Transformation: Zombie Crusade VI by J.W. Vohs, Sandra Vohs Read Free Book Online Page B

mean here, specifically, with Luke. Why us?”
    “Because we’re his friends, and he can trust us. And we trust him.”
    “Okay, I don’t have a problem trusting Luke, but what if he actually does have some great destiny or higher purpose or something? Can we trust fate? I don’t think so—just look at the world around us.”
    Zach reached over and put his arm over Maddy. “You had some pretty crappy things happen to you before the outbreak—do you think your dad was fated to be a meth head? I don’t believe that for a second. I think people have choices. Luke has choices, you have choices, I have choices . . .”
    “But sometimes we don’t have choices—is that fate? I didn’t choose to not like boys, no matter what anybody says.”
    Zach hadn’t expected Maddy to bring up being gay; they’d never talked about it, but he’d always considered it a non-issue. He decided that this was one of those times he was supposed to be sensitive and reassuring. “You are who you are, and even though I give you a lot of grief, I wouldn’t change a thing about you if I could.” 
    “You wouldn’t even make me taller? Some friend you turned out to be . . .” Maddy sounded satisfied and relived. “Do you ever wonder what your life would be like right now if the pandemic had never happened?”
    Zach yawned. “No point, Maddy. Sometimes you think too much.”
    She smiled in the darkness. “I’d rather think too much than not enough, but thanks for putting up with me tonight. You really are a great guy, no matter what I normally say.”
    “And I’m going to remind you of my greatness every chance I get, starting tomorrow. Now, just shut up so we can get some sleep.”
     
     
    As Terry had promised, he was standing at the edge of his new friends’ camp at sunrise. He had thirty-two others with him, including his little sister. As Luke had requested, the volunteers were all on the young side, ranging in age from fifteen to thirty-one years of age. Some of them were obviously married couples, but one thing they all had in common was that they had no children, and were eager to leave what had become home since the outbreak. Luke and his companions spent the morning meeting the new recruits and dividing them into small groups for basic skills assessments.
    Just after noon, word came that Jesse and his followers were set to be hanged at sunset. Terry explained, “Gladys announced the decision. She said that since there are no more prisons, a community has three choices now when a crime is committed: punishment and reinstatement, banishment, or death. The first option was out of the question in this case, and the second would have led to more people being victimized somewhere else if the criminals didn’t find a way back into their former settlement to cause trouble again. That left the council with only one choice.”
    Gracie tried to read Luke’s reaction, but it was difficult with his eyes hidden by sunglasses. She made it a point to sound casual when she asked, “So babe, are you okay with how this all turned out?”
    “I think I’d be really sad if I saw a shepherd kill a wolf trying to get at his flock. There’s nothing glorious in killing. But if the sheep are going to be protected, there will be bloodshed.” Luke made sure Maddy and Zach were listening before he continued, “For some reason, we humans always seem to have monsters among us. The only thing standing between the monsters this community have ordered executed and their would-be victims is the strength and determination of good people. I used to worry about killing bad guys; hunters, no problem, but killing humans really bothered me. I don’t feel that way anymore. I’m worried about Courtney and all of the others like her who can’t defend themselves yet against the predators.”
    “I think that’s a perfect cue for us to get back to work,” Maddy responded. “We’re trying to build an army of good guys here,