CHAPTER 1 “Rome wasn’t
built in a day.” God, I can’t tell you how many times I’ve heard that cliché.
Dad was particularly fond of it when I had issues with homework or a dilemma in
my personal life. I knew what his point was. He was telling me to be patient,
to let things progress the way they were supposed to. But, I wasn’t good at
that. I never had a lot of patience. I imagined my Dad reiterating the cliché
after the North Platte takeover, wondering what he would think of what I’d
done. What we’d done. We liberated Nebraska, but we still had a long road ahead
of us. I knew Rome wasn’t built in a day, but I was pretty sure the zombies
could destroy it in one.
I stood in
the guard tower, overlooking the field. My body pressed against the railing.
Corpses still littered the ground, but there weren’t as many as when I first
came to North Platte. The crews had done a great job of cleaning up, though
there was little they could do about the atrocious smell.
The sun sank
beneath the horizon, casting hues of orange, pink, and purple onto the
silhouettes of the undead. A bullet was chambered into a gun behind me. Quinn
had been sitting in a chair behind me in the tower the whole time.
“Quinn, what
happened to your parents?” I turned so I faced him.
Quinn rested
the butt of his gun on the deck and wrapped his arms around the barrel. He
sighed. “My mom died about seven years ago from cancer. I don’t know what
happened to my dad.”
I furrowed
my brow. “What do you mean?”
“Well, when
we heard about the first zombie attacks, Dad wanted to help. Most of the
neighbors lived within a few miles, so it didn’t take too long for him to move
them onto the ranch. One morning, him and a few of the others decided to
venture a little further, see who else might need some help, and he never came
back.”
My stomach
felt queasy. I averted my gaze to the floor, then glanced back at Quinn. “Did
you go look for him?”
Quinn shook
his head. “He told me not to. He said no matter what happens, I was to stay at
the ranch and take care of the people.”
“Yeah, but
you must have been curious what happened to him.”
Quinn nodded
and stood from his chair. “Of course, but I did as I was told.” He shouldered
the rifle and lined up his sights. He fired.
I moved so I
stood next to him. “Do you think he’s out there somewhere?”
Quinn
glanced at me. “Probably. But I doubt he’s anything like I remember.”
“Doesn’t
that make you sad?”
He returned
his attention to the sight. “Every day. But there’s nothing I can do to change
it now.” He fired another round.
I slumped
against the rail. Tears welled up in my eyes, and I averted my gaze back to the
field. I rubbed my sore shoulder. A breeze picked up, bringing a chill and the
smoke from the funeral pyre. I wrinkled my nose.
“We need to
do something about that.”
Quinn
straightened. “Like what?”
I shrugged
the good shoulder. “I don’t know. Maybe we could put a building around it. It
might help contain some of the smoke and smell.”
Quinn
nodded. “You should suggest it at the next meeting.”
I opened my
mouth to speak, but the sound of footsteps on the stairs interrupted me. It was
Pam. She still wore her old guard uniform, a relic from Liet’s reign, but it
was obvious whose side she was on. Thank goodness she was on our side. She
trained me; I knew how tough and skilled she was. It would’ve been a battle to
take her down.
“Krista,”
Pam said. “There’s someone who needs to see you.”
I pushed
myself away from the rail. “Who?”
Pam motioned
toward the courthouse. “I think it’s best if you just head over there.”
I looked at
Quinn, who shrugged, then the three of us headed to the courthouse.
My stomach
fluttered as I pushed opened the door. Visions of Mrs. Johnson’s bodyguard
flooded my mind, and I didn’t think I could stand another visit like that. I
held my breath as I opened the door. The person stood at the end of the room,
her head down as she chewed on her thumb nail. Excitement rose in my chest and
relief loosened my shoulders. A smile crossed my lips. I held out my good arm
and hurried across the room. Normally, I wasn’t one for hugs, but anyone
besides guards from Florida in the office was a welcome relief.
“Tanya! What
are you doing here?”
Tanya looked
up. She balled her hand into a fist and swung it over her head. I flinched, and
the blow hit me on the bicep. Tanya lunged forward, flailing her arms. I
crouched and covered my head. I didn’t know what else to do. I was so shocked,
I froze. I couldn’t react. Several more hits landed on my back and head before
someone pulled Tanya away.
“How could
you?” Tanya yelled. “HOW COULD YOU?” She kicked and caught me on the knee.
Pain
radiated through my leg, and I rubbed at the minor injury. Anger replaced the
shock. Who did she think she was coming into my courtroom and attacking me?
“What are
you talking about?” I tried to keep my emotions in check, common sense told me
I needed to know what was going on.
“Don’t play dumb with me! You know what you
did.” She jerked her arms out of Quinn and Pam’s grasp.
Really? Was
she mad that we liberated Nebraska before we helped Florida? I didn’t think it
was a big deal, but I guess it upset her.
“I’m sorry,
Tanya. We had to move quickly. We had to set the people of North Platte free.”
She narrowed
her eyes. “I’m not talking about the attack.”
I stared at
her for a moment. “Then what are you talking about?”
“You sent
zombies down in the truck of supplies! You figured if you couldn’t overthrow
The Families, you’d overrun the state with the undead!” Tanya yelled, then
attempted to attack again. Pam and Quinn restrained her and stared at me.
I picked
myself off the floor, staring at Tanya wide eyed. Zombies in the truck? What?
When? Why would I have done that? I hate those things! I would have to get
pretty close to put those in the truck, and I wasn’t willing to do that. But
someone must have. Who would be stupid and conniving enough to do that?
“Tanya,
honestly, I have no idea what you are talking about. Maybe you should fill us
in on some details.”
Tanya
snarled. “The truck showed up a few weeks ago, with Mrs. Johnson’s bodyguard
behind the wheel. He said it had come from North Platte, and I assumed it had
another shipment of guns. As usual, I was going to wait until night to collect
the weapons. My father took the vehicle to the storage yard, like he always
did. I was done working at the coffee shop, so I decided to see what you guys
sent. I stood at the chain link fence, watching the guys work, when I heard my
father scream from the trailer. The others ran to see what was going on, and a
zombie lurched out of the vehicle. They ran.”
Tanya
continued her story, and I pictured the whole scenario in my mind. She was a
bit lacking on details, so I filled in the blanks with my own imagination. It
wasn’t hard, especially when you’ve seen as many zombies as I have. There were three
creatures, buried under crates. Two men, newly turned with just the slightest
hint of yellowed skin. Their clothes were dirty but not yet torn. The third, a
woman, she had been a zombie for a while. Her stringy blonde hair was knotted,
caked in mud, and falling out of her head, only wisps remained on the bottom
and right side. Her clothes had almost completely decayed, tatters of a floral
print dress clung to her the bones exposed in her chest and legs. Her gray,
wrinkled skin looked like leather. They hid in the shadows, hard to see, and
for some reason, they didn’t moan like the others when food was near. The
workers didn’t know they were there and had unloaded almost the entire truck.
They were almost finished when the attack started. Tanya ran through the gate,
making her way to the back of the truck, just in time to see her father beating
one of the creatures with a tire iron. The third one was still pinned behind a
crate. Her breath caught as she watched the creature’s mouth snap for her dad.
Her dad panted with exhaustion. He leaned against the side of the truck for
support. Blood, brain matter, and bits of skull were everywhere, and the smell
was overpowering. Tanya was about to climb in, find out if her dad was all
right, but he told her to stop. He collapsed onto the floor, sliding down the
wall. He cradled his hand. The zombie had bitten him.
Tanya set
her jaw. “The other one that got out of the truck attacked several of the
workers before it was put down. I don’t know how many of them got bit, but
within a few days, we had an epidemic on our hands. They got it under control,
but thirty people got infected.”
Pam and
Quinn released her, and she pointed a finger in my direction.
“You just
couldn’t wait, could you? You just had to make all of us pay.”
My throat
felt tight and a knot developed in my stomach. I swallowed hard. “What happened
to your dad?”
Tanya
snarled. “Instead of waiting for the plague to take its toll, he took care of
himself.”
I lowered my
gaze to the floor. My stomach lurched, bile rose into my throat. I took several
deep breaths, but the feeling never abated.
“I’m sorry,
Tanya.” I looked into her face. “I really, truly am. But I did not put zombies
in the back of the truck. Why would I harm the people I’m trying to help?”
Tanya shook
her head and opened her mouth to speak.
“Think about
it,” Quinn interrupted her. “The Families were afraid of losing control. They
knew about the rebellion here in North Platte, and they knew the people would
soon hear about it. They had to do something to ensure the people wouldn’t
revolt, so they planted zombies.”
Tanya stared
at him for a moment, letting the information sink in. “Maybe,” she spoke
softly.
I stepped
closer to her. “Tanya, please, you have to believe us, we would never do anything
like that. Smuggle guns to kill the regime, yeah, but we wouldn’t infect
Florida with zombies.”
Tanya took a
deep breath. “Maybe.”
“Didn’t Bill
and Kyle tell you what was going on?” Quinn asked.
Tanya faced
him. “They did.”
“What
happened to them?”
She took a
deep breath and averted her gaze to the floor. “After the attack and my dad’s
suicide, guards, um, did random house searches and they were arrested.”
Pam’s,
Quinn’s, and my eyes grew wide.
“What?”
Quinn glanced from Tanya to me. “Arrested? Why?”
“They were
outsiders.” she responded. “I guess they felt they were a threat to The
Families and Florida.”
“Did they
find out about the guns?” I stammered out the question.
Tanya looked
at me. “No. Those are still safe.”
“How did you
get here?” Pam chimed in.
“After
everything calmed down, I took the boat Bill and Kyle came in on and found
their vehicle in Texas. I made my way up here to you.”
“Do you know
what happened to them?” Worry coated Quinn’s eyes.
“I’m sure
they’re not dead. I’m sure The Families kept them for interrogation.”
Quinn rubbed
his hand over his mouth, staring at me. “What are we going to do? Everything is
ruined. I told you we had to attack simultaneously.”
Confusion
and anger coursed through my body. “It’s a moot point now. We’ll figure it out.
It’ll be fine.” What did he expect me to do? I couldn’t change the past.
The room was
silent for a long moment. The group glanced at each other out of the corners’
of their eyes, then averted their gazes to the floor. My head spun. When we
first took over North Platte and found out there had been a spy, I felt like I
was losing control then, but after Tanya arrived, I knew I lost my grip. An
all-out attack on Florida was out of the question. They would know what was
coming. Plus, we were grossly outnumbered by Floridian soldiers. Despite the
tragic nature of the event, a zombie attack wasn’t a half bad idea. It would
keep the soldiers busy long enough for our people to get in and take control.
There would be some collateral damage, but in the long run, it would lead to
the liberation of the people of Florida.
I shook the
idea out of my head. How could I even think of that? There were innocent people
down there. Children. It wouldn’t work. Besides, three zombies had already done
enough damage. I couldn’t believe Tanya thought we sent the attack.
Quinn
grabbed my arm and directed me away from Tanya and Pam.
“We’ve got
to evacuate the city.”
“Why?”
“Don’t you
see what’s going on? Florida sent men up here to investigate what happened.
They planted zombies in the back of the truck and blamed it on us. They are
trying to rally the masses against us.”
“Yeah? So
what else is new?”
“The people
they sent here were the dregs of society. They were causing problems in
Florida. They are still causing problems. This is the perfect excuse to wipe us
off the planet.”
My stomach
knotted. The color drained from my face. I didn’t want to believe it, but I
knew Quinn was right. They were probably on their way to level the city.
“There are
two thousand and eleven people in North Platte.” I couldn’t raise my voice over
a whisper. “Where are they going to go?”
Quinn
pinched the bridge of his nose between his thumb and forefinger and shook his
head. “I don’t know. All I know is they can’t stay here.”
“What about
Liet? What are we going to do with him?”
Quinn didn’t
have the opportunity to answer.
“Everything
all right over there?” Pam asked.
We faced
her.
“No. I don’t
think it is,” Quinn responded.
“Well, maybe
you’d like to fill the rest of us in.”
Quinn
glanced at me for a second, then back at Pam. “I think you need to call a town
meeting.”
“For what?”
“Just do
it!” I didn’t mean to yell at her, but I had no control over my emotions. The
room spun and breathing was difficult, it just slipped out.
Pam hurried
out of the room, and I sank to my knees. I lowered my head and closed my eyes.
I felt light-headed and nauseous. I couldn’t believe it was this hard. It
wasn’t supposed to be this hard. I felt Quinn’s hand on my back.
“You all
right?”
I looked up
at him. “I’ll be fine. Just give me a second.”
Tanya moved
so she stood in front of me. Her knees popped as she knelt down.
“What are we
going to do now? Everything has been ruined.” She lowered her gaze. “I ruined
it. I can’t believe I was so stupid to believe you would have sent zombies!”
I took a
deep breath and stared at her face for several moments. Anger clenched my
chest. I wanted to tell her it was her fault, that she should have known we
would never do anything so devious, but it wouldn’t get us anywhere. Her eyes
were red rimmed and her shoulders slumped forward. She probably didn’t stop
traveling until she made it to the city. Rage kept her moving. Her desire to
see me dead or maimed fueled her journey. After she found out the truth, rage
was replaced with sheer exhaustion. Sadly, her journey wasn’t even close to
being over.
Besides, I
wasn’t mad at her, I was angry at the universe. I was upset that my luck had
run out. The same rage that kept her moving was going to have to sustain me. We
still had a job to do, we just had to rethink it.
“You didn’t
ruin it,” I told her. “You were just reacting to a situation you thought we
created. It’s understandable.”
She placed
her hands on the floor and leaned forward. “I want to help you fix it. Please
tell me what I can do.”
“First of
all, we’ve got to get the people to safety. Then, we’re going to disappear.”
“And go
where?”
“The only
place we have left. The West.”
When I first started reading this book, I was a little taken back. I have seen quite a few, if not all, of the zombie movies and am a HUGE fan of "The Walking Dead". That being said, it was really, really weird to read about zombies vs. watching them.
The stories progressed fairly quickly. I like that in a book as I don't always have time to sit and read a huge novel. But, trust me when I say, that the shortness of the books does not take away from the awesomeness.
I love the story of the world ending. Of course it does, there are zombies!! How do you combat that? But, Krista doesn't hold back! I love her character! She is mean and nasty but so vulnerable at the same time. An outcast from a society without zombies, she knows that once inside the gates of the safe-haven in Florida, she is just as socially screwed. But, that doesn't deter her, or keep her from making a very good friend and a helpful enemy (you will see what I mean when you read them).
After making the decision that the safe-haven was not the place for her (for various reasons that you have to read to know about), she leaves to a place she thinks will be better because she has her freedom. But, little does she know that a tyrant in a uniform with a lot of power holds the key to her happiness. And he isn't very willing to let it go. Especially, when she meets Quinn. The handsome, caring, loving, man she meets that helps her find herself, her strength, and her heart. This lowly tyrant being her only surviving relative doesn't help the situation in the slightest. Man! It feels so good to loathe him!!
Things spiral out of control as her and Quinn's plans at freedom come to a screeching halt when their plan at over-throwing the tyrant Liet fails. There are a few surprises coming in here that I won't mention because I don't want to ruin it for the readers. But, OMG!!! I was so heartbroken, surprised, happy, and excited all at the same time!!
By the time I got to the end of Book 2, I was wishing for Book 3. Even though I know the story had pretty much come to an end, I really wanted to see where it went with Quinn and Krista. I have to say that the story lacked their romance and I was really looking forward to that. But, then again, who wants to get jiggy with it when there are a bunch of zombies around? OK, Ms. Sinclair, I see your point. Still, I was a little disappointed.
But, do not mistake me that BOTH of these books deserve 5 out of 5 stars!!! They are masterly written, expertly carried out, and seamlessly flowing. What a fantastic set of fingers on Ms. Sinclair!! I loved both of them and would recommend them to anyone who loves a good horror book but with a touch of sanity!!
