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CHAPTER 1
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2024-10-29 19:42:56I answered Mom's phone with trembling fingers as footsteps pounded down the hall. "Dad, something's really wrong with Mom."
"Thank God! I've been worried sick. There was a horrible accident on the interstate. It took forever to get around it, but I should be home in ten. Why haven't you or your sister been answering your phones and where is your mother? I've been trying to get a hold of her. Wait, this is her phone. Why are you answering her phone? Where's your phone? You better not have lost it again." Dad hadn't listened to a word I said.I tuned him out as he rambled on like Mom wasn't sick and unconscious.A shadow crept over the bed, suffocating Mom's frail form. I glanced up. Suzie inched into the room with her hands covering her mouth and squeezing her nose. We had to do something. Mom's brain could be boiling right this very minute. She could die."Call 911," I instructed my sister."What?" Dad asked from far away.I stared wide-eyed at Suzie as I waited for her to follow my orders, but she just held her hands securely over her nose and mouth, staring at Mom."What happened?" Dad asked."Suzie!" I screamed.As if I'd slapped her, my sister jolted back to life and finally looked at me."Mom is boiling hot and I can't wake her up," I spoke slow. "Call 911. Now."Suzie nodded with tears in her eyes. She removed one hand from her face and pulled out her phone."Oh my God! I should've come home earlier. Damn it! I knew something was wrong with her this morning, but she said it was only the flu and..." Dad kept talking, but his voice faded out.My heart raced as I waited for Suzie to get through to 911."It's busy." Suzie shook her head. "Why's it busy, Case? I thought 911 always answered.""Give it to me." I reached for her phone and handed Dad over to her. Both of us were shaking."Dad? I'm so so sorry. I should've answered when you called." Suzie's voice trembled as she backed out of the room.I dialed 911. "If you would like to make a call, please hang up and try your call again."Ending the call, I glanced at the phone to make sure I dialed the right three numbers. I did. What the hell?I re-dialed manually. Busy signal this time. What the hell was going on?I called back two dozen times and still wasn't able to get through."What good is 911 if we can't get through?" I screamed at the busy signal.Suzie walked back into the room and handed Mom's phone to me. "Dad will be here soon."I let out an angry breath and flicked on the bedroom light.We both gasped.Mom looked like someone had used her face as a punching bag. Her entire face was swollen and covered in nasty bruises.A greenish-yellow substance clung to the edges of her mouth and her eyelids, gluing them shut. What kind of sickness was this? She was completely unrecognizable.Dad would help us get her to the hospital when he got here, but we needed to do something for Mom now."We have to wait for Dad," I said. "Go start Mom a cold bath. We need to cool her down."Suzie nodded and ran into the bathroom.Bending down to Mom's face, I listened for any breathing, but couldn't hear anything. I held my fingers under her nose.Relief ran through me when a hot stream of air escaped her nostrils, but it was barely there just like her pulse. I stood at the sound of the bathroom faucet."Su, I need help getting Mom to the tub." I yanked the bedding down and my stomach flipped inside out at the gut-wrenching sight.I doubled over and threw up all over Mom and Dad's floor.
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We never got Mom to the tub. After I heaved everything in my stomach onto my parent's bedroom floor, I held my breath and tried to lift Mom, but she was freaking heavy.Suzie wouldn't come anywhere near Mom once she saw the disgusting mess of feces on the bed. My sister ran out of the room and refused to come back in.Thank goodness Dad got home in record time after Suzie ditched me because I didn't know what else to do. The shock on Dad's face once he saw Mom was something I'd never seen before.Dad was actually scared.After trying to wake Mom up with no success, he told me to grab a blanket from the linen closet. He moved Mom from the bed of her bloody feces to the blanket, cleaned her face, and forced ibuprofen down her throat before carrying her to our SUV.Five minutes later we were speed racing to the hospital until Dad slammed on the brakes. Somehow, we'd landed in the middle of bumper to bumper traffic only a mile from the hospital."Casey, go see what the
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"Where's the ambulance?" Dad was pissed. He must've yelled it ten times once he spotted me.What I was about to tell him could send him into hysterics.As my feet pounded closer, I noticed he and Suzie were standing beside a group of four strangers. Three men and a woman. Other people who'd lost their patience were leaning against their vehicles, waiting for the traffic to clear.I sprinted up to Dad and bent over, struggling to catch my breath. Running on full throttle in the cold night air forced a sharp cough to erupt from my lungs. "No ambulance... is coming. Cars... are full... of sick people all the way to the hospital... and both roads are completely blocked."Another hard cough raked out of me."Don't get me sick, too." Suzie backed away from me.I threw a mean glare at her. "I'm not sick. I ran my butt off to get back here, you little brat. Excuse me for breathing."Dad set a hand on my shoulder, analyzing the side of my face. "Tell me what happened."
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My gaze drifted over Derek as he stared up at the half moon while making the call. The rugged, untamed look was really working for him, and it was impressive how easily he'd rolled with the onslaught of problems.Derek had even offered to be the solution. He knew it could lead to incarceration, but he was willing to sacrifice himself. Somewhere in this rough and dangerous guy lurked a responsible protector.Grant let out a painful groan, pulling me out of my stupor. His face scrunched up as he bent over, clutching his stomach tighter.Suzie's brow wrinkled as she lightly placed a hand on his shoulder.When the pain appeared to subside, Grant silently turned and walked back to their truck. Even though I wasn't Grant's biggest fan, I still felt awful for him.Suzie watched him longingly until he opened the truck door. Then she sadly returned to check on Mom.I glanced over at the big man who gazed toward his wife and son as he massaged the back of his neck."I can
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"Come on. We need to hurry. I'm parked at least a block from here." Derek released my wrist to pull out his keys. He didn't spare me a glance before briskly making his way up the darkest part of the road. "We need to stay in the shadows so that lady won't see us."I followed him closely and kept an eye out for her. Every car had someone sitting in the driver's seat, but it was too dark to see anything else. And truthfully, I didn't want to see anything at all. I'd seen enough as it was.Derek glanced back to make sure I was still with him. When his eyes met mine for a millisecond, the corner of his mouth tipped up. "Just a little further.""Okay," I whispered.Hollering lady wasn't making a sound. Maybe she went back to her car after that confrontation."This is me." He led me to a dark motorcycle with reflective stripes and inserted his key.My eyes bulged. There was no frigging way I was getting on that deathtrap. "A motorcycle? Do you have a death wish or someth
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"Thomas, dude, you're here." Derek's relief was obvious as he fist bumped Thomas. He must've been lying earlier and wasn't sure if Thomas would be here. "Is Mitch inside?""Yeah, but keep it down. He's passed out in back. Said he was feeling under the weather." Thomas ran a hand through his light brown crew cut as his eyes slid from Derek to me. "Dude, you're rude as hell, aren't you gonna introduce me to this vixen?"Derek's eyes flicked to mine. I could see the apprehension all over him. Under the weather. We'd both heard the same thing. Mitch had an illness, and from all we'd seen tonight, it could be assumed Mitch was sick with the same thing as everyone else."Damn dude. Staring at the beautiful woman isn't an introduction," Without grabbing a jacket or shoes, Thomas jogged down the four steps and walked toward me, his muscles taunting me. Thomas was ripped. He held out his hand. "I'm real sorry about Derek. He's known for being moronic from time to time. I'm Thomas—"
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"What the hell is going on?" Thomas threw his cell phone at the dashboard. It bounced off the windshield, cracking the phone's screen. "I keep getting some damn recording.""Dude, I told you the phones are out." Derek shifted on the bench seat pushing his thigh against mine.Thomas's jaw hardened, but he didn't speak as he stared at the road. I was feeling the same way. What was there to say?We'd tried the radio again and still failed to get a signal, which was really beginning to scare me. My eyes kept wandering back to the unending stream of numbers as the radio cycled continuously.Thankfully, we decided to leave Derek's motorcycle behind for our little escapade. When I saw Thomas pull around his beefed out Ford truck, my jaw dropped. The thing was frigging huge with gigantic tires. And when I say gigantic, I mean it. A three foot lift is ridiculous when you're trying to get into any vehicle, and I'm a basketball player who has to make jump shots. Well, I'm only five
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After watching the guys walk inside the warehouse, I crawled into the truck to wait. I was a little surprised to find Thomas had left the keys in the ignition just in case they didn't return. It probably scared the crap out of him to imagine some psycho chick stealing his beloved ride, but unlike Derek, Thomas may have understood I had no intention of ditching them.Dad had instructed me to get the medication, and I would get it no matter what. Otherwise Mom could die.No! I wasn't going there. If they didn't come back in thirty minutes, I'd come up with a plan to get the guys out with the meds and get home.I pulled out my phone to set a timer for fifteen minutes. They'd already been inside for about three.For a while, I messed around on my phone, trying to see if I could get through to the outside world. Unfortunately, that was a big hell to the no.With a turn of the keys, I switched on the truck's battery to check the radio. FM had been a static-fest before, so I
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Closing the metal door as quietly as possible, I glanced around the bright warehouse. I plastered my back to the concrete wall and crouched, searching for the best place to explore first.Damn it. I was totally out in the open, and I had no idea which way to go. My breathing sped up. What the hell was I doing?The massive amount of merchandise stored here was overwhelming. Stacks upon stacks of full pallets stocked the endless aisles of metal shelves, and these shelving units were arguably as tall as a frigging dinosaur.How in the hell did these people find anything here? Or here's a better question. How in the hell did they stack stuff so high, and then get it down later?I ran across to the closest shelf and crouched near the end. Where was everyone? I surveyed the area, listening for voices or movement, but only the hum of lights filled the silence."They're in here somewhere," A voice said from far away. Unless the maniac gun squad had taken off their masks, it h
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"Anyone else wanna play the next round?" Miranda asked as she gathered cards."I'll play. You wanna play, Bae?" Matt pulled Celia toward the table."Wanna give Su her gifts?" I whispered to Thomas.He nodded and tugged me toward the living room. "Alone? Or with everyone else.""Alone." I knew if we did it alone, the gift would be more meaningful. "Su, come here.""Yeah?" Suzie walked into the living room."We have birthday gifts for you," I said."You do?" With wide eyes, Suzie glanced between us."Thomas first," I said.Releasing my hand, Thomas pulled a small pouch out of his pocket. "Squirt, you need to know I'm always gonna be here. I hate thinking about horrible shit, but if anything ever happens to your sister or if one day she smartens up and leaves my dumbass, I want you to know I'm always gonna be here for you. You'll always be my little sister, no matter what."Suzie's sapphire eyes sparkled in the candlelight as her face m
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A mouthwatering aroma wafted out of the house as I ascended the back steps. Jett must've heard me coming because he started whining at the door before Miranda opened it."Back up, Jett," Miranda tried to hold Jett inside with her foot. "Everything alright? Y'all have been out there for a hot minute.""Yeah, we're good." Pushing back the desire to tell her about Joey's latest bullshit, I laughed at Jett's eagerness to see me. "You can let him out."Miranda moved her foot, letting Jett run. He yelped as he bounded toward me."Case?" Suzie rushed out behind Jett. "Are you okay? I heard you needed stitches."Kneeling to catch Jett before he ran down the stairs, I scratched his head. "Yeah. Do they look okay?"Miranda clicked on her tiny flashlight and moved in my direction, shining the light at my ear. Both she and Suzie hissed."That good, huh?" I chuckled as I grabbed Jett and stood."I'm no doctor, but it looks like Thomas knows what he's doing
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Just as the barn door opened, a shadow darted from the cellar to the office."What was that?" I whispered as I clicked on my flashlight."I hope it's not what I think." Thomas's tone was angry as he put his gun away and flicked on his flashlight before barging into the office.I rushed in after him with my gun raised."Well, looky who it is," Thomas said sarcastically.Joey's dark hair hung over one eye. His other eye was wide with fear as he stared up at Thomas from behind the desk. He was sitting on the floor, holding the front of his shirt like a baby. Pre-packaged goods of all sorts were poking out of his makeshift basket."Empty it on the desk." Thomas said.Joey sighed in defeat and stood, unloading the contents of his shirt onto the desktop. Candy and snacks of all kinds fell out.Thomas and I looked over the pile of junk food. Everyone wanted this stuff, but since they were in such high demand, we were only permitted one selection per
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Casey POVAfter our visitors finally left, we all rushed to get back on track. I barely had time to clean the blood off my face before I hurried outside to get done with the day's to-do list.Since our schedule had been unendingly jam packed, we were all looking forward to the party planned for tonight. Not only did we need some time off, but we were finally celebrating birthdays.For the first time since the virus started, we were going to have a relaxing night and drink alcohol. We didn't have much to look forward to in this new life, and we'd all been working our asses off. The first priority on our list was to finish the fence, and this party was our big reward.The unexpected visit from Waldo and Harold had put our day way behind schedule.Grant and Suzie stayed in the house to watch Mindy, and they were also helping Miranda and Derek with food preparation.Thomas, Matt, and Joey were
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Casey POV"Grant, stand guard here. No one gets inside." Thomas said from somewhere under my window as he and Matt jogged toward the front gate."Dada!" Mindy hollered from her playpen.Keeping my gun pointed forward, I twisted and pressed one finger to my lips. "Shh.""Mama ma ma." Mindy's big smile faltered before dropping to her bottom and throwing one of her blocks at the netting.I gave her a warm smile. Thomas had been working with her to say 'mama,' and last week, she finally got it. During his lessons, Thomas hugged me and kissed my cheek to show Mindy that I was Mama. She was growing too fast and was on the verge of walking. I was nervous she would figure out how to escape her playpen soon.Matt and Thomas opened the small gate beside our large vehicle gate. When they both disappeared, my skin crawled.I'd watched the three vehicles approach, but now they were hidden behind th
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Suzie POVOver the next few weeks, things were oddly quiet. Don't get me wrong, it was awesome, but it was just weird since we hadn't seen a zombie in days.Digging sucked. It looked easy, but it was tiring, and my hands suffered the consequences. The blisters made it a painful transition, but I didn't get blisters anymore. Now I had calluses."Do you think the zombies went south to the ocean?" Taking a long drink from my water, I studied the clouds in the sky as I tried to catch my breath."No. We're just in between groups." Joey tossed a heap of dirt onto my feet. "They're always right around the corner, headed our way.""What the heck? Don't!" Kicking the dirt off my boots, I aimed for Joey, hitting his knees.Joey's deep laugh filled the trench as he slapped the dirt off his jeans."Joey," Matt warned in a harsh tone before his pickaxe hit the dirt. "Do it again, and you'll be put
Her Deadly Revenge CHAPTER 66
The drive home was pleasantly uneventful. For the first time in a long time, it felt like today some angel above was watching over us.Since the Dually had more seating, Joey and Miranda were riding with Grant and Suzie. Our newbies didn't argue or complain as Thomas gave them specific instructions when they were preparing to leave with us, which was a good sign.Joey, albeit heartbroken over his father, stayed silent as he and Miranda quickly loaded more supplies, their belongings, and thoroughly disinfected themselves before loading up for the journey home."Is that Matt?" I pointed to a shadow digging in the yard as we rolled down our long dirt road.Thomas squinted against the late afternoon sun. "Looks like it."Matt glanced up. A huge smile lit up his face as he threw down his shovel, hoisted himself out of the hole, and jogged toward us.The front door swung open, revealing a joyful Celia with our Munchkin in her arms.At the sight of my dau
Her Deadly Revenge CHAPTER 65
Casey POVClicking on our flashlights, Miranda led us into the dark store. Dodging a massive stack of empty boxes sitting just inside the door, I nearly walked into a heaping pile of garbage. One bulging trash bag showed that someone had done the same thing and ripped one open. The garbage within was comprised of empty soup cans and food packaging."Be careful." Miranda grimaced before she continued walking without a flashlight. "We don't do much tidyin' up. I tried to organize the store after those military men left, but a couple of days later, a group of college guys broke in and destroyed all my hard work. They got so drunk that one guy forgot to block the entrance and let a group of eaters inside. The guys all died. Well, actually, I think maybe one got away, but they left me with the mess, and I had to kill all the eaters and the guys that came back to life. It was bad. I gave up cleaning anything after that."
Her Deadly Revenge CHAPTER 64
Casey POVGiving up on finding gas, I buckled myself into the passenger seat and leaned my head against the window. We passed several random biters staggering aimlessly down the road as I stared into space. This country road was hopeless.As we hit the three-quarter mark toward home, I glanced at the truck's gas gauge, and it was almost empty again. This truck literally guzzled gas.Noticing my worry, the corner of Thomas's lips tipped up. "It's okay, Sweetheart. Like I said before, it's just a truck. We'll drive until it runs out and we'll come back for it someday."I grimaced and nodded. I hated the idea of leaving this truck behind. It was his, and he shouldn't have to lose anything else. Who was I kidding? It was mine too, and I damn sure didn't want to lose it.Even though the dark clouds continued to hold their ominous position, the rain slowed, softening into a sprinkle. That was when a small m
