Read Online Love and Decay, Boy Meets Girl by Rachel Higginson - Free Book Online

but that didn’t mean we just let
her run around willy-nilly with weapons. She was eight.
    And we were trying to keep her alive.
    This part of the store stayed secluded from
the rest of the departments, so we could hide undetected until the
rest of my brothers made it to the bottom of the shaft.
    The Feeders swarmed everywhere else though,
loud, hungry and single-minded with the need for our brains. They
were slow, clumsy and hardly cognizant of anything but flesh, still
they were the most dangerous enemy mankind had every fought.
    One bite. Just once. And that was it. The
poison of the disease infected you immediately and your rational,
functioning thought died in the wake of a desperate addiction to
flesh, blood and brains.
    There was no cure, no immunity, no anything
but kill or be killed.
    Eventually, Nelson, Harrison and King joined
us on the ground, weapons ready and bodies tensed. We moved into
position and Vaughan held up three fingers, counting down. Then we
were off. I led the way and Reagan stayed directly behind me just
as I’d asked.
    I always led the way- it was my place. But
with Reagan so close and vulnerable, I was suddenly rethinking this
position. The rest of my family took up the rear and I had never
once second-guessed them or doubted their ability to perform and
protect. I shouldn’t start tonight.
    We moved as silently as we could, stepping
over dead bodies, and around the gore and carnage left littering
the floor. I led my group to the outside though the wall we’d blown
up just for this very purpose and immediately engaged the
enemy.
    I had wanted to wait to start shooting until
we were closer to the Hummer, since I knew the sound would draw
attention our way; but firing shots was unavoidable. Feeders of
every size, shape and degree of disease were scattered before me
and if I didn’t kill them, then they would come after me in the
space of a heartbeat.
    I spared one extra moment to look down at
Reagan and remind her she needed to stay by my side. “With me,” I
mouthed and she nodded obediently.
    Pride and satisfaction swelled in my chest
and I felt a surge of extra energy. I also felt the resolute
certainty that we were doing the right thing by going with
them.
    As I looked around at the Zombies swarming
us, from in front of us, down the street or now streaming back down
the stairs in order to get to us, I knew with absolute certainty I
couldn’t let Reagan and Haley continue on their journey alone.
    They needed us as much as we needed them. And
I was just starting to realize how much we needed them . And not for any of my own selfish,
a-little-bit-delusional reasons. The boys needed women to soften
them and Page needed girls to confide in, to teach her how to be a
woman. I would dissect my own reasons for needing them, or at least
Reagan… later.
    I trusted my brothers to take care of
themselves and Page. And they trusted me to clear the way. This was
my job- eliminating the threat. I was the best shot, had the
clearest aim and held the highest kill record- if we were counting…
which we weren’t. Well, they weren’t.
    I pulled the trigger time and time again. The
gun reverbed through my body, making me feel electric, making me
feel invincible. Feeder after Feeder dropped in front of me, but it
was never enough. They were everywhere, in every direction. There
was no end to them, just endless supplies of creatures trying to
kill us.
    I pushed my body harder, until my ears rushed
with the sound of my breathing and pumping blood. My heart hammered
furiously and warred with the panting of my lungs. My legs burned
with the stretching pace, but this was a pain I enjoyed. My arms
stayed steadily raised and my gun expertly trained.
    They were run of the mill B-roll. I was a
skilled assassin, born and bred for this.
    “Reagan, to your left” Vaughan shouted from
behind me.
    My gun went with hers. Her instincts took
over and she started shooting before she had time to process
rational thought. I