Several clicks sounded as the gun-wielder desperately tried to make a bullet materialize in the chamber. I closed my eyes and charged forward. When my nose told me I was mere feet away, my eyes flew open to ensure my strike wouldn't miss. The would-be assassin barely had time to focus on the red glow before my hand reached his neck. His shocked gasp was cut off by a loud crack.

Closing my eyes, I darted into the darkness before his body slumped to the ground. I slid on my sunglasses so the last man wouldn't be able to see me. Keeping to the shadows, I eased through the darkness as I tried to spot an opening. The man backed up against the wall, holding Nina in front of him like a shield.

He hadn't drawn his knife yet, probably because both of his hands were needed to keep Nina still and silenced. Not that the burly man would need a knife to inflict serious harm. He was more than strong enough to twist Nina's head and cause permanent damage to her neck or spine – or possibly even snap her neck.

Faint footsteps had me glancing over my shoulder with a low growl. Company was the last thing I wanted at this precise moment. I immediately recognized the person meandering over with bare feet.

I seriously wondered if one of the voices in Nicky's head had a magnetic attraction to any dangerous situation. It was bad enough for Nina to wander around unsupervised, and if Nicky was sleepwalking, I was going to tie both of them to their beds in the future.

The man also noticed her approach and quietly called out, "Hey, can you give me a hand over here?"

He glanced in the direction I had gone, possibly hoping the person he was calling had a flashlight, or that I'd leave if more people showed up. Turning back, he peered through the darkness as he tried to identify the person walking toward us, who still hadn't given any indication she had heard him.

She paused some distance away and scratched her head with a sleepy and bemused expression. "Can I give you some advice?"

"Uh, okay...." He replied, stalling for time as he tried to identify her by her voice and make sense of her unexpected question.

While he was distracted by Nicky, I edged closer as I waited for any possible opening.

"Well, for starters," Nicky said with a yawn, "playing hide and seek at night really isn't a wise idea. And having a quick make-out session in front of the public bathroom is even worse."

"I wasn't-"

"Yeah, yeah," Nicky interrupted him with a lazy wave of her hand. "Of course not. The only people who ever admit to that sort of thing are the ones I make sure to chase on a coffee high."

"That isn't what-"

Nicky cut him off once again. "Uh-huh. That's what they all say. Come back in a couple of hours with some better excuses."

The man gritted his teeth and glared at her silhouette, simultaneously irritated and confused by the convoluted conversation as well as his inability to identify who he was speaking with. He still didn't relinquish his hold on Nina, nor did I see any opening I could exploit.

"Who are you?" the man asked, enunciating each syllable.

"Would you believe me if I said I was an undercover agent who got stuck in the wrong country when the outbreak occurred?" Nicky replied.

"Wha- That wasn't what I meant-"

Nicky dropped her face into her hand as if exasperated at the man's stupidity. "Oh boy. I was hoping for a battle of wits, but you, sir, appear to be completely unarmed."

The man stared at the redhead, almost seeming to forget about the motionless woman he still held hostage.

When he didn't say anything, Nicky yawned again. "Since you're clearly no fun, I'd rather be in bed, so let's get to the point. Tip number three – and you better remember this one – women don't appreciate being silenced with a hand over their mouth like that." Nicky crossed her arms. "Now, I want to know what the hell you are doing with Nina. And considering Trinity is stalking you, the only thing I do know is the odds aren't in your favor right now."

The man tightened his hold on Nina, now aware Nicky must know us to use our names so casually.

"She kicked us out of the Stronghold," the man finally growled.

I narrowed my eyes at his words. His two friends had been more upset by Nina's involvement with zombies, but this man didn't even mention that angle.

Nicky snorted in disdain. "Woohoo. You got kicked out of a Stronghold. I've been to quite a few on my own power. Get a frequent flyer's card and quit complaining."

"That zombie of hers didn't let us go back for anything. I had to leave the pictures of my family behind!" There was more heat in his voice this time.

"You should have thought about that before you attacked a guest. You did that to yourself. Did you tell them there were pictures in your room?" she asked pointedly. "Or ask if they could bring them out? The guards would rightfully assume you wanted to have one last shot at killing someone – but they would have brought them to you if you asked."

The man grimaced and didn't reply. The answer was obvious though – he hadn't.

"Did it ever occur to you to ask the traders to bring back the pictures?" Nicky pressed. "Or go back to your home and get more?" She snorted at his lack of intelligence. "Go annoy someone else. Two of the voices in my head think you're an idiot, and the third one is trying to decide where to bury you. Now be a good boy and let Nina go before you make any more bad decisions."

Her words seemed to jolt him back to the present, and he shook his head fiercely. "It's too late for that. If I let this woman go, that zombie of hers will kill me."

Despite the finality in his words, he remained where he was, almost as if desperately hoping for some other option that would get him out of this alive. And that gave me an idea.

I silently backed up to a safer distance and removed my glasses so he could tell where I was. "Since you haven't attacked me this time, I'll give you a chance. Let Nina go unharmed, and I won't retaliate or raise the alarm. I advise you to make miles though. Daniel won't be so forgiving when he finds out what transpired here."

"You expect me to believe that?" the man huffed, although his eyes never left mine.

"Use your head," I told him bluntly. "You kill her, I kill you. You somehow manage to kill all three of us, and Daniel will kill you. My offer is your only chance to survive. Consider your options quickly, because your time is rapidly running out. It won't be long before Daniel decides to see what's taking her so long."

The man hesitated, then said, "Do you swear this upon your honor and your life?"

Really? A guy with no apparent honor wanted me to swear upon my own?

Instead of snorting like I wanted to, I increased the glow in my eyes as I replied in a serious voice. "Since you haven't tried to harm me tonight, I'll let you escape from this place as long as Nina is released unharmed. I won't raise an alarm, and I will only answer questions if someone comes to find me. My sanity is proof that my humanity has triumphed where most of the infected have failed. My honor is my own and can never be judged by another."

The man watched me for several long seconds before he hesitantly removed his hands from Nina and edged to the side. As soon as he let her go, Nina ran toward me, stumbling over the uneven ground. I remained where I was and watched the man back away as Nina took shelter behind me in case he changed his mind.

"Thanks. That was a close one," she murmured.

I glanced back at her, although I doubted there was enough light for her to see my frown. "And what exactly were you doing out here?"

I wasn't impressed I had to rescue her again without prior notice.

"All three bathrooms on the main floor were full-" she tried to clear her throat, but ended up coughing lightly with a wince. "The people inside didn't sound like they'd be coming out anytime soon. Nor did I want to go inside after some of those sounds. Someone passing by suggested the outhouses, and looking back, I'm betting it was those men in the bathrooms." She rubbed her throat as if it was sore, which it probably was.

"Fine," I said gustily. "Let's get you back before Daniel shows up."

Nina glanced around. "What about the other two..." She trailed off, knowing they were dead.

"I'll take care of them once you're back under Daniel's supervision." I turned to look at Nicky, who had come closer. "And just why are you out here?"

Nicky yawned again. "I caught a glimpse of your eyes glaring at something, so I knew someone was in deep doo-doo. I came to rescue whatever poor sap had pissed you off. It wasn't until I got closer that I realized what was going on."

I shook my head. "Let's get you two back to your rooms."

We started walking back, and halfway to the door, Nina tripped. I caught her elbow before she fell, and she automatically grabbed my arm to avoid falling. My muscles tensed as my instincts protested strongly against the contact, demanding I shake her off.

I narrowed my eyes, surprised by how strong my reaction was. It had never been easy for me to touch someone, or let them touch me, but this was different. My mind spun around in circles before finally realizing it must be another side effect of the controlex enhancing my nighttime instincts.

It took a force of will to let her hang onto my arm as she regained her balance. I kept reminding myself that if she fell and skinned her knees, the scent of her blood would have Daniel charging out the instant he caught a whiff of it. It was a small miracle she hadn't obtained a single scratch in that struggle.

"Thanks..." Nina said with a nervous glance at my glowing eyes, unsure of what her limits were at night. Her nerves were already frayed from her encounter with the men and then hearing me kill two of them.

Once she was steady on her feet, she let go and continued shuffling forward. I shook my arm off with a frown and walked beside them, still mulling over how my instincts had objected to the contact. I knew the controlex made them touchier once the sun set, but I hadn't realized until now that it also applied to my aversion to being touched.

Not wanting to test that theory any further, I pulled a tiny penlight out of my backpack and put my sunglasses on. I turned the dim light on and passed it to Nina.

"Here. Keep it on you for the future."

Nina took it with shaking hands. "Thanks."

I hadn't seen her hands tremble like that before. I checked the air and confirmed she was starting to go into shock. It was a good thing we were almost to the rooms. The best thing for her would be to get into bed and warm up. She'd also be more relaxed around Daniel than me, particularly right now.

"Don't I get a present too?" Nicky asked sadly, glancing at Nina's flashlight.

The door to the main hallway opened and light from Daniel's flashlight spilled across the grass, saving me from having to reply. He blinked when he saw us and lowered the light so it pointed more at the ground.

"What are all of you doing out here?" He seemed particularly confused by my presence, and I was glad we were too far away for his light to reveal the bodies sprawled across the grass.

"What? Didn't you know women always go to the bathroom in flocks?" Nicky replied with a yawn.

He snorted in disbelief. "Nina left to use the washroom, and I somehow find all of you – including Trinity – wandering outside in the dark. Why are you out here?"

Nicky rolled her eyes and said, "If it bothers you that much, here's a clue. The fact that there's a highway to hell and only a staircase to heaven says a lot about the anticipated traffic levels."

She watched Daniel expectantly, although he looked just as clueless as any rational person would be at this time of night when faced with such a bizarre comment and no background knowledge. The three of us would recognize the reference to the two dead people and where they had likely ended up, but no one else would have.

Daniel shook his head and asked Nina, "What's she rambling about?"

Nina hesitated and glanced at me, recalling my promise to allow her attacker a chance to escape. If she said anything, Daniel would have his hide within minutes. That was my promise though. She was free to reveal what happened, assuming she wanted someone's blood on her conscience.

"We gave a guy some directions," Nicky said. "Although I'm not sure how much good it did since he was clearly several coins short of a change purse."

Daniel looked at her in confusion, then glanced between Nina and me as he waited for a translation.

Nicky saw his look and sighed tiredly as she walked forward to link her arm with Nina's. "Come on, let's go to bed. We can have a girl's slumber party in my room. Trinity isn't about to use her bed, so you might as well have it. I could use some company. I'm tired of sleeping where no one else can hear me snore."

Daniel watched with a rather baffled expression as Nina let Nicky drag her off without a single comment or token protest. With only one person left who might give him some answers, he sent me a questioning look.

"Women," I replied vaguely, knowing he'd smell the evasion in my answer. "Nicky tried to give the guy some advice, but as you just heard, she doesn't make much sense at night. No wonder he left as soon as he got an opening. I'm heading back outside the fence before she tries to include me in this slumber party."

I turned and walked off with silent footsteps. When I was sure he could no longer see me, I glanced back. Daniel was still standing where I had left him; he glanced between Nicky's room and the darkness where I was hidden. He wore the same puzzled look many men did when women completely baffled them, and they knew they'd never understand what the hell just went down.

Eventually, he shook his head and went to Nicky's room. When he opened the door, Nicky's peeved voice told the world that interrupting her sleep wasn't a smart move.

"What part of a girl's slumber party do you simply not understand? Get your ass out of my room!"

Daniel ducked as a pillow sailed through the doorway. He snagged a second one out of the air and went inside, closing the door behind him. If Nicky continued her verbal assault, I was too far away to hear it.

Unfortunately for Nicky, Daniel was a zombie, and stubbornness was a trait we all had in abundance. She didn't stand a chance of kicking him out if he refused to go. If Nicky wasn't so dog tired, she would have remembered that attempting to order a zombie around wouldn't get the intended results.

Perhaps I should have put thumbtacks on the chair in the corner...