Free Winter Apocalypse: Zombie Crusade V by J.W. Vohs, Sandra Vohs Page A

baby.”
     
     
    Back at the cabin, Luke had broken into a cold sweat. He was shivering, but so deeply asleep that neither David nor Gracie could wake him. They wrapped him in blankets and watched helplessly as he twitched and jerked in seizure-like bursts every few minutes. Eventually the spasms stopped, and he settled into what appeared to be a restful slumber. His breathing was deep and even, and when Gracie listened to his heartbeat it was strong and regular.
    In his mind, Luke had been trapped in a cell that kept getting smaller and smaller until he was being crushed on all sides by iron bars. He struggled against the pressure until he suddenly expanded and broke free. He’d become bigger and stronger in an instant—strong enough to shatter his metal prison as if it had been made of paper-thin glass. He roared in delight. He’d never felt so powerful and alive. He scanned his surroundings and saw nothing but emptiness; then an uneasiness slowly crept over him as he sensed that something dangerous was watching. He turned around to find several alpha hunters a few feet away, studying him and snapping their jaws. He felt a surge of power in his chest, and he expanded again. Now he towered over the hunters, and they ran away in fear.
    A distant hum caught Luke’s attention, and he cocked his head to listen. It was music, and it called to him. He walked toward the sound. When he got a bit closer he recognized Gracie’s voice, but he couldn’t quite make out what she was singing. A large window appeared to his left, and he could see several deer standing together by a thicket of small trees and shrubs. For an instant he was torn—he didn’t know whether to follow Gracie’s voice or leap through the window to make a feast of the wild game. The hesitation made him question himself, and who or what he had become. Suddenly Gracie was standing before him in her wedding dress, radiating total love and acceptance. She bent down and picked up a large, ornate mirror. She raised it slowly and held it up high in front of her. Luke quickly turned away, afraid of what he would see in his own reflection. He knew what would be there—the coal black eyes of a heartless predator. He forced himself to confront the mirror, resigned to his monstrous fate. He was surprised to see his normal human face staring back at him.

 
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
    CHAPTER 6
     
    Deb made one last transmission before packing up the radio, turning her full attention to finalizing the evacuation, and abandoning the fort. She contacted Christy and the others out at Trudy’s horse ranch. “We’re deep in Alpha 2 evacuation mode; whoever bombed the wall also managed to sabotage the explosives wired to the bridge. We can’t hold this place.”
    Christy looked around the room at her mom and the rest of the people gathered by the radio. They’d been discussing their options since the first call from Deb about the trouble in Fort Wayne. Everyone at the ranch understood what they were going to have to do. Christy was five months pregnant, her mom was a fifty-five year-old housewife, Vickie was a doctor, and her husband a gentle giant who avoided fights when he could. Teenagers Jade and Tyler were with them, and four kids under the age of twelve were counting on the adults to take care of them. They also had Chewy, a beagle with a heart of gold. He’d saved the kids once before on the journey from Cleveland, and now it looked like he might have the chance to do it again on a return trip down the Maumee.
    “Deb, we’ll follow your lead and see you at the HD.” There were several canoes hidden at the nearby farm on the St. Joe, and she knew that Deb would understand that “HD” meant the Hosey Dam on the east side of town. Jack and Carter had tried to ensure that everyone, even newcomers to the settlement, had a basic understanding of the regional geography and could locate several key landmarks that could be utilized as rendezvous points.
    “No