Chapter 22 – Lions

Rosalie drove us for hours, all the while neither of us spoke and the silence between us was deafening.

As much as I had hoped Irina would get eaten, I'd be lying if I said the reality of it wasn't traumatic. I didn't have sympathy for her because of everything she had done, but I would probably see that image of her being overtaken in my mind for the rest of my life. What it was doing to Rosalie was probably beyond my comprehension. Regardless of all the lies and manipulations, she loved Irina, and watching someone you love be killed was excruciating for anyone.

"Rosalie, I…" I started to say after an immeasurable amount of time passed.

"We need gas," she cut me off before pulling into a gas station. We were in a rural area, but it was dark, so we needed to be on high alert. "Stay inside and lock the door," she instructed. "If you see one of them, take off. There is enough gas left to at least get you away from here."

I didn't argue with her, I just said "Okay", and did as I was told.

I watched intently as she carefully tiptoed around the station looking for the manual pump. It took a few minutes that felt more like hours, but she was able to locate it, and she quickly inserted it into the station's underground depository. When she pumped enough gas into our tank, she also filled several large jugs she found, and then we were back on the road.

"Where are we going?" I asked quietly, but it sounded like I was shouting compared to the quiet hum of the road under our tires.

"I don't know. I'm just driving," she answered evenly without looking at me.

"I thought you said you were going to take me home?" I asked carefully. She looked almost unhinged, and I didn't want to do or say the wrong thing.

She visibly tightened her grip on the steering wheel. "Just because Irina is gone, doesn't mean anything has changed. Those men are still…"

"Irina was lying to you," I spoke over her. "I know how confused you must feel, and after you were hurt so many times by so many men, I understand why you believed her. But I promise you, Edward is good, and I haven't known the others very long, but I really believe they are good guys too. Please. I just want to go home. You said you had to stop Irina from leading the horde home. Please."

A tear fell over her cheek, but she kept her face blank. "I just don't know what to believe anymore. My mind is so jumbled. How could this world wipe out so many people but allow the bad ones to stay? Maybe this really is rapture and everyone good has gone to heaven. Everyone left are just diabolical sinners."

"Do you really believe that?" I asked gently. "They're not in heaven, Rosalie. Most of them are the walking undead. Just like you said before, you are proof that they can be brought back. That doesn't sound like any kind of rapture to me."

"I'm just so confused," she said with more tears rolling down her cheeks.

"Rosalie, you told me before that I can trust you. That you would give your life to protect my baby. Were you lying?"

She looked at me for the first time since getting into that ambulance. "Of course not. I would do anything to protect a child."

I nodded. "I believe you. All I'm asking is that you give me that same faith. This is my baby. I would never do anything that would harm it. If I thought for a second that it would be in danger from those men, I would never even consider going back."

"Irina said you were manipulated. You didn't realize how evil they were."

"That's not true. They have never said or done anything that would make me uncomfortable or concerned. The last time I was with Edward, he was rubbing my stomach and telling me how worried he was to raise a baby in a world like this. He loves our child, and all the other guys were so sweet when they found out I was pregnant. Seth even started that garden so the baby would have fresh food to eat. Pete is an EMT, and Emmet is this lonely guy that just wants to protect people. Rosalie, I swear to you, if you take me back, this baby would have nothing but love and more protection than the two of us could give it alone. Please. Please take me home."

"What if one of them does hurt the baby?" she murmured emotionally.

"Then I'll shoot them in the face. They do have guns there. You said you would protect my baby with your life. Trust me to do the same," I reiterated. "Trust all of them to do the same. Good men do exist, and they are good men. Please, Rosalie, take me home," I asked one more time.

She chewed on the inside of her cheek as she considered it, and then she sighed and nodded. "Okay. After daybreak we will stop in another gas station and find a map. I'll get you home."

I was suddenly overcome with thankful tears, and I found myself hugging Rosalie's arm to show her my gratitude. "Thank you," I whispered.

Rather than travel any further in potentially the wrong direction, we opted for pulling over in a dark secluded area for the night. We went to the back of the ambulance where Rosalie insisted that I lie on the stretcher, and she curled up on the small bench seat. Ten minutes into it and I was already missing the comfort of the motorhome, but I was grateful for the space we did have, as well as all the lifesaving equipment that vehicle came with.

That night Rosalie cried. She tried to be quiet about it, but I heard her, and I couldn't help but feel for her.

"It's okay," I murmured as I reached over and placed my hand on her shoulder, which only made her cry harder, and in turn, I cried with her. I remembered the agony I felt when I thought I lost Edward forever all too clearly. I doubted her affections for Irina came anywhere close to my love for Edward, but I understood grief, and despite who she was grieving for, she had my utmost sympathies. It was a pain I wouldn't wish on my worst enemy.

The night dragged on, but like every other night, eventually the sun rose again.

We didn't waste any time that morning, and found a convenience store with maps and some food we could stock up the ambulance with. Everything we had been stock piling in the motorhome was gone, so we basically had to start from scratch. We both needed toiletries and other necessities, and most importantly, we needed to make sure we had plenty of water.

We headed northwest from our current location to go back to Ione Oregon, and along the way we stopped by a few stores to scavage some extra clothes and more prenatal vitamins.

"With our diet being shit, you really need these for you and the baby," Rosalie insisted.

Because neither Rosalie nor I were idiots, we managed to spend the next several days on the road without incident, and when we crossed the border into Oregon, I could hardly contain my excitement.

"I can't believe we made it back so quick. We were gone so long, I thought it would take just as long to get back," I said, practically giddy.

"Irina didn't have a destination in mind when we left," Rosalie explained. "We just drove aimlessly for a while. Plus, she wanted to make sure the guys couldn't follow us. It's much faster taking a direct route back."

When Rose spoke, I could hear her voice tremble, and by the way her knuckles were turning white on the steering wheel, I knew she had to be squeezing it extra tight. She was nervous to return, and her nerves were only spiking higher the closer we got.

"Everything is going to be okay," I tried convincing her. "I promise. I would never let anyone hurt the baby…or you."

"There are four of them and only two of us," she said unconvinced. "I just really hope you're right about them."

"I am," I replied confidently.

When she pulled into town and down the familiar street towards the house, I could hardly contain myself. I hated just sitting in a seat when I really wanted to be in motion. I wanted to run to Edward. I couldn't wait to feel his arms wrapped around me again and to truly know I was home. Even those last few minutes seemed torturously long. However, as we pulled up to the house, I immediately had a sinking feeling.

Both trucks were gone.

"They're not here," I said, almost feeling sick from such a drastic mood shift. Going from an extreme high of excitement to see my love again, to that plummet of utter disappointment was almost bewildering.

"Maybe they're just in town getting supplies," Rose offered, trying to keep my spirit up. I appreciated it, but even without being certain, I could just feel that Edward was much further away than just the few miles into town.

I sighed as my nose began to twitch with the threat of tears. "No. Of course he wouldn't be just waiting around here hoping I would come back. Edward isn't a wait and see kind of guy. He is out there somewhere looking for me, and I'm not sure how we will tell him we're back."

"Bella, I'm sorry," Rose said, ever so quietly. "But maybe they will come back soon. I mean, he must know you would return here if you could, so I would think he would come back periodically to check. Or maybe Seth is still here….or Pete."

I sighed again and nodded. "You're right. The garden doesn't look too overgrown, so there has to be someone here," I said, feeling fractionally better but still disappointed that I wouldn't get to hold Edward the way I was expecting just yet.

We got out of the ambulance and headed for the house door, but I was fairly surprised to find it locked. They never locked the door when they just left for day trips to town. But still, the garden looked tended so they couldn't have gone far. Someone had to have been there somewhere.

Rosalie and I decided to sit and wait for them. She took to a step, but I reclined in the crisp green grass, just like I had done so many times before. It wasn't home without Edward there, but it sure felt nice to be on familiar ground again.

I watched the clouds go by for what felt like hours, but then I heard the rumble of an engine approach – an engine, that certainly didn't sound like a truck.

"Bella?" Rose said nervously as she bolted to my side. We could see the driver as the car drew closer, and it was definitely a stranger.

"It's okay," I tried calming Rose. She was going to have a hard-enough time with the guys she did know; seeing a strange man was undoubtedly going to be terrifying for her.

The old car's breaks squeaked, slowly it to a stop. Then the man got out of the driver's seat, and a woman got out of the passenger seat.

"Hi there," he said as he slowly approached us.

Rose tightened her grip on my arm.

"Hi," I replied, awkwardly rolling my rounded body in a way that I could climb to my feet. "Um, who are you?" I asked the man as he stopped just in front of us with the woman by his side.

"Victor," he said with a warm smile. "This is Jamie. You must be Bella?"

Him knowing my name made me relax and tense at the same time.

"Where's Edward?" I asked anxiously, choosing to skip all the formalities and cut to the chase. If he knew my name, he had to know where Edward was.

"Is he the big burly one, or the kid?" the woman asked confused.

"No, Edward is the leader," Victor told her.

"Oh, that's right. Eddie. The distraught sexy one."

Victor clearly didn't like her comment because he turned and shot her one of the vilest glares I had ever seen on someone. She mouthed sorry before he turned back to us.

"He's not here. He hasn't been here in weeks," he told me what I already figured.

"He is out looking for me," I said; it wasn't a question, I already knew that's where he was.

Rather than answering me, Victor winked and clicked his tongue at me as confirmation.

"So, who are you exactly?" Rosalie spoke up, sounding much more like a protective mama bear than someone meek and scared as I was expecting her to be.

"Victor," he repeated his name. "Apparently the guys cured me from a life of solo zombiness in town."

That was when I took note of his red hair. This was the lone fast zombie in town that Seth had assumed I was referring to as my boyfriend when we first met. The very same zombie that the guys all left to cure when I was kidnapped. His hair was much more orangey than the copper tones of Edward's hair, but I could see how our descriptions of them could have gotten confused.

"So, who is she?" Rosalie asked next.

"My wife," Victor answered with a smirk. "She was attacked by zombies a few towns over before I did. We had been on a road trip prior to that. After I was cured, I went back and found her, and now here we are."

"Are you the only two here?" I asked him with reserved hope. Even if Edward was gone, it would have been a sweet consolation to get to hug one of the other guys.

"Yep. Just my sugar muffin and me," he said while draping his arm over her shoulder and pulling her in for a kiss.

She giggled, but kind of almost looked disgusted too. It was very strange.

"Do you have any idea when the guys will be back?" I asked them.

"Hard to say," he replied while scrunching his eyes as if he was trying to come up with some kind of prediction. "Eddie was pretty distraught and left right after I was cured, so I don't remember much about that time except for how frantic he was to find you. He came back a few weeks ago and left right away when he saw you were still missing. The others also left, but I guess they all went in different directions to cover more ground. It's just been me and my woman for a while now."

"But we are so glad to have visitors," Jamie added. "Victor might actually give me a break with you here. We are trying for a baby."

"Oh, that's nice," I said awkwardly.

"Gotta repopulate the world," Victor said with a smile and a wink to me. Then he looked to Rosalie. "How you doin'?"

Rose responded by scowling at him and shaking her head no. Whatever that meant.

Victor and Jamie invited us into the house, which was kind of odd since it was really my house – or, at least, it was mine first. When we walked inside, I felt like I was in a completely foreign place. Everything was different; the furniture, the wall color, there was even a bunch of random knickknacks on display shelves that weren't there before.

"Wow, you guys decorated," I said as I looked around.

"Yeah, my baby loves her pretties," Victor confirmed. "It's amazing what you can get when you don't need money."

I nodded in agreement.

"Bella, I think we should leave," Rosalie suddenly hissed in my ear. She grabbed my arm tightly, as if she was going to yank me outside, so I just patted her hand and tried to convince her to relax.

"It's okay. We are fine here," I whispered back, but I should have known Victor would hear.

"Of course, you're fine here. Mi casa, su casa."

"Oh, do you speak Spanish?" Rosalie challenged him before saying something in Spanish herself.

Victor sneered. "I don't speak all of that. I only know a couple words. Mainly cuss words. I had some awesome Latino friends. Or were they Japanese?" he asked himself. "Shit, I don't know what they were, but they sure as hell weren't Cajun."

"Cajun?" Rosalie asked confused.

"They weren't like us. You know, that fancy word for crackers," he tried clarifying.

"Caucasian," Rosalie asked with a raised brow.

"Yeah. That's what I said. Cajun." When Rosalie snorted quietly to herself, Victor jokingly took offense. "Damn woman, I hope you're not being disrespectful. I'm the lion in these here parts, and when a lioness gets out of line, he takes a few chunks out of her neck."

I assumed he was joking, but Rosalie took offense. "Excuse me?"

"It's okay," I said to Rosalie, trying to defuse the growing tension radiating off of her. "He was kidding. It was just a joke."

Rosalie backed down, but the look on Victor's face sort of gave me the creeps, so I excused us back to the ambulance for a little break from him.

"Bella, I know I'm overly defensive and paranoid around men, but there is something not right with this guy. I think we should leave."

"If we leave, we may never find Edward. I have to stay and wait for him to come back."

"Am I being paranoid?" she asked me, suddenly unsure. "I mean, he reminds me of my ex, Royce, but then again, all men kind of do. I just don't know how to trust my instincts with guys anymore."

"Look, you know I'm all about giving people the benefit of the doubt, but because we don't know this guy really well, I think it would be smart to stay cautious around him. Personally, I think the woman is even creepier than the man."

"Thank God you feel that way, because I thought it was just my paranoia. She is super creepy. Like her parents were hillbilly siblings and she wants to wear your skin as a bodysuit kind of creepy. The way she kept staring and smiling with her brown teeth. Ugh."

I laughed. "I'm trying not to be judgy, but yeah, the thought of her being inbred did cross my mind. Though, I have no room to talk, I'm pregnant with my cousin's baby," I said facetiously.

Rosalie cracked a smile, but it quickly faded. "We need to make sure we stay together until your guys return. I just don't trust these people."

"I agree."

To be safe, we treated the ambulance as our own private bedroom, and only went into the house during the day to use the bathroom and kitchen. Victor kept insisting on us sleeping in the house, but we kept refusing.

Over the next few days, the strange vibe we were getting from the couple never lessened, but I did try to get to know them better. They were both in their mid-twenties, but neither had graduated high school. Before the world ended, Victor worked at a garage, and Jamie was a waitress – and they wanted a lot of kids.

"We have to repopulate the world," they both kept saying.

"Have you… have you menstruated since you were cured?" Rosalie asked Jamie at one point.

"Come to think of it, I haven't. Maybe I'm already pregnant!" she said enthusiastically.

As the days continued to pass, without ever taking a test or having any other reason to believe so, Jamie went around like she was nine months pregnant. She kept telling us she needed to rest and that she wasn't feeling well. She even convinced Victor to put on her shoes for her, saying her ankles were swollen and she was having a hard time reaching her feet.

We soon came to realize that Jamie had been doing all the gardening alone, while Victor lounged around like the male lion he claimed to be. Now, since she was currently laid up, neither of them were out there watering and weeding, so Rosalie and I happily returned to that task. Busying ourselves with gardening was far better than doing nothing at all. It helped take my mind off of the pain and worry of waiting for Edward to return.

"This stuff is half dead," Rosalie grumbled as we worked through the rows to assess what needed to be done. We were in that garden most of the day, and it wasn't until that late afternoon that Victor even realized it.

"Well, look at you two. Don't over exert yourself, girl. That baby needs to be born healthy," he said to me.

"Um, I'm fine," I told him. "Working out here is actually really relaxing for me."

"Okay, but whatever you do, stay away from that patch over there," he said, pointing to a small lump of earth covered in weeds. "We sprayed some pesticides on it and then read it made it so the garden wasn't organic anymore. Not sure what one has to do with the other, but my lady only wants organic."

"Um… okay. We will stay away from it," I agreed.

Even though Victor and Jamie were both very odd and sometimes unwittingly vulgar, I began to think of them as harmless. We all seemed to move around each other without much interaction. But like a flip of a switch, one day everything changed.

"Bella, we need to get away from here," Rosalie told me unexpectedly.

"Why? What's wrong?"

"I just went inside to use the bathroom, and Victor cornered me and demanded that I tell him when I last menstruated. I thought it was some weird joke, but he was serious. He said we are his lionesses and he was ready to breed. He even mentioned you being pregnant and said he was thinking of going the natural route and doing what lions do when a lioness is pregnant with another lion's baby."

I scoffed. "He said all of that as he cornered you by the bathroom?" I asked, unsure of her accuracy. It honestly sounded like one of Irina's old tall tales that she used to get her to hate the guys. I tried to trust Rosalie, but I couldn't help my occasional doubt, especially with a story like that.

"Yes! He is just as crazy as Royce was. Bella, I know you probably don't believe me because of what happened before, but I'm telling you the truth. This guy is wacko."

I sighed. "I know he is weird, but we have to stay here. Let's just make sure we don't go into the house at all unless we are together."

Rosalie didn't like it, but she didn't like any man so I couldn't rely on her feelings. Victor was definitely creepy, there was no denying that, but was he as bad as she was claiming? Even if she was being completely honest with the whole lion thing, she also couldn't comprehend joking and often took things out of context. Regardless of whatever intentions Victor may or may not have had towards us, we absolutely had to stay there. It was the only way I was ever going to see Edward again.

My plan was to just continue to be cautious. We needed to keep our guards up, and try to keep to ourselves as much as possible. However, as we were digging though the garden one day, we made a horrifying discovering…

"Bella!" Rosalie called from the opposite side of the garden. She jumped up in fear, so I assumed she found a large insect or even a rodent.

"I'll get it," I said as I climbed to my feet, using my shovel as leverage to help me get my big body up.

Rosalie hadn't freaked out like that in a while, so I wanted to take it seriously, but how bad could a garden critter be?

I waddled over to where she was staring at the ground and trembling profusely, and that was when I saw it. Rosalie wasn't wrong or exaggerating. There, poking out of the dirt pile we were told to stay away from, was a human hand.