Read Online Until the End of the World (Book 1) by Sarah Lyons Fleming - Free Book Online Page A

my door and turns to me with a smile. I bury my head in the closet and mumble something about boots to keep him at bay, but he comes up behind me and kisses my neck. I stiffen just a little, although what I really want to do is swat his hands away.
    I bonk my head on the closet rod as I turn. “Peter, we have a lot to do.”
    He smiles and gently pats my temple. “And no time for a kiss? Come on, I haven’t seen you in a few days.”
    I give him a kiss that’s more than a peck but definitely not a real kiss. I smile and hope it isn’t as fake looking as it feels. “Okay, now, there’s a lot to do.”
    I can’t decipher the look he gives me, but it’s not a happy one. “Fine.”
    I let my breath out, relieved, and find clothes for myself.

CHAPTER 13
    Peter helps to organize the basement, even though you can tell by the set of his face he thinks it’s ludicrous. We have food and water and water filters. Compasses, duct tape, knives, flashlights, a radio, a tiny stove with fuel, two light tents, and other things for backpacking. Peter’s made a list and checks things off once they’re packed. Whether or not he thinks we’re being ridiculous, he’s being diligent. He’s like a toddler; you have to give him a job or else he’ll pout and annoy you.
    “We’ll have to get the van soon,” I say. “Get it loaded and ready to go.”
    “I don’t know,” Penny says, as she zips up her pack. “I’d feel like we were stealing. Maybe we should cab it to the airport and rent a car.”
    “Julio said I could use the van. Like if I went to Ikea or something,” I assure her. “We’ll be back with it when work starts. Given the circumstances, he’ll be happy we used it.”
    “Julio won’t mind at all, Pen,” Nelly says.
    With urgency James calls to us from upstairs, where he’s mapping out routes on my computer. “I guess you guys can’t hear down there. Come here.”
    The noises grow louder as we climb the stairs. James has opened the street-facing windows in my bedroom. We peer past the decorative wrought iron that covers the glass, but my street is empty. It’s coming from up the block.
    “Let the looting begin,” Penny says, over the sound of breaking glass. “Let’s go up on the roof and walk to the avenue.”
    We pick our way along the attached brownstones to the end of my block and stand at the ledge.
    Broken glass from the storefront windows glitters in the streetlights. Dozens of people cheer as they hand things out to their partners in crime. One guy dances along with his radio as he fills every inch of his car with plunder.
    More figures head this way. At first I think they’re more looters, but they don’t show any interest in the stores. They begin to scuffle with the looters a few blocks down. It must be a group of infected.
    “Holy shit,” James says, coming to the same realization.
    They make their way toward the looters below, who don’t hear the screams that we can barely make out over the din. Finally, a teenager notices the infected, and his face slackens as they arrive. The sounds of rioting fade under the shrieks of fear. He grabs a friend by the back of his shirt and points.
    Some manage to run. Those who don’t notice, or don’t know what the infected are like, or who think they have time to grab one or two last things, find themselves surrounded. The infected fall on them with their hands and teeth. Hoarse screams rise up and are abruptly cut off.
    “Jesus. Get their heads,” James mutters next to me.
    It’s a massacre. Blood splatters to the street as bodies are ripped open. A few escape after being bitten. I hope they don’t go home to their families and infect them, but I’m sure that’s where they’ll go. That’s where everyone goes when they’re hurt.
    Peter leans heavily on the ledge, looking pale. Maybe now he understands.
    It doesn’t take long until bodies litter the street. Some of the infected wander around like they’ve lost track of what they were