Free Phase One: Identify (Territory of the Dead) by Rose Wynters Page A

over was nothing short of amazing.
     
    “Get in,” the man at the hood ordered, opening the driver's door and sliding in. He slid his shotgun down into the floorboard beside him, within easy reach. Jayden yanked the back door open. Amanda slid in first, followed by the rest of us. James climbed up in the front seat and strapped himself in.
     
    The rest of us were packed into the backseat, so much so I had to sit in Jayden's lap. With five of us, it was a very tight fit, not that any of us complained. We were just thankful to be alive. Jayden slammed the door, and the man immediately took off, hitting zombies on his way back out of the yard. 
     
     

Chapter 8
     
    “ What is your name, son?” Dad asked the man in the driver's seat. He was taking us into the main part of town. The streets looked completely different than how they'd always looked in the past. Cars were crashed into trees and even houses, their doors left wide open. Trash, clothing, and even blood was spread across the sidewalks and streets. It looked like a wasteland, no longer the tidy suburbia area I'd grown up in.
     
    The zombies were everywhere you looked. They weren't grouped together, but you'd see one walking across a yard or next to a house. Some of them were bent over bodies, eating flesh from corpses to destroyed to ever come back again.
     
    There wasn't a one of them that didn't start to follow us, though, after we went by.
     
    “The name is Kellan,” he said coolly. His voice was smooth, like liquid silk. The slight bite in his tone didn't invite any further conversation.
     
    “Nice to meet you,” Dad replied hesitantly, still remembering his manners. He quickly introduced the rest of us, then asked awkwardly, “Where are you taking us?”
     
    “My home,” Kellan stated. He didn't add anything else to it.
     
    “Well, er, we were actually hoping you could just drop us off wherever the other survivors are at.” It was obvious Dad didn't feel very comfortable with him.
     
    Kellan laughed, without humor. “What other survivors? I hate to tell you this, but as far as I'm aware, we're it. It's how I located you, actually. I just followed the trail of zombies leading to your house. They only do that when they sense a meal.”
     
    “We appreciate that, son. I shudder to think of what would have happened if you wouldn't have got there.” Dad's face was sad. “I just can't believe everyone is gone.”
     
    Kellan shrugged. “Maybe, or maybe not. Hopefully there are some survivors that are staying well-hidden. I won't give up on looking for them. His eyes met mine in the mirror. I was sitting directly behind him. “I've just got a full load tonight.”
     
    He had a point about that. The only free space would be in the trunk area. Here and now, I felt safe. I'm not sure how safe I would have felt though with a vehicle packed to the brim with people. What if a tire popped?
     
    We passed by a cemetery. It was completely empty, as if the zombies had no interest in wandering through its gates. I did a double take. “Look at that,” I said, my voice puzzled as I pointed at the cemetery. “Shouldn't it be packed full with zombies, rising from the graves? I mean, probably the older graves would be harder to dig out of, due to the ground hardening. But the newer graves would be easy for someone as strong as a zombie to dig out of.”
     
    Everyone but Kellan looked puzzled. His eyes met mine again. “Makes you wonder what really is infecting the population, huh?”
     
    I nodded, my thoughts focused on exactly that. Whatever it was, it didn't seem to affect anyone dead prior to the epidemic. I'd seen with my own eyes what happened if someone died now, though. They came back. Then again, it could be possible they couldn't dig their way out. It was enough to make my head spin. I filed it away in my mind to ponder on later.
     
    My parents were quiet and visibly distraught. I felt bad for them. They'd walked away with nothing but the