As the World Dies by Rhiannon Frater Read Free Book Online

sat next to his feet and stared up at him pensively.
        
        "Oh, shit, " was all Eric could think to say. "Oh, shit."
        
        

Chapter Seven
    The Day Worsens
        
        Eric gulped down more milk then looked down at Pepe. The dog responded with an enormous burp and Eric couldn't help but laugh.
        
        "Went a little crazy there, did you," he said to the little dog.
        
        Pepe wagged his tail with satisfaction.
        
        The house was dreary with all the windows downstairs shuttered. There was at least two more hours of sunlight and if the town was about to turn into zombie central, he needed to get to planning. He took the time to put everything back where he got it from and picked up the rifle. Reloading, it was his first priority. He fumbled around with it a little, but finally got it ready for the next encounter with the zombies. He shoved the rest of the shells in his pocket and looked down at Pepe.
        
        "Okay, this is the plan. We're going to go make sure there are no zombies around, then we're going outside-"
        
        Pepe thumped his tail hard at the word "outside" and Eric realized how long it had been since the little dog had been outside to do his business.
        
        "Okay, definitely that is a major priority. We're going to come up with an escape plan and figure out what we are doing next."
        
        Pepe yawned and strutted out of the kitchen in front of him and Eric followed.
        
        The second floor was awash with dim sunlight. The overcast skies made it a little darker than it usually was, but it felt better than the gloomy downstairs. He wasn't sure he was glad they had been the only guests or not. In a way, being on his own meant he had the final say. But it felt lonely being the only one in the house. Well, alone except for Pepe.
        
        In the room he had shared with Brandy, he pulled out his suitcase and tried to ignore the pain he felt as her sweet scent wafted up from the bed. She always slathered herself in body lotion before bed and the sheets still smelled like jasmine. Digging through his suitcase, he found the small binoculars he had brought for bird watching. Brandy have given him hell for bringing them and called him a nerd, but he felt smug at thinking how his little hobby gave him a tool to protect himself. He picked up the small book he had bought that had photos of all the indigenous birds in the region.
        
        "Think they have one for zombies?" Eric asked the dog. "You know. One that has photos of all the terrible versions of them."
        
        Pepe looked at him and tilted his head as if pondering the question.
        
        "Maybe we should make that book. Starting with the armless army guy," Eric said with a small, nervous laugh.
        
        He tossed the book back in the suitcase and pulled out Pepe's leash. The little dog did a flying leap onto the bed and scrambled over onto the suitcase with his tail wagging anxiously. Eric felt bad for making Pepe wait so long to relieve himself and quickly hooked the leash onto the small dog's collar. The second it was on, the dog jumped back to the floor and headed to the door.
        
        Slinging the binoculars around his neck and grabbing the rifle, Eric hurried to keep up with the dog. Pepe started down the stairs, but Eric pulled him back.
        
        "Check for zombies first," he said to Pepe.
        
        The dog gave him a nasty look, but followed him.
        
        Eric walked down the hall to the doors that lead onto the upstairs porch. White wicker chairs and a table were set out there so people could star gaze or just relax on a nice afternoon. He stepped out and looked over the rail. It was straight down to the ground and nothing lurked there. Raising his binoculars, he began to survey as much of the surrounding area as he could from his vantage