Read Online Life After The Undead (Book 1) by Pembroke Sinclair - Free Book Online Page A

find Pearl. I didn’t think it ’d be right to leave without saying goodbye to my only friend.
    Pearl was still in the penthouse, cleaning up, so I waited outside until she was done. We walked to the lake, and Pearl sat on the beach while I threw pebbles into the water.
    “I’m leaving tomorrow.”
    Pearl stared at me in disbelief. “Where are you going?”
    “Liet said I could go with him.”
    Pearl stood and grabbed my arm. “I don ’t think that ’s a very good idea. I ’v e heard bad things about him, Krista.”
    I pulled away from Pearl ’s grasp. “Yeah? Like what?”
    “I heard he’s an ex-con.”
    “So? Lots of people get reformed in prison.”
    “I don’t think he’s very nice. What do you know about him?”
    I sighed and pulled the picture out of my pocket. I handed it to Pearl. “He’s my family.”
    Pearl unfolded the photo and stared at it in disgust. “How is he your family?”
    “He ’s my second cousin.”
    Pearl huffed. “How do you know that for sure?”
    “Look at the picture. That’s me. There are my parents. This is Liet’s mom. And this is Liet.”
    Pearl shook her head. “I don’t think it’s a good idea.”
    “ Staying here is? What are we even doing here? We go to school to learn stuff that we are never going to use in life. Then we have to wait on jerks. I don ’t know about you, but I ’m not going to be their servant for the rest of my life.”
    “What are you gonna do out there? Huh? Fight zombies? Build a wall? Yeah, that sounds like such a better deal. At least here you have a roof over your head and food on your plate. Did Liet guarantee that you ’d have that?”
    “At least I’d be doing something. At least I have family.”
    We turned our backs on each other and stared off in opposite directions for a long time. Why did Pearl want to stay? The re was nothing. At least out there, there was a chance for adventure. To do something with our lives. I didn’t want to be a slave. I might not know Liet very well or remember his family, but he was all I had left. I threw a rock into the water.
    “Look, Krista,” Pearl ’s voice was soft, “I understand not wanting to stay here. I ’v e thought about it a lot too , but I’v e seen wha t’s out there. I ’v e seen what the zombies can do, and I’d much rather stay here where I know I’m safe.”
    I sighed. “I’v e seen what the zombies can do too , but pretending they don’t exist isn’t going to make them go away. Something has to be done.”
    “Well, I hope you ’r e successful in what you do.” Pearl attempted to walk away, but I grabbed her arm.
    “I don’t want you to be mad at me. You ’r e my only friend, and I want you to stay that way.”
    Pearl forced a smile. “ I’m not mad. I ’ m sad you want to leave. I understand that you should be with your family.”
    “Then come with me.”
    Pearl shook her head. “I’m not that brave.”
    I wrapped my arms around Pearl ’s shoulders, and we held each other for a while. Eventually, we let go and then headed into the hotel to spend our last few hours together.
     
    ***
     
    Liet showed up at my door at six. I grabbed my duffel bag of clothes and headed into the morning sun. He opened the door to a transport truck, and I climbed into the passenger side. Glancing out the window, I noticed three more trucks were making the trip, two of them were filled with kids from my class and other civilians from the town. The third was full of the soldiers who ’d come with Liet. He smiled as he climbed behind the steering wheel.
    “You ready?”
    I smiled and nodded.
    “You better be because we ain’t ever coming back here.” He turned the key and put the truck into gear. Whether I was ready or not, we were on our way.
    My stomach fluttered, but I didn ’t look back. I thought about Pearl, wished briefly that she’d decided to come, then focused on what lay ahead. It’d been two years since I’d been outside Florida, and I was anxious to see