Free Epidemic of the Undead: A Zombie Novel by P. A. Douglas Page B

the National Guard or someone would show up and eventually clean all of this crap up. Out of frustration, he slammed the laptop shut and then put it in his pack.
    “Internet not working?” Stephanie stepped back into the room with two drinks on ice.
    “No go…”
    “Well, that’s lame. What did you need it for anyway? Not like people have a lot of free time right now to just be surfing the web and chatting the latest gossip. Although, I am pretty eager to know if Sheila, from my work, ended up getting with that guy the other night.”
    “I know.” Chris stared down at his lap with a deep sigh. “Just hoping to get hold of my parents. That, and maybe find out what else is going on out there. People have to be alive. Someone has to. If we made it, there are others. I think we would be smart to find out what’s going on around us.”
    “You’re thinking about going after them. Am I right?”
    “Who? My parents?” Chris finally looked up from his lap. Stephanie reached out, handing him iced tea. “Well, yeah, it has crossed my mind. But it’s not like they’re just right up the road. And I couldn’t ask Steve or you to trek all the way to Tennessee with me risking your lives like that.”
    “But what about his parents? Wouldn’t he want to find them or something?” Stephanie’s eyes grew curious.
    “Between you and me, I honestly doubt it. Steve’s a great guy. Been my best friend since I can remember, but he is pretty self-centered. In the three years that we’ve spent on tour, I think he has spoken to his folks once or twice. And one of those times was to ask for money to get the tour van fixed.”
    “But he’s you’re best friend. Friends are supposed to stick it out together,” she said.
    “You would think. Anyway, I’m sure he’s a little preoccupied with his own goals right now,” Chris said, and gave her a wink.
    She understood, and reared back in laughter, almost spilling her tea. “Ha! No chance in hell.”
    “Not a chance it hell for what,” Steve said, as he walked in wearing only a towel wrapped around his waist. He poked his finger in his ear to plunge out trapped water. His long hair was slicked back and it made his optical lenses appear twice as large on his thin face.
    Stephanie held back her laughter and focused her gaze on Chris. A big grin grew on her blushing cheeks. 
    Chris just smiled and lifted his drink in the air. “Stephanie makes a mean glass of tea. You should get one.”
    “Hell yeah, I’ll take one,” Steve said, as he sat beside Stephanie. Finally, pulling his finger from his ear, he said, “So, what about hell and why is there no chance?” He kicked his legs up on the coffee table.
    “Nothing,” Chris said.
    “We were talking about pulling out the radio. We need to find out what’s going on out there,” Stephanie said, as she climbed over Steve’s legs to fetch him a drink.
    The two men sat across from each other in silence. The lights were up just high enough to barley make out each other’s facial features, casting shadows that grew into children’s monsters. Chris felt that at any moment the front door would come crashing open and a dozen undead zombies would flood into the room and tear them to ribbons. His chest felt heavy.       
    “Nice job on the hot water, douche bag.” Steve tossed a loose pillow across the couch at Chris.
    “I do what I can,” Chris replied with a smile, blocking the pillow with his arms.  
    When Stephanie came back into the living room, not only did she have a cup of tea for Steve, but two pillows, a set of blankets, and a small battery powered AM/FM radio. “Here you go,” she said balancing the glass of tea in her hand with the blankets. “The batteries in this thing may not work, but it’s worth a shot.”
    After dialing through all of the channels, Chris was only able to find one that worked. The signal was weak and mostly static, but it came in clear enough. The three sat in the living room,