Deadland: Untold Stories of Alice in Deadland (Alice, No. 5) by Mainak Dhar Read Free Book Online Page A

glint in his
eyes, and then he smiled.
    'Now you're really scaring me, little girl. Well, we'll hang
around at the Jeep till the boss shows up.'
    Just as he started walking away, Alice heard the sound of an
approaching helicopter. A sleek black copter came and landed a hundred meters
away and a black-clad officer jumped out and ran towards them. Alice noted that
he was white, like her dad and herself, while the other troopers had been
brown. Colors, races and nationalities mattered little to her, since she had
grown up in a world where the only race that mattered was whether you were
human or undead. Still, it was the first time she had seen a white Zeus
officer. He walked up to her father and saluted.
    'Afternoon, Mr. Gladwell. I'm Captain Morgan, just got moved
here from Stateside. Was hoping we could get you to reconsider.'
    Her father smiled back, but from the look in his eyes he was
anything but happy to see the Zeus men.
    'Captain, I've said this to your predecessors but since
you're new, I'll repeat myself so that there's no misunderstanding. No, we do
not recognize Zeus as representing any legitimate authority. No, we will not
give up our weapons in return for guarantees of safety. No, we will not move to
your so-called safe zones and work your farms and have our boys and girls
drafted into your force.'
    Morgan nodded and began to walk away, then he stopped and
turned towards Gladwell.
    'Sir, I get where you're coming from, but I do hope you
think of the future as well as the present. The future does not lie in isolated
settlements like this. Civilization will not be restarted like this. It lies in
a more ordered society, where people don't have to worry about defending
themselves but trust some central authority to do it for them.'
    Her father's grip on her hand tightened.
    'Morgan, we screwed our world up enough by trusting it with
politicians and so-called statesmen. The best bet for securing our safety and
freedom lies not in the speeches and promises of politicians but in a
well-maintained rifle by my side. Let me guess, Morgan, you were a soldier
before The Rising, right?'
    The man straightened a bit as he answered.
    'Yes, Sir. US Marines.'
    'Morgan, I served in the Army and in the Diplomatic Service.
At least then we served a flag, a nation. Who do you serve now? The guys with you
are mercenaries, most of who look like they belong in prison. Who are your
masters? Why don't we see them?'
    Gladwell saw the look in the man's eyes and he guessed the
truth.
    'You don't know either, do you? Find out who you really
serve and what they really want, and then come back and ask us to sign over our
freedom.'
    As they walked back to the settlement, Alice said, 'Those
men aren't nice, Daddy.'
    'Sweetheart, all men are capable of being good or evil. It
really comes down to what you choose. They're choosing to serve the wrong
masters. Now come on, I'm so hungry I could eat a horse.'
    They laughed and entered the gate, where Jane was waiting
for them, a bemused look on her face. 'Alice, are you my bodyguard now?'
    Alice looked up at her older sister.
    'Yes, I am. If only Dad would let me learn from Uncle Jones,
I'd blow all of them up.'
    Jo had joined them, and her look of relief at seeing
Gladwell back safe quickly give way to exasperation at Alice's outburst. 'It's
not nice to always want to fight, okay? What you did with Junior...'
    Before she could complete, Alice cut in.
    'Junior is an ugly toad, and if he picks on me again, I'll
hit him again so hard he becomes even uglier.'
    With that, she ran off with her mother shouting after her.
    'You come back here, young lady!'
     
    ***
     
    'Daddy, why can't I learn how to fight?'
    Gladwell put his cup of water down and asked Alice to sit
next to him, on the edge of the garden.
    'It's not as if you don't get into enough fights as is.'
    'I don't get into fights, they pick on me.'
    'All of them?'
    Alice looked away as he turned towards her.
    'Alice, sometimes it's necessary to fight,