Free Die Trying: A Zombie Apocalypse by Nicholas Ryan Page B

peeled away from the darkness of the foyer and slumped with weary exhaustion to the ground.
    “ There’s plenty of food, and plenty to drink in the kitchen,” I said softly. “And I’ve found clothes,” I added. “I’ve left them at the door to the bathroom.” I turned to the girl and stared at her. Her long dark hair was plastered flat to her skull in messy tangles, and her face was drawn and very pale. She looked very small and fragile. It was the first time I had taken notice of her. I guessed she was maybe fifteen years old. She had dark, sad eyes. “I don’t think anything will fit very well, but at least you will be dry. Take the candle with you and get changed. You can’t stay in those wet clothes.”
    The girl glanced to her father and I saw him nod. Then she got to her feet and took the candle from the television. She took two tentative steps towards the darkness, and then stopped. She turned back.
    “Come with me,” she said to her father, her voice timid and fearful. “Just to the end of the hall.”
    The man nodded and got to his feet. He followed the girl, gun drawn, and I watched the tiny soft glow of the candle in her hands fade as she disappeared deeper into the house.
    Jed, Harrigan and I sat in absolute silence, staring down into the flame of the candle between us, each of us lost in our own thoughts. It wasn’t a numbed, horrified silence – not for me at least. I was contemplative. I’m not a Rhodes scholar, and I don’t have a university education – but I’m not a fool. I’ve learned enough about life to be wary, and how to read subtle signs. Some of the signals I was getting from the man and girl made me suspicious. But not suspicious enough to voice my concerns – not until I’d had the time to ask questions and to get answers.
    And I had a lot of questions.
    I glanced across at Jed. He was staring back at me with dark eyes. The light from the candle leaped and flickered so that his expression looked wicked and malevolent.
    Jed I understood. I could read his thoughts – see the anger simmering behind my brother’s eyes. I realized it was something I was going to have to deal with, probably sooner rather than later.
    But not yet.
    Not while we were still in danger. Not while I was still useful.
    I held Jed’s gaze, but I couldn’t match his intensity. He was grimacing with pain from his swollen jaw, but beneath that agony, his hatred was clear, boiling just below the surface, waiting to erupt.
    Harrigan seemed to sense the tension between Jed and me. He looked quizzical. He glanced a question at me but I ignored him.
    “Your jaw looks worse,” I said to Jed. “More swollen. You look sick.”
    He didn’t say anything for a long while. Then he finally grunted. “It’s all right.”
    “You sure?”
    “Yeah.”
    “Good,” I said. “Then as soon as you change into dry clothes, you can pull sentry duty at the back door for a few hours. One of us will relieve you later in the night.”
    Jed balked – and I sensed bitter words leap into his mouth. But he clamped his jaw shut, simmering, and got to his feet. “I’ll start now,” he said, and disappeared down the hallway without another word.
    Harrigan glanced at me again. “Did I miss something between you two?”
    I shook my head. I didn’t want to answer – this wasn’t the time to go into it – but in the end, I couldn’t help myself. Somehow the words just spilled out.
    “Jed’s going to kill me,” I said suddenly, my expression as dark as the night. “My brother is going to kill me as soon as we get to safety.”
    Harrigan flinched in stunned silence.
    He gaped at me. “Are you serious?”
    I nodded. “Yes.”
    “But why?”
    I sighed. “It’s a long story.”
    Harrigan leaned forward, and his voice was a hushed conspiratorial whisper. “Are you really serious? You’re not making this up?”
    “I wish I were,” I said, and leaned heavily back against the wall. I stared at Harrigan and held his