When I arrived, four faces were at the door watching. Marissa was out of sight with the kids somewhere. No zombies had come back yet, although that didn't surprise me.

I parked it on the road in front of the store and turned it off. I pocketed the keys and got out of the truck. I slowly approached the door of the grocery store. My sunglasses were back on. Hank and Ben held their ground by the door while Nicky watched almost eagerly from further back. Tom had backed up with my approach and was well off to the side now.

I paused in front of the glass doors as I looked at those watching me. "Did I scare you guys shitless or are you still willing to put up with me?" They would have no problem hearing me with just two old glass doors separating us.

Hank slowly pushed the door open. I put out my hand to hold it open and slowly walked in. I was being cautious, lest they try to kill me with an ambush. Nicky came forward with a grin, "So, what is the casualty count?"

I somehow doubted that she believed the story that the guys gave her. I chuckled, "There is one less elk in the forest, but that is about it."

For them, the room would be almost pitch black since it was well past midnight, but I could see them perfectly. She came forward fearlessly, almost eagerly, "Can I see your eyes? Ben kept claiming that they were glowing red. I think he needs his vision checked."

I had kind of expected this. With a sigh I reached up and took my glasses off. I kept my eyes at a faint glow, but didn't alter their red color. She blinked in shock, "Wow. That is so cool. How come they were brown yesterday?"

I gave her a confused look, how could she accept this so easily? Most humans put as much distance between themselves and me as possible. "I can control the color and glow to a certain extent."

Ben turned on a small flashlight and pointed it at the ceiling to allow them to see easier. The small amount of light it emitted was uncomfortable, but tolerable. At least he didn't point it at me, which was a good thing. Having a light pointed at me flared up my temper in a fashion that little else could.

Nicky's excitement only climbed as she bombarded me with questions, "How long have you been a zombie? How come you can talk and the others can't? Are you always grouchy because you are a zombie? I have a hard time believing you are a zombie considering you haven't tried to eat us yet."

I watched her until she had to pause for breath. My red eyes didn't bother her in the least. "I turned about a week after the zombies first appeared. I can talk because I am still in control. Yes, the irritability is common in all zombies. I don't attack humans mindlessly because I am in control. For me to actually eat human blood or flesh would reduce me to a mindless zombie."

I restrained my irritation at the bombardment of questions and kept my answers as patient as I could. They had let me in after all, so they didn't expect me to lunge for their throats. I knew that knowledge often dissipated fears so my answers should calm them a bit.

The others looked surprised at my answers, but Nicky was already rattling off more questions, "How come you are in control while the others are all deranged morons? Yeah, I wouldn't eat Ben either. Insanity is contagious and considering how that bathroom stunk after he was in it, he'd give you food poisoning. How come you had to go out so badly? If I got bitten by a zombie, how do I remain in control too?"

This could be a long night. I was so full from the elk that even the powerful smell of seven humans barely bothered me. That was a good side effect as far as I was concerned.

"The regular zombies have no chance of retaining their sanity. They are insane by default. For the other types of zombies, as long as you can avoid human blood, human flesh, or any raw meat you can remain in control. Many don't realize the dangers and when you first come to after turning you crave raw meat and blood."

Nicky was still staring into my red eyes with all of the excitement of a hyperactive child, "But why did you have to go out? There was lots of other food in here. What did you mean by there was one less elk in the forest?"

Here we go... I sighed, "Sanity is shattered by human flesh, human blood, or any type of raw meat. To remain in control a zombie still needs blood from other animals. I had to go out because my control was waning and I had to hunt. I drained the elk of its blood, so I am in full control again."

Marissa made a face and Tom looked pale. Nicky's excitement flew through the roof, "Like a vampire! Awesome!"

I blinked in confusion at her wild excitement. This girl was definitely off her rocker. And had possibly fallen on her head. Several times.

Hank was watching me closely, "You are too coordinated for a Runner. Are you a Nightstalker or a Terror?"

Ben's eyes got wider at Hank's question. I nodded at Hank's keen observation, "Nightstalker."

Nicky spun to face Ben with an evil smile, "Still feel like kissing her?"

Ben rapidly shook his head. I chuckled at his sudden change of heart. "You should be proud Ben, you managed to piss off a Nightstalker at least three times in three days and you still live. Not many can claim that feat."

Nicky shook her head, "You don't act much like any zombie I ever heard of."

"I was acting as human as I could. Now that you know, I won't be trying so hard. So don't be surprised if I growl or snarl at you. It is as natural for me as breathing is for you."

Nicky grinned at me, "As irritable as you seem, I have a feeling I will be hearing more growling than laughter."

I bared my teeth in a parody of a grin, my white teeth showing even in the darkness as proof of how true her words were. I was a zombie. Nicky grimaced, "Just give me warning before you eat me."

I snorted, "I have no plans on eating you." Especially her, just in case whatever was wrong with her was contagious...

Hank gave Nicky a confused look, "You can't outrun a Nightstalker, what good would a warning do?"

Nicky grinned at him, "I would drink every drop of hot sauce in this place and give her indigestion as revenge."

I sat on the bench behind me to see if it would help relax those watching me, "Wouldn't do you any good. You can't give a zombie indigestion or poison them. It simply isn't possible."

Nicky pouted, "You ruin all of my fun."

Liz sat up from her bed in the corner, obviously just waking up as she blinked sleepily around. She spotted me, "Trinity?"

I nodded, "Yes, it's me." I wasn't sure how the girl would react with my red glowing eyes visible in the darkness. I just hoped she wouldn't start screaming about zombies and freak out.

She promptly stood up with her blanket and walked over to climb into my lap, much to my surprise. The adults all tensed up as Liz curled up in my lap and pulled her blanket over herself. Nicky was the only one who seemed unconcerned. I held Liz as she swiftly fell asleep again.

Hank lifted his head, "That was how you knew to evade all of those zombies and keep our scent down. It was because you were a zombie."

I nodded in confirmation. He furrowed his eyebrows in thought, "I saw you tense up a bit when Liz cut herself, but didn't think much of it then. The smell of her blood affected you, didn't it?"

I exhaled, "Yes. The mere scent of humans is a temptation, but I can easily ignore that as long as I hunt regularly. Fresh blood is much worse, the smell of it makes my throat burn somewhat and only blood can ease the burn. I wasn't expecting her to cut herself, let alone in my lap when I hadn't hunted for two days. I took a few seconds to ensure that I was in control and wouldn't slip."

Marissa got suddenly pale as she realized the danger that the child had been in. People from the orphanages had always been worried about negligent or abusive parents. Bad parents had nothing on me. I could have easily killed and eaten the child over a paper cut. I set a whole new definition for bad parenting.

Marissa slowly stood up and came over, "Can I please take her? No offense, but I just need some time to adjust and prefer her in my arms for now."

I held out the child and she came closer with a nervous watch on my red eyes. I spoke quietly, "Had I truly wished you harm, I wouldn't have killed that Runner that was coming up behind you when you were fending off the other four zombies. That first night you all slept so hard that if it wasn't for the snoring, I would have thought that you were dead. Yet you all still live."

She nodded slowly as she took Liz and backed up. Her mind was now working and fear was no longer the center of her attention. I was pretty sure I had seriously rattled her though. She would likely start avoiding me, which was typical behavior for most humans.

Nicky yawned, "Well, if you aren't going to kill us, then I am heading to bed. I assume that Hank will be up at the crack of dawn since you brought us a new truck."

"I have no plans to kill you." At least at the moment. I would probably want to throttle them before it was time for lunch. Hopefully they wouldn't irritate me as much now that they knew what I was.

She yawned and headed to her sleeping bag, "Good. See you in the morning."

Ben seemed at a loss and looked at Hank. Hank met my eyes once more, "I think we had all best get some sleep. I assume you will keep an eye on the door?"

I nodded. Ben gave Hank a disbelieving look. Hank shrugged at him, "If she wanted us dead, she would have killed you the other day."

They all went to their sleeping bags. I doubted Ben or Tom would sleep, they were simply too nervous. Marissa would probably manage to get some sleep. Nicky was already snoring softly. Hank was one of those people who thought about something carefully, analyzed it from every angle, made his decision and went with it. I knew he would sleep. Ben turned the small flashlight off, leaving the room in darkness.

I turned my red eyes toward the doors and remained as a sentry.