving me the only living thing within their sight.

“You’ve got this, Cora!” Trent cheered quietly.

I winked at him before focusing on the seven zombies stumbling toward me. I circled, trying to get one separated a little more from the pack. I saw one who got distracted and didn’t immediately follow me and skirted around the pack to come up behind him. I grabbed his shoulder and stabbed him in the back of the head— or tried to. My blade bounced off the zombie’s skull, slicing off his ear.

Son of a bitch.

“You have to use more power than that to go through the skull, Cora,” Derrick called.

“Aim for the softer areas,” Remi advised, “and watch behind you!”

I pushed the zombie away from me and darted away from the pack before one of them could get ahold of me. Ok, this wasn’t going to be as simple as I thought. I stayed on the first zombie and went after him again. This time, I attacked from the side and stabbed my knife through his ear and into his skull. He became deadweight, crumbling to the ground and sliding off my knife. If I hadn’t had such a good grip on it, the damn thing would have been yanked out of my hand.

I quickly turned back to the pack and selected my next target. This seemed a little ridiculous since, in a real-world scenario, I probably wouldn’t have the chance to take my time, but I kept at it. The guys seemed to think this would help, and if it made them feel more comfortable, then I would play along.

Once I got the hang of it, taking out the rest of the zombies wasn’t too tricky. It was rather invigorating! I was so caught up in the moment that when Isaac grabbed me, I spun around, ready to stab the threat in the head. Luckily, he anticipated the move and grabbed my wrist before I could.

I dropped the knife in an instant and dragged Isaac’s face to mine with my free hand. He let me control the kiss, devouring him instead for once. When the kiss ended, I looked to my right, where Derrick was watching, and reached for him. I pulled him into a kiss even though I was still wrapped around Isaac.

The adrenaline still pumping through my veins was quickly turning into something else. I needed them. All of them. I slid my hand into Isaac’s pants and wrapped my hand around his penis. Now that I had seen them all, I had to assume that Trent was the only one with a “cock.” Isaac looked at me with a question in his eyes.

“Are you sure about this, Cora?”

I nodded. This was the first time I initiated something with all of them around. I wasn’t sure how Remi would react. We hadn’t had our time together yet, but I wanted to have sex, and I didn’t want to have to choose between them. I didn’t want to have to drag someone off to a room. I wanted it here, now, and with all of them together.

He must have seen the determination in my eyes because a rakish smile spread across his face seconds before he stooped to put me over his shoulder. He walked toward the house, and I pounded on his back to get him to stop. I didn’t want to go inside! Isaac stepped onto the porch and then set me on my feet.

“Relax, Cora. I was just bringing you to the porch. Wouldn’t want to accidentally roll around in zombie guts, would you?”

I wrinkled my nose. He had a very good point.

“Am I correct in assuming our Little Mouse is interested in a group activity?” Remi asked as he and the other two joined us on the porch.

I nodded my head emphatically and then blushed as I met his gaze. I tilted my head to the side, silently asking him if he was ok with this.

Remi smiled softly and ran the back of his finger over my cheek. “How do you want us, beautiful?”

I froze. How did I want them? I didn’t know the answer to that question. I wasn’t the one who knew how all of this worked. I was counting on them to tell me what to do. My silent panic must have been obvious because Isaac’s face was suddenly in mine.

“Don’t freak, Cora. We’ll take care of everything, ok?” his sentence ended with a growl as he glared at Remi.

“Sorry, I didn’t mean to put all the pressure on you,” Remi apologized. He grabbed my hand and tugged me against him. We kissed tentatively as his hands ran down my sides. “What do you say we start by getting you out of these clothes?” he asked against my lips.

My head bobbled up and down as I stepped back and started to pull my shirt over my head.

“Why don’t you let us do that,” Trent said, moving my hands away and pulling my shirt off. Hands touched my exposed skin as they crowded around me. There were so many of them that it was hard to keep track of who was doing what as pleasure assaulted me from all directions. I let my eyes fall shut, giving myself over to them and getting lost in their love.

“C’mere, Cora,” Derrick said, tugging my hand.

I opened my eyes as he lay on the wood porch and stroked himself. It felt like an out-of-body experience as I looked down at him and really took in this entire situation. That sexy man was waiting for me! They all were. Derrick held his hand out to me, and I took it as I stepped over him, straddling him, and lowered myself to my knees. I didn’t immediately take him inside me. Instead, I rubbed myself along his length like we had done that first time we had been intimate.

I teased us both until I felt Isaac kneel behind me, his bare chest pressing against my back as he cupped my breasts and tweaked my nipples.

“When you’re ready, Princess, D and I will both be squeezing into that little pussy of yours, so make sure you get it nice and wet for us,” Isaac said in my ear.

My eyes widened. Both?! I started to shake my head, but Isaac rubbed my sides soothingly. “We’ll go slow. You’ll take us, I promise. What’s more, you’re going to fucking love it. And then, when you’ve adjusted to us, you’re going to suck Remi and Trent’s dicks. By the time all four of us have come inside of you, you won’t have a coherent thought in your head. You’ll only know the pleasure we’ve given you.”

I started to tremble in his arms as his words painted a picture that had my pussy flooding with arousal. The next time I slid up Derrick’s penis, I leaned forward, adjusting the angle of my hips to slide him inside me. We groaned together, though he was the only one that was heard. Isaac continued to play with my body as I bounced on Derrick while watching Remi and Trent stroke each other. I licked my lips and reached for them, causing everyone to still.

“Are you ready for me, Cora?” Isaac asked.

Right. There was an order to this. I didn’t get the other two until I had both Derrick and Isaac inside of me. Isaac applied pressure between my shoulder blades, urging me to lay flat over Derrick. Once I had, I felt him move closer, and then I felt the head of his penis pushing alongside Derrick’s.

Derrick felt me tense and stroked my face. “Relax, Cora,” he murmured, turning my head to distract me with a kiss. I tried to keep my attention on what Isaac was doing, but Derrick made it impossible as his lips demanded my full attention. However, nothing could distract me from the moment Isaac forced himself inside of me. My back bowed as every muscle in my body tensed. It didn’t hurt, but it wasn’t entirely comfortable either.

“Good girl,” Isaac praised. “I knew you would be able to take us. When you’re ready to move, let us know.”

I nodded as I panted through the feeling so incredibly full. It wasn’t as bad as I had expected, and my body was adjusting to their combined sizes faster than I had expected. Of course, I regularly had sex with Trent, and while he wasn’t as thick as the two of them together, he wasn’t far off. When I felt ready, I tentatively rotated my hips, making Isaac and Derrick moan.

“You ready?” Derrick asked me. At my nod, he and Isaac worked together to suspend me between them and then started to fuck me. Once I had gotten used to it, I focused on Remi and Trent. I reached for them, and they moved in closer so that I could alternate sucking and stroking them.

Now, this was why you claimed four men all to yourself.

After our romp on the porch, we took hot showers and started a fire in the fireplace. The house was thick with coziness. I was wrapped up in my pink fluffy robe, sitting in Derrick’s lap, sipping hot chocolate while Isaac massaged my feet. Remi sat across from us in the chair with Trent sitting between his legs while he played with Trent’s hair.

Life was perfect.

“Now that you’ve graduated from zombie boot camp,” Isaac said, “Would you be willing to go hunting with us? We’ve tried, but we just aren’t good at it.”

Excitement built inside of me. I hadn’t been hunting in so long. I loved going hunting with Daddy. I nodded but held up my finger as I reached for the iPad.

“Yes, but I’m only taking one of you. You guys sound like a herd of elephants stomping around. I’m not surprised that you haven’t had much luck. You’re announcing your presence to every animal within a two-mile radius. They’re gone long before you’ve reached them.”

“We’re not that bad,” Trent protested. I gave him a look, and he blushed. “Ok, maybe we are, but if we aren’t taught, we don’t know.”

I nodded. That was true, but now was not the time to teach them, which I relayed to him through my iPad. “Next spring, I’ll work with all of you on better hunting practices, but right now, we need to focus on getting as much meat stored for winter as possible.”

“We understand,” Derrick said. “Who are you going to take with you?”

I smiled and looked at Isaac. He returned my smile with a grin, but it faltered soon after. “Why me?” he asked.

“Because you’re the one who has done the most research trying to learn to hunt.” I stood and typed my final message. “Better get a good night’s sleep. We’ll be leaving before dawn.” I bent, kissed his cheek, waved at the others, and went to bed.

The sleeping arrangements were still a little odd. I didn’t want to assume they wanted me in their beds for more than a romp, so I’ve still been sleeping in the bunker. As I climbed into bed, I heard the scraping and banging of furniture being moved upstairs. I worried what the hell they were doing to my house but was too tired to go upstairs and find out. Just as I drifted off to sleep, Isaac picked me up and jarred me awake.

“From now on, you’re sleeping with us, Cora,” he explained as he carried me back upstairs. He took me into my old room, where they had dragged Daddy’s bed and put the beds side by side, creating one large bed. Remi and Trent were already cuddled up on one side of the bed, and when Isaac set me down on the mattress, they opened their arms to invite me to join their cuddle pile.

Grinning, I crawled across the mattress and snuggled into Trent’s side. Remi rested his hand on my hip, and I closed my eyes happily. Derrick and Isaac joined us not long after, and I fell into a deep sleep, sandwiched between my men. Now, this was why you claimed four men all to yourself.

The next morning, I was awake before all of them. I went downstairs and dusted off my old hunting gear. The white camo pants and jacket were a little big on me now, but they still fit well enough. I cleaned my hunting rifle and packed my ammo, axe, rope, game bags, field dressing kit, and knife. I had to pack my spare hunting knife since my favorite needed to have the zombie brains cleaned off it. I definitely didn’t think it wise to cut into an animal we were going to consume with a knife tainted with zombies. Proper society may have fallen apart, but that didn’t mean hygiene and proper food handling had to, as well.

Once my gear was packed, I packed a food sac for us and made two thermoses of hot coffee. I know Isaac preferred tea, but coffee was better for a hunt. I grabbed Daddy’s hunting clothes and then carried everything upstairs. The guys were still asleep, and I huffed in annoyance as I went into the bedroom and turned on the light. When no one stirred, I clapped my hands together. Still, there was no response. This was ridiculous!

An evil idea came to be, and I grinned wickedly as I collected my large soup pot, a lighter, and a packet of firecrackers. Carrying everything back to the bedroom, I set the pot down in the middle of the floor, lit the fuse, and dropped the firecrackers into the pot. I quickly moved to the other side of the room and plugged my ears as explosions filled the room.

They couldn’t sleep through that. All four snapped awake, yelling and grabbing the closest object to defend themselves from the attack. I stood in the corner laughing so hard that tears streamed down my face as they looked around in confusion.

“Cora,” Isaac growled when he finally spotted me.

I tapped the non-existent watch on my wrist and gestured for him to hurry up. We were burning daylight. Oh great, now I sounded like Daddy.

While I waited for Isaac to get dressed and pack, I unplugged the iPad and slipped it into a cross-body bag. This way, if I needed to communicate something to Isaac, I would not have to dig through my backpack.

“Ready,” Isaac announced.

I looked him over thoroughly before nodding. Daddy’s hunting clothes fit him well. I gestured for him to follow me, and we left the warmth of the house to the frigid temperatures of the early mountain morning. As I stepped off the porch, my feet crunched in the freshly fallen snow. We had our first official snowfall overnight. That was good news for our hunt. The animals would be slightly more lethargic as they acclimate to colder weather. They would also be more active as they made their final push for food before winter was in full swing.

We hiked further up the mountain to an area I knew would be ripe with potential kills. This was my and Daddy’s favorite place because we could usually come home with a deer or two, if not a bear. I was hoping for both today. The fresh snowfall aided us even more up here because I could better track the animals moving through the forest. When I spotted fresh bear tracks, I stopped and typed a message to Isaac. I had turned the volume all the way down so that we didn’t accidentally scare off any nearby animals, so I turned the screen so that he could read my message.

“Fresh bear tracks. Step where I step and don’t make a sound.”

Isaac nodded his understanding. I put the iPad away and checked my gun to make sure I had a round in the chamber and that the safety was off. I followed the tracks on silent feet only when I was sure I was prepared to take the bear down. We had been following the trail for the better part of fifteen minutes when the sound of the bear’s grunts floated in the breeze. I slowed my approach, not wanting to walk right into it or tip it off that we were there.

I tapped my ear and pointed in the direction of the bear. I wanted Isaac to hear the bear so he would know what one sounded like. After a few more grunts, Isaac nodded his head. I set my bags down and crept closer. I stopped behind a group of bushes and peeked over them. Twelve feet away, in a small clearing, was a black bear munching on berries. It looked like a decent size, which pleased me. We would get a lot of meat from this animal.

Hindsight is twenty-twenty, and I realized I should have discussed where to shoot the animals before we left the house with Isaac. Now, we didn’t have the time. After we took the bear down, I would revisit the topic. I motioned for him to stay behind the bush and move to the bear’s side in a better position. Clearing my head and relaxing my body, I took aim and shot the bear in the side, right where the lungs should be.

The bear roared in pain, turning in a circle, searching for the threat. I could already see him weakening, so I stood, getting his attention. The bear tried to stand on its hind legs in a show of power, opening up its heart for my second bullet, allowing me to put the animal out of its misery for good. I approached slowly, chambering another bullet just in case the bear still had a bit of a spark of life in it. Thankfully, it was dead.

“That was amazing!” Isaac exclaimed when I waved him forward. “Derrick will be so happy when we come home with this beast! So now what do we do? Start dragging it back to the house?”

I shook my head. We were more than a mile from the house, and he thought we would have to drag this three-hundred-pound bear back? It was a good thing that I was here. I went back to my pack and grabbed the tools I would need. With Isaac’s help, I field-dressed the bear, reducing the weight we’d be carrying by nearly half. Once all the meat and fur were wrapped up, I chopped down a small sapling only a couple of inches wide and attached it to the tree using my rope. We held the tree between us and began the trek back to the house, sharing the load.

I hoped to spot a deer or two on the way back. I didn’t expect to find people instead. Isaac and I crouched above about ten people stomping through the forest.

“Hey, Queen! How close do you think we are to Christmas?” we heard one of the men ask the redhead balancing across a fallen log.

I exchanged a look with Isaac. Those guys that beat up Remi had mentioned a Queen. This must be her and the rest of her followers.

“I don’t know, but Terrence said he was getting me a present. Nobody is celebrating shit until we find him,” the woman replied.

It looked like Christmas would be canceled for Queen and her pals because Terrence wouldn’t be found any time soon. They weren’t headed toward the house, which led me to believe they didn’t know where Terence had gone. Unfortunately, if he had found us, it would only be a matter of time until the rest of them did. Isaac must have been on the same train of thought as me because he slowly raised his gun to aim at the people below.

Placing my hand on the rifle barrel, I lowered it and shook my head. This wasn’t the way. I wasn’t naive enough not to understand the ways of this new world, but that didn’t mean we had to compromise ourselves to survive in it. We watch them leave and don’t try to continue until their voices have faded away.

I had a feeling that wouldn’t be the last time we saw them.