Free As The World Dies Untold Tales Volume 3 by Rhiannon Frater Page B

hair braided and held back by a bandana, she stood with her legs planted firmly apart as she swung the bat with cruel efficiency. She was a petite thing, but her arms rippled with muscle each time she slammed the bat onto the head of a zombie. The truck bounced under the onslaught and she lost her balance a few times, but quickly recovered.
    Stopping the bike near the entrance, Rune lifted his Glock, aimed, and began to kill the zombies one by one. He saw the woman give him a sharp look. She hesitated, then continued to smash away at the zombie heads.
    The sound of the Glock firing drew the attention of the zombies. The undead looked very different from the first days. Their dark gray skin was ragged and leathery. Their hair was almost colorless it was so coated with filth. It was difficult to ascertain sex, age, and even race. Much to Rune’s relief, they were slow. Very, very slow. Stumbling toward him, they made easy targets. Yet, despite their slowness, there were a lot of them, which instantly made them dangerous. Rune kept firing until one Glock clicked empty , then drew his second one.
    On the truck, the woman kept fighting the undead that were intent on reaching her. Grunting with exhaustion, she continued to lift the bat over her head, allowing gravity to drag it down with brutal power onto the skulls of her enemies.
    The zombies were getting too close for comfort and forming a semi-circle as they hemmed Rune in. Still gripping his Glock, he rode the Harley past the rotting creatures to the far side of the gas station. All the zombies in the area appeared to be coming toward him or gathered around the truck. Reloading, Rune slid off the bike and opened fire on the zombies again. More gave up on the young woman and shambled after Rune.
    Taking each shot carefully, Rune didn’t waste any of his precious ammo. He saw movement near the truck, but didn’t look away from the zombies shuffling purposefully toward him. They were relentless, unafraid, and terrifying. It was clear that they didn’t understand death. There was no sense of self-preservation. They were only motivated by the need to feed.
    The woman appeared racing along the edge of the crowd. A zombie twisted about, grabbing for her. She smacked it across the face with the bat, knocking it away. Briefly pausing to slam the bat down one more time on its head, she lost a few precious seconds. Rune started toward her as a different zombie lunged at her. Being more aware than Rune had given her credit for, the young woman swiveled about and drove the handle into the creature’s sternum, shoving it off its feet. The zombie clutched her arm, trying to drag her down, but she deftly twisted her wrist free of its grappling hand and ran toward Rune.
    “Give me a gun!” she ordered.
    Rune hesitated, then jerked his head toward the Redhead shotgun tucked into the sheath on the side of his bike. The woman grabbed it and instantly began to fire at the zombies. Calmly and efficiently, they aimed and pulled the triggers of their weapons to be rewarded with the sight of the zombie heads disintegrating. When the Redhead needed to be reloaded, Rune handed over one of his Glocks. The woman was an even better shot with the pistol.
    The bodies tumbled to the ground , creating obstacles for the other zombies. The undead tripped over the corpses, falling into each other, flailing in confusion. As the zombies crawled on the ground, struggling to regain their feet, Rune and the woman killed them.
    As the last gunshot echoed into the distance, Rune and the woman stood in silence and stared at the bodies.
    “Thanks,” she said at last.
    “No prob.”
    “It was clear when I went inside for food, but when I came out...” She shrugged. “The neighborhood came out to say hello.”
    “Good thing I came by.”
    “I would have gotten all of them. It just would have taken time.” The woman lifted her chin confidently.
    “Maybe so.” Rune shrugged. “Can I have my gun