Survival (Invasion of the Dead, BOOK 2) by Baillie Owen

Author:Baillie, Owen [Baillie, Owen]
Language: eng
Format: mobi
Publisher: Phalanx Press
Published: 2014-07-29T07:00:00+00:00

THIRTY-SIX

KRISTY LOCKED HER TREMBLING hands around the wheel and drove on at a steady sixty miles per hour, willing the Jeep and the camper van away from Holbrook. They were safe for the moment, but who knew what really constituted safety anymore. How long since they’d felt any semblance of safe? Leaving Lake Eucumbene had been the last time. Since finding the old couple at the gas station, a shadow of uneasiness had followed them around.

That final image of Howard letting the zombies take him left a sickening imprint on her mind. Could she have done more? Perhaps she should have garnered the courage to leave the Jeep. She didn’t think so, but a part of her felt a sliver of doubt.

They drove for another fifteen minutes, until Kristy felt they were far enough away. She edged the Jeep and trailer onto the side of the road, the headlights revealing wisps of dry grass and weeds along the edges. No zombies in sight.

Kristy clicked the door open and rolled out. Dylan was already halfway towards her. They met with a strong hug. Kristy pulled her head back and they kissed, soft and warm, and she thought, our lips are made for kissing each other. The rough stubble on his cheeks and chin scratched her skin, but she would put up with that forever if it meant having him this way, whenever she wanted.

“I thought you were dead,” she said.

“I thought you were.”

“We nearly all were,” Callan said. “If it wasn’t for Eric, and Julie.”

Eric smiled. “Glad to help.”

“Where’s Howard?” Callan asked.

Greg shook his head. “He didn’t make it.”

“Shit. Poor bugger.”

“He gave Greg a chance,” Kristy said. “Then took a few with him.”

“I don’t know if I would have made it,” Greg said.

They all let the silence drift. While they hadn’t known Howard for long, he was a decent man, and had made a small contribution to the group. Kristy turned to Eric and Julie. “You changed your mind? I thought you were staying in Holbrook?”

Eric spoke, glancing at Julie, who looked annoyed. “We had to make a choice. We knew you guys were moving on. It made sense to be with others, in case something happened to me if I went out alone. What would happen to Julie if I didn’t make it back?” Kristy glanced at Dylan. The same thing had happened to his parents. “And those zombies freak me out. We saw that the slow ones disappeared, but those other ones … we decided in the end not to stick around.”

“There were headlights coming from Albury as we were leaving,” Callan said.

“I saw them in the rear-view mirror,” Eric said. “But they disappeared.”

Callan looked back the way they had come. “Do we wait? See if they drive this way?”

Kristy started towards the Jeep. “I don’t like being out here. We don’t know what’s hiding in the shadows. We need to leave.” The others agreed.

Outside the van, Callan explained that they had found Johnny and said their goodbyes. Greg fell into a deep silence and wandered back to the Jeep to wait for the others.

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