Page 138 of My Undead Love Life

“When the outbreak started, I did most of the foraging for our town with my parents,” Keith said. “One day, I went alone, but by the time I got back, my entire town had been hit by a horde. There were no survivors.”

The room went still.

“My parents had poisoned themselves and left me a note to apologize just in case I survived. They didn’t think I would.”

Fuck.

Spencer crawled into his lap and kissed his lips softly. “They would be so proud of you for surviving.”

“Thanks, wildflower.” He kissed her nose, but his eyes were sad.

She picked her food back up and continued eating, but she stayed in his lap.

“How’d you get the M-4?” Oxi asked.

“Ah.” Keith glanced toward the rifle resting within reach. “I ran into a stranded soldier in the forest. He’d been bitten. There were a ton of zombies that I was running from behind me. I tried to help him, but he wouldn’t accept help. Instead, he begged me to take the weapon and use it to protect myself. He also made me shoot him before he turned.” His mouth tightened. “It was hard, but I did it. The rifle has always been my last resort. Even with the suppressor, I prefer to avoid shooting unless I need to.”

“That’s admirable,” I murmured.

Mad glanced at the rifle. “Useful too.”

“How’d you handle the murder cats on your own before you found us?” I asked.

“I hid,” Keith stated.

I blinked. “That’s it?”

“I’m familiar with wildlife.”

“Undead wildlife?”

“No,” he said dryly. “Regular wildlife. But certain rules still apply. Don’t run unless you have a plan. Don’t corner yourself. Don’t assume silence means safety.”

Oxi leaned forward. “You ever deal with anything like this?”

Keith’s expression darkened. “Nothing infected, but I’ve tracked predators before. Bears and mountain lions. This isn’t that different. Just worse.”

“Comforting,” I muttered.

“It’s not meant to be comforting.”

Spencer nudged me with her foot. “Your turn. Keith doesn’t know your backstory.”

I sighed and looked down into my food. “I was a junior groundskeeper at the cemetery, and I was working when this hit. I never saw my family again. Siblings and parents never came back home, so I left.”

“I’m sorry, Luck,” Keith said. He sounded like he meant it.

I shrugged. “It’s life now.”

That was the easiest answer. The one that kept everything manageable. The truth was I still wondered if my mom made it out. I still wondered if my dad ever went back to the house. I still wondered if my sister and brother died helping people or if they ran like everyone else. But wondering didn’t bring anyone back.

“I was a firefighter, and I was at the station when shit went down,” Mad said, setting his empty container down. “Don’t know anything about my family, honestly.”

“Shit,” Keith said. “At least you had the skills to survive.”

“You too,” Mad told him.

Oxi was quiet for a long second. Then, he set his food down. “As for me, I was at my family’s estate, but I left when shit happened. They didn’t need me, and I wasn’t wanted there. Before this, I was just a man with a criminal record forced into a psych hospital.”