Read Online After The End by Melissa Gibbo - Free Book Online

patches of grass, immobile vehicles, wild flowers, and
dozens of Dead. The zombie population would only get worse as we
traveled further into the city.
    “Let’s get the fuel taken care of before we
attract to many corpses.” Sunny said through the cubby-sized window
as she pulled up between the cars.
    “I hate this part.” I exclaimed as we jumped
out of the trucks.
    Sunny and the other driver stood watch in
their doors, prepared to start our getaway, their weapons firm in
hand. Daemon flew straight up and circled like a vulture as he
surveyed the area.
    Randolph and Dane crawled under the two
nearest autos and cut the fuel lines as everybody took position.
Four others collected the flowing liquid in steel mixing bowls;
they passed them to the last woman and myself. The two of us used
our beer bongs to pour the fumy substance into the gas tanks.
    Everyone continuously scanned to check the
distance of the decaying wanderers. As I clicked shut the gas cap,
Daemon swooped down. In a blur of motion the vampire tore off the
head of one Dead, causing a sound of snapped celery before
returning to the sky.
    “Ewww.” I heard as he ascended again.
    The head lay on the pavement twenty feet from
me; it was still blinking and gurgling as a thick black substance
oozed from its ragged stump. I hadn’t realized it was so near. The
process was repeated on three more cars and several more carcasses.
A couple of fleshies got unnervingly close to our party. Gassing up
left us so exposed; I felt I was on a stage naked in the
spotlight.
    Sunny was almost bitten by what had once been
a young girl. The creature dragged its half-missing leg, leaving a
wake of pus, tissue, and stink. It had crawled beneath the truck
and was only discovered when the tiny hand clasped her ankle.
    Sunny leapt sideways as the thing pulled
itself out in the open and drew upright. It chomped its mouth open
and closed; crooked baby teeth reflected the scant light. A pink
plastic bracelet and several brightly colored bangles decorated the
discolored child’s remains. Someone’s dried blood coated the
creature, a stark contrast to the glittered fingernails that
reached out for Chase’s wife.
    Someone added vomit into the aroma encircling
us when she jabbed her spear through the zombie’s bleached eye.
Immediate peril being neutralized, our group completed the task and
mounted our metal steed to begin our search.
    Our drivers pulled into a subdivision; it was
a pastel nightmare with a community pool. There weren’t many
fleshies in view, but sometimes that was worse. I silently prayed
that the Dead hadn’t learned to hide.
    We stopped at the first house that was
unmarked from previous ventures. It was bright pink with teal
shutters and the front yard had bone shards strewn about; they
gleamed under our headlights.
    Daemon and I took the lead for the sweep of
the house, all but the drivers trailing us closely. I drew my
broadsword as he pulled the door off the hinges and tossed it onto
the misshapen hedges. The azaleas seemed to be thriving.
    “You couldn’t try the door knob before going
for the horror movie effect?” I asked.
    He shrugged and answered sheepishly,
    “Sorry, I’ve been wanting to do that ever
since I got turned.”
    With a half-smile, the vampire disappeared
into the suburban deathtrap. I crossed the threshold and checked
the kitchen, pantry, and garage for hungry cadavers. Upon hearing
the all clear, I stepped into the doorway to give a wave to the
drivers. They acknowledged call and guarded the trucks and extra
gas.
    “Alright, we all have the list so let’s load
up whatever we can use. We need to move quickly, there are a lot of
items we need and it’s a big neighborhood to search.” I
instructed.
    Our team became a tornado, drawing everything
into the center of the room. I carried a green reusable grocery bag
stuffed with Ziploc bags, spices, pots, pans, Ramen noodles, and
some cans of corn out to the trucks. Between the first six