As The World Dies Trilogy Box Set [Books 1-3]

by Frater, Rhiannon

  Katie tucked one hand under the pillow Travis usually slept on. His scent comforted her. “As long as you don’t give in to him, you’ll be fine.”

  Jenni rubbed her reddened nose. “Sometimes that first day feels like a hundred years ago. Today, it feels like … today.”

  Katie lovingly smoothed Jenni’s hair back from her face. “I know.”

  Rolling over, Jenni hid her swollen eyes and tearstained face. Katie draped one arm over her friend’s waist. They lay in comfortable silence for a few minutes as Jenni regained her composure and her shoulders relaxed.

  Katie reached over her and switched off the lamp. Jenni sighed and Katie could feel her friend sinking into the drained weakness that came after an emotional storm. She snuggled down behind Jenni, holding her close.

  “You’re the best friend in the world. The best I’ve ever had,” Jenni whispered.

  “I love you, Jenni. You’re my best friend. I’ll always be here for you.”

  Closing their eyes, the two friends held each other until sleep carried them away.

  CHAPTER FIFTEEN

  1.

  The Dead in the Night

  “We have a problem. Let’s go!”

  Travis and Eric looked up as Curtis rushed toward them. Neither one of them could sleep after the events of the day, so they were back at work. They were in the hotel’s lobby, studying an antique map of the town that was displayed under glass. Despite its age, it was surprisingly accurate. The town had not changed much in seventy years.

  “The Hackleburg survivors are under attack! We have to go! We have to go!” Curtis’s young face was flushed under his blond hair. He was agitated and motioning with both hands.

  “Shit! Get Nerit!” Travis headed toward the communication center at a run.

  “What does Curtis mean? ‘Under attack’?” Eric was flustered as he rushed after Travis. He shoved his glasses up on his nose and seemed as alarmed as Travis felt.

  “In this crazy world, who knows?”

  They burst into the communication center, where Bill was perched over an array of radios.

  “Repeat! Repeat! I can’t make out what you’re saying!” Bill was speaking loudly into a mic.

  “ … got through … we are fight- … please hur …” The sounds of gunshots peppered the woman’s voice. Her terror could be heard clearly despite the static that ate her words. “ … hurry! Please hurry … Repeat … got in!”

  “Zombies?” Travis asked, his body tensing at the thought of losing another survivor group.

  “I don’t know. I can’t make it all out,” Bill said in a surprisingly composed voice. As always, Travis was impressed by Bill’s ability to handle stressful situations in a calm manner.

  Eric cocked his head, listening to the frantic woman’s garbled message. He frowned. “Are we really going out there?”

  Bill looked at Travis, who said, “Hey, I’m not the mayor.”

  “Not yet,” Bill answered.

  Nerit entered the room, her yellowed silver hair in a braid over one shoulder and her bathrobe tied tightly at her waist. “What is the situation?”

  “Hackleburg is under attack. I can’t make out if it’s zombies or bandits. Sue just keeps screaming into the microphone that someone got in.” Bill rubbed his broad forehead. “It doesn’t sound good.”

  Peggy rushed in with Curtis behind her. She was wearing pajamas and her son was clinging to her like a monkey. “Hackleburg? Shit! They have kids in there!” She heaved Cody onto her hip and shoved papers around on a desk until she found a state map.

  “They’re here, on the outskirts of town,” Peggy said, pointing. “Twenty-two people in a church community center. Mostly old folks, women, and kids. The men went to fight the zombies and didn’t come back alive. Anyway, they didn’t have any vehicles to escape in and they ended up with zombies banging on their doors. They’ve held off the zombies by barricading the doors and windows. They even managed to thin them out by dropping things onto the zombies from the church’s roof. They were saving the ammo just in case the zombies got in.”

  “There have been gunshots going off,” Bill said quietly.

  Through the static, they could still hear the woman crying and begging for them to come.

  “We gotta go get them! Save them!” Curtis looked desperately at Nerit. “We gotta go.”

  Travis sighed. Decisions like this were impossible to make. Did they sacrifice resources, and maybe lives, to save other survivors, or did they stay safe within their walls? His humanity told him one thing; his fear for those he cared about told him another.

  “How far away, Peggy?” Travis asked.

  “Twenty-one miles going southeast.” Peggy was trying to sound calm for the sake of her son, but her eyes were wide with fright.

  “We have to go,” Eric said. “We have to. We have room and food. We can’t let them just … die.” His voice shook with emotion.

  Travis rubbed his jaw and watched Nerit, waiting for her to give her opinion. He wanted to rush out and save the people, but he knew Nerit understood the dynamics of the situation better than he did. When Nerit finally turned to Travis, her expression said it all. Travis was glad to have her to lean on in that moment. She was quick to decide and quick to act.

  “We take two trucks and the bus. We leave immediately. Bill, we need Katarina, Felix, Ed, Jenni, Katie, Roger, and Juan down here. Have them meet me in the Panama Canal,” Nerit said in a firm, authoritative voice.

  “Gotcha, Nerit,” Bill said, and reached for the phone as Nerit and Travis headed for the door.

  “What are the chances we’ll find survivors?” Travis asked as he hurried along beside Nerit.

  “Slim to none. But we need to know for sure if it’s the zombies or something else attacking them,” Nerit responded.

  Travis blinked. He hadn’t thought of that. “Something else?”

  “The men who killed Ralph are still out there,” Nerit answered with a grim look on her face. “Let’s get moving.”

  As he walked away from the communication center, he heard the woman’s screams distorted by the static.

  2.

  Into the Darkness

  Jenni and Katie were asleep when Bill called.

  “Will this day ever fuckin’ end?” Jenni had groused at him when she picked up the phone.

  But once they heard what was up, they had scrambled out the door as fast as they could, strapping on their holsters even as they struggled to wake up and get focused.

  “I hate shit like this,” Jenni grumbled.

  “You and me both.” Katie shoved the wrought iron gate into the old construction site. It squealed open and they stepped out into the humid night.

  “I’m so ready to stomp some zombie ass. I’m so sick of this shit. So sick of people dying,” Jenni bitched. She braided her hair as she walked.

  “We’re going to need to try to get all those survivors in here soon,” Katie observed. “We have enough room and food.”

  Jenni shoved pins into her braid to keep it on top of her head. “Fuckin’ zombies.” She wanted them all dead. Chopped up, mashed up, dead.

  In the lock, Juan stood near the ladder, talking to a few of his men. The sight of him made Jenni’s heart beat a little faster. He glanced at her from under his cowboy hat and winked. She smiled back at him. Just like that, their fight was forgotten.

  “Hey, Loca,” he said as she walked up to him. They shared a soft kiss. Her arms felt good around his waist and she rested her head against his shoulder.

  “I’m heading out.”

  “Yeah, I heard. My own little zombie-killin’ loca.” Juan ruffled the fine strands of hair at the base of her neck and kissed her forehead. “Come back.”

  “I will. Katie’s driving and she’s a psycho bitch behind the wheel.”

  Katie grinned in response

  “Yeah, but you get all loca, Loca.”

  “Only in a good way,” Jenni answered flirtatiously.

  Juan laughed an
d kissed her again.

  Jenni felt better now. Everything felt more solid. Lloyd’s specter seemed like a bad dream.

  Ed drove the small bus out of the newspaper building’s garage. The vehicle’s bright headlights blinded Jenni for a second, until she raised a hand to shield her eyes. Then she could make out Nerit and Felix already seated inside.

  Katie looked like a badass as she walked into the garage and climbed into Nerit’s red Ram 1500 truck. Her rifle was slung over her shoulder, a bowie knife was tucked into a sheath at her waist, and her pistol was clearly visible in its holster on her hip. Katie picked up a spear from the weapon storage and tossed it into the truck.

  “I better get my ass in gear. We got people to save and zombies to kill,” Jenni said.

  Juan touched her cheek and kissed her one last time. “Hurry back.”

  Jenni ran her hands down his chest, feeling his heartbeat for a few seconds. Reluctantly, she stepped away, ready to go. “If Jason wakes up before I’m back, tell him I love him.” She hurried past Roger and Katarina as they climbed into another truck, then paused to let Katie and Travis have a private good-bye as he joined her best friend in the garage. Jenni knew that Travis would take care of Katie no matter what, and that made her feel secure. Jenni worried about her loved ones. Her own mortality felt fragile. Who would take care of them if she was gone? Katie would be safe with Travis. And she would look after Jason. But Juan …

  She looked back at the tall Mexican-American with the gorgeous green eyes and knew she would never leave him. Even if she died, she would watch over him. She couldn’t imagine their love ending, not even with death. Jenni snatched up her ax from storage and headed toward the truck.

  “Let’s go, children!” Nerit’s voice was a hard bark in the night.

  Jenni swung herself up into her old seat and strapped herself in. Slamming the door shut, she gave Juan the thumbs-up.

  Katie slid into the driver’s seat.

  “Take care, you two,” Travis said, worry puckering the flesh between his eyebrows.

  “We’re Wonder Woman and Supergirl,” Jenni chided him. “Sheesh!”

  “We’ll be back for breakfast,” Katie assured him.

  Travis forced a smile and shut the door.

  “Men are such worriers,” Jenni grumbled.

  Katie chuckled. “Yeah. We’re just heading out into the deadlands. No reason to worry.” She turned the key and the engine roared to life.

  “Piece of freakin’ cake!”

  “Absolutely!” Katie placed her slightly shaking hands on the steering wheel, guiding the truck out of the garage.

  Jenni felt an adrenaline rush. Though it had her trembling, she embraced it. It reminded her that she was alive. Heading out into the dead world was always terrifying, but she trusted the people she was with. It would be okay.

  Katarina and Roger, in a big black truck, were first into the lock system. The bus was second, followed by Jenni and Katie. It felt strangely good to be back in the familiar red truck. She missed Jack, who had occupied the backseat during the first days after the zombie outbreak. Anxious to get out there and see whom they could save, Jenni drummed her hands on the dashboard.

  “You’re so wired,” Katie remarked.

  “I just want to get going.” Jenni pouted.

  “Obviously.”

  The big gates slid open and Katie drove into the first lock. Jenni looked out the window at the tall cement block wall beside her. She craned her head to look up and waved at a sentry standing post.

  Nerit’s voice cackled over the CB. “Katarina knows the way. She’s leading. Watch out for deer and cows. Some cattle have broken out of some of the fields, according to our scavengers. Don’t drive too close together, in case anything happens. Hackleburg is heavily infested, so we are keeping to the outskirts and heading straight for the church. We don’t stay around any longer than we have to.”

  “Gotcha,” Roger’s voice said through the static.

  Jenni snatched up the mouthpiece. “We’re good.”

  The final gate opened, revealing the silent, dark street outside the fort. The darkened world seemed bleak and forlorn.

  “Here we go,” Katie said.

  “Yeah. Again.”

  Once the red truck was clear of the lock, Katarina took off at top speed in the black truck. The rest of the convoy followed.

  The quick drive through the countryside was strangely exhilarating. The cold stars in the velvet darkness above were brilliant. The waning moon was a glowing a Cheshire cat smile. In the dark fields, washed with moonlight, cows slumbered and deer wandered. Occasionally, birds took flight from the tall trees, startled awake by the passing vehicles.

  Jenni glanced at Katie, studying her friend’s features in the glow of the dashboard. “You scared?”

  “Yeah. You?”

  “Shitless. Not of the zombies, though. I’m scared those people are all dead.” Bill’s debrief over the phone had been quick, simple, and to the point.

  “Me, too.” Katie swept her hand over her hair. “There’s no rest from this stuff. Just when we start to feel a little comfortable, something goes down again.”

  Jenni propped her feet up on the dashboard and glowered at the bus in front of them. “Seriously, zombies should take a vacation from eating us. Let us unwind. Refresh ourselves before we have to shoot their heads off in the next round.”

  “If only life were that simple,” Katie commiserated.

  “And if it’s the assholes who shot Ralph, I’m shooting their balls off.”

  Twenty minutes later, the CB crackled to life. “We’re getting close. Katarina, you and Roger cover the north end of the parking lot. Katie and Jenni, cover the south. Ed will pull up in the center and we’ll see what the situation is. Everyone be alert,” Nerit’s voice ordered.

  Jenni slid her gun out of its holster and rested it on her thigh. She could feel her heart speeding up. She took a deep breath.

  Katie drove the red truck around a curve in the road. An old whitewashed church came into view. Behind it was a rectangular building with aluminum siding and a few windows set high in the walls. The gravel parking lot was empty except for a horde of the walking dead, feasting on the freshly dead or dying.

  “Damnit!” Jenni slammed her fist into the dashboard.

  “This isn’t good,” Katarina’s voice said over the radio.

  Katie grabbed the CB mouthpiece. “Nerit, what do we do now?”

  Katarina’s voice said, “If we start shooting, the zombies in the town will come for us.”

  “That’s too many to kill by hand,” Jenni whispered. “We have to shoot them.”

  Before them, the feast continued. The zombies did not notice the three vehicles idling just a few yards away.

  Nerit finally spoke. “We’re going to make sure that if anyone is still alive in there, they have a chance. Kill the ones eating. Make it fast.” Nerit continued with her grave instructions swiftly, her voice calm and steady. Katie gripped the steering wheel even tighter.

  “This really fuckin’ sucks,” Jenni said under her breath, flicking the safety of her gun on and off.

  “We do what we can and let the rest of it go. Otherwise, we’ll go batshit crazy,” Katie answered.

  Jenni nodded.

  Nerit’s voice gave the word and Katie drove into the parking lot, along with the minibus and Roger’s black truck. Using the big metal beasts as weapons, they ran over the zombies and their partially eaten victims. The big bus did a good job of flattening the disgusting creatures that were so greedily consuming the dying.

  After four passes through the parking lot, anything left moving was doing so feebly. Jenni shoved her door open and jumped out, carrying her ax. She headed for the nearest twitching zombie and brought the ax down hard on its skull. Katie followed behind, using a spear to perform the same duties. Jenni dispatched the still-moving zombies swiftly. She felt back to her new, normal self. She wasn’t going to let Lloyd’s ghost fuck with her an
ymore.

  Once their grisly task was done, the group from the fort stood stoically among the dead. Jenni tried not to notice the old people and children among the bodies.

  “Ed, Felix, Bill, and I are going in,” Nerit said. “Roger, Katarina, Jenni, and Katie, you stay out here and keep watch. If we call for you, come quick.”

  Jenni started to protest, not wanting to be left out of the mission inside, but she caught Katie’s eye and clamped her mouth shut. Jenni could not quite define what she saw in Katie’s face, but it let her know that Katie needed her nearby.

  Katarina stared toward the town, her red hair coiled on top of her head, as she held her rifle. The grisly remains at her feet were ignored. Jenni didn’t know the quiet woman very well, but in that moment, Katarina reminded her of Nerit. There was a calm coldness to her that Jenni admired. She felt hot and emotional inside in contrast.

  The smell of the fresh and rotting dead was terrible. Jenni’s eyes watered and she stepped away from the nearest cluster of bodies. A group of zombies had been greedily eating one of the larger women when they arrived. Jenni briefly wondered if the woman had been fat or pregnant, but the thought made her feel unbalanced, so she shoved it away.

  “I hate this shit,” Roger said. “I really, really do.”

  “Look,” Katarina said suddenly, pointing. “I see headlights. I think a vehicle went down in a ditch over there.”

  “I’ll get the binoculars,” Roger said, and hurried to retrieve them from the bus.

  Katie stood guard nearby, watching the road and their surroundings. “Is anyone alive?”

  Katarina shrugged. “Can’t tell, but something is moving. I can see a shape moving in front of the lights.”

  Jenni strained to see down the road. Roger returned and handed the binoculars to Katarina, who immediately raised them and studied the scene.

  “Zombies. Trying to get into a truck that is definitely nose down in a ditch.”