Apocalypse: After Reanimation, I Became The Queen-Chapter 76: _ Error! Do Not Unlock!

"So, what are you? A superwoman or something?"

Nah. Just undead and pissed off.

I give Pretty Boy a lazy smile. If only he knows. If only they all know battle raging within me right now. After all that shooting, all that blood and flesh, I’m battling the urge to sink my teeth into all of them.

If only they know that of all the monsters in this apocalypse, I am the worst.

However, "Nah. Just had a lot of training." I shrugged.

He lifts a brow. "Military?"

"Life."

Bea scoffs behind me. "More like a walking trauma response with a death wish."

She’s not wrong, but I’m not giving her that point.

Leon gestures toward a dusty recliner, and I drop into it with a sigh that’s somewhere between relief and existential despair.

My arms feel like jelly. My legs are vibrating with leftover adrenaline. My shoulder aches from swinging that bat earlier, and my ribs still twinge from where I got kicked. This means I’m getting weaker. Means I need to recharge. To feed.

But for the first time in hours, maybe days, I don’t feel like we’re about to die.

That’s progress.

Yara has curled up against the wall like a sleepy cat, her wrapped foot sticking out at a weird angle. Bea finds a corner and stays standing, which is just petty at this point.

"So," Leon says, flopping onto the battered couch across from me. "You wanna explain why you were out there turning the streets into a Tarantino scene?"

I lean my head back. "Let’s just say the locals weren’t friendly."

He nods sagely. "I assumed as much. Heard the yelling before the gunshots. One of them sounded like a dying rooster."

"That was Scar-Lip."

"Ah." He pauses. "Sure he had it coming."

Yara scoffed. "They all did."

There’s a moment of silence. Just the soft sound of our breathing, the creak of the building settling, and the distant moan of rotters somewhere far enough not to matter... for now that are audible.

Leon looks at me again. "You alright?"

That question always hits wrong. Not because I’m not grateful... just because no one ever is. Not really. Not in this shitty world.

I nod anyway. "I’m fine."

He doesn’t press. Smart man.

"I still can’t believe you shot them," Bea mutters suddenly. "Like, just—bam. No hesitation."

For fuck’s sake! This bitch is always trying to find faults in everything I do when she’s literally the useless snitch!

I don’t even open my eyes. "They made a choice, Bea. The same way you made yours."

"Yeah, and you made sure it was their last one."

"Is this about morals or about you being salty I didn’t hesitate? Or are you trying to make yourself look less bad for betraying me?!"

She falls quiet. Guilty, maybe. Or just tired of arguing with someone she knows will win.

Yara groans, shifting against the wall. "Can we not do this now? I’m two seconds from passing out and if I have to listen to more of this pissing contest, I’m going to snap my other toe for fun."

That earns her a tired laugh from Leon. He grabs a bottle of water from a cracked crate and tosses it to her.

"Thanks," she mumbles, uncapping it and downing half like she hasn’t tasted water in weeks.

Which, knowing us, is probably accurate.

Bea finally gives in and sits on the floor, pulling her knees up to her chest. "So what now?" she asks, glancing around the room like she expects a zombie to fall from the ceiling.

Leon answers before I can. "Now, we rest. Then we make a plan."

"And then what?"

He shrugs. "Depends on whether we want to find more people or stay ghosts."

I lean forward, elbows on my knees, letting the silence stretch before I speak. "We’re not safe here forever. Those fuckers are going to come for us. This is their city. But here’s good for now. We need to recuperate and some of us need to recover. That’s enough."

Bea glances at me. "You’re always thinking ten steps ahead."

"That’s why we’re alive."

Her eyes flick down. She doesn’t argue... as she should: it’s high time she learns that she’s no match for me.

Leon tosses another bottle at me. I catch it reflexively even though I don’t need it. Even though I can’t drink it:

"So, what happened with the guy with the bat? Tell me there’s a guy with a bat," he asks playfully.

"Shot him in the throat."

He whistles low. "Brutal."

"He threatened us."

"You gonna shoot everyone who threatens you?"

"Only the ones dumb enough to follow through."

Yara finishes her water and tosses the bottle into a corner. "I vote we sleep in shifts."

I nod. "I’ll take first."

Leon raises a brow. "You sure? You’ve been on edge all day."

Dead sure I am. I don’t need sleep, baby.

"Edge is where I live."

He laughs, standing up to stretch. His shirt rides up slightly and I catch a glimpse of bandage and bruised skin that is now less angry than before. Bea notices too.

"You really are healing fast," she says, almost accusing.

Leon grins. "Guess you bring out the best in me, Renata."

I roll my eyes, though my lips twitch. "Keep flirting and I’ll make you take second watch."

"I’d do anything my superwoman wants." He winks.

That takes me back to our first meeting. He had winked at me back then too. The memories those bring forward are haunting.

I shove it down, gulping hard. Will Leon ever forgive me if he learns of the truth? Would he still want to... flirt with me?

Yara groans again. "You two are exhausting. Can we please just shut up and not die for the next six hours?"

I grab a blanket from the couch and toss it at her. "Catch."

She squeaks when it hits her face. "You suck."

"Love you too."

The lights flicker, though none of us turned them on. Probably just the wind hitting a loose wire. Or a ghost. Either way, I’m too tired to care.

Bea lays down eventually, back to the wall with arms crossed like she’s still trying to protect something.

I stay sitting, pistol resting in my lap with my eyes fixed on the door.

Leon settles across from me, watching. Bro is Always watching and it scares me. What if somehow, someday, he remembers and figures it out?