The Virus Within: Third Wave (Book 2)

Chapter 26

Luke sighed heavily. "Alright, whenever you're ready."

He wasn't looking forward to this but acknowledged it was necessary. On the bright side, Luke had agreed far more easily than Nicky had. Nicky glanced at me before walking closer to him, trusting my nearby presence to keep her safe if this test went south.

She stopped about three arm-lengths away. "How's this? This is about what Trinity was comfortable with before, even with people she didn't know."

Luke visibly braced himself and took a deep breath. He relaxed. "Nowhere near as bad as it used to be."

"Am I safe to come closer?"

When Luke nodded, Nicky took slow steps toward the Runner as she tested his control. Jess, Nina, and Daniel watched from the picnic table.

Nicky stopped just out of range for a handshake. "And now?"

Luke had been breathing normally as she approached and gave no signs of having problems with his control. He took a deep breath and tilted his head as he examined Nicky.

"The bloodlust isn't at a level that concerns me, but I think there may be another reason for that."

"What do you mean? I didn't put any perfume on."

"Trinity's scent has partially rubbed off on you. It's slightly off-putting for myself, and will probably have a similar effect on other Runners or regular zombies since a Nightstalker outranks us."

"I didn't realize that," Nicky replied, "although with as much time as I spend around Trinity, most animals can also smell it." She tilted her head. "Could that be why I piss Daniel off so easily?"

"It likely has a hand in it," Luke replied. "It's just an afterscent though, so it's only noticeable at close range. Runners or regular zombies might hesitate for a second or two if they get this close to you, but it wouldn't stop them."

"I really don't want to get this close to a feral," Nicky replied fervently.

"That would be a wise decision."

With a sigh and another glance at me, Nicky refocused on the task at hand. "Am I safe to try touching your shoulder? Or is this afterscent thing going to cause any unexpected problems?"

Luke considered it for a moment. "The afterscent isn't going to affect things, and I'm not having any problems with my control. I believe you are safe to try it."

Nicky took a deep breath before taking another step closer. Luke watched as she slowly reached out. I scrutinized Luke's body language, ready to intervene at a moment's notice since he was tensing up. Nicky's hand almost touched his shoulder when the faintest trace of a growl escaped him.

Nicky paused, but Luke shook his head. "Sorry, it's an instinctive reaction against contact." He sounded more annoyed at himself than anything else. "I'm not close to lashing out. Please keep going. I need to know what will happen if someone touches me."

I took a step closer and both of their eyes flickered to me before focusing on each other. Luke's scent was nervous. He didn't know how he'd react or if his instincts would do something unpredictable. His own emotions were making things harder for him, although his control and bloodlust still didn't seem to be causing him problems. It was mostly the aversion to being touched.

Nicky stretched her arm out until her hand touched his shoulder. The muscles in Luke's shoulder twitched at the contact, but nothing more happened. Luke exhaled a slow sigh of relief.

He sniffed the air and a grin spread across his face. "Well, the last three days were worth it. I can feel the bloodlust, but it's faint. I'm having more difficulty with you in my personal space than anything else right now."