Scavengers: Collection - Books 1-4 (Zombie Gentlemen) (m/m zombie steampunk erotic romance) Read Free

not know me, sir. But I... know you!” He smiled and looked Ira in the eyes.
    “Oh yeah?” was all the man answered, staring at him with bored, half-lidded eyes.
    “Yes,” James decided to sit on a chair by Ira’s table, though he felt a bit uneasy in the presence of this man. “I have heard you accept even the most dangerous missions!” he said, assuming that flattery should prove to be a good tactic.
    Ira sighed, flexing the muscles in his arms, which made the snake-like shapes on his skin seem to move. “Depends how well they pay,” he finally said, eyeing the aristocrat calmly.
    “Well the one I have come to propose pays extremely well!” James promised with enthusiasm leaning in closer to the man.
    Ira’s eyes quickly scanned his body before focusing on the eyes. “Well...?” he demanded.
    “I am the owner of a countryside mansion in Kent...” James started, looking at Ira and trying to guess what he might be thinking.
    “I know what you want me for,” the treasure hunter interrupted him, “I just wanna know if it pays off. Just returned from Morocco, you see,” he breathed, running his fingers over his bald head.
    “Oh it will!” said James, immediately. “My father had a whole case of jewels stored. I am willing to pay quite a substantial fee, or share some of the gems; whichever is best for you, sir. Though I also need to get some important documents from my office in the property. I have the blueprints, so it shouldn’t be that hard...” He took out a scroll from a deep inner pocket of his coat and placed it on the table.
    “How much is ‘substantial’ to you?” asked Ira, paying no attention to the document in front of him and instead eyeing the aristocrat. The pipe smoke danced around him lazily.
    James looked at Ira once again, trying to assess how much would be enough for a man like that. The tattoos on Ira’s forearms kept distracting him from the task at hand. There were snakes, tangled wood and a weird male face, encircled with fur and topped with high, fox-like ears. On the whole, the design definitely looked oriental. “Two hundred pounds” he said in the end.
    Ira looked at him flatly for a longish time and when it occurred to James that he might now refuse him, the man shrugged.
    “Seems fair”, he sighed, rubbing his temple and tracing the aristocrat’s form with a lazy gaze. “I guess you got yourself a deal...” Having said that, he straightened his back and held out a large hand towards the other man. James could now vividly see the dark hair on its back.
    “Thank you, sir!” James smiled momentarily and grabbed his palm. At the very moment they touched, he felt his heart skipping a beat. He reasoned that must have been because a man like Ira could be frightening to some degree.  “Could you please tell me more about your qualifications? I would be happy to hear about that from you, not from gossip.” He swallowed, feeling his hand being clenched in a strong grip of rough, manual work-calloused fingers. Dark eyes seemed to bore straight into his brain, making him feel uneasy.
    “Qualifications?” Ira asked in a low voice. “You want me to show ya a Certified Scavenger diploma?” he asked with a dead serious expression.
    James slowly slipped his hand out of the man's grip, but kept looking into his eyes. “No... I thought maybe... I don’t really know if there is any way to measure these things,” he said in all honesty.
    “Now, how do you measure the skill of a hooker if not by what they say ‘bout her, eh?” Ira said, finishing his tobacco. “Same here,” he explained.
    James’ lips parted as he stared at Ira, dumbstruck. In the end, he managed a nervous smile. “I suppose I will have to go with that then, kind sir.”
    “Drop that,” said the other man, who seemed strangely out of place in this freehouse. “I’m no sir.”
    James murmured something beneath his breath and hurried to roll out the blueprint of the house on the