Free The Zombie Wars: The Enemy Within (White Flag Of The Dead Book 8) by Joseph Talluto Page A

than it really was.  Experience taught me not to mention this thought to Charlie while we waited.
    Charlie took a peek over the nearest hill, and gave me the signal to get flat on the hill closest to the truck.  A casual glance would pass us by, but a good look would find us quickly.  I was hoping Zim would be more focused on getting to his pet hordes than looking for enemies.
    After a minute in the grass, the truck ran past.  I don’t think the driver gave the side road a glance at all.  Charlie sprang off the ground and practically leaped to the top of the hill on the other side of the road.  I wasn’t as graceful, but I got there a second after he did.
    Looking through my scope, I saw the lovely rear left tire in intimate detail as it rolled along the road.  I was sure Charlie saw the same thing, only on the right side.
    “Ready?  Three, two, one, now,” I said, squeezing off my shot the same time Charlie did. 
    The rear tires blew out immediately, and the truck lurched back on its haunches as the rear end dropped to the ground. The brake lights shone brightly as the driver slewed the vehicle first one way and then the other.  Finally it stopped in the middle of the road, and the man known as Zim popped out of the truck like he had a spring in his ass and started sprinting towards the south. 
    Charlie and I fired again, putting a bullet on either side of his running feet.  He got the message clearly, and stopped, putting his hands in the air. We came down the hill, and I walked around to the front of our extortionist to see what it was we were dealing with.
    Zim proved to be different than I thought.  I expected to see some sort of nasty, pasty-faced loser who probably had no friends in the world before the zombies. What I got was a young man of about twenty-five, with model good looks, and piercing dark eyes.
    “Well, Zim, it seems like your plan of unleashing a horde of zombies on me just came to a crashing halt,” I said, casually aiming my rifle at his chest while Charlie tied his hands with a zip tie.
    “I still have friends.  When they see I’m not back, they’ll let the whole horde loose.  You’ll see.  Whatever is left of the population around here is toast,” Zim said.
    “Does it bother you that you’ll be part of the toast?” I asked.
    “Fuck you.  What are you gonna do now? Kill me?  Go for it.  The zombies get out.  Put me in jail? Fuck you, the zombies get out. Face it, jackass. Even as a captive I have more power than you,” Zim snarled.
    I had to admit, he had a point, and as much as I wanted to just shoot him or leave him out for the zombies to eat, I had to figure out a way to contain the threat. 
    “Let’s walk, asshole,” I said, gesturing with the barrel of my rifle.
    “If I refuse? Same rules, jackass,” Zim smirked.
    His smirk lasted a second, and then it was replaced with a look of shock as Charlie brought his fist crashing into the side of Zim’s head.  Zim went down like the proverbial sack of crap.  He didn’t get to lay there; Charlie grabbed him by the shoulders and lifted him back on his feet. Zim’s eyes were glazed over for a moment before he recovered and figured out what had just happened.
    “Ow! Motherfucker! You can’t…wait!” Zim’s sentence was cut off as Charlie hit him again, let him fall, then put him back on his feet.
    It took a little while longer for the effect to wear off.  I had a little sympathy for him.  I’d been hit by Charlie before in training, and it always felt like getting hit with a sack full of rocks.
    This time Charlie spoke.  “These are the rules, jackass. You open your stupid mouth to be insulting, and I will punch you to the ground.  If you do not learn this rule, I will beat you half to death.  If you insist on being a nasty little prick for the rest of your short life, I will finish the job I started.” Charlie grabbed Zim by his long blonde hair.  “Do you understand?”
    Fortunately, Zim was a