Zombies Sold Separately by Cheyenne McCray

coming into the park. “We’d better take a look around before the PTF cleans up.”
    *   *   *
     
    Rodán folded his hands on his Dryad-wood desk and looked at them. He had long tapered fingers. His skin was smooth, soft, golden.
    When he looked at me his crystal green eyes appeared darker than normal. Almost emerald in color.
    “I am taking you off the case, Nyx.” Rodán’s features were set, his tone firm, unyielding.
    My jaw dropped and I just stared at him. For a moment there was complete silence in his den as I sat across the desk from him.
    I clenched the armrests of my chair. “You did not just say that you’re taking me off of the Zombie case.” I managed not to flinch at the word “Zombie.”
    “Yes.” Rodán leaned back in his chair. “I’ll appoint Angel as team leader in your place.”
    My skin began to burn and my face grew hot. If the chair hadn’t been made of Dryad wood, the armrests would have broken off as hard as I was gripping them.
    “You are too close to this one,” Rodán said. “I’d like you to—”
    “What do you mean I’m too close?” My voice rose in pitch as I started to rise in my chair.
    “You lost a family member.” Rodán’s features remained calm, neutral. For the first time ever, I wanted to slap him.
    “Don’t tell me I’m too close to this case to do my job.” I stood and clenched my hands into fists at my sides. “I’m damned good at what I do and I’ll solve this.”
    “No.” Rodán tilted his head back and studied me. “You compromised yourself tonight when you froze up. You compromised your team.”
    “Are you saying that I’m unprofessional? That I can’t do my job?” So much anger built up inside me that I started to shake with the white heat of it. “If you take me off the team then you might as well consider this my resignation.”
    Surprise flickered across his features. “Nyx—”
    “If you don’t respect me, if you think I’m not good enough to lead this team,” I said as I jerked my phone out of its holster on my weapons belt, “then I don’t belong here anymore.” I slammed my phone on his desk. “I won’t be needing this to reach you, will I.”
    My eyesight blurred from the strength of my anger. How dare he?
    I whirled and headed away from his desk toward the stairs and nearly ran into Rodán. With Elvin speed he’d gotten up from his chair and was now standing in front of me, grasping my upper arms.
    “Nyx.” His voice was low now, a soft plea that startled me. “It’s not about you being unprofessional. You’re the best I have. But there is no perfect Tracker who can do it all. You’re simply too emotionally involved with this one, Nyx. I—we almost lost you on the last operation. I don’t want to take the chance of losing you again.”
    All my life I’d had someone make the decisions for me before I left Otherworld. My father wouldn’t allow me to participate in actual operations because not only am I a princess and his daughter, but Drow males will never work side by side with Drow females.
    Here in the Earth Otherworld I’d never been held back like Rodán was trying to do to me now.
    And I wasn’t about to let it start.
    “What about Angel?” I put my palms on his chest and pushed away from him. He let his hands fall to his sides. “Aren’t you concerned about her?”
    “Of course—”
    “And the next op—are you going to decide it’s too dangerous, too?” I had to hold back to keep from shouting at him. “Are you going to decide that I’m compromised in some way that will affect my ability to be a Night Tracker?”
    “This is different.” Rodán took a step toward me, decreasing the distance I’d just put between us. “You saw Zombies devastate your people.” His tone was almost fierce with concern. “You lost your brother to them.”
    “That doesn’t mean I can’t do my job.” My voice was nearly hoarse with anger.
    “I told you that you’re the best I have,” he said.