Free Infected by V.A. Brandon Page B

out a pack of AA batteries, waving them in the air. “And we have more inside the box.”
    Minutes later, each person had a flashlight. While Justin and Daniel went in to check out the mansion, Amy stood outside with Marie and Patrick, flashing beams of light around the unkempt lawns and wooded area just below the hill. She shivered, wondering if there were Runners lurking in the trees.
    Walter released a soft whine, and Marie immediately put him down. “What is wrong? You have to pee?” When he lifted a paw, she turned to smile at the others. “We will not take long. Please call out when Justin and my husband return.”
    “Walter can pee here,” Amy said, waving a hand at the tangled grass and dirt at their feet. “And it’s dark. I don’t like the idea of you going somewhere far, where I can’t see you.”
    Marie smiled again. This time, she looked embarrassed. “I have to go, too,” she said. “Do not worry, Amy. We will only take a minute.” And with Walter leading the way, she hurried around the building and disappeared from their sight.
    Amy tossed a bored glance at Patrick, studying his features. Objectively speaking, the older man was classically handsome, with well-defined cheekbones and a head of chestnut-colored hair. If it weren’t for his personality, she would have found him quite attractive.
    “What did you used to do for a living?” she blurted, out of the blue.
    Startled, Patrick whirled around, and the beam from his flashlight caught Amy right in the face. Instantly, she threw a hand up to shield her eyes.
    “Jeez, Patrick! Put that thing down. You’re going to blind me.”
    “Sorry.” He sounded contrite.
    Amy blinked hard, seeing spots dancing across her vision. To her left, she could hear Patrick moving around. She blinked again and jumped when she realized that he had sidled up right next to her.
    “I’m not telling, not until you tell me what you used to do,” he drawled.
    Ye gods, is the man flirting with me?
    Amy straightened, trying to ignore how close he was standing beside her. It had been a mistake asking him a friendly question. “Nothing much. I graduated from college, and then I got a sales assistant position for a while. I quit that to fly across the country and visit Justin.”
    “Interesting. Are you two a couple?”
    “We used to date, but we’re just friends now.”
    “That’s too bad.” Patrick smiled, revealing a set of straight teeth. Amy briefly wondered if they were veneers. “Can you guess what I used to do in my former life?”
    She sighed and threw a hand up. “I don’t know. Were you a stripper?”
    “Hey!”
    “Well, I don’t know! You told me to guess.” To be honest, she could see him as a boy toy to some rich sugar mommy in her sixties.
    He glared at her, indignant. “I was an actor. A damn good one, too.”
    “Is that so? Have I seen you in any movies?”
    “I had roles in several soaps and TV series. A patient here, an estranged cousin there, a victim of a brutal crime . . . they were all good stuff.”
    He was talking about minor, insignificant roles. “Did those jobs pay well?” she asked, genuinely curious.
    Patrick’s shoulders hunched a little. “Not really. I mean, I had to support myself with a night job. I worked as a waiter at one of the local fancy restaurants. It paid the rent and bills.”
    “I see.” To Amy’s chagrin, she found her heart softening. She did see. Wasn’t that what she had been doing after college? Working in sales to support her dreams of becoming a professional writer? That she and Patrick had something in common rattled her a bit.
    Sounds of approaching footsteps reached her ears, and she turned around to see Justin and Daniel exiting the mansion.
    ‘The place is empty,” Justin said, smiling. “It’s a bit dusty, but there are plenty of rooms.”
    Daniel cast the beam of his flashlight over the building’s exterior. “I think this place used to be an asylum,” he said thoughtfully. “An