Free Love and Decay, Volume Eight (Episodes 9-12, Season Three) by Rachel Higginson Page A

it
worked. Si ?”
    I just shook my head at him. “Be a good
leader,” I said. “Protect your people. Give them freedom.”
    His smile turned more affectionate, “This is
something I learned from my American friends. Freedom is importante , yes? You value your freedom.”
    “We do,” I said with a soft, earnest voice.
“And your people will too. They will be even more loyal to you
because you gave them the choice.”
    “So no shooting in the streets?”
    I knew he was teasing me, but I also knew
that had been a part of his past. “No shooting in the streets. Only
shoot the bad guys.”
    “No more bad guys.” His eyes darkened. “My
people will be safe. We will rebuild.”
    “And the Zombies?” Over the last week, there
had been Zombies roaming the desert, sometimes stumbling upon our
bungalow. There had been a considerable debate about what to do
with them. Diego wanted to catch them and save them for his future
Zombie army and the Parkers wanted to shoot to kill. There had been
a lot of discussion over the humane treatment of Zombies and the
ethics involved.
    It was still bizarre to me that I had to
defend Zombie killing, like I was the bad guy.
    “I have not yet decided,” he admitted
honestly. “My enemies will not listen to your reasoning, Reagan. I
will have to think of my people first, Zombies second.”
    I couldn’t argue with that logic. “Take care
of yourself,” I said instead.
    He nodded once. “And you take care of her, si ?” His eyes tracked to Adela.
    “ Si ,” I promised him.
    When he looked back to me, it was with a
gravity that took my breath away. “ Gracias , Reagan. I mean
that. Thank you for saving me. Thank you for helping me.”
    I shrugged a shoulder, embarrassed by his
sentiment. “I don’t know if we’ll ever come back through here, but
it was nice knowing you, Diego.”
    He leaned forward and pressed one last piece
of advice on me. “I have said this to your men, but listen
carefully. Mexico City will be…” he seemed to search for the
English word before settling on, “mayhem. There is no order there.
Everyone fights everyone. And the Dead, they run free. Look for a
man named Tomás. He is my cousin. He will help you if you tell him
that you know me.” He met my gaze; concern flickered in his dark
eyes. “He will get you through the city. Then we will be even.”
    He was saving our lives because we had saved
his. “Thank you, Diego.”
    His grin returned and he stood up. He nodded
once more and walked away.
    With the weirdest sense of loss, I watched
him go. Hendrix walked over and held out his hands. I still needed
help getting up and down and moving around. He had stuck by me
every moment.
    I let him scoop me up and support my weight.
“What did Diego have to say?” he asked quietly.
    “He warned me about Mexico City and said to
look for his cousin Tomás.”
    Hendrix’s body stiffened next to mine.
“Sounds like it’s not exactly smooth sailing from here on out.”
    I looked up at him and couldn’t help but
smile. “Did you think it would be?”
    His lips twitched, “Not with you around.”
    “Hey!”
    He kissed my neck and helped me outside.
“I’ll take it though. If I get to have you, then bring it on. It’s
worth it.”
    I loved this man.
    The house had been a flurry of movement as my
friends packed and got ready to leave. Now the outside had that
same air of chaos. Nelson, Tyler and Vaughan packed the van that
Andy had given us. They were going to take one of Diego’s smaller
trucks since there were only three of them and we now had eleven
people if you counted the baby. If we were careful, we hoped it
would get us through Mexico.
    Only time would tell. And Mexico City.
    “You really don’t want to come with us?” Andy
asked as we stood in a circle next to the van.
    “We have a different battle to fight,”
Vaughan explained. “If people are really out there looking for a
cure, we want to be part of it.”
    And that was the truth. We had