Read Online Vampire Apocalypse: Fallout (Book 3) by Derek Gunn - Free Book Online Page A

forward,
ignoring Harris’ attempt to grab him. “The serum …”
    “Yes,” Phelps interrupted, “the
serum. Very convenient, that, isn’t it? We still have no proof that
this serum will kill everyone as you say. With all due deference to Mister Smith, he is only a chemist and not an expert
in the field by any means. He could be wrong.”
    “But …”
    “No,” Phelps interrupted again.
“This is not about the serum. This is about the flagrant disregard
for the safety of others; it’s about recklessly endangering this
community as a whole. It’s about forcing these good people to
starve through the winter, and it’s about not only telling the
vampires that we exist at all, but where we live.”
    There was a shocked silence.
Phelps had left that gem for last and everyone was stunned. The
committee had known, of course, but it had been decided that the
rest of the community should not be told that part of Harris’
plan.
    “That’s not the full story and—”
Sandra Harrington stepped forward but Phelps easily cut her
off.
    “You will notice she did not
deny the charge.” Phelps grinned and Harris could see that he was
enjoying himself. “Less than an hour ago we had a visit from a
vampire - in our very home.” A muttering swept through the crowd.
“They know we are here because Peter Harris told them. And do you
know why?” Phelps swept the crowd with his stare and counted the
seconds before speaking again. “Because Mr. Smith had determined
that the very serum that is meant to kill those taking it is also
killing the vampires. If he is to be believed, and again this has
not been proven, all we have to do is wait till spring and this
nightmare will all be over.”
    “Now wait a minute, there is
more to it than that….”
    “I do not want this
responsibility, but,” Phelps ignored the interruption and continued
on, “if we are to die because of one man’s misguided sense of
charity, then I think we should all have a say in his
punishment.”
    The crowd was silent now. There
had been far too much to take in. The vampires had caused so much
pain and death, how could anyone want to save them? How could
anyone endanger them all so recklessly? They had been annoyed with
Harris at the start of the meeting but this was far worse than
bringing too many refugees in and forcing them to share what little
they had. This was traitorous.
    Father Reilly scanned the crowd
and saw nothing to give him any hope. When laid out the way Phelps
had done, Harris looked like a maniacal traitor. He tried to
compile an answer in his head, tried to order the words that would
explain how these events had come about and how important for their
survival Harris’ actions had been, but the words would not come.
Phelps had said too much and had outplayed them all. He had not
realised the extent of Ian Phelps’s preparation, or indeed, the
hatred that drove the man.
    He did not know what to do.
    Harris recovered slowly from the
shock of Phelps’ words. There was no way he could put his case
across to this crowd, he could see the cold fury in all their
faces. Phelps had won. It was now a matter of trying to limit the
fallout.
    “We should all, as a community,
be allowed to vote on what to do with such a man, and whether he
should even be allowed to remain with this community.”
    My God, thought Harris, he’s serious; he wants to throw me out . Harris itched to
reveal that he wasn’t the traitor. He hadn’t told the vampires
where they were. He wanted to explain everything; how the serum
would kill the humans and leave the vampires without food. How the
vampires would be driven mad by the serum before it killed them,
and how that would send them into a feeding frenzy which would
leave everyone dead, including them, as the vampires tore the
country apart in their desperate search for food.
    He wanted to explain how Von
Richelieu had already known where they were and that they would all
need to work together if they wanted to