Read Online Revenence: Dead of Winter: A Zombie Novel by M.E. Betts - Free Book Online Page B
Authors: M.E. Betts
Ads: Link
gonna be one of them, it's only a matter of time. I don't know where I'll go from here...maybe Sikeston, I heard there's a survivor camp there. But I have to go somewhere. I don't want to live my life here, alone with the ghost of a dad I hate.
Shari closed the journal, then picked it up to return it to the drawer. As she lifted it, a photo slid out from between the pages, fluttering down to the desk. She picked up the photo, bringing it closer to her face to examine it more closely. It showed a handsome, dark-haired teenage boy with ear plugs and a pierced eyebrow, his arms thrown around the shoulders of a middle-aged woman whom, Shari was guessing, must have been his mother. His chin rested lovingly on the woman's shoulder, and they both grinned at the camera. Shari tucked the picture back into the journal, then placed it back in the drawer where she had found it. She laid down on the couch to go to sleep for the night, wondering about the young man. Had he made it to Sikeston, or anywhere else? Had his zombie dad eaten him? She hoped he was still alive and well, but she knew that the fact that his journal was left in the desk didn't bode too well for his odds. She struggled to settle into sleep, then experienced nightmares throughout the night that woke her only to disappear from her conscious mind back into obscurity before she fell asleep to begin the process over again. One of the nightmares woke her up around 5:30, and she sighed, resigning to give up her attempt to rest.
"Pointless," she hissed to herself as she swung her legs down from the couch to the floor. She picked up her jeans from the floor, wiggling into them and sliding her feet into her boots. She lit up a smoke, settling into an armchair near the bedroom, where Daphne lay sprawled across the bed. Shari had about half an hour to kill before it was time to wake Daphne, so she used the time to clean her assault rifles by the flickering candlelight. She had finished her regular AK and was working on her sniper rifle when the sun began to peek over the eastern horizon, slowly filling the small cabin with daylight. Daphne awoke, stretched briefly, and trudged through the living room and into the small bathroom.
"Sorry to hold us up," she mumbled.
"Neh," Shari said. "Sun's just now coming up." She finished piecing her rifle back together, then held it up into the stream of light coming in through the window. "Besides, it gave me time to clean my irons." She stood and crossed the room, gathering the various items she had unpacked. By the time she had finished packing, Daphne was finished in the bathroom. Shari used the toilet, washed up, and went back into the living room to join Daphne for a quick breakfast. It was a few minutes past six when they left the cabin, stepping outside into the brightening day. Shari was pleased to find Eva sleeping where she had left her the previous evening. She had hitched the horse closely to a post, then dumped several large garbage bags full of aluminum cans she had found in a shed in a perimeter around the post. She had hoped that if any undead approached with the intention of making a meal of the horse, the jingling of the cans would give them away. It appeared, though, that each can was where she had left it.
She stepped inside the ring of cans and mounted Eva. "Must not be any zombies in the area," she said.
"Appears to be the case," Daphne agreed as she turned the key in the ignition of her ATV. She started down the quarter mile-long dirt driveway back toward the highway, Shari and Eva behind her.
Shari's eyes flitted over the landscape as she rode, taking in the sights and sounds of the late summer morning. The various scavenging birds had ruled the skies ever since the outbreak began back in April. The ever-present sound of hawks and vultures calling to one another became just
Shari closed the journal, then picked it up to return it to the drawer. As she lifted it, a photo slid out from between the pages, fluttering down to the desk. She picked up the photo, bringing it closer to her face to examine it more closely. It showed a handsome, dark-haired teenage boy with ear plugs and a pierced eyebrow, his arms thrown around the shoulders of a middle-aged woman whom, Shari was guessing, must have been his mother. His chin rested lovingly on the woman's shoulder, and they both grinned at the camera. Shari tucked the picture back into the journal, then placed it back in the drawer where she had found it. She laid down on the couch to go to sleep for the night, wondering about the young man. Had he made it to Sikeston, or anywhere else? Had his zombie dad eaten him? She hoped he was still alive and well, but she knew that the fact that his journal was left in the desk didn't bode too well for his odds. She struggled to settle into sleep, then experienced nightmares throughout the night that woke her only to disappear from her conscious mind back into obscurity before she fell asleep to begin the process over again. One of the nightmares woke her up around 5:30, and she sighed, resigning to give up her attempt to rest.
"Pointless," she hissed to herself as she swung her legs down from the couch to the floor. She picked up her jeans from the floor, wiggling into them and sliding her feet into her boots. She lit up a smoke, settling into an armchair near the bedroom, where Daphne lay sprawled across the bed. Shari had about half an hour to kill before it was time to wake Daphne, so she used the time to clean her assault rifles by the flickering candlelight. She had finished her regular AK and was working on her sniper rifle when the sun began to peek over the eastern horizon, slowly filling the small cabin with daylight. Daphne awoke, stretched briefly, and trudged through the living room and into the small bathroom.
"Sorry to hold us up," she mumbled.
"Neh," Shari said. "Sun's just now coming up." She finished piecing her rifle back together, then held it up into the stream of light coming in through the window. "Besides, it gave me time to clean my irons." She stood and crossed the room, gathering the various items she had unpacked. By the time she had finished packing, Daphne was finished in the bathroom. Shari used the toilet, washed up, and went back into the living room to join Daphne for a quick breakfast. It was a few minutes past six when they left the cabin, stepping outside into the brightening day. Shari was pleased to find Eva sleeping where she had left her the previous evening. She had hitched the horse closely to a post, then dumped several large garbage bags full of aluminum cans she had found in a shed in a perimeter around the post. She had hoped that if any undead approached with the intention of making a meal of the horse, the jingling of the cans would give them away. It appeared, though, that each can was where she had left it.
She stepped inside the ring of cans and mounted Eva. "Must not be any zombies in the area," she said.
"Appears to be the case," Daphne agreed as she turned the key in the ignition of her ATV. She started down the quarter mile-long dirt driveway back toward the highway, Shari and Eva behind her.
Shari's eyes flitted over the landscape as she rode, taking in the sights and sounds of the late summer morning. The various scavenging birds had ruled the skies ever since the outbreak began back in April. The ever-present sound of hawks and vultures calling to one another became just
Similar Books
