Fire Birds by Shane Gregory Read Free Book Online

said, “Dude.”
    I looked up too, following his line of sight. There was a corpse clothed in brown, oily rags standing right there drooling down on us. I started to get up, but a dark blur came over my head. Then the creature was hit in the face with a hoe. Sara came in from behind me and took another swing. The thing fell sideways, and Sara beat its head to mush. I got to my feet and there were three more coming up the driveway.
    “Don’t use your guns,” she said. “It’ll just make it worse.”
    I ran over to the fence for the garden and grabbed a rake that was propped up there. Sara was already on her way out to meet the others, and Grant was right beside her, unarmed. He reached over to touch her shoulder, but she jerked away.
    “I’m really mad at you right now, Grant!” I heard her say.
    He stopped, but she continued on. When she was close enough to the nearest zombie, she swung her hoe. Grant ran over and got into his van. I thought he was going to leave us, but instead, he backed over the other two creatures. Then he pulled up farther into the driveway and got out again.
    “Hurry!” he called out to me. “Let’s put the gate back before more get in!”
    I ran over and helped him pick up the gate while Sara held off the closest zombie. Several more creatures were coming down the road. They would continue to trickle in for a while. The gate was bent, but we were able to prop it up across the opening then pull the van against it to brace it.
    “It should hold,” I said. “When they move on, I’ll fix it properly.”
    We all stood next to the van breathing hard, sweating, and staring at the undead on the other side of the gate. There were twelve of them right there, but there were more coming in.
    “Nice,” I said. “I haven’t had problems out here for a while. Way to go, Grant.”
    “Stop it,” Sara said. “You said the gate would hold. Let’s just go back to the house and sort this out.”
    “What if it doesn’t hold?” I said. “What if they break through and mess up the garden? What then? Grant?”
    “Stop it!” Sara said.
    “No,” I said. “We’re going to have to be quiet and out-of-sight for a while until they leave. How am I supposed to tend the garden? How am I supposed to do anything? It’s like a thousand degrees, and we have to stay cooped up in the house!”
    “Don’t be such a baby,” Grant said flippantly.
    “Son of a bitch!” I yelled. The creatures all answered me with howls.
    “Enough!” Sara yelled. “We’ll sort it out inside!”
    She stomped off toward the house. Despite my anger and even though I knew she was angry too, I couldn’t help think about how great she looked walking away. The grip of that pink pistol poking out of her jeans just made it even more adorable. Grant must have been thinking the same thing, because when I looked over at him, he had this silly grin on his face.
    “Get in the house, dumbass,” I said.
    Grant followed Sara up to the house. I stopped in the garden to re-tie the cucumber vines. I wanted to eat some breakfast, but I planned to come outside right after that to pick the vegetables that needed picking. The creatures were out there, and they would continue to come in for a while, so I didn’t see the harm of doing it at that time.
    I came in the house about fifteen minutes later. I didn’t see Sara, but Grant was slouched in my favorite chair looking through one of my Playboys. I frowned at him and went upstairs to wash up in my basin and find a shirt to wear. I walked past Sara’s bedroom and found her sitting on her bed, her arms crossed, and staring at the floor. I stopped in the doorway.
    “Do you want some breakfast?” I said. “I’m going to eat something.”
    “I’m sorry,” she said.
    I shrugged, “Not your fault.”
    “Grant left Julio and Christine at the cabin without a vehicle,” she said.
    “Why the hell would he do that?” I asked.
    “He planned to go back after he got me.”
    “Why didn’t