Rotten by Victoria S. Hardy Read Free Book Online

Heather and Penelope, but I didn’t love them.  My mom … I loved.  “We go on.  Let’s go.”  I turned back to the vehicle and I felt how uncomfortable the others were with my emotions, but I didn’t know how to change it.  That was my mom.
     
    Rotten put his arm around me before I reached the car.  “Remember what you said, Dove.  It was God who brought her here, even if she had changed to something not human, it was God, hope, and her memories that brought her here.”  He kissed me lightly on the temple and pushed me toward the backdoor. 
     
    I crawled in the backseat and Princess crawled over top of me and pushed Sully against the other door.  She reached into the back and Moonshine woke up enough to hand her a box of tissues.  I cried.  Princess petted my hair, hugged my neck, and handed me tissues to blow my nose. 
     
    I gathered myself and sat up straighter when we turned into the old neighborhood.  We all did, except Sully, he stared out the window and sipped wine from the bottle.  We didn’t reminisce in words, but we all looked at the old familiar places where we played as children.  My mom had since moved into a smaller house on a golf course, Rotten’s parents lived in Arizona when they weren’t traveling the world, Moonshine’s parents had bought a trailer and land in a rural area beside the river, and Princess’s foster parents disappeared from the neighborhood shortly after she dropped out of high school.  Highland’s mom was the only one left in the old neighborhood, the place where we once regularly planned for the zombie apocalypse. 
     
    We’d never asked about Highland’s dad and he never spoke of him.  It was just he and his mom.  Mrs. Williams is a kind lady, old fashioned in her demeanor.  She’s a bit out of step with the world and upon first meeting her you may assume she’s ditzy or shallow, but then she say something profound, totally blowing your mind, and smile and hand you a cookie she’s just pulled from the oven.  Frankly, Mrs. Williams is an enigma, just like Highland. 
     
    Over the years we had discussed many times that Mrs. Williams probably knew what we were doing in the basement, especially after the night Moonshine puked peach moonshine on the wall.  But she didn’t say a word as she cleaned it up, and then she called our parents, and put us all to bed.  She had to know, but she told our parents it was a terrible case of food poisoning and refused forever after to go the Pizza Hut on the corner.  She had to know because what Moonshine puked up totally reeked of alcohol, and then Rotten puked.  The rest of us kept it down, but she had to know.
     
    Rotten slowed and turned onto Cardinal Lane.  I straightened and grabbed my golf club and noticed that even Moonshine was alert and ready to slide over the seat with his two-by-four.  Rotten stopped in front of the house and we observed three husks in the yard, one by the garage door and the other two at the front door.  “What do you think it means, dude?” he whispered.
     
    Highland rubbed his face.  “It’s Friday, right?”
     
    Rotten nodded.
     
    “Mr. Keppler from the shelter is at the garage to collect recycling and at the front are Miss Lily and Mrs. Eddy, quilting every Friday morning for the last fifteen years.” 
     
    “What do you want me to do, man?” Rotten said.
     
    “Turn in.”  He reached in his backpack and pulled out a control for the garage door.  Rotten started up the drive slowly and we watched the door begin to lift.  “Guys, get ready.” 
     
    Moonshine slid over the backseat, settling between Princess and me and then lifted me and set me in the middle of the seat.  “I’m going first,” he said.
     
    “He’s back,” Princess whispered in my ear.
     
    “It’s dark in there.” Rotten stopped right outside of the opening.
     
    “Just do it,” Highland said, rolling down his window and picking up the gun.  “Just do it.” 
     
    Rotten