"What?" Surely I had not heard correctly or had misunderstood.

Nicky shrugged, but she was even more upset and frustrated than I was at the moment, "They took my key for the side by side. It has been parked beside the guardpost by the north gate and one of the guards will take you if you don't want to walk. Or so I was informed this morning."

My vision took on a redder haze as my anger was kindled. I saw no reason for this recent change and I did not appreciate it. The side by side had been tight enough considering how small Nicky was, anyone larger would be bumping elbows with me the entire trip. I might be able to tolerate that from Nicky or Liz, but no one else would be safe from my temper at that proximity.

A growl rumbled through my chest, "And just why did they decide this?"

She shrugged, "They didn't give me a clear answer." Her expression said that she knew more, but didn't dare repeat them considering there was a group of people washing clothing not far away. Some were talking among themselves, but others had their heads tilted as they subtly eavesdropped on us.

I shook myself briskly while clamping down on my temper, "I'll be walking then. Sticking a stranger right beside me in that close of a space is a good way to get someone injured."

"You might be concerned about that, but this means that I don't get to take a big chunk of the afternoon off. I actually have to work! To make it worse, they won't let me do most of the chores I want to do. I can't help with the horses, they refuse to let me play with wiring on the solar panels or vehicles, and they won't even let me go hunting despite how much better my aim has gotten!"

Once more Nicky's crazy perception of the world caused a tiny thread of amusement to appear amidst the rolling anger. It didn't do much, but the fact that it was there at all was surprising. I snorted, "Nicky, if you are hunting rabbits, you at least have to hit the rabbit. Not the tree behind it."

She huffed indignantly, "I am getting better! I am going to find somewhere where my skills are more appreciated."

She turned and stomped off. I started walking toward the gate knowing that she wasn't actually upset with me. I hid a smirk as Nicky headed straight for our eavesdroppers to grace them with her presence. Those who had been listening held pained expressions as they saw her heading straight for their group. It looks like Nicky also has a very subtle and strange idea of revenge, but it is one that I can appreciate.

The guards didn't comment as they let me walk out. They didn't even offer to drive me, which didn't surprise me. I somehow doubted that any of them wanted to get that close to me. Wanting me to stay in the Stronghold and sitting right beside me when I was clearly annoyed were two very different things.

Once I was out of sight in the forest I started jogging. My mind had been replaying this newest aggravation the entire walk and my mood had worsened as I traveled. I didn't damage any more trees, but the local wildlife had better not cross my path until I got to those rabbit traps.

Had Nicky been here, I knew that I wouldn't be able to predict what would fly out of her mouth. I finally realized that this was how Nicky had been managing to somewhat ease my temper. Her unpredictable comments completely derailed my line of thought even though she kept to the same subject and never attempted to placate me in an obvious way.

Nicky's absence also meant that she couldn't help me doctor my shoulder, not to mention that our discussion of various escape plans were on hold. I would have to get her alone later on and find out what she had overheard.

Two of the traps held rabbits and once I had drained them I hung them on a tree to pick up later. I explored the forest again, taking care to not go past the edge in case it made Daniel suspicious. Other than his trail from yesterday, he didn't seem to enter this small forest. His faint scent from further out showed that he did patrol further out in the fields several times a day.

It would not take him long to notice if I left this forest to explore further. I was suddenly glad that I had always mostly hung around in one area with Nicky. When Daniel had come looking for me yesterday, he would have noticed that I had not strayed far from the area with the live traps. He might think that my leg was bothering me more than I was letting on, which would be a typical thing for any predator.

I wandered into the cave again, but left it within minutes. It didn't hold my interest, and as much as my instincts liked the darkness, even they wanted to be further away from the resident Terror. All of this wandering around in this forest would also spread my scent and make it harder to trace. It was sure to surprise Daniel whenever he realized it.

Instead of venting my temper on hapless logs and rocks, I put my energy into preparing our future escape. I took the time to prepare a few components that would help me to break my scent trail before hiding them near the water bottles that contained our pilfered gasoline.

Nicky and I would have to grab them and run when we made our escape. With luck, I could cover our trail until we hit that abandoned town and Daniel would thoroughly search this forest for us before ranging further afield. The more he was delayed, the better.

~

I returned at my usual time right before supper. Nicky brought me a plate with some fruit, steamed veggies, and fried chicken, but her companions put a damper on my mood. Nina and Daniel had their own plates as they were seated on the lawn chairs on the roof.

I tried to hide my unease and suspicion as I tried to act normal. It wasn't easy, but it was necessary. There hadn't been much tension between Daniel and me toward the end of our road trip. The tension had somewhat reappeared and was more noticeable now, although it was due to me, and not Daniel this time. I hoped that he wasn't in touch enough with his instincts to realize the difference.

Nina nibbled on a bun, "How is your shoulder?"

I glanced in her direction, "Sore."

Daniel narrowed his eyes at my short tone, but didn't comment.

Nina looked sad, "I'm sorry, I didn't realize that it would have hurt you that much. Your other injuries were more healed."

Instead of responding, I chewed on a bit of fried chicken, giving Nina the proverbial cold shoulder with my lack of a response. If she hadn't gotten the hint that I didn't appreciate her constant doctoring of my injuries, then she was likely more than aware of it now.

Nightstalkers did not make good patients. Especially if the nurse in question kept bothering them. Nina's saving grace was how well she had Daniel wrapped around her little fingers. I wondered how much it would piss Daniel off if I sent a parcel to him at Christmas that contained a guard dog collar with his name on it. I might have to do that, but I would have to be a long way away when it arrives.

Nicky broke the growing silence, "Feel like archery again after supper?"

I shrugged, "Sure. I am not getting anywhere learning to throw knives."

Daniel glanced at me, "You were hitting the center of the target each time."

I raised an eyebrow, "The point of knife throwing is to actually get the knife to stick into the target. Otherwise it is simply an easy way to pass a weapon to an opponent."

His eyes flickered a bit redder before he shrugged without replying. He didn't even carry a belt knife, so he certainly had no room to talk. The rest of the meal was eaten in a somewhat uncomfortable silence. Nina offered to take our plates back for us and I politely thanked her as I passed her mine. I suspected that it was her way of trying to apologize, although it wasn't doing much with the undercover plot afoot.

Nicky and I headed toward the archery area. Two of the archers were already there practicing. We took the two furthest lanes. The archery group seemed to think that if they were invited once that it meant that they were always welcome. The entire group shared the other lanes.

Liz didn't make an appearance, although this didn't surprise me with the effort that Marissa was probably putting in to keep Liz away from me. The company meant that I was still unable to speak with Nicky alone without the chance of others overhearing. It was frustrating that it was so hard to manage a private conversation.

I picked out the largest compound bow in the shed. It was some sort of heavy draw custom-made thing and I had no clue where they had found it. I tormented it for a bit before my shoulder started twinging. I bid Nicky a good evening before I went to walk the inside perimeter of the fence twice.

It may have looked like a casual evening stroll, but it was actually a careful evaluation of the security. I could see two potential ways to get out without being caught. With my assessment complete, I headed back to my room.

I had also located Nicky's window. Once it was dark out I would sneak out and go over there. The brick façade wouldn't be an easy climb, but my hard fingernails made it possible. She was on the second story in the hotel. I knew she had a room to herself, so I didn't have to worry about a roommate.

My window was open halfway, but I didn't overhear anything besides trivial gossip that didn't interest me. I watched the archery group from my window as the evening wore on. The group took turns shooting, but they never asked Nicky to share her lane.

They did occasionally go over and talk to her, so it wasn't that they were actively trying to avoid her. I suspected that it had something to do with the fact that I did spend so much time with Nicky. They were trying to ensure that she felt welcome in this place since she had tried to transfer using the excuse that she liked to travel. She had been to so many Strongholds in the past that it could very well be the truth. She had never stayed in one Stronghold for more than two months.

Every time I turned around there seemed to be more layers to their plans. This conspiracy thing was going to drive me nuts.

~

I climbed up the rough bricks until I got to Nicky's window. Daniel had been right, once it got dark out almost no one stirred from their rooms. I finally made it to her window sill and reached over to gently tap at the glass.

I lowered my glasses a bit so my red glowing eyes could be seen above the edge of the frame. Nicky groggily looked over and jumped a bit before getting out of bed. She staggered over to the window and opened it up so I could climb inside. She yawned, "And for what do I owe the privilege of this visit?"

I leaned against the wall by the window as she went to flop on her bed. She didn't seem inclined to turn on any lights so I took my sunglasses off so she could at least tell where I was. "I figure the events of today would count as sufficient."

She yawned again, "I did try to come up to your room earlier this evening, but apparently only the residents of the secondary building are allowed inside of that place once the sun starts to set. I was turned back."

I growled lowly, "I was not aware of that. I climbed out of my window, so I had no idea that there was even someone watching the entrance. Any idea what prompted them to take away your keys? You didn't go and burn donuts in the garden did you?"

"Shit, I should have thought of that. It would have made weeding so much easier." She started muttering about dandelions and stinkweed.

I sighed, "Back on track Nicky. I know it is late, but please try to concentrate."

She shook her head as she tried to wake up, "The idiots seem to think that you actually enjoy having me piss you off. They are now quite convinced that you would return if I was still here. They are nervous that we would just decide to keep driving on the side by side, so they decided to ensure that I am always inside the fence when you go outside of it."

I snarled as my eyes glowed more brightly at the force of my emotions. They had purposefully tried to separate me from the one person here that I trusted. It was very hard to gain my trust and loyalty, but Nicky had managed it.

I had always been loyal as a human and being turned into a zombie didn't seem to have affected that trait. People were trying to mess with my friend and that was a huge blunder on their part. I was also the wrong person to piss off.

My chest rattled with my growl as I tried to keep quiet to avoid waking the neighbors, "This changes our plans. We can't wait here any longer. My leg has healed up enough that it won't open up and Nina is likely going to try and corner me again the day after tomorrow."

Nicky sat up straighter, "There isn't enough time to get far tonight. Are you sure your leg is going to hold up? I know it still gives you trouble."

My eyes focused on her, "I'll manage. We will leave tomorrow night as soon as it is dark out. Do you think you can make it to the chicken coop undetected?"

She nodded sleepily, "I can manage that, but how are we going to get out of this place and dodge that red eyed bloodhound?"

"The side gate is unguarded and there is one other spot where no one will notice us if we don't use flashlights. I will also leave my backpack in my room as a decoy, hopefully they will think I am in the Stronghold somewhere. That should delay pursuit for a while. My scent is pretty much entrenched in the area with the rabbit traps so we can head there first. Once we cloak our scents we can run to that town. Daniel will have to search that entire bloody forest to ensure we aren't in there somewhere and it should give us some time."

Nicky rubbed her eyes, "Sounds like you thought this through. Is it really possible to hide our scent from Daniel?"

I nodded, "It is difficult, but it can be done for a short time."

She yawned, "That is good, but if we are planning on running tomorrow night, then I really need my beauty sleep. You can explain the fine details while we run tomorrow."

She promptly laid down in her bed and pulled her covers over herself. I exhaled gustily in irritation at her dismissal, but put my sunglasses on and went out of the window. The only lights were the ones on each of the guard posts. The ground I crossed was completely unlit and no one would notice me.

The night air and moon called to me, but I climbed back up to my window and went inside. I started doctoring my leg again. If we were running tomorrow, I needed any bit of extra healing I could coax out of it by then.