Free The Living Dead (Book 1): Contagion by L.I. Albemont Page A

peered out through the blinds. Was the snow letting up a little? It was hard to tell. The streets and lawns were now completely covered and the picturesque peacefulness of the little street belied the horror she knew lurked out there. Portia and Bill’s house was dark and she shuddered when she thought of the bodies that lay within.
                The internet was still up but most posted government warnings were the same. Watch for these symptoms. Isolate and restrain the infected. After the experience she had had with Bill, she knew these warnings in no way prepared anyone for what they would face when confronted with an actual infected person. She checked out various blogs. Lots of people were hiding in their homes. Some seemed confident they could ride the crisis out. Survivalists. Others were desperate for food, water and medicine. Many had moved into their attics as roving bands of looters broke into houses and stories of rape and robbery abounded. She found a post from a Catholic mission in Afghanistan addressed to the local Red Cross/Crescent.
     
                “Greetings from the mission home of the Sisters of Mercy in Ghazni. We have a small compound here where every day, we strive to better the lives of Afghan women and children through the teachings of Jesu Christ our Lord, Amen. The hardships and trials these people are bearing are unknown to most of the world. Many of the precious children who come to us have handicaps, mind or body, sometimes both. Fathers don’t want these children. Mothers bring them here to save their lives. We believe we have been allowed to exist here, mostly unmolested, because we take children who “shame” their families. Whatever the reasons, we are grateful to God for these blessed children. We also have a day school where we teach girls and young women to read and write.
                You must help us now. Taliban are coming each day and taking the women and girls. They bind them with explosives and send them out as bombs to destroy the infected whose numbers grow daily. The Mutawa'een take also women accused of violations of Sharia law and no longer stone them but send them out also. I am attaching this note from our former student, Malalay.
                ‘Beloved Sister, women are being killed each morning. The Mutawa'een took my mother to the wall for the al-ghul to eat. My father fought them but two men held him and ran his head into the stone wall. My beautiful mother, they bound her body with charges and dropped her down into the street outside the wall. She cried, ‘Why do you do this thing?’ They told her, ‘Woman, you have shamed your family. We will do as Allah has instructed us.’ When she dropped into the street, her foot twisted. She could not run except painfully and slow. The men from the wall are throwing stones at her. The al-ghul are not fast but they are many now. They heard the noise in the street. My mother has not the ability to run away. She is on her knees and praying as the first to reach her bites her arms she is holding up to God. She screams and they bite her until she screams no more. I closed my eyes until I heard the explosives and I knew my mother was dead. The Mutawa'een looked at us the women and girls inside the walls. He said, ‘We will give one of you to them every day until all disobedient behaviors are stopped.’
                I think they do this thing to keep the demons away from eating them the men. They put two more women outside the walls this morning. You knew them, beloved Sister. The explosives did not completely destroy their bodies. Dilbahar Bibi and Zuqaina Javed are now among the walking corpses outside our walls. I have not seen my mother. I hope she is truly dead. I see fewer of my friends each day. I believe their fathers are hiding them. My father is still alive and I am caring for him but he has no consciousness anymore. I have no protection. Please help if you