He's well on his way to kicking the habit. So it'd be real nice if you got off his ass about it.”
John laughed raucously between another series of coughs. “Yeah, right,” he wheezed. “That'll be the day.” John turned to Josh. “You know what I wished for when the dead started coming back to life?”
“That they'd actually listen to anything you had to say?” Josh said.
“ That I'd be there to watch you turn into one of them. So when you came back to life I'd be the lucky one to put you down like a lame stag.” John Vander smiled hideously. “And the best part? No one would even give a shit. Not even Olivia. Because you'd be a fucking zombie!”
“ Well, I'll tell you what, whack-job. I didn't kill your little girl. You did. And she died long before the zombies came along.” Josh pursed his quivering lips. He gritted his teeth as he continued. “You smothered her, John. And you know who she turned to? Someone like me.” He giggled softly. “Yeah, I'm a liar. I've cheated. Stolen things. Did drugs. Lots of them. And you know what makes girls want to date scumbags like me? Overbearing fathers who try to control their daughter's lives, John. Like you. So do me a favor and kindly keep your fucking mouth shut.”
Josh exhaled. For a second no one said anything. He caught Ben smiling behind his hand. Ross smirked as well. Josh rested his head against the cage and sighed. Fishing for the smokes in his pocket, Josh remembered that the Three Little Pigs had cleaned him out before locking him up. He muttered an obscenity that no one heard.
“You disrespectful little sh—” John started to say, but another hacking fit interrupted him. The bundle of coughs was more throaty than the previous ones. John hunched over and retched blood onto the concrete, which alarmed everyone, bringing them to their feet. A wave of gasps circled the basement.
“ You okay?” Ben asked.
More blood splashed onto the concrete.
“Fine,” he said hoarsely. “I can feel it coursing through me. The sickness. Whatever we're infected with.”
At first, Ben didn't understand. Then, John rolled his pant leg. A good-size chunk of his leg was missing, about enough to fill the average mouth. Ben recognized the teeth marks around the hole that exposed bone. The skin around the wound had purpled, almost blackened. The smell that emanated from the chewed orifice was nauseating. Body odor and urine were no longer the dominant aromas. The stench overpowered the other disgusting smells that wafted around the basement. Ben tried to cover his nose with his arm, but it did nothing to block the putrid stink. Josh grimaced while Victoria heaved air. Emily quickly pinched her nostrils with her fingers. Brittany buried her nose in her arm.
Ross closed his eyes, wishing he were somewhere else.
“ Jesus Christ,” Paul muttered, turning his head.
Tabby held her silent son close, fearing what was going to happen next. The poor kid trembled in her arms.
“I'm turning into one of them,” John said.
Ben shook his head, pressing his back against the cage. He realized John would come after him once the sickness ran its course. And he wouldn't stop until he he had Ben's flesh between his teeth.
Jake... Ben thought. His heart sank into his bowels when John Vander opened his mouth to speak and froze, staying that way until his body reanimated.
CHAPTER SIX
TWO DAYS AGO...
I t felt like the morning after a night of binge drinking and popping Xanax. The world around him blurred, slowly reshaping reality. When things focused, he found himself in the passenger's seat of a car—perhaps the one that had bowled into him. He wasn't sure. A fog enveloped his sense of clarity. The whole thing played out like a terrible dream. There was his mother. Then the zombies. Running and screaming. Mass hysteria. The little girl in the woods. The road, the car—
Josh tried to rise from his slumped
John laughed raucously between another series of coughs. “Yeah, right,” he wheezed. “That'll be the day.” John turned to Josh. “You know what I wished for when the dead started coming back to life?”
“That they'd actually listen to anything you had to say?” Josh said.
“ That I'd be there to watch you turn into one of them. So when you came back to life I'd be the lucky one to put you down like a lame stag.” John Vander smiled hideously. “And the best part? No one would even give a shit. Not even Olivia. Because you'd be a fucking zombie!”
“ Well, I'll tell you what, whack-job. I didn't kill your little girl. You did. And she died long before the zombies came along.” Josh pursed his quivering lips. He gritted his teeth as he continued. “You smothered her, John. And you know who she turned to? Someone like me.” He giggled softly. “Yeah, I'm a liar. I've cheated. Stolen things. Did drugs. Lots of them. And you know what makes girls want to date scumbags like me? Overbearing fathers who try to control their daughter's lives, John. Like you. So do me a favor and kindly keep your fucking mouth shut.”
Josh exhaled. For a second no one said anything. He caught Ben smiling behind his hand. Ross smirked as well. Josh rested his head against the cage and sighed. Fishing for the smokes in his pocket, Josh remembered that the Three Little Pigs had cleaned him out before locking him up. He muttered an obscenity that no one heard.
“You disrespectful little sh—” John started to say, but another hacking fit interrupted him. The bundle of coughs was more throaty than the previous ones. John hunched over and retched blood onto the concrete, which alarmed everyone, bringing them to their feet. A wave of gasps circled the basement.
“ You okay?” Ben asked.
More blood splashed onto the concrete.
“Fine,” he said hoarsely. “I can feel it coursing through me. The sickness. Whatever we're infected with.”
At first, Ben didn't understand. Then, John rolled his pant leg. A good-size chunk of his leg was missing, about enough to fill the average mouth. Ben recognized the teeth marks around the hole that exposed bone. The skin around the wound had purpled, almost blackened. The smell that emanated from the chewed orifice was nauseating. Body odor and urine were no longer the dominant aromas. The stench overpowered the other disgusting smells that wafted around the basement. Ben tried to cover his nose with his arm, but it did nothing to block the putrid stink. Josh grimaced while Victoria heaved air. Emily quickly pinched her nostrils with her fingers. Brittany buried her nose in her arm.
Ross closed his eyes, wishing he were somewhere else.
“ Jesus Christ,” Paul muttered, turning his head.
Tabby held her silent son close, fearing what was going to happen next. The poor kid trembled in her arms.
“I'm turning into one of them,” John said.
Ben shook his head, pressing his back against the cage. He realized John would come after him once the sickness ran its course. And he wouldn't stop until he he had Ben's flesh between his teeth.
Jake... Ben thought. His heart sank into his bowels when John Vander opened his mouth to speak and froze, staying that way until his body reanimated.
CHAPTER SIX
TWO DAYS AGO...
I t felt like the morning after a night of binge drinking and popping Xanax. The world around him blurred, slowly reshaping reality. When things focused, he found himself in the passenger's seat of a car—perhaps the one that had bowled into him. He wasn't sure. A fog enveloped his sense of clarity. The whole thing played out like a terrible dream. There was his mother. Then the zombies. Running and screaming. Mass hysteria. The little girl in the woods. The road, the car—
Josh tried to rise from his slumped
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