by Kate L. Mary
“What’s his name?” Charlie asked, beaming down at her new nephew.
Luke glanced toward Kelly, and then at Parv. “I want to name him Trey.”
Parv’s mouth fell open and it took a few seconds of shocked silence before she managed to get out, “Why?”
“Dad told me that Trey was his next door neighbor growing up, and that the two of you went to his house looking for his family. They were all dead by then, but because of that trip Dad survived. He was just a teenager and he was alone, and if you and Trey hadn’t taken him back with you, he might not have lived.” Luke’s gaze moved to Lila. “And he wouldn’t have met mom.”
Tears filled Parvarti’s eyes when she looked up at Al. “He would have loved knowing that you remembered him even after all these years.”
“Trey was always nice to me,” Al said. “He was the cool jock and I was the nerdy computer geek, but he always took the time to stop and talk to me. I appreciated him for that, even before you two saved my ass.”
Parv crossed the room so she could hug Al, then turned and did the same with Luke. When he handed the baby to her, she looked like she might break down. I didn’t know the whole story of who this Trey had been to Meg’s aunt, but I didn’t need to. The look on her face said it all.
Trey got passed around for the next hour or so, but eventually started to cry and had to be returned to his mother. It was getting late by then, but we still hadn’t announced our news. I was probably dying to do it more than Meg was, and not just because I wanted someone to back me up when I tried to tell her to take it easy.
I cleared my throat and called out, “We have some news.”
Meg’s eyebrows jumped up at my sudden declaration, but by then all eyes were on her. Color flooded her cheeks and she reached up to twist a strand of hair around her finger.
“Megan?” Vivian’s expression told me that she already knew what we were going to say, and I doubted she was the only one.
Meg held her mother’s gaze when she said, “I’m pregnant.”
The cheer that rose up was loud enough to shake the walls, and so many congratulations were thrown our way that I couldn’t figure out who was saying them, but I was happy. Happier than I’d ever been. Vivian hugged Meg and cried, and Axl shook my hand while Margot looked on with starry eyes that said she was having one of those days where she wasn’t quite connected with reality. It happened from time to time and probably always would, but for the most part she was adjusting well.
By the time we dragged ourselves upstairs to bed, Meg looked beat. Angus and Parv were right behind us, and when we reached the top of the stairs we paused so they could give us yet another round of congratulations.
“You’re gonna need to get your own place,” Angus said, slapping me on the arm.
“I’m working on it,” I replied, earning me a look from Meg.
Her uncle nodded in approval as Parv pulled Meg in for a hug.
“Congratulations,” she said. “I’m so happy for you two.”
When she stepped back there were tears in her eyes, but she didn’t bother swiping them away. Angus stood waiting, and when she reached out to him, he took her hand and together they walked into the room they now shared.
In our own bedroom, Meg sprawled out on the bed and let out a sigh. “I’m exhausted.” But she was only down for a second before sitting back up. “What were you saying about a house?”
“I started looking the day you told me you were pregnant,” I said, taking a seat next to her. “The old town’s filling up but there are still a lot of options available, assuming you’re willing to put in the work.”
“So you found something?”
I grinned. “I did. It’s two stories, three bedrooms. It has a nice backyard that has almost been taken over by azalea bushes, and a swing already hanging from a live oak tree. It just needs some upkeep.”
“When can we go look at it?” she asked, smiling up at me.
“First thing in the morning.”
She kissed me and I found myself doing it again, covering her stomach with my hand. She wasn’t very far along, eight weeks maybe, but already I was counting down the days until we would meet our child. The knowledge that we had created a life together, that it was inside her now, took my breath away. Back in DC when I’d been a prisoner, I’d thought my life was over, and then in a twist of fate everything had changed. I’d managed to win a few fights, and then I’d joined the prisoner release program where I’d been sent to New Atlanta, and where I’d met Meg. None of it should have happened, but it had and I now found myself part of a big, mismatched, happy family. After years of struggling and zombies and death, it was almost too good to be true.
The End
Acknowledgments
It makes my head spin to think about how far I’ve taken this cast of characters. I’ve enjoyed writing about them so much, and the continued messages that I get from readers raving about the world I’ve created never gets old. Really. I love that everyone is so enthusiastic about this series, and I love that I’ve been able to take a group of misfit survivors and mold them into a family, and I want to extend a huge thank you to all of my readers for loving them as much as I have.
Yes, I had hoped to get this book out to you much earlier than I did, but once again life got in the way when I dislocated my shoulder this past June. To say the injury has been eye opening is an understatement. Three months after it happened and I am still recovering. Thankfully, it only put my writing behind by a month or so since I was planning to get TWISTED FATE out by mid-September at the latest, and for that I am thankful. For your amazing patience, yet again, I am also grateful. I’m not a person who enjoys doing nothing, and the month following my injury it was extremely very difficult for me to take it easy, but it has paid off because I am doing much better despite the fact that I am not yet 100%.
A very big thanks goes to Jan Strohecker for once again doing a great critique on my first draft. This series now spans ten books and twenty years, which makes for a lot of backstory and characters to keep track of, and I really appreciate having someone who pays so much attention to detail on my side. I scrambled to get the first draft done before my vacation (seriously, I had one night where I got up at three o’clock in the morning and didn’t go to bed until ten the next night) and Jan was wonderful enough to read through it twice while I was out of town so I could dive right back in when I got home. It makes a very complicated conclusion to a very long series so much easier.
I’d also like to thank Jennifer Foor, Mary Jones, and Karen Atkinson for taking the time to search for typos. It’s always helpful to have multiple sets of eyes, and you have no idea how much I appreciate the time you put in!
I also need to acknowledge the chant I used in the novel whenever The Church was around. It’s a verse from the Bible, Isaiah 26:14 ESV: “They are dead, they will not live; they are shades, they will not arise; to that end you have visited them with destruction and wiped out all remembrance of them.” It seemed to fit perfectly and taken totally out of context, added a nice creepy tone to the people who worshipped Angus.
I know what you’re thinking: Is this really the end?!
I’ve said it before and changed my mind, but at this moment in my life I don’t want to commit to writing another book in this series. I love this series and the characters, don’t get me wrong, but like Angus, I’m tired. Each book I add becomes more and more complicated because there are so many details to keep track of. When I finished the first draft of this book, I had a whole page of questions I needed to answer, little details from the previous books that I had to go back and search for so I was sure to get it all right. It’s been fun, but part of the joy I get from writing is creating new characters and new worlds, and at this point I’m just adding on to what I’ve already made, which not only takes more time and work, but isn’t as enjoyable. I want to start something new. What? I’m not sure, but I hope readers will give it a chance the same way they did with Broken World.
So, for now, this is goodbye to Axl, Angus, and Vivian, as well as all the characters who has joined them along the way. Hopefully, it’s a satisfying end for everyone.
~ Kate
Other Books by Kate L. Mary
The Broken World Series
Broken World
Shattered World
Mad World
Lost World
New World
Forgotten World
Silent World
Broken Stories
The Twisted Series
Twisted World
Twisted Mind
Zombie Apocalypse Love Story Novellas
More than Survival
Fighting for a Future
Playing the Odds
The Key to Survival
Collision
When We Were Human
Alone: A Zombie Novel
The Moonchild Series
Moonchild
Liberation
The College of Charleston Series
The List
No Regrets
Moving On
Letting Go
Anthologies
Prep for Doom
Gone with the Dead
About the Author
Kate L. Mary is an award-winning author of New Adult and Young Adult fiction, ranging from Post-apocalyptic tales of the undead, to Speculative Fiction and Contemporary Romance. Her Young Adult book, When We Were Human, was a 2015 Children’s Moonbeam Book Awards Silver Medal winner for Young Adult Fantasy/Sci-Fi Fiction, and a 2016 Readers’ Favorite Gold Medal winner for Young Adult Science Fiction. Don’t miss out on the Broken World series, an Amazon bestseller and fan favorite. For more information about Kate, check out her website: www.KateLMary.com
Connect with Kate L. Mary online:
KateLMary.com
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